New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-11-22

ii the volume Of DR.. Sprague on the Baptist
pulpit, Coy Briggs communicates very interest
tng letter On john Leland, which contains a fuller
account Of his personal habits and manner of
preaching than we have before seen.
X He 49, little inclined to superstition, says Gov.
Briggs. Indeed, his practical sagacity and start
ling common sense kept him from any tendency in
that direction, but he had some peculiar expert
ences of The supernatural, as the following anec-
While WAS at his house enqured of him about
: remarkable noise which had, when boy, heard
that he and big family had been annoyed by when
feE lived IN Virginia. He gave this account of it
I'LL family, at the time, consisted Of himself,
wife. and four children. One evening, all the
family being together their attention was attracted
by noise which very much resemblcd the faint
groans q person IN pain. It was distinct, and
repeated ut intervals Of q few seconds. It seemed
70 Ne under the sill Of the window, and between
the clapboards and the ceiling. They paid very
lfsc attention to il, and in short time it ceased.
but, afterwards, It returned in the same way
sometimes every night, and sometimes not so fre-
quentiy, and always in the same place. and Of the
ssme character. It continued for some months,
b said II excited their curiosity and ANNOYED
them, but they were not alarmed BY it, During its
continuance they had the sliding and casing re-
moved M0m the place where it appeared to be, but
found nothing to account for it, and the sound CON
dnued the same.
~ consulted biz friends, especially some Of his
ministerial brethren about it, think he said it
~ never heard ~ any except himself and his
4hsent from home. Mrs. Leland said that often
when she was alone with the children, and while
they were playing about the room, and nothing
neing said, i would come, and they would leave
tne,r pay and gather abont her person. They had
apiAce MY or sixty rods from the house, BY the
s5de ~ brook, where the family did their washing.
One dny while she was at that place. it met her
there PRECISELY as il had done in the house
Alsef tle NOISE had been heard at brief intervals
mr. otSr II xl.,@ i.
lodgings TO quite an opposite and distant part of
the house Int it continued as usual. for some
time, Ia its old locality. One night after they had
retired, they observed, BY the sound, that i had
ceeded. and seemed to be advancing, in q direct
I lines towards their bed, and was becoming CON
stantly louder and more distinct.
Az each interval It advanced between them, and
BATTERED strength and fullness, until it entered the
when the groan became deep and appalling
Then, said he, for the first time since tt began
lfelt TIE emotion Of fear; turned upon my face.
enc lever prayed il my life Iprayed then:
that annoyance, and that, if it were message
4 from Heaven, i might be explained to us. and
depart thatif II were an evil spirit permitted to
sdssairD md disquiet me and my family, it might
ne fepaked ana sent away; or if there was any.
sning for me TO do to make it depart I might be
instructed what It was, SO that i could do III
TINS exoreise restored his tranquility Of mind
ana N amed his usual position in the bed
startling 70 be initiated by the human voice INC
next groan was not 50 loud, and it receded a ster
Or sMo rom the front Of the bed near his face L
conunuea e recsae N the direction from whence
csc, anu gleW iess and less, until it reached it
0id staton, When y died away TO the faintest sound
and entirely and forever ceased. - 1Au
No explanation was ever found. SCI have o;ve,
yoa." seq hs. e simple and true history 81 tn
none. His wife confirmed all he said / think
can nay that Inever knew person less given
the marvellous than Elder Leland