s good work, and that he was afraid he
would be permitted to raise a storm or speat of rain, designing to drown
some of them: but, said he, it shall not be in his power to drown any of
you, no, not so much as a dog. Accordingly it came to pass on Monday,
when he was dismissing the people, they saw a man all in black entering
the water a little above them, at which they were amazed, as the water
was very large. He lost his feet (as they apprehended) and came down on
his back, waving his hand; the people ran and got ropes, and threw them
in to him; and there were ten or twelve men upon the ropes, yet they
were in danger of being all drawn into the water and drowned--Mr. Semple
looking on, cried, Quit the rope, and let him go; I see who it is; it is
the devil, he will burn but not drown, and by drowning of you would have
God dishonoured, because he hath got some glory to his free grace in
being King to many of your souls at this time, and the wicked world to
reproach the work of God, &c. All search was made in that country to
find if any man was lost, but none was heard of, which made them
conclude it to be the devil.

Mr. Semple, being one of the faithful protestors, in the year 1657, was
apprehended with the famous Mr. James Guthrie at Edinburgh in Aug. 1660,
and after ten months imprisonment in the castle, was brought before the
bloody council, who threatened him severely with death and banishment;
but he answered with boldness, My God will not let you either kill or
banish me, but I will go home and die in peace, and my dust will lie
among the bodies of my people; accordingly he was dismissed, and went
home, and entered his pulpit, saying, I parted with thee too easy but I
shall hing by the wicks of thee now. It was some time after the
restoration, that, while under his hidings, being one night in bed with
another minister, the backside of the bed falling down to the ground,
the enemy came and carried away the other minister, but got not
him:--which was a most remarkable deliverance.

Lastly, He was so concerned for the salvation of his people, that when
on his death-bed, he sent for them, and preached to them with such
fervency, shewing them their miserable state by nature, and their need
of a Saviour, expressing his sorrow to leave many of them as graceless
as he got them, with so much vehemency as made many of them weep
bitterly.

He died at Carsphairn (about the year 1677, being upwards of seventy
years of age)