In August, 1843, Lyman Beecher, D. D., formerly minister in East-Hampton from 1798 to 1811, visited there with his sons Edward and William, who were born there, as was Catherine E., his daughter.
On the Sabbath of August 27th the three preached in the old historic church built in East-Hampton in 1717. Edward preached in the morning, his father in the afternoon and William in the evening. Forty-five years had gone by since the father first came to minister there, and a generation had passed since he had removed.
Tradition and story had treasured and reiterated events that occurred, sayings he had uttered, traits of character he exhibited, gifts that he possessed, during his early career. It was said he was so small an infant that he was put in a silver tankard, and the top shut down over his head. That he was an enthusiastic lover of fishing, which was confirmed by his fishing then at Alewive Brook for perch, and giving especial care and watchtul attention to cooking the catch. It was said he was fond of hunting, and an ardent pursuer of game. Stories were told of his fishing and hunting with a company, who secured, as a guide, an Indian expert in the then great wilderness of the west, who at first doubted his ability to undergo the toil and hardship of the expedition, but as day after day he exhibited increasing elasticity and power of endurance, extorted from the guide the admiring exclamation, "This little old man all Indian."
John Edwards told me that when a boy he caught a lot of perch in Wainscott pond, stringing them the largest first on a forked stick. Beecher and Dr. Abel Huntington had been unsuccessful, getting nothing there. Beecher said to John: "Boy, how do you sell your fish?" Ans.: "A shilling a dozen if you pick them, and sixpence if you take them as they come." Beecher deliberately took the stick, counted twelve of the largest, beginning at the bottom, cut them off and handed the remainder to John, with a six pence, saying, "Boy, I'll take a dozen as they come." The narrator said, "Huntington looking on with astonishment, exclaimed, 'Lyman, that's a Yankee trick.'" All knew, not the saving of money, but the triumph in wit, was the mark aimed at by Beecher. How he caught sharks in the ocean; how on a time he tied the line to his body and a large shark took him down in the water so that the fishermen rescued him from drowning; how after that he tied the line to the whiffletree, and when he had a shark bite, made his horse haul the shark on the shore; how Beecher could sing with sweet and charming voice; how he could beat all other experts on the violin; how nimble and agile he was and could outrun the boys; how fertile in resource, how keen in perception, how overcoming in argument, how eloquent in discourse; how sympathetic in heart, how simple in manners, how regardless of ceremony. All this from the lips of age to the ears of youth, made this visit the talk and the thought of the town.
When that clear Sabbath afternoon came the old church was packed to the utmost endurable pressure. The Rev. Samuel R. Ely, then minister of the church, and Dr. Beecher with his two sons, occupied the high pulpit. The ntroductory services, invocation, reading and singing of hymns, the prayer before the sermon, (not long) were unmarked by any noticeable impressiveness. The afternoon sun shone on the marked features of the speaker when he rose to address the people. The full, expressive blue eye, the perpendicular forehead, steep as the palisades, the convex nose, the firm under jaw, the projecting under lip, all revealed a man who would maintain to the death "the faith once delivered to the saints." Without preamble he announced as his text Romans 5th chap., 1st verse: "Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." In the course of his sermon he referred to his trial on the charge of heresy; he stated that he had never preached any other doctrine of justification than that by faith through Jesus Christ; he appealed to the older people who sat under his preaching during his ministry there, to bear testimony to the truth of his statement, that his doctrine then and his doctrine now were one and the same. That he would live and die in this faith. He spoke of an infidel club existing in East-Hampton in his early ministry, and in view of this doctrine of justification by faith then preached, one of the club sent him word he believed he had as good prospect of getting to heaven as any of his church; for when he sold wheat, every time he struck the half-bushel he put a handful back on the measure. Rising to his utmost height he said, "I sent him back word if he ever expected to get to heaven that way he had better save his wheat."
The sermon was written. The preacher read from manuscript until it seemed some burning thought demanded immediate extemporaneous delivery, when, pushing his spectacles over his forehead, with a rare spontaneous eloquence he expressed and illustrated the thought, again reading and then unexpectedly surprising and electrifying his audience by extemporaneous speaking. It was an occasion and a sermon never to be forgotten. At the close of this magnificent effort--magnificent in directness, in eloquence, in sublime sincerity--exhausted and sitting down, his two sons took him under each arm and gently eased him to the seat. Sweetly, tenderly, they broke the suddenness of the fall, exhibiting their affection, their sympathy, their intelligence and their experience. If listening to the old man eloquent his hearers felt indignation towards his accusers, who could say it was unwarranted? The impression of that sermon was deep and abiding. The electric power of the sermonizer attracted the attention, enlisted the approval, convinced the reason, gained the judgment and won the affection of the audience.
In the morning of this memorable day Edward Beecher preached from Deuteronomy 8th chapter, 2d verse: "And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness to humble thee and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldst keep his commandments or no." The scholarly air, the pale expanded forehead, the wealth of expression, the abounding flash of illustration marked him as the student of the family. He looked as if he could study all day and wake up at midnight to commence again. The intellectual temperament so predominated that it seemed as if to wrestle with the deepest problems of our faith and being was play for him. If man could sound the deeps of Theology, could read the mind of God and speak God's thoughts and word and will to his fellowman, that high prerogative if in the range of human learning or human thought must be the mission of Edward Beecher. The exposition of the training of a human mind, of the hosts of Israel from the deep debasement of soul and body to the light and joy and freedom of Righteousness, was a masterpiece of learning and eloquence. In the progress of his sermon the difficulty of interpreting correctly the book of Ecclesiastes was noticed except as viewed from the stand. point of a man disappointed by experience of the anticipated enjoyment of worldly pleasure and finding emptiness where he had anticipated satisfaction.
Moved to the inmost being by the deliverance of these two, father and son, who would dare follow to say for the Most High what they had not said? What weak hand would hold and try to sound the bugle note that their mighty voice had blown.
The third meeting during the summer months was then held at 5 o'clock, called the "5 o'clock meeting." At that season a Sabbath evening meeting after sundown was unknown. William Beecher took his text in Isaiah, 3d chap. 10th and 11th vs.: "Say ye to the righteous that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked; it shall be ill with him for the reward of his hands shall be given him." He pictured the life of the righteous progressing in knowledge, in virtue, in grace, in joy here and hereafter, partaking of the tree "whose leaves are for the healing of the nations;" an unending ascent to capacities of enjoyment ever rising to higher and still higher attainments as a law of his being and a consequence of his doing. This was the immortal life. He pictured the descending course of the wicked resulting from his own choice, his own conduct, sin heaped upon sin, penalty incurring still more punishment until the abysmal deeps of the submerged soul outmeasured the human conception in unsounded darkness.
And all this by a law of our being, by the act of the transgressor, by a series of movements in a downward career that disabled and were continually disabling the wrong doer. Thus "the reward of his hands was given him."
The shades of evening began to fall, but the speaker went on and on. At times the music of the Angelic choir, at times the wail of the lost, now the song of the seraph, now the discord of the self-destroyed burst upon the ear.
In power of imagination William Beecher was like Whitfield. In that gift he seemed pre-eminent. In learning acquired from books, ancient or modern, Edward surpassed the others. In the harmony of well balanced power, in the endowment of strong common sense, in the quick intuition that caught the points of relation and dependence of thought and winnowed the chaff from the wheat, the father excelled. Looking back through the mists of more than half a century, it now seems as if each one selected the subject wherein he excelled, and that his power to impress others resulted largely from the accuracy and wisdom of such choice.

ST. MATTHEW'S RECTORY,
BEDFORD, N. Y., Aug. 15, 1895.
H. P. HEDGES, DEAR SIR:
As you write to me for authentic information about the date and place of birth of John Howard Payne, I will make the following statement: My wife, Eloise E., was the niece of John H. Payne, and had in her possession all the papers relating to the Payne family. She died in 1892. In 1875 Mr. Harrison, of Brooklyn, wrote a biography of J. H. Payne, and had frequent interviews with Mrs. Luquer, in regard to date, and facts connected with his life. In 1884 Mr. Brainard, of Washington, wrote another memoir, which was dedicated to W. W. Corcoran of that city. Before publication this had been submitted to Mrs. Luquer, for inspection and correction. This later publication was considered by her, in all its statements, to be entirely reliable. In both these biographies it is asserted that John H. Payne was born in the city of New-York, June 9th, 1791.
In support of this statement I find among my wife's papers a momorandum, signed: "A true statement, attest, Wm. Osb. Payne," giving June 9th, 1791, as the birth of the poet; and also in another genealogical table, apparently in the same handwriting, giving New-York city as his birth place. I find also a "History of the Family," dated March 16, 1861, and written by Mrs. Luquer's aunt, Mrs. Lucy Osborne, John H. Payne's sister-in-law. In this the writer says: "My father and mother took with them (from East-Hampton) to New-York five children, my brother William the only son."
The statement in Brainard's life of the poet, that "he
was born at No. 33 Pearl St., near corner of Broad Street, (New-York city), on the 9th of June, 1791," was made after close investigation of authentic record and family tradition, and should be considered a settled fact of history.
Yours Truly,
LEA LUQUER.