Biography of Rev. Hosea Ballou

And now, ere the reader closes these pages, permit the author to ask for the book a kind consideration, and to solicit the lenient judgment of the public for these records of a parent's life, written and compiled amid the arduous duties attendant upon his editorial calling. The work has little else to recommend it, save the homely truthfulness of its record, and the sincerity that has dictated its composition.

To the many friends of Mr. Ballou, and more particularly to the denomination, clergymen and laity, with whom he has so long held fellowship, the author trusts this book may prove an acceptable memento of one whom they delighted to honor.