The young woman blushed, and was going to rise; but I desired her to sit still, and hoped that God would bless her in so good a work; and then pulling out a Bible (which I brought on purpose in my pocket for him.) Here Atkins, said I, here is an assistant that perhaps you had not before.  So confounded was the poor man, that is was some time before he could speak; at last turning to his wife, My dear, he said, did I not tell you that God could hear what we said?  Here’s the book I prayed for, when you and I kneeled under the bush:  God then heard us, and now has sent it.  The woman was surprised, and thought really God had sent that individual book from heaven; but I turned to the young woman, and desired her to explain to the young convert, that God may properly be said to answer our petitions, when, in the course of his providence, such particular things came to pass as we petitioned for.  This the young woman did effectually; but surely Will Atkins’s joy cannot be expressed; no man being more thankful for any thing in the world, than he was for his Bible, nor desired it from a better principle.

After several religious discourses, I desired the young woman to give me an account of the anguish she felt when she was starving to death with hunger; to which she readily consented, and began in the following manner: 

“Sir,” said she, “all our victuals being gone, after I had fasted one day, my stomach was very sickly, and, at the approach, of night, I was inclined to yawning and sleepy.  When I slept upon the couch three hours, I awaked a little refreshed:  three hours after, my stomach being more and more sickly, I lay down again, but could not sleep, being very faint and ill.  Thus I passed the second day with a strange variety, first hungry, then sick again, with reachings to vomit:  that night I dreamed I was at Barbadoes, buying plenty of provisions; and dined heartily.  But when I awaked, my spirits were exceedingly sunk, to find myself in the extremity of famine.  There was but one glass of wine, which being mixed with sugar, I drank up; but for want of substance to digest upon, the fumes of it got into my head, & made me senseless for some time.  The third day I was so ravenous and furious, that I could have eaten a little child if it had come in my way; during which time, I was as mad as any creature in Bedlam.  In one of these fits I fell down, and struck my face against the corner of a pallet bed, where my mistress lay; the blood gushed out of my nose, but by my excessive bleeding, both the violence of the fever, and the ravenous part of the hunger abated.  After this, I grew sick again, strove to vomit, but could not; then bleeding a second time, I swooned away as dead; when I came to myself, I had a dreadful gnawing pain in my stomach, which went of towards night, with a longing desire for food.  I took a draught of water and sugar, but it came up again; then I drank water without sugar, and that staid with me.