mere ceremony, and if he had errors you would not surely object to renouncing them." Those who surrounded him saw that the specious arguments made an impression, and they followed it up with others based upon his duty to his wife and children, who would be left destitute if he was taken from them. The poor fellow was overpowered by their crafty reasoning, he had no one near to strengthen his weakness, and it is not to be wondered at that he should at last have yielded to the tempter, abjured the errors of Calvin, and obtained life and liberty as the reward. The wakeful monitor, conscience, had slumbered for a short space, but she soon awakened and resumed her power most fearfully. After the recantation, the mason became a prey to the most frightful remorse; he was so wretched that he could not rest or sleep by night or day.
As soon as he heard of my return home, he hastened to me, threw himself at my feet, wept like a child, and declared that he had damned his soul by his weakness. He then related all the circumstances to me; he said it would be impossible to describe to me the torments he had endured, and that he could not pray for himself, but he implored me to pray for him. He looked upon his crime with such utter abhorrence, and was plunged into such depths of despair, that I clearly perceived it was my duty rather to comfort than reprove the sinner. I endeavored to convince him that the mercy of God was open to him, and I urged him to go at once to the Fountain for sin and uncleanness. I drew a parallel between his case and that of St. Peter, from which I thought he might draw consolation, as he had imitated the apostle in his bitter tears of repentance as well as in his fall.
He abjured once more, and this time it was the abjuring
