Sketches of the Life and Character of the Rev. Lemuel Haynes, A. M.: For Many Years Pastor of a Church in Rutland, Vt., and Late in Granville, New-York

by Timothy Mather Cooley

There is another sacred spot of ground—it is the place of the apple-tree, where, in early life, he found the Saviour to be precious to his soul. Though some of its limbs are decayed, the tree itself is yet alive, after enduring the blasts of more than eighty winters. It stands behind a gentle elevation of ground, and near it a granite rock rises a little above the surface. Hither he often came during his distressing conviction of sin;—here he found relief and hope in Christ;—and while in Granville he always made this the place of his private devotion and prayer. It was like Bethel, where Jacob lay down to sleep, and dreamed, "And behold, a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold, the angels of God ascending and descendinf on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it." It is impossible to describe or even conceive the emotions which he felt on visiting this place. After lingering a while, he kneeled down and prayed.

Place he made his altar