On the other hand, the Pietistic hymn is exemplified in its highest and noblest form in the writings of the so-called Wuerttemberg school of hymnists, the chief exponent of which was Philipp Friedrich Hiller. Wuerttemberg was blessed with the famous scholar and theologian, Johann Albrecht Bengel, whose sound doctrinal views and profound understanding of human nature not only led to a healthy development of Pietism in southern Germany, but also left a lasting impression on all the theological students who came under his influence at the training schools at Denkendorf, near Esslingen. Hiller was one of these. Hiller's hymns and those of the other Wuerttemberg hymnists never indulge in the weak emotional effusions of which the later Halle hymn-writers were often guilty. Hiller was a man sorely tried in the school of adversity. Shortly after he began his pastorate at Steinheim, in 1748, he lost his voice and was unable to continue his pulpit duties. However, he believed implicitly in the Pauline teaching that "to them that love God all things work together for good," and, when his voice became silent, his spirit began to sing hymns richer and sweeter than ever. Witness, for example, the note of tenderness in the last stanza of his baptismal hymn, "God, in human flesh appearing": Feeble is the love of mother, Father's blessings are as naught, When compared, my King and Brother, With the wonders Thou hast wrought; Thus it pleased Thy heavenly meekness; Pleasing also be my praise, Till my songs of earthly weakness Burst into celestial lays. Hiller was a prolific writer, his hymns numbering no less than 1,075 in all. Most of these were written for his devotional book, "Geistliches Liederkaestlein," a work that holds an honored place beside the Bible in many pious homes in southern Germany. Indeed, it has been carried by German emigrants to all parts of the world. It is related that when a Germany colony in the Caucasus was attacked by a fierce Circassian tribe about a hundred years ago, the parents cut up their copies of the "Liederkaestlein" and distributed its leaves among their children who were being carried off into slavery. Hiller's hymns, though simple in form and artless in expression, have retained a strong hold on the people of Wuerttemberg and are extensively used to this day. Among the more popular are "O boundless joy, there is salvation," "Jesus Christ as King is reigning," and "O Son of God, we wait for Thee."