Page:Lives of the apostles of Jesus Christ (1836).djvu/296

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of without help. Where in the world this place was, nobody can tell; for there is a great clashing among the saintly authorities, whether it was in Scythia or Ethiopia; and as the place is never mentioned by any body else, they have the dispute all in their own hands. But since the story says he went all the way by ship, from Achaia to the city, it would seem most likely to have been in that part of Scythia which touched the northeastern border of the Black sea. Having finished this business, as will be elsewhere told, he went back towards Achaia, and resumed the good works, but just begun, soon gathering around him a throng of disciples. Walking out with them one day, he met a blind man, who made the singular request that the apostle would not restore him to sight, though confessedly able, but simply give him some money, victuals and clothes. The acute Andrew straightway smelt a devil, (and a mighty silly one too,) in this queer speech, and declaring that these were not the words of the blind man himself, but of a devil who had possessed him, ordered the foolish demon to come out, and restored the man to sight, supplying him also with clothes from the backs of his disciples. The fame of this and other miracles spread far and fast, and the consequence was that the apostle had as many calls as a rising quack doctor. Every body that was in any sort of trouble or difficulty, came to him as a thing of course, to get a miracle done to suit the case exactly. A rich man who had lost a favorite slave, by death, had him raised to life by Andrew. A young lad whose mother had wrongfully accused him, before the proconsul, also called for help or advice;—Andrew went into court and raised a terrible earthquake, with thunder and lightning, whereby all present were knocked down to the ground, and the wicked woman killed. The proconsul, as soon as he could get up, became converted, with all who had shared in the tumble. The apostle still increasing in business, soon had a call to Sinope, to see a whole family who were in a very bad way,—the old gentleman, Cratinus by name, being quite sick with a fever,—his wife afflicted with a dreadful dropsy, and his son possessed with a devil. These were all healed, with sundry charges about their secret sins, and some particulars as to the mode of cure, not worth translating, since it reads better in Latin than in English. He then went on through Asia to the city of Nicaea, in Bithynia, where his arrival was hailed with a universal shout of joy from the whole community, who were terribly pestered with seven naughty devils, that had taken up their quarters among