"You often, when speaking to us, used the words of the Saviour, 'Come unto Me, all ye who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest'; but, like all the other priests, you mixed with them the invocation of Mary, confidence in signs of the cross, and confession, so that your sublime appeals to the words of Christ were drowned by absurd and impious superstitions. "One morning, after a sleepless night, and feeling so pressed down with the weight of my sins, I opened my Gospel Book, after praying for light and guidance, and my eyes fell on the words, 'The Lamb of God, that takes away the sin of the world.' These words fell on my poor guilty soul with a divine power. I spent the day in crying to the Lamb of God to take away my sins. Before the day was over I felt and knew that my cries had been heard. The Lamb of God had taken away my sins. He had changed my heart, and made quite a new man of me. "From that day the reading of the Gospel was to my soul what bread is to the poor, hungry man, and what pure and refreshing waters are to the thirsty traveller. My unspeakable joy was, to read the Holy Book, and speak to my companions in chains of the dear Saviour's love for poor sinners; and, thanks be to God, a good number have found Him altogether precious, and have been sincerely converted in the dark holes of that convict ship. "When at work in Sydney with the other culprits, I felt my chains to be light when I was sure the heavy chains of sin were gone; and, though working hard beneath a burning sun from morning till night, my heart was full of joy when I was sure my Saviour had prepared a throne for me in His heavenly kingdom. "About a year afterwards, a minister of the Gospel and another gentleman came to me and told me I was pardoned, at the same time handing me a document signed by the Governor, and a hundred dollars, adding, 'Go and be a faithful follower of the Lord Jesus, and God Almighty will bless you in all your ways.' "All this seemed like a dream, but it was a reality, and I spent several days and nights weeping for joy, and blessing the God of my salvation. "Some years after that, we heard of the gold mines, and I started, in company with several others; but I separated from the others, for I wanted to be alone, and pray to my God as I walked along. "After a long march, I came to a beautiful spot between three small hills, whence a brook was running to the plain below. I sat down to eat my dinner, and, while doing so, my eyes fell on a stone by the brook about the size of a goose's egg. The rays of the sun shone on it like a mirror. I picked it up, and found it was nearly all gold of the purest kind.... "With the money I gained from that place I afterwards bought a piece of land, and became one of the wealthy men of Australia. I married and settled here; ... and it is to you, after God, I owe my life and all the privileges I now enjoy."