Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-01-26
A ARemarkabls ExperIeno..

Ihave been preaching in Essex this week,
and took the opportunity to visit the place
where my grandfather preached solong, and
where spent my earliest days. Last We'd
nesday was to me day in which I walked
like man in dream Everybody seemed
bound to recall some event or other of my
childhood. What a story of Divine love and
mercy it did bring before my mindl Among
other things sat down in place that must
be sacred to me. There stood in my grand
fathers manse garden, two arbors made Of
yew trees cut in sugar-loaf fashion. Though
the old manse has given way to new one,
and the old chapel has gone also, yet the yew
trees flourish as aforetime. sat down in
the right-hsnd arbor and bethought me Of
what had happened there many years
ago. When l was young child staying
preach in the village Mr.. Knill, who had
been missionary at Sc. Petersburg, and
mighty preacher of the Gospel He came
to preach for the London Missionary Society,
and arrived on Saturday at the naanse. He
was a great soul-winner, and he soon spied
out the boy. He said to me, ''Where do you
sleepa for want to call you up in the morn
ing" showed him my little room. At six
o'clock he called me up and we went into the
arbor. There, in the sweetest way, he told
me of the love of Jesus, and Of the blessed
ness Of trusting in Him and loving Him in
our childhood. With many a story he
preached Christ to me, and told me how
good God had been to him, and then he
prayed that l might know the Lord and
serve Him.
On Monday morning he did as on the Sab
bath, and again on Tuesday. Three times he
taught me and prayed with me, and before
he had to leave, my grandfather had come
back from the place where he had gone to
preach, and all the family were gathered to
morning prayer. Then, in the presence Of
them all, Mr.. Knill took me on his knee and
said, ssThis child will one day preach the
Gospel, and he will preach it to the great
multitudes. l am persuaded that he will
preach it in the chapel of Rowland Hill
where Il think he said am now the minis
ter" He spoke very solemnly, and called
Then he gave me six-pence as rewardif I
would learn the hymn:
@God moves in amysterious way
His wonders to perform"
I was made to promise that when I
preached at Rowland Hills chapel that hymn
should be sung. Think of that as promise
from a childl Would it ever be other than
an idle dream? Years flew by. After had
begun for some little time to preach in Lon
don, DIR. Alexander Fletcher had to give the
chapel, but as he was taken i'll, l was asked
i'm hurry to preach to the children. eyes,
| said, II will, if the children will sing God
moves in q mysterious way l made a
promise long ago that it should be sung.h
And so it was; preached in Rowland Hills
chapel, and that hymn was sung. My
emotions on that occasion cannot describe.
Still that was not the chapel which MIR. Knill
intended ALI unsought by me, the minister
at Wottonunder Edge, which wasMr. KnilI's
/ summer residence, invited me to preach
there. went on the condition that the con-
gregation should sing ''God moves in mys-
terious way"-which was also done. After
that went to preach for Mr.. Knil himself,
who was then at Chester. What q meeting
we hadl
''God moves in mysterious way
His wonders to PERFORM
After more than 40 years Of the Lords
loving kindness, sat again in that arbor
No doubt il is a mere trff1e for outsiders tc
hear, but to me it was an overwhelming
moment. The present minister OF StambourI
! meeting house and the members of his fami
| ly, including his SON and his grandchildren
| were in the garden, and / could not helI
calling them together around that arbor
while praised the Lord for His goodness
| One irresistible impulse was upon me: 1t was
| TO pray GTOQ TO DloSS GnOS6 laos budb stoot
around me. The memory begat the prayer
! ~-TC. FL. Spurgeon.
! A bill recently presented to the Kentucky
Legislature provides that each county in thu
State shall vote next November whether il
\ will have prohibition. II q majority Of thu
votes in the whole State favor prohibition i
shall apply to the whole State. Any single
county or a district in county that vote
'sdry'' shall have prohibition. II county
| votes dry the question shall not be referred
to popular vote again for ten years; il it goe
s'weth there shall be another vote on it tn
next year. The penalty for illegal selling
shall, after the third offense, be not less thar
g., 900 and three months imprisonmet. Their
is some expectation Of the passage Of the bill
Professor Bunge, of the University 9
Basle, Switzerland, and four or FIVE Of hi
students have signed the total abstinenc
pledge A number Of persons have been in
duced to takethe pledge by reading his pam
Inlet: "The Alcohol Question DR.. Baer
of Berlin, Germany Councillor Of Health an,
4 chief physician Of one of the largest prisons
who has published very important work o.
alcoholism, has also taken stand for tota
abstinence.