The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-04-02
Office WAS proverbially hard tn find, even by
persons in possession ct the most minute in
struclions for finding it,

| peISOUs III poSbtsSlOH III luc iiDSl III
distractions for finding 1t.
Monday morning less Than forty-eight hours
after these ladies' offered prayer together as
Mrs Rounds sat in her office, a man entered
aud took seat before she observed han. hen
she looked up, she found that he answered oX'
actly 20 the description given by Miss Smith
| of her brother, even to the brown clothes.
! She was convinced at y glance that he WAS the
man she was looking for but she gave him no
sign that anything unusual had happened.
I"Do you wish 10 speak 10 mc?' shc sad. Il
want 10 sign tho pledge" he answered. The
Ipledgc was produced, aud while he was slgn-
| ing il, she said 10 him, "What put il mo your
heart to come up here and sign the pledgcE'
l" Il don't know" he replied, II was walking
! along The street, and had passed the entrance
| to The building, when something stopped me
IL secincd that heard voice saying: so up
those stairs and sign the pledge | couldn't
70 On-I had TO turn back. When had come
back TO the entrance saw on one ct the steps
these words: Come, slgA the pledge 50
came up the steps, and kent on until | found
can keep the pledge?" she sad. II don't
know" he replied II want to" All these
answers were given In trembling, sorrowtul
manner, as If he was completely broken
hearted.
Mrs. Round, took from the drawer Miss
Smiths letter aud remarking to her visitor,
Let me read you something" proceeded to
read it to him, taking care, however, to sup.
press all The names and dates. Before size In
iShvd reading, the man became greatly excited,
and springlng IT, his feet with tears raining
down his cheeks, he reached both hands To
take the letter That's about me- !" lie cried
my sister wrote that. God! my poor sister
my poor mother I've killed her, I've killed
her" Then. after walking around the room
in agony, he went up 10 the wall, and placing
hs face against II, s0bbCd aloud. Mrs. Rounds |
waited a moment, until the storm had lulled, |
and Then calling him to her, knelt with him, |
and prayed for him, he drowning her voice in
his own sobS and cries 10 God for mercy. He |
WAS not instantly converted for u whole week |,
he was seeking Christ without finding Him. |
AT the end os that time, however, hs came into
the office with his tacc beaming with joy, and |
crying I'm saved! I'm saved" and within II
few weeks more he returned to his 0verjoyed |
sister and mother, in Cincinnati.
Now, TyDdal and others account for a great |
many alleged answers TO prayers 10y referring
hem TO the reflex influence Of faith and pray |
nr on the praying man himself, or to magne-
m or to imagination, or To mere coincidence
How will they account TOR this wonderful and
glorious occurrence? II ey would probably |
agree to consider it rs Il remarkable GOMEZ
ience and nothing more. Sir William Ham-t
tnn and other philosophers have reduced the
calculation of probabilities to a science. Ac.
,ordng to all received principles Of that sci
nee, the chances that such a coincidence
would occur are absolutely inhnItesimal
Moreover, If one occurrence ri this kind
should hc set down ~ a mere coincidence, IL
,rcomes proper To ask how many more such
occurrences would be necessary to remove
hem from the category accidents, AMI en-
lille them 10 he considered answers To PRAYER.
For really there Is no end 10 them even with
n the limits ct Chicago. If skepNcs who
,oast that they Confine their belief Ia sensible
and logical deductions herefrom
would only deal as canddly with these phe-
lomena of prayer rs they dn with physical
phenomena, they would speedily discover thai
he telephone does not begin To he such u SCI
nlfic fact rs ~ The religion o! Jesus Christ :
Northmestern Udrch 8.