"After my mother’s death my sister and I left the house of tragedy, broken down with sorrow and grief. These blows were beyond my powers of endurance. In vain did I seek some ray of comfort. Then I grew careless! Wine began to get a hold on me; and I sank into depths of despair, of which you only know. I really thought there was no God, and contemplated ending my own existence. "Through it all the Lord was looking down in tender compassion and love. He sent you at this critical time in my sad career. "When I look back on the past I can only praise God for what He has done for me, through you. "I am now conscious of the fact that He has washed and redeemed me through the precious blood. Jesus is very dear to me. He is the Lily of the Valley, the fairest of ten thousand to my soul. The pleasures of the world have henceforth no attraction for me, in Him I can overcome all temptations." The following is from a gentleman in America, who, for thirty-five years, had never entered a church. He happened to hear the Maréchale once, and, rushing into the vestry, he broke down utterly and told her the tragical story of his life. He was an illegitimate child, and his mother often used to beat him until the blood ran. As a lad he struggled hard to be good, and, although he was sometimes led astray through the drink, he always shunned anything of an immoral character. He married a sweet German girl, and by honest labour obtained a very good position in New York, where he was esteemed by all who knew him. At this juncture he met the French woman who ruined his life. He told the Maréchale between his sobs that his wife naturally refused to have him back. Remorse and anguish of mind had driven him twice to attempt suicide, but he was miraculously rescued. In January, 1914, he writes: "Dear Maréchale and honored Spiritual Mother: "It was with joy that I received your dear letter. God has indeed been wonderfully good to me, an undeserving sinner! He has rolled away the stone from a heart heavy with sin and sorrow. I thank Him daily for His mercy, and wonder how I could ever have lived so long without Him. No wonder I failed and would have been lost, had I not found Him at last through you, dear Maréchale. Life has a new meaning for me. It is a pleasure to live now, and before it was a curse. The musicians are playing ragtime while I am writing this, but God is playing another melody in my heart. I thank Him for the opportunity I have here to do good. God has indeed changed me. He has given me great power over the minds of my men. The change which, with His help, I have been able to effect in their natures in two short weeks is wonderful to see. I am happy, very happy. "There is surely a devil, for he has sorely tempted me, but I shake him off like a feather, smiling happily in my God-given strength. I say to him, ’I fear you not, for I belong to Christ Jesus forever.’