Grand Rapids morning telegram., 1885-07-29
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Il ths Yorx papers fe- DAYS 40 sp-
pssEed ne paarticulars q a sia uI4x ara2r
a. valley Cottage, Kocklaad County.
Jobn Ryder. ons ~ the prominent resi-
dsnls q that place. one day not long SO
G&ds ~ IA uai8d o. ais. snd die he did
after PTes1leting AIS taking on - his
friends and relatives. signing his slt .2d
engaging an andeFtaksr.
~Nys, al tais seems very singular ~
person" said squire James Allertoa, II
this village, '-oat l an prepared - believe
that it al aetual fact 1 czn tell yog .
more singular case than that, IA which
death ~as premv,iit4tsd for a long time
ahead
In ls-i nay father, Rev Isaac Allerton,
then Ia his Biaetlesh year, ~ DO had been
living with ne for . time, went u Chicago
GA vlsit u One II his soRs lie returned
along ia the summer T. Port Crane, Broome
County, where another son was living.
During the hOt days Of July aud August
be Suffered very much from the heat One
day in the latter month he astonished his
sons family by Announcing that 0u a GER
tain day Ia the cOmiag February ln 1915 "a.
would pass u the other world. Although
the family tried IA every way II rid him
Of the peculiar idea, he insisted that
his prediction would prove true.
lie was calm and composed, and
said something seemed 10 tell him that
his final dissolution was near at hand.
Accordingly he set about 20 write his
farewell sermon. He had told his son that
I A af H.u
Ca the day before, Sunday, he would de-
liver the farewell sermon which he was
preparing, aud on the following w ednes-
day he would he buried. The sermon was
10 be review Of his life, work and his TO-
ligiOn, and he spent great deal OF time
upon 10. The title was Farewell 20 Earth. ,
lie also selected spot ia the graveya ard
where he wished 10 be buried and staked
it out, also making all the necessary prep
arations for his funeral lie even went SO
far as 10 have the remains of his wife re-
moved from Port Jervis, where she was
buried, % the Port Crane burying ground.
"As the summer wsned and fall spent
itself there was nothing in the appearance
| OF father that would seem TO indicate the
approach Of the silent messenger. At
times he would appear grave and thought
/ ful, and would talk 10 his family OF re-
| ligious matters, but usually he was lively
and went about in good health. You must
not forget that at this time he was almost
four score and ten, but he was unusually
active. Well, as the time neared for
his death, as predicted, he assured
his friends that the prediction was
/ correcf, and that he would pass
away as he had foretold. But he had made
slight error in some way, and he died on
| Sunday, the day he was to preach his fare
well sermon, instead of on Monday, the
day he had fixed upon an the day of his
| death.
Another singular thing about il was
that the day ON which he died was also
his YOth birthday, and as near AS could be
decided upon the hour of his birth aud the
! hour of his death were identical. Father
was not sick or in pain at any time after
he predicted his death. nor when the end
was reached. He simply laid back his
head, said he was going, and died"
ThereIhave been other similar cases in this
section, notably that of Mr.. Thomas Van
| Etten, father Of Levi Van Etten OF this
/ town, who predicted his death. In this
instance 1t was only short time before
death.