"Dr. Samuel Thompson, of Vermont, is introducing a new system of
medical practice which I believe to be more in accordance with the
laws of life and health than any I know of. His maxim, applied to
disease, is: 'REMOVE THE CAUSE, AND THE EFFECT WILL CEASE.'
"Every diseased condition of the body is the effect of some cause.
This cause being removed, the disease, either simple or complex, must
yield to the restorative forces of nature. But to diminish the
activity of these forces, by copious depletion of the body, to be
followed by a regimen so severe as to withhold, almost absolutely,
the nourishment and support nature demands, is, in my view, to say
the least, irrational."
Had Brother Kline penned these words fifty years later in the century,
they could not be more in harmony with the popular theory of medical
science as it is taught in the schools of the present day. They are
almost prophetic. He goes on: "I am therefore determined to try the
new way of treating disease, and see what I can do with it. I feel
sure it will do no harm, even if it does but little or no good."
His subsequent success as a physician for many years proves that he
was not mistaken in the conclusions at which he arrived preparatory to
his entering the field of medical practice.
He procured his remedies in their virgin purity from the mountains,
meadows and woods, either in person, with hoe in hand, or through
agents whom he employed for the work. Lobelia, Boneset, Pleurisy-Root,
Black-Cohosh, Blue-Cohosh, Lady's-slipper, Red Raspberry, Ginseng,
Spignet, Black-Root, Seneca-Snake-Root, Gentian, May-Apple, Golden-Rod,
and many other roots and herbs were quite familiar to him, not only as
they were seen growing in their native mountains, fields and forests,
but also as to their medical properties and uses.
No recreation could be more delightful to the true lover of nature
than to get on a good horse and go with him to see the Brethren, as he
called it. This may sound a little odd; but the reader must know that
Brother Kline rarely went on an errand with a single aim. His object
seemed to be to crowd into his life all the service for both God and
man that it was possible for him to do. In this desire to do good he
would sometimes humorously repeat the old saying: "Kill as many birds
with one stone as you can."
When the season approached for gathering "_roots and herbs_" he would
sometimes write to the Brethren among the mountains of West Virginia,
that they might expect him to be with them at a given time. This
announcement always sent a thrill of joy through their hearts. The
news of his coming spread rapidly; and he was sure of large
congregations for that sparsely settled country.
One Sunday, toward the close of his life, he said to me: "Brother
B----, would it suit you to go with me over to Pendleton and Hardy? I
have a line of meetings in view; and if it would suit you to go with
me I will be very glad of your company. I want to gather some
medicines by the way, and as you are fond of rambling among the
mountains you may enjoy the trip and make yourself useful at the same
time."
I agreed to go. So on Thursday morning about the latter part of July,
very early, we mounted our horses. "Old Nell"--as he called his
favorite riding mare, that had up to that time, as his Diary will
show, carried him on her back over _thirty thousand miles_--seemed to
understand where we were starting for, and how fast she ought to go.
In the early part of the day she walked very moderately; but as the
hours went by she quickened her gait, and really walked with a
livelier step in the evening than she had in the fore part of the day.
Soon after our arrival the people began to come together for night
meeting at the house where we staid.
After a most refreshing supper and a little rest we were ready to
engage in the sacred duties of worship. Brother Kline very kindly took
the lead in the services, and in a very plain way delivered one of the
best discourses I have ever heard on Col. 1:12. This is the TEXT:
"_Giving thanks to the Father, who hath made us meet to be partakers
of the inheritance of the saints in light._"
He showed, in a very impressive way, that if an heir to an estate is
not qualified to appreciate that estate, to enjoy it by making a right
use of it, it can do him but little good. From this thought his mind
ascended heavenward; and he said that heaven, with all its glory and
bliss, can never be a desirable inheritance to any but to those who
are qualified or prepared for it. Those who are thus qualified are
described in the text as "_the saints in light_." He then drew a most
lively picture of the difference between a saint in light and a sinner
in darkness. It almost chilled my blood to see how low in the scale of
intelligent beings the one stands contrasted with the lofty elevation
of the other.
The next day we repaired to the Shenandoah mountain to procure medical
herbs. We went up into a very deep and rich hollow, where it looked as
if the rays of the sun could hardly penetrate, and soon I saw his face
light up with something that evidently pleased him. "Ah! here it is,"
said he. "What is here?" I asked. "Don't you see this patch of
Ginseng?" he replied. "Is this Ginseng? It is my first sight of it."
As I was much younger than he I insisted upon using the hoe; but no!
He was so pleased that he seemed to want to do all the digging himself.
When a supply of Ginseng was obtained we went to the top of the ridge,
where we found a considerable quantity of Seneca-Snake-Root, an article
very much in demand at the present day.
The next thing sought for was the Red Raspberry. We hunted and hunted,
and were on the point of giving up the quest, when, at the extreme
head of a very rough mountain hollow, we discovered a "patch" of the
bushes. They were full of berries of a bright scarlet, resembling
somewhat in form the common raspberry, but in some other respects they
were quite different. They were very beautiful. If the plant would
bear domestication it would be highly ornamental. Having filled a
"poke" with the raspberry leaves, we set out to return to the place
where we had left our horses. I doubt exceedingly whether I could have
found the spot; but his familiarity with the mountains generally, and
his acute perception of topographical relations in particular, enabled
him to find the place without difficulty.
On our way back to where we had left our horses, however, we came
across a "patch" of Golden Seal. This is a graceful plant, each one
having a single calyx enclosing the seeds, somewhat in the shape of a
button or seal of a bright yellow color; hence its name. "The root of
this plant," said he, "is an excellent alterative and tonic." We dug
up the yellow roots with zest; but being by this time very hungry, I
began to fear that we might come across a "patch" of something else
that might still longer delay our return. But he seemed satisfied with
his success, and we found our horses all right. "Old Nell" had,
however, loosed the strap of her halter, and was quietly browsing
around. When she heard us coming she threw up her head; and at the
call of his voice she came up to him.
It was past two o'clock when we got back to Brother Judy's. Dinner was
soon served; and to this day I do feel that if ever I have been truly
thankful for the good things of this life it was then.
We followed up the line of appointments to the last one, and returned
home.
And now, my dear reader, I can truly say, that if it is as pleasant to
you to _read_ these reminiscences as it is to me to _write_ them, you
are well repaid.
_Sermon by Peter Nead._
_Preached at the Linville's Creek Meetinghouse,
Sunday, January 3, 1836._
TEXT.--Unto you therefore which believe he is precious.--I Pet. 2:7.
Dear Brethren, this chapter is full of instruction and encouragement.
Peter knew by experience what it is to backslide. Now, that he is
restored again to full fellowship with the Lord and the church, Jesus
seems nearer and more precious to him than ever before. In the seventh
verse he says: "Unto you therefore which believe he is precious." I
know he must be so, because he is so precious to me. I shamefully
denied him when he most needed my loving support, and swore that I did
not know him in the darkest hour of his temptation. Who can comprehend
his grace? The meekness, the gentleness, the calmness of his forgiving
heart under trials the deepest, under persecutions the greatest, even
unto death, are surely worthy of God incarnate.
"'_I know not the man_' were the very last words he heard me utter on
his way through tribulations to the cross; and I added oaths to the
declaration. I now fail to find words to express my surprise and joy
at the message he sent me on the morning of his resurrection. When he
was placed in the tomb I had no hope of his ever coming out thence.
But what surprised and overcame me more than the direct news of his
rising was the special message of love he sent me by the women who saw
him first. He said to them: 'Go and tell my disciples AND PETER, that
I go into Galilee, and there they shall see me.' His forgiving love
singled me out as one of its special objects, because I was such a
vile sinner, and had treated him so badly. Brother Paul calls _himself_
the 'chief of sinners,' because he persecuted the saints of God; but I
feel that _I_ must be, for I denied his Son. Truly did Paul say of all
such great sinners as we are: 'Where sin abounded, grace did also much
more abound.' Thanks to my risen Lord, I can now with heart and voice
join the chorus of those that sing:
"'O, the length and the breadth,
And the depth and the height
Of the love of Christ!
It passeth all understanding!"
I have here represented Peter as giving us some of his experiences;
and I believe that my representations are correct; for in the chapter
next preceding the one just read, we find this joyful exclamation:
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which
according to his ABUNDANT MERCY hath begotten us again unto a lively
hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." I must think
that the mercy was much more _abundant_ than Peter expected, for it
wrought an effect upon him which he calls a _regeneration_, or a sort
of new birth. At any rate, he says he was "BEGOTTEN AGAIN." It looks
as if it made a new man of him. It gave him new life. He never denied
his Lord again. When called to fulfill the prophecy of the Lord
concerning "the death by which he was to glorify God," he faltered
not, but met it "as seeing him who is invisible."
Brethren, some of us may, at times, have a taste of Peter's experience.
We feel so vile in our own eyes, that, like him, we go out, and over
our sins "weep bitterly." Ah, but these are "pearly tears" in God's
sight. Though we may not know it, though we may still feel too bad to
repair, on bended knees, to a "throne of grace," yet God knows how to
value them. They are precious in his sight; and it is your experience
and mine that after seasons of this kind he sends us the brightest
tokens of his love, and we are joyfully amazed that it is so.
I once, when a boy, disobeyed my father. I have in mind a particular
instance of disobedience, and of a character very trying to his
patience. When I came rightly to myself and realized my sin I was
afraid to meet him. He discovered, without any confession on my part,
what I had done. I expected severe punishment. To my surprise he met
me with a smile. Taking me by the hand he said: "Let us go out into
the orchard." We sat down upon the fallen trunk of an apple tree, and
gently placing one arm around my neck, he said: "Peter, do you know
that I love you?" I instantly broke down under the weight of this arm
of love, and answered as well as my sobs would let me, "Yes, sir!" "Do
you love me?" he next said. Again I answered, "Yes, sir!" "Then never
again disobey me, my boy, and we will have a sweet and happy life
together." And I can say from my heart, right here, I never did.
I now think, dear Brethren, that you are prepared to understand what
Peter meant by the words: "Unto you therefore which believe he is
precious." You feel that he is precious to you, because he has taken
away your sins by giving you a _new heart_ and filling you with his
love. You can now say with the Apostle John: "We love him because he
first loved us." Now then, inasmuch as ye love him, "abide in his
love," and "the God of love and peace shall be with you." May his
grace, mercy and peace be with us all forever. Amen!
_Sermon by Elder John Kline._
_Preached at Tobbins,
Sunday, January 10._
TEXT.--As ye therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk
ye in him.--Col. 2:6.
Paul addressed these words to the church at Colosse, a city of Asia
Minor, in the Roman province called Phrygia. It may be of interest to
you for me to tell you something about the character of these people
at the time Paul first visited them. Ancient history gives a very dark
picture of this. What Paul said of Athens applied equally to Colosse:
"The city was wholly given to idolatry." The lower classes, especially,
were very ignorant, having no knowledge of God save that which the
light of nature gave them.
But when Paul went into their midst, preaching the Gospel of
salvation, the prophecy of Isaiah, concerning Zebulon and Naphtali,
was fulfilled unto them, as it had been before at Capernaum on the
shore of the Galilean Sea: "The people which sat in darkness saw a
great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death,
to them did light spring up." They opened their eyes to the light and
rejoiced to see it; and their hearts to the love it revealed, and they
took it in. They accepted Christ Jesus the Lord in all his fullness.
Faith became to them a living principle. They felt its truth as surely
as though with their natural eyes and ears they saw and heard all that
it comprehended for time and eternity, for earth and heaven.
But you want to know how I find all this out. Turn with me to the
first chapter of Paul's letter to them, and I will show you. Now
notice that right in the beginning he addresses them as "SAINTS and
FAITHFUL BRETHREN in Christ." By "saints" he means that they are
_holy_; and by "faithful brethren" he means to tell how they got to be
so. This, I think, is saying a good deal for them; but he goes on: "We
give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying
always for you; having heard of your FAITH in Christ Jesus; and of the
LOVE which ye have toward ALL the saints, because of the HOPE which is
laid up for you in the heavens."
You now see that these Colossian brethren had the three essentials
that distinguish a Christian from a pagan, a saint from a sinner, and
an angel of light from a demon of darkness. These three are _faith_,
_hope_ and _love_; but of these Paul says that "love is the greatest."
This they had in large measure, because it extended "toward ALL the
saints." It is natural for every Christian to love SOME of the saints
when he is free "to pick and choose;" but to love ALL is quite another
thing.
If you will thoughtfully read this first chapter through, you will see
the high place these Colossian brethren held in Paul's confidence, not
only as to faith and love, but also as to the enlightenment of their
understandings with heavenly wisdom. He sets forth our Lord Jesus
Christ as the triune God--Creator, Redeemer and Savior--in loftier
terms than are to be found anywhere else in his epistles. Had there
been any doubt in his mind as to their ability to understand these
revelations, and thus profit by them, they would have been withheld.
He would have fed them with milk, as he did his Corinthian and Hebrew
brethren, and not with strong food.
My text says: "As ye therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so
walk ye in him." They had received him in _faith_, and _hope_, and
_love_. So were they instructed to walk in him. "Ye have been buried
with him in baptism, wherein ye were also raised with him through
faith in the working of God who raised him from the dead." "Inasmuch
then, as ye were raised together with Christ, seek the things that
are above where Christ is seated on the right hand of God." "Set your
affections on the things above, not on the things that are upon the
earth. For ye died; and the new life which ye now live, ye live by
faith in the Son of God who loved you and gave himself for you."
"Avoid fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness
which is idolatry; for the wrath of God is revealed against all these
things. And ye know that a little while ago YE LIVED AND WALKED IN ALL
THESE THINGS." This last quotation tells what these brethren _had
been_, and the foregoing quotations show what they were when Paul
wrote to them.
After a careful study of these good instructions, these faithful
brethren could not mistake the way in which they were to walk. Paul
not only showed them how to get into the good way in the first place,
but he also told them how to _keep_ in the way. It is one thing _to
get into_ the right road to any place, but it is quite another thing
to keep it. In writing to his Galatian brethren, Paul says: "Ye did
run well for awhile; who turned you out of the way?" Ah, brethren,
there are many by-roads leading off from "the king's highway." I have
known brethren and sisters to start well, to all appearance, and run
well for a time; but by and by the cares of the world and the
deceitfulness of riches, and other things, like the thorns in the
parable, choked the Word in their hearts, so that they brought forth
no fruit unto perfection.