said Jack, turning to me with a look of anguish, and laying his hand on his heaving bosom.

"Dunning was hung, and James Tid was hung. Concklin, who was the instigator, was sent for life, and Jack was sent for twenty-one years."

"Jack, how does this, and all your other sins appear?"

Mr. Curtis told The keeper then

Very great," said Jack; "but this does not appear so great as all my other sins against God—cursing, and swearing, and getting drunk." Jack said, "When I first began to reflect, I saw my sins, in my cell, so great, that I felt, if God should not, for Christ's sake, have mercy on me, I must go down to the lowest hell. I was sitting down at my work, in the north wing. Mr. Curtis came along, and asked me my crime. I told him. He said that was one of the greatest crimes; but then he told me I might remember David's sin, and he was forgiven. Before that, I had thought my crime was so great that I could not be forgiven. A little while after, Mr. Brown came along, and asked Mr. Curtis if he had been talking with me any thing about my crime. him yes, he was just talking with me. passed on. Mr. Curtis then said, 'Let your crime be as great as it will, pray to God, and put your trust in him, and you shall find rest to your soul;' which I shall ever love him for while God gives me breath. I shall love Mr. Curtis, for he put me in the way to save my soul. He made me promise him, faithfully, that I would go to God, and try to find mercy. And yet, master, I had a doubt, in my heart, my sins were so heavy, whether I should be forgiven. Mr. Curtis left me, and I went into my cell, and poured out my heart to God to have mercy on me. He told me, 'If you can't read, I will visit you, at your cell, and put you in the way.' The more I prayed, the worse I grew; heavier and heavier, the worse my sins grew. The next day, Mr. Brown came along, and I asked him to read a chapter to me. Mr. Brown, as God would have it, turned over a chapter, the fifty-fifth chapter of Isaiah, which says, 'Every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, and buy wine and milk without money and without price.' He read along till he came to where the prophet says, 'My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor my ways your ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth, and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and

bread to the eater, so shall my word be, that goeth forth out of my mouth it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle-tree; and it shall be to the Lord for a name; for an everlasting sign. that shall not be cut off.'

"I found it give me great encouragement to go on to pray to see if I could find relief from all my troubles the load of sin that was on my heart. I thought, and prayed; and the more I prayed, the worse I growed; the heavier my sins appeared to be.

"A night or two after that, Mr. Curtis came to my cell, and asked me how I felt. I told him my sins were greater than I could bear so guilty, so heavy. He asked me if I thought praying would make my sins any less. I give Mr. Curtis no answer. He left me, and I went to prayer. I was almost fit to expire. In all my sorrows, I had not a right sorrow. My sorrow was because I had sinned against man. The Sunday following, just after I had carried my dinner into my cell, I put down my dinner, and I went to prayer. I rose, and just as I rose from my prayer, Mr. Curtis was at the door. Says he, 'We are all guilty creatures, and we cannot be saved, except God, for Christ's sake, will save us. If we pray and go to God, we must go in the name of Jesus Christ. If we expect to be saved, we must be saved through the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ.' Then I plucked up encouragement. Says he, 'The sins which you have committed are against your fellow-creatures, but especially against God.' Now, I never knew before that they were against God. Mr. Curtis left me, and I went to prayer again. I could eat no victuals that day. I did not eat a mouthful.

"It struck me that Mr. Fiske, a minister of Goshen, told me, whenever I had a chapter read, to have the Fifty-first Psalm read. I could not see any body to get to read it, and how to find it I did not know; and the Sunday following, before the keepers unlocked the door, I rose up, and went to prayer; and I prayed, O Lord, thou knowest I am ignorant brought up in ignorance; thou knowest my bringing up. Nothing is too hard for thee to do. May it please thee, O Lord, to show me that chapter, that I may read it with understanding.' I rose from prayer, and went to my

Bible, and turned over, and counted every psalm, and it appeared to me that God was with me, and I counted right to the Fifty-first Psalm. I marked it, and then the door was opened, and we went to empty our pails. When we came back, I opened the Bible again, and looked at that psalm, and it come to me just as plain as if I had had learning. I could read a little, and began to spell, 'H-a-v-e m-e-r-c-y,' &c. I looked over it, and spelt it, and read it, and put the Bible down, and fell upon my knees. Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving-kindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgression. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquities, and cleanse me from my sins; for my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight; that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward part; and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Restore unto me the joys of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation; and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it. Thou delightest not in burntoffering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion; build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of burnt-offering and whole burnt-offering. Then shall they offer bullocks on thine altar.' That is the last of the psalm," said Jack.

"Now, master, when I came to the words, 'Deliver me from blood-guiltiness,' I was struck dumb. I could not say any more at that time. I fell upon my knees, and prayed to God to have mercy upon me for Christ's sake. I grew worse and worse. I went on that way, praying, striving, and fighting, against sin and Satan, and growing worse and worse, before I found any relief from my misery. I recollect something

gnawing in my breast, and telling me it was no use to pray; but when I saw Mr. Curtis, he would give me encouragement. As I prayed, I recollected I used to hear old people say, that when a sinner sets out to serve God, Satan sets out to keep him off from his watch. I concluded it was Satan. I went to prayer, and I prayed to God to keep Satan away from me : 'Suffer no evil to approach my poor, feeble heart., Thou knowest my frame and my weakness. Thou knowest that I am nothing but dust. O, deliver me from my distresses, and keep the evil One from me!'

"I fought on so till about the 15th of June. I was in my cell, and cried to God to have mercy upon me, and I grew worse and worse. All my sins, and all that ever I had done come plain and open in my sight, and I was led to see that I must perish, and drop down into hell. There was no help for me; all my sin was upon my head. I went upon my knees, and I went to the same psalm, and I repeated it all over, 'Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God.' And I fell down upon the floor, and was struggling, like a man ignorant of every thing no sense in me at all. I felt a relief from my load of sin. I rose up on my knees, and turned round, and Mr. Doxtater was at the door. He heard me struggling. He asked me, 'What is the matter, Jack?' 'Lord, master,' said I, 'I don't know.' 'Do you feel happy there, Jack?' 'Lord, master,' said I, 'how can I feel happy, I feel happy, a poor sinner?" He went away, and I fell down upon my knees again, and went to prayer. And in my prayer, my sins were moved from me, and I was lightened, and I thought I could fly. I felt as though I could fly. I looked around me, and my cell appeared to be as big as two such cells, and all appeared to be as light as noon; just the same as if I was in a palace. I looked around me, and it appeared to me that I could see my Savior upon his cross, bleeding for poor sinners. I could see the blood gushing out from his side. I rose up, and I began to bless his holy name. My sins, my load of sins, moved away from me, and I felt light, as though I could fly. I stood upon my knees, and all I could say was, 'Glory to God! Glory to God!' Mr. Doxtater came again, and said he, 'Don't make such a noise.' Said 1, Mr. Doxtater, I can't help it, sir. If you was to bring a gun, and point at me, I must pray to God now.' He asked me, said he, 'Shall I call Mr. Curtis?' 'It is no use,' said I. 'O, no; don't call Mr. Curtis.' He left me, and I continued praising my God all that whole day. Whether he told Mr. Curtis, I don't know. I said to myself, 'I will take

notice of this day.' I did not know the day of the month. Monday morning, I went to Captain Cobb, and I asked him the day of the month. He laughed at me, and would not tell me for some time. At last, he told me it was the 15th of June. And ever since that, master, the place where I am confined has been more to me like a palace than a prison; every thing goes agreeable. And I, once and a while, I find a deceitful heart; but Jesus tells, if I lack knowledge, he will always lend; if I cast my care on Jesus, and not forget to pray."

Mr. Curtis said, "Do you not remember that Mr. Dwight conversed with you last year."

'Yes, but I was so borne down with sin then! but thanks be to God, who has brought me into his marvellous light!" Mr. Curtis remarked, "Some expect to get to heaven on account of their own righteousness."

"O, yes; I might have thought so, too; but now I see there is no heaven without a glorious God and his Son Jesus Christ. I remember," said Jack, "Mr. Markam come to the cell, about three or four weeks ago. I was praying, just before church, begging God to give me an ear to hear, and a heart to receive. And in my prayer, some how or other, something come out about Mr. Curtis. And Mr. Markam heard it, and said, 'Do you love Mr. Curtis?' I did not answer for some time. At last said I, 'Mr. Markam, I want to ask you one question, and I hope you won't be offended.' 'No,' said he, 'I won't; say what you are a mind to.' 'Now,' said I, 'Mr. Markam, if you was standing over a great large fire, and ready to fall down in it, and any man at all—I don't say Mr. Curtis was to come and haul you out of the fire, and keep you from being burnt up, wouldn't you love him?' Said he, 'I don't know but I should.' 'Well,' said I, 'this is the very reason that I love Mr. Curtis. I was falling down into hell headlong, and he hauled me out. That is the reason

I love Mr. Curtis."

Mr. Curtis said, "You know, Jack, a State Prison is considered a dreadful place. You have a long and dreary sentence, and you may die here. What have you to say to that?"

"I have considered all that, and I am willing. I have considered, Mr. Curtis, let me die where I will, if I may die in peace, if I may have that sure and well-grounded hope, I don't care where I die."

"Do you consider," said Mr. Curtis, "that God's will is the best?"

"I do."

"Will you tell me how the Savior appears to you?"