The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1893-06-14
From the Rev. John Hemmenway.

From the Rev. JOnn HeHheh""S'
Believing that the readers of the
CHRISTIAN NEIGHBOR will be glad to
hear from their old friend, I have TAX
en- the liberty of making some extracts
from a private letter. 1t is hoped that
such freedom will be excused by my
venerable and highly esteemed friend
who, in the past, has favored the
NE1GHBoR and its readers with many
(none too many Christian communi-
cations. His letter brings to mind the
line-"Ah! who that loves can loye
enough"
Saint Anthony Park, Minn.,
May Is, 1893.
My Very Dear Christian Brother
Browne -
thank you for your very kind good
letter Of May 9Th.
4 X \
have been greatly afflicted since l
last wrote to you. My dear daughter
Elizabeth died on the 9th of last De-
cember aged 40 years. That was the
heaviest affliction that ever fell upon
me in my long life of IS years, except
ing of the death of my precious wife,
December Z, 1878. Elizabeth had been
very sick for much of the time for
four years previous to her death. She
suffered the most during the those four
years of any person that I ever knew:
She was by nature very gifted, and
very eloquent in temperance and in
religious meetings. In prayer meet
ing I have known her to exceed in
pathetic eloquence any person that l
ever heard. She was for many years a
very active member of the Methodist
Church and she made it a rule of her
Christian life to talk personally, when
alone with an uncOnverted person, on
"the great salvation" On the next
day after her death q leading woman
OF the Methodist church said of Eliza
beth, in an emphatic manner, "She
was Christian, If there ever was one
in the svortd." 1t is a great consola-
ton to me that my dear daughter, not
only lived q Christian life, but she
died with hope full Of immortality.
In her last sickness, when she kneaO,
and we all knew, that death was ine-
vitably near her, she calmly said !:
1.-THE prospect is bright before me-"
"Rock of Ages" was her favorite hymn
in her last illness.
I have also been afflicted in the re-
moval of my daughter Maria and her
good husband from this place. Last
May they went to Maine to Hve, and /
never expect to see them again in this
world. 1t was so evidently the will of
God for them to return to Maine that
felt 1t to be my duty to be cheerfully
resigned to their removal from me.
Maria is my oldest child, and is now
nearly Al years old. She Is very dear
to me. She is an active member of the
Methodist Church, and is greatly be-
loved by ali Christians, and by all sin
ners also, as far as sinners can love a
Christian. She is a woman of an ex-
cellent mind and extraordinary good
common sense, and favorite with all
children. Her only child, a lovely lit
tie daughter, died ten years ago. =
live with my good son, William
Penn and his good wife. They have
one child, daughter of IA years of
age. She is very lovely and affec-
tiOnate girl, and an ambitious scholar.
and Is determined to have college ed
ucation. William and his wife are
members of the congregational church
here. =
My youngest son, Zenas, lives one
fourth of mile from me. He is near
ly 3S years old, be has good wife, and
q son nearly three years old, and
daughter three months old. He like
William is a very kind good son to me,
and Is I trust Christian.
His wife Is a member of the congre-
gational church. I am glad to say
that my sons are both Peace men, and
have q sincere respect for "Sidi H.
Browne" and love the CHRISTIAN
NEIGHBOR.
And now I suppose you would like
to have me write something about my
self. have been afflicted for more
than a year at times with vertigo.
Last Monday as was sitting in large
rocking chair reading with large
book in both my hands, my head sud-
denly became confused and I uncon-
sciously upset the chair sideways. and
fell heavily on the floor, but immedi-
ately recovered my consciousness, yet
I think I am liable to such spells any
day.
I have been wonderfully favored
through life, till within a year, with
good health, excepting several short
sickness, 80 that I have never been
confined to my bed for "a hours in my
life at any one time. But I noU zee
that have arrived at that period of
feeble old age, SO truly described in the
last chapter of Ecclesiastes. know /
must be drawing near the close of my
life on earth; but if it is the will of
my Saviour I hope He will continue
my poor, faulty improbable life till
the close of my sOth year (which will