seemed as though its force would sever me. I lost all control of myself; I neither knew nor cared where I was. Such was my humiliation and grief that my consciousness left me, and I would have fainted away, had not the Recorder taken me by the hand, and in a kindly loving voice said: "My son, my son, do not give way so."
Whether it was the soothing, compassionate, kindly and almost loving tone of his voice, or whether it was the energy that was flowing into me through his hand that revived and reassured me, I cannot tell, but I soon began to recover my self-possession. The Recorder did not speak again for a long time, but continued holding my hand. At last, when he saw that I was once more calm, he said:—
"I called you my son, because I see that you are in great grief, and because I have a great regard for you. Now I want you to be calm for a little while, while I speak quietly to you. I find that I have over-estimated your strength of mind and understanding; I have not fully
