Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-09-04
By Smith D. Fry

this story has never before been
told. Physicians are almost if not quite as
faithful to their professional trusts as are
priests in their fidelity to the condolences of
the confessional.
The Rev. John Brown, evangelist. made
his home on the mountainside within sight
| of our town, when he was not travelling
about doing good. He was physical giant,
with Joveke head, massive wavy raven
black hair long flowing beard, and hands
| big enough to grasp half dozen of the hands
| of little children at one time And how he
did love children. and love to preach to
them! Moreover, they loved him too and
there was a wonderful melowness in his
splendid voice when he pronounced again
and again his text, Suffer little children
to come unto me, and forbid them not
John Browns wife was a demure little
| Quakeress. She always travelled with him,
attended all his meetings, and looked after
him with wonderful devotion in every way.
Although the evangelist was man of broad
catholicity, preaching with equal force and
fervor in all churches and at all gatherings,
his faithful little wife always wore the habit
of her childhood; for she dressed after the
manner of Quakers. with close fitting bon
net, her angelic face surrounded with snow
| like ruching.
During the preceding winter John Brown
had preached by day and by night until he
had overtaxed his throat and entire nervous
system. True, he was proud of his work,
| and when he came to our Sanatorlum he was
cheerful and hopeful, saying that upward of
ten thousand souls had been "snatched as
brands from the burning, and that he would
surely serve the Master with strength and
power in the following season.
He remained with us about six weeks,
L 4 ha ctfra and
but it was apparent to me that his heart was
failing gradually. However, his physical
improvement was so marked that when he
| left us and went to his own little house on
| the mountainside he looked like well man,
and believed himself to be in need only of a
few weeks of quiet and repose, with no other
treatment than the loving care of his won
derful but reticent wife.
| called on him two or three times each
week, looking after him more carefully than
| he realized; but my visits were merely
social ones | wanted to tell his wife to look
after him at nights, and to warn her of the
danger of sudden collapse; but | never had
an opportunity to see her. She kept to her
own rooms when | was there, and, indeed.
| never appeared before any of the neighbors
except in the presence of her husband. |
| tried to get my wife to warn her; but she
also found it impossible to have a single
minute of private conversation with the
sweet little recluse. My wife told me that
she chided the evangelist for keeping his
wife all to himself, and he had said:
| MARY keeps herself all to herself of her
own free will. 1t is her pleasure. | have
found by living with her that her greatest
happiness is in making me comfortable, and
that she does not seem to care for anyone
else in the world. OF course she is a sympa-
thetic neighbor and friend, and does many
little deeds of kindness of which people know
nothing: but she is selfish in that one thing,
she likes to be with me only"
DURING my afternoon or evening visits to
= him, as we sat on his south portico, John
Brown often told interesting stories of his
experiences, some of them most thrilling.
One afternoon he told the story of gambler
he had known in the far West. He said that
whenever he preached from the text, With
out shedding of blood is no remission"
he always had that gambler in mind
This is the story. substantially as he told it
then:
There was a young man of good and
wealthy family and superior education. who
became possessed of mania for gambling.
He played marbles "for keeps" and grad
ually took up other games of chance, in
Guiding horse racing, until his life was