Year: 1876




Of God am free now, because he that IS
" free in Christ, is free indeed"


lie sat down. and there came forward a
young man with fair face, and an abund.
ance OF brown, curly hair. His story was a
SAD one Of prolonged struggle and repeated
failure, and the bitter anguish of rcmorse.
lie began to drink at the age of fifteen AZ
twenty.one he was a hopeless drunkard.
His father and mother never ceased TO prav
for him. His wife, after he had one, never
would give him up. but these were his only
friends. And he did all a man could do TO
break their loving hearts In the army all
his evil habits became confirmed. and he
had bcon enslayed by them al his life, ex-
cept one interval of two years and seven
months. Aud this period Of reformation
was brought to an end by the advice Of
physician, at whose suggestion he resorted
again to the use Of stimulauts. Soon he
could not live without them, vet such was
his anguish Of spirit at finding himself again
under the dominion of the tyrant that he
took every vow, joined every society, even
took an oath to abstain before a magistrate.
Al was Of no avail. lie broke them all
when he saw the cup nothingc could restrain
him IN ahe presence Of temptation. Twice
he would have taken his own life but that
his wife had stayed his hand when the knife
had almost touched his throat.


lie said need not dwell on what was.
Let me hasten to tell whence came my deliv-
erance. On Thanksgiving day | went ont
in the morning, and by dinner time had had
as many as six or seven drinks. Went home
in condition in which ! could only eat and
after eating, sleep. slept on the sofa till
toward evening, then sauntered forth. Az
ter a short visit at the house of my brother
in-law, went out, not knowing or caring
whittier, having no definite purpose. except
30 drink at every corner on my way home
At one place the bartender said "Fill up
the glass, its Thanksgiving day, you know"
And filed IL mp, and went staggering on
An unaccountable impulse turned me back
several times that night when would have
taken a certain direction and my steps wan
dered on and ON. until | came to the great
building where Moody and Sankey were
holding their meetings. ] drew nearer and
nearer. A great conflict was going on in
my mind, and 1t seemed as if God and Satan
fought together for my soul. | could not go
away | could not enter Aud when at last
| was enabled to rush to the entrance, il was
more as a maniac might have gone there
than like a reasonable man. Once inside
| the lights, the throng, the chorus of a hymn
they were singiug-all helped to sober me.


And when the hymn ceased and Mr..
Moody called out is there in all this
throng any poor sinner who is so lost that
he cannot help himself Let him come
| forward here aud We will ask God to help
him" | said That's me that message
is for me and down the long aisle, push
ing my way through the crowd standing
| there, almost ran to the foot of the plat
form and seated myself. When the invita-
t,.t I a.. -. I..k
| people near me, seeing my condition. took
me by the arms and held me down, whis-
pering "Sit still; sit still, you're drunk"
/ Drunk Yes, knew it, but had heard the
voice Of God, and when the invitation came
again ! couldn't sit still, and broke away
! from those who held me, and rose. All,
what an hour followed What prayers and
tears and struggles And at its close, some
ore asked me if would pray an hour after
my return home, for, if | would do so,
might know that at the same hour many
hearts were praying in their own homes for
me. As we were about TO separate, one good
Christian said Why go home to pray for
this soul2 Let us pray now aud here"
And we stayed, and they prayed for me and
! | prayed for myself, and was able TO come
to Christ, and Just as was-yes, drunk as
| was--lle took me- And from that glad
hour when went home TO my wife with the
| good news of my sins forgiven, lie has kept
me; lie has shown in me His power to save
to the utmost"


When he had closed, young man arose
and said ! was a drunkard from my boy
hood-a wreck before reached the age of
twenty-one. My mother never ceased TO
pray for me, and to urge me to reform. When
| was under the influence of drink would
| rat far frot la aft1
/ stay away until my money was all gone,
and sick, broken and helpless, would seek
my fathers house. During these absences,
my mothers letters would follow me- when
ever she knew where | was and when re-
/ turned She always welcomed me and nursed
| me back TO health. Here is one of her let
ters, said he (and he drew from his pocket
and read 10 the audience tender letter from
his mother to her dear boy begging him to
come home, telling him how she loved him
and waited for him, and wanted to see him
/ home AGAIN.. In answer to some such ap-
peal, he did seek his home one night after
having been on debauch of weeks, in which
he had fallen as low as intemperanoe could
bring him. lie came at night he watched
the windows till the lights were out ; he APP
preached aud rang and waited, and soon
step on the stair aud the door was opened,
and his mother held him in her arms
Z" close to her heart, as il had never gone
astray"


That night, he continued, with voice
husky and broken, she nursed me as she had
nursed me many times before but on the
morrow she was not at my bedside. When
asked for her, they said that she was i'll /;
and when erept from my chamber and
confronted the physicians, and begged them
TO tell me that had not murdered her, they
replied "There is not a shadow of hope"
Then my heart broke, and pleaded with
God, with many tears, to spare her only un-
til her boy could repent Aud God was
merciful 10 me. lie did spare her, and lie
did teach me repentance. knew the way
had been well taught. | knew that help
was in Christ, and Christ alone. And |
sought and found that help, and have lived
10 see my mothers heart made glad by the
answer To her prayers.


lie called upon the mothers whose fearful
eyes were lifted to his face to work ON and
pray on and love on, until their wandering
boys should come back