had an impediment in his speech, except when he prayed. Then he had an eloquence and power that I have known no other man to possess.

When Dr. Talmage preached in the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 1875 he was much distressed at the scarcity of conversions. The audiences crowded the great building and were respectful and attentive, but there were no results. He thought and prayed much about the situation, and was led to invite five of the oldest members of his church to his house one evening. They came, not knowing why they were invited. They were taken to the top room of the house. Then the Doctor said to them: "I have called you here for special prayer. I am in an agony for a great turning to God of the people. Let us kneel down and each one pray, and not leave this room until we are assured the blessing will come, and has come." It was a time of most intense crying unto God. That was Tuesday evening. It was agreed that not a word should be said about this, but that they should continue in prayer. On the following Friday night occurred the usual weekly prayer meeting. No one knew of what had occurred on the previous Tuesday night, but the meeting was unusually thronged. Men accustomed to pray in public in great composure broke down under stress of emotion. The people were in tears, and asked each other: "What does this mean?" When the following Sabbath came, although it was still the same secular meeting place, the Academy of Music, over four hundred arose for prayers, and a religious awakening occurred that made that winter memorable.

In the Rev. C. N. Broadhurst's book, Wireless Messages, a splendid collection of answered prayers, the

story is told of a good old lady in Vermont who, being distressed because of the closing of a weekly prayer meeting in a little red schoolhouse, on account of the smallness of attendance, and the bad winter weather, determined she would not let the prayer meeting die. So, on the usual Wednesday night, she lighted her lantern, opened the schoolhouse, kindled a fire, and, all alone, read a passage of Scripture, and spent an hour in earnest, fervent prayer for a revival of His work in that indifferent and backslidden neighborhood.

On returning home she found the weather so fierce and the snow so blinding that she sought shelter in the house of one of the leading members of the church. He was surprised to see her out in such a night and inquired the cause.

"Oh," she replied, "I have been to prayer meeting." "Prayer meeting," he said. "I thought it was discontinued."

"No," she said; "it will never be discontinued as long as I live and am able to get to the schoolhouse." "Well, who was there?" he inquired.

66

There were four of us," she said.

"God the

Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, and I. We had a glorious time, and intend to have another prayer meeting next Wednesday."

The news spread quickly around, and next Wednesday night found the schoolhouse filled to its utmost capacity. It was the beginning of a revival that swept over all the surrounding country, in which thousands of souls were saved.

"Every one that asketh receiveth." It was the prayers of a bedridden, shut-in, pain-racked, invalid woman in the north of London that started Dwight L.

Moody off on his wonderful career as a world-wide evangelist. Twisted and distorted by suffering, yet calm-faced and gentle-spirited, she had lain for many years unable to do anything else than pray. She had read in a paper of a man called Moody who in the early seventies of the last century was doing some work among the ragged children of Chicago. She put that paper under her pillow and prayed, "O Lord, send this man to our church."

How unlikely it seemed. She had no means of communicating with him, and if she had, it seemed to be the height of absurdity to expect him ever to come that great distance. But she continued to pray. All things were possible to God, and if this was in accordance with His will, it could be accomplished.

When in 1872 his church lay in ashes in Chicago he visited London. He was an unknown man at that time. Stepping into the noonday prayer meeting of the Y. M. C. A. in the Strand, he came in contact with a minister who asked him to preach at his church the following Sunday. In the morning service he felt terribly depressed because of the hardness and indifference of the congregation and regretted that he had promised to preach in the evening also.

After the morning service the sister of the invalid woman informed the suffering one that a Mr. Moody of Chicago had preached. The invalid turned paler even than usual. "If I had known," she said, "I would have taken no breakfast. I would have spent all the time in prayer. Send me no dinner. Leave me alone. Lock the door. Don't have me disturbed. am going to spend the whole afternoon and evening in prayer."

I

At the evening service the building was packed. There was a new atmosphere. The powers of the unseen world seemed to have fallen upon the people. Five hundred gave themselves to God in the after meeting. A great revival broke out and thousands of souls were added to the churches of North London.

Oh, the wonderful power that is all-unconsciously being exerted on the world by unknown heroes and heroines, who have come to understand, and use the matchless power of prayer!

CHAPTER VII

'ANSWERED PRAYER

(e) IN THE BOWERY MISSION

The Bowery Mission was opened on November 7, 1879. The Rev. A. G. Ruliffson, a devoted Presbyterian minister, seeing the terrible wickedness of the Bowery of that day, felt called to do his utmost to stem the torrent of iniquity that seemed to submerge all who came within the limits of the then infamous thoroughfare.

He sought the advice of a few friends, who immediately made the matter a subject of prayer.

On the date I have mentioned, the first meeting was held in a small room lighted with a few lamps. It was only a handful of Christians who were present, and the surrounding circumstances were of the most depressing and discouraging character, but their prayers were full of faith and deeply in earnest. They had for some time tried to get the use of the building at No. 36 Bowery, but when the purpose for which they required it was discovered, it was immediately refused. This little band of people prayed continuously until at last they were able to rent it, and the work became known as THE BOWERY MISSION AND YOUNG MEN'S HOME, or, "A Light in a Dark Place." It was the second Mission of the kind in the city, the first being that opened by Jerry McAuley in Water Street. Mr. Ruliffson was the leader, and Mr. J. W. Childs was appointed as associate leader and resident