Was it possible he now so abhorred the elegant refinement of a formal public petition that he purposely chose to rebuke himself for his previous precise manner of prayer?
It is more likely that he had no thought of all that.

His great longing to voice the needs and wants of his people made him unmindful of an occasional mistake.

It is certain that he had never prayed so effectively as he did now.
There are times when a sermon has a value and power due to conditions in the audience rather than to anything new or startling or eloquent in the words said or arguments presented.

Such conditions faced Henry Maxwell this morning as he preached against the saloon, according to his purpose determined on the week before.
He had no new statements to make about the evil influence of the saloon in Raymond.

What new facts were there?
He had no startling illustrations of the power of the saloon in business or politics.
What could he say that had not been said by temperance orators a great many times?
The effect of his message this morning owed its power to the unusual fact of his preaching about the saloon at all, together with the events that had stirred the people.