The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1873-11-06
A1~. a9aaSaas.sss s.sAessA..

As<. Iaasases's s4e1aer.
We publish below the letter Of Dr.. Nun
ssy which WAS read before the Holston Con-
Ference at its last session at Merton, Va
Dr.. Mausey's letter will explain his con-
duet fully, and no one who reads it can think
for g moment that he has been guilty Of the
charges imputed to him. The following is
the full text Of bis letter. which is addressed
to Rev. DR.. Summers, Editor of the Nashville
CAsistian .adpocote.
BEAR Dir. SUMMERS: 1t is published
from Que end Of this country to the other that
| use stimulating spirits too freely. Their use
| have entirely asar loned, prefsrring to be
sick, or dead, than to lay myself liable any
longer to such complaints. fused them by
medical and eth erwise respectable sdvisenent
Their Use saved my lie. [ was poor boy,
and had to support, sing le-handed, for many
years, q mother and Eve chldran. l did it
most of the time by manual labor, as hire
ling. [ had little time to so to school
Three months will comprise all the-time which
was Of any profit tome. Then had to walk
several n1iles,to the school house, after cut
ting and carrying npona my shoulder, from
neighboring ridge, wood euough 70 supply
the necessities Of the family for a winter day
-retuTning at night, doing my work, and
learning nay lessons by the light Spine knots
and chips. In the meantime God regenera-
ted me, and six. years alterward -cal!ed Of
God to preach started without an educa
ton, to my first and only circuit, three hun
7dred and forty salles away, on foot, with but
three dollars in my pocksS. I was furnished
some money by Rev. A. G. Worley of the
Holston Conference God bless him, to ena
bic me to get to ray work., But [ had to de-
ny rsyself the privilege Ct eating, save once,
from Bristol, Tenn, to Charleston, Teno. land
seventy-fye miles Of the road was travelled
by the stage, Thus started to preach,
studying everywhere and under all circum
stancos-sometime nearly all night, to try
and make myself an approved workman
My record ia-the Holston conference is we'll
known. In 1861 was sent by Bishop Ear
ly to Alexandria Virginia Always having
a feeble nervous constitution, and neyerhinch
ing 10 my life from the post Of duty and
danger, my health rapidly began to give way.
Exhortedto use stimulants, refused. Du-
ring the eighteen months [ was stationed in
Alexandra, tasta3 ardent spirits but few
times, ard only in cases Of real illness new
! er as beverage. | never took bat one drink
as a beverage in my life, and that was when
[ was boy. At the end4of my ternlia Al.
eSandria, ] ought, to have located for one
year:but,h had o terror Of such STEP l
was then removed by Bishop Doggett, to Bal
timore city. Baltimore was our frontier
work. The membership was small | had
to make my own congregation With such
an aspiraton,l gathered up all my feeble
powers aud did my best, in the meantime
helping. other charges all could: Ny efforts
to preach at this time. were succeeded by a
kind Of convuisive von.it. and this often fol-
lowed By a severe attack Of cramp collie, which
several times threatening my life. was
told BY friends, and among then. TIE late Or.
t.. u Bona,D D.,aad President ofthe Medical
University Of Maryland, to use a small por
ton of whiskey Or brandy after preaching
and it would prevent the vomiting. ] had
to do this or. giva up the station and stop
preaching I tried it and it effected cure,
and countervalloa, after a time, the tendency
Of collie the amount used was ANAL.
The first summer was in Baltimore 7 vas
! threatened with paralysis. Ny health seemed
| to give way almost entirely, and / w,s re-
| leased from my york for nearly ioar mouths.
recommended my work IN October, but to
! GIL the pulpit :sad to give up III great de-
gree pastoral visiting. The state Of my
health caused ire 20 accept the postioa Of
Secretary OF tho Board OF Foreign Missions.
| Daring that sammer, | was threatened with
anot her attack and lost about three months
from my work but alter shat, my health for
the FIRST time, began to recu psrate in such a
way that L thought would have no moro
trouble; aud ii [ had not been put back to
regular work for q year o. more | would not
hayo beea eff ,ctiye, as have been now for
twelve months. Our troubles in Baltimore
in 1872 kept me at nay post during the SUM
mes-t;ll [ fell there. I.sfayed, not because
was able to do the whole work /; but to prevent
a Generalization. | had to use stimulapt or
desert my pest. In addition to Threatened
attack Of paralysis (Harvy G. Bird, NJ. D, of
Baltimore. being one of the physicians who
made the diagnosis,) | have suffered. horribly
with neuralgia. Again | had to use whisk y
or brandy I ceased a while last February
but was compelled to resume their use for a
while. 1 always used them against my will
and one great purpose Of my coming TO the
country was to get my nerves gradually re-
Taxed from the tension Of twenty-five years,
80 that [ could live without stimulan5. [
was making battle fer life and in me it was
no sin-hence never concealed it Ny in-
tense horror Of paralysis, may have caused
the, in my mind, to exaggerate my danger. Ii
threw gloom over my soul, and the year to
me has been one Of darkness; though l could
feel the strong hand Of God leading me
through the shadows. s,But He knoweth the
way that take; when he hath tried me, l
shall come forth as gold" [ could have
spared Leg, an arm, or even an eye, but my
fault lay not in them. God touched the
point Of ambition, and will abide his time.
q lie performeth the thing that is appointed
for me and many such things are with Him.
[ never dreamed that could, and would be
misunderstood and traduced as common
drunkard, OF that any Of my brethren would
ever have believed it. But neuralgia or no
nearalgio- porolysis or no paralysis, I
haze abandoned its use IN ony quantity, and
IN all circumstances, except the most extra
ordinary i. e., it must be a matter Of inme-
date life and death, and never in the sense
Of a tonic, or to relieve pain, or in any con-
tnuous sense whatever. Il would be we'll
| for al. to come, under God, after careful