They began their missionary labours on Monday April 27th 1829 by preaching in the open air at Wanborough a populous village several miles north of Swindon. A large congregation attended and the word preached appeared to produce deep and solemn impressions The next day they visited Little Hinton, Church Hinton, Bishopstone, Idstone, and Ashbury and made inquiries respecting the religious services held at each place, but the weather was too cold and stormy to permit them to preach in the open air. On Wednesday 29th, they visited Crompton, Woolstone, Uffingham, Vernon Longcut, Shrivenham and Bourton and made similar inquiries as at the places before named. Most of these places lie in the vale of Berkshire and were found to be very deficient of evangelical preaching. There were no Wesleyans in the district and very few Dissenters of any kind. At Ashbury where a sermon had not been preached by any Dissenter for forty years there was an evangelical clergyman, but he was the only one of his class within a circuit of many miles extent. Occasional preaching on week nights by the Independents was the only evangelical instruction which those numerous villages then received except Ashbury. At Bourton, the missionaries sang through the village to collect a congregation and then preached at the cross to a tolerably attentive audience. This village was the first place in the county of Berks at which a sermon was preached by a Primitive Methodist preacher. On the following day Mr Ride and his colleague crossed over the Downs into a corner of Wiltshire and visited Aldbourne and Ramsbury and made arrangements for preaching at each place the following day. On Friday May 1st they stood up at four o’clock in the afternoon under a large tree at Ramsbury and one of them preached a plain and earnest sermon. A constable and one or two more persons stood in consultation part of the time but allowed the service to close without interruption for which the preachers were thankful. They had been informed that the last preacher who had stood up there before was the venerable Dr Coke who was assaulted by a furious mob by whom his gown was torn and his person ill treated and they had reason to anticipate some molestation. A peaceable service therefore excited their gratitude and joy.

As soon as this service was ended they hastened to Aldbourne where it had been announced for them to preach at seven in the evening. On arriving at the village they found that a great excitement had been produced by the announcement of their preaching in the street. But they were not the only strangers who visited Aldbourne that evening inviting the attention of the inhabitants. A company of merry andrews arrived and the crier was sent through the place to announce their performances at the Bell Inn. At seven o clock the missionaries repaired to a high stone cross which stood in a wide open space near the centre of the village and began to sing a hymn. The people generally flocked to their doors and to the corners of the streets to look at the strangers and to listen to their singing. None but children however camé near the preachers at first adults stood at a distance as if afraid or ashamed to draw nigh. When the hymn was finished Mr Ride poured out his soul in prayer with a fervour which only few Christian ministers could equal and his colleague solemnly and earnestly responded to his petitions. This excited the merriment of the children and others whose loud bursts of laughter would have distracted men of weaker nerves and rendered them unable to continue their devotions but Mr Ride only prayed the more earnestly and both he and his companion in agony of soul took hold of the Strong for strength to sustain them in the conflict upon which they were entering. On opening their eyes at the close of prayer they were surprised to see themselves surrounded by several hundred persons and while they sang the second hymn the concourse continued to increase. The intelligence respecting their intention to preach that evening at Aldbourne cross had circulated throughout the vicinity and people came flocking in from all the neighbourhood. By the time they had concluded singing the second hymn a thousand persons or more had congregated to see and hear them. The novelty of the affair no sermon having been preached there before within the memory of the oldest people of the place had excited nearly all the inhabitants and the merry andrews at the Bell Inn were neglected except by a few persons who were called gentlemen. These being disappointed of their anticipated amusement imagined it would afford capital sport to take the merry andrews to the preaching service to exhibit their accustomed performances among the people who were assembled to hear the humble and despised missionaries. They repaired immediately to the place and made ready for commencement at a short distance from the congregation as soon as preaching should begin. A person on horseback took his place in the centre and the rest of the actors stood round him. The junior preacher announced his text and with great seriousness proceeded to describe the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ Immediately the merry andrews began to dance round the man on horseback to play their musical instruments and to go through their various performances in the best manner they were able. A large portion of the congregation immediately left the preacher and hastened to witness the antics of the merry andrews. He however made no observations respecting their performances but kept to his subject and preached with freedom and power on the solemn theme embodied in his text. Those who had been drawn off by the attractions of the merry andrews soon returned to the preaching and the mountebanks were left alone with those who employed them. Disconcerted in their attempts to retain a portion of the congregation the opponents determined on a bolder measure. The person on horseback rode up to the people who were listening to the sermon and attempted to drive his horse through them but happily failed. The mountebanks and the rest of their supporters moved directly behind the preacher and while close to him made all the horrid din and uproar in their power. A parish officer who ought to have found other employment being the clerk of the church assisted in increasing the uproar by going round the congregation ringing a large bell and engaging a great number of children to shout and scream. Amidst this disturbance the youthful preacher continued to proclaim the solemn truths of revela tion and with increased feeling and power. Supported by a divine hand he felt no timidity but regardless of danger or of personal ill treatment lifted up his voice like a trumpet and faithfully delivered his message. A son of Belial hired for the purpose ascended the cross behind him in order to throw him down among the people but his courage failed when about to execute his purpose. The preacher saw alarm depicted in the countenances of many of his hearers several of whom rose on their tip toes to look at what was going on behind him yet he never turned his head but continued his discourse. At length the merry andrews were tired out and withdrew the parish clerk gave over ringing his bell and went away the children became quiet and the sermon was concluded in peace.

Mr Ride afterwards gave a short exhortation and the service terminated in an orderly manner. This was a memorable May day to the preachers and not less so to many of their hearers. Religious impressions were made upon scores of minds and a noble beginning of a glorious work in the district was effected. This extraordinary service was a means of making the missionaries well known and of preparing the way for them to visit many other villages and hamlets. It is worthy of record that while the preachers were enduring this conflict at Aldbourne many of their friends were assem bled for prayer in their behalf near Wootten Bassett and were so drawn out in fervent supplications that they continued in prayer for many hours. How greatly those fervent and united supplications contributed to the success of the important mission now undertaken cannot be fully known in the present world. More prayer of this description in behalf of missionary efforts both at home and abroad would doubtless be a means of obtaining large measures of divine influence and thereby of rendering those efforts more abundantly successful in the conversion of sinners and the extension of the Saviour’s kingdom.

But the opposition to the evangelical efforts of the missionaries at Aldbourne did not cease with the disturbance created at their first service. Mr R Jukes was the next preacher of the denomination who visited this place and on several occasions he was opposed and his services disturbed by wicked and thoughtless men who neither loved nor understood evangelical religion. On the 12th of May he preached to about a thousand persons most of whom were wishful to listen with attention but were disturbed by a person who played upon a tambourine for the purpose and by four young farmers who rode up among them full speed in order to disperse them. On the 19th he preached there again to a great concourse but was annoyed by the unseemly conduct of several farmers and tradesmen who brought a jug and glass and drank freely of intoxicating drink and occasionally offered some to the preacher. A more serious contest awaited him on the 26th. A large assembly was convened as before composed of persons of all ranks and ages some with a view to hear the word of life some to persecute and some to defend the preacher. The clerk of the parish came into the congregation to cry a lost sheep in order to disturb the service other persons went to ring the church bells with a view to drown the voice of the preacher and rang them so earnestly as to do them considerable damage the repairing of which cost several pounds. Others threw eggs at the preacher to spoil his clothes. But the majority of the assembly were in his favour and not a few were seriously inquiring the way of salvation. A society was afterwards formed and a barn obtained for a place of worship which in time gave place to a chapel.