buttons upon my coat. He gave them to my brother John, a Methodist minister in Ohio, who has passed them down to his son, Prof. John White of Harvard College. When visiting the Centennial Exhibition I had the pleasure of seeing in the New England Log Cabin what was said to be the veritable cradle in which the infant Perigrine was rocked. Also in the Gallery of Art there was a painting representing the landing of the Pilgrims, and the infant Perigrine is sleeping in his mother's arms.

My father possessed from his youth great physical strength, and activity of body and mind. With his own hands he cleared the heavy timber from his land. This revealed stones in the soil, which his own hands removed, and placed into stone fence, to prepare the way for the plow. He toiled on for more than half a century, till the rock-bound soil was literally worn out, and much of the old farm had lost its power to produce crops. At the age of seventy-four he left it and sought rest in the more congenial climate of the West.

His religious experience, of more than sixty years, was marked with firmness and zeal, and yet with freedom from that bigotry which prevents investigation and advancement, and shuts out love for all who seek to worship God in spirit and in truth.

At the age of twenty-one he was sprinkled, and joined the Congregational church, but never felt satisfied that in being sprinkled he had received Christian baptism. Several years later, a Baptist minister came into that new part of the State and taught immersion. My father was immersed, and was a Baptist deacon ten years. Still later he embraced the views held by the Christian denomination of New England, which were more liberal and scriptural than those of the Calvinistic Baptists of those days, and communed with that people. The Baptists called a special meeting. The minister and

many of the church members were present. The minister invited several to open the meeting with prayer, but each in his turn wished to be excused. He waited. Finally, my father opened the meeting. They then excluded him for communing with the Christians. The minister made an effort to have some one close the meeting. No one moved. My father closed their meeting with prayer, and left them with feelings of love and tenderness. He soon joined the Christian church, and served them as deacon nearly forty years. During this entire period he was present at every conference meeting held by the church, excepting one, which, according to their custom, was held on Saturday afternoon of every fourth week.

As early as 1842 my father read with deep interest the lectures of William Miller upon the second coming of Christ. He cherished faith in the doctrine of the soon personal appearing of Christ to the time of his decease. He embraced the Sabbath of the Bible in 1860, and observed it while he lived.

My mother was a granddaughter of Dr. Samuel Shepard, one of the first and most eminent Baptist ministers of New England. She possessed great firmness of constitution, a good mind, and a most amiable disposition. Her entire religious experience, for more than sixty years, was marked with a meek and quiet spirit, devotion to the cause of Christ, and a consistent walk and godly conversation.

My venerable parents reached the good old age of more than fourscore years, and kept house alone. when father was eighty-five years of age and mother was eighty-two. At Oak Hill Cemetery, Battle Creek, Michigan, are two graves at which are erected two marble slabs. On one is chiseled "Dea. John White, was born April 12, 1785, Died July 5, 1871, aged 86 years." On the other, "Mrs. Dea. John White, was born February 14, 1788, Died January 1, 1871, aged 82 years." Also that remarkable pas

sage of Paul to his son in the gospel, is divided, the first part is engraved at my venerable father's head, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." At At my beloved mother's head the concluding portion is given, "Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness." 2 Tim. 4:7, 8.

In my father's family I stood in the center of nine children, four above me and four below me. But this family chain is now much worn, and nearly half its links are broken. The four above me in years, all live. All below me sleep. Time, toil, and care have made their unmistakable impress on the remaining five.

My remaining brothers are both ministers, one of the M. E. Church, of Ohio, the other of the regular Baptist, of New Hampshire. Two sisters are living. One brother is supposed to have lost his life by the Indians, in returning from California. Another sleeps beside a sister in Mount Hope Cemetery, Rochester, N. Y., while another brother, who died at the age of three years, rests in the old buryingground in Palmyra, Maine.

My parents say I was an extremely feeble child. And, what added greatly to my difficulties, and cut off their hopes of my life, when less than three years old, I had what the doctors call worm fever, resulting in fits, which turned my eyes and nearly destroyed my sight. I am reported to have been extremely cross-eyed-not naturally, but from affection of the nerves-a feeble, nervous, partially-blind boy. These are sufficient reasons why I could not enjoy the common advantages of school. And not until I was sixteen years old, when my health and strength greatly improved, and my eyes became quite natural, could I read a single verse in the Testament without resting my eyes. I felt keenly the fact that I was behind my school-mates in education. And with the poor advantages of those times I could

do but little toward making up the almost total loss of ten years. I grew rapidly, and at eighteen was ahead of my years in size and strength. This added to my embarrassment as I entered the Academy at St. Albans, Me., at the age of nineteen. I could not then work a simple problem in single rule of three, and I could not tell a verb from an adverb or an adjective, and was deficient in the other common branches. My friends advised me to turn my attention to farming, and not think of seeking an education. But I could not take their advice.

At the close of the term of twelve weeks, I received from the preceptor, C. F. Allen, a certificate of my qualifications to teach the common branches, and the winter following I taught school. This required close study eighteen hours of each twentyfour. A victory was gained. Much of my time previous to this I had viewed myself as nearly worthless in the world, and regretted my existence. But now I was beginning to hope that I had powers to become a man. No privation nor hardship formed an obstacle in my way. My father gave me my time at nineteen, and a suit of clothes. All I asked of my parents in addition to this was three dollars to pay my tuition, and six days' rations of bread to take with me each Monday morning for three months as I should walk five miles to the school.

At the close of my first term of school-teaching I again attended school at St. Albans five weeks, then shouldered my pack and walked to the Penobscot river, forty miles, to offer myself as a raw hand in a saw-mill. In the mill I cut my ankle, which resulted in permanent weakness and occasional painful lameness in my left foot. For twenty-six years I was unable to bear my weight upon my left heel. At the end of four months I returned home. I had lost much time in consequence of the severe wound in my ankle joint, and after paying my

board during the time lost, I had but thirty dollars and a scanty amount of worn clothing. In order to be qualified to teach a school where I could obtain first-class wages it was necessary for me to attend school. I therefore immediately packed up my books and humble apparel for the school at Reedfield, Me., then favorably known as being under the control and support of the Episcopal Methodists. During that term my object was to thoroughly qualify myself to teach the common branches. Besides these, I took up Natural Philosophy, Algebra, and Latin. At the close of that term I had conquered all the Arithmetics within my reach, was regarded as a good grammarian, was prepared to teach penmanship, and was told by my preceptor that I could fit for college in one year.

At

My thirst for education increased, and my plans were laid to take a college course and pay my way, if labor, economy, and study would accomplish it. I had but little else to thank but God and my own energies for what advancement I had made. Reedfield I wore old clothes, while my class-mates wore new, and lived three months on corn-meal pudding prepared by myself, and a few raw apples, while they enjoyed the conveniences and luxuries of the boarding-house.

With the close of this term, also closed my school studies. I had attended high school, in all, twentynine weeks, and the entire cost of tuition, books, and board, did not exceed fifty dollars. My apology for being so definite in this part of my narrative, is a desire to help those young men who wish to obtain an education while suffering under the unfriendly influences of poverty and pride. A poor boy may obtain an education by calling to his aid industry, economy, and application to his books. Such an one will prize his education, and be likely to make a good use of it; while the young man