ittle returned with the provos

N all." He was also a person of the utmost gravity, and scarce smiled
at any thing. Once when Mr. William Guthrie being exceeding merry,
made Mr. Durham smile with his pleasant,
facetious and harmless conversation,
at which Mr. Durham was at first a little disgusted, but it being the
laudable custom of that family

to pray
after dinner, which Mr. Guthrie did, upon being desired, with the
greatest measure of seriousness and fervency, to the astonishment of
all present: when they arose from prayer, Mr. Durham embraced him and
said, "O William, you are a happy man, if I had been so merry as you
have been, I could not have been in such a serious frame for prayer
for the space of forty-eight hours." As Mr. Durham was devout

in all parts of his ministerial work,
so more eminently at communion

occasions. Then he endeavoured through grace to rouse and work
up himself to such a divineness of frame, as very much suited the
spiritual state and majesty of that ordinance. Yea, at some of these
solemn and sweet occasions, he spoke some way
as a man that had been in heaven commending Jesus Christ, making a
glorious display of free grace,
&c. and brought the offers thereof so low that they were made to think
the rope or cord of the salvation offered, was let down to sinners,
that those of the
lowest stature might catch hold of it. He gave himself much
up to meditation, and usually said little to

persons that came to propose their cases to him, but heard them
patiently, and was sure to handle their case in his sermons.
His healing disposition and great moderation of spirit remarkably
appeared when this church was grievously divided betwixt the
resolutioners and protestors; and as he would never give his judgment
upon either side, so he used to
say, That division was worse by far than either of the side