TWICE-BORN MEN
REMARKABLE CONVERSIONS OF WELL-KNOWN MEN
IN DIFFERENT AGES AND IN VARIED RANKS OF LIFE
Compiled by HY. PICKERING
The Founder of Saltaire
SIR TITUS SALT, man of millions, inventor of “Alpaca,” founder of Saltaire, commenced life as a factory boy in a Yorkshire town, and by industry, perseverance, and strict attention to business, became one of the wealthiest manufacturers in the county. Upright, honourable, and considerate of the interests of his workers, he built a model town, calling it Saltaire. Eventually he was elected to Parliament, and a baronetcy was conferred upon him by Queen Victoria. After such achievements and attainments, was the baronet satisfied? Indeed he was not. God’s Word declares that “the eye is not satisfied with seeing, or the ear filled with hearing” (Ec 1:8). All that Sir Titus Salt had heard, seen, and possessed did not, and could not, afford him real satisfaction.
On a never-to-be-forgotten Sunday, Sir Titus listened to a preacher of the Gospel, who showed that soul rest and satisfaction are alone to be found in Christ. In the course of his sermon the minister said that he had “sat in his garden and watched the caterpillars climbing the painted sticks; he had seen them reach the top, and look this way and that in search of some juicy twig on which to feed, only to be disappointed, and to return slowly and wearily to the ground again. There are many painted sticks in this world,” continued the preacher; “there are the painted sticks of pleasure, wealth, power, and fame. All these are calling to men and saying, ‘Climb me, and you will achieve the desire of thy heart. Climb me and you will fulfil the purpose of your existence. Climb me and taste of the fruits of success. Climb me and so find satisfaction. ‘ “
On the following day the baronet visited the preacher, and said to him, “Sir, I was in your congregation last night, and I heard what you had to say about the painted sticks, and I want to tell you that I have been climbing them, and to-day I am a weary man. Tell me, is there rest for a weary millionaire?” The herald of the Cross had the joy of pointing the sin-burdened soul to Him Who says: “Come unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Mt 11:28). And he. , who was tired and worn-out in the long struggle to obtain what this world promises but does not bestow, laid his heavy burden at the foot of the Cross of Christ, accepted Him as his own personal Saviour, and was enabled truthfully and joyfully to exclaim:
“I came to Jesus as I was.
Weary, and worn, and sad;
I found in Him a resting-place.
And He has made me glad.”