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Auld, Esq., • A. C. Smith, Esq., • 26 T. Thomson, Esq.. ALEXANDRIA. CARDROSS. James Gilmour, Esq., 10 0 HELENSBURGH. A. M'Laren, Esq., - 20 W. Drysdale, Esq., 15 o D. Ritchie, Esq., - 2 6 J. S. Morris, Esq., 2 6 G. Brymner, Esq.. 5 0 A. Breingen, Esq., - 10 0 Mrs. Urie, - 10 O Rev. D. Boyd, G. M'Lauchlin, Esq., 5 o 5 0 Rev. A. Anderson, . 5 0 Mrs. Craig, 2 6 Rev. W. H. Carslaw, 2 6 20 O J. S. Smith, Esq., 20 0 A, Lennox, Esq., 5 0 Jas. Spalding, Esq., 20 J. Lusk, Esq.,. P. Denny, Esq.. A. M'Lean, Esq - 20 E 4.. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FORD. "Better to turn back in the middle of the ford, than to go on and be drowned."-Old Proverb. PROVERB, it has been said, is the wisdom of many, and the wit of one. The proverb above quoted once saved the writer's life. An extraordinary rainfall on the Grampian mountains, in the end of the autumn of 1829, had been attended with disastrous floods in all the rivers flowing northwards. The phenomena of these inundations, and their desolating effects in one at least of the counties which were subjected to them, were collected at the time, and described with graphic power by Sir Thomas Dick Lauder in a book, The Moray-rise had not reached this, its middle course, so soon shire Floods, which has obtained scientific celebrity. The present writer became indirectly acquainted, a number of years later, with one of their effects in another locality. He was residing at the time on the left bank of the Deveron, where that river divides the two counties of Banff and Aberdeen. The Deveron has its sources among the loftier Grampians; but in this, the middle part of its course, it winds for miles among lower hills, in scenes of alternate wildness and beauty, being skirted here by steep wooded and heathery or rocky braes, there by green meadows and corn fields. The writer had frequent occasion to cross the river by one of the slight wooden bridges when he walked, or by one of the fords if he rode. A stone bridge had formerly spanned the stream on the direct road to the neighbouring market-town; but it had been swept away in the floods of 1829, and had not been rebuilt, so that a rider had no resource but to take the adjoining ford. This was generally quite safe. But one day we found it otherwise. Snow had lain deep on the ground for several weeks, but had, on the setting in of warmer weather, thawed gently away in the river valley and on the nearer hills; only on the loftier mountains in the distance was there still seen a clothing of white. The day was delightful when we rode into town; and we forded the river without difficulty, notwithstanding that it was somewhat swollen by the gradual thaw of the preceding days. But on returning after a few hours we were astonished to see the ford greatly increased in breadth, and its water very turbid. Knowing little, however, about fords and their dangers, we urged our horse in, holding his head towards the well-known landmark on the opposite shore. But when we had passed about a third through, the river deepened so fast and flowed with such strength, that we became uneasy lest our horse (which was of pony size) might lose his footing and be obliged to swim-the risk in that case being, that the force of the current would carry him past the proper landing-place, and that he and his rider would be borne down to the rapids which were in sight near the remaining pier of the old stone bridge a little below, and perish. Yet pride, or some other feeling, might have caused us to dismiss the fear as imaginary and cowardly, had there not suddenly flashed into our mind a proverb, which we had once read but never thought of since--Better to turn back in the middle of the ford than to go on and be drowned. We were not foolhardy enough to disregard the embalmed experience of the past, thus opportunely brought to our mind. We at once resolved to turn. But the question had to be solved, In which direction? Upwards, against the strong current; or downwards, with it? The latter seemed easier; but reasoning rapidly, that the danger to the horse of becoming giddy and losing his footing would be greater in looking down the stream, we determined rather to stem it. We accordingly turned his head upwards; and in a few moments, which seemed minutes, the obedient animal had faced quite round, and soon bore us safe to the point at which we had entered. Leaving him at a neighbouring farm, we crossed by the footbridge, and walked home; there to learn, on relating our adventure to persons of more experience, how great was the danger we had escaped. The thawed snows on the mountains where the Deveron has its as those which had lain on the nearer hills, but had come down in an almost sudden rush during the very time when we were in the neighbouring town; swelling the river so greatly, that no sane man who was practically acquainted with such things would have dreamed of attempting the ford in the circumstances. And the question which was significantly asked us, "In which direction did you turn your horse's head?" informed us how narrowly we had escaped a second danger in the very endeavour to save ourselves from the first. We have not ceased from that day to feel that, to the kindness of an all-foreseeing God, who, years before, had drawn our eye to this particular proverb, and who now brought it, together with another lesson we had learned about giddiness, to our recollection at the critical moment, we owed our life on the occasion. Has not the proverb still more important applications, which this season of the year, as one of the great turning-points of life, suggests with special force? Does it need any proving, that it is better for a sinner to turn from his evil ways, even in the middle of life, than to go on and perish for ever? The way he has chosen may seem very pleasant to him; but its end is death. It is a law of Heaven, more unalterable than the courses of the sun and stars, that he must turn or die. "Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways,” says God by the prophet Ezekiel; "for why will ye die?" (Ezek. xxxiii. 11). Except ye repent,” says the Lord Jesus Christ-and to "repent" means to turn in heart and life-"ye shall all perish" (Luke xiii. 3). What though it be the middle of life when he becomes awake to his danger? it were a miserable pride of consistency that would prompt him on that account to go on to perish. The farther he is on in life and in sin, the reasons for turning are the more urgent; for life is fast passing, and his guilt is increasing. Granting that it will involve self-denial to turn against the deep, strong current of natural and habitual sin, there is the stronger reason to set about it now; for by and bye it will be impossible. By God's mercy it is not impossible as yet. When the Lord Jesus began his personal ministry with the call "Repent," his call was more than law, which can but command and threaten, and do no more. It was uttered in view of the shedding of His own blood for sin, and of the giving of His Spirit for regeneration, and of the joy of Heaven over every sinner that repenteth. He still says, "Repent." But He also says, "Come unto Me, and live;" because He knows that His blood cleanses from all sin, so that He can say with authority, Thy sins be forgiven thee, and can say also with power, Go and sin no more. But a man thinks he is only dallying with temptations. Better, we say in the language of our proverb, better to turn back in the midst of temptation, than to go on, to be overcome and lost. A young man who has got into evil companionship, or who has begun some reading of a kind which he feels instinctively to be full of danger to inward purity and moral principles; or a man who has entered into a business which gives him peculiar facilities for such a vice as drunkenness; or who is so engrossed in making money that he has no leisure to read God's word, or pray, or think of his eternal well-being; a man in such a position is in extreme peril, and it is his wisdom to escape as quickly as possible, taking no sleep to his eyes, until he deliver his soul as a bird out of the snare of the fowler. If he do not, he can expect nothing but that the temptation will become too strong for him, and will carry him away as with a flood into sin and perdition. We are afraid of being misunderstood in saying one other thing, but we must say it. In the present day many have entered on courses of speculative thought, in which they are getting beyond their depth, and are in danger of being carried utterly away from God and the hope of Heaven. It were worse than folly to disparage true inquiry-the spirit that "proves all things, and holds fast that which is good." But when any person feels that speculation is making him lose his reverence for God and the things of God, the sensitive dread and the very sense of sin, as well as the peacegiving faith of former days, he may well take alarm. There must be something wrong. If he cannot see where, that fact simply proves that he is really beyond his depth, and that he has been dealing with matters too deep as well as too high for him. Better to turn back in the middle of such speculations, than to go on and be engulfed in utter scepticism, godlessness, and moral lawlessness. GERHARD TERSTEEGEN: Ribbon Weaver, Lay Preacher, and Poet. BY THE REV. JOHN KELLY, STREATHAM. (Translator of Paul Gernard's Spiritual Songs.) & PART I. ERHARD TERSTEEGEN was born Wit, talent, beauty, all had he, But grace pursued him constantly, Such is the picture of his youthful character and experiences furnished by a friend of his later years, probably from information derived from himself. His early attainments in Latin, Hebrew, and other branches were great and varied; but his mother's circumstances forbade her devoting him to study, and he was apprenticed to a merchant, his own brother-inlaw. With him, however, he was not happy. Studious and thoughtful as he was, he often wished to devote an hour to reading and meditation; but his brother-inlaw would not permit this; it is even said, on one occasion when there was nothing else to do, he made him roll empty casks backwards and forwards across the yard. Gerhard, however, used to redeem the hours of the night for reading and prayer. We do not know much about his religious experiences at this early time; for he was always adverse to speaking or writing, even to friends, about them. Many persons were in the habit of retailing their experiences ad nauseam, and of dwelling on incidents of no intrinsic importance and no general interest; but he, manly in tone and ingenuous in mind, was very modest and forgetful of self, and always regarded personal matters as insignificant. One incident, however, is preserved, which occurred about this period, and made on him a deep impression. He had been sent to Duisborg, but being taken suddenly ill by the way, was attacked by such severe pain that he thought he was going to die. He turned aside, and prayed earnestly for the removal of the pain, and the prolongation of his life, that he might have time to prepare for eternity. The pain at once ceased; and, moved by the most powerful impulse, he dedicated himself unreservedly to God, who had so graciously heard his prayer. According to one of his friends he was sixteen years old when he experienced the great change, according to another he was eighteen. Notwithstanding the disagreeableness of his position at this time, his business training exercised a favourable influence upon him. "The Holy Ghost," says he himself, "made my outward work a good school of discipline for me." It moderated the liveliness of his feelings, and checked any tendency to dangerous exuberance; and he was in all his after life distinguished for love of order, as well as sound practical sense. "I do not know," says one of his friends, "that I ever knew a more discreet man, or one more punctual in word or deed." In his own family, only one of his brothers (John) had any sympathy with his Christian character. The others despised him for it, and would hardly bear to hear his name mentioned: when his mother died, they did not write him to be present at the division of her effects; and they even treated him with cruel neglect when he was sick. But "better," as he wrote afterwards, "better give up all friends, all relations, yea, the whole world itself, than with them secure idols, sin, and Satan." He outlived all his brothers and sisters; and the widows and children becoming in some degree dependent on him, he not only showed solicitude for their spiritual interests, but for their temporal comfort. After serving his apprenticeship, he carried on business for himself for two years, till 1719; but did not find it to his taste. His health was not good, his feelings were unsettled, and, anxious to escape the disquietude attending the pursuit of business, he gave it up, and learned a trade. His motive for this step may be partially gathered from some words which he addressed at a later period to friends engaged in business. "Make a point, if possible, of redeeming some time for prayer; for you need much grace to keep yourselves unspotted from the world. . . . Cultivate sweet devotion to God in all places." He had ere this become acquainted with a pious linen weaver, who gave him a liking for that trade, and taught it to him, and it he followed for a time. But it proved to be too much for his health, and he exchanged linen for ribbon weaving, at the same time devoting himself to the calls of spiritual and philanthropical work. Living much alone, and in the simplest manner, even preparing his own food, he continued to do good, and communicate to others out of his scanty earnings. "I hope," he once wrote to a friend, "I shall never love anything so much that I would not give it cheerfully to a brother. It would not be well with me were it otherwise. Keeping oppresses, letting go refreshes." He employed the evening hours, when he could go about unobserved, on his errands of love. In after days he looked back fondly on this period of his life. "How happy was I," he wrote to a friend, "at that time when I lived alone. I often thought no king could live so contentedly as I then lived. I often did not know, when I was eating, what the food was, nor how it tasted." He had, it is true, times of great hardship and privation to pass through, of which his friends knew nothing; and, besides, he was always a great sufferer from bodily pain, especially from headache. Under He all this, he found consolation in prayer and song. could sing and write hymns, even when suffering from the most severe attacks of toothache! Probably many of the hymns in his Little Flower Garden and Lottery may have dated from this early period. In the fellowship both of the linen weaver, and of Hoffman, a candidate of theology resident in Mühllein, he found help and comfort. The linen weaver exercised much influence on his inner life. Hoffman was eminent for his Christian activity, and through his influence Tersteegen was drawn into the line of active service to which he ultimately devoted almost his whole time and energies. His bodily sufferings contributed to fit him, in an eminent degree, to be a comforter to others. And he had trials of another kind, mental and spiritual, to pass through. In 1719, some volumes of Böhme's mystical writings, lent to him by a preacher, plunged him into a state of great perplexity; but he betook himself to prayer, and returned the volumes to the preacher. Though he undoubtedly had strong Quietist tendencies, he was quite free from any of the pantheistic taint so commonly found in mystics. The times were difficult and trying. In the church, lifeless orthodoxy prevailed. The preaching was generally dry and formal; and "what," asks Pastor Raph, "could the narrowness and half-heartedness of the theologians offer to such a heart as his ?" He made more use of the church than of her preachers, although he never clearly discerned the relation of the outward administration to the inner life which was pre-eminently his sphere. Many were led into separatism; but he was preserved from this. He came into contact with some of the restless and unruly spirits who were abroad, who claimed to be inspired; but after a while he withdrew from all intercourse with them. From 1719 to 1724 he passed through a prolonged period of spiritual darkness from which he emerged when he was on a journey to a neighbouring town. It was on this occasion that he wrote the hymn, of which the following is a translation :— "THE RECONCILING GRACE OF CHRIST. Thou art to me so truly good, Whene'er remorse my conscience wrings Thy blood alone true calmness brings, It giveth freedom, Lord, towards Thee, And though I stumble oft and fall It sootheth every bitter smart Then I forget my sins straightway, How can it be, Lord? still I say; May it deception be? A grievous sinner every day, Thy curse is earned by me. No: Jesus, Thou dost ne'er deceive: Thee will I love with all my power, I of myself will think no more; Away, O sin! unknown remain : My soul mounts up to God. Ah, no! I can and will no more, Oh! draw me closer to Thy heart, My Jesus, nearer Thee; In time of trouble, death, or smart, Come, all ye sinners; come ye here, This heart of grace stands open near; Another form of trial which he experienced arose from reflecting on the many different sects into which Christians are divided. He was so sorely tempted by this trial, that he almost doubted whether there were any God; but was delivered by such a manifestation of the gracious presence of God as he was quite unable to express in words. It was doubtless on emerging from the prolonged season of darkness, the |