In May, 1898, I made the journey from New York to Liverpool in the White Star S.S. Teutonic. After we had cleared the harbor I sought my stateroom to arrange my belongings for the voyage. My cabin companion (then unknown to me) had, I found, been before me and arranged his luggage, and it was not until the dinner hour, 7 P.M., that I entered the cabin again. I found a man prostrate on the locker, almost insensible,—indeed he had lost consciousness and was just coming out of it as I entered,—he was very sick, he said, always was so at sea, and was very much afraid he would be a nuisance to me the entire voyage. He advised me, if possible, to arrange for another cabin. I told him I would help him if he would allow me, and as he was quite helpless, got him undressed and ready for bed and put him there. We all like to be made comfortable. I then left him and did not return until about 11 p.m.; he was fast asleep and did not waken until morning; then he was persuaded to get up and dress and has been upright ever since. He told me afterwards that he fell asleep that evening after I left him, wondering what sort of a man he had for a room-mate,—a man who appeared to be a matter-of-fact business man, who said, "We are here to help each other," that there really was nothing the matter with him that could not be relieved by his changing his thoughts about himself, because his sickness was only as real as he made it to himself; that God did not cause it or permit it, and there was no reason or justice in his suffering in the discharge of his duty. "Why," he thought, "the man must be crazy—a fanatic!" It was not until morning that my friend learned what it was that helped him—"The power of Truth over all error." He had never heard of Christian Science before, but when the voyage was ended he had taken in more of the Truth than either he or I was aware of. He was very happy during the entire voyage and listened eagerly. Of course I became very well acquainted with him. He was very pious, a superintendent of a Sunday School that he had established in the town of W—. England, his native town, and to his highest understanding was doing good work in the old way. However, he had every reason to believe in the practicality of Christian Science,—he, who had been a martyr to seasickness, had made this voyage in freedom. He expressed a desire for "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," and I sent him a copy from 55 Bryanston Street, London, together with copy of "Miscellaneous Writings." He has certainly made good use of them and all the other Christian Science publications. Two months later, on my sailing for home, he came to Liverpool to see me off, and I was astonished to see what could be gotten from Science and Health unaided. The man had been spiritually healed, the seed had certainly been planted in good soil. When I entered my stateroom I found a beautiful expression of gratitude in the shape of a basket of fruit for my use during the voyage.
During the year that followed I heard from my friend once or twice,—he was still seeking more Light and was very earnest. The following year, 1899, found me in England again. My friend spent as much time with me as he could, and I had the pleasure of meeting his family. Christian Science was a mystery to his wife; she did not then accept it, but thought it a good thing for her husband, because he had been transformed physically and was very much happier and more contented than formerly.
He had a number of little demonstrations, as he called them, to tell of, and when I sailed for America I left a very happy man in W—, because of the little understanding that he felt he had. I have seldom seen so much gratitude expressed. During the year that followed a few letters passed between us, all showing growth in the Truth, and last February, when I landed in Liverpool, my friend was waiting for me at the landing stage. He met me with the story that his little daughter, then about three months old, was very ill. The mother held to materia medica, the father to Christian Science. The little thing was wasting away under the care of doctors. A week passed, every day the father brought the same news—no improvement, worse if anything; then the day came when the doctor pronounced the case hopeless, could do nothing more, and that same day the passage in Science and Health was shown him on page 446, "You should practise well what you know, and you will then advance in proportion to your honesty and fidelity." He went home with his heart full of those words, and that night his wife brought the child to him, as she believed, dying. She laid it in his arms—emaciated, convulsed, and with every appearance of death. He says that he never had such a feeling of love and peace come over him as then,—all fear vanished and the child was restored to its mother's arms shortly afterwards—healed! From that hour it began to improve and in one month's time it has become round and rosy and healthy as a child should be expressing beauty and harmony. About this time I had business on the Continent, and on my return my friend met me with a face glowing with the good that had come to him,—his little girl was entirely restored!
