326 MEMOIRS OF PERIOD XI. from worldly affairs, when the Lord should be pleafed to call me home. Mean while my wife's furnace was heated. In the thoughts aforefaid of my demitlion, I had fome view ofcarrying her in to Edinburgh, againft the winter 1726, and going in thither myfelf too, for the winter, and to make trial that way : but her indifpofition increafing beyond what it had formerly in that feafon, barred all moving that way ; mean while he helped us both through, and kept me up better than the winter before. The Lord knows man's thoughts to be vanity. I was like to have little encouragement from Profeffor Hamilton and Dr Crawford. But I adored the Providence that bath led me to and through that work on the accentuation, and the effày on the text; the two things I had mainly at heart ; and that has fo far accomplilhed his word to me, Pfal. lxxi. that I was in better cafe when I finifhed the-effay in Latin, than when 1 began it in refpeét of my body. For my ordinary, I had, on Feb. 19. entered on the fubjeót of propagating religion to pofterity, and difcourfing it from If. xxxviii. 19. " The living, the living, he [hall praife thee," &c. and infifted thereon till May 21 , that I entered ou , fermons preparatory for the fàcrament. About which time, the weather proving exceeding rainy, for about the fpace ofa month, I was was brought to a pitch of bodily weaknefs, through my great talkwasnow off my hand. In this cafe, at the làcrament, June, 11. my kind and gracious Mafter. Managed me as ever a mother would have done a wèak child : fo that at that time I got a lef- fon, juft to be doing with theftrerth I have for the time, with- out afking queftions ; the which bath been of good ufe to me firice. Now the bruifed ferpent began with a broadfde ; which was heavy indeed, but made mé the rather expeét to fee the goodnefsof the Lord in this work an open door, finco there were many adverfaries. Some of the parifh had a hórfe-race ap- pointed to be juft,on the Monday before, to which -many were invited through the country. I had no notice of it till the im- mediately preceding Sabbath betwixt fermons ; and then told them the furprifing indecency of it ; got no anf"wer, but that they knew not if it could be got diverted. Hereupon I warned the congregation, that there was a fnare laid for them ; and the difiributing of the tokens, appointed to have been that Sabbath after fermon, was delayed till Thurf<lay the flit-day. The if' fue was, the manager of that matter feemed to be afhamed, de- clared he had done it inadvertently. None of the pari(h anfwered their invitation but one; a few came from other. places ; the race was dropped for the time, and they parted civil- ly. Thus, by the Hearer of Prayer, Satan wasoutfhot in his own bow. He plied another engine. I was wounded and vexed on Thefe excellent fermons were publifhed in 1755, being annexed to thefhort ex, plication of the firft part of the Shone; Catechifm, of the occafion of writing with sa account is given in the fequel.
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