For more than thirty years a student of medicine and of law,—necessarily absorbing the theories and tenets of the former profession, and in an active and diversified court practice acquiring the combative tendencies inseparable from the latter,—I feel that my condition of thought did not offer a hopeful field for the inculcation of Christian Science, unless it should appeal to reason and be indeed eternal truth. With my knowledge, limited as I now gladly admit it to have been, but which I then deemed extended, I ascribed the various healings of which I had read and heard, and the authenticity and verity of which I did not question, as having been due to some effective eradication of hysteria from the patient or as the result of hypnotic suggestion. Marvelous as many of them appeared, I placed all of them in one or the other of these categories, and in my ignorance denied the existence of that which I should have known—the omnipotence of God. I acknowledged the power of mortal mind, while discrediting or limiting that of immortal Mind.
Only a few months ago, in a quiet and friendly discussion of the subject, I took occasion to admit the possible efficacy of Christian Science in the healing of diseases seemingly arising from nervous affections or conditions, but stubbornly maintained that it would be powerless to effect a cure where there had been a structural lesion, as such would require an anatomical or physiological change in the one affected. As I recall my remarks made at that time, they were almost in the nature of a challenge. I need not say that I thank God that through the power of living and eternal Truth I was convinced upon the exact terms of my challenge, if I may now dare so to designate it; and the conviction came not through the emotions nor the human senses, whereby I might have been misled, but through those very same demonstrations which I had before deemed impossible.
Only a few weeks after this conversation, and after I had an opportunity to gain a slight insight into Christian Science, in running to catch a trolley-car in Los Angeles one of the tendons of my leg suddenly gave way, and I received what promised to be quite a painful and tedious injury. To avoid as far as possible the stiffening of the limb, I remained standing during a ride of forty minutes, continually bending the knee, and intending on my arrival home to subject it to the customary treatment of such injuries. Yet during that forty minutes there came to me, with the force of conscious and rational conviction, an understanding of God's omnipotence; and although I met with no more consolation from a medical friend whom I consulted than that in a few weeks I would get over it if meanwhile I was careful, and for about two days my leg was stiff and slightly sore, nevertheless I used no medicament or remedy of any kind, and on the third day walked as well as I ever did and suffered no further pain or inconvenience whatever. Within a fortnight from the time of this injury, while attending a Sabbath service at First Church of Christ, Scientist, at Ocean Park, Cal., I suddenly realized that I was able to read the print of the Quarterly and the Sentinel without the aid of glasses, although for at least five years I had been unable to read either a newspaper or typewritten matter without them, and on several occasions, when in going to my office I had forgotten them, I had been compelled to send for them before I could attend to the ordinary details of business which required me to either read or write. While perfect sight without them has not been entirely restored, it is each day improving, and I know that it will be perfect.
