His death.

Sympathy.

ty, where he died of a sudden attack of pleurisy, and in the triumphs of faith, on the 7th of December, 1804, in the forty-fourth year of his age. Indeed, his departure seemed rather a translation than a death. He left a widow and five children to mourn his loss.

"The following letter was addressed by Dr. Rush to Mrs. Rhees, in reference to the death of her husband, and it shows the writer's exquisite sensibility and sympathy, as well as his high appreciation of Mr. Rhees' character:

"MY DEAR MADAM,-Accept of my sympathy in your affliction. While you deplore the loss of an excellent husband, I lament the loss of a sincere and worthy friend. His memory will always be dear to me. Be assured of my regard for you and your little family. May a kind and gracious Providence support you! And may you yet have reason to praise the orphan's Father and the widow's God in the land of the living!

"From, my dear madam, your sincere friend,
"BENJAMIN RUSH.

“Philadelphia, January 26th, 1805.'

"A glowing but chastened enthusiasm was a leading characteristic of Mr. Rhees, and gave form and hue to his entire life. He had a highly poetic temperament. This was apparent from his earliest life-not merely from the lyrics of which he was the author, but from the ardor with which he devoted himself to every subject which interested him. He was, while orthodox

Distinguished men.

Mrs. Rhees.

himself, a liberal in religion and a democrat in politics. Hence he was a lover of all good men, and threw the mantle of charity even over persons whose opinions he considered honest though unsound. Hence he was the intimate friend of Dr. Priestley, and of Jefferson, while utterly eschewing their religious opinions, because they agreed with him on the agitating political topics of the day. He was a most fervent preacher and orator, and gave to his sentiments a point and intensity which made them deeply felt. And down to the present day, his name is as ointment poured forth among the old settlers of Cambria and Beulah. And if any excuse is necessary for the degree to which he united the religious and the political in his life, it may be found in the circumstances of his times, which induced many of the ablest divines of his native and adopted country to pursue the same course.

"Mrs. Rhees was a woman of high character. On her great bereavement she returned to her native home, where, upon her patrimonial inheritance, she educated her children, and lived to see them all not only members of the Church of Christ, but filling posts of high honor and usefulness. Endowed with a mind of the strongest original texture, polished by education, stored by reading and reflection, and by grace subdued to the most humble obedience to the truth, she was efficient in action, wise in counsel, strong in faith, and untiring in doing good. A spirit of selfsacrifice, connected with the deepest humility, was her leading characteristic. But few have lived a life more consistent and lovely, or died a death more cheerful,

No bridegroom.

Marriage.

calm, and confiding. She rested from her labors on the 11th of April, 1849, in the seventy-fourth year of her age.

"The earlier productions of Mr. Rhees were published in the Welsh language, but few of them have been translated. The few orations and discourses, written and published by him in this country, exhibit great vivacity and eloquence."

The daughter of Mr. Rhees had been for nearly three years engaged to be married to Mr. Murray. In the month of January, 1830, he went to Philadelphia to bring back his bride. It was then more of a journey than it is now, to cross the rough country, in the midst of winter, in the old stage-coach. The day was appointed for the marriage, and he left Wilkesbarre in time, but the course of true love did not run even so smoothly as usual in this case. The day arrived, but the bridegroom came not. The evening came, and the hour, but no bridegroom. There was no telegraph to announce the cause of detention, but it was soon ascertained that the stage had not arrived. The next day brought him on, bruised and sore, but still alive and well. The coach had been upset near Bethlehem, and several of the passengers injured. Mr. Murray escaped with a cut on one of his fingers, which required a surgical dressing, and the circular scar which he always carried he called his wedding ring. The marriage was deferred a week, and then he carried his wife away to his new home. It was a cold and fearful journey, and the delicate bride would have suffered by the way but for the buoyant spirits

The ride.

Arrival.

and unfailing humor of the young husband, which kept the company in a state of pleasurable and healthful excitement all the way. They spent a Sabbath at Easton, where Mr. Murray preached for Rev. Dr. Gray. The journey over the mountain on Monday and Tuesday was made in an open sleigh, in bitter cold, but on the second day they reached Wilkesbarre, and were cordially greeted by a circle of refined, cultivated, and devoted friends, who at once made the minister's young wife at home among them.

The Valley.

Other scenes.

CHAPTER IX.

The Valley of Wyoming. -The Freshets.-The Drift-wood. —A Type of Society.-A Classmate and two more.-Other Characters drawn.

THE beauties of the Valley of Wyoming, as they never weary the eye of the dweller or the visitor, were often the theme of Dr. Murray, when he would draw striking and strong illustrations. One of his most characteristic sketches was suggested by the habits of a class of people among whom he was first settled. He writes:

"It has been my lot to wander upon foreign shores. I have gazed upon Italian skies and scenes; I have wandered over the mountains and vales of Switzerland; I have traversed the Rhine, the Rhone, the Clyde; I have gazed upon most of the beautiful scenery of Britain, and yet I turn to Wyoming as unsurpassed in quiet beauty by any vale that I have ever

seen.

"A valley from the river shore withdrawn;

*

So sweet a spot of earth, you might, I ween,

Have guessed some congregation of the elves,

To sport by summer moon, had shaped it for themselves.'

"The river by which it is divided, enriched and greatly beautified, is subject to freshets. This is caused, in the spring, by the sudden melting of the snow in