And thou shalt remember all the way the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep His commandments or no. And He humbled thee and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know. That He might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. -Deut. 8:2-32And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. 3And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. (Deuteronomy 8:2‑3).
Under this third head, we propose to speak of two spheres in which the Lord made all things work together for good during the late war. Firstly, as to those who passed through the circumstances of trial. Secondly, as to those outside, who found such a blessed opportunity of ministering to the sufferers, and of sharing their trials.
(1) It is always difficult, if not impossible, to speak of what passes between the individual soul and God; but God does teach us by the experience of others, and His ways of love are always legitimate subjects of praise for His children.
All that can be attempted, however, is to give some idea of the way in which the Lord turned the circumstances of the presence of the invader into a means of searching the hearts of His people and blessing them.
One of the heaviest trials, because in many cases it was so prolonged, was that of lodging soldiers. When the Prussians were in garrison, the men were evenly distributed; every family had two, three, or more soldiers, according to its means, and these soldiers always had their rations served out to them, but, as this nourishment was insufficient, it had to be supplemented by the families with whom they were lodged, which was a heavy charge upon the poor. For instance, a brother in Amiens had almost continuously to lodge four Prussians, during the eight months of their occupation of that town, that is, from November 28th to July 20th and during the whole of that time he sold nothing, for, being an upholsterer, there was nothing doing in his line of business. Hence the trial of faith and patience was very great.
Many suffered considerably from the interruption to industry and commerce through the unsettled state of affairs. D-, of Orleans, the brother already mentioned, who is a plasterer and paperhanger, got no work at all through the winter and spring months. He used to go into the fields searching for the horses which had been killed by the Prussians because there was no fodder for them, and cut from the carcasses food enough for his household, and this, with the addition of rice and bread, was their nourishment for many weeks.
Notwithstanding the dryness of the season last summer (1870), he had, with great toil and trouble, managed to cultivate some very fine cabbages in his little garden. A few short minutes were sufficient to dissipate all the hopes centered in the cabbages, for the day the Prussians entered a soldier cut them all for the use of the horses. This disappointment was, however, soon changed into thankfulness, as, on the following night, there was so severe a frost that everything green in the gardens was entirely destroyed, and then he was thankful that at least the poor horses should have had the benefit of what would otherwise have been entirely wasted.
But the Lord would cast him yet further upon Himself. Having heard of the Prussian rapacity, our poor friend hid 801bs. of potatoes-all his stock-in a loft, so as to ensure their not being taken from him; but he soon had to repent his want of faith, for the whole lot were frozen and uneatable.
Nevertheless, as he himself said, neither he nor his wife and children suffered from hunger. The Lord provided for him, and enabled him to make both ends meet in spite of all the difficulties. Some Christian friends sent him help in money that enabled him to buy more potatoes and other necessaries, as they were required. And then how much happier to receive these mercies directly as a gift from his Father than even as the hard-earned fruit of his own honest labor. A gift is always sweeter than a wage, for pure love that wins the heart takes the place of self-satisfaction, and the affections go out instead of being restrained..
During the passage of the troops, lodging soldiers meant something besides merely receiving three or four men every night and attending to their wants more or less during the day; and in the intense cold of last winter that was really no light trial. In the country of Montbeliard, during January, armies passed and re-passed continually, came and went at all hours of the day or night, so that every one had to be on the alert. The villages along the high roads were those chiefly exposed to this necessity.
The Prussians wisely distributed their forces so as to get all their men under shelter during the night, whereas the French under Bourbaki were so numerous that it was utterly impossible to find a place for them to lodge in, and the greater part encamped in the snow, sleeping as best they might by the side of enormous camp-fires. The remains of these fires were to be seen along the roads, all over the country, for months after. Poor fellows! When driven across the Swiss frontier many of them had frostbitten feet, and many died from the reaction to the system, when they partook freely of food after the great privations and hardships they had endured, some of them having been four or five days almost without food. But the Prussians being less numerous, and supported by an excellent commissariat, always ensured being comfortably lodged.
The first thing they did on entering a house was to take possession of every room where there was a stove, turn out the inhabitants, spread straw on the floor, and make themselves as comfortable as possible. Others took possession of the kitchen to cook their victuals, and as they were always eating it was most difficult for the proprietors to get hold of their stove, even for a short time-to dress some hasty meal; and as for lodging, they had to shift as best they might in cellars or lofts without fires. Even supposing the soldiers to be perfectly well behaved-which they were not always-it was not pleasant to have every room in the house filled with these men, all smoking together as only Germans can smoke, going to sleep even with their pipes in their mouths, and lying so thickly together that one could scarcely walk across the room without treading upon them. In addition to this, there was the pleasure they took in examining every nook and cranny in the house to know exactly its resources, sometimes under the pretext of there being arms or French soldiers concealed. Cases of pillage were certainly rare, and generally the fault of the proprietors, who hid various things and deceived the Prussians about them, who never failed to wreak their vengeance upon such offenders. Those who hid nothing and received the enemies of their country well, were protected and well treated, and the Prussian officers almost invariably held their soldiers in check with that discipline for which they were remarkable.
It will thus be understood that the trial of faith and patience was considerable. Those who received these unwelcome visitors as Christians should receive all-as friends, not as enemies-had no reason to repent of their patience and forbearance: for they were always well treated; but it required great patience, self-command, and quiet confidence in God.
In one village, Desandans, situated upon the high road between Dijon, Belfort, and Strasbourg, they suffered more than in many neighboring villages; still the Lord's hand in moderating the trial was very marked; for four weeks, from Monday the 26th December to Saturday, January 21st, the passage of troops was incessant, day and night, but both the previous and following Sundays were free, and in the interval there was only one Sunday upon which the brethren were unable to meet together; the next one after the departure of these unbidden guests, they wept for joy at again finding a little company on earth waiting for the Lord from heaven.
During these four weeks of watching and fasting in cold and discomfort of every kind, the Lord gave His people the needed bodily strength. After it was over, the nervous strain necessarily produced a reaction, from which it took several days to recover, and a good deal of sickness followed, as typhus fever, smallpox, &c.
At Bethoncourt they suffered in a similar way, and were prevented one Lord's Day from meeting together; but not being on the highroad, they had not to lodge soldiers for so many days in succession.
The fighting was more terrible there, and as the Prussians were sheltered in the village behind the railway embankment, several of the French were killed in the meadows round the village, the fighting continuing with more or less violence for three days-Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, the 15th, 16th, and 17th January.
The Prussian requisitions were another kind of trial. Many had to follow the army with horse and cart for weeks, doing the work of soldiers, who did not care to treat too tenderly the horses and drivers who did not belong to them. But in this case, as in an others, faith and patience were well rewarded. Those who accepted the trial, and remained quietly at their post, taking care of their beasts, were eventually sent back to their homes with horses and cart in good condition; whilst others, who refused to remain, lost both horse and cart; and, in some cases, those who tried to escape were well beaten by the Prussians.
The son of a brother in St. Julien (a village near Desandans), a lad of 18, was put into requisition in this way, and had to follow a regiment into Alsace, and when he returned home fell ill of typhus fever, caught during his absence, or else the effect of the hardships he had endured, and he died in a few days; and one of his sisters also caught the fever, and died.
In the midst of such afflictions human nature is often tempted to look at circumstances as second causes and complain. Only faith can rest unmoved above all this, recognizing and seeing nothing but a Father's hand, who rightly orders all things, not for time, but for eternity, and who only humbles His children to teach them more and more what His resources are, so to wean them from earthly things, and set their hearts upon things in the heavens where Christ sitteth.
The temptations to hide things from the Prussians was very great indeed. It seemed unnecessary to expose one's little all to be carried away, perhaps even ruthlessly wasted; and it was easy to forget that a Divine Hand guards even the temporal goods of the children of God. But those who did conceal things generally lost much more than they tried to hide.
One poor brother, in weak health, dug, with much difficulty and trouble, a hole in the floor of his cellar to hide fifty bottles of wine there, which he kept for occasional visits from his friends-for, as a rule, he never drank any himself. As he afterward confessed, the bodily exertion and mental torment which were the inevitable accompaniments of his self-imposed task, cost him much more than the wine was worth, and he was gently rebuked for his want of faith, as the Prussians never came to that village at all, so that his anxiety proved groundless.
The Prussians made continual requisitions throughout the country they invaded for money, provisions, and forage; but these were generally met by the village authorities, so as to avoid their falling unfairly upon single individuals; and their great annoyance consisted in their keeping the people in a constant state of apprehension. As has been already stated, the loss of the hay-which was entirely exhausted in the winter-was what was most heavily felt by all.
Those things which we see and hear work upon our senses, and we are apt to judge after the sight of the eyes and the hearing of the ears, and forget that, were we occupied with praising the Lord for His mercies of the day, we should not have time to be troubled with the cares of tomorrow. He loves us today-that we know and feel-and it is certain that we shall have to own the same truth tomorrow; for though all things change, He changeth not.
One brother, who lives in a lonely house, almost surrounded by forests, and far from any village, found himself for some days enclosed by Prussians, who formed a camp there; but his house was speedily turned into a temporary hospital, and his wife and children were left unmolested in the cellar and protected by the officers, and he suffered little beyond the loss of a few cooking utensils, and a few young fruit trees damaged by the passage of the cannon.
Thinking that so lonely a spot was beyond the reach of the strict search of the Prussians, some of the neighboring villagers had got this brother to stow away some goods, and brick up that portion of the cellar in which they were concealed at the commencement of the war. Happily for him the Lord did not permit this to be discovered.
There were other kinds of anxiety and suspense, which may be more easily imagined than described. Of such were the interruption of postal correspondence, and often the impossibility of getting news from those nearest and dearest-of one's own family-who were known to be in the midst of scenes, the horrors of which were always exaggerated in the published accounts, and yet more so by oral repetitions. In all such circumstances, however, the Christian has one triumphant answer, "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, and to them who are called according to His purpose."
(2) We have yet to say a few words as to those who were outside the trial, but still called to participate in it. If the trial itself has called forth praises (as it has, thank God), surely this work of sympathy has been the occasion of double praise to our God and Father,-praises from those who gave voluntarily and promptly, and praises from those who received of their bounty as a proof of their care, love, and interest in their brethren. At such a moment, 2 Cor. 11:10-1510As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia. 11Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth. 12But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. 13For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 15Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. (2 Corinthians 11:10‑15) becomes a living reality, and the promptitude with which the Swiss and English brethren came to the assistance of the sufferers, was very deeply appreciated by the latter. It was chiefly the factory workpeople and laboring men that needed assistance, for all work was at a standstill, through railway and other circulation being almost entirely interrupted for many weeks, and, in some places, for several months. Mercy only waits for a fitting opportunity to show itself; and surely the child of God, who is the favored object of His love and righteousness, must rejoice in an occasion of manifesting in a practical way the love which sought him in his wretchedness, and brought him to God, making him an heir of glory; and then kindled a fire of love in his heart which goes up to God by Christ in a fountain of praises, and out to others by the Spirit in streams of living waters.
In the end of January last, at the time of the retreat of the French army under Bourbaki from the neighborhood of Montbeliard, suffering was brought to the very doors of the Swiss in an unexampled way, and every class of society had to strain every nerve to seek to alleviate it. Happy, indeed, were those who could do so for the Lord's sake, and not merely as actuated by human philanthropy.
It was nearly a fortnight after the retreat was sounded along the whole line from Villersexel to Montbeliard, at the very moment that the Prussians were fleeing everywhere before the advancing French, that more than half Bourbaki's army was thrown in the wildest disorder across the Swiss frontier. Whether it was the faulty administration of the commissariat department, or the knowledge that another division of the Prussian army was coming down from the north-west to cut off the retreat of the French, that determined the step, one thing is certain, namely, that God permitted the most extraordinary spectacle, for a moment, of two armies running away from each other, and then the French army having been divided by the Prussians, one portion of it got away towards Lyons, whilst the other retreated as fast as possible along the Swiss frontier, as far as Pontarlier, until the circle of Prussians, which had been gradually tightening round them from Belfort by Vesoul, Gray, and Dole, forced them to seek refuge on Swiss soil at Verrieres. At this point the railway from Paris passes down the Val de Travers-a narrow valley in the Jura mountains-leading directly to Neuchatel, and one of the chief passes across the frontier. Pontarlier is in the center of the Jura range, and said to be one of the most elevated towns in France. At the time the army passed, there were from two to three feet of snow upon the ground. The depth of snow lessens always as one gets into the low country, and at Neuchatel there were about ten inches.
Bourbaki's army had already been suffering from privations when fighting at Montbeliard, so what their sufferings were, when all was in the disorder of a hasty retreat by forced marches in deep snow, may be more easily imagined than described. Verrieres is a little frontier Swiss village not far from Pontarlier. Being there in safety, these 50,000 men or more halted to rest, until they could be distributed, as far as circumstances allowed, over the Swiss towns as prisoners of war. All these had to pass by Neuchatel. Some 30,000 others crossed the mountains lower down; and entered by the Canton de Vaud.
Distributed over the whole of Switzerland, this sudden influx of people was an addition of one in forty to the entire population. It will not be difficult, then, to understand that at the moment of their entry it was absolutely impossible to provide for the wants of 50,000 men in a mountainous and thinly populated country, with only one railway passing through it, and no possibility of help from the French side; so that from Verrieres downward through the Val de Travers, their sufferings could be only partially alleviated. The horses gnawed the snow, the cart-wheels, trees, everything that came in their way, even one another's tails; many succumbed with hunger and fatigue, and men then fell upon them, eating the flesh raw in many cases.
Subjoined are some extracts from a letter written from Neuchatel, and dated February 10th, 1871: "During the last fortnight we have been eyewitnesses of the touching and lamentable passage of a large part of those who were a few weeks ago the most formidable French army that the Republic has set on foot. Night and day, hour by hour, followed each other thousands of disarmed troops, wounded, sick-some limping from frost-bitten feet-all emaciated from the privations and fatigue they had undergone in their late forced marches. On the 30th January we had the first batch of wounded and sick. It was half past twelve when I heard the town crier calling upon the inhabitants to go to the station to give soup to the French wounded, whose arrival was suddenly announced."
It was the advanced guard of the French army-a miserable wreck of what had been for a moment the hope of France. It is impossible to convey the expression of destitution expressed in the faces of these soldiers, come from all parts of France.
"Some had no shoes, others had their feet wrapped up in straw or in cloths; others, again, had wooden shoes (sabots) or slippers; all had suffered, and were suffering from hunger. Two days after this the army itself crossed our frontier, and we saw the arrival in our town of the troops that had been considered to be in good condition. Alas! many of them were in such a state that when we offered them food they refused, saying, 'We only want to die!' How much must they have suffered to have to come to such a pass!
Soldiers of the line, francs-tireurs, zouaves, Turcos shivering with cold, foot chasseurs, marines, cuirassiers with dirty white cloaks, dragoons in red cloaks, lancers, &c., &c., all mingled together in one promiscuous mob, dragged themselves through snow at least ten inches deep, with the artillery, military train, and baggage, both men and animals bearing an expression of want which was heartrending, for bread had completely failed for some days."
The zeal of the population of Neuchatel did not slacken for an instant. Rich and poor, men, women, and children, hastened to bring warm and comfortable clothing, shirts, socks, linen for dressing wounds, cigars, food of all kinds-in a word, all that ingenious charity could suggest. And when the first needs were supplied, many came forward with paper and ink to write letters for the poor soldiers to their friends. All the colleges and churches were turned into temporary barracks or hospitals. Clean straw was strewn all over the floor, on which the soldiers lay for a day or two until they could be drafted off to other towns, as fast as the trains could transport them.
It took about ten days to get all these men through the town; but it was some weeks before the inhabitants recovered from the wear and tear of those ten days' work, to say nothing of the typhus fever and smallpox which made their appearance soon after.
The sickness, however, was not confined to a few towns only. Smallpox was general all over Switzerland, and raged nowhere more violently than in the south of France, which had been quite beyond the reach of these terrible scenes.
The Lord Himself has told us that sword, famine, and pestilence are but the beginning of the sorrows called down by the wickedness of mankind. He knows, however, how to humble and try and bless His own people by their means, as He surely has done and does.
The presence in Switzerland and Germany of so many fresh prisoners from all parts of France gave occasion for very many opportunities of spreading the glad tidings of God's grace, by means of tracts, Testaments, portions of Scripture, &c., which were distributed in great numbers; as also by personal intercourse with the soldiers, who, touched by the kindness they had experienced in Switzerland, were generally very willing to listen to what was said to them. It is indeed known that much, very much of the seed sown has been snatched away by Satan's evil birds; for the Romish priests have already burnt many Testaments and tracts, and many others have been given away lest the priests should find them; nevertheless, faith looks above the earth and above the human agents who accomplish Satan's work in it. The Spirit still remains among us to accomplish God's work; and that He will carry out by means of His written word in spite of all Satan's opposition" we also helping together by prayer."
May the Lord's people be stirred up also to pray that the benefit of the Lord's lessons to His people may not be lost through our carelessness, and also that the opportunities which have been seized and made available for preaching the truth and sowing precious seed may be fruitful in a harvest of many souls to our Lord's glory.
Is there not, too, in all these circumstances a voice to us to be more earnest in attending to the exhortation to pray for the powers that be, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty?
In conclusion, it seems a fitting occasion to render yet more public the cordial thanks returned by those who have suffered during the war to all who have so promptly and liberally come forward to help them. If the more blessed part is that of those who gave, it was nevertheless no trifling joy to read, in that substantial testimony of love and care, a proof that the sufferers live in the hearts and thoughts of their brethren; and that strengthens the bonds which unite all together practically as the members of the body of Christ, so that what is true spiritually is manifested outwardly.
A Biographical Sketch of the Author ( 1839-1927)
William Joseph Lowe was a brilliant and accomplished youth, junior to William Kelly (1821-1906) by some eighteen years. Among his school teachers were John George Deck, William Hake and Henry Soltau. These all impressed him greatly with Scriptural truth. From 1856 to 1857 he finished his studies in Ealing, where he secured the highest awards. He was converted to Christ when as a youth in Kennington he attended a meeting where a Mr. Leans preached.
He had obtained an important position in Madras, India, when only twenty-one years of age. Before sailing to take up this post, a holiday of some three weeks was spent by him in Guernsey, Channel Islands, where he met and heard Kelly. So mutually impressed were they that the acquaintance speedily ripened to friendship owing to a common interest in divine things. Ever after, Lowe referred to this meeting as having been one of the great formative influences of his life. Indeed on several occasions he remarked that in some respects it was the turning point of his career which, in truth, was a remarkable one in many ways.
W.J. Lowe, a civil engineer by profession, possessed great linguistic ability, speaking nine or ten languages with ease, and with a working knowledge of one or two others. He was also an accomplished painter. His worldly prospects in India appeared very favorable indeed. The climate, however, soon took toll of health and energy, and in a few years he felt compelled to resign.
At 26 years old he studied in Switzerland to perfect his knowledge of French, because he wanted to serve the Lord in Quebec, Canada. It was there that he met up with J N Darby who early recognized his abilities. Lowe went to assist the team engaged in translating the Bible, the New Testament in French was brought out in 1859. His earliest contributions were invaluable and showed his gift. This was quickly seized upon by Darby who said to him, You are just the man we want here, you must now stop and help us.'
Lowe labored for years in France, having a home in Paris above the meeting room. He traveled extensively in other quarters of Europe, especially Spain, Germany and Holland. During the 1870 war he was strengthening the brethren and in 1878 Lowe was instrumental in the formation of new assembly testimonies in Belgium, which continue to this day. He also labored in Egypt and visited North America several times.
He married Ellen, the daughter of Christopher McAdam, in September 1885. Their honeymoon was in Dillenburg, Germany, but they also spent time at various meetings and the conferences in Elberfeld and the Hague. He labored indefatigably at home and abroad. During four visits to Spain he learned Spanish, he also preached during the revival in South Wales in 1906. Most of his written ministry in English has remained dormant till now, but it is to be hoped that more will be issued in due course.
After some years of very poor health Mr. Lowe died 27th September 1927 in his home at 34 Woodside, Wimbledon and was buried in Gap Road Cemetery, Wimbledon, London SW.
A Biographical Sketch of Dr C. J. Davis (1842-1870)
Born in the West Indian island of Barbados in 1842, as one of a family of ten children, Christopher James Davis came under the influence of the Word of God in his earliest years. His family were identified with the Wesleyan Methodists. In spite of the fact that so many in his country took up the profession of the religion with which they had been brought into contact through education or association without any exercise of conscience, the truth of God had reached his young soul and early formed his behavior. 'Of all my children,' wrote his mother, 'he seemed the most tender and considerate for me, and would weep himself to sleep if anything tired me.'
Dr. Thomas Mackern of Blackheath, South East London, visited the West Indies in 1866, in order to promote the literature work of the 'brethren' in the islands. He met numerous Christians who had then recently broken with their denominational associations. They had begun 'amidst much opposition from professing Christians' to gather simply to the name of the Lord Jesus. The one chiefly used was the young school master, C.J. Davis who for some time had been a local preacher among the Wesleyans. Three of his family also came out to the Lord's name alone.
It was in the same year as Mackern's visit that he went to London in order to study medicine, with the desire to return to practice in the West Indies. In London, Davis settled in the north London suburb of Stoke Newington in the home of a Mr. Holland, where besides kind hospitality, he also received much spiritual help. He became one of the House Physicians at St Bartholomew's Hospital, where in the first year of study, he gained the examiner's prize for proficiency in practical anatomy, and a junior scholarship in anatomy, physiology and chemistry.
He was an able and earnest evangelist. He preached to large congregations with much accompanying blessing in many parts of the British Isles. This noble West Indian preacher must have cut a very striking figure and quickly drew crowds when preaching in the open air. For instance he used to preach from a kitchen table in Union Street, Aberdeen, the result of which was the establishment of a very large assembly of brethren. It was while in Aberdeen that he delivered those very edifying lectures which were published from shorthand notes the same year that he died. His book 'Aids to Believers' went through many editions and has been a real help to many readers.
He also wrote the tract 'The Lord's Coming, which proved to be of considerable value in former days. His book on the 'Grace of God', though long out of print also ranks among those choice publications of the last century which will still be a blessing to the modern reader if he is fortunate enough to secure a copy. He will be also be remembered for the remarkable conversation on his last train journey, which is still issued in tract from entitled, 'The Good Black Doctor'. Formerly the narrative appeared under the titles 'The Teachers Taught' and 'On a Train Journey.' Fellow passengers thinking him to be an ignorant man, attempted to give him some religious instruction, he turns the tables on these well intentioned English folk and presents to them instead, the true Gospel of the grace of God.
Dr CI Davis During the Franco-Prussian war in 1870 he volunteered his services to assist the suffering and cholera stricken peasantry of eastern France. He devoted himself with remarkable skill and energy to the treatment of large numbers of sick and wounded, and to the establishment of soup kitchens which gave food and life to multitudes of starving people. He devoted himself, too, during that war, to the care of several hundred wounded Bavarians in direst need of aid. So keen about his soup kitchens was he, that, when Miss Goulden, sister of the Protestant Pastor at Sedan, France, told him there was not sufficient soup for all applicants, he took his watch from his pocket, gained as a prize at College. He would rather sell the watch than suffer any to go away without some nourishment. For this special war-work, two dear friends, Mr. and Mrs. Chrimes of Moorgate, Rotherham, England, had made the young physician almoner of a thousand pounds for the poor and sick among whom he labored. Dr Davis's ambulance, wrote one who could judge, was the finest one in the neighborhood.
'But his enthusiasm,' said the 'Lancet' medical journal, 'carried him beyond his strength.' Returning in an exhausted condition from a short visit to England where he had been to procure further funds for his charitable work, he was attacked by smallpox from which he died on 28th November 1870, at the age of 28.
He had accomplished a noble work, and earned the gratitude of hundreds, who owed their lives to his self sacrifice. It was in this benevolent service that he assumed the honorable nickname, 'The Good Black Doctor.' The university of Aberdeen where he took his degree of MD, may be justly proud of him. His body lies buried in the quiet graveyard of fond de Givonne, just outside Sedan, awaiting the resurrection.
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