of his abjuration. His penitence was so sincere, that he felt, no humiliation too great, and he asked forgiveness of every one he met for the scandal he had brought upon their holy religion. God brought good out of evil on this occasion, for he made the remorse of this unhappy man the means of strengthening the faith of many others, who saw, by his melancholy example, that man, with all his cruelty, can inflict no such torture as God causes to the consciousness of those, who deny him before men.
I was deeply grieved that I had not been upon the spot when this poor man was taken up, for I thought I might have accompanied him and prevented his recantation; and it determined me to do what I could to confirm the faith of the other members of my flock. I was told that there was a warrant out for my apprehension, so I rode over to Saintes to inquire into the truth of the report, and I determined to give myself up to the authorities, if it should be required.
I called upon the Lieutenant-General or Seneschal of the Presidency of Saintes to ascertain the fact, and he was malicious enough to deny that there was any such warrant out, though he was himself the very person who had issued it. He wished me to return home in ignorance of the truth, for the purpose of inflicting upon me the ignominy and mortification, that he supposed would be the result of making me a public spectacle, dragged to prison by the Grand Provost and his Archers. I had a shrewd suspicion that it was so, and therefore went home with the determination to make the most of my time for the benefit of my poor neighbors. During the week I visited from house to house, prayed, and exhorted to the best of my ability.
At length I was informed that the Provost and his Archers
