Examination of evidence and report to the Most Reverend James Whitfield ... upon the miraculous restoration of Mrs. Ann Mattingly, of the city of Washington, D.C. ... together with the documents / By the Right Reverend John England.

  • England, John, 1786-1842.
Date:
1830
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Examination of evidence and report to the Most Reverend James Whitfield ... upon the miraculous restoration of Mrs. Ann Mattingly, of the city of Washington, D.C. ... together with the documents / By the Right Reverend John England. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    EXAMINATION AND REPORT TO THE MOST REVEREND JAMES WHITFIELD, D. D., ARCHBISHOP OF BALTIMORE, ETC. ETC. Most Reverend Sir : Having been peculiarly struck with the evidence in the case of Mrs. Mattingly’s restoration to health, I requested, as a favor, your permission, as the occurrence took place in the Diocess over which you preside, to examine it specially, for my own satisfaction, and to publish my opinion after close inquiry and mature reflection. You were pleased to consent. My first wish was to converse again with Mrs. Mattingly herself: I had previous conversations with her in the latter end of December 1825, and the beginning of January, 1826, and with several of the other witnesses to the principal facts of her case. 1 was also desirous ' of procuring the supplemental affidavits which are now for the first time published. And I might, perhaps, better state here the reason of their not having sooner appeared. _ When I was in Washington, about four years since, I was accompa¬ nied by my sister, who had much more conversation with Mrs. Mat¬ tingly than my opportunities then allowed; after our departure for the South, she stated to me her surprise that no more special mention was made in the published documents of what she considered to be the most palpable evidence of the miraculous nature of that lady’s cure viz., the sudden healing of an ulcerated back. The statement was perfectly new to me, and I asked particularly respecting the evidence. She mentioned to me her having had the information from Mrs. Mat- tingly, and from, I believe, one of her sisters. I immediately wrote to Mrs. M. and requested such afiidavits as the nature of the case would rei^iire or admit. Soon afterwards I received a letter from Capt. Car- bery, the brother of Mrs. M., covering the affidavit. I mislaid this