P A &T I. Reverend Mr. RichardBaxter. 83 than all the Medicines that ever 1 ufed from all Phyfitians in my Life : 'So that though Rill I am very feldom without pain, yet my Languilhings and Pains have been much lets theft laft ten Years than long before. How it Both all this I amnot certain ; but I fuppofe principally by its great Altri&ion, mightily corroborating the relaxed Stomach and Veffels, and Brain, and by Aftristion of the relaxed Vein, doth hinder the Motion and Shedding abroad of the corrupted Blood they contain : And alfo I am fure it mightily precipitateth and taketh off Acidides. Theway I ufe it is, r. Well boiled in the Wort in all myBeer : z. Well boiled in my Gruel for every Mornings Breakfalt : 3. Upon any fpecial.Necelliity I take a Spoonful of the Powder ( of the Leaves dryed andmixed with two orthree Parts of Sugar) which is the Strongeft way of all : So that I find the Vertue is molt in the terrene and (alive Parts, and not in any thing fuperficial and volatile. For the Infufion, and Ale made by Infufion doth me little Good, nor the Conferve of the Flowers. I have tried it on others, and findno fuch marvelous Effe&s as on my telf ; but leali on the fat and thong, and molt on the lean, old-and weak, and that have thin fluid Humours, and laxity of Veffels, and fome inordinate Acrimony: This I thought myfèlf obligedto mention to the Praife of my heavenly Phyfician; in Thankfulnefsfor theft ten Years Eat-6 ; and to give fome hint to others in my, Cafe : Though now, through Age and conítant Ufe, this Herb doth lets with me than at the firft; yet amI necefiìtated 1E11 to ufe it, and quickly to return to it when I have omitted it. After fixteen or feventeen Years benefit it now faileth me, and I forfake it. § 135. I thannext record, to the Praifeof my Redeemer, the comfortable. Em- ployment and Succeffes which he vouchlàfed me during my abode atKiderminffer, under all theft Weakneffes. And e. I will mention my Employment. z. My Succeffes. And 3. Thofe Advantages by which under God it was procured ; in order. t. I preachedbefore the Wars twice each Lord's Day ; but after the War but once, and once every Thurfday, betides occafional Sermons. EveryTburfday Even- ing my Neighbours that were molt defirous and had Opportunity, met at my Houfe, and there one of them repeated the Sermon, and afterwards they propofed what Doubts any of them had about the Sermon, or any other Cafe of Confci- ence, and I refolved their Doubts : And lai} of all I caufed fometimes one, and fometimes another of them to Pray (to exercife them) ; and fometimes I prayed . with them my f lf: which ( betide tinging a Plain) was all they did. And once a Week alfo fome of the younger fort who were not fit to pray in fo great an Af fembly, met among a few more privately, where they fpent three Hours in Pray- er together, every Saturday Night they met at fomeof their Houfes to repeat the Sermon of the lait Lord's Day, and to pray and prepare themfelves for the follow- ing Day. Once in a few Weeks we had a Day of Humiliation on one Occafrotí or other; Every Religious Woman that was làfely Delivered, infteadof the old Feaftings and Goflipings, if they were able, did keepa DayofThankfgiving with fome of theirNeighbours with them, prairiing God, and tingingPlains, and lober- ly Feafling together. Two Days every Week my Ailuftant and I my felf, took n4Families between us for private Catechifing and Conference (hegoing through. the Patin, and the Town corning to me ) : I flit} heard them recite the Words, of the Catechifm, and then examined them about the Senfe, and laltly urgedthern with all poffrble engaging Reafon and Vehemency, to anfwerable Affection and, Praâice. If any of them wereflailed through Ignorance or Bathfulnefs, Iforbore' to prefs them any farther toAnfwers, but made them Hearers, and either examin- ed others, or turned all into Initruûion and Exhortation. But this I have opened more fully in my Reformed Rafter. I fpent about an Hour witha Family, and ad- mittedno others to be prefenr, left Balhfulnefs fhould make it burthenfom, or any fhould talk of the Weakneffes of others : So that all the Afternoons on Mondaya. and Tuefdayr I fpent in this ( after I had begun it ; for it was many Years before I, did attempt it ): And my Afüttant fpent theMorning of the fame Days:in the fameEmployment. Before that, I only catechifed them inthe Church; and con. ferred with, now and then, one occafionally. Betides all this, I was forced five or fix years by the Peoples Neceliìty to pro.' Rife Phyfick : A commonPleurifie happening one year, and no Phyfician being near, I was forced to advife them, to fave their Lives ; and I could not afterwards avoid the Importunity of the! Town and Country round about : And becaulè I never once took a Pennyof any one, I wascrowded. with Patients, fo that almoft Twenty would beat my Door at once; and thoughGod by more Succefs than Ì M a expeetedb
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