Stoddard
was lighting his candle to go home, when Mr. Stocking asked if he
saw any indications of interest in his school. There was no reply;
but the expressive face, and the candle dropping unnoticed as he
held it, showed that thought was busy, and the heart full. At length
he said, with deep feeling, "I should expect to see interest if we
felt as we ought to feel;" and passed out. All were impressed with
his manner, so earnest, yet so humble. He retired to his study,
called John, and talked with him on the state of the school. He
proposed that they should each day make some one pupil a subject of
special prayer and personal effort, and begin that night with Yakob
of Sooldooz. They prayed together for him, and then he said, "John,
I want to talk with him to-night; we don't know what may be on the
morrow; go and call him." Yakob, who had acted badly in meeting that
day, came, expecting to be punished; but when Mr. Stoddard kindly
asked him to come and sit down by him, and, taking his hand, said,
"Have you ever thought that you have a soul to be saved or lost?" he
broke down at once. He confessed that the whole school had combined
to shut out the subject from their thoughts, but really felt so
uneasy, that if one of them should be brought to Christ he thought
all would follow.
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