then a young preacher, and stationed at Franklin and Lebanon. Mr. Paine offered himself for the work, making only one condition-that Simeon should accompany him. To this Simeon readily consented; but the entire arrangement was defeated by the remonstrance of the Church at those places against the removal of their preacher.*

In his personal appearance he was superior to all his race around him. Although a full-blooded African, his face would have commanded attention anywhere. With a high and well-formed forehead; with penetrating, searching eyes; with a countenance full of the expression of benevolence, and with a mind far above ordinary-he would have commanded respect in any community. Added to these, a life unblemished by vice, developing every day the practical duties of Christianity, it is no wonder that he enjoyed the confidence, as well as commanded the respect, of those among whom he lived. Not only did he minister to the spiritual wants of his own people, but often was he sent for to kneel and offer prayers to God at the bedside of the sick and the dying among the white people.†

In 1847, he passed away. After a long and useful life, he was called from "labor to reward." While dying, a member of the Church was kneeling beside him, who said to him: "Father Simeon, what hope have you beyond the grave?" With his eyes swim

*I have these facts from Bishop Paine.

†Samuel P. Ament informed me that he had often found him praying with white families in sickness.

CHAPTER V.

FROM THE CONFERENCE OF 1792 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1793.

Kentucky admitted into the Union-Isaac Shelby the first Governor -The imperiled condition of the State-Preparations for its defense-The counties of Lincoln, Fayette, Jefferson, Nelson, Bourbon, Madison, Mercer, Woodford, Mason, Green, Hardin, Scott, Logan, Shelby, and Washington-The Conference of 1792Bishop Asbury present-Religious condition of the State-Col. John Hardin-He is sent on a mission of peace to the Indians— Is massacred-Col. Hardin a Methodist-Isaac Hammer-John Sewell Richard Bird-Benjamin Northcutt-John Ray-Anecdotes of John Ray-John Page—Dr. McFerrin's testimony – Letters of John Page-Bishops Asbury, Whatcoat, and CokeWilson Lee leaves Kentucky.

KENTUCKY was admitted as a sovereign State into the Union in 1792. On the 4th of June, under the first Constitution, Isaac Shelby, the first Governor, took the oath of office. Mr. Shelby was of Welsh descent, but was born in the State of Maryland, near Hagerstown, where his ancestors had settled, on their first arrival in America from Wales. In early manhood, he removed to Western Virginia. At twenty-four years of age, he distinguished himself by the conspicuous part that he bore in the memorable and bloody battle fought with the Indians on the 10th of October, 1774, at the mouth

of the Kanawha, under the command of the famous chief, Cornstalk.*

Mingling with the stirring events of the Revolution, and having borne an active part in our struggle for independence, he won for himself a reputation for martial prowess that gave him a place in the confidence and affections of his countrymen more enduring than granite. In 1783, he came to Kentucky, where "he established himself on the first settlement and preëmption granted in Kentucky," on lands that he had "marked out and improved for himself," during his first trip to the District, in 1775. Desirous to live in retirement, in the peaceful pursuit of agriculture, and to enjoy the quietude of home, he addressed himself with energy to the improvement of his lands. The unsettled condition of the District—the frequency of Indian depredations-the unprotected condition of the frontier— the dangers to which the settlers were continually exposed-all called for efforts too active to allow such a man the enjoyment of rest. He was a member of the Conventions held in Danville in 1787 and 1788, for the purpose of obtaining a separation from the State of Virginia; and also a member of the Convention of April, 1792, which formed the first Constitution of Kentucky. In the succeeding month he was duly elected Governor of the State. Entering upon the discharge of his official duties under the most trying circumstances, he turned his attention at once to the defense of the State against

*The father of Bishop Morris was in the same battle.—Morris's Miscellany, p. 87.

Indian incursions, and entered upon defensive operations for the protection of the entire frontier. The safety of the people-their growth and prosperityas well as their religious advancement, and the promotion of Christianity, were intimately associated with the devising of such measures as would be a guarantee for protection. War has never been friendly to the advancement of religious truth, and no wars have probably ever been more demoralizing than those between the early Kentuckians and the Indians. Commenced and waged with shocking cruelties by the savage, retaliations equally severe were not unfrequent. The administration of Gov. Shelby-the signal advantage to the State with which he discharged his duties as the Chief Executive-belong not to our history, but to that of the State.

The county of Kentucky, which had been formed in 1776, by the Legislature of Virginia, out of Fincastle county, was divided, in 1780, into three counties-Lincoln, Fayette, and Jefferson. The former was named in honor of Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, an officer of distinction in the Revolutionary war; Fayette county was so called for Gen. Lafayette, the generous young Frenchman who offered his services to Washington in defense of American liberty; and Jefferson county was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson. Besides these, six other counties had been formed previous to 1792: in 1781, Nelson, named in honor of Gov. Nelson, of Virginia; in 1785, Bourbon and Madison counties were formed -the former named for the Bourbon family, in