FKOM THE FLAG TO THE CEOSS; OB, SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. THE CONVERSIONS, PRAYERS, DYING REQUESTS, LAST WORDS, SUP- FERINGS AND DEATHS OF OUR SOLDIERS, ON THE BATTLE- FIELD, IN HOSPITAL, CAMP AND PRISON} AND A DESCRIPTION OF DISTINGUISHED CHRISTIAN MEN AND THEIR LABORS. BY A. S. BILLINGSLEY, LATE CHAPLAIN U.S. AKMY. "Stand by Vie, Flag, and cling to the Cross.'' E. M. SCHNEIDER, 57th Mas. Vol. NEW-WORLD PUBLISHING COMPANY, PHILADELPHIA, PA.: BOSTON, MASS.: LANSING, MICH.: B. T. ROOT, BURLINGTON, IOWA. 1872. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by NEW-WORLD PUBLISHING COMPANY, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. TAKE NOTICE ! The publishers of this work assure the public that they deal with Booksellers nor publish Trade SooJcs being exclusively engaged in the subscription busi- ness and that none of their publications can honestly and legitmatety go into the stores. They therefore CAUTION all jutt and fair-minded persons against buying " FROM THE FLAG TO TE CROSS " from any others than Canvassing Agents. OVEUV DEPARTED SOLDIERS, SAILORS AND OFFICERS OF THE UNION, WHO FOUGHT, BLED, AND DIED FOR THEIR COUNTRY; AND IN HONOR OF THE SURVIVING SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AND OFFICERS WHO FOUGHT AND SUFFERED IN QUELL- ING THE LATE REBELLION, ook IS GRATEFULLY INSCRIBED AND HEARTILY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. THE UBSARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES 963326 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAQB. REV. A. S. BILLINGSLEY ...... Frontispiece. ABRAHAM LINCOLN 15 FORT SUMTER IN 1861 . . . . ' 16 STREET IN CINCINNATI IN THE EARLY PART OF THE WAR ... 20 HARPER'S FERRY 32 REV. JAS. MARSHALL, U. S. ARMY 42 PRATT STREET, BALTIMORE ....*.,.. 46 REV. E. P. ROE, U. S. ARMY 59 HAMPTON HOSPITAL 92 HOSPITAL SCENE . . . . . . . . . .119 PITTSBCRG LANDING 124 COOPER VOLUNTEER REFRESHMENT-SALOON, PHILADELPHIA . . 210 UNCLE JACOB 235> THE PRESIDENT'S RECEPTION ROOM DURING THE WAR . . . 283 VIEW OF THE ANTIETAM BATTLE GROUND 300 NATIONAL CEMETERY, FORTRESS MONROE, VA. .... 315 REV. P. D. GURLEY, D.D . . .334 REV. MATTHEW SIMPSON 346 GEO. II . STUART, ESQ 364 HENRY WARD BEECHER 383 INDEPENDENCE SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA . ... 418 PREFACE. FT1HE late war was one of the greatest conflicts that ever stained -L the historic page. Involving the life of the nation and the great question of man's self-government, its results will very ma- terially affect the progress of Christianity and the destiny of the world for generations to come. When we look at the extent, the duration, and the severity of the mighty struggle, the number of men engaged, the number of lives lost, and the glorious vic- tory achieved, for awfulness, grandeur, and glory, it excels all modern warfare. And as such a war occurs only once in an age, it is well to havejits history recorded as fully as possible. And although it has already given rise to a great many books, yet, as those already issued relate more particularly to the cause, rise, and progress of the Rebellion, and the great sacrifice and mighty up- rising of the North in putting it down, together with the military genius and heroic achievements of great generals and officers, there seems to be a demand for another, giving a more detailed account of the sufferings, piety, and heroism of the private soldier and patient in the hospital. Thus far there seems to be a ten- dency in the historian to ascribe too much honor and glory to the officer, and too little to the private soldier. There were, doubt- less, among the rank and file of the late Union army and navy many unknown heroes, whose piety, worth, and heroism deserve to be written on leaves more durable than brass; men whose sagacity, courage, and military genius, if fully developed, would to-day shine as bright in the galaxy of military glory as many of those whose names will go down to posterity crowned with glory and honor. Now, to record some of the sufferings, hard- ships, prayers, conversions, sayings, and dying messages ol the VI PREFACE. Pati mt in the Hospital and of the Captive in the Prison, and to aid a little in giving the Private Soldier the honor due him in the great conflict for our national preservation, and to comfort the soldier's bereaved mother, widowed wife, and orphaned child, is the object of this little book. Laboring for a long while in the United States General Hospital, Fortress Monroe, Va., one of the largest in the country during the war, and visiting daily from seven hundred to nine hundred patients, canvassing the hearts of the worst cases and noting down their religious experience as they gave it in their own words, the writer had a fine opportu- nity of becoming acquainted with the general character and moral condition of our soldiery. We have written out but a very small proportion of the number of patients visited whose spiritual diagnosis we recorded in our diary ; but in making our selections we have taken some from all classes, so that the reader can see at a glance the general moral character of the American soldier. Thus furnished with the materials, at the request of friends the author now sends forth to the world this little volume, with the hope that it may be a source of comfort to the soldier's bereaved friend, praying that it may lead some wandering soul, who has so long borne his country's flag, to take up and bear the Cross of Christ. NEW BRIGHTON, PA. CONTENTS. INTRODUCTORY. MM Tour to the Rocky Mountains The Devil Outflanked "The Bigges* Gun ever Fired in America" Plucking Flowers and Making Snow- balls at the Same Time Gathering up the Lost Sheep Preaching to Colorado Volunteers Late Papers "go off like Hot Cakes" The Mighty Struggle waxes Hotter Going to the Army Visiting and Bidding Good-bye to Friends Touching at Pittsburg and Baltimore, We enjoyed a very Pleasant Foretaste of Army and Hospital Life at Washington, Fortress Monroe, and Newbern Another Sail brought us to Plymouth ........ 17 CHAPTER I. ENTERING THE SERVICE. Arrival at Plymouth Found our Regiment, the 101st Pa. Vol., comfort- ably Housed The Garrison Hungry for the Gospel Christmas Ser- mon Big Turn-out The Rebels Captured and Drove us off . . 21 CHAPTER II. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS AND OFFICERS. A Fort-Fisher Hero A Heroic Soldier: " I Don't Backslide " "Jesus is All I Want" "Stand by the Flag, and Cling to the Cross" "All is Well!" A Soldier's Farewell Capt. Tresouthick Lieut. Ransom: His Dying Prayer and "Glory to God" Capt. Fee: His Request, "Please Pray for Me" A Rolling Chaplain "You Saved My Life" A Dying Soldier's Letter Lieut. Merrill : Baptized at Midnight The Dying Captain: " Hurrah for Jesus." By Chaplain Marshall. . 22 CHAPTER III. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. "When I go into Battle, I put Jesus in Front" A Hero of Plymouth: "I will Fall right into His Arms" "Jesus is Precious to Me Now" "Why did You Call Me back ? " " 1 don't Fear Nothin' at all " Yii Vlll CONTENTS. PAOB " The World is Hollow and Empty " "I came out to Conquer or Die " " They left Me for Dead " " Good-bye, Old Arm ! " " Put the Bright Side out to Mother," he said, as he died " Oh, if I only could ! " "I am Happy, Day and Night" Value of the Union: "Pray, Labor, Fight for it." ........ 46 CHAPTER IV. THE FALL OF PLYMOUTH. The Rebels Attack Us, April 17, 1864 The Garrison numbered about Nineteen Hundred Men fit for Duty Excitement Great Alarmed Women fled to Me, crying, "Come and Pray for Me!" "Come in and Pray for Us!" The Army and Navy both Engage at once The Scene was Grand, Awful, Sublime Rebel Iron-clad attacks our Gun- boats Fight Severe Lieut. Flusser Killed The Garrison Overawed by the Rebel Ram "The Combat Deepens" "In the Last Ditch" Hard Fighting The Capture Gen. Wessels Surrenders Massacre at Plymouth Visiting the Wounded Preached in a Rebel Hospital Prayed for a Rebel Soldier. . . . . . .63 CHAPTER V. GOING TO LIBBY. Order: "Be Ready to Start for Richmond To-morrow Morning at Four" Sail up the Roanoke to Halifax Take Cars Enter Libby with Loud Shouts of "Fresh Fish! Fresh Fish !" They took our Money Life in Libby All Sorts of Things going on Very Hard Place Preach to the Prisoners Big Congregation Visited the Hospital Not Allowed to Preach to the Sick Released Farewell to Libby The Exchange We Cheered the Dear Old Flag Rebels Handle our Men very Roughly Belle Isle U. S. General Hospital, Annapolis, Md. Labors in, etc. . . . . . . . .71 CHAPTER VI. TJ. S. GENERAL HOSPITAL, FORTRESS MONROE, VA. Location Fine Buildings Splendid Chesapeake Hospital Bethesdian Chapel Interesting Meetings Reading-Room and Library for Pa- tients Hampton Hospital, Organized 1862 Head-Quarters "New Camp" Contraband Hospital All Consolidated into One General Hospital in 1864 Called by the Above Name Disbanded in March, 1866 Managed by Dr. Eli McClellan, Assistant Surgeon U. S. A. Hospital Garden Very Extensive Twenty-five Thousand Head of Cabbage Hospital Hennery Camp Distribution Soldiers came and went by Thousands Chaplain Marshall Preached to Them by Night Military Prison Preaching to the Spirits in Prison Gan- CONTENTS. IX Fi.01 grcne Camp Interesting Scenes "None but Christ" Arrival of Patients: from Two Hundred to Eight Hundred a Day Transferring Patients Voyage to New York with a Load of Patients Big Job for the Chaplain A Patient Kissed my Hand A Weeping Mother and Hard-hearted Surgeon " All Fast on the Potomac." . . 79 CHAPTER VII. THE BELIQIOTJS WORK AT HAMPTON HOSPITAL. The Harvest, Great and White The Prayer-Hall No Church Sol- diers' Earnest Prayers and Eloquent Exhortations It was the Elo- quence of the Heart Melting All into Tears Ward Prayer-Meetings Interest Increasing The Power of Prayer Soldiers' Prayer-Meeting Bush Prayer-Meetings Preaching to Men on their Death-Beds " The Last Morning." . . . . . . .93 CHAPTER VIII. WRITING LETTERS FOR THE PATIENTS. A Dying Soldier's Letter to his Brother Solemn His Will "Yours in Death " " Letters of Death " "I am Ready " Letters from the Bereaved : No. 1. The Bereaved Wife No. 2. The Bereaved Brother No. 3. The Weeping Widow No. 4. The Dying Husband's Letter to His Wife No. 5. A Weeping Southern Family Canvassing Patients' Hearts Diagnosis of the Whole Hospital "Oh, Chaplain, Stay, and Talk to Me more about Jesus!" "Before I would cry, 'Fort Pillow, and Let 'em have it ! '" " Save Me, Lord ! Save Me, Lord ! " . . 107 CHAPTER IX. THE WOMEN OF THE HOSPITAL. Their Valuable Services highly Appreciated by the Patients Chesapeake Hospital well Supplied Here Mrs. Mary B. Dully was Directress and Head of Sanitary Department "She did what she Could" Miss Amos, of Baltimore, Kind, Faithful, and True Mrs. Chaplain E. P. Roe "She went about Doing Good" Mrs. Meecham and Many Others did Likewise Mrs. Carver, with her Tent, Cooking-Stove, and Provisions, did much for the Patients Mrs. Mary Alexander Plain, Earnest, Heroic, Loved the Soldiers Ardently "Bury Me with Them when I Die." . . . . . . . .118 CHAPTER X. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. "Past Feeling" Patchwork won't do for Eternity "Jesus Saved Me Twice" " I Never Forget My Saviour" The Blind Exhorter "I have very Sweet Communion with God" His Death Letter from X CONTENTS. PAOS His Wife Corporal John Creed, 23d 111., Co. B Honored for His Bravery Soldiers Die Clinched Courage of Pompey Joy an Ele- ment of Strength Ananias Montgomery "He had a Ball in His Side, and God in His Heart" "I Feel Happy" The Backslider "I Lost My Religion" "Now I am Miserable" George H. Vanloan "I do Love Him" "It would be Hard to Live in the Army without Religion " The Fixed Heart " I Pray Often " " I do Feel Happy " "lam Too Wicked for That " "I Swear a Great Deal" "I Can't Pray " " It 's Too Late " "I am a Great Sinner " "I Have Given Up " " It is Better to Die " " I am Willing to Go " " All is Well " Midnight Calls " Chaplain, I Feel Most Awful! " . . 124 CHAPTER XI. SCENES IN ANDERSONVILLE. The Prison Its Condition Cruel Treatment " Can this be Hell?" Prisoners' Awful Condition Mortality One Hundred and Fifty a Day Apathy of U. S. Government toward Them Hundreds Died of Broken Hearts Many went Deranged, and turned Maniacs A School and Church there Now " The Dead-Line " Execution of Union Prisoners Band of Robbers and Murderers Six Tried, and Con- demned to be Hung Awful Tragic Scene They Expected to the Last to Escape The Crisis of Andersonville Murder will Out Patriotism in Andersonville " I would rather have Died a Dozen Deaths" "I am not Sorry that I Enlisted" Your Patriotism never Dies: "It is Stronger than Death" Died Praying for Victory Andersonville Hospital: an Awful Place No Beds but Bare Ground Rations Diet Enlarged The Food would Produce Disease among Swine The Moonlight Prayer-Meeting Religion Sweetens the Bitterest Cup. 161 CHAPTER XII. THE EXCHANGE. Long Looked for Many Exchanging Time for Eternity They Cheer the Old Flag "It never Seemed so Dear" They Wept Profusely Rejoicing Sung the "Battle -Cry of Freedom" What a Happy, Grateful Crowd Furloughed Home Thirty Days The Departure "Be Ready to Depart" Filled with Rejoicing They Cried "Thank God ! Thank God ! " " The Year of Jubilee is Come " Loud Shouts of Joy burst from Thousands Farewell, Andersonville Sad Disap- pointment It was no Exchange : Only a Removal "Hope Deferred maketh the Heart Sick." ... ... 164 CHAPTER XIII. ANDERSONVILLE CEMETERY. Contains Fifty Acres Thirteen Thousand and Seven Hundred and Five Graves Who are the Dead? What did They Suffer? How did CONTENTS. XI FAOX They Die ? As They Lived and Fought The First Prisoners Buried There The Last One The Stars and Stripes Wave over Them Captain Wirz His Birth Entering the Rebel Army Promoted for His Cruelties to the Prisoners Proven Guilty of Conspiracy against the United States " I will give you Bullets for Bread" He Shot a Prisoner " Oh, do Let Me Down ! " His Last Days Found Guilty Received Sentence to be Hung very Coolly Attended by the Priest No Signs of Sorrow His Execution Hurries to the Gallows The Closing Scene ........ 169 CHAPTER XIV. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. " My Heart is so Hard, I Can't Pray " Converted on the Field of Battle " I Went to Church Cursing, and Came away Praying " "I Can't Get Religion" "I Can't Help but Pray" A Hero of Andersonville Saved by His Wife A Boat-Load of Andersonville Prisoners "Con- verted on Picket by Two Men Talking to Me" "I am Resolved to Quit Swearing" Died Calling to the Chaplain to Pray for Him "I am Ready to Die " " Tell Them I am Happy " " Converted through a Sister's Letters " "If I go to Hell, I will go Praying " " Prayer is a Great Privilege " " Oh, that I had Ventured Before ! " "I am Guilty of Everything but Theft and Murder" "I Expect to get Re- ligion when I get Home" Bleeding to Death, yet" Resting, on Christ" "Praying for Sport" "I Gave My Heart to Jesus'' "Christ is Everything to Me" "My Sins are Great and Heavy" "Satan is Often at My Heels" James Ward, 81st N. Y., Co. 1 A Soldier's Creed "I See so much Bad Christianity, I am Discouraged " "Jesus is Still Precious" "I Still Hold on to God" "I Pray much in Battle" A Soldier with Seven Wounds "lean Afford tf Suffer" A Happy, Shouting Soldier "I would Like to be a Chris- tian, if 1 Could Keep It " "I Can't Live without Prayer" " Thi Lord is Mine " "I Can't Pray " "I Found Jesus " "I Leave it al) with the Lord" A Swearer Brought to Tears. . . . '78 CHAPTER XV. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS CONTINUED. The Bomb-Proof Prnyer-Meeting "Are You Ready to Go?" Little Lizzie's Letter " I Prayed in the Street" " I Love Everybody" "I Have no Fear" Sergeant James Tustison: "I am Dying, But I am very Happy " "I have Got It!" Satan Repulsed by Prayer " Hell Seems to be Gaping for Me " "I am Happy in the Lord " " Converted in the Army through Sin " " Do You Trust in the Lord ? " "Urge Him to Come to Jesus" " Thank God for My Wound" Ser- geant Dwight Kneeland: "My Work is Done " Died Calling for the Chaplain "Just as God Wishes " " Tell My Mother I Died Happy " "It is Easier to Serve Satan" "I am Better in the Army than at Home" William J. Johnson, 142d N. Y., Co. D "All is Well" Xll CONTENTS. MM " Old Jacob," the Grave-Digger " The Bible Better than Greenbacks " "Somehow It Worked upon Me" "God Still Sticks to Me" "O Chaplain, What Will I Do?" "I am on the Devil's Side" "Pray for Me, Chaplain, till I Die: " His Bereaved Wife's Letter "I would as soon Go to My Heavenly Home " "I am Too Wicked to Come to Jesus" " God Grabbed Me into His Heart at Once " "I Prayed on, and God Changed My Heart " " The Devil Coaxed Me Off." . . 210 CHAPTER XVI. EXTRACTS FROM THE AUTHOR'S DIARY. Preaching in the Wards A Melting Prayer-Meeting Hospital Church Organized Church Creed A Weeping' Scene at the Grave The Naked Heart Mortality Increasing "Try Again" A Soldier's Prayer-Meeting Catholics Turning Protestants Christmas Dinner Holidays in U. S. Hospital Week of Prayer The Lord's Supper Revival in Hospital. . . . . . . .256 CHAPTER XVII. MISCELLANEOUS FACTS. Celebration of Washington's Birthday Religious Interest in New Camp Soldiers' Entertainment The Fall of Richmond Unbounded Rejoic- ing Lee's Surrender Death of President Lincoln Largest Inter- ment .Dedication of New Hospital Chapel Arrival of Fort Fisher Wounded 279 CHAPTER XVIII. BOMBARDMENT OF FORT FISHER. The Wounded Arrive at the Hospital They are very Jubilant Admiral Porter Commands the Fleet " The World never Saw such Fighting " The Scene Awfully Grand and Sublime Great Slaughter of Sailora Awful Hand-to-Hand Fight for Hours The Surrender Buoyant Wounded from Richmond Dying that the Nation might Live Hos- pital Variety Monotonous Desire to go Home. . . .288 CHAPTER XIX. LINCOLN'S FUNERAL. Lincoln's Funeral Deep Feeling: Solemn, Impressive The Author's Address at the Funeral Sudden Change from Rejoicing to Weeping His Death a Loss to the Entire World National Grief Unspeakable His Character The Great Emancipator and Friend of the Slave Self - Made The Saviour of His Country Religious Character: Brought up to Pray, and Read the Bible His Last Request: "Pray for Me " "I Leave Myself, my Country, and All in the Hands of God." 294 CHAPTER XX. THE STREAM OF DEATH. The First Soldiers Killed in the War Rebel Cruelty to the Dead CONTEXTS. xiii MM Death of Col. Baker Gen. Lyon's Bravery and Death Death in the Mississippi Valley and on the Peninsula Removal of Gen. McClellan Gen. Ilosecrans' Bravery at Stone River "The Bloodiest Battle of the War " The Battle of Gettysburg the Death-blow of the Rebellion Gen. Grant Assumes Command in Chief "On to Richmond" Death of Gen. Sedgwick Battle of Coal Harbor Simultaneous Movement of Armies Gen. Sherman at Atlanta Gen. Sheridan's Victories in the Shenandoah Valley Battle at Franklin, Tenn. Gen. Sheridan's Stratagem at Cedar Creek Lincoln Calls for More Volun- teers Gen. Sherman Completes His " March to the Sea" Slavery Abolished by Congress, Jan. 31, 1865 Grant's Last "Great Strike" Fall of Richmond, Flight of Jeff. Davis, and Surrender of Gen. Lee Mortality During the War The Deserter. .... 300 CHAPTER XXI. THE NATIONAL CEMETERY AT FORTRESS MONROE, VA. Number of Graves The Place of Many Prayers, Sighs, and Tears The Old Man Weeping at his Son's Grave Who are the Dead ? How did They Die ? Soldiers' Dying Words The Monument The Inscrip- tion Burying the Dead National Cemeteries General Summary. 315 CHAPTER XXII. SKETCHES BY CHAPLAIN MARSHALL THE U.S. CHRISTIAN COMMISSION. A Theatre turned into a Religious Meeting Masses of Soldiers in Camp Distribution Their Profanity Burlesque Military Drill The Chap- lain's Resolution A Shout upon his Entrance Theatrical Prepara- tions They Black Themselves up They Sing Devotion Rises God Helps The Chaplain Reads, Speaks, Prays They Sing with Great Power They Visit the Reading-Room Great Good done in a Short Time " No more Swearing " Sunday Night with the Dying The Dying Sergeant sends for the Chaplain The Weeping Father prays for his Dying Son The Dying Lieutenant desires to be Prayed for The Dying Captain's Warm Grasp The Friendship of Christ The U. S. Christian Commission Its Origin Officers First Meeting Its Spirit and Zeal Head-Quarters Its Object Fidelity of its Delegates Its Efficiency and Contributions Its Popularity. . 326 CHAPTER XXIII. DISTINGUISHED CHRISTIAN MEN IN THE WAR. KEV. P. D. GURLEY, D.D. His Birth Pious Mother Babyhood Desire for the Ministry His Education Works his own Way through Union College His Piety when a Boy Studied Theology at Princeton His Standing in his Class Graduates at Princeton, and Receives a Call to Preach in In- dianapolis His Marriage His Ordination Successful Labors Xiv CONTENTS. VMM Accepts a Call to Dayton, Ohio Leaves Dayton, and goes to Washing- ton, D. C. Summoned to Lincoln's Death-Bed Impressive Scene Prays at his Death Presides at a Meeting of the Clergy of the District of Columbia Preaches at Lincoln's Funeral Dr. Hall reads the Episcopal Burial-Service Bishop Simpson's Opening Prayer " Cling to Liberty and Right" Composed a Hymn for the Funeral Bishop Simpson's Sermon at the Grave Dr. Gurley's Christian Character His Ability in Prayer Successful as a Minister His Gifts He Com- forts the Afflicted His Popularity His Death His Rapturous Foretastes of Heaven His Dying Requests to his Family and Friends Last Words Dr. Sunderland's Remarks at the Funeral His Peo- ple's Affection for him. ....... 334 OLIVER O. HOWARD. His Birth Boyhood Early Religious Training A Christian Gentle- man He Graduates at Bowdoin College; also at West Point Academy in 1854 His Patriotism Appointed Colonel of Third Regiment Maine Volunteers Is Promoted for Bravery Joins Army of the Potomac Wounded at Battle of Fair Oaks Had his Arm Ampu- tated Returns Home the Next Day Lectures the People, and Urges Them to Come to the Rescue of the Country He Returned in Time for the Battles of Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Chancellors- ville His Position at the Battle of Gettysburg His Calmness in Battle Is Temperate Gen. Sherman's High Opinion of him His Warm Attachment for Capt. Griffin He Prays with him, and Bids him a Final Farewell "It is the Last Time " Appointed Commissioner of the Freedman's Bureau Howard University a Monument of His Benevolent Efforts. ....... 343 BISHOP SIMPSON. His Nativity His Education Enters the Ministry His Popularity Elected President of Asbury University Elected Editor of "Western Christian Advocate" His Success Elected Bishop His Success and Administration His Patriotism and Zeal in Quelling the Rebel- lion Lincoln's Trusted Friend His Prayer at Lincoln's Funeral His Preaching Abilities His Oration at Lincoln's Grave Powers of Discrimination Delineates Lincoln's Characteristics, and Points out the Secret of his Power His Style of Preaching He Preaches Christ What he Covets His Tour to the Rocky Mountains Intimate with the Presidents of the United States Appointed by President Grant to Visit San Domingo His Present Standing, Influence, and Power His Touching Peroration at Lincoln's Tomb . . .346 ADMIRAL FARRAGUT. A Now Era in Naval Affairs Fight between the Monitor and Merrimac Progress in Destroying and Saving Man Satan's Whetting his Sword should Arouse the Church Farragut's Birth Enters the U. S. Navy His First and Second Engagements Heroic Courage Wounded Highly Esteemed by his Commander His Heroism Sleeps Sails all CONTENTS. XV MM over the World Promoted His Loyalty Went North Commands a Naval Expedition vs. New Orleans His Large Fleet Captures New Orleans Daring Feats in Capturing VicJksburg His Stratagem and Heroism in Capturing Mobile Lashed Himself to the Rigging of his Ship in Battle Calls upon God for Help and Direction Severe Fight with a Rebel Ironclad He Whipped Her She Surrenders Pro- moted Again His Habits Decorating his Grave His Prayer in the Battle of Mobile Bay "Go Forward" His Religious Life Testi- mony of Lieut. Montgomery. ...... 353 GEORGE H. STUAET. Sketch of, by Dr. Wylie His Birth Parents Education Arrival in this Country Religious Profession Elected Ruling Elder His Christian Zealand Liberality Missionary Spirit A Sabbath-school Worker Suggested the National Presbyterian Convention, and Pre- sided over it His Suspension from the Church Refused a Position in President Grant's Cabinet A Successful Merchant His Natural Talents Christian Character An Expert Presiding Officer His Natural Eloquence Attractive Speaker and Successful Beggar He Always Succeeds Goes about Doing Good His Marriage Family Personal Appearance His Labors in the Christian Commission Its Leading Spirit and President His Qualification and Devotion to the Work Secret of His Success Distributes Books Overcomes an Infidel The People's Faith in Him Money Flows in at his Asking His Importunity Prevails His Zeal to Supply the Needy Soldiers His Kindness to the Rebels Rebels Weep at Northern Kindness His Fondness for Army Relics "His Generalship in Prayer" He can always have Prayer "An Eminent Christian at Work" His Chris- tian Sngaciry His Popularity An Eloquent Speaker His Speech in England. . . . . . . . .364 HENRY WARD BEECHER. His Distinguishing Traits A Great Worker His Style Oratory His Birth Lost his Mother Early Religious Impressions Inured to Hardship A Bashful, Stammering, Unpromising Boy His Educa- tion Went to School Barefooted, and Hemmed Towels at Recess Fond of Flowers and Full of Jokes Drilled in Elocution Tired of School Wishes to "Go to Sea" Subject of a Revival Unites with the Church Naval Project Given up Attention Turned to the Ministry Enters College Choice of Studies Preferring Rhetoric, Studies to Know "What to Say," and "How to Say it" Strictly Temperate Conducts Prayer-Meetings His Creed Religious Im- pressions Troubled Believed Buoyant Teaches School Lec- tures and Preaches The Slave's Friend Graduates Studies Theol- ogyPerplexed about Entering the Ministry Marries First Pas- toral Charge Did Everything Himself Moves to Indianapolis Style of Preaching His Popularity Revival in his Church Moves to Brooklyn Visits England and Europe Lectures in England, and, Xvi CONTENTS. FAOI Braving all Opposition, Pleads America's Cause Successfully His London Letter glowing with Joy and Gratitude to God, and Love to his Enemies Impression Favorable Affectionate Enthusiasm for him His War Sermons Oration at Fort Sumter. . . . .383 DWIGHT L. MOODY. Power of Individual Effort Earnestness the Secret of Success A Great Want The Church and the World Asleep His Birth Lay- preaching Encouraged Paul's Great Success Labor, Labor! Moody's Early Religious Views His Conversion Joins the Congre- gationalists Education Limited His Labors Successful A Great Worker in Sabbath Schools Organized Mission Sunday School in Chicago Its Growth Started Prayer-Meetings Labors Blessed Young Men's Christian Association Begun Daily Prayer-Meeting His Trust in God for a Living No Salary His Active Labors in the Army His Zeal at the Battle of Fort Donelson Goes to God for Direction Efficient in Building Calls to go Abroad Crosses the Atlantic Organized Daily Prayer-Meeting in London Labors in Sunday-School Convention Successful Deeds, not Words, a True Sign of Principle His Success as an Organizer; as a Speaker; as a Revivalist How to "Get up a Revival" His Large Audiences in Chicago His Popularity at Home His Personal Influence over Others. 395 GAKKETSON I. YOUNG. Solemn Warning "Be Ye also Ready !" His Birth Parents. Boy- hood Education A Diligent Scholar His AcWlemical Course at Calcutta, Ohio Enters Jefferson College Graduates His Habile Taught High School Studies and Practises Law Elected Probate Judge A Neat Book-keeper Marries Early Religious Training Read the Bible Daily Joins the Episcopal Church His Military Position Labors in War Department Resigns, and Returns Home Purchased the "Buckeye State" Edits it His Success Elected to the Ohio Legislature His Character Patriotic Winning Ways Noble Traits "He Made Friends Fast" His Sudden Death Im- pressive Scenes at the Capitol; and at his Home Hia Funeral Marked Honors Paid him by the Governor and State Legislature Eulogies by the Members. ...... 403 CHAPTER XXIV. FAREWELL TO THE HOSPITAL. A Brief and Solemn Review Number of Patients in Hospital Average Daily and Total Mortality of the War Interviews with Soldiers Chaplains much Exposed to Disease Solemn to Part Farewell to the Chesapeake; to the Chapel; to the Matrons; to Hampton; to the Chap- lains Farewell to the Christian Soldiers Appeal and Farewell to the Impenitent Farewell to the Dead The Great Christian Victory The Rebellion Dissected Source of the Victory Munificent Gifts Americans and Europeans Whetting One Another Go Forward. . 411 it ft.urf Suits m miftrlh* Mtttm diittid Iter- v,v. . - CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. INTRODUCTORY. TOUR TO THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS THE DEVIL OUT-FLANKED "THE BIGGEST GUN EVER FIRED IN AMERICA" PLUCKING FLOW- ERS AND MAKING SNOWBALLS AT THE SAME TIME GATHERING UP THE LOST SHEEP PREACHING TO COLORADO VOLUNTEERS LATE PAPERS " GO OFF LIKE HOT CAKES " THE MIGHTY STRUG- GLE WAXES HOTTER GOING TO THE ARMY VISITING AND BID- DING GOOD-BY TO FRIENDS TOUCHING AT PITTSBURG AND BALTI- MORE, WE ENJOYED A VERY PLEASANT FORETASTE OF ARMY AND HOSPITAL LIFE AT WASHINGTON, FORTRESS MONROE, AND NEW- BERN ANOTHER SAIL BROUGHT us TO PLYMOUTH. THE present is an eventful age an age for intellectual research, discovery, scientific investigation; and for great and mighty changes and revolutions in the social, moral, civil, and religious world, is unparalleled in the history of man. It is peculiarly a fast age. Kingdoms and empires now rise, flourish, fade, and fall, almost in a day. And the human mind ever on the alert in search of new truths, under the present march of mind, we often see old creeds and platforms give way, and give rise to new and better ones. Although our country lias just emerged from a baptism of blood, and although Satan is whetting his sword and rallying his forces, yet with oceans tra- versed with telegraphs, and continents spanned with railroads, knowledge is running to and fro, and Christianity is spreading rapidly. When the nation's indignation was stirred at the rebel bom- 15 16 CHRISTIANITY IN THE TTAE. bardment of Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861, the writer was wind- ing his way across the boundless plains of Nebraska, to Denver, and the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Leaving Omaha, Neb., April 21, after riding over six successive days and nights in the coach, and travelling over six hundred miles up the broad waters of the Platte, we reached Denver, and put up at the Cherokee House, at twelve dollars a week for boarding and lodging. It was here, in this bustling city, that we first felt the gloom that overspread the country, occasioned by the signal defeat at the first battle of Bull Run. Here we spent several months in preaching, and gathering up the scattered sheep of Israel, and preaching occasionally to small squads of Colorado volunteers. It was at Laurette far beyond Pike's Peak, at the foot of the snowy range, between two lofty spurs of the back- bone of North America, in the regions of perpetual snow, where in July you can pluck flowers with one hand and make snow- balls with the other that the glorious news of Lincoln's Eman- cipation Proclamation first fell upon our ears. A mountain merchant then said, " It is the biggest gun ever fired in America; " while Lord John Russell, of England, pronounced it " an act of vengeance on the slave-holder" Meeting here, beneath the shade of the lofty peaks and rocky cliffs, for preaching, prayer, and praise, we often enjoyed precious times of refreshing. On one occasion, we out-flanked the devil, and broke up a Sabbath-evening auction, and had the pleasure of seeing the Sabbath-breaking auctioneer haul in his unsold goods, and come to church himself. And although we were separated from the seat of war by a distance of some two thou- sand miles, yet we watched the movements of the two mighty armies with intense interest. Every mail was looked for with the greatest anxiety, and the late papers, by thousands, "went off like hot cakes." But seeing the mighty struggle for our national existence waxing hotter and hotter, and feeling deeply anxious to aid in quelling the rebellion, we pulled up stakes and struck for home, and hastened to lend our assistance as chaplain of the 101st Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers. Having visited my friends, and bidden farewell to a kind and affectionate sister CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 17 and her family, we took the cars at New Brighton, Pa., and soon landed in the thronged streets of Pittsburg and Alleghany. Leaving these smoky twin cities, in the Pennsylvania Central Express, with lightning speed we hurried across the lofty Alle- ghanies, with their beautiful curves and deep ravines, and soon found ourselves promenading the broad pavements of Pennsyl- vania Avenue, overlooked by the splendid dome of the national capitol at one end, and the " White House " at the other. Here we visited a few U. S. General Hospitals, and, for the first time, enjoyed the privilege of preaching to the sick and wounded sol- diers, lying upon their narrow couches, in their airy wards. It was in Douglas Hospital, chaplained by Rev. W. Y. Brown, U.S.A. Having enjoyed this little foretaste of hospital life, we hastened back to Baltimore, where we fell in with G. S. Griffith, Esq., president of the Maryland Branch of the U. S. Chris- tian Commission, who, though a stranger, received me very kindly, and gave me a rich supply of Testaments, books, papers, and tracts for my regiment. Embracing the first opportunity, we sailed down the broad bosom of Chesapeake Bay to Fortress Monroe, Va., and soon made our way up to the Chesapeake Hos- pital, where we met with a very kind reception from Chaplain James Marshall, U.S.A., stationed at that point, faithfully labor- ing for the welfare of the large number of patients collected at that noted place. Waiting for transportation, we spent a few days here very agreeably ; preaching for the chaplain Sabbath morning to his patients, and to a regiment of colored troops, in Camp Distribution, in the afternoon. Having enjoyed this, another little taste of hospital life, early Tuesday morning we bade farewell to the thronged wharf of Fortress Monroe, and sailed in the splendid steamer Spaulding for Beaufort, N. C., rounding the dangerous coast of Cape Hatteras in the night, while wrapped in the sweet embraces of sleep, entirely uncon- scious of the danger encountered. But rocked by the raging billows of the troubled ocean, upon leaving my berth in the morning, I found my head so light, and my stomach so disturbed, that I could not walk for sea-sickness. But having fully recov- ered before reaching Beaufort, we hurried, " by rail," to captured 2 18 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Newbern, surrounded with fortifications and soldiers without, and teeming with colored people within. Here we visited sol- diers' camps, chaplains' quarters, hospitals, and delegates ^f the Christian Commission, preaching as often as we could ; and thus enjoyed another very profitable initiatory step into the panorama of hospital and army life. After waiting a few days, a Govern- ment transport arrived, and sailing down the broad Pamlico and up the placid Albemarle Sounds, we arrived at Plymouth, N". C., Dec. 19, 1863, where we found the brave boys of the 101st comfortably housed in their warm winter-quarters, and met with a very warm reception from Col. A. W. Taylor, then com- manding the regiment. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 19 CHAPTER I. ENTERING THE SERVICE. ARRIVAL AT PLYMOUTH FOUND OUR KEGIMENT, THE 101ST PA. VOL., COMFORTABLY HOUSED THE GARRISON HUNGRY FOR THE GOSPEL CHRISTMAS SERMON BIG TURN-OUT THE REBELS CAP- TURED AND DROVE us OFF. ON arriving at Plymouth, we found the garrison, containing some two thousand men, made up of the following regiments and companies: the 103d Pa. Vol., Col. Leghman; the 85th N. Y. Vol., Col. Fidello; the 101st Pa. Vol., Lt.-Col. A. W. Taylor; the 16th Conn. Vol., Col. Beech ; a New York Independent Bat- tery, and parts of the 12th N. Y. Cavalry and the 2d Mass. Heavy Artillery, all commanded by Brig.-Gen. H. W. Wessels. They had been there a long time, and were almost entirely destitute of preaching. Col. Taylor preached occasionally, and the Rev. Mr. Morris, a faithful delegate of the U. S. Christian Commis- sion, had just arrived, and held service one or two Sabbaths. At his request, I preached the first Sabbath evening after my arrival, and announced a Christmas sermon for the following Sabbath evening. At the hour appointed, the large Methodist church, seating some eight hundred, was crowded to overflowing : hundreds, they said, had to go away for want of room. Several ladies, Gen. Wessels, and his staff, graced the wide-awake audi- ence with their presence. I gave them a sermon on the advent of the Saviour, (Gal. iv. 4, 5,) and they listened with rapt atten- tion. From that time on, we had a crowded house every Sab- bath. The soldiers and officers seemed to be hungry for the gospel. The field was great, white, ready to harvest. It was a delightful work to preach to them. We had a large, interesting Bible-class, and a semi-weekly, well-attended prayer-meeting. Our meetings were usually very interesting, solemn, and impret**- 20 CHBISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ive; and at one time we seemed to be on the eve of a great revival, but the rebels came, and drove us off before we enjoyed it. The colored people had preaching or prayer-meeting in the same house every Sabbath afternoon, and a flourishing Sabbath-school, conducted by a sergeant of the New York Battery. Chaplain Dixon, of the 16th Conn. Vol., and Chaplain Rawlings, of the 103d Pa. Vol., soon arrived, and took part in the regular services of the Sabbath. Many of the soldiers and officers took an active part, and seemed to be deeply interested. The whole garrison, without any distinction of sects, together with a few of the citizens of the place, met together. We had no church organization, but whenever we met a man apparently bearing the image of Christ, we treated him as a brother in the Lord. Graced with a well-played melodeon, we had a fine choir, which gave life and animation to the services. Each chaplain labored with his own regiment during the week, and being well supplied with religious papers, tracts, and books, from the Christian Commission, our religious work went on finely until the attack by the rebels, April 17, 1864, which resulted in our capture, after a hot siege of three days. CHAPTER II. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS AND OFFICEES. A FORT-FISHER HERO A HEROIC SOLDIER : " I DON'T BACKSLIDE " "JESUS is ALL I WANT" "STAND BY THE FLAG, AND CLING TO THE CROSS" "ALL is WELL!" A SOLDIER'S FAREWELL CAPT. TRESOUTHICK LIEUT. EANSOM: His DYING PRAYER AND "GLORY TO GOD" CAPT. FEE: His REQUEST, "PLEASE PRAY FOR ME" A EOLLING CHAPLAIN " YOU SAVED MY LlFE " A DYING SOLDIER'S LETTER LIEUT. MERRILL : BAPTIZED AT MID- NIGHT THE DYING CAPTAIN : " HURRAH FOR JESUS." BY CHAP- LAIN MARSHALL. THE following sketches of patients, on to page 62, were taken from the U. S. General Hospital, Fortress Monroe, Va. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 21 A FORT FISHER HERO. John B. Duncan, Co. B, 3d N. H. Vol., was wounded at the capture of Fort Fisher, N. C., Jan. 15, 1865. Eager for victory, after having fought several hours, he mounts the fort, and while there battling for his country, about fifteen minutes before the surrender, a minie-ball passed through his shoulder, entering just above the right lung. He was brought here Jan. 19, and I preached to him and his ward the next evening, from the Sa- viour's last farewell promise, "Lo, I am with you alway." Blessed with patience and courage, though he suffered severely, he bore it all very patiently like a young hero. Not a murmur fell from his lips. Approaching his bed one day, he said, " I want you to talk to me, chaplain." We found him very tender, anxious, prayerful, and penitent. He said he had been awakened at Hilton Head, S. C., last May, and had been praying ever since. He said " he trusted in Christ, and that he was dear and precious; that he felt prepared, and was not afraid to die." Having with undaunted courage fought the rebels at Fort Fisher, and shared in the honor of the glorious victory there achieved, and trusting in Him " who hath abolished death," he now prepares to meet " the last enemy," death, and says, " If I die, send my Testament (much worn by use), my portfolio, and my jack-knife to my mother, and tell her riot to mourn for me, for I feel that I can die happy, and am willing to go, and hope and pray we will all meet in heaven." I talked, read, and prayed with him. He was very anxious to be talked to, and hear about Jesus. On the last morning of his life he said, " I feel happy in the Lord." On going into the ward to preach on Saturday evening, we found him worse, and breathing very hard. We asked him if he would like to hear. He said, "Yes;" and while we were singing, " I am going home to die no more," he went, and, doubtless, through grace, achieved a victory far more glorious than that won at Fort Fisher. His serene countenance, resignation, and easy departure seemed to Bay : " O death, where is thy sting ? " 22 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. " To die is gain." How sudden the change ! How striking the contrast of his condition on the field of battle with his con- dition in heaven ! Here all is war, blood, and death ; there all is life, joy, and peace ! Here he was clothed in garments stained with blood ; there in robes white and clean ! Here he was sur- rounded with the dead and dying ; there with the redeemed and living ! Here his wounds were bathed in blood ; there in the waters of the river of life ! Here he shouted on to victory ; there on to glory ! Here he bore a sword ; there he wears a crown ! And " though dead, he yet speaketh." His tongue, though now mute in death, seems to say to every surviving sol- dier, " Be ye also ready PREPARE TO MEET THY GOD." A HEROIC SOLDIER. Elias Babcock, 10th N. Y., Co. B., was wounded at the last battle before Petersburg, and brought here April 4, with his left leg amputated above the knee. He had been sick before the battle ; and although his stump seemed to do pretty well for a while, he always looked like a man that was going to die. His ward was full of stumps or amputated limbs, fresh from the bloody field and fierce conflict that gained the glorious victory that put Jeff. Davis to flight, brought down Richmond, and led to Lee's surrender and the overthrow of the great rebellion. On my first approaching him, I found him a prayerful, decided Christian. He said, though in the army, " I don't backslide." I visited him very frequently, and often preached to him and sev- eral others on their death-beds in his ward. He seemed to enjoy it very much. Though pale and weak, he would always put out his arm to shake hands on my approach. A few days before his departure, he said, " I thought I was dying last night, and my thoughts reverted to the place of my conversion four years ago." "All was bright I felt very happy." "This wound is God's rod to comfort me ; it is for my good." " Oh, the pre- oious promises in God's word !" " I am not afraid to die." "I believe I could die happy." " Men may live along with reli- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 23 gion, but when they get wounded and begin to look into eternity, and feel the near approach of heaven, it is far better." He spoke of, and seemed to realize deeply, the great sacrifice God requires us to make for Christ. At another interview, when I spoke to him about Christ knocking at the door for admittance into the sinner's heart, he said, " I have let him in long ago." Here the solemn scene beggars description. With his weeping wife standing at his side, and with eyes streaming with tears, and clasped hands lifted up toward heaven, and gating into eternity, he said, " It is far better." But passing this lofty attainment, and rising higher and higher, and drawing nearer and nearer to God, apparently " filled with the Holy Ghost," he seemed to realize "a joy unspeakable." Though he suffered long and severely, he bore it all very pa- tiently ; not a murmur fell from his lips. Blessed with God's sanctifying grace, his wounded limb was a healing balm to his soul. And his dying words, " This wound is God's rod to com- fort me ; it is for my good," should strengthen the heart and cheer the soul of every wounded soldier. " Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth." His last words were, " I am happy." Thus passed away the heroic soldier, doubly crowned crowned with victory on the field, and with glory in heaven. " To die is gain." "JESUS IS ALL I WANT." Man is a creature of vast desires so vast that the world with all its grandeur and glory will not satisfy him. Though he really wants but little, " nor wants that little long," yet " the more he gets the more he wants." Let a man own all the gold of earth, possess all the wealth of the universe, command all thrones, wield all sceptres, control all commerce, scale all heights, fathom all depths, enjoy all the pleasures that this world can afford, and yet there remains an empty void within. The insa- tiable heart still cries, " Give ! give ! " and longs for more. But is there no adequate portion? Is there no remedy for this insatiable thirst? Must man live and die famishing upon the empty vanities of this fleeting world ? No ; he need not 24 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. There is the infinite God, and the all-comprehensive Saviour, filled with all the fulness of God, before whom " all nations are as nothing, and counted less than nothing and vanity." Yes, man of the world, here is Jesus, infinitely rich in wis- dom, honor, power, and glory, waiting to make you infinitely rich in all the joys of earth, and in all the glories of heaven. Jesus is here willing to be " made unto you wisdom, righteous- ness, sanctification, and redemption." The following incident shows, in a very striking manner, the all-sufficiency of Christ as a satisfying portion. Walking over the field of battle, shortly after a severe fight, a chaplain stepped up to a wounded soldier lying on the cold ground, apparently in severe pain, and said : " Can I do anything for you ? " " Oh, no," replied the soldier ; " I want nothing. I have Jesus here with me, and he is all I want." "But," said the chaplain, "you can't live but a few minutes longer ! " "I know it ; but I am in perfect peace. I have no fear of death. Please put my blanket over me and cover my face, and let me shut out all but Jesus ; so let me die." Oh, what wonderful words ! " I want nothing ! " How rich the dying soldier ! Go and gaze upon the wonderful scene. See ! There he lies with his mangled body bathed in his own blood, and wrapped in a thin blanket, and yet he says, " I want nothing." No earthly friend is near ; not a prayer was offered for him ; not a tear was shed over him ; not an emotion of sym- pathy to console him ; and yet the warm response rises from his gushing heart, " I want nothing " nothing of the world ; and why ? His soul, his heart, was full of Jesus. " I have Jesus here, and he is all I want." Oh, what a rich possession ! What an all-sufficient portion ! Where is the worldling that can say as much ? Search creation through, explore all heights, examine all kingdoms, ascend all thrones, muster all millionnaires, and where can you find one out of Christ that can say, " I have all I want." No, it is not in the riches, honors, or pleasures of the world to satisfy the cravings of the immortal mind. Then let us pray to be crucified to the world and consecrated to God ; so CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 25 that when we come to die we may be able to say, " I have Jesus, and he is all I want." "STAND BY THE FLAG, AND CLING TO THE CROSS." Every age produces some vivid, remarkable, and sublime say- ings, words glowing with intense thought, lofty fervor, and heroic devotion. Bacon's " Knowledge is power; " Patrick Henry's " Give me liberty or give me death;" Gen. Grant's "/ am de- termined to fight it out on this line; " and Abraham Lincoln's " Charity for all and malice toward none " will live until the close of time. So will the immortal words, " Stand by the flag, and ding to the cross." They are the dying words of Edward M. Schneider, of the 57th Mass. Regiment, to his brother in the navy. When the regiment was being formed, young Schneider was at school in Philip's Academy, Andover, Mass.; but fired with a lofty patriotism, he dropped his books, laid down his pen, girded on the sword, and boldly marched to the defence of his country, though strongly opposed by his friends. During the weary march from Annapolis to the Rapidau, though but seventeen years of age, he steadily kept his place in the ranks, and receiving a slight wound on the North Anna, was sent to Port Royal for transportation to Washington ; but pre- ferring the field to the hospital, and longing to go, he returned to his regiment, and joined them at Coal Harbor ; and being so full of fight, he said to his chaplain, while preparing to charge upon the enemy near the "Dunn House," " I intend to be the first one to enter their works" The charge was made. On they rush, with a full determination to conquer or die ; and with an eager heart young Schneider led the advance, keeping several paces ahead, as they approached the awful crisis. He was almost there, near enough to feel the hot flash of the rebel musketry in his face, when a fatal ball pierced his body and brought him to the ground. He was carried back to the hospital, with six hun- dred and fifty of his comrades, where he lay all night with his wound undressed, waiting his turn. He suffered severely, yet, possessing a heroic patience, not a murmur fell from his lips. 26 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. The chaplain, Rev. Mr. Dashiell, visited him, looked at his wound ; and the suffering soldier, anxiously looking him in the face, asks, " What do you think of it, chaplain ? " Seeing that it was mortal, the chaplain was so deeply aifected that he could neither reply nor restrain his tears. Edward interpreted the meaning of his silent tears that his wound was mortal. " Don't weep, chaplain," he said ; " it is God's will. Please write to my father, and tell him that I have tried to do my duty to my country and to God." He disposed of his effects, giving ten dollars to the U. S. Chris- tian Commission, twenty dollars to the American Board, and trifles to his friends. Then, in the simplicity of his heart, he said, " I have many good friends, schoolmates, and companions. They will want to know where I am, and how I am getting on. Tell them I am gone, and that I die content. And the boys in the regiment, chaplain, I want you to tell them to stand by the dear old flag. And there is my brother in the navy, write to him, and tell him to stand by the flag, and cling to the cross of Christ." The surgeon came, examined his wound, and said, " It is my duty to tell you that you will soon go home." " Yes, doctor, I am going home. I am not afraid to die. I don't know how the valley will be when I get to it, but it is all right now." Then, gathering up his waning strength, he calmly and solemnly repeated the verse often sung by the soldiers, who, amid all the whirl and shock of battle, never forget their loved ones at home, "Soon with angels I'll be marching, With bright laurels on my brow: I have for my country fallen; Who will care for sister now? " " The night passed away, death came on apace ; " he still suf- fered intensely, yet without a complaining word. Sabbath morn- ing came, and, with the dawning of the light, his blood-washed soul passed away on the 17th of June, 1864, just eighty-nine years after the battle of Bunker's Hill. It was sad news to send to his father, then a well-known missionary of the American Board at Aintab, Turkey. It was a great loss to lose such a noble son; yet it was glorious to die such a triumphant death. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 27 His work is done. His destiny is fixed. He died that his country- might live. His death was a triumphant victory. And although he was not permitted to stand first upon the ramparts of the ene- my's works at Petersburg, yet, having died such a glorious death, no doubt to-day he stands among the first within the ramparts of heaven. His grave is by the roadside, marked by the rude palings erected by Chaplain Dashiell. "The summer -breeze sweeps through the sighing pines overspreading the heaved-up mound. Mournful, yet sweet, the music of the wind-harp mournful, because one so young, so full of life, and capable of such a future, should go so soon ; sweet, in that he did his work so well." " Had he lived a century, he could not have made it more com- plete." " And," says Carlton, to whom we are indebted for the facts, and part of the language of this sketch, " I have stood by the mouldering dust of those whose names are great in history; whose deeds and virtues are cut in brass and marble ; who were reverenced while living, and mourned for when dead, but never have I felt a profoimder reverence for departed worth than for him who sleeps beneath the pines, uncoffined, unshrouded, wearing, as when he fell, the uniform of his country." His last words "STAND BY THE FLAG, AND CLING TO THE CROSS!" will live as long as the flag of our country waves, or the cross of Christ endures. " They are the emblems of all our hopes, both for time and for eternity." How heroic the patriotism ! and how strong and sublime the faith that prompted them ! What lofty conceptions of duty ! What earnest, whole-hearted consecration do they indicate ! They are the very cream and essence of the young hero's life, and the sum and concentration of man's whole duty. What power, grandeur, and glory do they inspire and carry along with them ! Dudley Tyng's immortal words: " STAND UP FOR JESUS," have fired the hearts of millions; but they only im- press us with our duty to God ; but the heroic soldier, with a heart glowing with Christian zeal and patriotic ardor, with his 28 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. dying breath pleads most earnestly both for his country and his Saviour. God grant that his inspiring words may be deeply impressed upon every Christian's heart. "ALL IS WELL!" A SOLDIER'S FAREWELL. ELNOR WINSLOW, 203d Pa., Co. C, was mortally wounded at the capture of Fort Fisher, N. C., Jan. 15, 1864, and brought to the hospital shortly after. Brave and courageous, he rose above all fear in battle; and, eager for victory, he ventured within a few feet of the rebel guns, and there, amidst whizzing balls and bursting shells, battling for his country, he received a wound, which, after a few months of severe and patient suffering, closed his career on earth. Though blessed with a religious edu- cation, he enlisted in the service of his country before he enlisted under the banner of the Cross, and was converted in the army. At my first interview with him, he said he had been seeking religion for some six months ; and that he began to pray while posted at Camp Cadwalader, near Philadelphia, Pa. It was there, it seems, he first began to realize his lost and undone condition, and to feel his need of a Saviour. It was then he began to cry, " God be merciful to me a sinner ! " I pointed him to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world, and urged him to look unto him. Orthodox in his views, and with a clear concep- tion of the plan of salvation by faith in Christ, at our next inter- view we found him indulging a hope, and he said, " I think, now, I am a Christian." And now having tasted something " of the heavenly gift," he thirsts for more, and realizing his depend- ence upon God for it, he very frequently goes unto him in prayer, earnestly pleading for an increase of light, grace, and strength. Possessing a heart glowing with an ardent, lofty patriotism, he prayed much for his country. Though pale and weak in body, he appeared to be strong in the Lord, and would very often make most beautiful, earnest, touching prayers. I visited him often ; and when I preached in his ward, he seemed to enjoy the services very much. He was remarkably mild, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 29 patient, and resigned. Notwithstanding the duration and sever- ity of his sufferings, yet in patience possessing his soul, he seemed to lie passive in the arms of Jesus, patiently waiting God's time. Not a murmur fell from his lips. Rising above all fear of death, he said, " I feel happy in the Lord, and am not afraid to die." Deeply concerned for the salvation of his comrades, he frequently urged them to be faithful to God and their country. At another call, some ten days before his death, full of bright hopes of eternal glory, with Christ precious to his soul, he said, "ALL is WELL." " Yes, dying for your country, and dying in the Lord, all must be well. When Rev. S. B. Bangs was approaching the eternal world, full of assurance, he exclaimed, 'Not a doubt! not a cloud!' ( All is well ! more than well/ and looking out at the window, he said, ' The sun is setting ; mine is rising.' ' I go from this bed to a crown/ and, bidding all farewell, he went home to glory. And here you lie, with a body pierced with rebel bullets, expect- ing soon to bid farewell to this weeping world, and, rising above all doubts and fears, be enabled to say, glory be to God, ' all is well ! " ' Oh, how glorious the approximation ! How lofty the achievement ! Victory over the enemy on the field of battle is glorious. Having shed his own blood for his country, and with his soul washed in the blood of Jesus, there he lies patiently wait- ing the summons, " Come up higher ! " And God keeps him here among his comrades. And why ? Doubtless to give them further warning by his example, exhortations, and prayers. Yet, like Paul, having a desire to depart, he prays, " Lord, can't you as well let me go now as any other time?" In the language of the sainted Toplady, he seemed to cry, "Oh, how this soul of mine longs to be yours ! Like a bird imprisoned in a cage, it longs to take its flight ! Oh, that I had wings like a dove, then would I fly away to the realms of bliss, and be at rest forever ! Oh, that some guardian angel might be commissioned ; for I long to be absent from this body, and to be with my Lord forever." " Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly ! " And yet this brave hero lingers ; the grave yawns. Death knocks at his door, yet with- holds the fatal stroke ; and his noble soul still cleaves to its clay tenement. Gather round, and gaze upon the solemn scene, and 30 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. leani how a heroic soldier can die ! His dear comrades weep around him ; angels hover over him, till at last, March 14, 1864, God, in mercy, snaps the silver cord, and his emancipated soul took its flight home to glory. CAPTAIN TRESOUTHICK. This brave officer was brought to the Chesapeake Hospital early in July, 1864/with one leg amputated above the knee. In what engagement he was wounded, we do not recollect. But having proven his love for his country on the bloody field, he comes to the hospital to complete the sacrifice. With a robust frame, a dark, heavy brow, and a countenance beaming with honor and integrity, his appearance was quite prepossessing. Delighting in the law of the Lord, he kept his Bible at his side all the time, drawing from its exceeding great and precious promises strong consolation. Blessed with the skilful surgical attendance of Dr. Rush, Surgeon of the U.S. volunteers, and nursed by a tender, faithful matron and an affectionate brother, he was well cared for, and received the best attention the hospital could afford. And although his loss was great and suffering severe, yet, " counting all things but loss " for the salvation of his coun- try, he was not only composed and resigned, but he seemed to enjoy an inward peace the world knows nothing of. I preached occasionally to him and his large ward of sick and wounded officers, in all some one hundred and fifty patients, once on the nature and necessity of regeneration, and again on the nature of God's presence and the rest it affords, urging upon them all the great importance of " fleeing the wrath to come, and immediately to lay hold of the hope set before them in the gospel." Fond of the word of God and prayer, the captain felt himself neglected, if Chaplain Marshall or I did not go every evening and read and pray with him. Consequently we did this very often. At the close of the day, just as the sun was setting beneath the bloody sky, we would go, in a quiet, easy way, and read to him about the Sun of Righteousness, and, after a few words of explanation, kneel down by his bedside and pray with him, com- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 31 mending him, soul and body, to the watchful care of "Him who neither slumbereth nor sleepeth." He had commenced to study for the ministry, but with a heart swelling with patriotism, at his country's call he laid down theology, grasped the sword, fought, and fell a martyr in the noble cause of liberty and truth. Giving satisfactory evidence of the gracious state by his words and deeds, we never felt like questioning him particularly on his religious experience. But his meek, forgiving spirit and heroic devotion evinced that there was laid up for him a crown of glory. The weather became extremely warm. He lingered along the shore of the eternal world until late in July, when, robed in white, and crowned with a martyr's crown, and singing a victor's song, he passed the precincts of mortality, and went, we trust, to swell the ranks of the blood-washed throng in heaven. LIEUTENANT C. M. RANSOM. The following brief sketch of Lieut. Ransom was written by the author, and published in the " American Messenger," New York. CHESAPEAKE HOSPITAL, ) FORTRESS MONROE, VA., July 25, 1865. j Rev. A. S. Billingsley, a devoted chaplain of this hospital, writes, Lieut. C. M. Ransom, 98th N. Y. Vol., was wounded at Petersburg, Va., on the 6th, and brought here on the 8th of July. He soon became very restless, slept but little, and seemed to suffer intensely. I visited him very often, and frequently spoke to him of Jesus, and told him that lie is a precious, merciful, all-compassionate Saviour, able and willing to save even to the very uttermost, and urged him to come unto him. On one occasion I read and explained to him the interesting story of "blind Bartimeus," Mark x., and kneeling by his bedside besought God for his salvation, and prayed that that poor beggar's prayer, " Jesus, thou eon of David, have mercy on me\" might go forth from his heart. As I prayed, he cried, " Amen ! amen !" and exclaimed, " Glory to God ; glory to God." Prayer being over, and convinced of his approaching death, ho said to me, with deep emotion and tears, " Tell my mother, brothers, and tisters that I died for my country, and with a Christian heart, and hope they will do the same." Soon after he oTFered an audible prayer. Let us thank God for such a victory. How glorious such a death. " To die for our country, and to die with a Christian heart," is the chief end and highest attainment of man. 32 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Shortly after his death his brother came to see him, and learning he waa dead and buried, was deeply anxious to know if he died with hope in the Lord. When I told him of his dying words and bright prospects, with a /smitten heart he exclaimed, " Thank God ! thank God ! " and burst into tears, weeping like a child. Such is the anxiety of one brother for another, and such the strong con- solation "to die with a Christian heart" affords. Let Christian laborers, soldiers, and officers "thank God, and take courage." CAPTAIN FEE. Capt. JOHN A. FEE, Co. I, 48th N. Y. Vol., was severely wounded in the right shoulder and arm, June 30, 1864, while defending his country's honor, and brought to Chesapeake Hos- pital shortly after. Brave, frank, and free in conversation, with a generous heart, although he possessed many noble traits, yet lie made no pretensions to piety. His wound never seemed to do well. In spite of all the surgeons could do, it would occa- sionally bleed profusely, thus rapidly reducing his strength. But being lively and jovial, he bore up under it very well. Easy of access, we had no trouble in approaching him on the subject of religion, and frequently we had lengthy conversations about the " one thing needful." I recollect one occasion particularly, ou the 12th of July, when I read to him the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, pointing him to the Saviour " who was wounded for our transgressions, and with whose stripes we are healed." " Jesus received five wounds for the salvation of our souls ; you, captain, have received only one for our country. He was pierced through his hands and feet, you only through the shoulder." And having explained to him the plan of salvation, upholding Christ to him in all his offices of prophet, priest, and king, urging upon him the necessity of regeneration, and the importance of immediate repentance, I besought him by every motive under heaven at once to fly to the Saviour. On July 9, his wound bled again profusely, and made another heavy draw upon his vitality. The surgeons tied the artery, but erelong it broke loose again ; and, after consultation, the doctors decided to take his arm off. Laying him on a stretcher, he was carried to the " operators' tent ;" and feeling deeply interested in his welfare, I went along to witness CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. the operation. All ready, they lay him upon the hard table ; and conscious of the danger of losing his life (in the operation), 1 spoke to him about his future prospects, and asked him, " If you should die in the operation, captain, do you feel prepared to go ? " " No," he said ; "/ don't know as I do" Firm and com- posed, the captain exhibited no signs of fear. They gave him chloroform; and as it began to take effect, he began to say bad words. The surgeons hesitate ; waiting, it was said, for the ad- vice of the surgeon in charge. The stupefaction passes off, and I began to persuade him to repent and come to Jesus. Endeav- oring to impress his mind with the importance of making his peace with God immediately, and to encourage him, I referred him to the striking, encouraging case of the thief on the cross. I told him " man's extremity is God's opportunity." " There hangs the dying thief. It is his last opportunity. This may be your last. There he hangs upon the cross here you lie upon the fatal amputation-table. There he went a hardened sinner here you have come an open swearer. He died a malefactor for his crime. You may soon die a martyr for your country. With him it was the last extremity ; with you this is probably the last opportunity. Oh, then, trifle no longer with your soul's salva- tion. There he hangs, a thief and a robber here you lie, a patriot soldier. A regular Jew, he had been brought up to hate and despise the Saviour. You have been brought up to love and serve him. How thrilling the scene! There he hangs right beside the bleeding Saviour. Hark ! do you hear that voice ? It is the voice .of prayer, the dying thief praying to the dying Saviour. 'Jesus, Lord, remember me \vhen thou comest into thy kingdom.' Oh, what a prayer was that ! It is not only short, direct, earnest, comprehensive, but it was a prayer of won- derful faith and power. Look at the circumstances, how dark and unfavorable to elicit faith and secure confidence ! There hangs the Saviour, nailed to the cross, dying as a malefactor ; yet with divine light flashed upon the thief's soul, his faith penetrates the dark cloud, and recognizes the expiring Redeemer as 'Jesus, Lord,' and flies to him for salvation. How critical the mo- ment ! It is the crisis of his soul. It is salvation now, or never. 3 34 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. It was his last prayer. And was it heard ? Did it prevail ? Did Jesus remember him ? He did, and replied, ( To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise/ Yes, that very day, with his soul washed in Christ's blood, he went home to glory, translated from the cross to the throne. Oh, then, my dear captain, be encour- aged. Look to Jesus. Look and live, believe and be saved. Pray like the publican, 'God be merciful to me a sinner.' Pray like sinking Peter, ( Lord, save me.' Pray like the dying thief, ' Jesus, Lord, remember me/ and I can assure you, your prayer will be heard, your sins pardoned, and your soul saved. " Doubtless it will soon be with you, as it was with that dying thief, your very last chance. Now is the crisis of your soul. It is salvation now, or never ; it is believe and be saved now, or refuse and be lost forever ; it will soon be salvation or damnation ! Now is the accepted time ; oh, then, let this be the day of your salvation ! Just think, captain, of the Saviour's love in suffering and dying to save us, and of his ability and willingness to save you ; think, too, how lamentable it will be to die for your country and lose your own soul ! Think of the torments of hell ; of the lashings of a guilty conscience ; of the gnawings of the undying worm ; of Hhe everlasting fire;' of the weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, you will soon bring upon yourself, unless you soon repent ! Then let these things alarm you ; let the love of Christ constrain you, and his spirit woo you. Gaze upon the compassionate Saviour lying in a manger. View him agonizing in Gethsemane ; suffer- ing, groaning, bleeding, dying upon Calvary, crying unto you, ' Give me thy heart ! ' and let the cry go forth from your heart, 'Here, Lord, I give myself away ! ' " And perceiving his heart beginning to yield, I asked him, " If he had not been a great sinner? " He replied, " Yes ;" and feeling a sense of his sins, and realizing his need of a Saviour, he said, " Chaplain, will you please pray for me ?" and then, while he lay on the hard board, surrounded with doctors and surgeons, I knelt down on the ground : I prayed, and besought God, for Jesus' sake, to have mercy on him. Then urging him still further to surrender him- self to the great Captain of our salvation, and beseeching him to let go of everything else, and to step right out upon the pro- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 35 mises of God, and throw himself into the arms of Jesus, we left him. They cut off his arm, and carried him back to his ward. At my next call, I said to him, " Do you feel sorry for your sins, captain ? " " Yes," he replied. " Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. O captain, just surrender yourself at once, and come to Jesus. Now is your best time. Now is God's time. Delay is dangerous. It is glorious to die for your country ; but it is lamentable to die, and be lost. Go to Calvary ; see how Jesus suffered, bled, and died that you might live ! And can you, will you refuse him ? May God bless you, captain." He said, " He loved the Saviour, and that he was precious to him." He grew pale and weak, and his attendant brother sent for me just as he was dying, July 15, 1864; but it was then too late, even to pray for him again. We trust he went happy. A ROLLING CHAPLAIN. The son of Dr. Eastman, Secretary of the American Tract Society, was a chaplain. His horse, plunging during a battle, struck him on the knee-pan. His leg swelled and stiffened until the pain became almost unendurable. When he could no longer stand, he gave his horse up to a servant, and had himself to lie on the ground. The pain was intense. Darkness settled over him. He had to take a wounded soldier's place alone that night. As he lay on his back, suffering and thinking, he heard a voice : " my God ! " He thought, can any body be swearing in such a place as this ! He listened again, and a prayer began. It was a wounded soldier praying. How can I get at him? was his first impulse. He tried to draw up his stiffened limb, but he could not rise. Then he grasped a sapling, drew up his well foot, and tried to lift the other up and extend it without bending, that he might walk ; but he fell back, in the effort, with a heavy fall, that jarred through him like a stab ! He then thought, " I CAN ROLL." And over and over, in pain, he rolled in blood and over dead bodies, until he fell against the dying man, and there he preached Christ, and prayed. At length one of the line- officers came up, and said, "Where is the chaplain ? Where JF 36 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR the chaplain ? One of the staff-officers is dying." " Here he is ! here he is ! " cried out the suffering hero. " Well, such an officer is dying ; can't you come out and see him ? " "I cannot move ; I have just rolled up alongside of this dying man to talk to him." " If I detail two men to carry you, may they do it ? " " Yes." They took him gently up, and carried him. And that live-long night those two men rode him over the battle-field, and laid him down, in blood, beside bleeding, dying men ; and he preached Christ to them, and prayed. He had to look up then, brethren ; he could look no other way from that position, not even into the face of the dying ; and with God's stars shining down on him, and heaven bending over him, he had to preach Christ, and pray ! " I can do all things, and can bear All sufferings, if my Lord be there ; And pleasure mingles with my p^ins, While his right hand my head sustains." Extract. "YOU SAVED MY LIFE!" It was on a hot, sultry night, about twelve o'clock, in the sum- mer of 1864, when all was calm and quiet, that I heard a quick rap at the door of my quarters. " Who 's there ? " I inquired, hastily. " The nurse from room number eleven, first ward ! " replied the nocturnal visitor. " What do you want ? " " Lieut. D. is very bad, and wants you to come up and see him right quick." Immediately I got up, put on my clothes, and hurrying up the long, winding stairs, by the lamps dimly burning, made my way to his lofty apartment, and found him lying on his bed in the sixth story of the hospital. On approaching his bed, he reached out his hand, and giving each other a warm, tender shake, I said, " What 's the matter, lieutenant ? " " O chaplain, I feel most awful. I have long been a professor of religion, and have enjoyed much comfort in it ; but now I feel that I have lost it all. I am afraid I am going to die, and be lost. Oh, what shall I do ? " " Look to Jesus, look to Jesus, He is the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 37 great Physician, able, willing, and mighty to save and comfort ! And he is right here here in this room, in all his loveliness, tenderness, and compassion, waiting to dispel your doubts and fears, and restore unto you the joys of his salvation. Are you in darkness ? He is light. Are you weak ? He is strength. Are you guilty ? His blood cleanseth from all sin. Are you afraid you '11 be lost ? He is ' mighty to save.' Are you in trouble ? He says, ' Be of good cheer.' Then, 'fear not ;' don't be dis- couraged ; there is no danger of your going to die now, and be lost. God's promises run parallel with a man's life. ' Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain thee.' 'Only believe,' and your doubts and fears will leave you. Jesus says, ' My grace is sufficient for thee.'. . . The temptations of army life have, per- haps, led you away from the Saviour, and God has, in mercy, thrown you into the furnace of affliction, to whip and bring you back. God is, no doubt, only trying your faith, and he says, ' Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial that is to try you/ Troubles and trials don't come by chance ; no, they are sent in infinite wisdom, love, and mercy for your good ; and if through their sanctified use you are brought nearer to God, you ought to be thankful for them. Basil's prayer was, ' Saviour, give me any cross that may bring me into subjection to thy cross.' Then be patient : ' All things work together for good.' Job says, ' Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.' Oh, then, fly to Jesus throw yourself right into his arms, and cry, like sinking Peter, 'Lord, save me,' and God will lift you out of this ' doubt- ing castle.' If the dying thief, when hanging upon the cross, trusted a dying Saviour amidst all the darkness, horror, and gloom of the crucifixion, surely you can trust him here in the hospital. Besides these encouraging facts, it is very common for Christians at times to become cast down, and get into a state of soul dejection. Job, with all his patience, piety, and assurance, on one occasion so lost his sense of God's presence, that he ex- claimed, 'Oh, that I knew where I mind find him!' David, though we find him, at times, soaring aloft and basking in the blessed enjoyment of full assurance, yet, again, we find him cast down, watering his couch with tears, earnestly exclaiming, 'Why 38 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. art thou cast down, O my soul ? Why art thou disquieted within me ? ' So you need not be discouraged, if, amidst all the whirl- pools of temptation incident to a soldier's life, you do sometimes get into the fog, and wander away into the Slough of Despond. Besides, your trouble and distress of mind may arise from the disease of your body." Thus, sorely troubled, and being very anxious to have his doubts and fears removed, he began to inquire about the nature and evidences of love to the Saviour. Answering his inquiries as well as I could, and recounting to him some of the principal marks of the gracious state, and endeavoring to console him, after reading to him the fourteenth chapter of John, and praying that God would dispel his dark clouds, and pour into his soul the consolations of his Spirit, his doubts and fears began to leave him. After pointing him again to the Saviour, and upholding him in all his offices and attractiveness, drawn from the melting scenes of Gethsemane and Calvary, I bid him a tender farewell for the night. Hastening up early next morning, I found him all bright and clear. The lowering cloud had passed away, and, enjoying the bright rays of the Sun of Righteousness, he was very gratefully rejoicing in his happy deliverance. I visited him frequently afterward, and always found his heart overflow- ing with gratitude and thanksgiving. He soon got well, and went back to his regiment; served his time out, and went home. I labored on in the hospital long after Lee's surrender: the rebellion was quelled, the slave was freed, and the country saved ; but of the lieutenant I heard nothing more until the fall of 1868, when he saw and recognized me in the church while attending the Presbyterian Synod in Ohio. Finding out my lodging-place, he came round next morning to see me ; and on entering my room, as we shook hands, he said, with a good deal of warmth, "Do you know mef " Looking at him a moment "No; I guess not," I replied. And says he, "You SAVED MY LIFE!" "I saved your life?" greatly surprised. "Yes, I believe you did." " When and where ? " " In Chesapeake Hospital." " Who are you ? " " Lieut. D , 143d Ohio Vol. Co. E. Don't you remember coming up late, one night, to see CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 39 a sick man in room number eleven, first ward ? " " Yes ; I re- member it very well." "I am the man/' and then, with joy, I recognized him at once. It was a very happy re-union. How glad we were to see one another again ! He was unspeakably thankful for what I had done for him, and I was very glad to learn that I had been the means of relieving him and saving his life. I had not known it until now. At his kind request, with great pleasure I went out and spent a night with him and his family, near C ; and, as I reached the house, found his noble wife waiting for me at the door. As I approached her, she gave me a very warm shake of the hand, saying, *' You are veiy dear to me, because I believe you saved the life of my husband." Thanking her heartily for her com- pliments and kind reception, we went in, and found them living very comfortably with his parents. Instead of dying, and being lost in the hospital, as he feared he would be that awful night, Mr. D still lives, a highly - respected, consistent Christian gentleman. Reader, let this striking case encourage you to labor on, and be faithful, even though you do not see the fruits. It is not given us always to know what good we are doing. The blessing is of God. It is man's duty to labor ; it is God's prerogative to bless. A DYING SOLDIER'S LETTER. We copy the following from a late number of the " Detroit Free Press:" Many of the friends and acquaintances of the late Col. Brodhead have expressed a great desire to see his last letter, the one which, it is generally known, he wrote to his wife from the fatal battle-field. To gratify this desire, we have requested, and have been able to obtain, a copy of the let- ter, and to publish it, with the restriction, however, that the names referred to in it should not be mentioned : " MY DEAREST WIFE : I write to you mortally wounded from the battle-field. We are again defeated, and ere this reaches you your chil- dren will be fatherless. 40 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. " Before I die, let me implore that, in some way, it may be stated that Gen. has been outwitted, and that is a traitor. Had they done their duty as I did mine, and had led as I led, the dear old flag had waved in triumph. " I wrote to you yesterday morning: To-day is Sunday, and to-day I ink to the green couch of our final rest. "I have fought well, my darling; and I was shot in the endeavor to rally our broken battalions. I could have escaped ; but I would not till all hope was gone, and was shot about the only one of our forces left on the field. Our cause is just, and our generals, not the enemy's, have defeated us. In God's good time he will give us victory. " And now good-by, wife and children. Bring them up, I know you will, in the fear of Gad and love for the Saviour. But for you and the dear ones dependent, I should die happy. I know the blow will fall with crushing weight on you. Trust in Him who gave manna in the wilderness. " Dr. Nash is with me. It is now after midnight, and I have spent most of the night in sending messages to you. " Two bullets have gone through my chest, and directly through the lungs. I suffer but little now, but at first the pain was acute. I have won the soldier's name, and am ready to meet now, as I must, the soldier's fate. I hope that from heaven I may see the glorious old flag wave again over the undivided Union I have loved so well. " Farewell, wife and babes, and friends ! We shall meet again. "Your loving " THOKNTON." LIEUTENANT FRANK L. MERRILL. This noble officer of the 3d Kegiment N. H. Vol., Co. H, was brought into Chesapeake Hospital, July 2, 1864, with his left leg amputated below the knee. Mild and affable in his manners, he was always an agreeable patient to wait on. Frank and free in conversation, we found no difficulty in approaching him on any subject. Touching his religious character, he said he had been brought up by Baptist parents; and although not a professor of religion himself, he was moral, and had often been deeply impressed with religious things, yet, he said, " I am satis- fied I am not a Christian." Still he was deeply concerned about his salvation, and, at his request, I read and prayed with him very frequently ; sometimes three or four times a day. He seemed to hunger and thirst for salvation. And in the plainest manner I pointed him to Christ, explaining to him the simplicity CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 41 of faith, urging him to prayer, and by the mercies of God be- sought him to repent, and come to Jesus. By the thrilling and encouraging example of the thief on the cross, I endeavored to impress upon his mind the willingness and ability of the Saviour to save even to the uttermost; beseeching him, Peter-like, to launch forth and step right out upon the promises of God, and throw himself into the arms of the compassionate Saviour, and be saved. Time fled, the heat became more intense, his wound grew worse, mild lockjaw set in, his appetite began to fail, and frail nature began to give way. At our next call, with his noble countenance lit up with smiles, we found him indulging a hope ; and with a spirit of meek submission, he said, " I feel perfectly resigned and happy lying here. I can say from the heart, not my will, but thine, O God, be done, in my case." " I suppose that rebel shot through your leg has, by grace, knocked the spirit of rebellion out of your heart, and brought you in submission to God's will. Oh, how rich the blessing to be resigned ! " Recently I heard a wounded soldier say, " I thank God for my wound ; it has brought me to the point." At times the lieutenant suffered very severely, yet he never murmured. Two days before his departure, we warned him of his danger and probably approaching dissolution ; yet without an emotion of fear, and resigned to God's will, he seemed to say, in the language of old Eli, " It is the Lord ; let him do as seemeth him good." Entertaining a hope that he had passed from death unto life, and giving bright evidence of a change of heart, a few days before his death, at his own request, after due examination, we baptized him in the name of the triune Jehovah. How solemn the scene ! There lies the brave hero, away up in the fifth story of the massive building, cheered and soothed by the warm-hearted kindness of Mrs. Dully, principal matron of the hospital. It was about midnight when we applied the outward emblem of the washing of regeneration. And having again invoked the blessing of God to accompany the administration of the ordi- nance, we gave him the right hand of fellowship, and his heart seemed to throb with thanksgiving to God and gratitude to man. 42 CHRISTIANITY IX THE WAR. Resigned to his fate, he had no fear of death. And fond of the word of God and prayer, I still read and prayed, two or three times a day, with him until the last. It is now July 13, near two o'clock in the morning, and he is still failing. His last sands are running, and yet how sensible and composed. Having given me some ringlets and' precious mementos to send home to his friends, as his last dying request, he said, " Give my dying love to my father, mother, wife, brothers, and sisters." He stood the conflict of life till near twelve the next evening, when the silver cord was broken, and his noble spirit took its flight, we trust, to the realms of endless bliss. His mortal remains were sent home in a few days. The following letter from Chaplain James Marshall, U.S.A., will be read with much interest. This captain died in Chesa- peake Hospital. THE DYING CAPTAIN. When Capt. P was brought to the hospital, he said that slight wound through his wrist could not kill him. The bones were fractured, and his whole hand was badly inflamed. The surgeon was anxious to amputate, as soon it would be impossible to cut off the disease, when the whole system would become diseased by ab- sorbing the poison. The captain refused to have his hand am- putated, as he could not well support a wife and a family of small children with only one hand. His heart was blessed with good natural affections, but piety did not ennoble them. They were the beautiful flowers springing up amid the most noxious weeds around a den of vipers. His heart grew hard as his hand grew worse. His frame grew weak ; amputation now would only hasten death, if not cause it at once. The surgeon might cut off the wrist, but he could not the disease. One Sabbath morning, while in his room, he told me he might not live, and evinced great anxiety about sending home at once his effects. He wanted to get his pay, to settle up with the Government, and then send money and effects to his wife. When earthly affairs were properly arranged, I very plainly referred to CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 43 the necessity of preparing to settle his account with his God, and asked him how he felt in regard to death, and his own per- sonal preparation for such an event. Lying with his right side to the room, he cast his eyes upon the wall, shook his head, his face looking despair, and said, " I don't know. Pretty hard case." This very remark was a rebuke to a life of sin and neg- lect to prepare for death while in health. I spoke freely to him of Christ as the satisfier of divine justice, as the atoner for sin, as the mediator between God and man, and as the present intercessor at the court of Heaven for all sinners who would cheerfully and willingly trust in the great work he had done, and was then doing by his Holy Spirit, to save the most guilty among men. He was most solemnly attentive. I did not pray with him ; but the story of the Cross was fixed in his mind. He was silent and thoughtful, and his manner spoke more than words. As I left him for other sick beds, whose occupants I wanted a word with before the religious services of the day, I heard his voice saying, " Come again soon : I can't talk ; but I love to hear you talk." About ten o'clock at night he sent for me. I was weary and worn ; had visited and prayed with a number of wounded men that day, four of whom died within a month ; had preached at 10 A. M. ; held a Bible-class for soldiers at 2 p. M., and a Sun- day-school for colored servants of these officers at 3 J P. M. ; had preached at 4 p. M. in the military prison to about five hundred rebel refugees, blockade-runners, Union deserters, etc., and had conducted a most interesting meeting of soldiers for prayer and conference in the evening. But I went at once to his room. Just as soon as I entered, he told the story of preparing his effects that day to send to his family. I satisfied him that his pay could be drawn on the morrow, and all sent home with little trouble and expense. When satisfied on these things, I inquired how he had spent the day, and how he felt after our conversation in the morning. He replied, "I feel very serious very serious indeed." " You want to be a Christian, a friend of Christ, do you, captain ? " 44 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. " I do. I believe there is a reality in religion, and I want it." I then prayed with him, after trying to prepare his mind to come to Christ. During prayer, he would exclaim, " God grant it!" "Come, Jesus; come just now!" He was failing growing weaker. I repeated the promises, and pointed out the significance of God's providences, and Christ's mercy ; his will- ingness to pardon and give peace, if he were only willing to give up family, house, friends, the world, all for Christ's sake ; let him cast himself a helpless sinner upon the merits of Christ's work : believe in what he had done for sinners. "But I have been," he said, "such a vile, guilty man!" After showing him that the fact that he felt so convicted of his sin was cause for gratitude, for it was evidence God's Spirit was working in his heart, I removed quietly to one side, as he was tired and exhausted, and I wanted him to sleep. But soon he seemed in silent prayer, and whispering? in most plaintive, beseeching breath, " O Jesus, just now ! O Jesus, just now ! Come, O Jesus, bless my soul just now!" Then he spoke out, apparently to himself, " I can't understand ; I can't understand." Arousing up, I asked him what it was he could not understand. "Oh, I can't understand how to get religion." Here man's weakness is so plain, I felt like leaving the bedside in despair. But Christ says, My grace is sufficient. Repeating those blessed promises, and urging him to trust his Saviour as a little child trusts his parents, he said/ " Oh, yes ; I am willing to trust the Saviour. I have the disposition, but I haven't the ability to come to Christ. If I could only get a foothold something to stand on." How true that experience. How childlike had become that rough, courageous, brave, profane, proud man! Only divine grace can make such changes. After talking in quieting, cheer- ing, comforting words, I sat one side to let him go to sleep. Soon he was in prayer again. His hand he waved over his face in form of cheering, whispering, " Hurrah for Jesus ! hurrah for Jesus ! Oh, come, just now ! " Then he broke out in a strong voice, " Oh, glory, glory, hallelujah ! " and sang, in a most beau- tiful strain, " Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone," etc. CHRISTIANITY IX THE WAR. 45 He was a changed man. He sang " The Star of Bethlehem," and other most beautiful hymns, showing he had had a religious training. The nurse had been giving him water at times, and observing most intently his experiences. After singing "The Star of Bethlehem," he said, " Oh, I feel that I had a most joy- ful night." He kept talking, and praying, and singing for some time. At one time he would grieve for his sins. " Oh, that I had served the Lord in the days of my youth." Again : " I wish I was able to grasp the very essence of religion." The wife of another wounded officer in an adjoining room had come in to see him, and, while getting him some ice-water, he asked for some. I told him Mrs. J was getting some. "Is she? God bless her ! I came here a perfect stranger, and how many have been my friends. Everybody has been so kind to me. How thankful I am. It shows there is a blessed reality in reli- gion. How I have been prayed for! The church, the con- gregation, my father and mother, and friends, God bless them ! how they have all prayed for me. But what an ungrateful, wicked sinner I have been a poor, despised sinner." Then he broke out into prayer, " O Jesus, save me ! O Jesus, save me just now! " He spoke of his family with such deep interest, of his little children ; related some anecdotes of them ; wished he could see them once more. When telling him that a Christian character was the richest legacy he could leave them, " I know it," said he. " I believe it; oh, yes. I wish I could have them here to-night, arranged along before me ; how I would like to talk to them give them good advice ; but God wills it other- wise." I told him freely that life's hardest lesson, which he was learning by trial, was to submit to God's holy will. He knows best. We should be thankful for this world, where, through the Holy Spirit, we can prepare and fit ourselves to meet our Saviour and our earthly relatives and friends in another and bet- ter world. Then, his face glowing, he sang out " Cheer me onward, Cheer me onward, Cheer me onward, Just now ! " 46 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Becoming reconciled and quieted, he passed into a rest which seemed the peace of heaven. Thus passed the night until three o'clock A.M., when I left him asleep. He lived eight days from that time in which God converted his soul. Nothing but grace on the heart, teaching the joys of heaven and the hope of glory through Jesus Christ our Lord, makes such changes in these dying men. He was all this time mild, cheerful, gentle, submissive, resigned to God's will ; and when he died, it seemed as though he was gazing upon the very splendors of the eternal throne, so clear and implicit his trust in the mercy and power of the Lord and Saviour. CHAPTER III. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. " WHEN I GO INTO BATTLE, I PUT JESUS IN FRONT " A HERO OP PLYMOUTH: "I WILL FALL EIGHT INTO His ARMS" " JESUS is PRECIOUS TO ME Now" "WHY DID You CALL ME BACK?" "I DON'T FEAR NOTHIN' AT ALL" "THE WORLD is HOLLOW AND EMPTY " "I CAME OUT TO CONQUER OR DIE " " THEY LEFT ME FOR DEAD" "Gooo-BY, OLD ARM!" "Pur THE BRIGHT SIDE OUT TO MOTFIER," HE SAID, AS HE DIED " OH, IF I ONLY COULD !" "I AM HAPPY, DAY AND NIGHT" VALUE OF THE UNION: " PRAY, LABOR, FIGHT FOR IT." "WHEN I GO INTO BATTLE, I PUT JESUS IN FRONT." A T my first interview with LEWIS LOVETT, 2d Regiment U. S. -JL Colored Vol., Co. C., we found him prayerful, penitent, pa- tient, brave, and fluent in religious conversation. He said he had been serving God thirty-two years, and seemed to be a decided, earnest Christian. I said to him, " How does the Saviour ap- pear to you?" He replied, "He is dear and sweet; and I am determined to hold on to him, let what else may come." " When I go into battle, I put Jesus in front; and if I fall, I will hold him CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 47 fast." " I have no fear in battle." . " No fear ? " " No." " Why not ? " " Because I put Jesus in front ; and if I fall, I know he will save me." " Perfect love casteth out fear. Oh, what an exalted privilege ! What a glorious attainment ! ready and will- ing to die for your country, and prepared ' to die in the Lord/ " Thanks be to God for such faith and heroic patriotism. It is worth more than earth's loftiest throne, or brightest laurel ever won upon the field of battle. " Don't the shock of battle, the roaring cannon, the whizzing bullet, and the bursting shell, affright you? Don't the streaming blood, the groans of the wounded and dying intimidate you?" "No; with Jesus in front, none of these things move me ; neither count I my life dear to myself, so that I may win victories, aid in quelling the rebellion, and, if need be, die for God and my country. I go in for crushing out the rebellion at all hazards, though blood flow to the horse's bridle, and death come up to the window." " You seem to have courage like a martyr, and faith almost equal to Abraham." " I don't know, but I suppose not. I am a poor sinner; but with Jesus in front, and the everlasting arms be- neath, I fear no evil. God says, ' No evil shall touch thee.' With God for my help, and with Jesus in front, and holding him fast, striving, watching, and praying, I expect to go on fighting the 'good fight of faith' until God says, 'Depart, and come up higher.' " " You seem to have no doubts of salvation ?" " No ; I passed the Slough of Despond and doubts long ago, and now, by offer- ing up prayers and supplications, with strong crying and tears, I strive to ' go on to perfection/ and I feel very happy. With Jesus 'in front to direct, guard, protect, and sustain me, I fear nothing but sin, and nobody but God. I expect soon to die ; but I have no fear of death. Death is only a change nothing but a departure. ' To die is gain, and to depart is far better/ I won victories on the field of battle, but when I die, I expect to win a far more glorious victory." " How did you attain to this high degree of assurance and comfort ? " " Besides striving to ' walk worthy,' I just take God at his word, and tiy to act as though I believed what he says. I 48 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. stagger not, but step right out upon the promises of God, like in- trepid Peter, when he walked upon the water to go to Jesus. Jesus said, < Come,' and Peter stepped forth, treading the mighty deep, ' nothing doubting.' When God commanded Abraham to sacri- fice his son, he went forth and offered him without waiting, doubting nothing. When God bade Noah build an ark, he obeyed, went forward and built it." " So, I suppose, it is with you, when God says do this or that ; you go forward with implicit faith and do it." "Yes, that's it WHOLE-HEARTED FAITH IN GOD, DOUBTING NOTHING. When I ask God in faith, I expect, believe, and know he will hear me." "You colored people have long prayed for liberty?" "Yes; we have long prayed and wrestled with God for it." " You expected it ? " "Yes; we were sure of it. We knew that God said, 'Let the oppressed go free,' and we knew he would bring it to pass." " The great secret of attaining this assurance is UNSHAKEN FAITH IN GOD. It is all summed up in two words BELIEVING and DOING." " Yes, that's it, believing and doing with all your heart. Just take God at his word, and do what he says. I strive to be faithful to God and my country ; and I expect to cling to the cross and stand by the flag till I die." A HERO OF PLYMOUTH: "I WILL FALL RIGHT INTO HIS ARMS." I became acquainted with JOHN H. BARNETT, Co. H, 101st Pa. Vol., some two years ago, at Plymouth, N. C. At our first interview, he said, " The army has been a good place for me ; " and he went on and gave me an account of his conversion, which occurred since he enlisted in 1861, at New Brighton, Pa. He endured the hardness of the Peninsula campaign, and for many months the miasmatic atmosphere of swampy North Carolina, and the shock of all the battles in which the 101st was engaged. He was regularly at prayer-meeting, at church, Bible-class, and a frequent, welcome visitor at my quarters, to get religious books, and talk about religion. He would often meet with a few colored people, read the Bible, talk and pray with them, and had concluded to study for the ministry. He often assisted me in distributing papers and tracts to the regiment. His captain called him " Our Chaplain." He was severely wounded April 19, 1864, while supporting the pickets during the heavy siege at Plymouth. When the battle was over, after he CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 49 had lain on the cold ground for several hours, the rebels took him into the hospital, and laid him down near the fire with their wounded, and seemed to treat him kindly. Here I visited, read, preached to and prayed with him, surrounded by some forty wounded rebels. Though apparently mor- tally wounded, he was calm, patient, composed, and resigned. Not an expression of fear or complaint fell from his lips. Intimating to him, one evening, that he would probably die before morning, and pointing him to Jesus, I said, " Do you think he will save you ? " " Yes," he said ; "1 will fall rig/it into his arms ! " How glorious to fall on the field, hattling for his country, and yet fall into the arms of Jesus ! Putting his hand into his pocket, he drew out his Testament, stained with his own blood, and gave it to me, together with his diary, pocket-book containing some sixty-seven dollars and his coat-buttons, to send home to his widowed mother. Though unable to get up, or turn himself as he lay on the floor suffering from his wounds, he took it all very patiently, as though he was reposing " in the arms of Jesus." He was a good fellow, a faithful soldier, and evidently a devoted Christian. At my last visit, at his request, I read, kneeled down by him and prayed for his salvation. Oh, how very much I regretted to leave him and the rest of our wounded. With weeping eyes I bade him a long farewell, to meet no more on earth. He died, I heard, shortly after, and doubtless " fell into the arms of Jesus," and his soul went from a rebel hospital home to heaven, where there will be no more war, pain, nor death. Very early next morning, we, Gen. Wessels, his staff, and a few other officers, started for Libby on an old tug-boat, up the Koanoke River. A. S. B , Late Chaplain 101st Pa. Vol. "JESUS IS PRECIOUS TO ME NOW." The wharf to which the patients of the U. S. General Hospital, Fortress Monroe, Va., were brought, was near three-fourths of a mile from the hospital, at the mouth of Hampton Creek. Here they were brought in on Government steamers at the rate of from one hundred and fifty to eight hundred a day. From this point the patients either walked, were hauled in ambulances, or were car- ried on stretchers, to the wards, and laid on their narrow beds to suffer, get well, or bleed and die, and fill a soldier's grave, as God had appointed them. It was a sad sight to see a large steamer crowded with brave men, bearing scars of honor, with bleeding wounds and amputated limbs, patiently waiting the attention and comforts of the hospital. Here, on these crowded transports, we 4 50 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. walked among the living and the dead, and often found the suf- fering heroes, some in the last stages of life, and others in the agonies of death. Here they lie, strewn all over the boat, calm, quiet, and composed, and sometimes, when they had just come off the gory field flushed with victory, as at the capture of Fort Fisher, or the fall of Richmond, with hearts glowing, and eyes sparkling with patriotism, they were in the best of spirits, and full of jubilation. And while some were thus exulting over victories won by valor and courage upon the field, others we found glorying in the Cross, and rejoicing in Him who conquered on Calvary, and through whom we can conquer, even to the last enemy Death ! On one of the dog-days of August, 1864, three boat-loads of patients (some four hundred in all) were brought down from Deep Bottom, among whom were two dead officers, and a great many very severely wounded, with amputated legs and arms. It was while passing around among these brave heroes, endeavoring to learn their spiritual condition and catch the dying words of the dying, that we came to one suffering severely, whose first words, after he recognized me, were " JESUS is PRECIOUS TO ME NOW." "Jesus precious to you now? Oh, how rich and striking this spontaneous manifestation of faith, joy, and comfort. Yes, although just from the gory field of battle, with the loss of an arm and much blood, and lying among the dead and dying, yet with Jesus precious to your soul, you must be very happy ? " " Yes, chaplain, I am happy. With Jesus precious, whether in sickness or in health, whether in prosperity or adversity, in life or in death, we can say, ' all is well.' It is not in the place we occupy on earth ; it is not in the friends about us ; it is not in worldly engagements or earthly emoluments. No; it is in enjoy- ing Christ's gracious presence that makes us happy. Enjoying his smiles, though the world may allure and devils prowl, we have nothing to fear, and can rejoice with a joy unspeakable and full of glory." Jesus is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother; and although he may, for a while, sometimes withdraw his smiles from his children, to try them, yet when they have sufficiently CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 51 felt the rod, he withdraws the frown and restores the joys of his salvation. All earthly friends may forsake us, but Jesus never. It is a law of his kingdom never to forsake the least of his sub- jects. Hence his farewell promise, "Lo, I am with you always," should always give comfort and consolation to his followers, whether at home, abroad, or amidst the clash of arms and the shock of battle. It will matter but little who else may be absent, or whatever may be your circumstances, with a sense of God's presence and with Jesus precious to your soul, your peace will flow like a river. "WHY DID YOU CALL ME BACK?" It was early in May, 1864, while making my regular rounds among the sick, wounded, and dying, that I came in contact with Moses Bowman, 15th Va., Co. F, whom I found, at our first inter- view, indulging a hope that he had passed from death unto life. In God's good providence, it seems, enlisting under his coun- try's flag had been the means of his enlisting under the banner of the Cross. There is something connected with army life and with battle scenes well calculated to impress and awaken the sinner. The solemn pause, the awful suspense just before a battle, together with the dread of death and the awful forebodings of the eternal world, are well calculated to arouse the most care- less. Hence, conversions among the most wayward are not unfrequent in the army. It was some such impressions, it seems, received during the thrilling scenes of battle, that led the subject of this sketch to repentance. "God, who out of the mouths of babes has ordained strength, has his own way of doing his work." He who shoots his arrows when, where, and how he pleases, can make the whizzing of a bullet, the groans of the dying, or the lightning's vivid flash, the means of the soul's salvation. And aroused from his slumber and convinced of his sin, Moses Bowman began to pray on the field of battle ; and there, pleading for mercy, it seemed darkness fled, light dawned upon his soul, God smiled, the Spirit wooed, Satan was dethroned, and Christ enthroned upon his heart; and with a sou 1 52 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. leaping for joy and a heart swelling with gratitude, he was enabled to exclaim, "All is bright/' and "I am happy in God." Yes, though clothed in garments stained with blood, and surrounded with the dead and dying, with the stern reality of eternity rising in full view before him, yet calmly reposing in the arms of Jesus, and longing to depart, he said, upon recovering from a sinking spell, which brought him nigh unto death, " Why did you call me. back? " " I saw Jesus and the angels waiting to receive me." And now with his enraptured soul so filled with joy that he was enfeebled thereby, or from his wound, he said, " My mind is so weak, I can't enjoy it well." The Rev. John Welsh, an earnest Scotch divine, who spent eight hours out of twenty-four in prayer, when about to depart, enjoyed such an ecstasy of joy that he exclaimed, with his dying breath, " It is enough, O Lord ; it is enough : hold thy hand ; thy servant is a clay vessel, and can hold no more ! " Somewhat similar seemed to have been the feelings of Moses Bowman as he stood upon the threshold of glory. His last words to me, according to my record, were, " God blessed me." Whether he got well, or soon went home to heaven, I know not. " I DON'T FEAR NOTHIN' AT ALL." A sense of shame and the fear of man are two great hindrances in the discharge of religious duties. Perseverance and courage are equally alike necessary to win and conquer at the foot of the Cross as they are upon the field of battle. Yea, more ; for it requires more strength and moral courage to face the world, the flesh, and the devil, than it does to face the blazing charge and the belching cannon's mouth. To stand firm for your country's flag requires much undaunted courage ; but it requires more to stand firm for the cross of Christ. And it was while we were passing through " New Camp," canvassing the hearts of the colored patients, that the brave words heading this article fell from the lips of the brave Edward Draper, 45th U. S., Co. H., while he lay upon his bed, suffering with rheumatic pains, as I was talking to him about the matchless CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 53 love of Jesus, and he telling me about what great things the Lord had done for him. "And have you no fear?" "No." "No fear of death ? " " No ; I trust in de Lord all de time for every- thing." "And so you are satisfied ?" " Yes ; God gives me what I need, and ( I don't want.'" "Will you please give me a brief sketch of your history ? When were you converted ?" " About two years ago." " Where ?" " In New Jersey." " What led to your conversion ?" "Light. I prayed to de Lord, and I received light; then I knew I was in darkness." "How did you feel, when you received the light ? " " Me felt I was a very great sinner." " How did your sins appear to you ? " " My sins seemed very great and heavy, and my heart felt hard, and me felt very bad and unhappy. Then me prayed on to de Lord ; me broke off from my evil ways, and all of a sudden, when I was prayin' and meditatin' about de blessed Saviour, I felt as though a great burden rolled off my back, and dare, while wrestling with de good Lord, I believe Christ was formed in my poor soul, and I felt a great change come over me. And now I pray day and night, and feel ready to go whenever de Lord calls me." " No fear ? no want? and ready to die any time? what a glorious attainment! How did you make such progress in holiness?" "Oh, I just trust in de Lord, and pray day and night. Christ is very dear and precious. I goes to church, when I can, to hear of Jesus. I serve him. And it is a glorious thing ! " " What is a glorious thing ! " " Religion, and to enjoy this assurance of salvation ? I would not be without it for all the world. What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Yes, it is a glorious thing ! By it, Christ, the glorious Saviour, is made unto the believer ' wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.' Through it we achieve a glorious victory, and receive a glorious crown. It is glorious on earth ; it will be far more glorious in heaven. That by which we rise above all ' fear ' and ' want,' and by which we are made heirs of God, and receive Christ in all his fulness, and are made to reign and rule with him on his throne (Rev. iii. 21) in heaven, must be perfectly glorious. All earthly glory and honor is nothing compared with the honor and glory the glorious gospel reveals." 54 CHRISTIANITY IN THE \fAR. "THE WORLD IS HOLLOW AND EMPTY." Notwithstanding the general similarity in the soldier's experi- ence, we find, on some points, a shade of difference in every individual case. Accustomed to hardness, suffering, and death, even with a well-grounded hope, they generally expressed no fear of death. At our first interview with John B. Moore, 1st Texas, Co. D, though conscious of his being mortally wounded, yet with an abiding hope, he said, " I feel perfectly resigned." Blessed with courage and self-reliance, I said to him, "You seem very calm, cheerful, and lively." " Yes, I do feel so ; and it is because I love God." Love to God is enough to calm the most turbulent and rebellious, and cast a lasting smile upon the most forlorn of earth. Linked to God's throne by the ties of this heavenly grace, it soothes the sorrows of the distressed, binds up the broken in heart, and comforts in circumstances the most adverse and trying. Constrained by the fire and strength of divine love, the heroic martyr dies at the stake with joy and tri- umph. And fired with this most noble of all principles, of love to country and love to God, the faithful dying soldier, though weltering in his own blood, in defending the honor of his coun- try's flag and the glory of his Saviour's cross, will shout victory in the last agonies of death upon the gory field of battle. Con- strained by this most powerful of all motives, our country has been deluged with blood and ridged with graves. And to buoy up, encourage, and console the suffering soldier in the hospital, there is nothing like it. Conscious of his own sins and un worthi- ness, John B. Moore seemed very penitent, and manifested a strong desire to live a righteous life, and die a triumphant death. His tender emotions, his anxious desires, his resigned and prayer- ful spirit, all gave evidence that the love of God was shed abroad in his heart. With a high appreciation of things spiritual, and a deep sense of the instability and vanity of things temporal, he said, " The world is hollow and empty." " Yes," I replied, " ' This world is all a fleeting show, For man's illusion given: Deceitful shine, deceitful flow, There 's nothing true but heaven.' CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 65 Solomon, with a very rich and a most varied experience, rolling in wealth and grandeur, and crowned with a brilliant success as a ruler on the throne, yet with all his wisdom and understanding, at the close of a most eventful life, in speaking of the emptiness of earthly things, exclaimed, " Vanity of vanities ! vanity of vanities ! all is vanity." What, we ask, signifies all the gold of Ophir, if a man is without the pearl of great price ? What sig- nifies the most extensive intellectual attainments, if a man is without an experimental knowledge of the way of salvation? Of what value are all the laurels and victories won upon the field of battle, if the conqueror is at last conquered by Satan ? What, we ask, does it signify to sit on the loftiest throne of earth, if at last you make your bed in hell? Then let us with meek humility sit low at the foot of the Cross, and learn how to be wise, useful, and good. In talking about the ministers of Texas, I asked him if he had ever seen the distinguished Dr. Baker. " Yes," he said ; u I have often fed his horse when he was stopping at my father's house. He was the first man that ever showed me the Cross." With ups and downs, John Moore survived the struggle of life till Nov. 1, 1864, and gave up the ghost. "I CAME OUT TO CONQUER OR DIE." THEY LEFT ME FOR DEAD." To hear the brave soldier recount the thrilling incidents of battle the deadly charge, the hand-to-hand fight, and the bloody conflict is enough to warm the heart and stir the soul of the most indifferent and unpatriotic. Returning from visiting the sick and wounded, one day, as I approached my quarters, I fell in conversation with Robert Curtis, 1st U.S., Co. C, who gave me an astonishing account of his inhuman treatment, severe pun- ishment, and wonderful escape from the enemy. He was from Salem, N. J., and seemed to be a confiding, steadfast Christian ; said " he started to serve God twenty-two years ago," and, trust- ing in the Lord, appeared to have no fear of death. He was in the fight at " the springing of the mine," near Petersburg, Va., July 30, 1864. Said he, " As we went into it, I said, 'It's God's work, and I am going into it. I came out to conquer or die; 7 " 56 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and urging his colonel to go forward, in they plunged with twelve hundred men in his regiment, and so destructive was the battle, they came out with only nineteen. The idea that " it is God's work," urges on the religious devotee more than all things else besides. Impress the Turk or Mohammedan with this principle, and they will fight to the very death. Coming in close contact in that battle, Robert Curtis said, " One rebel ran his bayonet through my body, another shot off one of my fingers and bit my left arm." " Why, you must have had a real hot time of it ! " " Yes, chaplain, it was hot." " And what did you do to the bloodthirsty rebels in this severe conflict ? " "I shot five of them dead ; got one by the throat with my teeth, and tried to bite his big vein, but I failed to do it; and while he had me by the arm, I got loose from him, picked up a gun and shot him dead ; and falling down by him, the rebels jumped up and down on me, till the blood gushed out of my side so profusely they left me for dead. I laid there for three days, got better, and in three days the ' rebs ' came around and took me into the hospital, and I got well." Such is his wonderful story ; and did he not bear about with him in the body the marks of those ruthless rebels, we would look upon it as being almost incredible ; but when we saw the print of their voracious teeth in his arm, and saw the rent in his side, we could no longer doubt. "Your sufferings have been very severe indeed ; but they are nothing compared with the sufferings of Christ. You received five wounds on the gory field ; he received five on the bloody cross. You suffered pain of body ; Christ suffered agony of soul. You suffered the frowns of ene- mies on earth ; Christ suffered the frown of his Father in heaven. You suffered for the salvation of your country ; Christ for the salvation of the world. You suffered without seeing death ;" Christ suffered the ignominious death of the cross." The following extract is from the distinguished Chaplain McCabe. It denotes strong courage and a lofty patriotism in the wounded hero. Snch acts of heroism deserve to be published all over the earth. I never learned the hero's name. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 57 "GOOD-BY, OLD ARM!" In an hospital at Nashville, a short time ago, a wounded hero was lying on the amputation-table, under the influence of chloroform. They cut off his strong right arm, and cast it, all bleeding, upon the pile of human limbs. They then laid him gently upon his couch. He woke from hia stupor, and missed his arm. With his left arm he lifted the cloth, and there was nothing but the gory stump I " Where 's my arm ? " he cried ; " get my arm ; I want to see it once more my strong right arm." They brought it to him. He took hold of the cold, clammy fingers, and, look- ing steadfastly at the poor dead member, thus addressed it with tearful earnestness : " Good-by, old arm ! We have been a long time together. We must part now. Good-by, old arm I You '11 never fire another carbine nor swing another sabre for the Government; " and the tears rolled down his cheeks. He then said to those standing by, "Understand, I don't regret its loss. It has been torn from my body that not one State should be torn from this glorious Union." He might have added : " Some things are worthless, some others so good That nations that buy them pay only in blood : For freedom and Union each man owes his part, And here I pay my share, all warm from my heart." This is what that man gave. What is your share and mine? "PUT THE BRIGHT SIDE OUT TO MOTHER." Filial affection is one of the strongest propensities of the soul ; implanted in the human breast by God himself, it is a ruling passion of the heart. To love one's mother ardently is natural. A striking example of which is seen in the case of a little drum- mer-boy, as he lay dying in the awful abodes of Andersonville* prison. The little hero had long endured the hardships and deprivations of prison-life with great patience and heroism ; but the severe suffering and exposure at last proved too much for him. Reduced by hunger and disease, and crushed with rebel cruelty and revenge, frail nature gives way, and, with his cup of suffering almost full, the day of his relief draws nigh. How sad and mournful the scene ! Draw nigh, and gaze upon the noble patriot. There he lies. Once cheering the home, and gladdening the heart, of his widowed mother, now he lies low in the agonies of death. The heart that once throbbed with 58 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. patriotic devotion is now sinking in death. The king of terrors closes in upon him, and, though dying amidst all the heart-rend- ing scenes of Anderson ville, yet, with a heart gushing with filial affection and love, his thoughts fly home to the parental roof; and having cheered and comforted his dear mother during life, he is most tender and faithful to her in death. And being well aware of the severe stroke his death would prove to her, he endeavors to lighten it ; and, with his dying words, pours into her smitten heart the living words of strong consolation. It is the last act of his life ; and, commending his soul to God, he bids his comrade come to him, and, as he bent down to catch his last words, he whispered into his ear : _" PUT THE BRIGHT SIDE OUT TO MOTHER ! " And with a few more struggles, his noble soul passed away, crowned with the honors and glories of martyrdom. " Thank God ! the battle is fought ; the victory won ; and his soul is saved. But, alas ! " said his faithful friend, as he bowed his head, and wept bitterly, " what side is bright in this terrible prison - life ? It is all darkness, horror, and gloom." His remains were interred in the gloomy graveyard close by; but his comrade's life was spared to tell the sad story to his bereaved mother. Mark the sublime courage, strong, filial affection, and patient resignation of this noble boy. Though his soul was harassed, and his heart pierced with rebel cruelty, yet not a murmuring word fell from his lips. Oh, what deep depths of filial affection, moral grandeur, and glory breathe through those immortal words, "Put the bright side out to mother ! " What a noble and magnanimous principle they exhibit ! They deserve to be written in letters of gold, and embedded in the heart of every youth. Let them be written upon the broad canopy of heaven, that every son and daughter of the land may read them. How sublime and Christ-like this example of filial affection ! It is second only to that exhibited by the Saviour himself on the cross. Having loved and served his Saviour in his life, here we see how he acts like him in his death. Jesus, with his soul wrapped in the deepest agonies of the cross, laying down his life for his CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 59 people, with a heart gushing with care and affection for his mother, charges his disciple, John, to take care of her, ana, with his dying words, says to him, "Behold thy mother" * The drummer-boy, though dying amidst all the horrors of Anderson ville, laying down his life for his country, with a heart glowing with filial affection, says to his comrade, "Put the bright side out to mother!" The Saviour and the drummer-boy both seemed to be more con- cerned about their mothers' sorrows than about their own suffer- ings. * "OH, IF I ONLY COULD! " At my first interview with SAMUEL WILLIAMS, 104th Pa., Co. E, I found him careless and prayerless. Though low with rheu- matism, he still remained impenitent, yet not destitute of religious emotions and desires. I endeavored to explain to him the sim- plicity of the plan of salvation ; and when I urged and besought him by the mercies of God to repent and come to Jesus, he earn- estly exclaimed, " If I only could ! Oh, if I only could ! " " You can, if you will" I replied. "What hinders you from coming?" " Oh, I don't know ; but I feel as though I cannot." " Perhaps you have never tried it ? Did you ever try to pray ? " " No, not much." " There is nothing to hinder you but yourself. God is willing; the Spirit is wooing; and Jesus is able and waiting. Yes, the Lord waits to be gracious. 'Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love, and power.' Jesus having made ' all things ready/ now most earnestly warns and most tenderly invites you to look and live, believe, and be saved. If you refuse to come, and go down to eternal death, it is your own fault. It is the sinner's voluntary 'cannot' that keeps him away from the Saviour. Jesus nowhere says ' Ye can- not ; ' but he expressly says, ' Ye WILL not come to me, that ye might have life.' (John v. 40.) Look with what a gushing heart the compassionate Saviour cried to wicked Jerusalem : ' O Jerusalem ! Jerusalem ! how often would I have gathered thy chil- * That is Mary, the mother of Jesus. 60 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. dren together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not.' Yes, it is the sinner's ' ye would not ' and ' will not,' not his ' cannot,' that keeps him away from the Saviour. Whose fault then is it that the sinner is lost ? Is it the fault of the church ? No. Is it the preacher's fault ? No. Is it Satan's fault? No. Is it Christ's fault ? No ; for he has made an atonement sufficient to save the whole world, if they will only accept of it. Jesus has fulfilled the law, satisfied divine justice, given himself a ransom, paid the price, l redeemed us by his blood,' wrought out salvation, and given his Spirit to apply it, and now says, ' What could have been done more to my vine- yard that I have not done.' Then let the important question come home to every sinner's heart, Whose fault is it, if he is lost ? It is his own fault. He loses his own soul. He works out his own destruction. ' And,' says an old orthodox divine, ' he dies, because he will die.' Going on in sin, he is treasuring up 'wrath against the day of wrath/ And yet you say you can't come to Christ. You can, if you will. Only make up your mind, and resolve, like the penitent prodigal, ' I WILL arise,' and go, and you will soon find the way. Perhaps you have never sought God earnestly, and say you can't without making the proper effort. God says, 'Ye shall seek me, ahd find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.' (Jer. xxix. 13.) Are you willing to come to Christ?" "Oh, yes; I am willing, if I only could." "Christ's ability and willingness to save you is beyond a doubt. He says, ' Whosoever will, let him come.' Jesus is f mighty to save.' You seem to thirst for salvation. And the risen Saviour says, Ho, every one that thirsteih, ' come.' To the man with a withered hand, God said, ' Stretch forth thy hand ; ' and immediately he stretched it forth, made whole as the other. God said to the valley of dry bones, 'hear,' and they heard. He said to them ' live,' and they lived, rose, and stood upon their feet, an exceeding great army. And although you may think yourself unable to come to Jesus, yet if, like Peter, you will only make the effort, strive with all your might, and throw yourself right into the arms of Jesus, he will grasp and save you. Oh, then, rise ; come with all your hindrances ; come with all youi CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 61 weakness ; come just as you are ; look and live ; believe, and be saved. May God help and bless you." "I AM HAPPY, DAY AND NIGHT." JAMES A. CUNNINGHAM, Co. C, 96th Ohio Vol., constrained by a sense of duty to his country, volunteered in her service in August, 1862. After a few months' hard service, he shared in the honors of the first battle of Vicksburg, in the following December, and shortly after he took sick ; and after suffering severely for months, from exposure, was taken to the U. S. Float- ing Hospital, at Milliken's Bend, La., by Rev. B. W. Chidlaw, whom he afterward called to him, as he was passing through the hospital. After a short interview, by way of introduction, the minister inquired into his religious prospects and feelings ; where- upon he replied, " / am happy, day and night ! " " Happy, day and night, here, so far from friends and home, floating on this sickly, frail craft ? " " Oh, yes ; Jesus is my all in all, and I am happy." It is not the place nor surroundings that make us happy. No ; if " without God," we may have all that heart could wish, and still be miserable. But if we can only say from the heart, " Jesus is my all" we will always be happy anywhere. With Jesus for our prophet, priest, and king, we may say with the Psalmist, " In thy presence is fulness of joy ; " and then "Let cares like a wild deluge come, And storms of sorrow fall " And let the world allure ; the flesh entice ; and Satan shoot his fiery darts dipped in sin's poisonous bowl ; yet, with God for our portion and Jesus for our all, we can "bid farewell to every fear," and say " all is well." In a letter to his father, a short time l)efore his death, he said, " Father, I feel satisfied. I hope I have no fear of death. I have my Bible and, more than all, my God, near me day and night ; and I pray secretly to him to watch over me, and prepare me for every trial that awaits me on earth, and fit me for entering that rest where the wicked cease to trouble, and the weary are at rest." Patient, and resigned to his Father's will, and enjoying his smiles, he rejoiced in tribulation. 62 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Although for a long time severely afflicted with rheumatism and chronic diarrhoea, yet, sustained by God's grace, he lingered till May 3, 1863, when "the silver cord was loosed, and the golden bowl was broken." God gave him his discharge, and, doubtless, took him home to heaven, a few days after he had received his honorable discharge from the service of his country. His mortal remains were taken home to his native place in Delaware County, Ohio, and decently interred, amidst the tears of a bereaved mother, father, brothers, sisters, and friends. The following extract is taken from one of the author's letters, written before he entered the army, while laboring in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. ATLANTIC SLOPE, ROCKY MOUNTAINS, BUCKSKIN JOE, C. T., Oct. 15, 1862. I The religious operations of this isolated territory are moving on as ustial ; interrupted, of course, more or less, by the all-absorbing interests of the war. Detached, as we are, from the seat of the great, fierce, and mighty conflict, we feel it perhaps less than most other sections. Yet we feel it sensibly here in the Rocky Mountains. Colorado has furnished her full quota of troops to defend the glorious old flag. My eyes fill with tears while penning these lines, when I think of the gross, indignant contempt with which that flag has been used. God grant that it may again soon wave untarnished over our whole country. For this let us unitedly pray, act, and fight. How awful, terrible, and oh, how humiliating, this war ! And yet we fear the people are not yet humbled because of it. Some have asked the question, Is the principle at stake worth all that it is costing us in treasure, blood, agony, and tears? Yes, and infinitely more ! What is treasure, what is life, and what is death, when a great eternal principle is at stake? What is half a million of lives, and all the gold in America, to the life of a great and prosperous nation ? Yes, what is all this to the life of civil and religious liberty? Oh, then, let every loyal heart gird on the sword ; and let Zion awake, and put on her strength, plead and pray for deliverance from this unhallowed rebellion. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. . 63 CHAPTER IV. THE FALL OF PLYMOUTH. THE REBELS ATTACK Us, APRIL 17, 1864 THE GARRISON NUMBERED ABOUT NINETEEN HUNDRED MEN FIT FOR DUTY EXCITEMENT GREAT ALARMED WOMEN FLED TO ME, CRYING, "COME AND PRAY FOR ME! " " COME IN AND PRAY FOR Us ! " THE ARMY AND NAVY BOTH ENGAGE AT ONCE THE SCENE WAS GRAND, AWFUL, SUBLIME REBEL IRON- CLAD ATTACKS OUR GUNBOATS FIGHT SEVERE LIEUT. FLUSSER KILLED THE GARRISON OVERAWED BY THE REBEL RAM "THE COMBAT DEEPENS" " IN THE LAST DITCH" HARD FIGHTING THE CAPTURE GEN. WESSELS SUR- RENDERS MASSACRE AT PLYMOUTH VISITING THE WOUNDED PREACHED IN A REBEL HOSPITAL PRAYED FOR A REBEL SOL- DIER. IT was on a mild, beautiful Sabbath-day, April 17. 1864, about five o'clock, P. M., when all was quiet, that the rebels, under command of Gen. Hoke, began the siege of Plymouth. They commenced the assault with a heavy fire of artillery upon Fort Gray, some two miles above the town, on the Roanoke River, commanded by Capt. John Brown, of the 85th N. Y. Vol., who, with his brave few, gallantly defended it to the last. About the same time an attack was made upon our pickets in front ; where- upon a small detachment of the 12th N. Y. Cavalry was sent out to see, who, after a short skirmish with a loss of one man killed, and Lieut. Russell wounded, soon returned to announce a strong force in that quarter. The alarm now suddenly spread all over town, and many of the women, frantic with fear, came to me, trembling and weeping, crying, " Come and pray for me!" " Come in and pray for us ! " all with most intense anxiety inquiring what to do to be saved ? I had preached in the morning, and Chaplain Dixon, of the 16th Conn., was to preach at night; but the distraction and ex- citement were so great that the sexton failed to ring the bell ; and we had no evening service. A few of the praying men of ray 64 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. regiment had a prayer-meeting in their quarters. It was a good time to pray. A little after dark, the spirited firing at Fort Gray ceased ; and, aside from the activity occasioned by sending our sick and the ladies to Roanoke Island, on a small steamer, a solemn silence pervaded doomed Plymouth, with the men all at their posts, ready for any emergency. An attack had been expected for several days ; and Gen. "Wessels, with characteristic sagacity and foresight, made due preparations for it. Early Monday morn- ing, the stillness of the night was broken by sharp firing above the town, indicating the rebels' determination to take Fort Gray; and in the struggle, the Bombshell, a small gunboat, was so disabled that she dropped down the river, and sunk opposite Plymouth. Nothing of special notice occurred on Monday, but occasional firing by the enemy, and a warm skirmish along our picket-line, wounding Capt. Burke. The Massasoit returned from Roanoke Island with some two hundred men, commanded by Capt. Mays, of the 101st Pa. Vol., just in time to engage in the severe conflict. Now comes the tug of war in earnest. The fierce struggle for swampy Plymouth be- gins to wax hotter and hotter. The bloodthirsty rebels thus far had fired only upon our outposts ; but now, Monday evening, just at sunset, a heavy line of infantry, emerging from the woods, drove in our pickets in front; and obtaining a favorable position for their artillery, they soon opened upon the town, with shells flying from five or six batteries at a most terrible rate, paying particular attention to Fort Williams, where Gen. Wessels had established his head-quarter|. It was just after supper; and having gone over to the head of my regiment, the band of the 16th Conn. Vol. struck up and played a few patriotic airs, to ani- mate and encourage thesoldiers'hearts for the approaching struggle. Presently the music ceases ; and although it was dangerous, yet fearing no evil, I was not afraid as, though unconscious of danger, I stood undismayed amidst whistling bullets, balls, and shells, while all around me dodged and juked be- hind the breastworks. By this time (little after dark), all the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 65 Artillery on both sides, and our gunboats on the river, were brought into action, and the fierce conflict now presented a scene brilliant and grand. Graced with the silver light of the full .noon shining brightly, dimmed only by the smoke of battle, and eager for victory, there they fought for some three hours with perfect desperation. The long sheet of fame issuing from the rebel lines in front, and the heavy storm of balls and shells bursting forth from our artillery and the gunboats, filling the air with balls, shells, and burning fuses, together with the groans of the wounded and dying, presented a scene awfully terrible, grand, and sublime. Men who had been through the Peninsula cam- paign said, for awfulness, grandeur, and glory, it excelled any- thing they had seen. Finding, with a heavy loss, after a long, persistent attempt, their efforts to storm our works and take the town proved unsuccessful, and feeling that our fire was too hot for them, they abandoned the fight for the night, to renew it again with increased vigor. Meanwhile, an assault had been made upon Fort Wessels, a small detached work lying about a mile to the right front, com- manded by Capt. Chapin, 85th N. Y. Vol., who, with a handful of heroic men, bravely repulsed heavy charges of the desperate odds of a brigade, frequently driving them back with the bayo- net and hand-grenades, until their ammunition gave out, and the brave, noble-hearted captain, receiving a mortal wound, was overpowered, and finally compelled to surrender, having, it was said, killed nearly as many rebels as he commanded men. He died soon after. Peace be to his ashes. Encouraged by the cap- ture of this fort, the enemy now sent in a staff-officer, under a flag of truce, and demanded a surrender of the garrison. This, of course, was peremptorily refused, notwithstanding a rebel force of some fifteen thousand was said to confront us. SEVERE NAVAL FIGHT. Very early Tuesday morning, just after the setting of the moon, embracing the darkness of the hour, the iron-clad rebel ram Albemarle came floating quietly down the Roanoke River, 5 66 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and passed Fort Gray (receiving a few shots) and our 200- pounder at Plymouth almost unobserved ; and approaching our little fleet of wooden gunboats, she ran into the Southfield, com- manded by Lieut. French, as she lay tied to the Miami, and soon she began gradually to sink. Lieut. Flusser, the brave commander of the fleet, soon began to move upon the iron-clad with the Miami, endeavoring to sink her ; and while the ill-fated Southfield was gradually sinking, she was taking the Albemarle down with her. During this time, a most severe hand-to-hand fight was going on between the rebel crew and our seamen. Thirst- ing for victory, Flusser commanded a gun himself; but, most unfortunately for the fleet and the garrison on shore, he was struck by a ball rebounding from the Albemarle, discharged from his own gun, and fell mortally wounded on the deck of his own ship, with the lanyard in his hand, and soon after expired. "The command now devolved upon Lieut. French, who left his sink- ing ship," says Lieut. Longnecker, "and sprang aboard the Miami, and sailed down the river, whereupon the Albemarle was enabled to withdraw from the sinking Southfield, and she came to the surface with three feet of water in her hold, coming very nigh sinking. But the unfortunate Southfield went down, and," continues Lieut. Longnecker, "more than one hundred brave but deserted sailors were left to go down with her, and find a watery grave on the decks where they so bravely fought for their country." Some were fired upon by the hard-hearted rebels while attempting to swim ashore, calling for quarter. Says the same lieutenant, "Their drowning cries could be distinctly heard from where I stood. Only a few escaped." When day dawned, the Albemarle, now to us "the terror of the seas," was seen sailing about in the river below, and nothing but the smoke-stack and pilot-house of the Southfield could be seen. Thus deprived of our invaluable gunboats, and cut off from all possibility of reinforcements, the unwelcome prospect of a rebel prison began to stare us in the face. Yet " none of tLese things moved me." Nothing special occurred during Tuesday but frequent firing aud shelling from Fort \Vessels and the Albemarle, from which, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 67 to screen themselves, the men constructed bomb-proofs. I found it no trouble to dodge a cannon-ball discharged a mile distant. Passing along the lines, I found the men, though fatigued, of good courage, and ready for more fight. It was astonishing to see what desolation the rebel ram had wrought at Compiler re- doubt. But there were five companies of the 101st Pa. Vol., com- manded by Capt. Compher, all still unterrified. This was the evening before the capture next morning. THE LAST STRUGGLE. Toward Tuesday evening, the rebels were seen moving and massing their forces on our left to assault the town at our weak- est point ; and about midnight they opened a brisk cannonade on our picket-line, near Canoby bridge, to which our men spi- ritedly replied ; but, after a most desperate contest, were by over- whelming numbers overpowered, and compelled to give way. They fell back fighting, gallantly contending for the ground inch by inch. Here David Fisher, Co. H, 101st Pa. Vol., was killed ; two more mortally and several others severely wounded. We were now in "the last ditch;" for a few hours before, all was compara- tively quiet; but it was a quiet that precedes the storm, for about daylight, artillery opened along the rebel lines it would seem as a signal for a general assault and in a few minutes more, a whole brigade, led by Gen. Ransom, furiously charged on us on the left, defended mainly by the 101st Pa. Vol., commanded by Lieut- Col. A. W. Taylor, concentrating their main force on Compher redoubt, commanded by Capt. Compher of the 101st Pa. Vol., who, with five companies of his own regiment and part of a com- pany of the 2d Mass. Heavy Artillery, most bravely defended it to the uttermost against overwhelming odds, until the rebels, rush- ing in, compelled them to give away. The rebels now rushe:! into town, and our men forming again gave them battle in street after street, repulsing them at different points; and thu? bravely contended for their old quarters to the very last. It- this severe conflict six of our horses were shot down on a caisson 68 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. in quick succession. It was now about sunrise, Wednesday, April 20, 1864; and the enemy, having got possession of the town, pillaged the houses, robbed the stores, and took several hundred prisoners, I among the rest, who were marched over the rebel dead lying around Compher redoubt, and on the left, some two miles down the Columbia road. The loyal North Carolinians and colored troops, after fighting nobly, and seeing that all hope of successful defence was gone, and well knowing their awful fate if captured, fled to the adjoining swamps. But our forces still held part of our works. Gen. Wessels, with the 103d Pa. Vol., commanded by Col. Leghman, and a company of 2d Mass. Heavy Artillery, and part of the 16th Conn., still held Fort Williams, and over it our dear old flag still waved in all its glory. Gazing upon it then and there, surrounded with hosts of rampant rebels, as we marched out of town, prisoners of war, it seemed peculiarly dear and precious. An irregular engagement took place between the rebel sharpshooters and our forces in and about Fort Williams, amidst which Gen. Wessels stood calm and serene. A short truce followed, when terms of surrender were proposed, which our general refused, and firing was again resumed. No further advantage was gained by either side until about eleven o'clock, A. M., when our flag was very reluctantly lowered, and the place surrendered. Thus ended the siege. Gen. Wessels, with a force of eighteen hundred men, defended the place for nearly three days against a rebel force of some fifteen thousand. The rebel loss in killed and wounded was estimated at about fifteen hundred ; ours at two hundred and twenty-five. The 101st Pa. Vol. had twenty-one privates and two officers wounded, and five privates killed. The 103d Pa. Vol. had sixteen privates and two officers wounded, and one lieutenant killed. The 85th N. Y. Vol. had twenty-one privates and one officer wounded, and ten privates and one captain killed. The 16th Conn, had some twelve or fourteen privates wounded ; killed, unknown. The N. Y. Cavalry had one officer and one sergeant wounded. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 69 MASSACRE AT PLYMOUTH. " During the whole afternoon after the surrender," says Lieut. J. H. Longnecker, adjutant of the 101st Pa. Vol., a very reliable man, " we could hear the sharp crack of rebel rifles along the swamps, where they were hunting down the colored troops and loyal North Carolinians. ' I cannot say that the latter were shot, but the former were shot down wherever found. They were massacred after the surrender." I heard a rebel colonel say, with an oath, " That they intended to shoot every ' buffalo? i.e. (North Carolinian) and negro they found . in our uniform ; and, as far as I know, they managed to redeem the promise." For two days after the surrender, I heard very frequent firing in an adjoining swamp, and I always believed they were shooting our men. The Richmond Dispatch, quoting from the Philadelphia Inquirer, speaking of this awful tragedy, says, " Two full com- panies of the 2d N. C. Union (colored) Vol. were among the captured ; the most of whom were led out and shot by the enemy after surrendering." RAVAGES OF THE FIGHT. After returning from below, we were marched about a mile out the Washington road, where our captured host quartered the first night after the fall, before starting to our destined prisons. Through the kindness of a rebel major, I got permission to return to town for my satchel, and on entering my room found everything topsy-turvy. My diary was torn up ; several of my most valuable devotional books gone. Library scattered, desk broken, trunk broken open and rifled, the house-floor torn up, papers, tracts, and letters scattered, coats, shirts, pants, blankets, satchel, Bible, sermons all gone, and everything in a state of perfect desolation. I filled my trunk with the scattered books and left them with Mr. Latham, an old resident, who le^ a rebel officer carry them off. I never saw nor heard of them afterward. Here, in this room, I pointed the anxious soldier to Christ ; and here in this room, while rebel shot and shell were pouring into the town for our destruction, my prayers ascended to 70 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. God for our defence and protection. Going up into Col. Taylor's room, I picked up an old Bible, which I carried through Libby, used during the war, and brought it home for daily use. With stores and houses plundered, buildings demolished, riddled with balls and shell ; with the gunboats sunk and swept away ; with the hospitals crowded with wounded, the streets strewn with the dead and dying, and the dear old flag lowered, North Caro- linians and negroes massacred, and bereaved widows mourning for their husbands, and weeping because they were not, fallen Plymouth now presented a scene of horrible desolation and dis- tress. VISITING THE WOUNDED. During our stay at Plymouth, after the capture, surgeons and chaplains had the privilege of visiting the wounded. Several of our wounded were put in the same hospital with theirs. On one occasion I went in to see three of our men lying crowded in a room with theirs, and while conversing with and pointing them to Christ, a small, wounded North Carolinian boy, who seemed to be in deep anguish, beckoned me to come to him ; and as I approached him, he put out his feeble hand, grasped mine, and earnestly said, " Will you please pray for me ? " I knelt by his side, asked God to lead him to repentance, forgive his sins, and save his soul. He thanked me most heartily. The approach of death seemed to knock the spirit of rebellion out of him. He seemed very tender, penitent, and anxious to be saved. The scene was solemn and impressive. Bidding him farewell, I said to him, " Trust in the Lord, and prepare to meet thy God." He died soon after. This was in the officer's messroom of the 101st Pa. Vol., where we formerly passed many a lively joke, and enjoyed many a social confab. How changed is all now ! Here, where we cracked jokes and ate crackers, now lie dying rebels, bleeding soldiers, and heroic wounded patriots dying for their country. At the request of one of our mortally-wounded heroes, lying in another hospital amidst some forty rebels, I preached, sung, and prayed, and, with close attention, the meeting was deeply solemn CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 71 *nd interesting. I counted hundreds of rebel wounded quartered in the largest houses in Plymouth. In visiting a large hospital down on "Water Street, I found P. B. Mortimer, Co. F., 103d Pa. Vol., mortally wounded in the abdomen. Upon canvassing his heart, I found him, though conscious of approaching death, composed and tender, trusting in the Lord, and resigned to his fate. Although suffering severely, and with death staring him in the face, he gave no signs of fear or complaint. Having fought a "good fight," and now about finishing his course, he seemed to be waiting to receive a crown of righteousness laid up for him. Bidding him a long farewell, we parted to meet no more until the trumpet of God shall sound, summoning us to judgment. CHAPTER V. GOING TO LIBBY. ORDER : " BE READY TO START FOR RICHMOND To - MORROW MORN- ING AT FOUR" SAIL UP THE ROANOKE TO HALIFAX TAKE CARS ENTER LIBBY WITH LOUD SHOUTS OF "FRESH FISH! FRESH FISH!" THEY TOOK OUR MONEY LIFE IN LIBBY ALL SORTS OF THINGS GOING ON VERY HARD PLACE PREACH TO THE PRISONERS BIG CONGREGATION VISITED THE HOSPITAL NOT ALLOWED TO PREACH TO THE SICK RELEASED FAREWELL . TO LIBBY THE EXCHANGE WE CHEERED THE DEAR OLD FLAG REBELS HANDLE OITR MEN VERY ROUGHLY BELLE ISLE U. S. GENERAL HOSPITAL, ANNAPOLIS, MD. LABORS IN, ETC. HAVING spent some three days in captivity at Plymouth, about 11 o'clock, Friday night, orders came to our quarters, " Be ready to start for Richmond by four o'clock to-morrow morning." Now came the trial of leaving our wounded, whom, though apparently quite well provided with provisions, sur- geons, and nurses, it was hard to leave. Bidding them fare- well, and gathering up a few scattered books, blankets, etc., with 72 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Gen. Wessels, his staff, and a few other officers, nineteen in all, we were marched down to the river before day, and got aboard an old tug-boat, and in a short time we bid good-by to Ply- mouth, and set sail up the beautiful Roanoke, under command of a wounded rebel major. Our fare was tolerably respectable. They furnished us two colored servants to wait on us, and pre- pare our meals. Being without any, we made wooden knives and forks to eat with. Sailing up the river, we were the object of all gazers. Having reached Halifax, we left our old tug, and took the cars for Richmond, and reached there early Monday morning. Having registered our names at the provost-marshal's office, we were marched down to Libby, and were jocosely received by the inmates with loud shouts of " Fresh fish ! fresh fish ! " As we went in, Major Turner, the prison-keeper, searched us for arms, registered our names and rank, and took our money. One of our men gave him six hundred dollars. But, to our great surprise, they refunded the money again. For this, we give them due credit. LIFE IN LIBBY. Libby prison is a large three-story brick building, one hundred and twenty by eighty feet, formerly occupied by " Libby & Son, ship-chandlers and grocers." It contained, when we were there, nine hundred and thirty captured officers, ranking from the brigadier - general down to first lieutenant. Sometimes the number rose to twelve or thirteen hundred. Some had been there, enduring all the hardships and deprivations, for twelve or fifteen months. With very scant, poor, rough, and unwhole- some diet, with some one hundred and fifty men crowded into a room, with no glass in the windows, and no beds but a blanket each man had the good fortune to provide himself, it was a very hard, miserable place. And yet with all these deprivations, with buoyant spirits and patriotic hearts, the men seemed to get along and look better than we would naturally suppose. Every morning there was a general skirmish and severe fight with the invading hosts of " graybacks." The emplovment in Libby was various. What did they do CHKISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 73 there ? How did the captured patriots spend the long, wearisome months in captivity ? From splendid portrait painting down to card playing, they had a great variety of exercises. The men were usually divided off into small squads "or messes. Every man had his own quarter and sleeping-place on the floor, though densely crowded all around him. Walk around, and see : There you see a man with his slate and pencil studying arithmetic ; there is another at geography ; there is another writing home to his friends. A little farther on, you see two men busily engaged in making a wooden clock ; and then, off to one side, you see a small squad playing cards or chess to kill time. Approach that table, and there you see an Italian portrait painter minutely drawing the features and expression of a dark-eyed major. Twice a day we were all made to pass through a narrow door, and counted one by one, by the guard, in order to be sure no one had escaped. While thus dragging out a life so intolerable in these wretched abodes, our unterrified men were fighting the battles of our country on the field. Some of the prisoners often received boxes from home, and thus procured something respectable to eat. I took tea with a kind friend one evening, and our fare was respectable, considering. There was a stove and fuel for cooking, and soap for washing. The fare was a small ration of very rough, coarse corn- bread and a few worm-eaten black peas. The Eichmond daily papers were brought in for sale every morning. With this daily routine, it was a hard way of serving our country. They had lectures, debates, etc., to break the dull monotony. PREACHING IN LIBBY. I had not been long jwithin the massive walls of that terrible place until they found out I was a chaplain, and invited me to preach. A room was selected, an hour appointed, and the people invited ; Bible and hymn-books procured, and, at the appointed time, we met in the name of Him who said, " Lo, I am with you always ! " and we had a very large, attentive congregation and a solemn, interesting meeting. I chose for the text God's precious, encouraging promise to Moaea and the children of Israel, 74 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. when they were in troubles and trials, journeying through the wilderness to Canaan, " My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest." (Ex. xxxiii. 14.) God's presence, essential and gracious, and the rest it affords. GOD is PRESENT, that, though prisoners of war, shut up in this stronghold in the rebel capital, yet the " Lord of hosts is with us," " God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble/' that Jesus Christ is here, waiting to be gracious, waiting to sustain, guide, guard, comfort, and save us. Though encompassed with the strong rebel guard, yet God was with us, and it was good to be there. The next day but one, I preached again on the attractions of the cross ; and many were drawn together, and seemed by Christ's con- straining love to draw very near to God ; and the congregation was much larger and the services more solemn and impressive. Some of the Richmond clergy came in and preached occasionally, until one spoke contemptibly of our flag, and he could never get a hearing afterward. The people seemed to be hungering for the gospel, and anxious to hear preaching. Libby was a good, promising field for preaching, and therefore, with all its hardness and deprivations, I regretted, in some respects, to leave it. LIBBY HOSPITAL. The hospital, containing some forty patients, was down in the lower story of the same building. Through the permission of Major Turner, accompanied by a guard, I went down to see the patients, and having encouraged the hearts of the sickest ones and pointed them to Christ, besought them, by the mercies of God, to come to Jesus, and " be of good cheer." At their request I consented to stay, take supper, and preach for them that evening ; but the hard-hearted major would not allow it, and I had to go back to my own place, with the guard, before dark. The sick fared better than the well. They had bunks, mattresses, pillows, etc., but all were so awful dirty, that it was enough to make a man sick to sleep on them. There were but few very bad cases. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAE. 75 FAREWELL TO LIBBY. During my short stay I made the acquaintance of many noble, generous, patriotic fellows, whom I regretted very much to leave incarcerated in that horrible place of torment. But now having witnessed something of the panorama of prison-life in Libby, right beneath the frown of " old Jeff," and having shared in their sorrows and trials, early Saturday morning orders came " for all chaplains, surgeons, and some twenty-five others, to get ready to start for the flag-of-truce boat." As the list of ex- changed officers was read out, all stood with profound silence, every one with intense anxiety waiting to hear his own name called. By hurrying, we soon got ready, and, hastening down- stairs, stood in double file in front of the prison, waiting "march- ing orders," with the prison windows densely crowded with anxious hearts witnessing our departure; and as we started, many exclaimed, "Good-by, chaplain good-by, chaplain," and with a hearty response, and with a falling tear, commending them to the God of all grace, we bade them farewell, sorrowing most of all to leave them in their forlorn, suffering condition. On reaching the boat, we found it heavily loaded and densely crowded with some three hundred and fifty half-starved Union prisoners from Bell Isle and Richmond. Many of them were mere skeletons, and pale as death from disease and starvation. On arriving upon the boat, they gave us small rations of good wheat bread and a kind of briny soup, which, not suiting my taste, I threw into the river; but the wheat bread tasted very well, after living so long on coarse corn and the hard, scanty fare in Libby. THE EXCHANGE. On arriving at City Point, the place of exchange, we again beheld our dear old flag, and cheered it heartily. What a change from the rebel to the Union flag ! from Libby prison to the sweet air of liberty, sailing down the flowing tide of the beautiful James. It was like emerging from darkness to light. As we stepped off their boat into ours, we felt as though a heavy burden had rolled from our backs. 76 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. And now began the exchange of the poor suffering soldiers. While their men, fresh from our prisons, looked stout and rugged and well-fed, nearly all ours looked pale, weak, and half starved to death. And how shocking to see how awfully rough they handled our men. I could but weep to see them toss them about almost like dead hogs. It was most cruel. Laboring hard, I did what I could to comfort the poor fellows while going to Annapolis : I begged bread from the cook, and fed the most hungry. I preached and prayed w r ith them, pointed them to the Saviour, and tried to comfort them with the consolations of the gospel. Sailing down the river, and it being the Sabbath- day, at the request of Col. Beech, I gave them a short sermon in the cabin. Touching at Fortress Monroe, we sailed up the broad Chesa- peake Bay to Annapolis, Md., where our half-starved, sick, and dying patriots were taken to the hospital and well cared for ; and all the officers were granted twenty days' leave of absence to go home. But I chose to remain and labor "for the welfare of the poor suffering soldiers." Having registered my name, and supplied myself with a little necessary clothing, and being re- freshed with a good night's sleep, after writing out a brief sketch of the fall of Plymouth for a New York paper, we started out in search of the hospital, to see how those suffering soldiers were faring. And upon entering one of the wards of the naval hospital, my attention was drawn to a half-starved, fine-looking soldier, for whom we had begged bread on the boat two days before, now struggling in the agonies of death, soothed by the tender affection of two kind lady - nurses. How solemn the scene ! Gaze upon the brave soldier, now fighting his last battle, dying for his country ! See how he struggles ! the conflict rages ; the soul clings to its clay tenement ; death presses his claims ; frail nature gives way ; reason is dethroned ; and it is now too late to inquire into his spiritual condition, but the calm smile resting upon his noble brow, the manifest submissive spirit, together with his serene countenance, seemed to tell that he was getting the victory over the last enemy ! There he lies . time flies ; life ebbs away ; he gasps, struggles, and, though he CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 77 seemed to die easy, yet the twitching of his face evinced that he felt the pain of dying ! He breathes on, till, presently, the wheel at the cistern stands still, and his immortal spirit, washed ii. Christ's blood, we trust, went home to God ! UNITED STATES GENERAL HOSPITAL, ANNAPOLIS, MD. And now, looking around us, we found ourselves in one of tht finest hospitals in the country. Occupying the neat, comfortable buildings and beautiful grounds of the U. S. Naval School, and washed by the swelling tide of the pure water of Chesapeake Bay, it is most delightfully situated, and enjoying the sweet, refreshing breeze rolling up from the "old ocean/' and sur- rounded with a salubrious atmosphere, rendered it very con- ducive to the health and comfort of the patients. Superintended by the discriminating and exacting Dr. Vanderkeiff, Assistant Surgeon U. S. A., everything was carried on with good order. Well supplied with surgeons and a good corps of faithful lady- matrons, and good rations, the patients fared very well. With a good chapel, organ, and choir, we had a good attentive congregation and very interesting prayer-meetings. With a very large, well-selected library and a good supply of papers, the patients were very well supplied with reading matter. Yet, with all these comforts and appliances, they could not keep death out of the camp. In spite of all their skill and attention, " the king of terrors " would invade their thick brick walls and tent wards and pluck off his victims daily. To see the brave heroes drop off, and four or five consigned to the tomb in a.day, was, to one not accustomed to such rapid mortality, deeply impressive. Here we met with a kind and generous friend in the laborious Chaplain H. C. Henries, U.S.A., at whose request we took charge of the religious work of the hospital during his absence East. And now there opened before us a fine field for Christian effort. Preaching, visiting the patients, and burying the dead, kept us very busy all the time. And, with- out time to particularize minutely, we had many very interesting cases and interviews with the patients, and here we formed many 78 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. BELLE ISLE. Hard by Libby was the cruel Belle Isle, a prison for cruelty more severe than Libby, situated on an island in the James River, opposite Richmond, on a low, sandy, barren waste, where the prisoners were exposed to severe heat in summer and ex- treme cold in winter. Here the rebels practised cruelties upon our unfortunate soldiers in a manner almost impossible to describe. With but a few ragged tents, about one-half of the men had no shelter at all. It was my privilege to labor for and preach to a boat-load of some three hundred and fifty men from this place of torment ; and such a half-starved, distressed appearance as they presented, was enough to make an angel weep. With eyes sunken, hair dishevelled, countenances pale and wan, and reduced to skin and bones, they looked more like walking skeletons than living men. To hear them relate their hardships, deprivations, and suffer- ings was truly heart - rending. There, they told me, " many starved to death, and many froze to death." One day a dog ran into camp, they said, and he was quickly snatched up, killed, skinned, and devoured by the prisoners with the appetite of a vulture. I have now in my possession a ration of corn-bread given me over five years ago by one of those half-starved fellows as we sailed from Richmond to Annapolis ; it is less than two inches square, and less than an inch thick. This, with a gill of rye coffee in the morning and a gill of soup in the evening, twice a day, was all they had to sustain life. " Sometimes some of them got a mouthful of meat." Having there dragged out a life more intolerable than death itself, in this horrible place, many of them were sent down to Annapolis to die. But a day of retribution awaits those unmerciful oppressors and tyrants. Yes, it has already come upon them. Less than a year after, Richmond, the stronghold of rebeldom and of this unparalleled cruelty, was wrapped in flames, and the arch-traitor, Jeff. Davis, driven from his throne, caught, manacled, and imprisoned. " The way of the transgressor is hard. Be sure your sins will find you out." CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 79 CHAPTER VI. TJ. S. GENERAL HOSPITAL, FORTRESS MONROE, VA. LOCATION FINE BUILDINGS SPLENDID CHESAPEAKE HOSPITAL BETHESDIAN CHAPEL INTERESTING MEETINGS READING-ROOM AND LIBRARY FOR PATIENTS HAMPTON HOSPITAL, ORGANIZED 1862 HEAD-QUARTERS " NEW CAMP " CONTRABAND HOSPITAL ALL CONSOLIDATED INTO ONE GENERAL HOSPITAL IN 1864 CALLED BY THE ABOVE NAME DISBANDED IN MARCH, 1866 MANAGED BY DR. ELI MCCLELLAN, ASSISTANT SURGEON, U. S. A. HOSPITAL GARDEN VERY EXTENSIVE TWENTY-FIVE THOU- SAND HEAD OF CABBAGE HOSPITAL HENNERY CAMP DISTRIBUTION SOLDIERS CAME AND WENT BY THOUSANDS CHAPLAIN MARSHALL PREACHED TO THEM BY NIGHT MILITARY PRISON PREACHING TO THE SPIRITS IN PRISON GANGRENE CAMP INTERESTING SCENES " NONE BUT CHRIST" ARRIVAL OF PATIENTS: FROM Two HUNDRED TO EIGHT HUNDRED A DAY TRANSFERRING PA- TIENTSVOYAGE TO NEW YORK WITH A LOAD OF PATIENTS BIG JOB FOR THE CHAPLAIN A PATIENT KISSED MY HAND A WEEPING MOTHER AND HARD-HEARTED SURGEON " ALL FAST ON THE POTOMAC." STANDING off Hampton Roads, some two miles north of ^ the fort, is the old Chesapeake Seminary building. Built of brick, it is massive and substantial, one hundred and sixty by sixty feet, six stories high, and well devised. With grand and lofty columns, and a towering dome surmounted with the glorious "stars and stripes," and overlooking the busy fort, Hamp- ton Hospital, the mouth of James River, and the long lines of ships and steamers playing therein, it is most beautiful for situation. Washed by the swelling tide, and fanned by the bland, invigorating breeze of the ocean, it is one of the most pleasant and desirable places in the United States. Captured in 1861, it was used a while for regimental hospital purposes, and was organized into a United States general hospital in March, 1862, by Dr. John M. Cuyler, then medical director at the fort. This is generally known as Chesapeake Hospital. 80 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Having spent about a month, immediately after my release from Libby prison, in the U. S. General Hospital at Annapolis, Md., I reported in person to the Secretary of War, who gave me, unasked, under his own signature, a leave of absence for twenty days. But not wishing to go home, and Fortress Monroe being the head-quarters of the department to which I belonged, I was afterward ordered to report there for duty. Here I arrived June 1, 1864, and reported to Gen. Butler, and was ordered to the above hospital for duty the next day. Here I met the laborious Chaplain James Marshall, U. S. A., who had been laboring here for the spiritual welfare of our brave heroes for some two years. Through his persevering efforts, he had suc- ceeded in raising funds at the North, and had erected a very neat, comfortable little chapel, hard by Camp Distribution and close by the Chesapeake. Here the chaplains, delegates of the U. S. Christian Commission, visitors, patients, officers and soldiers, matrons and all, met from time "to time; and we often enjoyed most precious seasons of refreshing. Here the suffering patients, after lying for months upon their wearisome beds, when at all able to get out, would drag their crippled limbs and mangled bodies, on crutches, to church and the semiweekly prayer-meet- ing, where many would relate their religious feelings and ex- perience with deep interest and powerful effect. Sometimes the whole congregation would rise to be prayed for. Here Chaplain Marshall and myself labored together, and for some three months preached in turns, and I always found it good to be there. The pulpit was very often supplied by delegates and visitors. Having no organized church, the converts were never counted. In this main building I quartered and boarded till mustered out. Close by it were two large wooden star-barracks and a few tents, ac- commodating in all some eight hundred patients. Mr. Marshall collected a valuable and well-assorted library of some fifteen hundred volumes, which, together with a great variety of pamphlets, periodicals, and a rich supply of secular and religious papers and tracts, made a very interesting reading- room. Here the reader could always find on file " The Army and Navy Journal," and the daily papers from all parts of the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 81 country. Here the soldiers went, read the news, wrote letters, and obtained books as they chose. The reading-room was a great light among the patients. It was in connection with the chapel. They had a Sabbath-school and Bible-class also. This hospital was the scene of much severe suffering, of many prayers, many tears, many deaths, and of some very striking conversions. Here many a sick and wounded officer and soldier, after suffering for months most severely, was at last relieved by death, and laid in a soldier's grave. Here, too, many a weeping wife and bereaved mother faithfully watched and tenderly nursed their sick and wounded, dying, sons and husbands. You could tell the patient's condition, whether better or worse each day, by the nurse's coun- tenance and expression. If the patient's prospects were encour- aging, and bidding fair to get well, you could see the cheerful expression beaming from the nurse's countenance as we sat by them at the table. On the other hand, if all looked discouraging, and death seemed to be approaching, you could see a solemn sad- ness in the eye of the anxious wife or mother. To 'this noted hospital and camp the coming and going of patients, soldiers, officers, prisoners, surgeons, visitors, and ma- trons were like the ebbing and flowing of the tide of the ocean. Superintended by Dr. Eli McClellan, assistant surgeon of the U. S. A., surgeon in charge, noted for his good executive ability, and managed more directly by the skilful surgeon, Dr. Rush, surgeon of U. S. Vol., and executive officer of this division, with all the modern improvements, and carefully managed internally, by Mrs. Mary B. Dully, directress, who, like Mary of old, "did what she could " to provide for and comfort the sick and wounded, the patients generally fared very well. It was called Chesapeake Hospital, and sometimes known as the Officer's Division. It was closed August 1865. Having labored here some three months, owing to the dimi- nution of patients in this division, I went over to the UNITED STATES GENERAL HOSPITAL, HAMPTON, VA., which was organized August 18, 1862, by Dr. J. M. Cuyler, Assistant Surgeon, U.S.A. Dr. E. McClellan was the firat 82 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAK. surgeon in charge, and was continued nearly three years. It was only about half a mile from the Chesapeake. It contained twenty-five good frame wards, well furnished with single iron bedsteads and good bedding, with everything convenient and comfortable. Each ward would accommodate about sixty pa- tients. It was beautifully laid out, and built in the form of a sharp triangle, or wedge, with comfortable board-walks all through it, and with two large dining-halls and two " side- kitchens" in the centre, with linen-room, dispensary, baggage- room, library, post-office, and head-quarters, at the base all were very conveniently arranged. Besides those twenty-five " wooden wards," there were several large teut-wards, containing each about one hundred patients, which, together with the guards and attendants, made in all usually about twenty-five hundred patients in this division. Built upon a level plain, hard by the old aristocratic town of Hampton, always kept clean and neat, and overlooked by the lofty dome of the Chesapeake, and the Tyler House, and over- shadowed by the dear old flag, and surrounded with Hospital tents, it looked like a little city, and presented a very neat ap- pearance. Here I met with the efficient Chaplain E. P. Roe, U.S.A. ; and we labored together very agreeably until several months after the war closed. This division was the scene of much severe suffering and many deaths. It was devoted, during my stay, exclusively to private soldiers; and, being the head- quarters of all the other divisions, in the fall of 1864 it was very much enlarged. Here the surgeon in charge had his office, to which all the other divisions made their regular reports. In July or August, 1865, all the other divisions were consolidated into this. Soon after the fall of Richmond, the hospitals at the front began to disband, and the patients were brought here. About the 20th of July, 1865, Dr. McClellan, the old surgeon in charge, was relieved, and Dr. J. H. Frantz, Assistant Surgeon, U.S.A., succeeded him. NEW CAMP, or Division No. 2, established in the summer of 1864, and chap- lamed by Rev. Dr. Charles Raymond, U.S.A., was composed CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 83 entirely of tents. Situated upon a little eminence close by Hampton, and washed by the swelling tide, and favored with a fine refreshing breeze, the location was fine. It contained from ten to twelve hundred patients, comfortably situated in good tents. Everything about it was kept clean and neat, so that it was an interesting place to visit. Here, a great many brave soldiers fought their last battle, and many, too, gave every evi- dence of triumphing over death. It was afterward used exclu- sively for colored patients. Chaplain Raymond, having charge of the public schools of the department, was absent very often, and consequently had pious soldiers appointed to go round, read, talk, and pray with the sickest or worst wounded patients, and note down their religious experience and the dying messages of those that died, and send them home to the bereaved friends. I very often visited this camp and did what I could in pointing the patients to Christ, warning and beseeching them to trust in the Lord. Here I met with many very interesting cases in religious experience. THE CONTRABAND HOSPITAL, or Division No. 4, accommodating about one hundred and sixty patients, was situated over beyond Hampton, in a very pleasant place. Although it was devoted more especially to the accommo- dation of the contrabands, colored soldiers were often sent there for treatment. They had no chaplain ; and when I could find it convenient, I went over, visited, conversed with the worst cases, and preached to them all. They seemed to appreciate it highly. During the summer and fall of 1864, this vast institution was rather a receiving hospital, where the patients were coming and going nearly all the time. They came at the rate of seven hun- dred, or more, a day ; sometimes, and often, from two hundred and fifty to four hundred per day in Government steamers. They were sent North by ship-loads ; often in a state of health so low that several would die on their way North. All the different divisions were consolidated into one general hospital in the sum- mer of 1864, under the name of the United States General Hospital, Fortress Monroe, Va., and so remained until March, 1866, when 84 CHRISTIANITY 1ST THE WAR. it was all disbanded. Blessed with an almost constant refreshing sea-breeze, and being almost surrounded with water, the location was fine, and very conducive to health. For nearly three entire years of the bloody war, the whole was commanded by Dr. E. McClellan, Assistant Surgeon, U.S.A., who displayed fine execu- tive ability in managing it so successfully. THE HOSPITAL GARDEN. Close by Hampton Hospital was the hospital garden. With a rich, fertile soil in a fine state of cultivation, and superintended by Chaplain Roe, it was well managed, and worked by the pa- tients and convalescents ; it was well tilled, and yielded abundant crops. It was the biggest garden I ever saw. There must have been some sixty acres under cultivation, yielding the finest kind of vegetables, and many of them of a very early growth. The yield in the year 1865, according to the report of Chaplain Roe, was 25,000 head of cabbage, 800 bushels of beans, 100 bushels of carrots, 20 bushels of cucumbers, 75 bushels of beets, 5 bush- els of peppers, 20 bushels of salsify, 25 bushels of parsnips, 100 bushels of squashes, 250 bushels of tomatoes, 2693 ears of sweet corn, 1100 cheese pumpkins, 1500 watermelons, 325 egg-plants, 1000 bushel of Irish potatoes, 1100 bushels of lettuce, 104 bushels of spinach, 364 bushels of pease, 11,760 bunches of onions, 11,465 bunches of radishes, 800 heads of cauliflowers, and large, fine patches of strawberries, etc. Many of the patients having been so long without vegetables, they gave them a double relish for them. A nice dish of fine strawberries was very re- freshing to the sick and wounded soldier. The officers shared largely in the products of the garden. Dr. McClellan frequently sent a box of vegetables to Gen. Barnes, Surgeon-General, U.S.A., at Washington City. When the strawberries and watermelons began to get ripe, the garden was put under guard. The garden was a fine thing for the hospital. The vegetables were conducive 1 the recovery of the patients. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 85 THE HOSPITAL HENNERY. Owing to the great demand for eggs aiid chickens in the hos- pital, and well aware of the value of this kind of diet among the patients, the surgeon in charge got up a hospital hennery hard by the hospital garden and graveyard. It contained some five or six acres of ground, traversed by a small ravine, with a little bayou of a small arm of the adjoining bay. Inclosed with a very high paling, it was very difficult for the fowls to escape. It was well furnished with neat, comfortable hen-houses and roomy coops. Here the doctor gathered in some fifteen hundred chickens, turkeys, and ducks. Overseen by a detached soldier expert in the business, the institution was well managed. And although the hens laid thousands of eggs and hatched over a thousand chickens, yet, owing to their being too much crowded, or from some other cause, they never seemed to do well. Yet the craving appetite of many a needy soldier was satisfied and his languishing system strengthened by the eggs, soup, and chickens furnished from this poultry yard ; and no doubt many a patient's life was saved by these refreshments. CAMP DISTRIBUTION. Hard by Chesapeake Hospital was Camp Distribution. Washed by the swelling tide of the limpid waters of Hampton Roads, overlooking the fort and the mighty ships and flying steamers ploughing the wide surrounding waters, the location was fine. With extensive barracks, and inclosed with a strong fence, with a secure guard, it formed a safe retreat for the so- journing soldier. Here the new recruit, the drafted soldier, the volunteer, and the returning veteran poured in from the North by thousands and thousands, and during the last eighteen months of the war some hundred thousand passed through this often crowded camp. Like the ebbing and flowing of the tide, they came and went daily by hundreds and thousands to all parts of the army and navy. Commanded by Capt. Blake, and guarded by Battery F, of the 3d Pa. Heavy Artillery, everything 86 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. was kept clean and neat. With large crowds collected in these barracks, it afforded a very good opportunity for preaching. And here Chaplain Marshall would go, night after night, and administer to their spiritual wants. Entering the vast crowd at dark, he would commence by singing an interesting hymn, and having thus attracted their attention, he would preach to them the simple truths of the gospel, earnestly urging them, as they had enlisted in the service of their bleeding country, to enlist in the cause of a bleeding Saviour. Commencing in his attractive, win- ning way, he always succeeded in getting their attention, and then, in a warm, earnest manner, he gave many of the heroic patriots their last warning and urgent invitation, as they were going forth to fight for the salvation of their country, first to secure the salvation of their immortal souls. The meetings were solemn and interesting. And the chaplain, feeling that it was doubtless the last opportunity with many of them, with his heart warmed and soul stirred with the solemnity and im- portance of the occasion, was enabled the more earnestly to be- seech them, by the mercies of God, " to flee the wrath to come," repent, and oome to Jesus. Eternity alone will reveal the good accomplished in these meetings. Immediately adjoining this camp was the military prison, into which were gathered all sorts of criminals from the Union army, and -hosts of rebel prisoners of all grades and characters. To see a gang of "Johnnies " stripped of their arms, clothed in tattered gray, with countenances fallen, hearts discouraged, each one dragging a flimsy blanket surmounted with a rusty canteen, presented quite a shabby appearance. In this stronghold, or " bull pen," as it was generally called, Union soldiers and officers were often, for very small offences, kept in confinement for months. They repeatedly sought redress, but it was difficult to get, and always slow in coming. They had comfortable barracks, partitioned off into small rooms, to dwell in ; but no beds but blankets in their bunks to sleep in. When any got very sick, they were taken to the rebel ward in the hospital. Their spiritual wants were supplied with Testaments, religious books, tracts, and -papers. Besides, they usually had preaching CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 87 on the Sabbath sometimes by a stranger, or a delegate of the Christian Commission, but generally by Mr. Marshall. Here this laborious chaplain would go with an armful of papers and tracts, and having distributed* them to the hungry inmates, many of whom read them with avidity, he would assemble them together in the open air, and preach to them "Jesus, and the resurrection," telling them of their sins, warning them of their danger, and beseeching them by the mercies of God to repent, and embrace the Saviour. Here, too, I went occasionally, distri- buted papers and tracts, and " preached to the spirits in prison," urging them by the love of Christ, by the pains of hell, and by the joys of heaven, to cling to the cross. GANGRENE CAMP. A little to the left of the apex of Hampton Hospital, situated alongside of a little swamp, headed by a fine spring of good water, was the lonely Gangrene Camp ; made of tents, some good and some inferior, some with plank floors and some without, yet being well kept, with the streets swept clean, it presented rather a neat appearance. The cooling spring, so convenient, added very much to the comfort of the wounded heroes. This camp was the scene of much very severe suffering. It was not until a patient's wound became badly gangrened, and they began to despair of recovery, that he was brought here, as the place of the last resort. Here the brave heroes would undergo the most severe pain for months and months, and finally die at last. Here they put in nearly the whole winter of 1864-'65, without any fire in their tents, which added much' to their suffering from wounds and disease. Stoves were put up late in the winter, and added much to the comfort of the patients. Although this camp was furnished with a surgeon, ward-master, nurses, wound-dresser, and all the appli- ances of the hospital, yet, being off to one side, it was generally a somewhat forsaken and neglected place. Sometimes persons visiting it were not allowed to go immediately into other wards, lest they should convey the gangrene to other wounded patients. 88 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Besides, many did not wish to see so many severe "wounds, bruises, and putrefying sores." I visited it, preached to, read and prayed with, the patients very often; urging the impenitent to repentance, and comforting the believer with the consolations of the gospel. It was on a cold, chilly night in November, near the hour of twelve, when I was called by the nurse to go and visit a patient lying nigh unto death in this lonely, cheerless camp. The pale moon was dimly shining, and the dim light feebly burning in the tent, when I lifted the curtain where the brave hero was lying, earnestly praying for his soul's salvation. On approaching him, he warmly grasped my hand, and, upon inquiring how he was, he replied, " I am very weak ; I don't think I am going to live long; and I have sent for you, hoping you could administer a word of comfort, and write a letter of sympathy and consolation to my wife and children." " I trust you are not without hope ? " " Oh, no ! I have a glorious hope. Christ is my only hope, and he is growing more and more precious every hour." " The pious, heroic John Lambert, with his legs burned to the stumps, with his body pierced with ruthless halberds, with his fingers flaming with fire, with dying breath exclaimed, 'None but Christ ! NONE BUT CHRIST ! ' Think you would be afraid to die ? " " No, I think not. I die for my country, and, dying for Him who died for me, I have nothing to fear ; I don't fear death, thank God ! I trust He will give me the victory over it." " You seem to have it already." " I have got the victory ! " said the dying Rutherford, and he left the world shouting glory. I asked him, " What word shall I send to your wife and dear children?" "Tell them I died happy in Christ." He lingered a few hours, and God took him home. How striking the transition ! how glorious the change ! from a lonely, dreary gangrene camp to the throne of God in heaven ! Here, he wore a soldier's garb ; there, robed in white, he wears a crown of glory, and bears palms of victory. I visited two other patients at the same call ; one of which was so far gone, it was then too late to get his dying message to send home to comfort his bereaved friends. He was a good man. Such were my visits to this suf- fering camp. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR, 89 Here we have witnessed some most glorious, triumphant deaths. Big sinners saved " brands plucked out of the fire" rejoicing in the Lord, shouting glory to God, and giving thanks for saving grace. Here we saw a wounded soldier with whom we had often conversed, read, and prayed, after several days' earnest seeking and praying, while we were trying to explain to him the way of salvation, and urging him to fly to Christ, all of a sudden ex- claim, " I have got it ! J have got it ! I have got religion ! " and he went on shouting " glory to God and hallelujah to the Lamb " to such an extent that it roused the whole camp. Here, too, we have seen the affectionate wife, burdened with anxiety, come several hundred miles to see her wounded husband; and on arriving, to her most sad disappointment, find him struggling in the agonies of death, with reason dethroned, unable to recognize her. It was a severe trial. But such is life, and such is death in the hospital. Here, too, we have seen the intelligent New England colored soldier, with his face and eyes so badly swollen with erysipelas that he could not see ; yet, enlightened by God's Spirit, and seeing Jesus with the eye of faith, give important instruction arid advice to dying comrades lying around him, urging them, as the last act of his life, and in a most tender manner beseech them, be reconciled to God. With an eye and a countenance beaming with intelligence and probity deeply stamped with the image of Christ, and possessing clear and dis- tinct views of the plan of salvation, he was able in a few words, in an appropriate manner, to point the sick and wounded soldier, lying close by him, to Him whose blood cleanseth from all sin. ARRIVAL OF PATIENTS. During the time of the most destructive fighting, we often received from two hundred to five hundred patients in a day, and some days the number reached nearly eight hundred. And our hospital having better accommodations than those at the front, they usually sent us the worst and most dangerous cases. We often sent them North by ship-loads of five or six hundred each, to make room for more. During the summer of 1864, like 90 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. the mighty waves of the sea, they came and went all the time. We frequently received large boat-loads of patients all wounded, many of them seriously and mortally wounded ; yet it was sur- prising to find them so calm, patient, and resigned. Inured to hardness on the march and in battle, and filled with a heroic spirit, they had learned not to complain. To see a large steamer crowded with them, lying upon their narrow couches, with bleeding wounds, shattered bones, amputated limbs, and parched tongues, was enough to move the compassion and rouse the sympathies of the hardest heart. And to gaze upon so many brave hearts, with limbs riven from their bodies, that not a State be riven from the Union, would stir the loyalty of the coldest patient. TRANSFERRING PATIENTS. During the summer of 1864, Hampton Hospital was more of a receiving hospital than a home for the sick and wounded soldier. Like the ebbing and flowing of the tide, the patients kept pouring in and flowing out all the time. They were brought in from " the front" by boat-loads, and transferred North by ship-loads. After a man had tried the realities and trials of hospital life a few months, he usually began to think about getting a furlough home. And often patients severely wounded, and low with disease even, sometimes, when they were unfit to go, were gathered up and transferred. Sometimes ten or twelve would die on board during one trip to New York or Philadelphia They were often a good deal crowded, and frequently suffered for the want of air. Although a change of climate, besides the voyage, together with the idea of going home or homeward, were well calculated to inspire new life and vigor into the poor sufferers, yet many found a watery grave by the way instead of the smiles of kind friends and the comforts of home. While some were transferred when unable and unfit to go, yet doubtless many an emaciated patient, run down with chronic diarrhoaa, and breathing an unwhole- some air, and often fed on an unsuitable diet, died in the hos- pital, who would have got well had they been discharged or furloughed and sent home. But, somehow or other, they were CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 91 retained in the hospital until reduced to mere skeletons, and at last death came as a relief and closed the solemn scene. And although the patients were often handled quite roughly in being taken to and from the transport, yet, tired of hospital life, and very anxious to go home, they were nearly always ready to gtart. VOYAGE TO NEW YORK. Late in July, 1864, I sailed with a load of five hundred and fifteen patients on the beautiful ocean-steamer Atlantic, Capt. Eldridge, in charge of Dr. Smith, Surgeon, U. S. Vol., for New York. The Atlantic was a very fine, large, fast -running ship, well fitted up for transferring patients, and, being so large, she could not get near the hospital; hence the patients had to be taken out to her in tugs and small crafts, which occasioned an- other handling of them to their disadvantage. With the last patient on board, taken in at a small hole in the side of the sable Atlantic, it was about noon, and the old gray-headed captain gave the bell a ring, and we set sail amidst the surging waves of the old Chesapeake lashing the bustling wharf of Fortress Monroe. On reviewing the patients, and learning their condition, we soon found that we had got into "a big job," for there were many bad, needy cases. One brave veteran, with an arm and leg both off, fatigued with his removal, fell from his bed, and hurt his wounds till they bled afresh. Yet, full of pluck, he bore it all very patiently. Others we found apparently nigh unto death, needing much attention; but they all survived the voyage. Some of the nurses seemed rather negligent, and, by administer- ing to his wants, I believe I saved the life of one poor frail old man. The labors of a chaplain are very much needed on board, when so many patients are being transferred. In making my rounds, we found one very low, weak patient, with whom we conversed and prayed in the hospital before we started, lying on his back, unable to sit up ; and, as I approached him, he was so glad that he grasped and kissed my hand most affectionately, as he lay upon the floor attended by his kind brother. And thougli weak, yet within that frail body there throbbed a warm heart, beating 92 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. high with gratitude to God and his friends. Trusting in the Lord, he bore all very patiently, and seemed to have no fear of death. Lying in the same ward in the ship was the unfortunate soldier who was shot in the head, who lay beside him in the same tent in the hospital, accompanied by his kind, affectionate mother. Crowded into a place poorly ventilated, they both, with all in that ward, suffered for the want of fresh air ; and he who carried the minie-ball in his head grew worse by the fatigue of the trip. And it was very hard, when he was carried off the Atlantic, to see the surgeon in charge of the patients received at New York, refuse the weeping mother the privilege of taking her dear son to the city hospital. " No," the surgeon sternly replied; " he must go to David's Island, with the rest of the patients ; " and the grieved mother wept like a child, saying, "The Government will get no more of my sons for the army." Al- though the opportunity for preaching on the transport was not favorable, we gave them one or two short sermons during the trip. We had many very interesting seasons of prayer for and with the patients during the pleasant voyage. Frequently they would request to be prayed for. The weather was cool for the season, and the patients, with good beds and good rations, gene- rally fared well. We reached quarantine, ten miles below New York, in less than thirty -six hours, where we lay all night, and landed at the foot of Canal Street by seven o'clock next morning, July 29th, and by one P.M. we had all the brave boys trans- ferred to another boat for David's Island, some twenty-five miles above the city. Though the work was laborious, I enjoyed the trip very much. It was an encouraging field for usefulness. Though duty called, we parted with the maimed and suffering heroes with reluctance. Having been detained two days in New York, we sailed Friday morning for Alexandria, Va., for another load of patients. And having rounded Fortress Monroe, with all its beautiful attractions, and sailing up the broad, beautiful Chesa- peake Bay, we entered the wide-mouthed Potomac, with a fine view of Point Lookout on the right, Saturday evening at six, and soon anchored for the night, July 30, a little above Black- stone's Island. A beautiful Sabbath morning dawned, and by CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. five we weighed anchor, and the gigantic Atlantic went on sub- limely, ploughing the murky Potomac, regardless of the Lord's day, until half-past six, when she ran aground on Kettle Bottom Shoals, opposite Homini cliffs, hard by the birthplace of General Washington. Now came a hard day for the old gray-headed captain. At the stupidity of the pilot, he was sorely vexed. He, the crew, and the nurses, all worked very hard all Sabbath- day to get loose, but failed. They hitehed on tug after tug to pull her off, but, being so deeply moored in the sand, she stuck fast. Sabbath evening I gathered up all I could in the cabin and preached to them. We had a very good meeting. Yet it was a hard way spending the Lord's day, which is so awfully disre- garded in time of war, and by boatmen generally. Having spent the Sabbath "all fast on the Potomac," we got loose on Monday, and sailed for Fortress Monroe; and I was glad to get back to the hospital. CHAPTER VII. THE RELIGIOUS WORK AT HAMPTON HOSPITAL. THE HARVEST, GREAT AND WHITE THE PRAYER - HALL No CHURCH SOLDIERS' EARNEST PRAYERS AND ELOQUENT EXHOR- TATIONS IT WAS THE ELOQUENCE OP THE HEART, MELTING ALL INTO TEARS WARD PRAYER - MEETINGS INTEREST INCREAS- ING THE POWER OF PRAYER SOLDIERS' PRAYER-MEETING BUSH PRAYER-MEETINGS PREACHING TO MEN ON THEIR DEATH- BEDS "THE LAST MORNING." OWING to the diminution of patients at the Chesapeake, and having heard the Macedonian cry on the other side, we went over, and commenced laboring regularly in Hampton Hos- pital about the first of August, 1864. Here, with a large hospital, containing some two thousand patients, the field was great, white, ready to harvest ; and God, in his providence, as well as the sick and dying soldier, loudly called, "Thrust in ike sickle, and reap" 94 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Before we quit laboring at the Chesapeake, we occasionally visited Hampton. At the first prayer-meeting we attended there, June 17, 1864, the people seemed cold and backward in taking part. The meeting was small, and, conducted on the voluntary principle, it seemed to drag. The time wasted between prayer and praise denoted a want of interest. Yet praying right in the midst of so many sick, wounded, and dying soldiers, we deemed it a great privilege to be there ; and, at the request of the chaplain, we took part in prayer and exhortation. The touching song, "Just before the battle, mother," sweetly sung by a few ladies at the close, was deeply impressive. Such was the first prayer-meeting at Hampton, where we met so often afterward and enjoyed such precious times of refreshing. A few days after, we again visited Hampton, and, after calling with a few of the old patients from the Chesapeake, we went back to the house of prayer, and we had a very good meeting. The spirit of the Lord was with us, and there was much more life and devotion in the exercises. Several soldiers spoke and prayed. It was good to be there. Here we met with a generous, agreeable, fast friend in Chaplain E. P. Roe, U.S.A., in charge of the spiritual interests of this division of the hospital, with whom we labored, hand-in-hand, till long after the rebellion was quelled and the country saved. Mild, modest, and unpretending in his nature, and progressive in his views, Chaplain Roe had a good tact to get Christians to labor in the vineyard of the Lord. THE PRAYER-HALL. Being without a chapel, we met in one of the dining-halls situated in the centre of the triangular hospital. The building was a mere shell an upright frame, some two hundred feet long and about thirty wide, with a dingy table in the middle, around one end of which we met twice a week for many long, bloody months, and poured out our souls and hearts unto God for the salvation of the patients, the bereaved and loved ones at home, and for the salvation of our bleeding country. Being without any fire, and the hall being open, it was very cold in winter, and CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 95 very uncomfortably warm in summer. But it was the best we could get, and, knowing that the blessing to be obtained through the prayer - meeting did not depend upon the house or place we met in, but upon the state of the hearts that meet, here we met regularly, and enjoyed many seasons of refreshing. Paul and Silas had a very happy meeting in the Philippian jail, with their feet fast in the stocks. And within "the murky walls of this sombre hall the faithful soldier of the cross would drag his emaci- ated, mutilated frame upon crutches, to sing and pray. Accus- tomed to feats of daring and courage, men are less bashful in the army than at home. Trained to fight upon the bloody field, they are not so slow and backward to take up the cross in the house of prayer. Partaking less of "the form" our prayer-meetings in the hospital seemed to enjoy, or possess, more of " the power of God " than those usually at home. To see men hobbling along to the prayer-meeting when scarcely able to walk, and so earn- estly engaged in the great work of salvation, was truly encouraging and refreshing to the soul. The warm, earnest exhortation, and the fervent, heart-gushing prayer, told that many of the soldiers lived near the throne of grace. Sometimes the recital of religious experience, incidents, and purposes was most touching, eloquent, and powerful. Their little speeches were not composed, far-fetched or fine-spun phrases: no ; it was the eloquence of the heart big, earnest thoughts, bubbling up from the depths of the soul, struggling for utterance, and when they fell from lips set on fire by the Holy Ghost, it was like rain upon the mown grass. Gushing right out from the heart, their words were sharp, quick, and powerful, and, steeped in prayer, they sunk down deep into the heart and made a deep, lasting impression. Men, illiterate, with souls burning with zeal, would sometimes so electrify the whole congregation that all would melt into tears. To hear the young converts relate their own experience often arrested the careless, and stirred the soul of the lukewarm professor. The interest was often so great, and the disposition to pray so strong, that it was very diffi- cult to get through in reasonable time. Sometimes we had fifteen or twenty prayers at one meeting. The hall being used for 96 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. eating purposes in the daytime, we always met at night, and with but a few candles "dimly burning," stuck up along the rough sides of the hall, it always presented a gloomy appearance ; yet with our souls lit up by God's Spirit, and stimulated by the crisis of the dying soldier's soul, we often got very near the throne of grace, and the men often prayed as though they felt " I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." Praying-men from all quarters of the country putting up their prayers from this noted place, the prayer-meetings became quite a power in the hospital. The happy seasons there enjoyed by thousands will, doubtless, be remembered throughout eternity. Such a spirit of union pervaded the meeting that we seldom inquired to what church a man belonged. Denominationalism was swallowed up in the great interests of the soul. These meetings were usually led by Chaplain Roe, but often by the author. We generally commenced by singing a hymn, and after reading a few verses of Scripture, accompanied with prayer and a few words of exhortation by the chaplain, the meeting was thrown open, and all cordially invited to lay aside all Restraint and take part freely, and the liberty in praying and speaking fully evinced that the Spirit of the Lord was with us. In this same gloomy hall we had preaching every Sabbath night. In this the chaplains took turns, except when visitors, or the delegates of the Christian Commission, by request, filled the pulpit. The attendance was usually good, and sometimes very large, reaching five hundred or six hundred attentive hearers. With a good choir, graced with a well-played harmonium, they made the dusty walls of the old hall ring again with their en- chanting music. We usually used " the Army and Navy Hymn- book," published by the American Tract Society. WARD PRAYER - MEETINGS. Seeing the field was so great, and the work so arduous, the chaplains labored to secure Christian effort among the patients. In this Mr. Roe .succeeded well. And in this way we induced the patients to hold prayer-meetings in their own wards by them- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 97 selves. In several wards those little pray ing- circles were kept up regularly for months, and some of the more active Christians would go round and look up the scattered sheep, and gather the wayward into the fold. And in this way, we believe, much was accomplished. One soldier told me he was led to Christ by two men talking to him, one night, on picket. Another, while lying on his sick-bed, he said, was converted by hearing a man of the world read a chapter out of the Bible. I have frequently seen the Christian soldier earnestly talking Christ into his com- rade, and beseech him to be reconciled to God. This was obeying the divine command, " Go, WORK in my vineyard" And if alt Christians would only obey it, the cause of Christ would advance tenfold faster. " Why stand ye here all the day idle ?" Tired of the lonely monotony of hospital life, the sick or wounded soldier, who has lain for months on his bed sore-back, is always willing and glad to hear a word of prayer and praise, and, coming from a soldier, it is often more effectual than from a chaplain. There was one good boy, George, of the 188th Pa. Vol., recently converted in the hospital, who took a deep interest in this work. He would often go round, talk to, read and pray with the patients, earnestly beseeching them to repent, and come to the Saviour. The ward masters and matrons also did a good work in this way in their own wards. With these, besides the labors of the delegates of the Christian and Sanitary Commissions, together with the regular visitations of the chaplains and the rich supply of books, periodicals, tracts, and all sorts of papers, the spiritual as well as the intellectual wants of the patients were well provided for. In visiting the patients we usually noted down their religious experience, and when they died, we sent home their dying messages to comfort and console their bereaved friends To go round thus, daily bending over the sick, wounded, and low-fevered cases, endeavoring to catch their last dying words, and learn their hopes and feelings, exposing ourselves to disease, though the work was hard and laborious, yet we delighted in it. 7 98 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. , INTEREST INCREASING. After laboring a short time in Hampton Hospital, preaching daily in the wards, and by prayer, exhortation, and conversing with the patients, urging them to repent, and come to the Saviour, together with the regular Sabbath evening preaching and semi- weekly prayer-meetings in the dining-hall, in connection with the distribution of tracts, religious papers, pamphlets, and books, through the blessing of God, the interest soon began to in- crease. Clouds of mercy gathered /ind burst upon us, and God's gracious presence and the strivings of his Spirit were evinced not only by the attentive ear, but by the enlarged attendance upon the preaching of the gospel, and increased interest in the regular prayer-meetings. The \veather was now very warm, and the battles raging at the front, boat-loads of patients were brought in almost daily, with many very severely wounded, with arms and legs off, and shot in all parts of the body. Hence the stream of death rose very high, and flowed all through the hospital, carrying away from ten to twenty suffering heroes a day. The average mor- tality during the month of August, 1864, was a little over ten a day. And while death was raging so furiously, as though the people were warned and impressed with the solemn fact, the desire for spiritual life increased. While some, being so " used to death," rather " made light of it," others, seeing so many dear comrades snatched away, wrapped in their winding-sheets, and borne to the dead-house on stretchers, were deeply impressed, and acting as though they felt, " I don't know but it may be my turn to go next," they began to consider their ways, and to prepare to meet their God. Still, death reigned : God's Spirit was poured out, and there was quite a shaking among the dry bones, and the people were enabled to speak and pray with great power. And while our armies at "the front" were winning glorious victories on the field, through grace the sick and wounded were achieving greater victories on their beds in the hospital. Although they could no longer wield the sword nor fire a cannon, yet, with their hearts fired with the Holy Spirit, they could wield CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 99 an instrumentality in defence of their country still more power- Jfil than either of these. What was it? PRAYER ! faithful, earnest prayer. " Prayer moves the arm that moves the world." " Prayer is literally, actually, and positively a means of power " " When Ethelred, the Saxon king of Northumberland, invaded Wales, and was about to give battle to the Britons, he observed near the enemy a host of unarmed men. He inquired who they were, and what they were doing. He was told that they were monks of Bangor, praying for the success of their countrymen. ' Then,' said the heathen prince, ' they have begun the fight against us ; attack them first.' " How clear and strong the king's faith in prayer as a means of power. " Prayer is no fiction." No: it is a reality. " It is," says Dr. Phelps and God has purposed that it should be "a link of connection between the human mind and the divine mind by which, through his infinite condescension, we may actually move his will." The orifice of the throttle connecting the boiler with the cylinder of a steam-engine is very small ; but it is an engine of mighty power. Gaze upon the Great, Eastern as she lies upon the placid ocean. Not a wave is to be seen; not a wheel or a paddle in motion. All is calm and quiet. Lift the valve, the steam escapes, enters the cylinder, starts the piston, moves the huge crank, turns the ponderous wheel, and in a moment all is in motion, and the mammoth steamer ploughs the mighty ocean and heaves the very earth. And all done simply by lifting a little valve. " Behold how great a matter a little fire kindleth." So it is with earnest, importunate prayer ; though apparently a small, weak instrumentality, yet it is " mighty through G6V1." Gaze upon the earnest supplicant in his closet ; there, upon his bended knees, he lifts the valve of his gushing heart ; his desires escape, reach God's throne, and thus moves the powers of heaven and earth. The Saviour says, " If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it." " And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." " The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availcth much." Jacob prayed, and had power with God, and prevailed. Gaze upon the thrilling scene of Peniel, and mark the power of prayer. Jacob had 100 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. supplanted his brother Esau, and caused his furious wrath and murderous indignation to burn against him, and, being afraid, Jacob fled to Padan-aram for refuge. After a sojourn of twenty years he returned, and finds Esau's vengeance still burning against him ; but Jacob resolves to meet him, and to try the power of prayer to effect a reconciliation. And having sent his family and flocks over the brook Jabbok, he retires alone, prays, and wrestles with God, and prevails. The heart of Esau is touched, the rebel- lion knocked out of him, and his fratricidal revenge is turned to brotherly love and affection ; and when he met him, he embraced him with a kiss and the warmest affection. And although our success in quelling the rebellion is generally attributed to the sagacity and ability of great generals and the hard fighting of brave soldiers, yet, doubtless, we owe it very much to the prayers of God's people. If the revenge and rebellion of Esau were quelled in answer (o Jacob's prayer, could we not expect God's loyal people to pray cVwn the rebellion of the South? If God delivered the captive hosts of Israel in answer to the prayers of Daniel, could we noi expect deliverance from the great rebellion in answer to the prayers of the North ? What ! without fighting ? No. But the prayers of faith are always mixed with works. Hence, while the faithful Christian soldier prays as though God had to do everything, he fights and labors as though he had to do everything himself. Washington and Cromwell fought bravely, doubtless, because they prayed fervently. The colored people had been praying for liberty for years before their emancipation. God says : " Call upon me in the*day of trouble, and I will deliver thee." And endowed with the spirit of prayer, there commenced about this time among the nurses and patients of the hospital A SOLDIERS' PRAYER -MEETING. U. S. HAMPTON GENERAL HOSPITAL, ) FORTRESS MONROE, VA., Sept. 17, 1864. I It was on Friday evening, August 12, 1864 : a few of us had just returned from burying the mortal remains of five soldiers, and left seven more it. the dead-house for want of graves. The meeting was opened with CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 101 reading the tenth chapter of Isaiah, by Chaplain Roe, followed with some nppropriate remarks, and the singing of a few verses from the Army and Navy Hymn-book. The meeting was then thrown open to all, and the chaplain said, " We wish to have a free, social soldiers' meeting." Soon one rose, and said, " The past week has been the happiest of my life. On this night a week ago, I went round, after prayer-meeting, and gathered up four comrades, and we went out in the woods to pray. We all prayed, and had a very happy time." He also spoke of the last words of a poor, dying soldier, who said, "The Lord is mine." Another rose, and said, " I never felt so happy ; " and, requesting the prayers of the congregation, sat down in tears. Another rose, and, with a trembling heart and stirred spirit, confessed his sins, acknowledged his unfaithfulness, and earnestly besought the prayers of all that he " might do right." Another, like the trembling jailer, " desired to be a Christian." He said he had Christian parents, and asked to be prayed for, " that God might bless his soul ; " to which many responded, " Amen ! Amen ! " Another boy, George, aged sixteen, said, " I have tried to be a Christian a week. I received a letter from my good old mother, and she encourages me much ; " and with a smitten heart he sat down, " all filled up." This same boy speaks and prays witfy wonderful power and effect. He goes about in the wards, talks and prays with the patients, and gathers up a little company, and goes out into the woods every day to have prayer- meeting. He says they always come back much refreshed. " Let us thank God, and take courage." Toil on, George, God will reward you. Another, more aged, soldier said, " I am filled full. I thank God for what I have felt to-night. Some say we can't be Christians in the army ; but we can be better here than anywhere else." He closed with shouting "glory," and seemed very much stirred up said he felt happy. Another said, " It is twenty-five years, next Monday, since I found Jesus in a sugar-grove in Ohio. God found me a sinner. I feel very happy to-night." Another said, "It is good to serve God. I have tried it, and would recommend it." It was a happy, powerful meeting a real " time of refreshing." Some of the speeches were really eloquent ; it was the eloquence of the heart the Spirit of God speaking through the quickened soldier. We could but weep. It was truly good to be there. The gracious work still goes on, deepening and widening. The frail soldiers turn out very well. Some walk with crutches ; others, scarcely able to walk at all, drag their frail bodies to the dining-hall to sing and pray. We now have a hospital Union church of over fifty members, and still they come. Last night we had a most precious time. I scarcely ever saw such a disposition to pray. After the chaplain ended his remarks, he 102 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. picked up the hymn-book to give out a hymn to sing; but before he had time to open his mouth, some soldier was on his knees praying. We "go it on the voluntary system;" and very often, when one ceased praying, two more began at once. Eighteen led in prayer last night. We didn't take time to sing much. Brethren, pray for us ! "0 Lord, revive thy work ! " A PRAYER -MEETING IN THE BUSHES. When God's Spirit is powerfully poured out, it always draws men to their knees ; and when man, just converted, gets a glimpse of the great things God has done for him in " pull- ing him out of the fire," with a heart overflowing with gratitude and burning with desire for the salvation of souls, he cannot help but pray. Such was the feeling of the small squad of soldiers in Hampton Hospital. And wooed by the Spirit, and desiring a more retired place than the crowded, suffering ward afforded, they retired to the leafy copse daily for prayer and supplication. Armed with the sword of the Spirit, and the little Army and Navy Hymn-book, thither this little band of suppliants would daily resort to pour out their hearts unto God for the preservation of the country, and for the salvation of the sick and wounded. There, secluded from the world, and shut in with God, with no covering but the canopy of heaven, and no altar but the cross of Christ, they read, sung, and prayed ; and while the earth was drinking the blood of our brave veterans at the front, dying for the salvation of their country, their prayers ascended to God for the salvation of their souls. And so eager were they in this blessed work, that sometimes a few of them would collect and go out to pray, after the regular weekly prayer-meeting, late at night. And there, overshadowed by the darkness of the night, yet with their souls lit up by the light of God's Spirit, they found the way to the throne of grace, and got so nigh unto God that one says, "We all felt very happy." Another active spirit in these bush prayer-meetings says, a We always come back much refreshed." " What a blessing ! how encouraging ! Always come back much refreshed ! " " Yes ! " " Why, George ? " " Well, I don't know, chaplain ; but so it CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 103 Is. We go out into the bushes. God meets with us ; and, by singing and praying, we endeavor to get very near to God, and always come back much refreshed." What the cooling brook is to the thirsty hart, or the thirsty soldier on a long march on a warm day, prayer is to a thirsty soul always refreshing. " And doubtless, George, it is your drinking so deeply of the wells of salvation that proves so refreshing to your longing hearts." " Yes ; I suppose, chaplain, that is so. We always find the nearer we get to God, and the more earnestly we pray, the more refreshed we feel." "Yes, God is an inexhaustible 'fountain of life ; ' and the oftener you draw, and the deeper you drink, the more refreshed you will be. " Then, George, let me entreat you, go on with your prayer- meetings. As you have got the fire burning in the bushes, fan it, and keep it burning until it spreads all over the camp, and burns upon the altar of every sinner's heart, so that when the patients go back to the front, they may go armed with weapons not carnal, that they may be mighty through God to the pulling down of the strongholds of the rebellion. Oh, then, George, pray on. Gather up the forces, and lead them on in the battles of the Lord ! You have every encouragement. It was in answer to the prayers of eleven apostles that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost, when three thousand souls were converted in a day. In answer to the prayers of the church, the chains fell off of Peter, and he was released from prison. It was after Rev. John Livingstone had spent the pre- vious night in prayer, that he preached that most powerful sermon on 'the new heart' (Ezek. xxxvi. 25, 26), at Shotts, in Scot- land, June 21, 1630, under which about five hundred sinners were converted. " Thus you see what great things God has" wrought in answer to the prayers of his people. How very encouraging to pray on, George ! Then go on with unfaltering determination." PREACHING TO MEN OX THEIR DEATH-BEDS. Overburdened with labor, and surrounded with so many critical cases of sick and wounded men requiring prompt attention, our 104 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ingenuity was sometimes taxed to know how to meet them to the best advantage. Hence, on entering a ward, and seeing so many brave heroes lying upon the verge of eternity, and others, per- haps, just passing the crisis of the soul, and all anxiously inquir- ing what to do to be saved, and not being able to reach them all in due time in personal conversation, we were led to adopt the plan of preaching in the wards, where we could at the same time instruct, beseech, and implore all in the whole ward to come to the Saviour at once. This plan seemed to work very well. A word of prayer and praise, accompanied with a plain, pointed, brief sermon, was a relief to the patients, tired of the dull monotony of the hospital. After entering a ward, and securing the approbation of the ward-master, we usually commenced the solemn service by singing some appropriate hymn full of Christ, the soldiers joining in, followed by reading a short passage of Scripture, such as the parable of the prodigal son, the case of the Philippian jailer, or the story of blind Bartimeus, etc. Then followed the sermon, which we always endeavored to make searching, powerful, and practical ; always endeavoring to con- vince the sinner of his sins, the imminent danger of his course, and the great importance of immediate repentance ; urging them by the love of Christ, by the pain of hell, and by the eternal glories of heaven, " to flee the wrath to come," and fly to the cross at once. With the sick, the dead, and the dying around us, and with the stern realities of eternity rising before us, and God's Spirit stirring within us, the services were usually very solemn and interesting. Preaching to men lying upon their death-beds, who had laid down their lives for their country, and feeling that it was " the last time," and the last warning to some of them, and that their salvation, under God, hung suspended upon the deci- sion of the hour, seemed to add much to the solemnity of the occasion, to heighten our responsibility, and to help and strengthen us for the arduous, important work. This work, though very laborious to the chaplain, was to me very pleasant and delightful. To point out the way of eternal life to him who had sacrificed his life for his country, though a sad, was no melancholy, duty. The patients enjoyed it much. And very often would they ex- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 105' press their gratification, as I passed their couches, in such words- as these. "You don't know, chaplain, how much good that sermon did me. Please come in and give us another as soon as you can." A colored soldier said to me, " I liked to jumpt out of bed while you was preaching, last night, I felt so happy; my very heart seemed to leap with joy" I preached on this way, averaging more than a sermon a day, for several months. Very often I preached two or three times a day, besides writing letters for the patients, burying the dead, and canvassing the hearts of the most dangerous cases, noting down their religious experience and prospects for the future. There, standing between the living and the dead, we endea- vored to hold forth the cross of Christ as the only way of sal- vation : endeavoring to comfort and console the suffering patient by the meek submission of Him who died upon Calvary that guilty sinners might enjoy eternal life. The following extract will give the reader an idea of our man- ner of addressing the patients in the wards. THE LAST WARNING. AN APPEAL TO WOUNDED SOLDIERS IN HOSPITAL. Having spoken to the Christian soldier and to the backslider, we come now, my impenitent friends, to give you a word of warning and encou- ragement. You have had many warnings. The thrilling, heart-rending scenes of battle dear comrades falling, bleeding, dying at your side, beseeching you with their last breath, " Be ye also ready " the departed spirits of half a million slain in this war, whose tongues are now mute in death, bid you " Prepare to meet thy God." The daily funeral notes of the death march of the escort bearing a cart-load of dead soldiers to the grave is but the voice of God warning you '* to flee the wrath to come." The gushing tears and earnest prayers of a tender mother, an affectionate wife, and anxious sister, warn you ; trust in God and fly to Jesus. And yet, withal, here you are to-night, still impenitent, lying prostrate upon your couches, and, doubtless, many of you upon your death-beds, dying for your country, and yet rejecting Him who died for you. You kill men for rebelling against the government, and yet you still live in rebellion against God. Your sufferings for your country have been terribly severe, but they 106 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. are notin,iy compared with the sufferings that await you if you die impeni- tent. You have felt the raking fire of long lines of rebel heavy artillery, but that is nothing to the " unquenchable fire," artillery, and torments of hell. And here you are still careless and insensible to your danger. Care- less ! insensible ! with the grave yawning, the devil seeking, and hell moving to destroy you ! Insensible ! with God smiling, the Spirit striving, and heaven stooping to save you ! Oh, then, we beseech you, by the mercies of God, by the love of Christ, and by the joys of heaven, bestir yourselves ; repent, and come to Jesus. This is, without doubt, the last warning to some of you. It is now or never ; to-morrow, doubtless, will be too late. " Now is the accepted time." I heard a dying soldier say, last night, with his life-blood flowing from him, " IT is TOO LATE ! TOO LATE ! " And so it will be with you, unless you soon repent. Oh, then, let this be the day of your salvation ! May God bless you ! And yet the Lord waits to be gracious. Jesus is here waiting to forgive your sins, and wash your souls in his own blood. Jesus is here earnestly crying, "Turn ye! turn ye I for why will you die!" And will you die, patriot soldier ? WILL you die with Jesus, " the Prince of Life," at your hand, waiting to give you eternal life? You may die, die here in the hospital, covered with glory and honor defending your country that is glorious but, oh, if you die to save your country and lose your own soul, is not that lament- able? Die for your country I Die beside the Prince of Life, and to enter " the second death," which never dies ! Die for Him who died for you, and yet die and be lost I Oh, how lamentable ! Oh, my dear friend, stop, think, consider, turn, look, and come to Jesus, and come now ! May God have mercy on you, and bless you ! May the love of Christ constrain you! Jesus is here here in this ward here in all the plenitude of his power, readiness, and willingness, to give you life, pardon, peace, and sal- vation "Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love, and power." As the compassionate Saviour cried to the anxious throng around the lovely heights of Jerusalem, " Come unto me, and I will give you rest," so he still cries to you, my impenitent friends, in tones of love and mercy, with the same gushing heart and encouraging promise, " How often would 1 have gathered you ! " Yes, you, my dear soldier ; and must it, shall it, be said of you, as of them, " ye would not ? " Oh, remember, I pray you, only think of the Saviour's "I WOULD," and your own, " ye would not I " And are you not willing to be saved? Are you willing to die for the salvation of your country, and not willing to be saved " without money and without price ? " And will you, can you, reject such a Saviour, who has suffered, bled, and died to redeem you? " Who of God is ready to be made unto you wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption." Oh, then, come unto him ! " Come, for all things are now ready." Come, for yet, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 107 there is room. Yes, room for every patriot soldier; room in the church below ; room in the church above ; and room in the Saviour's bleeding heart. See how he pleads ! hear how he entreats ! by the thrilling scenes of Bethlehem, Gethsemane, and Calvary he cries, Come ! by his bleeding hands and dying groans, he cries, Come unto me, and I will give you REST rest from sin rest from error and doubt rest from sorrow and suffering rest in heaven, where there will be no more sorrow, pain, nor death ; for God himself shall wipe away all tears. Oh, then, come ! Come where f Come here \ Come when f Come now ! Come how f Come JUST A3 YOU ARE I But, oh, come ! May God bless and enable you to come! CHAPTER VIII. WRITING LETTERS FOR THE PATIENTS. A DYING SOLDIER'S LETTER TO HIS BROTHER SOLEMN His WILL " YOURS IN DEATH " " LETTERS OF DEATH " "I AM READY " LETTERS FROM THE BEREAVED No. 1. THE BEREAVED WIFE No. 2. THE BEREAVED BROTHER No. 3. THE WEEPING WIDOW No. 4. THE DYING HUSBAND'S LETTER TO HIS WIFE No. 5. A WEEPING SOUTHERN FAMILY CANVASSING PATIENTS' HEARTS DIAGNOSIS OF THE WHOLE HOSPITAL "On, CHAPLAIN, STAY, AND TALK TO ME MORE ABOUT JESUS ! " " BEFORE, I WOULD CRY, ' FORT PILLOW, AND LET 'EM HAVE IT ! '" " SAVE ME, LORD I SAVE ME, LORD ! " WHEN long deprived of the pleasures of home, the next thing to seeing the friends is to hear from them. Letter- writing is said to be " a true transcript of the soul ; " and, doubt- less, it is this (because we can more fully unbosom our hearts in writing than in speaking face to face) that gives letter-writing such an immense power and influence in society. A neat letter from a long-absent, far-off friend, " how good is it." See how the happy recipient clasps it to her bosom, with a heart throbbing with joy! To open and trace the beautiful lines all glowing with sympathy and love, bedewed with the heart-gushing tears of an affectionate friend, wife, or mother, would always cheer up 108 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and revive the most cast-down and home-sick patient. Hence, writing letters for them was an important part of the chaplain's and delegate's work. This work was profitable, not only morally, but spiritually. For at the close of every letter sent home, it was always a favorable opportunity to draw out the religious feelings, purposes, and prospects of the patient, to send along to comfort his anxious friends at home. And just as we were about closing the letter, the question would come up, "Shall I say, 'Please pray for me, mother?' " and the inquiry would often be re- plied to with such a meek, God-confiding " yes" as often brought the penitential tear from the eye, redolent with faith and hope. And when we come to inquire, at the last, of the brave soldier, "Shall I add 'May God bless you, mother?' " as the soft "yes" dropped from his quivering lips, with a heart throbbing with the deepest emotions, and thinking that probably it was the son's last letter to a dear mother, it seemed to draw us both nearer to God. Scenes like these were solemn, and fraught with peculiar touching interest ; but when we come to write the letter of a man mor- tally wounded, when we knew it was his last, it increased the interest to deep solemnity. We recollect one particular case of thrilling interest. A young man, of talent and wealth, had re- ceived a severe wound in the arm. Amputation had been per- formed, but not until it was too late. Pyemia had set in, which almost always resulted in dissolution in a few days ; and, con- scious of the near approach of death, the brave hero begins to set his house in order, and prepares to leave this lower world. How solemn the scene ! Although facing " the last enemy," with the stern realities of the eternal world rising in full view before him, yet with undaunted courage he fears not. Death stares him in the face ; yet he lies calm and serene. He indites a letter to his brother ; it is his last ! How trying the hour ! After casting some reflections upon his surgeon for not cutting off his arm sooner, and giving his brother some directions about his temporal aifairs, he closes his dying letter with these striking, solemn words, " YOURS IN DEATH ! " Prayer was frequently made for his salvation. And entreating aim to throw himself in the arms of an all-compassionate Saviour, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 109 he seemed to let go of the world, and lay hold of Jesus. There he lies. His last sands are running. The mortal conflict rages. Death works; frail nature gives way; the vital cord snaps, and the heroic patriot yields up the ghost ! LETTERS OF DEATH. But there was another kind of letters to be written. To in- form the friends at home of the condition of the sick and wounded soldier was, sometimes, an unpleasant task ; but when one died, especially if he gave but dim evidence of preparation, as was fre- quently the case, and we were made the despatcher of the mourn- ful intelligence of his death to the bereaved mother, widowed wife, and orphaned children, the duty was peculiarly sad and painful. Hence, we always endeavored to canvass the heart and obtain the spiritual condition of every dangerously diseased patient, not only for his own spiritual benefit, but also for the comfort and consolation of his friends at home. To have a pa- tient brought into the hospital, who had sacrificed his life for his country, and die before we could learn his spiritual condition, as was sometimes the case, was very unpleasant. Yet when the influx of mortally-wounded and fatally-diseased patients was so great, it could not always be avoided. Frequently they were brought in dead, without having any account of their religious experience, and sometimes even without a record of their name, company, or regiment. How severe the ravages of war ! At times, when the mortality was very great, I have frequently been called to the bedside of a dying patient who was too far gone to even express a hope in Christ, leaving no record but his life to comfort his bereaved friends. For an anxious, aifectionate mother, or devoted wife, to v ear of the death of a dear son or husband, by the ruthless hands of infuriated rebels, was trying ; but to hear that he died " with- out hope," was almost overwhelming. When the mighty conflict was raging that decided the fate of our country, and the news- papers were teeming with the accounts of bloody battles and long lists of casualties, all know with what deep anxiety those rolls of 110 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. honor were searched by every anxious heart, to know if his or her own particular friend was among the fallen. Much similar was the anxiety felt by those at home who had clear friends in the hospital. Hence, when the messenger of a soldier's death reached the throbbing heart of his bereaved friends, the next question was, " How did he die ? What were his prospects for eternity ? What was his disease, or wounds," etc. All such questions were proper and natural ; and, when we could, we always answered them with pleasure, and did what we could to console and com- fort the bereaved, mourning friends at home. Many of the brave heroes died triumphant deaths, perfectly resigned ; and, rising above all doubts and fears, evincing their assurance and preparation in such words as these : " I am ready." " I have no fear of death." " The Lord is mine." " Tell my wife I died happy," etc. When this was the case, to despatch a death notice was not so painful ; but when a man died " without hope," sacrificing his life for the salvation of his country, and dying beside the Prince of Life, and yet, doubtless, dying to die the death that never dies, to communicate the sad intelligence was no desirable task. We always made the best we could of such cases, urging the bereaved friends (at home) to be warned, by the death of him who died defending his country, to "prepare to meet their God" And the replies we received to these letters were usually most interesting and touching. Filled with gratitude, patriotism, tenderness, sor- row, and faith, we often read them with tears. Our letters describing the last hours of the departed heroes, and the answers we received in reply from their friends at home, if collected, would make a very interesting book. LETTERS FROM THE BEREAVED AT HOME TO THE CHAPLAIN IN THE HOSPITAL. LETTER No. 1. THE BEREAVED WIFE. Written with a heart gushing with grief and glowing with connubial affection, it cannot fail to interest every reader. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Ill PEASLEVILLE, N. Y., Feb. 13, 1865. REV. FRIEND : With a trembling hand and a downcast heart, I take the liberty to write a few lines to one that has vis- ited my dear husband in his last moments. Oh ! is it possible that he is gone, and I am never to behold his form on earth again? Must I can it be so? God has called, and I must submit to the stroke, though severe. He has a large circle of friends and relatives that deeply mourn our loss. He was beloved and respected, in his northern home, by all who knew him. He was the father of three children two girls, and a boy twelve years of age. They have looked forward to the time when they could greet him ; but their hopes are all blasted with mine. They have no father to look after them now in a cold and unfeeling world. Alone ! no eye to pity, no arm to save, but God. By diligence and proper improvement of time, he has accumulated a quiet home for his family. We enjoyed the com- fort of his society until his country called for him ; he left us in the hands of God, and went forth to lend a helping hand in this great strife which desolates a home which was once pleasant and lovely. The rose may blossom and flowers bloom around my lonely dwelling the hand that planted them with so much care lies silent in the tomb, and there must rest until God shall wake the sleeping dead. Oh, how many a great and good man has fallen to save and preserve the Union, so the living can have freedom of speech and liberty. May God hasten the time when it can be said, we are victorious ; that oppression has ceased, and the cord which bound the oppressed is broken ; may the time soon come when the flag of honor and glory may find a resting- place in every State over our great continent; and then may it wave in peace and security until time is no longer this is my prayer. N. B. Concerning my husband's precious remains, if it is possible, how glad would I be to have him buried in the family bury ing-ground with his dear connections; so that when I am done with the afflictions of this life, I can slumber sweetly by his side. Not having the money by me, I wait an answer from you. If you will take the trouble to let me know how much it would cost me, and if it is possible for me to raise the money, I shall. But it is my prayer that there may be a way opened so that his remains can be sent to me. I cannot bear the thought of having him slumber there, away from home and all that was dear to him on earth. Oh, how gladly would I visit the ward where he has en- dured so much Buttering and toil, and spent his last days on earth ! 112 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Oh, how can I give him up, and never greet that form again ? If thou art a companion, or a father, thou knowest well our feel- ings. But when the short journey of life is concluded, and I am done with sorrow and afflictions, that AVC shall meet where separa- tion is unknown forever. My prayer shall not cease for that ward, although my husband is called away by death. Receive this from the hand of deep affliction, which pen can- not describe. This short epistle to the much-honored chaplain of Hampton Hospital. LETTER No. 2. THE BEREAVED BROTHER. He had just lost his only brother died far away, in the ser- vice of his country. Here are the feelings of his soul, lament- ing his loss, and expressions of gratitude for favors shown him in his last sufferings. NEW HAVEN, July 30, 1865. MR. BILLINGSLEY, AND FRIEND : I received your letter con- taining the sad intelligence of my brother's death, the youngest, and only brother, my eldest having died only one year and six months ago. Your sympathy for me, in my sad trial and bereave- ment, I assure you, I appreciate more than pen and ink can de- scribe ; while you kindly assure me he fared well, and I am some- what consoled. I am grieved that I cannot learn the date of death, where and when he was wounded. I wrote to Washing- ton, as you advised, but without the much-desired information. I received an answer. Please accept my heartfelt thanks for kindness in writing the particulars so far as you were at liberty to do. Your letter, with its contents, will ever be a sad comfort to me. Should you ever visit New Haven, I should be most grate- ful for a visit from you. I shall bring his remains home as soon as they can be obtained. Yours gratefully, . LETTER No. 8. THE WEEPING WIDOW. Though written with a pen dipped in grief, and with a soul bowed down with sorrow, yet it breathes such a spirit of submis- sion under the heavy stroke, and the writer seems to derive so CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 113 much comfort in the sad trial from God's word, that it cannot be read without profit. DONEGAL, PA., April 18, 1865. MY DEAR BROTHER : I received your letter of the 4th on the 12th the sad news of my dear husband's death. Oh ! was ever sorrow equal to mine ? I cannot describe my feelings when I came to where you said, your dear departed husband. Oh ! I thought, can this be so ? Yet it is. I thank you very much for your kind letter, and your kindness to my dear companion in his affliction. Your admonitions, your portions of divine truth, they have been read over and over ; and, oh, what consolation I find in these lines, Behold, happy is the man whom God correctcth ; therefore, despise not the chastening of the Almighty. For He maketh sore, and bindeth up the wounds ; and His hands make whole. He shall deliver them in six troubles; yea, in seven there shall no evil touch them. No tongue can express my grief. My friends here are trying to persuade me to leave his body there, as you say he is buried decent ; and they tell me I could not see him if I would have him brought home. But, oh, I think it cannot be ! But his remains must come. They tell me it will cost at least an hun- dred dollars. I am in rather poor circumstances, and know not what to do ; but, if you please, see that the board that marks his grave is well put in, so that, after a while, I perhaps can have him home. If you please, be so kind and write me again, and tell me if he said anything concerning me or my poor little chil- dren. I am left with four dear children the oldest not nine, and the youngest two, years old ; but I trust that my Father in heaven will be their father and the widow's husband. My hope of heaven is bright. I am a member of the Baptist Church, and have been for near eleven years ; and I love all Christians, let them be of what name or order. And please let me know what branch of the Christian church you are connected with ; and I hope that we'll all meet in heaven at last. I am also very grateful to you for a lock of my companion's hair. Your marks of kindness shall never be forgotten while memory lasts ; and my prayer is that you may see the work of the Lord prosper in your hands. I ask an interest in your prayers : we are here in the wilder- ness, and oft are tempted ; but Christ is sufficient to bring us out conquerors and more. I think now, if my dear husband had only been permitted to get home to die, that I would not murmur. But this is hard. 8 114 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. And then, when I reflect, I think it is all right, and I should feel thankful that he is now happy, and that he did not fall on the battle-field. And may God hasten the day when war shall cease. I will close by saying please answer this soon. Your sorrowful friend, LETTER No. 4. THE DYING SOLDIER'S LETTER TO HIS WIFE. It was his last farewell letter. He indicted it himself as he lay on his bed in the hospital, nigh unto death. To see the dying father, with weeping eyes, bid farewell to his far-off wife and children, was peculiarly touching. HAMPTON HOSPITAL, "1 FORTRESS MONROE, NOT. 28, 1864. / MY DEAR WIFE : I am sick low with diarrhoea; I don't expect to get well. But I feel that I am going to a better world. I feel prepared to die ; and hope and trust and pray you will meet me in heaven. Bid farewell to Catharine and David for me. If you live to raise the children, raise them to the religion of the Bible. Religion seems more precious and valuable to me now than ever before. If you choose, come and take my remains home. I have no doubts of heaven. I never felt so happy be- fore. All is bright and clear. "My title is clear to mansions in the skies." That God may abundantly bless you and the chil- dren is my prayer. Farewell. Your Affectionate Husband. LETTER No. 5. A WEEPING SOUTHERN FAMILY. This letter, although coming from the other side of the strug- gle, and written shortly after "the surrender," yet, being so full of sorrow and grief of a bereaved family, and breathing such a strong paternal and grateful spirit, it will no doubt be read with deep interest by many. MONTGOMERY, ALA., July, 1865. SIR: Yours of the twenty-fifth May, addressed to my father, Mr. C. Stokes, informing him of the death of my only brother, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 115 Andrew J. Stokes, has just been received. We had already received the bitter intelligence; but are none the less indebted and thankful to you for your note. Although you are an entire stranger to our once happy, but now gloomy, household, on be- half of the entire family allow me to return to you our most heartfelt thanks for the attention and care you bestowed upon the deceased. And although in the busy struggle of life our paths may never meet, rest assured, my dear sir, that under whatever suns, or upon whatever seas, it may please an all-wise God to cast us, we shall never, never forget you, who pointed the soul of him we loved so well to the brightly-beaming star of Faith and Hope. The day we received your sad, but comforting letter, because it bid us, " Be of good cheer," " It is thy Father's will," was the anniversary of the third year since last he was with us. Then, in the prime of his young, but noble manhood, he left us now, poor boy, he sleeps the quiet sleep of death in a far-off, strangers' land. Pardon me for these ebullitions of private grief, but truly, indeed, has it been written, "Oh, what a shadow o'er the heart is flung, When peals the requiem of the loved and young." Again accept our thanks for your very kind attentions, and believe that when we " bend the knee " to invoke the blessings of Heaven; whenever memory shall revert to the joyous days of yore, we shall ask that same kind and righteous power to shower blessings upon you, so that when your race is run, you may rest in the bosom of the omnipotent God. With profound respect, I remain, truly yours, CANVASSING THE PATIENTS' HEARTS. One of the most laborious and important duties of the hospital chaplain was to canvass the hearts of the patients. And at one time we knew the spiritual diagnosis of almost every patient in the hospital. This was all-important; for it matters but little who has the head, if Satan has the heart. The heart governs. True religion is heart-work. Christianity is the religion of the heart. Hence the divine injunctions, " Give me thy heart" " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart," and " Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life." 116 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Hence, in talking with the patients, we always endeavored to get at and get down deep into their hearts. And although, with some, it is difficult to reach the heart, yet we scarcely ever found it so with the soldier in the army. Accustomed to acts of heroism, soldiers are generally less ashamed, and more free to talk about religion in the army, than at home. And why should they not be ? What a shame to the Christian religion that professors talk so little about it. In days of old, it was written, " they that fear the Lord, spake often one to another." Religious conversa- tion is not only instructive, but strengthening and refreshing to the Christian, and very beneficial to the sinner. It warms the heart and fires the soul. Hence we often found it difficult to get away from the sick and wounded soldier. When about to start from the bedside, I have heard them plead thus: "O chaplain, don't go away. Can't you stay, and talk to me more about Jesus?" and giving him a warm shake of the hands, with a hearty "good-by," accompanied with the earnest exhortation, ''Trust in the Lord" together with the comprehensive prayer, "May God bless you" it was hard to tear ourselves away from their warm hearts. To sit down, read and explain appropriate passages of Scripture, and enjoy a free, frank, unrestrained, social talk with the brave heroes, and to see the penitential tear trickle down their furrowed cheeks, was always touching and refreshing. They were not afraid or ashamed to unbosom their hearts, uiul tell us all about their lives and religious experience. If they prayed, they would say so ; if not, they would frankly acknowl*- edge it. When we put the question, "Do you swear?" they frankly answered, " Yes," or " No," or " Yes, I swear sometimes, when excited," as the case might be. If they enjoyed religion, they would tell you if not, they would frankly acknowledge it. If they were seeking it, they were not ashamed to confess it. I asked one lovely boy, severely wounded, under deep conviction, bathed in tears, with anxiety about his salvation, "What hinders you from getting religion?" He promptly replied, "Pride, and my hard heart, I suppose," and, wringing his heart with contri- tion, the big tears flowed down his pale cheeks. With one leg off above the knee, there he lay for many days watering his CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 117 couch with tears, given up by the ward-master and surgeon to die. He was a noble boy. I wept and prayed much for him ; virned and entreated him to come to the Saviour, and, on my entering his ward shortly after, I saw his face lit up with smiles, and on asking, "How are you to-day, Henry?" he replied, "I am better. The burden is removed ; I think I have found the Saviour. Oh, what a precious Saviour ! " We sent for his father. He came. Henry got better, and went home, leaving one leg and a large portion of his patriotic blood upon the field of battle to water the tree of Liberty. We often met with soldiers well versed in Scripture, who were rich and fluent in religious conversation. Some of them seemed to have the Bible at their fingers' end. Others, with less knowledge of God in the head, but with more of Christ in the heart ; their lips teemed " with words that glow, and thoughts that burn," about the story of the cross, and their own religious experience. To talk and pray with them was a great privilege. I have gone away from their bedsides instructed, encouraged, and much re- freshed. To witness the frequent bright conversions, their deep religious experience, triumphant deaths, and bright prospects of a glorious immortality exhibited, by their own language, in such words as these : " I am ready;" "The Lord is mine*;" "I have no fear of death;" "Tell my wife I died happy;" "All is well," etc., were truly refreshing to the soul. And often very striking religious expressions fell from the lips of the colored patients. Having fewer religious and theological ideas than white people, what they have seem to take a deep hold and make a very deep impression upon them. More simple and confiding in their views and habits, they seem to believe more and doubt less, according to the light they have, than the whites. Taking God at his word, they seem to know nothing about doubting or unbe- lief. And being full of the warmest emotions, they often give vent to very vivid and striking impressions, such as the follow- ing: "I thank God for my wound: it has knocked the feeling of revenge out of me, and brought me nearer to God." "Before it, I would cry, ' Fort Pillow, and let 'em have it;' but now I would spare a rebel on his knees." Another says, " I am ready 118 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. to go any time ; " *' I have got more than all the world can give ; " "I don't want." Another earnestly prayed, " Save me, Lord ! save me, Lord ! " Another says, " When I go into battle, I put Jesus in front, and I don't fear," etc. Speaking right out from the heart, their thoughts are original, quick, and powerful. Many of them are remarkably earnest and powerful in prayer. CHAPTER IX. THE WOMEN OF THE HOSPITAL. THEIR VALUABLE SERVICES HIGHLY APPRECIATED BY THE PATIENTS CHESAPEAKE HOSPITAL WELL SUPPLIED HERE MRS. MARY B. DULLY WAS DIRECTRESS AND HEAD OF SANITARY DEPARTMENT " SHE DID WHAT SHE COULD " MlSS AMOS, OF BALTIMORE, KlND, FAITHFUL, AND TRUE MRS. CHAPLAIN E. P. ROE "SHE WENT ABOUT DOING GOOD" MRS. MEECHAM AND MANY OTHERS DID LIKEWISE MRS. CARVER, WITH HER TENT, COOKING-STOVE, AND PROVISIONS, DID MUCH FOR THE PATIENTS MRS. MARY ALEXANDER PLAIN, EARNEST, HEROIC, LOVED THE SOLDIERS ARDENTLY " BURY ME. WITH THEM, WHEN I DIE." the wearied, sick, or wounded soldier, so long from home, and deprived of the affectionate smiles of mother, father, wife, and children, a visit from no one seemed to do them so much good as from a kind, cheerful, sympathizing lady. Made up so much of tenderness, affection, and sympathy, a good woman can cheer and comfort when none else but God can. And so long exposed to the asperities of war, those messengers of mercy always met with a hearty welcome from the patient in the hospital. Hence every well regulated hospital was well furnished with competent matrons. Many a sick and wounded soldier and officer has been greatly comforted in their sick and dying hours by the sympathy and soothing power of woman's kindness. At the Chesapeake, every ward had its own matron, whose duty was to give out medicine, provide suitable food and delicacies for the most needy patients. In this way doubtless, under God, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 119 they saved the lives of many a patient. Besides this very im- portant work, they did much in cheering up, reading and talking to, and writing letters for, the patients, and in a thousand ways added much to their comfort. MRS. MARY B. DULLY. At the Chesapeake, Mrs. Mary B. Dully, directress of this division of the hospital, stood at the head of the sanitary depart- ment, and with a liberal, prudent hand gave out the rich sup- plies of cordials, dainties, clothing, etc., furnished through the liberality of the Sanitary Commission, sent chiefly from Pitts- burg, Pa. Intrusted with the internal affairs of the hospital, she presided over them with dignity and honor to herself and satisfaction to all concerned. Hailing from Pittsburg, Pa., with a heart full of patriotic ardor, she entered the service, at the beginning of the war, in the old Hygiea Hospital near the fort, and came here when that closed. Marked for discretion, she succeeded in gathering around her a corps of competent ladies, well qualified for the arduous work of nursing the sick and wounded. With a head " silvered over with age," she always sat at the head of the table, and presided with ease and dignity. Possessing good executive abilities, and wielding a fine moral influence, her administration was a perfect success. But she not only managed the hospital affairs well, but, possessing a heart glowing with kindness, and swelling with com- passion for the sick and wounded officers and soldiers, she labored faithfully, and, like Mary of old, " did what she could" to cheer and comfort them. I have seen her sit for hours endeavoring, with all her characteristic tenderness, to ease the pains and soothe the sorrows of the dying hero. Thus she continued to labor until the hospital closed; and being a warm friend of the freedmen, then fell in and labored for them. She hath wrought a good work. The Lord reward her abundantly for it. Miss Amos, of Baltimore, was another faithful laborer in this good work, who, in her meek, winning, unobtrusive manner did 120 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. so much in administering to the wants and comforts of the patients. Mild and prepossessing in her ways, she was always a welcome visitor at the bedside of the patient. For a long while she was a very acceptable matron of one of the principal wards in the officers' division, but was afterward sent to "New Camp" to labor for the well-being and comforts of the private soldier. She was afterward assigned' to duty in one of the more prominent wards of the Hampton division of the hospital, where, through her laborious work, she became sick, as did several other matrons, from hard labor and rooming in small rooms in one end of their respective wards. Among many others of equal worth, energy, and self-denial in their painstaking and arduous efforts in caring for and supplying the wants of the patients at the Chesapeake, (as we have not time and space to speak fully of them all,) were Miss J. E. Bently, Mrs. D. W. Holt, Mrs. Campbell, Mrs. Jane M. Worrell, Miss Preston, Miss E. Woleott, and several others whose names we have forgotten. At Hampton, they acted the same part. But here, the matrons being fewer in proportion to the number of patients, each matron had a much wider field of labor. Sometimes there were but three or four matrons in all the division. Then they went round and visited from ward to ward,- paying particular attention to the worst cases. MRS. CHAPLAIN E. P. EOE, from New York, for a while in the summer and fall of 1864 took an active part in this noble work. With her kind heart, liberal hand, and cheerful countenance, she went round through the wards, administering both to the temporal and spiritual wants of the patients. Supplied with cordials and articles of clothing, wherever she found a needy patient, she supplied him with these things. And having supplied their temporal wants, she often ministered to them spiritually, in reading and talking to them, pointing them to Christ, and urging them to immediate repentance. With her Christian zeal and characteristic tenderness, she did much to relieve the suffering soldiers. On the opposite page is a picture of her reading to a wounded soldier. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAE. 121 MRS. MEECHAM, of Cleveland, Ohio, who spent some two or three years in this home of the sick and wounded soldier, by her good sense and adaptedness to the work, was a perfect veteran in administering to the wants and comforts of the patients. She was a sweet singer, and by her enchanting music did much to ease the pains, soothe the sorrows, and cheer the hearts of the suffering. Be- sides after leading the singing at church, she always went around with the choir to sing in the wards. This exercise, very accept- able and cheering to the patients, was usually conducted by Chaplain Roe, and generally attended to on Sabbath afternoons. The chaplain, accompanied by the choir, would enter a ward, read a suitable passage of Scripture, followed by the enlivening music. After singing two or three pieces, they would go on to the next ward. They usually sung every Sabbath. Part of the time it was omitted. MRS. CARVER. Although she was not connected with the hospital, and had no relative therein, she there did a good work. Deeply con- cerned for the salvation of the country, and deeply interested in the welfare of the soldier, this noble - hearted lady came from Philadelphia, Pa., to Fortress Monroe, Va., to labor for their comfort. Amply provided with cooking-stoves and cooking- utensils, and a rich supply of flour, meats,, fruits, fowls, and deli- cacies, she came here first in the summer of 1864, and located herself in a remote part of the hospital, in the north-east corner of New Camp. Here, through the surgeon in charge, she soon had a comfortable tent erected, put up her cooking-stove, hung out the stars and stripes, and commenced operation on her own hook. Thus prepared, she set about the great work in good earnest, and baking bread and pies, and preparing all sorts of good things in best style, the heart of many a suffering soldier was made glad through her incessant labors and bountiful lib- erality. And having prepared her rich provisions, she would gc round through the wards and look up the most needy patients, 122 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and with eagerness administer to their wants. Possessed with a magnanimous spirit and a tender, sympathizing heart and a lofty patriotism, she was a true friend of the soldier, and delighted to give and labor for his comfort. The first time I met her was in a tent in New Camp, endeavoring to comfort a distressed, suffer- ing soldier. At her request I went in, read, conversed, and prayed with him, endeavoring to pour into his soul the consola- tions of the gospel. Here, and in this way, she continued her good work and labor of love until late in the fall, and then went home. But, without growing weary in well doing and with unabated interest in the welfare of the soldier, she returned the following summer, with a fresh supply of provision, and opened out her Sanitary Tent again near ward twenty-seven, close by the head-quarters of Hampton Hospital. Here, with renewed vigor and liberality, she prepared and dealt out her good things to the worthy suffering defenders of our country. What she did in the great conflict for the Union in other parts of the army, we do not know ; but for what she has done here, she deserves to be en- shrined in the memory of every American patriot. MRS. MARY ALEXANDER. Of all the matrons of the U. S. General Hospital, Fortress Monroe, Va., for fidelity, self-denial, and devotion to the inter- ests of the sick and wounded, there were none that excelled Mrs. Mary Alexander. Deeply interested in the cause of free- dom, she entered the service at the beginning of the war, and sacrificed her life in the noble cause. Born and brought up among the mountains of Switzerland, the principles of liberty were deeply instilled in her mind, and they burned warmly upon the altar of her patriotic heart. A love of liberty was the ruling passion of her soul. A true, .devoted friend of the soldiers, she nursed them as her own children ; and they loved her as a mother. Trusting in God for help and success, when laboring with a pa- tient severely wounded or dangerously diseased, she would say, "We will try and save him, by the help of God." And, doubtless, it was her reliance upon God for help that made her so devoted CHRISTIANITY IIS THE WAR. 123 and successful in her noble work and labor of love. Stout- hearted, heavy-set, with a strong, muscular frame, she was well calculated to endure hardness. Firmness, energy, persever- ance, and determination were some of the leading traits of her character. Blessed with good sense and sound judgment, plain and unassuming, she was a woman of few words, distinguished more for her deeds than for words. Acting the part of both wound-dresser and ward-matron, when it was necessary for the good of the patient to pour into his gangrened wound the burn- ing, smarting tincture, she possessed the nerve to do it, even though the patient would sometimes scream out with anguish and pain. Having so many bad cases in her ward, and being so much exposed to the impurities of the patients, through her excessive labor and toil by day and night, she contracted a malignant fever, which carried her off in eight or ten days. Devotedly attached to the soldiers while living, she said "Bury me with them, when dead" Her request was granted. In the centre of a small triangular lot, reserved for flowers in the centre of the soldiers' graveyard, her mortal remains were buried with all the pomp and honors of war. Having lived to see the rebellion quelled, the slave freed, and the country saved, patient and resigned she passed away, April 23, 1865, at five o'clock p. M., crowned with the glories of martyrdom. She died in the Chesa- peake Hospital. Her funeral was large, solemn, and imposing. The corpse, beautifully decorated with garlands of roses and wreaths of flowers, wrapped in a fine shroud and inclosed in a neat coffin, was placed in the parlor, richly draped in mourning in honor of the death of Abraham Lincoln. And there, standing in the aisle, thronged with officers, ladies, and soldiers, Chaplain E. P. Roe, U.S.A., preached an appropriate sermon from the following words, " Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." The exercises were very solemn and deeply impressive. The procession, headed by the hospital band discoursing mournful music, was grand and im- posing. Having labored faithfully with the soldiers in the field and hospital, she now rests with them in the grave. There she lies, waiting the voice of the last trumpet, " when all will meet 124 CHKISTIANITY IN THE WAR. again around the judgment-seat of Christ." There she lies, with her noble soul disembodied, and washed, we trust, in the blood of Jesus, has gone to swell the ranks of the redeemed in heaven, where there will be no more war, where God himself shall wipe away all tears. She deserves a monument more durable than brass. Let it rise. CHAPTER X. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. "PAST FEELING" PATCHWORK WON'T DO FOR ETERNITY "JESUS SAVED ME TWICE" "I NEVER FORGET MY SAVIOUR" THE BLIND EXHORTER "I HAVE VERY SWEET COMMUNION WITH GOD " His DEATH LETTER FROM His WIFE CORPORAL JOHN CREED, 23o ILL., Co. B. HONORED FOR His BRAVERY SOLDIERS DIE CLINCHED COURAGE OF POMPEY JOY AN ELEMENT OF STRENGTH ANANIAS MONTGOMERY " HE HAD A BALL IN His SIDE, AND GOD IN His HEART" "I FEEL HAPPY " THE BACK- SLIDER "I LOST MY RELIGION" "Now I AM MISERABLE" GEORGE H. VANLOAN "I DO LOVE HIM" "!T WOULD BE HARD TO LIVE IN THE ARMY WITHOUT EELIGION " THE FIXED HEART "I PRAY OFTEN " " I DO FEEL HAPPY" "I AM Too WICKED FOR THAT" I SWEAR A GREAT DEAL" "I CAN'T PRAY" "Tr's Too LATE" "I AM A GREAT SINNER" "I HAVE GIVEN UP" "!T is BETTER TO DIE" "I AM WILL- ING TO GO " " ALL is WELL " MIDNIGHT CALLS " O CHAPLAIN, I FEEL MOST AWFUL ! " "PAST FEELING." SITTING beside a pale, languid soldier, one day, in ward number seven, endeavoring to probe his conscience and stir his soul upon the subject of immediate repentance, and finding him hard to reach, the kind, compassionate matron came up, and cried out, "Comfort him! comfort Aim/" whereupon I immedi- ately replied, " The soldier's heart, like his wound, must be probed before it can be healed or comforted. To comfort the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 125 soul while the heart is embedded in sin is impossible. What caused this great national disturbance? Why is our country deluged with blood to-day ? What is the cause ? It is sin. Sin is the great disturber in this world. It is sin that robs man of comfort ; and so long as it lies on the heart unrepented of, there can be no lasting peace. Sin has dug hell ; and God says, ' The wicked shall be turned into hell ; ' and I wish to say to you, my dear friend, you must soon repent or perish, turn or die. And, as Whitefield says, ' It is better to hear of he\l, than to feel it/ we wish to give you fair warning. Patchwork may do for time, but it will not do for eternity. It won't stand the test of the great heart-searching God, whose eyes are as a flaming fire. If you build on the sand, when the floods of God's wrath rise, you will be swept away. The natural heart is such a sink of iniquity that, unless it is deeply probed by God's Spirit, and washed in Christ's blood, there can be no true peace on earth and no hap- piness in heaven. A wound may be healed over with corruption within, but it will soon break out again ; so you may smooth over, and patch the old stony heart, and obtain a little transient comfort; but unless it be thoroughly cleansed, like the troubled sea, that cannot rest, it will continually be casting up mire and dirt. So long a? Satan sits enthroned within, and retains posses- sion of the heart, the ebullitions of envy, strife, and unhallowed ambition will continue to rise, and keep the whole man in a continual commotion. A small leak will sink a great ship ; and a small sin, unrepented of, will sink the soul to hell. Hence we learn the importance of a change of heart and complete sanctifica- tion. Oh, then, we beseech you, my dear friend, give your heart to God ! Surrender the old heart, and God will give you a new one. You have had many warnings. God still waits to be gracious. Jesus still cries, ' Come unto me, and I will give you rest.' " I preached to him, conversed and prayed with him ; urged and besought him by the mercies of God, by the love of < 'hrist, and by the joys of heaven, to fly to Jesus ; yet all seemed to make but little or no impression. His heart seemed bam-d against the truth. He seemed to be past feeling, and the story of the cross appeared to make no impression upon him. He was 126 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. / frank and free to talk, but seemed to be perfectly careless and indifferent about his salvation. The tender-hearted matron tried him, but, with all her sympathy and kindness, said she could do nothing with him. Profane and careless, he seemed to quench the Spirit and resist the truth. He was now pale and low with chronic diarrhoea, and, from all appearance, was nigh unto death. I said to him, " Are you not afraid you will die, and be lost ? " " No ! " he said, without appearing to realize his danger. I urged him by every possible motive, with all tenderness, to look to Jesus ; but, dead in sin and lost to God, nothing appeared to touch him. With his conscience seared, he seemed to have sinned away his day of grace, and to have become " past feeling." I said to him, " Were you to feel the torments of hell and to realize the joys of heaven for one minute, think you would remain any longer careless ? " He said, " I don't know ; but I suppose not." "And yet the existence of these places is as sure as though you had felt the torments of the one and realized the joys of the other. Why not then ad as though you had seen and felt them both?" He belonged to the 169th N. Y. Vol. We urged him by the melting scenes of Gethsemane and Calvary, but all apparently with no effect. He lingered till February 17, 1865, and, so far as we could see, died without hope. Let the careless be warned and entreated to seek the Lord while he may be found. This was a very rare case. A SICK SOLDIER BAPTIZED. At our first interview with JOHN W. PHILIPS, of Ohio, we found him tender, and with some degree of anxiety inquiring what to do to be saved. After pointing him to the Lamb of God whose blood cleanseth from all sin, and beseeching him by the mercies of God to come to Jesus, we bid him good-by. Although now quite feeble, his strength was evidently declining. At our next interview we found his spiritual interest increasing, and he seemed to be indulging a hope. Telling him of the good- ness of God, of the amazing love of Christ, and of his willingnest? and ability to save even to the uttermost, and endeavoring to CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 127 explain the simplicity of the plan of salvation by faith, and urging him to let go self, renounce the world, forsake sin, and at once to throw himself right into the arms of Jesus, and beseech- ing the Lord to wash and save his soul, we left him to meditate on these things. Possessing a mild, amiable, forgiving spirit, and apparently resigned to God's will, not a murmur fell from his lips. At our next call we found him sinking physically, but rising spiritually, and, indulging a hope that he had felt the washing of regeneration, he desired to be received into the church, and be baptized. He laid in a tent hard by and facing the bay, from which blew daily a fine refreshing breeze, symbolical of the Spirit that washed, we trust, his soul in a Saviour's precious blood. Pressing his desire to unite with the Presbyterian Church, we brought the pastor and ruling elders of the Annapolis Presby- terian Church, and after the usual examination he was received, and after a brief explanation of the nature and design of the ordinance of baptism, he was solemnly baptized, sitting on his death-bed, beside the blue waters of Chesapeake Bay, May 10, 1864. Rejoicing in the Lord, and overflowing with gratitude, he thanked us most heartily. But his time was short. Lingering some ten hours after his baptism, his soul left its clay tenement, and went, we hope, to dwell with the spirits of just men made perfect on high. A SOLDIER WITH HALF OF HIS THROAT SHOT OFF. The army of the Potomac, commanded by Gen. Grant, set out for Richmond, May 3, 1864, and, having crossed the Rapidan, they soon met the bloodthirsty rebels in the fierce, destructive battles of the Wilderness and Spottsylvania, and the wounded soon began to pour into the hospitals here almost daily. Many of the officers, though but slightly wounded or diseased, seemed to be a good deal fatigued, and after a few days' rest were, by the exacting surgeon in charge, sent back to the front. Others, severely wounded and unable for duty, were retained, and re- ceived strict attention. In making my regular visits, one day, I found an unfortunate soldier, sitting alone in his tent, with half of his under jaw and 128 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. throat shot off. " A very narrow escape, sir ! you have made a very narrow escape with your life." " Yes, a little deeper, and I would have been gone." Though severely wounded, he bore it all very patiently without a murmur. With his swalloAV so badly injured and so much of it torn off, he had to live entirely on spoon victuals. And his vocal organs were so much impaired he could scarcely speak. On approaching him on the subject of religion, he said he trusted in the Lord, and appeared to have a well-grounded hope. After pointing him to the Saviour, and beseeching him to cling to the cross, I said to him, "Shall I pray for you?" and promptly nodding his head, he quickly kneeled down with such a zest that manifested a longing desire for the intercession ; and kneeling down by his side, we besought God to sustain and comfort him in his trials, heal his wounds, forgive his sins, and save his soul. We visited him often, and always found him patient and resigned, frequently reading his Testa- ment. He belonged in Philadelphia, had no family, and when we left the hospital he w r as doing well. How he got along after- ward, we never heard. This and the case immediately preceding it, were in the U.S. General Hospital at Annapolis, Md. "JESUS SAVED ME TWICE." The shock of battle, the bloody charge, the groans of the dying, and the awful sight of the ghastly dead, together with the press- ing danger of the severe conflict, sometimes so deeply stir the soul and fire the heart of the Christian soldier, that when he falls severely wounded upon the gory field, and is carried to the hos- pital, the first word he utters is one glowing with gratitude to God for his great mercy in. sparing his life. Such were the heart-gushing words of George Frederick, 15th N. J., Co. C, as he lay upon his bed with a rebel ball in his shoulder, when he said, with deep emotion and tears, as I first approached him, " Jesus saved me twice," Having twice barely escaped with his life, and ascribing all the glory of his salvation to God, lie hastens to give utterance to the deep thoughts of his heart, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 129 and exclaims, in words of immortal memory, " Jesus saved me twice;" whereupon I replied, "And I hope he will save you again." And George said, with a smiling countenance, " I hope and believe he will." He was wounded in one of the last great battles near Petersburg, Ya., having been shot in the left shoulder, the ball remaining in him ; yet, with his strong faith and buoyant hope, his severe wound soon began to improve. Upon examining a little farther into his spiritual condition, we found him very penitent and unusually prayerful. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and, conscious of the great things God had done for him, his heart seemed to flow out with prayer and praise. He prayed much. His wound was so severe, and the shock so great at first, to use his own language, he said, " I thought I would have died on the field, and I re- quested a friend to write home, ( Poor George is dead.' " And although exposed to the temptations of the camp, the trials of the march, and the conflicts of battle, yet, says he, " I never forget my Saviour" " Never forget him ! Few, very few, can say as much. You must be very happy ? " " Yes, I feel happy in the Lord." " And I suppose you find this happy state of feeling, or joy in the Lord, a source of courage and strength in the day of battle ? " " Yes, I believe it is. Besides the salvation of the country, the anticipated honor and glory of victory does much to urge men on to acts of daring and courage in the day of battle." " As you never forget your Saviour, George, I suppose the ordinary temp- tations of army life make but little impression upon you." " No ; I try to watch and pray, and by endeavoring to remember the great truth contained in the words of Hagar, ' Thou, God, seest me,' I endeavor to endure temptation as much as possible. " And there is nothing tends more to deliver us from temptation than a clear conception of God's presence. A deep sense of the sublime truth, Go(l is present, should quench the fiery darts of the wicked and blunt the weapons of hell. If the thief, when he goes to steal, would stop, and call to mind the important truth God is present, his thieving heart would fail him. If the profane swearer, when his lips begin to teem with oaths, would remember that the God 130 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. whose name he profanes is present, it would stay his swearing. Had J. Wilkes Booth, when he was about to assassinate Abraham Lincoln, stopped, and grasped the awe-inspiring truth, God is pres- ent,\h\s fiendish heart would have failed him, and his murderous hand would have fallen palsied to his side, and he would have failed to commit that awful deed. Thus, as a check upon sin, let us always remember God is present, and our responsibility unto him, and strive to live so that we will be enabled to say in the words of George Frederick, " I never forget my Saviour." The last we heard of him was in his own words, " I feel happy in the Lord." THE BLIND EXHORTER. The Gangrene Camp was the scene of much severe suffering. It was a kind of a depository for the almost hopeless cases of men with gangrened wounds, and other contagious diseases. Yet patients taken there frequently recovered, and were taken back again to their wards. Patients dreaded to go there. But gangrene being considered so contagious, it was considered dangerous to allow cases of it to remain with other wounded patients clear of it. In our " gospel ranging," we often met with very interesting cases of religious experience in this lonely camp. When we first met with Hutchinson Miller, 29th Conn., Co. C, colored troops, we found him low with the erysipelas in the head. His face and eyes were so badly swollen with this fatal disease that he could not see. Wearing a noble countenance, marked with intelligence, integrity, and honor, we find him pleasant and interesting in conversation. Approaching him on the subject of religion, he seemed to be well versed in the doctrines of the cross. Hailing from "the land of steady habits," and being a Presbyterian, he possessed less of the emotional than colored men generally. He said he had been converted fifteen years ago. And as I began to draw him out on his religious experience, he gave me as his creed, "All my trust is in Jesus Christ." " That is a very good, brief, comprehensive, sound, orthodox creed. If you will stand straight and firm on that, it will sustain, console, and buoy yop up under all circumstances. With ' all your trust in CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 131 Christ/ who is able, willing, mighty to save, you have nothing to fear. He is the rock of our salvation. Besides him there is no Saviour. He is able to save to the uttermost. I suppose you derive much comfort from Him ? " " Yes, I have very sweet communion with God." " Communion and intercourse with dear friends is sweet and precious, but it is nothing compared to com- munion with God. When John Wesley was lying on his death- bed, surrounded with intimate friends, with tender hearts and weeping eyes expressing their warmest sympathies and earnest efforts to comfort him, the faithful old soldier of the cross, realizing that his comfort came from a higher source, exclaimed, 'The best of all is, God is with us.' Sweet communion with God, together with a firm reliance upon Christ, will drive away every cloud, and enable us to ' rejoice in the Lord always.' I hope you have no fear of death ? " " No, I am not afraid to die." " With all your trust in Christ, you need not fear to die, because, when standing firmly on such a foundation, ' to die is gain/ Christ, when he died upon the cross, deprived death of its sting to every believer; hence Paul said, 'to depart is far better.' " His disease grew worse, and although he could not see, yet, perceiving that an unconverted soldier was lying close by him in the same tent, Hutchinson Miller, being no longer able to wield " the sword of Gideon," now grasps the sword of the Spirit, and fights with it in warning, instructing, and beseeching his dying comrade to repent, and fly to the Saviour. Although his swollen eyes hid from his vision the light of the natural sun, yet, with his soul lit up by the glorious light of the Sun of Righteousness, he exhorted his tent-mates with tenderness and earnestness to prepare to meet their God. Blest with the joys of salvation himself, he felt deeply anxious that his comrades-in-arms should enjoy it also. And to see him, with his swollen head and. closed eyes, lying upon his death-bed, with a gushing heart imploring the wayward to be reconciled to God, was enough to stir the soul of the most unfaith- ful Christian. He said he belonged to the Free Masons. Calm and submissive, he survived the struggles of life till February 25, 1865, when his soul left its clay tenement, and went, we trust, to the home of the blest. His last words to me were, " Christ is 132 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. precious, and all ray trust." The following interesting letter is from his bereaved wife. READING, PA., March 1, li>5. CHAPLAIN A. S. BILLINGSLEY : I take my pen in hand to inform you that I received your letter of the 3d, which re- vealed to me the sad news the death of my husband, Hutchin- son Miller. So great was the shock to me that I have been unable to answer your letter till now. At present I am laboring under a very severe headache. Whilst this duty is a very pain- ful one to me, your letter was very kind and sympathizing ; and I feel under many obligations to you for the interest that you took in visiting him, conversing with him, and also in writing to me so soon. You will please here accept my warmest thanks for all you have done, hoping that God will reward you more bountifully. My loss is exceedingly a very great one ; for the last letter he wrote was dated on the fifteenth of February : he then spoke of feeling very comfortable, and up to that time he entertained a hope that he would get a furlough. I had been in the habit of getting a letter every week, and often twice a week. The last one was a very cheerful one, and he spoke much of coming home, and of our poor little children ; and when the time arrived for me to get the next, and there was none, I felt confident that he would answer it by his presence. I set up every night till after the late train came in, thinking he would come ; but, alas ! my waiting was in vain ; instead of his presence, the unwelcome news came that he was gone where no travel lei 1 was ever known to return. So you can imagine my loss much better than I can express it. At one time he wrote me that he had asked for a furlough, and the reply was that he would get one, but it would be down front, which was very wounding to his feelings. I think that it is very hard that, when a man leaves his home a comfortable home, like he did and when they are no longer fit for service, that they are deprived of the privilege of seeing their families, which is their all in this life. At times I think that it cannot be that I am not to see him any more in this life ! But I pray earnestly that God will give me grace sufficient to bear with my bereavement. My health is very poor, so that I am not able to labor to raise my family ; but still I believe that God will provide a way for me, if T live faithful. I was led to inquire the way to Christ when a Sabbath-school scholar, and at the age of fourteen years I was admitted a mem- ber of the Presbyterian Church ; and in all my sorrow through life, He has been my comfort, and I still feel to trust Him. So I CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 133 close, hoping that you will remember me and my family when bowing before the throne of grace ! From your bereaved friend, N. B. His remains may be sent for ; but at present I have not the means. If he was here, it would all be much to my comfort. SOLDIERS DYING CLINCHED IN BATTLE. Corp. JOHN CREED, 23d 111., Co. B, though small in body, possessed a noble, courageous heart. He was an old soldier, and had served several years in the old country before he left Ireland. His physiognomy, manners, and appearance, and everything about him, denoted honesty, frankness, and simplicity. Although he carried with him a medal of honor that he had. received from the Government of the United States for his bravery, and had re- ceived special marks of respect from President Lincoln, he was very unpretending in his manners. He was shot in both arms at the capture of Fort Craig, Va., just at the close of the war. Though mild, he was also stern and invincible. To hear him recount deeds of valor and bravery on the field of battle would * raise the patriotism of the most heroic. He said he saw a Union and rebel soldier bayonet one another, clinch, and die clinched. Said he had seen men die standing on the field of battle. And just here let us stop a moment, and inquire what it is that leads men to do such daring deeds. The fear of disgrace and the love of honor, together with the love of God and a patriotic devotion, constitute some of the strongest motives that actuate men in the discharge of duty. Aside from these considerations, the power of military discipline has a wonderful influence in making men steadfast and resolute. A striking instance of which is given by Dr. Guthrie, in the case of the old Roman s'entinel, in the fol- lowing graphic words : THE ROMAN SENTINEL. There was nothing in Pompeii that invested it with a deeper interest to me than the spot where a soldier of old Rome displayed a most heroic 134 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. fidelity. That fatal day on which Vesuvius, at whose feet the city stood, burst out into an eruption that shook the earth, poured torrents of lava from its riven sides, and discharged, amidst the noise of a hundred thun- ders, such clouds of ashes as filled the air, produced a darkness deeper than midnight, and struck such terror into all hearts that men thought not only that the end of the world had come and all must die, but that the gods themselves were expiring on that night a sentinel kept watch by the gate which looked to the burning mountain. Amidst unimaginable confusion, and shrieks of terror mingled with the roar of the volcano, and cries of mothers who had lost their children in the darkness, the inhabit- ants fled from the fatal town, while falling ashes, loading the darkened air and penetrating every place, rose in the streets till they covered the house-roofs, nor left a vestige of the city but a vast silent mound, beneath which it lay unknown, dead, and buried, for nearly seventeen hundred years. Amidst this fearful disorder, the sentinel at the gate had been forgotten ; and as Rome required her sentinels, happen what might, to hold their posts till relieved by the guard, or set at liberty by their officers, he had to choose between death and dishonor. Pattern of fidelity, he stood by his post. Slowly but surely the ashes rise on his manly form ; now they reach his breast ; and now, covering his lips, they choke his breathing. He, also, was "faithful unto death." After seventeen centuries, they found his skeleton standing erect in a marble niche, clad in its rusty armor the helmet on his empty skull, and his bony fingers still closed upon his spear. And next almost to the interest I felt in placing myself on the spot where Paul, true to his colors when all men deserted him, pleaded before the Roman tyrant, was the interest I felt in the niche by the* city gate where they found the skeleton of one who, in his fidelity to the cause of Caesar, sets us an example of faithfulness to the cause of Christ an example it were for the honor of their Master that all his servants followed. And besides all this, there is a thrilling, buoyant joy in antici- pated victory which nerves the soul and urges on in daring deeds, that leads men .undauntedly to face danger, and even to bid defiance to death itself. When the friends of the intrepid Pompey dissuaded him from venturing on a tempestuous sea, in order to be in Rome on an important occasion, the fearless hero replied in words of immortal memory: "It is necessary for me to go; it is not necessary for me to live." To Pompey, the joy in the discharge of duty overcomes the fear of death. When Gen. Howard (under Gen. Sherman) was advancing upon Savannah, as he approached the doomed city, he met in the way a small CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 135 rebel battery which kept up a most galling fire, to the great annoyance of his troops; whereupon the brave general com- manded a halt, and called out for twenty-five brave men to storm the rebel stronghold. Animated with a sublime thirst for the fierce conflict, and fired with a noble joy in anticipating the vic- tory, the brave twenty-five quickly volunteered, and rushed up boldly amidst the thick grape and canister, and, staring death in the face, took the courageous battery amidst the loud shouts of ten thousand hearts anxiously gazing upon the grandeur of the sublime achievement. And although man burns with ambition and longs for fame's immortal honors, it is after all the inspiring joy attending these things that impels the ambitious to grasp for them. Hence this animating joy is one of the principal elements of moral strength in all great and laudable undertakings : it is strength to the orator, it is strength to the soldier, and strength to the Christian. It is this buoyant feeling that gives the rostrum and the pulpit such wonderful power, and makes the forum flash " with thoughts that burn and words that glow." It is this wonderful element of strength that holds the martyr to the stake, and enables him to shout victory in the very agonies of death. "For the joy of the Lord is your strength." Neh. viii. 10. And if it were possible to strip man of this powerful element, the church and the enterprising world would fall into a sudden collapse. What, we ask, was it that led Jesus to Cal- vary? What enabled him to endure the cross and despise the shame? It was the "joy" that was set before him. Then, if we would be mighty in battle and strong in the Lord, let us so live that we will be "rejoicing in the Lord always." Phil. iv. 4. Reader, if you would be happy, useful, and successful in the world, cultivate a cheerful disposition. ANANIAS MONTGOMERY HE HAD A BALL IN HIS SIDE, AND GOD IN HIS HEART. In canvassing one of the new wards, on a balmy April morn- ing, we came in contact with Ananias Montgomery, 10th West Va., Co. B, and found him, at our first interview, patient, prayerful, and resigned. His manly form, expressive counte- 136 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAH. nance, frank appearance, led us to set him down for a noble fellow. He was wounded in the capture of Fort Craig, April 2, 1865, in the last great battle of the war. I remarked to him that it seemed hard to fight three or four years, and then receive a mortal wound just at the close of the struggle. " It does seem so," he said ; "yet I hope and trust it is all right. God's will be done." " Thank God for such submission ! To be resigned to God's will is a very high attainment. Although you have a minie-ball in your side, yet, having God in your heart, you \ave, I hope, nothing to fear. Do you think you would be afraid to die ? " "No; I feel I can die happy." Realizing his need of divine assistance, he said, " Pray for me, that I may hold out faithful till death." "Have you any word to send to your wife?" " Nothing ; only I feel happy, and prepared to die." What a consoling message from a dear dying husband to a bereaved, weeping wife! It is more precious than all the victories and honors ever won upon the field of battle. Victory over the enemy is glorious, but victory over death is rapturous ; and to the bereaved, heart-broken wife nothing could afford so much consolation. To lose a kind husband at home, under the most favorable circumstances, is very trying to the bereaved widow ; but when he dies upon the ensanguined field, or in the hospital, far away from friends, it is far more severe. Having fought a good fight, even with a ball in his side, and feeling that God was in his heart, with the grave yawning before him, sustained by God's grace, he was enabled to say, " I feel happy, and prepared to die." He lingered a few days, and passed away, we trust, where the clanging of arms and the whistling of balls are heard THE BACKSLIDER. I have heard men say, in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, "We can't live out religion here, where sin so much abounds, and where temptations are so strong." Sometimes the same objection and excuse has been urged in the army. And although restraints are weaker, and temptations stronger, in the army than at home, yel, as God is tne same everywhere, and as his grace is CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 137 sufficient for us at all times, and in all places, if we will only trust in Him, he will deliver in every temptation, and sustain us in every trial, as well in the army as at home. If God preserved and delivered Daniel in the lions' den, surely he can sustain the Christian soldier in the army. At our first interview with Harry Stanton, 118th N.Y., Co. C, we found him of easy access, frank and free to converse, and confess his sins. Said he, " I was soundly converted over twelve years ago. I enjoyed religion very well for six months ; but then I lost it." m " What a long list of sins ! Yet we are glad to see you make such a frank and full confession of them. It is good to confess your faults to another. God says, 'If we confess our sins, he is faith- ful to forgive, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.' What led you to backslide?" " My own unfaithfulness. My neglect- ing my Bible, my closet, the church, and the prayer-meeting. I became lukewarm ; my love waxed cold ; I forsook God, and he has forsaken me." " Where did your backsliding begin?" "It began in my heart, I suppose, and, taking root there, it soon spread all through my thoughts, prayers, devotions, words, and deeds, until I soon found that I possessed so little strength that I was just ' ready to die.' " "Now do you think you were really soundly converted to God?" "Yes, I have no doubt of it." "Although it is the Christian's privilege to know that he is a Christian, there is, after all, a possibility of being deceived in this matter. We may think and belief we are Christians, when we are not. Hence, close self-examination is all - important. How are you getting along now ? Do you feel happy since you lost your religion ? " " Oh, no ; I am miserable. God frowns upon me a miserable backslider ! Yes, that's what I am ! " " Oh ! how strange and awful, that any should ever wander away from such a compassionate Saviour, who has done such great things for us ! Take the oath of allegiance to the King of kings, and then turn traitor to God ! Forsake Him who suffered, bled, and died for you f OL, how treacherous ! What treacherous disloyalty ! With your soul once washed in Christ's blood, and then return like a sow that is washed to her wallowing in the mire ! Come down from the lofty heights of holiness, of union 138 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and communion with God, and return again to the beggarly elements and to bondage quit praying, and take to swearing ; forsake God to serve Satan ! Oh, how awful ! And is it so ? Is this your condition $ " " Yes, that 's it, in strong terms.'' "And don't you feel sorry for your aggravated sins?" " Yes, [weeping,] I do feel sorry; and I am going to try to do better." "You are not going to live without religion, I hope?" "No; I expect to seek it again when I get home." " Why not seek it here in the hospital now?" "Oh, this is a poor place for it." "A poor place for it here, among the sick and dying, where death is so frequent, where time is so short, and eternity so near ? I should think it a very good place for it ; and it is the very place that you need. Do you see that shrouded corpse ; do you see that dear comrade bleeding to death ; do you hear the dying groans of that expiring soldier; and what meaneth all this? It is a warn- ing to you ; it is the voice of God warning and admonishing you, 'Prepare to meet thy God!' Oh, then, say not 'this is a poor place to seek religion ! ' If the awful, terrible charge and the shock of battle don't alarm you; if the thrilling, solemn scenes of the hospital don't arrest you, and lead you to repentance, how can you expect the dull routine of life at home to do it ? You expect, you say, to seek religion when you get home? What if you should never reach home ; how then ? Besides, God says, ' The expectation of the wicked shall perish.' (Prov. x. 28.) Many, doubtless, expect to be saved, who are finally lost. Your only safety, then, is in immediate repentance. Now is God's time, and here is the right place. Oh, then, we beseech you, repent, repent now, come back, come home to God, and he will heal your backsliding, and restore unto you the joys of his salvation! May God bless you." GEORGE H. VANLOAN. Upon canvassing the heart of George H. Vanloan, 3d N. Y. Cavalry, we found him penitent, prayerful, trusting in the Lord. " Do you love the Saviour ! " " Yes," he said, with great emphasis, and deep emotion and tears, " I do love him." " Love is the principal thing. Without love we are f as sounding brass, or a CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 139 tinkling cymbal.' < And though I bestow all my goods to feed the puoi, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, or love, I am nothing. Love is the fulfilling of the law ; it is the strongest of all propensities. It holds and binds the Chris- tian to the throne of grace, and the martyr to the stake. Don't you think love to Christ helps in getting along in afflictions ? " " Yes, I believe so ; for I'd have died long ago, had I not trusted in the Lord." " The calm, composed state of mind resulting from strong faith in Christ, when passing through the deep waters of affliction, is, no doubt, well calculated to sustain and comfort the sick, so that in many cases life has been spared and health restored where death would have ensued without it. I have heard soldiers, who had been brought nigh to death, express themselves to this eifect frequently. Faith saves the soul, and is the means of saving the life. It is written of the blind beggar, 'Thy faith hath made thee whole.' " Afflicted reader, if you would bear affliction patiently, and get well quickly, trust in Christ, the great physician, who, in justice, love, and mercy, afflicts his own children, when they need it, for their profit. A deep consciousness of the fact that sanctified affliction's work for our good, and the consequent cheerful spirit resulting therefrom, is doubtless one of the reasons why they tend to restore health. "IT WOULD BE HARD TO LIVE IN THE ARMY WITHOUT RELIGION." While it has often been said by the thoughtless and careless, " We can't live out religion in the army ;" and although it is often said by a certain class of professors, " the army is a hard place to be a Christian, and live it out," yet at our first interview with James H. Finney, 1st N. Y. Engineers, we found him entertaining a very different view, and being fully conscious of the enjoyments and consolations of the Christian religion, he says, " It would be hard to live in the army without it." Opposed, as we are, by the combined powers of the world, the flesh, and the devil, life at best is a warfare from the cradle to the grave. And although the temptations are greater and the restraints weaker some places than others, yet, since God's grace is sufficient at all 140 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. times and under all circumstances to guide, guard, and sustain the believer, he can, if he will, at all times walk worthy of his vocation, and so live and act that his life will be an embodiment of the great doctrines of the cross of Christ. And it is im- pugning the wisdom, mercy, power, and grace of God to say that he cannot. Noah, though thrown amidst all the whirlpools of temptation of an antediluvian world, yet, actuated by a living faith, he sustained his character, and moved with fear, when God's wrath and fury were about to be poured out upon a doomed world, " he prepared an ark to the saving of his house." If God gives the martyr grace and strength to burn at the stake, most assuredly he will give grace sufficient to stand the trials and temptations of the march, the camp, and the field of battle. And surrounded with increased exposure in the army, as you say, it would be hard to live without the comforts and consola- tions of religion. It is difficult to conceive how a man once regenerated, with his sins pardoned, and with the image of God restamped upon his soul, and blessed with the glorious hope of a blessed immortality beyond the grave, could ever think of living without religion anywhere, much less among the asperities and hardships and trials of the army. To sustain under trials, to comfort in distress, and to bind up the broken in heart, is one of the great objects of the religion of the cross. And to hold that we cannot have it, and enjoy it when we most need it, is preposterous in the extreme. The only difficulty in living in the full enjoyment of the sweet consolations of the gospel is in the faithful use of the means. If we will only be faithful, God will bless and comfort as well in the army as in the family circle at home. " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." THE FIXED HEART. It was just as the last lingering rays of the setting sun play- ing on the lofty dome of "old Chesapeake," as we were making our regular round through the hospital, that we came in contact with Henry Barteher, 58th Pa. Vol., Co. I. And, finding "iiim of easy access, we had no difficulty in drawing him out on CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 141 the subject of religion. Conscious of the great things God had done for him, he was not ashamed to speak of them. Penitent and humble, and realizing his constant need of God's strengthen- ing grace, he says, " I pray often, and believe God has forgiven my sins." Warmly attached to the Saviour, and feeling him dear and precious, he said, " Christ is on my mind all the time." "Always thinking about Jesus ? " " Yes." " You must be very happy ? " " Yes, I do feel happy, thank God ! " " Your experi- ence seems to be somewhat similar to David's, who, though sur- rounded with danger, and hotly pursued by enemies, even with his soul among lions, exclaims, with a mind calm and composed, 'My heart is fixed, O God; my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.' Here we have the way and the source of happiness. What is it ? A fixed heart a heart stayed and fixed upon God. Let the world allure; let the flesh entice; let Satan shoot his fiery darts dipped in sin's poisonous bowl ; let the waves of trouble rise, how high soever ; let the fires of persecution burn and blaze as hot as they did at the stake of John Rogers yet, with the heart stayed and fixed upon God, the Christian can say 'All is well,' and sing and give praise. The heart is a very hard thing to keep ; but when you get it fixed upon God, happiness is sure to follow. With a heart stayed and fixed upon God, and with Christ on the mind all the time, the martyr, with composure, faces the scaffold and the stake ; and with undaunted courage dies in triumph amidst devouring flames. With his heart stayed and fixed upon God, John Nicholson, with his legs burned to stumps, with two halberds thrust into his sides, with which his cruel persecutors lifted him up as far as the chain would permit, while his fingers' ends were flaming with fire, exclaimed, ' None but Christ! None but Christ!' and, being let down, fell in the fire, and soon expired in the triumphs of faith. With his heart stayed and fixed upon God, Paul, standing upon the verge of the eternal world, exclaimed, 'I am now ready' to be offered; ready to sacrifice his life for the cause of Christ." Henry Bartsher lived till October 19, 1864, when the silver cord was loosened, and the golden bowl was broken, and his emancipated soul went to the realms of everlasting peace! 142 CHEISTIANITY IN THE WAR. "I AM TOO WICKED FOR THAT ! " It was just after sermon, in one of the wards, when I stepped up to John Palmer, 62d Ohio Vol., Co. F, and on my beseech- ing him to repent, and look to God for strength and salvation, he said, " I am too wicked for that ! " " Too wicked? Too wicked to seek God ? " " Yes ; I feel so." " Although you confess your wickedness, yet I suppose you are much wickeder than you think you are. Could you but see the height, length, breadth, and depth of the depravity and wickedness of your deceitful heart, I suppose you would be driven to despair. God, in mercy, for a while conceals the truth, and opens our eyes gradually, and gives us light as we can stand it. ( Too wicked to come to Jesus?' Oh, what infatuation ! How deceitful, bewitching, and blinding is sin ! It makes the sinner feel rich and as though he has need of nothing, when, at the same time, he is wretched, miserable, poor, blind, naked. (Rev. iii. 17.) What kind of a life have you lived ? " "I have lived a careless and wicked life." " Did you ever feel much interested in religion ? " " No ; I always lived careless." "Do you swear? " "Yes; I swear a great deal." " Do you ever pray ? " " No ; I am too wicked to pray." " Be not deceived ; God is not mocked. When the Lord saw that the heart of Simon Magus was not right, he commanded him to repent of his wickedness, and pray for forgiveness. Your case is similar ; and as God commanded Simon to repent of his wick- edness, and pray for forgiveness, so he commands you to repent and pray also. God now commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent. And when God bids you repent and pray, it Won't do for you to say, 'I can't.' Severely wounded, racked with pain, wicked and careless, profane and prayerless, without strength sufficient to pray, or keep from swearing, as you say, your case presents rather a dark picture. Yet it was j ust such sinners as you, Jesus came to seek and save. Oh, then, don't be discouraged. God says, l Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts : and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have rnercy upon him and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.' Now fix it m your mind, you must repent, or perish. Turn or CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. burn ! turn or die ! is one of God's unalterably fixed laws. And, jo doubt, you expect to be saved ? " " Yes, I hope to." " How?" " Why, I expect to reform, and do better." " Yes ; but you say you are without strength, and too wicked to ask God for it that 'you can't pray.' Yes, there you are; hanging upon the mercy of God, standing upon the very verge of the eternal world, ex- posed to all the penalties of a broken and violated law, and liable to sink to hell any moment. There you hang, with heaven and hell before you. Satan seeks to destroy you ; Jesus to save you ! Oh, then, choose ye this day whom ye .will serve ! Say no longer you can't pray; you can, if you will. The publican prayed, and God heard his prayer, and forgave his sins. The thief on the cross, no doubt, a mnch worse man than yon, prayed, and the Lord heard his prayer, and saved his soul. Oh, then, be encour- aged ; your wickedness, your sins and oaths, are no hindrance in coming to Jesus, if you will only repent. God's mercy is infinite, the atonement of Jesus infinite, and God can save a big sinner as easy as a little one. The blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin. Think of what momentous interests are involved in your case. Your wound may get well ; and you may go back and fight a few more battles, and help win a few more victories. You may die to save your country ; but, unless you come to Jesus, you will die, and be lost. Only think of the goodness of God in sparing you, and of the love of Christ in dying to save you 1 Go to the garden of Gethsemane, and view Jesus agonizing in prayer for our salvation; view 'him dying upon the cross; view him going from the cross to the tomb, and from the tomb to the throne and all that we poor unworthy sinners might be saved ! Oh, then, let his Spirit woo you ; let his love constrain you to give your heart unto him! Look away from self; look away from your sins, and look directly, and only, to Jesus. He will wash your guilty soul in his own cleansing blood, and you will find your wickedness giving way to holiness. ' Rise, rise, he callcth thee; ' here he is, right here ! entreating and beseeching you, by the mercies of God, come and be saved ! Stretch forth thy hand, and grasp Jesus like a drowning man a straw, and he will save you ! Just make the effort ; strike for the cross ; make 144 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. a plunge for Jesus, like sinking Peter, and cry, 'Lord, save, or I perish ! ' and the crown is yours." IT IS TOO LATE ! " Sad, solemn, impressive words to fall from the lips of a dying soldier, as he lay struggling in the agonies of death. As we entered upon the canvass of the heart of Edwin Vanwert, 3d Mich. Regiment, Co. E, we found him, apparently, much concerned for his salvation. It seemed that the light of divine truth had dawned upon his darkened soul, and that conviction had been sealed upon his mind, and feeling, to some extent at least, the depravity of his heart, he says, " I have been very wicked. I am a great sinner." " It was just such that Jesus carne to seek and to save," I replied. " Therefore be encouraged. Look and live; believe and be saved. It is an encouraging fact to find that you have found it out that you are such 'a great sinner.' Yet you must never for a moment, however, entertain the idea that the greatness of your sins will be any hindrance to your coming to the Saviour. Jesus is ' mighty to save/ His blood cleanseth from all sin, and he can as easily save one sinner as another, if he will only repent." He seemed to be penitent. And as we urged him to come to Jesus, as though he felt his need of a Saviour, he began to pray, and cried, " God have mercy on me." " That, my dear friend, is a very good, appropriate prayer. It just suits your case. It is very similar to the prayer of the publican, who, when he cried out, ( God be merciful to me a sinner/ he went down justified. Oh, then, look up, and, from the answer of this sinner's remarkable prayer, press your suit for salvation." And although his case did look more en- couraging at times, as we conversed, plead, and prayed with him, yet, with all we could do, dark clouds rose before him, his hopes began to fail, and the withering hand of despair grasping his soul, he says, " It is too late ; I have given up." " Oh, no, my friend, it is not too late, ' it is not too late.' ' While there : s life, there is hope.' Don't ' give up.' Man's extremity is God's opportunity. The promises of God run parallel with a man's CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 145 life. A defeat is sometimes turned into a victory. No, it is not too late There is still balm in Gilead. The river of life still flows at your feet. Step in, wash, and be clean. The Spirit still strives. Jesus still cries, how often would I have gathered you, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and must it, shall it, be said of you, ye would not f ' While the lamp holds out to burn, The vilest sinner may return.' God still waits to be gracious. Oh, then, escape for thy life fly to the cross. Embrace Christ by faith. Come to Jesus just as you are, and he will save you. And to encourage you still further, let me urge you, by faith, to go to Calvary and gaze upon that wonderful scene. Do you see that dying thief hanging beside that dying Saviour ? and hanging there upon the very verge of the eternal world, with a soul all stained with blood, guilt, theft, robbery, and murder, it would not have been sur- prising to hear him exclaim, ' It is too late/ yet with pierced hands and feet, with his life-blood flowing from his wounded heart, moved with the wonderful love, compassion, and meek- ness of Jesus exhibited on the cross, instead of crying ( it is too late,' he earnestly cries, ' Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom ; ' and in answer to his prayer, in quick succession, with his guilty soul washed in the Saviour's blood, plucked as a brand from the burning, the dying Saviour re- sponds, ' To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise/ and the praying thief and vile malefactor went from the cross to the throne of God in heaven. Saved at the eleventh hour, in order to encourage just such cases as yours. Oh, then, say not, 'it is too late/ but let the lateness of the hour and the near approach of death arouse and bestir you to arise and come to Jesus at once. Then let the love of Christ constrain you, let the terrors of the Lord persuade you, let the crowns of glory, the palm of victory, and the joys of heaven entice you. Oh, then, delay no longer. And while Jesus is here offering and beseeching you to receive the crown of life, reach forth thy wounded hand and accept it. Remember, you must make an effort you must seek God wit I) 10 146 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. all your heart. Kesolve, like the prodigal son, 'I will arise.' And yet here you lay, like the man with the withered hand to whom Jesus said, Stretch forth thy hand ; and no sooner did the command drop from the lips of the omnipotent Saviour, than the man begins to stir, makes an effort, raises and stretches forth his withered hand, and immediately it was restored whole as the other. Jesus healed him, but not without an effort on his part. So, if you will only make an effort, and resolve I will arise, and go to my Father, while Jesus is standing with open arms to receive you, he will forgive your sins and save your soul. Oh, then, look and live, believe and be saved, and, as you die for your country, let the glorious, cheering news go home to your bereaved friends, and go home to heaven, that you died in the Lord." The curtain falls, and on the twenty-first day of April, 1865, the same day Macon, Ga., was captured by Gen. Wilson's cav- alry, and five days before the final surrender of the rebel army, right in the midst of the fall of the confederacy, while the nation was hotly pursuing the murderers of Abraham Lincoln, the soul of Edwin Vanwert, who, on his death-bed said, " It is too late/' went to its long home. Sinner, beware. "IT IS BETTER TO DIE." Among many other interesting cases we found in the lonely Gangrene Camp was that of Robert Armstrong, 109th U. S., Co. I. At our first interview, we found him prayerful, tender, penitent, and resigned. Said he, " I prayed at home ; but I have got wild since I came into the army. Yet I hope God has for- given my sins." " Do you think you love the Saviour, Robert?" "Yes, I love him; and he is precious to me." I visited him very often, and frequently read and prayed with him. Though he suffered long and severe, he always seemed to be perfectly resigned. " Think you would be afraid to die, Robert? " " No ; I am not afraid to die. I believe I could die happy." Deeply concerned for his wife, he handed me a few dollars, saying, "If I die, send that to her." At another interview, as he appeared to draw nearer to God with meek submission, he calmly said, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 147 " I am willing to go. All is well ! and I think it better to die." "Blessed be God for his sustaining, comforting grace! When * we are willing/ and when ( all is well/ it is better to die ! Then, as Paul says, ' to die is gain/ and ' to depart is far better.' Death is only a change, only a ' departure/ or separation of the soul from the body. We live after death ; death is an advanced step in our state of existence ; hence, if prepared, to die is gain ! In death we lose 'a vile body/ which, though very useful in this life, is a clog to the soul. The body is not only the occasion of disease, but it is also the source of a great many very expensive cares, fears, temptations, pains, and sorrows. At death, this mortal body is dismissed, and the disembodied spirit, washed in Christ's blood, divested of these heavy weights, is borne by angels to the mansions of the blessed. And ' it is better to die/ because by death the redeemed gain a great increase of knowledge. How great soever may be our mental attainments here, we remain ignorant of a great many things. God's providence is myste- rious, and his 'judgments are a great deep.' 'Now we know in part, but then we shall know even as we are known.' ( Now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face.' Oh, how great the change ! how rich the gain ! And, in order to realize it more fully, let us contrast the Christian soldier's condition on earth with his condition in heaven. Here all is war and strife ; there all is joy and peace ; here we have conflict, there victory ; here we are in exile, there at home ; here we suffer, there we reign ; this is the race, that the goal ; here we are strangers and pilgrims, there fellow-citizens with the saints. Contrast Paul on earth with Paul in heaven : here he wore a chain, there he wears a crown ; here he dwelt in prisons, there in mansions of light and glory ; here he hung upon the martyr's stake, there he sits upon the throne of God. Oh, then, let us strive so to live, that, when we come to depart, we may say, 'All is well ; ' so that it will { be better to die.'" Robert Armstrong lived till June 2, 1865, when his soul went, we trust, to realize the gain and bliss of dying. It was refreshing to talk with him. "Be ye also ready!" \ 148 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. MIDNIGHT CALLS. Danger, when realized, will always lead a man to look for refuge and some way of escape; hence "a drowning man will catch at a straw : " yet the careless and thoughtless sinner, blinded by sin and deceived by Satan, lying strongly intrenched in carnal security, feeling that all is well, cries peace and safety when sudden destruction is near. But when death threatens, and the grave yawns, and conscience begins to probe, and the clay tene- ment begins to give way, it is natural to look out for some way of escape. And thus alarmed, the trembling sinner, instead of flying directly to Christ, will often send for a spiritual adviser to point him to the Saviour. Even the old soldier of the cross, sometimes, getting under a cloud, lying upon his wearisome, lonely bed, would send for the chaplain at all hours of the night. And sometimes the patient would put it off till it was too late, and die ; calling for the chaplain, instead of calling upon God for salvation. Although God repeatedly says "to-day" the poor, blinded sinner, like Pharaoh, says " to-morrow." And it is through this fatal delay, the devil cheats many a man out of the salvation of his soul. I recollect the case of a captain, with whom I prayed in an amputation-tent, who was carried back to his bed without being operated upon, whose wound shortly after proved fatal, who desired a call from me ; but his attending brother refused until he was almost gone, and when I arrived reason was dethroned, and it was " too late ! " His wound had bled, frail nature gave way, and to see the brave soldier struggling in the agonies of death, and that too with an ungratified desire to see the chaplain about his spiritual condition, presented a scene solemn and lamentable. I recollect the case of an assistant sur- geon of the U. S. army, who seemed to be an humble Christian ; yet, while lying in Chesapeake Hospital, through surrounding discouragements, got into the fog, and began to doubt his interest in Christ, and giving way to a desponding frame, and fearing his sudden dissolution with the awful foreboding of dying unpre- pared, he sent for me about three o'clock in the morning. I got up, and upon hastening to his room, found him in deep dis- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 149 tress, cast down, and feeling as though God had forsaken him, he was in deep agony of soul. " What distresses you, doctor?" I said, as I approached him. " O chaplain, I feel most awful bad. I have been a professor for several years, and thought I enjoyed religion ; but now I feel as though I had lost it all." " Don't be discouraged, doctor ; perhaps God is only trying you. Job says, ' Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him/ God afflicts his own children in love and mercy' for their profit/ and it is their duty to be resigned. The very fact of your deep concern about your salvation is clear evidence that you have not ( lost it all/ and that God has not forsaken you. Look up, ' be of good cheer j ' 'let not your heart be troubled ; ' ' cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain thee.' Bring all your troubles, doubts, and fears, and lay them at the foot of the cross, and throw yourself, just as you are, right into the arms of Jesus, and he will lift the burden from your troubled soul. Your soul- trouble, doubtless, arises from your disease of body ; and if you will but remember the troubles and sufferings of Jesus, it will help to release you." With a few words of exhortation and com- fort, and a word of prayer, we bade him good-night, and left him much releaved of his doubts and fears. Rising out of his slough of despond, the doctor soon got well, and returned to duty. Another very touching case was that of a private soldier, lying at the point of death in the lonely Gangrene Camp. It was a cold, chilly night in November, when, summoned by the call of this dying soldier, we approached his tent, near midnight. Lit up with the pale light of the moon, and the candle dimly burning, we approached the lonely bedside of the heroic patriot. Gazing upon his placid eye and serene countenance, we soon saw he bore the image of Christ; and, instead of being perplexed with doubts and fears, found him rejoicing in the God of his salvation. And feeling that the time of his departure was near at hand, he said, " I have sent for you, chaplain, to administer a word of comfort in my last hours ; and to request you to write a letter of sym- pathy and consolation to ray dear wife and children after I am dead and gone ; and tell them that I died happy in Christ, re- questing them to strive to meet me in heaven." After a very 150 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. refreshing interview with him about his religious experience and sufferings of the past, and his bright prospects for the future, closing with reading an appropriate passage of Scripture and a word of prayer, commending him to the God of all grace, we bade him a long farewell. He died next day. After visiting two other patients close by, we closed our noctur- nal visits for the night. These nightly calls were always attended with more than usual interest. The stillness of the night, as well as the peculiar circumstances of the occasion, always added much to the impressiveness and solemnity of the scene. A dying man, a bleeding soldier, an anxious sinner, the fear of djeath, to- gether with the stern realities of the external world drawing nigh and rising in full view before them, always tended to deeply impress not only the thoughtful, but the most careless and indif- ferent. But these were not the only impressive sights we saw in our nightly visits ; there were others also deeply solemn. " See there ! Do you see that corpse wrapped in a winding-sheet carried along on a stretcher by those four men?" "Yes; who are they ? " " They are the nurses from one of the wards. One of the patients has died, and they are carrying his body to the dead house." " Who 'a dead, boys ? " " Emanuel Byers, from ward twelve." " What ! Byers dead ? Why, he was much better this morning ! " " Yes ; but the tying of his artery gave way to- night, and he soon bled to death." " Gone at last ! " He had prayed and wept much ; and as death drew near to him, he seemed to draw nigh to God. Among his last words, he said, " I am resting on Christ, sure." And, doubtless, for him " to depart was far better." Though his body was bathed in his own blood, yet with his soul washed in the blood of Jesus, we trust he has gone to swell the ranks of the blood- washed throng in heaven. And as they bore away his pale corpse, by the light of the moon, to deposit it in a red coffin in the dead house, we were deeply impressed with the solemn thought that we, too, must soon die. Yet death was so common, and we all got so used to it, that, while in the army and in the hospital, it seemed gener- ally to make but little impression. When a patient died, the soldiers called it ''getting discharged" or "getting his red over- coat." meaning his red coffin. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 151 CHAPTER XL SCENES IN ANDERSONVILLE. THE PRISON ITS CONDITION CRUEL TREATMENT " CAN THIS BE HELL ? " PRISONERS' AWFUL CONDITION MORTALITY ONE HUN- DRED AND FIFTY A DAY APATHY OF U. S. GOVERNMENT TOWARD THEM HUNDREDS DIED OF BROKEN HEARTS MANY WENT DE- RANGED, AND TURNED MANIACS A SCHOOL AND CHURCH THERE Now -" THE DEAD-LINE" EXECUTION OF UNION PRISONERS BAND OF ROBBERS AND MURDERERS Six TRIED, AND CONDEMNED TO BE HUNG AWFUL TRAGIC SCENE THEY EXPECTED TO THE LAST TO ESCAPE THE CRISIS OF ANDERSONVILLE MURDER WILL OUT PATRIOTISM IN ANDERSONVILLE "I WOULD RATHER HAVE DIED A DOZEN DEATHS " "I AM NOT SORRY THAT I ENLISTED " YOUR PATRIOTISM NEVER DIES: "!T is STRONGER THAN DEATH" DIED PRAYING FOR VICTORY ANDERSONVILLE HOSPITAL: AN AWFUL PLACE No BEDS BUT BARE GROUND RATIONS DIET ENLARGED THE FOOD WOULD PRODUCE DISEASE AMONG SWINE THE MOONLIGHT PRAYER - MEETING RELIGION SWEETENS THE BITTEREST CUP. A LTHOUGH Anderson ville before the war was a small, in- -^- significant village of four houses, one church, and a post- office, situated in Sumpter county, Ga., it has now a world-wide notoriety. And of all rebel prisons, for cruel torture, revenge, wretchedness, starvation, murder, and death, there were none equal to it. Belle Isle was awful, Libby was intolerable, but for double-distilled cruelty, Andersonville excelled all. With thirty-five thousand starved, half-naked prisoners crowded into an area of some twenty -five acres, literally covered all over with lice and vermin; breathing an atmosphere filled with poisonous, fetid odors, arising from sinks and putrid corpses, it presented a scene awfully terrible and horrible beyond description. The very thought of it is appalling. To think of it carries the mind down to the infernal regions, and makes one think of the tor- nxMits of hell. And so appalling was the scene, and horrible the sight, that the brave heroes captured at Plymouth, upon 152 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. entering it, out of the depths of their feelings and burning indignation, instinctively exclaimed, " Can this be hell ? can this be hell?" and feeling their need of divine help, there arose from many a pious heart the earnest prayer, " Lord, have mercy. May God protect us." Adding to the loathsomeness and wretch- edness of this horrible place, was a large swamp of three or four acres, extending half-way across the camp, through which ran a small brook, three or four feet wide, which, with a few small springs and wells, was the only supply of water for all this vast throng of suffering humanity. The water generally was so thoroughly impregnated with filth and excrement, that it was entirely unfit for use ; yet, rather than die with thirst, the poor fellows drank it with avidity. Here, into this " slaughter-pen," our brave patriots were dragged in from Belle Isle, Castle Thunder, Pemberton, Danville, and Libby prisons by hundreds and thousands. And when any of these unfortunate sufferers were fortunate enough, by digging immense tunnels, to escape, the rebel tyrants hunted them down like dogs, with fierce blood- hounds, brought them back, and punished them most inhumanly for their struggling to get out. Here, huddled together, without shelter to protect them from the drenching rains, winter's cold and summer's heat, with no bed but the bare ground, and some- times dying at the rate of some one hundred and fifty a day, and compelled to endure the malignant contempt, abuse, and reproach of the rebel tyrants, their condition was indescribably wretched and awful. But the most unpleasant thing of all to them, says one of their number, was the apparent apathy of the Federal Government toward them, and its want of efforts to rescue them from the iron heel of their unmerciful oppressors. Cut off from all communication with the North, and the rebels laboring to convince them that their Northern friends had forsaken them, they succeeded in fastening the conviction upon the hearts of some that the Federal Government had abandoned them. And to feel themselves thus forsaken in times of deep distress, is one of the hardest things to endure. 'Having voluntarily left their homes at their country's call, and ready to fight and die for its honor and defence, and now to CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 153 be neglected and forsaken, as they felt themselves to be, was enough to crush and break the heart of the most noble and devoted patriot. To endure sickness, hunger, thirst, and rebel contumely was awful hard ; but nothing compared to the grief and anguish of soul arising from the conviction although it was not true that the Government, the army, the navy, arid their friends at the North had forsaken them ; and so severe was this trial to them, and the awful cruel treatment they received, that hundreds sank away, and died of broken hearts; many went deranged, and became maniacs; others, filled with despair, and preferring death to such a wretched life, crossed the dead-line in order to be shot. Having suffered there so long and so ex- tremely severe, without knowing of any effort on the part of the Government to relieve them ; and the rebels doing all they could to convince them that the Government had forsaken them ; and thus try to induce them to join the confederacy, and having no means of ascertaining the feelings of the Government toward them; and struggling along through such horrible scenes of filth, cruelty, and murder it is no wonder that many gave way to despair, and turned maniacs. This stronghold of cruelty was at first designed for J>ut ten thousand men, and contained but six- teen acres ; but it was afterward enlarged to twenty-five acres. And, although there have been volumes written about the suffer- ings and atrocious cruelties perpetrated upon our soldiers in Andersonville, the half will never be told. Language fails to express it. The fifty acres of graves, and the sacred spot where lie the mortal remains of thirteen thousand heroic martyrs who perished there, will doubtless be guarded, and preserved, and adorned with appropriate monuments, handing down to future generations, through all coming time, the cruel torture there inflicted, and the heroic patriotism there manifested by our un- flinching heroes. It is said that, when a .train of cars approaches this consecrated spot, every eye is strained to see it, and every voice is hushed in silence as the train rolls slowly by. The power of association is so great while approaching near the pre- cious dust of these immortal heroes, that the heart so fills with sympathy and indignation that the tongue id mute in contem- 154 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. plating the tragic, horrible scenes of their sufferings and deatn. It is an encouraging, pleasing fact to know that the " American Missionary Association " has recently established a school and a church in this noted place. This is progress in the right direc- tion ; and God said, " Let there be light ! " "THE DEAD-LINE." As our Union soldiers approached Andersonville prison, they were warned by those outside, "Beware of the Dead-Line" And " What is that ? " said one. It is a slender wooden railing extending all around inside, and about a rod from the inner stockade of the prison, which, if a prisoner approached, passed or attempted to pass, to get a drink of water, or for any other pur- pose, he met with certain death from the vigilant sentinel, charged with strict orders to shoot every man who attempts to pass that fatal line. There goes a poor thirsty prisoner, just ready to die with thirst ; he crawls up to slake his parched tongue, all un- conscious of his danger, without knowing of the barbarous law or order ; the eye of the bloodthirsty guard is upon him ; but encouraged by the sight of the cooling brook,, his languid eye sparkles with joy at the bright prospect of a refreshing drink ; along he drags his frail body buoyant with hope ; but, alas ! as he was about to realize his fond expectation, the ruthless rebel raises his gun, takes a deadly aim, and, without a moment's warning, the loyal patriot falls a lifeless corpse, bathed in his own life's blood. And just here let me say to you, my impeni- tent friend, God has his " dead-line," beyond which, if you go in life, eternal death is your certain inevitable doom. Where is it? Just where the sinner commits "the sm unto death;" grieves and quenches the Holy Spirit, until he ceases to strive with him. Although God is slow to wrath, full of compassion, and abundant in mercy, and waits to be gracious, yet he will not wait always; for there is a point a "dead-line" beyond which, if the sinner goes, he sins away his day of grace ; and then for him "there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation ; " and CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 155 then, being "past feeling," and "joined to his idols," God pro- nounces the awful sentence, "Let kirn alone ! " and then his con- demnation is sealed forever. Gcd spared and warned the ante- diluvian world one hundred and twenty years ; but when they had gone on in sin, " treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath," until their cup was full, and the earth was filled with violence, God says, " My spirit shall not always strive with man ;" and he issues his decree, and declares, " I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth." But Noah having found grace in God's sight, God commanded him to build an ark to the saving of his house. The ark being finished, "the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark ; " and they, and two of every living species went in ; and God having shut them in, the closing of the ark's ponderous door upon its huge hinges announced to a dying world the day of mercy is over, and the day of wrath begun. It was then, with those excluded, too late. The door was shut. They had passed the dead-line of God's mercy, and God swears, in his wrath, that "they shall not enter into his rest." (Heb. iii. 11.) And now the rain falls in torrents, the windows of heaven are opened, and the fountains of the great deep are broken up, and the whole earth was deluged, and all out of the ark perished in the mighty flood. Take, for example, the almost Christian, one with whom the good spirit and the evil spirit are both striving. Satan strives to drag him down to hell, and the Holy Spirit strives to raise him up to heaven. How critical his condition ; how momentous the conflict ! It is the crisis of the soul. Standing upon the pivot of eternity, seemingly, a small influence decides his destiny for- ever. Oh, how critical his condition ! Another crooked step, one more sinful thrust against the Spirit's wooing voice, may banish him forever from your breast, carry you across the fatal line, and seal your damnation in hell forever. Oh, then, strive that you "quench not the Spirit," but cherish and yield to his im- pressions ; let him come into your soul, and take possession of your heart! A man who has lost his way in a dark, dreary mine, and can only find his \vay out, and save his life, by a ruulle he carries in his hand, would be very careful how he carries it, lest 156 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ii be blown out and let him perish in darkness. So should the almost Christian take great heed, lest he quench the Spirit, and let him perish forever. Oh, then, reader, lest this be your case ; let us beseech you, by the mercies of God, by the love of Christ, and by the joys of heaven, yield to the Spirit, and come to Jesus, and come just now ! EXECUTION OF UNION PRISONERS. Man is a creature of circumstances. We are all influenced very much by our surroundings; and whether or not it rose from the hardening influence of the barbarous, cruel treatment our men received in Andersonville, there was a large gang of robbers, who made it their business to beat, plunder, and murder prisoners as they came into camp, and as opportunity favored. This outrageous work was suffered to go on until it rose to such a height it proved its own destruction. As new prisoners came in, those thieves availed themselves of every opportunity to rob them. Seizing a new comer, one day, as he entered the prison, after lacerating his head and beating him most severely, they robbed him of his watch and one hundred and seventy-five dol- lars in greenbacks. He made complaint to Capt. Wirz, and the fact spread throughout the prison. And filled with indignation at such enormous cruelty, the whole camp became thoroughly aroused, and armed with clubs, etc., a large crowd collected and proceeded to arrest the robbers as fast as possible, and hand them over to the rebel guards outside, to keep them for trial by our own men. On the next day, aided by the rebel quartermaster, sergeants, and guards, guided by a noted character known as " Limber Jim," and his comrades, they soon arrested about fifty, and twelve of our newly arrived men were appointed to try them. Under their tents were found money, pistols, knives, and a few dead bodies. And upon satisfactory evidence, six of them were convicted, and found guilty of robbery and murder, and sentenced to be hung till dead. Those not found thus guilty were sent back into the prison, and made to run the gauntlet between a long row of deeply-incensed men, who so furiously CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 157 pelted them with clubs and stones, that one was killed in the furious action. The day of execution, July 12, 1864, having arrived, a gallows was erected in the prison, and at half-past four P.M., mounted on horseback, dressed in spotless white, Capt. Wirz came in with the six condemned murderers and robbers under guard, and delivered them up to the vigilance committee, saying, " These men have been tried and convicted by their own fellows, and I now return them to you in as good condition as I received them. You can now do with them as your reason, justice, and mercy dictates. And may God protect both you and them." After their sentence was announced, the Catholic priest came and plead most earnestly for their lives but seeing that he prevailed nothing, and convinced that the poor unfor- tunate men must soon die, he began to try to induce them to " prepare to meet their God." He talked and prayed with them. And yet, believing that the whole affair was disguised merely to frighten them, the whole doomed six exhibited a degree of won- derful unconcern about their awful impending crisis. Vain, delusive hope! Blinded by sin, hardened by crime, and de- ceived by their false hopes, like the careless sinner, they cried peace and safety when sudden destruction was near. How awful and tragic the scene ! Tried, condemned, sentenced to be hung dead, and standing at the foot of the gallows, gazed upon by tens of thousands, and yet expect to escape. And it was not until they ascended the gallows that they began to feel that it was a reality, and that they were about to be executed. " Be sure your sins will find you out." " Murder WILL out." As they were about to mount the scaffold, one of them made a desperate lunge, broke away, and ran through the swamp to the opposite side of the prison. But mark ye, it was no escape. The decree had gone forth, " you must hang;" and the enraged crowd, eager for his execution, soon arrested and brought him back, with a countenance filled with wretchedness and despair, and securely placed him with his condemned comrades. Oh, how awful and lamentable the tragic scene! There they stand six American soldiers, prisoners of war, sentenced to be hung for robbing and murdering their own fellow-soldiers and captives in Anderson- 158 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ville prison ! What a foul blot upon American soldiery ; and what a deep disgrace to the United States army ! An opportunity was given them to speak, but they had but little to say. After a few words of advice, and requesting their comrades to take warning by their sad fate, meal-sacks were drawn over their heads, and the dreaded ropes being adjusted, all is ready. A short pause ensues ; all eyes are fixed. It is the crisis of Ander- son ville, and to the condemned the crisis of the soul. The awful form of death seems to stand out before them. " The door of the eternal world is swinging open;" the grave yawns to receive them. Crime, judgment, and stern retribution are making their terrible impressions. " Swift, vivid thoughts are in every heart, and the prayer, God have mercy on them, falls from many a lip." The hour is up ; their time is out. The drop falls, and they are launched from time into eternity. There they hang, swinging in the air, gone to reap the fruits of their own doings in their eternal reward. How sad ! " The way of the trans- gressor is hard." Let him take warning. PATRIOTISM IN ANDERSONVILLE. With all the excruciating torments inflicted on, our brave patriots in Andersonville, with few exceptions, their heroic devo- tion to their country never abated ; though surrounded with filth, cruelty, starvation, murder, and death, they still clung to the dear old flag with unyielding pertinacity, choosing rather to die martyrs than traitors. While a few took the oath of allegiance and joined the confederacy, expecting thereby to escape and flee to our lines, the great body of the men stood, with unshaken confidence and unflinching hearts, for God and their country ! This was the true spirit of martyrdom. To face the belching cannon, to storm batteries, make charges, and capture forts, re- quires pluck and strong courage ; but to face starvation, hunger, and murder, to drag out a life more intolerable than death itself, amidst such fiendish cruelty and barbarity as characterized this slaughter-pen, required something more than pluck and courage. And to endure all this, when the Government, which they had so CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 169 nobly volunteered to defend, treated them, as they thought, with such a spirit of indifference as led them to believe it had forsaken them, manifested a self-sacrificing heroism unparalleled in the history of the world ; and sometimes, when a number reduced to the extremity of want, with death staring them in the face, did go over to the confederacy, the feeling of the great mass of the soldiers was, "I would rather have died a dozen deaths than be guilty of such disloyalty." After they had been years in the army, and several mouths in Andersonville, we hear them say, U J am not sorry that I enlisted." No; true patriotism, like true love, never dies out : it is stronger than death. And with the unquenchable fire burning in their bones, and blazing upon the altar of their hearts, thirteen thousand brave martyrs, rather than turn traitors, chose to die amidst the devouring cruelties and torments of Andersonville, and left their uncoffined bones to tell the tragic story of their sad fate. Being excluded from the world, and deprived of all news from the army and the progress of the war, except what they heard from prisoners coming in, their condition was not only inexpressibly wretched, but; dreary and lonely ; yet, like the captive Jews in Babylon, they never forgot their country. Dejected, discouraged, and heart-broken as they were., yet, methinks, I can hear them exclaiming, in the language of the Psalmist, " If I forget thee, O my country, let my right hand forget her cunning ! " etc. (Ps. cxxxvii. 5, 6.) Hence, with all their cruelties, when any encouraging news came from the army, crowds would collect, and sing with joy a few patriotic songs, such as " Red, White, and Blue," " My Country," and " Star-Spangled Banner ; " at which the rebel guards were surprised and somewhat confused, as though they hardly knew what it meant. Devotedly attached to their country, and having so long shared each others' hardships and misfortunes, they be- came warmly attached to each other; and, says one of them, " We loved each other as brothers." Even in the hospital, while racked with pain, and writhing in agony from the most malignant forms of diarrhoea, dropsy, and scurvy, they expressed their trongest desires and most earnest longings for success and victory *.o crown our arms. Their patriotism was of the undying kind. 161 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. With the same heroic devotion with which they went forth to fight the battles of their country, firmly clinging to the dear old flag, they died the most excruciable deaths possible for rebel tyrants to inflict. The severe shock of battle, and all the unut- terable horrors of starvation, death, and murder of Andersonville, failed to lessen their unfaltering devotion to their bleeding coun- try, and dying even by starvation and torture, martyr-like, their last prayers were for victory and Union. ANDERSONVILLE HOSPITAL. The word hospital usually means a place where sick and wounded are nursed and cared for ; but here it seemed more like mockery. The hospital, at first, was inside the stockade, on both sides of the run passing through the prison. The indescribable filth, the pestilential air, and the utter want of comfort and atten- tion to the patients was perfectly awful. The very sight of the inside was sickening and horribly revolting. With a poor, scanty, sickly diet, and many with nothing fit to eat ; with but little medi- cine, and no beds but the naked ground ; with no tents, and but very scanty covering of any kind, the very thought of going into such a horrible place was enough to make a well man sick. The number of patients was never large, seldom much over two hundred ; not because there were but few sick, but because they died as fast as they took them in, and because, if a sick man had any friends, he preferred to run his chance outside. It was almost certain death to go there, and they never went until the very last resort. To come out alive was wonderful. And yet, withal, there was little or no complaint among the patients. About the first of June, 1864, a much more comfortable hospital, containing about four acres, was fitted up outside the stockade, near one hundred rods from the prison. Regularly laid out with a few shady trees and inferior tents, and with a stream of water passing through it, the accommodation and comforts were far superior to the former. About a month later, it was again sufficiently enlarged to accommodate twenty-five hundred pa- tients, and seven hundred were admitted in one day. To be CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 161 admitted into the hospital, the patient had to attend the sick-call, 10 which one thousand or twelve hundred poor lingering sufferers would come out daily, seeking relief. Hundreds were brought in blankets; and the number received into the hospital corre- sponded with the number of vacancies occasioned by death the past twenty-four hours. And here the poor sick fellows, scorched with burning fevers, were often left standing in the hot sun all day without anything to eat or drink. How awful their suffer- ings ! Stern indignity, heartless cruelty, and ruthless inhumanity seemed to characterize every act of treatment. A shivering suf- ferer was shot by the guard, and had his leg broken above the knee, for warming himself by the guard's fire; his leg was amputated, and he died shortly after. Such cases of extreme cruelty were frequent. The nurses would often search and rob the dying patients before they were entirely dead. The rations per day were two ounces of meat and a piece of coarse corn-bread^ about two inches square, made of corn and cobs all ground up together. In very bad cases, they were allowed two gills of flour, and occa- sionally a little loathsome rice. What a mess for sick men in a land of plenty ; not better than ordinary hog feed ! Some of the surgeons often complained, and said, "Some of the food furnished the patients would produce disease among swine" The principal diseases were chronic diarrhoea, scurvy, dropsy, and typhoid fever ; all in their most malignant forms. In cases of dropsy, the sufferings were extreme. Sometimes the limbs of the poor sufferers would burst open and fill up with maggots ; and the pain would become so severe, they would cry out with agony for some one to come and kill them. In other cases, it would affect the extremities, and disable the patients from walk- ing ; with others, it would settle in the mouth, and so affect the gums that the teeth would all drop out at once, and leave the patient entirely toothless. Says a prisoner : " I have seen hun- dreds of cases in this disease, where the men have actually starved to death, because they were unable to eat the coarse food furnished them by the confederates." Living among such awful filth and impurities, the blood of the men generally became so impure that the least break of the 11 162 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. skin usually led to gangrene, subsequent amputation, and con- sequent death. Exposed to the hot rays of a scorching sun, the upper surface of the foot often became blistered, which would break, and leave the foot all raw ; and, becoming gangrenous, a loss of the foot was inevitable, and death generally ensued from amputation. The patients subjected to amputation averaged six or seven daily, and they almost invariably died. A great many suffered most cruelly from the use of poisonous vaccine matter and from the exposure to the burning rays of the sun, and, from a combination of cruelties, many went totally blind. Raining for twenty-one days in succession, in June, 1864, tended much to increase the suffering and mortality. With fifteen thousand prisoners, without any shelter, huddled up together in such a slaughter pen as this, where it took the healthiest prisoner three hours each day to divest himself of the abounding pestiferous lice, together with the awful surroundings, must have presented a scene the most appalling and horrible the eye of mortal man ever beheld. Nearly three thousand died during August, 1864. Some of the surgeons complained of their fare in strong terms to the higher authorities ; but their cries were disregarded. The men seemed to cling to life with a wonderful tenacity Fired with heroic zeal for the salvation of the Union, hope buoyed them up until life was almost extinct. With a gradual, constant decline, they usually passed away at last so suddenly ind unexpectedly that they often failed to realize the approach of death, and said but little about dying. Almost dead and dying for days, they seemed to pass off without much pain. Some gave bright evidences of preparation, and, leaving their dying messages to be sent home, died triumphant deaths, and, with their souls washed in Christ's blood, went from this awful scene of suffering to "where the wicked cease to trouble, and the weary are forever at rest." Such, reader, is but a very faint description of the untold and Awful cruelties and sufferings of Andersonville Hospital. But the HALF is not told. The facts beggar all description. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 163 THE MOONLIGHT PRAYER-MEETING. Notwithstanding the intolerable suffering and untold cruelties of Anderson ville, though distressed, forlorn, and cast down, many of the suffering heroes often met for prayer and supplica- tion. Although the rebels cut off their communication with the outer world, yet they could not prevent their communion with God. Deeply realizing their need of Divine help, with no covering but the canopy of heaven, and no light but that of the moon, yet enlightened by God's spirit, and constrained by Christ's love, they often met, read God's word, sung and prayed ; and pouring out their souls and hearts unto God in prayer for protection and deliverance, they enjoyed precious times of re- freshing ; and, says one of them, " We could pray as well, or better, there, than at home." And there, like David, with their " souls among lions," yet, like him, with their hearts stayed and fixed upon God, they sang and gave praise. (Ps. Ivii.) There, like imprisoned, fettered Paul and Silas, though encompassed with a strong stockade, an insolent guard, and a terrible " dead- line," yet, like Daniel in the lions' den, drawing nigh unto God, they felt that the Lord of hosts was with them. There, surrounded with the dead and dying, and feeling that the salva- tion of their comrades, under God, depended upon their prayers, and becoming so deeply interested and praying so earnestly for their salvation and protection, they almost forgot their imprison- ment. In this we see the power of the Christian religion to sustain, strengthen, and comfort. With warm, ardent love to Christ, and strong faith in Jesus, religion will lighten the heav- iest burden and sweeten the bitterest cup. 164 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. CHAPTER XII. THE EXCHANGE. LONG LOOKED FOB MANY EXCHANGING TIME FOR ETERNITY THEY CHEER THE OLD FLAG "!T NEVER SEEMED so DEAR" THEY WEPT PROFUSELY REJOICING SUNG THE "BATTLE-CRY OF FREEDOM" WHAT A HAPPY, GRATEFUL CROWD FURLOUGHED HOME THIRTY DAYS THE DEPARTURE " BE EEADY TO DEPART " FILLED WITH REJOICING THEY CRIED, " THANK GOD ! THANK GOD ! " "THE YEAR OF JUBILEE is COME " LOUD SHOUTS OF JOY BURST FROM THOUSANDS FAREWELL, ANDERSONVILLE SAD DIS- APPOINTMENT IT WAS NO EXCHANGE : ONLY A REMOVAL " HOPE DEFERRED MAKETH THE HEART SICK." A LTHOUGH they had been sadly deceived, disappointed, ** and made heartsick by frequent false promises of release, at last a day of deliverance arrives. To the poor half-starved, suffering heroes, it was a glorious day. Deliverance from the atrocious cruelties and tyranny of Andersonville, Florence, Milan, etc., was almost like life from the dead. It is one of the great events of the war. Behold the brave heroes, ten thousand poor half-starved, shoeless, hatless, shirtless men, almost* naked, whose blackened skin, blackened by filth and dirt, hung loosely upon their protruding frames. There they are, the maimed, the halt, the blind the sons, brothers, husbands of the North. Brave, heroic men ! some who have dragged out a life more in- tolerable than death itself, but at last to be exchanged ; but with many, alas, it is too late ! They are dying, exchanging time for eternity. But with the great mass it is a day of ecstatic joy and rejoicing. As they drew near and saw the glorious old flag, they gave it three most hearty cheers. And when they stepped upon the steamers, and fully realized that they were final- ly cut loose from rebeldom, they gave three more grateful cheers, and began to sing "The Battle-Cry of Freedom," "Rally Round the Flag, Boys," etc. The men divest themselves of their filthy CHRISTIANITY IN THE \VAR. 165 rags and throw them into the river or furnace, wash off, and, after putting on new and comfortable clothing, they rejoiced with joy unspeakable ! A large lot of prisoners from Florence sailed down from Savannah to Venus Point, the place of ex- change, in the Beauregard, Gen. Lee, and Jeff. Davis. The Beauregard bore the flag of truce, carried the officers ; and the other two steamers, the privates. Rounding Fort Jackson, they hove in sight of the splendid Union fleet waiting to receive them, with the dear old flag waving its beautiful folds, welcom- ing them back to its protection. " Never before," said one, " did it seem so dear." Grateful for their deliverance, and rejoicing over their exchange, gazing upon it, they wept profusely. After the commissioners of the two fleets, Col. Mulford of the Union, and Capt. Hatch of the Confederates, had a short interview, an ar- rangement was agreed upon, and the rebel boats soon sided up to the Union transports, Star of the South, the Crescent, and the New York, and the long-wished-for exchange began. They first stepped on the Star of the South, the " receiving ship," hence to the New York, the " clothing ship," where, after bath- ing, and casting off their lice and old tattered garments, once very valuable to them, they all received new and comfortable clothing. Then going aboard of the Crescent, the " feeding ship," their craving appetites were once more satisfied, with gratitude inexpressible, upon a good army meal. " What a feast it was," exclaimed one half-starved fellow; and "that pint of hot coffee," to them, was like nectar. They were one of the happiest crowds on earth. Rescued from an untimely grave, the chilly rains of autumn, and the scorching sun of summer, and delivered from the tyranny of Capt. Wirz, and sailing home- ward-bound under the glorious stars and stripes, language fails to express their gratitude and joy. They sung, danced, and rejoiced exceedingly. Those too feeble to participate were highly cheered by looking on. Getting aboard the regular transports, they bade a final farewell to Dixie, and sailed for Annapolis, Md., where they were joyfully and heartily received with the cheering strains of Hail Columbia, by the Marine Band. Thus ended their prison-life; for heart-rending cruelties, atrocious barbarity, 166 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and fiendish tyranny, unequalled upon the face of the earth. Receiving two months' pay and a commutation for rations, all that were able received a thirty days' furlough, and away they went in haste to see the loved ones at home. This exchange took place about the eighteenth or twentieth of November, 1864, at Venus Point, near Savannah, on the Savannah River, Ga. Many had been in captivity from nine to fifteen months. What a glorious deliverance ! THE DEPARTURE. After many warm, earnest, pathetic appeals to the Government in behalf of the prisoners perishing for relief; after many false promises of a speedy exchange from Capt. Wirz ; and having so often realized " that hope deferred maketh the heart sick," at length the decree "Let my people go," went forth, and the heart- cheering order, "Be ready to depart" spread throughout the camp like wild fire. It put new life in everybody. All are now on tiptoe with rejoicing; and overflowing with gratitude and joy upon the glorious deliverance, with gushing hearts many exclaimed, "Thank God! thank God!" and began to fix up, and make ready to depart. Fooled and disappointed so often, soon doubts begin to rise in their minds ; and, as the encouraging news spread throughout the camp, the anxious inquiiy, "Is it so ? is it so ? " went forth from many a throbbing heart ; and, as it met with a speedy respond, " Yes, yes ! " by the messenger, loud shouts of joy and rejoicing rose in quick succession from thousands of glad hearts " The year of jubilee is come, Return, ye ransomed sinners, home! " It inspired everybody with fresh life and courage. To be delivered from Andersonville was almost like deliverance from hell. What a stir throughout the camp ; what a shaking among the dry bones ! Every one is astir, on the alert, gathering up his few things, and making his last call with his frail comrades too weak to go ! (It is about the first of September, 1864.) And while all this excitement and preparation to leave Andersonville for ex- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 167 change was going on, many are just exchanging time for eternity. To struggle through all the torments of Andersonville up to the hour of exchange, and then die, seemed unusually hard. But it seemed " thus it must be ! " (Matt. xxvi. 54.) Others too weak to go, it seemed hard to leave. To bid a final farewell to a dear comrade, with whom they had so long shared the hardships and horrors of war, amid such awful circumstances, was indeed trying ; it was hard for those going, and much harder for those left. A hearty, warm sigh and a gushing tear, a good wish and a hearty " May God bless you ! " was all they could do ; and while they were pronouncing the final "farewell," the cry, "There they go ! " flashed across the camp, and thousands of the heroic braves, together with the maimed, halt, and blind, were seen marching up and passing that gate which had so long held them in captivity, and through which thirteen thousand brave patriots brought in alive had been carried out dead. Farewell, Anderson- ville; farewell, thou hell of earth and "plague-spot of creation!" let thy name go down to posterity as synonymous with cruelty, starvation, atrocity, death, and murder ! Thou wilt be remem- bered only with the saddest associations. The awful sufferings there endured, and the reproach, gross insult, abuse, and vindic- tive revenge there poured out upon the brave heroes by those malignant rebels, will never be forgotten. As they marched out, they were divided into small companies of sixty each, and tot- tered over to the depot, the stronger supporting the weak. With sixty in a car (freight-car), with a little corn-bread and rancid bacon for their rations, and a bucket to get water, away they went through the beautiful scenes of Georgia. Shut up so long as they had been, the green trees, beautiful foliage, thrifty grass, and fine flowers, and the pure air, to them appeared most lovely and delightful. By sunset, next evening, they arrived at Au- gusta, where they were detained a long while, and were much refreshed through the great kindness of the generous citizens, who did what they could to administer to their wants in supply- ing them with good water, biscuits, meat, and delicacies for the sick. They were received with the warmest gratitude, without knowing whether they came from loyalists or disloyalists. How 168 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. very striking the contrast between the tyranny and cruelty of Andersonville and the warm sympathy and kindness of Au- gusta ! Here all was kindness and good-will, there all was hatred and revenge ; here the kind people labored to save the lives of the prisoners, there they labored to destroy them ; here they were treated like men, there like hogs and wild beasts ! Here our captive heroes met a confederate prisoner from the North (from Johnson's Island), who, when asked by our men how he fared while a prisoner, promptly replied, " Very well, in- deed, sir ! We had plenty of good food, and vegetables ' quite often ; ' " and to compare his stout, robust, healthy appearance with our half-starved, pale, feeble, disheartened men, the contrast was most striking. The next day, at three P. M., they arrived at Charleston, S.C., and, to their great surprise and most sad disappointment, they ascertained that " it was no exchange after all; "it was only a hurried remove upon the sudden anticipated approach of Sherman's army. And again they felt "that hope deferred maketh the heart sick," and sorrow and sadness again filled their hearts. Such is life full of ups and downs; and the downs are often greater than the ups! Here the fare was hard, but far superior to Andersonville ; here they were visited by two sisters of charity, who did much to relieve the sufferings of both Catholics and Protestants. Having put in a few weeks at Charleston, they were taken to Florence early in October. Here the suffering and barbarous cruelties were about equal to Andersonville. The hospital here was literally awful. To see brave soldiers, the heroes of a hundred battles, lying nigh unto death, with no beds and no coverings, and turning idiots from suffering and starvation, and dying at the rate of twenty-five a day out of seven hundred, or about four percentage, was horrible in the extreme. But at last the day of deliverance came, and they were let go free. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 169 CHAPTER XIII. ANDERSONVILLE CEMETERY. CONTAINS FIFTY ACRES THIRTEEN THOUSAND AND SEVEN HUNDRED AND FIVE GRAVES WHO ARE THE DEAD? WHAT DID THEY SUF- FER? How DID THEY DIE? As THEY LIVED AND FOUGHT THE FIRST PRISONERS BURIED THERE THE LAST ONE THE STARS AND STRIPES WAVE OVER THEM CAPTAIN WIRZ His BIRTH ENTERING THE EEBEL ARMY PROMOTED FOR His CRU- ELTY TO THE PRISONERS PROVEN GUILTY OF CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE UNITED STATES " I WILL GIVE You BULLETS FOR BREAD " HE SHOT A PRISONER "On, Do LET ME DOWN ! " His LAST DAYS FOUND GUILTY KECEIVED SENTENCE TO BE HUNG VERY COOLLY ATTENDED BY THE PRIEST No SIGNS OF SORROW His EXECU- TION HURRIES TO THE GALLOWS THE CLOSING SCENE. IN a well-selected spot, half a mile north of the prison stock- ade, lie the heroic martyrs of Anderson ville. Containing some fifty acres of level land in an elevated old field, surrounded with dense forests of pine, and lying close to the South-western Rail- road, it is a beautiful situation. Inclosed with a white-washed picket fence, and laid off in four sections, with streets crossing in the centre, it presents quite a neat appearance. Entering at the south gate, and passing up the main street, there are three sec- tions of graves on your right, of about three-quarters of an acre each, divided by two alleys ; and on your left are two more of equal size. The dead all lie facing to the east. At the head of every grave is a plain head-board, ten inches wide, two and a half feet high, painted white, with the prisoner's name, company, regiment, and date of death, lettered on it in black. The dead lie very close together in trenches and in rows, each body occu- pying only fourteen inches, with only four inches between the head-boards. The graves are finished in a common level, and are neatly grassed over. Who are the dead? whence came they? From almost every 170 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. State in the Union ; but chiefly from the North. There they lie, from the green mountains of Vermont to the golden shores of California and Oregon. There lie the uncoffined bones of the dear husband of many a crushed, heart-broken widow, and the precious dust of many patriotic sons, whose weeping mothers refuse to be comforted, because they are not. There lie thousands of brave veterans, who, at the tap of the drum, voluntarily rushed to the defence of the old flag, at the beginning of the rebellion. The heroes of one hundred battles, they were a part of the very bone and sinew of the army ; not bounty-jumpers, but noble, heroic, patriotic men, who fought, suffered, and died ; not for mere pay, but from principle, for the glory, defence, and salvation of the country ; not stragglers, but soldiers thirsting for victory, rushed into the thickest of the battle, and unfortunately were captured, and dragged into the slaughter-house at Andersonville. What did they suffer f Tongue cannot tell ; heart cannot con- ceive, and language cannot describe it. The severity of their sufferings beggars all description ; they not only suffered cruelty, hunger, thirst, starvation, robbery, torture, death, but atrocious contumely, dire reproach, and fell revenge from rebel tyrants. It was proven in Capt. Wirz's trial, that some ten thousand died from torture, neglect, cruelty, hunger, and want maliciously in- flicted ; " that numbers died from the dead being left too long in the prison ; that numbers died from wearing the ball and chain ; that many died from being tied up by the thumbs, and from tor- ture in f the stocks ; ' that a number were shot and killed upon the dead-line ; that a large number died from the bite of ferocious dogs or bloodhounds, and from poisonous vaccination ordered by Capt. Wirz; "and," says Col. Chipman, Judge Advocate, in his closing remarks on the trial, " Capt. Wirz murdered eighteen, and one died from his jumping upon, stamping, and kicking him." How did they die ? Having no regular spiritual adviser gener- ally, but little is known of their prospects, or preparation for the future. A number " made perfect through suffering " gave bright evidence of repentance ; for whom to die was gain. And from the patient suffering, calm submission, and humble resigna- tion, and tine patriotism they exhibited, doubtless many hun- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 171 dreds of them died happily, and have gone beyond the reach of rebel tyrants, " where the wicked cease to trouble, and the weary are forever at rest." The first prisoner buried there was J. S. Warner, Co. H, 2d N. Y. Cavalry, died Feb. 27, 1864. The last death was R. Hanson, Co. F, 1st Wis., died April 28, 1865. The exact number buried there is 13,065, including one hundred and fifteen rebels from the garrison, and sixty-five who died from small-pox. There they lie, waiting the sound of the last trump summoning them to judgment, when all will be rewarded strictly according to their works. In the centre of this vast depository of the patriotic dead is to be erected a suitable monument to the memory of these heroic martyrs. Let it rise. They most richly deserve it. Let it rise, that it may tell to future generations the patriotic heroism, the ardent devotion, patient endurance, and unyielding perseverance of those thirteen thousand heroic martyrs. Again we say let it rise, and engrave upon it the opprobri- ous name, " ANDERSONVILLE," that it may tell to future ages the extreme suffering, the despotic tyranny, the gross indignity, the fierce cruelty, the severe punishment, hunger, want, and starvation endured by the immortal heroes lying beneath it. Let it rise of material lasting as time, so that if our American patriotism should ever grow cold, and we become unmindful of the rich boon of civil and religious liberty established by the blood of our fathers, and redeemed by the blood of half a million of their sons, we may go and stand around the graves of these departed heroes; that we may think of the horrible sufferings they endured, and of the awful deaths they died, that we and our country might live ; that the world may know that man is capable of self-government, and that all men are created free and equal. In the centre of this large depository of the lamented dead stands a flagstaff, one hundred and twenty feet high, from which the stars and stripes float every day. Cared for by a superintendent appointed by the Government, who keeps two hands employed in dressing it, the cemetery is kept in good order. A few marble stones have been placed at a few of the graves by 172 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. friends. The main entrance is at the south ; and on the east side of the gate is printed in large capital letters : NATIONAL CEMETERY, ANDERSONVILLE. Opposite these words are inscribed the following touching lines : "On Fame's eternal camping-ground Their silent tents are spread ; And Glory guards with solemn round The bivouac of the dead." A little farther down stand the following graphic words : " The hopes, the fears, the blood, the tears, That marked the bitter strife, Are now all covered by victory That saved the nation's life. " A thousand battle-fields have drunk The blood of warriors brave : And countless homes are dark and drear Through the land they died to save." In one corner, by themselves, lie six more buried, marked below their names "Hung, July 12, 1864." CAPTAIN WIRZ. And now, in closing those wonderful scenes from Anderson- ville, the reader will no doubt feel anxious to hear a little more about the perpetrator of those awful crimes and the inflicter of such severe punishments. Capt. Henry Wirz was born of respectable parents, in Zurich, Switzerland, Nov. 1823. In early life he manifested a strong desire to study medicine, but, his father objecting, he was placed in a commercial house in his native town. Desiring to try his luck in a new country, he came to the United States in 1849, landing at New York, where he again resumed the study of medicine. During the first stages of secession, Wirz obtained some notoriety by his severe denunciations of the Federal Govern- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 173 ment, and declaring his warm attachment to the South. But failing to get a commission as surgeon in the rebel army, he enlisted as a private soldier under the flag of treason. But having served a short time in that capacity, and being of a cruel disposition, and possessing the requisite qualifications to execute the atrocious designs of rebel leaders upon our prisoners, he was, early in the war, put in charge of Libby Prison. Here the sergeant-major soon so distinguished himself for cruelty and bar- barity to the unfortunate captives, that he was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant. In the spring of 1862, he was sent to the front, while Gen. McClellan was bringing to bear his battering-rams upon the strongholds of Richmond, and receiving a wound in the arm, by the stroke of a fragment of a shell at the battle of Fair Oaks, he obtained a furlough to visit his native home in Europe. After having spent over a year on his furlough, he voluntarily returned to the United States in the spring of 1864. Shortly after his return, he was ordered to assist Gen. G. H. Winder in carrying out his cruel atrocities perpe- trated upon our unfortunate men incarcerated in Andersonville. Here he was again promoted, and honored with the rank of captain. Having full sway, and giving loose rein to his cruel, bloodthirsty disposition, he went on in his barbarous work until he was proven guilty of confederating, combining, and conspiring with Jefferson Davis, Howell Cobb, and others, in leagued rebellion against the United States; and that he did maliciously and traitorously, contrary to the laws of war, so cruelly neglect and treat some ten thousand Union prisoners under his care in Andersonville, that they died from hunger, torture, cruelty, and want. What a long black catalogue of crimes ! How deeply seared must have been the conscience, and how awfully hard must have been the heart, of the atrocious perpetrator ! Before such monstrous iniquity, the sensitive heart recoils and humanity shudders. Such heights and depths of deep, double-distilled wickedness are seldom, if ever, equalled. On a certain occasion, when a poor starved soldier asked Capt. Wirz for a little more bread, the hard-hearted tyrant contemptu- ously replied, " 1 will give you builds for bread" On another 174 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. occasion a frail, prostrated sufferer mildly asked permission of the unmerciful captain to go out to get fresh air, when "Wirz in- dignantly replied, " What do you mean ? " drew out his revolver from his pocket, and shot him down. He died in two or three hours after, watering the tree of liberty with his patriotic blood. The prison punishments were all most cruelly severe. The idea of mercy or kindness seemed never to have entered the hearts of those unrelenting tormentors. For a prisoner to at- tempt to escape was almost always certain death. The fact is, the institution was got up, and kept up, to weary, abuse, starve, and destroy Union prisoners. Capt. W. S. Winder said, when he was laying out the stockade, " I am going to ^build a pen here that will kill more Yankees than can be destroyed at the front." And Capt.. Wirz said to the Union men who were burying the dead, " This is the way I give the Yankees the land they come to fight for." What deep-seated malevolence and murderous revenge underlies such devilish expressions ! Wirz often told the prisoners " that he intended to destroy them." "On passing by the guard-house, one day," says Major Kellog, " I heard a most pitiable, distressing outcry ; and upon looking around, I saw a prisoner, who for attempting to escape had been brought back and strung up by the thumbs to the beam of the guard-house, paying the unrighteous penalty of honorably attempt- ing to flee from impending starvation and death. And there, swinging in the air, with his body roasted with pain and a soul writhing in anguish, in the most compassionate, pitiable manner, he begged with his cruel tormentors for mercy. Hanging there with the ruthless cords tightening around his swollen thumbs, he exclaimed, in the most heart-rending manner, 'Oh, for God's sake, have mercy on me; oh, do let me down. Oh, mercy, mercy, mercy ! } But, alas ! he begged without mercy." There he hung. Oh, how awful ! Humanity shudders at the horrible cruelty. A wicked world gaze and look on with astonishment, and in summing up this double-distilled cruelty, atrocious torture, fell revenge, and fiendish murder, it would seem that God had withdrawn all restraining grace, and that Satan had poured forth his bitterest vials of wrath to fire the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 175 malicious heart of Wirz to perpetrate those most damnable deeds, that the world might see how low and deep the depraved heart is capable of sinking in iniquity. And yet, doubtless, as this monster of iniquity was only a tool in the hands of higher officers, his crimes must be small when compared with theirs. THE LAST DAYS OF WIRZ. After the fall of Richmond and the surrender of Johnston to Sherman, when bloody treason was lying low in the dust, and the shouts of victory gushing from every loyal heart throughout the land, Wirz endeavored to flee the country ; but was arrested, and brought back to Washington, and confined in prison to await his trial for his numberless deeds of cruelty and murder. After the assassins of Abraham Lincoln were executed, charges and specifications were brought against this monster of iniquity, and a military court was convened, and the guilty tyrant was made to look at himself in the eyes of the law and justice. He took a deep interest in the trial, and closely watched every move- ment and every word of testimony brought against him. The trial, though long and tedious, was at length closed ; the plead- ings heard, the testimony canvassed, and the sentence, " guilty," brought in; and on the sixth of November, 1865, he was in- formed by Gen. Winder that he was sentenced to be hung on Friday the tenth. Wirz received his sentence with remarkable coolness and with great unconcern, remarking only, " Well, I suppose it must be done ; " and with a stern indifference he went immediately to the door of his cell, and announced the fact to Gen. Briscoe, who was occupying the opposite side of the cell, in the following words : " General, I am to be hung on Friday ! " And as Gen. Augur was retiring from the cell, he said, " After I am dead and gone, I will come back and haunt you all." Being a Roman Catholic, a priest was sent for to administer to his spiritual wants, and warn and entreat him to prepare for death. And, notwithstanding his enormous sins, his historian sayp he gave no marks of sorrow or contrition for his iniquitous crimes. Scoffing at the Federal Government to the last, on the 176 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. night before his execution he said " the American Eagle was a turkey buzzard." Undisturbed about his approaching end, he slept soundly the last night of his life, until he was aroused at three o'clock by his spiritual comforters, to pray with and for him, and beseech him to prepare for the solemn scene. He lis- tened to their prayers, but, insisting on his innocence, manifested no signs of forgiveness. Touching his personal appearance, wearing a dark complexion, Wirz was a man of about five feet ten inches high, " of a thin, spare figure," with black hair, beard and mustache mixed with gray. Dressed in black, with an old silk hat, he presented, during the trial, a rather shabby, genteel appearance. THE EXECUTION. At length the day of execution dawns. On the morning of the tenth of November, with the preparations at the gallows all completed, fifteen minutes before ten the doomed man was led out of his cell, supported by Fathers Doyle and Wiget. And although he manifested no regret for his crimes nor sorrow for his sins, yet, realizing the stern laws of retribution beginning to play upon him, he now begins to feel that the way of the trans- gressor is hard. And wrapped in a black robe, carrying his right arm in a sling, with hands and feet unmanacled, with a light, careless step he made haste to the gallows and ran up the steps, and sat down upon a chair, sitting upon the deadly drop, over which hung the fatal noose dangling in the air, ready to crush the forfeited life lingering in "the demon of Andersonville." Guarded by a battalion of soldiers, formed into a hollow square, there he sits, hanging upon the verge of the eternal world, just running his last sands. With death standing out before him, and the grave yawning to receive him, there he sits, wrapped in the hardness of his own insensibility. Major Russell, taking his station directly opposite the gallows, read aloud the charge, specifications, and the sentence. Wirz listened atten- tively, but shook his head with an occasional smile, without a ray of sorrow or remorse flashing from his stern brow. At the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 177 close of the reading, he was asked if he had anything to say. He replied, " No ; I have nothing to say to the public." After a silent whisper and parting exhortation of the priest, the black cap being drawn over his face, he was requested to stand up, and the rope was adjusted around his neck, and his hands and feet bound with cords. And now the fatal hour draws nigh. At twenty minutes past ten, the commanding officer gave the signal, and Capt. Henry Wirz hangs suspended between heaven and earth. The roofs of the surrounding houses were crowded with spectators, anxiously gazing upon the solemn scene; and, at the fall of the fatal drop, a loud yell rose from the crowd without. After a few convulsive jerks, the soul of Wirz winged its flight to the eternal world, and the tragic scene closed. At seven o'clock his body was taken down, examined by the attending physician, and officially pronounced dead. The corpse was placed in a coffin, and delivered into the hands of Father Boyle, and the excited crowd dispersed. 12 178 CHEISTIANITY IN THE WAR. CHAPTER XIV. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS. "MY HEART is so HARD, I CAN'T PRAY" CONVERTED ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE "I WENT TO CHURCH CURSING, AND CAME AWAY PRAYING " "I CAN'T GET EELIGION " "I CAN'T HELP BUT PRAY" A HERO OF ANDERSONVILLE SAVED BY His WIFE A BOAT -LOAD OF ANDERSONVILLE PRISONERS " CONVERTED ON PICKET BY Two MEN TALKING TO ME" "I AM KESOLVED TO QUIT SWEARING" DIED CALLING FOR THE CHAPLAIN TO PRAY FOR HIM "I AM EEADY TO DIE" "TELL THEM I AM HAPPY" "CONVERTED THROUGH A SISTER'S LETTERS" "Ir I GO TO HELL, I WILL GO PRAYING " " PRAYER is A GREAT PRIV- ILEGE" "OH, THAT I HAD VENTURED BEFORE!" "I AM GUILTY OF EVERYTHING BUT THEFT AND MURDER" "I EXPECT TO GET RELIGION WHEN I GET HOME " BLEEDING TO DEATH, YET "RESTING ON CHRIST" "PRAYING FOR SPORT" "I GAVE MY HEART TO JESUS" "CHRIST is EVERYTHING TO ME" "MY SINS ARE GREAT AND HEAVY" "SATAN is OFTEN AT MY HEELS " JAMES WARD, 81sT N.Y., Co. I A SOLDIER'S CREED "I SEE so MUCH BAD CHRISTIANITY, I AM DISCOURAGED" "JESUS is STILL PRECIOUS" "I STILL HOLD ON TO GOD" "I PRAY MUCH IN BATTLE " A SOLDIER WITH SEVEN WOUNDS " I CAN AFFORD TO SUFFER " A HAPPY, SHOUTING SOLDIER "I WOULD LIKE TO BE A CHRISTIAN, IF I COULD KEEP IT" "I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT PRAYER" "THE LORD is MINE" "I CAN'T PRAY" "I FOUND JESUS" "I LEAVE IT ALL WITH THE LORD" A SWEARER BROUGHT TO TEARS. " MY HEART IS SO HARD, I CAN'T PRAY." JOSEPH P. NICHOLS, 39th 111. Vol., Co. K, was severely wounded in one of the last battles near Petersburg, Va., and was soon after brought to Hampton Hospital. His wound soon became gangrened, and he was taken to the Gangrene Camp. At first we found him a profane, prayerless sinner, and yet honest and frank to confess it. Said he " had been a Methodist, but had wofully backslid." He said, " I have been a great swearer. I CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 179 have sworn to such an extent that I am ashamed of it." " We are very glad to hear you confess your sins, and your shame for swearing. And are .you sorry for it now, Joseph ? " " Yes, I feel sorry ; but not as I ought to." I preached to him ; pointed him to Christ ; told him of his love and compassion ; that he waits to be gracious ; that he is " able and willing to save, even to the uttermost ; " and urged him to repent, and come to him. He became very anxious ; and as I urged him to pray and to turn his oaths into prayers, he said, with deep emotion and tears, " My heart is so hard, I can't pray." I told him to " tell the Lord so ; " to go to God with his hard heart, and he would soften and change it. He now seemed to feel deeply the great- ness of his sins ; and as I urged him to pray, and throw himself right into the arms of Jesus, he cried, with eyes filled with tears, " God be merciful to me a sinner ! " " Lord, save, or I perish ! " Thus, with his soul stirred, pleading and begging for mercy, we left him, and made special prayers for him that night at the public service, and ere the sun set on the nineteenth of May, 1865, he closed his eyes in death. Gone, we trust, to reap his reward in heaven. Let backsliders be warned, and take care. " Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord." CONVERTED ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE. " Good-morning, Henry ! how do you do to-day ? " "I am somewhat better to-day, I thank you, chaplain." " Very glad to see you so well. How are you spiritually? " " Well, I have been a very great sinner ; but I believe, now, God has converted my soul and forgiven my sins." "Where do you think you were converted ? " " In the battle of Hatcher's Run. There, amidst the shock of battle, I saw so many falling around me, and think- ing how soon it might be my turn, and what an awful thing it would be to die for my country, and lose my own soul ; there, with balls and bullets whistling close by me, and shells bursting around me, together with the groans of the wounded and dying, I cried to God for mercy ; and there, I believe, he changed my heart." " Did you feel afraid in battle ? " " No, not much ; we 180 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. never expect to get hit. I felt anxious about my soul ; my sins rose up before me, and seemed to be very great. The battle raged. ' On we went, giving it to the rebels hot and heavy ; ' but I kept on praying, ' Lord, have mercy, and save me ! ' We drove the rebels, and gained a glorious victory." " But I sup- pose your greatest victory was a victory over Satan." " I 'spose it was." " Satan has a very strong fort in every sinner's heart, and to storm and take that fort requires nothing less than the omnipotent power of God. And you still think you were con- verted, then, during that battle?" "Yes, I believe I was." " Do you now feel like holding fast, and going on in the Lord's service ? " " Yes, I do ; by the grace of God I will try, and be faithful till death." " Do you pray often now, Henry ? " " Yes, I pray two or three times a day." " When did you begin to pray ? " " While we were at Petersburg." " May God bless you, Henry. Cling to the cross ; trust in the Lord ; and all will be well ! " It was Henry McElvain, 118th U. S., Co. A. I WENT TO CHURCH CURSING, AND CAME AWAY PRAYING. " Upon canvassing the heart of HENRY FERGUSON, 39th 111., Co. E, we soon saw that he bore marks of the new creature. The pleasing smile upon his countenance bore evidence that the image of God had been enstamped upon his heart. And upon further inquiry, he said, " I have a hope that I would not ex- change for the world." " Do you think you are a converted man ? " " Yes, I believe that I am." " When do you think you were converted ? " " About fifteen months ago." " Where ? " " In church. I went to church cursing, and came away praying. While there, I was deeply convicted and smitten down. My sins rose like mountains before me, and I felt very unhappy and awful. I thought I saw the devil, that he was all black and dreadful. The encouraging promise, ' Resist the devil, and he will flee from you/ rushed to my mind ; and all of a sudden light dawned upon my mind, and I began to pray to God for mercy ; and all at once a feeling of joy came over me, and I fel* glory in my soul." " How have you lived since ? " "T. still CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 181 trust in the Lord and try to be faithful, and I feel happy ever since. I have no fear of death." " How does the Saviour ap- pear to you ? " " Dear and precious ; he has done great things for me." " Do you still pray daily ? " " Yes ; I read my Testa- ment, and pray two or three times every day." " Do you ever feel like swearing now?" " No; swearing never comes into my mind now." " Be faithful. War a good warfare. Watch and pray, and may God abundantly bless you." From the example of Henry, let the wicked and profane be encouraged to go to church. Men often receive a blessing when they don't expect it. A man once went to hear John Wesley preach, with a stone in his pocket to break his head, but his sermon broke his heart, and resulted in his conversion. "I CAN'T GET RELIGION." As I approached HENRY W. CHASE, 96th N. Y., Co. H, he wept profusely, and exhibited distress and deep anxiety of mind. I said to him, "Do you want anything?" "No. I can't get religion" "Would you like to have it?" "Yes," he said. " Oh, yes," trembling, and weeping with deepest emotions. " I am glad to see you so anxious. Salvation is free free as the air you breathe. Jesus says, ' If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. Ho every one that thirsteth, come; and whosoever will, let him come and take of the waters of life freely.' What hinders you from getting religion ? " " Pride, and my hard heart," he said, weeping most bitterly. Oh, how I felt and prayed for him. Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on him. "Do you feel sorry for your sins?" "Yes; but I fear God has not forgiven them." " Do your sins seem to be great?" " Yes, very great." " The blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin. Look and live. Only believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Just come to Christ now. Throw yourself right into his arms, and he will save you. Come just as you are. Don't wait to get better. There is no work to be done ; no preparation to be made to go to Jesus. No, all things are now ready ; come and be saved." I preached occasionally to him and his ward, 182 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAK. and warned them to flee the wrath to come, fly to Jesus, and cling to the cross. He grew worse, and the ward-master gave him up to die. How interesting the scene. Gather round and gaze upon the brave, lovely boy as he lies upon his bed, with one leg off above the knee ; with a fine countenance and a pale face, there he lies, bathed in tears, weeping for his sins, and pleading for salvation. Calling on him a few days after, he said, weeping, " I have not found the Saviour yet." " Oh, Henry, are you willing to die for your country, and die and be lost? Only think of the love of Christ. View him in Bethlehem. View him in Gethsemane, agonizing for our salvation. View him on Calvary, groaning, bleeding, dying, that we, that you, might have eternal life. And will you, CAN you refuse such a Saviour? Having sealed your heroic devotion to your country with your blood, now only look to Jesus, and he will seal the salvation of your soul with his blood. Step right out upon the promises of God } and grasp Christ by the hand of faith, and salvation is yours. Look away from your wound ; look only to Christ, and he will break and melt your hard heart, and give you a new one. Jesus cries to you in tones of love and mercy. ' My son, my son, give me thy heart/ Remember, my dear friend, you must sur- render or be lost ; you must repent or perish ; turn or die. Jesus cries, ' How often would I have gathered you, and will you not come?' May God help and bless you." He suffered long, and bore it all very patiently. Not a murmur fell from his lips. At ray next call his wound was better, and he was indulging a hope, and said, " Prospects are brighter." " Do you still pray, Henry?" " Yes, I pray very often." At our next call we found him still more encouraged, and he said, " I think now I have found the Saviour, and God has forgiven my sins. Christ seems precious now. My sins before seemed heavy, now they seem light." He wept. I wrote to his father : he came. Henry got well, and went home. "I CAN'T HELP BUT PRAY." "I GO FORWARD." On canvassing the heart of JOSEPH SMITH, 38th U.S., Co. I, we soon found him evidently a devoted Christian, and seemed to CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 183 }>e filled with the Spirit. " I suppose you think and meditate much about the Saviour?" " Yes, I think on God all the time." " Do you pray much ? " " Yes, I prays very much : I can't help it." "Can't you help it?" " No ;" pointing to his breast, he said, " there is something within me that draws me to the throne of grace." " What is it? " " I suppose it is the Spirit of God that prompts me to it, or the love of Christ drawing me." " Do you love Jesus ? " " Yes, I loves him ; and he is very dear and precious to me." " Do you find it difficult to live out religion in the army ? " " No ; God is the same in the army as he is at home." "You don't backslide, then ?" "No; I go forward, and still keep trying to do my duty to God and my country, and God helps and blesses me." "Be faithful, Joseph; live near to God, and cling to the cross." Reader, if you would reach that high Christian attainment, where you "can't help but pray," "think on God all the time! " To the devoted Christian, prayer is no task. No ; filled with the Holy Ghost, and constrained by the love of Christ, " he can't help but pray ! " A HERO OF ANDERSONVILLE SAVED BY HIS WIFE. PHILIP H ARTEL, 51st Pa. Vol., Co. I, an exchanged prisoner from Anderson ville, was brought here from Wilmington, N. C., April 2, 1865. When he came in, he was completely run down with chronic diarrhoea and starvation to a mere skeleton. He looked like death, and for a long time we despaired of his life ; but with kind treatment he got along. We preached to him and his ward of prisoners, and tried to comfort them with the con- solations of the gospel, and besought them, by the mercies of God, to trust in Christ and cling to the cross. He belonged to the Lutheran Church, and seemed to be an humble, meek, good Christian soldier, looking to God for help and strength. Per- fectly resigned, not a complaint or murmur fell from his lips. He said, " I hope and trust, if God willing, to get home and see my wife and child (eight years old)." He gained a little, and in a few days his good wife came and tenderly and most faithfully uursed him; and, after a good while, he got well enough to go 184 CHEISTIANITY IN THE WAK. home. But it seemed like life from the dead. I believe his faithful wife, under God, saved his life. A BOAT-LOAD OF ANDERSONVILLE PRISONERS. One hundred and sixty were brought in April 2, 1865, from Wilmington, N. C. They had been at Florence and Ander- sonville, and many of them were reduced to mere skeletons from disease and starvation. Although they had spent a few days at Wilmington, and recruited up considerably, yet some of them seemed to look more like dead men than living ones with hair dishevelled, ghastly eyes, faces pale, and nothing but skin and bones, they looked like living corpses. A great many died at Wilmington. Many of them died here in the wards after linger- ing a few days. "CONVERTED ON PICKET BY TWO MEN TALKING TO ME." Upon conversing with THEODORE BRADLY, 7th Conn., Co. H, we soon found him indulging a good hope. After a short con- versation about religion, and the trials and temptations of army life, I asked him if he was an old soldier of the cross. " No," he said. " I was converted by two men talking to me one night on picket at Bermuda Hundred." " What did they talk to you about ? " " About Jesus Christ and the way of salvation, and the awful danger of living in the army without religion." " Did they urge you to repentance, and beseech you to come to the Saviour? " "Yes; they talked to me in an earnest, humble, simple manner, and urged me to become a Christian." " How had you lived before that time? " " Careless and indifferent : I went to church at home, but felt no particular interest in religion." " Have you ever read the Bible much ? " " Yes, considerable : I went to Sunday-school at home." " Do you feel sorry for your sins, now ? " " Yes." " How do your sins appear to you ? " " They appear great; but I believe God has forgiven them." "And you still believe you were converted there that night on picket?" "Yes, I believe I was. I still trust in Christ, and I pray daily. Yes, there, standing between two mighty armies, exposed CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 185 to death from the rebel sharpshooter, I believe God changed my heart and washed my soul. Now, if I know my own heart, I feel prepared to go whenever God calls." " God is everywhere, and can as easily convert a sinner on picket as in the church. Oh, how important to talk about religion, and thus hold up the cross to a dying world ! f Hear, O Israel ; the Lord our God is one Lord ; and these words shall be in thy heart ; and thou shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up/ (Deut. vi. 4, 6, 7.) ' Talk ye of all his wondrous works.' (Psalm cv. 2.) How lamentable that we talk so little about religion ! How very common in the social circle, to hear Christians talk all over the world, and talk all around the cross, and never utter a word for Jesus. Of old, it was written, ' They that feared the Lord, spake often to one another/ " "I AM RESOLVED TO QUIT SWEARING." GEORGE H. TRACK, 6th Conn., Co. K, was severely wounded at the fall of Fort Fisher, where our men did such brave fight- ing. Upon my grasping him by the hand, and trying to lead him to the cross, he wept most profusely, and seemed to feel his sins very deeply, and appeared to be very penitent, hopeful, and anxious. " Do you pray?" " Yes ; and I have resolved to quit swearing." " May God bless you richly. Think you can quit it?" "Yes, I think I can." "I know you can, if you will. Have you sworn any since you resolved to quit it ? " " No, not an oath." To see the big tears rushing to his eyes and rolling down his cheeks encouraged us to talk and pray with him. After singing a beautiful hymn, and commending him to the God of all comfort, we bade him good-by, and left him. Eeader, if you swear, resolve to quit it, and you can. Remember the words of Him who says, " Swear not at all." DIED CALLING FOR THE CHAPLAIN TO PRAY FOR HIM. Upon our first interview with JOHN S. BURKET, 13th Ind. Cavalry, we found him inquiring " what to do to be saved." I 186 CHKISTIANITY IN THE WAR. replied, "'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. 7 Salvation is free; and it is ready. Only believe, and you will enjoy it. Faith implies two things : forsaking all else, and receiving and relying upon Christ alone for salvation. It is taking God at his word, and acting as though you believed what he says." He gave signs of penitence ; said he " trusted in Christ, and was not afraid to die." " If you only have faith, you need have no fear of death. To die is gain, if you die in faith." Toward the last he became very anxious, and died praying to God for mercy, and calling upon the chaplain to pray for him. He indited a letter to his wife shortly before he ex- pired. Many careless, with the hope of long life, grow anxious about salvation at the approach of death, when it is too late. Delays are dangerous. Oh, then, reader, be warned, and "pre- pare NOW to meet thy God ! " "I AM READY TO DIE," Said JOHN WEEKLY, 4th U. S., Co. I, after a few minutes conversation with him about his spiritual condition. He seemed to be very tender, penitent, humble, and resigned. " Are you not afraid to die?" "No; I trust in Jesus, and I don't fear death." " Do you love the Saviour ? " " Yes ; I love him, and he is very good to me." " Perfect love casteth out fear. It is a great blessing," I said. " Oh, yes," he replied, and began to pray, "Jesus, have mercy on me. Save me, Lord, for Jesus' sake." Continuing in prayer, he cried more earnestly, "Save, save me, SAVE me, O Jesus" How direct, simple, comprehen- sive and earnest his prayer. Standing upon the verge of the eternal world, like sinking Peter, he goes directly to Jesus, pleads for salvation, and most earnestly cries, " Save me, Lord." He seemed to live right beneath the throne of God. And with a heart all alive with the love of Christ, it was no wonder he had no fear of death. It is readiness to depart that banishes fear. If prepared, " to die is gain," and to depart is far better. " Be ye also ready." Reading and praying with him, and commending him to the God of all grace, we bade him farewell, and left him. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 187 "TELL THEM I AM HAPPY." When I first visited MAHLON SPANOGLE, 205th Pa., Co. A, he was careless and prayerless, yet a regular attendant at church at home. Beseeching him to be reconciled to God, we left him. His severe wound grew worse, became badly gangrened, and, consequently, he was taken to the gangrene camp. At our next interview, we found him still careless and unconcerned ; and we noted him down in our book, " indifferent, and don't pray, " and he said, " he swore when excited." After pointing him to the cross, we bade him good-by, and went on to the next poor suf- ferer. I preached to and prayed with him often, explaining the way of salvation, and besought him to repent and fly to Christ; and after a while he became interested in religion. I often read the Bible to him, lying on his very sore back, and explained to him the penalties of the law and the precious promises of the gospel. By-and-by he became attentive and tender, and gave some signs of repentance. By the examples in the Bible and by the promises of God, I urged him to pray earnestly, to think of the love of Christ, and of the mercy of God in sparing him through so many narrow escapes, and what an awful thing it would be to die for his country, and lose his own soul ; and tears trickled down his pale cheeks. The Spirit of God moved upon him, and he said he was sorry for his sins, and seemed deeply penitent. He failed gradually; his mortal frame gave way; and shortly before he expired, whea he saw he was going, he threw his arms around the nurse, embraced and hugged him very affec- tionately, and said, " I am dying ; Lord, help me ! Tell them I am happy. The gates are open, and I am going home." The wheel at the cistern stood still, and his disembodied spirit went, tve trust, where there will be no more sorrow, pain, and death. His bereaved wife arrived half an hour ere his departure, and brought some good things for him to eat ; but it was too late. His understanding had failed, and he could not recognize her. What a severe trial ! Yet his dying message, " Tell them I am happy," was calculated to afford her strong consolation. May God aoundantly bless and comfort the soldiers' widow, mother, 188 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. orphan. He died Feb. 28, 1865. Reader, when trials, hard- ships, and suffering surround you, go to the gangrene camp, and think what was there endured for our imperilled country. " CONVERTED THROUGH A SISTER'S LETTERS." Canvassing the heart of CHARLES E. SMITH, 148th N. Y., Co. K, we soon saw that he bore marks of regeneration ; and, after a little further conversation upon the subject, he said, " I was converted in the army through a sister's letters. They turned me," he said. " You mean they were the means of your con- version ? " " Yes ; for God only can change the heart." " You seem to have clear views of the plan of salvation : what is con- version ? " " It is a change of heart." He appeared very peni- tent, humble, and prayerful. " Do you still feel like going on in the Lord's service ? " " Yes ; I read my Testament, and pray two or three times a day." " Do you find it difficult, surrounded with the temptations of the army, to live out religion ? " " No; if we only strive to be faithful, God will help and sustain us." " Yes ; he says, ' My grace is sufficient for thee.' How does the Saviour appear to you now?" " He appears dear and precious." " Peter says, ' To you, therefore, which believe, he is precious/ He is precious in his names, offices, and promises. I suppose your sister wrote you very religious, kind, and affectionate letters, urging and beseeching you to repent, and give your heart to God ?" "Yes ; she seemed to feel deeply, and to pray very earnestly for me." Let sisters and friends at home be encouraged to write and pray very often for their friends abroad. Persons at home cannot at all conceive what great encouragement and consolation a good letter affords to one long from home. "IF I GO TO HELL, I WILL GO PRAYING." At our first interview with WILLIAM S. BULLOCK, 89th N.Y., Co. B, we found him very much concerned about his salvation. He said, "Chaplain, I want to get religion. I thought I had it once, but guess I was mistaken. I have been trying to pray, but it seenis rather hard work. Blinded as we are by sin, about CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 189 our spiritual condition, we are liable to be deceived. Hence Paul says, ' Let a man examine himself, and prove his own works.' I have prayed frequently in the army for some three .years, and often with tears ; but I do not meet with that change I wish." I preached to him and prayed with him often, urging him to exercise implicit faith in Christ, and recounted to him some of the evidences of the gracious state, and gave him James's Anxious Inquirer to read. After reading it, he said he thought he had been deceived, and his anxiety seemed to increase, and his chief concern was to know what to do to be saved. Suffering much from his severe wound in the left arm, he had many ups and downs, and sometimes we almost despaired of his recovery. But he persevered, prayed on. God worked in him ; light burst upon his soul ; and plucking up courage, and feeling determined to fight on in the good fight, he says, "I will pray on, pray till I die, and if I go to hell, I will go praying" " That's right ! May God help and bless you. Make up your mind, by grace, to become a Christian, and God will help you. When the prodigal son made up his mind and resolved, ' I will arise, and go to my Father/ he soon came home. Jacob said, 1 1 will not let thee go, except thou bless me j ' and God blessed him there." His good wife visited him often ; with a tender, anxious heart, he would often weep profusely. He continued to pray and read, got better, was promoted, his doubts were removed, and God's smiles re- stored, and I left him rejoicing in the God of his salvation. If doubts encompass, if clouds of darkness surround you, do not be discouraged ! Look to Jesus ! pray to God ; pray earnestly ; pray in faith, and God will hear and bless ! " PRAYER IS A GREAT PRIVILEGE " That " My dear husband is dead ! " is very sad news to the affectionate wife ; but it was very common news from the army and hospital. But that he died for his country lessens the sorrow and sadness very much ; and that he died happy in the triumph of faith lessens it much more. How great the loss to the family! though gain to the departed. Michael Shawley, 206th Pa., Co. K, 190 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. at our first interview, wept profusely, and was very tender and penitent. Said he had been praying for years, though a non- professor. He said, " I feel, if I were called away to-day, I would go to heaven. I feel happy. I thought I could go to heaven without joining church." Apparently perfectly resigned, he said, " Not my will, but God's be done. If I die, tell my wife I die happy." "Oh, how exalted the privilege; dying upon the altar of your country ; dying at the foot of God's throne, resigned to his will, and dying happy in the Lord ! What kind of a heart have you now ? " "A bad, wicked heart ; yet, if it don't deceive me, I have given it to God." "Do you find it easy to pray?" " Yes ; prayer is a great privilege." " Though a non-professor, you seem to be a Christian ; yet the Saviour's sweet command, 'Do this in remembrance of me,' I suppose you never obeyed?" " No ; I never went to the Lord's table, but I often desired to." " It is a great privilege, refreshing to the soul, and strengthening to the heart, which no Christian should deny himself. It is his right, it is his duty, and to disobey is sin. When God, through his great mercy, converts a sinner, he ought to acknowledge it before the world. l Come out from among them, saith the Lord, and I will receive you.' " He lingered till March 3, 1865, and no doubt went home to heaven. "OH, THAT I HAD VENTURED BEFORE." This was the weeping lament of a brave, patriotic soldier who had put off repentance till brought to the verge of the grave. His name was Richard Delling, 8th Maine, Co. E. We visited him often, preached to and conversed with him, and urged him to immediate repentance. He seemed penitent, tender, and anx- ious, and wept freely. We could but weep to hear him recount the heroism and losses of his regiment in battle. His chief lament was his putting off religion ; and sometimes, with most intense earnestness, he would exclaim, "Oh, that I had ven- tured before. If I had only thought of it a year ago. If I had only known of this sickness when I was in health, how much better." He resolved to do better Mr. Martin, fr^m New York, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 191 of the Christian Commission, did much for him temporally and spiritually. I plead with him, and besought him by the mercies of God to come to Jesus, and come now. He desired a good book to read. I gave him one. The Spirit of God seemed to strive with him, and he said, " I have a firmer hold on God than I have on the devil." "Do you feel the devil tempting you?" " Yes, I do." " ( As a roaring lion, he walketh about, seeking whom he may devour/ yet if you resist him, he will flee from you. Only meet him with prayer and the sword of the Spirit, and he will flee at once. Martin Luther, when tempted by him, simply prayed, ' Get away, thou infernal spirit/ and he fled im- mediately. Just hold on to God ; cling to the cross ; throAV your- self right into the outstretched arms of Jesus, and he will rescue you from Satan's grasp, wash your soul in his blood, and save you in spite of the devil. Just cut loose from Satan at once, and surrender yourself, heart and all, to Christ, and he will give you a kingdom of righteousness, joy, and peace." " How very strik- ing your warning words. Oh, that I had ventured before." " Ventured before ? " " Yes." " It is not too late now. The Spirit still strives ; the blood of Christ still cleanseth from all sin. Jesus still cries, t How often would I have gathered you/ and beseeches you look and live, believe and be saved : just come to him as you arc, and there is no venture about it. VEN- TURE ! VENTURE, in going to Jesus ! No ; thank God, there is no venture about it. It is a SURE thing. God's promises, made in infinite wisdom and backed by omnipotent power, are all sure. Only believe, and you'll be saved." He seemed to be coming to Christ, growing in grace, and said, "I see a light;" and among his last words to me were, " I am happy in the Lord." Lingering along till February 27, 1865, his mortal frame gave way, and he went, we hope, to dwell with God in heaven. "I AM GUILTY OF EVERYTHING BUT THEFT AND MURDER," Said LAWRENCE McGAVERN, 2d Pa. Heavy Art.,Co. G, as we were conversing about the value of the soul, the wickedness of the heart, and the love of Christ. He was very low and danger- 192 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ous with the phthisic. " What kind of a life have you lived ?" " I have lived a very wicked life. I am guilty of everything but theft and murder. I am a great sinner." " Truly you are a great sinner. But Christ is a great Saviour a greater Saviour than you are sinner ; more willing to forgive than you are to commit sin ; more mighty to save than even you or Satan is to destroy. Guilty of everything but theft and murder ? " " Yes." " Your sins are great, yet Christ's love is greater. Christ's love is stronger than death, sweeter than life, and vast as eternity. The love of Christ constraineth us. At the tap of the drum, the patriot soldier leaves home, goes forth, fights, bleeds, and dies to save his country. Christ left heaven, and came to earth, to die upon Calvary to save sinners. He has wrought out salvation, fulfilled the law, made an atonement for sin, bought us with his blood, paid the price of our redemption, and, in a word, made all things ready, and now beseeches you look and live, believe and be saved. He saves the greatest sinners. He saved the thief on the cross ; he saved some of his own murderers at the foot of it, and he will save you, if you will repent and trust in him." As I talked, read, and prayed with him, the Spirit seemed to strive and the word to sink deep into his heart. He appeared to be deeply penitent, and anxious to be prayed for. Thanking me heartily for my prayers, he said he prayed, felt penitent, and trusted in the Lord. "How long have you been in the army?" "Almost three years ; my time is out to-morrow." " Out to-morrow ? And what if your time on earth should be out to-morrow ? Do you feel willing and prepared to go ? " "I hope so," he said, with deep emotion and tears. " My sins are great, yet I believe not unpardonable. I find it easy to pray now, and Jesus seems more precious." "This is the crisis of your soul. Without doubt your last sands are running, time with you will soon be no more. Oh, then, we pray you, we beseech you, by the agonies of the Son of God, escape for thy life, fly to Jesus, and salvation is yours." He lingered along until January 1, 1865 : his time was out, and his soul took its flight. A voice seemed to say, " The battle is fought, and the victory is won." CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAK. 193 "I EXPECT TO GET RELIGION WHEN I GET HOME" In our interviews with HENRY LUCAS, 39th 111., Co. H, we always found him disposed to procrastinate and "put it off." He said, " I expect to get religion when I get home." " Why not get it here now f " " This place is unfavorable ; there is so much wickedness, profanity, etc., here." "Still, the Lord is here, waiting to be gracious, and give you eternal life. Repentance will be just as easy here as at home; the way of salvation is the same here as at home ; God and Jesus Christ are the same here as at home ; and your disposition to put it off is a delusion of the devil. Delay is the devil's verb j Now is God's time. What if you should never get home ? Then, according to your own plans, you will be lost. Oh, how unreasonable and dangerous ! If a friend were to offer you a gift of one hundred thousand dollars here, to-day, would you wait till you got home to receive it?" "No; I would accept it now." " Why, then, refuse the gift of eternal life now, which is infinitely more valuable ? If you were a deserter, sentenced to be executed, and the President would offer you pardon, would you refuse it ? " " No ; I would most gladly receive it." "You have deserted God; and you have been arrested, tried, and condemned to eternal death. Jesus now offers you pardon and eternal life, and you refuse it refuse it at the peril of your soul. Is it wise? is it reasonable? is it safe?" "No." "Are you willing to risk it?" "No." "Then seek ye the Lord while he may be found. May God help, bless, and save you." BLEEDING TO DEATH, YET "RESTING ON CHRIST." EMANUEL BYERS, 116th Ohio, Co. D (ward number twelve), was severely wounded in the left arm at the last great battle near Petersburg, Va., which resulted in the fall of Richmond, the flight of Jeff. Davis, Lee's surrender, and the death of the confederacy. At our first interview, we found him very tender and anxious. He said, " I am going to become a Christian when I get home." "What if you should never get home?" 13 194 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. I said ; and he began to think and reflect. I visited him very often ; prayed with and preached occasionally to him and his ward, warning them " to flee the wrath to come/' to repent, and fly to Christ. He read his Bible much, and when I talked to him about his sins, the mercy of God, and the love of Christ, he would weep like a child. He said, " I started once to go to the mourner's bench, burdened with sin and a heart ready to burst ; but a friend called me back, and I did not go. The feelings wore off, and I have never felt the same since." Yet he was not " without hope." Time fled : he lived on, got better, prayed, and bled occasionally. On May 1st, he said, " My prayers were answered last night, and I now feel more comfortable." Calling on him two days after, he seemed to be growing in grace and drawing nearer and nearer unto God, and his prospects both temporal and spiritual looked brighter. He prayed on, and I besought him, by the mercies of God and the love of Christ, to make an immediate and en tire surrender of himself to the Saviour. Life ebbed away. There lies the brave patriot, with his life- blood gradually flowing from his wound. " It is hard to leave you. Oh, my dear fellow, come to Jesus just as you are, and come now. May God bless, help, and enable you to come. Having shed your own blood for the salvation of your country, come and enjoy the cleansing, saving power of the blood of Jesus ! " Reading and praying with him again, we bade him fare- well, and left him. Calling again shortly after, we found him indulging a bright hope, and he said, "I think God has forgiven my sins, and that I have experienced a ' change of heart.' " A pleasant smile upon his pale face seemed to denote he was at peace with God. At our next call he bid fair to get well, and said, " I am resting on Christ sure." " Thank God ! and are you sure of it?" "Yes, I feel so, chaplain." "What a glorious attainment ! Dying for your country, and yet dying in the Lord ! " He lived along for several days, until the tying of his wound gave way: he bled to death May 27th, 1865, with his body all bathed in his own blood, and his soul, we trust, washed in the blood of Jesus, went home to dwell with God. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 195 "PRAYING FOR SPORT." While many of the soldiers died triumphantly, some seemed to go " without hope." , of 67th Ohio, Co. F, a stout, robust man, and a brave soldier, was brought from " the front," mortally wounded with a minie-ball in the left side of his head, into a tent in ward number twenty-four. Though drowsy, he was sensible, but not disposed to talk much. Upon canvassing his heart, he said, " I am not a religious man." " Do you read the Bible?" "Yes; I read it some." "The Saviour says, ' Search the Scriptures/ Do you ever pray ? " "I and others have prayed for sport." " Prayed for sport ! What ! mocking God ! " " Yes, I 'spose you may call it that." " Did you not feel afraid God would smite you dead ? " " No ; we had no fear of God before our eyes." " Pray for sport! oh, how awful ! how deep the depravity of the human heart ! Do you ever swear ? " " Yes, occasionally." " And don't you feel sorry for your sins of profanity and mocking God ? " " Yes ; I know it is wrong." "Have you ever felt any special interest in reli- gion?" "No, nothing particular; I have lived a careless life." "Though you are a great sinner, yet Christ is a great Saviour. He is more willing to forgive than you are to commit sin. Christ's love is stronger than the sinner's enmity. His blood ' cleanseth from all sin.' Do you feel your sins to be great ? " "Yes; they are very great." "Jesus is mighty to save. You have received one wound for the salvation of the country ; Jesus received five for the salvation of the soul. That ball in your head is not as bad as sin in your heart ; that ball may destroy your life ; but your sins, unless you repent, will destroy your soul. Oh, then, we entreat you, repent, look to Christ ; throw yourself right into the arms of Jesus, and he will save you. Grasp him by faith, like a drowning man grasps a lifeboat, and all will be well. God calls ; Jesus invites, and says, ' Come unto me, and I will give you rest.' Time is short; life uncertain. Now is the accepted time. Look, and live ! " He lingered a few days, became stupid, and died November 10, 1864, without giving any particular evidence of preparation. Reader, be warned ! 196 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. "1 GAVE MY HEART TO JESUS," Said DWIGHT WILLIAMS, 203d Pa., Co. C, as he related his religious experience. " That is a very reasonable, profitable gift : Jesus gave himself, shed his blood, gave his life for us; and it is but a reasonable service that we should give our hearts unto him." " Do you feel that you have given him your heart ? " " Yes ; I feel so, and he seems very precious to my soul." "Think he has given you a new heart?" "I trust he has." " Our hearts are very wicked and deceitful, and the springs of action lie very deep ; therefore, lest we be deceived, we should closely examine ourselves, search our hearts, and see if they are right with God, and pray, like David, ' Create in me a clean heart, O God ! ' Do you ever say bad words ? " " No ; I detest swearing." " Do you pray regularly ? " " Yes ; I prayed at home, and I pray in the army too." All about him seemed to bear marks of the new creature, and oifering him the consola- tions of the gospel, and commending him to God in prayer, we bade him a long farewell, November 7th, 1864. He lingered till next day, when his soul was dismissed from its clay tenement, and, washed in Christ's blood, doubtless went home to be forever with the Lord. "CHRIST IS EVERYTHING TO ME," Said CHARLES WILSON, 16th N. Y. Heavy Art,, as he related his religious experience. Though a non-professor at home, he now seemed to have Christ formed within him ; and his own dying words seemed clearly to evince that Christ, of God, had been made unto him " wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption." (1 Cor. i. 30.) " What evidence have you that Christ is yours ? " "I think much about him ; I love to hear about him, to read his word ; and he appears so lovely, and I feel he has forgiven my sins." " How rich the inheritance, and how great the consolation ! If Christ is everything unto you, then all things are yours, whether the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come all are yours; and ye are Christ's." "Then you don't want?" "No; the Lord is my CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 197 shepherd, I shall not want." " You must feel very happy ? " " Yes, I feel happy, and am not afraid to die." " With Jesus Christ for your prophet, priest, and king, dying for your country for the cause of God, liberty, and truth you have no need to fear death, for then 'to die is gain, and to depart is far better.'" This was October 20th, 1864. John Lambert, who died a martyr at the stake, while his fingers' ends were flaming with fire, exclaimed, " None but Christ ; none but Christ ! " Charles survived until next day, and with his weeping wife at his side, witnessing his last struggle with the king of terrors, his soul bid farewell to its clay tenement and the world, and went, we trust, where all is joy and peace. " MY SINS ARE GREAT AND HEAVY," Said SMITH A. CONNER, 62d Ohio, Co. I, as I was canvassing his smitten, tender heart. With his soul stirred, he was very anxious, prayerful, penitent, and had a deep sense of his sins. His principal inquiry was, "What must I do to be saved?" He prayed while I stood at his side, and the burden of his prayer was, " God be merciful to me a sinner ! " He sent for me, and requested me to pray that his sins be blotted out. " You seem to feel deeply the weight of your sins ? " " Yes, my sins are great and heavy." " ' The blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin.' Come to him, and l though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.' Why don't you come to Christ at once ? Now is the time." " I do try to ; but somehow something hinders me." "There is nothing in the way but yourself; Christ is willing, able, waiting. All things are ready. You must let go self, and lay hold of Jesus, and he will blot out your sins, and wash your soul in his own blood. Step right out on the promises of God, and grasp Christ by faith, and he will save you. Jesus is here knocking at the door of your heart, warning, inviting, and beseeching you, by the pains of hell and by the joys of heaven, be ye reconciled to God. Time is short ; eternity is near ; Death shakes his dart ; the grave yawns ; hell frowns, and heaven smiles ! and urill you, can you delay ? How long 198 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. will you halt? Christ says, in tones of love and mercy, ' My son, my son, give me thy heart!' Just think how lamentable it will be for you to die for your country and lose your own soul ; die beside the Prince of Life, and yet die and be lost ? Oh, my dear friend, look to Christ, and look now I " Preaching and praying with him, and commending him to God, we left him. He lingered a few days, and died full of hope November 7th, 1864. SATAN IS OFTEN AT MY HEELS, " But I keeps him off," said JOSIAH MURDOCK, 4th U. S., Co. H, colored. " How do you keep him off? " " I keeps him off by faith and prayer. I prays, and then he goes away." " Does Satan tempt you often ? " " Yes ; but I resist him, and he flees. Satan made three bold, imprudent attacks upon the Saviour ; but he always met him with the sword of the Spirit, and invariably put him to flight. Paul says, ' Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.'" " How long have you been praying ? " " Two years, this fall. I am trying to go to heaven." "The way is straight and narrow. It requires close watching, straight walking, and earnest praying. The Christian's life is a warfare. Jesus, our great Captain, commands us to strive, fight, contend, watch, pray, and be faith- ful. Think you have got God in your heart ? " " Yes ; I think BO." " Do you love the Saviour ? " " Yes ; I try to love him with all my heart." "Pray on, Josiah. Be earnest, cling to the cross. ' Be thou faithful unto death, and God will give you a crown of life.' " "I WOULD RATHER DIE." JAMES WARD. It was a cold, chilly night, late in November, 1864, near mid- night, when I was called to see James Ward, 81st N. Y., Co. I, lying in a cold, dreary tent in the Gangrene Camp. At first sight he seemed to be nigh unto death, from a severe wound received while battling for his country. With a strong, abiding faith in Him who giveth life, he manifested no fear at the ap- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 199 proach of death. Having been trying to serve God some five years, he said, "Christ is all my hope; and he is growing more and more precious." I asked him what word he had to send to his family. He said, with deep emotion and tears, " Tell them I am happy in Christ. That I would like to live for their sake, if God is willing, and if it would glorify his name; but for my- self, I would rather die." To die is gain. How solemn the scene. Gather round and gaze upon the Christian patriot dying for his country ; dying in the Lord, resigned to God's will as his rule, and ready to live or die for the promotion of God's glory as his end. What a happy attainment ! How consoling his dying message to his bereaved wife and children. "Tell them I am happy in the Lord." And the fervor and aifectionate tenderness with which he spoke these words added much to their import. I read the fourteenth of John, endeavoring to comfort him with those consoling words ; and kneeling down upon the cold ground, we commended him to God in prayer. On bidding him farewell, he expressed a strong hope and a bright assurance that we would meet again around God's bright throne in heaven. "Jerome of Prague sung God's praise till choked by the flames at the stake, and with his dying breath said, ' This soul in flames, I offer, Christ, to thee.' You, having sacrificed your life upon the altar of your country, now seem ready to oifer your soul to Jesus." His soul seemed to be wrapped in joy and bliss. The serenity of his countenance, his calm, composed spirit, together with his easy departure, seemed to say, " Thanks be to God, who giveth as the victory," and to his weeping wife and children, "weep not," be of good "cheer," and strive to meet me in heaven. He lingered till next day, and God took him home. A SOLDIER'S CREED. As I approached JACOB BOSTON, 188th Pa. Vol., Co. C, he grasped my hand very warmly, and said, " I trust in God, and shall be saved, and it makes me happy." What a short, plain, comprehensive creed! Would to God every soldier could heartily adopt it. Just look at it. Three blessed things faith, 200 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. salvation, happiness. Faith in God as the source ; assurance, the privilege; happiness, the result. Strong faith always fills the soul with joy. "Believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." " I suppose you have no fear of death ? " " No ; with faith in God, I fear not." Perpetua was sentenced to mar- tyrdom, and when most earnestly besought by her tender father to renounce Christ, great was the struggle in her heart ; but grace at last triumphed, and she said, " I am not in my own power, but in that of God ; " and when asked, " Art thou a Christian ? " she said, " I am ;" and when condemned to execution, she returned to her prison filled with joy, saying, " None of these things move me." It was the power of faith. She died in triumph. " Have faith in God." "I SEE SO MUCH BAD CHRISTIANITY, I AM DISCOURAGED," Said GEORGE H. GILBERT, 34th Mass., Co. I, as I was trying to persuade and urge him to come to Jesus. " Blinded by sin since the fall, man's ways have been very crooked, and so prone to evil that, even after regeneration, there is much that is wayward and perverse. We must not expect perfection, even in Christians. What kind of life have you lived ? " "I have lived careless and prayerless." " Do you swear ? " " Yes, often ; but I am quit- ting it now." "Quitting it? Why don't you quit it at once? From the bleeding of your wound, you look pale and weak, and God only knows how short may be your time on earth. You have fought and bled, and are ready to die for your country ; and yet you have never prayed for it, nor for yourself. God com- mands us to pray and repent now ! You should regard that wound as a call to repent, and trust in Him who was wounded for our transgressions. Let every bleeding be a warning to come to Him who bled for you. You seem to stumble over the bad Christianity of professors. This is a sinful excuse. You are excusing one sin with another sin ; excusing your own great sin of rejecting Christ with professors' sins. God will never hear such excuses; and if you go to the judgment-seat with them, he will bid you depart l depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire ! ' CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 201 There is much inconsistent practice in professors, we admit; but they are not to be taken as examples. No : take Christ as your example ; and remember, if you stumble into perdition over professors' imperfections, it won't lessen the torment any. It is your own fault v ' Every tub must stand on its own bottom ; ' and, unless we all stand on the ' Rock of Ages/ we will sink to hell. Oh, then, we beseech you, by the love of Christ and by the joys of heaven, repent, rind become a devoted Christian, and set the church a good example, and provoke others to good works. Come out from the world. Be ' a living epistle/ and God will save you ! May God abundantly bless you ! Professor, beware ; ' take heed to thyself; ' ' keep thyself pure ; ' walk worthy, lest you be a stumbling-block to others," "JESUS IS STILL PRECIOUS." PETER BOBBINS, 203d Pa., Co. F, was mortally wounded in the heroic fight of Fort Fisher, N. C., and brought to the hospital with an arm amputated, and with a bad stump. Though heroic and patient, he never seemed to get along well ; he was a calm, harmless, meek Methodist. Though he suffered long and severe, he bore it all very patiently, without a complaining word ; pray- erful and humble, he said, " Christ is all my trust." " None else is worthy of trust; none but Jesus can do helpless sinners good; he is mighty to save ! Throw yourself right into his arms, and he will sustain, bless, and comfort you." I visited him very often, and preached to him occasionally. He said, February 18, "Jesus is still precious." Getting worse, he said, February 21, " I can die happy." " You helped to win a glorious victory at Fort Fisher ; but only cling to Jesus, and he will enable you to win a victory far more glorious when you die." His wound became gangrened, and he was taken to the Gangrene Camp, where he suffered, not only from his wound, but from cold. There was no fire in his tent. Lingering till February 26, 1865, death closed the scene, and God took him home to glory. Rev. McClaren said, when he was dying, " I am gathering together all my pray- ers, sermons, good and evil deeds, and am going to throw them 202 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. all overboard, and swim to glory on the plank of free grace.' Christ was all his trust ! "I STILL HOLD ON TO GOD." PERRY WELSH, 67th Ohio, Co. A, though rather careless ana indifferent at first, soon became deeply interested in his soul's salvation. Becoming prayerful, tender, penitent, and resigned to God's will, he said, " I am not afraid to die." " Do you love the , Saviour ? " u Yes," he replied. " Love is the fulfilling of the law the very heart, soul, and core of Christianity. And if you love Jesus, you need not fear death, for then heaven is sure. What a glorious attainment, to rise above the fear of death ! It requires courage to face the enemy on the field of battle; but to face death, God, and eternity, requires far greater courage." He became more anxious, tender, and earnest; and at my last call with him, he said, "I still hold on to God's will." "That's right ! Hold on, hold on to the cross, and stand by the flag ; hold on to Jesus ; hold fast ; be steadfast ! When waves of trouble rise, hold on ; when the world allures, and temptations press, hold on ; when you go to face the enemy amid the shock of bat- tle, hold on to the flag, and cling to the cross ! Above all, hold on, when you come to face death and fight the last great battle of life ! Be faithful ; go on ; never let go the cross, and you will surely win the crown ! " Lingering till January 5, 1865, he let go the vital cord, and went home, we trust, to glory. "I PRAY MUCH IN BATTLE." At my first interview with JOSHUA SMITH, llth Western Va., Co. F, I found him a decided Christian. Having passed the sea of doubts, he now seemed to enjoy full assurance. He said, " I have no doubt God will make it all right with me : " said he, " I pray much in battle, on the march, and everywhere." He seemed very tender and penitent, and wept as we talked about these things. " And did you find time to pray in battle ? " "Oh, yes ; I would load and fire, and pray at the same time." " What ! CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 203 pray much in battle, when so much depends upon every man doing his utmost with his musket and sword ? " " Yes j for the victory is of God, after all." " Pray much in battle, when your captain commands you to fight ? " " Yes ; for the great Captain commands us, ' watch and pray ! ' " " How striking the difference ; you pray much in battle, and many never find time to pray ! You are right ; with the grave yawning, eternity approaching, and comrades falling and dying, it is a needy time to pray. We should pray as though God did everything in battle, and fight as though man had everything to do himself." He lived till June 4, 1865, and passed away to where there will be no more war, pain, nor death. Let the prayerless be warned and admonished. " What," said the Saviour, " could ye not watch with me one hour ? Watch and pray, lest ye fall into temptation." A SOLDIER WITH SEVEN WOUNDS. JOHN WERTZ, 23d Ohio, Co. D, received seven wounds in one of the last battles near Petersburg, Va. Patient, brave, and patriotic, though he lay on his back for several months and suf- fered severely, he took it all very calmly. His recovery at times was doubtful, but with extra care and with his strong nerve and composed disposition, he gradually improved. Penitent, prayer- ful, resigned, he said he enjoyed religion, and seemed to enjoy a well-grounded hope. " You have received seven wounds to save your country ; Christ received five to save the world. If you look to him, he will save you." I preached to him and his ward often, warning them to flee the wrath to come, and accept of the great salvation. At my last interview with him, he said, " I still pray and trust in the Lord." He was gaining strength and improving, when I left him with his seven scars of honor. "I CAN AFFORD TO SUFFER," Said JUDSON SPALDING, 10th N. Y. Art., Co. H, as we talked about Jesus and his prospects of heaven. He seemed to be rooted and grounded in love, and, blessed with patience, said, " I can 204 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. afford to suffer, since Christ has suffered so much for me. I trust in him, and he is all my hope." " I am very glad to find you in your sufferings looking unto Jesus, who, for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross with such perfect resignation. Since the immaculate Son of God suffered and died for us, well may we afford to suffer and die for him and for our country. If you grow impatient while suffering, go to Calvary, and learn of Jesus how to bear it. Think of the heroic martyr dying at the stake rather than turn traitor to the cause of Christ. And when called to suffer, it will help us to bear it patiently to remem- ber that Jesus Christ, who hath gone before us as our example, ' hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows ; ' so that if we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him in glory. 'No cross, no crown.' Jesus, filled with compassion, even prayed for his own murderers on the cross, and cried, ' Father, forgive them ; for they know not what they do/ " A HAPPY, SHOUTING SOLDIER. " I have God in my heart, Christ in my soul, and heaven for my home," said PETER JONES, 36th U. S., Co. B, colored, as he related his experience. " You seem to be very happy, Peter ? " "Yes, thank God, chaplain; I am happy." " When were you converted ? " " Last March." " Where ? " " At Point of Rocks, Va. I rose up about three o'clock, got out of bed, and shouted glory to God for nearly an hour. The nurse tried to hold me, but when they saw that I was not out of my head, they let me go." " Think you have God in your heart?" " Yes, I have no doubt of it," " Do you feel like holding on ? " " Yes ; by the grace of God, I mean to stand fast." " It is all of grace. Christ says, ' Without me, ye can do nothing ; ' but if you trust in him, he will give you grace to conquer. With God in your heart, and Christ in your soul, you must be very rich, Peter." " I suppose I must be rich, chaplain, yet I feel very poor and weak." " Christ says, ' Blessed are the poor in spirit.' And with all your as- surance, Peter, let me say to you, beware, watch, and pray. Our hearts are very deceitful. God says, ' Let him that thinketh lie CHRISTIANITY IX THE WAR. 205 stundeth, take heed lest he fall/ The boasting Apostle Peter thought he could stand everything; yet he trembled before a little maid, and thrice denied his Master with cursing and swearing. May God bless you, Peter." "I WOULD LIKE TO BE A CHRISTIAN, IF I COULD KEEP IT," Said ABRAHAM WEED, 58th Pa., Co. E, as we besought him to be reconciled to God. Anxious and hopeful, he said, " I have quit swearing pretty muSh; and I would like to have religion, if I could keep it." " First attend to getting it, and never fear losing it. If you only get it, the Lord will help and enable you to keep it. We are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. Jesus Christ is mighty to save, able to save unto the uttermost. Only trust in him, and he will be as a wall of fire round about you, and keep you as the apple of his eye, and make all things work together for your good, and let no evil touch thee. For he says, ' When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee ; and through the rivers, they shall not over- flow thee: When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.' Only em- brace Christ and cling to him, and there is no danger of losing him." With a tender, smitten" heart, he wept as we urged him to go to Jesus. " Come to him now, just as you are, and he will forgive your sins, save your soul, and be with you always to guide, guard, sustain, bless, and comfort you." He died May 27, 1865. " I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT PRAYER." GEORGE E. CLEVELAND, 5th N.Y. Cavalry, Co. F, at our first interview, seemed to be a decided Christian. He said, " All my hope is in God ; " "I have much faith in prayer ; " " Christ was all my hope while in prison," and "I believed that he would bring me home." He was much given to prayer ; he said, " I think I could not live through the night without it." " I suppose your religion gave you strong consolation in Andersonville, amid so much suffering, starvation, and death ? " " Oh, yes ; it was a 206 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. great comfort." " How very encouraging to find you indulging such a strong hope ' in Him who is our only hope.' We are pri- soners of hope. Hope is the anchor of the soul. God is our refuge and strength ; a very present help in trouble. Jesus says, ' Lo, I am with you always/ " He lived till April 16, 1865, when death severed the vital cord, and his hope, we trust, was lost in full fruition. " THE LORD IS MINE," Uttered HENRY A. LATHROP, 8th. Conn., Co. I, in a low, feeble tone, as he was standing upon the brink of eternity, while I was trying to point him to the blessed Saviour. He was too weak to talk but little ; it was too late to get his history. Al- though apparently seized with death, he was able to say, " I am happy I" "I want nothing." " I feel that ' the Lord is mine, and all is well/ " How very comprehensive, and how clearly those few sentences evince the gracious state ! With the love of Christ shed abroad in his heart, and the Spirit bearing witness, the brave Christian soldier rises above all doubts, and to the waiting crowd announces his dying words, " I am happy, and ' all is well.' " There, with the grave yawning to engulf him, and Jesus waiting to receive him, having given his life for his country, and now grappling with. death, he is enabled to say with a decided though weak tone of voice, " The Lord is mine." How great the loss ! how incomparably rich the gain ! Life is lost, but heaven is gained ! How sweet and consoling the language of assurance, " My Beloved is mine, and I am his ! " Ownership in God ; and it is mutual " The Lord is mine, and I am his ! " How rich the inheritance " All things are yours ! " hence, " All is well." A death message is sad news to send home to weeping friends ; but when accompanied with stich a happy, triumphant death, when " all is well ! " it soothes the sorrows and calms the troubled breast. He expired September 29 ; 1864. "I CAN'T PRAY," Said CHARLES A. HINKLE, 130th Ohio, Co. D, as we urged him to pray and repent. " Did you ever try to pray ? " " No ; CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 207 I never felt like praying, and never tried it." " I hope you have a praying mother ? " " No ; I am of a prayerless family." " Do you swear ? " " No ; I never swear. I go to church, and try to live a moral life." " Morality is very important, but it is not enough. You need not swear, lie, or get drunk, or murder, in order to be lost ; no, only neglect salvation, and you will be lost sure. * How shall ye escape, if ye neglect so great a salva- tion ? ' ' Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish/ You must turn, or die ; believe, or be lost. .You say you 'can't pray ; ' you can, if you will ! Prayer is very simple. It is asking God for what you want in Christ's name. Do you want to be saved ? " " Yes." " Then ask God for salvation, and he will save you. 'Ask, and ye shall receive.'" "But I don't know how!" "Ask God to teach you. Pray, ' Lord, teach me how to pray ; ' pray, like the publican, ' God be merciful to me a sinner ; ' pray, like sinking Peter, ' Lord, save me ! ' Will you try it ? " " Yes." " The Lord help and bless you." "I FOUND JESUS." REUBEN ALEXANDER, 29th U. S., Co. D, was a man of bright talents, and fluent in conversation. He was wounded in his left arm, and possessed much firmness and decision of character. On canvassing his heart, he said, " I have been converted eleven years ; and although I have enjoyed much comfort in religion, I still want more and more : I am never satisfied." " What were the circumstances of your conversion ? " " My father, mother, and brothers were sold from me, and I wondered where I 'd get more good friends. An old man told me of Jesus. I prayed to him, * Lord, Lord, LORD, have mercy on me ! ' God heard my prayers, and I found Jesus, and then I had glory in my cabin. And, oh, I was so happy then ! God has been very good to me." " Do you ever backslide ? " " No ; me never backslide. I clings to Jesus, watch and pray." He seemed to be an earnest Christian, with clear views of the plan of salvation. He said, " To be a Chris- tian and live it out, we must plough deep and plough straight." 11 That is so/' [ said; "it requires close watching and straight 208 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. walking. The Lord says, ' Love mercy, deal justly, and walk worthy/ ' Do unto others as you would have them do unto you/ Be faithful; keep your lamp trimmed and burning, and be a burning, a shining light. May God bless you/' "I LEAVE IT ALL WITH THE LORD." On approaching PHIL CORTEGE, 19th U. S., Co. C, lying on his bed, I asked him how he did. He said, " I suffer, and am sick for want of food." He seemed discouraged, and said, " I don't expect ever to get out of this till I am carried out on a stretcher." I said to him, "'Be of good courage, and God will strengthen your heart/ (Ps. xxvii. 14.) Let not your heart be troubled; be of good cheer. Only believe, and God will make all things all these trials, deprivations, wounds, and afflictions work together for your good. Do you trust in the Lord ? " " Yes ; I trust in him. I leave it all with the Lord." He seemed to be very honest, penitent, and humble, and yet how resigned. Prostrated upon a sick-bed, away from home, and with a deep, anxious care for his dear wife and children, with a heroic patience he said, " I leave it all to the Lord." And the manner in which he said it added much to the resignation conveyed. It was a voluntary ex- pression of his submission to God's will, and a mark of very high Christian attainment in weeping Philip. " Do you pray ? " "I prays all de time. I makes praying my business." He said he had served God twenty-four years, and appeared to be a decided Christian. I pointed him to the consolations of the cross, and he soon got well. John Fletcher received on his death-bed such a manifestation of the full meaning of the words, God is love, he said, " It fills my heart every moment," and he exclaimed, " Shout, shout aloud." His last words were, " I leave it all to God." A SWEARER BROUGHT TO TEARS. It was on a warm afternoon, July 24, 1864, while visiting ward No. 26, I heard a man groaning from pain occasioned by his wound being dressed. We were all strangers. As I ap- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 209 preached his tent, in the presence of a kind mother, whose son lay by her side, shot in the head, this groaning man swore aw- fully. I spoke of his swearing in his presence, and went away. Presently, the anxious mother requested me to talk to her wounded son about his salvation. She wept and I wept. After visiting and reading and praying with a few suiferiug boys in another tent, I returned to see this swearing man; and after a hearty shake of the hand, he gave me his religious experience. Said he had been in a revival, and was put down for baptism, but ran off before his turn came. On telling him of his wicked- ness, and beseeching him to repent, and flee the wrath to come, he apologized for his profanity. Turning from him, I began to talk of the joys of heaven to the next poor sick fellow, whose brother John was waiting on him, and he requested me to pray for him; and his brother burst into tears and wept like a child. As I rose from prayer, we found the great swearer all bathed in tears. James wept, and as John bade him farewell, he hoped, if they met no more on earth, to meet in heaven. It was really a time of refreshing. Sailing round to New York with a ship- load of patients, I met James again; and he was so glad and thankful, he warmly and affectionately kissed my hand, as he lay upon his back, unable to set up. The soldier wounded in the head, accompanied with his parents, went orr the same ship to New York, and got worse, and when his weeping mother asked permission to take him to the City Hospital, the surgeon refused her request. It seemed very hard. I supposed he died soon after. 14 210 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. CHAPTER XY. SKETCHES OF SOLDIERS CONTINUED. .'HE BOMB-PROOF PRAYER-MEETING "ARE You KEADYTOG'O?" LITTLE LIZZIE'S LETTER "I PRAYED IN THE STREET" "I LOVE EVERYBODY" "I HAVE NO FEAR" SERGEANT JAMES TUSTISON: " I AM DYING, BUT I AM VERY HAPPY " "I HAVE GOT IT ! " SATAN EEPULSED BY PRAYER " HELL SEEMS TO BE GAPING FOB ME " "I AM HAPPY IN THE LORD " " CONVERTED IN THE ARMY THROUGH SIN" "Do You TRUST IN THE LORD?" "URGE HIM TO COME TO JESUS" " THANK GOD FOR MY WOUND " SERGEANT DWIGHT KNEELAND : " MY WORK is DONE " DIED CALLING FOR THE CHAPLAIN "JUST AS GOD WISHES" "TELL MY MOTHER I DIED HAPPY" "Ir is EASIER TO SERVE SATAN" " I AM BETTER IN THE ARMY THAN AT HOME " WILLIAM J. JOHNSON, 142o N. Y., Co. D " ALL is WELL" "OLD JACOB," THE GRAVE-DIGGER " THE BIBLE BETTER THAN GREENBACKS " " SOMEHOW IT WORKED UPON ME " " GOD STILL STICKS TO ME " "O CHAPLAIN, WHAT WILL I Do?" "I AM ON THE DEVIL'S SIDE " " PRAY FOR ME, CHAPLAIN, TILL I DIE : " His BEREAVED WIFE'S LETTER " I WOULD AS SOON GO TO MY HEAVENLY HOME " " I AM Too WICKED TO COME TO JESUS " " GOD GRABBED ME INTO His HEART AT ONCE " "I PRAYED ON, AND GOD CHANGED MY HEART " " THE DEVIL COAXED ME OFF." THE BOMB-PROOF PRAYER-MEETING. AS a number of the delegates of the U. S. Christian Commis- sion were passing by Fort Albany, then guarded by the 14th Mass. Volunteers, one of the brave boys said to. them, " Look here! " (pointing to a deep hole in the ground ;) " what is that ? " " It 's the bomb-proof, where we hold our daily prayer- meetings, down twelve feet under ground." " Do any come?" "Oh, yes; sixty or more." "Do you find the Saviour there?" " Yes ; we find him here as well as at home." " So you go down to get up ?" " Yes; and that is one of God's fixed, unalterable laws, ' We must go down to get up ; ' for God says, ' Before CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 211 honor is humility/ and ' He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.' Christ was exalted to heaven 'because he humbled himself, and became * obedient unto death/ (Phil. ii. 8, 9.) So it is with all of us ; we must humble ourselves, if we would be exalted ; if we would ever reach the joys of heaven, we must start at the foot of the cross. And do you get very high, and draw very near to God, down there ? " " Yes, sir ; and when we meet down there, we come away strengthened and refreshed, and feel that it was good to be there." "I suppose you all flee down there when the rebel balls and shells fall thick around you ? " " Yes, that is our refuge in time of extreme peril. But when the devil, the first great rebel, shoots his fiery darts, we can't find refuge in bomb-proofs, forts, or behind earth-works, because he can very easily shoot his poisonous darts through all these. No refuge from him is found but in the cleft-rock, Christ Jesus, the believer's only stronghold of defence and protection." (; I sup- pose when the balls and shells fly thicker, and the danger becomes greater, you plead harder for deliverance ? " " Yes ; realized danger tends to help us to divest ourselves of self, and to draw us nearer to God. The 'greater our sense of want, the harder we can plead for help. Hence, nothing but great emergencies will develop and draw out the latent powers of the soul. When were the grandest exploits of military genius dis- played ? Under some great pressing emergency, when the glories of victory, or the salvation of the country, hung upon the decision of an hour and the action of a moment. When were the greatest and most eloquent speeches delivered ? Under some very great crisis, involving the interests of nations and the destiny of the world. When were the most earnest and powerful prayers put forth? Under some pre-eminently great emergency involving the redemption of a kingdom and the salvation of the world. Where, we ask, was Jacob, when he plead with that intense importunity and assured confidence that enabled him to exclaim, ' I will not let thee go, except thou bless me ? ' He was in a case of imminent danger, with his life exposed to the direful revenge of his incensed brother, whom he was going to meet When did the devoted Daniel plead with such wonderful assurance and 212 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. power, that his prayer was heard even while he was yet speaking and praying; what were his circumstances? It was when he was deeply concerned for the deliverance of the captive hosts of Israel. It was there, while pouring out his soul and heart unto God, crying, 'O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hearken and do ! defer not, for thine own sake, O my God/ that the angel flew from heaven, and announced that the decree had gone forth liberating the Jewish captives. What were the circumstances that gave rise to the Saviour's agonizing prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, which brought the bloody sweat from every pore, and led him to exclaim, ' Father, if thy will, let this cup pass from me ! ' Whence this most intense importunity and anguish of soul? It is the preparation for the agonies of the cross. Jesus is going to Calvary, and feeling the billows of God's wrath rising about him, and realizing the fierce conflict before him in working out our salvation, he goes to God, and prays for sustaining grace. Where, we ask, was the dying thief, when he offered up that effectual prayer that snatched his soul from a yawning hell, and landed it safe in heaven ? He was hanging upon the cross, in the very agony of death, and with the flames of eternal fire kindling at his feet, in the most extreme peril. There he hangs ; and, standing upon the pivot of the eternal world, feeling that it is the last opportunity, that it will soon be salvation or damnation, he earnestly prays, 'Jesus, Lord, remember me ! ' and his soul, plucked from the jaws of Satan and washed in the Saviour's blood, went home to heaven !" I heard a soldier say he could pray better while facing the rebel cannon's mouth. Thus we see that, when we are closely pressed and more fully feel our dependence upon God, the more earnestly we can pray. " So, I suppose, when the balls and shells fall thick around you, you draw nearer to God, and pray more fervently, than when all is peace ? " " Yes, chaplain, that 's so." " ARE YOU READY TO GO ? " Although over three hundred thousand loyal patriots tasted death during the rebellion, yet many more have fallen since CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 213 from wounds inflicted and diseases contracted during the war. To fight and die on the gory field, in putting down treason, even when crowned with victory, is hard. To get sick or wounded, and linger and suffer severely for mouths, and then die in the hospital, far away from friends and from home, is harder ; but to linger and suffer for years from wounds received, or diseases contracted in the service, and then die, seems harder still. Such was the fate of Samuel S. Brown, late member of the 3d Reg. Ohio Cavalry, Co. B, who entered the service of his country, January 1, 1864, and after enduring much hardness in Sherman's memorable campaign, contracted a severe cold at the long and bloody siege of Atlanta, through exposure to the weather, from the effects of which he never recovered. Having served his country a little over a year, and being unable to serve longer, he was honorably discharged February 8, 1865, when he returned home to his father's house in Cardington, Ohio, where he spent the remainder of his days, and died February 14, 1868, aged .twenty-three years and three months. Born and brought up by religious parents, he received a religious training, which seemed to have resulted in his conversion. Quiet and unassuming in his disposition, he was warmly attached and strongly devoted to his parents. Although he suffered long, he bore it all very patiently. Not a murmur was heard to fall from his lips. And when ap- proached by a brother upon the subject of religon, shortly before he died, he seemed calm and collected, and gave good evidence of being at peace with God. When asked, " Do you trust in Jesus ? " He replied, " Yes, and have for some time." " Would you be afraid to die ? " " No." " Are you ready to go ?" " Yes; and the sooner the better." " The sooner the better ?" " Yes ! " " How glorious the attainment ! Dying for your country, and dying in the Lord. Not only ready, but, like Paul, even longing to de- part. Waiting to hear the summons, ' Come up higher/ Wait- ing to bid farewell to this sinful world of troubles, conflict, and trials. Waiting to lay aside this vile body, to go and dwell with the ransomed of the Lord in heaven. To be ready to go when your country calls to defend her honor, is glorious. To be ready to go when the command, " charge" is given in the heat of battle, is 214 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. glorious. But to be ready to go, when it comes ours to die. is more glorious. Victory achieved over the enemy on the field of battle is glorious, but victory achieved over the last enemy, death, is the most glorious of all victories. To be able to face the king of terrors, gazing into the eternal world, and be able to say, 'O death, where is thy sting?' is the very acme of per- fection on earth." Mr. Brown lived but a short time after the above conversation, and during his last hours his voice was heard in prayer. Be ye also ready. LITTLE LIZZIE'S LETTER. PHILADELPHIA, April 17, 186?,. MY DEAR SOLDIER: I send you a little Testament. I am a little girl seven years old. I want to do something for the soldiers who do so much for us; so I have saved my pocket money to send you this. Although I have never seen you, I intend to begin to pray that God will make and keep you good. Oh, how sorry I am that you have to leave your dear mother. Did she cry when you bade her good-by? Don't you often think of her at night when you are going to bed? Do you kneel down and say your prayers? If I were you, I would not care if the other soldiers did laugh : God will smile upon you. I am sorry, very sorry, that you are sick. I wish that I could go to nurse you. I could bathe your head, and read to you. Do you know the hymn, " There is a happy land ? " I hope you will go to that land when you die. But remember, I will pray that you may get well again. When you are able to sit up, I wish you to write to me, and tell me all about your troubles. Enclosed you will find a postage-stamp. I live at No. North Ninth Street, Philadelphia. Good-by. Your Friend, LIZZIE S . Lizzie's letter and the Testament she sent proved the means of the soldier's salvation who received them. NASHVILLE, TENN., April 24, 1863. DEAR SISTER LIZZIE: I received your kind letter from Mr. C. I. M. A beautiful present indeed, and I trust it will be CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 215 one of the means of converting others, as well as the receiver. May God bless the giver. You have done a good work. Con- tinue to pray, dear sister, and God will answer you. He says so in his wor.d. My dear mother is in the grave. It is nearly eleven years since she died ; but she died happy ; and I trust I shall meet her in heaven. I will try and pray for myself. Have been in the hospital four months, but am now nearly well ; will be able to join my regiment to face the enemy ; and if I should fall on the battle-field, I may have the blessed assurance of meeting my Saviour in peace. Yes, " there is a happy land." May we meet in that happy land. I do not think that my fellow-soldiers will deter me from serving my Master. There are many others here that his Spirit is striving with. I expect to go home to see my dear friends once more. Am very thankful that the privilege is granted, and I trust we shall have a happy meeting. Dear Lizzie, I must close. May God bless you, is my prayer. Write me again. Address your friend, S. L. N., Fourth Mich. Cavalry, Nashville, Tenn. " I PRAYED IN THE STREET." " Man's extremity is God's opportunity." Coming to Christ is the sinner's last resort. Blinded by sin and deceived by Satan, man, lost, will go to a thousand refuges before he will flee to the safe one ; and it is only when he finds that all other refuges are, in the language of the prophet, " refuges of lies," that he flees to Christ, " the only stronghold." In canvassing the heart of Charles A. Morton, 7th N. H., Co. K, we found him much interested in religion, at our first interview. He seemed to be indulging a bright hope, and said he had been converted in a revival. He appeared to have been powerfully wrought upon by the Spirit; and said he, " I became so earnestly engaged in seeking Christ, that I prayed in the street, and afterward I felt so different that I went home and told my wife." "When an anxious sinner is brought to feel his awful exposure to endless woe, and to realize his own helplessness and utter dependence upon God for salva- tion, it is perfectly natural and reasonable to fly to God in prayer 216 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. immediately, even ' on the street/ or, like sinking Peter, ' on the water.' The interests involved are so vast, and the emergency is so great, he can't watt ; he must pray ; he can't help it ; and it is in just such emergencies as these that the most powerful and effectual prayers have been offered up. I suppose when you prayed in the street, you felt that you could not wait till you got home ? " " Yes ; I felt such a pressing necessity, that I could not wait." " Under that state of feeling, how easy, and, oh, what a great privilege, it is to pray ! How have you felt since?" "I feel much altered, and happy." "Regeneration is a great change a change from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God. In it, the old man is put off and the new put on ; old things pass away, and all things become new; so that when a man undergoes it, he will ' feel much altered/ as you say. And although many Christians can't tell the precise time, place, and circumstances of their conversion, yet they will know something about it. Others profess to know all about the circumstances, the time when and the place where the great change, wrought by God's Spirit, was brought about. And how can we know it ? Love to the brethren is one distinguishing mark. Hereby ' we know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren.' c He that loveth not his brother, abideth in death.' Another evidence is secret prayer : 'Prayer is the Christian's vital breath, The Christian's native air; His watchword at the gate of death: He enters heaven with prayer.' If a man has experienced a change of heart, he will feel so grate- ful to God that he will often repair to his closet, and thank the Lord for the great things he has done for him. David prayed three times a day. The Saviour prayed all night ; and it is said John Welch prayed eight hours out of twenty-four ; and that he would often rise at midnight and pour out his soul to God in prayer for the people of his congregation. How is it with you?" " I have been praying ever since my conversion. I pray that my arm may heal fast, and it does." " You seem to have strong faith CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 217 in prayer ? " " Oh, yes, I believe God answers prayer. He says, ' Seek, and ye shall find.' " " I LOVE EVERYBODY." It was on a beautiful evening, in the summer of 1865, in the U. S. General Hospital, near Fortress Monroe, Va., while making my daily calls with the patients, that I fell into an interesting conversation with R. Brown, of the 7th Regiment S. C. Cavalry, Co. F., confederate troops. He gave me a hearty welcome to his bedside, and we found him free to converse about religion and his own personal experience. He seemed to be a decided Christian, not only enjoying a well-grounded hope, but even full assurance of his acceptance with God ; and, to use his own lan- guage, he said, " I know I have passed from death unto life." What a glorious attainment ! It is worth more than all things else. " How long have you been trying to serve the Lord ? " " Some fifteen years," he replied. Touching his love to Christ, he said, "I love everybody." "Would you be afraid to die?" No t Perfect love casteth out fear.' < Love is the ful- filling of the law.' ' Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy- self.' Do you love God's word?" "Oh, yes," he said; "I have read my Testament through thirty times in the army." "Do you find it difficult to live out religion in the army?" " No ; I can live as well in the army as out of it ? " " Christ, who is our strength, says, ' My grace is sufficient for thee ; ' hence he says, ( No evil shall touch thee.' With God's Spirit to guide us, and his everlasting arms beneath us, we have nothing to fear." I visited him frequently, and always found him prayer- ful, patient, and resigned. I heard not a murmur fall from his lips. He manifested a strong desire to see his wife. Administer- ing to him the consolations of the gospel, he lingered along, and died full of hope June 15, 1865. "I HAVE NO FEAR." In visiting the sick and wounded, we were daily cheered by the patience and heroism they manifested. We often found them not only resigned, but buoyant and jovial, with hearts glowing with courage and patriotism. At my first interview with John 218 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Lestur, 38th U.S., Co. D, we found him in patience possessing his soul; and although severely wounded, he was jovial and lively as a cricket, and yet full of fight. In describing the hot fight near Chapin's Farm, close by Richmond, he said, " With my finger shot almost off", while going it at double quick, I pulled out my jack-knife, cut it off, threw it down, went on, loaded and fired eight or nine times while charging the fort near the above place." Eager for victory, he said, " With my bleeding hand, I mounted the fort, raised the stars and stripes, and fought on till I received a ball in my thigh, which brought me down." " Were you not afraid in such a warm fight ? " " No ; I trust in the Lord, and I am not afraid." " You have the right remedy for fear." "What?" "Trust in the Lord there is nothing equal to it. David said, when surrounded with hosts of enemies, ' What time I am afraid, I will trust in God.' Faith as a shield is a sure defence against the wiles of the devil and all the fiery darts of the wicked." He said, " If I die, I believe Jesus will save me." " Would you not be afraid to make another such charge ? " " Oh, no ; I would cut off another finger under simi- lar circumstances. I came out to fight and, if need be, to die for God and my country. I have no fear." " No fear ? no fear of death ? " " No." " ' O death, where is thy sting ! Thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ/ " How grand the perfection to rise above all fear ! Said the cele- brated Robert Hall, in his dying hours, " I fear pain more than death ; " and he soon passed into glory, praying, " Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." Dr. Taylor kissed the stake as he ap- proached it, and in meek submission died, sealing the doctrine he taught with his own blood. At our next interview, John Lestur said, as I approached him, " Here I am, waiting on the Lord. Had not Jesus been nigh my side, I 'd have died when I got wounded." " Do you think Jesus saved you ? " " Yes ; I feel so." " Christ is a covert in the storm. The name of the Lord is a strong tower ; the righteous runneth therein, and they are safe. The Lord is as a wall of fire round about them that fear him. How does the Saviour appear to you to-day, John?" "He seems dear : Jesus is close by my side, and I am happy in him." CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 219 " What sweet words ! Happy in Jesus ! To such there ia no con- demnation. And you think you would be willing to lose another finger, * in a pinch/ for your country ; aye, John ?" " Oh, yes ; the loss of fingers, legs, and lives is nothing to the loss of our country." Such courage and patriotic devotion deserves great praise. To see men cut off a finger, load and fire as they run, charging a rebel fort, shows great pluck and bravery. He got better, and was transferred North. SERGEANT JAMES TUSTISON. Fired with a lofty patriotism, JAMES TUSTISON consecrated himself to the service of his country shortly after the outbreak of the rebellion. Though a native of Crawford County, Ohio, he moved to Iowa in 1854, and at his country's call enlisted as orderly sergeant of Capt. Holson's company, of the Tenth Reg. Iowa Volunteers, at Richmond, August 24, 1861, and was mus- tered into the service, September 6, at Iowa City. And as the rebellion had not reached Iowa, his regiment was soon ordered to St. Louis, and before they had time to procure their uniforms there, they were ordered to Cape Girardeau, where they arrived October 2. Time rolled on, and as the rebellion spread itself, the noble-hearted sergeant met the enemy in a severe skirmish at Charleston, Mo.; and although he was so fortunate as to come out unhurt himself, two of his company were killed and several others wounded. At the close of the fall campaign, his regiment went into winter-quarters at Bird's Point, Mo., and the sergeant, being unaccustomed to camp life and that very unhealthy climate, Mas taken with a severe attack of diarrhoea early in February, 1862. And although he had comfortable quarters, they were made more comfortable by the graceful presence of his kind, affectionate wife, Mrs. Tustison, who, with her characteristic tenderness, went all the way from home to see him, and carefully nursed him through all his sickness. Blessed with an early reli- gious training, he united with the Presbyterian Church when seventeen years of age, and by his consistent life was an orna- ment to the church, and adorned the doctrines of the cross. His 220 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. disease assumed the chronic form, and he suffered severely, yet, sustained by an unseen Hand, he bore it all very patiently. Not a murmur was known to fall from his lips. Failing so rapidly, and despairing of his recovery, on application of his friends, he was examined by a board of physicians and honorably discharged from the service, and, accompanied with his faithful wife, he bid farewell to his regiment and started for home. On arriving at Mattoon, 111., he became so feeble he was unable to go any further, and they "put up" at a hotel. Being a member of the Masonic fraternity, upon (his) making himself known to the lodge of that place, they kindly assisted in taking care of him. The Rev. Mr. McFarlan and Dr. Bridges were especially attentive in administering to his wants; yet, with all their attention, he grew worse. A few days before his departure he became delirious, but on the evening ere he expired, his reason was restored, and he awoke from his unconscious -state, wrapped in the sweet smiles of his heavenly Father. As the struggle of death came on, and fully conscious of the approach of " the last enemy," sustained by Him who " hath abolished death," he said, calm and undismayed, "l AM DYING, BUT I AM VERY HAPPY!" And filled with filial affection in his last moments, his thoughts fly home to his mother, and wishing to leave her a word of com- fort, the dying soldier said, among his last words, " Tell my mother that, when dying, my trust was in Christ." Lingering until the afternoon of March 27, 1862, the wheel at the cistern stood still, and in the thirtieth year of his age, in the presence of his weeping wife and brother, his blood-washed soul left its clay tenement, and went, we trust, home to swell the ranks of the redeemed in heaven. How sublime such a death dying for his country, and dying in the Lord ! How consoling to his bereaved wife and friends ! Though your loss is heavy and your affliction severe, yet, if you will listen, you will hear the soothing voice of the good Shepherd saying unto you, " Weep not ;" " be of good cheer." " Let not your heart be trou- bled, for all is well." " Be ye also ready ! " CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 221 "I HAVE GOT IT." Having preached in ward twenty-three, as I was passing up the aisle, Thomas Warren, 199th Pa., Co. D, being under deep anxiety of mind, called me to him, and said, " I want to get reli- gion, and I want you to pray for me." He seemed to be very anxious, and on telling him of the goodness of God and the compassion of Jesus, and of his ability and willingness to save, and urging him to repent and pray, he began to pray, and cried, " Lord, have mercy on me ! Cast me not off! O Saviour, take me now just as I am ! " and, weeping profusely, and praying with intense earnestness, he exclaimed, " Oh, if I had only reli- gion now ! " He said he had been swearing, but now seemed deeply penitent. Urging him to look to Jesus, I left him all stirred up. His severe wound became gangrened, and he was taken to the Gangrene Camp ; and, calling upon him there soon after, he exclaimed, " I have got it ! / have got it ! " and clap- ping his hands, shouted, " Glory to God ! glory to God ! hallelu- jah ! " Several gathered in to see him. He said, " I feel light ; a great burden has rolled off of me." Upon my next call, he seemed very much changed ; he prayed and wept much. When I left, he was improving. SATAN REPULSED BY PRAYER. We found CHARLES WILLIAMS, 5th U. S., Co. C, at the first, prayerful, humble, penitent, anxious, crying like the trembling jailer, " What must I do to be saved ! " " When did you begin to pray ? " " Since I got wounded." " How do you feel on the subject of religion?" "I feel that I am a great sinner; and I am afraid I won't get through. The devil came and told me I would be lost, if I do trust in Christ." " Yes ; but the devil is a liar, and you must not believe a word he says, nor indulge a thought he suggests. Mother Eve believed the devil and disbelieved God, and fell. Do you believe the devil?" " No ; when he tempted me I called on the Lord, and he went away." " So you repulsed the devil with prayer?" *' Yes, he 222 CHKISTIANITY IN THE WAR. left me." " That proves the great power of prayer. You will always find it true, 'resist the devil, and he will flee from you.'" Calling upon him again, we found him indulging a strong hope ; and I said to him, " Do you think you are a Christian ?" " Yes; I believe God has converted my soul ; and I expect my wife won't know me when I go home, I will be so changed." " Was it your wound that led you to pray, which has resulted in your hopeful conversion ? " " Yes, I believe it was." " A stroke of lightning led to the conversion of Martin Luther, and no doubt the stroke of balls and shells has led to the con version of many a soldier. Think you could die happy?" "Yes; I feel that I could." " Be faithful. Stand up for the flag, and cling to the cross ! " "HELL SEEMS TO BE GAPING FOR ME!" Exclaimed JACOB MULLJNCUP, 13th Ind., Co. D,ashe related his religious experience. He seemed to be very anxious and tender, but said he, " T have not followed Christ ; but I want you to pray for me," weeping profusely. " Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, and died for the ungodly, just such as you are. He is mighty to save ; able and willing to save, even unto the uttermost. His blood cleanseth from all sin : ' Look, and live !' " It was on December 4, 1864, I visited him again at five P.M., and found him writhing with a deep sense of his sins. "You seemed to have lived a wicked life?" "Yes; I have sworn, and done everything that 's bad ; and my mother brought me up good." " Have you ever been troubled with skepticism ? " " Yes ; but there can't but be another world." " Why, what makes you think so ? " " Not only because God reveals it, but because I feel such a load of guilt upon my con- science." " Do you really feel your sins to be so great ? " " Yes, I do. Oh, my sins ! my sins ! hell seems to be gaping for me ! Oh, chaplain, what \vill I do?" "Just throw yourself right into the arms of Jesus, and cry for mercy, and he will save you. Pray, like the thief on the cross, * Jesus, Lord, remember me ; * pray, like the blind beggar, ' Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me ! ' What are you going to do with your sins ; how do you CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 223 expect to get rid of them ? " "I don't know. I try to pray, and trust in the Lord, but my heart is so hard : I know God is able to save me, but I am so faithless." "Jesus is the only sin-bearer ; he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows : only believe, and he will wash your soul and cleanse your hard heart. Do you feel sorry for your sins? " " Oh, yes ; very sorry." " If you repent, God will forgive. ' Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unright- eous man his thoughts : and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.' Jesus is here, full of pity, love, and power, knocking at the very door of your heart, crying, ' Come unto me, and 1 will give you rest ! ' May God bless you." "I AM HAPPY IN THE LORD!" I visited JAMES KEED, 188th Pa., Co. D, very often, and at first he manifested some interest in religion, but gave no satisfac- tory evidence of piety. He was badly wounded in the knee, and suffered long and very severe. Lying so long on his back, he had very bad bed-sores. I preached, read, and prayed with him very often, and he appreciated it highly. He would say, " Come and see me often, chaplain." He became concerned about his salva- tion, and gave himself unto prayer. Several days before his death, he seemed to undergo a great change. On the evening of November 27, he was much engaged in prayer, and said, " The Saviour was dear and precious." He seemed to long for heaven, and said, " I feel prepared to go, and am not afraid to die. I pray and hope to meet my father, mother, brothers, and sisters in heaven." He had two books, and said, " Give one to my sister Nancy, and the other to Mary," and again engaged in earnest prayer. November 30th : He prayed fervently to-night. I read and prayed with him, and sung, " I am going home, to die no more ! " The doctor had given him up some time. He lingered with much pain till December 1st, and death closed the solemn scene. 224 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Dying for his country and, we trust, dying in Christ, he said, " I am happy in the Lord. To die is gain : to depart is far better." CONVERTED IN THE ARMY THROUGH SIN. At my first interview with EDWARD BURNETT, 118th N. Y., Co. G, he seemed to be an humble, prayerful Christian. Said he had been converted in the army from seeing so much sin and wickedness, and seeing so many dying soldiers. " Sin led you to forsake sin, did it ? " " Yes ; hearing so much profanity, and seeing so much wickedness, led me to consider my ways, and led me to seek God in prayer, which has resulted in my conversion/' " How do your sins appear to you now ? " " They seem very great; but I believe God has forgiven them all." He had a very deep sense of his sins, and gave bright evidence of being a regenerated man. God often brings good out of evil ; but this is an unusual case. Such heights of wickedness and streams of profanity, as were common during the war, were enough to alarm the most thoughtless. God's ways are not our ways. He can make one word of truth, the minie-ball, the lightning's flash, and the sinner's sin, result in the conversion of sinners. The wrath of man shall praise him. Edward grew worse, and died Novem- ber 25, 1864, full of hope. "DO YOU TRUST IN THE LORD?" "NO," Said BENJAMIN E. TILTON, as we tried to urge him to re- pentance. "Do you pray?" "No." "Do you swear?" "Yes, occasionally." "No prayers, no faith, no Saviour, and shot through the mouth, and scarcely able to speak : what a dark picture ! How glorious to die for your country ! how awful to die, and be lost ! What mean these daily deaths around you ? It is the voice of Jesus, warning you to prepare to meet thy God : you must turn or burn ; believe or be lost ! Oh, then, go to Bethlehem ; go to Gethsemane ; go to Calvary, and there be- hold the Lamb of God praying, bleeding, dying, that you might live ! Just think of the matchless love of Christ in exchanging CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 225 the glories of heaven for the agonies of the cross, that we, un- worthy sinners, might have eternal life. Think of the prayers and tears of an anxious mother for your salvation, and will you let it all be in vain ? " " I trust not ! " " Your creed, ' I trust not/ is not enough ; it will not save you : no, it is quite too scanty to carry you to heaven. Paul's creed delivered to the ti ambling jailer was short, plain, and orthodox ; but it was very comprehensive a creed which, if heartily received, will carry you safely through the shock of battle; through all the fire, temptations, trials, and storms of life, and finally give you a triumphant death, and take you safely home to heaven." " What is it?" " ' Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.' There it is. Do you understand it? It is the very thing you need : it is the Bible and the plan of salvation in a nutshell. With Christ for its object, and salvation for its end, it will just suit you. To benefit you, you must receive it by faith. It is the only thing for those who have ' no Saviour/ and no prayers. Only believe, and you have nothing to fear." " Yes ; but what is faith?" "Faith is to the Christian what courage is to the soldier." "What?" " That which always carries him through. Faith is letting go of all things else and laying hold of Jesus, and clinging to the cross with all your heart. Let me illustrate it for you. There is a man away down in a well, with his satchel of valuables and gold ; he can't get out himself, and therefore cries for help. Two men passing by with a rope, heard him, and ran to his relief. ' Can't you climb up and get out?' ' No ; I have nothing to catch hold of.' ' Can't you get a foot- hold on the stones in the wall of the well ? ' ' No ; it is all too smooth, and the water is deep, and I have nothing to stand on.' ' Nothing to stand on ? ' ' No.' Just like the sinner without Christ building without a foundation, and nothing to stand on. < Can't you touch the bottom?' 'Oh, no; the water is deep, and I am afraid I will lose my satchel. Oh, DO lift me out! I am almost out of breath, and I can't keep up much longer. If not soon saved, I am gone forever. And will you let me drown ?' ' No ; here is a rope : now you grasp it firmly with both hands/ 'With both hands?' < Yes.' ' But what will I do with my satchel ?* 226 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 1 Why, let it go ; let it go quick, and grasp the rope with both hands with all your might, or we will let you sink and be drowned.' He grasped the rope with one hand, clinging to the satchel with the other. The men gave a strong pull ; but the poor worldling, having reached about half-way up, let go, and down he went again into the water, deeper than ever. ' There ! he 's gone ! ' exclaimed one man to the other. ' Stop ! wait : let 's see if he won't come up again ! ' Presently he rises again, just ready to perish, exclaiming ' Lord have mercy on me ! God be merciful to me a sinner ! Oh, brethren will you let me drown?' And again they let down the rope, beseeching him to drop his satchel, and grasp the rope with all his might with both hands. He did so. They gave another pall, and up came the drowning man, saved at last.' This, Benjamin, is an illustration of faith. It implies two things : first, letting go of the world, and, second, laying hold of Jesus. Do you see it, Benjamin ? " " Yes, I believe I do." "Will you try it?" "I will." "May God help and bless you." "URGE HIM TO COME TO JESUS." JOHN GOFF, 142d N. Y., Co. D, though rather careless at first, soon became interested, and enjoyed religious services very much. At our next interview, though somewhat anxious, he said, "I don't think I am a Christian, but would like to be one." Apparently penitent and prayerful, he repeatedly said, "God bless me." With a very severe wound in the left arm, and increasing in anx- iety about his salvation, he seemed to enjoy my visits very much, and would usually exclaim on my entering his tent, " God bless you, chaplain ; God bless you. Oh, how glad I am that you have come." He appeared to grow in grace, and several days re he died he said he loved the Saviour ; that he had been con- verted in the hospital, and that he felt a deep concern for his unconverted brother. He suffered long and severely, and seemed to be an humble, sincere Christian. When I wrote a letter to his brother, he said to me, " Urge him to come to Jesus." Deep concern for the salvation of others is an evidence of the gracious CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 227 state. He seemed very happy, and his oft-repeated prayer was " God bless me ; God bless me." If every man urged his brother to come to Jesus, there would not be so many without hope. Reading and praying with him very often, he lingered a long while, and fell with the autumn leaf in 1864. To depart is far better. "THANK GOD FOR MY WOUND," Said MILES JAMES, Corporal, Co. B, 36th U. S., colored, as he related his religious experience. He was a backslidden Methodist, yet, with his left arm off near the shoulder, he was very grateful for liberty ; full of fight, full of courage, and with a heart burning with heroic patriotism, he was lively and rich in conversation. Sprightly, .and hot with zeal to quell the re- bellion, he seemed to " glory in tribulation," exclaiming, as his heart seemed to glow with gratitude, " Thank God, thank God, THANK GOD for my wound ! It has brought me nearer to God, and knocked the feeling of revenge out of me. Before it, I would have killed a rebel on his knees before me, but now I would take him prisoner. Before it, I would cry, ' Fort Pillow, and let 'em have it/ but now I would spare 'em. My wound has brought nte nearer to God, and I thank him for it. Before it, I was full of revenge against the rebels, but this wound has taken it away. I praise the Lord for it. I feel very happy lying here on my bed. Oh, I am so happy ! But if I get well, I will go and fight again." This was on October 11, 1864. At another interview, he said, " My wound has brought me to the point." " Brought you to the point, aye ? " " Yes." " What point ? " " Why, to the point of repentance and contrition ; it has brought me, chaplain, to the foot of the cross." " Then stick to it, James. By all means stick to it. It is sticking to the point and clinging to the cross that makes us happy even under the most adverse and trying circumstances. Daniel, when surrounded with hosts of fierce enemies, said, ' My sotil is among lions ; ' yet, with his heart stayed and fixed upon God, he was happy in prayer and praise. Cranmer, brought to the point, with his heart stayed and fixed upon God, because he had subscribed to popery, when at the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. stake, held his unworthy hand in the flames till it was burned to a cinder, before his body was scorched, exclaiming, 'This hand, this unworthy right hand.' There he hung, apparently insensible of pain, praying, ' Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,' until the flames choked his utterance. How glorious, James, to see you so happy, with your arm riven from your body, that not one star should be riven from the dear old flag. Fight on, James, for God and the country, and the Lord will reward you. Do you pray much ? " " Yes ; I prays very often. It is very good to pray." " Do you like to hear the gospel ? " " Yes ; I liked to jump out of my bed when you preached to us last Sunday night." " Pray on, James. Be earnest ; stick to the point and cling to the cross, and Jesus will at last raise you to his throne." SERGEANT DWIGHT KNEELAND. Sergeant DWIGHT KNEELAND, of the Signal Corps, U. S. A., was brought to the hospital, in Feb. 1865, from near Petersburg, Va. Worn out by nearly three years' service in his country's cause, he was very much reduced in flesh, and sinking with con- sumption. Pale, tall, slender, and well dressed, he presented a dignified, genteel appearance when he entered the ward. He lingered along for several days with but little perceptible change, yet failing gradually. On approaching him on the subject of religion, we found him rather careless, yet not entirely indiffer- ent. Says he, " I have been a great sinner." But he soon gave signs of concern for his salvation, and became somewhat penitent and prayerful. God worked in him, and on our next interview we found him more deeply concerned, and praying in the lan- guage of the publican, " God be merciful to me a sinner." The Spirit strove with him, and, becoming more resigned and con- trite, he prayed, " Not my will, but God's, be done." This was on February 26, 1865. I preached to him and his ward on the Sabbath, from the Saviour's compassionate words, Matt, xxiii. 37. It was his last sermon, and he listened very attentively. Time fled, life ebbed away, and three days after, conscious of approach- ing death, he said, in the language of the immortal Braiuard, CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 229 " MY WORK IS DONE ! I am going to die ; I don't want to live ; I feel prepared to go. Tell my father, ' I die happy, and that I bid them all farewell ! Send my things home to him/ " Thoughtful and faithful to his country and to his trust, he requested us to burn his Signal-Boolc, lest secrets might be revealed ; and we burned it in the stove. On approaching him the next evening, he seemed better ; and, after reading to him the Saviour's consoling words (John xiv.), and praying with him, we bade him " good-night," expecting to visit him early next morning. But on entering the ward, we found that he had finished his course, and his place in the ward was made vacant ! Gone from time to eternity ; gone, we trust, from earth to heaven, to join the redeemed, blood- washed throng, where there will be no more war, no more death, neither sorrow nor crying. We saw him next in the dead-house. Patient in all his sufferings, he uttered not a murmuring word. Resigned, and with his work done, and, we trust, prepared to die, his quiet departure seemed to say, " To die is gain ; thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ ! " He died March 1, 1865. His mortal remains were taken home to Connecticut. "DIED CALLING FOR THE CHAPLAIN." At our first interview with JOHN H. DUNHAM, 117th N. Y., Co. D, we found him careless, and rather indifferent about reli- gion. " Do you pray ? " " Not much. I feel a little sorry for my sins at times ; but it soon passes away like the wind." This was on November 10, 1864. I preached to him and prayed for him, and commended him to God, and urged him to fly to Jesus. " You may get well, but life is very uncertain. How sad the thought to see a brave soldier lose his limb, and shed his blood, and die for his country, and die and be lost ! Oh, then, let me beseech you, repent, repent ! Let the loss of your leg be a call from God to repent, and seek the salvation of your soul. Only think of the goodness of God in sparing your life ; giving you time to repent, while many others fell dead without a moment's 230 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. warning! Look to the cross; look to Jesus; behold him in Gethsemane ; see how he pleads, agonizes, and sweats as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground, for our salva- tion ! Behold him hanging upon Calvary, groaning, bleeding, and dying that ignominious death, that you might live and enjoy eternal life ! How wonderful the scene : the earth quakes ; the rocks rend ; the graves open ; the dead rise ; and the sun refuses to shine before the awful grandeur of the solemn scene! And for whom, and for what did he suffer all this ? It was for us, poor sinners, who have rebelled against him ; it was for you ! It was to make an atonement for sin, that you might enjoy for- giveness and eternal life ! You have shed your blood for the salvation of your country, Jesus shed his for the salvation of the soul ; you die for his friends, Jesus died for his enemies. Oh, John, just think of his matchless love, and be no longer impenitent! Does his compassion move you? does not the very thought of these things touch your heart?" "Yes, chap- lain, they do ; but my heart is so hard, I can't feel my sins for- given." " Do you feel sorry for your sins? " " Yes, I do ; but not as I ought." " Would you not like to be a Christian ? " " Oh, yes, I would ; but my heart is so hard." " Yes, but Jesus can soften and change it." " Can't you trust him ? " "I will try." "He is able, willing, mighty to save! Just forsake sin, and let go self, and throw yourself right into the arms of Jesus, and he will save you. Only ' believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.' Pray, pray, like the publican, 'God be merciful to me a sinner!' Pray, like sinking Peter, ' Lord, save me !' and just come to Jesus now, just as you are, and salvation is sure." Calling on him again in a few days, we found him indulging a hope, and said, " He thought he would not be afraid to die, and that he could die happy." He grew worse, and died November 18, 1864, exclaiming, " Where is the chaplain ? " Patients often called for the chaplain at the ap- proach of death. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 231 "JUST AS GOD WISHES." It was on a cold, cloudy day in November, with the whistling wind whirling around the patient's narrow bed, when we ap- proached Wm. Brown, Co. I, 117th N. Y., lying quite low with a severe wound in the leg. But upon canvassing his heart, we found him, though weak in body, strong in faith, clinging to the cross, with bright prospects of a glorious immortality beyond the grave. Resigned and submissive, he said, " Though life is sweet, I am not afraid to die. I can say, God's will be done. Just as he wishes." " How precious the attainment ! Just as God wishes, whether I live or die. I suppose you feel very happy ? " " Oh, yes ; I am happy. To die is gain." " Have you any doubts about your salvation?" " No ; I know in whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he will grant me a seat at his right hand at the last day." Lying in the arms of Jesus, he seemed to say, with Paul, "I am now ready. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith : henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness." Oh, how sublime the consummation ! How glorious the victory ! walling to die for your country, and just waiting to die in the Lord. Just waiting to drop the garment of mortality and be clothed with a glorious immortality. Lingering till December 10, 1864, God gave the word, and said, " Come up higher," and, robed in white, doubt- less he went home to glory. " Be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of man corneth." "TELL MY MOTHER I DIED HAPPY," Said LORENZO D. STEWARD, llth Me., Co. K, as we were canvassing his tender heart. It was his dying message to an affectionate mother. He freely confessed his waywardness in the army; but at our first interview seemed quite penitent and anxious about his salvation. " I would like to be saved," he said, "and meet my Father in heaven." "Seeing you are so anxious about salvation, I hope you have oorreot views of the way to be saved." " I trust I have, sir." " What must we do to 232 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. be saved ? " " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." " Yes, that's it. Salvation is free. Yes, free as the air we breathe. God says, ' Look and live.' Do you feel sorry for your sins ? " "I trust I do." " How does the Saviour appear to you ? " " He appears dear and precious." " Think you love Jesus ? " "I believe I do." " Love is the principal thing. ' Love is the fulfilling of the law.' Love to Christ is the essence and the very core of Christianity. We may say our prayers, shed our tears, make the loudest professions, unite with the church, go to the Lord's table, bestow all our goods to feed the poor, die for our country, and give our bodies to be burned, yet without love to Christ, we are as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal ; yea, ( we are nothing.' The great, heart-searching question the Saviour put to Peter, was, ' Loved thou ME ? ' The question is not do you love your wife, children, parents, or sister. It is not do you love your coun- try? No; it is higher, purer, holier, and more important far than all these. It is do you love the SAVIOUR ? Nothing but supreme love to God will ever raise the soul to heaven. The question is not do you profess to love. It is not do you hope or expect to love. No; but do you love now? Think you can answer the question as did weeping Peter ? l Yea, Lord, thou Jcnowest that I love thee.' " " I believe I can." " Do you feel the love of Christ constraining you?" "Yes; it seems to draw me nearer and nearer unto him. Oh, the love of Christ ! Oh, the love of Christ ! How VAST ! how great and powerful ! How precious is Jesus to my soul. I feel so happy. I have no fear of death. I believe to die will be gain, and to depart will be far better." Outriding the storms of life till November 28, 1864, the silver cord was broken, and, with his soul washed in Christ's blood, he went, we trust, home to heaven. " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." "IT IS EASIER TO SERVE SATAN." Upon entering a ward of colored patients, one day, and while canvassing the heart of Charles Pearson, 22d U. S., Co. H, col- ored, and finding that he was still " out of the way/' I asked CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 533 him why he chose to serve Satan ? He promptly replied, " It is easier." "Easier? What! is the devil an easier master than the Saviour? is the service of him who walketh about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, easier than the service of Him who came from heaven to earth to seek, suffer, bleed, and die to save? is 'the snare of the devil ' easier than the cross ol Christ? is the road to hell easier than the road to heaven? is i< easier, Charles ? " " It is easier, chaplain, till you get in the right way." " It is always easier to swim down stream than to swim up against a strong current. Lost by the fall, blinded by sin, led captive and deceived by Satan, to the unrenewed to serve him is more natural and easy, although Christ's yoke is far easier and his burden far lighter. Yet Satan is a hard master. Contrast him with Christ : Satan is a liar, Christ is ( the truth ;' Christ was always a Saviour, but the devil was always a murderer ; Satan seeks to destroy, Christ to save ; Satan will lead you down to hell, Christ will lead you up to heaven ! Oh, then, choose ye this day whom ye will serve ! Cut loose from the world, divorce thyself from Satan, let go self, escape for thy life, fly, fly to Jesus; look and live; believe and be saved! Sin hath its pleasures, but 'at the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.' Look to God for strength ; go forward in Christ's name ; and if Satan assaults you, charge against him with the sword of the Spirit, and you will always put him to flight. But to triumph over the devil is not enough. To be safe, you must embrace Christ. Only enlist under his banner, and you will find his yoke easy and his burden light. In his presence there is fulness of joy, and at his right hand there are pleasures for- "I AM BETTER IN THE ARMY THAN AT HOME." Notwithstanding the distressing apprehensions and the awful forebodings entertained by some patriotic mothers at home, when their sons entered the service of their country, dreading the con- taminating and corrupting influences of the army, and greatly fearing lest they would come home " spoiled and ruined," they 234 CHRISTIANITY. IN THE WAR. almost refused to let them go ; yet we find that the army was not such a great demoralizer after all. At the close of the war, one million of soldiers go home, receiving the most hearty wel- come, accompanied with sumptuous dinners and the most enthu- siastic demonstrations of joy upon their safe return, and the glorious victory they achieved. And each one going to his respective home, again enjoys and mingles with his old surviving friends, exerting his influence upon them, and still the moral stamina of society does not seem to have diminished. It is true some became worse, but many were made better by army life. The fact is, the religious interest in the army, in many places, was far greater than ordinarily at home. Hence we not unfrequently hear soldiers express themselves as did Marquis Davis, 118th N. Y., Co. A, " I am better in the army than at home/' as we talked about the trials, deprivations, and temptations of army life. Said he, " I have quit swearing in the army. I pray daily ; all my trust is in God ; and the Saviour is dear and precious." " Pretty well for the army, Marquis ! Better here than at home ? " "Yes; I have quit swearing, and tried to reform and do better." " Think you have been converted in the army ? " "I hope so ; but the evidences are not quite as bright as I would like." " You have some doubts, eh ! " " Yes ; but I have a strong, abiding hope." " Jesus says, ' Come unto me, and I will give you rest.' Just go to God with your case, and make a full, com- plete surrender of yourself to him who gave himself for you, and all will be well. Ask God for brighter evidences, and he will give it. ' Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.' Thomas had doubts, and said, ' Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And Jesus said unto him, reach hither thy hand, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side; and be no longer faithless, but believing.' And Thomas answered and said unto him, ' My Lord and my God ! ' His doubts were removed by looking to Christ. Thomas looked with the natural eye ; but if you only will look with the eye of faith, Jesus will remove your doubts, and you will be enabled to say, ' My Lord and my God ! ' Many good Christians at times have doubts ; UNCLE JACOB. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 235 yet it is the believer's privilege to rise above them, and say, with Job, 'I know that my Redeemer liveth.' Pray on, brother; strive to grow in grace ; 'go on unto perfection/ until you shall be made complete in Christ and filled with all the fulness of God. If you will only be earnest and faithful, army life will tend to help you on to God. The shock of battle, the stare of death's grim visage, the dreadful carnage, the groans of the wounded and dying, and dear comrades falling around you, to- gether with the stern realities of eternity rising in full view, and the solemn thought, ' I don't know how soon it may be my turn to fall/ are all well calculated to quicken and arouse the most thoughtless sinner. Hence we feel like saying, that doubtless many have been converted in the army who never would have been reached at home. God has his own way of doing his own work." WILLIAM J. JOHNSON, 142o N. Y., CO. D., Was severely wounded during the last year of the war, and brought to Hampton Hospital, and put in a .tent, ward number twenty-three. Shot through the left breast, the ball passing through the lungs, he lay for several months upon his back, and suffered severely. William was a kind, good boy, and highly esteemed by all who knew him. Genteel, patient, and neat in his person and manners, everything about him was calculated to win : he was a particular favorite of the matron and ward-master. On approaching him on the subject of religion, he said, " God has done great things for me." " What has he done for you ? " " I hope he has forgiven my sins ; and I believe he will save me. I put my trust in him, and hope and pray he will raise me." "If you will only trust in God, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, your salvation is sure. Salvation is free and ready, and offered without money and without price, upon the conditions of faith and repentance." "Do you feel sorry for your sins?" "I trust I do." "God says, 'Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.' We must all turn or die, believe or be lost." We visited him very often, reading and praying in his tent, urging him to give his heart to God, and cliug to the cross. 236 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Brave and patriotic, William bore all his sufferings like a young hero. Patient and resigned, he was always cheerful and happy. Although other patients died around him, William lived on, notwithstanding his severe, dangerous wound, always lively and hopeful. We left him getting better. "ALL IS WELL." "Well, William, how are you to-day?" "I feel tolerably well to-day, chaplain." " Gaining a little, eh ? " " Yes, a little." "How are you spiritually? Are you soldiering for Christ as well as for your country?" "I don't know: I have lived rather a careless life ; but I feel somewhat interested in religion now." I visited him very often, and preached, talked to and prayed with him, and he enjoyed it very much. Though a non-professor, he seemed now, March 20, 1865, on my second visit, to be in- dulging a good hope. On my approaching him, he wept, and, raising his frail hand, grasped mine most heartily, and appeared to be very happy, and said, " I feel that I could fly away to Jesus." As he saw and felt death approaching, he said, " This (i. e. approaching death,) will fetch 'em." " Fetch who ? " " Fetch sinners to repentance." " Yes, the approach of ' the king of ter- rors' often brings men to their feelings, and makes them think and feel very differently from what they had ever done before. I suppose, as you feel as though you could fly away to Jesus, that you are very happy? " " Yes," he said, with deep emotions, " I feel happy in the Lord." Lingering along till March 25, his mortal machinery gave way, and with the dying, consoling words "All is well ! " he left this sublunary world, and went, we trust, to dwell with the sanctified above. His name was William F. Smith, 7th Conn., Co. D. How consoling to surviving friends, to die with the happy, " All is well " on the lips ! " To depart is far better." "OLD JACOB," THE GRAVE-DIGGER. " It takes all sorts of people to make a world," and although " God hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on CIIRISTTANITY IN THE WAR. 237 all the face of the earth," yet he has made every man with his peculiar traits and peculiar fitness for some particular position in life. Some are born to rule, others to obey. Some to wield the sword, others the pen. Some to fight and make war, others to reconcile and make peace. When God was about to publish the moral law, and deliver the captive hosts of Israel from Egyptian bondage, he raised up a Moses well fitted for the great work. When a new world was to be discovered, God raised up a Columbus to search and find it. When the gospel was to be sent to the Gentile world, a learned Paul, armed with the panoply of heaven, and with a heart burning with zeal, was raised up, thoroughly furnished for the great and arduous work. When 4,000,000 of slaves were to be emancipated, an Abraham Lin- coln steps upon the political arena, walks into the presidential chair, and with a stroke of the pen cuts their bonds asunder. When Dr. Eli McClellan, assistant surgeon of the U. S. A., and surgeon in charge of the U. S. Gen. Hospital, Fortress Mon- roe, Va., noted for his executive ability, wanted a man to super- intend the digging of graves for the departed soldiers, he made a wise choice in the selection of " Old Jacob," of Hampton, Va. With four or five other colored men, under his care, he was en- trusted with this laborious work. Always known by the familiar name, " Old Jacob," I never learned his proper name. But judg- ing from his history and from his appearance, his frank, open countenance, the simplicity of his manners, his meek disposition, and marked piety, we suppose he possessed many of the distin- guished traits that characterized Jacob of old. At the burying of the soldiers, he always behaved with marked reverence and propriety. With his hoary head bared, with his spade in one hand and hat in the other, he always listened to the funeral ser- vices with profound attention, and, judging from his deep sighs and profuse tears, he was evidently very deeply impressed with the solemn scene. There was something noble and prepossessing in his appearance. In fact, he possessed so many marked features and striking traits of character, that the distinguished Abbott, in getting up illustrations, and in preparing a lengthy article on the hospital, for Harpers' Monthly Magazine, put in his portrait, 238 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. accompanied with a brief sketch of his life. If you look in the August Number of 1864, you will see "Old Jacob/' natural as life, with his big white eye, broad-brimmed hat, with his spade in hand, standing beside a soldier's grave, in the soldiers' grave- yard at Hampton, Va. Besides digging graves, and burying the dead, he had the supervision of exhuming the dead to be sent home. And so great was the pressure in this unpleasant, sickly work, in the fall of 1864, that " Old Jacob" worked himself to death. At least he got sick, and died December 4, 1864, at Hampton, Va. Gone, we trust, to realize the blessedness of dying in the Lord. "THE BIBLE BETTER THAN GREENBACKS." Although the great mass of our soldiers were Americans, we found in the ranks men from almost every nation of the earth. The Germans and Irish were numerous. With a small sprinkle of English, French, and Scotch, we frequently met with the Swiss, the Italian, the Polander, the Russian, the Dane, and the Canadian, and, in a few instances, with " the poor Indian," wear- ing the soldier's garb, with Uncle Sam's large glittering " U. S." sticking upon his blue cap. While visiting the brave boys of ward No. 27, we accosted John Nichols, of the Oneida tribe, and belonging to the 29th Reg., Co. B, of Conn. Vol. ; and as we were conversing about religion, the war, and the country, we were somewhat surprised to learn his high appreciation of the word of God. He said, " Instead of giving the recruit green- backs, the Government should give him the Bible. The country is too much for greenbacks," he said. Deeply impressed with the horrors of war and of the value of human life, he said, " It is not right to fight and kill so many." Possessed with a humane spirit and being tired of the war, and failing doubtless to realize the great interests involved in the great struggle, he said, " I wish I had never enlisted." He was the only soldier I ever heard express his regret for having entered the service. And although there may have been, in some cases, an undue thirst for greenbacks among this war spirit, yet we did not expect such CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 239 a reproof as the above, " The country is too fond of greenbacks," from an Oneida Indian. And how very significant the sug- gestion, " Better give the recruit the Bib ] e than give him green- backs." "Although money auswereth all things," as Solomon said, yet "the love of it is the root of all evil." Money, as "the sinews of war," is good and important; yet the poor Indian says, " for the recruit the Bible is better." And so it is. Arm&l with the weapons not carnal, which it provides, man is made mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. " As you seem to think so much of the Bible, I suppose you read and study it carefully? " " Yes; I carry one along with me, and read it every day." " Do you try to live up to its precepts ? " (t Yes, I try ; but not as I ought." " God says, ' In keeping them, there is great reward.' The Bible says, c Watch and pray.' Do you pray ? " " Not much now. I prayed at home." " Prayed at home ; but not much now ! In the army is the very place, above all others, where we all ought to pray. Here, where we are exposed to so many temptations, we should pray always." Warning him of his danger, and urging him to immediate repentance, and beseeching him to fly to the Saviour, we bid him good-by. He got well. "SOMEHOW IT WORKED UPON ME." " Good-morning, Stephen ! How do you do to-day ? " "I am some better to-day, chaplain, I thank you. My wound is better, and my appetite is improving; and I am gaining strength, and coming up every way." "How are you religiously?" "I am all right religiously, I think, sir. I have been a great swearer and an awful wicked man, but I feel that I have undergone a great change lately." " Be not deceived, God is not mocked. Our hearts are so deceitful, we may think we are all right when we are all wrong. It is a very nice point to be * all right.' " " Yes, I know it is, chaplain ; but I feel that I am a converted man." " When were you converted?" "About three months ago." " Where ? " " In Chestnut Hill Hospital, near Philadel- phia, Pa." " What were the means of your conversion ? " "A 240 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. worldly man read a chapter in the Bible in the ward, one day, and somehow it worked upon me, while we were playing bluff. I went to church, and prayed, and thought on God." " You seemed to have been deeply convicted by hearing that chapter of the word of God?" "Yes, my sins seemed very great and heavy ; but I believe now God has forgiven me ; and I feel pre- pared, and am not afraid to die. God is all my trust ; besides him there is no Saviour; neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved." " There is only one way of salva- tion. That is enough. Jesus says, ' I am the way.' " " Yes, chaplain, that is enough. I feel that the Lord has done great things for me ! " "And all brought about by that worldly man reading a chapter in the Bible ? " " Yes, that has been owned and blessed of God, I believe, to my salvation." " What a glorious work : 'A great swearer' saved through a worldly man's reading a chapter in the Bible ! How clearly this demonstrates that ( the word of God is quick and powerful ; ' that ' the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.' Somehow it worked upon you ? " " Yes." " But I suppose you cannot tell how ? " " No, I cannot tell particularly ; light seemed to flash upon my mind; I saw and felt my sins were great, and, realizing my need of a Saviour, I cried to God for mercy ; and I believe he has changed my heart and washed my guilty soul." " Yes, it is all mysterious. The word of God is the instrument, and the Spirit of God is the agent, in conversion. "We know, in this great change, that the mind is enlightened, that the will is subdued, and the heart changed ; but as to the manner how it is effected is mysterious. The Saviour compares the operations of the Spirit in regeneration to the blowing of the wind, which { we can't tell whence it cometh or whither it goeth ; so is every one that is born of the Spirit.' All we can tell about it is, as you say, ' Somehow it worked upon me.' We know it by the effects produced, as we know that the wind blows, because we can feel it, and see its effects ; so we may know that we are converted, although we cannot tell how the change was brought about." And, as we see in such a striking manner the power of God's word in this case CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 241 how all-important is it to "Search the Scriptures." And inasmuch as this "great swearer" was converted through the instrumentality of u a man of the world," how strong are the inducements for sin- ners to labor for the conversion of sinners; or, in the language of the Spirit and the bride, " let him that heareth say, come." "GOD STILL STICKS TO ME." During the last few months of my labors in the hospital, I very frequently conversed with JOHN JONES, Co. E, of the 10th Reg. Western Va. Vol. He lay in the western end of ward number two, noted for containing so many badly wounded pa- tients. He was severely wounded in one of the last battles near Petersburg, Va., and brought to the hospital soon after. He said he had been converted in the army, and that he enjoyed religion, and that he derived much comfort from it. When I asked him, "Do you trust in the Saviour?" he promptly re- plied, " I will trust in him till I die. Jesus is my guide until death." Conscious of his need of help, and realizing his depend- ence upon God, he was very anxious to be prayed for. I preached to him, conversed and prayed with him very often; and he seemed to grow in grace until May 27, when he appeared to rise above all doubts, and was enabled to say, " All is well ; I am going to die." "Would you be afraid to die?" "Oh, no; I have no fear of death. When ' all is well/ to die is gain, and to depart is far better." Wrapped in a kind of vision, he said, " I heard singing in heaven last night, as I awoke out of sleep." Patient, humble, meek, and resigned, although his sufferings were long and severe, not a murmur was heard to fall from his lips. He was so submissive that he seemed to lie passive in the arms of Jesus. At another interview, among other strong expressions of his faith, he said,' " God still sticks to me." " Do you feel his presence?" "Oh, yes; he is very near to me." "And do you still try to stick to him?" "Yes; though he slay me, yet will I trust in him." " May God bless you, and enable you to 'stand fast in the Lord.' God commands us to 'war a good warfare,' to contend earnestly, to fight, and strive to enter in at the straight 10 242 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. gate. ' Jesus is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.' Just cling to and hold on to him, and he will bring you off more than conqueror. How grand and glorious your position ! " Gazing into the eternal world, with its stern realities rising in full view, with death knocking at his door, he was able to say, "All is well." What an all-comprehensive word ! Spiritually, it im- plies pardon, resignation, peace, joy, readiness, and willingness to die and go home to glory. John Jones stood the battle of life until June 21, 1865, when it seemed the victory was com- plete, and his blood-washed soul, we trust, went home to heaven. " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." "OH, CHAPLAIN! WHAT WILL I DO?" Most earnestly and piteously exclaimed JOHN CURRY, when I approached him as he lay upon his long occupied bed in the corner of a tent in the north part of " New Camp." " Do you ask what to do to be saved?" "Yes," weeping profusely. " Trust in the Lord. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. There, John, is the plan of salvation in a nut- shell. ' Only believe.' Renounce and let go of everything else, and throw yourself right into the arms of Jesus, and he will save you." I had visited him often before, and as I approached him this time, he warmly grasped my hand, threw his arm around my neck, and hugged me up to him very affectionately. He seemed very penitent and prayerful ; and after pointing him again to the Saviour, holding him up to him as one able, willing, and mighty to save, and beseeching him by the mercies of God to come unto him, at his request I read and prayed with him. He belonged to the army of the James, but having forgotten to note down his company, we cannot tell to what regiment he belonged. He was wounded May 9, 1864, in battle, and had his leg cut off 5. Camp Butler, 111 644 6. Camp Denison. Ohio 31 7. Mound City, 111 40 Rebel prisoners of war 10,288 FIRST MILITARY DISTRICT. Richmond, Va Fort Harrison, Va Glendale, Va Cold Harbor, Va City Point, Va Poplar Grove (Petersburg) Seven Pines, Va Yorktown, Va Danville, Va Hampton, Va Fredericksburg, Va Culpepper C. H., Va Winchester, Va Staunton, Va 6,281 814 1,196 1,033 5,123 5,599 1,311) 2,180 1,316 4,654 14.848 1,327 4,385 749 50,854 Of which 18,428 can probably be identified. SECOND MILITARY DISTRICT. 1. Beaufort, S. C 10,000 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 325 Namti of Cemeteria. Gravrt. 2. Florence, S. C 2,795 3. Wilmington, N. C 2,0.">9 4. Raleigh, N. C 3,287 5. Newberne, N.C 1,187 6. Salisbury, N. C 12,112 7. At Charleston, S. C 80 8. At Columbia, S. C 14 31,534 All of which have been re-interred. Of which 8,474 can probably be identified. THIRD MILITARY DISTRICT. 1. Andersonville, Ga 13,705 2. Marietta, Ga 9,972 3. Mobile, Ala 834 4. Barrancas, Fla 1,008 Total 25,519 Of which 21,040 can be probably identified; 12,519 of these have been re-interred up to date of report. FOURTH MILITARY DISTRICT. 1. Vicksburg, Miss 14,185 2. Natchez, Miss 1,720 3. Little Rock, Ark 4,050 4. Fort Smith, Ark 1,583 6. Fayetteville, Ark 1,202 22,740 Six thousand more are expected to be interred here ; of which 9,645 can probably be identified. FIFTH MILITARY DISTRICT. 1. Monument at Chalmetta.La. 12,230 2. Baton Rouge, La 2,891 3. Port Hudson, La 3,779 frames of Cemeteries. Oravtt. 4. Pinello, La 1,487 5. Fort St. Philip, La 326 6. Brownsville, Texas 1,763 7. Galveston, Texas 383 8. San Antonio, Texas 186 23,045 Of which 12,073 can be identified. DEPARTMENT OF THE CUMBERLAND. Knoxville, Tenn 3,153 Chattanooga, Tenn 12,924 Stone River, Tenn 6,810 Nashville, Tenn 16,329 Cumberland River, at Fort Donelson, Tenn 656 Shiloh, Tenn 3,582 Mississippi River, Tenn.... 13,958 Union, at Corinth, Miss.... 5,589 New Albany, Ind 1,931 Camp Nelson, Ky 2,866 Mill Springs, Ky 707 Lebanon, Ky 864 Cave Hill, Louisville, Ky., Lexington, Ky 994 Danville, Ky 355 74,114 Of which 45,189 can probably be identified. DIVISION OF THE MISSOURI. 1. At Jefferson Barracks, Mo. 8,601 2. At Jefferson City, Mo 635 3. At Springfield, Mo 1,519 4. At Fort Scott, Kansas 417 5. At Fort Leavenworth, Ks.. 702 6. At Keokuk, Iowa 627 12,501 GENERAL SUMMARY. Reports have been received from seventy-two national ceme- teries, and from three hundred and twenty local and post ceme- teries. The total number of bodies of United States soldiers reported throughout the United States is 316,233. The number of the 326 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. same which can probably be identified is 175,764, or about five-ninths of the whole number. The number of the same which cannot probably be identified is 140,469, or about four- ninths of the whole number. The number of bodies which have been re-interred up to date of report is 257,250, or about four-fifths of the whole number. The number of bodies which it is proposed to re-inter hereafter is 14,283 : thus the total number of bodies which will have been re-interred, in all, is 271,533, or about five-sevenths of the whole number of bodies. The estimated aggregate of expenditure made by the Quarter- master's Department, on account of interments and other ceme- terial operations, up to June 30, 1868, is $2,801,352.49. The expenditures required for this purpose next fiscal year are esti- mated at $553,655.84. The aggregate amount of expenditures, past and future, will thus appear to be $3,355,008.33. CHAPTER XXII. SKETCHES BY CHAPLAIN MARSHALL THE U. S. CHRIS- TIAN COMMISSION. A THEATRE TURNED INTO A EELIGIOUS MEETING MASSES OP SOL- DIERS IN CAMP DISTRIBUTION THEIR PROFANITY BURLESQUE MILITARY DRILL THE CHAPLAIN'S RESOLUTION A SHOUT UPON HIS ENTRANCE THEATRICAL PREPARATIONS THEY BLACK THEM- SELVES UP THEY SING DEVOTION RISES GOD HELPS THE CHAPLAIN READS, SPEAKS, PRAYS THEY SING WITH GREAT POWER THEY VISIT THE READING-ROOM GREAT GOOD DONE IN A SHORT TIME "No MORE SWEARING" SUNDAY NIGHT WITH THE DYING THE DYING SERGEANT SENDS FOR THE CHAPLAIN THE WEEPING FATHER PRAYS FOR His DYING SON THE DYING LIEU- TENANT DESIRES TO BE PRAYED FOR THE DYING CAPTAIN'S WARM GRASP THE FRIENDSHIP OF CHRIST THE U. S. CHRISTIAN COM- MISSION ITS ORIGIN OFFICERS FIRST MEETING ITS SPIRIT CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 327 AND ZEAL HEAD-QUARTERS ITS OBJECT FIDELITY OP ITS DELEGATES ITS EFFICIENCY AND CONTRIBUTIONS ITS POPU- LARITY " GOD BLESS THE CHRISTIAN COMMISSION." A THEATRE TURNED INTO A RELIGIOUS MEETING.* THE mass of soldiers that came into Camp Distribution, Satur- day night, March 18, 1865, left for the front on the follow- ing day. On Monday night, over a thousand came in. They formed into a large ring in front of the barracks, and witnessed burlesque military drills by some of the muster. It was dark, and I elbowed through till I got to the circle ; but there was no time during the evening when I thought that I could successfully turn the amusement into a religious meeting. When I heard the ob- scene swearing, and the responsive laugh by the crowd to the low wit of the performers, I was upon the point several times of rushing into the ring, and having my customary say to the boys going to the front. But I failed to see the time when I might be success- ful, and failure would be worse than silence. "Taps" sounded, and all dispersed, the soldiers to their bunks, and I went into the reading-room, feeling condemned that I had not made one effort for Christ and the salvation of some of these men who were on their way to the battles then raging ; and so I resolved, if they remained another night, that sink or swim, live or die, succeed or fail, I would sound the note of warning in their ears. Some of them were in the reading-room next day. Night came, and the soldiers were still there. It rained so hard that no performance could be held outside ; but to my utter surprise, when entering one end of the barracks, the other end was fitted up in a most theatrical style, and all the appointments and amusements of the stage were in full blast. I crowded through to the centre, and found a tall Irishman, as ringmaster or manager, blacked up like a negro, and several soldiers also blacked up as negro men and women, with banjos, violins, tambourines, sticks, ecame known as one of the most impressive and eloquent preachers of the denomination. As his vigorous mind became more fully developed, his popularity and usefulness increased; and being a man of energy and ripe scholarship, he was elected President of Asbury University, Greencastle, Indiana, in 1839; and he discharged the duties of that important position with so much ability, success, and satisfaction, that his reputation and influence, both as a teacher and as a pulpit orator, increased so fast that he was soon regarded as one of the leading men of the State. Improving in intellectual power and usefulness, and growing more and more in favor with the people, he was elected, by the Gen- eral Conference of 1848, to the responsible position of editor of the " Western Christian Advocate," one of the most important and influential official papers of the church. To fill this influential position well required rare qualifications and a peculiar tact. Yet Mr. Simpson, conscious of the fact that, while occupying the editorial chair, he was speaking to many thousands every week, and making every one of them either better or worse by every issue of his paper, with his well -cultivated mind and thorough knowledge of human nature and of the affairs of the church, made a very successful editor. But with all his pop- ularity and success as an editor, there was another step for Mr. Simpson to take. The church still kept railing him, "Go up higher ; " and thus advancing step by step, more and more de- veloping the great faculties of his head and heart, increasing his usefulness and power, until in 1852 the General Conference 348 CHKISTIANITY IN THE WAR. elected him to the important office of bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church of the United States. Blessed with a vigor- ous mind, an indomitable will, and a persevering heart, Bishop Simpson possesses fine qualifications for an executive officer. And being zealous in the Master's cause, he discharges the duties of his office with becoming gravity and general satis- faction. Being thoroughly acquainted with the polity, the work, and the wants of the church, he makes one of the best and most efficient superintendents of the connection. With a wide sphere of labor, and having the care of so many churches, like other bishops he travels about from place to place, holding conferences, administering discipline, dedicating churches, preaching, and or- daining men to preach the gospel. Progressive in his views, and understanding all the wants and interests of the church, Bishop Simpson's administration has been marked for the breadth and liberality of his opinions on all questions pertaining to the polity of the church. Being strongly in favor of lay represen- tation, he has been identified with this great movement from the beginning. Through his persevering labors, aided by the co- operation of other leading men, their efforts have at last been crowned with success, and the great Methodist Church of the land is now blessed with a lay representation. Full of patriotic ardor, Bishop Simpson has always stood firm for the flag of his country. He looks upon man's duty to his country as being second only to his duty to his Maker ; or, as he has (we believe) graphically expressed it : " NAIL THE FLAG JUST BELOW THE CROSS;" or, as the Saviour says, "Kender unto Caesar the thing that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." In importance, the church is the centre of the universe. Around it everything else revolves. For the church, grass grows and water flows : for the church, the sun shines by day and the moon and stars by night. God the Father " gave his Son to be head over all things to the church." Hence the impor- tance of faithfully doing your duty to your country, because a good, well-administered government tends so much to advance the prosperity of the church. Says " Harper's "Weekly," "When the civil war broke out, Bishop Simpson exerted himself to the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 349 utmost in promoting the work of suppressing the Rebellion. He was the trusted friend of the lamented Lincoln ; " and by request he made the opening prayer at his funeral at the White House in Washington. This prayer is remarkable for its being very comprehensive, fervent, and appropriate. The earnest suppliant, having implored the Divine blessing to rest upon Lincoln's bereaved widow, upon his sons, upon his successor in office, prayed, " Lord, let thy blessing rest upon our country. Grant unto us all a fixed and strong determination never to cease our efforts until our glorious Union shall be fully re-established." " Around the remains of our beloved President may we covenant together, by every possible means, to give ourselves to our country's service until every vestige of this Rebellion shall have been wiped out, and until slavery, its cause, shall be forever eradi- cated. Preserve us, we pray Thee, from all complications with foreign nations. Give us hearts to act justly towards all nations, and grant unto them hearts to act justly towards us, that uni- versal peace and happiness may fill our earth. We rejoice then in this inflicting dispensation Thou hast given, as an additional evidence of the strength of our nation. We bless Thee that no tumult has arisen, and in peace and harmony our government moves onward, and that Thou hast shown that our Republican Government is the strongest upon the face of the earth. In this solemn presence may we feel that we, too, are immortal. May the sense of our responsibility to God rest upon us ; may we repent of every sin ; and may we consecrate anew unto Thee all the time and all the talents which Thou hast given us ; tmd may we so fulfil our allotted duties that, finally, we may have a resting- place with the good and wise and great who now surround that glorious throne." As a preacher, Bishop Simpson has but few equals. Being an intimate friend of President Lincoln, he was selected to de- liver the closing oration at his funeral at Springfield, Illinois. And his comprehensive grasp of the subject of his sermon on that occasion, and the masterly manner in which he treated the great topics therein discussed, denote a thorough knowledge of the aifairs of the world and of the human heart, and an. 350 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ability to delineate and analyze human character seldom equalled. It is often very difficult to ascertain exactly wherein a great man's strength lies. Sometimes it is found in one faculty, and sometimes in another. And here the skilful orator, exploring the heart and scanning the mind of the martyred hero, points out with wonderful precision wherein his great strength lay. And where was it ? was it chiefly in his head $ No. With all his mighty intellectual grasp and strong powers of quick perception and close discrimination, his great moral strength laid more in the goodness of his heart than in the brilliancy of his mind. "And," said Bishop Simpson, in his funeral oration, " if you ask rne on what mental characteristics his greatness rested, I answer, on a quick and ready perception of facts ; on a memory unusually tenacious and retentive ; and on a logical turn of mind, which followed sternly and unwaveringly every link in the chain of thought on every subject which he was called to investigate. . . . Who that has read his messages fails to perceive the directness and simplicity of his style? And this very trait, which was scoffed at and descried by opponents, is now recognized as one of the strong points of that mighty mind which so powerfully influenced the destinies of the nation, and which, shall for ages to come influence the destiny of humanity. " It was not, however, chiefly by his mental faculties that he gained such control over mankind. His moral power gave hirn pre-eminence. The convictions of men that Abraham Lincoln was an honest man led them to yield to his guidance. As has been said of Cobden, whom he greatly resembled, he made all men feel a sense of himself a recognition of individuality, a self-relying power. They saw in him a man whom they believed would do what is right regardless of consequences. It was this moral feeling that gave him the greatest hold on the people, and made his utterances almost oracular. When the nation was angered by the perfidy of foreign nations in allowing privateers to be fitted out, he uttered the significant expression, ' One war at a time/ and it stilled the national heart. There are instants which seem to contain germs which shall develop and bloom forever. Such a moment came in the tide of our own land, when CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAK. 351 a question must be settled which affected all the earth. The contest was for human freedom. Not for this republic merely, not for the Union simply, but to decide whether the people, as a people, in their entire majesty, were destined to be the gov- ernment, or whether they were to be subject to tyrants or aristo- crats, or to class of any kind. This is the great question for which we have been fighting, and its decision is at hand, and the result of the contest will affect ages to come. If successful, republics will spread, in spite of monarchs, all over this earth." [Exclamations of " Amen," Thank God."] With a warm, gushing heart, glowing with tenderness and sympathy, Bishop Simpson's manner partakes somewhat of the Whitefield style. Of the three great French pulpit orators, it is said that Bossuet addressed the imagination, Massillon, the heart, and Bourdaloue, the understanding. And while Dr. Simpson sometimes soars aloft in the field of imagination, yet generally he addresses himself more to the understanding and the heart. Full of vigor and life, his fine, charming voice and his plain, vivid, fluent style of presenting the truth give him a wonderful power over his hearers ; and, rising with the importance of his subject, with all his majesty of thought, vehemence, and tenderness of manner, and irresistible strength of argument, he carries away his audience with a force almost irresistible. Bishop Simpson preaches Christ. His sermons, though graphic in description, touching and impressive, abound with the doc- trines of the Cross. And in grasping for the soul, he often says some very comprehensive and striking things. In his recent sermon before the New England Conference, he said, " If there is anything I covet in this world, it is the power of making man feel that he stands before the throne of God. I would covet the power to take my audience to the Croas, to let them see Jesus in all his mercy and in all his love." When the church is pressed for funds, if they want to raise a large collection, when Bishop Simpson is present they always put him up to preach ; and, by the power of his touching eloquence and earnest appeals in press- ing the wants of the church and the claims of the gospel, he never fails to secure a very large collection. During the late 352 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. .Rebellion the Bishop made a tour to Denver and the Gold Re- gions in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, preaching at every opportunity to lawyers, politicians, miners, and gamblers; and he always had very large, attentive congregations. Sometimes, in times of deep distress and great peril, when the destiny of the nation seems to hang upon the decision of the hour, and when the path of duty seems dark, and you know not what to do, it is good to have a wise, trusty friend to consult with. Such a friend was Bishop Simpson to President Lincoln. But this eminent divine not only enjoyed the abiding confi- dence of President Lincoln, which he might have won during the anxieties, reverses, and successes of the war, but he also enjoys the friendship and full confidence of President Grant, who recently appointed him as one of the commissioners to visit San Domingo, to consult with others upon the propriety of annexing that fertile island to the United States. In point of standing, the Bishop still seems to be increasing in usefulness and rising in influence and power. We close this brief, imperfect sketch with the Bishop's graphic peroration at the tomb of Lincoln. Having quoted a touching sentence of Lincoln, with deep and tender emotion he exclaimed: " Chieftain, farewell ! The nation mourns thee. Mothers shall teach thy name to their lisping children. The youth of our land shall emulate thy virtues. Statesmen shall study thy record, and learn lessons of wisdom. Mute though thy lips be, yet they still speak. Hushed is thy voice, but its echoes of liberty are ringing through the world, and the sons of bondage listen with joy. Prisoned thou art in death, and yet thou art marching abroad, and chains and manacles are bursting at thy touch. Thou didst fall not for thyself. The assassin had no hate for thee. Our hearts were aimed at, our national life was sought. We crown thee as our martyr, and humanity enthrones thee as her triumphant son. Hero, martyr, friend, farewell! " CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 353 ADMIRAL FARRAGUT. A new Era in Naval Affairs Fight between the Monitor and Merrimac Progress in Destroying and Saving Man Satan's Whetting his Sword should Arouse the Church Farragut's Birth Enters the U.S. Navy His First and Second Engagements Heroic Courage Wounded Highly Esteemed by his Commander His Heroism Sleeps Sails all over the World Promoted His Loyalty Went North Com- mands a Naval Expedition vs. New Orleans His Large Fleet Cap- tures New Orleans Daring Feats in Capturing Vicksburg His Stratagem and Heroism in Capturing Mobile Lashed Himself to the Rigging of his Ship in Battle Calls upon God for Help and Direction Severe Fight with a Rebel Ironclad He Whipped her She Surrenders Promoted Again His Habits Decorating his Grave His Prayer in the Battle of Mobile Bay " Go Forward" His Religious Life Testimony of Lieut. Montgomery. THE late war established a new era in naval affairs. Hitherto the fighting at sea had been done on wooden vessels. But now, in the navy, " old things pass away, and all things become new." Fresh light having dawned upon the inventive genius of Captain Ericsson, he begins to construct war vessels upon a new and improved plan, and the feeble old wooden hulks give way to the introduction of the destructive ironclads. And although with those inferior crafts distinguished victories had been won, yet for speedy destruction of life, for naval skill and naval glory, those achieved under the new era are far greater. The unprecedented, fierce, and bloody fight between the Monitor and Merrimac, off Hampton Roads, Va., astonished the world. It put an end to the use of wooden vessels of war, and very materially changed the naval and military strength of the nations of the earth. And notwithstanding the late great progress made in Christian civilization and in the arts and sciences, the introduction of ironclads into the navy, and the needle-gun and the mitrailleuse in the army, indicate a progress m the art of war hitherto unknown. And when we view the awful carnage in the recent civil war in France, and look upon the sixty thousand uncoifined dead lying unburied in the bloody streets of Paris, we are led to believe that the recent progress 23 354 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. made in the art of destroying man is much greater than any made to save him. And as Satan is whetting his sword and devising new means for man's destruction, most assuredly the Church, under God, should search out and devise new measures for his salvation. In the galaxy' of naval glory, no star shines brighter than the subject of this sketch. His father was a naval officer before him, and fought under Commodore Patterson a long while ago, at the battle of New Orleans. David Glascoe Farragut was born at Campbell's Station, in East Tennessee, in 1801. He joined the United States Navy when a boy of only nine years of age, and served a severe ap- prenticeship under Commodore Porter. His first naval engage- ment was under Porter in the Essex, with the English sloop-of- war Alert, on the 13th day of April, 1812. Eager for action, as soon as the Alert saw the Essex, she ran violently upon her, and with much loud cheering, opened her entire broadside upon her with great fury. The brave commodore, undismayed, and thirsting for victory, quickly replied with such terrible effect that the sinking Alert was knocked into drowning helplessness, and surrendered in eight minutes after commencing the fight. Farragut's next engagement was in the destructive fight in Valparaiso harbor with the British Captain Hillyar. In this noted combat the young midshipman displayed great courage. The British vessel, with a force double that of the Essex, by a gross violation of the laws of neutrality succeeded in destroying the Essex; yet Farragut, then but twelve years old, although he received a wound in the fight, stood firmly to his post to the very last. In this brave act of the young hero, you see in embryo the heroic admiral. With his deck strewn with the killed and wounded, the humane Porter, when all hope was lost, surrendered his bloody wreck to save himself and the helpless wounded from a watery grave. With the other officers of the ship, Farragut was sent home on parole, accompanied with words of high com- mendation from Commodore Porter, who in his report to the Secretary of the Navy expressed his sincere regret that the noble boy was too young for promotion. It is more than probable that CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 355 no other boy in the world, so young, ever endured with so much courage and firmness a fight so terrible and bloody. And such worthy and noble conduct in the young midshipman so com- pletely won the esteem of Commodore Porter that he at once pro- vided for his military and general education. But Farragut preferred the navy to the army, and as soon as the war was over he went back to sea again. With these bright displays of bravery, the heroism of Far- ragut, for the want of opportunities to develop it, was suffered to lie almost dormant for over forty years. For some forty-five years he sailed about, all over the world, from place to place, commanding at different harbors, slowly advancing in rank by seniority, until, in 1825, he was made lieutenant. In 1841 he became commander, and in 1851 he was raised to the rank of captain. When the rebellion burst upon the world, he had served forty- eight years in the United States Navy, yet with his great genius as a naval officer almost entirely undeveloped, and altogether unknown to the world. Having always lived in the South, it was expected he would secede and go with the South in their rebellion and trea- son ; but having sailed so long under the flag of his country, he had learned to respect and honor it too much to rebel and fight against it. He was living at Norfolk, Va., at the time, and as soon as he publicly declared his principles, and made known his determina- tion to stand by his country, he was met with heavy frowns and severe threats. The hot-headed rebels told him it might be unsafe for him to utter, and remain in the South with, such sentiments. " Very well," he said, " I will go where I can live with such sentiments ; " and making ready, he left Norfolk on the night of the 18th of April, 1861, the very night before the rebels fired the navy yard of that place. He sailed for the Hudson River, New York, and stopped for a short time near Tarry town, where, being a perfect stranger, he was looked upon for a while with a good deal of suspicion. As the rebellion spread itself, the demand for naval strength increased. Captain Farragut received his first appointment Jan- uary 20, 1862, to command the naval part of an expedition 356 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. against New Orleans. After a tedious preparation, with a fleet of forty-six sail, the largest ever known in America at that time, Farragut sailed in his splendid flagship Hartford, from Hamp- ton Roads, February 3, 1862, and reached Ship Island, near New Orleans, by the 20th of the following March. The mortar vessels were commanded by Commodore D. D. Porter. After a short consultation with General Butler, it was concluded to advance. Farragut gave the command, and the vast fleet sailed up to the forts, and on the 18th of April com- menced a furious bombardment, which lasted six days. Finding the reduction of the forts rather a tedious job, Farragut concluded to pass them; and, dividing his squadron into two columns, after getting under way, they passed the forts under a most furi- ous fire, in an hour and ten minutes. This was a very danger- ous feat. Of all injuries received, the Brooklyn fared the worst, which lost eight men killed and twenty wounded. The enemy's steam-rams ran a fire-raft aboard the Hartford, and drove her ashore; but the skilful commodore soon drew her off, but not without being severely injured. The forts having been thus passed, and the enemy's fleet sunk or captured, the Union fleet entered the harbor of New Orleans with but little opposition, and the city surrendered to Commodore Farragut, April 26, 1862. After things became a little settled, General Butler went in and took possession, and established his headquarters in the St. Charles Hotel, which had been closed for some time. He soon established martial law, instituted and maintained a government, though somewhat severe, admirably adapted to the city of New Orleans. After issuing his proclamation, he made a speech to the people, and gave them to understand, with characteristic firm- ness, what he meant to do. Baton Rouge, Natchez, and other points above, yielded with- out making any opposition, at the approach of the Union forces ; and Commodore Farragut, with his vast fleet reinforced, received orders to open the Mississippi River from one end to the other. But this fiery trial and brilliant victory was only a prelude and a foretaste of what was to follow. Vicksburg was the next stronghold to be taken ; and on the CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 357 26th of June the batteries around it were bombarded all day with but little effect. On the 27th, at the command of Commo- dore Porter, the town was shelled. Meanwhile the daring Far- ragut was lying five miles below, and while Porter was going on with his bombarding, he succeeded in passing the well-fortified city in the face of its blazing batteries, with eight vessels of his fleet, with a loss of only four killed and twenty wounded. Having got above the town, he was met by Commodore Davis, descend- ing from Memphis, when Farragut determined to open the river by cutting a canal through a tongue of land, and leave Vicksburg far to one side, entirely out of the way ; but the falling of the river thwarted his design, and compelled him to sail down the river for deeper water ; and the capture of the place at that time was abandoned. The attack on Vicksburg was resumed the following autumn. Meanwhile, the Federal arms had been crowned with such brilliant victories and successes in the earlier part of 1862, that, for a while, some entertained strong hopes of a speedy termina- tion of the war. The Confederates had been driven out of Missouri, Western and Middle Tennessee had been occupied by Union forces, and with the capture of New Orleans (excepting Vicksburg and Port Hudson) the passage of the Mississippi was now clear. And Vicksburg, as it was strongly defended by nature, and much stronger by rebel forces, being the prin- cipal obstruction, an attack was made upon it first. An ex- pedition, under General Banks and Farragut, was to ascend the river from New Orleans to meet one- under General Sherman and Commodore Porter from Memphis, while General Grant was to operate in the rear of the city. With this formidable combination, they hoped to take the place. But it failed. And after this and other schemes had failed, General Grant determined upon the very dangerous plan of running a por- tion of the fleet past Vicksburg to make an attack below. And to aid in this, the fearless Farragut, inspiring his brave men with fresh courage by facing danger' and death, attempted to pass Port Hudson with its impregnable fortifications and four 358 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. miles of blazing batteries, with seven of his vessels the Hart- ford, Albatross, Richmond, Kineo, Monongahela, Genesee, and the Mississippi. With eyes flashing with courageous fire, the heroic admiral gives the command, and the daring fleet, falling into line, sails on through vast volleys of balls and bursting shells spreading death and destruction among the struggling ships and sailors. The awful firing was so severe and destructive that only two of the entire fleet, the Hartford and the Albatross, succeeded in passing. The Richmond was so severely damaged that she re- treated. The Mississippi was destroyed. About eighty persons of the fleet were killed in the hazardous undertaking. This was on March 14, 1863. The Federal army now being below Vicks- burg, and supported by the formidable fleet, the capture of the long sought-for city looked far less difficult. Although the rebels poured in their forces by tens of thousands to defend it, and although it was girded with seven hills by the God of na- ture, yet ere the setting of the bloody sun of July 3, 1863, it fell into the Federal hands, and surrendered to General Grant. But Farragut's greatest fight and grandest naval victory re- mains to be told. With the capture of Vicksburg, and the complete opening of the Mississippi, his next great undertaking was the capture of Mobile. And, in order to understand the greatness of that victory, it will be necessary to know something about the strength of the fortifications to be overcome. Besides three lines of strong earthworks extending five or six miles in rear of the city, and five thirty-two rifled batteries strewn along the bay with immense obstructions of piles stuck in the channel, there played in the waters about the city the impregnable iron- clad ram Tennessee, and four large wooden gunboats besides. Yet Forts Morgan and Gaines at the mouth of Mobile Bay con- stituted the principal obstruction in taking Mobile by sea. But before the unterrified admiral this mighty force was soon made to give way. Early in July, Farragut, with his fleet, accompa- nied by a land force under Generals Canby and Granger, arrived in Mobile Bay. After a short consultation between the admiral and the generals, it was determined to invest Fort Gaines first. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 359 For this purpose, the fleet covered the landing of a force of some four thousand men under General Granger. Meanwhile, feeling their danger, the enemy kept pouring in troops and supplies into Fort Gaincs to strengthen its defence. Early on August 4th, the Federal fleet, twenty-six sail, including t\vo double and one single turreted monitor, and one ironclad, commenced closing in their lines east of Fort Morgan, as though they were concen- trating their forces on Fort Gaines. But this was only a feigned preparatory step, and by forty minutes past five on the morning of August 5th, the mighty fleet, two abreast and lashed together, set sail. Grand and buoyant they steamed fearlessly up the main channel of the bay, and by forty-seven minutes past six the ironclad Tecumseh fired the first shot. In a few minutes the fort opened upon the fleet, and immediately the action became general. The fort played heavily on the Brooklyn and Hartford, and the fight began to wax very hot. Buoyant with hope and courage, thirst- ing for victory, the heroic admiral lashed himself to the mast of his ship the better to give command, and there, standing above the smoke and dust of battle, watched with eagle eye the pro- gress of the mighty conflict. Fighting with perfect desperation, the famous ironclad Tecumseh, shattered by a torpedo, careened and sank- nearly all on board sinking with her. Undis- mayed at this heavy loss, the persistent admiral, calling upon God for help and direction, at once peremptorily ordered up the wooden boats to fill up the loss. The flagship Hartford then led the fleet, and, urged on by their brave hero, they steamed stead- ily forward, maintaining a constant fire, and passed the destruc- tive forts a little before eight o'clock. But though past, the fight was not ended. The rebel gun- boats Morgan, Gaines, and Selma, which had kept up such an annoying fire, were then attacked, and one of them was captured and another destroyed. Then followed a most terrible fight with the Tennessee, which at once made for the flagship Hartford; whereupon the monitors were immediately ordered to attack her. The Mononyahela, Commander Strong, struck her first ; but re- ceived far more injury than she inflicted. The rebel monster then received heavy blows from the Lackawanna and the Hart- 360 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ford and the Manhattan, but with little effect, except a fifteen- inch shot from the latter which broke through her iron plating. Determined upon her destruction, the Hartford fearlessly made at her again with full speed, and, with the combined efforts of their united forces, she was now reduced to a desperate condition. With her steering chains gone and smoke-stack shot away, she was compelled to resort to her relieving tackles. And increasing their firing on and on, they waged the furious fight until, seeing the Ossipee was about to strike her a tremendous blow, she raised the white flag and surrendered about ten o'clock. During this severe fight with the Tennessee and the rebel gunboats, the fleet lost more men than it did in passing Fort Morgan. Admiral Buchanan, commanding the Tennessee, was wounded in the leg, and two or three of his men were killed, and five or six wounded. Commodore Johnston, formerly of the United States Navy, came on board the flagship to surrender his and Admiral Buchanan's sword to the victorious Farragut. Thus ended one of the fiercest and most destructive naval engagements on record. Thus, too, for the first time in the history of the world, was a naval officer known to risk the danger of lashing himself to the rigging of his ship on entering an engagement. In this grand adventure it had been thought, as the ship channel was so very near to Fort Morgan, that it would be impos- sible for any ships to pass. But by the discerning Farragut this seeming insurmountable difficulty was very soon overcome, and even turned to an advantage to him and a disadvantage to them. Lashing his vessels together, two and two, he diminished the exposure, and secured the safety and integrity of the fleet. This was a most masterly contrivance. On the 7th of August, Forts Powel and Gaines surrendered, and, with another small skirmish, on the 23d Fort Morgan surrendered also. With the surrender of Forts Gaines and Morgan eighty-six guns and fifteen hundred men fell into the hands of the Union forces. In honor of his distinguished services in these splendid victo- ries, Commodore Farragut was, in July, 1863, promoted to the rank of rear-admiral, and in August of the following year he CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 361 was raised to the rank of vice-admiral, which grade was created by Congress especially for him. Being remarkably neat, clean, and temperate in his habits, Ad- miral Farragut enjoyed very good, vigorous health. He would not even so much as smoke a cigar. And the distinguished favors and the strong testimonials of high regard he has received, both at home and abroad, show in the most decided terms how highly his valuable services are appreciated by the people. Mourned by the nation, his full history would fill volumes. Enshrined in the heart, embalmed in the memory, for his heroic, noble deeds, he will live in the affections of the people forever. We clip the following from a New York paper of May 30, 1871, which shows how fresh his memory still exists in the minds of the people : " Admiral Farragut's grave at Wood Lawn was decorated at sunrise this morning; the ceremonies being per- formed by a battalion of marines under Colonel Brooke, with a full band from the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Farragut Lodge of Good Templars, and the Wadsworth Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, both of Brooklyn. General S. Catlin, of Williams- burg, delivered an eloquent address commemorative of the life and services of the deceased admiral, after which the grave was profusely covered with cut and growing flowers. Admiral M. Smith, commanding the Brooklyn Navy Yard, was also present at the ceremonies." A large portion of the crowd were ladies. FARRAGUT AT PRAYER. "Man's extremity is God's opportunity." Deeply impressed with a sense of want, and conscious of his own weakness, in times of great emergency, when all human aid seems to fail, it is natural for man to go to God for help. Sinking Peter, hanging upon the verge of a watery grave, cried, " Lord, save me I " The ship- wrecked disciples, tossed upon the ocean's raging billows, feeling their awful danger and helplessness, fled to Jesus, and cried, " Lord, save, or we perish!" Farragut, in the depths of a great emergency, and feeling the salvation of his country hanging as it were upon his own success, 362 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. lashed to the rigging of his ball-riven and mast-shattered ship, with cannon-balls flying thick about him, and with his fleet halt- ing and sinking around him, when hesitating what to do, fled to God for help and direction, and cried, " God, my Maker, lead me to do this day, what is right and best for my country! " * " In answer to this prayer, the admiral said he heard a voice from heaven, which seemed to say, in tones of thunder, ' Go forward! Go FORWARD ! ' >:< He went forward ; and for deeds of daring courage, high naval skill, and unyielding perseverance, achieved a victory, for grandeur and glory far exceeding anything ever accomplished in the world ! When we come to speak more particularly of the great admi- ral's religious life, our data is more scanty. Absorbed with his grand naval achievements, our historian has failed fully to record his religious history. But the admiral has always sustained a good reputation as a faithful, consistent Christian. He belonged to the Protestant Episcopal Church ; and the Rev. Dr. Montgo- mery, who preached his funeral sermon, says another, " alluded, in very strong and feeling terms, to his wonderful character as a Christian hero." With his faith and religious emotions highly wrought up in contemplating the melting scenes of Calvary, Dr. Montgomery says " he always partook of the holy communion with great religious fervor." The purity of his life, his heroic devotion to his country, his great love of truth, and his unbounded kindness, together with his earnest prayer to God, in passing the belching batteries at Fort Morgan, speak much in favor of his Christian character. And says Lieutenant James E. Montgomery, the admiral's secretary, who was with him under all kinds of circumstances, for many years, and who was more intimately associated with him than any one else outside of his family : " I fail to recall one act that reflects upon him as an upright, exemplary Chris- tian ; and at the same time I bear full testimony to the truth of the well- won and justly deserved reputation he has left to the world. He was always truly religious, and he never forgot or * Related by Rev. Dr. Montgomery in preaching the admiral's funeral sermon. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAK. 363 neglected his duties as a professing Christian." These, together with "his unbounded charity, tender-hearted disposition, and child-like simplicity, made him one of nature's noblemen, who was at once the hero of the sea and a model Christian patriot." Full of years and victories, crowned with unfading honor and glory, this noble-hearted hero left this world August 14, 1870. He died at the residence of Commodore Pennock, in the Navy Yard at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and was temporarily buried there August 17. His remains were removed to New York, and deposited with unparalleled honors in a beautiful mound in Woodlawn Cemetery, September 30, 1870. " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." 364 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. GEORGE H. STUART. Sketch of, by Dr. Wylie His Birth Parents Education Arrival in this Country Religious Profession Elected Ruling Elder His Christian Zeal and Liberality Missionary Spirit A Sabbath-school Worker Suggested the National Presbyterian Convention, and Pre- sided over it His Suspension from the Church Refused a Position in President Grant's Cabinet A Successful Merchant His Natural Talents Christian Character An Expert Presiding Officer His Natural Eloquence Attractive Speaker and Successful Beggar He always Succeeds Goes About Doing Good His Marriage Family Personal Appearance His Labors in the Christian Commission Its Leading Spirit and President His Qualifications and Devotion to the Work Secret of His Success Distributes Books Overcomes an Infidel The People's Faith in him Money Flows in at his Ask- ing His Importunity Prevails His Zeal to Supply the Needy Sol- diers His Kindness to the Rebels Rebels Weep at Northern Kind- ness His Fondness for Army Relics " His Generalship in Prayer " He can always have Prayer " An Eminent Christian at Work " His Christian Sagacity His Popularity An Eloquent Speaker His Speech in England. THE wisdom, goodness, and power of God are strikingly mani- fested in amply providing for every emergency of His people. And His provisions are always according to the exigency of the case. " As thy days, so shall thy strength be." When the world was about to be deluged, God raised up a Noah to prepare an ark to the saving of his house and two of every living thing. When a great Reformation was to be brought about, God raised up a Luther to bring it to pass. When three millions of slaves were to be led out of Egyptian bondage, a Moses was raised up to do it. When the Church was made to pass through a fiery trial of fierce persecution, God raised up hosts of heroic martyrs to die at the stake to sustain it. When a new nation was to be born, God raised up a Washington and hosts of other heroes to establish it. When a great rebellion was to be quelled, God raised up a mighty army to quell it ; and when a great Christian Commission was necessary to sustain that army, God raised up a Stuart to manage it. " Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up." CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 365 The following extract is from the pen of the Rev. T. W. J. Wylie, D. D., of Philadelphia, Mr. Stuart's distinguished pastor and friend : "GEORGE HAY STUART was born at Rosehall, County Down, Ireland, April 2, 1816. His parents were highly respected members of the Associate Presbyterian Church, under the pas- toral care of the late Rev. George Hay, whose name he bears. After receiving the usual elements of education, he immigrated to this country, to which several of his family had previously come; arriving in Philadelphia, September 1, 1831. Shortly afterward he became a regular attendant at the First Reformed Presbyterian Church, of which the late Rev. Dr. S. B. Wylie was then the pastor. In connection with this he made a profession of religion April 24th, 1835. On the 7th of August, 1842, he was ordained a ruling elder, an office which he still holds. Mr. S. enjoyed the highest regard of his pastor, who was able to dis- cern in his character even at an early age the germs of excellence which have been subsequently so fully developed. Mr. 'S. has always been one of the most active, liberal, and useful members of the congregation ; and to his munificent contributions, as well as his untiring personal labors, much of its prosperity has been owing. The handsome and commodious edifice occupied by the congregation, and which has historic fame as the place of meet- ing of the Presbyterian National Convention in 1867, was erected principally by his exertions and received his generous aid. Mr. S. has been an early and warm supporter of the For- eign Missionary cause, and for many years acted as treasurer of the Board of Foreign Missions of the Reformed Presbyterian Church. The Missionary Refuge at Landour, Northern India, was his gift to the Saharunpur Mission, to all of whose operations he has made large donations. He was also, for many years, treas- urer of the Theological Seminary of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, which received from him valuable aid. He was early interested in the Sabbath -school cause. Shortly after his arrival in this country he became connected, as a teacher, with the Sab- bath school of the First Reformed Presbyterian Church, Phila- delphia, and after a few years was elected its superintendent, an 366 CHEISTIANITY IN THE WAR. office which he filled for about twenty-five years with the greatest success, the number of teachers and pupils in the parent school, and two white and one colored mission schools connected with the congregation, amounting at one time to nearly a thousand. " Mr. Stuart's efforts to do good have not, however, been re- stricted to any one denomination. Wherever good was to be done, he has been ready to give all the aid in his power. The delegation of the Irish Presbyterian Church sent to this country during the years of famine in that land, owed to his counsel, co-operation, and contributions much of its success. The Rev. Dr. Duff visited America by his invitation, and the extensive tour he made, and the large amount of money he re- ceived for the College in Calcutta, was, in a great measure, the result of Mr. S.'s arrangements. Other deputations from the Presbyterian Churches of Ireland and Scotland were greatly indebted to him. The Presbyterian National Convention held in Philadelphia, November, 1867, which did so much to effect the reunion of the Old and New School Churches, was suggested by him, and he was called by acclamation to act as its president. He has been connected with Young Men's Christian Associations since their organization, and was President of the National Con- ventions held at Troy in 1859, and Chicago, 1863. He has been for many years an officer of the American Sunday-School Union, and of the American Bible and American Tract Societies, in each of whose operations he has taken An active part. "In 1868 he was suspended by the General Synod of the Re- formed Presbyterian Church from his office as a ruling elder, and his membership in the church, on a charge of having sung hymns and communed with Christians of other evangelical denomina- tions, and declaring that he would continue to do so. This was done without any trial, and in his absence in consequence of severe sickness, during which his physician would not allow him to leave his room. This act of discipline was formally condemned and repudiated by about half of the Presbyteries of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, and led to a suspension of their relations to the Synod. The large majority of the congregation with which he was connected, along with his pastor, refused to recog- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 367 nize it, and it has met with severe and almost universal condem- nation wherever it has been known. " The esteem and confidence felt for Mr. S. have led to his being called upon to discharge important public trusts. lie has re- peatedly and urgently been invited by President Grant to occupy a place in his Cabinet, which he has declined on account of his precarious health. He has, however, been acting as one of the Indian Commissioners whose labors have done so much to protect our aborigines from wrong. He is also one of the members of the Board of Public Trusts of the city of Philadelphia, to which the charge of the humane and benevolent institutions under the care of the city has been committed. " As a merchant, Mr. Stuart occupies the foremost rank, not only in regard to enterprise and sagacity, but also for an integ- rity which has never been tarnished by a dishonest or dishonor- able action. During the war, while acting as President of the Christian Commission, and attending to the management of his own business, he found time to superintend the detaiJs of the Commis- sion with a devotion which secured at the lowest expense the greatest efficiency. " Mr. Stuart's natural talents are of a superior order, and would have rendered him a distinguished man in any position, whether military, political, or ecclesiastical. Like the good king of Judah, ' whatever he does, he does it with all his heart, and prospers.' It is, however, as an humble, earnest, generous, and laborious servant of Christ that his great eminence is manifested. He is emphatically a man of prayer. Few persons, there is reason to believe, are as attentive to the private duties of religion, and none can excel him in conducting public services. Those who hear him pray feel that his heart rises to GOD. He is very frequently called on to preside at public meetings, which he does with une- qualled ability. He possesses great natural eloquence. His style is earnest, direct, and luminous. At times he moves to tears, and again he displays great power of humor. None can command better the attention of an audience, or obtain more liberal con- tributions to the cause which he advocates. We know not that he has ever failed in anything he has undertaken. 368 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. " While doing much in public, Mr. Stuart is remarkable for doing more in private. He is frequently at the bedside of the sick and dying ; and avails himself of every opportunity in the car, the steamer, the hotel, the counting-room, the workshop, the crowded street, or the lonely dwelling, to give words of counsel and comfort, and to lead the sinner to the Saviour. To him ' to live is CHRIST/ " Mr. Stuart has naturally a robust constitution, which his habits of strict temperance have kept unimpaired, although his labors have been so abundant. He has been, however, for many years a great sufferer from spasmodic asthma, which has frequently prevented him for weeks in succession from resting in bed. Even in the most severe paroxysms of pain, he has been enabled to endure all without a murmur. " Mr. Stuart was married, May llth, 1837, to Miss Martha K. Denison, of Philadelphia. They have had nine children, four of whom have been called to the heavenly world, three dying in childhood, and one, William David, in his twenty -third year, a young man of remarkable talents, sanctified by an extraordinary measure of divine grace. Mr. Stuart's house has been the delight- ful resort of the great and good of all lands : few strangers of dis- tinction visiting this country have not lodged under his roof, or sat at his table; while at the same time, multitudes unknown to fame have received his warm-hearted hospitality. " In person, Mr. Stuart is a man who would attract attention by the benignant expression of his features, along with the intel- ligence and animation which his countenance displays. He is nearly six feet in height, somewhat broad-shouldered, and stout, though with a stoop recently from the effect of sickness and excessive labor." The mercantile firm with which Mr. Stuart has been so long con- nected was first established at Philadelphia in 1827, and has con- sisted of the brothers, Messrs. John, Joseph, David, James, and George H. Stuart, the last named being admitted in 1837. It has had establishments in New York, Manchester, and Liverpool, as well as in Philadelphia. The business has always been man- aged with great ability ; and during all the financial crises which CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 369 have occurred, every shock has been sustained with a reputation for integrity, liberality, prudence, and success, which have never been surpassed. But it is of Mr. Stuart's arduous labors in the Christian Com- mission we wish now to speak more jparticularly. Aroused by the bombardment of Fort Sumter, and stung by the defeat of Bull Run, with the war-cloud rapidly thickening over the national horizon ; 'and convinced that the quelling of the rebellion was no small undertaking moved by the warm impulses of compassion and sympathy for the soldier and patri- otic devotion the United States Christian Commission sprang into existence as by magic. It rose from a spontaneous and heart- gushing liberality, and from a burning desire and a full deter- mination of the loyal people of the land to quell the rebellion and save the country. Its object was to aid in promoting the spiritual and temporal welfare of the officers, soldiers, and sailors of the army and navy of the United States. In this grand movement, the like of which was before un- known to the world, Mr. Stuart was the great leading spirit from beginning to end. At its first meeting he was chosen chairman of the Commission, and so remained till its close.* Embracing men of all the leading evangelical denominations, and embodying a large amount of the best character and talent of the nation, inspired with the noble cause of liberty and self-government, it was at once capable of a glorious work. Liberal, enterprising, and with an energetic, buoyant heart, and possessing fine executive abilities and a lofty patriotism, Mr. Stuart was eminently qualified for the position of chairman ; * The following extract 'from the " First Annual Report of the Chris- tian Commission " shows its origin : " At a convention of delegates from Young Men's Christian Associations, held in the city of New York, November 16, 1861, the following persons were appointed as a United States Christian Com- mission: Rev. Rollin H. Neale, D.D., Boston; George H. Stuart, Esq., Phila- delphia ; Charles Demond, Esq., Boston ; John P. Crozier, Esq., Philadelphia; Rev. Bishop E. S. Janes, D.D., New York ; Rev. M. L. R. P. Thompson, D.D., Cincinnati; Hon. Benj. F. Manniere, New York; Col. Clinton B. Fisk, St. Louis ; Rev. Benj. C. Cutler, D.D., Brooklyn ; John V. Farwell, Esq., Chicago ; Mitchell H. Miller, Esq., Washington ; John D. Hill, M.D., Buffalo." 24 370 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. and enjoying the full confidence of the American people, with his excellent business qualifications, rich experience, and un- bounded popularity, he managed the affairs of the Commission with marked ability, strict economy, and universal satisfaction. Aided by the hearty co-operation of a generous, patriotic people and efficient officers, and encouraged by the exigencies of the case and the glory of the cause, Mr. Stuart, under God, has made this noble institution a great blessing to the army and navy, to the Church, and to the world.* And he not only managed the Commission well, but with a heart longing for souls and glowing with compassion for the soldier, he made an excellent canvasser in the hospital and the camp. With a head well stored and a heart well fired with the doctrines of the Cross, he could sit down and talk Jesus to the sick, wounded, and dying soldier with great success. His great- heartedness, overflowing kindness, warm sympathies, abounding charity, and Christian enthusiasm, together with a soul lit up by the spirit of God, eminently fitted him for this great, soul-saving work. With these winning traits, painstaking labors, and earnest desires for the soldier's welfare, the noble-hearted philanthropist soon won their warmest attachment and love. Professor Stoever, of Gettysburg, Pa., in describing the battle of Gettysburg to Mr. Daniel Macrea, of Glasgow, said " that Mr. Stuart was there, and prayed with dying men upon the field. He was very much loved by the soldiers. One of our poor boys at Gettysburg lifted his bleeding head, and said to Mr. Stuart, 'Will you let me kiss you before I die?'" With hearts over- flowing with gratitude for acts of kindness received, they would frequently kiss the hand of the delegate or chaplain. But with all these eminent gifts and 'graces, the great secret of Mr. Stuart's success, under God, was mainly in his unyielding perseverance. It lay in the principle that prompted his im- mortal words : f " I DON'T BELIEVE IN BEING CONQUERED ! " * A further account of the labors, expenses, and contributions of the Com- mission is contained in Chapter XXII. } Uttered in his speech in the House of Representatives, Washington, Feb- ruary 2, 1864. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ,.371 u I NEVER GIVE UP anything that is practicable ! " He was speaking about distributing books, and said, " I have visited many of the hospitals and some of the camps, and dis- tributed many of these religious books, and I can testify that, from the beginning until now, I have never met a man who refused my books, save only one, and he was from my own city (Philadelphia). He told me that he was an infidel, that he did not believe in my books, that he did not need them. Said he, ' I am from Philadelphia ; I live at such a number, Callowhill Street ; if you will go there, you will find out my character, and that I am as good as you are.' ' I trust, a great deal better/ said I. But the case did seem a difficult one. ' Stuart,' said a friend, to whom I related the incident, ' you are beaten for once.' ' No,' I replied, ' I am not done with that man yet.' I approached him a short time afterward, and he said to me, l What is the book you wanted to give to me ? ' ' It was a selection from the Scrip- tures, called Cromwell's Bible.' ' Oh,' said he, ' I don't want your Bible ; I 've no need of it ; I 'm a good enough man with- out it;' and, with a motion of supreme indifference, he turned his head. Said I, 'My friend, I 'm from Philadelphia, too. I know where you live can find the exact house. On next Sunday eve- ning, if God spares my life, I expect to speak for the Christian Commission in the Church of the Epiphany.' He looked at me with an inquisitive air. { And what are you going to say ? ' ' I am going to tell the people that I had been distributing books and tracts all day through the hospitals and camps I had visited, and that I had found but one man who refused to take them, and he was from Philadelphia.' 'Well, what more are you going to say?' the man asked, with a steady gaze, apparently defying my at- tempts to move him. * Well, I '11 tell them that I commenced my tract-distribution this morning at the White House in Wash- ington; and the first gentleman I offered one of these little books was one Abraham Lincoln ; that he rose from his chair, read the title, expressed great pleasure in receiving it, and pro- mised to read it. But that I came to one of his cooks, here in these quarters, and he was so exceedingly good that he did n'l need a copy of the word of God, and would n't have one ! ' 372 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. ( Well/ said the man, completely conquered, ' if the President can take one, I suppose I can/ as he reached out his hand and received it ! " Here we see the glorious results of perseverance. Yes, it is "the unconquerable will" and unswerving determination that leads to noble deeds and grand achievements. What, we ask, led to the great success of this great Commission, which began with sixteen members, had in its employ over five thousand dele- gates, and gave over six millions of dollars, and an infinite num- ber of books, pamphlets, tracts, and papers to the army and navy in four years ? It was the energy and perseverance of its liberal supporters, and the zeal of its noble-hearted chairman. His great liberality and burning zeal in this great work were manifested in his furnishing the Commission with office and store room ; in giving his own time and labors, and the services of clerks and porters, all free of charge. With his whole soul and great heart absorbed and wrapped up in this glorious work, Mr. Stuart prayed and labored for it as though he felt that the salvation of the country depended upon his own individual efforts. And to save expense, through his and the combined influence of the other officers of the Commission, railroad and telegraph companies gave their services in transporting stores and delegates and in transmitting telegrams without cost. Commanding the respect and full confidence of the religious publishing societies of the country, the American Bible and the American Tract Societies, and other publishing societies, gave very liberally of their publications in books, periodicals, tracts, and papers, to supply the spiritual and intellectual wants of the men in the field. Led on by the wisdom, energy, and heroic de- votion of its efficient chairman, and having secured the confidence of the people and a strong hold upon their sympathies, prayers, and purses, and inspired by the grandeur and glory of the coun- try's salvation, the Commission met with a success unparalleled in the history of the world. The people gave money by the million, and they gave Bibles, books, papers, and tracts by tens of millions. The rapidity with which the people raised money for the Com- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 373 mission is seen from the words of Mr. Stuart to his Scotch friend, Mr. Macrea : " We relied/' said he, " on the voluntary contribu- tions of the people and how nobly they responded ! After the battle of Gettysburg, when tens of thousands of wounded and dying men were thrown upon our hands, I telegraphed in all directions. To Boston I telegraphed, ' Can I draw on you for ten thousand dollars at sight ? ' It was stuck up in the Exchange. The merchants at once formed in line to put down their sub- scriptions. In half an hour the answer came : ' Draw for sixty thousand dollars.' And," said Mr. Stuart, " the little children helped us too. They made tens of thousands of little housewives' comfort-bags, as the soldiers called them, with buttons, needles and thread, comb, cake of soap, and, above all, a little tract or Testament, and sent them on through the Commission to the needy soldiers, and they did them a world of good." Thus armed and equipped, the Commission had nothing to do but to go forward, labor, and pray ; gather up delegates, and collect stores and distribute them as needed in the field. And it is wonderful to see with what great despatch stores and delegates were procured and sent on. They gathered them as by magic,' and sent them free by lightning-trains. We give one example. It was a pressing case. A number of delegates and boxes of stores had just been sent to Murfreesborough on Saturday night ; and on Monday morning, early, an urgent request reached the central office for another supply. Grasping the situation, with- out a moment's hesitation, Mr. Stuart decided to send them by the next train, if possible. They had only an hour and a half to get them ready. The delegates were ready waiting, but passes had to be procured for them, and an order for the free passage of the stores also. The time was short, and the depot was three- quarters of a mile away. At Mr. Stuart's request, a letter was despatched to the vice-president of the Pennsylvania Railroad for the passes, an,d half a dozen clerks were sent to buy the stores, and porters and draymen to gather them into the depot. At ten minutes before eleven the messenger sent to the vice-president for the passes returned, saying, " There are twenty men or more before the door, and the door is locked ; it 's no use trying to swr 374 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. him." The train will start in thirty-five minutes, and the stores are pouring into the depot. Deeply anxious to have them go, Mr. Stuart at once hurried to the office of the vice-president, and instead of pressing his way in front, he went round through a private way into a communicating office, and said to the gentle- man occupying it, " I must see Mr. Scott ; I have not a moment to spare ; just open the door." The door was opened, Mr. Scott was seen, and, although overwhelmed with business, the passes were signed, and the order for the free transmission of the stores was given and Mr. Stuart was back before the clock struck eleven ! And before the remaining twenty-five minutes had ex- pired, the stores twenty-five boxes, etc. were piled into the cars, all numbered, marked, invoiced, and went free, with light- ning speed, with the delegates to Nashville ! And so intense was the desire and earnest the efforts to supply the needy soldiers, that the Commission, through the earnest im- portunity of Mr. Stuart, sometimes prevailed upon long trains of cars to wait to take provisions to the suffering braves. ... It was for a Thanksgiving dinner for the soldiers at Bolivar's Heights, near Harper's Ferry, Va. Mrs. Dr. Harris wrote Mr. Stuart about the rough, scanty fare of the soldiers there asking for something more than "dry bread, half-boiled beef, and a poor mixture called tea," for their Thanksgiving dinner. Owing to the great press of business at the office, Mrs. Harris's letter was nol read until it was too late to get ready and forward what was necessary for the dinner. But, presuming that railroads would do extraordinary things under such extraordinary circumstances, the articles for the dinner were prepared with great despatch and hurried to the depot to go on the express train. The conductor agreed to take them, and they put them aboard as quick as pos- sible ; yet, with all their haste, they failed to get them in due time. But the compassionate conductor waited, and, with Mrs. Harris going along to push them through, they reached their destination in due time, and the poor soldiers had a splendid Thanksgiving dinner. Forewarned of an approaching battle, they always sent stores in advance. And, in order still more to expedite this business, they always kept on hand a quantity of CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 375 ptores packed ready for a battle at any time, marked " Stores for the next battle." And to render immediate living aid, they had a class of delegates they called "minute-men" ready to go at any time on five minutes' notice ; and, said Mr. Stuart, " If one of them was on the pulpit preaching when the telegram reached him, he must stop, and hurry off to the battle-field." It was very encouraging to the Commission to see how will- ingly the soldiers would assist them in anything they could do. Was an army church to be erected, they would turn out en masse and help put it up ! A regiment would cut the logs, gather them in, and put up a church iu a few hours. In this way, the Com- mission erected fifty churches in one week. Sometimes they would begin and lay the foundation of a church in the morning, and have preaching in it at night. Founded upon the "Rock of Ages," and deeply imbued with the loving spirit of its cheerful chairman, the Christian Com- mission was a GREAT COMFORTER. It administered comfort both to the soldier's soul and body. When it found a man suf- fering for suitable food, it fed the body first, and the soul after- ward. To the hungry it offered bread first, and then a Baxter's Call. To the thirsty it offered a cup of cold water before the cup of salvation. Relieving the outer man tends to give access to the inner. It brought the fresh sympathies of dear friends and the sweet pleasures of home close to the camp and the hos- pital. And, being so long destitute of these cheering attractions, nothing else seemed to do the soldiers so much good. Anything direct from home, (even but a flower,) that would cause the mystic cords of memory to vibrate from the dreary hospital, from the lonely camp, or from the bloody battle-field, to the hallowed scenes of home, and there to linger around the lovely forms of a dear sister, an affectionate mother, or a beloved wife, would cheer and revive the drooping spirits of the most forlorn soldier. We give an illustration in the language of a soldier: "I was seated in my tent on the banks of the Potomac, weary and worn, heartsick and homesick, when a letter was brought in by the postboy, and handed to me. It bore the impress of a sister's direction. I opened it eagerly. A rosebud from a favorite 376 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. bush at home fell upon my lap. It was a precious memento ot* home, and of a sister's love. I forgot the letter. I seized the rosebud, pressed it to my lips with a kiss, and sent up a prayer that God would bless my sister, my home, and all its dear ones who were brought so vividly before me. Ah ! had I been called at that moment to draw the sword or shoulder the musket and repair to the field of battle, I would have fought with tenfold valor for my country ; for my country is the home of my mother that I love, and the sister who had not forgotten me." * Such is the wonderful power of sympathy. Oh, how important to cul- tivate and bestow it ! But, endowed with this lofty spirit, and engaged in the holy cause of God, liberty, and truth, the Christian Commission was not only a great comforter, but it was also a great life-preserver and soul-saver. Under God, it preserved men's lives, and saved their souls. In speaking of the labors of the delegates among the sol- diers, Bishop Mcllvaine, of Ohio, said, in a mass meeting of the Commission in Philadelphia, " We rejoice that they are able to take stimulants to the faint, and food to the hungry. We think it exceedingly precious that they are able to minister to such necessities ; but oh, dear brethren, there is a joy unspeakable above such joys as that, that they are permitted to share. It is precious to hear one say, ( I should have died upon the battle- field but for the supplies that the Christian Commission brought me ! ' But oh, how unspeakably more precious is it to you and to me, brethren, to hear one saying, in addition to this, ' I should have perished in my sins, had it not been for the precious words which Christ spoke to me through the men whom the Christian Commission sent to me.' " Abounding in these noble deeds and lofty aims, the Christian Commission was food, clothing, and shelter to the destitute ; medicine, nurse, and physician to the sick and wounded ; joy and hope to the dying ; and strength and encouragement to the Government. Armed with the panoply of heaven, laboring in- cessantly by day and by night in dispensing the benign influences * Extract from Ex-Governor Pollock's address at the first annual meeting of the Christian Commission in Washington, D. C. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 377 of the gospel, and receiving no pay but the soldier's hearty " God bless you ! " and most successfully managed by the match- less George H. Stuart, it was the glory of the land and the brightest honor of the Church ! KINDNESS TO REBELS. The care, compassion, and labors of the Christian Commission were not confined to the men of our own army and navy. Chris- tianity is not selfish and sectional. It is not bounded by conti- nents, oceans, empires, and states ; it is not confined to army lines, camps, guards, and pickets. No ; Christ says, " Do good unto all men;" "if thine enemy hunger, feed him ; if he thirst, give him drink." Constrained by a Saviour's love, the earnest Christian's heart embraces and yearns for the salvation of a lost world. The cross of Christ, when heartily received, consumes and annihilates self. Self cannot live at the foot of the cross. There it dies ; and there it lies buried. Moved by this Christ- like principle, the noble delegates of the Christian Commission administered to the wants of the soldiers and officers of the rebel army as well as our own. The writer has often done this, and received hearty thanks for it. In telling them of Jesus, we have often seen them weep profusely. They often sent for me to come and pray with them in the hospital. I have often preached to them in their wards; and when they died, we always read and prayed at their graves. They fared just the same in the hospital as the Union soldiers. When the writer, with a number of other officers who had just been released from Libby Prison, was being exchanged at City Point, Va., we met a number of rebel prisoners just from John- son's Island; and, seeing them looking so well, one of our men asked them, " How did you fare way up North ? " " First-rate, first-rate! " was one's immediate reply; and he went on to tell what good things they had to eat. In speaking of his ministrations to Confederate wounded, who were brought to Martinsburg in the same wagons with our own men, Rev. T. B. Thayer says, in Incidents of the U. 8. Christian Commission: "As we have ministered to their wants and ad- 378 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. dressed words of kindness to them, tears have started from eyes unaccustomed to weeping. They fairly overwhelmed us with their thankful expressions. ' This is what I call living Chris- tianity/ one would say. ' This is the religion for me/ added an- other. ' I can't stand this/ said a rough, hard-looking fellow, badly wounded in the foot, but able to hobble along on crutches; ' I can't stand this, boys ; it overcomes me ; I give in/ with his whole frame shaking with emotion, and the big tears falling from his sun-burnt face tears which he tried to conceal from his comrades and us. ' You know/ he continued, ' I am no coward ; I can face the enemy, and not wink ; but this kindness kills me ; it breaks me all to pieces. I tell you, boys, this is no humbug ; it's a big thing; it's the gospel for body and soul just what we all need.' And so he went on in the truest eloquence for some minutes, closing with the ever-recurring soldier's benedic- tion, ' God bless you ! ' " In speaking of the rebels found on the battle-field, Mr. Stuart said, " If we found them dying, we took their last messages and wrote to their friends, just as if they had been our own soldiers. It was the same in the hospitals. The poor fellows would some- times burst into tears. One of them said, ' You fight us like devils, but you nurse us like angels.' " Mr. Stuart's fondness for army relics and Christian Commis- sion memorials is seen in his statement to his friend from Glas- gow. " When you go to Gettysburg, you must see Round Top, where the battle was fiercest, and where the dead lay five or six deep. Lee said to Barksdale, of Mississippi, ' That height must be taken if it cost you all your men.' Barksdale went, and buried himself and his whole force on that slope. This Testament (holding it in his hand) was found there among the dead." " He showed me," said Mr. Macrea, " another little Testament that had saved a soldier's life. ' It belonged to one of our boys/ said Mr. Stuart. ' He always carried it in his breast-pocket. In one battle a bullet struck him, and nearly knocked him down. It had struck on the Testament, and pierced it to the back board ; there, as you see, it stopped, and his life was saved. There are snores like this scattered up and down the country. Some wives CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 379 have them with the blood-stains on the leaves. I saw one where the ball had stopped at a verse that struck the man, and which proved the means of his conversion. He was killed afterward, but his wife preserved the Testament. I said to her, ' I would like to own that Testament what will you take for it ? ' ' Oh, Mr. Stuart/ she said, ' there is n't gold enough in the country to buy it from me.' " HIS GENERALSHIP IN PRAYER. In speaking of the Christian Commission practice of connect- ing religion with all their operations, Mr. Stuart said to Mr. Macrea, "/ never was in a place where I couldn't have prayer. When dissolving the Commission, we went round (more than one hundred of us) and called on Johnson, Stanton, Grant, and all the heads of Departments, and had prayer with them all. When we went to the White House, some of them said, ' Re- member, Johnson is a different man from Lincoln.' I said, 'I know it.' However, before we left, I said to the President, ' Mr. Johnson, you have been called to the head of the nation at a very critical time.' 'Yes, yes/ he said. ' After a man who was the idol of the people.' 'Yes.' 'No man has been raised to a posi- tion where he stands more in need of divine help.' ' It is true/ ' Dr. will perhaps ask the divine blessing and guidance for you before we go.' The President made no objection, and we all knelt in prayer. " But when we went to Culpepper to see Botts, Dr. Kirk and the rest of them said there was no hope there. Botts was a prominent statesman. He had opposed the Democrats of the South, but he had no sympathy with the movements on behalf of the negro. We knew that ; and he had the reputation of being an infidel. I thought it all the more necessary that we should, if possible, have prayer. He received us very kindly. When we were preparing to leave, I said/ You have seen a good deal of fighting here, Mr. Botts?' ' Fighting ! ' said he ; ' I have seen fifteen battles from that window.' ' You have run many risks ?' * You may well say that/ he replied. ' Now, gentlemen/ I said, turning to the others, ' Mr. Botts has sacrificed a great deal for 380 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. the country ; he has suffered a great deal ; he may have much to suffer still we cannot tell. Now, I think, before going, Dr. Kirk might lead us in thanking God for having preserved Mr. Botts through so much, and praying that Mr. Botts may be long spared to serve his country, and see it restored to prosperity and peace.' Botts, who had been throwing in prompt words of assent to everything that went before, looked queer at this. We all began to go down upon our knees. Botts looked about with a ludicrous expression of perplexity on his face; but, seeing us all kneeling, he seemed to feel there was no escape, and slipped re- luctantly down upon his knees. When we came out, Dr. Kirk said, 'I never prayed in such strange circumstances before.' ' Well,' said I, ' you never prayed more powerfully.' Neither he had. Some of them said that Botts was in tears when he rose." * What an invaluable lecture on pastoral theology ! For practical utility it is worth more than whole volumes of ordinary lectures. Like Paul, Mr. Stuart seems to know perfectly "how to be all things to all men." To make such a man as Mr. Botts " feel that there was no escape," but to kneel in prayer, denotes won- derful ingenuity ! If we should attempt to describe Mr. Stuart as a Christian, it would be hard to find words sufficiently expressive. The Rev. T. W. J. Wylie, D. D., speaks of him as " that most eminent servant of God ! " We do not wish to exaggerate, but when we look at his great liberality, self-denying labors, and his eminent success in managing the Christian Commission, and his heroic devotion to his country, and to his Master's cause, as exhibited therein, as a Christian philanthropist, and as "a Christian at work," he is one of the most eminent in the world. His Chris- tian sagacity exhibited in his generalship in prayer was most masterly. We do not believe there is another man in the world that could have succeeded as well. By the winning force of his powerful prestige, genius, and tact> together with his melting kindness, he brought every man to his knees a place where some of them perhaps had never been before. Such sagacious generalship is exceedingly rare. You may search the records of * Mr. Macrea's Interview with Mr. Stuart. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAtt. 381 all Christendom, and explore the history of the world, and no- where, we believe, since the fall of man, will you find such shrewd strategy. Corresponding with his unbounded zeal and popularity, the Rev. Dr. E. R. Beadle, of Philadelphia, delegate from the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of tho United States to the late General Assembly of Ireland, in speak- ing to the latter of the distinguished Irishmen in America, after having mentioned the names of the distinguished Dr. McCosh, of Princeton, and Dr. Hall, of New York, said, " There is an- other humble man, namely, George H. Stuart, a man who has made the whole continent love him." Bishop Simpson, in his farewell remarks to the Christian Com- mission, said, " Early in the history of this Commission, when our work had not yet been fully developed, I remember to have spoken of our great leader our worthy president, Mr. Stuart as our major-general. But, sir, his works merit promotion, and I nominate him now as Lieutenant-General of the Christian Com- mission ! He shall never wear the stars upon his shoulders ; but above and behind yon clouds, which hide the Invisible from view, there are crowns, and there are stars which shall shine in his crown of rejoicing forever ! " As a speaker, Mr. Stuart is ready, tender, touching, eloquent, and impressive. With a'quick discernment, he always grasps the situation, and makes his speeches very appropriate, eloquent, and powerful. Standing before the annual meeting of the British and Foreign Bible Society, says the "American Messenger," " he thrilled the immense audience by evidences of the divine bless- ing on the Bible in our late civil war, and closed by saying : " ' England and America speak the same language, they worship the same God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, they are the two great Protestant nations of the earth, and woe to the hand that ever causes blood to flow between them. England and America there may have occasionally risen up differences of opinion be- tween them ; but I say here, what I wrote a short time since to a member of the Washington Cabinet.. I said to him, " Sir, I believe, all through this terrible conflict, there are no two agencies which God has so much blessed in the preserving of peace be- 382 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. tween the two countries as the British and Foreign Bible Society and the American Bible Society." I say, God bless the British and Foreign Bible Society ! God bless its honored president ! may he be long spared to carry on his work of usefulness. God bless the American Bible Society ! God bless its honored presi- dent ! God bless the Queen of England ! long may she reign over a prosperous and a free country. God bless the President of the United States ! I long for the coming of that day when all wars shall cease, and when Jesus Christ shall reign over all lands.' " The President of the British and Foreign Bible Society here rose, and, amid the general applause of the meeting, said that with his whole heart he reiterated the prayer of the last speaker, God bless the President of America ! God bless the Queen of England ! And may peace ever reign between the two coun- tries." This was in 1866. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 383 HENRY WARD BEECHER. His Distinguishing Traits A Great Worker His Style Oratory His Birth Lost his Mother Early Religious Impressions Inured to Hardship A Bashful, Stammering, Unpromi&ing Boy His Edu- cation Went to School Barefooted, and Hemmed Towels at Recess Fond of Flowers, and Full of Jokes Drilled in Elocution Tired of School Wishes to "Go to Sea" Subject of a Revival Unites with the Church Naval Project Given up Attention Turned to the Ministry Enters College Choice of Studies Preferring Rhetoric, Studies to Know "What to Say," and "How to Say it" Strictly Temperate Conducts Prayer Meetings His Creed Religious Impressions Troubled Relieved Buoyant Teaches School Lectures and Preaches The Slave's Friend Graduates Studies Theology Perplexed about Entering the Ministry Marries First Pastoral Charge Did Everything Himself Moves to Indianapolis Style of Preaching His Popularity Revival in his Church Moves to Brooklyn Visits England and Europe Lectures in England, and, Braving all Opposition, Pleads America's Cause Successfully His London Letter glowing with Joy and Gratitude to God, and Love to his Enemies Impression Favorable Affectionate Enthusiasm for him His War Sermons Oration at Fort Sumter. THE prescribed limits of our book will not admit of a lengthy sketch of this renowned genius. Distinguished for tact, fore- sight, independence, intrepidity, patriotism, and great versatility of talent, he does not need it. Constitutionally buoyant, and naturally disposed to look at the bright side of things, he is always lively and cheerful ; self-reliant, pertinacious, and cour- ageous, he cannot be swatnped nor easily cried down ; peculiar and progressive in his views, he is often far ahead of the rest of mankind, and consequently liable sometimes to get a little off the track. Laborious and energetic, he travels and lectures, preaches regularly, writes books, and edits one of the ablest papers in the country. With a style combining grandeur, energy, simplicity, beauty, and strength, he is one of the most popular writers of the day. Being well posted with a thorough knowledge of human nature, always grasping the situation, and possessing fine powers of illustration, he is one of the most complete orators of the age. 384 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. And exhibiting so much genius and talent, it will be interest- ing and profitable to trace him to his early history and origin. A New-Englander by birth, Henry Ward Beecher was born in Litchfield, Conn., June 24, 1813. He is the son of Roxana and Rev. Dr. Lyman Beecher, so distinguished for his piety, theo- logical attainments, and pulpit power. Inheriting from his parents a perfectly sound and healthy organization of both body and mind, and having lost his mother when he was only three years old, he was brought up with little caressing, and in a way that was calculated to develop both his physical and intellectual powers. Having fallen into the hands of a pious, refined, and highly intellectual step-mother, he was highly favored with a kind, religious, motherly training. It was her custom every Sunday night to take Henry Ward (the eighth child of the family) and two other little ones into her bedroom, and read, talk to, and pray with them. Inured to the long winters, severe storms, and bleak mountains of Connecticut, he was brought up to industry, and knew what it was to endure hardness when a boy. During a New-England winter drought, when but nine years old, he harnessed and hitched up the horse to the sled, went alone three miles over an icy, hilly road to a distant spring, dipped up and brought a barrel of water for the family and "thought nothing of it." The only thing that grieved him about it was, his step-mother compelled him to wear his overcoat. He put it on, however; but not without "tears of mortification freezing on his cheeks as he went for the water, because he had firmly determined in his own mind to go a whole winter without wearing an overcoat." Although bashful and quite dull when a boy at school, yet the stammering lad, being ambitious, AVOS very sensitive as to praise and blame. Nobody ever expected any- thing brilliant of him ; and with a very poor, indistinct utter- ance, no one ever thought of his making an orator. Said his kind aunt, " When Henry is sent to me with a message, I always have to make him say it over three times ; the first time I have no manner of an idea, more than if he spoke Choctaw ; the second, I catch now and then a word ; by the third time I begin to un- derstand." And while his elder brother was sharing in the first CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 385 honors of his class at college, and his elder sisters amusing them- selves in writing poetry and enjoying the pleasure of Litchfteld society, this unpromising boy went to school barefooted in a little old school-house, and (says his sister Harriet) " with a brown towel, or a blue checked apron, to hem during the intervals between his spelling and reading lessons." And yet, with all his apparent stupidity, Henry was not destitute of serious thought. When once driving his step-mother on an errand, in an old chaise, the town-bell tolled for the death of one of the inhabitants ; whereupon she said to the thoughtful boy, " Henry, what do you think of, when you hear a bell tolling like that?" Surprised at so grave a question, he replied, " I think, Was that soul prepared ? It has gone into eternity ! " With a poor mem- ory, he disliked to study and commit the catechism, although he was sure of being seriously talked to by Mrs. Beecher if he failed to recite his questions well. Thus at ten years of age he was a stout, well-grown, obedient boy ; and although backward in learning, he was very fond of natural scenery, buds, and flowers, and full of jokes and fun. At twelve, his father moved to Boston, and, shortly after, Henry Ward was sent to the Boston Latin school, where, urged by a sense of self-respect and regard to his father's entreaties, he set out to study in earnest, and completely mastered the Latin Grammar the first year. But hard study seemed to injure his health, and having become somewhat gloomy and dissatisfied at school, his father thought it best to divert his attention a little from his studies, and suggested a course of biographical reading. Delighted with this, after having read a few naval histories, and the accounts of noted voyages, great commanders and sailors, he made up his mind to leave Boston, and " go to sea." Having heard of this project, his father made use of it as an argument to induce Henry to go to school, and study mathematics as a pre- paration for his newly devised scheme. Although he had no taste for mathematics, yet being enthusiastic for the sea, he went to Amherst, and studied algebra, geometry, etc., with a good degree of success. Here, too, he was thoroughly drilled in the 26 386 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. principles of elocution by Professor J. E. Lovell, to which Mr. Belcher attributes very much of his success as a speaker. While at Amherst, a powerful revival of religion broke out in the school, and Henry, having enjoyed a good religious train- ing, was very deeply impressed. Upon hearing of this, his father wrote for him to come home, to unite with the church at an ap- proaching communion, at which the anxious boy, with a trem- bling heart, stood up and took upon him the solemn vows of the Church, and, for the first time, obeyed the solemn injunction, " Do this in remembrance of me." From this time on, his plans and purposes of life were changed his naval project was abandoned, and his attention was turned to the pulpit. Having spent three years at Amherst, he was well prepared to enter the sophomore class at college ; yet being deeply convinced of the importance of thoroughness, his kind father, in order to give him ample time for general reading, wisely advised him to enter as a freshman. Finding but little attraction in Greek and Latin, or mathematics, though quite thorough in all of them, he turned his attention more particularly to oratory and rhetoric, and made it his chief business to learn "what to say," and "how to say it." To form and improve his style, he took a regular course in the English classics, and read with great avidity such authors as Milton, Bacon, Shakspeare, Robert Hall, etc. Strictly temperate and regular in his habits, the new convert was regularly at the class prayer-meetings, and took part in the exercises. Fortunately for his early religious development while at college, he became intimately acquainted with a pious, laborious student, who took him around with him to attend the prayer meetings in the outskirts of the village. And after hearing Henry read and pray a few times, the exhorter left one of the prayer-meetings in his care, while he went away and looked up another. With this little foretaste as a Christian worker, Henry went on in the good work, and, aided by others, kept up the prayer meetings all through his college course. This was his beginning as a speaker. During his sophomore year, Mr. Beecher's attention was in- CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 387 eidently directed to the subject of phrenology ; and being un- settled in his views as to the truth of this science, after hearing a few lectures on it, he commenced and read with great avidity everything he could get having a bearing on the subject. He and his associates immediately formed a society for physiological investigation. They bought books, charts, dissecting instru- ments, and set out in good earnest to know the truth. He was so enthusiastic in this matter, that he bought several books for his own individual use. He not only read the works of Drs. Gall, Combe, and Spurzheim, but also a number of old English authors, besides the renowned works of Locke, Reid, Stuart, etc. The taste formed by Mr. Beecher in this physiological and phrenological research, taken in connection with his studies in theology and metaphysics, has had much to do in laying the foundation of his theory and views through life. From that time forward he has pursued this branch of study with deep interest. And, says Mrs. Stowe, to whom we are indebted for many facts in this sketch, " The depth of Mr. Beecher's religious nature pre- vented this enthusiasm for material science from degenerating into dry materialism. He was a Calvinist in the earnestness of his intense need of the highest and deepest in religion. In his sophomore year there was a revival of religion in college, in which his mind was powerfully excited. He reviewed the almost childish experiences under which he had joined the church, as possibly deceptive, and tried and disciplined himself by those profound tests with which the Edwardarian theology had filled the minds of New England. A blank despair was the result. He applied to Dr. Humphrey, who simply told him that his present feelings were a work of the Spirit, and with which he dared not interfere. After days of almost hopeless prayer, there came sud- denly into his mind an ineffable and overpowering perception of the divine love, which seemed to him like a revelation. It dis- pelled all doubts and fears ; he became buoyant and triumphant, and that buoyancy has been marked in his religious teachings ever since." To raise money to purchase a library of much-desired books, Mr. Beecher, during his last two years at college, taught country 388 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. schools during the long winter vacations ; and then, as now, he was a great worker. "While laboring to develop the intellectual powers of his scholars, he was not indifferent to that which is more important, the cultivation of the heart. Besides delivering an occasional lecture on temperance, he made his appointments, and went regularly, and exhorted and preached to the people. With a broad, sympathetic nature, Mr. Beecher was kind to the poor, and a warm friend to the slave ; and, possessing an heroic spirit, he was not afraid, in the early anti-slavery move, to be called an Abolitionist. Graduating in 1834, he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and soon after commenced the study of theology in Lane Seminary ; and having nearly completed the course, as the time of his liPensure approached, he was thrown into a deep feeling of melancholy, and was at times so much distressed and perplexed about entering upon the duties of the sacred office that he seriously thought of abandoning the profession. But during his last seminary year he took a Bible class in Cincinnati, and while studying the evangelists, in preparing his lessons for the class, he found so much to think and preach about, his difficulties were all re- moved. Having finished his theological course, Mr. Beecher got mar- ried, and immediately took charge of a small congregation in Lawrenceburg, on the west bank of the Ohio River, near Cincin- nati. In one of his speeches, in England, he gave the following account of his commencing there : " I began my ministry in a church in the wilderness ; there were nineteen women and one man, and I wished him out more times than one ; they were the saints, and he the sinner. I was at that time sexton and general undertaker for the church ; I swept it ; I bought the lamps, and lit them I would have rung the bell, but there was none. I did the preaching, was superintendent of the Sabbath school, and did everything else there was to do; and though many years have passed, and I have seen other scenes, I have never had happier days since." After laboring a short time at Lawrenceburg, he accepted a call and moved to Indianapolis, Ind., wLere he labored with great success, devoting three months CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 389 of each year to missionary work, in travelling about from place to place, on horseback, preaching once every day. In studying theology, he paid special attention to the Bible and to human nature a knowledge of both he held to be necessary to under- stand either ; and, in sermonizing, he studied closely the style and principles of the sermons of the apostles, and endeavored to imitate them. Full of wit and humor, and possessing fine social qualities and a great tact for close observation, he possessed an ability to analyze man's wants and a genius to know how to meet them, rarely attained by one so young. Unique and attrac- tive in his style of preaching, and drawing largely, both for matter and illustrations, from unexplored fields, his popularity spread abroad, and the people flocked to hear him wherever he went. During a powerful revival that took place in his congregation in Indianapolis, in 1842, a member of that church says, "The whole town was pervaded by the influences of religion, and nearly one hundred persons were added to the church." And Mr. Beecher was seen " plunging through the wet streets, with his trowsers stuffed in his muddy boots, earnest, untiring, swift, with a merry heart, a glowing face, and a helpful word for every one ; the whole day preaching Christ to the people, wherever he could find them." During a pastorate of eight years in Indianapolis, the church was very much strengthened financially, and increased from thirty-two to two hundred and seventy-five members ; and al- though there existed a very strong mutual attachment between pastor and people, yet, having received a call to a much wider sphere of usefulness from the Plymouth Congregational Church, Brooklyn, New York, he accepted it, and moved thither in the summer of 1847, where he has labored with very great success ever since. His church now numbers over two thousand mem- bers, and pays him a salary of twenty thousand dollars. In this move, Mr. Beecher changed his ecclesiastical connection from the Presbyterian to the Congregational Church. Mr. Beecher's fine colloquial powers, his broad, impartial sympathy and kindness, and his thorough knowledge of human nature gave him access to the hearts of all classes ; he had warm 390 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. friends in every grade of society. When living in Indianapolis, he commanded the respect even of the drunkard and the gambler ; and when he left there, some of this class gave him the strongest demonstrations of respect and attachment. Some of those whom he had tried to reclaim, seemed to have gone beyond redemption ; and one of them, when Mr. Beecher was about to leave the city, said, " Before anything or anybody on earth, I do love Beecher ; I know he would have saved me, if he could." During the heated anti-slavery discussions, Mr. Beecher al- ways took decided grounds in favor of emancipation ; and when the rebellion arose, he heartily went in for putting it down at all hazards. Encouraged by their pastor, his congregation raised and equipped one regiment of volunteers (the First Long Island), and many of the young men of the congregation joined it. Deeply interested in their welfare, Mr. Beecher often went out and preached to them while in camp before they started for the field. Mr. Beecher labored very hard during the war; and, having much to say to the public in connection therewith, he assumed the editorial chair of the Independent early in the conflict. Bur- dened with the war and the cares of his country, together with his incessant labors in writing, speaking, and editing, his health and voice began to fail, and he sought relaxation in a trip to Europe. Here he was met by friends, before he stepped off the steamer, urging him to consent to lecture ; but he positively de- clined. Having spent a few days in England, and some two weeks in Wales, he visited Switzerland, Germany, and Northern Italy. At Paris he was much encouraged in receiving the news of the battle of Gettysburg, and the fall of Vicksburg, and found in those great victories the only kind of logic and argument that would successfully carry the cause of America through Great Britain and Europe. On returning to England, he was again invited to speak, and again declined ; but upon the repeated solicitation of such men as Newman Hall, Baptist Noel, and Francis Newman, constrained by a sense of duty to his country, and our friends over there, he at last consented, and arrangements were made for him to lecture CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 391 in the principal cities of the Kingdom. And now, realizing his great responsibility, and conscious of the difficult task he had undertaken, to plead the cause of his country in a foreign land, he set about preparing for the arduous work. Thus armed and equipped in the great cause of American nationality and American liberty, he delivered his first speech in the Free Trade Hall, in Manchester, October 9, 1863, to a tumultuous crowd of some six or seven thousand. Taking for his subject the merits of the American cause and the rights of the laboring man, he went on to show that the Southern Confederacy was founded upon the false principle that a strong and superior race has a right to oppress a weak and inferior one. And although Southern sympathizers did rail, and rant, and make great efforts to cry him down, and prevent his speaking ; yet, with a buoyant heart and a resolute will, he went on in spite of all opposition, and completed his speech ; and the London Times did him the honor of publishing it the next day. Thus ended his first effort. On the 13th of October he spoke again in the City Hall of Glasgow, and discussed the comparative advantages of free over slave labor. The next day he spoke to a very large meeting in the Free Church Assembly Hall in Edinburgh, and gave them ail historic outline of the American conflict. But the severest struggle and the most disorderly audience was at Liverpool. This place being more pro-slavery, the opposition was found to be more formidable yet, with undaunted spirit and unyielding pertinacity, Mr. Beecher braved the storm and delivered his mes- sage. In describing the difficulty in speaking to these turbulent assemblies, Mr. Beecher says, " I had to outscream a mob, and drown the roar of a multitude. It was like driving a team of runaway horses, and making love to a lady at the same time." The following letter breathes so much of the spirit of Chris- tianity in the war, it will doubtless be read with deep interest : "LONDON, Sunday, October 18, 1863. "My DEAR FRIEND You know why I have not written you from England. I have been so full of work that I could not. God has been with me, and prospered me. I have had health, and strength, and courage, and, what is of unspeakably 392 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. more importance, I have had the sweetest experience of love to God and to man, of all my life. I have been enabled to love our enemies. . . . God awakened in my breast a desire to be a full and true Christian toward England the moment I put my foot on her shores, and he has answered the prayers which he inspired. I have been buoyant and happy. The streets of Manchester and Liverpool have been filled with placards in black and white let- ters, full of all lies and bitterness ; but they have seemed to me only the tracery of dreams. For hours I have striven to speak amid interruptions of every kind yellings, hootings, catcalls, derisive yells, impertinent and insulting questions, and every conceivable annoyance some personal violence. But God has kept me in perfect peace. I stood in Liverpool and looked on the demoniac scene, almost without a thought that it was me that was present. . . . You know, dear friend, how, when were are lifted up by the inspiration of a great subject, and by the almost visible presence and vivid sympathy with Christ, the mind forgets the sediment and dregs of trouble, and sails serenely in an upper realm of peace, as untouched by the noise below, as a bird that flies across a battle-field. Just so I had, at Liverpool and Glasgow, as sweet an inward peace as ever I had in the loving meetings of dear old Plymouth Church. And again and again, when the uproar raged, and I could not speak, my heart seemed to be taking of the in- finite fulness of the Saviour's pity, and breathing it out upon those poor, troubled men. I felt that I was his dear child, and that his arms were about me continually, and at times that peace that passeth all understanding has descended upon me, that I could not keep tears of gratitude from falling for so much tender goodness of my God. For, what are outward prosperities com- pared with those interior intimacies of God? It is not the path to the temple, but the interior of the temple, that shows the good- ness and glory of God. And I have been able to commit all to Him, myself, my family, my friends, and in a special manner the cause of my country. Oh, my friend, I have felt an inexpressible wonder that God should give it to me to do something for the dear land ; when sometimes the idea of being clothed with power to stand up in this great kingdom' against an inconvinceable vio- lence of prejudice and mistake, and clear the name of my dis- honored country, and let her brow shine forth, crowned with liberty, glowing with love to man oh, I have seemed unable to live, almost ! It almost took my breath away. " I have not in a single instance gone to the speaking halls without all the way breathing to God unutterable desires for CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 393 inspiration, guidance, success ; and I have had no disturbance of personality. I have been willing, yea, with eagerness, to be myself contemptible in men's sight, if only my disgrace might be to the honor of that cause which is intrusted to our own thrice dear country. I have asked nothing of God but this, and this with uninterrupted heart-flow of yearning request : ' Make me worthy to speak for God and man/ I never felt my ignorance so painfully, nor the great want of moral purity and nobility of soul, as when approaching my tasks of defending liberty in this her hour of trial. I have an ideal of what a man should be that labors for such a cause, that constantly rebukes my real condition and makes me feel how little I am. Yet that is hardly painful. There passes before me a view of God's glory, so pure, so serene, uplifted, filling the ages, and more and more to be revealed, that I almost wish to lose my identity, to be like a drop of dew that falls into the sea, and becomes a part of the sublime whole that glows under every line of latitude, and sounds on every shore ! 'That God may be all in all!' that is not a prayer only, but a personal experience. And in all this time I have not had one unkind feeling toward a single human being ; even those, who are opposers, I have pitied with undying compassion ; and enemies around me have seemed harmless and objects of charity rather than potent foes to be destroyed. God be thanked, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ " I am, as ever, yours, H. W. BEECHER." Mr. Beecher spoke again, October 20, in Exeter Hall, London, and, in describing the meeting, he said : " It was a very fit close to a series of meetings that have produced a great sensation in England. The enthusiasm was almost wild and fanatical. I was like to have been killed with people pressing to shake my hand." The press was so great, and "the affectionate enthusiasm" so strong, that the police came to his rescue, and conveyed him into the retiring-room, where many gentlemen brought their wives, sons, and daughters for a " God bless you ! " from the distin- guished orator and patriot. These meetings made a very favorable impression upon Eng- land and Scotland in favor of the American cause, and, no doubt, did much to prevent their interfering in behalf of the Southern Confederacy. Mr. Scott, (the Chamberlain of London,) the president of the meeting in Exeter Hall, said that a few 394 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. more such meetings "in some other parts of England, and the question would be settled." In the successful delivery of these powerful, impressive speeches amid such strong, combined opposition, we see in a most striking manner the lofty patriotism, the great energy, and indomitable perseverance of Mr. Beecher. In speaking of it, he says, "I thought I had been through fur- naces before, but this ordeal surpassed all others. I was quite alone in England ; I had no one to consult with ; I felt the burden of having to stand for my country in a half-hostile land ; and yet I never flinched for a moment or lost heart." Although Mr. Beecher did not go to the front, and labor and preach much to the army in the field, yet his incessant labors at home in prosecuting the war, had much to do in quelling the rebellion. He made balls, and others threw them ; he preached war-sermons at home that encouraged the soldiers to fight hard on the fields. And upon the fall of Richmond, and Lee's surrender as the flag of the nation had been traitorously stricken down from the battle- ments of Fort Sumter, April 14, 1861 as a fitting emblem of the nation's restored sovereignty, the same flag was again, by the direction of the Government, with appropriate religious and military ceremonies and rejoicings, unfurled over the same fort, on the same day of the same month, (1865); and Mr. Beecher was invited by the President and Secretary of War to deliver an ora- tion on the important occasion ; and, as he drew to a close in his speech, he uttered the following significant words : " From this pulpit of broken stones we speak forth our earnest greetings to all our land : we offer to the President of the United States our solemn congratulations that God has sustained his life and health under the unparalleled burdens and sufferings of four bloody years, and permitted him to behold this auspicious consummation of that national unity for which he has waited with so much patience and fortitude, and for which he has labored with such disinterested wisdom and self-denial." And scarcely had these memorable words of congratulation passed the lips of the patriotic orator, before the cruel assassin's ball had pierced the head of the noble President, and thus most suddenly turned the nation's highest joy into the deepest mourning. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 395 DWIGHT L. MOODY. Power of Individual Effort Earnestness the Secret of Success A Great Want The Church and the World Asleep His Birth Lay-preaching Encouraged Paul's Great Success Labor, Labor! Moody's Early Eeligious Views His Conversion Joins the Con- gregation alists Education Limited His Labors Successful A Great Worker in Sabbath Schools Organized Mission Sunday School in Chicago Its Growth Started Prayer Meetings Labors Blessed Young Men's Christian Associations Begun Daily Prayer Meeting His Trust in God for a Living No Salary His Active Labors in the Army His Zeal at the Battle of Fort Donelson Goes to God for Direction Efficient in Building Calls to go Abroad Crosses the Atlantic Organized Daily Prayer Meeting in London Labors in Sunday-School Conventions Successful Deeds, not Words, a True Sign of Principle His Success as an Organizer ; as a Speaker ; as a Revivalist How he " Got up a Revival " His Large Audiences in Chicago His Popularity at Home His Personal Influence over Others. IT is wonderful what good one man can do, when he sets him- self about it earnestly. Earnestness is the great secret of success. One devoted, earnest Christian will do more good than twenty of the common run. Why were such men as George Whitefield, John Calvi,n, and John Wesley so eminently' success- ful ? It was because of their whole-hearted earnestness. Why was Paul more successful than other apostles? Because "he labored more abundantly than they all." Whence Mr. Moody's great success ? According to his own words, it would seem to lay in his earnest, entire consecration to the Master's cause. Paul says, " Give thyself wholly to these things." Moody said, early in his Christian labors, " I have decided to give God all my time." Full, entire, unreserved consecration is the great lack of the church, and the great want of the world. One-half of the world and one-half of the church is more than half asleep all the time. The Lord says, " Awake, awake, put on thy strength." The power of earnestness is great. It is felt, not only in the additional good accomplished directly by it through the earnest individual, but also in the influence it exerts upon others. The very sight of an earnest man is stirring and rousing. 396 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Dwight L. Moody was born in Northfield, Mass., February 5, 1837. He is, therefore, comparatively but a young man, and, with a beginning so fair, encouraging, and successful, he has every reason earnestly to go forward, continuing to give all his time to God in winning souls to Christ. The church, it would seem, has just entered upon an age of lay -preaching; and with the renowned lay -preacher Richard Weaver in the Old World, and with our distinguished lay-preachers in the New, crowned with so much success, the present prospects for more lay-labor are very encouraging. The Apostle Paul was a lay-preacher. He had no theological training nor ecclesiastical ordination, save the receiving of a new heart and a subdued will. Soon as he was put through " the washing of regeneration," he earn- estly cried, " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" and filled and fired with the Holy Ghost, he straightway went forth preaching Christ crucified ; and, with his deep, logical arguments and pow- erful, moving eloquence, he made kings and emperors tremble upon their thrones, and, for the salvation of the world and the glory of God, accomplished a work second to no man. on earth. Then let the lay-preacher be encouraged. Let Zion arise, and shake herself from the dust, until every remnant of latent power shall be fully developed and called forth to the most lively action. God says, " Go, LABOR IN MY VINEYARD." Born in the State of Massachusetts, the stronghold of Unitari- anism in the United States, Mr. Moody was brought up to that doctrine, until his conversion, when he became a Congregationalist. Of his parents we know nothing, and, with but a limited educa- tion, constrained by a Saviour's love, he has gone forth sowing precious seed, which, we believe, has produced an abundant harvest, as history, and the following extract by J. F. B., from The National Sunday -School Teacher, edited by Rev. Dr. Eggleston of Chicago, will clearly show : " Fourteen years ago, I met a young man, and was told he was a clerk in a wholesale boot and shoe house ; had recently come from Boston. He came into our school, Sabbath morning, seemed much interested, and talked of work. Soon after, I met him, and learned that he had been visiting on the North Side, and had CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 397 found great destitution. He said, 'I have promised to commence a Sabbath school there.' This was in the days when the ' Sands' were the ' Five Points ' of Chicago. A few weeks later, the ( North Market Hall Sabbath-School ' was an established fact. Similarity of work brought us often together; and in 'an exchange,' when he came one evening to speak at our mission, I learned his early history. He came to Chicago, September, 1856, a young man, and a young Christian. He desired to work for God. He said, ' I ap- plied to the superintendent of a mission Sunday-school for a class, (there were only three mission schools in the city ;) but I was told they had a full supply of teachers. I went to another school, and found twelve teachers and sixteen scholars. I was told if I would gather a class I might teach it.' The next Sabbath he came with eighteen boys. " Then he commenced the ( North Market Hall Mission School.' The old Market Hall was generally used for a dancing hall on Saturday nights ; and on Sabbath it took most of the forenoon to clean out the sawdust, and wash up the beer and tobacco filth. Here the school was held for over six years. The growth con- tinued until over one thousand were enrolled. Of the countless incidents, the encouragements and discouragements, we cannot speak ; but there was an auxiliary work, and another room. Find- ing it almost impossible to conduct a prayer meeting or Sabbath evening service in the hall, Mr. Moody rented a room used for a saloon ; boarded up the side windows, and seated it with unpaiuted pine seats. It was small, (seating about two hundred ;) it was dark, it was unventilated ; it was necessary to have policemen to watch and guard the place during service. And here Mr. Moody met those young men and women, night after night, year after year. But much more than this : here the blessed Lord met hardened sinners, and here his rich grace was abundantly given. Thi* 'vill doubtless fall under the notice of many a child of God, whose eyes will moisten, and heart grow warm, as they remember that these rude benches were a ' mercy-seat ' to them, and this rough room ' the gate of heaven.' " In 1863, the building on Illinois Street was erected. Its cost with the land was nearly twenty thousand dollars. It was all 398 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAE. paid for. Here the work -has gone forward, the school has not diminished, and here a church of three hundred souls has been gathered ; a few have joined by letter, but a very large propor- tion have been converted there. Of this church Mr. Moody is the leader. " The great work of God, during the winter of 1857-58, led to the formation, in January of the latter year, of the Young Men's Christian Association. It also led to the organization of a daily union prayer meeting. The latter was held in Metro- politan Hall, beginning in January, and was attended by many hundreds. In April the number had become small, and in May it was moved to the First Baptist Church, corner of La Salle and Washington Streets. It continued to decline in members, and was by the committee turned over to the Association, and removed to the rooms on Randolph Street. Here it was maintained by a few brethren, sometimes not more than three. Mr. Moody commenced attending this meeting, and by his personal efforts it began to in- crease, and soon the attendance averaged fifty, often being over one hundred. About this time, Mr. Moody met the writer, and said, ' I have decided to give God all my time' He had at first given his evenings, an occasional day, and the Sabbath. I asked how he expected to live ? ' God will provide, if he wishes me to keep on ; and I will keep on until I am obliged to stop,' was his reply. From that day to this he has never had a salary from any individual or society. The breaking out of the war brought Mr. Moody into public notice. The devotional committee of the Association of which he was a member was made 'the Army Committee,' Mr. J. V. Farwell being added as chairman. The men, to fill the first call for seventy-five thousand, were so quickly off, that only a fragmentary effort could be made. But the first regiment of the three hundred thousand that encamped at Camp Douglas had not finished the shelter for their first night's rest } when a part of that committee were on the ground, and an hour later a camp prayer-meeting was in progress. Over fifteen hun- dred of these meetings were held. Mr. Moody seemed almost ubiquitous. " The news of the battle of Fort Donelson came, and among CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 399 the first volunteers to go and succor the sufferers were Dr. Robert Patterson and Mr. Moody. He was at Shiloh, at Murfreesboro', with the army at Cleveland, and Chattanooga; he was one of the first to enter Richmond, ministering to friend and foe, following Christ. Though so often absent on duty, he seemed always at home ; his presence in the daily meeting was a felt necessity. "The Association rooms were then in the Methodist Episcopal Church block, small and overcrowded. The only place for pri- vate prayer was a dark closet. Coming from one of the meet- ings, two young men, with Mr. Moody, sat on the Clark Street stairs and consulted about the Association. An hour later, they were in that closet at prayer. In a safe on Water Street is a paper signed by each, pledging continuous effort for a building. Plan after plan was formed and abandoned. One day a young man said, ' The only way to get a building is to elect Mr. Moody president of the Association/ " In March following, he was elected. At the annual meeting a plan was submitted, the following spring the building was com- menced, and in September it was finished. For four years he was president, and then was chosen first vice-president only because he would no longer serve. During these years, his record has not only been national, but it has spread abroad. District, State, and national conventions have called him only too often from home. Twice he has crossed the Atlantic, and among his many efforts in Great Britain, he was permitted to organize the daily union prayer-meeting in London. " It is necessary to go back a step to bring up the Sunday- school work of Mr. Moody. Our State Sunday-school conventions had been much as others, but had never been sources of religious power. The seventh convention was to be held in Springfield. Mr. Moody presented the matter to several brethren in different parts of the State, and in company with two from Chicago took the train Friday night, and arrived in Springfield Saturday morn- ing. The convention was to meet on Tuesday. Saturday was spent in visiting brethren there. On Sabbath afternoon, a great meeting was held, at which about seventy rose for prayers. Sab- bath evening, another ; and on Monday, at 8 A. M., 4 P. M., and 400 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. in the evening. God greatly blessed those meetings, and they were held three times a day, during the convention, with blessed results. Many were converted ; the delegates caught the fire, and the influence spread over the State. The conventions assumed new shape and power, until the last one, at Quincy, was attended by over five thousand people. " Mr. Moody was president of the State Association during its eleventh year. His help at the conventions in many other States has often been sought. " The open-air meetings with the soldiers led to similar meet- ings on the streets during our State and county conventions. The results from one of these will illustrate one view of Mr. Moody's character. He had twice been invited to visit one of the counties in this State, but had been obliged to postpone his visit. Having a leisure week in summer, he sent word to some one of the pastors that he was coming, and took the next train. " Arriving, he called on the pastor. Said he, * I 'm sorry you have come; when we wrote you, all seemed fair for a revival; now all promise is gone.' He called on another ; he said, ' You might better have stayed at home; winter is the time; in summer people are too busy.' Mr. Moody persuaded a few of them to go with him to the corner of the public square. He tumbled a dry- goods box over from a store across the street, and began to speak. A crowd gathered, they listened they wept. He invited all who wished to go, to a second meeting in the church near by. The church would not hold all who followed. Meetings were continued. A gracious revival followed. The first pastor said, ' I was mistaken ; the Lord knew when to send.' The second said, 'I see, summer is just the time for a revival.' " Under Mr. Moody's leadership, such meetings have been held in different parts of the city. Some of our best workers have been converted there. The violent opposition of the enemy at the central meetings, held in the City Hall Square, led to a change of place, and the Association lecture-room was chosen. This soon became too small ; and on the completion of our second building, meetings were held on Sabbath nights in Farwell Hall. " Mr. Moody has continued to speak at the Illinois Street CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 401 Church, Sabbath morning ; to superintend the Sabbath -school in the afternoon, and to speak in the hall in the evening. His audience there, now, averages eight hundred oftentimes more ; mostly young men. Here, as everywhere, and always, his ser- vices are given, and God provides in his own way. " The friends who love him here, now insist that they have the privilege of replying for him, to invitations to labor out of the city, and securing a just acknowledgment of his services. " Even this hurried sketch would be incomplete did it not give some account of the estimation in which he is held at home. It is perhaps the best evidence, that he is gladly welcomed to most of the evangelical pulpits of the city'. He is beloved by Sunday- school workers, and respected by all. That he has enemies and opposers is a necessity. Such a positive life for Christ must develop the positive hostility of some. That this is often the result of wrong judgment, one illustration will show. " One day the writer was conversing with a prominent physi- cian about Mr. Moody, when the doctor avowed his dislike, in the most decided terms. Some months afterward, the same man called and said, ' I once told you how I disliked Mr. Moody. I now wish to say I have greatly changed my opinion.' Being asked the cause, he said, ' I was called in to see a dying woman who had led a life of shame. She gave me her watch, jewels, and other property, and asked me to send them to her daughter, in a distant place. She died. I wrote the daughter. She came to the city, called, gave me her name and her husband's references, and received the things. Finding her respectable and lady-like, I asked her how she escaped. She said, " I was a little girl; we lived on the North Side. I went to Mr. Moody's Sunday school, and he often went to my mother, and begged her to send me away to a place of safety ; and his earnest entreaties prevailed. I was sent. I owe it to him." The doctor added, ' This man must be a Christian, and I was wrong.' " In his home, with his wife, whose gentleness and love are among God's richest gifts to him, with the two dear children, Emma and Willie, he is as loving and tender as are his own xvarm entreaties to sinners. 26 402 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. " Of his personal influence over others, I now only say *t has been my privilege to know him fourteen years, to be associated with him in many efforts for the blessed Master. I have travelled, worked, eaten, slept, talked, studied, prayed, and wept with him, and the man who has most influenced my life, and, under God, led me to try and live for Him, is D WIGHT L. MOODY." A man's principles and zeal in a cause are known by his acts. It matters very little how loud a profession he may make, unless he lives it out. Action, not profession deeds, not words, constitute the only true sign of principle. " Even a child is known by his doings." "By their fruits ye shall know them." Woman's attachment to the Saviour is seen in her being "last at the cross and first at the tomb." Mr. Moody's ardent patriotism and strong sympathy for the soldier is seen in his being one of the first to volunteer to go down and take care of the wounded at the battle of Fort Donel- son. His being among the first to enter fallen Richmond to dispense the blessings of the gospel, evinces the same worthy principle. As an organizer, Mr. Moody seems to excel. On May 10, 1864, he organized a very successful daily prayer meeting in the Second Presbyterian Church, of Nashville, Tenn., which was kept up until after the close of the war, and resulted in much good. This, toge- ther with the daily prayer meeting in London, the Sabbath schools, meetings, and prayer meetings in Chicago, in the army, and in other places, he has organized, attended with so much success, clearly prove his zeal, wisdom, tact, and success in this kind of work. As a speaker and a revivalist, we suppose, he has but few equals among the laity of this country. To be able, in the midst of summer, when there were no prospects of an awakening, by one short speech made at the corner of the street to collect a large, attentive, weeping audience, and thus "get up a revival," as they call it, proves an ability and genius for this kind of labor rarely excelled. And to be able to attract an audience of some eight or nine hundred every Sabbath in such a city of churches and dis- tinguished preachers as Chicago, denotes a power of attraction and eloquence very rarely attained by one of nothing but a CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 403 common-school education. In looking over the reports of the Christian Commission, we find frequent references made to the labors of Mr. Moody among the soldiers, which we might here relate ; but, having given enough to answer our end, we close this sketch in the stirring words of Solomon : " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." GARRETSON I. YOUNG. Solemn Warning " Be Ye also Ready ! " His Birth Parents Boyhood Education A Diligent Scholar His Academical Course at Calcutta, Ohio Enters Jefferson College Graduates His Habits Taught High School Studies and Practises Law Elected Probate Judge A Neat Bookkeeper Marries Early Religious Training Read the Bible Daily Joins the Episcopal Church His Military Position Labors in War Department Resigns, and Returns Home Purchased " The Buckeye State " Edits it His Success Elected to the Ohio Legislature His Character Patri- otic Winning Ways Noble Traits " He Made Friends Fast " His Sudden Death Impressive Scene at the Capitol ; and at his Home His Funeral Marked Honors Paid him by the Governor and State Legislature Eulogies by the Members. ONATCHED away almost without a moment's warning, how *~J solemn and impressive is the admonition to his relatives, to his friends, and to the Ohio State Legislature, "Be ye also ready ! " " Prepare to meet thy God I " The entrance of death within the portals of the halls of legislation, most assuredly should deeply impress every reader with the certainty of the divine edict, " Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return ! " Garretson I. Young was born of highly respected parents, at Young's Mills, in the Valley of Achor, Columbiana County, Ohio, June 28, 1827. His mother was brought up a Quaker; but for many years she has been a devotedly pious member of the Baptist Church. His father is noted for uprightness and uni- formity of character; and as an evidence of his good business qualifications and popularity at home, he was elected township clerk twenty-one years in succession. Being the only child, Gar.- 404 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. retson was the object of much kind and tender parental affection. He spent the days of his boyhood in the Achor district school. Born and brought up in the same neighborhood with myself, I have known him well from his childhood. The writer taught him to read, write, and cipher. Garretson was always a good boy, and the boy was father to the man. He went through the arithmetic ( The Western Calculator) in three months, when he was only about ten years old ; he was always a diligent student. The school was taught in a little old log school-house near the village of Achor. Although his father was a miller, Garretson never seemed to have much taste for that kind of business ; and having obtained a good district-school education, at the age of fourteen he com- menced a course of academical study in the High School at Cal- cutta, Ohio ; boarding with his aunt, Mrs. Hoffstot. Here he re- mained at school some four years, excepting a few months which he spent in teaching ; here he and I recited Greek and Latin to S. W. Gilson, Esq., and enjoyed many seasons of pleasant memory ; here, too, Mr. Young formed the acquaintance of a large circle of interesting, worthy young ladies, whose society he often enjoyed with much pleasure and profit, and with some of whom he whiled away the shades of many an evening. Having completed his academical course, he entered Jefferson College, Canonsburg, Pa., in the fall of 1846, where he soon made many warm friends, rose in standing and influence, and graduated with honor and distinction in 1848. In the college there were two large rival literary societies, with one of which almost every student in college was connected. Mr. Young be- longed to the Franklin Society, and, having been elected secretary of the same the last term of the year, he had the honor of offi- cially signing the diplomas of the graduating class. Mr. Young was a very fine penman ; he excelled in pictorial penmanship, and I have always thought more of my college diploma because he wrote my name on it. As a student, he was diligent and methodical ; he had a time for study, and a time for every de- partment of business. Preferring the languages to mathematics, He excelled in the classics ; and. proficient as a scholar, he was CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 405 selected uy the faculty of the college to deliver an oration on commencement day. With his diplomas in his pocket, and bidding a long farewell to his friends at college, he hastened to see his beloved parents at their beautiful home in Achor. After a short rest, and having visited his friends at Calcutta, he engaged in teach- ing in the Cottage Hill Academy, Ellsworth, Ohio ; where he remained until the spring of 1849, when he commenced the study of law under Hon. S. W. Gilson, of Canfield, Ohio, and was ad- mitted to the bar in 1851, and at once entered into partnership and practised with his preceptor. Appreciated for his uprightness, and valued for his good judgment, in the fall of 1854, he was elected probate judge of Mahoning County ; and having given such general satisfaction, at the expiration of three years he was re-elected, and faith- fully discharged the duties of that important office for six years. Like his father before him, Judge Young had a fine tact for drawing up instruments of writing. Pleasing in his manners, order, exactness, and neatness were prominent traits in his char- acter. The records of his office while probate judge, said Judge Johnson, of Ohio, are " models of neatness." Mr. Young was a fine epistolary writer. His letters were always rich and spicy. Conscious that " it is not good that man should be alone," and having arrived to the mature age of nearly thirty years, Judge Young was married to Miss Susan Bingham, of Ellsworth, Ohio, on the 27th day of March, 1856. Blessed with the good example of a pious mother and an honest father, Mr. Young enjoyed a good, religious training. While at home, he usually attended the Baptist church, and sat under the faithful ministrations of the pious Rev. Reece Davis. While attending the academy at Calcutta, he attended the Presby- terian church, and sat under the able ministrations of the devoted Rev. William Reed ; here he attended the weekly prayer meeting and Sabbath school, in which he taught a class. While at college, he was surrounded by similar religious influences, and, although more exposed to temptation there, we never heard an evil tiling of him. Being very deeply impressed with the doctrines of the 406 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. Christian religion, and having a very high regard for the Bible, Mr. Young read three chapters in it daily during his student- life. At Canfield, where he studied and practised law, the same wholesome checks and restraints were thrown around him, all of which, blest of Heaven, finally resulted in an open profession of his faith in the blessed Saviour. He united with the Protestant Episcopal Church in 1855, in which he continued an active, con- sistent member until his death. And says Dr. Brooke, of Can- field, " in the discharge of his religious duties, Mr. Young was as earnest and devoted as when engaged in his own private busi- ness, or that of a public character." At the breaking out of the rebellion, being in somewhat feeble health, instead of going to help to fight the battles of his country upon the field, he accepted the appointment of judge advocate in one of the military departments, and made up his mind to serve his country in that way ; but before he had time to enter upon the duties thereof, he accepted the office of military secretary and aide-de-camp to Governor Tod, of Ohio, with the rank of colonel, and served in that capacity during the Governor's administration. Having enjoyed a short respite after the close of his arduous labors as secretary, he received and accepted an appointment in the War Department at Washington, and was placed upon duty by Secretary Stanton. Here, besides performing various other duties, he gave decisions in cases of claims against the Government, in cases of rebel prisoners seeking to renew their allegiance to the United States, and in cases where charges were preferred against military officers. He occupied this responsible and important position until the spring of 1868, when, upon the urgent request of his aged parents, he resigned, and returned to his beautiful " Hillside " home in New Lisbon, Ohio, which overlooks the lonely cemetery in which now sleeps the precious dust of his mortal remains. Thus rolled on, one after another, the important events of his life. In the following August he purchased The Buckeye State, one of the old county papers of his native county ; and, going at once into the editorial chair, he earnestly applied the genius, ability, and tact of his well-disciplined mind to make it a paper CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 407 worthy of its new editor. And with his good sense, extensive knowledge of human nature, and general information, together with his easy, fluent, graphic, and forcible style of writing, he succeeded admirably. In a few months the reputation of the paper had improved so much, and the popularity of the new editor increased so rapidly that, in the foil of 1869, the people of his native county did him the honor of electing him a member of the State Legislature. This was a new era in Colonel Young's life. Though a lawyer by profession, and a judge by practice, he had never acted in the capacity of a legislator; yet, buoyant with hope, and eager to discharge every duty, at the meeting of the Legislature he answered to his name at the first calling of the roll ; and although, with few exceptions, he entered the walls of the Capitol at Columbus an entire stranger, yet with his genial, winning ways he soon formed many agreeable acquaintances, and made many warm friends. True, sincere, and honest, with engaging manners and fine colloquial powers, he was one who knew well how to make friends, and how to keep them ; in fact, warm friendship, stern integrity, pure morality, ardent patriotism, and a peculiar nobility of soul, were some of the leading traits of his noble character. Colonel Young, being of feeble health, labored under great disadvantages ; and yet true greatness does not con- sist in high intellectual attainments: it lies more in the heart, in self-denial, and moral heroism. And if you analyze closely the character of Colonel Young, you will find that his great power and influence laid more in the goodness of his heart than in the brilliancy of his mind. In speaking upon this point, says his special friend, Hon. Mr. Williams, member of the Legislature from Fayette County, "Admirable as were his#qualities of mind, it was, after all, more his qualities of heart that attracted and attached his fellow-men to him. No man had a higher sense of honor, or finer sensibilities, or exhibited more uniformly in daily life those accomplishments which mark the perfect gentleman. He seemed to have been gifted by nature, rather, than to have acquired by culture, in a prominent degree, .those noble traits of heart that win and charm; and inspired with confidence and respect all who came in contact with him. He made friends fast, and held them long" 408 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. HIS DEATH. Sudden and unexpected it came "as a thief in the night." Like a faithful soldier, he died at his post ; that is a great honor. Having dined with Mr. Adair, at the American Hotel, they walked in company to the Capitol. Upon ascending the steps, Colonel Young threw up blood, and complained of pain and oppression at the lungs. Growing worse, he intimated that he ought to return to the hotel, and suddenly beginning to feel very weak, he desired to lie down; whereupon he was assisted into the Comptroller's office, and was at once waited upon by his intimate friends, who spared no pains for his comfort, and immediately sent for his old family physician, Dr. George W. Brooke, member of the House of Representatives from Mahoning County. Other physicians were brought at once, and everything possible was done, but all to no avail. Almost as soon as he was seated, " over a gallon of blood gushed from his mouth." This gave him a little relief, but he never spoke after entering the room. When Dr. Brooke, his old friend, approached him, he opened his eyes, but gave no other signs of recognition. His work was done his time was out; and, with a few more throbbings of his kind, generous heart, "the wheel at the cistern stood still," and his noble soul, washed in a Saviour's blood, went from the exciting scenes of legislation to the peaceful abodes of the redeemed in heaven. The scene in the Capitol was deeply impressive. At first it partook of great excitement ; officials ran from their offices, members from the House and Senate Chamber, and, filled with consternation, large crowds rushed from the streets deeply anxious to know what ha^ happened. The first response was, "Colonel Young is dying." And no sooner had this spread through the vast crowd, than came the more startling announcement, "Colonel Young is dead ! " Deeply impressed with reverence and awe, the people gathered round, and gazed upon the pale face of the de- parted patriot the excitement dies away, and a deep feeling of sorrow and sadness settled down upon the Capitol, and all about it. But still more sorrowful and impressive was the reception of the sad news of his death at his late home in New Lisboa. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 409 Word had been received a day or two previous of Mr. Young's intention to spend the following Sabbath at home with his family: he was therefore anxiously looked for when the news of his dying reached New Lisbon. Almost immediately following the last flash, the next despatch announced that " Colonel Young is dead." How deep the impression, and sad the disappointment! sorrow and sadness filled every heart ! How great the loss and severe the trial to the bereaved wife, the aged parents, and the dear little daughter ! And although the transition from sweet expec- tation to the keenest grief and deepest mourning was very sudden and unexpected yet to the bereaved, in all such cases, Jesus says, " Let not your heart be troubled ; " " Weep not ; " " Be of good cheer," because, for such " to die is gain" and " to depart is far better." The departed, instead of spending the anticipated Sabbath with his beloved family on earth, went, no doubt, to spend it with the blessed " family in heaven." Here, his friends weep and mourn his loss ; there, realizing his gain, he joins the ranks and sings the songs of the redeemed in glory. Here he sat in a legislator's chair, there he sits upon the throne of God. The remains of Colonel Young laid in state in the Governor's office, on Friday, from 8 to 10 o'clock, A. M., and arrived on the train, in charge of the escort, at New Lisbon, Saturday evening about 9 o'clock, and were immediately conveyed to his late resi- dence. There, on the following Sabbath, they were visited by hundreds of friends and a large concourse of people ; and at 2 o'clock, p. M., the Rev. Dr. Vallandigham read in a very im- pressive manner the solemn funeral services of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The remains were then escorted to the ceme- tery by a large delegation of Free Masons and Odd Fellows, to both of which societies the deceased belonged. The funeral procession was unusually large and imposing. At the close of the burial services, the body was given in charge of the Masons, and buried with their usual forms and ceremonies. The House of Representatives unanimously passed resolutions expressing, in the strongest terms, their high appreciation of Mr. Young's " varied talents, his public and private worth, and of his exalted character as a Christian gentleman." We here insert a 410 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. few extracts from the speeches of the members of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, upon the solemn occasion of Mr. Young's death. Hon. JOSIAH THOMPSON", of East Liverpool, his successor, said, in speaking of the responsible positions he had occupied: "He leaves a record of which his friends may well be proud ! But our friend has gone! Cut down in the meridian of the years ordinarily allotted to man upon the threshold of usefulness, with a brilliant future before him. His kindly greeting will meet us not again; and that place where he was more highly prized and will be more sadly missed the domestic circle will see him and hear his voice no more forever. And, while we mourn for the dead, and sympathize with the surviving widow and relations, let us not forget our duty to mankind and to the State : let us so conduct ourselves, not only through the remain- ing time of the present session of this General Assembly, but through life, that, when the Governor of the Universe shall sound the gavel which shall be the token for our departure, we shall leave behind us characters beautified with all the Christian vir- tues of our departed friend." Mr. CURTISS, of Cuyahoga County, said : " Mr. Young's gentle spirit cast a halo of warmth and brightness around him continually. I can truthfully attest that I have never met with one whom I believed combined purer and more excel lent elements of character than he. It is rare, indeed, sir, we meet men of finished culture, enlarged intelligence and firmness, who add to these qualities the finer and ennobling characteristics of virtue, truthfulness, and kindness of decided and marked types. But this was true of him. It can truly be said that he lived not within the sphere of self, but in the great interests of humanity. His moral vision was never dimmed by sordid or mercenary conceptions. Truth was ever his polar star, while mercy and justice lighted his pathway." Mr. ENOCHS, of Lawrence County, in speaking of Colonel Young, said : " He was true, kind, faithful, patient, honest, and brave . With a disease at all times preying on the very vitals of his life; standing, as he knew, on the verge of the grave; yet cheerful and happy. Ordinary men would have sunk in its CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAB. 411 presence ; but when not prostrate, he entered upon life each day seemingly as buoyant as though he had every prospect of a long life before him ; and at each step in life seemed to feel ' death, where is thy sting ! grave, where is thy victory ! ' " The Hon. S. W. Gilson says, in a letter, that " Judge Young was a close student and an excellent classical scholar, careful and attentive to business ; and, while with me as student and partner, he was an agreeable friend, a man of good moral character, of excellent habits, and worthy of the esteem of his companions and friends." He adds : " With these few words I say, friend of former years, farewell ! May'st thou rest with heroes and sages on The green banks of the river of Life ! FABEWKLL! " CHAPTER XXIV. FAREWELL TO THE HOSPITAL. A BRIEF AND SOLEMN REVIEW NUMBER OF PATIENTS IN HOSPITAL AVERAGE DAILY AND TOTAL MORTALITY .OF THE WAR INTER- VIEWS WITH SOLDIERS CHAPLAINS MUCH EXPOSED TO DISEASE SOLEMN TO PART FAREWELL TO THE CHESAPEAKE; TO THE CHAPEL; TO THE MATRONS; TO HAMPTON; TO THE CHAPLAINS FAREWELL TO THE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS APPEAL AND FAREWELL TO THE IMPENITENT FAREWELL TO THE DEAD THE GREAT CHRISTIAN VICTORY THE REBELLION DISSECTED SOURCE OF THE VICTORY MUNIFICENT GIFTS AMERICANS AND EUROPEANS WHET- TING ONE ANOTHER Go FORWARD. OFFICERS AND FELLOW -SOLDIERS: The war is over! the effusion of blood is stayed ! " the battle 's fought; the vic- tory won ! " and the country is saved ! The two mighty armies, so long engaged in fierce conflict, have disbanded, and gone home! AIK! the nation, ju<^ drenched in fraternal blood, again enjoys peace ; and the hospitals, for the last four years thronged with the sick, wounded, dying, and dead, are now closing out. And although a few of us are still here lingering around these old blood- 412 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. stained wards, made sacred by the long, severe suffering and death of so many brave patriots, to nurse and take care of those patients as yet unable to go home, we will all soon be discharged. As for me, being the last chaplain mustered in, I am the first mustered out. Having labored some fifteen months in this ex- tensive home of the sick and wounded, the honorable Secretary of War drops me a little note, stating that "you are honorably mustered out of the service of the United States ; your services being no longer needed." Hence we come, to-day, to bid you all an affectionate farewell. And now, in taking my leave, let us take a brief retrospect of the past. It makes a very solemn review. To recall the severe suffering and the immense mortality endured in these hospitals the past two years is very solemn and impressive. And when we begin to count numbers, the impres- sion is much deeper. The greatest number of patients in the hospital at any one time, was four thousand nine hundred and forty-eight on May 26, 1865. And during my labors here, which have been the hardest of my life, we have received and treated in this hospital some twenty-five thousand patients, some two thousand of whom are now in their graves, The greatest number of deaths on any one day was nineteen. Three hundred died during the month of August, 1864, in the Hampton division. The greatest number buried any one day, was twentj'-nine. Others are passing away. The stream of death is still flowing. The king of terrors still reigns. Half a million have died in the war, with an average mortality of more than two hundred a day. Two hundred a day ! How impressive the fact ! how solemn the warning ! Take the world over, about seventy die every minute, over four thousand every hour, and a generation every thirty-three years. We will all soon be in our graves. Time is short; eternity is just at hand. Oh, then, fellow-soldiers, let us now prepare for it. My intercourse with you has been very pleasant. To hear the soldier speak of the thrilling incidents of the war, the weary march, the heavy charge, the bloody fight, and the dreadful carnage, was deeply interesting ; but to hear them relate, with deep emotions and gushing tears, their religious experience, was far more interesting and refreshing. CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 413 The simplicity, freeness, and frankness with which soldiers and officers have talked to us about these things, their wants, trials, temptations, etc., have always added much to the interest and profit of our interviews. They often became eloquent and pow- erful, because they spoke right out from the heart, telling us all about their sins, difficulties, sufferings, feelings, wants, and cares. Many a time have I gone away from the patient's bedside in- structed, encouraged, and refreshed. Although this work was very laborious, yet we deemed it a privilege. Constrained by a sense of duty to the soldier, to our country, and to God, we enjoyed it, notwithstanding our great exposure to contract dis- ease. Though it is very pleasant to go and see " the loved ones at home," yet we leave the suffering soldier, and these old halls, where we have so often knelt and prayed together and enjoyed such precious times of refreshing, with much sorrow and deep regret. % It is very hard to get away. To pack up, and say fare- well, seems very difficult. To leave kind friends with whom we have been so long associated in our dreadful work, is peculiarly trying. Yet it is a pleasing reflection to go home crowned with victory and a redeemed country, although it has cost the Union army the loss of over three hundred thousand lives, of whom over ninety thousand were killed in action or died of wounds. " Peace be to their ashes." May God abundantly bless and com- fort their bereaved, mourning friends ! Farewell, " Old Chesa- peake ! " thou whose ocean breeze has so often gladdened the heart and cheered the soul of many a suffering hero ! Farewell to thy historic walls, which, if they could but speak and record the agonies and sufferings, the patience, the dying groans, the fervent prayers, the bright conversions, and triumphant deaths of our departed heroes, 't would fill many volumes with most interesting matter. Farewell, ye widowed weeping wives and bereaved mothers, whose dear husbands and beloved sons have laid down their lives within these blood-stained walls in honor of the dear old flag and for the salvation of the country. You have done your country a good service. May God richly reward you for your great sacrifices, and abundantly bless and comfort you in your sad bereavements. Farewell, ye self-denying matrons, 414 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. who have so long stood pensive and watehful around the narrow couch of the sick, wounded, arid dying soldier, who, by your tender, affectionate, painstaking nursing, fervent prayers, and soothing sympathies, have ministered so much to the comfort of the dying, and have saved the lives of so many of our surviving soldiers and officers. You have done a noble work in the great strug- gle for national existence. Although you have not wielded the sword, fired the cannon, besieged cities, nor commanded armies; yet, doubtless, you have done more, perhaps, than some who did all these things, in quelling the rebellion and saving the country. Fare ye well ! The Lord reward you abundantly for your work and labor of love. Peace be with you ! Farewell, " Bethesdian Chapel," within whose walls we have enjoyed many a precious hour ; farewell, thou sacred place endeared to thousands of soldiers and officers by the sweet songs of praise, the impressive sermon, the refreshing prayer and con- ference meeting, the soldiers' religious talk, earnest exhortation, and fervent prayers ! Long wilt thou be remembered with pleasing recollections, as the sacred spot where many a con- valescent soldier, officer, and chaplain enjoyed precious seasons of refreshing, and, doubtless, by many as the place where they first drew the breath of spiritual life. Farewell, " Old Hampton," with all thy thrilling scenes of suffering, blood, and death ; farewell, ye blood-stained wards, into whose oblong barracks and snow-white tents the sick and wounded have come and gone like the ocean's tide : though ye have been the scene of so much suffering, sorrow, and death, yet being the place where we have so often mingled our prayers, sympathies, and tears, with so many brave patriots, and being the battle-field where so many have, through grace, won the victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil, those old walks and wards, headquarters, and halls will ever be held in sor- rowful, yet affectionate remembrance ! Farewell, ye dingy dining - halls ; whose rough tables and sombre walls, if they could but speak and record the solemn, impressive sermons, the interesting and refreshing prayer and conference meeting, the soldier's stirring, heart-gushing exhortation and importunate CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 415 prayer, the happy religious experience, the sweet communions, and solemn vows, and frequent conversions, it too would form many volumes of most interesting and useful matter. Farewell, ye chaplains ! Though we have been long associated in our arduous work, to-day we separate ; and although the four divisions of the hospital are now merged into one ; and although the patients are now rapidly hurrying away by transfer, by dis- charge, and by death, yet your work is still great. The field is still great, white,, ready to harvest ! God is still saying, " Thrust in the sickle, and reap." There are here yet many soldiers of the army, who are not soldiers of the cross. Some are nigh unto death, yet without hope ; others, almost Christians, like the trembling jailer, are anxiously inquiring what to do to be saved. They will require special attention, tender sympathy, faithful instruction, and earnest prayers. Many others, still careless and impenitent, should be faithfully instructed, tenderly warned, and earnestly besought to repent and come to Jesus. I^et us en- deavor to remember that, although the war is over, and the rebellion quelled, it is still our duty to fight on even until death. Then suffer me, in bidding you an affectionate farewell, to say to you, in the language of Jesus, "Be thou faithful" , Let us strive to meet around God's throne, where there will be no more war. We come now, fellow-soldiers, to bid you a long, affectionate farewell ! Our associations have been pleasant and agreeable, and, having so long endured the trials, hardships, and depriva- tions of hospital life, to separate seems very hard ; and although I leave you to-day, yet my prayers, my sympathies, and my heart will still be with you. Farewell, ye soldiers of the cross ! We have enjoyed many precious times of refreshing around the throne of grace in these old wards and halls ; but we will enjoy them here no longer : to-day we part, to meet no more in this world ; and, as we will no more mingle our prayers and praises on earth, oh, let us strive " to strike hands in heaven ! " Remember, brethren, that, although the war is over, and the country saved, and you will soon be discharged from the service, yet you still have rebellions to quell, battles to fight, and victories to win. Your great Captain's command is, still to fight, fight on, fight 416 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. on till death, and you '11 receive the crown ! Doubtless, many of you have been converted in the army or in the hospital ; the thrilling incidents of battle, and the melting scenes of hospital life, through grace, have led you to the cross. God has done great things for you. You owe him a debt of gratitude you can never pay. You have done much for the deliverance of your country, and for the salvation of souls ; but your work is not complete ; there is yet much work to be done, and, as you have enlisted in this service for life, let me entreat you, brethren, toil on, children of the living God, toil on ! As you go home, carry your religion with you j keep the doctrines of the cross uppermost in your hearts, and let them shine bright in your lives. As you lay off the armor of your country, gird on afresh " the whole armor of God," and let the Church at home see and feel the power of the religion of the army. May God abund- antly bless, comfort, and save you. And now we come to bid farewell to you, my impenitent friends ! And what shall I sav to you ? what more can we say? what more can we do, than we have done ? My very heart bleeds for you ; my very soul longs for your salvation ! And, oh, my dear soldiers, what shall we say more? We have given you many warnings; we have sounded in your ears the terrors of God's law ; in our exhorta- tions we have led you down to the depths of hell, and then led you up to the seraphic joys of heaven, and besought you by the thrilling scenes of Gethsemane and Calvary, and by the mercies of God, and by the love of Christ, to believe and be saved and you still remain impenitent. Though you have proved your- selves loyal to your country, yet, with sorrow be it said, you are still disloyal to God ! You have fought well to put down rebel- lion against the Government, yet you still keep up rebellion against God in your hearts. And now, before I bid you a final farewell, allow me to warn and entreat you once more. It is the last time. It is hard to give you up. How solemn and im- pressive the scene ! To see men, who have done so much to save their country, go home, and doing nothing to save their souls, seems hard. Here we have often met beneath the beautiful folds of that dear old flag, and heard many earnest prayers and CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 417 impressive sermons ; but here we all will meet no more forever. AVe will all soon go home; the hospital will soon disband; the last bugle will soon sound ; the last roll will soon be called, and these old wards, made sacred by the death of so many heroes, will soon be torn away ; and though we meet no more on earth, we will all meet at the judgment-seat of Christ, when the trump of God shall sound, when a final separation will take place between the loyal and disloyal to God. Then, once more we beseech you, repent, and look to Jesus ; let the thrilling scenes of Bethlehem, Gethsemane, and Calvary stir your souls and win your hearts ; yes, go to Calvary, and see the Lord of glory expiring upon the cross Jesus dying that you might have eternal life. Follow him from the cross to the tomb, and from the tomb to the throne, and all to bring us to God. Oh, then, while standing by the graves of three thousand brave comrades who have sacrificed their lives for their country, we beseech you, give your hearts to God. Dear soldiers, farewell, farewell ! It is hard to leave you ; it is harder to leave you out of Christ. May the God of all grace have mercy upon and abundantly bless you all ! And now, in taking leave of the living, my thoughts go and linger with the dead; and while walking amidst the soldiers' graves, we almost feel like saying farewell to their precious dust. Farewell, thou sacred spot, within whose slen- der walls sleep the mortal remains of thousands around whose lonely graves many a tear has been shed, many a prayer offered, and many a smitten heart has deeply throbbed with crushing grief. Farewell, ye patriotic dead, whose blood has stained many a battle-field, whose valor and courage have won many a victory, and whose daring deeds deserve to be written on leaves more durable than leaves of brass : let their names be enshrined in the memory and deeply engraved upon the heart of every Amer- ican patriot; let monuments of marble rise to their honor, so that their heroic deeds may be handed down to the latest poster- ity. Farewell to their precious dust ! May God keep, guard, and protect it until the morning of the resurrection, when the voice of the archangel and the trump of God shall sound, and bid the scattered fragments of broken bones and amputated liralw 27 418 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. come together; when those mortal bodies, sown in corruption, weakness, and dishonor, shall be raised in power, honor, and glory ; when the redeemed shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and dwell forever with him in glory* THE GREAT CHRISTIAN VICTORY. With all the Christian efforts, preaching, praying, and pains- taking labor performed by the chaplain and the Christian and Sani- tary Commissions, to supply the wants and to save the soldier's soul, the grandest exhibition of Christianity in the war is the victory achieved in quelling the rebellion. Conceived in sin, and brought forth in iniquity, the rebellion was all wrong from beginning to end. If you dissect it, you will find it made up of sin, pride, selfishness, treachery, and treason. And the victory achieved in quelling it, is a victory of right over wrong, of truth over error, of liberty over slavery, and of loyalty over treason. The history of the world affords many great and glorious victo- ries; but, for important results, few equal this. And although the earth did not quake, nor the rocks rend, nor the sun refuse to shine at its achievement ; yet, when viewed in all its great, far- reaching, and powerful effects upon the church, self-government, human progress, and Christian civilization throughout the world, it is for grandeur and glory the greatest victory since that achieved 'by the Son of God upon Mount Calvary or at the tomb of Joseph. And when we consider the length and severity of the conflict, the great sacrifice made in life, blood, and treasure in achieving it, carrying away over half a million of brave men, and filling the land with widows and orphans, and ridging it with soldiers' graves, the victory appears much greater. The restoration of peace after a four years' civil war that caused an average daily mortality of three hundred and sixty brave men, is no small blessing. How much soever is due to the bravery, military genius, and hard fighting of the army and navy, yet the great moral energy, strength, and power by which the rebellion was put down, is, doubtless, mainly due to the Christian principles of the loyal part of the nation. It was moral strength that saved the nation and freed the slave. And had we had less of it, the rebellion a CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. 419 might have destroyed the nation, and thus thwarted this great effort to maintain self-government in the world. Even while the fierce conflict was raging, when victory perched upon the rebel standard, monarchical Europe rejoiced, and European aristocracy were heard to say in derision, " There goes your model republic, knocked into splinters in the course of one man's life ! " And then, with our country struggling for life, and just ready to be wrapped in her winding-sheet, as those European aristocrats sup- posed, they stood ready to help our American traitors lay her in the grave. But thanks be to a kind Providence, our God-pro- tected republic, then unconscious of her strength, withstood the severe storm, and came out of the awful conflict with her columns of constitutional liberty stronger than ever. And so great has been our progress since, that, were it not for the old battle-fields, the maimed soldiers, their graves, and the mourning widows and orphans, you would scarcely know that there had been any war. The power and influence of Christianity in the war is seen not only in the great efforts made for the soldiers' salvation and spiritual instruction, but also in the munificent contributions made for their general relief and comfort. The Missionary Herald, quoting from Hartley's Philanthropic Results of the War in America, says that the total amount contributed for the aid and relief of the soldiers and their families during the war by the States, associations, and individuals, is $211,245,474 58, exclu- sive of the Government expenditures, and what was given for the freedmen and white refugees. It has been estimated that one-third of this large amount has been given by professing Christians, which, says the same author, is a great deal more than has been given by the entire church for the conversion of the world since the organization of the Govern- ment. These vast contributions show that how much soever the American people may be absorbed in bank-bills, that, in times of great emergencies, such as the salvation of the country, they are capable of great acts of sympathy, and of a noble generosity. Hitherto our republic has been on probation, and the great question of man's self-government was still undecided ; but now, having survived the tremendous shock of the rebellion, it may 420 CHRISTIANITY IN THE WAR. be regarded as being forever settled. And now, with railroads and telegraphs spanning our continent, bringing the life and energy of the Far West in contact with the commerce, wealth, and talent of the Great East; and linked to the Old World with the ties of commerce, religion, literature, and telegraphic communications, making Americans whet Europeans, and Europeans whet Ame- ricans the United States is to-day a terror to kings ancl queens, an example and a light to the world, and the emulation of the whole earth. Although sin abounds in our land ; yet, with slavery abol- ished, reconstruction completed, and with a railroad, commercial, educational, Sabbath-school, and Missionary enterprise unsur- passed in the history of the world, our future prospects are very bright and encouraging. How all-important, then, to wisely im- prove this victory ! Achieved at a cost so great, and involving interests so vast both to Church and State, the trust reposed in us as a nation is exceedingly great, and fraught with a responsibility literally immense. Having thus renewed our strength, and been made more perfect through suffering, and having passed the Red Sea of our pro- gress and trials, in view of the great responsibility resting upon us, God, our past success, and the great work before us, bid us " Go forward ! " " FOLLOW UP THE VICTORY ! " INDEX. A UCTIOXEERIXG, Sabbath, broken up, A 16. A dying thiers prayer powerful, 34. Assurance, secret of, 48. "A glorious attainment," 47. Arrival of patients, 89. An affectionate kiss, soldier's, 91. Army and Navy Hymn -book used, 96, 102. " Always refreshing," 103. An Indian's reproof, 239. Appeal to the wounded in hospital, 105-7. Asking a mother's prayers, 108. Amos, Miss, matron, 119, 120. Americans and Europeans whetting one other, 420. Alexander, Mrs. Marv, the soldiers' friend, 122 ; her death, 123. Armstrong, Robert, 109th TJ. S., prayer- ful ; " all is well ; " happy death, 146-7. Andersonville Prison, cruelties, 151; trials in, 152 ; awful suffering, 153, 165 ; many died of grief, some went deranged, 153, 270 ; church and school there now, 154. American Missionary Association, 154. Almost Christian, the, 155. Andersonville Hospital, 160; diet of, 160; "sick call," 161 ; sufferings in, 161, 162. Andersonville prayer-meeting, 163. Andersonville Cemetery, 169; the dead, 169; their sufferings, 170; number, 171; inscription on gate, 172. Alexander, Reuben, 29th U. S., craving prayers, 207. A swearer brought to tears, 209. Aikin, Charles A., 4th Mass. Car., anxious, happy, 254, 255. Author's praying with a dying rebel, 70. capture, 20, 69 ; loss by, 69. preaching daily to men on their death-beds, 98, 104, 105, 128, 132, 185, 186, 188, 246. canvassing through the rain, 275. speech at the fall of Richmond, 285. address at Lincoln's funeral, 295- 298. Rocky Mountain letter; value of the Union, 62. Author's saving a lieutenant's life, 36. receiving letters of thanks, 114, 115, 246, 247. BAPTISM of blood, country's, 15. Babcock, Elias, 10th N. Y., co. "B," wounded ; his heroic faith, ecstatic joy, dying words, 22, 23. Basil's prayer: "Give me any cross," Ac., 37. Bowman, Moses, 15th W. Va. Vol., con- verted in the army ; began to pray on the field of battle ; " all is bright," 51, 56. Barnett, John II., 101st Pa. Vol., converted in the army; his zeal, will, assurance, weeping farewell, 48, 49. "Biggest gun ever fired in America," 16. Brown's, Captain J. B., bravery at Fort Gray, 63. Beech, Colonel, requests preaching on the boat, 76. Bible-class, large, interesting, 19, 43, 81. Brown, Chaplain W. Y., U. S. A., 17. Baptized an officer at midnight, 41. " Brought to the point by wounds," 41. Battle of Plymouth, N. C., 63-68 ; casual- ties of, 68. . Bible picked up and carried through the war, 70. Bread begged for prisoners, 76. Belle Isle Prison, cruelties of; fare, 78, 151, 152. Butler, Major-General, 80, 307, 308. Barnes, General, Surgeon-General, U.S.A., 84. Blake, Captain, 3d Pa. Heavy Art., 85. Brands plucked out of the fire, 89. Bush prayer-meetings, 102. Bently, Miss J. E., matron, 120. " Bury me with them, when dead," 123. Blind exhorter, 130. Backslider, the, 136, 137, 138, 178. Bartsber, Henry, 5Sth Pa. Vols., heart fixed; joyful death, 140-1. "Bullets for bread," 173. Boat-load of Andcrsonville prisoners, 184. Bradley, Theodore, 7th Conn. Vol., con- verted in army, 185. 421 422 INDEX. Burket, John S., 13th Ind. Cav., anxious, prayerful death, 185-6. Bullock, Wm. S., 89th N. Y. Vol., anxious, prayerful, doubts; perseveres; comfort- able, 188-9, 269. Bleeding to death, yet " resting on Christ sure," 194. "Ball in your head not as bad as sin in your heart," 195. Boston, Jacob, 188th Pa. Vols., his creed, faith, assurance; happy; no fear, 199, 200. Bomb-proof prayer-meetings, 210. Brown, Samuel S., 3d Ohio Cav., ready to go; his death, 213. Brown, R., 7th S. C., prayerful assurance; no fear, 217. Burnett, Edward, 118th N. Y. Vol., con- verted in army, through sin, 224. Brown, Wm., 117th N. Y., submissive, strong faith, 231. Bingham, Rev. Mr., preached, 274. Bombardment of Fort Fisher, 288. Battle of Big Bethel, killed at, 301. Bull Run, killed at, 301. Ball's Bluff, killed at, 301. Wilson's Creek, killed at, 301. Pittsburg Landing, killed at, 302. South Mountain, killed at, 302. Williamsburg, killed at, 302. Antietam, killed at, 302. Fair Oaks, killed at, 302. Malvern Hill, killed at, 303. Cedar Mountain, killed at, 303. Second Bull Run, killed at, 303. Fredericksburg, killed at, 303. Corinth, killed at, 303. Stone River, killed at, 304. Chancellorsville, killed at, 304. Vicksburg, killed at, 304. Gettysburg, killed at, 305. Chattanooga, killed at, 305. Missionary Ridge, killed at, 305. Fort Wagner, killed at, 306. and Massacre at Fort Pillow, killed at, 306. of the Wilderness, killed at, 306. Spottsylvania, killed at, 306. Cold Harbor, killed at, 307. Resaca, Ga., 307. Keneshaw Mountain, killed at, 308. Monocacy, killed at, 308. Atlanta, killed at, 308. Opequan and Fisher's Hill, killed at, 309. of Franklin, Tenn., killed at, 309. Nashville, Tenn., killed at, 309. Cedar Creek, killed at, 309-10. Averysboro, killed at, 310. Bentonsville, killed at, 310. Five Forks, killed at, 311. Hatgher's Run, Fort Steadman, 311. Battles of Sherman's march to the sea, 308-9. Baker, Colonel, killed, 301 ; Captain Beirel slew the perpetrator, 301. Burnside, General, succeeded McClellan, 303-4. Byers, Emanuel, 116th Ohio Vol., anxious ; prayed; delayed; converted; bled to death, 150, 193-4. Beecher, Henry Ward, 383, 394. CONNER, Smith A., 62d Ohio Vol., con- victed ; tries ; dies, 197-8. Cleveland, Geo. E., 5th N. Y. Cav., pray- erful; his death, 205-6. Cortege, Phil., 18th U. S., discouraged; prayerful, 208. Converted in the army, through sin and profanity, 224. by a worldly man reading the Bible, 240. Curry, John, a converted Catholic; good boy; sufferings; death, 243. Church organized, 259. Church creed, 260, 276. Cobley, Bennett J., 58th Pa, Vol., careless ; wept, 261-2. Converted Catholics join theUnion Church. 261. Catholics turning Protestants, 268. Curtis, General, visit from, 278. Curtis, General N. M., 142d N. Y., 291. Craighead, Rev. Mr., Editor N. Y. Evan- gelist, 295. Christmas gift by General Sherman to President Lincoln, 310. Christmas dinner, 269, 270 ; four hundred turkeys ; " huge feeding," 272. sermons, 269, 270, 272. concert, 271. Colored soldiers' prayer-meetings in new camp, 280-1. Captain Cameron's warm grasp ; death, 117, 127, 330-1. Card-playing broken up, 269. Conversions in the army, 48, 49, 51, 52, 184, 188, 241, 253, 265, 265, 276. Conversions in hospital, 41, 42, 28, 44, 45, 187, 194, 197. Converted in hospital, 221, 223, 224, 239, 267, 277. on picket, 97. by hearing the Bible read in hos- pital, 97. in battle, 179. on picket, by being talked to, 184-5. Curtis, Robert, 1st U. S., heroic courage; killed five rebels; bit another's throat; left for dead, 55, 56. Carlton quoted, 27. Chaplain McCabe, 55. Chidlaw, Rev. B. W., 61. INDEX. 423 Cunningham, Jas. A., 96th Ohio Vol. ; "all is well : " his death, 61-2. Chapin, Captain, 85th N. Y. Vol., his he- roic bravery 5 fighting; mortally wound- ed, 65, Converted through a sister's letters, 188. Compher, Captain, 101st Pa. Vol., 67. Cuyler, John M., 79, 81. Camp Distribution, preaching in, 80,85, 86. Chapel, Bethesdian, precious meetings in, 80. Contraband Hospital, preached in, 83. Church, hospital, organized, 101, 259. Choice of hymns, 104. Christ's "I would;" your "Ye would not," 106. " Come just as you are," 107. Crane, Rev. Mr., 269. Canvassing the patients' hearts, 115. Campbell, Mrs., matron, 120. Carver, Mrs., 121-2. Creed, John, 23d 111., co. " B," brave, hon- ored, 133. Castle Thunder Prison, 152. Crisis of the soul, 155-8. of Andersonville, 158. Catholic priest prays with prisoners, 157. Crying peace in danger, 157. Chase, Henry W., 96th N. Y., anxious; weeps ; sins great ; his conversion ; went home, 181-2. Christian Commission supplied reading matter, 20. delegates, 80, 96, 97, 190, 210, 279, 282-6. a grand exhibition of Christianity in the war, 331. gave first cup of coffee to the wound- ed at battle of Wilderness, 332. its efficiency and contributions, 333. delegates highly esteemed, 333. saved lives and souls, 333. "God bless the Christian Commission," 333. Christian effort among patients, 96. Corporal Cook, Vet. Reserves, 283. Craven, Doctor, medical director, 284. DEVIL outflanked, 16 ; and whipped, 285. Dixon, Chaplain, of 16th Conn. Vol., 20, 63. Duncan, John B., wounded; patient; dying words ; will ; triumphant death, 21, 22. Draper, Edward, 45th U. S., conversion ; strong faith; no fear; " It is glorious," 51,52. Dashiel, Chaplain, weeps over n, dying soldier, 26, 27. Doubts and fears removed ; joy restored, 38. Dying soldier's letter to his wife ; fare- well, 39, 40. Dully, Mrs. Mary B., principal matron, 41, 81, 119. Drummer-boy's affection for his mother, 57, 58. Davis*, Jeff., flees Richmond, 78, 173, 292. Disappointed friends, wives, 89. Diagnosis, spiritual, of the hospital, 115. Doubting, distressed doctor relieved, 148-9. Dead-line, the, in Andersonville, 154. God's, 154. " Door was shut," 155. Departure of Andersonville prisoners, 166, 167. " Died calling for the chaplain," 185-6, 229. Disappointed, bereaved wife, 187. Delling, Richard, 8th Maine Vol., brave, patriotic, anxious ; prays ; dies, 190, 191. "Delay is the devil's verb now is God's time," 193. Deserter, condemned, refusing pardon, 193. Danger of delay, 193. Doing essential to enjoying, 253. Dunham, John H., 117th N. Y., rather careless; trying; death, 229, 230. Dickson, Hiram, 112th N. Y. Vol., longs for heaven, 248-9. Dinsmore, Rev. Mr., 279. Dedication of new hospital chapel, 286. Dodging bullets, 307. Death mighty ; there is a Mightier, 312. Deaths in rebel prisons, 312. Deserter, the, his crime and fate, 313-14. Dix, Miss, visits hospitals, erects soldiers' monuments, 322, 323. Distinguished Christian men in the war, 334. 17 MANCIPATION Proclamation, effects -^ of, 16. Eastman, Chaplain, rolled to the wound- ed and dying, 35, 36. carried to a dying officer, 36. Eloquence of the heart powerful, 101, 257. Execution of prisoners in Andersonville, 156, 157. Exchange of Andersonville prisoners, 164. Extreme cruelty, 173. Eloquence of freedmen, 282. Edwards, Jonathan, " lost and swallowed up in God," 248. Eternal progress in heaven, 249. Ellison, Jacob, 114th U. S., converted in camp, 253. Extracts from author's diary, 256, 279. Ellsworth, Colonel, his death, 300. FEE, Captain, co. " I," 48th N. Y., his character; wound; requests to be prayed for; his death, 32-35. Filial affection, strong, 57; unquenchable, 58. Flusser, Lieutenant-Commander, brave, patriotic; his death, 66. Fisher, David, 101st Pa. Vol., killed, 67. 424 INDEX. Frantz, Dr. J. H. A., Surgeon U. S. A., in charge, 82. Frederick, Geo., 15th N. J. Vol., prayer- ful; faithful, 128, 130. Finny, James H., 1st N. Y. Engineers, "can't live without religion," 139, 140. Fixed heart, the, 140. Farewell to Dixie, 165 Ferguson, Henry, 39th 111. Vol., his con- viction, conversion, 180-1. Father's dying message to his family, 199. Fort Fisher wounded, buoyant, patriotic, brave, 276, 287. bombarded, 288-290. Friendship of Jesus, 331. Farewell to the hospital, 411-418. and appeal to the impenitent sol- diers, 416, 417. Farragut, Admiral, 353-363. nRIFFITH'S, G. S., kindness; liberal vf gift, 17. Gangrene camp, suffering in, 87, 88; and triumphs of, 89. " Got used to death," 98. Guthrie, Rev. Dr., quoted, 133, 134. God's dead-line, 154. Grant, General, assumed command-in- chief, 306. his unyielding determination, 307- 311. starts for Richmond, 127. crossed the Rapidan, 125. Greenough,. Sergeant, dying; dead, 330-1. Good music ; melodeon, 20. " Good-bye, old arm," a patriotic, weep- ing farewell, 57. " Get away, thou infernal spirit," 191. " God's time now," 193. Great sinners saved, 250. Gilbert, Geo. H., 34th Mass., careless, pro- fane, bad excuses, 200. " Going down to get up," 210. Great emergencies develop moral powers, Goff, John, 142d N. T. Vol., interested; prayed; repented; died, 226 7. Good effects of a sermon, 256. Gurley, Rev. Dr. P. D., 334-342. HOLT, Mrs. D. W., hospital matron, 120. Howard, General, bravery of his sol- diers, 134, 135. Heroic, unparalleled patriotism, 159, 160. Hartel, Philip, 51st Pa. Vol., saved by his wife, 183. Hugged the nurse when dying, 187. Hinkle, Charles A., 130th Ohio Vol., pray- erless : " I will try," 206-7. Homesick for heaven, 246. Heaven, description of the joys of, 248-9. Hospital church organized, 259. Hospital wards, neatness of, 270. Hays, General, killed, 306. Hammond, Lieutenant, requests prayer: death. 330-1. Hero, a, saved by his wife. 183. Howard, 0. 0., General, 343-346. Hospital, General, U. S., Annapolis, 77; preaching in, 77, 80. General, U. S., Fortress Monroe, Va., organization, 79. Chesapeake, 79, 81. - ary ; papers, 80, 8. - General, U. S., Hampton, 81, 102. Henries, H. C., Chaplain, U. S. A., 77. Hospital garden, abundant crops, 84. Hospital hennery, useful, 85. Hampton Hospital, 81, 102, 178. TOHXSON, Edmund, 37th U. S., col- v ored ; prayerful, 252. James, Milas, 36th U. S., colored ; back- slider ; penitent ; patriotic ; happy, 227-8. Jones, Peter, 36th U. S., happy; per- severing ; shouting, 204. Joy, a source of moral strength, 135. Johnson, Wm. J., 142d N. Y. Vol., gen- teel, patient, brave, patriotic, 235. Jacob, old, the grave-digger, preposses- sing, devout, faithful, 237-8. Jones, John, 10th W. Va., patient, meek, humble, pious, happy, 241-2. KELLOGG, Major, the awful sight he saw, 174. Kissing the stake as he approached it, 218. Kneeland, Dwight, Signal Corps U. S. A., rather careless; prays; repents; happy, T OVETT, Lewis, 2d U. S. colored troops, -" his heroic faith, assurance, patriotism ; how to be happy, 46-48. Longnecker, Lieutenant, 66, 67, 69. Leghman, Colonel, 103d Pa. Vol., 19, 68, 69.. Left for dead, yet lived, 55. Libby prison, going to, 71, 72 ; reception, life in, 72: fare, 73, 151, 152. hospital, patients, 74 ; farewell to, 75. Lambert's, John, victorious death, 88. Letter-writing for patients, 107. Letters of death. 1U9. Last messages, 110. Letters from the bereaved at home to the chaplain, 110. 1, The bereaved wife, 110; 2, The bereaved brother, 112; 3, The weeping widow, 112; 4, The dying soldier, 114; 5, A weeping South- ern family, 114, 115. Letter from a bereaved wife, 132. Letters of a sister convert a brother, 188. INDEX. 425 Lucas, Henry, 39th 111. Vol., "putting it off .-"delaying, 193. Latkrop, Henry A., 8th Conn., "All is well ; " victorious, 206. Little Lizzie's letter, 214; reply, 215. Largest interment any day, 286. Lestur, John, 138th U.S. colored; brave, faithful, 218. Loaded and fired eight times during a charge, 218. Lord's Supper administered, 272. Leo's surrender, 284-5, 304-5, 311. Lyon, General, killed, 301-2. Lincoln, Abraham, his emancipation proc- lamation, 16; his character, 296-7; re- ligious life, faith, 298 ; reinauguration, 283; his death, 157; funeral, 285,295, 299, 310. MURDOCH, Josiah, 4th TT. S. colored, 217: prayerful, 198. Morton, Charles A., 7th N. H., 215; anx- ious; prayed; converted, 216. Mullincup, Jacob, 13th Ind. Vol., anxious, skeptical, tries to pray, 222-3. MeMaster, John, died, 259. Mortality increasing : twenty-six buried in one day, 264-5, 286. Moore, Colonel, 203d Pa. Vol., killed; brave, 291. Mansfield, Brigadier-General, U. S. A., his death, 302. Moody, D. L., 395-403. Massacre at Fort Pillow, 306. McPherson, General James B., killed, 308. Mortality of the war, average daily and total, 412. Maximum mortality of hospital at Fort- ress Monroe, 412. Moral strength saved the nation, 418. Munificent contributions for the army and navy, 419. Marshall, Rev. Jas., U. S. A., 17, 30, 42, 80, 86, 87, 272, 279, 283, 284,286,295. sketches by, 326-331. turned a theatre into a religious meeting, 327-9. did great good in a short time, 329. stopped the soldiers swearing, 329. prays with dying officers, 329-30. Morris, R.-'v. Mr.. It'. Merrill, Lieutenant F. L., 3d N. H., con- verted in hospital; baptism; his will; dying words, 40-42. Mays, Captain, 101st Pa. Vol., 64. Massacre at Plymouth, 69, 70. Mortimer, P. l')., lo:M Pa. Vol., mortally wounded ; resigned, 74. Moore, John B., 1st Texas, hopes; suf- ferings : death, 54, 55. Mother, affection for, 57, 58. Massachusetts 2d Heavy Artillery, 67, 68. McClellan, Dr. Eli, U. S. A., Surgeon in charge, 81, 82, 84, 283-4, 294, 30<* Military prison, 86. Moore, George, 188th Pa,, a good boy, 97; refreshed, 102, 103, 261. Meeting God in the bushes, 103. Most powerful sermon, 103. Matrons in hospitals, 117. Meccham, Mrs., veteran matron, 121. Miller, Hutchinson, 29th Conn., hia strong faith; creed; exhorts sinners, though blind, 130, 131. McElvain, Henry, 118th U. S. Vol., pray- ers ; conversion, 180. Montgomery, Ananias, 10th W. Va., ball in his head, God in his heart ; resigned ; death, 135-6. Midnight calls, 148. " Murder will out," 157. Martyrdom, spirit of, 158. Moonlight prayer-meeting in Anderson- ville, 163. Mulford, Colonel, commissioner, 165. McClellan, General, 173, 317. Martin, Mr., delegate, Christian Commis- sion, 190. McGavern, Lawrence, 2d Pa. Heavy Art., wicked; repents; prays; dies, 191-2. . O fear ; why ? " Because I put Jesus in front," 47, 117, 186. " None but Christ," 88, 141. Night-calls, 88. Nichols, Joseph P., 39th 111. Vol., prayer- less ; confesses ; prays ; dies, 178, 179. No venture in coining to Jesus, 191. Nichols,, John, 29th Conn. Vol., (an In- dian), humane, backsliding, 238-9. Number of patients visited daily, 6, 269. National Cemetery, Fortress Monroe, Va., prayers and tears in, 315, 316. - who are the dead ? 317. - how did they die? 317; as they fought, 318. - their dying words, 318, 319. the monument inscription, 320. N a plea to guard and protect it, 321. its erection, 322. burying the dead, 323-4. National Cemeteries of U. S., different de- partments, 324-5. general summary of, 325-6. OWNERSHIP in God. It is mutual "The Lord is mine, and I am his," 206. PATRIOTISM, 25, 26, 28, 30, 40, 123, 133, 218, 275, 309 ; " I came out to con- quer or die," 55, 57. in Andersonvillc, 158, 159 ; undy- ing, 160. 426 INDEX. Patriotism, " we conquer here," 304-7. " Put the bright side out to mother," 57. Philadelphia Inquirer quoted, 69. " Past feeling," 124. Procrastination, evil of, 193. Prisoners in Andersonville, sufferings of, 152-5, 161, 170-4 ; execution of, 156. Preaching to colored troops, 17. to patients, 16. Preached a Christmas sermon, 19. in rebel hospital, 70. on steamer, 76. Preaching by Col. A. "W. Taylor, 19. by colored people, 19. in the military prisons, 43, 73, 87. Plymouth, strength of garrison, 19; at- tacked by rebels under General Hoke, 63. consternation of citizens, 63 ; siege of, 64-70 ; surrender of, 68. Papers and tracts distributed, 87. Pride hinders in coming to Jesus, 116. Pivot of eternity, the, 155. Prisoners, Belle Isle, condition of, 75, 76. exchange of, 75. frozen to death, half-starved, 78. severe suffering of, 170-4. Plan of salvation in a nutshell, 225. Payson's flood of glory rolling around him, 248. Preaching in the wards, 256. Plumb, Sergeant, 4th Mass. Cav., 283. Porter, Admiral, bravery, 288, 317. Pennypacker, Col., 291. Preston, Lieutenant, and Porter,both killed in battle, 292. President Johnson, 294. Prayer-meetings, semi-weekly, large, in- teresting, 16, 80, 92, 273-6. on voluntary principle, 94, 262, 265. powerful, 95-98. ward, 96. in the bushes, 102. melting, 258, 261. soldiers', 100, 101. refreshing, 102, 257-9, 266. by moonlight, 163. in the dark, 281. bomb-proof, 210. Power of religion on the mind, heart, 56. prayer illustrated, 99, 100, 102, 130. preaching, 105. God's presence, 130. Christ's love, 232. Privilege of prayer, 189. PRAYERS, SOLDIERS' : " Jesus, save me just now," 45. " Oh, that I had ventured before," 190. " Jesus, ceme just now," 44. " Come and pray for us," 63. " Lord, save, or I perish," 179. die right j PRAYERS, SOLDIERS': " Oh, chaplain, don't go away," 116. " Lord have mercy." " May God protect us," 152. "Oh, for God's sake, have mercy on me," 174. " Save me, save me, Jesus," 186. " I will pray till I die," 187. " Lord, have mercy on me ; cast me not off," 221. Prayer-hall, 94. Patchwork won't do for eternity, 125. Philips, John W., of Ohio, converted in hospital ; baptized sitting on his death- ' ; death, 126-7 Pompey's heroic courage, 134. Palmer, John, 62d Ohio Vol., "too wicked to pray ; " " plunge for Jesus," 142-4. Praying for sport ; no fear of God, 195 ; with a ball in his head, 195. Praying Tom falls flat down, and prays right up, 281. p AAVLINGS, Chaplain, 103d Pa. Vol., " 20 ; captured, 68. Rush, Dr., Surgeon U. S. V., skilful, 81, 285. Ransom, C. M., Lieutenant, 98th N. Y. Vol., wounded; prays; shouts; dies, 31, 32. Russell, Lieutenant, wounded, 63. Rebels prayed with, 70 ; preached to, 49. Reading-room for soldiers, 81. Roe, E. P., Chaplain U. S. A., 82, 84, 94, 96, 101, 121, 259, 265, 275, 282-5, 295, 272, 285. Raymond, Chaplain Charles, U. S. A., 82, 279, 282-4, 295. Rutherford's dying words, 88. Religious work at Hampton Hospital, 93. Revival, 98, 101, 102, 257-8, 273-6. Religious experience, soldiers' 101. conversation, important, 116, 184-5. Revenge knocked out by a wound, 117. Roe, Mrs. Chaplain E. P., 120. Roman sentinel, the, 133; pattern of fidel- ity, 134. " Resting on Christ sure," 150. " Resist the devil, and he'll flee," 180. Rich soldier; no want, 197. Robins, Peter, 203d Pa., patient, heroic, pious, happy, 201. Reed, James, 188th Pa., interested, re- pented, prayed, converted, died, 2234. Ruffner, Samuel, 116th Ohio Vol., warm- hearted, happy, 245-6. Reno, John L., 76th Pa. Vol., buoyant, brave, 263-4. Raising the colors higher, 277. Richmond fallen; unbounded rejoicing,283. Rebel barbarity; used Union soldiers' skulls for goblets, 301. INDEX. 427 Rosecrans, General, patriotic determina- tion, 304. SATAN whetting his sword, 15. Snowballs and flowers gathered at once, 16. Schneider, Edward M., 57th Mass., his he- roic patriotism ; immortal dying words; patience; will; death; grave, 25, 271. " Stand by the flag/' 25. " Stand up for Jesus," 27. Sabbath-school, colored, flourishing, 20. Soldiers hungry for the gospel, 19. Slough of despond passed, 47. Sinner's unwillingness keeps him from Christ, 59, 60. Sinner's own fault, if lost, 60 ; urged to come, 60. Sailors drowned at Plymouth, fired on, 66. Soldiers' dying messages, 88 ; affectionate kiss of, 91. Smith, Dr., Surgeon U. S. V., 91. Stuck fast on the Potomac, 93, 101. Soldiers' exhortations, eloquent, po^er- ful, 95. Sanitary Commission delegates, 97, 119. Soldier's throat shot off, 127. Stanton, Harry, 118th N. Y. Vol., a backslider; miserable; confesses sor- row ; weeps, 137, 138. Shot dead for getting a drink of water, 154. Sin, unpardonable, 154. Spirit quenched, 155. Soldier's praying for mother, 108 ; " Ste- phen," 239. dying words, messages, 117. frankness ; free to give their expe- rience, 116. fluent in religious conversation, 117. colored, their implicit faith, 117. dying clinched in battle, 133. Smith, Joseph, 38th U. S., prayerful, 181-2. Sherman, General, 175, 307-8, 310. Spanogle, Mahlon, 205th Pa. Vol., prayer- less; repents; dies happy, 187. Smith, Charles E., 148th N. Y., converted in army by a sister's letters, 188. Shawley, Michael, 206th Pa. Vol., tender, prayerful, weeping, resigned ; happy death, 189, 190. Self the greatest hindrance, 197. " Satan is often at my heels," 193. " Swimming to glory on the plank of free grace," 202. Smith, Joshua, llth W. Va., prayerful; victorious, 202-3. Spaulding, Judson, 15th N. Y. Art., his faith, 203-4. Satan repulsed by prayor, 221. " Sticking to the point," 227. Steward, Lorenzo D., llth Maine Vol., anxious, hopeful, 231-2. Smith, Wm. F., 7th Conn., tender; prayed ; died happy, 233. Simplicity of prayer ; it is the heart that prays, 244. Soldiers talking Jesus to soldiers, 261. Small, John R., 37th N. Y., prayed with chaplain, 261. Soldiers' prayer and conference meeting, 266-7. Sent for to pray with a rebel soldier, 267. Smith, Thomas, 32d Co. Veteran Reserve Corps, 278; his funeral, 278. Sanitary Commission, 282. Soldiers' entertainment, 283. Shells thrown at the rate of two hundred and forty per minute, 289. Stream of death ; first death in the war,300. Struggle of the Mass. 6th Regiment in Bal- timore, 300. Sheridan, P., General, bravery, 304, 309-10. Shaw, Colonel, 54th Mass., killed, 306. Sedgwick, General, killed, 307. Slavery abolished in United States, Janu- ary 31, 1865, 310. Schofield, General, 310. Stockton, Rev. Dr., 332. Soldiers burnt to death in battle, 312. hung for loyalty, 312. Solemn review of the war, and hospital, 411-12. Simpson, Bishop, 346-352. Stuart, Geo. H., 364-382. SOLDIERS' SAYINGS AND DYING MESSAGES : The insatiable heart cries, " Give, give ! " 23. " I am in perfect peace ; I want noth- ing," 24. " I saw Jesus waiting to receive me," 52. " Jesus is precious to me now," 49, 50, 117, 258. "Christ is very dear and precious," 53. "Jesus saved me twice," 128. " Jesus is all my trust," 130. "Jesus is close to my side, and I am happy," 218. " Jesus is all I want," 23, 24, 61. " Hurrah for Jesus," 46. " All is bright," 52, 146-7. "All is well; glory to God," 29, 50. " I have got the victory," 88. " He must pray," 216. "It's too late," 106. " I could not wait," 216. Incorrigible sinner, the, 125, 126. " I will give you bullets for bread," 173. " I went to church cursing, and came away praying," 180. "I can't get religion," 181. " I can't pray," 206. "I have not found the Saviour yet," weeping, 182. 428 INDEX. SOLDIERS' SAYINGS AND DYING MESSAGES : " I can't help but pray ; I go forward," 182. " If I go to hell, I will go praying," 189. " I am ready to die," 186. " I want nothing," 266. "I have a firmer hold on God than on the devil," 191. " I 'm guilty of everything but theft and murder," 191. "I am resting on Christ sure," and bleeding to death, 194. " I gave my heart to Jesus," 196. " I prays, and Satan goes away," 198. "I found Jesus," 207. " I am happy in the Lord ; I would rattier die," 199. " I pray much in battle, on the march, and everywhere," 202. " I would load and fire, and pray at the same time," 202. "I can afford to suffer," 203. " I rose at three, and shouted glory to God," Ac., 204. " I can't live without prayer," 205. " I have no fear," 217. " I feel the Lord is mine," 206. " I leave it all with the Lord," 208. " I prayed in the street," 216. "I love everybody," 217. " I trust in the Lord, and I am not afraid," 218. "I fear pain more than death," 218. " Tell them I am happy ; " dying words, 187. " I have got it ! I have got it ! glory to God," 221. " All is well," 236. " Hell seems to be gaping for me ; my sins, my sin.*," 222. "I have nothing to catch hold of nothing to stand on," 225. ' "Oh, do lift me out," 225. " My work is done," 229. " Thank God, thank God for my wound," 227. " My wound has brought me nearer to God," 227. " I liked to jump out of bed when you preached," 227. "Oh, the love of Christ," 232. " It is easier to serve Satan," 232. " I am better in the army than at home," 233. "The Bible better than greenbacks,"238. " Somehow it worked upon me," 240. "All is well," 242. " I will trust him till I die," 241. "I have no fear of death," 241. " God still sticks to me," 241. " chaplain, what will I do ? " 242. " 1 am on the devil's side," 244. SOLDIERS' SAYINGS AND DYING MESSAGES: " I try to pray, but can't make much out," 244. "Pray for me till I die; I feel happy in the Lord," 246. " I 'm too wicked to come to Jesus," 250. "I will try," 251. " God grabbed me into his heart at once," 252. " I prayed on, and God changed my heart," 253. " I am the happiest man on earth. I mean it," 255. " The devil coaxed me off," 254. "How thankful I am for that sermon," 256. " God has got me," 228. " chaplain, will you pray for me," 257. " Tell my wife I died happy in Christ," 263. " I have found Jesus : oh, he is so lovely," 265. "My heart is .ill broken into pieces; *0 brethren, pray for me," 267. "They could only shout 'glory,' and died," 270. " I would give my arm and a hundred dollars, to quit swearing," 274. " I propose to fight it out on this line," 307. " God. got me to come into the army,"319. RESOUTIIICK, Captain, fond of Bible his death, 30-1. Taylor, Colonel A. W., of 101st Pa. Vol., and prayers ; patriotic ; his death, 30-1. A. W., of 18, 19, 67, 70. Thanking God for wounds, 41. " The Dying Captain," by Chaplain Mar- shall, 42-46. Transferring patients north, 83, 89, 90, 92. " The last warning," 105, 106. Too wicked to pray, 142. Too late, 155. Tisdale, Rev. Mr., 155. Track, Geo. II., 6th Conn., resolved to quit swearing, 185. The martyr's soul in flames offered to Christ, 199. Tustison, James, 10th Iowa Vol., patriotic, patient, happy; his death, 219-20. Testament, bloody, given up for mother, 49. Testaments distributed, 86. Testament read through thirty times dur- ing the war, 217. Testaments, five hundred, received one day, 261, 293. The great Christian victory, 418, 420. The rebellion dissected, 418. Tilton, Benjamin R., prayerless, profane; pleads for mercy, 2245. The rope of salvation, 225 ; grasped ; sin- ners saved, 226. INDEX. 429 The snares of the devil and the cross of Christ contrasted, 233. The world's great want, 251. Talked a swearing man to tears of peni- tence, 258, 261. Thurston, Henry A., 152d N. Y. ; "I am going home," 263. The naked heart, 263. Tremendous cheering, rejoicing, 284-5. Terry, General A. II., 290-2, 310. Triune campaign, success of, 310. Total loss during the war, 312. Theatre turned into a religious meeting, 327-9. iriSITING the sick in the rain, 273. Vanderkeiff, Dr., Assistant-Surgeon, U. S., 77. Voyage to New York, author's, 91. Victories on the field and in the hospital, 98. Value of a good letter, 107 ; the last letter, 108. Vanloan, Geo. H., 3d N. Y. Cavalry, pious, 138. Vanwert, Edwin, 3d Mich. Vol., anxious ; wicked ; prays ; dies, 144, 145. Victory claimed by both armies, 306. WESSELS, General H. W., 19, 49, 64, 68, 72. Winslow, Elnor, 203d Pa. Vols., wounded ; earnest prayers ; longs to depart ; happy death, 28-30. What Christ is to the Christian, 37. Welsh. Rev.John, his wonderful praycr,52. i. Vol., long- ing for Jesus ; feels his inability ; " Oh, Williams, Samuel, 104th Pa. if I only could! " 59, 60. Words immortal, 25. " Whole-hearted faith;" its effects, 48. " World hollow," empty, 54. Wounded, Plymouth, visited, 70; preached to, 49 ; farewell to, 70. Weeping mother's trials, 92. Work hard, but pleasant, 97. "We always came back refreshed," 102. Writing letters for the patients, 107. Women of the hospital, 118. Women's kindness and power to comfort^ 118. Worrell, Mrs. Jane M., matron, 120. Wolcott, Miss E., matron, 120. Wirz, Captain, 156, 157, 166, 170,172, 174-7. " What a feast ! " 165. Warner, J. S., 2d. N. Y. Cav., a weeping mother, 209. Winder, General G. H., his threats 174. Weekly, John, 4th U. S., prayerful; ready ; no fear ; assurance, 186. Williams, Dwight, 203d Pa., prayerful; resigned, 196. Wilson, Charles, 16th N. Y. Heavy Artil- lery, Christ his ; no want, 196-7. Ward, James, 81st N. Y., " Tell my family I am happy," 199. Welsh, Perry, 67th Ohio Vol., anxious; comfortable; steadfast, 202. Wcrtz, John, 23d Ohio, patient, with seven wounds, 203. Weed, Abraham, 58th Pa. Vol., anxious ; fearful, 205. Warren, Thomas, 199th Pa. Vols., anx- ious; prayed; converted; happy, 221. Williams, Charles, 5th U. S., anxious; prayerful ; converted, 222. "Wounds lead to prayer and conversions, 221-2. Weeping scene at the grave, 262. Week of prayer, 272. Washington's birthday celebrated, 279-80. Wolverton, Dr. A., Surgeon U. S. A., 279. Wadsworth, General, killed, 306. Weeping, bereaved father, 316 ; converse with the dead, 316. Weitzel, General, enters Richmond, 283. VOURS in death, 108. I Young, Colonel G. I., 403-411. THE END. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFOi LIBRARY University of California Library Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. OCT09 DUE2WKSFROMD/J(EREC! UCLA URL/IU- NOV19199I, DUE 'i iw rnum MAR 1 'Illllll 3 1158 00609 5763