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%ht Christian ^tan&ariu Vol. No. 6. DECEMBER, 1891. Price One Penny. PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF REV. D. SAUNDERS, D.D., SWANSEA. By Bev. W. James, Aberdare. 1.—Birth and Boyhood. ;ANY years ago, at a public meeting held at Aberdare, an eminent minister, who was a native of Aberyst¬ wyth, claimed th e Bev. D. Saunders as his fellow- countryman, "Because," said he, "it was pure Cardiganshire air he first breathed into his lungs." Another speaker, at the same meeting, zealous for the fame of Carmar- ,____-___________________________ thenshire as the cra¬ dle of great men, said that the correctness of his brother's state¬ ment depended to a great extent on tbte direction of the wind at the time, because the house in which the subject of our sketch was born, was on the bank of the river Teifi dividing the two counties. It might have been added, if the wind happened to be blow¬ ing from a south¬ westerly direction, as it does during nine months of the year, there must have been a considerable admix¬ ture of invigorating Pembrokeshire air in the first gush that in¬ flated his lungs. The town of "Emlyn," the place of his birth, is situated near the juncture of the three counties. A third speaker said, which¬ ever county claimed bis birthplace, it was Glamorgan that gave him growth and de¬ velopment. To-day he is not known as a county man, nor so much as a denomina¬ tional man, but as one of the few Na¬ tional Leaders, and one of the celebrities of the Welsh Pulpit. His father was a giant in stature, stand - ing six feet two-and- ■%£?sevfo*fr} and almost unerring in judgment; in intricate matters con¬ nected with the church and congregation, her counsel was invaluable. Their only son inherited the mental and moral qualities of both. From Emlyn his parents removed to Lampeter, thence to Morriston, when he was only eight years of age, and became members of the church at Philadelphia, where the father led the singing, and the son ultimately began to preach. He soon distinguished himself as a scholar. It was said of him that he could learn anything at the Sunday school, singing class, or at the day school. One day, a mere boy, buying Potts's Euclid at a bookseller's shop, he was observed by a gentle¬ man, who asked him what he was going to _____________________^__ do with that book. " Learn it, sir," was his answer. " Can you learn that ?'' said the gentleman. " I think I can, ' said he. He was put by him there and then to go through a somewhat difficult problem, which he did with the greatest ease. " Shall I pay for that book?" said the gen¬ tleman. " Thank you, sir," said he, and ran joyfully home. That gentleman was the late accomplished, but eccentric, "Rowly Mansel," as generally called. He had great aptitude and taste for mathematics, and he is reported to have learnt the second book of Euclid, so thoroughly in one night, as to be able to work the whole of it on the black-board the following morn¬ ing, without looking at the book. He was also an excellent classical scholar, as language is one of his strong points. Having began to preach, he went to school at Swansea to the Bev. G. P. Evans, and afterwards to Dr. Evan Davies, and re¬ mained under his care at the Normal College, until he en¬ tered Trevecca in the year 1851. a-half inches high, well-formed, symmetrical, of stately bear¬ ing and commanding presence. He was a man of wide in¬ formation, broad sympathies, deeply interested in the his¬ tory as well as in the social and political progress of his country; and, although not well educated in the modern sense of the term, was a man of varied reading, refined taste, and took great delight in art, especially music. The mother was highly intelligent, possessing power of keen observation, 2.—David and Jonathan ; beginning to Preach. David Gray, a companion of his in the same church, began to preach at the same time. This young man was rather a greater favourite as a preacher, but not quite, so able as a student. Between the two there existed such a close and genuine friendship that excluded jealousy in all its forms. They loved one another as David and Jonathan. Even now, in referring to the death