We left Basle June 15 and came to Hamburg in company with Sarah and Christine Dahl. W. C. W. preceded us. He started the morning of the fourteenth in company with Elders Whitney and Conradi. These visited Leipsic on business, and were quite successful. We met W. C. on the evening of the sixteenth. We took the boat at Kiel at midnight. We were accommodated with a stateroom, and had an opportunity to sleep from two o'clock until five o'clock. After the boat arrived we had to go through the preliminaries of the customhouse. That over, we made our way to the waiting room, placed our numerous satchels and bundles together, and took some refreshments--hot milk and bread. We then took up our baggage and stepped into the cars. [ Orebro, Sweden, June 24, 1886 ] 3MR 393

Cider drinking leads to the use of stronger drinks. The stomach loses its natural vigor, and something stronger is needed to arouse it to action. On one occasion, when my husband and myself were traveling, we were obliged to spend several hours waiting for the train. While we were in the depot, a red-faced, bloated farmer came into the restaurant connected with it, and in a loud, rough voice asked: "Have you first-class brandy?" He was answered in the affirmative, and ordered half a tumbler. "Have you pepper sauce?" "Yes," was the answer. "Well, put in two large spoonfuls." He next ordered two spoonfuls of alcohol added, and concluded by calling for "a good dose of black pepper." The man who was preparing it asked: "What will you do with such a mixture?" He replied: "I guess that will take hold," and, placing the full glass to his lips, drank the whole of this fiery compound. That man had used stimulants until he had deadened the tender coats of the stomach. 5T 357

They were both apparently fully consecrated, ready to do all the good they could, both with their means and by active effort. But Elder C knew not how to deal with them, and he has wounded and bruised and driven away Sister H. Brother H was for eight years an active worker in the Presbyterian church, taking charge of the Sunday school, until he embraced the truth. Then he took charge of the Sabbath school, and in the absence of a preacher conducted the meetings. Through Elder C's mismanagement he was relieved of every office, yet he would not give up the truth or forsake the church. About the time we came, he was in a position of sore temptation, but he is strengthened and established by the things that he has heard. His wife is a woman of great firmness, of decided opinions, and independent judgment. She has much push, and if consecrated, would be an aggressive worker. I have no doubt now that she will come along if she is rightly treated, and the Lord will be glorified if this sheep that has been driven away is restored to the fold. I shall see them once more in their home before I leave. I have perfect liberty in speaking plain things to them in love. 8MR 455 (LET.29A,1892 TO W.C.WHITE)

While parents and children were eating of their dainties, my husband and myself partook of our simple repast, at our usual hour , at 1 P. M., of graham bread without butter, and a generous supply of fruit. We ate our meal with a keen relish, and with thankful hearts that we were not obliged to carry a popular grocery with us to provide for a capricious appetite. We ate heartily, and felt no sense of hunger until the next morning. The boy with his oranges, nuts, popcorn, and candies, found us poor customers. CD 239

I spoke to the people on Sabbath morning, and as I saw the congregation, mostly composed of black people, bright and sharp of intellect, I felt that if I had dared, I should have wept aloud. As the people sat before me, I never felt more pleased to break the bread of life, and to speak comforting words to a people. My soul longed after them. When the old meeting-house in which they had met was sold, and was being torn down, the hopes of the people seemed to fall to the ground. They did not know what to do. Their enemies said, They have sold the meeting-house, and now they are going to leave you. But they were assured that a better house was to be built. Then their courage rose at once. When I heard them singing in the meeting, I thought, It is not only they who are singing. Of those who are saved it is said, God himself will rejoice over them with singing. If there was not on that Sabbath singing in the heavenly courts, then I am mistaken. GCB APR.05,1901

When we talked of building a meeting-house in Cooranbong, the brethren said that all we would be able to do would be to erect a very small, rough building, and that they did not think we could even do that much for a while. But in the night season the word of the Lord came to me, "Arise and build. Make of the building of this meeting-house an object-lesson." When I told this to the brethren, unbelief came in, and they said, "We can not do it, we can not do it." I said, "We can do it," and we did. Soon after that we received in a letter from Africa a gift of one thousand dollars to help in the building of our meeting-house. This gave our brethren hope and courage. The workmen labored at half price, and in a very short time our meeting-house was erected. GCB APR.25,1901

In the winter of 1864, my Willie was suddenly and violently brought down with lung fever. We had just buried our oldest son with this disease, and were very anxious in regard to Willie, fearing that he, too, might die. We decided that we would not send for a physician, but do the best we could with him ourselves by the use of water, and entreat the Lord in behalf of the child. We called in a few, who had faith to unite their prayers with ours. We had a sweet assurance of God's presence and blessing.

The next day Willie was very sick. He was wandering. He did not seem to see or hear me when I spoke to him. His heart had no regular beat, but was in a constant agitated flutter. We continued to look to God in his behalf, and to use water freely upon his head, and a compress constantly upon his lungs, and soon he seemed as rational as ever. He suffered severe pain in his right side, and could not lie upon it for a moment. This pain we subdued with cold water compresses, varying the temperature of the water according to the degree of the fever. We were very careful to keep his hands and feet warm.

We expected the crisis would come the seventh day. We had but little rest during his sickness, and were obliged to give him up into other's care the fourth and fifth nights. My husband and myself the fifth day felt very anxious. The child raised fresh blood and coughed considerably. My husband spent much time in prayer. We left our child in careful hands that night. Before retiring my husband prayed long and earnestly. Suddenly his burden of prayer left him, and it seemed as though a voice spoke to him, and said, Go lie down, I will take care of the child.

I had retired sick, and could not sleep for anxiety for several hours. I felt pressed for breath, Although sleeping in a large chamber, I arose and opened the door into a large hall, and was at once relieved, and soon slept. I dreamed that an experienced physician was standing by my child, watching every breath, with one hand over his heart, and with the other feeling his pulse. He turned to us and said, 'The crisis has passed. He has seen his worst night. He will now come up speedily, for he has not the injurious influence of drugs to recover from. Nature has nobly done her work to rid the system of impurities.' I related to him my worn-out condition, my pressure for breath, and the relief obtained by opening the door.

Said he, 'That which gave you relief will also receive your child. He needs air. You have kept him too warm. The heated air coming from a stove is injurious, and were it not for the air coming in at the crevices of the windows, would be poisonous and destroy life. Stove heat destroys the vitality of the air, and weakens the lungs. The child's lungs have been weakened by the room being kept too warm. Sick persons are debilitated by disease, and need all the invigorating air that they can bear to strengthen the vital organs to resist disease. And yet in most cases, air and light are excluded from the sick room at the very time when most needed, as though dangerous enemies.'

This dream and my husband's experience were a consolation to us both. We found in the morning that our boy had passed a restless night. He seemed to be in a high fever until noon. Then the fever left him, and he appeared quite well, except weak. He had eaten but one small cracker through his five days sickness. He came up rapidly, and has had better health than he has had for several days before. This experience is valuable to us. PH144 19

{ Other Experiences With Charcoal } { A Rapid Recovery. } --A brother was taken sick with inflammation of the bowels and bloody dysentery. The man was not a careful health reformer, but indulged his appetite. We were just preparing to leave Texas, where we had been laboring for several months, and we had carriages prepared to take away this brother and his family, and several others who were suffering from malarial fever. My husband and I thought we would stand this expense rather than have the heads of several families die and leave their wives and children unprovided for.

Two or three were taken in a large spring wagon on spring mattresses. But this man who was suffering from inflammation of the bowels, sent for me to come to him. My husband and I decided that it would not do to move him. Fears were entertained that mortification had set in. Then the thought came to me like a communication from the Lord to take pulverized charcoal, put water upon it, and give this water to the sick man to drink, putting bandages of the charcoal over the bowels and stomach. We were about one mile from the city of Denison, but the sick man's son went to a blacksmith's shop, secured the charcoal, and pulverized it, and then used it according to the directions given. The result was that in half an hour there was a change for the better. We had to go on our journey and leave the family behind, but what was our surprise the following day to see their wagon overtake us. The sick man was lying in a bed in the wagon. The blessing of God had worked with the simple means used.--Letter 182, 1899 (To a worker in an overseas field. See p. 287). PH144 22 (2SM 299)

On one occasion a physician came to me in great distress. He had been called to attend a young woman who was dangerously ill. She had contracted fever while on the campground, and was taken to our school building near Melbourne, Australia. But she became so much worse that it was feared she could not live. The physician, Dr. Merritt Kellogg, came to me and said, "Sister White, have you any light for me on this case? If relief cannot be given our sister, she can live but a few hours." I replied, "Send to a blacksmith's shop, and get some pulverized charcoal; make a poultice of it, and lay it over her stomach and sides." The doctor hastened away to follow out my instructions. Soon he returned, saying, "Relief came in less than half an hour after the application of the poultices. She is now having the first natural sleep she has had for days." PH144 25 (2SM 295)

I have ordered the same treatment for others who were suffering great pain, and it has brought relief and been the means of saving life. My mother had told me that snake bites and the sting of reptiles and poisonous insects could often be rendered harmless by the use of charcoal poultices. When working on the land at Avondale, Australia, the workmen would often bruise their hands and limbs, and this in many cases resulted in such severe inflammation that the worker would have to leave his work for some time. One came to me one day in this condition, with his hand tied in a sling. He was much troubled over the circumstance; for his help was needed in clearing the land I said to him, "Go to the place where you have been burning the timber, and get me some charcoal from the eucalyptus tree, pulverize it, and I will dress your hand." This was done, and the next morning he reported that the pain was gone. Soon he was ready to return to his work. PH144 26 (2SM 295)

After the passing of the time in 1844, fanaticism came into the ranks of Adventists. God gave messages of warning to stay the incoming evil. There was too great familiarity between some men and women. I presented to them the holy standard of truth that we should reach, and the purity of deportment that we should maintain, in order to meet the approval of God and be without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. Most solemn denunciations from God were given to men and women whose thoughts were running in an impure channel, while they claimed to be especially favored of God; but the message God gave was despised and rejected. They turned upon me, and said, Has God spoken only by you, and not by us? They did not amend their ways, and the Lord suffered them to go on till defilement marked their lives. Afterward, the very ones who had denounced me because I had reproved them, charged upon me the things which they had been guilty of themselves, and which had caused me such great distress and anguish of spirit. RH NOV.10,1885

When we built our meetinghouse in Cooranbong, Sister McEnterfer and I went through the district where the carpenters lived, asking them how much they would charge to work for us by the day. Many of them promised to work for much less than the ordinary wage. A few promised to give some time; others with families to support, being too poor to work for nothing, offered to work for six shillings - a dollar and a half - a day. The meeting-house was built, and stands today as a monument for God, a miracle wrought by his power. Many of the believers had just begun to keep the Sabbath. Some of them were very poor, and at first we had to help them. Now they are all self-supporting. They keep up the church expenses, and pay a faithful tithe. This is the way we worked to build our meeting-houses in many places in Australia. SPM 246