A WORD TO THE PEOPLE. PROVERBS 22, 23.
Buy the truth and sell it not; also wisdom and instruction, and understanding.
For a description of my heart-felt sorrow during those ten years of my captivity, read Psalm 22.
To know my joys and hopes since the cloud passed off, that hung so heavily, long over my mind, read Psalm 23.
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."
"If any one knoweth how to appreciate the blessedness of liberty and good society, I more."
"The kingdom of heaven is with men; but without, are dogs and liars, and sorcerers and whoremongers, and he that willeth and maketh a lie."
"Seek first the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness, and all things shall be added unto you."
"The Lord God is a sun and a shield, for a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness."
To prevent any person going to a lunatic asylum as patient wrongfully, I recommend:
1st. That the complainant be required to summon each physician in said town where the defendant lives, these being duly sworn after having examined the accused or defendant in regard to his sanity or insanity.
2d. That this examination be in presence of twelve legal unprejudiced jurors who shall weigh the testimony and decide accordingly in regard to his being a proper subject of a lunatic asylum.
3d. That the defendant or accused, like Paul before Felix, be permitted to answer for him or herself.
Transcriber's Notes
Original spellings and inconsistencies in hyphenation have been retained. Minor punctuation errors were corrected on pages [4], [32], [40], [47], [79], [104], [119], and [138].
The following apparent typographical errors were corrected.
Page [23], "to day" changed to "to-day." (I am happy to-day because I listened...)
Page [24], "encourged" changed to "encouraged." (...my mother often encouraged me to read the Bible...)
Page [52], "Belden" changed to "Beldon." (... a John Beldon, a man who, it was said...)
Page [67], "conscientiouly" changed to "conscientiously." (...ten years I was conscientiously mistaken...)
Page [86], "brutual" changed to "brutal." (...were engaged in brutal acts against poor lunatic persons...)
Page [113], "Hoosic" changed to "Hoosick." (...keep his luny wife with him at Hoosick Falls...)
Page [119], "shirt" changed to "skirt." (...to the men's hall with a skirt in her hand...)
Page [132], "O'Donnell" changed to "O'Donnel." (After O'Donnel destroyed the Bible in the main house...)
Page [137], "smutmill" changed to "smut mill." (...sent to the smut mill of hell...)