,a ,,handful ,,of ,,stars  ,,texts      
,,that ,,have ,,moved ,,great ,,minds   
,,by  ,f4 ,w4 ,,boreham   ,,the         
,,abingdon ,,press ,,new ,,york         
,,cincinnati  ,copyright1 #aibb1 by ,f4 
,w4 ,,boreham  ,printed in the ,united  
,states of ,america  ,first ,edition    
,printed ,march1 #aibb ,reprinted ,june1
 #aibb     ,,contents   ,i4 ,william    
,penn's ,text               #i  ,,ii4   
,robinson ,crusoe's ,text          #ba  
,,iii4 ,james ,chalmers' ,text          
#cc  ,,iv4 ,sydney ,carton's ,text      
#de  ,v4 ,ebenezer ,erskine's ,text     
#eg  ,,vi4 ,doctor ,davidson's ,text    
#fi  ,,vii4 ,henry ,martyn's ,text      
#gh  ,,viii4 ,michael ,trevanion's ,text
      #ij  ,,ix4 ,hudson ,taylor's ,text
           #ajb  ,x4 ,rodney ,steele's  
,text            #aac  ,,xi4 ,thomas    
,huxley's ,text           #abe  ,,xii4  
,walter ,petherick's ,text       #acg   
,,xiii4 ,doctor ,blund's ,text          
#adi  ,,xiv4 ,hedley ,vicars' ,text     
#afj  ,,xv4 ,silas ,wright's ,text      

#agb  ,,xvi4 ,michael ,faraday's ,text  
#ahb  ,,xvii4 ,janet ,dempster's ,text  
#aic  ,,xviii4 ,catherine ,booth's ,text
      #bjd  ,,xix4 ,uncle ,tom's ,text  
#baf  ,,xx4 ,andrew ,bonar's ,text      
#bbg  ,,xxi4 ,francis d',assisi's ,text 
#bcg  ,,xxii4 ,everybody's ,text        
#bej     ,,by ,,way ,,of ,,introduction 
,it is not good that a book should be   
alone3 this is a companion volume to ,a 
,bunch of ,everlastings4 ',o ,god1'     
cried ,caliban from the abyss1    ,o    
,god1 if you wish for our love1   ,fling
 us a handful of stars6  ,the ,height   
evidently accepted the challenge of the 
,depth4 ,heaven hungered for the love of
 ,earth1 and so the stars were thrown4  
,i have gathered up a few1 and1 like    
children with their beads and berries1  
have threaded them upon this string4 ,it
 will be seen that they do not all      
belong to the same constellation4 ,most 
of them shed their luster over the stern
 realities of life3 a few glittered in  
the firmament of fiction4 ,it matters   

little4 ,a great romance is a portrait  
of humanity1 painted by a master-hand4  
,when the novelist employs the majestic 
words of revelation to transfigure the  
lives of his characters1 he does so     
because1 in actual experience1 he finds 
those selfsame words indelibly engraven 
upon the souls of men4 ,and1 after all1 
,sydney ,carton's ,text is really       
,charles ,dickens' ,text2 ,robinson     
,crusoe's ,text is ,daniel ,defoe's     
,text2 the text that stands embedded in 
the pathos of ,uncle ,tom's ,cabin is   
the text that ,mrs4 ,harriet ,beecher   
,stowe had enthroned within her heart4  
,moreover1 to whatever group these      
splendid orbs belong1 their deathless   
radiance has been derived1 in every     
case1 from the perennial ,fountain of   
all ,beauty and ,brightness4  ,frank ,w4
 ,boreham4  ,armadale1 ,melbourne1      
,australia4     ,i  ,,william ,,penn',s 
,,text   ,i  ,the ,algonquin chiefs are 
gathered in solemn conclave4 ,they make 
a wild and striking and picturesque     

group4 ,they are assembled under the    
wide-spreading branches of a giant elm1 
not far from the banks of the ,delaware4
 ,it is easy to see that something      
altogether unusual is afoot4 ,ranging   
themselves in the form of a crescent1   
these men of scarred limbs and fierce   
visage fasten their eyes curiously upon 
a white man who1 standing against the   
bole of the elm1 comes to them as white 
man never came before4 ,he is a young   
man of about eight and thirty1 wearing  
about his lithe and well-knit figure a  
sash of skyblue silk4 ,he is tall1      
handsome and of commanding presence4    
,his movements are easy1 agile and      
athletic2 his manner is courtly1        
graceful and pleasing2 his voice1 whilst
 deep and firm1 is soft and agreeable2  
his face inspires instant confidence4   
,he has large lustrous eyes which seem  
to corroborate and confirm every word   
that falls from his lips4 ,these        
tattooed warriors read him through and  
through1 as they have trained themselves

 to do1 and they feel that they can     
trust him4 ,in his hand he holds a roll 
of parchment4 ,for this young man in the
 skyblue sash is ,william ,penn4 ,he is 
making his famous treaty with the       
,indians4 ,it is one of the most        
remarkable instruments ever completed4  
',it is the only treaty1' ,voltaire     
declares1 'that was ever made without an
 oath1 and the only treaty that never   
was broken4' ,by means of this treaty   
with the ,indians1 ,william ,penn is    
beginning to realize the greatest       
aspiration of his life4 ,for ,william   
,penn has set his heart on being the    
,conqueror of the ,world6   ,,ii        
,strangely enough1 it was a ,quaker who 
fired the young man's fancy with this   
proud ambition4 ,thomas ,loe was        
,william ,penn's good angel4 ,there     
seemed to be no reason why their paths  
should cross1 yet their paths were      
always crossing4 ,a subtle and          
inexplicable magnetism drew them        
together4 ,penn's father--,sir ,william 

,penn--was an admiral1 owning an estate 
in ,ireland4 ,when ,william was but a   
small boy1 ,thomas ,loe visited ,cork4  
,the coming of the ,quaker caused a mild
 sensation2 nobody knew what to make of 
it4 ,moved largely by curiosity1 the    
admiral invited the quaint preacher to  
visit him4 ,he did so1 and1 before      
leaving1 addressed the assembled        
household4 ,william was too young to    
understand1 but he was startled when1 in
 the midst of the address1 a colored    
servant wept aloud4 ,the boy turned in  
his astonishment to his father1 only to 
notice that tears were making their way 
down the bronzed cheeks of the admiral4 
,the incident filled him with wonder and
 perplexity4 ,he never forgot it4 ,it   
left upon his mind an indelible         
impression of the intense reality of all
 things spiritual4 ,as a schoolboy1 he  
would wander in the forests that so     
richly surrounded his ,essex home1 and  
give himself to rapt and silent         
contemplation4 ,on one occasion1 he     

tells us1 he 'was suddenly surprised    
with an inward comfort4' ,it seemed to  
him as if a heavenly glory irradiated   
the room in which he was sitting4 ,he   
felt that he could never afterwards     
doubt the existence of ,god nor question
 the possibility of the soul's access to
 ,him4  ,it was at ,oxford that the     
boy's path crossed that of the ,quaker  
for the second time4 ,when1 as a lad of 
sixteen1 ,william ,penn went up to the  
,university1 he found to his surprise   
that ,oxford was the home of ,thomas    
,loe4 ,there the good man had already   
suffered imprisonment for conscience    
sake4 ,the personality of the ,quaker   
appealed to the reflective temperament  
of the young student1 whilst the good   
man's sufferings for his convictions    
awoke his profoundest sympathies4 ,to   
the horror of his father1 he ardently   
espoused the persecuted cause1 involving
 himself in such disfavor with the      
authorities of the ,university that they
 peremptorily ordered his dismissal4    

,but it was the third crossing of the   
paths that most deeply and permanently  
affected the destinies of ,william      
,penn4 ,soon after his expulsion from   
,oxford1 he was appointed ,victualler of
 the ,squadron lying off ,kinsale1 and  
was authorized to reside at1 and manage1
 his father's ,irish estate4 ,it was    
whilst he was thus engaged that ,thomas 
,loe re-visited ,cork4 ,penn1 of course1
 attended the meetings4 ',it was in this
 way1' he tells us1 'that ,god1 in ,his 
everlasting kindness1 guided my feet in 
the flower of my youth1 when about two  
and twenty years of age4 ,he visited me 
with a certain testimony of ,his eternal
 ,word through a ,quaker named ,thomas  
,loe4' ,the text at that memorable and  
historic service1 like a nail in a sure 
place1 fastened itself upon the mind of 
the young officer4 ,thomas ,loe preached
 from the words3 ',this is the victory  
that overcometh the world1 even our     
faith4'  ,the faith that overcomes6     
,the faith by which a man may conquer   

the world6  ,the faith that is itself a 
victory6  ',this is the victory that    
overcometh the world1 even our faith6'  
,penn was electrified4 ,his whole being 
was stirred to its depths4 ',the undying
 fires of enthusiasm at once blazed up  
within him1' one record declares4 ',he  
was exceedingly reached and wept much1' 
the ,quaker chronicle assures us4 ,he   
renounced every hope that he had ever   
cherished in order that he might realize
 this one4 ,this was in #afff--the year 
in which ,london was devoured by the    
flames4  ',penn's conversion1' says ,dr4
 ,stoughton1 'was now completed4 ,that  
conversion must not be regarded simply  
as a change of opinion4 ,it penetrated  
his moral nature4 ,it made him a new    
man4 ,he rose into another sphere of    
spiritual life and consciousness4'  ,in 
his lecture on ,evangelist1 ,dr4        
,alexander ,whyte says that the first   
minister whose words were truly blessed 
of ,god for our awakening and conversion
 has always a place of his own in our   

hearts4 ,thomas ,loe certainly had a    
place peculiarly his own in the heart of
 ,william ,penn4 ,penn was with him at  
the last4  ',stand true to ,god6' cried 
the dying ,quaker1 as he clasped the    
hand of his most notable convert4       
',stand faithful for ,god6 ,there is no 
other way6 ,this is the way in which the
 holy men of old all walked4 ,walk in it
 and thou shalt prosper6 ,live for ,god 
and ,he will be with you6 ,i can say no 
more4 ,the love of ,god overcomes my    
heart6'  ,the love that overcomes6  ,the
 faith that overcomes6  ',this is the   
victory that overcometh the world1 even 
our faith6'   ,,iii  ,william ,penn     
realized his dream4 ,he became the      
,conqueror of the ,world4 ,indeed1 he   
conquered not one world1 but two4 ,or   
perhaps1 after all1 they were merely two
 hemispheres of the selfsame world4 ,one
 was the ,world ,within2 the other was  
the ,world ,without2 and1 of the two1   
the first is always the harder to       
conquer4  ,the victory that overcometh  

the world6 ,what is the world8 ,the     
,puritans talked much about the world2  
and ,penn was the contemporary of the   
,puritans4 ,cromwell died just as the   
admiral was preparing to send his son to
 ,oxford4 ,whilst at ,cork1 ,penn sat   
listening to ,thomas ,loe's sermon on   
the faith that overcometh the world1    
,john ,milton was putting the finishing 
touches to ,paradise ,lost1 and ,john   
,bunyan was languishing in ,bedford     
,gaol4 ,each of the three had something 
to say about the world4 ,to ,cromwell it
 was1 as he told his daughter1 'whatever
 cooleth thine affection after ,christ4'
 ,bunyan gave his definition of the     
world in his picture of ,vanity ,fair4  
,milton likened the world to an         
obscuring mist--a fog that renders dim  
and indistinct the great realities and  
vitalities of life4 ,it is an atmosphere
 that chills the finest delicacies and  
sensibilities of the soul4 ,it is too   
subtle and too elusive to be judged by  
external appearances4 ,in his fine      

treatment of the world1 ,bishop         
,alexander cites1 by way of             
illustration1 still another of the      
contemporaries of ,william ,penn4 ,he   
paints a pair of companion pictures4 ,he
 depicts a gay scene at the frivolous   
and dissolute ,court of ,charles the    
,second2 and1 beside it1 he describes a 
religious assembly of the same period4  
,the first gathering appears to be      
altogether worldly3 the second has      
nothing of the world about it4 ,yet1 he 
says1 ,mary ,godolphin lived her life at
 ,court without being tainted by any    
shadow of worldliness1 whilst many a man
 went up to those solemn assemblies with
 the world raging furiously within his  
soul6  ,william ,penn saw the world in  
his heart that day as he listened to    
,thomas ,loe2 and1 in order that he     
might overcome it1 he embraced the faith
 that the ,quaker proclaimed4 ',this is 
the victory that overcometh the world1  
even our faith4' ,and by that faith he  
overcame the world4 ,many years         

afterwards he himself told the story4   
',the ,lord first appeared to me1' he   
says1 in his ,journal1 'in the twelfth  
year of my age1 and ,he visited me at   
intervals afterwards and gave me divine 
impressions of ,himself4 ,he sustained  
me through the darkness and debauchery  
of ,oxford1 through all my experiences  
in ,france1 through the trials that     
arose from my father's harshness1 and   
through the terrors of the ,great       
,plague4 ,he gave me a deep sense of the
 vanity of the world and of the         
irreligiousness of the religions of it4 
,the glory of the world often overtook  
me1 and ,i was ever ready to give myself
 up to it4' ,but1 invariably1 the faith 
that overcometh the world proved        
victorious4 ,in his monumental ,history 
of the ,united ,states1 ,bancroft says  
that1 splendid as were the triumphs of  
,penn1 his greatest conquest was the    
conquest of his own soul4 ,extraordinary
 as was the greatness of his mind2      
remarkable1 both for universality and   

precision1 as were the vast conceptions 
of his genius2 profound as was his      
scholarship1 and astute as was his      
diplomacy2 the historian is convinced   
that1 in the last resort1 his greatest  
contribution to history is the          
development and influence of his        
impressive and robust character4 ',he   
was prepared for his work1' ,bancroft   
says1 'by the severe discipline of life2
 and love without dissimulation formed  
the basis of his being4 ,the sentiment  
of cheerful humanity was irrepressibly  
strong in his bosom2 benevolence gushed 
prodigally from his ever overflowing    
heart2 and when1 in his late old age1   
his intellect was impaired and his      
reason prostrated1 his sweetness of     
disposition rose serenely over the      
clouds of disease4' ,the winsomeness of 
his ways and the courtliness of his     
bearing survived for many months the    
collapse of his memory and the loss of  
his powers of speech4  ,such was his    
faith's first victory4 ,it was the      

conquest of the world within4   ,,iv    
',this is the victory that overcometh   
the world1 even our faith4' ,it was by  
his faith that he obtained his second   
great triumph--his conquest of the world
 without4 ,he disarmed nations by       
confiding in them4 ,he bound men to     
himself by trusting them4 ,he vanquished
 men by believing in them4 ,it was      
always by his faith that he overcame4   
,when the admiral died1 the nation was  
in his debt to the extent of sixteen    
thousand pounds4 ,this amount--on its   
recovery--,sir ,william bequeathed to   
his son4 ,in due time the matter was    
compounded1 ,william ,penn agreeing to  
accept an immense belt of virgin forest 
in ,north ,america in full settlement of
 his claim4 ,he resolved to establish a 
new colony across the seas under happier
 conditions than any ,state had ever    
known4 ,it should be called             
,pennsylvania2 it should be the land of 
freedom2 its capital should be named    
,philadelphia--the ,city of ,brotherly  

,love4 ,he was reminded that his first  
task would be to subdue the ,indians4   
,the savages1 everybody said1 must be   
conquered2 and ,william ,penn made up   
his mind to conquer them2 but he        
determined to conquer them in his own   
way4 ',this is the victory that         
overcometh the world1 even our faith4'  
,the ,indians were accustomed to        
slaughter4 ,they understood no language 
but the language of the tomahawk and the
 scalping-knife4 ,ever since the white  
man had landed on ,american shores1 the 
forests had resounded with the          
war-whoops of the tribesmen4 ,one night 
a colonial settlement had been raided by
 the red men3 the next an ,indian       
village had been burned1 and its        
inhabitants massacred by the outraged   
whites4 ,the ,indians looked with hatred
 upon the smoke of the ,english         
settlements2 the settlers dreaded the   
forests which protected the ambush1 and 
secured the retreat of their murderous  
foes4 ,william ,penn conquered the      

,indians1 and conquered them--according 
to his text--by his faith4 ',he will    
always be mentioned with honor1'        
,macaulay says1 'as a founder of a      
colony who did not1 in his dealings with
 a savage people1 abuse the strength    
derived from civilization1 and as a     
lawgiver who1 in an age of persecution1 
made religious liberty the cornerstone  
of his policy4'  ,immediately upon his  
arrival he called the ,indians to meet  
him4 ,they gathered under the great elm 
at ,shakamaxon--a spot that is now      
marked by a monument4 ,he approached the
 chiefs unarmed2 and they1 in return1   
threw away their bows and arrows4       
,presents were exchanged and speeches   
made4 ,penn told the natives that he    
desired nothing but their friendship4   
,he undertook that neither he nor any of
 his friends should ever do the         
slightest injury to the person or the   
property of an ,indian2 and they1 in    
reply1 bound themselves 'to live in love
 with ,onas'--as they called him--'and  

with the children of ,onas1 as long as  
the sun and the moon shall endure4'     
',this treaty of peace and friendship   
was made1' as ,bancroft says1 'under the
 open sky1 by the side of the ,delaware1
 with the sun and the river and the     
forest for witnesses4 ,it was not       
confirmed by an oath2 it was not        
ratified by signatures and seals2 no    
written record of the conference can be 
found2 and its terms and conditions had 
no abiding monument1 but on the heart4  
,there they were written like the law of
 ,god and were never forgotten4 ,the    
simple sons of the wilderness1 returning
 to their wigwams1 kept the history of  
the covenant by strings of wampum1 and1 
long afterwards1 in their cabins1 they  
would count over the shells on a clean  
piece of bark and recall to their own   
memory1 and repeat to their children or 
to the stranger1 the words of ,william  
,penn4' ,the world laughed at the       
fantastic agreement2 but the world      
noticed1 at the same time1 that1 whilst 

the neighboring colonies were being     
drenched in blood and decimated by the  
barbarity of the ,mohicans and the      
,delawares1 the hearths of ,pennsylvania
 enjoyed an undisturbed repose4 ,no drop
 of ,quaker blood was ever shed by an   
,indian4 ,so complete was the victory of
 the faith of ,william ,penn6  ,nor was 
the conquest merely negative4 ,when1    
after a few years1 the ,quakers began to
 swarm across the ,atlantic to people   
the new settlement1 they were confronted
 by experiences such as await all       
pioneers1 in young colonies4 ,there were
 times of stress and privation and      
hardship4 ,the stern voice of necessity 
commanded even delicate women to        
undertake tasks for which their frames  
were far too frail4 ,in that emergency  
the ,indians came to the rescue4 ,the   
red men worked for them1 trapped for    
them1 hunted for them1 and served them  
in a thousand ways4 ',you are all the   
children of ,onas6' they said4 ,nothing 
delighted the ,indians more than to     

receive the great ,onas as their guest4 
,a feast was arranged in the depths of  
the forest1 bucks were killed1 cakes    
were cooked1 and the whole tribe        
abandoned itself to festivity and       
rejoicing4 ,and when1 years afterwards1 
they heard that ,onas was dead1 they    
sent his widow a characteristic message 
of sympathy1 accompanied by a present of
 beautiful furs4 ',these skins1' they   
said1 'are to protect you whilst passing
 through the thorny wilderness without  
your guide4' ,the story of the founding 
of ,pennsylvania is1 as a classical     
writer finely says1 'one of the most    
beautiful incidents in the history of   
the age4' ,it was the victory of        
faith--the faith that overcometh the    
world6   ,v  ',this is the ,victory6'   
',the ,victory that overcometh the      
,world6'  ,the ,world ,within6 ,the     
,world ,without6  ',his character always
 triumphed1' says ,bancroft4 ',his name 
was fondly cherished as a household word
 in the cottages of the old world2 and  

not a tenant of a wigwam from the       
,susquehannah to the sea doubted his    
integrity4 ,his fame is as wide as the  
world3 he is one of the few who have    
gained abiding glory4'  ,the ,conquest  
of the world6  ',nobody doubted his     
integrity6'  ',he gained abiding glory6'
  ',this is the ,victory that overcometh
 the ,world1 even our ,faith6'     ,,ii 
,,robinson ,,crusoe',s ,,text   ,i      
,during the years that ,robinson ,crusoe
 spent upon the island1 his most        
distinguished visitor was a text4 ,three
 times it came knocking at the door of  
his hut1 and at the door of his heart4  
,it came to him as his doctor in the day
 of sore sickness2 it came as his       
minister when his soul was in darkness  
and distress2 and it came as his        
deliverer in the hour of his most       
extreme peril4  ,nine months after the  
shipwreck ,crusoe was overtaken by a    
violent fever4 ,his situation filled him
 with alarm1 for he had no one to advise
 him1 no one to help him1 no one to care

 whether he lived or died4 ,the prospect
 of death filled him with ungovernable  
terror4  ',suddenly1' he says1 'it      
occurred to my thought that the         
,brazilians take no physic but tobacco  
for all their distempers1 and ,i        
remembered that ,i had a roll of tobacco
 in one of the chests that ,i had saved 
from the wreck4 ,i went1 directed by    
heaven no doubt2 for in this chest ,i   
found a cure both for soul and body4 ,i 
opened the chest and found the tobacco  
that ,i was looking for2 and ,i also    
found a ,bible which1 up to this time1  
,i had found neither leisure nor        
inclination to look into4 ,i took up the
 ,bible and began to read4 ,having      
opened the book casually1 the first     
words that occurred to me were these3   
,call upon ,me in the day of trouble1   
and ,i will deliver thee1 and thou shalt
 glorify ,me4 ,the words were very apt  
to my case4 ,they made a great          
impression upon me and ,i mused upon    
them very often4 ,i left my lamp burning

 in the cave lest ,i should want        
anything in the night1 and went to bed4 
,but before ,i lay down ,i did what ,i  
never had done in all my life--,i       
kneeled down and prayed4 ,i asked ,god  
to fulfil the promise to me that if ,i  
called upon ,him in the day of trouble  
,he would deliver me4'  ,those who have 
been similarly situated know what such  
prayers are worth4 ',when the devil was 
sick the devil a saint would be4'       
,crusoe's prayer was the child of his   
terror4 ,he was prepared to snatch at   
anything which might stand between him  
and a lonely death4 ,when he called for 
deliverance1 he meant deliverance from  
sickness and solitude2 but it was not of
 that deliverance that the text had come
 to speak4 ,when1 therefore1 the crisis 
had passed1 the text repeated its visit4
 ,it came to him in time of health4     
',now1' says ,crusoe1 ',i began to      
construe the words that ,i had          
read--,call upon ,me in the day of      
trouble1 and ,i will deliver thee1 and  

thou shalt glorify ,me--in a different  
sense from what ,i had done before4 ,for
 then ,i had no notion of any           
deliverance but my deliverance from the 
captivity ,i was in4 ,but now ,i learned
 to take it in another sense4 ,now ,i   
looked back upon my past life with such 
horror1 and my sins appeared so         
dreadful1 that my soul sought nothing of
 ,god but deliverance from the load of  
guilt that bore down all my comfort4 ,as
 for my lonely life1 it was nothing4 ,i 
did not so much as pray for deliverance 
from my solitude2 it was of no          
consideration in comparison with        
deliverance from my sin4'  ,this second 
visit of the text brought him1 ,crusoe  
tells us1 a great deal of comfort4 ,so  
did the third4 ,that third memorable    
visit was paid eleven years later4      
,everybody remembers the stirring story4
 ',it happened one day1 about noon1'    
,crusoe says4 ',i was exceedingly       
surprised1 on going towards my boat1 to 
see the print of a man's naked foot on  

the shore4 ,i stood like one            
thunderstruck1 or as if ,i had seen a   
ghost4 ,i examined it again and again to
 make sure that it was not my fancy2 and
 then1 confused with terror1 ,i fled1   
like one pursued1 to my fortification1  
scarcely feeling the ground ,i trod on1 
looking behind me at every two or three 
steps1 and fancying every stump to be a 
man4' ,it was on his arrival at his     
fortification that the text came to him 
the third time4  ',lying in my bed1' he 
says1 'filled with thoughts of my danger
 from the appearance of savages1 my mind
 was greatly discomposed4 ,then1        
suddenly1 these words of ,scripture came
 into my thoughts3 ,call upon ,me in the
 day of trouble1 and ,i will deliver    
thee1 and thou shalt glorify ,me4 ,upon 
this1 rising cheerfully out of my bed1  
,i was guided and encouraged to pray    
earnestly to ,god for deliverance4 ,it  
is impossible to express the comfort    
this gave me4 ,in answer1 ,i thankfully 
laid down the ,book and was no more     

sad4'  ,these1 then1 were the three     
visits that the text paid to ,crusoe on 
his desolate island4 ',call upon ,me in 
the day of trouble1 and ,i will deliver 
thee1 and thou shalt glorify ,me4'      
,when the text came to him the first    
time1 he called for deliverance from    
sickness2 and was in a few days well4   
,when the text came to him the second   
time1 he called for deliverance from    
sin2 and was led to a crucified and     
exalted ,saviour4  ,when the text came  
to him the third time1 he called for    
deliverance from savages2 and the       
savages1 so far from hurting a hair of  
his head1 furnished him with his man    
,friday1 the staunchest1 truest friend  
he ever had4  ',call upon ,me1' said the
 text1 not once1 nor twice1 but thrice4 
,and1 three times over1 ,crusoe called1 
and each time was greatly and           
wonderfully delivered4   ,,ii  ,robinson
 ,crusoe was written in #agai2 exactly a
 century later ,the ,monastery was      
published4 ,and1 significantly enough1  

the text which shines with such luster  
in ,daniel ,defoe's masterpiece forms   
also the pivot of ,sir ,walter ,scott's 
weird story4 ,mary ,avenel comes to the 
climax of her sorrows4 ,she seems to    
have lost everything and everybody4 ,her
 life is desolate2 her grief is         
inconsolable4 ,her faithful attendant1  
,tibbie1 exhausts herself in futile     
attempts to compose and comfort the mind
 of her young mistress4 ,father ,eustace
 does his best to console her2 but she  
feels that it is all words1 words1      
words4 ,all at once1 however1 she comes 
upon her mother's ,bible--the ,bible    
that had passed through so many strange 
experiences and had been so wonderfully 
preserved4 ,remembering that this little
 ,book was her mother's constant stay   
and solace--her counselor in time of    
perplexity and her comfort in the hour  
of grief--,mary seized it1 ,sir ,walter 
says1 with as much joy as her melancholy
 situation permitted her to feel4       
,ignorant as she was of its contents1   

she had nevertheless learned from       
infancy to hold the ,volume in sacred   
veneration4 ,on opening it1 she found   
that1 among the leaves1 there were texts
 neatly inscribed in her mother's       
handwriting4 ,in ,mary's present state  
of mind1 these passages1 reaching her at
 a time so critical and in a manner so  
touching1 strangely affected her4 ,she  
read on one of these slips the consoling
 exhortation3 ',call upon ,me in the day
 of trouble1 and ,i will deliver thee1  
and thou shalt glorify ,me4' ',there are
 those1' ,sir ,walter says1 'to whom a  
sense of religion has come in storm and 
tempest2 there are those whom it has    
summoned amid scenes of revelry and idle
 vanity2 there are those1 too1 who have 
heard its still small voice amid rural  
leisure and placid contentment4 ,but    
perhaps the knowledge which causeth not 
to err is most frequently impressed upon
 the mind during seasons of affliction2 
and tears are the softened showers which
 cause the seed of heaven to spring and 

take root in the human breast4 ,at      
least1 it was thus with ,mary ,avenel4  
,she read the words--,call upon ,me in  
the day of trouble1 and ,i will deliver 
thee1 and thou shalt glorify ,me--and   
her heart acquiesced in the conclusion3 
,surely this is the ,word of ,god6'  ,in
 the case of ,mary ,avenel1 the         
resultant deliverance was as dramatic as
 in the case of ,robinson ,crusoe4 ,i   
turn a few pages of ,the ,monastery1 and
 ,i come upon this3  ',the joyful news  
that ,halbert ,glendinning--,mary's     
lover--still lived was quickly          
communicated through the sorrowing      
family4 ,his mother wept and thanked    
heaven alternately4 ,on ,mary ,avenel   
the impression was inconceivably deeper4
 ,she had newly learned to pray1 and it 
seemed to her that her prayers had been 
instantly answered4 ,she felt that the  
compassion of heaven1 which she had     
learned to implore in the very words of 
,scripture--,call upon ,me in the day of
 trouble1 and ,i will deliver thee1 and 

thou shalt glorify ,me--had descended   
upon her after a manner almost          
miraculous1 and recalled the dead from  
the grave at the sound of her           
lamentations4'  ,i lay this1 written by 
,sir ,walter ,scott1 in #ahai1 beside   
that1 written by ,daniel ,defoe in      
#agai4 ,in the mouths of two such       
witnesses shall every word be           
established4   ,,iii  ,what was it that 
led both ,daniel ,defoe and ,sir ,walter
 ,scott to give the text such           
prominence8 ,what was it in the text    
that appealed so irresistibly to        
,robinson ,crusoe and to ,mary ,avenel8 
,the answer is fourfold4  #a4 ,it was   
the ,charm of ,companionship4 ,robinson 
,crusoe fancied that he was alone upon  
his island4 ,mary ,avenel fancied that  
she was left friendless and forsaken4   
,they were both mistaken2 and it was the
 text that showed them their mistake4   
',call upon ,me in the day of trouble1  
and ,i will deliver thee4' ,if such a   
,deliverer is at hand--so near as to be 

within sound of their voices--how can   
,robinson ,crusoe be solitary or ,mary  
,avenel forsaken8    ,speak to ,him1    
thou1 for ,he hears2 spirit with spirit 
can meet--   ,closer is ,he than        
breathing1 and nearer than hands and    
feet6  ,if there be a shadow of truth in
 ,robinson ,crusoe's text1 there is no  
such thing as loneliness for any of us6 
#b4 ,it was the ,ring of ,certainty4    
,there is a strange and holy dogmatism  
about the great evangelical promises4   
',call and ,i will deliver4' ,other     
physicians say3 ',i will come and do my 
best4' ,the ,great ,physician says3 ',i 
will come and heal him4' ,the ,son of   
,man is come to seek and to save that   
which is lost4 ,he did not embark upon a
 magnificent effort2 ,he came to do it4 
#c4 ,it was the ,claim of ,monopoly4    
',call upon ,me in the day of trouble1  
and ,i will deliver thee4' ,it suggests 
the utter absence of alternatives1 of   
selection1 of picking and choosing4 ,in 
the straits of the soul1 the issues are 

wonderfully simple4 ,there is none other
 ,name given under heaven among men     
whereby we must be saved4 ,it is this   
,companion--or solitude2 this           
,deliverer--or captivity2 this          
,saviour--or none4  #d4 ,it was the     
,absence of ,technicality4              
',call6'--that is all4 ',call upon ,me  
in the day of trouble1 and ,i will      
deliver thee1 and thou shalt glorify    
,me6' ,call6--as a little child calls   
for his mother4 ,call6--as a drowning   
man calls for help4 ,call6--as a        
frenzied woman calls wildly for succor4 
,there are great emergencies in which we
 do not fastidiously choose our words4  
,it is not the mind but the heart that1 
at such moments1 gives to the tongue its
 noblest eloquence4 ,the prayer that    
moves ,omnipotence to pity1 and summons 
all the hosts of heaven to help1 is not 
the prayer of nicely rounded            
periods--,faultily faultless1 icily     
regular1 splendidly null--but the prayer
 of passionate entreaty4 ,it is a       

call--a call such as a doctor receives  
at dead of night2 a call such as the    
fireman receives when all the alarms are
 clanging2 a call such as the ships     
receive in mid-ocean1 when1 hurtling    
through the darkness and the void1 there
 comes the wireless message1 ',s4,o4,s4'
 ',call upon ,me in the day of trouble1 
and ,i will deliver thee1 and thou shalt
 glorify ,me4' ,had the text demanded a 
tinge of technicality it would have been
 useless to ,robinson ,crusoe2 it would 
have mocked the simple soul of poor     
,mary ,avenel4 ,but a call6 ,robinson   
,crusoe can call6 ,mary ,avenel can     
call6 ,anybody can call6 ,wherefore1    
'call1' says the text1 'just call1 and  
,he will deliver6'   ,,iv  ,but ,i need 
not have resorted to fiction for a      
testimony to the value and efficacy of  
the text--striking and significant as   
that testimony is4 ,i need have summoned
 neither ,daniel ,defoe nor ,sir ,walter
 ,scott4 ,i could have dispensed with   
both ,robinson ,crusoe and ,mary        

,avenel4 ,i could have called a ,king   
and ,queen to bear all the witness that 
,i wanted4  ,king ,edward the ,seventh6 
,and ,queen ,alexandra6  ,for ,robinson 
,crusoe's text is ,king ,edward's text2 
and ,mary ,avenel's text is ,queen      
,alexandra's text4 ,there are men and   
women still living who remember those   
dark and dreadful days of ,december1    
#ahga1 when it seemed as if the life of 
,king ,edward--then ,prince of          
,wales--hung by a single thread4 ,nobody
 thought of anything else2 the whole    
world seemed to surround that royal     
sickbed2 the ,empire was in a state of  
breathless suspense4 ,sunday1 the tenth 
of ,december1 was set aside as a ,day of
 ,solemn ,intercession1 and the strained
 intensity of the public anxiety        
reflected itself in crowded but hushed  
congregations4  ,and what was going on  
at the inner heart of things8 ,early    
that ,sunday morning1 the               
,princess--afterwards ,queen            
,alexandra--opened her ,bible and was   

greeted with these words3 ',call upon   
,me in the day of trouble1 and ,i will  
deliver thee1 and thou shalt glorify    
,me4' ,a little later1 just as the      
,vicar of ,sandringham1 the ,rev4 ,w4   
,l4 ,onslow1 was preparing to enter his 
pulpit1 he received a note from the     
,princess4 ',my husband being1 thank    
,god1 somewhat better1' she wrote1 ',i  
am coming to church4 ,i must leave1 ,i  
fear1 before the service is concluded1  
that ,i may watch by his bedside4 ,can  
you not say a few words in prayer in the
 early part of the service1 that ,i may 
join with you in prayer for my husband  
before ,i return to him8' ,the          
congregation was deeply affected when   
the ,princess appeared1 and the rector1 
with trembling voice1 said3 ',the       
prayers of the congregation are         
earnestly sought for ,his ,royal        
,highness1 the ,prince of ,wales1 who is
 now most seriously ill4' ,this was on  
,december the tenth4 ,for the next few  
days the ,prince hovered between life   

and death4 ,the crisis came on the      
fourteenth1 which1 ominously enough1 was
 the anniversary of the death of the    
,prince ,consort4 ,but1 whilst the      
superstitious shook their heads1 the    
,princess clung desperately and         
believingly to the hope that the text   
had brought her4 ,and that day1 in a way
 that was almost dramatic1 the change   
came4 ,sir ,william ,gull1 the royal    
physician1 had done all that the highest
 human skill could suggest2 he felt that
 the issue was now in other hands than  
his4 ,he was taking a short walk up and 
down the terrace1 when one of the nurses
 came running to him with pallid face   
and startled eyes4 ',oh1 come1 ,sir     
,william1' she said1 'there is a change2
 the ,prince is worse6' ,and1 as doctor 
and nurse hurried together to the sick  
room1 she added bitterly1 ',i do not    
believe ,god answers prayer6 ,here is   
all ,england praying that he may        
recover1 and he's going to die6' ,but   
,sir ,william ,gull's first glance at   

the ,royal patient showed him that the  
change was for the better4 ,from that   
moment there was a sure hope of the     
,prince's recovery1 and1 by ,christmas  
,day1 he was out of danger4 ,later on1  
when her husband's restoration was      
complete1 the ,princess raised a        
monument to the deliverance that she had
 experienced4 ,she presented to the     
,sandringham ,church a brass lectern    
bearing this inscription3 ',to the glory
 of ,god2 a thank offering for ,his     
mercy2 #adth ,december1                 
#ahga4--;,alexandra4 ,when ,i was in    
trouble ,i called upon the ,lord1 and   
,he heard me4'  ,nor is that quite the  
end of the story4 ,thirty years later1  
the ,prince ascended the throne4 ,he was
 to have been crowned on ,june #bf1     
#aijb2 but again he was stricken down by
 serious illness4 ,he recovered1        
however1 and the ,coronation took place 
on the ninth of ,august4 ,those familiar
 with the ,coronation ,service noticed a
 striking innovation4 ,the words3 ',when

 ,i was in trouble1 ,i called upon the  
,lord1 and ,he heard me1' were          
introduced into one of the prayers4     
',the words1' ,archdeacon ,wilberforce  
afterwards explained1 'were written by  
the ,king's own hand1 and were used by  
the ,archbishop at ,his ,majesty's      
express command4'  ',call upon ,me in   
the day of trouble1 and ,i will deliver 
thee1 and thou shalt glorify ,me1' says 
the text4  ',when ,i was in trouble1 ,i 
called upon the ,lord1 and ,he heard    
me1' said ,king ,edward and ,queen      
,alexandra4  ',i was in trouble through 
my sickness1 and in trouble through my  
sin1' said ,robinson ,crusoe1 'and when 
,i called upon the ,lord1 ,he heard and 
delivered me4'  ,so true is it that     
whosoever shall call on the ,name of the
 ,lord1 the same shall be saved4        
,,iii  ,,james ,,chalmers' ,,text   ,i  
,he was 'a broth of a boy1' his         
biographer tells us4 ,he lived chiefly  
on boots and boxes4 ,eager to know what 
lay beyond the ranges1 he wore out more 

boots than his poor parents found it    
easy to provide4 ,taunted by the        
constant vision of the restless waters1 
he put out to sea in broken boxes and   
leaky barrels1 that he might follow in  
the wake of the great navigators4 ,he   
was a born adventurer4 ,almost as soon  
as he first opened his eyes and looked  
around him1 he felt that the world was  
very wide and vowed that he would find  
its utmost edges4 ,from his explorations
 of the hills and glens around his      
village home1 he often returned too     
exhausted either to eat or sleep4 ,from 
his ventures upon the ocean he was more 
than once brought home on a plank1      
apparently drowned4 ',the wind and the  
sea were his playmates1' we are told2   
'he was as much at home in the water as 
on the land2 in fishing1 sailing1       
climbing over the rocks1 and wandering  
among the silent hills1 he spent a free1
 careless1 happy boyhood4' ,every day   
had its own romance1 its hairbreadth    
escape1 its thrilling adventure4        

,therein lies the difference between a  
man and a beast4 ,at just about the time
 at which ,james ,chalmers was born in  
,scotland1 ,captain ,sturt led his      
famous expedition into the hot and dusty
 heart of ,australia4 ,when he reached  
,cooper's ,creek on the return journey1 
he found that he had more horses than he
 would be able to feed2 so he turned one
 of them out on the banks of the creek  
and left it there4 ,when ,burke and     
,wills reached ,cooper's ,creek twenty  
years later1 the horse was still grazing
 peacefully on the side of the stream1  
and looked up at the explorers with no  
more surprise or excitement than it     
would have shown if but twenty hours had
 passed since it last saw human faces4  
,it had found air to breathe and water  
to drink and grass to nibble2 what did  
it care about the world8 ,but with man  
it is otherwise4 ,he wants to know what 
is on the other side of the hill1 what  
is on the other side of the water1 what 
is on the other side of the world6 ,if  

he cannot go ,north1 ,south1 ,east and  
,west himself1 he must at least have his
 newspaper2 and the newspaper brings all
 the ends of the earth every morning to 
his doorstep and his breakfast-table4   
,this1 ,i say1 is the difference between
 a beast and a man2 and ,james          
,chalmers--known in ,new ,guinea as the 
most magnificent specimen of humanity on
 the islands--was every inch a man4     
,,ii  ,but his text6 ,what was ,james   
,chalmers' text8 ,when he was eighteen  
years of age1 ,scotland found herself in
 the throes of a great religious        
revival4 ,in the sweep of this historic 
movement1 a couple of evangelists from  
the ,north of ,ireland announce that    
they will conduct a series of           
evangelistic meetings at ,inverary4 ,but
 ,chalmers and a band of daring young   
spirits under his leadership feel that  
this is an innovation which they must   
strenuously resist4 ,they agree to break
 up the meetings4 ,a friend1 however1   
with much difficulty persuades ,chalmers

 to attend the first meeting and judge  
for himself whether or not his project  
is a worthy one4  ',it was raining      
hard1' he says1 in some autobiographical
 notes found among his treasures after  
the massacre1 'it was raining hard1 but 
,i started2 and on arriving at the      
bottom of the stairs ,i listened whilst 
they sang ,all people that on earth do  
dwell to the tune ,old ,hundred1 and ,i 
thought ,i had never heard such singing 
before--so solemn1 yet so joyful4 ,i    
ascended the steps and entered4 ,there  
was a large congregation and all        
intensely in earnest4 ,the younger of   
the evangelists was the first to speak4 
,he announced as his text the words3    
,the ,spirit and the ,bride say1 ,come2 
and let him that heareth say1 ,come2 and
 let him that is athirst come2 and      
whosoever will1 let him take the water  
of life freely4 ,he spoke directly to   
me4 ,i felt it much2 but at the close ,i
 hurried away back to town4 ,i returned 
the ,bible to the friend who1 having    

persuaded me to go1 had lent it to me1  
but ,i was too upset to speak much to   
him4'  ,on the following ,sunday night1 
he was1 he says1 'pierced through and   
through1 and felt lost beyond all hope  
of salvation4' ,on the ,monday1 the     
local minister1 the ,rev4 ,gilbert      
,meikle1 who had exercised a deep       
influence over his early childhood1 came
 to see him and assured him that the    
blood of ,jesus ,christ1 ,god's ,son1   
could cleanse him from all sin4 ,this   
timely visit convinced him that         
deliverance was at any rate possible4   
,gradually he came to feel that the     
voices to which he was listening were1  
in reality1 the ,voice of ,god4 ',then1'
 he says1 ',i believed unto salvation4' 
',he felt that the voices to which he   
was listening were1 in reality1 the     
,voice of ,god4' ,that is precisely what
 the text says4 ',the ,spirit and the   
,bride say1 ,come4' ,the ,bride only    
says ',come' because the ,spirit says   
',come'2 the ,church only says ',come'  

because her ,lord says ',come'2 the     
evangelists only said ',come' because   
the ,voice ,divine said ',come4' ',he   
felt that the voices to which he was    
listening were1 in reality1 the ,voice  
of ,god1 and he believed unto           
salvation4'  ,the ,spirit said1 ,come6  
,the ,bride said1 ,come6  ,let him that 
is athirst come6  ',i was athirst1' says
 ,chalmers1 'and ,i came6'  ,and thus a 
great text began1 in a great soul1 the  
manufacture of a great history4   ,,iii 
,forty years later a thrill of horror   
electrified the world when the cables   
flashed from land to land the terrible  
tidings that ,james ,chalmers1 the most 
picturesque and romantic figure in the  
religious life of his time1 had been    
killed and eaten by the ,fly ,river     
cannibals4 ,it is the evening of ,easter
 ,sunday4 ,it has for years been the    
dream of his life to navigate the ,fly  
,river and evangelize the villages along
 its banks4 ,and now he is actually     
doing it at last4 ',he is away up the   

,fly ,river1' wrote ,robert ,louis      
,stevenson4 ',it is a desperate venture1
 but he is quite a ,livingstone card6'  
,stevenson thought ,chalmers all gold4  
',he is a rowdy1 but he is a hero4 ,you 
can't weary me of that fellow4 ,he is as
 big as a house and far bigger than any 
church4 ,he took me fairly by storm for 
the most attractive1 simple1 brave and  
interesting man in the whole ,pacific4' 
',i wonder1' ,stevenson wrote to ,mrs4  
,chalmers1 ',i wonder if even you know  
what it means to a man like me--a man   
fairly critical1 a man of the world--to 
meet one who represents the essential1  
and who is so free from the formal1 from
 the grimace4' ,but ,i digress4 ,as     
,stevenson says1 ,mr4 ,chalmers is away 
up the ,fly ,river1 a desperate venture6
 ,but he is boisterously happy about it1
 and at sunset on this ,easter ,sunday  
evening they anchor off a populous      
settlement just round a bend of the     
river4 ,the natives1 coming off in their
 canoes1 swarm onto the vessel4 ,with   

some difficulty1 ,mr4 ,chalmers         
persuades them to leave the ship1       
promising them that he will himself     
visit them at daybreak4 ,the savages1   
bent on treachery and slaughter1 pull   
ashore and quickly dispatch runners with
 messages to all the villages around4   
,when1 early next morning1 ,mr4         
,chalmers lands1 he is surprised at     
finding a vast assemblage gathered to   
receive him4 ,he is accompanied by ,mr4 
,tomkins--his young colleague1 not long 
out from ,england--and by a party of ten
 native ,christians4 ,they are told that
 a great feast has been prepared in     
their honor1 and they are led to a large
 native house to partake of it4 ,but1 as
 he enters1 ,mr4 ,chalmers is felled    
from behind with a stone club1 stabbed  
with a cassowary dagger1 and instantly  
beheaded4 ,mr4 ,tomkins and the native  
,christians are similarly massacred4    
,the villages around are soon the scenes
 of horrible cannibal orgies4 ',i cannot
 believe it6' exclaimed ,dr4 ,parker    

from the pulpit of the ,city ,temple1 on
 the day on which the tragic news       
reached ,england1 ',i cannot believe it6
 ,i do not want to believe it6 ,such a  
mystery of ,providence makes it hard for
 our strained faith to recover itself4  
,yet ,jesus was murdered4 ,paul was     
murdered4 ,many missionaries have been  
murdered4 ,when ,i think of that side of
 the case1 ,i cannot but feel that our  
honored and noble-minded friend has     
joined a great assembly4 ,james         
,chalmers was one of the truly great    
missionaries of the world4 ,he was1 in  
all respects1 a noble and kingly        
character4' ,and so it was whispered    
from lip to lip that ,james ,chalmers1  
the ,greatheart of ,new ,guinea1 was    
dead1 dead1 dead2 although ,john        
,oxenham denied it4    ,greatheart is   
dead1 they say6   ,greatheart is dead1  
they say6       ,nor dead1 nor sleeping6
 ,he lives on6 ,his name       ,shall   
kindle many a heart to equal flame2     
,the fire he kindled shall burn on and  

on       ,till all the darkness of the  
lands be gone1       ,and all the       
kingdoms of the earth be won1       ,and
 one6   ,a soul so fiery sweet can never
 die   ,but lives and loves and works   
through all eternity4  ,yes1 lives and  
loves and works6 ',there will be much to
 do in heaven1' he wrote to an old      
comrade in one of the last letters he   
ever penned4 ',i guess ,i shall have    
good mission work to do2 great1 brave   
work for ,christ6 ,he will have to find 
it1 for ,i can be nothing else than a   
missionary6' ,and so1 perchance1 ,james 
,chalmers is a missionary still6   ,,iv 
,now1 underlying this brave story of a  
noble life and a martyr-death is a great
 principle2 and it is the principle     
that1 if we look1 we shall find embedded
 in the very heart of ,james ,chalmers' 
text4 ,no law of life is more vital4    
,let us return to that evangelistic     
meeting held on that drenching night at 
,inverary1 and let us catch once more   
those matchless cadences that won the   

heart of ,chalmers6 ',the ,spirit and   
the ,bride say1 ,come2 and let him that 
heareth say1 ,come2 and let him that is 
athirst come2 and whosoever will1 let   
him take the water of life freely4'     
',let him that is athirst come6' ',i was
 athirst1' says ,chalmers1 'so ,i came6'
  ',let him that heareth say1 ,come6'   
,james ,chalmers heard2 he felt that he 
must say2 that is the connecting link   
between the evangelistic meeting at     
,inverary and the triumph and tragedy of
 ,new ,guinea4  ',let him that heareth1 
say6'--that is the principle embedded in
 the text4 ,the soul's exports must keep
 pace with the soul's imports4 ,what ,i 
have freely received1 ,i must as freely 
give4 ,the boons that have descended to 
me from a remote ancestry ,i must pass  
on with interest to a remote posterity4 
,the benedictions that my parents       
breathed on me must be conferred by me  
upon my children4 ',let him that        
heareth1 say6' ,what comes into the     
,city of ,mansoul at ,ear ,gate must go 

out again at ,lip ,gate4 ,the auditor of
 one day must become the orator of the  
next4 ,it is a very ancient principle4  
',he that reads1' says the prophet1     
'must run6' ',he that sees must spread6'
 ,with those quick eyes of his1 ,james  
,chalmers saw this at a glance4 ,he     
recognized that the kingdom of ,christ  
could be established in no other way4   
,he saw that the ,gospel could have been
 offered him on no other terms4 ,what1  
therefore1 he had with such wonder      
heard1 he began1 with great delight1 to 
proclaim4 ,almost at once he accepted a 
,sunday school class2 the following year
 he began preaching in those very       
villages through which1 as a boy1 his   
exploratory wanderings had so often     
taken him2 a year later he became a city
 missionary1 that he might pass on the  
message of the ,spirit and the ,bride to
 the teeming poor of ,glasgow2 and1     
twelve months later still1 he entered   
college1 in order to equip himself for  
service in the uttermost ends of the    

earth4 ,his boyish passion for books and
 boxes had been sanctified at last by   
his consecration to a great heroic      
mission4   ,v  ',let him that is athirst
 come6' ',i was athirst1' says          
,chalmers1 'and ,i came6'  ',let him    
that heareth say1 ,come6' ,and          
,chalmers1 having heard1 said ',come6'  
and said it with effect4 ,dr4 ,lawes    
speaks of one hundred and thirty mission
 stations which he established at ,new  
,guinea4 ,and look at this6 ',on the    
first ,sabbath in every month not less  
than three thousand men and women gather
 devotedly round the table of the ,lord1
 reverently commemorating the event     
which means so much to them and to all  
the world4 ,many of them were known to  
,chalmers as savages in feathers and    
war-paint4 ,now1 clothed and in their   
right mind1 the wild1 savage look all   
gone1 they form part of the ,body of our
 ,lord ,jesus ,christ and are members of
 ,his ,church4 ,many of the pastors who 
preside at the ,lord's ,table bear on   

their breasts the tattoo marks that     
indicate that their spears had been     
imbrued with human blood4 ,now          
sixty-four of them1 thanks to ,mr4      
,chalmers' influence1 are teachers1     
preachers and missionaries4' ,they1 too1
 having listened1 proclaim2 having      
received1 give2 having heard1 say2      
having been auditors1 have now become   
orators4 ,they have read and therefore  
they run4 ,having believed with the     
heart1 they therefore confess with the  
mouth4 ,this is not only a law of life2 
it is the law of the life everlasting4  
,it is only by loyalty to this golden   
rule1 on the part of all who hear the   
,spirit and the ,bride say ,come1 that  
the kingdoms of this world can become   
the kingdoms of our ,god and of ,his    
,christ4 ,it is the secret of           
world-conquest2 and1 besides it1 there  
is no other4   ,,vi  ',the ,spirit and  
the ,bride say1 ,come2 and let him that 
heareth say1 ,come2 and let him that is 
athirst come2 and whosoever will1 let   

him take the water of life freely4'     
',let him that is athirst come6'  ',let 
him that heareth say1 ,come6'  ,i have  
somewhere read that1 out in the         
solitudes of the great dusty desert1    
when a caravan is in peril of perishing 
for want of water1 they give one camel  
its head and let him go4 ,the fine      
instincts of the animal will lead him   
unerringly to the refreshing spring4 ,as
 soon as he is but a speck on the       
horizon1 one of the ,arabs mounts his   
camel and sets off in the direction that
 the liberated animal has taken4 ,when1 
in his turn1 he is scarcely             
distinguishable1 another ,arab mounts   
and follows4 ,when the loose camel      
discovers water1 the first ,arab turns  
and waves to the second2 the second to  
the third1 and so on1 until all the     
members of the party are gathered at the
 satisfying spring4 ,as each man sees   
the beckoning hand1 he turns and beckons
 to the man behind him4 ,he that sees1  
signals2 he that hears1 utters4 ,it is  

the law of the life everlasting2 it is  
the fundamental principle of ,james     
,chalmers' text and of ,james ,chalmers'
 life4  ',let him that is athirst come6'
 ',i was athirst1' says ,chalmers1 'so  
,i came6'    ,i heard the voice of      
,jesus say1     ',behold1 ,i freely give
   ,the living water2 thirsty one1      
,stoop down1 and drink1 and live4'   ,i 
came to ,jesus1 and ,i drank     ,of    
that life-giving stream2   ,my thirst   
was quenched1 my soul revived1     ,and 
now ,i live in ,him4  ',and now ,i live 
in ,him4' ,the life that ,james         
,chalmers lived in his ,lord was a life 
so winsome that he charmed all hearts1 a
 life so contagious that savages became 
saints beneath his magnetic influence4  
,he had heard1 at ,inverary1 the ,spirit
 and the ,bride say1 ,come6 ,and he     
esteemed it a privilege beyond all price
 to be permitted to make the abodes of  
barbarism and the habitations of cruelty
 re-echo the matchless music of that    
mighty monosyllable4     ,,iv  ,,sydney 

,,carton',s ,,text   ,i  ,memory is the 
soul's best minister4 ,sydney ,carton   
found it so4 ,on the greatest night of  
his life--the night on which he resolved
 to lay down his life for his friend--a 
text swept suddenly into his mind1 and1 
from that moment1 it seemed to be       
written everywhere4 ,he was in ,paris2  
the ,french ,revolution was at its      
height2 sixty-three shuddering victims  
had been borne that very day to the     
guillotine2 each day's toll was heavier 
than that of the day before2 no man's   
life was safe4 ,among the prisoners     
awaiting death in the ,conciergerie was 
,charles ,darnay1 the husband of her    
whom ,sydney himself had loved with so  
much devotion but so little hope4  ',o  
,miss ,manette1' he had said1 on the    
only occasion on which he had revealed  
his passion1 'when1 in the days to come1
 you see your own bright beauty         
springing up anew at your feet1 think   
now and then that there is a man who    
would give his life to keep a life you  

love beside you6'  ,and now that hour   
had come4 ,it happened that ,charles    
,darnay and ,sydney ,carton were1 in    
form and feature1 extraordinarily alike4
 ,darnay was doomed to die on the       
guillotine3 ,carton was free4 ,for the  
first time in his wayward life1 ,sydney 
saw his course clearly before him4 ,his 
years had been spent aimlessly1 but now 
he set his face like a flint towards a  
definite goal4 ,he stepped out into the 
moonlight1 not recklessly or            
negligently1 but 'with the settled      
manner of a tired man who had wandered  
and struggled and got lost1 but who at  
length struck into his road and saw its 
end4' ,he would find some way of taking 
,darnay's place in the gloomy prison2 he
 would1 by his substitution1 restore her
 husband to ,lucy's side2 he would make 
his life sublime at its close4 ,his     
career should resemble a day that1      
fitful and overcast1 ends at length in a
 glorious sunset4 ,he would save his    
life by losing it6  ,it was at that     

great moment that memory exercised its  
sacred ministry upon the soul of ,sydney
 ,carton4 ,as he paced the silent       
streets1 dark with heavy shadows1 the   
moon and the clouds sailing high above  
him1 he suddenly recalled the solemn and
 beautiful words which he had heard read
 at his father's grave3 ',i am the      
,resurrection and the ,life2 he that    
believeth in ,me1 though he were dead1  
yet shall he live2 and whosoever liveth 
and believeth in ,me shall never die4'  
,sydney did not ask himself why the     
words had rushed upon him at that hour1 
although1 as ,dickens says1 the reason  
was not far to seek4 ,but he kept       
repeating them4 ,and1 when he stopped1  
the air seemed full of them4 ,the great 
words were written across the houses on 
either side of him2 he looked up1 and   
they were inscribed across the dark     
clouds and the clear sky2 the very      
echoes of his footsteps reiterated them4
 ,when the sun rose1 it seemed to strike
 those words--the burden of the         

night--straight and warm to his heart in
 its long bright rays4 ,night and day   
were both saying the same thing4 ,he    
heard it everywhere3 he saw it in       
everything--  ',i am the ,resurrection  
and the ,life2 he that believeth in ,me1
 though he were dead1 yet shall he live2
 and whosoever liveth and believeth in  
,me shall never die4'  ,that was ,sydney
 ,carton's text4   ,,ii  ,it is a great 
thing--a very great thing--to be able to
 save those you love by dying for them4 
,i well remember sitting in my study at 
,hobart one evening1 when there came a  
ring at the bell4 ,a moment later a man 
whom ,i knew intimately was shown in4 ,i
 had seen him a few weeks earlier1 yet1 
as ,i looked upon him that night1 ,i    
could scarcely believe it was the same  
man4 ,he seemed twenty years older2 his 
hair was gray2 his face furrowed and his
 back bent4 ,i was staggered at the     
change4 ,he sat down and burst into     
tears4  ',oh1 my boy1 my boy6' he       
sobbed4  ,i let him take his time1 and1 

when he had regained his                
self-possession1 he told me of his son's
 great sin and shame4  ',i have         
mentioned this to nobody1' he said1 'but
 ,i could keep it to myself no longer4  
,i knew that you would understand4'     
,and then he broke down again4 ,i can   
see him now as he sits there1 rocking   
himself in his agony1 and moaning3  ',if
 only ,i could have died for him6 ,if   
only ,i could have died for him6'  ,but 
he couldn't6 ,that was the torture of   
it6 ,i remember how his heart-broken cry
 rang in my ears for days2 and on the   
following ,sunday there was only one    
subject on which ,i could preach4 ',and 
the king was much moved1 and went up to 
the chamber over the gate and wept2 and 
as he went he cried3 ,o my son ,absalom6
 my son1 my son ,absalom6 ,would ,god ,i
 had died for thee1 ,o ,absalom1 my son1
 my son6'  ,it was the unutterable grief
 of ,david1 and of my poor friend1 that 
they could not save those they loved by 
dying for them4 ,it was the joy of      

,sydney ,carton that he could6 ,he      
contrived to enter the ,conciergerie2   
made his way to ,darnay's cell2 changed 
clothes with him2 hurried him forth2 and
 then resigned himself to his fate4     
,later on1 a fellow prisoner1 a little  
seamstress1 approached him4 ,she had    
known ,darnay and had learned to trust  
him4 ,she asked if she might ride with  
him to the scaffold4  ',i am not        
afraid1' she said1 'but ,i am little and
 weak1 and1 if you will let me ride with
 you and hold your hand1 it will give me
 courage6'  ,as the patient eyes were   
lifted to his face1 he saw a sudden     
doubt in them1 and then astonishment4   
,she had discovered that he was not     
,darnay4  ',are you dying for him8' she 
whispered4  ',for him--and his wife and 
child4 ,hush6 ,yes6'  ',oh1 you will let
 me hold your brave hand1 stranger8'    
',hush6 ,yes1 my poor sister2 to the    
last6'  ,nobody has ever read ,a ,tale  
of ,two ,cities without feeling that    
this was the moment of ,sydney ,carton's

 supreme triumph4  ',it is1' he         
said--and they are the last words in the
 book--'it is a far1 far better thing   
that ,i do than ,i have ever done6'  ,he
 had never tasted a joy to be compared  
with this4 ,he was able to save those he
 loved by dying for them6  ,that is     
precisely the joy of the ,cross6 ,that  
was the light that shone upon the       
,saviour's path through all the darkness
 of the world's first ,easter4 ,that is 
why1 when ,he took the bread and        
wine--the emblems of ,his body about to 
be broken and ,his blood about to be    
shed--,he gave thanks4 ,it is that--and 
that alone--that accounts for the fact  
that ,he entered the ,garden of         
,gethsemane with a song upon ,his lips4 
,it was for the joy that was set before 
,him that ,he endured the ,cross1       
despising its shame6  ',death6' ,he     
said4 ',what of ,death8 ,i am the ,life1
 not only of ,myself1 but of all who    
place their hands in ,mine6  ',the      
,grave6 ,what of the ,grave8 ,i am the  

,resurrection6  ',i am the ,resurrection
 and the ,life2 he that believeth in    
,me1 though he were dead1 yet shall he  
live2 and whosoever liveth and believeth
 in ,me shall never die4'  ,he felt that
 it was a great thing--a very great     
thing--to be able to save those ,he     
loved by dying for them4   ,,iii  ',i am
 the ,resurrection6'--those were the    
words that ,sydney ,carton saw written  
on land and on water1 on earth and on   
sky1 on the night on which he made up   
his mind to die4 ',i am the             
,resurrection6' ,they were the words    
that he had heard read beside his       
father's grave4 ,they are the words that
 we echo1 in challenge and defiance1    
over all our graves4 ,the rubric of the 
,church of ,england requires its        
ministers to greet the dead at the      
entrance to the churchyard with the     
words3 ',i am the ,resurrection and the 
,life2' and1 following the same sure    
instinct1 the ministers of all the other
 ,churches have adopted a very similar  

practice4 ,the earth seems to be a      
garden of graves4 ,we speak of those who
 have passed from us as 'the great      
majority4' ,we appear to be conquered4  
,but it is all an illusion4  ',o        
,grave6' we ask1 in every burial        
service1 'where is thy victory8' ,and   
the question answers itself4 ,the       
victory does not exist4 ,the struggle is
 not yet ended4 ',i am the              
,resurrection6'  ',i am the             
,life6'--that is what all the echoes    
were saying as ,sydney ,carton1         
cherishing a great heroic purpose in his
 heart1 paced the deserted streets that 
night4  ',i am the ,life6 ,i am the     
,life6'  ',he that believeth in ,me1    
though he were dead1 yet shall he live6'
  ',whosoever believeth in ,me shall    
never die6'  ,that being so1 what does  
death matter8 ',o1 death6' we cry1      
'where is thy sting8' and once more the 
question answers itself4  ',o ,death1   
where is thy sting8'--',i am the ,life6'
  ',o ,grave1 where is thy              

victory8'--',i am the ,resurrection6'   
,the ,life and the ,resurrection6 ',i am
 the ,resurrection and the ,life6'  ,the
 text that he saw in every sight1 and   
heard in every sound1 made all the      
difference to ,sydney ,carton4 ,the end 
soon came1 and this is how ,dickens     
tells the story4  ,the tumbrils arrive  
at the guillotine4 ,the little          
seamstress is ordered to go first4      
',they solemnly bless each other4 ,the  
thin hand does not tremble as he        
releases it4 ,nothing worse than a      
sweet1 bright constancy is in the       
patient face4 ,she is gone4 ,the        
knitting women1 who count the fallen    
heads1 murmur twenty-two4 ,and then--   
',i am the ,resurrection and the ,life2 
he that believeth in ,me1 though he were
 dead1 yet shall he live2 and whosoever 
liveth and believeth in ,me shall never 
die4'  ,they said of him about the city 
that night that it was the peacefullest 
man's face ever beheld there4 ,many     
added that he looked sublime and        

prophetic4  ,i am the ,resurrection6 ,o 
,grave1 where is thy victory8  ,i am the
 ,life6 ,o ,death1 where is thy sting8  
,,iv  ,but there was more in ,sydney    
,carton's experience than we have yet   
seen4 ,it happens that this great saying
 about the ,resurrection and the ,life  
is not only ,sydney ,carton's text2 it  
is ,frank ,bullen's text2 and ,frank    
,bullen's experience may help us to a   
deeper perception of ,sydney ,carton's4 
,in his ,with ,christ at ,sea1 ,frank   
,bullen has a chapter entitled ',the    
,dawn4' ,it is the chapter in which he  
describes his conversion4 ,he tells how1
 at a meeting held in a sail-loft at    
,port ,chalmers1 in ,new ,zealand1 he   
was profoundly impressed4 ,after the    
service1 a ,christian worker--whom ,i   
myself knew well--engaged him in        
conversation4 ,he opened a ,new         
,testament and read these words3 ',i am 
the ,resurrection and the ,life2 he that
 believeth in ,me1 though he were dead1 
yet shall he live2 and whosoever liveth 

and believeth in ,me shall never die4'  
,the earnest little gentleman pointed   
out the insistence on faith3 the phrase 
'believeth in ,me' occurs twice in the  
text3 faith and life go together4 ,would
 ,frank ,bullen exercise that faith8    
',every word spoken by the little man   
went right to my heart1' ,mr4 ,bullen   
assures us1 'and1 when he ceased1 there 
was an appeal in his eyes that was even 
more eloquent than his words4 ,but      
beyond the words and the look was the   
interpretation of them to me by some    
mysterious agency beyond my             
comprehension4 ,for1 in a moment1 the   
hidden mystery was made clear to me1 and
 ,i said quietly1 ,i see1 sir2 and ,i   
believe6 ,let us thank ,god6 answered   
the little man1 and together we knelt   
down by the bench4 ,there was no        
extravagant joy1 no glorious bursting   
into light and liberty1 such as ,i have 
read about as happening on those        
occasions2 it was the satisfaction of   
having found one's way after long       

groping in darkness and misery--the way 
that led to peace4'  ,now the question  
is3 did those words--the words that came
 with such power to ,frank ,bullen in   
the ,new ,zealand sail-loft1 and to     
,sydney ,carton in the ,paris           
streets--have the same effect upon both8
 ,did they lead both of them to         
penitence and faith and peace8 ,i think 
they did4 ,let us return to ,sydney     
,carton as the sun is rising on that    
memorable morning on which he sees the  
text everywhere4 ,he leaves the streets 
in which he has wandered by moonlight   
and walks beside a stream4  ',a         
trading-boat1 with a sail of the        
softened color of a dead leaf1 glided   
into his view1 floated by him1 and died 
away4 ,as its silent track in the water 
disappeared1 the prayer that had broken 
up out of his heart for a merciful      
consideration of all his poor           
blindnesses and errors ended in the     
words3 ,i am the ,resurrection and the  
,life4'  ',he that believeth in ,me 444 

whosoever believeth in ,me6'--the       
insistent demand for faith4  ',he that  
believeth in ,me6'--,sydney ,carton     
believed and found peace4  ',he that    
believeth in ,me6'--,frank ,bullen      
believed and found peace4  ,paul has a  
classical passage in which he shows that
 those who have passed through          
experiences such as these1 have         
themselves 'risen with ,christ into     
newness of life4'  ,risen with ,christ6 
,they have found the ,resurrection6     
,newness of life6 ,they have found the  
,life6  ,in his ,death in the ,desert1  
,browning describes the attempts that   
were made to revive the sinking man4 ,it
 seemed quite hopeless4 ,the most that  
he would do was--    ,to smile a little1
 as a sleeper does1   ,if any dear one  
call him1 touch his face--   ,and smiles
 and loves1 but will not be disturbed4  
,then1 all at once1 the boy who had been
 assisting in these proceedings1 moved  
by some swift inspiration1 sprang from  
his knees and proclaimed a text3 ',i am 

the ,resurrection and the ,life6' ,as if
 by magic1 consciousness revisited the  
prostrate form2 the man opened his eyes2
 sat up2 stared about him2 and then     
began to speak4 ,a wondrous virtue      
seemed to lurk in the majestic words    
that the boy recited4 ,by that virtue   
,sydney ,carton1 ,frank ,bullen1 and a  
host of others passed from death into   
life everlasting4   ,v  ,i began by     
saying that it is a great thing--a very 
great thing--to be able to save those   
you love by dying for them4  ,i close by
 stating the companion truth4 ,it is a  
great thing--a very great thing--to have
 been died for4  ,on the last page of   
his book ,dickens tells us what ,sydney 
,carton would have seen and said if1 on 
the scaffold1 it had been given him to  
read the future4  ',i see1' he would    
have exclaimed1 ',i see the lives for   
which ,i lay down my life--peaceful1    
useful1 prosperous and happy--in that   
,england which ,i shall see no more4 ,i 
see her with a child upon her bosom who 

bears my name4 ,i see that ,i hold a    
sanctuary in all their hearts1 and in   
the hearts of their descendants1        
generations hence4 ,i see her1 an old   
woman1 weeping for me on the anniversary
 of this day4 ,i see her and her        
husband1 their course done1 lying side  
by side in their last earthly bed2 and  
,i know that each was not more honored  
and held sacred in the other's soul than
 ,i was in the souls of both6'  ',i see 
that ,i hold a sanctuary in all their   
hearts6'--it is a lovely phrase4  ,it is
 a great thing--a very great thing--to  
have been died for6  ,wherefore let each
 man be at some pains to build in his   
heart a sanctuary to ,him who1 for us   
men and for our salvation1 laid down    
,his life with a song6     ,v           
,,ebenezer ,,erskine',s ,,text   ,i  ,it
 is a lovely ,sunday afternoon in the   
early summer of the year #afij4 ,the    
graceful and heathery path that winds   
its way along the banks of the ,tweed1  
from the stately ruins of ,melrose to   

the crumbling gables of ,dryburgh1 is in
 its glory4 ,the wooded track by the    
waterside is luxuriating in bright      
sunshine1 glowing colors and soft       
shadows4 ,we are traversing one of the  
most charming and romantic districts    
that even ,scotland can present4 ,here  
'every field has its battle1 every      
rivulet its song4' ,more than a century 
hence1 this historic neighborhood is    
destined to furnish the home1 and fire  
the fancy1 of ,sir ,walter ,scott2 and  
here1 beneath the vaulted aisle of      
,dryburgh's ancient abbey1 he will find 
his last resting-place4 ,but that time  
is not yet4 ,even now1 however1 in      
#afij1 the hoary cloister is only a     
battered and weatherbeaten fragment4 ,it
 is almost covered by the branches of   
the trees that1 planted right against   
the walls1 have spread their limbs like 
creepers over the mossy ruins1 as though
 endeavoring to protect the venerable   
pile4 ,and here1 sitting on a huge slab 
that has fallen from the broken arch    

above1 is a small boy of ten4 ,his name 
is ,ebenezer ,erskine2 he is the son of 
the minister of ,chirnside4 ,like his   
father1 he was born here at ,dryburgh2  
and to-day the two are revisiting the   
neighborhood round which so many        
memories cluster4 ,this morning the     
father1 the ,rev4 ,henry ,erskine1 has  
been catechizing a group of children at 
the kirk4 ,he selected the questions in 
the ,shorter ,catechism that relate to  
the ,ten ,commandments2 and the very    
first of the answers that his father    
then taught him has made a profound     
impression on ,ebenezer's mind4 ,the    
forty-third question runs3 ',what is the
 preface to the ,ten ,commandments8'    
,and the answer is3 ',the preface to the
 ,ten ,commandments is in these words3  
,i am the ,lord thy ,god which have     
brought thee out of the ,land of ,egypt1
 out of the house of bondage4' ,other   
questions follow1 and they1 with their  
attendant answers1 have been duly       
memorized4 ,but they have failed to hold

 his thought4 ,this one1 however1       
refuses to be shaken off4 ,he has1 quite
 involuntarily1 repeated it to himself a
 hundred times as he pushed his way     
through the heather to the mossy abbey4 
,it sounds in his ears like a claim1 a  
challenge1 an insistent and imperative  
demand4  ,i am the ,lord6  ,i am thy    
,god6  ,the ,lord6 ,thy ,god6  ,it is   
his first realization of the fact that  
he is not altogether his own4   ,,ii    
,eighteen years have passed4 ,he is now 
the minister of the ,portmoak parish4   
,but it is a poor business4 ',i began my
 ministry1' he says1 'without much zeal1
 callously and mechanically1 being      
swallowed up in unbelief and in         
rebellion against ,god4' ,he feels no   
enthusiasm for the ,bible2 indeed1 the  
,new ,testament positively wearies him4 
,his sermons are long and formal2 he    
learns them by heart and repeats them   
parrot-fashion1 taking care to look1 not
 into the faces of his people1 but at a 
certain nail in the opposite wall4      

,happily for himself and for the world1 
he has by this time married a wife to   
whom the truth is no stranger4 ,for     
years1 poor ,mrs4 ,erskine has wept in  
secret over her husband's unregenerate  
heart and unspiritual ministry4 ,but now
 a terrible sickness lays her low4 ,her 
brain is fevered2 she raves in her      
delirium2 her words are wild and        
passionate4 ,yet they are words that    
smite her husband's conscience and      
pierce his very soul4 ',at last1' so    
runs the diary1 'the ,lord was pleased  
to calm her spirit and give her a sweet 
serenity of mind4 ,this1 ,i think1 was  
the first time that ever ,i felt the    
,lord touching my heart in a sensible   
manner4 ,her distress and her           
deliverance were blessed to me4 ,some   
few weeks after1 she and ,i were sitting
 together in my study1 and while we were
 conversing about the things of ,god1   
the ,lord was pleased to rend the veil  
and to give me a glimmering view of     
salvation which made my soul acquiesce  

in ,christ as the new and living way to 
glory4' ,the old text comes back to him4
  ',i am the ,lord thy ,god6'  ',i am   
the ,lord thy ,god6'  ,once more it     
sounds like a claim4 ,and this time he  
yields4 ,he makes his vow in writing4   
',i offer myself up1 soul and body1 unto
 ,god the ,father1 ,son and ,holy       
,ghost4 ,i flee for shelter to the blood
 of ,jesus4 ,i will live to ,him2 ,i    
will die to ,him4 ,i take heaven and    
earth to witness that all ,i am and all 
,i have are ,his4'  ,thus1 on ,august   
#bf1 #agjh1 ,ebenezer ,erskine makes his
 covenant4 ',that night1' he used to    
say1 ',i got my head out of ,time into  
,eternity6'   ,,iii  ,ten more years    
have passed4 ,it is now #agah2 ,ebenezer
 ,erskine is thirty-eight4 ,filled with 
concern for the souls of his people at  
,portmoak1 he preaches a sermon on the  
text that had played so great a part in 
bringing his own spirit out of bondage4 
',i am the ,lord thy ,god6'  ',i am the 
,lord thy ,god6'  ,as he preaches1 the  

memory of his own experience rushes back
 upon him4 ,his soul catches fire4 ,he  
is one moment persuasive and the next   
peremptory4 ,no sermon that he ever     
preached made a greater impression on   
his congregation2 and1 when it was      
printed1 it proved to be the most       
effective and fruitful of all his       
publications4   ,,iv  ,five and thirty  
further years have run their course4    
,mr4 ,erskine is now seventy-three4 ,he 
has passed through the fires of         
persecution1 and1 in days of tumult and 
unrest1 has proved himself a leader whom
 the people have delighted1 at any cost1
 to follow4 ,but his physical frame is  
exhausted4 ,an illness overtakes him    
which1 continuing for over a year1 at   
last proves fatal4 ,his elders drop in  
from time to time to read and pray with 
him4 ,to-day one of them1 the senior    
member of the little band1 is moved1 in 
taking farewell of his dying minister1  
to ask a question of him4 ,after        
grasping the sick man's hand and moving 

towards the door1 a sudden impulse      
seizes him and he returns to the        
bedside4  ',you have often given us good
 advice1 ,mr4 ,erskine1' he says1 'as to
 what we should do with our souls in    
life and in death2 may ,i ask what you  
are now doing with your own8'  ',i am   
just doing with it1' the old man        
replies1 'what ,i did forty years ago2  
,i am resting it on that word1 ,i am the
 ,lord thy ,god6'   ,v  ,now what was   
it1 ,i wonder1 that ,ebenezer ,erskine  
saw in this string of monosyllables as  
he sat on the fallen slab beside the    
ruined abbey in #afij1 as he sat        
conversing with his convalescent wife in
 #agjh1 as he preached with such passion
 in #agah1 and as he lay dying in #agec8
 ,what1 to him1 was the significance of 
that great sentence that1 as the        
catechism says1 forms 'the preface to   
the ,ten ,commandments'8 ,ebenezer      
,erskine saw1 underlying the words1 two 
tremendous principles4 ,they convinced  
him that the ,center must always be     

greater than the ,circumference and they
 convinced him that the ,positive must  
always be greater than the ,negative4   
,the ,center must always be greater than
 the ,circumference1 for1 without the   
center1 there can be no circumference4  
,and there1 in the very first word of   
this 'preface to the ,ten               
,commandments1' stands the august center
 around which all the mandates revolve4 
',i am the ,lord thy ,god4' ',i have    
many times essayed1' ,luther tells us in
 his ,table-,talk1 'thoroughly to       
investigate the ,ten ,commandments2 but 
at the very outset--,i am the ,lord thy 
,god--,i stuck fast4 ,that single word  
,i put me to a non-plus4' ,i am not     
surprised4 ,the man who would enter this
 ,palace of ,ten ,chambers will find    
,god awaiting him on the threshold2 and 
he must make up his mind as to his      
relationship with ,him before he can    
pass on to investigate the interior of  
the edifice4 ,in learning his ,shorter  
,catechism that ,sunday morning at      

,dryburgh1 ,ebenezer ,erskine1 then a   
boy of ten1 had come face to face with  
,god2 and he felt that he dared not     
proceed to the ,circumference until his 
heart was in harmony with the ,center4  
,,vi  ,he felt1 too1 that the ,positive 
must precede the ,negative4 ,the person 
of the most ,high must come before the  
precepts of the ,most ,high2 the ,thou  
,shalts must come before the ,thou      
,shalt ,nots4 ,the superstructure of a  
personal religion cannot be reared on a 
foundation of negatives4 ,life can only 
be constructed positively4 ,the soul    
cannot flourish on a principle of       
subtraction2 it can only prosper on a   
principle of addition4 ,it is at this   
point that we perpetrate one of our     
commonest blunders4 ,between ,christmas 
,day and ,new ,year's ,day1 we          
invariably frame a variety of good      
resolutions2 we register a number of    
excellent resolves4 ,but1 for the most  
part1 they come to nothing2 and they    
come to nothing because they are so     

largely negative4 ',i will never again  
do such-and-such a thing'2 ',i will     
never again behave in such-and-such a   
way'2 and so on4 ,we have failed to     
discover the truth that gripped the soul
 of ,ebenezer ,erskine that day at      
,dryburgh4 ,he saw1 as he repeated to   
himself his catechism1 that the ,ten    
,commandments consist of three parts4   
7#a7 ,the ,preface--',i am the ,lord thy
 ,god6'   7#b7 ,the ,precepts--',thou   
shalt 444'   7#c7 ,the                  
,prohibitions--',thou shall not 444'    
,our ,new ,year's resolutions assume    
that we should put third things first4  
,we are wrong4 ,as ,ebenezer ,erskine   
saw1 we must put the ,person before the 
,precepts1 and the ,precepts before the 
,prohibitions4 ,the ,center must come   
before the ,circumference2 the ,positive
 before the ,negative4  ,when1 at the   
end of ,december1 we pledge ourselves so
 desperately to do certain things no    
more1 we entirely forget that our worst 
offenses do not consist in outraging the

 ,thou ,shalt ,nots2 our worst offenses 
consist in violating the ,thou ,shalts4 
,the revolt of the soul against the     
divine ,prohibitions is as nothing      
compared with the revolt of the soul    
against the divine ,precepts2 just as   
the revolt of the soul against the      
divine ,precepts is as nothing compared 
with the revolt of the soul against the 
,divine ,person4 ,it is by a flash of   
real spiritual insight that1 in the     
,general ,confession in the ,church of  
,england ,prayer ,book1 the clause1 ',we
 have left undone those things which we 
ought to have done1' precedes the       
clause1 ',and we have done those things 
which we ought not to have done4' ,in   
his ,ecce ,homo1 ,sir ,john ,seeley has 
pointed out the radical difference      
between the villains of the parables and
 the villains that figure in all other  
literature4 ,in the typical novel the   
villain is a man who does what he ought 
not to do2 in the tales that ,jesus told
 the villain is a man who leaves undone 

what he ought to have done4 ',the sinner
 whom ,christ denounces1' says ,sir     
,john1 'is he who has done nothing2 the 
priest and the ,levite who passed by on 
the other side2 the rich man who allowed
 the beggar to lie unhelped at his gate2
 the servant who hid in a napkin the    
talent intrusted to him2 the            
unprofitable hireling who did only what 
it was his duty to do4' ,christ's       
villains are the men who sin against the
 ,person and the ,precepts of the ,most 
,high2 he scarcely notices the men who  
violate the ,prohibitions4 ,yet it is of
 the ,prohibitions that1 when ,new      
,years come1 we think so much4          
,at vesper-tide1   ,one virtuous and    
pure in heart did pray1   ',since none  
,i wronged in deed or word to-day1      
,from whom should ,i crave pardon8      
,master1 say4'        ,a voice replied3 
',from the sad child whose joy thou hast
 not planned2   ,the goaded beast whose 
friend thou didst not stand2   ,the rose
 that died for water from thy hand4'    

,during a ministry of nearly thirty     
years1 it has been my privilege and duty
 to deal with men and women of all kinds
 and conditions4 ,i have attended       
hundreds of deathbeds4 ,in reviewing    
those experiences to-day1 ,i cannot     
remember a single case of a man who     
found it difficult to believe that ,god 
could forgive those things that he ought
 not to have done and had done2 and ,i  
cannot recall a single case of a man who
 found it easy to believe that ,god     
could forgive those things that he ought
 to have done but had left undone4 ,it  
is our sins against the divine ,precepts
 that sting most venomously at the last3
    ',the sad1 sad child whose joy thou 
hast not planned2   ,the goaded beast   
whose friend thou didst not stand2      
,the rose that died for water from thy  
hand6'  ,ebenezer ,erskine saw that day 
at ,dryburgh that he must recognize the 
inspired order4 ,he must bow first of   
all to the authority of the ,divine     
,person2 he must recognize the          

obligations involved in the ,divine     
,precepts2 and1 after this1 he must     
eschew those things that are forbidden  
by the ,divine ,prohibitions4 ,that     
order he never forgot4   ,,vii  ,george 
,macdonald tells us how1 when the       
,marquis of ,lossie was dying1 he sent  
post-haste for ,mr4 ,graham1 the devout 
schoolmaster4 ,mr4 ,graham knew his man 
and went cautiously to work4  ',are you 
satisfied with yourself my lord8'  ',no1
 by ,god6'  ',you would like to be      
better8'  ',yes2 but how is a poor devil
 to get out of this infernal scrape8'   
',keep the commandments6'  ',that's it1 
of course2 but there's no time6'  ',if  
there were but time to draw another     
breath1 there would be time to begin6'  
',how am ,i to begin8 ,which am ,i to   
begin with8'  ',there is one commandment
 which includes all the rest6'  ',which 
is that8'  ',believe on the ,lord ,jesus
 ,christ1 and thou shalt be saved6'     
,what did the schoolmaster mean8 ,he    
meant that the ,person must precede the 

,precepts1 as the ,precepts must precede
 the ,prohibitions2 he was insisting on 
the divine order2 that was all4 ,and ,i 
feel confident that that was the burden 
of that powerful sermon that ,ebenezer  
,erskine preached to his people at      
,portmoak in #agah4 ,his last illness1  
as ,i have said1 continued for twelve   
months4 ,it was in its earlier stages   
that the old elder asked his question   
and received his minister's testimony   
concerning the text4 ,a year later ,mr4 
,erskine referred to the words again4   
,on the morning of the first of ,june1  
he awoke from a brief sleep1 and1 seeing
 his daughter1 ,mrs4 ,fisher1 sitting   
reading by his bedside1 he asked her the
 name of the book4  ',i am reading one  
of your own sermons1 father6'  ',which  
one8'  ',the one on ,i am the ,lord thy 
,god6'  ',ah1 lass1' he exclaimed1 his  
face lighting up1 as a wave of sacred   
memories swept over him1 'that is the   
best sermon ever ,i preached6'  ,a few  
minutes later he closed his eyes1       

slipped his hand under his cheek1       
composed himself on his pillow1 and     
ceased to breathe4 ,the noble spirit of 
,ebenezer ,erskine was with ,god4       
,ebenezer ,erskine reminds me of his    
great predecessor1 ,samuel ,rutherford4 
,when ,rutherford was staying for a     
while at the house of ,james ,guthrie1  
the maid was surprised at hearing a     
voice in his room4 ,she had supposed he 
was alone4 ,moved by curiosity1 she     
crept to his door4 ,she then discovered 
that ,rutherford was in prayer4 ,he     
walked up and down the room1 exclaiming1
 ',o ,lord1 make me to believe in       
,thee6' ,then1 after a pause1 he moved  
to and fro again1 crying1 ',o ,lord1    
make me to love ,thee6' ,and1 after a   
second rest1 he rose again1 praying1 ',o
 ,lord1 make me to keep all ,thy        
commandments6' ,rutherford1 like        
,erskine a generation later1 had grasped
 the spiritual significance of the      
divine order4  ',make me to believe in  
,thee6'--the commandment that1 as the   

schoolmaster told the ,marquis1 includes
 all the commandments6  ',make me to    
love ,thee6'--for love1 as ,jesus told  
the rich young ruler1 is the fulfilment 
of the whole law4  ',make me to obey all
 ,thy commandments6'  ,the man who      
learns the ,ten ,commandments at the    
school of ,samuel ,rutherford or at the 
school of ,ebenezer ,erskine will see a 
shining path that runs from ,mount      
,sinai right up to the ,cross and on    
through the gates of pearl into the     
,city of ,god4     ,,vi  ,,doctor       
,,davidson',s ,,text   ,i  ,there are   
only two things worth mentioning in     
connection with ,dr4 ,davidson1 but they
 are both of them very beautiful4 ,the  
one was his life3 the other was his     
death4 ,ian ,maclaren tells us that the 
old doctor had spent practically all his
 days as minister at ,drumtochty4 ,he   
was the father of all the folk in the   
glen4 ,he was consulted about           
everything4 ,three generations of young 
people had1 in turn1 confided to his    

sympathetic ear the story of their loves
 and hopes and fears2 rich and poor had 
alike found in him a guide in the day of
 perplexity and a comforter in the hour 
of sorrow4 ,and now it is ,christmas    
,day--the doctor's last ,christmas--and 
a ,sunday4 ,the doctor had preached as  
usual in the kirk2 had trudged through  
the snow to greet with seasonable wishes
 and gifts one or two people who might  
be feeling lonely or desolate2 and now1 
the day's work done1 was entertaining   
,drumsheugh at the manse4 ,all at once1 
he began to speak of his ministry1      
lamenting that he had not done better   
for his people1 and declaring that1 if  
he were spared1 he intended to preach   
more frequently about the ,lord ,jesus  
,christ4  ',you and ,i1 ,drumsheugh1    
will have to go a long journey soon1 and
 give an account of our lives in        
,drumtochty4 ,perhaps we have done our  
best as men can1 and ,i think we have   
tried2 but there are many things we     
might have done otherwise1 and some we  

ought not to have done at all4 ,it seems
 to me now1 the less we say in that day 
of the past1 the better4 ,we shall wish 
for mercy rather than justice1          
and'--here the doctor looked earnestly  
over his glasses at his elder--'we would
 be none the worse1 ,drumsheugh1 of a   
,friend to say a good word for us both  
in the ,great ,court6'  ',a've thocht   
that masel'--it was an agony for        
,drumsheugh to speak--'a've thocht that 
masel mair than aince4 ,weelum ,mac,lure
 was ettlin' aifter the same thing the  
nicht he slippit awa1 and gin ony man   
cud hae stude on his ain feet yonder1 it
 was ,weelum4'  ,it was the doctor's    
last conversation4 ,when his old servant
 entered the room next morning1 he found
 his master sitting silent and cold in  
his chair4  ',we need a ,friend in the  
,great ,court6' said the doctor4  ',a've
 thocht that masel6' replied            
,drumsheugh4  ',weelum ,mac,lure was    
ettlin' after the same thing the nicht  
he slippit awa6'  ',for there is one    

,god1 and one ,mediator between ,god and
 men1 the ,man ,christ ,jesus4'   ,,ii  
,my ,bible contains two stories--one    
near its beginning and one near its     
end--which to-day ,i must lay side by   
side4 ,the first is the story of a man  
who feels that he is suffering more than
 his share of the slings and arrows of  
outrageous fortune4 ,he thinks of ,god  
as very high and very holy2 too wise to 
err and too good to be unkind2 yet he   
cannot shake from his mind the          
conviction that ,god has misunderstood  
him4 ,and1 in his agony1 he cries out   
for one who can arbitrate between his   
tortured soul and the ,god who seems to 
be so angry with him4 ,oh1 for one a    
little less divine than ,god1 yet a     
little less human than himself1 who     
could act as an adjudicator1 an umpire1 
a mediator between them6 ,but neither   
the heavens above nor the earth beneath 
can produce one capable of ending the   
painful controversy4 ',there is no      
daysman who can come between us and lay 

his hand upon us both6'  ,a ,god6  ,but 
no ,mediator6  ,that is the first story4
  ,the second story1 the story from the 
end of the ,bible1 is the story of an   
old minister whose life-work is         
finished4 ,he writes1 in a reminiscent  
vein1 to a young minister who is just   
beginning2 and earnestly refers to his  
own ordination4 ',whereunto1' he asks1  
'was ,i ordained a preacher and an      
apostle and a teacher of the ,gentiles  
in faith and verity8' ,what is his      
message8 ,he answers his own question4  
,it is this4 ',for there is one ,god1   
and one ,mediator between ,god and men1 
the ,man ,christ ,jesus4'  ,a ,god6     
,and a ,mediator6  ,job needed a ,friend
 in the ,great ,court2 but1 alas1 he    
could not find one6  ,paul tells        
,timothy that he was ordained for no    
other purpose than to point men to ,him 
who alone can intercede4   ,,iii  ',one 
,god--but no ,mediator6' cries ,job4    
',one ,god--and one ,mediator6' exclaims
 ,paul4  ,in one respect these two      

thinkers1 standing with a long1 long    
file of centuries between them1 are in  
perfect agreement4 ,they both feel that 
if there is a ,god--and only one--no man
 living can afford to drift into        
alienation from ,him4 ,if there is no   
,god1 ,i can live as ,i list and do as  
,i please2 ,i am answerable to nobody4  
,if there are many gods1 ,i can offend  
one or two of them without involving    
myself in uttermost disaster and        
despair4 ,but if there is one ,god1 and 
only one1 everything depends upon my    
relationship with ,him4 ,and if ,i am   
already estranged from ,him1 and if     
there be no ,mediator by whose good     
offices a reconciliation may be         
effected1 then am ,i of all men most    
miserable4  ',one ,god--but no          
,mediator6' cried ,job in despair4      
',one ,god--and one ,mediator6' exclaims
 ,paul1 in delight4   ,,iv  ',one       
,god--and one ,mediator6'  ,it is the   
glory of our humanity that it needs both
 the one and the other4 ,we need a ,god 

and cannot be happy till we find ,him4  
,the instinct of adoration is in our    
blood1 and we are ill at ease until we  
can find ,one at whose feet we can lay  
the tribute of our devotion4 ,we need a 
,mediator1 too1 and are at our best when
 we recognize and confess our need of   
,him4 ,it is1 ,i say1 the glory of a man
 that he can yearn for these two things4
 ,the most faithful and intelligent of  
the beasts feel no desire for either the
 one or the other4 ,we know how ,dr4    
,davidson died4 ,i said that his        
conversation with ,drumsheugh was his   
last4 ,i was mistaken4 ,his last        
conversation was with ,skye1 his dog4   
,when ,john1 the serving-man1 paid his  
usual visit to the study before he went 
to bed1 the doctor did not hear him     
enter the room4 ,he was holding converse
 with ,skye1 who was seated on a chair1 
looking very wise and deeply interested4
  ',ye're a bonnie beastie1 ,skye1'     
exclaimed the doctor1 'for a' thing ,he 
made is verra gude4 ,ye've been true and

 kind to your master1 ,skye1 and ye 'ill
 miss him if he leaves ye4 ,some day ye 
'ill die also1 and they 'ill bury ye1   
and ,i doubt that 'ill be the end o' ye1
 ,skye6 ,ye never heard o' ,god1 ,skye1 
or the ,saviour1 for ye're just a puir  
doggie2 but your master is minister of  
,drumtochty and--a sinner saved by      
grace6'  ,those were his last words4 ,in
 the morning the doctor was still       
sitting in his big chair1 and ,skye was 
fondly licking a hand that would never  
again caress him4  ,skye1 the noblest   
dog in the world1 had no sense of sin   
and no sense of grace1 no need of a ,god
 and no need of a ,saviour6  ,dr4       
,davidson1 ,skye's master1 is a sinner  
saved by grace4 ,and it is his sense of 
sin and his sense of grace1 his need of 
a ,god and his need of a ,saviour1 that 
remove him by whole infinities from the 
faithful brute on the chair4 ',a        
sinner1' as our fathers used to sing3   
,a sinner is a sacred thing1   ,the     
,holy ,ghost hath made him so4  ,when   

the soul feels after ,god1 and the heart
 cries out for a ,saviour1 it is proof  
positive of the divinity that dwells    
within us4   ,v  ',one ,god--but no     
,mediator6' sighs ,job4  ',one ,god--and
 one ,mediator6' cries ,paul4  ,none6   
,one6 ,the difference between none and  
one is a difference of millions4 ,none  
means nothing1 one means everything4    
,none means failure3 one means felicity4
 ,none means despair3 one means delight4
 ,none means perdition3 one means       
paradise4 ,the difference between 'no   
,mediator' and 'one ,mediator' is a     
difference that can never be worked out 
by arithmetic4  ',one ,god'--and only   
one6  ',and one ,mediator6'--only one6  
,but one is enough4 ,it is only in the  
small things of life that ,i long for a 
selection2 in the great things of life  
,i only long for satisfaction4 ,when my 
appetite is sated1 and food is almost a 
matter of indifference to me1 ,i like to
 be invited to choose between this1     
that1 and the other4 ,but when ,i am    

starving1 ,i do not hanker after a      
choice4 ,i do not want to choose4 ,put  
food before me1 and ,i am content4 ,if  
,i am taking a stroll for the mere      
pleasure of walking1 ,i like to come to 
a place where several roads meet1 and to
 select the path that seems to be most  
tempting4 ,but if1 weary and travelworn1
 ,i am struggling desperately homewards1
 ,i do not want to have to choose my    
path4 ,i dread the place where many     
roads meet--the place where ,i may go   
astray4 ,my felicity lies in simplicity3
 ,i want but one road if that road leads
 home4 ,robinson ,crusoe climbs the     
hills of his island solitude and shades 
his eyes with his hand as he sweeps the 
watery horizon4 ,he is looking for a    
sail4 ,one ship will do3 he does not    
want a fleet4 ,there is but one way of  
salvation for my storm-tossed soul3     
there is but one ,name given under      
heaven among men whereby we must be     
saved3 'there is one ,god and one       
,mediator between ,god and ,men'--and   

one is ample4 ,the difference between   
'no ,mediator' and 'one ,mediator' is a 
difference that has all eternity within 
it4   ,,vi  ,but it is time that we came
 to close quarters4 ,there are two      
people in every congregation with whom  
the minister finds it very difficult to 
deal4 ,there is the man upon whose      
conscience sin lies very heavily1 and   
there is the man upon whose soul it sits
 very lightly4  ,the first of these two 
perplexing individuals is afraid to     
approach the ,mediator4 ,he feels it to 
be a kind of presumption4 ,it is        
difficult to argue with him4 ,it is     
better to introduce him to ,robert      
,murray ,mc,cheyne4 ,mc,cheyne had the  
same feeling4 ',i am ashamed to go to   
,christ1' he says4 ',i feel1 when ,i    
have sinned1 that it would do no good to
 go4 ,it seems to be making ,christ a   
,minister of ,sin to go straight from   
the swine-trough to the best robe4' ,but
 he came to see that there is no other  
way1 and that all his plausible         

reasonings were but the folly of his own
 beclouded heart4 ',the weight of my    
sin1' he writes1 'should act like the   
weight of a clock2 the heavier it is1   
the faster it makes it go6'  ,and the   
second of these difficult cases--the man
 upon whose conscience sin sits so      
lightly--,i shall introduce to ,dr4     
,mac,lure4 ,as ,drumsheugh told ,dr4    
,davidson on that snowy ,christmas      
night1 'if ever there was a man who     
could have stood on his own feet in the 
,day of ,judgment1 it was ,william      
,mac,lure4' ,through all his long years 
in the glen1 the old doctor had simply  
lived for others4 ,as long as he could  
cure his patients he was content2 and he
 was never happier than in handing the  
sick child back to its parents or in    
restoring the wife to the husband who   
had despaired of her recovery4 ,if ever 
there was a man who could have stood on 
his own feet in the ,day of ,judgment1  
it was ,william ,mac,lure4 ,yet when the
 old doctor came to the end of his long 

journey1 his soul was feeling after the 
same thing--a ,friend in the ,great     
,court1 an ,intercessor1 a ,mediator    
between ,god and men6  ',we have done   
our best1' said the old minister1 in    
that last talk with his elder1 'we have 
done our best1 but the less we say about
 it the better4 ,we need a ,friend to   
say a good word for us in the ,great    
,court4'  ',a've thocht that masel1'    
replied the agonized elder1 'mair than  
aince4 ,weelum ,mac,lure was 'ettling   
aifter the same thing the nicht he      
slippit awa1 an' gin ony man cud hae    
stude on his ain feet yonder1 it was    
,weelum4'  ,and for minister and elder  
and doctor--and me--'there is one ,god  
and one ,mediator between ,god and men1 
the man ,christ ,jesus4'     ,,vii      
,,henry ,,martyn',s ,,text   ,i  ,with  
,henry ,martyn the making of history    
became a habit1 a habit so inveterate   
that not even death itself could break  
him of it4 ,he only lived to be         
thirty-two2 but he made vast quantities 

of history in that meager handful of    
years4 ',his1' says ,sir ,james         
,stephen1 'is the one heroic name which 
adorns the annals of the ,english church
 from the days of ,elizabeth to our     
own4' ,and ,dr4 ,george ,smith1 his     
biographer1 boasts that ,martyn's life  
constitutes itself the priceless and    
perpetual heritage of all               
,english-speaking ,christendom1 whilst  
the native churches of ,india1 ,arabia1 
,persia and ,anatolia will treasure the 
thought of it through all time to come4 
,appropriately enough1 ,macaulay1 who   
dedicated his brilliant powers to the   
great task of worthily recording the    
history that other men had made1        
composed the epitaph for that lonely    
,eastern tomb4    ,here ,martyn lies6   
,in manhood's early bloom   ,the        
,christian hero found a ,pagan tomb3    
,religion1 sorrowing o'er her favorite  
son1   ,points to the glorious trophies 
which he won4   ,eternal trophies1 not  
with slaughter red1   ,not stained with 

tears by hopeless captives shed2   ,but 
trophies of the ,cross4 ,for that dear  
,name   ,through every form of danger1  
death and shame1   ,onward he journeyed 
to a happier shore1   ,where danger1    
death and shame are known no more4  ,for
 more than a hundred years the bones of 
,henry ,martyn have reposed in that     
far-off ,oriental sepulcher2 but1 as    
though he had never heard of his own    
decease1 he goes on making history      
still4 ,henry ,martyn died seven years  
before ,george ,eliot was born1 and they
 had very little in common4 ,but1 in the
 novel which ,dr4 ,marcus ,dods         
described as 'one of the greatest       
religious books ever written1' ,george  
,eliot makes the spiritual crisis in the
 experience of her storm-beaten and     
distracted heroine to turn on the       
perusal of the ,life of ,henry ,martyn4 
,when ,janet ,dempster1 clad only in her
 thin nightdress1 was driven at dead of 
night from her husband's home1 she took 
refuge with good old ,mrs4 ,pettifer1   

and fell into a stupor of utter misery  
and black despair4 ,nothing seemed to   
rouse her4 ,it chanced1 however1 that   
,mrs4 ,pettifer was a subscriber of the 
,paddiford ,lending ,library4 ,from that
 village treasure-trove she had borrowed
 the biography that was lying on the    
table when1 like a hunted deer1 poor    
,janet took shelter in her home4 ,after 
a day or two1 ,janet picked up the book1
 dipped into it1 and at length 'became  
so arrested by that pathetic missionary 
story that she could not leave it       
alone4' ,it broke the spell of her      
stupor1 gave her a new hold upon life1  
awoke her dormant energy1 and moved her 
to renewed action4  ',i must go1' she   
said4 ',i feel ,i must be doing         
something for someone2 ,i must not be a 
mere useless log any longer4 ,i've been 
reading about that wonderful ,henry     
,martyn wearing himself out for other   
people1 and ,i sit thinking of nothing  
but myself6 ,i must go6 ,good-bye6'     
,and1 like a frightened dove that1      

having been driven to shelter by a hawk1
 recovers from its terror and again     
takes wing1 off she went6 ,janet        
,dempster is all the more real because  
she is unreal4 ,she is all the more a   
substance because she is only a shadow4 
,she is all the more symbolic and       
typical because she appears1 not in     
history1 but in fiction4 ,if ,i had     
found her in the realm of biography1 ,i 
might have regarded hers as an isolated 
and exceptional case4 ,but1 since ,i    
have found her in the realm of romance1 
,i can only regard her--as her creator  
intended me to regard her--as a great   
representative character4 ,she          
represents all those thousands of people
 upon whom the heroic record of ,henry  
,martyn's brief career has acted as a   
stimulant and a tonic4 ,she represents  
all those thousands of people through   
whom ,henry ,martyn is making history4  
,,ii  ,the ,gospels tell of a certain   
man who was borne of four to the feet of
 ,jesus4 ,i know his name and ,i know   

the names of the four who brought him4  
,the man's name was ,henry ,martyn1 and 
the quartet consisted of a father1 a    
sister1 an author and a minister4 ,each 
had a hand in the gracious work1 and    
each in a different way4 ,the father did
 his part accidentally1 indirectly1     
unconsciously2 the sister did her part  
designedly1 deliberately1 and of set    
purpose4 ,the author and the minister   
did their parts in the ordinary pursuit 
of their vocations2 but the author did  
his part impersonally and indirectly1   
whilst the minister did his part        
personally and face to face4 ,the       
author's shaft was from a bow drawn at a
 venture2 the minister's was carefully  
aimed4 ,he set himself to win the young 
student in his congregation1 and he     
lived to rejoice unfeignedly in his     
success4 ,let me introduce each of the  
four4  ,the ,father bore his ,corner4   
,before ,henry ,martyn left ,england1 he
 was one of the most brilliant students 
in the country1 ,senior ,wrangler of his

 ,university1 and the proud holder of   
scholarships and fellowships4 ,but1 in  
his earlier days1 he failed at one or   
two examinations1 and1 in his           
mortification1 heaped the blame upon his
 father4 ,in one of these fits of       
passion1 he bounced out of the elder    
man's presence--never to enter it again4
 ,before he could return and express    
contrition1 the father suddenly died4   
,henry's remorse was pitiful to see4    
,his heart was filled with grief and his
 eyes swollen with tears4 ,but that     
torrent of tears so cleansed those eyes 
that he was able to see1 as he had never
 seen before1 into the abysmal depths of
 his own heart4 ,he was astonished at   
the baseness and depravity he found     
there4 ,years afterwards he writes with 
emotion of the distressing discovery    
that he then made4 ',i do not remember a
 time1' he says1 'in which the          
wickedness of my heart rose to a greater
 height than it did then4 ,the          
consummate selfishness and exquisite    

instability of my mind were displayed in
 rage1 malice and envy2 in pride1       
vain-glory and contempt for all about   
me2 and in the harsh language which ,i  
used to my sister and even to my father4
 ,oh1 what an example of patience and   
mildness was he6 ,i love to think of his
 excellent qualities2 and it is the     
anguish of my heart that ,i could ever  
have been base enough and wicked enough 
to have pained him4 ,o my ,god1 why is  
not my heart doubly-agonized at the     
remembrance of all my great             
transgressions8' ,so poor ,john ,martyn1
 lying silent in his grave1 entered into
 that felicity which1 in one of her     
short poems1 ,miss ,susan ,best has so  
touchingly depicted4 ',when ,i was laid 
in my coffin1' she makes a dead man say1
    ,when ,i was laid in my coffin1     
,quite done with ,time and its fears1   
,my son came and stood beside me--      
,he hadn't been home for years2   ,and  
right on my face came dripping     ,the 
scald of his salty tears2   ,and ,i was 

glad to know his breast   ,had turned at
 last to the old home nest1   ,that ,i  
said to myself in an underbreath3       
',this is the recompense of death4'     
,the ,sister bore her ,corner4 ,in his  
letters to her he opens all his heart4  
,he is sometimes angry with her because1
 when he expected her to show delight in
 his academic triumphs1 she only        
exhibits an earnest solicitude for his  
spiritual well-being4 ,but1 in his      
better moments1 he forgave her4 ',what a
 blessing it is for me1' he writes to   
her in his twentieth year1 'what a      
blessing it is for me that ,i have such 
a sister as you1 who have been so       
instrumental in keeping me in the right 
way4' ,and1 later on1 he delights her by
 telling her that he 'has begun to      
attend more diligently to the words of  
the ,saviour and to devour them with    
delight4'  ,the ,author bore his        
,corner4 ,it was just about a hundred   
years after the birth of ,philip        
,doddridge1 and just about fifty years  

after his death1 that his book1 ,the    
,rise and ,progress of ,religion in the 
,soul1 fell into the hands of ,henry    
,martyn4 ,twenty years earlier it had   
opened the eyes of ,william ,wilberforce
 and led him to repentance4 ,doddridge's
 powerful sentences fell upon the proud 
soul of ,henry ,martyn like the lashes  
of a scourge4 ,he resented them2 he     
writhed under their condemnation2 but   
they revealed to him the desperate need 
of his heart1 and he could not shake    
from him the alarm which they excited4  
,the ,minister bore his ,corner4 ,no    
preacher in ,england was better fitted  
to appeal to the mind of ,martyn1 at    
this critical stage of his career1 than 
was the ,rev4 ,charles ,simeon1 the     
,vicar of ,trinity ,church1 ,cambridge4 
,in his concern1 the young collegian    
found himself strangely attracted to the
 services at ,trinity2 and he gradually 
acquired1 as he confessed to his sister1
 more knowledge in divine things4 ,he   
made the acquaintance1 and won the      

friendship1 of ,mr4 ,simeon1 and        
confided in him without reserve4 ',i now
 experienced1' he says1 'a real pleasure
 in religion1 being more deeply         
convinced of sin than before1 more      
earnest in fleeing to ,jesus for refuge1
 and more desirous for the renewal of my
 nature4' ,the profit was mutual4 ,for1 
many years after ,henry ,martyn's       
departure and death1 ,mr4 ,simeon kept  
in his study a portrait of the young    
student1 and he used to say that he     
could never look into that face but it  
seemed to say to him1 ',be earnest6 ,be 
earnest6'  ,and so1 to repeat the       
language of the ,gospel1 'there came    
unto ,jesus one that was borne of four1'
 and his name was ,henry ,martyn4       
,,iii  ,i cannot discover that1 up to   
this point1 any one text had played a   
conspicuous part in precipitating the   
crisis which transfigured his life4     
,but1 after this1 ,i find one sentence  
repeatedly on his lips4 ,during a       
journey a man is often too engrossed    

with the perplexities of the immediate  
present to be able to review the path as
 a whole4 ,but1 when he looks back1 he  
surveys the entire landscape in grateful
 retrospect1 and is astonished at the   
multiplicity and variety of the perils  
that he has escaped4 ,henry ,martyn had 
some such feeling4 ,when1 at the age of 
twenty-two1 he entered the ministry1 he 
was amazed at the greatness of the grace
 that had made such hallowed privileges 
and sacred duties possible to him4 ,even
 in his first sermon1 we are told1 he   
preached with a fervor of spirit and an 
earnestness of manner that deeply       
impressed the congregation4    ,he      
preached as one who ne'er should preach 
again1   ,and as a dying man to dying   
men4  ',for1' he wrote1 ',i am but a    
brand plucked from the burning4'        
,again1 when the needs of the world     
pressed like an intolerable burden upon 
his spirit1 the same thought decided his
 course4 ,on the one hand1 he saw a     
world lying in darkness and crying for  

the light4 ,on the other hand1 he saw   
all those sweet and sacred ties that    
bound him to his native land--his       
devoted people1 his admiring friends1   
and1 hardest tie of all to break1 the   
lady whom he had fondly hoped to make   
his bride4 ,here1 on the one hand1 stood
 comfort1 popularity1 success and love6 
,and here1 on the other1 stood cruel    
hardship1 endless difficulties1 constant
 loneliness1 and an early grave6 ',but  
how1' he writes1 'can ,i hesitate8 ,i am
 but a brand plucked from the burning6' 
,a brand in peril of sharing the general
 destruction6  ,a brand seen1 and       
prized1 and rescued6  ,a brand at whose 
blaze other flames might be lit6  ,a    
brand plucked from the burning6   ,,iv  
',is not this a brand plucked from the  
burning8'--it was ,john ,wesley's text4 
,to the end of his days ,john ,wesley   
preserved the picture of the fire at the
 old rectory1 the fire from which he1 as
 a child of six1 was only rescued in the
 nick of time4 ,and1 underneath the     

picture1 ,john ,wesley had written with 
his own hand the words3 ',is not this a 
brand plucked from the burning8'  ',is  
not this a brand plucked from the       
burning8'--it was ,john ,fletcher's     
text4 ,john ,wesley thought ,john       
,fletcher1 the ,vicar of ,madeley1 the  
holiest man then living4 ',i have known 
him intimately for thirty years1' says  
,mr4 ,wesley4 ',in my eighty years ,i   
have met many excellent men2 but ,i have
 never met his equal1 nor do ,i expect  
to find such another on this side of    
eternity4' ,from what source did that   
perennial stream of piety spring8 ',when
 ,i saw that all my endeavors availed   
nothing1' says ,mr4 ,fletcher1 in       
describing his conversion1 ',i almost   
gave up hope4 ,but1 ,i thought1 ,christ 
died for all2 therefore ,he died for me4
 ,he died to pluck such sinners as ,i am
 as brands from the burning6 ,i felt my 
helplessness and lay at the feet of     
,christ4 ,i cried1 coldly1 yet1 ,i      
believe1 sincerely1 ,save me1 ,lord1 as 

a brand snatched out of the fire6       
,stretch forth ,thine almighty arm and  
save ,thy lost creature by free1        
unmerited grace6'  ',is not this a brand
 plucked from the burning8'--it was     
,thomas ,olivers' text4 ,thomas ,olivers
 was one of ,wesley's veterans1 the     
author of the well-known hymn1 ',the    
,god of ,abraham praise4' ,he went one  
day to hear ,george ,whitefield preach4 
,the text was1 ',is not this a brand    
plucked from the burning8' ',when the   
sermon began1' he says1 ',i was         
certainly a dreadful enemy to ,god and  
to all that is good1 and one of the most
 profligate and abandoned young men     
living2 but1 by the time it was ended1  
,i was become a new creature4 ,for1 in  
the first place1 ,i was deeply convinced
 of the great goodness of ,god towards  
me in all my life2 particularly in that 
,he had given ,his ,son to die for me4  
,i had also a far clearer view of all my
 sins1 particularly my base ingratitude 
towards ,him4 ,these discoveries quite  

broke my heart and caused showers of    
tears to trickle down my cheeks4 ,i was 
likewise filled with an utter abhorrence
 of my evil ways1 and was much ashamed  
that ,i had ever walked in them4 ,and1  
as my heart was thus turned from all    
that is evil1 so it was powerfully      
inclined to all that is good4 ,it is not
 easy to express what strong desires ,i 
felt for ,god and ,his service2 and what
 resolutions ,i made to seek ,him and   
serve ,him in the future4 ,in           
consequence of this1 ,i broke off all my
 evil practices1 and forsook all my     
wicked and foolish companions without   
delay4 ,i gave myself up to ,god and    
,his service with my whole heart4 ,oh1  
what reason have ,i to say1 ,is not this
 a brand plucked from the burning8'     
',is not this a brand plucked from the  
burning8'--it was ,stephen ,grellet's   
text4 ,writing of his conversion1 he    
says that 'the awfulness of that day of 
,god's visitation can never cease to be 
remembered by me with peculiar gratitude

 as long as ,i possess my mental        
faculties4 ,i am as a brand plucked from
 the burning2 ,i have been rescued from 
the brink of a horrible pit6'   ,v  ,and
 it was ,henry ,martyn's text6 ',is not 
this1' he cried1 as he entered the      
ministry1 and again as he entered the   
mission field1 'is not this a brand     
plucked from the burning8'  ,a brand    
that might have perished in the general 
destruction6  ,a brand seen1 and prized1
 and rescued6  ,a brand at whose blaze  
other flames might be lit6  ,a brand    
plucked from the burning6  ',oh1 let me 
burn out for my ,god6' he cries1 still  
thinking of the brand plucked from the  
flames4 ,he plunges1 like a blazing     
torch1 into the darkness of ,india1 of  
,persia and of ,turkey4 ,he leaves the  
peoples whom he has evangelized the     
,scriptures in their own tongues4 ,seven
 short years after he left ,england1 he 
dies all alone on a foreign strand4 ',no
 kinsman is near to watch his last look 
or receive his last words4 ,no friend   

stands by his couch to whisper          
comforting words1 to close his eyes or  
wipe the death-sweat from his brow4' ,in
 the article of death1 he is alone with 
his ,lord4 ,the brand plucked from the  
blaze has soon burned out4 ,but what    
does it matter8 ,at its ardent flame a  
thousand other torches have been        
ignited2 and the lands that sat so long 
in darkness have welcomed the coming of 
a wondrous light6     ,,viii  ,,michael 
,,trevanion',s ,,text   ,i  ,michael    
,trevanion misunderstood ,paul3 that was
 the trouble4 ,michael1 so ,mark        
,rutherford tells us1 was a ,puritan of 
the ,puritans1 silent1 stern1 unbending4
 ,between his wife and himself no       
sympathy existed4 ,they had two         
children--a boy and a girl4 ,the girl   
was in every way her mother's child3 the
 boy was the image of his father4       
,michael made a companion of his son2   
took him into his own workshop2 and     
promised himself that1 come what might1 
,robert should grow up to walk in his   

father's footsteps4 ,all went well until
 ,robert ,trevanion met ,susan ,shipton4
 ,susan was one of the beauties of that 
,cornish village4 ,she had--what were   
not common in ,cornwall--light flaxen   
hair1 blue eyes1 and a rosy face1       
somewhat inclined to be plump4 ,the     
,shiptons lay completely outside        
,michael's circle4 ,they were mere      
formalists in religion1 fond of         
pleasure2 and ,susan especially was much
 given to gaiety4 ,she went to picnics  
and dances2 rowed herself about the bay 
with her friends2 and sauntered round   
the town with her father and mother on  
,sunday afternoons4 ,she was fond of    
bathing1 too1 and was a good swimmer4   
,michael hardly knew how to put his     
objection in words1 but he nevertheless 
had a horror of women who could swim4   
,it seemed to him an ungodly            
accomplishment4 ,he did not believe for 
a moment that ,paul would have          
sanctioned it4 ,that settled it for     
,michael4 ,for ,michael had unbounded   

faith in the judgment of ,paul2 and the 
tragedy of his life lay in the fact     
that1 on one important occasion1 he     
misunderstood his oracle4  ,one summer's
 morning1 ,robert saved ,susan from     
drowning4 ,she had forgotten the swirl  
of water caused by the rush of the river
 into the bay1 and had swum into the    
danger zone4 ,in three minutes ,robert  
was at her side1 had gripped her by the 
bathing dress at the back of her neck1  
and had brought her into safer water4   
,from that moment the two were often    
together2 and1 one afternoon1 ,michael  
came suddenly upon them and guessed     
their secret4 ,it nearly broke his      
heart4 ,in ,robert's attachment to      
,susan he saw--or thought he saw--the   
end of all his hopes4 ',he remembered   
what his own married life had been2 he  
always trusted that ,robert would have a
 wife who would be a help to him1 and he
 felt sure that this girl ,shipton1 with
 her pretty face and blue eyes1 had no  
brains4 ,to think that his boy should   

repeat the same inexplicable blunder1   
that he would never hear from his wife's
 lips one serious word6 ,what would she 
be if trouble came upon him8 ,she was   
not a child of ,god4 ,he did not know   
that she ever sought the ,lord4 ,she    
went to church once a day and read her  
prayers1 and that was all4 ,she was not 
one of the chosen2 she might corrupt    
,robert and he might fall away and so   
commit the sin against the ,holy ,ghost4
 ,he went to his room1 and1 shutting the
 door1 wept bitter tears4 ',o my son1   
,absalom1' he cried1 'my son1 my son    
,absalom6 ,would ,god ,i had died for   
thee1 ,o ,absalom1 my son1 my son6'  ,it
 was in these desperate straits that    
poor ,michael consulted ,paul--and      
misunderstood him4 ,it was a ,sunday    
night4 ,michael picked up the ,bible and
 turned to the ,epistle to the ,romans4 
,it was his favorite epistle4 ,he read  
the ninth chapter4 ,the third verse     
startled him4 ',i could wish that myself
 were accursed from ,christ for my      

brethren1 my kinsmen according to the   
flesh4' ,nobody need wonder that the    
words strangely affected him4 ,in his   
,table ,talk1 ,coleridge says that when 
he read this passage to a friend of his1
 a ,jew at ,ramsgate1 the old man burst 
into tears4 ',any ,jew of sensibility1' 
the poet adds1 'must be deeply impressed
 by it4' ,michael ,trevanion read the   
throbbing words again4 ',i could wish   
that myself were accursed from ,christ  
for my brethren1 my kinsmen according to
 the flesh4'  ,he laid down the ,book4  
',what did ,paul mean8 ,what could he   
mean save that he was willing to be     
damned to save those whom he loved8 ,and
 why not8 ,why should not a man be      
willing to be damned for others8        
,damnation6 ,it is awful1 horrible4     
,millions of years1 with no relief1 with
 no light from the ,most ,high1 and in  
subjection to ,his enemy6 ,and yet1 if  
it is to save--if it is to save ,robert1
 thought ,michael1 ,god give me         
strength--,i could endure it4 ,did not  

the ,son ,himself venture to risk the   
wrath of the ,father that ,he might     
redeem man8 ,what am ,i8 ,what is my    
poor self8 ,and ,michael determined that
 night that neither his life in this    
world nor in the next1 if he could      
rescue his child1 should be of any      
account4'  ,so far ,michael and ,paul   
were of one mind4 ,now for the          
divergence6 ,now for the                
misunderstanding6 ,michael questioned   
himself and his oracle further4 ',what  
could ,paul mean exactly8 ,god could not
 curse him if he did no wrong4 ,he could
 only mean that he was willing to sin1  
and be punished1 provided ,israel might 
live4 ,it was lawful then to tell a lie 
or perpetrate any evil deed in order to 
protect his child4' ,michael therefore  
took his resolution4 ,he hinted to      
,robert that ,susan's history was       
besmirched with shame4 ,he left on his  
desk--where he knew ,robert would see   
it--a fragment of an old letter         
referring to the downfall of another    

girl named ,susan4 ,michael knew that he
 was telling and acting a lie1 a        
terrible and unpardonable lie4 ,he      
firmly believed that1 in telling that   
dreadful lie1 he was damning his soul to
 all eternity4 ,but in damning his own  
soul--so he thought--he was saving his  
son's4 ,and that1 after all1 was the    
lesson that ,paul had taught him4  ,the 
rest of the story does not immediately  
concern us4 ,robert1 on seeing the      
documentary proof of ,susan's shame1 ran
 away from home4 ,michael1 overwhelmed  
with wretchedness1 attempted to drown   
himself in the swirl at the mouth of the
 river4 ,of what value was life to him1 
now that his soul was everlastingly     
lost8 ,he awoke to find himself on the  
bank1 with ,susan bending over him and  
kissing him4 ,he soon discovered that   
there was more sense in ,susan's head1  
and more grace in her heart1 than he had
 for one moment imagined4 ,he set out   
after his son2 found him2 and died in   
making his great and humiliating        

confession4 ,he had meant well1 but he  
had misunderstood4 ,he had misunderstood
 ,paul4   ,,ii  ,michael made two       
mistakes1 and they were grave and tragic
 and fatal mistakes4  ,he thought that  
good fruit could be produced from an    
evil tree4 ,there are times when it     
looks possible4 ,but it is always an    
illusion4 ,when ,i see ,michael         
,trevanion in the hour of his great     
temptation1 ,i wish ,i could introduce  
him to ,jeanie ,deans4 ,for1 in ,the    
,heart of ,midlothian1 ,sir ,walter     
,scott has outlined a very similar      
situation4 ,poor ,jeanie was tempted to 
save her wayward sister by a lie4 ,it   
was a very little lie1 a mere glossing  
over of the truth4 ,the slightest       
deviation from actual veracity1 and her 
sister's life1 which was dearer to her  
than her own1 would be saved from the   
scaffold1 and her family honor would be 
vindicated4 ,but ,jeanie could not1 and 
would not1 believe that there could be  
salvation in a lie4 ,with her gentle    

heart reproaching her1 but with her     
conscience applauding her1 she told the 
truth1 the whole truth1 and nothing but 
the truth4 ,and then she set out for    
,london4 ,along the great white road she
 trudged1 until her feet were bleeding  
and her exhausted form could scarcely   
drag itself along the dreadful miles4   
,but on she pressed1 until she saw the  
lights of ,london town2 and still on1   
overcoming every barrier1 until she     
stood before the ,queen4 ,and then she  
pleaded1 as no mere advocate could      
plead1 for ,effie4 ,with what passion1  
what entreaties1 what tears did she     
besiege the throne6 ,and1 before the    
tempest of her grief and eloquence1 the 
,queen yielded completely and gave her  
her sister's life4 ,to ,jeanie ,deans   
and to ,michael ,trevanion there came   
the same terrible ordeal2 but ,jeanie   
stood where ,michael fell4 ,that was the
 first of his two mistakes4  ,the second
 was that he thought that spiritual     
results could be engineered4 ,he fancied

 that souls could be saved by           
wire-pulling4  ',robert1' he said1 on   
the day of his death and of his bitter  
confession1 ',robert1 ,i have sinned1   
although it was for the ,lord's sake1   
and ,he has rebuked me4 ,i thought to   
take upon myself the direction of ,his  
affairs2 but ,he is wiser than ,i4 ,i   
believed ,i was sure of ,his will1 but  
,i was mistaken4 ,he knows that what ,i 
did1 ,i did for the love of your soul1  
my child2 but ,i was grievously wrong4' 
',the father1' says ,mark ,rutherford1  
'humbled himself before the son1 but in 
his humiliation became majestic2 and1 in
 after years1 when he was dead and gone1
 there was no scene in the long         
intercourse with him which lived with a 
brighter and fairer light in the son's  
memory4'   ,,iii  ,and so ,michael      
,trevanion sinned and suffered for his  
sin6 ,for my part1 ,i have no stones to 
cast at him4 ,i would rather sit at his 
feet and learn the golden lesson of his 
life4 ,for love--and especially the love

 of an earnest man for another's        
soul--covers a multitude of sins4 ,there
 come to all of us mountain moments1    
moments in which we stand on the higher 
altitudes and catch a glimpse of the    
unutterable preciousness of a human     
soul4 ,but we are disobedient to the    
heavenly vision4 ,we are like ,augustine
 ,saint ,clare in ,uncle ,tom's ,cabin4 
,he could never forget1 he said1 the    
words with which his mother impressed   
upon him the dignity and worth of the   
souls of the slaves4 ,those passionate  
sentences of hers seemed to have burnt  
themselves into his brain4 ',i have     
looked into her face with solemn awe1'  
he told ,miss ,ophelia1 'when she       
pointed to the stars in the evening and 
said to me1 ,see there1 ,auguste6 the   
poorest1 meanest soul on our place will 
be living when all those stars are gone 
for ever--will live as long as ,god     
lives6'  ',then why don't you free your 
slaves8' asked ,miss ,ophelia1 with a   
woman's practical and incisive logic4   

',i'm not equal to that6' ,saint ,clare 
replied2 and he confessed that1 through 
having proved recreant to the ideals    
that had once so clearly presented      
themselves1 he was not the man that he  
might have been4  ',i'm not equal to    
that6' said ,augustine ,saint ,clare4   
,but ,michael ,trevanion was equal to   
that--and to a great deal more4 ,he saw 
the value of his son's soul1 and he was 
willing to be shut out of heaven for    
ever and ever if only ,robert could be  
eternally saved6 ',my witness is above1'
 says ,samuel ,rutherford1 in his       
,second ,letter to his ,parishioners1   
'my witness is above that your heaven   
would be two heavens to me1 and the     
salvation of you all as two salvations  
to me4 ,i would agree to a suspension   
and a postponement of my heaven for many
 hundreds of years if ye could so be    
assured of a lodging in the ,father's   
house4' ,michael ,trevanion's           
behavior--mistaken as it was--proved    
that he was willing to make an even     

greater sacrifice if1 by so doing1 he   
could compass the salvation of his son4 
,,iv  ,it is at this point that ,michael
 ,trevanion falls into line with the    
great masters4 ,since the apostolic days
 we have had two conspicuously          
successful evangelists--,john ,wesley   
and ,mr4 ,spurgeon4 ,the secret of their
 success is so obvious that he who runs 
may read4 ,i turn to my edition of ,john
 ,wesley's ,journal1 and at the end ,i  
find a tribute like this3 ',the great   
purpose of his life was doing good4 ,for
 this he relinquished all honor and     
preferment2 to this he dedicated all his
 powers of body and mind2 at all times  
and in all places1 in season and out of 
season1 by gentleness1 by terror1 by    
argument1 by persuasion1 by reason1 by  
interest1 by every motive and every     
inducement1 he strove1 with unwearied   
assiduity1 to turn men from the error of
 their ways and awaken them to virtue   
and religion4 ,to the bed of sickness or
 the couch of prosperity2 to the prison 

or the hospital2 to the house of        
mourning or the house of feasting1      
wherever there was a friend to serve or 
a soul to save1 he readily repaired4 ,he
 thought no office too humiliating1 no  
condescension too low1 no undertaking   
too arduous1 to reclaim the meanest of  
,god's offspring4 ,the souls of all men 
were equally precious in his sight and  
the value of an immortal creature beyond
 all estimation4'  ,in relation to ,mr4 
,spurgeon1 we cannot do better than     
place ourselves under ,mr4 ,w4 ,y4      
,fullerton's direction4 ,mr4 ,fullerton 
knew ,mr4 ,spurgeon intimately1 and the 
standard biography of the great preacher
 is from his pen4 ,mr4 ,fullerton       
devotes a good deal of his space to an  
inquiry as to the sources of ,mr4       
,spurgeon's power and authority4 ,it is 
an elusive and difficult question4 ,it  
is admitted that there is scarcely one  
respect in which ,mr4 ,spurgeon's powers
 were really transcendent4 ,he had a    
fine voice2 but others had finer ones4  

,he was eloquent2 but others were no    
less so4 ,he used to say that his       
success was due1 not to his preaching of
 the ,gospel1 but to the ,gospel that he
 preached4 ,obviously1 however1 this is 
beside the mark1 for he himself would   
not have been so uncharitable as to deny
 that others preached the same ,gospel  
and yet met with no corresponding       
success4 ,the truth probably is that1   
although he attained to super-excellence
 at no point1 he was really great at    
many4 ,and1 behind this extraordinary   
combination of remarkable1 though not   
transcendent1 powers was an intense     
conviction1 a deadly earnestness1 a     
consuming passion1 that made second-rate
 qualities sublime4 ,the most revealing 
paragraph in the book occurs towards the
 end4 ,it is a quotation from ,mr4      
,spurgeon himself4 ',leaving home early 
in the morning1' he says1 ',i went to   
the vestry and sat there all day long1  
seeing those who had been brought to    
,christ by the preaching of the ,word4  

,their stories were so interesting to me
 that the hours flew by without my      
noticing how fast they were going4 ,i   
had seen numbers of persons during the  
day1 one after the other2 and ,i was so 
delighted with the tales of divine mercy
 they had to tell me1 and the wonders of
 grace ,god wrought in them1 that ,i did
 not notice how the time passed4 ,at    
seven o'clock we had our prayer meeting4
 ,i went in to it4 ,after that came the 
church meeting4 ,a little before ten ,i 
felt faint1 and ,i began to think at    
what hour ,i had eaten my dinner1 and ,i
 then for the first time remembered that
 ,i had not had any6 ,i never thought of
 it4 ,i never even felt hungry1 because 
,god had made me so glad6' ,mr4         
,spurgeon lived that he might save men4 
,he thought of nothing else4 ,from his  
first sermon at ,waterbeach to his last 
at ,mentone1 the conversion of sinners  
was the dream of all his days4 ,that    
master-passion glorified the whole man1 
and threw a grandeur about the common   

details of every day4 ,he would         
cheerfully have thrown away his soul to 
save the souls of others4  ,it is along 
this road that the ,church has always   
marched to her most splendid triumphs4  
,why did the ,roman ,empire so swiftly  
capitulate to the claims of ,christ8    
,lecky discusses that question in his   
,history of ,european ,morals4 ,and he  
answers it by saying that the conquest  
was achieved by the new spirit which    
,christ had introduced4 ,the idea of a  
,saviour who could weep at the sepulcher
 of ,his friend2 and be touched by a    
sense of ,his people's infirmities1 was 
a novelty to that old pagan world4 ,and 
when the early ,christians showed       
themselves willing to endure any        
suffering1 or bear any loss1 if1 by so  
doing1 they might win their friends1    
their sincerity and devotion proved     
irresistible4   ,v  ,but ,michael       
,trevanion must lead us higher yet4 ,for
 what ,michael ,trevanion learned from  
,paul1 ,paul himself had learned from an

 infinitely greater4 ,let us trace it   
back6  ',let me be damned to all        
eternity that my boy may be saved6'     
cries ,michael ,trevanion1 sitting at   
the feet of ,paul1 but misunderstanding 
his teacher4  ',i could wish that myself
 were accursed from ,christ for my      
brethren1 my kinsmen according to the   
flesh1' exclaims ,paul1 sitting at the  
feet of ,one who not only wished to be  
accursed1 but entered into the          
impenetrable darkness of that dreadful  
anathema4  ',my ,god1 my ,god1 why hast 
,thou forsaken ,me8' ,he cried from that
 depth of dereliction4 ',in that awful  
hour1' said ,rabbi ,duncan1 addressing  
his students1 'in that awful hour ,he   
took our damnation1 and ,he took it     
lovingly6' ,when1 with reverent hearts  
and bated breath1 we peer down into the 
fathomless deeps that such a saying     
opens to us1 we catch a glimpse of the  
inexpressible value which heaven sets   
upon the souls of men4 ,and1 when       
,michael ,trevanion has led us to such  

inaccessible heights and to such        
unutterable depths as these1 we can very
 well afford to say ,good-bye to him4   
,,ix  ,,hudson ,,taylor',s ,,text   ,i  
,the day on which ,james ,hudson        
,taylor--then a boy in his teens--found 
himself confronted by that tremendous   
text was1 as he himself testified in old
 age1 'a day that he could never        
forget4' ,it is a day that ,china can   
never forget2 a day that the world can  
never forget4 ,it was a holiday2        
everybody was away from home2 and the   
boy found time hanging heavily upon his 
hands4 ,in an aimless way he wandered1  
during the afternoon1 into his father's 
library1 and poked about among the      
shelves4 ',i tried1' he says1 'to find  
some book with which to while away the  
leaden hours4 ,nothing attracting me1 ,i
 turned over a basket of pamphlets and  
selected from among them a tract that   
looked interesting4 ,i knew that it     
would have a story at the commencement  
and a moral at the close2 but ,i        

promised myself that ,i would enjoy the 
story and leave the rest4 ,it would be  
easy to put away the tract as soon as it
 should seem prosy4' ,he scampers off to
 the stable-loft1 throws himself on the 
hay1 and plunges into the book4 ,he is  
captivated by the narrative1 and finds  
it impossible to drop the book when the 
story comes to an end4 ,he reads on and 
on4 ,he is rewarded by one great golden 
word whose significance he has never    
before discovered3 ',the ,finished ,work
 of ,christ6' ,the theme entrances him2 
and at last he only rises from his bed  
in the soft hay that he may kneel on the
 hard floor of the loft and surrender   
his young life to the ,saviour who had  
surrendered everything for him4 ,if1 he 
asked himself1 as he lay upon the hay1  
if the whole work was finished1 and the 
whole debt paid upon the ,cross1 what is
 there left for me to do8 ',and then1'  
he tells us1 'there dawned upon me the  
joyous conviction that there was nothing
 in the world to be done but to fall    

upon my knees1 accept the ,saviour and  
praise ,him for evermore4'  ',it is     
finished6'  ',when ,jesus1 therefore1   
had received the vinegar he said1 ,it is
 finished6 and ,he bowed ,his head and  
gave up the ghost4'  ',then there dawned
 upon me the joyous conviction that1    
since the whole work was finished and   
the whole debt paid upon the ,cross1    
there was nothing for me to do but to   
fall upon my knees1 accept the ,saviour 
and praise ,him for evermore6'   ,,ii   
',it is finished6'  ,it is really only  
one word3 the greatest word ever        
uttered2 we must examine it for a moment
 as a lapidary examines under a powerful
 glass a rare and costly gem4  ,it was a
 farmer's word4 ,when1 into his herd1   
there was born an animal so beautiful   
and shapely that it seemed absolutely   
destitute of faults and defects1 the    
farmer gazed upon the creature with     
proud1 delighted eyes4 ',tetelestai6' he
 said1 'tetelestai6'  ,it was an        
artist's word4 ,when the painter or the 

sculptor had put the last finishing     
touches to the vivid landscape or the   
marble bust1 he would stand back a few  
feet to admire his masterpiece1 and1    
seeing in it nothing that called for    
correction or improvement1 would murmur 
fondly1 ',tetelestai6 tetelestai6'  ,it 
was a priestly word4 ,when some devout  
worshiper1 overflowing with gratitude   
for mercies shown him1 brought to the   
temple a lamb without spot or blemish1  
the pride of the whole flock1 the       
priest1 more accustomed to seeing the   
blind and defective animals led to the  
altar1 would look admiringly upon the   
pretty creature4 ',tetelestai6' he would
 say1 'tetelestai6'  ,and when1 in the  
fullness of time1 the ,lamb of ,god     
offered ,himself on the altar of the    
ages1 ,he rejoiced with a joy so        
triumphant that it bore down all ,his   
anguish before it4 ,the sacrifice was   
stainless1 perfect1 finished6 ',he cried
 with a loud voice ,tetelestai6 and gave
 up the ghost4'  ,this divine           

self-satisfaction appears only twice1   
once in each ,testament4 ,when ,he      
completed the work of ,creation1 ,he    
looked upon it and said that it was very
 good2 when ,he completed the work of   
,redemption ,he cried with a loud voice 
,tetelestai6 ,it means exactly the same 
thing4   ,,iii  ,the joy of finishing   
and of finishing well6 ,how passionately
 good men have coveted for themselves   
that ecstasy6 ,i think of those pathetic
 entries in ,livingstone's journal4     
',oh1 to finish my work6' he writes     
again and again4 ,he is haunted by the  
vision of the unseen waters1 the        
fountains of the ,nile4 ,will he live to
 discover them8 ',oh1 to finish6' he    
cries2 'if only ,i could finish my      
work6' ,i think of ,henry ,buckle1 the  
author of the ,history of ,civilization4
 ,he is overtaken by fever at ,nazareth 
and dies at ,damascus4 ,in his delirium 
he raves continually about his book1 his
 still unfinished book4 ',oh1 to finish 
my book6' ,and with the words ',my book6

 my book6' upon his burning lips1 his   
spirit slips away4 ,i think of ,henry   
,martyn sitting amidst the delicious and
 fragrant shades of a ,persian garden1  
weeping at having to leave the work that
 he seemed to have only just begun4 ,i  
think of ,dor taking a sad farewell of  
his unfinished ,vale of ,tears2 of      
,dickens tearing himself from the       
manuscript that he knew would never be  
completed2 of ,macaulay looking with    
wistful and longing eyes at the ,history
 and ,the ,armada that must for ever    
stand as 'fragments'2 and of a host     
besides4 ,life is often represented by a
 broken column in the church-yard4 ,men 
long1 but long in vain1 for the         
priceless privilege of finishing their  
work4   ,,iv  ,the joy of finishing and 
of finishing well6 ,there is no joy on  
earth comparable to this4 ,who is there 
that has not read a dozen times the     
immortal postscript that ,gibbon added  
to his ,decline and ,fall8 ,he describes
 the tumult of emotion with which1 after

 twenty years of closest application1 he
 wrote the last line of the last chapter
 of the last volume of his masterpiece4 
,it was a glorious summer's night at    
,lausanne4 ',after laying down my pen1' 
he says1 ',i took several turns in a    
covered walk of acacias which commands a
 prospect of the country1 the lake and  
the mountains4 ,the air was temperate1  
the sky was serene1 the silver orb of   
the moon was reflected from the waters1 
and all nature was silent4' ,it was the 
greatest moment of his life4 ,we recall1
 too1 the similar experience of ,sir    
,archibald ,alison4 ',as ,i approached  
the closing sentence of my ,history of  
the ,empire1' he says1 ',i went up to   
,mrs4 ,alison to call her down to       
witness the conclusion1 and she saw the 
last words of the work written1 and     
signed her name on the margin4 ,it would
 be affectation to conceal the deep     
emotion that ,i felt at this event4' ,or
 think of the last hours of ,venerable  
,bede4 ,living away back in the early   

dawn of our ,english story--twelve      
centuries ago--the old man had set      
himself to translate the ,gospel of     
,john into our native speech4 ,cuthbert1
 one of his young disciples1 has        
bequeathed to us the touching record4   
,as the work approached completion1 he  
says1 death drew on apace4 ,the aged    
scholar was racked with pain2 sleep     
forsook him2 he could scarcely breathe4 
,the young man who wrote at his         
dictation implored him to desist4 ,but  
he would not rest4 ,they came at length 
to the final chapter2 could he possibly 
live till it was done8  ',and now1 dear 
master1' exclaimed the young scribe     
tremblingly1 'only one sentence         
remains6' ,he read the words and the    
sinking man feebly recited the ,english 
equivalents4  ',it is finished1 dear    
master6' cried the youth excitedly4     
',ay1 it is finished6' echoed the dying 
saint2 'lift me up1 place me at that    
window of my cell at which ,i have so   
often prayed to ,god4 ,now glory be to  

the ,father and to the ,son and to the  
,holy ,ghost6' ,and1 with these         
triumphant words1 the beautiful spirit  
passed to its rest and its reward4   ,v 
,in his own narrative of his conversion1
 ,hudson ,taylor quotes ,james          
,proctor's well-known hymn--the hymn    
that1 in one of his essays1 ,froude     
criticizes so severely3    ,nothing     
either great or small1     ,nothing1    
sinner1 no2   ,jesus did it1 did it all1
     ,long1 long ago4    ',it is        
,finished6' yes1 indeed1     ,finished  
every jot2   ,sinner1 this is all you   
need2     ,tell me1 is it not8    ,cast 
your deadly doing down1     ,down at    
,jesus' feet2   ,stand in ,him1 in ,him 
alone1     ,gloriously complete4        
,froude maintains that these verses are 
immoral4 ,it is only by 'doing1' he     
argues1 that the work of the world can  
ever get done4 ,and if you describe     
'doing' as 'deadly' you set a premium   
upon indolence and lessen the           
probabilities of attainment4 ,the best  

answer to ,froude's plausible contention
 is the ,life of ,hudson ,taylor4       
,hudson ,taylor became convinced1 as a  
boy1 that 'the whole work was finished  
and the whole debt paid4' ',there is    
nothing for me to do1' he says1 'but to 
fall down on my knees and accept the    
,saviour4' ,the chapter in his biography
 that tells of this spiritual crisis is 
entitled ',the ,finished ,work of       
,christ1' and it is headed by the       
quotation3    ,upon a life ,i did not   
live1     ,upon a death ,i did not die1 
,another's life1 ,another's death     ,i
 stake my whole eternity4  ,and1 as ,i  
have said1 the very words that ,froude  
so bitterly condemns are quoted by      
,hudson ,taylor as a reflection of his  
own experience4 ,and the result8 ,the   
result is that ,hudson ,taylor became   
one of the most prodigious toilers of   
all time4 ,so far from his trust in 'the
 ,finished ,work of ,christ' inclining  
him to indolence1 he felt that he must  
toil most terribly to make so perfect a 

,saviour known to the whole wide world4 
,there lies on my desk a ,birthday ,book
 which ,i very highly value4 ,it was    
given me at the docks by ,mr4 ,thomas   
,spurgeon as ,i was leaving ,england4   
,if you open it at the twenty-first of  
,may you will find these words3 ',simply
 to ,thy ,cross ,i cling is but half of 
the ,gospel4 ,no one is really clinging 
to the ,cross who is not at the same    
time faithfully following ,christ and   
doing whatsoever ,he commands'2 and     
against those words of ,dr4 ,j4 ,r4     
,miller's in my ,birthday ,book1 you may
 see the autograph of ,j4 ,hudson       
,taylor4 ,he was our guest at the       
,mosgiel ,manse when he set his         
signature to those striking and         
significant sentences4   ,,vi  ',we     
,build ,like ,giants2 we ,finish ,like  
,jewelers6'--so the old ,egyptians wrote
 over the portals of their palaces and  
temples4 ,i like to think that the most 
gigantic task ever attempted on this    
planet--the work of the world's         

redemption--was finished with a         
precision and a nicety that no jeweler  
could rival4  ',it is finished6' ,he    
cried from the ,cross4  ',tetelestai6   
,tetelestai6'  ,when ,he looked upon    
,his work in ,creation and saw that it  
was good1 ,he placed it beyond the power
 of man to improve upon it4    ,to gild 
refind gold1 to paint the lily1   ,to   
throw a perfume on the violet1   ,to    
smooth the ice1 or add another hue      
,unto the rainbow1 or with taper-light  
,to seek the beauteous eye of heaven to 
garnish1   ,is wasteful and ridiculous  
excess4  ,and1 similarly1 when ,he      
looked upon ,his work in ,redemption and
 cried triumphantly ',tetelestai1' ,he  
placed it beyond the power of any man to
 add to it4  ,there are times when any  
addition is a subtraction4 ,some years  
ago1 ,white ,house at ,washington--the  
residence of the ,american              
,presidents--was in the hands of the    
painters and decorators4 ,two large     
entrance doors had been painted to      

represent black walnut4 ,the contractor 
ordered his men to scrape and clean them
 in readiness for repainting1 and they  
set to work4 ,but when their knives     
penetrated to the solid timber1 they    
discovered to their astonishment that it
 was heavy mahogany of a most exquisite 
natural grain6 ,the work of that earlier
 decorator1 so far from adding to the   
beauty of the timber1 had only served to
 conceal its essential and inherent     
glory4 ,it is easy enough to add to the 
wonders of ,creation or of ,redemption2 
but you can never add without           
subtracting4 ',it is finished6'   ,,vii 
,many years ago1 ,ebenezer ,wooton1 an  
earnest but eccentric evangelist1 was   
conducting a series of summer evening   
services on the village green at        
,lidford ,brook4 ,the last meeting had  
been held2 the crowd was melting slowly 
away2 and the evangelist was engaged in 
taking down the marquee4 ,all at once a 
young fellow approached him and asked1  
casually rather than earnestly1 ',mr4   

,wooton1 what must ,i do to be saved8'  
,the preacher took the measure of his   
man4  ',too late6' he said1 in a matter 
of fact kind of way1 glancing up from a 
somewhat obstinate tent-peg with which  
he was struggling4 ',too late1 my       
friend1 too late6' ,the young fellow was
 startled4  ',oh1 don't say that1 ,mr4  
,wooton6' he pleaded1 a new note coming 
into his voice4 ',surely it isn't too   
late just because the meetings are      
over8'  ',yes1 my friend1' exclaimed the
 evangelist1 dropping the cord in his   
hand1 straightening himself up1 and     
looking right into the face of his      
questioner1 'it's too late6 ,you want to
 know what you must do to be saved1 and 
,i tell you that you're hundreds of     
years too late6 ,the work of salvation  
is done1 completed1 finished6 ,it was   
finished on the ,cross2 ,jesus said so  
with the last breath that ,he drew6     
,what more do you want8'  ,and1 then and
 there1 it dawned upon the now earnest  
inquirer on the village green as1 at    

about the same time1 it dawned upon     
young ,hudson ,taylor in the hay-loft1  
that 'since the whole work was finished 
and the whole debt paid upon the ,cross1
 there was nothing for him to do but to 
fall upon his knees and accept the      
,saviour4' ,and there1 under the elms1  
the sentinel stars witnessing the great 
transaction1 he kneeled in glad         
thanksgiving and rested his soul for    
time and for eternity on 'the ,finished 
,work of ,christ4'   ,,viii  ',the      
,finished ,work of ,christ6'            
',tetelestai6 ,tetelestai6'  ',it is    
finished6'  ,it is not a sigh of relief 
at having reached the end of things4 ,it
 is the unutterable joy of the artist   
who1 putting the last touches to the    
picture that has engrossed him for so   
long1 sees in it the realization of all 
his dreams and can nowhere find room for
 improvement4 ,only once in the world's 
history did a finishing touch bring a   
work to absolute perfection2 and on that
 day of days a single flaw would have   

shattered the hope of the ages4     ,x  
,,rodney ,,steele',s ,,text   ,i  ',as  
soon1' ,dr4 ,chalmers used to say1 'as  
soon as a man comes to understand that  
,,god ,,is ,,love1 he is infallibly     
converted4' ,mrs4 ,florence ,l4 ,barclay
 wrote a book to show how ,rodney       
,steele made that momentous and         
transfiguring discovery4 ,rodney        
,steele--the hero of ,the ,wall of      
,partition--was a great traveler and a  
brilliant author4 ,he had wandered      
through ,india1 ,africa1 ,australia1    
,egypt1 ,china and ,japan1 and had      
written a novel colored with the local  
tints of each of the countries he had   
visited4 ,he was tall1 strong1 handsome1
 bronzed by many suns1 and--largely as a
 result of his literary                 
successes--immensely rich4 ,but he was  
soured4 ,years ago he loved a beautiful 
girl4 ,but an unscrupulous and designing
 woman had gained his sweetheart's      
confidence and had poisoned her heart by
 pouring into her ear the most          

abominable scandals concerning him4 ,she
 had returned his letters2 and he1 in   
the vain hope of being able to forget1  
had abandoned himself to travel and to  
literature4 ,but1 on whatever seas he   
sailed1 and on whatever shores he       
wandered1 he nursed in his heart a      
dreadful hate--a hate of the woman who  
had so cruelly intervened4 ,and1        
cherishing that hate1 his heart became  
hard and bitter and sour4 ,he lost faith
 in love1 in womanhood1 in ,god1 in     
everything4 ,and his books reflected the
 cynicism of his soul4 ,this is ,rodney 
,steele as the story opens4 ,the        
boat-train moves into ,charing ,cross1  
and1 after an absence of ten years1 he  
finds himself once more in ,london4     
,,ii  ,many years ago1 when our         
grandmothers were girls1 they devoted   
their spare moments to the making of    
bookmarkers2 and on the marker1 in      
colored silk1 they embroidered the      
letters ,,god ,,is ,,love4 ,dr4 ,handley
 ,moule1 ,bishop of ,durham1 made       

effective use of such a bookmarker when 
he visited ,west ,stanley immediately   
after the terrible colliery disaster    
there4 ,he motored up to the scene of   
the catastrophe and addressed the crowd 
at the pit's mouth4 ,many of those      
present were the relatives of the       
entombed miners4 ',it is very           
difficult1' he said1 'for us to         
understand why ,god should let such an  
awful disaster happen1 but we know ,him1
 and trust ,him1 and all will be right4 
,i have at home1' the ,bishop continued1
 'an old bookmarker given me by my      
mother4 ,it is worked in silk1 and1 when
 ,i examine the wrong side of it1 ,i see
 nothing but a tangle of threads crossed
 and recrossed4 ,it looks like a big    
mistake4 ,one would think that someone  
had done it who did not know what she   
was doing4 ,but1 when ,i turn it over   
and look at the right side1 ,i see      
there1 beautifully embroidered1 the     
letters ,,god ,,is ,,love4 ,we are      
looking at all this to-day1' he         

concluded1 'from the wrong side4 ,some  
day we shall see it from another        
standpoint1 and shall understand4' ,this
 all happened many years ago2 but quite 
recently some who were present declared 
that they never forgot the story of the 
bookmarker and the comfort that it      
brought4  ,it was a bookmarker of       
exactly the same kind1 and bearing      
precisely the same inscription1 that    
brought the fragrance of roses into the 
dusty heart of ,rodney ,steele4 ,sitting
 alone in his ,harley ,street flat1 he  
found himself turning over the pages of 
a ,bible that belonged to ,mrs4 ,jake1  
his housekeeper4 ,among those pages he  
found ,mrs4 ,jake's marriage 'lines1' a 
photograph of her husband in military   
uniform1 some pressed flowers and--a    
perforated bookmarker6 ,and on the      
bookmarker1 in pink silk1 were          
embroidered the words3 ,,god ,,is       
,,love4 ,it reminded him of those       
far-off days in which1 as a little boy1 
he had delighted in the possession of   

his first box of paints4 ,he had begged 
his mother to give him something to     
color1 and she had pricked out those    
very words on a card and asked him to   
paint them for her4  ,god6 ,love6       
,love6 ,god6  ,god is ,love6  ,so said  
the bookmarker2 but1 he reflected sadly1
 love had failed him long ago1 and of   
,god he had no knowledge at all4   ,,iii
  ,when those three tremendous words    
next confronted ,rodney ,steele1 they   
were worked1 not in silk1 but in stone6 
,in a lower flat1 in the same building  
in ,harley ,street1 there dwelt a       
,bishop's widow4 ,rodney got to know    
her1 to like her1 and1 at last1 to      
confide in her4 ,one afternoon they were
 discussing the novel that all ,london  
was reading1 ,the ,great ,divide4 ,it   
was from his own pen1 but he did not    
tell her so4 ,mrs4 ,bellamy--the        
widow--confessed that1 in spite of its  
brilliance1 she did not like it4 ,it    
betrayed bitterness1 a loss of ideals1 a
 disbelief in love2 it was not          

uplifting4  ',it is life1' ,rodney      
replied4 ',life tends to make a man lose
 faith in love4'  ,but ,mrs4 ,bellamy   
would not hear of it4  ',may ,i tell    
you1' she asked1 'the ,bishop's way of  
meeting all difficulties1 sorrows and   
perplexities8'  ',do tell me1' said     
,rodney4  ',he met them with three      
little words1 each of one syllable4 ,yet
 that sentence holds the truth of       
greatest import to our poor world2 and  
its right understanding readjusts our   
entire outlook upon life1 and should    
affect all our dealings with our fellow 
men3 ,,god ,,is ,,love4 ,in our first   
home--a country parish in ,surrey--three
 precious children were born to         
us--,griselda1 ,irene and little        
,launcelot4 ,scarlet fever and          
diphtheria broke out in the village1 a  
terrible epidemic1 causing grief and    
anxiety in many homes4 ,we were almost  
worn out with helping our poor          
people--nursing1 consoling1 encouraging4
 ,then1 just as the epidemic appeared to

 be abating1 it reached our own home4   
,our darlings were stricken suddenly4   
,mr4 ,steele1 we lost all three in a    
fortnight6 ,my little ,lancy was the    
last to go4 ,when he died in my arms ,i 
felt ,i could bear no more4  ',my       
husband led me out into the garden4 ,it 
was a soft1 sweet1 summer night4 ,he    
took me in his arms and stood long in   
silence1 looking up to the quiet stars1 
while ,i sobbed upon his breast4 ,at    
last he said1 ,my wife1 there is one    
rope to which we must cling steadfastly1
 in order to keep our heads above water 
amid these overwhelming waves of sorrow4
 ,it has three golden strands4 ,it will 
not fail us4 ,,god--,,is--,,love4  ',the
 nursery was empty4 ,there was no more  
patter of little feet2 no children's    
merry voices shouted about the house4   
,the three little graves in the         
churchyard bore the names ,griselda1    
,irene and ,launcelot2 and on each we   
put the text1 spelt out by the initials 
of our darlings' names3 ,,god ,,is      

,,love4 ,and in our own heart-life we   
experienced the great calm and peace of 
a faith which had come through the      
deepest depths of sorrow4 ,we were      
sustained by the certainty of the love  
of ,god4'  ,rodney ,steele was deeply   
touched and impressed4 ,here was one who
 had known sorrow and had been sweetened
 by it4 ,in her there was no trace of   
bitterness4  ',i don't know1' he said to
 himself1 as he came away1 ',i don't    
know as to the truth of the ,bishop's   
text2 but1 anyway1 the ,bishop's widow  
is love4 ,she lives what she believes1  
and that certainly makes a belief worth 
having4'  ',god is love6'--he had seen  
it worked in silk4  ',god is love'--he  
had seen it inscribed three times in    
stone4  ',god is love6'--he had seen it 
translated into actual life4  ',god is  
love6'--he was almost persuaded to      
believe it4   ,,iv  ,god is----6  ,it is
 the oldest question in the universe1   
and the greatest4 ,it has been asked a  
million million times1 and it would not 

have been altogether strange had we     
never discovered an answer4 ,in ,mr4 ,h4
 ,g4 ,wells' story of the men who       
invaded the moon1 he describes a        
conversation between the travelers and  
the ,grand ,lunar4 ,the ,grand ,lunar   
asks them many questions about the earth
 which they are unable to answer4       
',what8' he exclaims1 'knowing so little
 of the earth1 do you attempt to explore
 the moon8' ,we men know little enough  
of ourselves3 it would have been no     
cause for astonishment had we been      
unable to define ,god4 ,men lost        
themselves for ages in guess-work4 ,they
 looked round about them2 they saw how  
grandly a million worlds revolve1 and   
they noticed how exquisitely the mighty 
forces of the earth are governed4 ,then 
they made their guess4  ',god is        
,power1' they said1 ',god is ,power6'   
,then1 peering a little more deeply into
 the heart of things1 they saw that all 
these terrific forces are not only      
controlled1 but harnessed to high ends4 

,all things are working--they are       
working together--they are working      
together for good6 ,and thereupon men   
made their second guess4  ',god is      
,wisdom1' they said1 ',god is ,wisdom6' 
,then1 observing things still more      
closely1 men began to see great ethical 
principles underlying the laws of the   
universe4 ,in the long run1 evil        
suffers1 and1 in the long run1 right is 
rewarded4  ',god is ,justice1' they     
said1 ',god is ,justice6'  ,and so men  
made their guesses1 and1 as they        
guessed1 they built4 ,they erected      
temples1 now to the ,god of ,power1 then
 to the ,god of ,wisdom1 and again to   
the ,god of ,justice4 ,they had yet to  
learn that they were worshiping the part
 and not the whole2 they were worshiping
 the rays and not the ,light ,itself4   
,then ,jesus came1 and men understood4  
,by ,his words and ,his deeds1 by ,his  
life and ,his death1 ,he revealed the   
whole truth4 ,god is ,power and ,wisdom 
and ,justice--but ,he is more4 ,in a    

,european churchyard there stands a     
monument erected by a poet to his wife4 
,it bears the inscription3      ,she    
was----1     ,but words are wanting to  
say what6     ,think what a wife should 
be     ,and she was that6    ,god       
is----6   ,god is--what8      ,he       
is----1     ,but words are wanting to   
say what6     ,think what a ,god should 
be     ,and ,he is that6  ,jesus filled 
in the age-long blank2 ,he filled it in1
 not in cold language1 but in warm life4
 ,many attempts have been made to       
translate ,his definition from the terms
 of life into the terms of language4    
,only once have those attempts been even
 approximately successful4 ,the words on
 the perforated bookmarker represent the
 best answer that human speech has ever 
given to the question4  ,god is----     
,god is--what8  ,,god--,,is--,,love6    
,v  ,rodney ,steele met again the       
girl--ripened now into the full glory of
 womanhood--from whom he had been so    
cruelly separated4 ,he felt that it was 

too late to right the earlier wrong2    
and1 in any case1 his life was too      
embittered to offer her now4 ,but he    
rejoiced in her friendship1 and1 one    
day1 opened his heart to her4  ',madge1'
 he said1 ',i am furious with ,fate4    
,life is chaos4 ,shall ,i tell you of   
what it reminds me8 ,when ,i was last in
 ,florence ,i was invited to the dress  
rehearsal of ,figli ,di ,re4 ,i took my 
seat in the stalls of the huge empty    
opera house4 ,the members of the        
orchestra were all in their places4     
,pandemonium reigned6 ,each man was     
playing little snatches of the score    
before him1 all in the same key1 but    
with no attempt at time1 tune or order4 
,the piping of the flute1 the sighing of
 the fiddle1 the grunt of the double    
bass1 the clear call of the cornet1 the 
bray of the trombones1 all went on      
together4 ,the confused hubbub of sound 
was indescribable4 ,suddenly a slim1    
alert figure leaped upon the estrade and
 struck the desk sharply with a baton4  

,it was the maestro6 ,there was instant 
silence4 ,he looked to the right2 looked
 to the left2 raised his baton2 and lo6 
full1 rich1 sweet1 melodious1 blending  
in perfect harmony1 sounded the opening 
chords of the overture6'  ,rodney       
likened the jangling discords to the    
confusion of his own life4 ,there was in
 his soul a disappointed love1 an       
implacable hate1 and a medley of other  
discords4  ',you are waiting for the    
,maestro1 ,roddie6' said ,madge4 ',his  
baton will reduce chaos to order with a 
measure of three beats4'  ',three       
beats8'  ',yes2 three almighty beats3   
,,god--,,is--,,love6'  ,he shook his    
head4  ',i left off pricking texts when 
,i was five1 and gave up painting when  
,i was nine4'  ',it is not what you do  
to the texts1 ,rodney2 it is what the   
texts do to you6'  ,he left her1 and1   
soon after1 left ,london4   ,,vi  ,yes1 
he left her1 and he left ,london2 but he
 could not leave the text4 ,it          
confronted him once more4 ,he had taken 

refuge in a little fishing village on   
the ,east ,coast4 ,up on the cliffs1    
among the corn-fields1 flecked with     
their crimson poppies1 he came upon a   
quaint old church4 ,he stepped inside4  
,in the porch was a painting of an old  
ruin--ivy-covered1 useless and          
desolate--standing out1 jagged and      
roofless1 against a purple sky4 ,the    
picture bore a striking inscription3    
,the ruins of my soul repair   ,and make
 my heart a house of prayer4  ',the     
ruins of my soul6' ,rodney thought of   
the discord within4  ',make my heart a  
house of prayer6' ,rodney thought of the
 maestro4  ,he passed out into the      
little graveyard on the very edge of the
 cliff4 ,he was amused at the quaint    
epitaphs4 ,then one tombstone1 lying    
flat upon the ground1 a tombstone which1
 in large capitals1 called upon the     
reader to ',prepare to meet thy ,god1'  
startled him4 ,again he thought of the  
clashing discords of his soul4  ',then1 
suddenly1' says ,mrs4 ,barclay1 'the    

inspired ,word did that which ,it--and  
,it alone--can do4 ,it gripped ,rodney  
and brought him face to face with       
realities--past1 present and future--in 
his own inner life4 ,at once1 the       
,bishop's motto came into his mind2 the 
three words his gentle mother used to   
draw that her little boy might paint    
them stood out clearly as the answer to 
all vague and restless questionings3    
,,god ,,is ,,love6'  ',god is ,love6'   
',prepare to ,meet thy ,god6'  ,how     
could he1 with his old hate in his      
heart1 stand in the presence of a ,god  
of ,love8  ,standing there bareheaded1  
with one foot on the prone tombstone1   
,rodney grappled with the passion that  
he had cherished through the years1 and 
thus took his first step along the path 
of preparation4  ',i forgive the woman  
who came between us1' he said aloud4    
',my ,god1 ,i forgive her--as ,i hope to
 be forgiven6'  ',as soon as a man comes
 to understand that ,,god ,,is ,,love1' 
said ,dr4 ,chalmers1 'he is infallibly  

converted4' ,that being so1 ,rodney     
,steele was infallibly converted that   
day1 and that day he entered into peace4
   ,,vii  ,when ,robert ,louis          
,stevenson settled at ,samoa1 the       
islands were ablaze with tumult and     
strife4 ,and1 during those years of     
bitterness1 ,stevenson did his utmost to
 bring the painful struggle to an end4  
,he visited the chiefs in prison1       
lavished his kindnesses upon the        
islanders1 and made himself the friend  
of all4 ,in the course of time the      
natives became devotedly attached to the
 frail and delicate foreigner who looked
 as though the first gust of wind would 
blow him away4 ,his health required that
 he should live away on the hill-top1   
and they pitied him as he painfully     
toiled up the stony slope4 ,to show     
their affection for him1 they built a   
road right up to his house1 in order to 
make the steep ascent more easy4 ,and   
they called that road ,ala ,loto        
,alofa--,the ,road to the ,loving       

,heart4 ,they felt1 as they toiled at   
their labor of gratitude1 that they were
 not only conferring a boon on the white
 man1 but that they were making a beaten
 path from their own doors to the heart 
that loved them all4  ,god is ,love2 and
 it is the glory of the everlasting     
,gospel that it points the road by which
 the ,father's wayward sons--in         
whichever of the far countries they may 
have wandered--may find a way back to   
the ,father's house1 and home to the    
,loving ,heart4     ,,xi  ,,thomas      
,,huxley',s ,,text   ,i  ,she was a     
sermon-taster and was extremely         
sensitive to any kind of heresy4 ,it is 
in his ,life of ,donald ,john ,martin1 a
 ,presbyterian minister1 that the ,rev4 
,norman ,c4 ,macfarlane places her      
notable achievement on permanent record4
 ,he describes her as 'a stern lady who 
was provokingly evangelical4' ,there    
came to the pulpit one ,sabbath a       
minister whose soundness she doubted4   
,he gave out as his text the words3     

',what doth the ,lord require of thee   
but to do justly1 to love mercy1 and to 
walk humbly with thy ,god8' ',weel1     
weel1' this excellent woman exclaimed1  
as she turned to her friend beside her1 
'weel1 weel1 if there's one text in a'  
the ,buik waur than anither1 yon man is 
sure to tak' it6'   ,,ii  ,she thought  
that text the worst in the ,bible4      
,huxley thought it the best4 ,huxley    
was1 as everybody knows1 the ,prince of 
,agnostics4 ,we need not stop to ask    
why4 ,nobody who has read the story of  
,john ,stuart ,mill's boyhood will      
wonder that ,mill was a skeptic4 ,and   
nobody who has read the story of ,thomas
 ,huxley's boyhood will wonder at his   
becoming an agnostic4 ,as ,edward       
,clodd1 his biographer1 says1 'his      
boyhood was a cheerless time4 ,reversing
 ,matthew ,arnold's sunnier memories3   
,no rigorous teachers seized his youth1 
,and purged its faith and tried its     
fire1   ,shewed him the high1 white star
 of truth1   ,there bade him gaze1 and  

there aspire4  ',he told ,charles       
,kingsley that he was kicked into the   
world1 a boy without guide or training1 
or with worse than none2 he had two     
years of a pandemonium of a school1 and1
 after that1 neither help nor sympathy  
in any intellectual direction till he   
reached manhood4' ,and1 even then1 as   
those familiar with his biography know1 
he had little enough4  ,what would      
,huxley have been1 ,i wonder1 if the    
sympathy for which he hungered had been 
extended to him8 ,if1 instead of        
badgering him with arguments and        
entangling him in controversy1 ,mr4     
,gladstone and ,bishop ,wilberforce and 
others had honestly attempted to see    
things through his spectacles6 ,huxley  
was said to be as cold as ice and as    
inflexible as steel2 but ,i doubt it4   
,in his life-story ,i find two          
incidents--one belonging to his early   
manhood and one belonging to his        
age--which tell a very different tale4  
,the first is connected with the birth  

of his boy4 ,it is the last night of the
 ,old ,year1 and he is waiting to hear  
that he is a father4 ,he spends the     
anxious hour in framing a resolution4   
,in his diary he pledges himself 'to    
smite all humbugs1 however big2 to give 
a nobler tone to science2 to set an     
example of abstinence from petty        
personal controversies and of toleration
 for everything but lying2 to be        
indifferent as to whether the work is   
recognized as mine or not1 so long as it
 is done4 ,it is half-past ten at night4
 ,waiting for my child4 ,i seem to fancy
 it the pledge that all these things    
shall be4' ,and the next entry runs3    
',new ,year's ,day1 #ahei4 ,born five   
minutes before twelve4 ,thank ,god6'    
,mark that ',thank ,god6' and then note 
what follows4 ,a year or two later1 when
 the child is snatched from him1 he     
makes this entry and then closes the    
journal for ever4 ,he has no heart to   
keep a diary afterwards4  ',our ,noel1  
our firstborn1 after being for nearly   

four years our delight and our joy1 was 
carried off by scarlet fever in         
forty-eight hours4 ,this day week he and
 ,i had a great romp together4 ,on      
,friday his restless head1 with its     
bright blue eyes and tangled golden     
hair1 tossed all day upon the pillow4   
,on ,saturday night ,i carried his cold1
 still body here into my study4 ,here1  
too1 on ,sunday night1 came his mother  
and ,i to that holy leavetaking4 ,my boy
 is gone2 but in a higher and better    
sense than was in my mind when1 four    
years ago1 ,i wrote what stands above1  
,i feel that my fancy has been          
fulfilled4 ,i say heartily and without  
bitterness--,amen1 so let it be6'       
',thank ,god6' exclaims our great       
,agnostic when the child is born4       
',amen6' he says1 submissively1 when the
 little one is buried4  ,this is the    
first of the two incidents4 ,the        
second--which is no less pathetic--is   
recorded by ,dr4 ,douglas ,adam4 ',a    
friend of mine1' the doctor says1 'was  

acting on a ,royal ,commission of which 
,professor ,huxley was a member1 and one
 ,sunday they were staying together in a
 little country town4 ,i suppose you are
 going to church1 said ,huxley4 ,yes1   
replied my friend4 ,what if1 instead1   
you stayed at home and talked to me of  
religion8 ,no1 was the reply1 for ,i am 
not clever enough to refute your        
arguments4 ,but what if you simply told 
me your own experience--what religion   
has done for you8 ,my friend did not go 
to church that morning2 he stayed at    
home and told ,huxley the story of all  
that ,christ had been to him2 and       
presently there were tears in the eyes  
of the great agnostic as he said1 ,i    
would give my right hand if ,i could    
believe that6'  ,this1 if you please1 is
 the man who was supposed to be as cold 
as ice and as inflexible as steel6 ,this
 is the man for whom the ,christians of 
his time had nothing better than harsh  
judgments1 freezing sarcasms and windy  
arguments6 ,how little we know of each  

other6 ,how slow we are to understand6  
,,iii  ,but the text6 ,it was in the    
course of his famous--and               
furious--controversy with ,mr4          
,gladstone that ,huxley paid his homage 
to the text4 ,he was pleading for a     
better understanding between ,religion  
and ,science4  ',the antagonism between 
the two1' he said1 'appears to me to be 
purely fictitious4 ,it is fabricated1 on
 the one hand1 by short-sighted         
religious people1 and1 on the other     
hand1 by short-sighted scientific       
people4' ,and he declared that1 whatever
 differences may arise between the      
exponents of ,nature and the exponents  
of the ,bible1 there can never be any   
real antagonism between ,science and    
,religion themselves4 ',in the eighth   
century before ,christ1' he goes on to  
say1 'in the eighth century before      
,christ1 in the heart of a world of     
idolatrous polytheists1 the ,hebrew     
prophets put forth a conception of      
religion which appears to me to be as   

wonderful an inspiration of genius as   
the art of ,pheidias or the science of  
,aristotle4 ,what doth the ,lord require
 of thee but to do justly and to love   
mercy and to walk humbly with thy ,god8 
,if any so-called religion takes away   
from this great saying of ,micah1 ,i    
think it wantonly mutilates1 while if it
 adds thereto1 ,i think it obscures1 the
 perfect ideal of religion4'  ,and it   
was on the ground of their common       
admiration for this text--the worst text
 in the world1 the best text in the     
world--that ,mr4 ,gladstone and         
,professor ,huxley reached some kind of 
agreement4 ,not to be outdone by his    
antagonist1 ,mr4 ,gladstone raised his  
hat to the text4  ',i will not dispute1'
 he says1 'that in these words is       
contained the true ideal of discipline  
and attainment4 ,still1 ,i cannot help  
being struck with an impression that    
,mr4 ,huxley appears to cite these terms
 of ,micah as if they reduced the work  
of religion from a difficult to an easy 

program4 ,but look at them again4       
,examine them well4 ,they are1 in truth1
 in ,cowper's words3    ,higher than the
 heights above1   ,deeper than the      
depths beneath4  ,do justly1 that is to 
say1 extinguish self2 love mercy1 cut   
utterly away all the pride and wrath and
 all the cupidity that make this fair   
world a wilderness2 walk humbly with thy
 ,god1 take his will and set it in the  
place where thine own was wont to rule4 
,pluck down the tyrant from his place2  
set up the true ,master on ,his lawful  
throne4' ,in the text--the worst text in
 the ,bible2 the best text in the       
,bible--,mr4 ,gladstone and ,professor  
,huxley find a trysting-place4 ,we may  
therefore leave the argument at that    
point4   ,,iv  ,the words with which    
,huxley fell in love were addressed by  
the prophet to a desperate man--and that
 man a king--who was prepared to pay any
 price and make any sacrifice if only1  
by so doing1 he might win for himself   
the favor of the ,most ,high4           

',wherewith shall ,i come before the    
,lord and bow myself before the high    
,god8' he cries4 ',shall ,i come before 
,him with burnt offerings1 with calves a
 year old8 ,will the ,lord be pleased   
with thousands of rams or with ten      
thousands of rivers of oil8 ,shall ,i   
give my firstborn for my transgression1 
the fruit of my body for the sin of my  
soul8'  ',my firstborn6'--we have just  
witnessed a father's anguish on the     
death of his firstborn4 ,but ,balak1    
,king of ,moab1 is prepared to lead his 
firstborn to the sacrificial altar if1  
by so doing1 he can secure the favor of 
the ,highest4  ,and the answer of the   
prophet is that the love of ,god is not 
for sale4 ,and1 if it were for sale1 it 
could not be purchased by an act of     
immolation in which heaven could find no
 pleasure at all4 ,f4 ,d4 ,maurice      
points out1 in one of his letters to ,r4
 ,h4 ,hutton1 that the world has        
cherished two ideas of sacrifice4 ,when 
a man discovers that his life is out of 

harmony with the divine ,will1 he may   
make a sacrifice by which he brings his 
conduct into line with the heavenly     
ideal4 ,that is the one view4 ,the other
 is ,balak's4 ,balak hopes1 by offering 
his child upon the altar1 to bring the  
divine pleasure into line with his      
unaltered life4 ',all light is in the   
one idea of sacrifice1' says ,maurice1  
'and all darkness in the other4 ,the    
idea of sacrifice1 not as an act of     
obedience to the divine will1 but as a  
means of changing that will1 is the germ
 of every dark superstition4'  ,heaven  
is not to be bought1 the prophet told   
the king4 ',he hath shewed thee1 ,o man1
 what is good2 and what does the ,lord  
require of thee but to do justly and to 
love mercy and to walk humbly with thy  
,god8'  ,equity6 ,charity6 ,piety6  ,do 
something6 ,love something6 ,be         
something6  ,do justly6 ,love mercy6    
,walk humbly with thy ,god6  ,these1 and
 these alone1 are the offerings in which
 heaven finds delight4   ,v  ,i cannot  

help feeling sorry for the lady in the  
,scottish church4 ,she thinks that      
,balaam's brave reply to ,balak is the  
worst text in the ,bible4 ,and she is   
not alone4 ,for1 in his ,literature and 
,dogma1 ,matthew ,arnold shows that she 
is the representative of a numerous and 
powerful class4 ',in our railway        
stations are hung up1' ,matthew ,arnold 
says1 'sheets of ,bible texts to catch  
the eye of the passer-by4 ,and very     
profitable admonitions to him they      
generally are4 ,one1 particularly1 we   
have all seen4 ,it asks the prophet     
,micah's question3 ,wherewith shall ,i  
come before the ,lord and bow myself    
before the high ,god8 ,and it answers   
that question with one short quotation  
from the ,new ,testament3 ,with the     
precious blood of ,christ4' ,matthew    
,arnold maintains that this is not      
honest4 ,by casting aside the prophet's 
answer1 and substituting another1 the   
people who arranged the placard ally    
themselves with the lady in the         

,scottish church4 ,they evidently think 
,balaam's reply to ,balak the worst text
 in the ,bible4 ,but is it8 ,is it good1
 is it fair1 is it honest to strike out 
the real answer and to insert in its    
place an adopted one8 ,i wish to ask the
 lady in the ,scottish church--and the  
people who prepared the placard--two    
pertinent questions4  ,my first question
 is this4 ,is the deleted text--the     
worst text in the ,bible--true8 ,that is
 extremely important4 ,does ,god require
 that man should do justly1 love mercy  
and walk humbly with ,himself8 ,is it   
not a fact that heaven does insist on   
equity and charity and piety8 ,can      
there1 indeed1 be any true religion     
without these things8 ,do they not      
represent the irreducible minimum8 ,if  
this be so1 is it not as well for that  
,scottish minister to preach on that    
terrible text1 after all8 ,and1 if this 
be so1 would not the original answer to 
the question be the best answer for the 
placard8  ,my second question is this4  

,even from the standpoint of 'a stern   
lady who is provokingly evangelical1' is
 it not well for the minister to preach 
on that objectionable text8 ,the lady is
 anxious1 and commendably anxious1 that 
the pulpit of her church should sound   
forth the magnificent verities of the   
,christian evangel4 ,but will a man     
desire the salvation which the ,new     
,testament reveals unless he has first  
recognized his inability to meet        
heaven's just demands8 ,in a notable    
fragment of autobiography1 ,paul        
declares that1 but for the law1 he would
 never have known the meaning of sin4   
,it was when he heard how much he owed  
to the divine justice that he discovered
 the hopelessness of his bankruptcy4 ,it
 was when he listened to the ,thou      
shalts and the ,thou shalt nots that he 
cried1 ',o wretched man that ,i am3 who 
shall deliver me8' ,it was ,sinai that  
drove him to ,calvary4 ,the law1 with   
its stern1 imperative demands1 was1 he  
says1 the schoolmaster that led him to  

,christ4 ,the best way of showing that a
 stick is crooked is to lay a straight  
one beside it4 ,this being so1 the lady 
in the ,scottish church1 and the        
compilers of ,matthew ,arnold's placard1
 must consider whether1 in the interests
 of that very evangelism for which they 
are so justly jealous1 they can afford  
to supersede the stately passages that  
make men feel their desperate need of a 
,saviour4  ,this1 at any rate1 is the   
way in which ,micah used the story of   
the conversation between ,balak and     
,balaam4 ,by means of it he sought to   
reduce the people to despair4 ,and then1
 when they had fallen upon their faces  
and covered themselves with sackcloth1  
he made one of the noblest evangelical  
pronouncements that the ,old ,testament 
contains3 ',he pardoneth iniquity       
because ,he delighteth in mercy3 ,thou  
wilt cast all their sins into the depths
 of the sea4' ,but the people would     
never have listened hungrily to that    
glad golden word unless they had first  

realized the sublimity of the divine    
demand and the incalculable extent of   
their shortcoming4   ,,vi  ,we each have
 a blind spot4 ,we see truth            
fragmentarily4 ,if only the excellent   
lady in the ,scottish church could have 
seen1 in the minister's text1 what      
,huxley saw in it6 ,but she didn't2 and1
 because she was blind to its beauty1   
she called it 'the worst text in the    
,bible6' ,and if only ,huxley could have
 grasped those precious truths that were
 so dear to her6 ,but he never did4 ,he 
could only shake his fine head sadly and
 say1 ',i do not know6' ',i would give  
my right hand1' he exclaims1 'if ,i     
could believe that6' ,mr4 ,clodd adorns 
the title-page of his ,life of ,huxley  
with the words of ,matthew ,arnold3 ',he
 saw life steadily and saw it whole4'   
,that sad shake of the head1 and that   
passionate but melancholy exclamation   
about giving his right hand1 prove that 
the tribute is not quite true4 ,huxley1 
as he himself more than half suspected1 

missed the best4  ,when ,sir ,george    
,adam ,smith1 in his ,book of the       
,twelve ,prophets1 comes to this great  
passage in ,micah1 he prints it in      
italics right across the page3  ,what   
doth the ,lord require of thee but to do
 justly and to love mercy and to walk   
humbly with thy ,god8  ,this1 says ,sir 
,george1 is the greatest saying of the  
,old ,testament2 and there is only one  
other in the ,new which excels it3      
,come unto ,me1 all ye that labor and   
are heavy laden1 and ,i will give you   
rest4  ,huxley had eyes for the first1  
but none for the second2 the ,scottish  
lady had eyes for the second1 but none  
for the first2 but they who 'see life   
steadily and see it whole' will stand up
 to salute the majesty of both4   ,,vii 
,it is customary for the ,presidents of 
the ,united ,states to select the       
passage which they shall kiss in taking 
the oath on assuming the                
responsibilities of their great office4 
,president ,harding had no hesitation in

 making his choice4 ,he turned to this  
great saying of ,micah4 ',what doth the 
,lord require of thee but to do justly  
and to love mercy and to walk humbly    
with thy ,god8' ,the lady in the        
,scottish church would frown and shake  
her head1 but the ,president felt that1 
of all the texts in the ,bible1 that was
 the best4     ,,xii  ,,walter          
,,petherick',s ,,text   ,i  ,he was born
 at ,islington on the day on which ,sir 
,walter ,raleigh was executed2 and his  
father named him after the gallant      
knight whom he himself was so proud of  
having served4 ,that was forty-seven    
years ago4 ,he is now a prosperous      
,london merchant1 living1 at ordinary   
times1 over his warehouse1 and          
delighting in the society of his four   
motherless children4 ,at ordinary times6
 ,but these are not ordinary times4 ,the
 plague is in the city6 ,it appeared for
 the first time about two months ago and
 has gradually increased in virulence   
ever since4 ,mr4 ,petherick has         

therefore withdrawn with his two boys   
and his two girls to ,twickenham4 ,this 
morning--the morning of ,july #af1      
#affe--they all go together to the      
,parish ,church4 ,the riverside is in   
all its summer glory4 ,the brilliant    
sunshine seems to mock both the         
wretchedness so near at hand and the    
heavy anxiety that weighs upon their    
hearts4 ,during the week a solemn       
fast-day has been observed1 and to-day1 
services of humiliation and intercession
 are to be held in all the churches4    
,several times1 during the past week or 
two1 ,mr4 ,petherick has visited the    
city4 ,it was a melancholy experience4  
,most of the shops were shut2 poor      
creatures who claimed that they         
themselves or their relatives were      
infected by the pestilence cried for    
alms at every corner2 and he had passed 
many houses on whose doors a red cross  
had been marked1 and1 underneath1 the   
words1 ',lord1 have mercy upon us6'     
,to-day that pathetic entreaty is to be 

offered in every sanctuary4 ,all through
 the country1 men and women are pleading
 that the awful visitation may be       
stayed4 ,at ,twickenham the church soon 
fills1 and the fervently murmured       
responses give evidence of the depth and
 intensity of the universal emotion4    
,mr4 ,petherick never forgot the sermon 
that was preached in the old church that
 ,july morning4 ,at least1 he never     
forgot the text4 ',although the fig tree
 shall not blossom1 neither shall fruit 
be in the vines2 the labor of the olive 
shall fail1 and the fields shall yield  
no meat2 the flocks shall be cut off    
from the fold1 and there shall be no    
herd in the stalls2 yet ,i will rejoice 
in the ,lord and ,i will joy in the ,god
 of my salvation6'  ,the fields barren6 
,the stalls empty6 ,the vineyards bare6 
,i will rejoice6 ,i will joy6 ,i will   
joy6 ,i will rejoice6  ,the text        
reminded the ,pethericks of the dazzling
 sunshine that1 as they came along1 had 
seemed so unsympathetic4 ,for here was a

 radiance equally incongruous6 ,here was
 faith shining like a solitary star on a
 dark night6 ,here was joy1 singing her 
song1 like the nightingale1 amidst the  
deepest gloom6 ,it was as though a merry
 peal of bells was being rung on a day  
of public lamentation4   ,,ii  ',the    
words took hold upon me mightily6' wrote
 ,walter ,petherick to a friend in      
#afhb4 ,i do not wonder4 ,quite apart   
from their singular application to his  
own case1 they are full of nobility and 
grandeur4 ,when1 in #aghb--;exactly a   
century later--,benjamin ,franklin was  
appointed ,american ,plenipotentiary at 
,paris1 some of the brilliant ,french   
wits of that period twitted him on his  
admiration for the ,bible4 ,he          
determined to test their knowledge of   
the ,volume they professed to scorn4    
,entering their company one evening1 he 
told them that he had been reading an   
ancient poem1 and that its stately      
beauty had greatly impressed him4 ,at   
their request he took from his pocket a 

manuscript and proceeded to read it4 ,it
 was received with exclamations of      
extravagant admiration4 ',superb6' they 
cried4 ',who was the author8 ,where did 
,franklin discover it8 ,how could copies
 be obtained8' ,he informed them1 to    
their astonishment1 that it was the     
third chapter of the prophecy of        
,habakkuk--the passage to which ,mr4    
,petherick and his children listened    
that sad but sunny morning at           
,twickenham4  ,the ,petherick incident  
belongs to the seventeenth century2 the 
,franklin incident belongs to the       
eighteenth2 and they remind me of one   
that belongs to the nineteenth4 ,daniel 
,webster was one morning discussing with
 a number of eminent artists the        
subjects commonly chosen for portrayal  
upon canvas4 ',i have often wondered1'  
he said1 'that no painter has yet       
thought it worth his while to draw his  
inspiration from one of the most sublime
 passages in any literature4' ',and what
 is that8' they asked4 ',well1' he      

replied1 'what finer conception for a   
masterpiece could any artist desire than
 the picture of the prophet ,habakkuk   
sitting in the midst of utter ruin and  
desolation1 singing1 in spite of        
everything1 faith's joyous and          
triumphant song8'   ,,iii  ,suppose6    
,it is a ,song of ,suppositions6        
',suppose the fig tree shall not        
blossom6'  ',suppose the vine shall bear
 no fruit6'  ',suppose the labor of the 
olive shall fail6'  ',suppose the fields
 shall yield no corn6'  ',suppose the   
flock shall be cut off from the fold6'  
',suppose there shall be no herd in the 
stalls6'  ',suppose6 ,suppose6          
,suppose6'  ,i very well remember a     
conversation ,i once had at ,mosgiel    
with old ,jeanie ,mc,nab4 ,jeanie       
subsisted on a mixed diet of smiles and 
songs4  ',but1 supposing1 ,jeanie----'  
,i began one day4  ',now don't you have 
anything to do with supposings1' she    
exclaimed4 ',i know them all4 ,suppose  
,i should lose my money6 ,suppose ,i    

should lose my health6 ,and all the     
rest4 ,when those supposings come       
knocking at your heart1 you just slam   
the door1 and bolt it1 and don't let any
 of them in6'  ,it was excellent advice2
 yet the prophet acted on a             
diametrically opposite principle4 ,when 
the supposings came knocking at his     
door1 he cried ',come in6' and in they  
came6  ',suppose the figs are barren6'  
',suppose the vines wither6'  ',suppose 
the olive fail6'  ',suppose the corn    
perish6'  ',suppose the sheep starve6'  
',suppose the cattle die6'  ,the prophet
 invites them all to come in4 ,they     
jostle each other as they throng his    
little room4 ,he hears all that they    
have to say1 and then he answers them4  
',whence came all these things8' he     
demands4 ',whence came the figs and the 
vines and the olives1 the corn and the  
flocks and the herds8' ,and1 having     
asked this question1 he himself proceeds
 to answer it4  ',,he gave them6' he    
cries triumphantly1 ',,he gave them6    

,and if they perish1 as you suppose1 ,he
 can as easily replace them6 ,therefore 
will ,i rejoice in the ,lord and will   
joy in the ,god of my salvation6 ,it is 
a small thing to lose the gifts as long 
as you possess the ,giver2 the supreme  
tragedy lies in losing the ,giver and   
retaining only the gifts6'  ,there is no
 record as to what the preacher said    
that ,sunday morning at ,twickenham2 but
 some such thoughts as these must have  
been suggested to the eager minds of the
 ,pethericks as they listened so        
attentively4 ',the words took hold upon 
me mightily6' the father confessed1 in a
 letter to a friend1 long afterwards4   
,,iv  ,that evening a horror of great   
darkness fell upon the soul of ,walter  
,petherick4 ,he spent the sunset hours  
quietly with the young people1 and1     
before they bade each other good-night1 
he read with them again the passage that
 had so impressed them in the morning4  
,then1 left to himself1 ,mr4 ,petherick 
put on his hat and took a stroll in the 

lane4 ,it was a perfect summer's        
evening1 warm and star-lit2 yet its     
peace failed to penetrate his tortured  
soul4 ,a glow-worm twinkled in the grass
 under the hedge1 but no ray of light   
pierced the impenetrable gloom within4  
,he returned to his room1 and1 after    
sitting for a while at the open window1 
looking down on the sluggish waters of  
the tranquil river1 he threw himself on 
his knees beside his bed4 ,one by one he
 prayed for each of his children4 ,the  
red cross that he had seen on so many   
doors seemed to have stamped itself upon
 the retina of his eye2 it blazed before
 him even whilst the lids were closed in
 prayer4  ',lord1 have mercy on us6'    
said the legend under the cross4        
',lord1 have mercy on us6' cried ,mr4   
,petherick over and over and over again4
  ,he thought of the morning's text1 but
 it only mocked him1 as the sunshine    
mocked him on his way to church4  ',i   
could not say it1' he moaned4 ',if my   
children were snatched from me--my fine 

boys and my lovely girls--the treasures 
that she left me--how could ,i rejoice  
in the ,lord and joy in the ,god of my  
salvation8'  ,he broke into a fresh     
outburst of supplication4 ,again he     
mentioned each of his children by name4 
',spare him2 oh1 spare him6' he cried2  
and1 as he thought of the girls1 ',spare
 her1 ,o ,lord2 have pity1 ,i beseech   
,thee6'  ,he wiped his face2 it was damp
 with perspiration4 ,he allowed his     
forehead to rest upon his folded arms2  
and then1 bowed there in the solitude of
 his room and in the stillness of the   
summer night1 a strange thought took    
possession of him4   ,v  ,he remembered 
to have prayed as fervently as this     
before--many1 many years ago4 ,in those 
days--the days of his earliest religious
 experiences--he had prayed1 almost as  
earnestly as this1 for his own spiritual
 prosperity1 for the extension of       
,christ's ,kingdom and for the          
enlightenment of the world4 ,it seemed  
like a dream as he recalled it4 ,he was 

scarcely more than a boy in those days4 
,the ardor and intensity of that distant
 time had deserted him so gradually1 and
 had vanished so imperceptibly1 that he 
had never missed it until now4 ,love had
 come into his life1 irradiating and    
transfiguring everything4 ,love had led 
to marriage2 four happy children had    
brought added gladness to his home and  
fresh contentment to his heart2 and he  
had abandoned himself without reserve to
 these domestic cares and comforts4 ,the
 things that had so completely          
captivated his soul were all of them    
good things--just as the fig and the    
vine and the olive1 the corn and the    
flocks and the herds were all of them   
good things--but he had allowed them to 
elbow out the wealthiest things of all4 
,the good had become the enemy of the   
best4 ,before his heart had been        
gladdened by those treasures that were  
now so dear to him1 he had every day    
rejoiced in the ,lord and joyed in the  
,god of his salvation4 ,but not since6  

,his enrichment had proved his          
impoverishment6 ,what was it that the   
preacher had said8 ',it is a small thing
 to love the gifts as long as you       
possess the ,giver2 the supreme tragedy 
lies in losing the ,giver and retaining 
only the gifts4' ,and ,walter ,petherick
 felt that night that that supreme      
tragedy was his4  ,he rose from his     
knees1 reached for his ,bible1 and      
turned once more to the chapter from    
which the minister had preached4 ',o    
,lord1' it began1 'revive ,thy work in  
the midst of years6' ,he himself was 'in
 the midst of years4' ,the thought      
brought with it a sense of shame and a  
rush of thankfulness4 ,he was ashamed   
that he had permitted the years that had
 gone to filch so much from him4 ,like  
waves that strew treasures on the shore1
 and snatch treasures from the shore1 he
 felt that the years had brought much   
and taken much4 ,yet he felt grateful   
that he was still 'in the midst of the  
years'2 it is better to discover life's 

loss at the halfway house than to find  
it out at the end of the journey6 ,he   
returned the ,bible to its place1 and1  
as he did so1 he closed his eyes and    
repeated for himself the prophet's      
prayer4  ',o ,lord1' he cried1 'revive  
,thy work in the midst of the years2 in 
the midst of the years make known2 in   
wrath remember mercy6'  ,it seemed as if
 the prayer had opened the gates of his 
soul to the peace of the night4 ,as he  
looked again at the glistening river1 he
 felt strangely soothed and comforted4  
,and1 half an hour later1 he was        
sleeping as restfully as any of his     
children4   ,,vi  ,once more it is a    
,sunday evening1 and once more we are at
 ,twickenham4 ,for at ,twickenham the   
family have now made their home2 they   
never1 after the ,plague ,year1 resided 
in the city4 ,more than twelve months   
have passed4 ,we last saw them on ,july 
#af1 #affe2 this is ,sunday1 ,september 
#b1 #afff4 ,and this ,sunday has been as
 eventful and as memorable as that4     

,for1 just as the family were assembling
 at the breakfast table1 ,henry1 the    
elder of the two boys1 burst into the   
room1 exclaiming excitedly3  ',father1  
the city is on fire6'  ,it was true6    
,london was one great sea of flame6 ,in 
the afternoon the father and the two    
sons drove as far as the ,borough2 it   
was as near as they could get to the    
raging conflagration4 ,and what a sight 
confronted them6 ,immense tongues of    
crimson shot up from the burning city   
and seemed to lick the very skies4 ,when
 the clouds of smoke parted for a       
moment1 they saw towers falling1 walls  
collapsing1 chimneys tottering1 whilst  
the crash of roof after roof kept up a  
series of reports that resembled the    
firing of artillery4 ,every now and     
again a terrific explosion rent the air1
 followed immediately by an eruption of 
flaming debris that looked volcanic in  
its weird grandeur4 ,london seemed to be
 in the grip of an angry demon that was 
bent on tearing it to fragments4 ,the   

fire exhibited a thousand fantastic     
forms2 it blazed in every conceivable   
hue and color2 it roared and shrieked   
and sputtered2 it hissed and thundered  
and growled4 ,a spectacle of such vivid 
beauty1 yet of such awful horror1 had   
never been seen in ,england before4     
,and1 somewhere within the area swept by
 that red1 red ocean of flame1 was ,mr4 
,petherick's warehouse containing all1  
or practically all1 his earthly         
possessions6  ,but that ,sunday night   
the soul of ,walter ,petherick knew no  
such anguish as it had known a year ago4
 ,he thought of the 'supposes4' ,he read
 once more the prophet's song of        
defiance and of triumph4 ,he smiled to  
himself as he reflected that the flames 
could only take the gifts2 they could   
not rob him of the ,giver4 ',therefore1'
 he said to himself1 ',i will rejoice in
 the ,lord and joy in the ,god of my    
salvation'2 for 'it is a small thing to 
lose the gifts as long as you possess   
the ,giver2 the supreme tragedy lies in 

losing the ,giver and retaining only the
 gifts6' ,and that ,sunday night1 whilst
 ,london crackled and blazed1 the sleep 
of ,walter ,petherick was once more like
 the sleep of a little child4   ,,vii   
,again it is a ,sunday evening at       
,twickenham4 ,walter ,petherick has been
 celebrating his fiftieth birthday4     
,three years have passed since the      
,great ,plague and two since the ,great 
,fire4 ,in the presence of the young    
people1 he has poured out his heart in  
reverent gratitude for the mercies that 
have so richly crowned his days4 ,and   
now1 the soft autumn day1 with its      
russet tints and its misty sunlight     
having closed1 he is once more alone in 
his room4  ',o ,lord1' he prays1 ',thou 
hast been pleased by pestilence and by  
fire to redeem my soul from destruction4
 ,thou didst threaten me with the loss  
of ,thy choicest gifts that ,i might set
 my heart's affections once more upon   
their ,giver4 ,but the fig tree did not 
wither2 the vines did not perish2 the   

olive did not fail4 ,the pestilence did 
not touch my children2 the flames did   
not destroy my goods4 ,accept the thanks
 of ,thy servant this day and help him1 
all his days1 to rejoice in the ,lord   
and to joy in the ,god of his           
salvation4'  ,and the records show that 
,walter ,petherick lived to enjoy long  
life1 abounding wealth1 great honors1   
and the clinging affection of his       
children's children4 ,and ever in his   
heart he cherished a deep1 deep secret  
and sang a rapturous song4 ,for he      
reveled1 not only in the gifts1 but in  
the ,giver4 ,he rejoiced in the ,lord   
and joyed in the ,god of his salvation4 
,,xiii  ,,doctor ,,blund',s ,,text   ,i 
,the doctor was the worst man in        
,bartown1 and that was saying a good    
deal4 ,for ,bartown had the reputation  
of being 'the wickedest little hole in  
all ,england4' ,it is ,harold ,begbie   
who1 in ,the ,vigil1 tells its story4   
,dr4 ,blund1 he assures us1 spent most  
of his time drinking gin and playing    

billiards at ',the ,angel4' ,in a       
professional point of view1 only one    
person in the little seaside town       
believed in him1 and that was the broken
 and bedraggled little woman whose whole
 life had been darkened by his          
debauchery4 ,mrs4 ,blund was never tired
 of singing the doctor's praises4 ,when 
she introduced him to a newcomer1 and   
told of his wondrous cures and amazing  
skill1 he listened like a man in a      
dream4 ',dr4 ,blund1'--so runs the      
story--',dr4 ,blund was twitching with  
excess of alcohol1 and only muttered and
 frowned as his wife talked of his      
powers4 ,the terrible old doctor1 with  
his hairy1 purple face and his sunken   
eyes1 seemed to think that his wife was 
doing him the most dreadful dis-service4
 ,it was wonderful that this little     
woman1 instead of shrinking from        
exhibiting her husband1 should have so  
pathetic a faith in the dreadful-looking
 rogue that she evidently fancied that  
he had but to be seen to be chosen as   

medical adviser4'  ,thus the story      
opens4 ,it could scarcely be expected   
that such a wreck could hold together   
for long4 ,exactly half-way through the 
book ,i find ,mr4 ,rodwell1 the young   
rector1 standing at the street-corner   
talking to ,mr4 ,shorder1 the wealthy   
manufacturer4 ,they are interrupted4    
,mrs4 ,blund comes hurrying breathlessly
 round the corner4  ',mr4 ,rodwell1' she
 pants1 'please come at once6 ,dr4      
,blund6 ,he's asking for you6 ,i've been
 to the vicarage1 ,i've been everywhere1
 hunting for you4 ,don't delay a moment1
 please6'  ,richard ,rodwell was an     
earnest young clergyman1 who had ideas  
of his own about things2 and the task to
 which he was now summoned was very     
little to his taste4 ,he saw in ,blund a
 man who had lived hideously and was now
 concerned to avert his just punishment4
 ,he tried to believe that there was    
some hope for such a wretch2 but the    
attempt was not altogether successful4  
,he bent over the dying man and talked  

of mercy and repentance and forgiveness4
 ,but the words did not come from his   
own soul1 and they did not comfort the  
soul of the man to whom they were       
addressed4  ',there's something else6'  
he gasped4  ',there is nothing outside  
the mercy of ,god1' replied the vicar4  
',it's in the ,bible1 what ,i mean1'    
returned the dying man4  ',what is it8' 
asked ,rodwell soothingly4  ',it's a    
text1 ,except a man be born again----   
,you know the words1 ,born again4 ,what 
does that mean8'  ,the doctor1 in his   
professional capacity1 had often seen a 
child draw its first breath1 and had    
been impressed by its utter             
pastlessness4 ,it had nothing to regret1
 nothing to forget4 ,everything was     
before it2 nothing behind4 ,and here was
 a text that seemed to promise such an  
experience a second time6 ,to be born   
again6 ,what was it to be born again8   
,the dying doctor asked his insistent   
question repeatedly1 but the vicar was  
out of his depth4 ,he floundered        

pitifully4 ,at last the doctor1 to whom 
every moment was precious beyond all    
price1 lost patience with the hesitating
 minister and changed the form of his   
question4 ,looking fixedly into his     
visitor's eyes1 he exclaimed3  ',tell   
me1 have you been born again8' ,rodwell 
hung his head in silence1 and the voice 
from the bed went on4  ',have you ever  
known in your life1' he asked1 'a moment
 when you felt that a great change      
happened to you8 ,are you pretending8   
,have you ever been conscious of a new  
birth in your soul8'  ,the vicar fenced 
with the question1 but it was of no     
avail4 ,the dying man raised himself    
suddenly on an elbow4 ',you can't help  
me6' he cried angrily4 ,he seized       
,rodwell's wrist and held it tightly1   
fiercely4 ,as he spoke1 the fingers     
tightened their grasp1 and he bent      
,rodwell's hand down to the bed1 as it  
were for emphasis4  ',you don't know1'  
he cried4 ',you're pretending4 ,the     
words you say are words for the living4 

,i am a dying man4 ,have you the same   
message for the living and the dying8   
,have ,i a lifetime before me in which  
to work out repentance8 ,you can't help 
me6 ,you don't know6 ,you have never    
been born again6'  ,such a rebuke smites
 a minister like the sudden coming of   
the ,day of ,judgment4 ,after his       
conversion ,john ,wesley wrote a        
terrible letter to his old counselor1   
,william ,law4 ',how will you answer to 
our common ,lord1' he asks1 'that you1  
sir1 never led me into light8 ,why did  
,i scarcely ever hear you name the name 
of ,christ8 ,why did you never urge me  
to faith in ,his blood8 ,i beseech you1 
sir1 to consider whether the true reason
 of your never pressing this salvation  
upon me was not this--that you never had
 it yourself6'  ',it was a terrible     
discovery to make1' says ,mr4 ,begbie4  
',to think that he--,richard ,rodwell1  
,vicar of ,bartown--knew so little of   
the nature of ,god that he could say no 
single word that had significance for   

this dying soul6 ,he was dumb4 ,the     
words on his lips were the words of the 
,church4 ,out of his own heart1 out of  
his own soul1 out of his own experience1
 he could say nothing4'  ',forgive me1' 
he said1 as he bent over the form on the
 bed1 'forgive me for failing you4 ,it  
is not ,christ who has failed2 it is    
,i4' ,he turned to go4 ,the dying man   
opened his eyes and looked at ,rodwell  
sadly and tragically4  ',try to learn   
what those words mean1' he muttered4    
',born again6 ,it's the bad man's only  
chance4'  ,they parted1 never to meet   
again2 and from another minister's lips 
the doctor learned the secret for which 
he craved4   ,,ii  ,it is very difficult
 to excuse ,mr4 ,rodwell1 especially    
when we remember that the words that the
 dying doctor found so captivating1 and 
that he himself found so perplexing1    
were originally intended to meet just   
such cases as that of ,dr4 ,blund4      
',what is it to be born again8 ,how can 
a man be born again8' asked the voice   

from the bed4  ',how can a man be born  
when he is old8' asked ,nicodemus1 as he
 heard the ,saviour's words uttered for 
the first time4  ',when he is old6' ,to 
,nicodemus1 as to ,dr4 ,blund1 there was
 something singularly attractive about  
the thought of babyhood1 the thought of 
pastlessness1 the thought of beginning  
life all over again4 ,but to the aged   
ruler1 as to the aged doctor1 it was an 
insoluble enigma1 an inscrutable        
mystery4  ',how8' asked ,nicodemus of   
the ,saviour4 ',how can a man be born   
when he is old8'  ',how8' asked ,dr4    
,blund of ,mr4 ,rodwell4 ',how can a man
 be born again8'  ,we all feel that1    
unless the gospel can meet just such    
cases as these1 we might almost as well 
have no gospel at all4 ,and yet we have 
also felt the force of that persistent  
and penetrating ,how8  ,dr4 ,blund is no
 frolic of ,mr4 ,begbie's imagination4  
,dr4 ,blund is the representative of all
 those--and their name is legion--who1  
in the crisis of the soul's secret      

history1 have turned towards the        
,saviour's strange saying with the most 
intense wistfulness and yearning4 ,let  
me cite three instances--each as unlike 
the others as it could possibly be--in  
order to show that all sorts and        
conditions of men have at some time felt
 as ,dr4 ,blund felt in those last hours
 of his4 ,john ,bunyan1 the tinker of   
,bedford1 was born in the seventeenth   
century2 the ,duke of ,wellington1      
soldier and statesman1 was born in the  
eighteenth century2 ,frederick          
,charrington1 the ,london brewer1 was   
born in the nineteenth century4 ,from a 
great cloud of available witnesses ,i   
select these three4  ,as to ,john       
,bunyan1 the story of the beginnings of 
grace in the dreamer's soul is familiar 
to us all1 but it will do us no harm to 
hear it from his own lips once again4   
',upon a day1' he says1 'the good       
providence of ,god called me to         
,bedford1 to work at my calling2 and in 
one of the streets of that town ,i came 

to where there were three or four poor  
women sitting in the sun talking about  
the things of ,god2 and being now       
willing to hear them discourse1 ,i drew 
near to hear what they said2 but ,i     
heard1 yet understood not2 they were far
 above1 out of my reach2 for their talk 
was about a new birth6'  ',their talk   
was about a new birth6'  ',ye must be   
born again6'  ',i heard1' says ,bunyan1 
'but ,i understood not6'  ',at this1' he
 goes on to say1 'at this ,i felt my    
heart begin to shake1 for ,i saw that in
 all my thoughts about salvation1 the   
new birth did never enter into my mind6'
  ,thus the soul of the sleeper awoke4  
,he walked the streets of ,bedford      
asking the old1 old question1 the       
question of ,nicodemus1 the question of 
,dr4 ,blund1 the question of us all4    
',how can a man be born again8 ,how can 
a man be born again8'  ,from ,john      
,bunyan to the ,duke of ,wellington     
seems a far cry4 ,but the transition may
 not be as drastic as it appears4 ,dr4  

,w4 ,h4 ,fitchett1 who has made a       
special study of the character and      
achievements of the great ,duke1        
recently told the story of a remarkable 
and voluminous correspondence that took 
place between ,wellington and a young   
lady named ,miss ,jenkins4 ,to this     
earnest and devout girl1 her faith was  
the biggest thing in life4 ,she had but 
one passionate and quenchless desire3   
the desire to share it with others4 ,she
 sought for converts everywhere4 ,a     
murderer awaited execution in the local 
gaol4 ,miss ,jenkins obtained permission
 to visit him4 ,she entered the         
condemned cell1 pleaded with him1 wept  
over him1 won him to repentance1 and the
 man went to the scaffold blessing her4 
,then1 from the winning of the lowest1  
she turned to the winning of the        
highest4 ,she fastened her eyes upon the
 ,duke of ,wellington1 the victor of    
,waterloo1 the statesman of the hour1   
the most commanding figure in the three 
kingdoms4 ,wellington was then          

sixty-five1 a man covered with honor and
 absorbed in public affairs4 ,but1 to   
,miss ,jenkins1 he was simply a great   
worldly figure1 and1 in #ahcd1 she wrote
 a letter--a letter winged by many      
prayers--warning him of the peril of    
living without a sure1 deep             
consciousness of the forgiveness of     
sins1 through the redemption of ,jesus  
,christ4 ,wellington's iron nature was  
strongly moved4 ,he replied by return of
 post1 and thus inaugurated a           
correspondence in the course of which he
 wrote to ,miss ,jenkins no fewer than  
three hundred and ninety letters4 ,in   
the course of this amazing              
correspondence1 ,miss ,jenkins begged   
for an interview1 and it was granted4   
,miss ,jenkins took out her ,new        
,testament and read to the old warrior  
these very words4 ',verily1 verily1 ,i  
say unto thee1 except a man be born     
again1 he cannot see the ,kingdom of    
,god6' ',here1' says ,dr4 ,fitchett1 in 
unfolding the story1 'here was a        

preacher of quite a new type6 ,a girl's 
lips were reciting ,christ's tremendous 
words3 ,ye must be born again6 ,she was 
addressing them directly to him1 and her
 uplifted finger was challenging him4   
,some long-dormant religious            
sensibilities awoke within him4 ,the    
grace of the speaker1 and the mystic    
quality of the thing spoken1 arrested   
him4' ,to the end of his days the ,duke 
firmly believed that1 by means of this  
girl-prophet1 ,god ,himself spoke to his
 soul that day4  ,mr4 ,frederick        
,charrington's story has been put on    
record by ,guy ,thorne4 ,he was the son 
of the great brewer1 the heir to more   
than a million pounds1 and his time was 
very largely his own4 ,he traveled and  
formed friendships4 ,one of his earliest
 friends was ,lord ,garvagh4 ,they      
traveled together1 and1 when they       
parted1 ,lord ,garvagh asked            
,charrington if he would grant him one  
request4 ',when you are quite alone1'   
his lordship pleaded1 ',i should like   

you to read slowly and carefully the    
third chapter of ,john's ,gospel6'      
,later on1 ,charrington met ,william    
,rainsford1 and the acquaintance ripened
 into intimacy4 ',do you know what ,i   
wish you would do1 ,fred8' ,rainsford   
said to him one day4 ',i wish1 when you 
are by yourself1 that you would study   
the third chapter of the ,gospel of     
,john6'  ',this is a very curious       
thing1' ,charrington said to himself4   
',my old friend1 ,lord ,garvagh1 and my 
new friend1 ,rainsford1 both say exactly
 the same thing2 and they both profess  
to be saved4'  ,thus doubly challenged1 
he read the chapter with the closest    
attention1 and was arrested by the      
words3 ',verily1 verily1 ,i say unto    
thee1 ,except a man be born again1 he   
cannot see the ,kingdom of ,god6' ',as  
,i read1' he says1 'light came into my  
soul1' and he ever afterwards regarded  
that moment as the turning-point of his 
whole life4   ,,iii  ,now1 what did     
these men--these and a hundred thousand 

more--see in the strange1 mysterious    
words that ,jesus spoke to the aged     
ruler twenty centuries ago8 ,that is the
 question1 and the question is not a    
difficult one to answer4  ,a new birth6 
,to be born again6 ,what can it mean8   
,it can only mean one thing4 ',i wish1' 
somebody has sung----    ,i wish that   
there were some wonderful place         
,called the ,land of ,beginning ,again1 
,where all our mistakes and all our     
heartaches       ,and all of our poor1  
selfish grief   ,could be dropped1 like 
a shabby old coat1 at the door1     ,and
 never put on any more4  ,the words1 if 
they mean anything1 mean that there is  
such a place4 ,a man may have a fresh   
start4 ,in describing the greatest      
change that took place in his life--the 
greatest change that can take place in  
any man's life--,frank ,bullen says3 ',i
 love that description of conversion as 
the new birth4 ,no other definition     
touches the truth of the process at all4
 ,so helpless1 so utterly knowledgeless1

 possessing nothing but the vague       
consciousness of life just begun6' ,dr4 
,blund was thinking of the babes whose  
first breath he had seen drawn4 ,so     
innocent2 so pastless6 ,oh1 to begin    
where they were beginning6 ,oh1 to be   
born again6'  ,dr4 ,blund cannot begin  
where they were beginning4 ,he cannot   
enjoy again--at any rate in this        
world--the opportunities of growth and  
development that were theirs4 ,but he   
can be born again6 ,he can start afresh6
 ,dr4 ,blund made that discovery on his 
deathbed1 and1 in talking of the dead   
doctor's experience1 the young minister 
made the same discovery a day or two    
later4 ,he felt his need2 he turned in  
an agony of supplication to the ,saviour
 whom he had so often preached2 and he1 
too1 entered into the new life4  ',he   
made the great discovery1' ,harold      
,begbie says4 ',it had happened2 the    
longed-for event had come2 he stood by  
himself1 all by himself1 conscious now  
of the heart2 no longer satisfied either

 with his own intellect or the          
traditions of a church4 ,the miracle had
 happened4 ,he had discovered the       
helplessness of humanity4 ,he had       
discovered the need of the soul4 ,he had
 begun at last to see into the heart of 
things4' ,he had been born again6       
,there are two kinds of progress4 ,there
 is the progress that moves away from   
infancy towards youth1 towards maturity1
 towards age and decrepitude4 ,and there
 is a higher progress1 a progress that  
moves towards infancy4 ',except ye be   
converted and become as little          
children1' ,jesus said1 'ye shall not   
enter into the kingdom of ,god4' ,and   
the only way of becoming a little child 
once more is by being born again4 ,it is
 the glory of the gospel that it offers 
a man that chance4     ,,xiv  ,,hedley  
,,vicars' ,,text   ,i  ',those words are
 the sheet-anchor of my soul6' said     
,hedley ,vicars1 a gallant young ,army  
officer1 as he sat talking to his       
sweetheart in the handsome drawing-room 

at ,terling ,place4  ',those words are  
more golden than gold6' exclaimed ,miss 
,frances ,ridley ,havergal1 and she     
ordered that they should be inscribed   
upon her tomb4  ',those words did give a
 great ease to my spirit6' ,john ,bunyan
 tells us4  ',those words1' said old    
,donald ,menzies1 the mystic of         
,drumtochty1 'those words fell upon me  
like a gleam from the ,mercy-seat6'     
,what words8 ,let us return to ,hedley  
,vicars6 ,he was only twenty-eight when 
he fell1 leading his regiment--the      
,ninety-seventh--in action before       
,sebastopol4 ,the enemy attacked        
suddenly under cover of the darkness4   
',the men of the ,ninety-seventh behaved
 with the utmost gallantry and          
coolness1' said ,lord ,raglan1 in the   
historic dispatch that reached ,england 
on ,good ,friday1 #ahee4 ',they were led
 by ,captain ,vicars1 who1              
unfortunately1 lost his life in the     
engagement2 and ,i am assured that      
nothing could be more distinguished than

 the gallantry and good example which he
 set to the detachment under his        
command4' ,his biographer tells us that 
it was more than three years earlier--in
 ,november1 #ahea--that1 whilst awaiting
 in his room the return of a brother    
officer1 he idly turned over the leaves 
of a ,bible which lay on the table4 ,the
 words1 ',the blood of ,jesus ,christ1  
,his ,son1 cleanseth us from all sin1'  
caught his eyes and profoundly impressed
 his mind4 ',if1' he said1 as he closed 
the sacred ,volume1 'if this be true1 ,i
 will henceforth live by the grace of   
,god as a man should live who has been  
redeemed by the blood of ,jesus         
,christ4' ,that night he could scarcely 
sleep2 the great words repeated         
themselves again and again within his   
throbbing brain2 they seemed too good to
 be true4  ',all sin6 ,all sin6'        
',cleanseth from all sin6'  ',the blood 
of ,jesus ,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth 
us from all sin4'  ,he never tired of   
telling of that wonderful experience4   

,miss ,marsh1 to whom he was engaged to 
be married1 says that1 almost as soon as
 they were first introduced to each     
other1 'he gave her an outline of the   
manner in which ,god had worked the     
great change in his heart4 ,with        
forceful simplicity he told the point of
 the story2 how the words1 ,the blood of
 ,jesus ,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth us
 from all sin1 became the sheet-anchor  
of his soul1 adding1 ,thus was ,i born  
again of the ,word of ,god which liveth 
and abideth for ever6'   ,,ii  ,away    
back in the infancy of the world ,i hear
 one of the earliest of the ,patriarchs 
uttering a great and bitter cry4 ',i    
have sinned6' he cries2 'what shall ,i  
do8' ,and1 as ,i turn over the leaves of
 my ,bible1 ,i find that question echoed
 again and again1 generation after      
generation and age after age4 ,yet never
 once does it receive the slightest hint
 or suggestion of an answer4 ,and1      
depend upon it1 if the ,son of ,man had 
never come into the world1 it would have

 echoed round the globe--still          
unanswered and unanswerable--until this 
day4 ',o ,plato1 ,plato6' cried         
,socrates1 'it may be that the gods can 
forgive sin1 but1 alas1 ,i do not see   
how6' ,nor anybody else4 ,job's question
 fell back upon his face2 the universe  
could give him no reply4 ,it is very    
striking4 ,and so1 here at the beginning
 of my ,bible1 ,i hear the first man's  
question2 and1 here at the end of my    
,bible1 ,i hear the last man's answer6  
',what shall ,i do8 ,what shall ,i do8' 
',i have sinned2 what shall ,i do8'     
',the blood of ,jesus ,christ1 ,his     
,son1 cleanseth us from all sin6'       
,,iii  ,these two men--,job and         
,john--present us1 first with a         
comparison1 and then with a contrast4   
,it is interesting to examine side by   
side their views of the sin that        
represented so terrific a problem4  ,job
 thought of it as a contaminating thing4
 ,he felt that his soul was soiled4     
',what shall ,i do8' he cries1 'what    

shall ,i do8 ,if ,i bathe myself in snow
 water and wash my hands never so clean1
 yet shalt ,thou plunge me in the ditch 
and mine own clothes shall abhor me6'   
,every day of his life he thought he    
heard1 morning and noon and night1 the  
awful ,voice of the ,most ,high4        
',though thou wash thee with niter1 and 
take thee much soap1 yet thine iniquity 
is marked before ,me1 saith the ,lord   
,god4' ,he felt as ,macbeth felt when   
advised to cleanse the stain from his   
guilty hands4    ,will all great        
,neptune's ocean wash this blood        
,clean from my hand6 ,no1 this my hand  
will rather   ,the multitudinous seas   
incarnadine1   ,making the green one    
red6  ,job was like the old lama1 in    
,rudyard ,kipling's ,kim1 who1 year     
after year1 wandered through cities and 
rice-fields1 over the hills and across  
the plains1 always searching1 but       
searching in vain1 for the ,river1 the  
,river of the ,arrow1 the ,river that   
could cleanse from sin6  ,john1 on the  

other hand1 thought of sin as a         
condemning thing4 ,the great word       
'condemnation' occurs on almost every   
page of his writings4 ,he feels that    
every man's sin carries its own         
conviction4 ,it is like finger-print    
evidence2 it speaks for itself2 it needs
 no long procession of corroborating    
witnesses4 ,there it is6 ,it tells its  
own terrible tale1 and there is no      
gainsaying it4   ,,iv  ,and yet1 looked 
at in another way1 the thoughts of these
 two men stand in sharp and striking    
contrast1 the one with the other4 ',i   
have sinned1' cried ,job2 'what shall ,i
 do8 ,what shall ,i do8'  ,but there is 
no reply4 ,in the course of the         
stupendous drama that bears his name1   
,job scours sea and land1 earth and sky1
 for some answer to the wild            
questionings of his soul4 ,he climbs the
 summits of the loftiest mountains and  
thrids the labyrinth of the deepest     
mine2 he calls to the heights of the    
heavens and to the depths of the sea4   

,but there is no answering voice1 and he
 is left to nurse his dumb and piteous  
despair4 ,every attempt that he makes to
 rid his soul of its defilement is like 
the effort of a man who1 in trying to   
remove the stain from his window1 rubs  
on the wrong side of the glass4  ,but1  
in contrast with all this1 ,john saw the
 ,cross6 ,how could he ever forget it8  
,had he not stood beside it1 gazed into 
the thorn-crowned face1 and received    
from those quivering lips their last    
sacred bequest--the charge of the       
,saviour's mother8 ,and1 all through the
 eventful years that followed1 ,john    
never tired of presenting the ,cross as 
the only answer to the ,patriarch's     
question4 ,he may not have perfectly    
understood it--no man ever yet          
comprehended all its heights and sounded
 all its depths6 ,but it is easier to   
accept it than to reject it4 ,for1 if ,i
 reject it1 ,i am confronted by an      
enigma even more unanswerable than      
,job's4    ,oh1 why was ,he there as the

 ,bearer of sin     ,if on ,jesus my    
guilt was not laid8   ,oh1 why from ,his
 side flowed the sin-cleansing stream1  
,if ,his dying my debt has not paid8    
,if1 that is to say1 the ,cross is not  
the divine answer to the mystery of all 
the ages1 then who shall attempt to     
solve the dark1 inscrutable1            
impenetrable mystery of the ,cross8   ,v
  ,but it is6 ,experience proves it6 ,in
 the course of his dazzling ,apocalypse1
 ,john tells us that he saw a war being 
waged in heaven2 and the hosts of       
righteousness overcame their powerful   
and sinister foes by the virtue of the  
blood of the ,lamb4 ,i do not know what 
he means--never expect to know in this  
world4 ,but ,i know that1 in this life1 
something very like it happens every    
day4  ,martin ,luther says that1 in one 
of his periods of depression at the     
,wartburg1 it seemed to him that he saw 
a hideous and malignant form inscribing 
the record of his own transgressions    
round the walls of his room4 ,there     

seemed to be no end to the list--sins of
 thought1 sins of word1 sins of deed1   
sins of omission1 sins of commission1   
secret sins1 open sins--the pitiless    
scribe wrote on and on interminably4    
,whilst the accuser was thus occupied1  
,luther bowed his head and prayed4 ,when
 he looked up again1 the writer had     
paused1 and1 turning1 faced him4  ',thou
 hast forgotten just one thing6' said   
,luther4  ',and that--8' asked his      
tormentor4  ',take thy pen once more and
 write across it all3 ,the blood of     
,jesus ,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth us 
from all sin6' ,and1 at the utterance of
 those words1 the spirit vanished and   
the walls were clean6  ,in his ,grace   
,abounding1 ,bunyan tells us of a period
 in his life during which his soul      
seemed to be held in fetters of brass2  
and1 every step he took1 he took to the 
sound of the clanking of chains4 ',but  
about ten or eleven o'clock on a certain
 day1' he says1 'as ,i was walking under
 a hedge 7full of sorrow and guilt1 ,god

 knows71 suddenly this sentence rushed  
in upon me1 ,the blood of ,jesus        
,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth us from   
all sin4 ,at this ,i made a stand in my 
spirit and began to conceive peace in my
 soul1 and methought ,i saw as if the   
tempter did leer and steal away from me1
 as being ashamed of what he had done4  
,at the same time also ,i had my sin and
 the blood of ,christ thus represented  
to me3 that my sin1 when compared to the
 blood of ,christ1 was no more to it    
than this little clod or stone is to the
 vast and wide field that here ,i see4  
,this gave me good encouragement4'      
,neither ,martin ,luther nor ,john      
,bunyan would object to my setting them 
in the company of ,donald ,menzies4     
,for1 like them1 ,donald was at war with
 principalities and powers1 with the    
rulers of the darkness of this world1   
with spiritual wickedness in high       
places4 ,in the lonely anguish of that  
grim struggle it seemed as though1 at   
the last1 the gates of hell must have   

prevailed against him4  ',then1' he     
says1 ',i heard a voice1 oh1 yes1 as    
plain as you are hearing me3 ,the blood 
of ,jesus ,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth 
us from all sin4 ,it was like a gleam   
from the ,mercy-seat1 but ,i waited to  
see whether ,satan had any answer and my
 heart was standing still4 ,but there   
was no word from him1 not one word4     
,then ,i leaped to my feet and cried1   
,get thee behind me1 ,satan6 ,and ,i    
looked round1 and there was no one to be
 seen but ,janet in her chair with the  
tears on her cheeks1 and she was saying1
 ,thanks be to ,god which giveth us the 
victory through our ,lord ,jesus        
,christ6'  ',when ,i uttered those      
words1' says ,luther1 'the evil spirit  
vanished and the walls were clean6'     
',when ,i made a stand upon those       
words1' says ,bunyan1 'the tempter did  
steal away from me and ,i entered into  
peace6'  ',when ,i heard those words1'  
says ,donald ,menzies1 ',i waited to see
 if ,satan had any answer1 but there was

 no word from him1 not one word6'       
,this1 surely1 is what the seer means   
when he says that he saw all the hosts  
of evil routed and scattered by the     
virtue of the blood of the ,lamb4   ,,vi
  ,down at the library yesterday        
afternoon ,i spent an hour in glancing  
through the various volumes of          
,southey's ,commonplace ,book4 ,and1    
among a vast assortment of musty notes  
that are now of interest to nobody1 ,i  
came upon this3 ',i have been reading of
 a man on the ,malabar coast who had    
inquired of many devotees and priests as
 to how he might make atonement for his 
sins4 ,at last he was directed to drive 
iron spikes1 sufficiently blunted1      
through his sandals1 and on these spikes
 he was to place his naked feet and then
 walk a distance of five hundred miles4 
,he undertook the journey1 but loss of  
blood and exhaustion of body compelled  
him to rest one day under the shade of a
 spreading tree4 ,as he lay there1 a    
missionary approached and began to      

preach the gospel4 ,he announced as his 
theme the words3 ,the blood of ,jesus   
,christ1 ,his ,son1 cleanseth us from   
all sin4 ,whilst the evangelist still   
preached1 the man sprang up1 tore off   
his sandals1 and cried aloud3 ,that is  
what ,i want6 ,that is what ,i want6    
,and he became a living witness to the  
fact that the redeeming blood of ,christ
 does cleanse from human guilt4'  ',that
 is what ,i want6' cried ,southey's     
pilgrim on the coast of ,malabar4       
',that is what ,i want6' cried ,luther  
in the ,wartburg4  ',that is what ,i    
want6' cried ,bunyan at ,bedford4       
',that is what ,i want6' cried ,donald  
,menzies at ,drumtochty4  ',that is what
 ,i want6' exclaimed young ,hedley      
,vicars1 as his startled eyes fell upon 
the tremendous words that seemed to leap
 from the ,bible on the table4 ',the    
blood of ,jesus ,christ1 ,his ,son1     
cleanseth us from all sin4' ',that is   
what ,i want6 ,that is what ,i want6'   
,hedley ,vicars appropriated the        

priceless gift held out to him1 and his 
whole life was transfigured in          
consequence4 ,his life--and his death6  
,for1 on that fatal night before        
,sebastopol1 it was with ,hedley ,vicars
 as it was with the soldier with whom   
the poet has familiarized us4 ,everybody
 knows the story4 ,two men of ,god moved
 in the darkness across the field on    
which1 that day1 a battle had been      
fought4              ,and now they stand
   ,beside a manly form1 outstretched   
alone4   ,his helmet from his head had  
fallen4 ,his hand   ,still firmly       
grasped his keen but broken sword4      
,his face was white and cold1 and1      
thinking he was gone1   ,they were just 
passing on1 for time was precious1      
,when a faint sigh caught their         
attentive ears4   ,life was still there1
 so bending down1   ,they whispered in  
his ears most earnestly1   ,yet with    
that hush and gentleness with which     
,we ever speak to a departing soul--    
',brother6 the blood of ,jesus ,christ1 

,god's ,son1   ,cleanseth from every    
sin4'              ,the pale lips moved1
   ,and gently whispered 'hush6' and    
then they closed1   ,and life again     
seemed gone4              ,but yet once 
more   ,they whispered those thrice     
blessed words1 in hope   ,to point the  
parting soul to ,christ and heaven--    
',brother6 the precious blood of ,jesus 
,christ   ,can cleanse from every sin4' 
,again the pale lips moved1   ,all else 
was still and motionless1 for ,death    
,already had his fatal work half done2  
,but gathering up his quickly failing   
strength1   ,the dying soldier--dying   
victor--said3   ',hush6 for the angels  
call the muster roll6   ,i wait to hear 
my name6'              ,they spoke no   
more4   ,what need to speak again8 for  
now full well   ,they knew on whom his  
dying hopes were fixed1   ,and what his 
prospects were4 ,so1 hushed and still1  
,they1 kneeling1 watched4               
,and presently a smile1   ,as of most   
thrilling and intense delight1   ,played

 for a moment on the soldier's face1    
,and with his one last breath he        
whispered ',here6'  ',i have sinned6    
,what shall ,i do8' cries this          
despairing soul at the beginning of my  
,bible4  ',the blood of ,jesus ,christ1 
,his ,son1 cleanseth us from all sin6'  
answers the man who leaned upon the     
,saviour's breast and gazed full into   
the thorn-crowned face of the           
,crucified4  ',that is what ,i want6'   
exclaims the man at ,malabar1 speaking1 
not for himself alone1 but for each and 
all of us4  ',those words are more      
golden than gold6' says ,miss ,havergal1
 as she orders them to be inscribed upon
 her tomb4  ',they are like a gleam from
 the ,mercy-seat6' cries ,donald        
,menzies4  ',they are the sheet-anchor  
of my soul6' ,hedley ,vicars tells his  
sweetheart4 ,and he is a very wise man  
who1 in the straits of his experience1  
stakes his faith upon that which such   
witnesses have tested and have found    
sublimely true4     ,,xv  ,,silas       

,,wright',s ,,text   ,i  ,silas ,wright 
was deprived by sheer modesty of the    
honor of being ,president of the ,united
 ,states4 ,his is one of the truly      
,homeric figures in ,american history4  
,by downright purity of motive1         
transparency of purpose1 and the        
devotion of commanding powers to the    
public good1 he won for himself the     
honor1 the love and the unbounded       
confidence of all his fellows4 ,it used 
to be said of him that he was as honest 
as any man under heaven or in it4 ,he   
might have aspired to any office to     
which it was in ,america's power to call
 him4 ,only his extreme humility1 and   
his dread of impeding the promotion of  
his friends1 kept him from rising to a  
position in which his name would have   
taken its place with those of           
,washington and ,lincoln4 ,but he       
refused almost every honor4 ',he refused
 cabinet appointments1' says ,benton1 in
 his ,thirty ,years' ,view4 ',he refused
 a seat on the bench of the ,supreme    

,court of the ,united ,states2 he       
rejected instantly the nomination of    
#ahdd for ,vice-,president2 he refused  
to be nominated for the ,presidency4 ,he
 spent as much time in declining office 
as others did in winning it4 ,the       
offices he did accept were thrust upon  
him4 ,he was born great and above office
 and unwillingly descended to it4'      
,whittier is very conservative in his   
choice of heroes4 ,those whom he        
commemorates in verse are not only great
 men1 but good ones4 ,and ,silas ,wright
 is among them4 ',man of the millions1' 
he says1 in the lines that he penned on 
hearing of ,mr4 ,wright's death3    ,man
 of the millions1 thou art lost too     
soon6   ,portents at which the bravest  
stand aghast--   ,the birththroes of a  
,future1 strange and vast1   ,alarm the 
land2 yet thou1 so wise1 and strong1    
,suddenly summoned to the burial bed1   
,lapped in its slumbers deep and ever   
long1   ,hear'st not the tumult surging 
overhead4   ,who now shall rally        

,freedom's scattered host8   ,who wear  
the mantle of the leader lost8  ,the    
splendid personality of ,silas ,wright  
has been best revealed to us in ,irving 
,bacheller's ,the ,light in the         
,clearing4 ,the book is partly history  
and partly commentary and partly        
fiction4 ,silas ,wright1 says ,irving   
,bacheller1 carried the candle of the   
,lord2 and all the world rejoiced in its
 radiance4   ,,ii  ,barton ,baynes1 the 
hero of the book--for whose actuality   
and historicity the author vouches--is  
an orphan brought up on a farm by his   
,uncle ,peabody and ,aunt ,deel4        
,getting into all sorts of scrapes1 he  
makes up his mind that he is too heavy a
 burden on the affectionate and         
good-natured couple2 and one night he   
runs away4 ,out in the darkness1        
however1 he meets with strange          
adventures1 loses his way1 and at length
 finds himself in the hands of ,silas   
,wright1 the ,comptroller4 ,the ,senator
 first falls in love with the           

bright-faced1 open-hearted1 intelligent 
boy1 and then takes him back to his     
uncle's farm4 ,from that moment the     
friendship between the two--the great   
man and the obscure country boy--grows  
apace4 ,after a while the ,senator      
visits the district to deliver an       
address1 and he spends the night at the 
farmhouse4 ,it is a great occasion for  
,bart2 and after supper an incident     
occurs that colors all his life and     
strikes the keynote of the book4 ,as    
,barton approaches ,mr4 ,wright to say  
,good-night1 the ,senator says3  ',i    
shall be gone when you are up in the    
morning4 ,it may be a long time before  
,i see you2 ,i shall leave something for
 you in a sealed envelope with your name
 on it4 ,you are not to open the        
envelope until you go away to school4 ,i
 know how you will feel that first day4 
,when night falls1 you will think of    
your aunt and uncle and be very lonely4 
,when you go to your room for the night 
,i want you to sit down all by yourself 

and read what ,i shall write4 ,they will
 be1 ,i think1 the most impressive words
 ever written4 ,you will think them     
over1 but you will not understand them  
for a long time4 ,ask every wise man you
 meet to explain them to you1 for all   
your happiness will depend upon your    
understanding of those few words in the 
envelope4'  ,the words in the sealed    
envelope6  ,what are the mysterious     
words in the envelope8  ,and what if the
 sealed envelope contains a text8       
,,iii  ,in the morning1 when ,barton    
rose1 the ,senator was gone1 and ,aunt  
,deel handed the boy the sealed         
envelope4 ,it was addressed3 ',master   
,barton ,baynes2 to be opened when he   
leaves home to go to school4' ,that day 
soon came4 ,at the ,canton ,academy1    
under the care of the excellent ,michael
 ,hacket1 ,bart felt terribly lonely1   
and1 in accordance with the ,senator's  
instructions1 he opened the note4 ,and  
this is what he read3  ',dear ,bart1 ,i 
want you to ask the wisest man you know 

to explain these words to you4 ,i       
suggest that you commit them to memory  
and think often of their meaning4 ,they 
are from ,job3 ,his bones are full of   
the sin of his youth1 which shall lie   
down with him in the dust4 ,i believe   
that they are the most impressive in all
 the literature ,i have read4--,silas   
,wright4'  ,bart soon learned to love   
and admire the schoolmaster2 he was the 
wisest man he knew2 to him1 therefore1  
he went for an explanation of the words4
  ',all true6' exclaimed ,mr4 ,hacket1  
after reading the note4 ',i have seen it
 sinking into the bones of the young1   
and ,i have seen it lying down with the 
aged in the dust of their graves4 ,your 
body is like a sponge2 it takes things  
in and holds them and feeds upon them4  
,a part of every apple that you eat     
sinks down into your blood and bones4   
,you can't get it out4 ,it's the same   
with the books that you read and the    
thoughts that you enjoy4 ,they go down  
into your bones and you can't get them  

out4 ,a man's bones are full of the sin 
of his youth1 which lies down with him  
in the dust6'   ,,iv  ,but the best     
exposition of the text is not ,michael  
,hacket's1 but ,irving ,bacheller's4    
,the whole book is a vivid and arresting
 and terrible forth-setting of the      
impressive words that ,barton found in  
his sealed envelope4  ,all through the  
book two dreadful characters move side  
by side--,benjamin ,grimshaw and ,silent
 ,kate4 ,benjamin ,grimshaw is rich and 
proud and pitiless4 ,everybody is afraid
 of him4 ,but ,roving ,kate is not      
afraid4 ,indeed1 he seems to be more    
afraid of her4 ,wherever he is1 she is  
there4 ,she is wild and bony and ragged4
 ,she is1 or pretends to be1 half       
demented4 ,she tells fortunes with      
strange antics and gesticulations1      
scrawling her prognostications upon     
stray slips of paper4 ,but ,benjamin    
,grimshaw is the main object of her     
attention4 ,she hates him1 and hates him
 all the more terribly because she once 

loved him4 ,for ,roving ,kate1 the      
,silent ,woman1 was once ,kate          
,fullerton1 ,squire ,fullerton's pretty 
daughter4 ,and ,benjamin ,grimshaw had  
loved her1 and betrayed her1 and spurned
 her1 and married another4 ,in the      
village cemetery you might have seen a  
tombstone bearing her name4 ,her father 
erected it to show that she was dead to 
him for ever4 ,poor ,kate had never     
known her mother4 ,and so1 in the course
 of the story1 ,benjamin ,grimshaw had  
two sons1 only one of whom he           
recognized4 ,for ,kate ,fullerton was   
the mother of the other4 ,and1 in her   
shame and her anger and her hate1 ,kate 
resolved to follow the father of her    
base-born child all the days of his     
life2 and there she stands--unkempt1    
repulsive1 menacing--always near him1   
the living embodiment of the sin of his 
youth4  ,amos ,grimshaw1 his petted and 
pampered son1 comes to the gallows4 ,he 
is convicted of murder upon the highway4
 ,the father is in court when the ,judge

 pronounces the awful sentence4 ,and1 of
 course1 ,roving ,kate is there4 ,ragged
 as ever1 the ,silent ,woman is waiting 
for him as he comes down the steps4 ,she
 shoots out a bony finger at him1 as1   
bowed and broken1 he passes into the    
street4 ,he turns and strikes at her    
with his cane4  ',go away from me1' he  
cries4 ',take her away1 somebody6 ,i    
can't stand it6 ,she's killing me6 ,take
 her away6'  ,his face turns purple and 
then livid4 ,he reels and falls         
headlong4 ,he is dead6 ,three days later
 they bury him4 ,roving ,kate stands by 
the graveside1 strangely changed4 ,she  
is decently dressed2 her hair is neatly 
combed2 the wild look has left her eyes4
 ,she looks like one whose back is      
relieved of a heavy burden4 ,she        
scatters little red squares of paper    
into the grave1 her lips moving         
silently4 ,these are her last curses4   
,barton ,baynes and his schoolmaster1   
,mr4 ,hacket1 are standing by4  ',the   
scarlet sins of his youth are lying down

 with him in the dust1' whispers the    
master to his pupil as they walk away   
together4   ,v  ,this is terrible       
enough--the thought of our sins         
surrounding our deathbeds and lying down
 with us in our graves--but the book    
contains something more profound and    
terrible still6  ,for1 in addition to   
the grave of ,benjamin ,grimshaw1 from  
which we have just turned sadly away1   
there are two other graves in the book4 
,the one is a felon's grave--the grave  
of ,amos ,grimshaw4 ,and what sins are  
these that are lying down with him in   
the dust8 ,they are some of them his    
own2 and they are some of them his      
father's2 and they are some of them the 
sins of ,roving ,kate1 the ,silent      
,woman4 ,yes1 they are some of them the 
woman's sins4 ,for when ,amos was but an
 impressionable boy1 ,kate had supplied 
him with literature by which she hoped  
to pollute and ruin him4  ,out of the   
deathless hatred that she bore to the   
father1 she longed to destroy the son1  

body and soul4 ,she gave him tales that 
would inflame his fancy and excite his  
baser instincts1 tales that glorified   
robbery1 murder and villainy of every   
kind4 ,if ,amos ,grimshaw had been a    
good man's son1 and if ennobling        
influences had been brought to bear upon
 him1 he might have lived to old age and
 gone down at last to an honored grave4 
,but his father's example was always    
before him1 and ,kate's books did their 
dreadful work only too well4 ,he became 
a highway robber2 he shot a stranger on 
a lonely road4 ,it came out in evidence 
that the deed had been perpetrated under
 circumstances identical with those     
described in one of the sensational     
stories found in the ,grimshaw barn--the
 stories ,kate had given him6  ',it's   
the same with the books you read1' the  
schoolmaster had said1 when ,bart sought
 from him an explanation of the text in 
the sealed envelope2 'they go down into 
your bones and you can't get them out4' 
,and ,kate's books had gone down into   

,amos ,grimshaw's bones2 and thus her   
sins and his father's sins lay down in  
the dust of the felon's grave and       
mingled with his own4 ,no exposition of 
,silas ,wright's text could be more     
arresting or alarming than that4 ,my    
sins may overflow from my grave and lie 
down in the dust with my children6      
,,vi  ,and1 on the very last page of    
,the ,light in the ,clearing1 we have an
 even more striking presentment of the  
same profound truth4 ,for ,i said that1 
in the book1 there is yet one other     
grave4 ,it is a lonely grave up among   
the hills--the grave of the stranger who
 was shot by ,amos ,grimshaw that dark  
night2 and this time it is old ,kate who
 sits weeping beside it4 ,for who was   
the stranger murdered upon the highway8 
,it turns out to have been ,kate's own  
son6  ',it is very sorrowful1' she      
moans4 ',he was trying to find me when  
he died6'  ,and so the murderer and the 
murdered were step-brothers6 ,they were 
both the sons of ,benjamin ,grimshaw6   

,and1 in this grave up among the hills1 
there lie down with poor murdered ,enoch
 his own sins--whatever they may have   
been--and his father's sins--the sins   
that made him an outcast and a          
fugitive--and his mother's sins1 the    
sins of the only being who loved him6   
,yes1 his mother's sins2 for his        
mother's sins had slain him4 ,in her    
hatred of ,benjamin ,grimshaw1 she had  
moved ,amos ,grimshaw to become a       
murderer1 and he had murdered--her own  
son6  ',it is very sorrowful6' she      
moans4  ,it is indeed2 sin is always    
sorrowful4   ,,vii  ',wherefore come now
 and let us reason together1 saith the  
,lord2 though your sins be as scarlet1  
they shall be as white as snow2 though  
they be red like crimson1 they shall be 
as wool4'  ,it is best to make an end of
 them1 and to turn from them1 once and  
for all1 that they lie down at last     
neither with us nor with our children4  
,,xvi  ,,michael ,,faraday',s ,,text    
,i  ,the lecturer had vanished6 ,a      

crowded gathering of distinguished      
scientists had been listening1          
spellbound1 to the masterly expositions 
of ,michael ,faraday4 ,for an hour he   
had held his brilliant audience         
enthralled as he had demonstrated the   
nature and properties of the magnet4    
,and he had brought his lecture to a    
close with an experiment so novel1 so   
bewildering and so triumphant that1 for 
some time after he resumed his seat1 the
 house rocked with enthusiastic         
applause4 ,and then the ,prince of      
,wales--afterwards ,king ,edward the    
,seventh--rose to propose a motion of   
congratulation4 ,the resolution1 having 
been duly seconded1 was carried with    
renewed thunders of applause4 ,but the  
uproar was succeeded by a strange       
silence4 ,the assembly waited for       
,faraday's reply2 but the lecturer had  
vanished6 ,what had become of him8 ,only
 two or three of his more intimate      
friends were in the secret4 ,they knew  
that the great chemist was something    

more than a great chemist2 he was a     
great ,christian4 ,he was an elder of a 
little ,sandemanian ,church--a church   
that never boasted more than twenty     
members4 ,the hour at which ,faraday    
concluded his lecture was the hour of   
the week-night prayer-meeting4 ,that    
meeting he never neglected4 ,and1 under 
cover of the cheering and applause1 the 
lecturer had slipped out of the crowded 
hall and hurried off to the little      
meeting-house where two or three had met
 together to renew their fellowship with
 ,god4  ,in that one incident the man   
stands revealed4 ,all the sublimities   
and all the simplicities of life met in 
his soul4 ,the master of all the        
sciences1 he kept in his breast the     
heart of a little child4 ,mr4 ,cosmo    
,monkhouse has well asked--    ,was ever
 man so simple and so sage1     ,so     
crowned and yet so careless of a prize8 
,great ,faraday1 who made the world so  
wise1   ,and loved the labor better than
 the wage6    ,and this1 you say1 is how

 he looked in age1     ,with that strong
 brow and these great humble eyes       
,that seem to look with reverent        
surprise   ,on all outside himself4     
,turn o'er the page1   ,recording       
,angel1 it is white as snow6     ,ah1   
,god1 a fitting messenger was he   ,to  
show ,thy mysteries to us below6        
,child as he came has he returned to    
,thee6   ,would he could come but once  
again to show     ,the wonder-deep of   
his simplicity6  ,in him the            
simplicities were always stronger than  
the sublimities2 the child outlived the 
sage4 ,as he lay dying they tried to    
interview the professor1 but it was the 
little child in him that answered them4 
',what are your speculations8' they     
inquired4  ',speculations8' he asked1 in
 wondering surprise4 ',speculations6 ,i 
have none6 ,i am resting on certainties4
 ,i know whom ,i have believed and am   
persuaded that ,he is able to keep that 
which ,i have committed unto ,him       
against that day6' ,and1 reveling like a

 little child in those cloudless        
simplicities1 his great soul passed     
away4   ,,ii  ,faraday was a perpetual  
mystery4 ,he baffled all his colleagues 
and companions4 ,nobody could understand
 how the most learned man of his time   
could find in his faith those restful   
certainties on which he so calmly and   
securely reposed4 ,they saw him pass    
from a meeting of the ,royal ,society to
 sit at the feet of a certain local     
preacher who was notorious for his      
illiteracy2 and the spectacle filled    
them with bewilderment and wonder4 ,some
 suggested that he was1 in an           
intellectual sense1 living a double     
life4 ,tyndall said that1 when ,faraday 
opened the door of his oratory1 he shut 
that of his laboratory4 ,he did nothing 
of the kind4 ,he never closed his eyes  
to any fragment of truth2 he never      
divided his mind into watertight        
compartments2 he never shrank from the  
approach of a doubt4 ,he saw life whole4
 ,his biography has been written a dozen

 times2 and each writer views it from a 
new angle4 ,but in one respect they all 
agree4 ,they agree that ,michael        
,faraday was the most transparently     
honest soul that the realm of science   
has ever known4 ,he moved for fifty     
years amidst the speculations of science
 whilst1 in his soul1 the certainties   
that cannot be shaken were singing their
 deathless song4 ,like a coastguard who1
 standing on some tall cliff1 surveys   
the heaving waters1 ,faraday stood1 with
 his feet upon the rock1 looking out    
upon a restless sea of surmise and      
conjecture4 ,in life1 as in death1 he   
rested his soul upon certainties4 ,and  
if you will ask what those certainties  
were1 his biographers will tell you that
 they were three4  #a4 ,he trusted      
implicitly in the ,father's love4 ',my  
faculties are slipping away day by day1'
 he wrote to his niece from his         
deathbed4 ',happy is it for all of us   
that our true good lies not in them4 ,as
 they ebb1 may they leave us as little  

children trusting in the ,father of     
,mercies and accepting ,his unspeakable 
gift4'  #b4 ,he trusted implicitly in   
the ,redeeming ,work of ,his ,saviour4  
',the plan of salvation is so simple1'  
he wrote1 'that anyone can understand   
it--love to ,christ springing from the  
love that ,he bears us1 the love that   
led ,him to undertake our salvation4'   
#c4 ,he trusted implicitly in the       
,written ,word4 ',to complete this      
picture1' says ,dr4 ,bence ,jones1 in   
bringing to a close his great two-volume
 biography1 'to complete this picture1  
,i must add that ,faraday's standard of 
duty was not founded upon any intuitive 
ideas of right and wrong1 nor was it    
fashioned upon any outward experiences  
of time and place2 but it was formed    
entirely on what he held to be the      
revelation of the will of ,god in the   
written ,word1 and throughout all his   
life his faith led him to act up to the 
very letter of it4'  ',on these         
certainties1' he exclaimed1 ',i stake   

everything6 ,on these certainties ,i    
rest my soul6' ,and1 summing up the     
three in one1 he added1 ',for ,i am     
persuaded that ,he is able to keep that 
which ,i have committed unto ,him       
against that day4'  ,it is wonderful how
 the universal heart aches for          
assurance1 for confidence1 for finality1
 for certainty4 ,mr4 ,dan ,crawford     
tells of a cannibal chief beside whose  
deathbed an ,african boy was reading    
selections from the ,gospel of ,john4   
,he was impressed by the frequent       
recurrence of the words 'verily1        
verily4'  ',what do they mean8' he      
asked4  ',they mean certainly1          
certainly6'  ',then1' exclaimed the     
dying man1 with a sigh of infinite      
relief1 'they shall be my pillow4 ,i    
rest on them4'  ,sage or savage1 it is  
all the same4 ,bunyan's great night was 
the night on which he found that same   
pillow4 ',it was with joy that ,i told  
my wife1 ,o1 now ,i know1 ,i know6 ,that
 night was a good night to me6 ,i never 

had a better4 ,i longed for the company 
of some of ,god's people1 that ,i might 
have imparted unto them what ,god had   
showed me4 ,christ was a precious       
,christ to my soul that night2 ,i could 
scarcely lie in my bed for joy and peace
 and triumph through ,christ6'  ',those 
words shall be my pillow6' said the     
,african chief4  ',those words shall be 
my pillow6' said the ,english scientist4
  ',those words shall be my pillow6'    
cried ,john ,bunyan4  ',for ,i am       
persuaded that ,he is able to keep that 
which ,i have committed unto ,him       
against that day6'   ,,iii  ',he is able
 to keep6' ,that was the sublime        
confidence that won the heart of ,john  
,newton4 ,it came to him in the form of 
a dream on his voyage home from ,venice4
 ,i have told the story in full in ,a   
,bunch of ,everlastings4 ',it made1' he 
says1 'a very great impression upon me6'
 ,the same thought made an indelible    
impression upon the mind of ,faraday1   
and he clung tenaciously to it at the   

last4 ',he is able to keep'--as a       
shepherd keeps his sheep4 ',he is able  
to keep'--as a sentry keeps the gate4   
',he is able to keep'--as the pilgrims  
kept the golden vessels on their journey
 to ,jerusalem1 both counting and       
weighing them before they set out from  
,babylon and again on their arrival at  
the ,holy ,city4 ',he is able to        
keep'--as a banker keeps the treasure   
confided to his custody4  ',i know whom 
,i have believed1' says the margin of   
the ,revised ,version1 'and ,i am       
persuaded that ,he is able to guard my  
deposit against that day4'  ',i know in 
whom my trust reposes1' says ,dr4       
,weymouth's translation1 'and ,i am     
confident that ,he has it in ,his power 
to keep what ,i have entrusted to ,him  
safe until that day4'  ',i know whom ,i 
have trusted1' says ,dr4 ,moffatt's     
version1 'and ,i am certain that ,he is 
able to keep what ,i have put into ,his 
hands till the ,great ,day4'  ,he will  
guard my treasure6  ,he will honor my   

confidence6  ,he will hold my deposit6  
,i know6 ,i know6 ,i know6   ,,iv       
,faraday's text is an ill-used text4 ,it
 is frequently mis-quoted4 ,it occurred 
one day in the course of a theological  
lesson over which ,rabbi ,duncan was    
presiding4  ',repeat that passage6' said
 the ,rabbi to the student who had just 
spoken4  ',i know in whom ,i have----'  
',my dear sir1' interrupted the ,rabbi1 
'you must never let even a preposition  
come between you and your ,saviour6'    
,and when ,dr4 ,alexander1 of           
,princeton1 was dying1 a friend         
endeavored to fortify his faith by      
reciting some of the most familiar      
passages and promises4 ,presently he    
ventured upon the words3  ',i know in   
whom ,i have believed1 and----'  ,but   
the sick man raised his hand4  ',no1    
no1' exclaimed the dying ,principal1 'it
 is not ,i know in whom but ,i know     
whom2 ,i cannot have even the little    
word in between me and ,christ4 ,i know 
whom ,i have believed1 and am persuaded 

that ,he is able to keep that which ,i  
have committed unto ,him against that   
day6'  ,john ,oxenham has expressed the 
same thought with an accent and emphasis
 well worthy of the theme3    ,not      
,what1 but ,whom1 ,i do believe1        
,that1 in my darkest hour of need1      
,hath comfort that no mortal creed   ,to
 mortal man may give4    ,not ,what but 
,whom4   ,for ,christ is more than all  
the creeds1   ,and ,his full life of    
gentle deeds   ,shall all the creeds    
outlive4    ,not ,what ,i do believe1   
but ,whom4   ,who walks beside me in the
 gloom8   ,who shares the burden        
wearisome8   ,who all the dim way doth  
illume1   ,and bids me look beyond the  
tomb           ,the larger life to live8
    ,not what ,i do believe1   ,but     
,whom6   ,not ,what1   ,but ,whom6  ,it 
was a ,person1 a ,living and ,divine    
,person1 of whom ,faraday was so certain
 and on whom he rested so securely at   
the last4   ,v  ,is there in all        
,scottish literature a more robust1 more

 satisfying1 or more lovable character  
than ,donal ,grant8 ,readers of ,george 
,macdonald will cherish the thought of  
,donal as long as they live4 ,he was the
 child of the open air2 his character   
was formed during long and lonely tramps
 on the wide moor and among the rugged  
mountains2 it was strengthened and      
sweetened by communion with sheep and   
dogs and cattle1 with stars and winds   
and stormy skies4 ,he was disciplined by
 sharp suffering and bitter             
disappointments4 ,and he became to all  
who knew him a tower of strength1 a sure
 refuge1 a strong city1 and the shadow  
of a great rock in a weary land4 ,as a  
shepherd-boy among the hills he learned 
to read his ,greek ,testament2 and1     
later on1 he became tutor at the ,castle
 ,graham4 ,it was his business in life  
to instruct little ,davie1 the younger  
son of ,lord ,morven2 and he had his own
 way of doing it4  ',davie1' he said one
 day1 'there is ,one who understands    
every boy1 and understands each separate

 boy as well as if there were no other  
boy in the whole world4'  ',tell me who 
it is6' demanded ,davie4  ',that is what
 ,i have to teach you2 mere telling is  
not much use4 ,telling is what makes    
people think they know when they do not1
 and makes them foolish4'  ',well1 what 
is his name8'  ',i will not tell you    
that just yet2 for then you would think 
that you knew ,him when you knew next to
 nothing about ,him4 ,look here6 ,look  
at this book6' ,he pulled from his      
pocket a copy of ,boethius4 ',look at   
the name on the back of it2 it is the   
name of the man who wrote that book4'   
,davie spelled it out4  ',now you know  
all about the book1 don't you8'  ',no1  
sir1 ,i don't know anything about it4'  
',well1 then1 my father's name is       
,robert ,grant2 you know now what a good
 man he is6'  ',no1 ,i don't6' replied  
,davie4  ,and so ,donal led ,davie to   
see that to know the name of ,jesus1 and
 to know about ,jesus is not to know    
,jesus4  ',i know ,him6' cried ,faraday 

in triumph4  ,george ,macdonald makes   
,faraday's text the master-passion of   
his hero's life to the last4 ,all       
through the adventures recorded in the  
book1 ,donal ,grant behaves like a man  
who is very sure of ,god4 ',i know      
,him1' he seems to say4 ',i know ,him4' 
,and the closing sentences of the story 
tell us that ',donal is still a present 
power of heat and light in the town of  
,auchars4 ,he wears the same solemn     
look1 the same hovering smile4 ,that    
look and that smile say to those who can
 read them1 ,i know whom ,i have        
believed4 ,his life is hid with ,christ 
in ,god2 he has no anxiety about        
anything2 ,god is1 and all is well4'    
,,vi  ',i know whom ,i have believed4'  
,pascal had the words engraved upon his 
seal2 ,canon ,ainger left instructions  
that they should be inscribed on his    
tomb at ,darley ,abbey2 but1 like ,donal
 ,grant1 ,michael ,faraday wove them    
into the very warp and woof1 the fiber  
and fabric of his daily life4           

',speculations6' he cried in dismay1    
'speculations6 ,i have none6 ,i am      
resting on certainties6 ,for ,i know    
whom ,i have believed and am persuaded  
that ,he is able to keep that which ,i  
have committed unto ,him against that   
day6'  ,happy the heads that1 in the    
soul's last straits1 find themselves    
pillowed serenely there6     ,,xvii     
,,janet ,,dempster',s ,,text   ,i       
,sitting here in my pleasaunce on the   
lawn1 surrounded by a riot of           
hollyhocks1 foxgloves1 roses1 geraniums1
 and other ,english flowers that she    
described so vividly1 and loved so well1
 ,i find myself celebrating in my own   
way the hundredth anniversary of the    
birth of ,george ,eliot4 ,lying open    
beside me on the garden-seat is a very  
well-worn copy of ,janet's ,repentance4 
,it has been read many times1 and must  
be read again to-day4 ,for even those   
who cannot go as far as ,dr4 ,marcus    
,dods in pronouncing it 'one of the     
greatest religious books ever written'  

will at least agree that in religious   
feeling1 spiritual insight and          
evangelical intensity1 it is among the  
most noble and most notable of our      
,english classics4 ,the pity of it is   
that1 long before the book was written1 
its brilliant authoress had drifted away
 from that simple and majestic faith    
which she so tenderly portrays4 ,indeed1
 ,i have sometimes fancied that she     
wrote of ,janet with a great wistfulness
 in her heart4 ,she seems to have felt  
that if1 in the straits of her soul1 she
 had found her storm-tossed spirit in   
communion with personalities like those 
by whom ,janet was surrounded in the day
 of her distress1 her spiritual         
pilgrimage might have been a sunnier    
one4 ,but she drifted4 ,no other word   
will describe the process4 ,some        
powerful but sensitive minds1 like that 
of ,goethe--with whose works she was so 
familiar--have been driven or torn from 
their anchorage by some sudden and      
desolating calamity2 but with ,george   

,eliot it was quite otherwise4 ,she was 
a gentle ,english girl1 born on a farm1 
and passionately attached to the quiet  
beauty of the countryside4 ,she         
delighted in the village green1 the     
rectory garden1 the fields waving with  
golden buttercups1 and the shady woods  
in which the primroses twinkled4 ,she   
loved to watch the poppies tossing in   
the corn1 the wind sweeping over the red
 sea of clover1 and the hyacinths       
nodding on the banks of the silvery     
stream4 ,the smell of the hay and the   
song of the birds and the life of the   
fields were her ceaseless satisfaction  
and refreshment4 ,perhaps1 as she       
wandered about those winding lanes and  
lonely bridle-paths1 she became too     
contemplative1 too introspective1 too   
much addicted to the analysis of frames 
and feelings4 ,perhaps1 dwelling so     
exclusively on the abstract and the     
ideal1 her fresh young spirit became    
unfitted for its rude impact with the   
actual and the real4 ,perhaps1 too1 she 

was unfortunate in respect of the       
particular specimens of the evangelical 
faith that came under her notice4       
,perhaps6 ,at any rate1 she came at     
length into daily contact with men and  
women1 and her girlish faith reeled     
under the shock4 ,it is one of the most 
grievous tragedies of the spiritual     
realm that conscience often finds the   
sunny climate of an ardent evangelism   
singularly enervating4 ,the emotional   
side of one's nature luxuriates in an   
atmosphere in which the ethical side    
becomes languid and relaxed4 ,a man must
 be very careful1 as ,mr4 ,gladstone    
once incisively observed1 to prevent his
 religion from damaging his morality4   
,the simpleminded people with whom this 
sharp-witted and fresh-spirited young   
,englishwoman met had not fortified     
themselves against that insidious peril4
 ,one woman told a lie and the offense  
was sheeted home to her4 ',ah1 well1'   
she replied1 in a nonchalant and easy   
way1 ',i do not feel that ,i have       

grieved the ,spirit much6' ,george      
,eliot was horrified4 ,she saw1 to her  
disgust1 that strong religious feeling  
could consist with flagrant dishonor4   
,her finely poised and sensitive soul   
experienced a revolt and a rebound4 ,she
 changed none of her opinions1 yet she  
changed the entire attitude of her mind2
 and1 with the passage of time1 the new 
attitude produced new ideas4 ,she had   
not quarreled with the faith of her     
childhood2 she simply lost her love for 
it4 ,her anchor relinquished its hold1  
and1 almost imperceptibly1 she drifted4 
',she glided out of the faith1' as      
,principal ,fairbairn so expressively   
puts it1 'as easily and as softly as if 
she had been a ship obeying wind and    
tide1 and her faith a sea that opened   
silently before and closed noiselessly  
behind her4'  ,wherefore let all those  
who name the name of ,christ depart from
 iniquity6 ,for if1 through any glaring 
inconsistency between my faith and my   
behavior1 ,i offend one of these little 

ones that believe in ,him1 it were      
better1 so the ,master ,himself         
declared1 that a millstone were hanged  
about my neck and that ,i were cast into
 the depths of the sea4   ,,ii  ,now1 in
 the story that lies open on the        
garden-seat beside me1 all the          
characters are very religious people4   
,yet they are divided sharply into two  
classes4 ,there are the very religious  
people who are all the worse for their  
religion1 and there are the very        
religious people who are all the better 
for it4 ,mr4 ,dempster is a very        
religious man4 ,in the opening sentence 
of the story1 the first sentence in the 
book1 he acknowledges his indebtedness  
to his ,creator4 ,he is a very religious
 man--and a drunkard6 ,mr4 ,budd is also
 a very religious man4 ,indeed1 he is   
warden at the ,parish ,church4 ',he is a
 small1 sleek-headed bachelor of five   
and forty1 whose scandalous life has    
long furnished his more moral neighbors 
with an afterdinner joke4' ,but a very  

religious man is ,mr4 ,budd6 ,mrs4      
,linnett is a very religious woman4 ,she
 dotes on religious biography4 ',on     
taking up the biography of a celebrated 
preacher1 she immediately turns to the  
end to see what he died of1' and she    
likes the book all the better if a      
sinister element enters into its        
composition4 ,mrs4 ,linnett is a very   
religious woman--and a gossip6 ,we are  
introduced to a whole group of such     
characters--men and women who are very  
religious1 but who are none the better  
for their religion4  ,and1 side by side 
with these unamiable figures1 are a set 
of people1 equally religious1 whose     
characters are immeasurably sweetened   
and strengthened by their religion4 ,it 
is not that they profess another faith1 
attend another church1 or spend lives   
remote from the affairs with which the  
others have to do4 ,as ,george ,eliot   
herself pointed out1 when the publisher 
hesitated to commit himself to this     
manuscript1 it was not a case of one    

religion against another1 or of one     
creed against another1 or of one church 
against another1 or even of one minister
 against another4 ,the members of this  
second group move in the same           
environment as do the members of the    
first2 ,sunday by ,sunday they make     
their way to the self-same sanctuaries2 
yet every day they grow in gentleness1  
in thoughtfulness1 in kindness1 and in  
all those graces of behavior that       
constitute the charm of lovable and     
helpful lives4 ,in this attractive group
 we find ,mr4 ,jerome1 ,mr4 ,tryan1 and 
little ,mrs4 ,pettifer4  ,it is1 of     
course1 an old story1 vividly and       
startlingly retold4 ,the same cause will
 produce diametrically opposite effects4
 ,the sun that softens the wax hardens  
the clay4 ,the benefit that ,i derive   
from my religion1 and the enjoyment that
 it affords me1 must depend upon the    
response that ,i make to it4 ,the rays  
of light that fade my coat add a warmer 
blush to the petals of the rose4 ,why8  

,my coat does not want the light and    
makes no response to it2 the rose cannot
 bloom without the light and drinks in  
the soft rays as the source of all its  
beauty4 ,under the influence of the     
sunshine1 the violets in the vase droop 
and become noisome2 the living lilies   
under my window unfold and assume an    
even statelier grace4 ,it is all a      
matter of response4 ,religion was always
 beating upon the lives of ,mr4         
,dempster and ,mr4 ,budd and ,mrs4      
,linnett1 as the sunlight beats upon the
 coat and the cut-flowers4 ,they did not
 open their hearts to it2 they made no  
eager response to it2 it was a thing    
that shone upon the surface1 and that   
was all4 ,their lives consequently      
wilted and shriveled and grew less      
beautiful4 ,they were like violets made 
vile by the very light that was designed
 to make them lovely4 ,mr4 ,tryan1 ,mr4 
,jerome and ,mrs4 ,pettifer1 on the     
other hand1 opened their hearts to the  
love of ,god as the rose opens its      

petals to the light of the sun4 ,their  
religion was a revelry to them4 ,so far 
from its merely beating upon the        
surface1 as the sunlight beats upon the 
surface of the coat1 it saturated the   
very depths of their being4 ,they were  
like the lilies under my window2 the    
rays that withered the violets in the   
vase only make them more graceful and   
more fair4   ,,iii  ,here1 then1 are the
 two groups2 and the central scene of   
the story is the transfer of the        
principal character from the one group  
to the other4 ,janet ,dempster1 the wife
 of ,robert ,dempster1 is1 like her     
husband1 very religious1 but1 like him1 
she is none the better for her religion4
 ,but matters at home hurry to a climax4
 ,dempster drinks more and more1 and1   
drinking1 goes from bad to worse4 ,he   
treats his wife1 first with coldness1   
and then with cruelty4 ,at length comes 
the dreadful and dramatic scene that    
readers of the story will never erase   
from their memories4 ,in a fit of       

drunken savagery he burst into her room 
at midnight4 ,he drags her from her bed2
 pushes her down the stairs and along   
the hall2 and then1 opening the front   
door1 he hurls her by sheer brute force 
out into the street4 ,here is ,george   
,eliot's picture3 ',the stony street2   
the bitter north-east wind and darkness2
 and in the midst of them a tender woman
 thrust out from her husband's home in  
her thin nightdress1 the harsh wind     
cutting her naked feet and driving her  
long hair away from her half-clad bosom1
 where the poor heart is crushed with   
anguish and despair4' ,it is in these   
desperate straits that religion presents
 itself to her view in an entirely fresh
 guise4  ,in her extremity1 poor ,janet 
thinks of little ,mrs4 ,pettifer--a     
member of that other group1 the group   
that resembles the lilies under my      
window1 the group of kindly souls whose 
lives have been irradiated and          
beautified by their faith4 ,she taps at 
the cottage window2 ,mrs4 ,pettifer     

hastens to the door2 and1 as soon as    
that frightened little body can recover 
from the first shock of her             
astonishment1 she draws ,janet into the 
room and then into the warm bed4 ,having
 composed and soothed her1 she slips out
 of bed again1 lights the fire and makes
 a cup of tea4 ,in this guise1 religion 
presents itself to ,janet6  ,but she    
needs more6 ,a roof to shelter her1 a   
fire to warm her and a friend to caress 
and mother her--these are very welcome2 
but her heart is crying out with a yet  
deeper hunger4 ,she feels that she1 a   
poor weak woman1 is standing against a  
world that is too hard and too strong   
and too terrible for her4 ,what can she 
do8 ,where can she go8 ,little ,mrs4    
,pettifer urges her to open her heart to
 ,mr4 ,tryan1 the minister2 and to ,mr4 
,tryan she accordingly goes4 ,and in    
,mr4 ,tryan she finds ready helpfulness1
 warm sympathy1 and a perfect           
understanding of her inmost need4 ,her  
life1 she feels1 is but a tangled skein4

 ,to convince her that he is no stranger
 to such conditions1 ,mr4 ,tryan tells  
her of his own struggles and distresses4
 ,he has not stood aloof from the       
battle1 looking on2 he has been in the  
thick of the fight--and has been        
wounded4 ,she feels for him1 and1 in    
feeling for him1 becomes conscious that 
the healing of her own hurt has already 
begun4 ,in this guise1 religion presents
 itself to ,janet ,dempster6  ,in the   
person of ,mrs4 ,pettifer and in the    
person of ,mr4 ,tryan1 religion became  
incarnate under the eyes of poor ,janet4
 ,in the person of ,mrs4 ,pettifer and  
in the person of ,mr4 ,tryan1 'the word 
became flesh4'  ,but ,janet still needs 
more6 ,mrs4 ,pettifer shelters and      
soothes her body2 ,mr4 ,tryan comforts  
and strengthens her mind2 but her soul1 
her very self1 what is she to do with   
that8 ,she feels that she cannot trust  
herself with herself4 ,is there no still
 greater incarnation of the faith8      
,mrs4 ,pettifer is the ,incarnation     

,motherly4  ,mr4 ,tryan is the          
,incarnation ,ministerial4  ,but1 in her
 heart of hearts1 there is still a deep 
and bitter cry4 ,mrs4 ,pettifer can     
comfort2 she cannot keep through all the
 days to come6 ,mr4 ,tryan can counsel2 
he cannot guard from future sins and    
sorrows6 ,to whom can she commit        
herself8 ,it is from ,mr4 ,tryan's lips 
that the answer comes4 ,the words fall  
upon her broken spirit1 as she herself  
tells us1 like rain upon the mown grass3
      ',,come ,,unto ,,me1 ,,all ,,ye   
,,that ,,labor ,,and ,,are              
,,heavy-,,laden1 ,,and ,i     ,,will    
,,give ,,you ,,rest6'  ,and once more   
the solution is an incarnation6 ,when   
,janet's storm-beaten body needed fire  
and food and shelter1 religion became   
incarnate in the person of ,mrs4        
,pettifer4 ,when ,janet's distracted    
mind needed counsel and guidance1       
religion became incarnate in the person 
of ,mr4 ,tryan4 ,but when ,janet's      
sin-laden soul cried out for a ,saviour 

,who could deliver her from the stains  
of the past1 and keep her amidst the    
perils of the future1 religion became   
incarnate in the ,person of the ,son of 
,god6  ,the ,incarnation ,motherly6     
,the ,incarnation ,ministerial6  ,the   
,incarnation ,mediatorial6  ',come unto 
,me6' the ,saviour said4 ,and ,janet    
came6 ,she was a changed woman6 ',a     
delicious hope1' ,george ,eliot tells   
us1 'the hope of purification and inward
 peace1 had entered into ,janet's soul1 
and made it spring-time there as well as
 in the outer world6' ',she felt1' we   
are told again1 'like a little child    
whose hand is firmly grasped by its     
father1 as its frail limbs make their   
way over the rough ground3 if it should 
stumble1 the father will not let it go4'
 ,she had opened her heart to the living
 ,lord as the living flowers open their 
petals to the glad sunlight2 and ,he had
 become the strength of her life and her
 portion for ever4 ,temptation came1    
fierce and sudden and terrible2 but ,he 

was always there and always able to     
deliver4   ,,iv  ,in the correspondence 
with her publisher as to whether or not 
the manuscript should be printed1       
,george ,eliot assures him that the     
characters are drawn from life4 ,and1 in
 the closing paragraph of the story1 she
 tells us that ,janet--an old woman     
whose once-black hair is now quite      
gray--is living still4 ,but ,mr4 ,tryan1
 she says1 is dead2 and she describes   
the simple gravestone in ,milby         
churchyard4 ',but1' she adds1 'there is 
another memorial of ,edgar ,tryan1 which
 bears a fuller record2 it is ,janet    
,dempster1 rescued from self-despair1   
strengthened with ,divine hopes1 and now
 looking back on years of purity and    
helpful labor4 ,the man who has left    
such a memorial behind him must have    
been one whose heart beat with true     
compassion and whose lips were moved by 
fervent faith4' ,it is the last sentence
 in the book2 and every minister1 as he 
closes the covers and lays it aside1    

will covet for himself some such        
incarnate monument4 ,only as a          
preacher's preaching is 'made flesh' in 
that way1 will it be understood and     
appreciated by the generations          
following4     ,,xviii  ,,catherine     
,,booth',s ,,text   ,i  ,who that was in
 ,london on ,october #ad1 #ahij1 can    
forget the extraordinary scenes that    
marked the funeral of ,catherine ,booth8
 ,it was a day of universal grief4 ,the 
whole nation mourned4 ,for ,mrs4 ,booth 
was one of the most striking            
personalities1 and one of the mightiest 
spiritual forces1 of the nineteenth     
century4 ,to the piety of a ,saint      
,teresa she added the passion of a      
,josephine ,butler1 the purposefulness  
of an ,elizabeth ,fry1 and the practical
 sagacity of a ,frances ,willard4 ,the  
greatest in the land revered her1       
trusted her1 consulted her1 deferred to 
her4 ,the letters that passed between   
,catherine ,booth and ,queen ,victoria  
are among the most remarkable documents 

in the literature of correspondence4    
,mr4 ,gladstone attached the greatest   
weight to her judgment and convictions4 
,bishop ,lightfoot1 one of the most     
distinguished scholars of his time1 has 
testified to the powerful influence     
which she exerted over him4 ,and1 whilst
 the loftiest among men honored her1 the
 lowliest loved her4  ,such strong lives
 have their secrets4 ,mrs4 ,booth had   
hers4 ,her secret was a text4 ,as a     
child she learned it by heart2 as a girl
 she pinned her faith to the promise it 
enshrined2 amidst the stress and strain 
of a stormy and eventful life she       
trusted it implicitly2 and1 with all the
 tenacity of her keen1 clear intellect1 
she clung to it at the last4 ,in the    
standard ,life of ,catherine ,booth--a  
huge work of a thousand pages--four     
chapters are devoted to the scenes at   
the deathbed4 ,and then we read3  ',the 
lips moved as though desiring to speak4 
,unable1 however1 to do so1 the dying   
woman pointed to a wall-text1 which had 

for a long time been placed opposite to 
her1 so that her eyes could rest upon   
it4    ,,my ,,grace   ,,is              
,,sufficient ,,for ,,thee  ,it was taken
 down and placed near her on the bed4   
,but it was no longer needed4 ,the      
promise had been completely fulfilled4' 
',that1' said a speaker at one of the   
great ,memorial ,meetings in ,london1   
some of which were attended by many     
thousand people1 'that was her text6'   
,and1 as so often happens1 her text     
explains her character4  ,for1          
considered apart from the text1 the     
character is an insoluble enigma4 ,it is
 like a consequence without a cause4 ,i 
was talking a week or two ago with an   
old man1 who1 in ,australia's earlier   
days1 did a good deal of pioneering in  
the heart of the bush4  ',once1' he told
 me1 'soon after ,i first came out1 ,i  
really thought that ,i had reached the  
end of everything4 ,i was hopelessly    
lost4 ,my strength was utterly          
exhausted4 ,i had gone as far as ,i     

could go4 ,the country around me was    
flat and dry2 my thirst was a perfect   
agony2 and my poor dog followed at my   
heels1 her tongue hanging out1 and her  
sides panting pitifully4 ,we had not    
seen water for several days4 ,i sat down
 under a great gum-tree1 hoping that an 
hour's rest would bring me fresh heart  
and new vigor4 ,i must have fallen      
asleep4 ,when ,i awoke1 ,fan was        
standing near me1 wagging her tail4 ,she
 seemed contented and satisfied2 her    
tongue no longer protruded4 ,an hour or 
two later1 ,i suddenly missed her2 she  
had vanished in the scrub4 ,she was away
 about twenty minutes4 ,i determined to 
watch her4 ,presently she set out again1
 and ,i followed4 ,surely enough1 she   
had found a tiny spring in a slight     
hollow about half a mile away2 and by   
that spring we were saved4'  ,i have    
seen something like this in a higher    
realm4 ,i recall1 for example1 ,richard 
,cecil's story of his conversion4       
,richard ,cecil--the friend and         

biographer of ,john ,newton--was one of 
the great evangelical forces of the     
eighteenth century1 as ,catherine ,booth
 was of the nineteenth4 ,but1 in his    
early days1 ,richard ,cecil was a       
skeptic4 ,he called himself an infidel1 
but he was honest in his infidelity4 ,he
 could face facts2 and the man who can  
look facts fairly in the face is not far
 from the kingdom of ,god4 ,richard     
,cecil was not1 his skepticism          
notwithstanding4 ',i see1' he says1 in  
telling us of the line of thought that  
he pursued as he lay in bed one night1  
',i see two unquestionable facts4' ,and 
what were they8 ,they both concerned his
 mother4  ',first1 my mother is greatly 
afflicted in circumstances1 body and    
mind2 and ,i see that she cheerfully    
bears up under all her suffering by the 
support that she derives from constantly
 retiring to her quiet room and her     
,bible4  ',second1 my mother has a      
secret spring of comfort of which ,i    
know nothing2 while ,i1 who give an     

unbounded loose to my appetites1 and    
seek pleasure by every means1 seldom or 
never find it4 ,if1 however1 there is   
any such secret in religion1 why may ,i 
not attain to it as well as my mother8  
,i will immediately seek it6'  ,he did2 
and those who are familiar with his     
life-story know of the triumphant result
 of that quest4 ,it was precisely so    
with ,mrs4 ,booth4 ,her children knew   
that1 like the bushman's collie1 she    
found refreshment at some secret spring4
 ,later on1 she told them of the text   
and led them1 one by one1 to the        
fountains of grace4 ',my grace is       
sufficient for thee4' ,and when1 at     
last1 the avenues of speech and hearing 
were closed1 they hung the golden words 
before her clouding eyes4 ,again she    
greeted them with rapture1 and1 with    
unwavering confidence1 pointed her      
children to their deathless message4    
,,ii  ,in his ,grace ,abounding1 ,john  
,bunyan tells us that there was a period
 in his spiritual history when his soul 

was like a pair of scales4 ,it partook  
of three phases4 ,at one time the       
right-hand balance was down and the     
left-hand empty and high2 then for      
awhile they were exactly and evenly     
poised2 and1 at the last1 the left-hand 
balance dropped and that on the         
right-hand was swinging in the air4  ,at
 the first of these stages he was being 
tormented about the unpardonable sin4   
,he reminded himself that1 for ,esau1   
there was no place for repentance2 and  
he felt that there was none for him4    
,the scale in which he laid his despair 
was heavily weighted2 the scale in which
 he placed his hope was empty6  ,and the
 second stage--the stage that leveled   
the balances8 ',one morning1' he says1  
'as ,i was at prayer1 and trembling with
 fear1 lest there should be no word of  
,god to help me1 that piece of a        
sentence darted in upon me3 ,my grace is
 sufficient6 ,at this ,i felt some stay 
as if there might yet be hope4 ,about a 
fortnight before1 ,i had been looking at

 this very scripture1 but ,i then       
thought that it could bring me no       
comfort1 and ,i threw down the book in a
 pet4 ,i thought that the grace was not 
large enough for me6 no1 not large      
enough6 ,but now it was as if the arms  
of grace were so wide that they could   
enclose not only me but many more       
besides4 ,and so this about the         
sufficiency of grace and that about     
,esau finding no place for repentance   
would be like a pair of scales within my
 mind4 ,sometimes one end would be      
uppermost and sometimes again the other2
 according to which would be my peace or
 trouble4'  ,and the third stage--the   
triumphant stage8 ,bunyan felt that the 
scales were merely level because1 in the
 balance that contained the hope1 he had
 thrown only four of the six words that 
make up the text4 ',my grace is         
sufficient'2 he had no doubt about that1
 and it gave him encouragement4 ,but    
'for thee'2 he felt that1 if only he    
could add those words to the others1 it 

would turn the scales completely4 ',i   
had hope1' he says1 'yet because the for
 thee was left out1 ,i was not          
contented1 but prayed to ,god for that  
also4 ,wherefore1 one day1 when ,i was  
in a meeting of ,god's people1 full of  
sadness and terror1 these words did with
 great power suddenly break in upon me2 
,my grace is sufficient for thee1 ,my   
grace is sufficient for thee1 ,my grace 
is sufficient for thee1 three times     
together4 ,and oh6 methought that every 
word was a mighty word unto me2 as ,my  
and grace1 and sufficient1 and for thee2
 they were then1 and sometimes are      
still1 far bigger than all others4      
,then1 at last1 that about ,esau finding
 no place for repentance began to wax   
weak and withdraw and vanish1 and this  
about the sufficiency of grace prevailed
 with peace and joy4' ,and so the issue 
was reversed2 the scale that held the   
hope overweighed completely the scale   
that held the despair4  ,if it were not 
that others have passed through an      

identically similar experience1 we      
should feel inclined to marvel at       
,bunyan's reluctance to cast into the   
balances the tail of the text3 ,my grace
 is sufficient--for thee6 ,it seems     
strange1 ,i say1 that ,bunyan should    
have grasped with such confidence the   
four words and then boggled at the other
 two4 ,and yet it is always easier to   
believe that there is a ,saviour for the
 world than to believe that there is a  
,saviour for me4 ,it is easy to believe 
that    ,there is grace enough for      
thousands     ,of new worlds as great as
 this2   ,there is room for fresh       
creations     ,in that upper home of    
bliss2  but it is much harder to believe
 that there is grace and room for me4   
,martin ,luther believed implicitly and 
preached confidently that ,christ died  
for all mankind1 long before he could   
persuade himself that ,christ died for  
,martin ,luther4 ,john ,wesley crossed  
the ,atlantic that he might proclaim the
 forgiveness of sins to the ,indians2   

but it was not until he was verging upon
 middle life that he realized the       
possibility of the forgiveness of his   
own4  ,it is all very illogical1 of     
course1 and very absurd4 ,if we can     
accept the four words1 why not accept   
all six8 ,if we credit the head of the  
text1 why cavil at the tail8 ,sometimes 
the absurdity of such irrational        
behavior will break upon a man and set  
him laughing at his own stupidity4 ,mr4 
,spurgeon had some such experience4     
',gentlemen1' he said1 one ,friday      
afternoon1 in an address to his         
students1 ',gentlemen1 there are many   
passages of ,scripture which you will   
never understand until some trying or   
singular experience shall interpret them
 to you4 ,the other evening ,i was      
riding home after a heavy day's work2 ,i
 was very wearied and sore depressed2   
and1 swiftly and suddenly as a lightning
 flash1 that text laid hold on me3 ,my  
grace is sufficient for thee6 ,on       
reaching home1 ,i looked it up in the   

original1 and at last it came to me in  
this way4 ,,my grace is sufficient for  
,,thee6 ,why1 ,i said to myself1 ,i     
should think it is6 and ,i burst out    
laughing4 ,i never fully understood what
 the holy laughter of ,abraham was like 
until then4 ,it seemed to make unbelief 
so absurd4 ,it was as though some little
 fish1 being very thirsty1 was troubled 
about drinking the river dry2 and       
,father ,thames said3 ,drink away1      
little fish1 my stream is sufficient for
 thee6 ,or as if a little mouse in the  
granaries of ,egypt1 after seven years  
of plenty1 feared lest it should die of 
famine1 and ,joseph said3 ,cheer up1    
little mouse1 my granaries are          
sufficient for thee6 ,again ,i imagined 
a man away up yonder on the mountain    
saying to himself3 ,i fear ,i shall     
exhaust all the oxygen in the           
atmosphere4 ,but the earth cries3       
,breathe away1 ,o man1 and fill thy     
lungs2 my atmosphere is sufficient for  
thee6' ,john ,bunyan enjoyed a moment's 

merriment of the same kind when he threw
 the last two words into the scale and  
saw his despair dwindle into            
insignificance on the instant4   ,,iii  
,some such thought shines through the   
passage in which ,paul tells us how the 
great words came to him4 ,he was        
irritated by his thorn2 he prayed       
repeatedly for its removal2 but the only
 answer that he received was this3 ,my  
grace is sufficient for thee6 ,grace    
sufficient for a thorn6 ,it is an almost
 ludicrous association of ideas6  ,it is
 so easy for ,bunyan to believe that the
 divine grace is sufficient for the     
wide1 wide world2 it is so difficult to 
realize that it is sufficient for him6  
,it is so easy for ,wesley to believe in
 the forgiveness of sins3 it is so      
difficult for him to believe in the     
forgiveness of his own6  ,it is so easy 
for ,paul to believe in the grace that  
is sufficient to redeem a fallen race3  
it is so difficult for him to believe in
 the grace that can fortify him to      

endure his thorn6  ,and yet1 in a fine  
essay on ,great ,principles and ,small  
,duties1 ,dr4 ,james ,martineau has     
shown that it is the lowliest who most  
need the loftiest2 it is the tiny thorn 
that calls for the most tremendous      
grace4 ,the gravest mistake ever made by
 educationalists is1 he says1 the       
mistake of supposing that those who know
 little are good enough to teach those  
who know less4 ,it is a tragedy1 he     
declares1 when the master is only one   
stage ahead of his pupil4 ',the ripest  
scholarship1' he maintains1 'is alone   
qualified to instruct the most complete 
ignorance4' ,dr4 ,martineau goes on to  
show that a soul occupied with great    
ideas best performs trivial duties4     
,and1 coming to the supreme example of  
his subject1 he points out that 'it was 
the peculiarity of the ,saviour's       
greatness1 not that he stooped to the   
lowliest1 but that1 without stooping1 he
 penetrated to the humblest wants4 ,he  
not simply stepped aside to look at the 

most ignominious sorrows1 but went      
directly to them1 and lived wholly in   
them2 scattered glorious miracles and   
sacred truths along the hidden by-paths 
and in the mean recesses of existence2  
serving the mendicant and the widow1    
blessing the child1 healing the leprosy 
of body and of soul1 and kneeling to    
wash even the traitor's feet4' ,here is 
a strange and marvelous and beautiful   
law6 ,the loftiest for the lowliest6    
,the greatest grace for the tiniest     
thorn6  ,is it any wonder that1 this    
being so1 ,paul felt that his splinter  
positively shone8 ',i will glory in it1'
 he cried1 'that the power of ,christ   
may be billetted upon me4' ,he feels    
that his soul is like some rural hamlet 
into which a powerful regiment has      
marched4 ,every bed and barn is occupied
 by the soldiers4 ,who would not be     
irritated by a splinter1 he asks1 if the
 irritation leads to such an inrush of  
divine power and grace8 ,it is like the 
pain of the oyster that is healed by a  

pearl4  ,and so1 with ,paul as with     
,bunyan1 the grace turns the scales4 ,it
 is better to have the pain if it brings
 the pearl4 ,it is better to have a     
thorn in the one balance if it brings   
such grace into the opposite balance    
that one is better off with the thorn   
than without it4 ,therein lies life's   
deepest secret--the secret that         
,catherine ,booth and ,john ,bunyan     
learned from the lips that unfolded it  
to ,paul4 ,in ,the ,master's ,violin1   
,myrtle ,reed tells us the secret of the
 music that the old man's fingers wooed 
from the ,cremona4 ,you have but to look
 at the master1 she says1 and you will  
comprehend4 ',there he stands1 a stately
 figure1 gray and rugged1 yet with a    
certain graciousness2 simple1 kindly1   
and yet austere2 one who had accepted   
his sorrow1 and1 by some alchemy of the 
spirit1 transmuted it into universal    
compassion1 to speak1 through the       
,cremona1 to all who could understand6' 
,that is the secret--the old musician's 

secret2 ,catherine ,booth's secret2     
,bunyan's secret2 ,paul's secret2 the   
secret of all who have learned the text 
by heart6  ,my grace is sufficient for  
thee--the inrush of the grace turned    
,paul's torturing splinter into a cause 
for life-long thankfulness6  ,my grace  
is sufficient for thee--the inrush of   
the grace turned ,mrs4 ,booth's fierce  
struggle into a ceaseless song6  ,my    
grace is sufficient for thee6 ,to the   
man who like ,john ,bunyan1 stands      
weighing his gladnesses and sadnesses   
with that text in his mind1 it will seem
 that the one scale is overflowing and  
the other empty4 ,for it is the glory of
 the grace that it takes what sadnesses 
there are and transmutes them into songs
 sublime4     ,,xix  ,,uncle ,,tom',s   
,,text   ,i  ,poor old ,uncle ,tom has  
been stripped of everything4 ,all that  
he counted precious has vanished4 ,he   
has been torn away from the old         
,kentucky home2 has been snatched away  
from the arms of old ,aunt ,chloe2 has  

been sold away from children and        
kindred2 and has fallen into the        
merciless hands of that vicious         
slave-dealer1 ,simon ,legree4 ,and now  
,uncle ,tom is dying4 ,he lies in the   
dusty shed1 his back all torn and       
lacerated by the cruel thongs4 ,all     
through the night there steal to his    
side the other slaves on the plantation1
 poor creatures who creep in to see the 
last of him1 to bathe his wounds1 to ask
 his pardon1 or to kneel in prayer      
beside his tortured frame4 ,with the    
morning light comes ,george ,shelby1 his
 old master1 to redeem him4  ',is it    
possible1 is it possible8' he exclaims1 
kneeling down by the old slave4 ',uncle 
,tom1 my poor1 poor old friend6'  ,but  
,uncle ,tom is too far gone4 ,he only   
murmurs faintly to himself3    ,jesus   
can make a dying bed   ,feel soft as    
downy pillows are4  ',you shan't die2   
you mustn't die1 nor think of it6 ,i've 
come to buy you and take you home6'     
cries ,george1 with impetuous vehemence4

  ',oh1 ,mas'r ,george1 ye're too late4 
,the ,lord's bought me and is going to  
take me home--and ,i long to go4 ,heaven
 is better than old ,kentucky6'  ,at    
this moment the sudden flush of strength
 which the joy of meeting his young     
master had infused into the dying man   
gives way4 ,a sudden sinking falls upon 
him2 he closes his eyes2 and that       
mysterious and sublime change passes    
over his face that suggests the approach
 of other worlds4 ,he begins to draw his
 breath with long1 deep inspirations1   
and his broad chest rises and falls     
heavily4 ,the expression of his face is 
that of a conqueror4  ',who1' he        
murmurs1 'who--who--who shall separate  
us from the love of ,christ8' ,and1 with
 that unanswerable challenge upon his   
quivering lips1 he falls into his last  
long sleep4 ,severed from all that is   
dear to him1 there is yet ,one heart    
from which nothing can separate him4    
,and in that indissoluble tie he finds  
strong consolation at the last4   ,,ii  

,i was speaking the other day to a lady 
who had known ,signor ,alessandro       
,gavazzi4 ',when he was in ,england1'   
she told me1 'he used to come and stay  
at my father's home1 and1 to us girls1  
he seemed like a visitor from another   
world4' ,the life of ,gavazzi is one of 
the stirring romances of the nineteenth 
century4 ,born at ,bologna in #ahji1 he 
became1 at the age of fifteen1 a        
,barnabite monk4 ,his eloquence1 even in
 his teens1 was so extraordinary that1  
at twenty1 he was made ,professor of    
,rhetoric in the ,college of ,naples4   
,some years afterward ,pope ,pius the   
,ninth sent him on a special mission to 
,milan as ,chaplain-,general to the     
,patriotic ,legion4 ,a little later1    
however1 a new light broke upon him4 ,he
 left the church of his fathers and     
devoted his distinguished gifts to the  
work of evangelism4 ,in connection with 
his conversion1 a pathetic incident     
occurred4 ,a superstitious ,italian     
mother will sometimes hang a charm      

around her boy's neck to drive away     
malignant powers4 ,when ,gavazzi was but
 a baby1 his mother placed a locket on  
his breast1 and he never moved without  
it4 ,but when1 in riper years1 he found 
the ,saviour1 his mother's gift caused  
him great perplexity4 ,as a charm he had
 no faith in it2 he relied entirely on  
the grace of his ,lord to sustain and   
protect him4 ,and yet1 for his mother's 
sake1 he felt that he should like to    
wear it4 ,he solved the problem by      
placing in the locket the words by which
 he had been led to ,christ4 ,when he   
died1 an old man of eighty1 the locket  
was found next his skin4 ,and1 when they
 opened it1 they read3 ',who shall      
separate us from the love of ,christ8 ,i
 am persuaded that neither death1 nor   
life1 nor angels1 nor principalities1   
nor powers1 nor things present1 nor     
things to come1 nor height1 nor depth1  
nor any other creature1 shall be able to
 separate us from the love of ,god1     
which is in ,christ ,jesus our ,lord4'  

,gavazzi's excommunication nearly broke 
his heart4 ,he left ,rome to wander in  
strange lands1 the most frightful       
anathemas and maledictions ringing in   
his ears4 ,he was an exile and an       
outcast1 shuddering under the curse of  
the church that he had served so        
devotedly and so long4 ,yet1 after all1 
what did it matter8 ,he had found a     
love--the love of ,christ--that he had  
never known before2 and from that       
all-compensating love no power in church
 or state1 in heaven or earth1 in time  
or in eternity1 had power to tear him4  
,,iii  ,one is tempted to continue in   
this strain4 ,it would be pleasant to   
speak of ,hugh ,kennedy1 of ,savonarola1
 and of others who found life and grace 
and inspiration in the text on which    
poor ,uncle ,tom pillowed his dying     
head4 ,the testimony of such witnesses  
is strangely fascinating2 their name is 
legion2 we may yet cite one or two of   
them before we close4 ,meanwhile1 we    
must pay some attention to the words of 

which they speak so rapturously4 ,and   
even to glance at them is to fall in    
love with them4 ,they are among the most
 stately1 the most splendid1 in all     
literature4 ,macaulay1 who read         
everything1 once found himself in       
,scotland on a fast day4 ,it was a new  
experience for him1 and he did not      
altogether enjoy it4 ',the place1' he   
said1 'had all the appearance of a      
,puritan ,sunday4 ,every shop was shut  
and every church open4 ,i heard the     
worst and longest sermon that ,i ever   
remember4 ,every sentence was repeated  
three or four times over1 and nothing in
 any sentence deserved to be said once4 
,i withdrew my attention and read the   
,epistle to the ,romans4 ,i was much    
struck by the eloquence and force of    
some passages1 and made out the         
connection and argument of some others  
which had formerly seemed to me         
unmeaning4 ,i enjoyed the ,who shall    
separate us from the love of ,christ8 ,i
 know few things finer4'  ,the words    

constitute themselves the greatest      
challenge ever uttered4 ,poets and      
painters have gloried in the conception 
of ,ajax1 on his lonely rock1 defying   
all the gods that be4 ,but what is that 
compared with this8 ,in the passage     
whose sublimities awoke the enthusiasm  
of ,macaulay1 and delivered him from    
insufferable boredom1 ,paul claims to   
have reached the limits of finality1 and
 he hurls defiance at all the forces of 
futurity4  ',who shall separate us from 
the love of ,christ8 ,death8 ,life8     
,angels8 ,principalities8 ,powers8      
,things ,present8 ,things to ,come8     
,height8 ,depth8 ,any fresh ,creation8  
,i am persuaded that none of them can   
separate us from the love of ,god which 
is in ,christ ,jesus our ,lord4'   ,,iv 
,neither death nor life can do it4 ,not 
death--nor even life4 ,both are         
formidable forces2 and ,paul knew which 
was the more dangerous of the two4      
,so he died for his faith4 ,that is     
fine--     ,more than most of us do4    

,but1 say1 can you add to that line     
,that he lived for it1 too8  ,when      
,elizabeth came to the ,english throne1 
a number of men and women1 who were     
awaiting martyrdom under ,mary1 were    
liberated4 ,animated by the spirit of   
,ridley and ,latimer1 they would have   
kissed the faggots and embraced the     
stake4 ,yet1 in the years that followed1
 some of them lapsed into indifference1 
went the way of the world1 and named the
 name of ,christ no more4 ,the ordeal of
 life proved more potent and more       
terrible than the ordeal of a fiery     
death4  ,bunyan had learned that lesson4
 ,when he was in the depths of his      
despair1 envying the beasts and birds   
about him1 and tormenting himself with  
visions of hell-fire1 he went one day to
 hear a sermon on the love of ,christ4  
,to use his own words1 his 'comforting  
time was come4' ',i began1' he says1 'to
 give place to the word which with power
 did over and over again make this      
joyful sound within my soul3 ,who shall 

separate me from the love of ,christ8   
,and with that my heart was filled full 
of comfort and hope1 and ,i could       
believe that my sins would be forgiven  
me4 ,yea1 ,i was so taken with the love 
and mercy of ,god that ,i remember that 
,i could not tell how to contain till ,i
 got home2 ,i thought ,i could have     
spoken of ,his love to the very crows   
that sat upon the ploughed lands before 
me4 ,surely ,i will not forget this     
forty years hence8'  ,forty years hence6
 ,forty years hence ,bunyan was sleeping
 in his quiet grave in ,bunhill ,fields2
 and nobody who visits that familiar    
resting-place of his supposes for a     
moment that death has separated him from
 the love of ,christ4  ,but life6 ,life 
is a far more dangerous foe4 ',the      
tempter1' ,bunyan tells us1 'would come 
upon me with such discouragements as    
these3 ,you are very hot for mercy1 but 
,i will cool you4 ,this frame shall not 
last4 ,many have been as hot as you for 
a spirit1 but ,i have quenched their    

zeal4 ,with this1 several1 who were     
fallen off1 would be set before mine    
eyes4 ,then ,i would be afraid that ,i  
should fall away1 too1 but1 thought ,i1 
,i will watch and take care4 ,though you
 do1 said the tempter1 ,i shall be too  
hard for you4 ,i will cool you          
insensibly1 by degrees1 by little and   
little4 ,continual rocking will lull a  
crying child to sleep4 ,i shall have you
 cold before long6 ,these things1'      
,bunyan continues1 'brought me into     
great straits4 ,i feared that time would
 wear from my mind my sense of the evil 
of sin1 of the worth of heaven1 and of  
my need of the blood of ,christ4' ,but  
at that critical moment a text came to  
his help--,uncle ,tom's text1 ,signor   
,gavazzi's text4 ',what shall separate  
us from the love of ,christ8 ,for ,i am 
persuaded that neither death1 nor life1 
nor angels1 nor principalities1 nor     
powers1 nor things present1 nor things  
to come1 nor height1 nor depth1 nor any 
other creature shall be able to separate

 us from the love of ,god which is in   
,christ ,jesus our ,lord4' ',that1'     
,bunyan says1 'was a good word to me4'  
,death cannot do it6--that is good6     
,life cannot do it6--that is better6    
',and now ,i hoped1' says ,bunyan1 in   
concluding his narrative of this        
experience1 'now ,i hoped that long life
 would not destroy me nor make me miss  
of heaven4'   ,v  ,paul dares the       
universe4 ,he defies infinity4 ,he      
summons1 in pairs1 all the powers that  
be1 and glories in their impotence to   
dissolve the sacred tie that binds him  
to his ,lord4  ,he calls ,life and      
,death before him and dares them to do  
it6  ,he calls the ,powers of this      
,world and the ,powers of ,every ,other2
 none of them1 he says1 can do it6  ,he 
calls the ,things of the ,historic      
,present and the ,developments of the   
,boundless ,future4 ,whatever changes   
may come with the pageant of the ages1  
there is one dear relationship that     
nothing can ever affect6  ,he calls the 

,things in the ,heights and the ,things 
in the ,depths2 but neither among angels
 nor devils can he discover any force   
that makes his faith to falter6  ,he    
surveys this ,creation and he           
contemplates the ,possibility of        
,others2 but it is with a smile of      
confidence and triumph4  ',for ,i am    
persuaded1' he says1 'that neither      
death1 nor life1 nor angels1 nor        
principalities1 nor powers1 nor things  
present1 nor things to come1 nor height1
 nor depth1 nor any other creature shall
 be able to separate us from the love of
 ,god which is in ,christ ,jesus our    
,lord4'   ,,vi  ,the covenanters knew   
the value of ,uncle ,tom's text4 ,among 
the heroic records of ,scotland's       
terrible ordeal1 nothing is more        
impressive or affecting than the        
desperate way in which persecuted men   
and women clung with both hands to the  
golden hope enshrined in that majestic  
word4 ,it was in a ,scottish kirk that  
,macaulay discovered its splendor2 but  

even ,macaulay failed to see in it all  
that they saw4  ,it was a beautiful ,may
 morning when ,major ,windram rode into 
,wigton and demanded the surrender1 to  
him and his soldiers1 of two women who  
had been convicted of attending a       
conventicle4 ,one of them was ,margaret 
,wilson1 a fair young girl of eighteen4 
,she was condemned to be lashed to a    
stake at low tide in such a way that the
 rising waters would slowly overwhelm   
her4 ,in hope of shaking her fidelity1  
and saving her life1 it was ordained    
that her companion should be fastened to
 a stake a little farther out4 ',it may 
be1' said her persecutors1 'that1 as    
,mistress ,margaret watches the waves go
 over the widow before her1 she will    
relent6' ,the ruse1 however1 had the    
opposite effect4 ,when ,margaret saw the
 fortitude with which the elder woman   
yielded her soul to the incoming tide1  
she began to sing a paraphrase of the   
twenty-fifth ,psalm1 and those on the   
beach took up the strain4 ,the soldiers 

angrily silenced them1 and ,margaret's  
mother1 rushing into the waters1 begged 
her to save her life by making the      
declaration that the authorities        
desired4 ,but tantalized and tormented1 
she never flinched2 and1 as the waves   
lapped her face she was heard to repeat1
 again and again1 the triumphant words3 
',i am persuaded that neither death1 nor
 life1 nor angels1 nor principalities1  
nor powers1 nor things present1 nor     
things to come1 nor height1 nor depth1  
nor any other creature1 shall be able to
 separate us from the love of ,god which
 is in ,christ ,jesus our ,lord4'  ,as a
 representative of the men of that stern
 time1 we may cite ,john ,bruce4 ,when  
that sturdy veteran1 after a long life  
of faithful testimony and incessant     
suffering1 lay dying1 he beckoned his   
daughter to the chair beside his bed4   
,he told her1 in broken sentences and   
failing voice1 of the goodness and mercy
 that had followed him all the days of  
his life2 and then1 pausing suddenly1 he

 exclaimed3 ',hark1 lass1 the ,master   
calls6 ,fetch the ,buik6' ,she brought  
the ,bible to his side4 ',turn1' he     
said1 'to the eighth of ,romans and put 
my finger on these words3 ,who can      
separate us from the love of ,christ8   
,for ,i am persuaded that neither death1
 nor life1 nor angels1 nor              
principalities1 nor powers1 nor things  
present1 nor things to come1 nor height1
 nor depth1 nor any other creature1     
shall be able to separate us from the   
love of ,god which is in ,christ ,jesus 
our ,lord4 ,now1' he continued1 as soon 
as she had found the place1 'put my     
finger on the words and hold it there6' 
,and with his finger there1 pointing    
even in death to the ground of all his  
confidence1 the old man passed away4    
,,vii  ',who shall separate us from the 
love of ,christ8' asked ,uncle ,tom1    
with his last breath4  ',massa ,george  
sat fixed with solemn awe1' says ,mrs4  
,beecher ,stowe1 in continuing the      
story4 ',it seemed to him that the place

 was holy2 and as he closed ,tom's      
lifeless eyes1 and rose to leave the    
dead1 only one thought possessed        
him--,what a thing it is to be a        
,christian6'  ,it is indeed6     ,,xx   
,,andrew ,,bonar',s ,,text   ,i  ,it is 
an old-fashioned ,scottish kirk--and the
 ,communion ,sabbath4 ,everybody knows  
of the hush that brooded over a         
,scottish community a century ago       
whenever the ,communion season came     
round4 ,the entire population gave      
itself up to a period of holy awe and   
solemn gladness4 ,as the day drew near1 
nothing else was thought about or spoken
 of4 ,at the kirk itself1 day after day 
was given up to preparatory exercises1  
fast-time sermons and the fencing of    
tables4 ,in this old kirk1 in which we  
this morning find ourselves1 all these  
preliminaries are past4 ,the young      
people who are presenting themselves for
 the first time have been duly examined 
by the grave and somber elders1 and1    
having survived that fiery and searching

 ordeal1 have received their tokens4    
,and now everything is ready4 ,the great
 day has actually come4 ,the snowy      
cloths drape the pews2 everything is in 
readiness for the solemn festival2 the  
people come from far and near4 ,but ,i  
am not concerned with those who1 on this
 impressive and memorable occasion1     
throng around the table and partake of  
the sacred mysteries4 ,for1 at the back 
of the kirk1 high up1 is a cavernous and
 apparently empty old gallery1 dark and 
dismal4 ,is it empty8 ,what is that     
patch of paleness that ,i see up in the 
corner8 ,is it a face8 ,it is6 ,it is   
the grave and eager face of a small boy2
 a face overspread with awe and wonder  
as he gazes upon the affecting and      
impressive scene that is being enacted  
below4 ',as a child1' said ,dr4 ,bonar1 
many years afterwards1 when addressing  
the little people of his own            
congregation1 'as a child ,i used to    
love to creep up into that old gallery  
on ,communion ,sabbaths4 ,how ,i        

trembled as ,i climbed up the stairs6   
,and how ,i shuddered when the minister 
entered and began the service6 ,when ,i 
saw young people of my own acquaintance 
take the holy emblems for the first     
time1 ,i wondered if1 one great and     
beautiful day1 ,i should myself be found
 among the communicants4 ,but the       
thought always died in the moment of its
 birth4 ,for ,i found in my heart so    
much that must keep me from the love of 
,christ4 ,i thought1 as ,i sat in the   
deep recesses of that gloomy old        
gallery1 that ,i must purge my soul of  
all defilement1 and cultivate all the   
graces of the faith1 before ,i could    
hope for a place in the ,kingdom of     
,christ or venture as a humble guest to 
,his table4 ,but oh1 how ,i longed one  
day to be numbered among that happy     
company6 ,i thought no privilege on     
earth could compare with that4'   ,,ii  
,a couple of entries in his diary will  
complete our preparation for the record 
of the day that changed his life4 ,he is

 a youth of nineteen1 staid and         
thoughtful1 but full of life and        
merriment1 and the popular center of a  
group of student friends4  ,may #c1     
#ahbi4--;,great sorrow1 because ,i am   
still out of ,christ4  ,may #ca1        
#ahbi4--,my birthday is past and ,i am  
not born again4  ,not every day1 ,i     
fancy1 do such entries find their way   
into the confidential journals of young 
people of nineteen4   ,,iii  ,god's     
flowers are all everlastings4 ,the night
 may enfold them2 the grass may conceal 
them2 the snows may entomb them2 but    
they are always there4 ,they do not     
perish or fade4 ,see how the principle  
works out in history6 ,there is no more 
remarkable revival of religion in our   
national story than that represented by 
the ,rise of the ,puritans4 ,the face of
 ,england was changed2 everything was   
made anew4 ,then came the ,restoration4 
,paradise was lost4 ,puritanism vanished
 as suddenly as it had arisen4 ,but was 
it dead8 ,professor ,james ,stalker1 in 

a ,centennial ,lecture on ,robert       
,murray ,mc,cheyne--a name that stands  
imperishably associated with that of    
,andrew ,bonar--says most emphatically  
that it was not4 ,he shows how1 like a  
forest fire1 the movement swept across  
,europe1 returning at last to the land  
in which it rose4 ,when1 with the       
,restoration1 ,england relapsed into    
folly1 it passed over into ,holland1    
preparing for us1 among other things1 a 
new and better line of ,english kings4  
,from ,holland it passed into ,germany1 
and1 by means of the ,moravian          
,brethren1 produced the most amazing    
missionary movement of all time4 ,from  
,germany it returned to ,england1 giving
 us the ,methodist ,revival of the      
eighteenth century1 a revival which1    
according to ,lecky1 alone saved        
,england from the horrors of an         
industrial revolution4 ,and from        
,england it swept into ,scotland1 and   
kindled there such a revival of religion
 as has left an indelible impression    

upon ,scottish life and character4 ,it  
was in the sweep of that historic       
movement that the soul of ,andrew ,bonar
 was born4   ,,iv  ',it was in #ahcj1'  
he says1 in a letter to his brother1    
written in his eighty-third year1 'it   
was in #ahcj that ,i found the ,saviour1
 or rather1 that ,he found me1 and laid 
me on ,his shoulders rejoicing4' ,and   
how did it all come about8 ,it was a    
tranquil evening in the early autumn1   
and a ,sabbath4 ,there is always        
something conducive to contemplation    
about an autumn evening4 ,when1 one of  
these days1 one of our philosophers     
gives us a ,psychology of the ,seasons1 
,i shall confidently expect to find that
 the great majority of conversions take 
place in the autumn4 ,at any rate1      
,andrew ,bonar's did4 ,as he looked out 
upon the world in the early morning1 he 
saw the shrubs in the garden below him1 
and the furze on the moorland beyond1   
twinkling with the dew-drenched webs of 
innumerable spiders4 ,in his walk to the

 church1 and in a stroll across the     
fields in the afternoon1 the hush of the
 earth1 broken only by the lowing of    
cattle1 the bleating of sheep and the   
rustle of the leaves that had already   
fallen1 saturated his spirit4 ,the      
world1 he thought1 had never looked so  
beautiful4 ,the forest was a riot of    
russet and gold4 ,the hedge-rows were   
bronze and purple and saffron4 ,the soft
 and misty sunlight only accentuated the
 amber tints that marked the dying fern4
 ,in the evening1 unable to shake off   
the pensive mood into which the day had 
thrown him1 he reached down ,guthrie's  
,trial of a ,saving ,interest in        
,christ1 and gave himself to serious    
thought4 ,was it in the pages of        
,guthrie's searching volume that he came
 upon the text1 or did he1 later on1 lay
 down the book and take up his ,new     
,testament instead8 ,i do not know4     
,but1 however that may have been1 one   
great and glowing thought took complete 
possession of his soul4 ,as the tide    

will sometimes rush suddenly up the     
sands1 filling up every hollow and      
bearing away all the seaweed and        
driftwood that has been lying there so  
long1 so one surging and overmastering  
word poured itself suddenly in upon his 
mind1 bearing away with it the doubts   
and apprehensions that had tormented him
 for years4 ',of ,his fullness have we  
all received1 and grace for grace4'     
,then and there1 he says1 he began to   
have a secret joyful hope that he did   
really believe on the ,lord ,jesus4     
',the fullness and freeness of the      
divine grace filled my heart2 ,i did    
nothing but receive6'  ',of ,his        
fullness have all we received6'  ',his  
fullness filled my heart6'  ',i did     
nothing but receive6'  ,forty-two years 
afterwards1 at the age of sixty-two1 he 
revisited that room and tried to        
recapture the holy ecstasy with which1  
so many years earlier1 he had 'first    
realized a found ,saviour4'  ',grace for
 grace6'   ,v  ',of ,his fullness have  

all we received1 and grace for grace6'  
,i know a fair ,australian city that    
nestles serenely at the foot of a tall  
and massive mountain4 ,half way up the  
slopes is the city's reservoir4 ,in a   
glorious and evergreen valley it has    
been hollowed out of the rugged         
mountain-side4 ,the virgin bush         
surrounds it on every hand2 at its      
western extremity a graceful waterfall  
comes pouring down from the heights1    
mingling its silvery music with the     
songs of the birds around4 ,it is the   
favorite haunt of gaily-colored         
kingfishers4 ,swallows skim hither and  
thither over its crystalline and placid 
surface2 and1 as if kissing their own   
reflections in the glass1 they just     
touch the water as they flit across1    
creating circles that grow and grow     
until they reach the utmost edge4 ,like 
a giant who1 conscious of his grandeur1 
loves to see his image in the mirror1   
the scarped and weather-beaten summit   
gazes sternly down from above and sees  

his splendors reproduced1 and even      
enhanced1 in the limpid depths below4   
,often1 on a hot day1 have ,i resorted  
to this sylvan retreat4 ,at this        
altitude1 how deliciously cool is the   
air2 how icy cold the water6 ,it has    
come pouring down the cataract from the 
melting snows above6 ,for1 strangely    
enough1 the winter rains and the summer 
suns conspire to keep it always full4   
,far down the mountain-side ,i see the  
city1 shimmering in the noonday heat4 ,i
 think of its population1 hot1 tired and
 thirsty4 ,and then it pleases me to    
reflect that every house down there at  
the mountain's foot is in direct        
communication with this vast basin of   
shining water4 ,the people have but to  
stretch forth their hands and replenish 
their vessels again and again4 ,this    
crystal reservoir far up the slopes is  
really a part of the furniture of each  
of those homes4 ,have not ,i myself been
 down there in the dust and heat on such
 a day as this8 ,have not ,i myself been

 parched and thirsty8 ,and have ,i not  
thought wistfully of the reservoir far  
up the slopes8 ,and have ,i not taken my
 glass and filled it and quaffed with   
relish the sweet and sparkling water8   
,and have ,i not said to myself1 as ,i  
thought of the familiar scene among the 
hills3 ',of its fullness have all we    
received1 and water for water4'  ',his  
fullness filled my heart6'  ',i did     
nothing but receive6'  ',of ,his        
fullness have all we received1 and grace
 for grace6'   ,,vi  ,yes1 grace for    
grace6 ,grace for manhood following upon
 grace for youth6 ,grace for sickness   
following upon grace for health6 ,grace 
for sorrow following upon grace for joy6
 ,grace for age following upon grace for
 maturity6 ,grace to die following upon 
grace to live6 ,of that fullness of     
which he first drank on that lovely     
autumn evening1 he drank again and again
 and again1 always with fresh delight   
and satisfaction4  ,twenty-five years   
later1 ,i find him saying that1 'if     

there is one thing for which ,i praise  
the ,lord more than another it is this3 
that ,he opened my eyes to see that     
,christ pleases the ,father to the full1
 and that this is the ground of my      
acceptance4'  ,five years later still1  
he says that ',i have been many1 many   
times unhappy for awhile1 but have never
 seriously doubted my interest in the   
,lord ,jesus4'  ,when he was fifty-four1
 his wife died1 leaving him to bring up 
his young family as best he could4 ,but 
'grace for grace4' ,a year or two later1
 ,i find him rejoicing that 'to-night   
both ,isabella and ,marjory came home   
speaking of their having been enabled to
 rest on ,christ4 ,what a joyful time it
 has been6 ,i think1 too1 the young     
servant has found ,christ4 ,blessed     
,lord1 ,i have asked ,thee often to     
remember ,thy promise1 and when mother  
leaves thee1 the ,lord will take thee   
up4 ,i have asked ,thee to be a mother  
to my motherless children1 and now1     
indeed1 ,thou hast given me my prayer4  

,praise1 praise for evermore6'  ,on the 
fiftieth anniversary of that            
never-to-be-forgotten autumn evening1 he
 records with gratitude the fact that1  
'for fifty years the ,lord has kept me  
within sight of the ,cross4'  ,ten years
 later still1 now an old man of eighty1 
he declares that his ,saviour has never 
once left him in the darkness all these 
years4  ,and1 two years later1 just     
before his death1 he writes1 'it was    
sixty-two years ago that ,i found the   
,saviour1 or1 rather1 that ,he found me2
 and ,i have never parted company with  
,him all these years4 ,christ the       
,saviour has been to me my true portion1
 my heaven begun2 and my earnest prayer 
and desire for you and ,mary and little 
,marjory will always be1 that you may   
each find1 not only all ,i ever found in
 ,christ1 but a hundredfold more1 every 
year6'  ,grace for grace6  ,grace for   
the father and grace for the children6  
,grace for the old man just about to    
die1 and grace for the little child just

 learning how to live6  ',of ,his       
fullness have all we received1 and grace
 for grace6'   ,,vii  ,yes1 grace for   
grace6 ,grace for the pulpit and grace  
for the pew6' ,for1 through all these   
years1 ,andrew ,bonar was a minister1   
and the text was the keynote of all his 
utterances4  ,fullness6 ,fullness6      
,fullness6  ,receive6 ,receive6         
,receive6  ,grace for grace6 ,grace for 
grace6  ',of ,his fullness have all we  
received1 and grace for grace6'  ,in his
 study there hung a text of two words4  
,he had had it specially printed1 for   
those two words expressed the abiding   
fullness on which he loved to dwell4    
',thou remainest6' ,one day1 we are     
told1 a lady in great sorrow called to  
see him4 ,but nothing that he said could
 comfort her4 ,then1 suddenly1 he saw a 
light come into her face4 ',say no      
more1' she said1 ',i have found what ,i 
need6' and she pointed to the text3     
',thou remainest6'  ,that was it6 ,come 
what will1 ,he abides6 ,go who may1 ,he 

remains6 ,amidst all the chances and    
changes of life1 ,he perennially        
satisfies4 ,like the thirsty toilers in 
the city1 ,i draw and draw again1 and am
 each time refreshed and revived4  ',his
 fullness fills my heart6'  ',i do      
nothing but receive6'  ',of ,his        
fullness have all we received1 and grace
 for grace6'     ,,xxi  ,,francis       
,d',,assisi',s ,,text   ,i  ,oscar      
,wilde declares that1 since ,christ went
 to the cross1 the world has produced   
only one genuine ,christian1 and his    
name is ,francis d',assisi4 ,certainly  
he is the one saint whom all the        
churches have agreed to canonize2 the   
most vividly ,christlike man who has    
ever submitted his character to the     
scrutiny of public criticism4 ,his life1
 as ,green says in his ,short ,history  
of the ,english ,people1 his life falls 
like a stream of light athwart the      
darkness of the medival ages4 ,matthew  
,arnold speaks of him as a figure of    
most magical potency and sweetness and  

charm4 ,francis called men back to      
,christ and brought ,christ back to men4
 ',all ,europe woke with a start1'      
,sabatier affirms1 'and whatever was    
best in humanity leaped to follow his   
footsteps4'   ,,ii  ,a blithe saint was 
,francis4 ,he loved to laugh2 he loved  
to sing2 and he loved to hear the music 
of laughter and of song as it rippled   
from the lips of others4 ,every         
description that has come down to us    
lays stress on the sunshine that played 
about his lofty forehead and open       
countenance4 ,the days came when1 though
 still in the heyday of early manhood1  
his handsome figure was gaunt and       
wasted2 his fine face furrowed with     
suffering and care2 his virile strength 
exhausted by ceaseless toil1 wearisome  
journeyings1 and exacting ministries of 
many kinds4 ,but1 emaciated and worn1   
his face never for a moment lost its    
radiance4 ,he greeted life with a cheer 
and took leave of it with a smile4  ,his
 youth was a frolic2 his very sins were 

pleasant sins4 ,his winsomeness drew to 
him the noblest youths and fairest      
maidens of ,assisi4 ,the lithe and      
graceful figure of ,francis1 with his   
dark1 eloquent but sparkling eyes1 his  
wealthy shock of jet black hair1 his    
soft1 rich1 sonorous voice and his gay  
but faultless attire1 was the soul and  
center of every youthful revel4 ,he was1
 as ,sir ,james ,stephen says1 foremost 
in every feat of arms1 first in every   
triumph of scholarship1 and the gayest  
figure in every festival4 ',the         
brightest eyes in ,assisi1 dazzled by so
 many graces1 and the most reverend     
brows there1 acknowledging such early   
wisdom1 were alike bent with admiration 
towards him2 and all conspired to       
sustain his father's confidence that1 in
 his person1 the family name would rival
 the proudest and most splendid in      
,italy's illustrious past4' ,his        
bewitching personality1 his rollicking  
gaiety1 his brooding thoughtfulness1 his
 dauntless courage and his courtly ways 

swept all men off their feet2 he had but
 to lead and they instinctively         
followed2 he commanded and they         
unquestionably obeyed4 ,he was          
nick-named the ,flower of ,assisi4 ,he  
loved to be happy and to make others    
happy4 ',yet1' as one ,roman ,catholic  
biographer remarks1 'he did not yet know
 where true happiness was to be found4' 
,he was twenty-four when he made that   
sensational discovery4 ,he found the    
source of true happiness in the last    
place in the world in which he would    
have thought of looking for it4 ,he     
found it at the ,cross6 ,and1 in perfect
 consistency with his youthful conduct1 
he spent the rest of his days--he died  
at forty-four--in pointing men to the   
,crucified4 ,as a youth he had done his 
best to radiate laughter and song among 
all the young people of ,assisi2 it was 
therefore characteristic of him that1   
having discovered the fountain-head of  
all abiding satisfaction1 he should make
 it the supreme object of his maturer   

years to share his sublime secret with  
the whole wide world4   ,,iii  ,london  
was a village in the time of ,francis   
d',assisi1 and the baying of the wolves 
was the only sound heard in the forests 
that then covered the sites of our great
 modern cities4 ,whilst ,king ,john was 
signing ,magna ,carta1 ,francis was at  
,rome seeking recognition for his       
brotherhood of friars4 ,it was the age  
of the ,crusaders and the ,troubadours4 
,yet1 as ,i read the moving record of   
his great spiritual experience1 ,i      
forget that ,i have invaded a period in 
which ,english history had scarcely     
begun4 ,francis has his affinities in   
every land and in every age4 ,francis   
died four hundred years before ,john    
,bunyan was born2 yet1 as ,i read       
,bunyan's description of ,christian at  
the ,cross1 ,i seem to be perusing      
afresh the story of the conversion of   
,francis4 ,the language fits exactly4   
,strike out the word ',christian1' and  
substitute the word ',francis1' and the 

passage could be transferred bodily from
 the ,pilgrim's ,progress to the ,life  
of ,francis d',assisi4  ,the conversion 
of ,francis occurred five hundred years 
before ,dr4 ,watts wrote his noble hymn1
 ',when ,i survey the wondrous ,cross'2 
yet1 without knowing the words1 ,francis
 sang that song in his heart over and   
over and over again4  ,the conversion of
 ,francis was effected six hundred years
 before the conversion of ,mr4          
,spurgeon4 ,yet that conversion in the  
ruined church of ,st4 ,damian's in      
,italy is the very counterpart of that  
later conversion in the little chapel at
 ,artillery ,street1 ,colchester4       
',look6' cried the preacher at          
,colchester1 'look to ,jesus6 ,look to  
,jesus6' ',i looked1' says ,mr4         
,spurgeon2 ',i looked and was saved6'   
',francis looked to the ,crucified1'    
says his biographer4 ',it was a look of 
faith2 a look of love2 a look that had  
all his soul in it2 a look which did not
 attempt to analyze1 but which was      

content to receive4 ,he looked1 and1    
looking1 entered into life4'  ,you can  
take the sentences from the ,life of    
,francis and transfer them to the ,life 
of ,spurgeon1 or vice versa1 and they   
will fit their new environment with the 
most perfect historical accuracy4   ,,iv
  ,as1 with your face towards ,spello1  
you follow the windings of the ,via     
,francesca1 you will find the little    
church of ,st4 ,damian's on the slope of
 the hill outside the city walls4 ,it is
 reached by a few minutes' walk over a  
stony path1 shaded with olive-trees1    
amid odors of lavender and rosemary4    
',standing on the top of a hillock1 the 
entire plain is visible through a       
curtain of cypresses and pines which    
seem to be trying to hide the humble    
hermitage and set up an ideal barrier   
between it and the world4' ,francis was 
particularly fond of this wooded walk   
and of the sanctuary to which it led4   
,in pensive moments1 when it was more   
than usually evident to him that1 with  

all his merriment1 he had not yet       
discovered the fountain of true         
gladness1 he turned his face this way4  
,the crucifix at ,st4 ,damian's--which  
is still preserved in the sacristy of   
,santa ,chiara--has features peculiarly 
its own4 ,it differs from other images  
of the kind3 ',in most of the           
sanctuaries of the twelfth century1 the 
,crucified ,one1 frightfully lacerated1 
with bleeding wounds1 appears to seek to
 inspire only grief and compunction2    
that of ,st4 ,damian1 on the contrary1  
has an expression of unutterable calm   
and gentleness2 instead of closing the  
eyelids in eternal surrender to the     
weight of suffering1 it looks down in   
self-forgetfulness1 and its pure1 clear 
gaze says1 not ,see how ,i suffer6 but  
,come unto ,me6'  ,that1 at any rate1 is
 what it said to ,francis on that       
memorable day4 ,with an empty and a     
hungry heart he kneeled before it4 ',o  
,lord ,jesus1' he cried1 'shed ,thy     
light upon the darkness of my mind6'    

,and then an extraordinary thing        
happened4 ,the ,saviour to whom he      
prayed was no longer an inanimate image2
 but a living ,person6 ',an answer      
seemed to come from the tender eyes that
 looked down on him from the ,cross1'   
says ,canon ,adderley4 ',jesus heard his
 cry1 and ,francis accepted the dear    
,lord as his ,saviour and ,master4 ,a   
real spiritual union took place between 
him and his ,divine ,lord4 ,he took ,him
 for better for worse1 for richer for   
poorer1 till death and after death1 for 
ever4' ',this vision marks1' ,sabatier  
says1 'the final triumph of ,francis4   
,his union with ,christ is consummated2 
from this time he can exclaim with the  
mystics of every age1 ,my beloved is    
mine and ,i am ,his4 ,from that day the 
remembrance of the ,crucified ,one1 the 
thought of the love which had triumphed 
in immolating itself1 became the very   
center of his religious life1 the soul  
of his soul4 ,for the first time1       
,francis had been brought into direct1  

personal1 intimate contact with ,jesus  
,christ4' ',it was1' ,canon ,adderley   
says again1 'no mere intellectual       
acceptance of a theological proposition1
 but an actual self-committal to the    
,person of ,jesus2 no mere sentimental  
feeling of pity for the sufferings of   
,christ1 or of comfort in the thought   
that1 through those sufferings1 he could
 secure a place in a future heaven1 but 
a real1 brave assumption of the ,cross1 
an entering into the fellowship of the  
,passion of ,christ1 a determination to 
suffer with ,him and to spend and be    
spent in ,his service4'  ,francis never 
forgot that moment4 ,his whole soul     
overflowed with the intensity of his    
affection for his ,saviour4 ,to the end 
of his days he could never think of the 
,cross without tears2 yet he never knew 
whether those tears were prompted by    
admiration1 pity1 or desire4  ,when he  
arose and left the little sanctuary1 he 
felt1 as ,bunyan's pilgrim felt1 that he
 had lost his load1 and lost it for     

ever4  ,but he felt that he had assumed 
another4 ,he had taken up the ,cross4   
,he had devoted himself to its service4 
',god forbid1' he cried1 'that ,i should
 glory save in the ,cross of our ,lord  
,jesus ,christ1 by whom the world is    
crucified unto me and ,i unto the       
world4' ,when1 five centuries later1    
,isaac ,watts surveyed the wondrous     
,cross on which the ,prince of ,glory   
died1 his contemplation led to the same 
resolve3    ,forbid it1 ,lord1 that ,i  
should boast1     ,save in the death of 
,christ my ,god6   ,all the vain things 
that charm me most1     ,i sacrifice    
them to ,his blood4  ,and so1 once more1
 without knowing the words1 ,francis    
sang in his soul that song of           
consecration4  ',i looked and looked and
 looked again6' say ,francis and        
,spurgeon1 six centuries apart4  ',it   
was very surprising to me that the sight
 of the ,cross should thus ease me of my
 burden6' say ,francis and ,bunyan1 with
 four centuries between4  ',forbid it1  

,lord1 that ,i should boast save in the 
death of ,christ my ,god6' cry ,francis 
and ,isaac ,watts1 undivided by a chasm 
of five hundred years4  ,in the presence
 of the ,cross all the lands are united 
and all the ages seem as one4   ,v      
',god forbid that ,i should glory save  
in the ,cross of our ,lord ,jesus       
,christ1 by whom the world is crucified 
unto me and ,i unto the world4' ,in the 
one cross ,francis saw--as ,paul        
did--three crucifixions4  ,he saw on the
 ,cross his ,lord crucified for him4    
,he saw on the ,cross the world         
crucified to him4  ,he saw on the ,cross
 himself crucified to the world4  ,from 
that hour ,francis knew nothing among   
men save ,jesus ,christ and ,him        
crucified4 ,laying aside the gay        
clothing of which he was so fond1 he    
donned a peasant's cloak and tied it at 
the waist with a piece of cord--the garb
 that afterwards became the habit of the
 ,franciscan ,order4 ,he then set out to
 initiate the greatest religious revival

 and the greatest missionary movement of
 the medival ages--the enterprise that  
paved the way for the ,renaissance and  
the ,reformation4 ,beginning at his     
native town1 he journeyed through the   
classic cities of ,italy1 unfolding to  
all sorts and conditions of men the     
wonders of the ,cross4 ,although the    
hideous sight and loathsome smell of    
leprosy had always filled him with      
unconquerable disgust1 he gladly        
ministered to the lepers1 in the hope   
that1 by so doing1 he might impart to   
them the infinite consolations of the   
,cross4 ,worn as he soon became1 he set 
out to tramp from land to land in order 
that he might proclaim through ,europe  
and ,asia the matchless message of the  
,cross4 ,in his walks through the lonely
 woods he loved to proclaim to the very 
birds the story of the ,cross4 ,it is   
another link with ,bunyan4 ,bunyan felt 
that he should like to tell the crows on
 the ploughed fields the story of his   
soul's salvation2 but ,francis actually 

did it4 ,he would sit down in the       
forest3 wait until the oaks and beeches 
and elms about him were filled with     
sparrows and finches and wrens2 and then
 tell of the dying love of ,him who made
 them4 ,and1 as they flew away1 he loved
 to fancy that they formed themselves   
into a cross-shaped cloud above him1 and
 that the songs that they sang were the 
rapt expression of their adoring        
worship4 ,in his long journeyings he was
 often compelled to subsist on roots and
 nuts and berries4 ,meeting a kindred   
spirit in the woods he one day suggested
 that they should commune together4 ,his
 companion looked about him in          
bewilderment4 ,but ,francis pointed to a
 rock4 ',see6' he said1 'the rock shall 
be our altar2 the berries shall be our  
bread2 the water in the hollow of the   
rock shall be our wine6' ,it took very  
little to turn the thoughts of ,francis 
to the ,cross2 he easily lifted his soul
 into communion with the ,crucified4    
,whenever and wherever ,francis opened  

his lips1 the ,cross was always his     
theme4 ',he poured into my heart the    
sweetness of ,christ6' said his most    
eminent convert1 and thousands could    
have said the same4 ,feeling the        
magnitude of his task and the meagerness
 of his powers1 he called upon his      
converts to assist him1 and sent them   
out1 two by two1 to tell of the         
ineffable grace of the ,cross4 ,in      
humanness and common sense he founded   
his famous ,order4 ,his followers were  
to respect domestic ties2 they were to  
regard all work as honorable1 and to    
return an equivalent in labor for all   
that they received4 ,they were to       
husband their own powers2 to regard     
their bodies as sacred1 and on no       
account to exhaust their energies in    
needless vigils and fastings4 ,the grey 
friars soon became familiar figures in  
every town in ,europe4 ,they endured    
every conceivable privation and dared   
every form of danger in order that1 like
 their founder1 they might tell of the  

deathless love of the ,cross4  ,francis 
himself did not live long to lead them2 
but in death as in life his eyes were on
 the ,cross4 ,fifty of his disciples    
knelt around his bed at the last4 ,he   
begged them to read to him the #aith    
chapter of ,john's gospel--the record of
 the ,crucifixion4 ',in living or in    
dying1' he said1 ',god forbid that ,i   
should glory save in the ,cross of our  
,lord ,jesus ,christ6'   ,,vi  ,francis 
d',assisi and ,matthew ,arnold appear to
 have little or nothing in common4      
,francis was emotional1 mystical1       
seraphic2 ,arnold was cultured1 cold1   
and critical4 ,yet ,francis threw an    
extraordinary spell over the scholarly  
mind of ,arnold1 and1 dissimilar as were
 their lives1 in death they were not    
divided4  ',o my ,lord ,jesus1' prayed  
,francis1 ',i beseech ,thee1 grant me   
two graces before ,i die2 the first1    
that ,i may feel in my soul and in my   
body1 as far as may be1 the pain that   
,thou1 sweet ,lord1 didst bear in the   

hours of ,thy most bitter passion2 the  
second1 that ,i may feel in my heart1 as
 far as may be1 that exceeding love     
wherewith ,thou1 ,o ,son of ,god1 didst 
willingly endure such agony for us      
sinners4'  ,his prayer was answered4 ,as
 the sun was setting on a lovely autumn 
evening1 he passed away1 sharing the    
anguish1 yet glorying in the triumph of 
the ,cross4 ,the song of the birds to   
whom he had so often preached flooded   
the air with the melody he loved so     
well4  ,on another beautiful evening1   
nearly seven centuries later1 ,matthew  
,arnold passed suddenly away4 ,it was a 
,sunday1 and he was spending it with his
 brother-in-law at ,liverpool4 ,in the  
morning they went to ,sefton ,park      
,church4 ,dr4 ,john ,watson 7,ian       
,maclaren7 preached on ,the ,shadow of  
the ,cross4 ,he used an illustration    
borrowed from the records of the        
,riviera earthquake4 ,in one village1 he
 said1 everything was overthrown but the
 huge way-side crucifix1 and to it the  

people1 feeling the very ground         
shuddering beneath their feet1 rushed   
for shelter and protection4 ,after the  
sermon1 most of the members of the      
congregation remained for the           
,communion2 but ,arnold went home4 ,as  
he came down to lunch1 a servant heard  
him singing softly3    ,when ,i survey  
the wondrous ,cross     ,on which the   
,prince of ,glory died1   ,my richest   
gain ,i count but loss1     ,and pour   
contempt on all my pride4    ,forbid it1
 ,lord1 that ,i should boast1     ,save 
in the death of ,christ my ,god6   ,all 
the vain things that charm me most1     
,i sacrifice them to ,his blood4  ,in   
the afternoon he went for a walk with   
his relatives4 ,he had1 he told them1   
seldom been so deeply impressed by a    
sermon as by ,dr4 ,watson's4 ,he        
particularly mentioned the story of the 
,riviera crucifix4 ',yes1' he said1     
earnestly1 'the ,cross remains1 and1 in 
the straits of the soul1 makes its      
ancient appeal4' ,an hour later his     

heart had ceased to beat4  ',god forbid 
that ,i should glory save in the        
,cross6' cried ,francis4  ',the ,cross  
remains1 and1 in the straits of the     
soul1 makes its ancient appeal6'        
exclaims ,matthew ,arnold4  ,for the    
,cross1 as ,francis discovered that     
great day1 is the true source of all    
abiding happiness2 the ,cross is the    
stairway that ,jacob saw1 leading up    
from earth to heaven2 the ,cross has a  
charm for men of every clime and every  
time2 it is the boast of the redeemed2  
the rock of ages2 the hope of this world
 and the glory of the world to come4    
,,xxii  ,,everybody',s ,,text   ,i      
,centuries seemed like seconds that day3
 they dwindled down to nothing4 ,it was 
a beautiful ,september morning3 ,i was  
only a little boy3 and1 as a great      
treat1 my father and mother had taken me
 to ,london to witness the erection of  
,cleopatra's ,needle4 ,the happenings of
 that eventful day live in my memory as 
vividly as though they had occurred but 

yesterday4 ,i seem even now to be       
watching the great granite column1      
smothered with its maze of              
hieroglyphics1 as it slowly ascends from
 the horizontal to the perpendicular1   
like a giant waking and standing erect  
after his long1 long sleep4 ,all the way
 up in the train we had been talking    
about the wonderful thing ,i was so soon
 to see4 ,my father had told me that it 
once stood in front of the great temple 
at ,heliopolis2 that the ,pharaohs drove
 past it repeatedly on their way to and 
from the palace2 and that1 very         
possibly1 ,moses1 as a boy of my own    
age1 sat on the steps at its base       
learning the lessons that his tutor had 
prescribed4 ,it seemed to bring ,moses  
and me very near together4 ,to think    
that he1 too1 had stood beside this     
self-same obelisk and had puzzled over  
the weird inscriptions that looked so   
bewildering to me6 ,and now ,heliopolis1
 the ,city of the ,sun1 has vanished6 ,a
 single column tells the traveler where 

it stood6 ,london is the world's        
metropolis to-day4 ,and the monument1   
that stood among the splendors of the   
old world1 is being re-erected amidst   
the glories of the new6  ,will a time   
ever come1 ,i wondered1 when ,london    
will be as ,heliopolis is8 ,will the    
,needle1 in some future age1 be erected 
in some new capital--in the metropolis  
of ,to-morrow8 ,had you stood1 three    
thousand years ago1 where ,st4 ,paul's  
now stands1 the only sound that you     
would have heard coming up from the     
forests around would have been the      
baying of the wolves4 ,wild swine ranged
 undisturbed along the site of the      
,strand4 ,but ,egypt was in her glory1  
and the ,needle stood in front of the   
temple6 ,where1 ,i wonder1 will it stand
 in three thousand years' time8 ,some   
such thought must have occurred to the  
authorities who are presiding over its  
erection4 ,for see1 in the base of the  
obelisk a huge cavity yawns6 ,what is to
 be placed within it8 ,what greeting    

shall we send from the                  
,civilization-that-is to the            
,civilization-that-is-to-be8 ,it is a   
strange list upon which the officials   
have decided4 ,it includes a set of     
coins1 some specimens of weights and    
measures1 some children's toys1 a       
,london directory1 a bundle of          
newspapers1 the photographs of the      
twelve most beautiful women of the      
period1 a box of hairpins and other     
articles of feminine adornment1 a razor1
 a parchment containing a translation of
 the hieroglyphics on the obelisk       
itself--the hieroglyphics that so       
puzzled ,moses and me--and last1 but not
 least1 a text6 ,yes1 a text2 and a     
text1 not in one language1 but in every 
language known6 ,the men who tear down  
the obelisk from among the crumbling    
ruins of ,london may not be able to     
decipher this language1 or that1 or the 
other4 ,but surely one of these ten     
score of tongues will have a meaning for
 them6 ,and so1 in the speech of these  

two hundred and fifteen peoples1 these  
words are written out3 ,,for ,,god ,,so 
,,loved ,,the ,,world ,,that ,,he ,,gave
 ,,his ,,only ,,begotten ,,son ,,that   
,,whosoever ,,believeth ,,in ,,him      
,,should ,,not ,,perish ,,but ,,have    
,,everlasting ,,life4 ,that is the      
greeting which the ,twentieth ,century  
sends to the ,fiftieth6 ,i do not know  
what those men--the men who rummage     
among the ruins of ,london--will make of
 the newspapers1 the parchments1 the    
photographs and the hairpins4 ,i suspect
 that the children's toys will seem     
strangely familiar to them3 a little    
girl's doll was found by the            
archologists among the ruins of         
,babylon3 childhood keeps pretty much   
the same all through the ages4 ,but the 
text6 ,the text will seem to those      
far-off people as fresh as the latest   
fiftieth-century sensation4 ,those      
stately cadences belong to no particular
 time and to no particular clime4 ,ages 
may come and go2 empires may rise and   

fall2 they will still speak with        
fadeless charm to the hungry hearts of  
men4 ,they are for the                  
,nations-that-were1 for the             
,nations-that-are1 and for the          
,nations-yet-to-be4 ,that ,text is      
,,everybody',s ,,text4   ,,ii  ,few     
things are more arresting than the way  
in which these tremendous words have won
 the hearts of all kinds and conditions 
of men4 ,i have been reading lately the 
lives of some of our most eminent       
evangelists and missionaries2 and       
nothing has impressed me more than the  
conspicuous part that this text has     
played in their personal lives and      
public ministries4 ,let me reach down a 
few of these volumes4  ,here is the     
,life of ,richard ,weaver4 ,in the days 
immediately preceding his conversion1   
,richard was a drunken and dissolute    
coal miner4 ,it is a rough1 almost      
repulsive1 story4 ,he tells us how1     
after his revels and fights1 he would go
 home to his mother with bruised and    

bleeding face4 ,she always received him 
tenderly2 bathed his wounds2 helped him 
to bed2 and then murmured in his ear the
 words that at last seemed inseparable  
from the sound of her voice3 ,god so    
loved the world that ,he gave ,his only 
begotten ,son that whosoever believeth  
in ,him should not perish but have      
everlasting life4 ,the words came back  
to him in the hour of his greatest need4
 ,his soul was passing through deep     
waters4 ,filled with misery and shame1  
and terrified lest he should have sinned
 beyond the possibility of salvation1 he
 crept into a disused sand-pit4 ,he was 
engaged to fight another man that day1  
but he was in death-grips with a more   
terrible adversary4 ',in that old       
sand-pit1' he says1 ',i had a battle    
with the devil2 and ,i came off more    
than conqueror through ,him that loved  
me4' ,and it was the text that did it4  
,as he agonized there in the sand-pit1  
tormented by a thousand doubts1 his     
mother's text all at once spoke out     

bravely4 ,it left no room for           
uncertainty4 ',god so loved the world   
that ,he gave ,his only begotten ,son   
that whosoever believeth in ,him should 
not perish1 but have everlasting life4' 
',i thought1' ,richard tells us1 'that  
whosoever meant me4 ,what faith was1 ,i 
could not tell2 but ,i had heard that it
 was taking ,god at ,his word2 and so ,i
 took ,god at ,his word and trusted in  
the finished work of my ,saviour4 ,the  
happiness ,i then enjoyed ,i cannot     
describe2 my peace flowed as a river4'  
,duncan ,matheson and ,richard ,weaver  
were contemporaries4 ,they were born at 
about the same time2 and1 at about the  
same time they were converted4 ,matheson
 was ,scottish2 ,weaver was ,english4   
,matheson was a stonemason2 ,weaver was 
a coal-miner2 in due course both became 
evangelists4 ,in some respects they were
 as unlike each other as two men could  
possibly be3 in other respects their    
lives are like sister ships2 they seem  
exactly alike4 ,especially do they      

resemble each other in their earliest   
religious experiences4 ,we have heard   
,weaver's story3 let us turn to         
,matheson's4 ,weaver1 at the time of his
 conversion1 was twenty-five3 ,matheson 
is twenty-two4 ,he has been ill at ease 
for some time1 and every sermon he has  
heard has only deepened his distress4   
,on a sharp winter's morning1 with the  
frost sparkling on the shrubs and plants
 around him1 he is standing in his      
father's garden1 when1 suddenly1 the    
words of ,richard ,weaver's             
text--,everybody's ,text--take powerful 
hold upon his mind4 ',i saw1' he says1  
'that ,god loves me1 for ,god loves all 
the world4 ,i saw the proof of ,his love
 in the giving of ,his ,son4 ,i saw that
 whosoever meant me1 even me4 ,my load  
was loosed from off my back4 ,bunyan    
describes his pilgrim as giving three   
leaps for joy as his burden rolled into 
the open sepulchre4 ,i could not contain
 myself for gladness4' ,the parallel is 
very striking4  ',god loves me6'        

exclaims ,richard ,weaver1 in surprise4 
',i saw that ,god loves me6' says       
,duncan ,matheson4  ',i thought that    
whosoever meant me' says ,weaver4  ',i  
saw that whosoever meant me1' says      
,matheson4  ',the happiness ,i then     
enjoyed ,i cannot describe1' says our   
,english coal-miner4  ',i could not     
contain myself for gladness1' says our  
,scottish stonemason4  ,we may dismiss  
the evangelists with that1 and turn to  
the missionaries4   ,,iii  ,like        
,richard ,weaver and ,duncan ,matheson1 
,frederick ,arnot and ,egerton ,r4      
,young were contemporaries4 ,i heard    
them both--,fred ,arnot in ,exeter ,hall
 and ,egerton ,young in ,new ,zealand4  
,they lived and labored on opposite     
sides of the ,atlantic4 ,fred ,arnot    
gave himself to the fierce ,barotses of 
,central ,africa2 ,egerton ,young set   
himself to win the ,red ,men of the     
,north ,american woods and prairies4    
,arnot's life is one of the most        
pathetic romances that even ,africa has 

given to the world4 ,he made the wildest
 men love him4 ,sir ,francis de ,winton 
declares that ,arnot made the name of   
,englishman fragrant amidst the vilest  
habitations of cruelty4 ',he lived a    
life of great hardship1' says ,sir      
,ralph ,williams2 ',i have seen many    
missionaries under varied circumstances1
 but such an absolutely forlorn man1    
existing on from day to day1 almost     
homeless1 without any of the appliances 
that make life bearable1 ,i have never  
seen4' ,and the secret of this great    
unselfish life8 ,the secret was the     
text4 ,he was only six when he heard    
,livingstone4 ,he at once vowed that he1
 too1 would go to ,africa4 ,when his    
friends asked how he would get there1 he
 replied that1 if that were all1 he     
would swim4 ,but nobody knew better than
 he did that the real obstacles that    
stood between himself and a life like   
,livingstone's were not physical but    
spiritual4 ,he could not lead ,africa   
into the kingdom of ,christ unless he   

had first entered that kingdom himself4 
,as a boy of ten1 he found himself lying
 awake at two o'clock one morning1      
repeating a text4 ,he went over it again
 and again and again4 ,god so loved the 
world that ,he gave ,his only begotten  
,son that whosoever believeth in ,him   
should not perish but have everlasting  
life4 ',this1' says ,sir ,william       
,robertson ,nicoll1 'was ,arnot's       
lifelong creed1 and he worked in its    
spirit4' ',this1' he says himself1 'was 
my first and chief message4' ,he could  
imagine none greater4  ,exactly so was  
it with ,egerton ,young4 ,he tells us1  
for example1 of the way in which he     
invaded the ,nelson ,river district and 
opened work among people who had never  
before heard the gospel4 ,he is         
surrounded by two hundred and fifty or  
three hundred wild ,indians4 ',i read   
aloud1' he says1 'those sublime words3  
,for ,god so loved the world that ,he   
gave ,his only begotten ,son that       
whosoever believeth in ,him should not  

perish but have everlasting life4 ,they 
listened with the most rapt attention   
whilst for four hours ,i talked to them 
of the truths of this glorious verse4   
,when ,i had finished1 every eye turned 
towards the principal chief4 ,he rose1  
and1 coming near me1 delivered one of   
the most thrilling addresses ,i have    
ever heard4 ,years have passed away     
since that hour1 and yet the memory of  
that tall1 straight1 impassioned ,indian
 is as vivid as ever4 ,his actions were 
many1 but all were graceful4 ,his voice 
was particularly fine and full of       
pathos1 for he spoke from the heart4'   
',missionary1 exclaimed the stately old 
chief1 ,i have not1 for a long time1    
believed in our religion4 ,i hear ,god  
in the thunder1 in the tempest and in   
the storm3 ,i see ,his power in the     
lightning that shivers the tree3 ,i see 
,his goodness in giving us the moose1   
the reindeer1 the beaver1 and the bear4 
,i see ,his loving-kindness in sending  
us1 when the south winds blow1 the ducks

 and geese2 and when the snow and ice   
melt away1 and our lakes and rivers are 
open again1 ,i see how ,he fills them   
with fish4 ,i have watched all this for 
years1 and ,i have felt that the ,great 
,spirit1 so kind and watchful and       
loving1 could not be pleased by the     
beating of the conjurer's drum or the   
shaking of the rattle of the medicine   
man4 ,and so ,i have had no religion4   
,but what you have just said fills my   
heart and satisfies its longings4 ,i am 
so glad you have come with this         
wonderful story4 ,stay as long as you   
can6'  ,other chiefs followed in similar
 strains2 and each such statement was   
welcomed by the assembled ,indians with 
vigorous applause4 ,the message of the  
text was the very word that they had all
 been waiting for4  ,fred ,arnot found  
that it was what ,africa was waiting    
for6  ,egerton ,young found that it was 
what ,america was waiting for6  ,it is  
the word that all the world is waiting  
for6  ,for that text is ,everybody's    

,text6   ,,iv  ,a pair of               
evangelists--,weaver and ,matheson6  ,a 
pair of missionaries--,arnot and ,young6
  ,i have one other pair of witnesses   
waiting to testify that this text is    
,everybody's ,text4 ,martin ,luther and 
,lord ,cairns have very little in       
common4 ,one was ,german2 the other was 
,english4 ,one was born in the fifteenth
 century2 the other in the nineteenth4  
,one was a monk2 the other was ,lord    
,chancellor4 ,but they had this in      
common1 that they had to die4 ,and when 
they came to die1 they turned their     
faces in the same direction4 ,lord      
,cairns1 with his parting breath1       
quietly but clearly repeated the words  
of ,everybody's ,text4 ,god so loved the
 world that ,he gave ,his only begotten 
,son that whosoever believeth in ,him   
should not perish but have everlasting  
life4  ,during his last illness1 ,luther
 was troubled with severe headaches4    
,someone recommended to him an expensive
 medicine4 ,luther smiled4  ',no1' he   

said1 'my best prescription for head and
 heart is that ,god so loved the world  
that ,he gave ,his only begotten ,son   
that whosoever believeth in ,him should 
not perish but have everlasting life4'  
,a fortnight before he passed away1 he  
repeated the text with evident ecstasy1 
and added1 ',what ,spartan saying can be
 compared with this wonderful brevity8  
,it is a ,bible in itself6' ,and in his 
dying moments he again repeated the     
words1 thrice over1 in ,latin4  ',they  
are the best prescription for headache  
and heartache6' said ,luther4  ,there   
were headaches and heartaches in the    
world three thousand years ago1 when    
,cleopatra's ,needle stood beside the   
,temple at ,heliopolis6  ,there will be 
headaches and heartaches in the world   
centuries hence1 when the obelisk is    
rescued from among the ruins of ,london6
  ,there were headaches and heartaches  
among those ,barotse tribes to whom     
,fred ,arnot went6  ,there were         
headaches and heartaches among those    

tattooed braves to whom ,egerton ,young 
carried the message6  ,there are        
headaches and heartaches in ,england1 as
 the ,lord ,chancellor knew6  ,there are
 headaches and heartaches in ,germany1  
as ,luther found6  ,and1 because there  
are headaches and heartaches for        
everybody1 this is ,everybody's ,text4  
,there is1 as ,luther said1 nothing like
 it4   ,v  ,when ,sir ,harry ,lauder was
 here in ,melbourne1 he had just        
sustained the loss of his only son4 ,his
 boy had fallen at the front4 ,and1 with
 this in mind1 ,sir ,harry told a       
beautiful and touching story4 ',a man   
came to my dressing-room in a ,new ,york
 theater1' he said1 'and told of an     
experience that had recently befallen   
him4 ,in ,american towns1 any household 
that had given a son to the war was     
entitled to place a star on the         
window-pane4 ,well1 a few nights before 
he came to see me1 this man was walking 
down a certain avenue in ,new ,york     
accompanied by his wee boy4 ,the lad    

became very interested in the lighted   
windows of the houses1 and clapped his  
hands when he saw the star4 ,as they    
passed house after house1 he would say1 
,oh1 look1 ,daddy1 there's another house
 that has given a son to the war6 ,and  
there's another6 ,there's one with two  
stars6 ,and look6 there's a house with  
no star at all6 ,at last they came to a 
break in the houses4 ,through the gap   
could be seen the evening star shining  
brightly in the sky4 ,the little fellow 
caught his breath4 ,oh1 look1 ,daddy1 he
 cried1 ,god must have given ,his ,son1 
for ,he has got a star in ,his window4' 
',he has1 indeed6' said ,sir ,harry     
,lauder1 in repeating the story4  ,but  
it took the clear eyes of a little child
 to discover that the very stars are    
repeating ,everybody's ,text4 ,the      
heavens themselves are telling of the   
love that gave a ,saviour to die for the
 sins of the world4