And it is beautifully written, with all the drama, the rich characterization, the subtlety, of a fine novel. How very unlike the present-day incarnation of Wesley’s great movement. The Air Loom Gang is a wonderful book to read, combining exceptional scholarship and psychological insight with deep empathy for the tormented but always gentle and dignified Matthews.
Indeed it was commonplace in some parts of the country for young men to loiter outside Methodist chapels in the hope of taking advantage of the aroused state of susceptible young women after a particularly strong sermon by a good-looking preacher. Methodism was blamed by some for triggering not only religious mania but also sexual frenzy and its regrettable consequences. This no doubt reflects contemporary suspicion of the inflammatory emotionalism of some Methodist preachers. I particularly like the category ‘religion and methodism’ – as if Methodism were not quite worthy of classifying as ‘religion’. ISBN: 1568582978 Author Mike Jay has written a celebrated dramatised account of James Tilly Matthew's life and The Air Loom in 'The Influencing Machine', originally published as 'The Air Loom Gang'. The table can read like a kind of macabre poem, or summing up of human life. I came across it in The Air Loom Gang, Mike Jay’s fascinating study of the case of James Tilly Matthews. These figures are for ‘Lunacy by Cause’ in a table published by the apothecary of the Bethlem Hospital (Bedlam) towards the end of the 18th century.
Misfortunes, troubles, disappointments, grief…206
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