494 AN AFFECTING STORY.

Wife. That me would understand, that me fain see. If be teachee
all good thing, forbid all wicked thing; he reward all good thing,
punish all wicked thing; he make all thing, he give all thing;
he hear me when I say 0 to him, as you go do just now; he
makee me good, if I wish be good, he spare me, no makee kill me
when I no be good; all this you say he do, yet he be great God:
me take, think, believe him be great God; me say O to him too
with you, my dear.

Here the poor man could forbear no longer; but raising her
up, made her kneel by him, and he prayed to God aloud, to in-
struct her in the knowledge of himself by his Spirit, and that by
some good providence, if possible, she might some time or other
come to have a Bible, that she might read the Word of God, and
be taught by it to know him.

This was the time that we saw him lift her up by the hand, and
saw him kneel down by her, as above.

They had several other discourses, it seems, after this, too long
to set down here; and particularly she made him promise, that
since he confessed his own life had been a wicked, abominable
course of provocation against God, that he would reform it, and
not make God angry any more, lest he should make him dead, as
she called it, and then she should be left alone, and never be
taught to know this God better; and lest he should be miserable,
as he had told her wicked men should be after death.

This was a strange account, and very alfecting to us both, but
particularly to the young clergyman. He was indeed wonderfully
surprised with it, but under the greatest affliction imaginable that
he could not talk to her, that he could not speak English to make
her understand him; and as she spoke but very broken Hnglish,
he could not understand her. However, he turned himself to me,
and told me that he believed there must be more to do with this
woman than to marry her. I did not understand him at first, .
but at length he explained himself, namely, that she ought to be
baptized.

I agreed with him in that part readily, and was for going about
it presently. ‘No, no; hold, sir,” said he. ‘“'Though I would
have her be baptized by all means, yet T must observe, that Will