The Wesleyan Methodists are incor. porated into a regular and compact body, and have adopted a system of church-go vernment, which has a wonderful cy to unite the members to each other. Their meetings for worship and for busi. nese are of various kinds, and are distin guished into prayer-meetings, class-meet ings, band-meetings, watch.nights, love feasts, yearly-covenants, quarterly-meet ings, district meetings, and annual confer ences. Their church officers are deno minated travelling preachers, who are ' divided into superintendents and helpers; local preachers, who follow some secular employment, and never travel; class lead ers, prayer leaders, or exhorters ; band leaders, trustees, and stewards. For the more easy management and union of the whole connection, the kingdom is divid ed into districts, comprehending gene rally three, four, or more circuits, the whole being under the immediate super intendence of the conference, which is assembled annually, and consists of one hundred travelling preachers, at first no minated in the will of the late Rev. John Wesley, their numbers being regularly filled up by ballot.
Soon after the death of Mr. John Wes ley, his people began to be divided with respect to discipline. Notwithstanding his professed attachment to the church of England, he suffered himself, towards the latter part of his life, to be persuaded to ordain some of his preachers bishops and priests ! this produced a great sensa tion throughout the societies : and it was thought that he wished a regular ordina tion to take place at some future oppor tunity. At the first conference after his death, the preachers published a decla ration, in which they avowed their deter mination to "take up the plan as Mr.
Wesley had left it." This was by no means satisfactory to many of the junior preachers and people. Several pamph lets were published, tending to demon strate the justness of the claim, that a plan of perfect equality and religious li berty ought to be extended to all the so cieties.These disputes at length produced what was called a plan of pacification, in which it was decided—by ballot! that in every place where a three-fold majority of class-leaders, stewards, and trustees, desired it, the people should have preach ing in church-hours, and the sacrament of baptism and the Lord's Supper admi nistered to The spirit of investigation being excit ed, did not terminate here ; for it soon began to be discovered that the people ought to have a voice in the temporal concerns of the societies, vote in the election of church-officers, and give their suffrages in spiritual concerns. Nume rous pamphlets were published on these subjects. The leading man on the side of the people, was the late Mr. Alexander Kilham, who had been many years a tra velling preacher, and was much respect ed for his zeal and activity in the cause of religious liberty. He was expelled the connection for publishing a work, intitled " The Progress of Liberty among the People called Methodists." At the Leeds conference in 1797, there were delegates from many societies, in various parts, who were instructed to re quest, that " the people might have a voice in the formation of their own laws, the choice of their own officers, and the distribution of their own property." Their requests were refused ; and i motion that delegates from the people might he permitted to have seats in the yearly con ference being negatived, all hopes of ac commodation between the people and the leading preachers were cut off. Im mediately a new plan of church-govern ment was proposed, and on it was found ed a system of Methodism, denominated The New Connection. This plan was
organized and supported by Mr. William Thom, an old travelling preacher, Mr. Alexander Kilham, and Mr. John Grun dell, a blind gentleman of considerable talents, and unimpeachable integrity.
The preachers and people of the new connection, sometimes called Kilhamites, are incorporated in all meetings for busi ness. Their plan of church-government is laid down in a small pamphlet, intitled " General rules of the United Societies of Methodists in the New Connection." The following is given as an accurate statement of the number of preachers and people in the Wesleyan connection of Methodists, at the close of the sixty third annual conference, held in August, 1806: In Great Britain . . . . 110,803 In Ireland 23;773 Gibraltar 40 Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, S 1A18 and Newfoundland West India—Whites 1,775 14,940 Coloured people, &c. 13,165 United States–Whites95628 119,944 Coloured people, &c.24,316 Total 270,918 in addition to these may be added about 109,000 adult hearers—Methodists in religious sentiment ; though, from va rious causes, prevented from formally joining the societies. To these still fur ther may be added about 218,000 more, composed of the younger branches of fa milies, and those generally influenced by the Methodist doctrines. About 6,000 more may be added, from Methodists, who, from slight difference as to disci pline, &c. have formed themselves into independent societies, in various parts of the United Kingdoms; not now to reckon the Methodists of the New Connection. It appears from the report of the last con ference, held at Liverpool, in July, 1807, that an increase of 8,492 members had then been made to the society in these kingdoms since the preceding confer ence. At the conference held by the Methodists of the New Connection, in May, 1807, their number was 6,428. They have had an increase, we understand, of about 700 since that period. It appears, therefore, that the total number of Armi nian methodists amount to about 619,538. The Calvinian Methodists are doubtless equally numerous. The local and travel ling preachers, belonging to the different Methodist societies, amount to about 1,630. For a very impartial and minute history of the rise and present state of this sect, see the Rev. J. Nightingale's " Portraiture of Methodism." Two pamphlets on the subject of Methodism have also been lately published, which have excited considerable interest, and deserve to be generally circulated, enti tled " Hints to the Public and the Le gislature, on the Nature and Effects of Evangelical Preaching." By a Barrister. Replies to the first of these pamphlets have been published by Dr. Hawker and others. The periodical publications con ducted by the Methodists are numerous, and have an astonishing circulation. Of the Methodist Magazine about twenty thousand copies are sold monthly ; of the Evangelical Magazine about twenty-two thousand. The sale of the Eclectic Re view, in the same interest, appears, by a circular letter lately printed, signed by several preachers both of the Arminian and Calvinian Methodists, to be very li mited. The Methodists have also in their interest a weekly newspaper, called " The Instructor." The number of small tracts and pamphlets sold and given away by the Methodists is incredible ; and they are indefatigable in their attempts to con vert the Mahometans and the Heathen to their way of thinking.