San Francisco, February 26, 1902.
Friend E.: —I am in receipt of your letter of February 2, and I note that you ask me to inform you how I came to believe in Christian Science. I also note that you express surprise that a practical business man could believe in it. At the same time, you say you have not looked into the subject, but in these days of new developments, that you are not disposed to ridicule anything, but wish to know something about it, with a view toward investigating for yourself.
In answering your letter and the inquiries contained therein, permit me to say, I shall do so from a reasonable, practical standpoint. Permit me also to thank you for the kind expressions conveyed in your letter, in saying, that knowing me personally, you are ready to acknowledge there must be something in it, or I should not be an advocate and a believer. But let me say, that I do not desire or wish you to accept my ideas, but investigate for yourself, and then do as you think best, after you have satisfied your own reason, one way or the other. In this way alone, did I come to believe in the principles of Christian Science—after having combated it in my own family for several years, and being more or less antagonistic to it, although I must confess that at that time I had not looked into it, and refused to look into the subject, but mere stubbornness impelled me to ridicule and criticise it, in every way. The strange thing was, that during this time, I could not help seeing positive results in my own family. My wife had been healed by Christian Science after having been a confirmed invalid for several years. The physicians, amongst whom were my best friends, had given it as their opinion that she would be a confirmed invalid as long as she lived, unless a certain capital operation was performed. Five months' treatment in Christian Science effected an entire cure, much to the surprise of the physicians, but on account of my fierce and antagonistic attitude toward Christian Science, the cause of the cure was kept from me, and some time afterwards, when I was refused to credit it to Christian Science, even though one of the physicians told me the cure was little short of miraculous.
