1844-54- SYMPATHY WITH SUFFERERS. 245 



children ; nay, even on domestic animals, who came in for 

 a share of his friendly talk, and looked as if they under- 

 stood it." 



To those unstrung by broken health and the depression 

 almost invariably resulting from it, he was so often held up 

 as an evidence of how much of life's best blessings might 

 yet remain for all who had power to lay hold of them, that 

 it was sometimes laughingly suggested to him that his pe- 

 culiar " mission " in this world was to comfort invalids. But 

 not only negatively did he effect this ; his sympathy with 

 sufferers was such as to make any sacrifice for them a plea- 

 sure ; and no consolatory letters or sickbed visits were ever 

 more welcome than his. 



Looking at this phase of his life, we cannot but be struck 

 with the gratitude which each attack of illness brings out 

 more and more fully. With heaven-taught eye he sees how 

 immeasurably greater is the spiritual gain than the tem- 

 poral loss. His medical knowledge made him fully aware 

 that, step by step, he was steadily approaching the dark 

 valley ; yet it never seemed to lessen his interest in earthly 

 things, or curtail the plans for work in every department, for 

 which a long lifetime could scarcely have sufficed. The 

 only deception he ever practised was that of concealing 

 from those whose affections were bound up in him, his 

 knowledge of the state of his health. So skilfully was this 

 done, that, while themselves keenly watching every change, 

 and hoping against hope, they believed him unconscious of 

 much that filled them with harassing anxiety, and not till 

 after all his sorrows were over did they learn from letters to 

 others, that to him all had been as an open book. It is 

 needless to add, that no small amount of self-denial and 

 self-command were called for in carrying out this affectionate 

 purpose. 



