ir, in
a space of ground between the Cloth Market and St. Nicholas' Church.
Above a thousand souls were present, and the service continued till
ten, without one person moving from the ground. The moon shone
brightly, and the sky was spangled with stars. His subject was, "The
Great White Throne" (Rev. 20:11). In concluding his address, he told
them "that they would never meet again till they all met at the
judgment-seat of Christ; but the glorious heavens over their heads,
and the bright moon that shone upon them, and the old venerable
church behind them, were his witnesses that he had set before them
life and death." Some will have cause to remember that night through
eternity.[19]

[19] He afterwards preached the same subject with equal
impressiveness in the Meadows at Dundee. It was in the open air and
the rain fell heavy, yet the dense crowd stood still to the last.

His preaching at Gilsland also was not without effect; and he had good
cause to bless the Lord for bringing him through Dumfriesshire in his
way homeward. He returned to his people in the beginning of September,
full of peace and joy. "I have returned much stronger, indeed quite
well. I think I have got some precious souls for my hire on my way
home. I earnestly long for more grace and personal holiness, and more
usefulness."

The sunsets during that autumn were peculiarly beautiful. Scarcely a
day passed but he gazed upon the glowing west after dinner; and as he
gazed he would speak of the Sun of Righteousness, or the joy of angels
in his presence, or the blessedness of those whose sun can go no more
down, till his face shone with gladness as he spoke. And during the
winter he was observed to be peculiarly joyful, being strong in body,
and feeling the near presence of Jesus in his soul. He lived in the
blessed consciousness that he was a child of God, humble and meek,
just because he was fully assured that Jehovah was his God and Father.
Many often felt that in prayer the name "Holy Father" was breathed
with peculiar tenderness and solemnity from his lips.

His flock in St. Peter's began to murmur at his absence, when again he
left them for ten days in November, to assist Mr. Hamilton of Regent
Square, London, at his communion. But it was his desire for souls that
thus led him from place to place, combined with a growing feeling that
the Lord was calling him to evangelistic more than to pastoral labors.
This visit was a blessed one;