“1836.  A letter from brother John Burdsall, who is at the Conference, informs me, that he had some conversation with Dr. Bunting respecting my Richard and the Friendly Islands.  I feel as a mother, yet assured that God is alike in every place, my prayer is for resignation.—­Oh! the rapidity of time, conference has commenced and will, I suppose, appoint my Richard somewhere; only be it the place assigned by Providence—­my will submits, though nature would rebel.—­My desires tend upward, but oh! my wayward heart still clings to the creature—­my children lie near my heart.  But, do I wish to withhold my son from Thee? no; my heart says no;—­only let holiness be stamped upon his heart and character:  send him where holiness will be the most earnestly sought, and will make the most powerful impression.  My will does yield, but nature feels.  The solicitude I feel for my children depresses my spirit:  yet am comforted by the promises of God, and increasingly resolved to roll my every care at the foot of the Cross; where, like pilgrim, I often find the strings of my burden unloosed, and by faith beholding my unfailing Friend, am encouraged to believe the God who cares for me, will care for mine.  In the face of my fears, O Lord, I trust in Thee.  My Richard is appointed to the Friendly Islands.—­The cases of my three sons press upon my spirit; but Thy aid, O Lord, I seek and ask and have.—­It is the Sabbath morn.  I am fully bent to give myself and my family to God.  But now it is come to the point, how weak I feel!  Well, but I will resign—­Richard is Thine; I will through grace, give him up to Thee.  The time of his departure is at hand; tidings have reached us that he is expected to sail in the ‘Royal George,’ on the first of October.  O may He who sitteth above the water floods, and reigneth a King for ever, take charge of him; and so succeed his errand, that thousands may add lustre to his crown!—­At half-past six Miss B. and Mrs. A. met me, and Hannah S. who was seeking pardon.  After we had pleaded for a time, the Lord came down in power, and she cried aloud, ’I can believe, I do believe.’  We all shared the baptism.  My dear family all took tea together, perhaps for the last time.  Thank God, we are a united family, though we may separate wide from each other in our pilgrimage through the world.—­While pouring out my soul for my dear Richard, I felt the hallowing power; I believe the Lord will be with him and the people also.  Things very painful to nature are now my frequent lot; but through these, the Lord seeks to purge, and knit me closer to himself.  Lord give me grace to bear the sacrificing knife, and let ’Thy will be done,’—­Had a few friends to breakfast to commend my dear Richard to God:  it was a profitable hour, but I should have liked more prayer.—­My soul was much refreshed, especially in class.  What a fulness is treasured up in Jesus:  and yet I only sip.  In visiting the sick, and seeking out the wanderers, feel I am right, but seem to have little time for this work.