hen he still remained unmoved, I quite bawled in
talking to him; till at last I went away, seeing it was of no use. Though
none had sought the Lord less than myself, when He was pleased to begin
His work in me; yet so ignorant was I of the work of the Spirit, that I
thought my speaking very loudly would force him into repentance towards
God, and faith in the Lord Jesus.

Having heard that there was a schoolmaster living in a village, about six
miles from Halls, who was in the habit of holding a prayer meeting at four
o'clock every morning, with the miners, before they went into the pit,
giving them also an address, I thought he was a believer; and as I knew so
very few brethren, I went to see him, in order, if it might be, to
strengthen his hands. About two years afterwards he told me, that when I
came to him first, he knew not the Lord, but that he had held these
prayer-meetings merely out of kindness to a relative, whose office
it was, but who bad gone on a journey; and that those addresses which
lie had read were not his own, but copied out of a book. He also told me,
that he was much impressed with my kindness, and, what he considered
condescension on my part in coming to see him, and this, together with
my conversation, had been instrumental in leading him to care about the
things of God; and I knew him ever afterwards as a true believer.

This schoolmaster asked me, whether I would not preach in his parish, as
the aged and infirm clergyman would be very glad of my assistance. Up to
this time I had never preached, though for fifteen months past I might
have done so as a student of divinity; for before Christmas 1825 I had
been mercifully kept from attempting to preach, (though I wrote to my
father about July that I had preached, because I knew it would please
him), and after Christmas, when I knew the Lord, I refrained from doing
so, because I felt that I was yet too little instructed in the things of
God. The same reason ought to have still kept me from preaching; yet I
thought, that, by taking a sermon, or the greater part of one, written by
a spiritual man, and committing it to memory, I might benefit the people.
Had I reasoned scripturally, I should have said, surely it cannot be the
will of God, that I should preach in this way, if I have not enough
knowledge of the Scriptures to write a sermon. Moreover, I had not enough
light nor tenderness of conscience to see, that I was a deceiver in the
pulpit; for every