account of this period of his life, he tells us:—"At this time I was in habits of intimacy with some very worthy clergymen, residing at and in the neighbourhood of Stirling. They were acquainted with a principle I did not then admit,
and which, although a fundamental part of the creeds of the Established Churches, both of England and Scotland, is not generally admitted I mean the total corruption of human nature. Reasoning from their firm persuasion of this truth,
they assured me that such effects as I expected, unquestionably so desirable in themselves, could not flow from any change of government, and that the cruelties in France, then beginning to be exercised, were the natural effect of certain circumstances in which the people of the country stood, and would, in a greater or less degree, take place in any country in a similar situation." The ultimate benefit of such discussions is given in the following summary of his condition at this period:—"Before the French revolution, having nothing to rouse my mind, I lived in the country, almost wholly engaged by country pursuits, little concerned about the general interests or happiness of mankind; but selfishly enjoying the blessings which God, in his providence, had so bountifully poured upon me. As to religion, I contented myself with that general profession which is so common and so worthless, and that form of godliness which completely denies its power. I endeavoured to be decent, and what is called moral; but was ignorant of my lost state by nature, as well as of the strictness, purity, and extent of the Divine law. While I spoke of a Saviour, I
was little acquainted with his character, the value of his sufferings and death, the need I stood in of the atoning efficacy of his pardoning blood, or of the imputation of his perfect obedience and meritorious righteousness, and of the
sanctifying influences of the Eternal Spirit, to apply his salvation to my soul. When politics began to be talked of, I was led to consider everything anew. I eagerly catched at them as a pleasing speculation. As a fleeting phantom, they
eluded my grasp; but, missing the shadow, I caught the substance; and while obliged to abandon these confessedly empty and unsatisfactory pursuits, I obtained in some measure the solid consolations of the gospel; so that I may say, as Paul concerning the Gentiles of old, 'He was found of me who sought him not.'"
Having thus attained a vital knowledge of Divine truth, and prosecuted his first perceptions by careful reading and inquiry, Robert Haldane was eager to impart to others the knowledge he had learned and the blessings he had experienced. Such is the effect of the Christian life, especially when ingrafted upon a naturally heroic temperament. It will neither sit down amidst the silence of private life, nor withdraw itself to the solitude of the hermit's cell; not content with its own salvation alone, it is impatient for the salvation of others also, so that, while the patriot is ready to die for his country, the Christian is ready for even more than this like St. Paul, he could wish himself "accursed from Christ for his brethren." Thus animated, he looked for a field of Christian enterprise, and soon found it in India that empire of a hundred realms, which Britain has conquered, but still failed to christianize. The Baptist mission had just previously been established there, and the account of its proceedings been published; and Haldane, who read the first number of its periodical statements, was impatient to enter such a field, and co-operate with the efforts of Carey and his brethren. He, too, like the poor English shoemaker, would become a missionary, and devote himself to a life of danger and toil in India. It was a strange plan, but neither rashly adopted nor unwisely prosecuted. It was upon a grand and comprehensive scale. With himself, Mr. (afterwards Dr.) Innes,
