"I think that was the darkest night in all our lives. None of us thought
to live to see the light of another day. Nobody slept. We were all
huddled in the saloon of the first cabin--Americans and Germans, Jews,
Protestants, Catholics and skeptics--although at that time I doubt if
there were many skeptics among us. For forty-eight hours we were in this
mortal fear.
"Sabbath morning dawned upon as wretched a ship's company as ever sailed
the sea. There was at that time no talk of religious services. I think
that if this had been suggested then there would have been a panic. To
talk of religion to those poor people would have been to suggest the
most terrible things to them. Everybody was waiting for his neighbor to
say: 'Are we, then, doomed to die?'
"But as night approached I gathered those 700 quaking souls together and
we held a prayer meeting. I think everybody prayed. There were no
skeptics present. I have been under fire in the war, I have stood by
deathbeds during the cholera epidemic in Chicago, but I never was so
sorely tried. I could with difficulty command my voice as I read the
ninety-first Psalm. I read without comment, and then I prayed that God
would still the anger of the deep and bring us safely to our desired
heaven.
Pages:
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310