DREAM. 197 



A fearful presentiment arose in my mind that the day 

 of judgment was at hand ; I felt the petrifying influence 

 of despair pervade every faculty, yet, though my agony 

 was extreme, I could neither weep nor pray. In a 

 little time, the clouds began to disperse, and through 

 a clear blue opening, I perceived a large cloudy scroll 

 spread on the face of the heavens, which with a flicker- 

 ing undulating motion, at one moment resembled a dark 

 sulphureous flame, and at another reminded me of a 

 banner waving in the wind. I fixed my eyes upon it in 

 fear and astonishment, and perceived that in its centre a 

 few dark characters were inscribed. I strove to decipher 

 them, but could not. In a few seconds, however, the 

 colouring of the scroll deepened gradually as the hues of 

 the rainbow increase from dimness to brilliancy. I read 

 its startling motto " Take warning/' and awoke. My 

 mind was dreadfully agitated. The sweat, which, during 

 my dream, had flowed from every pore, w r as cooled .upon 

 my brow, but my heart was still burning. In my terror I 

 vowed that, for the future, I would be no longer a sinner, 

 and I began to pray ; but my prayers were addressed 

 not to the God of the Christian, but to the God of the 

 heathen philosopher. I was awakened to a painful con- 

 sciousness of sin ; I had heard that God was merci- 

 ful ; and on the strength of that attribute I addressed 

 myself to Him ; but alas ! I did not know that His 

 justice is as infinite as His mercy, and that no sinner can 

 be accepted by Him unless he appeal to the sufferings and 

 righteousness of that Saviour whom his sins have pierced. 

 ' The recollection of my dream haunted me for about 

 ten days, during which time I prayed. A natural 

 bashfulness withheld me from making any show of 

 sanctity, but my heart was very proud of its newly- 

 acquired purity, and I regarded myself as a much better 



