The following instance, when _death itself was made to give back the life it claimed_, is personally known to us to be true: A mother, in this city, sent a request for prayer to the Fulton street prayer-meeting, asking the Lord for the recovery of her daughter, who was sinking rapidly, and who she felt was almost dying.
Her husband, an eminent physician, and others, also, the most skilled physicians of the city, gave up the case as hopeless. The mother felt that now none but G.o.d could or would help; that in the Fulton street prayer-meeting were sympathizing friends, and to it sent her request.
She came to the meeting herself, to join in their prayers and testify her faith. The moments of the meeting pa.s.sed on. One request after another was read, but hers was not touched. She was sadly disappointed.
Her child was so weak and almost dying, it could not live the day through, perhaps. The time was within a few minutes, less than three, of the close of the meeting. She, at last, with faltering steps and palpitating heart, pressed her way to the desk and asked if her request was there. Upon search, it was found that it had been overlooked. _Too late_, said the leader, to _read it to-day_. See, the clock is at its last moment; but it shall be read first thing at 12 o"clock, to-morrow, and special prayer shall be offered immediately.
With what heavy heart the mother went away, back to the chamber of the dying one, none can ever know. All night the waiting ones watched, with their ceaseless attentions and silent prayers.
_A few minutes before_ 12 _o"clock the body sank, the eyes closed, pallor came over the features, the spirit seemed gone_, and _all was still; not a breath, not a motion--death had come_.
The mother had taken her watch, hung it on the pillow of the bed, and with streaming eyes, yet ceaseless prayer, they watched the slow finger move to 12 o"clock. At precisely twelve, all joined in prayer, lifting their hearts to G.o.d. _At fifteen minutes past twelve, the daughter opened her eyes_, saying, "Mother, _I feel better_," then sank into sleep, _breathing steadily_; after three hours awoke to consciousness and sat up in bed, and before night was able to walk the floor of her chamber. Prayer brought that life back, even when death had taken it.
_At the very moment when that precious prayer was offered in the meeting, the Lord came and touched the dying one, and gave it new life._ The mother"s faith and prayer was honored, and the Lord remembered his promise, "_If ye believe, ye shall see the glory of G.o.d."_ The same Lord who raised Lazarus and bade him come forth, also came and bade this precious life come back again to earth.
SAVED FROM THE HANDS OF A DESPERADO.
The following circ.u.mstance is communicated to us by a United States Surgeon:
"After the close of the Mexican war, and in the year 1849, a train was sent out from San Antonio to establish military posts on the upper Rio Grande, particularly at El Paso. I was surgeon of the quartermaster"s department, numbering about four hundred men. While the train was making up, the cholera prevailed in camp, for about six weeks, at first with terrible severity. On the 1st of June it had so far subsided that we took up the line of march. After about four days out from San Antonio, the health of the men became very good, and continued so through the whole route, with the exception of occasional cases of prostration from heat, and slight fevers, the Summer being unusually hot. One evening in July, after coming into camp, I received a call to see a man who had been taken sick on the march. I found him lying under his wagon. The wagon was loaded with bacon, in bulk about two tons. The heat with the pressure had caused it to drip freely. I asked him to come from under the wagon, that I might examine his case and prescribe, for him. This he refused to do; but demanded that I should crawl under the wagon to him, which I, of course, would not consent to do. No persuasion could induce him to change his position in the least. Becoming satisfied that he was not much, if at all sick, I left him. His profanity, threats and imprecations were fearful. Perhaps it would be well to give a short sketch of his life for the three years previous, as I learned it from men who knew him, and had been with him for considerable portion of that period. He went to Mexico, at the beginning of the war, a soldier in the regular army. When his term of service expired, he was discharged, and sought employment in the quartermaster"s department, as a teamster. He had the reputation of being a thief, a robber and an a.s.sa.s.sin. In a few months he was ignominiously discharged from the service, and, at the close of the war, he came to Texas, and sought and obtained employment as teamster in the train then organizing for El Paso. But, to return to my narrative. On the morning after the occurrence at the wagon, a teamster came to me and said, in a hasty and abrupt manner, "Doctor, Mc will kill you to-day or to-night. He is full of rage, and muttering terrible threats. He was out very early this morning and emptied his six-shooter, and came in and reloaded it and put it in first-rate order." I said, "Mc, what"s up now?" He replied, "I will kill that d----d old doctor to-day or to-night;" and he will do it. I have known him make threats before, and have never known him fail to execute them.
But I must go; he must not know that I have seen you." Knowing the man, I realized the danger, and felt that I was powerless, either to resist or avoid it. I retired within my tent and closed it up. I prostrated myself before Him who is able to save. I prayed for deliverance from the hands of the cruel and blood-thirsty man, and that I might not be left in the power of him who was my enemy without cause. I submitted my cause into the hands of Him who doeth all things well, and prayed for entire submission to his will. My anxiety subsided; my fear was removed, and I commenced the duties of the day with usual cheerfulness.
"Soon after this, the camp broke and we were on the march. I fell back with the officers of the rear guard, and the excitement of the morning was soon forgotten. About 10 o"clock, a courier came back in haste, for me to see a man who had been thrown from his mule and crushed under the wheels of his wagon. He did not know who the man was--he was about half or three-quarters of a mile ahead. The thought then occurred to me, I shall probably have to pa.s.s Mc"s team. I will ride square up with the courier, and keep him between myself and the train. When we came to the spot I inquired who the man was, for he was so mutilated I could not recognize him. _It was Mc. G.o.d was there_. Awe and terror took hold upon me. I was dumb with amazement.
"Mc had dismounted and walked some fifty rods by the side of his team.
Attempting to remount, his mule whirled and pitched, and he was thrown upon his back, and his team with fourteen others instantly stampeded.
Both the fore and hind wheels on the near side of his wagon, pa.s.sed directly over his face, and crushed every bone in his head. It was a fearful sight; not a feature of the human face could be discerned.
"The stampeded teams were flying wildly over the prairie, in spite of every effort of the teamsters to control them.
"I directed the head of the corpse to be inserted in some new, thick sacks, in such a way as to prevent the oozing of blood, and that it be wrapped in his blanket and taken to the next camp for burial. When the stampeded teams came in, it was found that no other person was injured, nor any damage done.
"The philosopher may tell us of the reign of law; of the coincidence of circ.u.mstances; of the action of natural causes; but, to the Christian, the fact still remains--prayer was answered. G.o.d heareth his people when they cry unto Him."
THE PRAYER OF A MISSIONARY IN MEXICO ANSWERED.--SAVED FROM BANDITTI.
"In the Spring of 1872, I was, with my wife and child, in the city of Cadereita, Mexico, where we had been laboring as missionaries, but felt it was our duty to return to the States for a little season, and had been asking G.o.d to open up the way for us. At length, about the middle of March, the opportunity appeared to be given, the means being provided; but the country was in a state of revolution (a no uncommon thing there), and, consequently, there were no stages running out of the country, so we had to take conveyance in Mexican carts. Therefore, we engaged two men, with their carts; one in which we might ride and carry a mattress, which should serve as a bed at night, and the other, to carry the baggage and provisions for ourselves and the horses, as our way was mostly through an uncultivated country.
"We knew that General Cortinas, with his troops, was somewhere between us and Texas, as the State we were in was one of those in rebellion. The blood-thirsty character of General Cortinas is well known on the frontier, there being no less than seventeen indictments against him for murder in the State of Texas. He is regarded as having a special hatred against Americans, and the Mexicans, themselves, stand in terror of him.
"Our friends and brethren in Cadereita tried hard to deter us from going, as most likely we would fall into the hands of General Cortinas; in which event, they said, the very utmost we could expect would be to escape with our lives, being left dest.i.tute of everything, in a wilderness road; but, as G.o.d had seemed to open up the way, providing the means, we determined to go forward, trusting that He also would protect us in the way. Therefore, having completed our arrangements, we started for Matamoras, some three hundred miles distant, on the 19th of March, the wives of the two men accompanying their husbands, making our party six adults and one child; the brethren in Cadereita promising to pray daily for our safety. The third morning, after commending ourselves, as usual, into the care of our covenant-keeping G.o.d, we started on our journey. Some two hours later, we espied the troops of General Cortinas, about two miles distant, marching toward us. We again all looked to G.o.d for protection, and prayed that, as he shut the mouths of the lions, that they should not hurt his servant Daniel, so He would now restrain the evil pa.s.sions of men, that they might not hurt nor injure us--then we went on till we met the advance guard, who commanded us to halt and wait till the General came up. After nearly half an hour, General Cortinas, with his escort, rode up to where we were waiting for him. After the ordinary salutation, he asked: (_de adonde vienen y adonde van?_) "From whence have you come, and where are you going?"--to which we replied properly; then he asked: "What is the news from Nueva Leon?" (the State we left)--to which we replied as faithfully as we could. Then I asked him, "Is the road safe between us and Matamoras?" He replied: "Perfectly; you can go on without any fear, and as safely as you would in your own country." Then, bidding us "good morning," he rode on, not even inquiring about or examining any of our baggage.
"When we arrived in Brownsville, Texas, and told of how gentlemanly General Cortinas had treated us, all p.r.o.nounced it wonderful, and said, "We could not have believed General Cortinas capable of such kindness to Americans so in his power. It was truly a miracle." We believed that it was G.o.d who restrained the naturally vicious pa.s.sions of the man, in direct answer to prayer."
AN INFIDEL"S LIFE SPARED A FEW DAYS.
"During the Summer of 1862, I became acquainted with a Mr. A----, who professed infidelity, and who was, I think, as near an atheist as any I ever met. I held several conversations with him on the subject of religion, but could not seem to make any impression on his mind, and, when a point was pressed strongly, he would become angry.
"In the Fall, he was taken ill, and seemed to go into a rapid decline.
I, with others, sought kindly and prayerfully to turn his mind to his need of a Saviour, but only met with rebuffs. As I saw that his end was drawing near, one day I pressed the importance of preparing to meet G.o.d, when he became angry and said I need not trouble myself any more about his soul, as there was no G.o.d, the Bible was a fable, and when we die that is the last of us, and was unwilling that I should pray with him. I left him, feeling very sad.
"Some four weeks after, on New Year"s morning, I awoke with the impression that I should go and see Mr. A----, and I could not get rid of that impression; so, about nine o"clock, I went to see him, and, as I approached the house, I saw the two doctors, who had been holding a consultation, leaving. When I rang the bell, his sister-in-law opened the door for me, and exclaimed, "Oh! I am so glad you have come; John is dying. The doctors say he cannot possibly live above two hours, and probably not one." When I went up to his room, he sat bolstered up in a chair, and appeared to have fallen into a doze. I sat down, about five feet from him, and when, in about two minutes, he opened his eyes and saw me, he started up, with agony pictured on his face and in the tones of his voice, exclaimed, "O! Mr. P----, I am not prepared to die; there is a G.o.d; the Bible is true! O, pray for me! pray G.o.d to spare me a few days, till I shall know I am saved."
"These words were uttered with the intensest emotion, while his whole physical frame quivered through the intense agony of his soul. I replied in effect, that Jesus was a great Saviour, able and willing to save all who would come unto Him, even at the eleventh hour, as He did the thief on the cross.
"When I was about to pray with him, he again entreated me to pray especially that G.o.d would spare him a few days, till he might have the evidences of his salvation. In prayer, I seemed to have great a.s.surance of his salvation, and asked G.o.d to give us the evidence of his salvation, by granting him a few days more in this world. Several others joined in praying G.o.d to spare him a few days, till he should give evidence of being saved.
"I called again in the evening; he seemed even stronger than in the morning, and his mind was seeking the truth. The next day, as I entered, his face expressed the fact that peace and joy had taken the place of fear and anxiety. He was spared some five days, giving very clear evidence that he had pa.s.sed from death to life.
His case was a great mystery to the doctors. They could not understand how he lived so long; but his friends, who had been praying for him, all believed it was in direct answer to prayer."
REMARKABLE PRESERVATION FROM BRAIN DIFFICULTIES.
"A few weeks ago, a man who had once been a member of my church, but had fallen from his steadfastness through strong drink, fell from a ladder, striking his head on the corner of a stone, which made a dent in the skull of over two and one-half inches in length, and three-fourths of an inch in width, and half an inch in depth. This happened on Friday afternoon. At our prayer-meeting, in the evening, most earnest prayers were offered in his behalf; the brethren prayed that G.o.d would restore him his senses and spare him a few days, that he might repent of his back-sliding and be saved.
"The surgeons raised the skull, and his senses were restored; his mind seemed clear. This continued over a week, when it was evident that there was still some pressure on the brain. The surgeons removed the skull, and found three pieces driven down into the brain. They expressed, from the first, no hope of his recovery; but wondered much at the clearness of his mind, which continued for over two weeks. We believed that it was in answer to the prayers of the church that he might have time and opportunity to repent and prepare to meet G.o.d, which we trust he did."
LITTLE GEORGE"S PRAYER.
A clergyman writes us these incidents:
"I knew a poor family whose son George, four or five years old, was accustomed to pray. They lived five or six miles from neighbors, and, at times, were quite dest.i.tute. One day, as little George observed his mother weeping over their dest.i.tution, he said, "Why, mother, don"t cry any; we shall not starve; G.o.d will send us something to eat, I know He will. I"ve just been praying, and asked Him to." The little fellow just as much believed G.o.d would send them food, as if he had asked a reliable neighbor and obtained his promise to supply their wants. In a day or two after this, some friends living at a distance and knowing they were poor, took them the welcome surprise of a wagon-load of substantial material for food and other comforts. The little boy grew up to be a Christian minister, and, about a year ago, on inquiry, his uncle told me he had been at the head of an inst.i.tution of learning in the South-west."
A PRAYER FOR A HORSE.
"My horse died, and, after traveling through the snow-drifts to my appointments, till I was lame, half sick, and unfit for service--as I had not means to purchase a horse, I thought of quitting the work and going to teaching, and laid the matter before G.o.d, in prayer; soon after which, some person at a distance, who heard that I had lost my horse, without my saying a word about it, raised the means by which I procured another."
A PRAYER FOR A WIFE.
"When I believed it would be well for me to seek a companion for life, I asked of G.o.d direction in making a wise choice, and that, in a matter of so much importance to me and others, I might meet with success or _hindrance_, as my heavenly Father knew best. He led me to a choice and marriage, which I have not since regretted."
CHURCH TROUBLES QUELLED.
"I might mention a dozen instances in which church troubles were gathering, and trials between members appeared certain, when all my tactics failed, and the wisdom of brethren was of no avail; my last resort was to ask G.o.d to send help and deliver from the threatened evil--and in ways that no one could foresee, complete deliverance came."