JUDGMENT UPON OPPOSERS--TWO MEN KILLED BY THEIR HORSES--HORRIBLE DEATH
OF ANOTHER--EIGHT PREACHERS GO DOWN AFTER OPPOSING ELDER EVANS--A
MAN SAVED FROM BLEEDING TO DEATH BY THE PRAYER OF FAITH--A SISTER
HEALED--WOMAN CURED OF A BLOODY ISSUE ON BEING BAPTIZED--ESCAPE THE
FURY OF A MOB BY THE SPIRIT'S WARNING--A WARNING THROUGH THE GIFT OF
TONGUES.
In numbers of instances in Brother John T. Evans' experience he had
evidence of the judgments of the Almighty being visited upon those who
opposed him.
On one occasion he and another Elder visited a village in
Montgomeryshire, North Wales, to try to effect an opening. They
failed to obtain a house to hold meeting in, but nevertheless they
announced to the inhabitants that they would be back there one week
from that time to preach to them. There seemed to be a strong spirit
of opposition to them there, and on their again visiting the place
and attempting to preach in the street opposite a public house, two
men emerged from the rear of the tavern leading a couple of fractious
and high-spirited horses. They immediately commenced manoeuvering
the animals in the midst of the crowd who had gathered to listen to
the preaching. It was evidently a preconcerted plan to break up the
meeting, and it succeeded, for the people scattered and the Elders were
forced to retire, and as they did so they were followed by a crowd
of roughs who pelted them with stones till they had got clear of the
village. Within two weeks from that time one of the men who had helped
to break up the meeting by leading his horse into the crowd was kicked
by the same animal and died from the effects of it, and the other
man was thrown from his horse and killed. The people of that region
regarded the summary death of these two men as a judgment sent upon
them for opposing the Elders, and they therefore treated them with more
respect afterwards.
Another case occurred in Elder Evans' native place, where he was sent
by Captain Dan Jones to introduce the gospel. An old shoemaker who
had known and been friendly to him from his childhood, on hearing him
preach came out and denounced the doctrine he taught as heretical and
"Mormonism" as a delusion. He was so bitter that he even followed
Brother Evans from place to place and railed against him almost like a
madman. He had not pursued this course very long when he was stricken
down with a peculiar kind of sickness which none of the doctors who saw
him understood anything about, although numbers of them visited him.
One of his arms was paralyzed and he had such a raging fever that he
felt as if it was consuming him. He begged of his friends to throw cold
water on him to keep him from burning up, and the doctors, not knowing
what else to do for his relief, advised that it be done. Accordingly
those who were waiting upon him continued dashing cold water upon him
while he remained alive, and he died raving and cursing "Mormonism" and
every person connected with it.
While preaching in that same region Elder Evans was sent for by a very
wealthy and influential man named Nathaniel Rowlands, who wished him
to come and preach at his house. He had once heard Elder Abel Evans,
preach and became somewhat interested in the doctrines he taught, and
wanted to learn more of them. After preaching at his house he went to
a village about a mile distant to fill an appointment. At this village
a literary gathering or _eisteddfod_ was being held, composed of the
best educated men of the region, who were in the habit of meeting to
compare their literary and musical compositions and compete for prizes.
This association comprized quite a number of ministers of various
denominations, and they, knowing that Elder Evans was going to preach
in the village on the same evening upon which they were to hold their
meeting, decided to go and oppose him publicly and expose his doctrines
to the ridicule of his congregation. They, therefore, sent one of their
number to Elder Evans' meeting to detain him until their meeting was
over.
This man came, and at the close of Elder Evans' sermon he began asking
him questions, and thus detained him until a late hour, and the
congregation, knowing the character of the inquisitor, stayed to see
the end of the controversy. Finally, eight other preachers from the
_eisteddfod_ came and announced to the Elder their intention. Elder
Evans was greatly surprised to see such an array of talent unitedly
opposed to him, but he did not feel to shrink from the contest, for
he knew he had the truth on his side. In the outset some of the more
independent persons in the audience stated that if the fallacy of the
young man's doctrines was to be exposed, he should first be allowed to
state briefly what his doctrines were. The preachers assented to this
and Elder Evans explained, one after another, the first principles
of the gospel, in as plain a manner as possible, and they in turn
sought to controvert and ridicule them. When he got to the subject of
baptism a division occurred among the preachers, some of them being
Baptists and others holding baptism as non-essential. They soon got to
denouncing each other as vehemently as they had the young Elder just
before, and when they almost got to blows the audience interfered and
the meeting was broken up, leaving a far more favorable feeling towards
Elder Evans than had before existed.
When the news of this reached Mr. Rowlands he was very indignant, and
he immediately wrote to each of the preachers, denouncing his action
in interfering with the young Elder, whom he had known from childhood
as honest and conscientious, and every way deserving of respect. The
result was, the preachers lost caste from that very time and sunk into
oblivion, despised by all who knew them.
While Elder Evans was laboring in Pembrokeshire a man by the name of
Thomas Evans broke a blood vessel and bled inwardly, the blood also
issuing from his nose and mouth profusely. Doctors were called in and
tried in vain to stop the hemorrhage. Brother Evans and another Elder
on learning of the man's condition went to see him. He had then grown
so weak that he was scarcely able to speak, but he made known that he
desired them to administer to him. They complied with his request, and
on taking their hands from his head it was noticed that the bleeding
had stopped, and the man recovered from that time, although it was some
time before he regained his strength, as he had lost so much blood.
Near the same time and in the same region a sister in the Church, named
Morgan, was taken very sick. Her friends did all they could for her,
but she continued growing worse. When she had grown so bad that the
persons waiting upon her expected her to die almost hourly, she fell
asleep and dreamed that Elder Evans came and laid his hands upon her
and she recovered immediately. On relating the dream to her friends,
they tried to find out where Brother Evans was, and sent to different
parts of the country in search of him, without finding him, however;
but during the day Elder Evans happened to call at the house where the
sick woman was. She saw him as he passed the window before he entered
the door and she declared afterwards that the sight of him caused her
pain to vanish, and when he laid his hands upon her head she was healed
instantly, and arose and ate her supper.
One of the most remarkable cases of healing that ever occurred in
Brother Evans' experience was that of a woman who had been afflicted
with a bloody issue for thirty years, and who had been given up by the
doctors as incurable. On hearing the gospel she believed, and requested
baptism. Notwithstanding the protests of her friends, who all declared
that if she went into the water it would kill her, she determined to do
so, and Elder Evans baptized her. From that very time she was cured of
her affliction and was no more troubled by it.
In illustration of the providential way in which the Elders are
sometimes preserved when their enemies seek to destroy them, Brother
Evans relates the following: In a village in Pembrokeshire in which
he had often preached, a man by the name of Thomas, who had listened
to his testimony and was a believer but had not made up his mind to
be baptized, was taken sick with the cholera. When the disease had
got such a hold upon him that he felt that he must die, he became
very anxious to be baptized, and sent for his brother, who was an
Elder in the Church, and demanded baptism at his hands. He expressed
no hopes of living, he fully expected to die, and to gratify him his
brother baptized him. The man died soon afterwards as he had expected
to, but at the coroner's inquest which was held over the body, on the
fact being known that he was baptized, a great uproar was raised.
His brother was arrested, charged with murder, and the Elders who
had labored in that region were threatened with the vengeance of the
populace if they ever returned. John Thomas was in time tried for his
brother's murder, and acquitted, the evidence being clear that he died
from cholera and not from being baptized. Soon afterwards Elder John
Morris, who was president of the Pembrokeshire conference, and Brother
Evans, who was his counselor, called at the village and put up as usual
at the house of an old gentleman named Noat, who was a member of the
Church. Before retiring for the night they felt impressed to leave
that house, and go to another and stay. It was fortunate that they did
so, for, if they had failed to act upon the warning of the Spirit,
they would probably have forfeited their lives as a consequence. In
the night a mob broke open the doors of Noat's house and searched for
the Elders, whom they supposed to be there. Failing to find them, they
dragged old Brother Noat from his house and abused him most shamefully,
because he would not inform them where the Elders were. The Elders, on
hearing of the outrage the next morning, went to the house; but were
seen by some of the mob, and had to flee for their lives, being stoned
out of the place.
As an example of the manner in which the gifts of tongues and the
interpretation of the same were enjoyed by the Saints in the Welsh
mission in an early day, Brother Evans relates the following: It was
customary at that time for the Saints in emigrating from Wales to sail
from Swansea to Liverpool. A couple or three days after a company had
started in this way, many of them having gone from Aberdare, a "Saints'
meeting" was being held in the latter place, when a young man was led
to speak in tongues. On the interpretation being given by another
person present, it was stated that the company of Saints who had sailed
for Liverpool were in danger of being wrecked, and were praying very
earnestly for their deliverance, and wishing that their friends at
home would also pray for them. The man who presided over the meeting
supposed from the length of time which had elapsed after the company
had sailed that they must have reached Liverpool before that time.
He therefore preferred to act upon his own judgment to accepting the
Spirit's warning, and dismissed the meeting without offering a prayer
for the safety of their friends. A few days afterwards news reached
Aberdare that the company had been all but lost on the voyage, and at
the time that their friends were holding their meeting they were in the
greatest peril.