Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-05-17

| wives anu cnlIuren.
The pledge was then offered for signatures
and large number affixed their names to
it. among them being several representa-
tiyes Of class whom it is particularly de-
sirable should be reached
Condensed from communication by NJ. C. T., in
the peTmoHt Chronicle.
Obituary.
MRS. G. C ToRREY OF CHARLOTTE
Adelaide Lucy Damon was born in Read
ing Mass, September 9th, 1881. She be-
| came n Christian in childhood. The imme-
date occasion of her conversion seems to
have been her fathers prayer, overheard by
her one day, as she was passing the door OF
the room where he was pleading with God
for his children. She early formed the de-
sire to become a missionary to the Indians,
but this wish seemed destined never to be
accomplished. One day, when playing in a
barn, she fell from the scaffolding. Her
spine was so injured that much suffering en-
sued, and she probably never recovered from
| the effects of this misadventure. A few years
after she became so i'll that for some time her
life was despaired Of Indeed she was
thought at one time to be dead. Her lungs
were now the seat of disease. While thus
Frustrated she was visited by Rev. Mr.. Hotch-
| kin, of the Choctaw mission, who wished to
secure her services as teacher. After find
ing how earnestly she had been preparing
herself for such work he told her that he
| thought the Lord would yet raise her up, and
| enable her to carry out her cherished wish.
So deep an impression did she make of her
fitness for such vocation, that q young
lady, who had been brought to Christ through
her influence, was led to pray that she her
self might rather be taken, and her friend
raised up to enter upon the life of a mission
| ary-a prayer, surely, that none but very
young person would venture to offer. With
in few years the young girl was called away,
while Adelaide, recovering from her disease,
| became comparatively strong and we'll She
| was endued by nature with remarkable degree
of nervous energy, and an unusual strength
| of will, which often took the place of the
force that belongs to Il healthy body. In
| consequence of this she shrank the less from
the tolls and exposures that she knew must
be incurred in the life of missionary. On
September 9TH, 1876, she was married to
Rev. C. c. Torrey, who was ordained on the
day succeeding us missionary to the Chero-
KEGS. Soon after they started for the Indian
| territory, where they labored together for
nearly six years, till the breaking out of the
war compelled them to return once more to
the North
| How faithfully she labored during these
wears in her chosen vocation-how brayely
She bore its privations its unforeseen difficult
ties and hardships this is not the place to
| tell The good she was enabled to accom-
plish, though known in part by those who
shared her labors, will doubtless never DO
wholly revealed before the final day. She
| returned to Vermont in 1861. Here her
health soon began to fail. The great priva-
| tons consequent upon the war, which fell
| with peculiar severity on the families of many
ministers, came in time when she was ill
able to bear them, and her delicate frame,
already suffering from injuries incurred dur
| ing her residence among the Indians, began
| to sink SO mpidly that in the opinion of an
| experienced physician who saw her in this
condition. there WAS nothing to be done for
her but to make her as comfortable as possi-
| ble The cause of the danger was however
removed by n skiltul but exceedingly severe
surgical operation. Nothing was heard from
her lips at this time but praise to God for his
supporting love and mercy. To the aston
shment OF her physician she rallied, and for
Il short time enjoyed tolerabe health.
In June of 1869 after day OF great fatigue,
she suddenly felt peculiar singing pain
shoot through her breast. As suddenly the
conviction shot through her mind which she
expressed aloud in words, Il have q cancer
For the sake of her five children, one of
whom was born soon after the disease ap-
peared, she henceforth faithfully used every
means within her reach to battle its progress |
submitting time and again to the painful |
operations necessary for this purpose. in or
der that she might be able to guide these |
helpless ones, if possible, through the dam
gers of infancy and childhood. The strug- |
gle lasted for almost nine years, and during |
all this time her strong spirit, rising above |
bodily weakness and pain, was an inspiring |
force in her household, cheering and sus- |
tanning. guiding and regulating, until, when |
she was no longer able to leave the bed |
where she sat day and night propped up by |
pillows, for it was many months that she was |
unable to lie down TO rest-though she could |
not now oversee the operations of her house, |
hold, she was still the one to whom all could |
safely come for advice IN their difficulties, |
and comfort in their troubles.
The heroism with which she endured pain |
was doubtless in part due to the natural |
force OF her character. But there was some
thing more than heroism here. There was
n joyful consciousness of the divine presence |
aud favor which never seemed wholly to
forsake her, and which was strongest i'll mo-
ments of most utter need. After one of the
severest operations she ever experienced, on
awakiug from the influence of ether to the |
CONSCIOUSNESS VI lutplSlhhlt SlCul hDOnN,
her first words were, mo one knows the
love of Jesus who has not gone through such
suffering MS this No expression OF COM
plant was ever iheard, no questioning OF the
wisdom and kindness of God. She was
willing to learn the whole OF the lesson He
sent in patience and submission, always
claiming and always receiving to the last,
the fuliilment of the promise, when thou
passeth through the waters will be with
Il, vaI,. not
overflow the when thou walkest through
the fire thou, shalt not be burned, neither
shall the flame kindlc upon thee" She was
even able ut last to thank HIM for the very |
ailliction he had suffered to come upon her,
and owned that it had been neediul for her
in her preparation for the higher life beyond.
Her last days, through Ills great mercy.
were comparatively free from pain. About
IL fortnight before her final departure, she
appeared to all about her to be dying. She
had even ceased to breathe. and the action
of the heart seemed to fail for few seconds
ut n time. She herself was wrapped in II
blissful trance, and confidently supposed
that she had done with earth and lis snr-
rows forever But she rallied again, to her
own surprise and that OF her family, TO
linger IL little longer. and to tell them, as
she said, of her happy experience ut the very
gates of death. She spoke often OF the land
, |
stood now what Bunynn meant 10y 1t. And, I
indeed she seemed to have reached that
beautiful region at last. She suffered Sc
verey only Mt intervals, and in the hours of ,
cunsciousncsss for her mind wandered much !
ufthe time. Her mouth was full of praise
and thanksgiving. and her face was radiant ,
with JOY not of this world. Ii seemed at
times ms though she could hardly lind words
to express her sense OF the goodness and
4 4 L ...tl U.Na1H
was always that He had enabled her 10 endure,
that she had never been left to herself III her |
and pain. but that, faithful to His
promise, lie Ind heard her when she COM
iuitted herself utterly and wholly to Ills sup
porting grace at the very first True to hJr
character she had insisted ON relieving 9th
crs ms much rs possible from the necessary !
care of which she knew the burden must be
So great, and was able TO do this till within
a few days of her death. "But." said she,
quoting Jamcs II, Il did not know the ,
end of the Lord. This she repeated sew ,
eral times at seems, she said, little
more than II week before she died, 'as
though the Lord meant should have moth !
ing hut enjoyment now |
There are those who will long remember
her words of counsel and cheer spoken as :
she wns lingering on the brink, nay even q
while she passing through The very I
waters of the river of death. She fell peace O
fully asleep ON the morning Of Monday. }
March 18th 1875.