“As for me, I am indeed in a dry and barren land, where no water is.  Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because nothing is to be heard in our Sodom but blaspheming the name of my God, and I not honoured as the instrument of doing any great service.  It is true, I have reformed six or seven field-officers of swearing.  I dine every day with them, and have entered them into a voluntary contract to pay a shilling to the poor for every oath, and it is wonderful to observe the effect it has had already.  One of them told me this day at dinner that it had really such an influence upon him, that being at cards last night when another officer fell a swearing, he was not able to bear it, but rose up and left the company.  So you see, restraints at first arising from a low principle may improve into something better.”

During his abode here, he had a great deal of business upon his hands, and had also, in some marches, the care of more regiments than his own; and it has been very delightful to me to observe what a degree of converse with heaven, and the God of it, he maintained amidst these scenes of hurry and fatigue, of which the reader may find a remarkable specimen in the following letter, dated from Lichwick in the beginning of April 1743, which was one of the last I received from him while abroad.  It begins with these words:—­

“Yesterday being the Lord’s day, at six in the morning I had the pleasure of receiving yours at Nortonick; and it proved a Sabbath day’s blessing to me.  Some time before it reached me,” (from whence, by the way, it may be observed that his former custom of rising so early in his devotions was still retained,) “I had been wrestling with God with many tears; and when I had read it, I returned to my knees again to give hearty thanks to him for all his goodness to you and yours, and also to myself, in that he hath been pleased to stir up so many who are dear to him, to be mindful of me at the throne of grace.”

Then, after the mention of some other particulars, he adds:—­

“Blessed and adored for ever be the holy name of my Heavenly Father, who holds my soul in life, and my body in perfect health!  Were I to recount his mercy and goodness to me even in the midst of all these hurries, I should never have done.  I hope your Master will still encourage you in his work, and make you a blessing to many.  My dearest friend, I am much more yours than I can express, and shall remain so while I am J.G.”

In this correspondence I had a further opportunity of discovering that humble resignation to the will of God which made so amiable a part of his character, and of which I had before seen so many instances.  He speaks, in the letter from which I have just been giving an extract, of the hope he had expressed in a former of seeing us again that winter; and he adds:—­