Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1884-11-29
THE OLD MANS PRAYER.
PrOvidenttally Answered, hut in
Very Unexpected Manner.

PrOvidentislly Answered, Hut In q
Very Unexpected Manner.
CHURoHvIILI, N. ". Nov 18th, 1884.
To the Editor ofthe Democrat and Chronicle
Sin The experience Of any person ex.
tending over long period Of time must
necessarily be valuable for the lessons II
teaches. While no two experiences IN
this world are exactly alike, there Is such
. similarity between them IS o make one
which is valuable In fact Of benefit to all.
Your correspondent the other evening
heard the following interesting experience
related. The speaker was an old man,
yet bis head was erect, his step firm and
elastic, and his voice clear and distinct.
He said
have been q hard working man all
my life, and am now 72 years of age
From the time was old enough to work
until my forty fifth year did all the hard
labor incident to farm life. have over
worked both physically and mentally, and
In the fall of 1880 the strain OF which my
mind and body had been subjected began
to tell upon me. The first change I no
ticed was dull, heavy pain across the
small of my back. This was followed by
sharp, shooting pains In my head, and 8
general feeling Of lassitude. The next
radical change noticed was scanty and
highly colored urine. Soon after, 6
chronic diarrh9a set In, and my bowels
moved as often as twenty times q day.
still kept about the house, however, until
one day passed out of the back door In
to the yard, when suddenly a terrific
pain shot up my back and into my head
my vision became blurred, whirrine
so.nd filed my ears, and upon attempting
to grope nv way back into the house .
dizziness seized me and ! sank to tn,
ground. When regained consciousness
l was in bed, having been placed there BY
members of my family, who found me II
the yard insensible. For week after weel
I was compelled to keep my bed, onll
sitiingup long enough to have 1t changed
had long before this relipquished al
business, and resigned myselfto fate. A
this time my condition was simply terri
BILE, and thosa who saw me during thOs
dark hours, and have seen me since m
restoration to health, can form an ide
of the shadow of death through which
passed. The water that passed me burret
like molten iron, and during the passag
great beads of Precipitation stood out al
over my body my back and shoulder
ached until imagined myself spread ur
on the rack my feet and legs wer
swollen so that the skin cracked open, re
sulting In local alterations my eye
burning with Inflammation, failed me da
by day, until my sight became almost en-
tirely obliterated terribly offensiv
saliva oozed from my mouth continuously
X there was q catarrhal discharge from tn
nose, q swelling of the glands of the necl
and my entire system became surchsrge
with virus my hearing gradually becam
affected, and finally my right ear wa
rendered entirely useless. Still my fac
and hands grew thinner and thinner an
my feet and legs larger and larger. TIL
former were so cold that 1t was impOssibl
to warm them, and the latter 30 hot tbs
fancied that that part OF my body was
a furnace. NJ nervous system was CON
pletcly shattered, my manhood entirel
!, destroyed and my reason almost dethrot
ed. The doctors said could not live, m
friends gave me up, and as for myself, m
daily prayer was that God In his infinii
mercy would have compassion and put
, end to my miseries. Such was my col
dition, when, after the doctors and med
cines had been tried in vain, / common,
first bottle gave me relief. My watt
; passed freely and increased in quantity
nv bowels assumed their normal cond
, ton the bloat in my legs and feet sui
, sided the sores on my feet healed m
hearing and eyesight returned the cata
rhal discharge and offensive saliva disal
J peared and my mind became sound an
/ active.
? l left my bed and again resumed m
business, fortified with . good appeti
and relish for food. arise every NOR
, ling at4 O'Clock and do Q hard days woI
before goinp to bed. am strong at
healthy, enjoy life and can do as mue
A | hard work in twenty four hours as al
| man of my age in this or any other cou
t TRY"
Such was the story of Mr.. ).
Hitchins, one of the Oldest and most r
spected of our citizens. z. j. M.