A Covenanter's Narrative. 151 



worthy name as I dought, and so I thought it was my 

 strength to sit still and . . . Then did I write a letter to 

 Mr Hew Hendrison (but none to my lo/) shewing that I was 

 sorrie I had been so troublesome to me Lord and him both, 

 and will forbear to trouble them farder, but only I desirit him 

 to speak my Lord once and wryte me if anything was done, 

 or expected in reality would be done, for I would not trouble 

 myself ne moir therewith at this time, but would wait upon 

 my God, who had my time in his hand, for the Lord gave 

 me every way strength and enabled my bodie as if it had been 

 but Thirty years old so that I . . . [betwixt] the loth 

 of January and the 20th of February which is forty nights 

 my sleep went from me, so that I sleepit but nine nights now 

 and then and wakit 31 thereof without any sleep. My bodie 

 was never weary or my bones sair night or day notwith- 

 standing thereof, but was fresh and alert and had my stomach 

 well, and did not be heavy or desire to slumber in the day 

 which I thought strange of. I did read meikle at a north 

 window through all the storm and desired not to go to the 

 fire, and the rest of my fellow prisoners would have found 

 fault with me for keeping up of the frostie window upon them, 

 who was siting at a good fire far from it. And when I had 

 tired of reading (which I had no reason to do, for I would 

 have custin up no scripture then, but it had a sweet and 

 fragrant and refreshing smell through the Lord my God his 

 grace and blessing upon it), I would have walked up and 

 down the prison another while of time without wearing, and 

 then would have gone to read again, untill the rest would 

 have thought it strange who were prisoners with me. But I 

 thought it more strange, who knew my own inability formerly 

 that I was not able to have wakand the twentieth part of it. 

 This continuit about the space of twelve weeks untill the 

 midst of March (but all this time I was not sensible of the 

 contracting of anie distress upon my bodie and yet I felt 

 myself losing and decaying of me), and then I became the 

 old man again in every way. For I became dead, lifeless, 

 lazie, and seemand my bodie became stif and crasie as I had 

 wont, and then within 8 days I took bed, and the first time I 

 arose to cause make it I was not able to stand, but betwix 



