Source:Obits-commercial-1876-10-30
"Obituary." Pittsburgh Commercial, Oct. 30, 1876, [p. 4]. Newspapers.com 85537832. Reprinted in the weekly edition, Nov. 4, 1876, p. 1 (Newspapers.com 85675610).
A few weeks ago the community was pained and startled by the sudden death of the Rev. W. D. Howard, D. D., and on Saturday a similar feeling pervaded the city when the announcement was made that Dr. M. W. Jacobus, another eminent divine of the Presbyterian Church, had fallen at his post, with scarcely a moment's warning. The Doctor had been in his usual health, and able to attend to his customary duties as Professor in the Western Theological Seminary. He retired to bed at the usual hour Friday evening, and slept through the night. Saturday morning, between five and six o'clock, he awoke and complained of nausea. He got up, partially dressed himself, stirred the fire in his room, put on a dressing gown, and sat down in front of the fire. Mrs. Jacobus prepared a warm foot-bath, and in the meantime Drs. Rankin and Sutton were sent for. A few minutes afterwards he called to his wife, "Sarah;" his head fell upon his shoulder, and his life was ended. The sad intelligence was communicated to the more immediate friends of the family, and spread rapidly throughout the two cities, in which he was so well known and so highly esteemed.
Dr. Jacobus was born at Newark, New Jersey, September 19, 1866 [sic], and had recently completed his sixtieth year. He was a graduate of Princeton College, at the early age of eighteen taking the first honors. After an interval of a year at home, he entered the Theological Seminary at Princeton in 1835, and having completed his course, he was invited to remain as an assistant to Prof. J. Addison Alexander, in the Hebrew department. He acted in this capacity during an academic year. When the year was drawing to a close, he received a unanimous and urgent call from the First Presbyterian Church of Brooklyn to become its pastor. He accepted and was installed in the fall of 1839. In January, 1840, he was married to the eldest daughter of Samuel Hayes, M. D., of Newark, N. J. He labored successfully in Brooklyn during eleven years, in which time the church was well established as one of the most flourishing churches of the Presbytery.
In 1850, owing to failing health, his congregation gave him a year's vacation, which he spent in foreign travel. He went with his wife through Europe; into Egypt and Palestine and Syria, to Damascus, returning by Constantinople and Greece, and arriving at home in September, 1851, after a year's journeying among classic and Bible lands, to the great advantage of his health. During his absence, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, at their session in 1851, elected him as "Professor of Oriental and Biblical Literature" in the Theological Seminary at Allegheny Pennsylvania, and he entered upon his duties there early in the year 1852. In 1866 he made a second tour through Europe. As a pastor Doctor Jacobus was eminently successful, especially in Brooklyn, where his services received high commendation from the Presbytery of New York, when the pastoral relation was dissolved. It was as an author that the deceased was most widely known and appreciated. As early as 1848 he had prepared and published his first volume of "Notes on the New Testament," entitled "Matthew, with the Harmony." This volume was received with so much public favor, and with the Catchetical [sic] Question Book accompanying, supplied so important a need, that, in the Professor's chair, with larger and richer materials from Bible lands, where he had made personal observation with advantage, he issued a second volume, "Mark and Luke," in May, 1853.
In 1856 he published a very valuable Commentary on John, and this was followed in 1859 with a still more elaborate Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles. In 1862 the Notes on the Gospels were republished in Edinburg [sic], Scotland, by Messrs. Oliphant & Son. Their very extensive circulation in this country, and the great favor with which they were received in the churches, warranted the British publishers in this undertaking.
In 1864–5 the two volumes on Genesis were issued from the press of the American Publishers, the Messrs. Carter, of New York. They evince great labor and research, and in a brief space furnish a mass of material. And his special fitness for the latest work, where so many great questions were to be grappled, at the threshold of Divine Revelation, was already indicated by his review of "Bush on Genesis" in the Princeton Review.
In 1852 the degree of D. D. was conferred upon him by Jefferson College, and he was honored with the degree of LL. D. by the college of New Jersey, in 1867.
He was Moderator of the General Assembly in 1869, the last session of the Old School body previous to the reunion. He presided at the great Assembly in New York, at the adjourned Assembly in this city, and also with his brother Moderator at the memorable Reunion Jubilee.
In addition to the works previously mentioned, he was the author of "Letters to Governor Bigler on the Common School System," in controversy with Bishop O'Connor, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh; also of a tract on "Universal Salvation," published by the Presbyterian Board of Publication in Philadelphia; also of a public debate with Bishop O'Connor on the relation of the Romish Church to Free Institutions, and of a controversy with the Pittsburgh Catholic (the late Rev. Dr. Keogh) on "Indulgences."
In February, 1858, Dr. Jacobus was called to the pastorate of the Central Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh (formerly the Fifth Presbyterian Church, which had been dissolved), and was mainly instrumental in building up that now flourishing congregation. He relinquished this charge some three years ago, owing to failing health, and took a trip to the Pacific coast, returning about a year ago. He has since pursued his educational and literary labors with unabated vigor, and gave all needful attention to other duties. He took a deep interest in the "Sustentation Fund" for the benefit of pastors having charge of financially weak congregations, and made an earnest address on this subject at the meeting of the Synod of Pittsburgh, held at Shadyside, some ten days ago.
The deceased leaves five children, three daughters and two sons. Two daughters are married—one to Rev. Matthew Vankirk, of Philadelphia, and the other to James B. Scott, Esq., with the firm of Park, Brothers & Co. The third, Miss Kate, remains at home. One son, Mr. Samuel H. Jacobus, is the financial manager of the Jacobus and Nimick Manufacturing Company; while the younger, M. W. Jacobus, Jr., is a student at Princeton College.
At a meeting of the congregation of the Central Presbyterian Church of this city, held yesterday, at the close of the morning service, to take action in regard to the death of Dr. Jacobus, the following named persons were appointed a committee to prepare a minute expressing the sense of the meeting, J. P. Smith Wm. Lyon, James Atkinson, G. S. Head and J. M. Kennedy.
The committee reported the following paper which was adopted:
With profound sorrow this congregation has heard of the death of its former pastor Dr. Melancthon William [sic] Jacobus, who died suddenly at his residence in Allegheny city, on the morning of October 28, 1876. And while we bow in submission to the will of "Him who doeth all things well," we desire to pay a proper tribute to the memory of the eminent and beloved deceased.
In the death of Dr. Jacobus, the ministry has lost one of its brightest lights, the church one of its boldest and most successful defenders, the family its honored head and society a devout Christian. His life was an eminently successful one. Graduating at an early age and with high honors at Princeton College, he shortly thereafter entered the Presbyterian Church, and preached and labored in an eastern congregation with great acceptance for many years, and until he was elected professor in the Western Theological Seminary of our neighboring city of Allegheny. He came amongst us in the maturity and vigor of his full manhood, bringing a ripe scholarship; a mind naturally strong and thoroughly trained by the closest habits of application and study, a thorough knowledge of his profession, and an absolute devotion to the cause in which he was engaged; he filled the position to which he had been chosen with the greatest success and honor, continuously down to the time when he was summoned hence by the Master. In all these years, he was a leader in the Church, as author, teacher and preacher, ever ready to aid and strengthen her friends, and a formidable champion in her defense against the attacks of her foes, the founder of some of her most glorious enterprises, and the sharer of some of her greatest triumphs.
But it is chiefly to him, as pastor of this church and congregation, we would pay our tribute. This position he filled for a period of more than fourteen years, commencing in 1858, and those of us who sat under his ministry can bear longing testimony to the power, the progress, the influence and the prosperity of the church during that time. Truly the "Lord did guide him continually," and this his church was "like a watered garden and spring of water, whose waters failed not." During his pastorate he was performing his duties as professor in the seminary and writing those books, which will live after him and be an honor to his name, in guiding and assisting those in search of truth. His life was one of actual, active service in the cause of the Master; his work will testify that he wrought with labor and travel night and day, neither an idler nor drone, setting an example to the rising ministery of earnest and abundant service. He was called away suddenly from the midst of his usefulness and before age had compelled a relaxation from his labors. He continued to love and cherish his association with us until his sudden and lamented death. To us his Christian character was lovely; let his memory be blessed. at the time of his death he had served more years as pastor, with one exception, than any other then living in our two cities. An aged and lamented one having preceded him into the presence of the Master, only a few days, and in almost as sudden and similar manner.
The lives and the deaths of these, who, with others have gone to sit down with the patriarchs in the kingdom of God, are fraught with lessons to us. Let us remember the words of admonition of the lamented dead in his last sermon to us: "The fathers, where are they? and the prophets do they live forever? But our work as a church is not yet done. The field remains and widens as men pass away. Occupy it. God opens a path, but we must do the marching. His path is open only to those who go forward. One step at a time is all that God requires. Near by to Marah are the palm trees and wells of Elim, and just beyond is the blessed country, and the clusters of Eshcol are there for such, and such only as will go in and gather them."
To the stricken family we offer our sincere Christian sympathy and condolence in this the sad hour of their bereavement, and direct them to go for comfort to that source to which he, if living, would point them in all their troubles.
We regret to announce the death of Captain Edward Evans, and old and well-known steamboatman, which occurred suddenly on Saturday morning, near his residence, in Union township, this county. Captain Evans had started from home to this city in his carriage, and had proceeded only a short distance when he was seized with a fit of apoplexy, which terminated his existence in a few minutes. The deceased had been engaged in steamboating on the Ohio, Missouri and Mississippi rivers for upward of forty years, commanding in that time some of the best boats on the Western waters. In 1860, if we recollet [sic] rightly, he took out the Westmoreland, a large boat which was built at Brownsville, Pa., which was the last boat that made a trip to New Orleans before the river was taken into the possession of the rebels. The last boat he commanded was the Exchange. He has been living a comparatively retired life for the past three years at his country residence in Union township with his family, consisting of his wife and five children, who are left to mourn his death. Deceased was in the fiftieth year of his age.
