Squire Brooke came of a substantial Yorkshire family, which possessed a considerable estate among the wild moorlands of the North. His parents belonged to the Established church while Edward was in his boyhood, but were brought to know the Lord in after years by the preaching of their zealous son. Edward was not sent to Eton or Harrow, as he should have been; but following the bent of his inclination he was allowed to remain upon the farm, to fish, and hunt, and shoot, and to develop a fine constitution and an original mind. Amid the rocks and the heather, the forest trees and the ferns, Edward Brooke, with his dogs and his gun, found both sport and health; or dashing over the country after the hounds, he enjoyed exhilaration and trained his courage in the hunt. Up to the age of twenty-two he seems to have been devoid of religious thought; but as we Calvinists are wont to put it, the time appointed of the Lord drew near, and sovereign grace issued its writ of arrest against him, resolving in infinite love to make him a captive to its power.
“Early in the year 1821, Edward Brooke rose one morning, intent on pleasure. Equipped for his favourite sport, with gun in hand and followed by his dogs, he was crossing the Henley Moors when a lone man met him with a message from God. The man was a Primitive Methodist preacher, named Thomas Holladay. “Intent upon his Master's work, 'in season and out of season', Holladay was prompt to seize an opportunity of usefulness. Passing the young sportsman, he respectfully saluted him, and said, with pitying earnestness, 'Master, you are seeking happiness where you will never find it.' On went the man of God, perhaps little dreaming that the arrow thus shot at a venture had pierced the joints of the armour encasing the young sportsman's heart. Yet so it was. Here went the wounded sportsman, the words of Holladay still sounding in his ears. 'Master, you are seeking happiness where you will never find it'. The time was opportune. It was a day of visitation for that neighbourhood. The Spirit of God was moving upon the population. A great revival was in progress.
The awakened young gentleman began to attend cottage prayer meetings and to converse with the godly men of the neighbourhood, and thus his anxiety was greatly deepened, and his desire for salvation inflamed.
“It was the day of his sister's wedding. Ill-prepared to join in the festivities of the occasion, because of the sorrow of his heart, Edward Brooke spent the previous night hours in reading his Bible and wrestling with God for salvation.
'All night the lonely suppliant prayed,
All night his earnest crying made.'
About four o'clock in the morning, whilst kneeling by the old armchair in his father's kitchen, still pleading for mercy through the mediation of Jesus, his soul grew desperate, and like Jacob wrestling with the angel till the break of day, he resolved, 'I will not let thee go except thou bless me.'
“That mighty importunity was the manifestation of true faith. He was enabled to receive Jesus as his Saviour, and believing with the heart unto righteousness, these words were applied to his heart, as distinctly and impressively as though spoken by a voice from heaven: 'Thy sins which are many are all forgiven thee, go in peace and sin no more.' All fear and sorrow vanished, and, believing, he rejoiced with joy unspeakable and full of glory.
“Exulting in his wonderful deliverance, his first impulse was to make it known. He hastened to his sister's chamber and told her the glad news that Christ had save him – a glorious announcement on her bridal morn: then early though it was, he ran out into the village and roused a praying man called Ben Naylor, whose heart he knew would be in sympathy with his, and told him how he had found the Lord; and they two called up a third, named Joseph Donkersley, to share their joy; and from the rejoicing trio up went a song of praise, the jubilant and sweet notes of which were music in God's ear, and woke up the songs of angels, and gave new impulse to the happiness of heaven, 'for there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.'”
From that moment Edward Brooke was what he would have called “a brand new man.” He could do nothing by halves, and therefore he renounced once for all his former course of life, and finding field sports to have too great a charm for him, he gave them up in the most resolute manner. “Sir,” said he to a Christian friend, “I found that the gate was strait, and so I pressed into it myself, and left my horses, and dogs, and the world outside.” Edward Brooke frequented cottage prayer-meetings, talked with the work people at the mill, exhorted in his father's kitchen, and instructed wayfarers by the roadside; he began, in fact, to put himself in training to become a mighty hunter before the Lord,” a consecrated Nimrod whose game would be the souls of men.
Mr Brooke's early career illustrates the great usefulness of small meetings in rooms and cottages, where the uneducated, the poor, and raw beginners may feel at home in their first attempts at speaking. Had it not been for such gatherings he might have remained silent, for he could not have dared to make his first essays before a large congregation.
“In such meetings, Edward Brooke first ventured to deliver the message of salvation, which was as a burning fire shut up in his bones, till he was weary with forbearing and could not stay; and there he found encouragement and strength for further service.
“After prayerful consideration and consultation with Christian friends, it was arranged that Edward Brooke should submit his convictions of duty to the judgement of others, by preaching in James Donkersley's chamber, a large room which answered the threefold purpose of a workshop, a bedroom, and a place where the neighbours might gather to worship God. The service was duly announced, and great interest awakened in the young squire's first appearance as a preacher. The chamber was thronged, and many a heart uplifted in earnest prayer that God would encourage and help his young servant in this first trial of his pulpit gifts. The preacher took for his text a passage in harmony with his intense convictions; 'The wicked shall be turned into hell.' Acting upon a sense of duty, and humbly relying on God, the preacher was divinely assisted, and the effort was a success.
We cannot pretend to give even an outline of Mr Brooke's long and useful life, but must content ourselves with citing incidents which illustrate both his eccentricity and fervour.
“Driving to some village in Derbyshire, where he was expected to preach in the after part of the day, the squire pulled up at a wayside inn. Having seen his horse fed, he ordered his usual refreshment of ham and eggs. A fine, healthy-looking countryman entered the room and sat down to rest. The squire made some friendly observations, and when his repast was spread, invited the young man to join him. The offer was gratefully accepted. Whilst enjoying their savoury dish the youth's heart opened, and there was a pleasant flow of conversation. 'We are expecting a very strange preacher,' said he, 'at our village to-night. He is a great man for prayer-meetings, and tries to convert all the folks into Methodists.' 'Indeed,' replied the squire, with evident interest in the topic, 'have you ever heard him?' 'No, I haven't,' said the youth, 'but my brother has.' 'Well, what did your brother say about him?' enquired the squire. 'Oh, he told me he never heard such a queer chap in his life; indeed he didn't know if he were quite right in his head; but,' said the young man, 'I intend to go and hear for myself.' 'That is right, my lad,' said the squire, 'and get your brother to go too, he may have a word to suit you both.' they did go, and greatly to the young man's surprise, as the preacher mounted the pulpit, he recognised his friendly entertainer at the wayside inn. As the squire proceeded with the service the young man's heart was touched and his brother's also. At the prayer meeting they were found amongst the penitent seekers of salvation and were both converted not merely into Methodists, but into Christian believers.” Here is a specimen of his characteristic letters: brief, but all on fire: -
Dear John – In reply to yours, I beg leave to say that our labour at Honley was not in vain. A new class has been formed, and about a dozen have gone to it. Two found peace. Praise the Lord! We shall rise. All hell is on the move, but we must go round about the bulwarks of our Zion, and mark well her palaces, and we shall ultimately and finally triumph over all. I say all. Go on, John, in the work. Live near to God. Be a giant in religion; one of the first and best men in your day. Plead with God. Live in the glory. 'Advance' is the Christian's motto. Onward to certain victory over sin, the world, and hell. Trample down worldly, fashionable conformity. Know the will of God and do it. Do it heartily, cheerfully, fully, eternally, and heaven will be your guide, defence, and all in all. Our kind respects. “And in your prayers, remember
(End of this present series)