e!

But the two went on together to the meeting. They went well to the
front of the congregation, the guide steadying the wavering steps of
the man he was leading. "Dodd" sat down, and after a brief rest began
to come to himself, and to realize where he was. He hung his head for
shame, and wept as the service progressed. He was weak, unnerved, a
wreck. He looked at his shattered self, and groaned in spirit over the
ruin that he saw. He longed to break away from the terrible bondage
that held him in its thrall. He cried out in spirit, in an agony, for
help in this time of his great need.

The sermon came on. The minister seemed to "Dodd" to be talking
straight at him. (Indeed, the gentleman had observed his entrance to
the church, and frequently had him in mind as he made this point or
that, in his remarks.) Under the enthusiastic eloquence of this man
"Dodd's" anguish increased till he was almost in a frenzy. It was when
he had reached this point that the speaker uttered the following words:

"Young man, whoever you are, no matter how cursed with sin or polluted
with iniquity you may be, put your trust in Jesus and all your sins
will be blotted out. Are you a drunkard, with an appetite for drink
that is gnawing your life away? Throw yourself into the arms of Jesus,
and he will take away your appetite for strong drink and give you
strength to overcome all the temptations of your former life. Let the
light of Jesus once shine into your soul, and neither cloud nor storm
shall ever enter there again. All will be brightness and purity. Old
things will have passed away, and all things will become new. I offer
you this salvation to-night, O, weary, sin-sick soul. Take it, I
beseech of you. Let the Sun of Righteousness break in upon you at this
hour, and never will you be in darkness again."

The man glowed under his theme, and his audience warmed with his
impulsive appeal. "Dodd's" soul grew hopeful. All these things
promised were the very things he was longing for. He had pledged
himself time and again to stop wrong doing, and had broken his word in
every case. He hated himself for this, and he stretched out his hands
for salvation from his miserable estate. Here, help was offered.

Why should he not take it?

And then the great congregation arose with a sound as of a rushing,
mighty wind, and all sang together, with an effect that must be seen to
be realized, "Just as I am, without one plea," et