ALL at once the thought came into my mind, 'I have not soughtout Mr. Brown.'

Upon that text I desire to depart from the direct line of my subject,and make a little excursion. I wish to reveal a secret which I havecarried with me nine years, and which has become burdensome.

Upon a certain occasion, nine years ago, I had said, with strong feeling,'If ever I see St. Louis again, I will seek out Mr. Brown, the greatgrain merchant, and ask of him the privilege of shaking him by the hand.'

The occasion and the circumstances were as follows.

A friend of mine, a clergyman, came one evening and said--'I have a most remarkable letter here, which I want to read to you,if I can do it without breaking down. I must preface it withsome explanations, however. The letter is written by an ex-thiefand ex-vagabond of the lowest origin and basest rearing, a manall stained with crime and steeped in ignorance; but, thank God,with a mine of pure gold hidden away in him, as you shall see.

His letter is written to a burglar named Williams, who is servinga nine-year term in a certain State prison, for burglary.

Williams was a particularly daring burglar, and pliedthat trade during a number of years; but he was caughtat last and jailed, to await trial in a town where he hadbroken into a house at night, pistol in hand, and forcedthe owner to hand over to him $8,000 in government bonds.

Williams was not a common sort of person, by any means; he wasa graduate of Harvard College, and came of good New England stock.

His father was a clergyman. While lying in jail, his healthbegan to fail, and he was threatened with consumption.

This fact, together with the opportunity for reflection affordedby solitary confinement, had its effect--its natural effect.

He fell into serious thought; his early training asserted itself withpower, and wrought with strong influence upon his mind and heart.

He put his old life behind him, and became an earnest Christian.

Some ladies in the town heard of this, visited him,and by their encouraging words supported him in his goodresolutions and strengthened him to continue in his new life.

The trial ended in his conviction and sentence to the Stateprison for the term of nine years, as I have before said.

In the prison he became acquainted with the poor wretchreferred to in the beginning of my talk, Jack Hunt,the writer of the letter which I am going to read.

You will see that the acquaintanceship bore fruit for Hunt.

When Hunt's time was out, he wandered to St. Louis;and from that place he wrote his letter to Williams.

The letter got no further than the office of the prison warden,of course; prisoners are not often allowed to receive lettersfrom outside. The prison authorities read this letter,but did not destroy it. They had not the heart to do it.

They read it to several persons, and eventually it fellinto the hands of those ladies of whom I spoke a while ago.

The other day I came across an old friend of mine--a clergyman--who had seen this letter, and was full of it.

The mere remembrance of it so moved him that he couldnot talk of it without his voice breaking. He promisedto get a copy of it for me; and here it is--an exact copy,with all the imperfections of the original preserved.

It has many slang expressions in it--thieves' argot--but theirmeaning has been interlined, in parentheses, by the prisonauthorities'--St. Louis, June 9th 1872.

Mr. W---- friend Charlie if i may call you so: i no you are surprisedto get a letter from me, but i hope you won't be mad at my writing to you.

i want to tell you my thanks for the way you talked to me when i wasin prison--it has led me to try and be a better man; i guess you thoughti did not cair for what you said, & at the first go off I didn't, but inoed you was a man who had don big work with good men & want no sucker,nor want gasing & all the boys knod it.

I used to think at nite what you said, & for it i nocked off swearing monthsbefore my time was up, for i saw it want no good, nohow--the day my timewas up you told me if i would shake the cross (QUIT STEALING) & live onthe square for months, it would be the best job i ever done in my life.

The state agent give me a ticket to here, & on the car i thought more ofwhat you said to me, but didn't make up my mind. When we got to Chicagoon the cars from there to here, I pulled off an old woman's leather;(ROBBED HER OF HER POCKETBOOK) i hadn't no more than got it off when iwished i hadn't done it, for awhile before that i made up my mindto be a square bloke, for months on your word, but forgot it when i sawthe leather was a grip (EASY TO GET)--but i kept clos to her & when shegot out of the cars at a way place i said, marm have you lost anything.

& she tumbled (DISCOVERED) her leather was off (GONE)--is this it says i,giving it to her--well if you aint honest, says she, but i hadn't gotcheak enough to stand that sort of talk, so i left her in a hurry.

When i got here i had $1 and 25 cents left & i didn't get no work for 3days as i aint strong enough for roust about on a steam bote (FOR ADECK HAND)--The afternoon of the 3rd day I spent my last 10 cts for moons(LARGE, ROUND SEA-BISCUIT) & cheese & i felt pretty rough & was thinkingi would have to go on the dipe (PICKING POCKETS) again, when i thoughtof what you once said about a fellows calling on the Lord when he wasin hard luck, & i thought i would try it once anyhow, but when i tryedit i got stuck on the start, & all i could get off wos, Lord give a poorfellow a chance to square it for 3 months for Christ's sake, amen; & ikept a thinking, of it over and over as i went along--about an hour afterthat i was in 4th St. & this is what happened & is the cause of my beingwhere i am now & about which i will tell you before i get done writing.

As i was walking along herd a big noise & saw a horse running away with acarriage with 2 children in it, & I grabed up a peace of box cover fromthe side walk & run in the middle of the street, & when the horse came up ismashed him over the head as hard as i could drive--the bord split to peces& the horse checked up a little & I grabbed the reigns & pulled his headdown until he stopped--the gentleman what owned him came running up & soonas he saw the children were all rite, he shook hands with me and gaveme a $50 green back, & my asking the Lord to help me come into my head,& i was so thunderstruck i couldn't drop the reigns nor say nothing--he saw something was up, & coming back to me said, my boy are you hurt?

& the thought come into my head just then to ask him for work; & i askedhim to take back the bill and give me a job--says he, jump in here &lets talk about it, but keep the money--he asked me if i could take careof horses & i said yes, for i used to hang round livery stables & oftenwould help clean & drive horses, he told me he wanted a man for that work,& would give me $16 a month & bord me. You bet i took that chance at once.

that nite in my little room over the stable i sat a long time thinkingover my past life & of what had just happened & i just got down onmy nees & thanked the Lord for the job & to help me to square it,& to bless you for putting me up to it, & the next morning i done itagain & got me some new togs (CLOTHES) & a bible for i made up my mindafter what the Lord had done for me i would read the bible every niteand morning, & ask him to keep an eye on me. When I had been thereabout a week Mr. Brown (that's his name) came in my room one nite and sawme reading the bible--he asked me if i was a Christian & i told him no--he asked me how it was i read the bible instead of papers & books--Well Charlie i thought i had better give him a square deal in the start,so i told him all about my being in prison & about you, & how i had almostdone give up looking for work & how the Lord got me the job when I asked him;& the only way i had to pay him back was to read the bible & square it,& i asked him to give me a chance for 3 months--he talked to me like a fatherfor a long time, & told me i could stay & then i felt better than everi had done in my life, for i had given Mr. Brown a fair start with me &now i didn't fear no one giving me a back cap (EXPOSING HIS PAST LIFE)& running me off the job--the next morning he called me into the library& gave me another square talk, & advised me to study some every day,& he would help me one or 2 hours every nite, & he gave me a Arithmetic,a spelling book, a Geography & a writing book, & he hers me every nite--he lets me come into the house to prayers every morning, & got me put in abible class in the Sunday School which i likes very much for it helps meto understand my bible better.

Now, Charlie the 3 months on the square are up 2 months ago,& as you said, it is the best job i ever did in my life,& i commenced another of the same sort right away, only itis to God helping me to last a lifetime Charlie--i wrotethis letter to tell you I do think God has forgiven my sins& herd your prayers, for you told me you should pray for me--i no i love to read his word & tell him all my troubles &he helps me i know for i have plenty of chances to stealbut i don't feel to as i once did & now i take more pleasurein going to church than to the theater & that wasnt so once--our minister and others often talk with me & a month agothey wanted me to join the church, but I said no, not now,i may be mistaken in my feelings, i will wait awhile,but now i feel that God has called me & on the first Sundayin July i will join the church--dear friend i wish i couldwrite to you as i feel, but i cant do it yet--you no i learnedto read and write while prisons & i aint got well enough alongto write as i would talk; i no i aint spelled all the words ritein this & lots of other mistakes but you will excuse it i no,for you no i was brought up in a poor house until i run away,& that i never new who my father and mother was & i dontno my right name, & i hope you wont be mad at me, but i haveas much rite to one name as another & i have taken your name,for you wont use it when you get out i no, & you are the mani think most of in the world; so i hope you wont be mad--I am doing well, i put $10 a month in bank with $25 of the $50--if you ever want any or all of it let me know, & it is yours.

i wish you would let me send you some now. I send you with thisa receipt for a year of Littles Living Age, i didn't knowwhat you would like & i told Mr. Brown & he said he thought youwould like it--i wish i was nere you so i could send you chuck(REFRESHMENTS) on holidays; it would spoil this weatherfrom here, but i will send you a box next thanksgiving any way--next week Mr. Brown takes me into his store as liteporter & will advance me as soon as i know a little more--he keeps a big granary store, wholesale--i forgot to tellyou of my mission school, sunday school class--the schoolis in the sunday afternoon, i went out two sunday afternoons,and picked up seven kids (LITTLE BOYS) & got them to come in.

two of them new as much as i did & i had them put in a classwhere they could learn something. i dont no much myself,but as these kids cant read i get on nicely with them.

i make sure of them by going after them every Sundayh............