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| committer | nfenwick <nfenwick@pglaf.org> | 2025-02-05 07:18:57 -0800 |
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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..01197bd --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #51062 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51062) diff --git a/old/51062-0.txt b/old/51062-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d69ee3e..0000000 --- a/old/51062-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7405 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of New Lights on Old Paths, by Charles Foster - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: New Lights on Old Paths - -Author: Charles Foster - -Release Date: January 28, 2016 [EBook #51062] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NEW LIGHTS ON OLD PATHS *** - - - - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Emmy and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - - NEW LIGHTS - ON - OLD PATHS - - - [Illustration] - - - BY CHARLES FOSTER, - AUTHOR OF THE “STORY OF THE BIBLE,” Etc. - - - 350 ILLUSTRATIONS. - - - PUBLISHED AT THE OFFICE OF - - _CHARLES FOSTER’S PUBLICATIONS_, - No. 118 SOUTH SEVENTH STREET, - PHILADELPHIA, PA. - - - - - Copyright, 1885, - By CHARLES FOSTER. - - - ELECTROTYPED BY WESTCOTT & THOMSON, PHILADELPHIA. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -PREFACE - - -THE author is expected to say something by way of introducing, or -apologizing for, his book. What is its object? Why did he write it, -when there are already so many more than are wanted? In reply to these -questions he would say (what is evident, indeed, without saying) that -nobody adds another to the long list who does not believe that—on _his_ -subject, at least—there is room for one book more. And he proves the -sincerity of his belief by making the venture. - -The writer of this volume does not claim to present in it a single -new truth. In the sphere of morals, of which it treats, he believes -there is no such thing. It is not new truths that we need, but the -application of old ones to our daily life and practice. Any device that -may assist in securing so desirable a result is of value; in the hope -that these Fables may not be wholly useless to this end he hazards -their publication. As their title indicates, they will be found to vary -widely in subject and mode of treatment. - -One word about the illustrations: these all, without exception, -were drawn for the book. Much time, labor, and expense have been -bestowed upon the effort to make them appropriate and entertaining. -The illustrations of a story may be compared to the music of a song. -We can bear with some defect in the verse if the music awakens the -sentiment the verse was intended to express. So the author hopes that -the excellence and originality of many of these designs will in some -measure make amends for whatever deficiencies the reader may discover -in the text. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration: CONTENTS] - - - Page - - The·Innkeeper. 13 - - The·Brook·and·the·Waterwheel. 37 - - The·Court-House·Steeple. 41 - - Crooked·Horn·and·Old·Brindle. 46 - - The·Millers·Tenth. 51 - - The·Lark·and·the·Whippoorwill. 69 - - The·Gate·and·Gate·Post. 73 - - The·Weedy·Farm. 78 - - The·King·Seeking·Content. 84 - - The·Learned·Owl. 94 - - The·Horse·and·the·Grasshoppers. 98 - - The·Bark·and·the·Lightship. 101 - - The·Unhonored·Servant. 104 - - Wings. 107 - - Standpoints. 111 - - The·Man·with·a·Menagerie. 117 - - Two·Outlooks. 121 - - Job·Nickel. 125 - - The·Unused·Loom. 133 - - Crowing. 137 - - Peter·Crisp’s·Spectacles. 140 - - The·Two·Apple·Trees. 182 - - The·Spring·in·the·Woods. 186 - - The·Distant·View. 189 - - The·Two·Vines. 195 - - The·Old·Chestnut·and·the·Young·Oak. 199 - - Corn-cribs. 202 - - The·Old·Clock·in·the·New·Home. 209 - - The·Great·Secret. 213 - - The·House-Builder. 216 - - Pigeons. 223 - - The·Clock·on·the·Desk. 225 - - The·Watch-Dog. 228 - - The·Opened·Eyes. 231 - - The·Lantern·People. 235 - - Grand·Relations. 253 - - Fair·and·Foul·Weather. 255 - - Wreckage. 258 - - The·Robin. 261 - - Riddles. 265 - - The·Emigrants·Wagon. 268 - - Big·and·Little·Lanterns. 273 - - The·Cat·and·the·Tiger. 278 - - Charity. 281 - - The·Day-Laborers. 286 - - The·Artist’s·Answer. 291 - - The·Hemlock·and·the·Sugar-Maple. 294 - - Bread·and·the·Beautiful. 297 - - The·Harper. 301 - - The·Unappreciated·Gift. 305 - - The·Worn-Out·Team. 310 - - The·Wise·Farmer. 314 - - Wayfarers. 319 - - Other·Birds·Feathers. 323 - - The·Night-Watchman. 326 - - Single·and·Double. 332 - - The·Boastful·Fly. 335 - - The·Mended·Boots. 339 - - The·Cripple·and·his·Staff. 344 - - The·Search. 360 - - The·Swallows·and·the·Windmill. 365 - - The·Medicine-Man. 370 - - The·Eagle·and·the·Wren. 374 - - The·Two·Saplings. 378 - - The·Cog-Wheel. 382 - - The·Plough·and·the·Mowing-Machine. 386 - - Fat·and·Lean. 389 - - Half·Empty·and·Quite·Full. 392 - - The·Snake. 395 - - Rich·&·Poor. 398 - - The·Hawk·and·the·Chicken. 402 - - The·Servants·Money. 405 - - Future·Greatness. 411 - - The·Old·Mans·Watch. 415 - - The·Teacher. 418 - - Cloud·Shadows. 426 - - The·Penitent·Transgressor. 428 - - The·Dry·Well. 432 - - The·Fruit·Tree. 435 - - The·Deer. 438 - - Homely·and·Handsome. 442 - - The·Colt·and·Old·Gray. 446 - - The·King’s·Almoner. 453 - - Pansies. 457 - - The·Birds·and·the·Bells. 459 - - Jack·and·Jenny. 465 - - The·Meeting·of·the·Winds. 476 - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE INNKEEPER. - - -THERE was once a man who kept an inn on a country road. Just back of -his house stretched a dark forest in which a number of bad men lived. -Some of these men were great fighters, some were robbers, some had even -murdered people. And they were all in the habit of coming to the inn. -They were very glad to have some place where they could meet together -and talk over the wicked things they had done, and lay plans for more -that they wanted to do. - -[Illustration] - -In that same country, but farther off, there was a rich plain which was -covered with beautiful farms. The people who lived on these farms were -very different from those who lived in the forest. They were honest and -industrious; they had ministers and schoolmasters living among them; -on every weekday they might be seen working in their fields, and on -every Sunday going to their churches. And they too used to stop at the -inn as they went to the city to sell the butter, and eggs, and poultry, -they had raised, and to buy the tea, and coffee, and clothing, and -other things, that they needed. - -It happened, one day when these good men stopped at the inn, that the -bad men out of the forest were there. Then the good men went to the -landlord, and said: - -[Illustration] - -“Give us a room away from these men where we cannot hear their evil -talk.” - -So the landlord put them in his parlor on the opposite side of the -house; but though the doors were shut tight, the noise came through, -and was so loud that the men in the parlor could hardly hear themselves -speak. Then they said to one another: - -“What shall we do to get beyond the reach of these horrid sounds? -Truly, we can do nothing else but leave the place.” - -So they went out and harnessed up their horses and drove off. - -The next time they stopped at the inn the bad men were there again. -Then the farm-people called the landlord, and said to him: - -[Illustration] - -“We want to stay and take dinner here. Bring us therefore to a room -much farther away from these men than the parlor where you put us -before.” - -So the landlord took them up stairs into the best room on his second -floor, and gave them the key of the door, that they might lock -themselves in and stay as long as they wanted. But the bad men had seen -them going up, and presently they seized the great clubs that they -always carried, and hurried up after them. - -“Let us in!” they cried. - -[Illustration] - -But without waiting for any answer they broke down the door and rushed -at the men who were sitting around the table, until they had to run for -their lives. - -That night, after everybody had gone to bed and the landlord had locked -up the inn, as he sat alone by the fire, he said to himself: - -“I must do one thing or the other. I must turn away either the good -men or the bad men, for it is plain they cannot both come to my house. -Which shall it be?” - -After thinking a while longer he said: - -“I admit that the people from the forest buy a good deal more out of my -bar-room—wine, brandy, and whiskey—but then they get drunk and break my -furniture, and often refuse to pay for what they have had; so that, in -truth, I do not make any great profit out of them, after all—not near -enough to make up for the bad example they set my children and the bad -name they give my house. But the people from the farms, though they do -not buy any brandy, or whiskey, buy a good deal more of bread and meat, -and they always pay for what they get. By the end of the year I am sure -that I make more out of them than I do out of the others. Then they -are kind to my family, and they make my house respectable and give it -a good name. I am resolved what to do, and which to turn away. These -shall stay, and the others shall go; and to-morrow I will tell them.” - -So, after making up his mind, he went to bed and slept all night. - -[Illustration: INN - -OUT OF THE HEART ARE THE ISSUES OF LIFE] - -Early the next morning he opened his house. As soon as the door was -unlocked in came the men from the forest, and they kept on coming till -the bar-room was full. Then, while they were making a great noise, -talking very loud, and calling for drink, the landlord rapped on the -top of the bar and cried: - -“Silence, and listen to me! You men have been coming here and doing as -you pleased, until you seem to think the house belongs to you, and that -you can turn people out of it whenever you like. But I am the one who -has to pay the rent, and I think it is for me to say who shall come and -who shall go. And now I say that I want you to go and never come back.” - -[Illustration] - -As soon as the landlord had spoken in this firm way the men out of the -forest—who, in spite of their boasting, were great cowards—began to -steal off one by one, until they were all gone; at which the landlord -was glad, for he thought he had gotten rid of them altogether. But in -this he was mistaken, for in a few days they were back again, standing -about the doors and watching for a chance to get in. - -To keep them out the landlord shut up all but the front door, and -tried to keep his eye on that. But so impudent had the men grown that -they began to climb into the windows when no one was looking. Then the -landlord sent for the blacksmith and had iron bars put across every -window. But after he had done this the men even got up on the roof in -some way, and came down the chimney like so many sweeps; at which the -landlord told his hired man to build a hot fire, and to keep it blazing -no matter how much wood it burned. - -[Illustration] - -But it was not possible to close every door, and window, and chimney, -and keep them always shut. There was the side door, that opened into -the flower-garden, where sometimes persons wanted to walk; and there -was the back door, out of which the cook must go to the woodpile many -times every day. Some of the windows opened on beautiful prospects, -where the boarders liked to sit and look out. So that, do what he -would, the landlord often found places left open. - -[Illustration] - -And, beside this, the men out of the forest had lately changed their -plan. They came now dressed up like the farm-people, and sometimes the -landlord could hardly tell one from the other. In short, they were -too clever for him; and so, in spite of all he could do, they got in, -and every day he would meet some of them sneaking about the house, or -hidden in some closet or corner, or under a bed. - -[Illustration] - -While things were in this sad state he was sitting one night before -the fire by himself, just as he sat on the night that he made up -his mind to order the bad men out of his house. But how differently -he felt now from what he felt then! Then he thought he could have -everything his own way, but now he had done his utmost, and, instead of -getting better, things were getting worse and worse. He was very much -discouraged and low-spirited. - -Then he began to think of some of the wrong things that he had done -himself. He had been too friendly with these bad men, and not as kind -as he should have been to some good men that he knew. Especially he -remembered how unkindly he had treated one good man. It happened in -this way. - -When he first came to the inn, after renting it, he found a watchman -there. The owner of the inn had sent him to watch it, and keep it safe. -When the landlord came, this watchman did not go away, but stayed on. -The owner had told him to stay and watch the house; for, although the -owner had rented it, the house still belonged to him. - -So the watchman stayed and tried to make himself useful to the -landlord. But the landlord paid no attention to him; in truth, he often -treated him rudely, until one day, when the watchman was warning him -against these very men out of the forest, the landlord told him he -could take care of his house himself, and that he did not want his help -any further. - -Since that time the poor man had been staying about the inn wherever he -could find a place. Sometimes he slept down in the cellar, sometimes -out in the wood-house; and when he got anything to eat, it was always -after the servants were done, and only such food as was left from their -table. And now the landlord remembered all this. While he sat thinking -about it before the fire, there was a knock at the door. - -“Come in,” said the landlord; and the door opened, and in walked this -same watchman. He did not say a word, but stood still, looking right at -the landlord. - -“Watchman,” said the landlord, “I have treated you very unkindly, and I -am sorry for it. Are you willing to forgive me and be watchman again?” - -“I am,” said the watchman, “if you will promise to pay attention when I -warn you of danger.” - -“I promise,” said the landlord; “I will do anything to get out of the -trouble I am in.” - -“Very well, then,” replied the watchman; “it is a bargain between us. -But now go to bed and get some rest, for you need it.” - -So the landlord went to bed, and because his worry of mind had worn him -down a good deal he soon fell asleep. - -Early the next morning, before any one else was awake, the watchman was -up and at work. The first thing he did was to build up the little room, -or watch-box, that used to stand in front of the house. It was placed -there on purpose for him when the house was first built, but because it -had not been taken care of it had long since tumbled down. But now the -watchman built it up again, setting in windows all around it, so that -as he stood there, he could look out on every side. As soon as he had -built up his watch-box he fixed the cord, or bell-rope, that reached -from there into the landlord’s chamber. - -[Illustration] - -And no sooner was this done than, seeing one of the forest-people -coming toward the house, he pulled the cord and rang the bell. At this -the landlord awoke. He knew what it meant. He did not need any one to -tell him, for he used to hear that bell long ago, although he then paid -no attention to it. But now he jumped up and dressed quickly, and ran -to the door just in time to shut out one of the very worst of the men -from the forest. - -After that the bell went on ringing every day, and the landlord was -kept busy shutting doors and windows. It must be confessed that he got -tired of hearing it sometimes; but he was so much happier, he ate so -much better and slept so much sounder than he did before, that, even -when it put him to a good deal of trouble, he was always careful to -obey the bell. - -[Illustration] - -All this time the good farm-people were made welcome at the inn. The -door was always wide open to them, and the best of food was put on -their table. As they never went into the bar-room to buy anything to -drink, and as they disliked very much to see drunkards about, the -landlord concluded to take away his bar and make the inn a temperance -house. Being pleased at this, the farm-people came oftener and stayed -longer than ever before, until the landlord found himself growing rich -on the money they paid him. Then he painted his house inside and out, -and added some new rooms to it, and made it more comfortable every -year. - -When the forest-people found that the watchman was always looking out -for them, and that the landlord always paid attention to his bell—and -when they saw, too, that the company in the house was such as would -make them feel ashamed, even if they should get in there—they did not -try to get in as often as they used, and so the bell did not ring -nearly so often. Then the landlord had time to walk in his garden and -to sit down in the shade of his favorite tree, which he had not been -able to do for long years before. - -And so things went on from year to year. The landlord never ceased -to mind the bell, and gradually, as he grew older, it rang more and -more seldom, until, during his last sickness, while he was shut up in -his chamber, growing weaker and weaker every day, it stopped ringing -altogether. And this was not because the watchman (whose name was -Conscience) was unwilling to disturb him, but because the forest-people -(that is, wicked thoughts and bad desires) did not trouble him any -further. - -[Illustration] - -So the old man lay in peace and quietness until he died. Then his son -took the inn and carried it on. It is true that the men out of the -forest knew as soon as the old man was dead, and thinking that now, -as there was a new master, they might perhaps be able to get in, -they came and tried again and again. And the son had to fight his own -battles with them like his father. But he kept the watchman in his -house, and minded the bell; and in the end he gained the victory, as -his father had done before him. - -[Illustration: LET NOTHING EVIL ENTER - -TRUST - -WATCH] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE BROOK AND THE WATER-WHEEL. - - -THE water-wheel in a grist-mill went round and round, by day and by -night, without stopping. Said the brook one day, as it passed over the -wheel: - -“Are you not tired of being always at work, and of doing the same thing -to-day that you did yesterday? When I have done my work in making you -turn, I glide on and take my pleasure in flowing through the fields and -the woods.” - -“But my pleasure,” replied the wheel, “is in continuing to work, and go -round and round, grinding up the corn.” - -“Yesterday,” continued the brook, “as I flowed through the meadow, I -heard some people who were wandering there say how beautiful I was, and -what sweet music I made as I rippled over the stones.” - -“And no doubt they said what was true,” replied the wheel, “but it -could never be said of me. How would I look rolling through the meadow? -I would not be admired by others, nor would I enjoy it myself.” - -“You are to be admired for your humility,” said the brook, “in being -contented with so dismal a place.” - -“Not at all,” replied the wheel, “for when this place was given me, I -was given also a liking for it.” - -“But do you not long for the sunlight and the breeze and a sight of the -birds and the flowers?” - -[Illustration] - -“No more than you do for this dim chamber under the mill. Here I was -made to dwell, and here I am satisfied to be. I greet you tumbling -in from the mountain-side over my head, and I bid you adieu as you -flow out joyously under my feet; but I do not long to follow you. The -summer’s heat does not parch me here, nor the winter’s frost stop me -from turning. Ever in this dim twilight I revolve and listen to the -sound of the grinding. I delight to hear the farmer drive his team to -the mill door loaded with grain, and afterward haul it away when I have -made it into flour for his wife and children to eat. I am content -to stay here and labor—not by constraint nor for duty’s sake alone, -but because the place accords with my nature, and therefore it is my -choice.” - - * * * * * - -We often err in judging the lot of others by our own feelings and -preferences, forgetting that, from differences in taste or training, -what would be pain to us may be pleasure to them. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE COURT-HOUSE STEEPLE. - - -THE steeple on a country court-house was built to hold a clock. But -when a year or more had passed after it was finished, and no clock -appeared, it began to complain that the promise made to it had not been -kept. - -“I expected to be of some consequence in the village,” it said, “but -with these ugly round holes in my side left boarded up, I am of no -more account than if I did not exist.” - -The town council, having heard of what it said, met together to talk -over the matter, when they had to admit that the complaint was just; -so an extra effort was made to raise the money needed, and, this being -successful, the clock was ordered, and in due time put in its place. - -And now the steeple’s ambition was fully gratified. The clock kept good -time and was the standard for the whole village. The farmers went to -their work by it, and the children to school; the people also who drove -in from the country might be seen, as they passed the court-house, -leaning forward, with upturned faces, to get the correct hour. - -Week after week passed, and month after month, and still the steeple -was gazed at by old and young a hundred times a day. But after a good -many months had rolled round, notwithstanding all this attention, it -began to be conscious of a change within itself. - -[Illustration] - -“It is true I have got what I asked for,” it said, “and my proudest -wishes have been fulfilled; but, after all, what have I gained by it or -how am I any better off? I am just as much exposed to the winter’s cold -and the summer’s heat, to the risk of storm and lightning and fire, as -ever. And, as for being looked at—which I once thought so much of—I’m -tired of it, and could wish myself back to what I was before, instead -of being forced to listen to the click of these wheels and the banging -of that great iron hammer by night and by day. I believe I’d rather be -the empty steeple on the church, across the street.” - -At length its complainings reached the ears of one of the council, who, -though an old man, climbed up the steeple’s winding stair and listened -patiently to what it had to say. When it had finished, he answered: - -“My friend, I think I can put my finger on the cause of your -discontent. You were very anxious to have the clock, you remember, but -perhaps you never recognized the reason, which was only a desire to -increase your own importance. You thought that all the watches and all -the little clocks in town would be regulated and ruled over by you. -Your motive was wholly selfish, and, as a consequence, when you got -what you wanted, it failed to satisfy. - -“Now, as for taking the clock down again, that is out of the -question. It was put here for the benefit of all, and here it must -stay. Nevertheless, if you will take an old man’s advice, I think -your troubles will soon come to an end. Instead of thinking only of -yourself, your own comfort, and your own consequence, think of other -people. Remember the good you have the power to do them, and for their -sakes be willing to do it. Then you will find that the possessions -which yield no satisfaction while hoarded up only for self, impart a -real joy when shared with others in the uses of charity.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CROOKED HORN AND OLD BRINDLE. - - -A COW that had a crooked horn learned to open gates and let down bars -with it, and, as her master took no pains to keep her at home, she -roamed the roads unrestrained. One day, in passing a neighbor’s meadow, -she saw an old brindled cow inside hobbled by a rope and clog of wood -fastened to one leg. - -“Who put that on you?” asked Crooked Horn. - -“My master,” replied Brindle. - -[Illustration] - -“What for?” - -“To keep me from jumping fences.” - -“I’m glad he’s not my master. Why don’t you leave him and take to the -woods?” - -“Well, he’s kind to me in other ways. He gives me a warm bed, and -plenty to eat, in the winter, and beside, I have a notion that I’ve got -myself to blame.” - -“Nonsense! I’m allowed to jump all the fences I like. Whenever I see a -good dinner through the bars, over I go, no matter whom it belongs to.” - -“I wish I could do so,” said Brindle. - -“But you can’t,” cried Crooked Horn. “I’m on my way now into yonder -clover-field, over across the railroad.” - -Saying which, she kicked up her heels and galloped away. But just as -she reached the track an express train dashed past, and old Brindle saw -the engine toss her boastful acquaintance into the air as a mad bull -tosses a dog. Another moment, and poor Crooked Horn lay in the ditch -mangled and dead. - -“Oh,” cried Brindle, shuddering and looking down affectionately at the -rope and block of wood, “how glad I am now that my master hobbled me!” - - * * * * * - -[Illustration] - -If we only knew how much worse ills our troubles save us from, we would -often welcome them, instead of trying to free ourselves from them. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE MILLER’S TENTH. - - -A YOUNG miller who had succeeded to his father’s business, made flour -for the people of his native village, and also for the farmers of -the country around, receiving for his pay, or toll, one-tenth of the -grain that he ground. He measured this out in a round box—called a -“toll-dish”—which contained just one-tenth of a bushel. - -Among his customers was an old farmer who, having his farm all paid -for and well stocked, with some money out at interest beside, was -looked upon by his neighbors as a rich man. He used to come about once -a fortnight to the mill, bringing four or five bags of wheat to be -ground. - -One day, after the old man had left, as the miller began pouring his -wheat into the hopper, the thought occurred to him that if he should -take a little more than a tenth the farmer would never miss it. - -“Other millers do it,” said he, “and so might I as well. Beside, I will -make it up to him by extra care in grinding his flour.” - -So, after he had taken out the tenth that he was entitled to, he filled -the toll-dish twice again and emptied the contents into a barrel of his -own wheat that stood near. - -But the miller did not feel altogether satisfied with what he had done. -The thought of it disquieted him more than once. Yet he could not quite -persuade himself to put the wheat back. - -“I think I’m fairly entitled to something more,” he said, “from such a -rich man.” - -Then a bright thought struck him. There was in the mill some corn -that belonged to a widow. She had wheeled it there in a barrow—poor -woman!—with her own hands, and left it to be ground into meal. - -“I’ll take something less than my full toll from her,” he said, “and so -will make matters square by remembering the poor.” - -This seemed for a time to overcome his scruples, and, having made a -beginning, he gradually increased the extra toll that he took from -the rich farmer, but soon discontinued making any allowance on his poor -customer’s grist. - -[Illustration] - -But, though the miller had made a correct calculation concerning the -farmer—viz., that he would not miss what was unjustly taken from -him—he had made a wrong estimate of his own conscience. He found by -thus testing it that it was not of the sort to heal while he kept on -wounding it afresh, or to accept as true what he knew to be false. It -was rather of the kind that we find it so inconvenient to have when we -want to do wrong and still be as comfortable as if we were doing right. - -The miller was in the habit of going to the village church on a Sunday, -where he sat in the pew with his wife and little children, taking -part in the service and listening to the minister’s sermon. But now, -whenever the eighth commandment was repeated, or so much as alluded to, -he grew restless and uneasy and anxious for the service to be over. - -On week-days the stage-driver, as he passed the mill door, threw out -a newspaper that the miller subscribed for, and it had long been -his favorite pastime, as the great water-wheel was revolving and -the millstones were grinding, to sit among the bags of grain in his -flour-besprinkled clothes and read his paper through and through. But -of late he found himself avoiding all paragraphs headed: “DEFALCATION,” -“EMBEZZLEMENT,” “BREACH OF TRUST,” “CONSCIENCE FUND.” - -[Illustration] - -Now and then he stumbled on an account that was published there of some -honest debtor who as soon as he was able paid up his back debts, or of -some repentant thief who made restitution of the things he had stolen. -This was unpleasant reading to the miller. - -In the village there lived a man who had done just the reverse of these -things, and in consequence bore a bad name. The miller disliked to meet -this man. Occasionally he had to go on business to the county-town, and -on his way passed the jail. Peering through the bars he often saw the -evil countenances of the prisoners. - -“What are they in there for, I wonder?” he said to himself. “The truth -is I deserve to be there with them.” - -And this finding of a rebuke in whatever he came across went on until -everything about him seemed to join in a dreadful chorus, accusing him -of his crime. - -But at last the load on his conscience became too heavy, and he could -bear it no longer. But what should he do to get rid of it? To confess -his guilt would crush him to the earth. There was but one thing more -dreadful, and that was to go on hiding it. But was there no way of -escaping an open confession? Ah! happy thought! This would not be -necessary. The farmer was still confidingly bringing his grain every -two weeks to the mill. - -[Illustration] - -“I will go over my accounts,” said the miller, “and add up to the last -pound all I have ever taken from him, and this I will return gradually, -from time to time, with his flour, in quantities that will not be -noticed; so I shall pay my debt and clear my conscience without being -even suspected of wrong.” - -Having made this resolve, he longed to put it in practice, and could -hardly wait for the next appearance of the farmer’s wagon. In a few -days, however, it drove up to the mill door as usual. The miller with -a glad heart (which he was careful to conceal) carried the bags it was -loaded with into the mill, and bade the farmer a cheerful “Good-bye” as -he drove away. - -“Now,” he said, “I will take out of this grinding a part of my toll, -lest, if I should take none, the difference may be noticed and some -inquiry made.” - -So he filled the toll-dish three times instead of six, as he was -entitled to, and ground up the rest of the wheat. - -But while he was thus carrying out, in secret, his plan at the mill, -he little suspected how matters stood at the farmhouse. The farmer’s -wife, who was a more shrewd observer than himself in such things as -came directly under her charge, had noticed for some time past that -the returns from the mill seemed short in weight, and at length she -confided her suspicions to her husband. - -[Illustration] - -“Nonsense!” said he. “I’ve known the miller all his life, and his -father before him: his father had a conscience, and so has he.” - -“Well,” replied his wife, “there’s one way of testing it that neither -you nor anybody else can object to. I weighed what we last sent him; -now we’ll weigh what he sends back to us.” - -As the farmer could find no fault with this proposal, he called it a -bargain, and the next day went to the mill for the grinding. The miller -received him gladly and hastened to carry out his grist to the wagon. -As he drove homeward the farmer said to himself: - -“How strange that wife should speak so about the flour! But women do -sometimes take up such queer notions. I’ll be bound, now, that she will -be waiting, when I get home, to have the bags put on the scales as soon -as they are unloaded.” - -He was not wrong. As he drove through the gate around to the side porch -his wife appeared in her great white apron, hardly able to keep quiet -until the wagon was backed up, and as the bags were taken out of it -they were laid, one by one, on the scales that stood near. - -[Illustration] - -“How does it come out, wife?” cried the farmer as she set down the -pounds contained in the last bag. - -But she kept on going over the figures again and again without -answering, at which the old man put on his spectacles and hastily -footed them up. - -“Didn’t I tell you so?” he exclaimed, with a reproachful look for her -and a triumphant one for himself. “Why, instead of cheating us, he has -cheated himself! What a pity it is for a woman to be suspicious!” - -“Don’t brag too soon,” said his wife, piqued at his words; “you’d -better put that off till we’ve weighed another grinding.” - -The hungry mouths on the farm soon demanded a fresh supply of flour, -and before many weeks had passed another load of wheat, after being -weighed with extra care, was hauled to the mill. The miller, in the -mean time having found some relief to his conscience by the little he -had already done, was more eager than ever to carry out his plan and -remove his burden altogether. - -“It is certain,” he said, “they have not noticed anything unusual in -the last grist. I might just as well hurry matters up a little. This -time I’ll take out no toll at all, and after this will begin adding -some of my own flour.” - -Putting off other farmers who had brought their grain before him, the -miller ground the old man’s wheat first, out of its turn, and sent -him word it was ready. His wife, still smarting under the charge of -being unjustly suspicious, hurried him away after it, and waited his -return even more anxiously than she had for the former load. It came in -due time, and was promptly laid on the scales as the other had been. -But if she was surprised before, she was dumb with wonder now, and -her husband—who, in truth, thought there was no better woman—seeing -her embarrassment, was considerate enough to do no more than join in -expressing his astonishment at the unlooked-for result. The flour -was quietly put away in the store-room, and other matters requiring -attention about the farmhouse were looked after. - -That evening, just before bedtime, as they sat together in their -old-fashioned comfortable kitchen, the farmer said to his wife: - -“I’ve been thinking about that last grist. There must be something the -matter with our young miller’s scales, and you know that we don’t want -to take without paying for it what belongs to him. I mean to go over to -the mill to-morrow on purpose to look into it.” - -“That’s exactly what I want you to do,” replied his wife, seriously. -“Short of weight more than once I know the grinding was, and -over-weight twice we both know it was; the thing keeps worrying my -mind, and troubling me.” - -The next morning, as soon as breakfast was over, the farmer harnessed -up his horses and drove to the mill. The miller, who was standing in -the door, looked surprised to see him when there was neither wheat to -bring nor flour to haul away. And not only surprised: there came a look -of apprehension over his face, for there is always a lurking fear of -evil in the heart that is conscious of hiding some wrong. - -“I don’t believe you can guess what I’ve come over about,” cried the -farmer as he got down from the wagon. - -The miller said nothing. - -“Did you weigh the last grinding?” asked the old man. - -“Yes.” - -“And the one before that?” - -“Yes.” - -“And don’t you know they weighed too much? But perhaps you wanted to -make us a present,” he continued, good-humoredly, “or maybe, as winter -is coming on, you thought we stood in need.” - -The miller’s face grew scarlet. He attempted to speak, but his voice -stuck in his throat and he could not utter a word. Perceiving at a -glance that he was in trouble, the farmer’s manner changed. - -[Illustration] - -“Tell me all about it,” he said. “I was your father’s friend, and am -yours.” - -Then the miller took the old man into the mill, and, shutting the door, -told him, in a trembling voice, the whole sad story. - -“I’ve found out,” he said, “that the wrong way is a hard way, and I’m -in that way yet, but I long to get out of it. I’d give this mill—yes, -and all that is in it—were that needful to make me feel myself once -more an honest man. I have set it all aside. Those bags over there -contain every pound I have ever taken. But I shall never know a happy -moment till I see them hauled away from here and put into your barn.” - -“My dear young friend,” said the farmer, drawing his sleeve across his -eyes, “I care nothing for the flour, yet it is mine, and it is right -I should take it. Carry it out yourself and load it on the wagon, and -I’ll soon put it where you want it to be. I believe you have been -taught, by the best of teachers, such a lesson as you’ll never forget. -And be assured that after it I will never fear to trust you. Take my -word for it, too, that no one but wife—and she can keep a secret—shall -ever hear of this.” - -[Illustration] - -The next Sunday the miller went to church, and, whatever else he -might dread to hear about, it was not the eighth commandment. And the -following week, and for many a week afterward, he read his newspaper as -he did in former times—all through, skipping nothing, from beginning to -end. - - * * * * * - -The way out of the path of uprightness is smooth and easy; the way back -to it, rough and difficult. The one is ever open to the erring, but the -other is never closed against the penitent. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE LARK AND THE WHIPPOORWILL. - - -A LARK had nearly fallen asleep in the dusk of the evening, when a -whippoorwill began calling loudly to its mate, that was lodged in -another part of the wood: - -“Whippoorwill! Whippoorwill!” - -“Why do you disturb me,” asked the lark, “here at the close of the day, -when I am so tired and just ready to take my rest?” - -“I will try to be quiet, then,” replied the whippoorwill. - -So, with a great effort, the bird kept still. Occasionally, when its -mate called from a distance, its bill _would_ open and a faint note, -“Whip! Whip!” escape. But a look at the lark, with its head under its -wing, was enough to quiet it again. And so all night long it hopped -about in silence hunting its food. - -At last the rosy dawn appeared, and it flew down to its humble perch -near the ground and made ready to go to sleep for the day. But just -then the lark suddenly burst forth with a loud song, and started up in -its flight toward the sky. - -“Stop! stop!” cried the whippoorwill. “How is this? You made me keep -silence when you wanted to sleep, and now, when it is my turn, you make -more noise than I did.” - -“It is my nature,” cried the lark, “in the early morning to shout out -my glad song.” - -“And it is mine,” replied the whippoorwill, “in the quiet twilight to -call to my loving mate.” - -“I suppose what you say is true,” said the lark, “but I am sure that I -can’t help singing. Why do you not sing in the daytime, as I do? That -is the proper time.” - -[Illustration] - -“Nay,” replied the whippoorwill; “as you are made to wake and sing in -the daytime, I am made to wake and sing in the night. Now, as we can -neither of us have the woods alone, let us try and put up with one -another’s songs, and so each of us enjoy its lot.” - - * * * * * - -As long as we live we shall find something to put up with in other -people. It will be easier to do this if we remember that they in like -manner have to put up with something in us. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE GATE AND GATE-POST. - - -A GATE and the post that it latched to could not get along peacefully -together. The gate swagged somewhat, and the post, instead of leaning -back a little to accommodate it, seemed purposely to lean forward. As a -consequence, there was difficulty whenever they met. The gate accused -the post of getting in the way, and the post charged the gate with -striking against it. Things remained in this unhappy condition for a -long while, and very often the gate might be seen swinging back and -forth in the wind, unable to latch itself, while the post showed ugly -scars on either side, which were growing uglier and deeper every day. -Neither seemed willing to yield, or even to make the first movement -toward a reconciliation. - -At length, on a gusty morning, after a squall had banged the gate -against the post with unusual violence, the latter said: - -“You needn’t think I’m going to give in. That last blow did you as much -damage as it did me.” - -“I don’t want you to give in,” replied the gate; “all I ask is that you -lean back a little, so that I can swing free and fasten my latch as I -used to do.” - -“It’s your own fault that you cannot do so still,” said the post; “you -began to swag and bear down on me, and then, of course, I began to butt -against you.” - -“Well, now,” replied the gate, “though I don’t agree to all you say, I -am willing to admit this much—that there may be faults on both sides. -But here we are together, and here we’ve got to stay. I can’t go off to -look for another post, and you can’t go and hunt up another gate. Why -can’t we try and get along as we did at first? I’m sure we were a great -deal more comfortable then.” - -[Illustration] - -“Agreed,” said the post; “I’m as tired of it as you are. Let us from -this time do all we can to keep out of each other’s way.” - -As this conversation took place in the early spring, when the ground -was freezing and thawing almost every day, the two had the best -possible chance of carrying out their good resolutions; and by the -help of wind and rain, with an honest purpose on both sides, their -efforts at last were crowned with success. Then all was pleasant and -serene again. The gate swung free, the latch caught on the post without -fail, and they upheld and supported each other, without either one -trespassing on the other’s rights. - -But after this tranquil state of things had lasted for some time, one -day the latch, in passing, left a slight scratch on the post’s fresh -paint. At once there was scolding and faultfinding on both sides. It -was only a scratch, to be sure, and neither seemed disposed to make it -any more; but, on the other hand, neither would recede enough to make -it any less. And so, after they had overcome far greater difficulties, -and proved that peace and harmony were attainable, they sacrificed -them both because they could not overlook a very small offence. The -consequence was that discord reappeared between them. When I last saw -them, they were still giving each other (not at all times, but every -now and then, when the wind was from a certain quarter) this irritating -little scratch. I suppose it is thus with them still, and probably will -be so to the end. - - * * * * * - -After surmounting great and serious difficulties in the way of our -happiness, we often allow insignificant ones to keep us back from its -possession. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE WEEDY FARM. - - -A POOR but industrious man who rented a farm that was badly overgrown -with weeds set his heart on getting rid of them. To do this he worked -early and late. By the dawn of day he might be seen ploughing his -fields, and because his own team (two rather sorry-looking horses) were -not strong enough to turn up the deep soil he hired a pair of oxen and -ploughed with them. - -Afterward he went over the ground with his harrow, from one side of the -field to the other, and again across it from end to end. He did this to -break up the hard clods and throw out the roots of the weeds, that the -sun might scorch and kill them. Then he sowed the ground thickly with -good seed, so that if any of the roots were left they might be crowded -out by the grain. He kept on patiently working in this way until he had -gone over every part of his farm. - -And his labor was not in vain, for in the fields where the corn and -the oats and the rye were growing the weeds almost disappeared. -Nevertheless, as soon as it came in turn for a field to rest and lie -fallow for a season, they were sure to show themselves again. And in -the pasture-land, that was never ploughed, they sprang up plentifully -among the grass and the clover. - -In vain the farmer took out his scythe, searching for the places where -they grew, and cutting them down with his own hands. There were some -places that he did not reach, and some where the roots were hidden from -sight; so that every summer they continued to mar the prospect around -him. And, as time went on, instead of getting used to them, it seemed -as if he worried over them more and more. - -At length, after he had been worrying thus from year to year, he went -out one gloomy autumn afternoon to walk alone, and, seeing patches -of the hated weeds here and there all over his farm, he grew very -despondent. He turned, and came back with a heavy step to his cottage. -His wife, having gotten through the rest of her work, was sitting by -the window mending his well-worn coat. - -“You know,” said he as soon as he came in the door, “how I’ve tried to -get rid of these weeds. I’ve worked early and late, in season and out -of season, and yet there’s not a field that has not got some of them in -it. And down in the low-lying land back of the meeting-house—I’ve just -been there—it seems to me they’re thicker than ever. I’m discouraged. -I feel like throwing up my lease and giving up the farm, and fighting -against them no longer.” - -“Well, now,” said his wife as she threaded her needle and sewed away -at his patched coat, “I think you’re looking only on one side. You -haven’t worked all these years for nothing. You’ve had pretty good -crops, I think, and it seems to _me_, the way I look at it, that this -is a very good farm, after all, the way farms go. As for getting rid of -the weeds, they were here when you came. It’s a weedy country. I don’t -believe you’ll ever be able to get them clean out of the land. But then -you’ve succeeded in keeping them under. I reckon that if we work hard, -with the help of a kind Providence this farm will do till we get a -better. For you know we hope to move to a better country some of these -days, and to get new land that hasn’t any weeds in it.” - -[Illustration] - -“I declare, wife,” said the farmer, brightening up, “I do believe -there’s something in what you tell me. I never looked at it so before. -I’ve been looking at the weeds, and nothing else. We ought to look -at the crops too, no doubt since they’ve been given us in spite of -the weeds. We must put up with something, I reckon, wherever we go; -so I think we’ll just do as you say, and stay where we are, trying -nevertheless, to get the weeds out, harder and harder. I’m glad I came -straight to you. You always were a good, sensible wife, and now I -admire you more, and set greater store by you than ever.” - - * * * * * - -We must not despair because evil is still present with us, but rather -take courage from whatever growth in good our past lives may show. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE KING SEEKING CONTENT. - - -A CERTAIN king who was weary of the cares of his high office determined -to seek among his subjects for a perfectly contented man, and, when he -found him, to exchange his throne for that man’s place, whatever it -might be. “For,” he said, “peace of mind is worth more than even royal -honors and dignities.” - -So he disguised himself in a way that no one would know him, and went -forth on his search through the streets of the city. And first he came -into the house of a man who by long years of labor had heaped up -great riches, and now, having withdrawn from all business affairs, was -living in ease and luxury. But in a little while the king saw that this -life, so different from that he was accustomed to, had become irksome -and tedious, and that in his heart he wished himself back at buying and -selling again. He looked out of his front window and said: - -[Illustration] - -“Oh that I were only in the place of my opposite neighbor, whom I see -going out early to business every morning!” - -Leaving this man’s house, the king found an entrance into that of the -neighbor whom he envied, who was still engrossed in trade as the other -had formerly been. Already rich, he was adding to his wealth year by -year; but in doing this he had to labor so hard, and to carry so heavy -a load of care, that no time or space for enjoyment was left him. - -“I am living but a slave’s life,” he said. “Would that I were well out -of it, like my neighbor across the way, whom I see driving out in his -carriage every afternoon!” - -Passing out of this street, where many rich merchants lived, the king -went into another, near by, and entered the house of a man whom he -himself had appointed to a responsible post under his own government. - -[Illustration] - -“Without the weight of anxiety which oppresses me,” said the king, “yet -with honors sufficient, and an ample provision for all his wants, shall -I not here find a happy man?” - -But it was not long before the king heard him, one day when he thought -he was alone, muttering to himself: - -“Why did I ever accept this post, or choose this service for my -calling, only to bear the envy of those below me, and the scorn of -those above? How much better off and more independent would I have been -engaged in some business of my own, like my well-to-do friends around -the corner!” - -“I will seek for my object in a lower sphere of life and occupation,” -said the king; and, passing into an obscure back street, he went into -the shop of a mechanic who was working at his bench with saw and plane -as a carpenter. - -“Below the level of ambition and above that of want,” continued the -king, “surely here I shall find the object of my search.” - -So he entered into conversation with the man, talked with him about his -trade, admired his handiwork, and said: - -“Whatever else you lack, my friend, I am sure that here in perfect -independence you enjoy content.” - -“Content at this trade!” exclaimed the man. “I would rather have been -brought up to any other. What with low wages and high lumber, there is -nothing left when your work is done. I don’t know who you may be; but -if you’re thinking of going into this business, let me warn you against -it. For my part, I don’t see why some people have it so hard and others -so easy. There’s a couple of rich men that I work for over in the main -street, that have both of them made big fortunes since I came into this -miserable little shop. And around the corner from them is another man -I do odd jobs for—one of the king’s officers; he has I don’t know how -many servants to wait on him, and plenty of money. Yes, and even the -king himself, if a poor man may look so high—there he is with nothing -to do but enjoy himself and rule over the rest of us. What justice is -there in all this? Everybody has all he wants, and is happy, but me.” - -Discouraged at his repeated failures, the king turned away from the -crowded city and went into the country. There, as he walked along -a quiet road by himself, he came to a little cottage with a bench -beside the door. In front of it was a flower-bed filled with pinks and -lady-slippers; in the rear, a small plot of ground that appeared to -have been just digged. A shovel and a hoe were lying there, evidently -left only for the dinner-hour. The door of the cottage was open, and a -laboring-man well on in years was seen within at his noonday meal. - -The king, in the guise of a wayfarer, stopped before the gate, and -was at once asked to enter and be seated at the table. Accepting the -invitation, he sat down and partook of the humble repast. As soon as it -was finished the two betook themselves to the bench beside the door. -Said the king: - -“You have a hard time, I fear, my friend. This is but a little plot -from which to get your living.” - -“But you’ve no idea,” replied the man, “how much this ground yields. -It is planted in potatoes, and a finer crop you never saw. I’m just -digging them, and shall have enough to last me on till spring, with -some to sell—yes, and a few to give a poor neighbor, beside.” - -“But is that all you have to depend upon?” asked the king. - -“Oh no,” replied the man; “I go out to day’s work on the farms around, -and, beside being able to pay for some new clothes, I’ve put by a -barrel of flour for the winter; it stands over in that far corner. And -you see my woodpile stretching along the fence yonder. I’ve had to work -hard for these things, but they are all that I need, and I am content.” - -“‘Content’!” cried the king, as though he could not believe his own -ears. “But have you no other wants beside these?” - -[Illustration] - -“I might have,” said the man. “There are plenty that offer me their -company, but I refuse to entertain them.” - -“Are you, then, quite satisfied?” - -“Not with myself, but I am with my lot.” - -At this the king was silent, for he saw that his companion was speaking -the truth, though he could not comprehend it. - -“But understand me,” continued the man. “It is not because I have no -trials to bear that I am content, for I have my share of them. Here -is the rheumatism in this arm, which often will not let me sleep, and -sometimes keeps me from work for days together. And then, what is -harder still, my landlord is not always kind, or even just.” - -“Why, is not this cottage your own?” said the king. - -“Oh no,” replied the man; “I’m not so rich as that. And yet, as I -was going to say, taking it all in all, I have in my lot a bigger -proportion of good than most people, and a better chance to be what I -ought to be. And to this end I can see how even my trials are a help.” - -The king, rising from the table, bade his humble friend adieu and went -his way, but pursued his search no farther. - -“I have found content in another,” he said, “and learned, too, how to -get it for myself. It is to accept not only my good things, but also -my evil things, as a precious part of my portion. I will go back to my -throne esteeming even it in this light, and so, instead of trying to -cast them off, shall be happier in bearing the burdens which it lays -upon me.” - - * * * * * - -Were we able to look into the secret thoughts of those whom we envy, we -should often find that what we covet in their lot, is borne by them as -a trial and a cross. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE LEARNED OWL. - - -AN owl that had long separated himself from his companions that he -might devote his nights to study and become learned, employed himself -afterward in trying to impart his learning to the other owls. Having -called them together, he discoursed about different animals and -reptiles and fishes which they had never heard of before; but he -found that, while a few seemed anxious for instruction and listened -patiently, the most of his hearers made some excuse for flying away -while he was still talking, so that by the end of his discourse -scarcely a half dozen of them remained. - -As he was ambitious to be considered an interesting as well as -instructive speaker, he was greatly discouraged at this result, and -at once retired to the woods, into a thick clump of hemlocks whose -dark shadows never admitted a ray of the sun, and there, all alone, he -thought over the matter, trying to decide what was best to be done. - -[Illustration] - -He remained for several days thus engaged, when suddenly, as if the -whole difficulty were solved, he gave a cheerful hoot, and flying -forth, summoned all the owls to a meeting in the apple-orchard near -by at twelve o’clock the following night. When the time arrived, but -a small audience appeared in the trees immediately around him, though -many were on those farther off—as we might say, on the back seats—from -which, in case they grew weary, they could retire unseen. - -“I’ve come this time,” he began, “not to talk about animals or reptiles -or fishes, but about owls.” - -At once he could see an awakening of interest in the birds that -were near him. Then he went on to tell all he knew about owls—their -ancestors who had lived long ago, the different kinds that are -living now, the big owls and the little owls, their habits, their -dispositions, their pleasures, and their pains, not, of course, -omitting courtship and marriage. Very soon he saw the birds that had -lodged on the distant trees flying nearer, and as he went on they came -one by one into the very tree where he stood, until all the owls that -lived in the neighboring woods were gathered close around him; nor -were they willing to leave while he continued his discourse. And after -that, all he had to do was to vary somewhat his treatment of the same -theme to secure a punctual and full attendance. - - * * * * * - -This fable proves that owls, like men, prefer to hear about things in -which they feel the interest of kindred. The speaker or the book that -can awaken our human sympathies is the one, as we know, that commands -the largest audience and the closest attention. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE HORSE AND THE GRASSHOPPERS. - - -A HORSE, while feeding in a meadow, frightened the grasshoppers at -his feet, so that they flew up thickly on every side. Some chickens, -discovering this, gathered around and accompanied him, eagerly -devouring the insects. The horse did not notice them for a time and -continued to move slowly along, thus providing them with an abundant -supply. But, at length spying them at their repast, he suddenly raised -his head, saying: - -“How are you going to pay me back for all this trouble I am taking for -you?” - -At which one of the chickens replied: - -“You don’t eat grasshoppers yourself, neither are you going out of -your way to stir them up for us. Why, then, should we pay you at all?” - -[Illustration] - -The horse, not able to answer this question, began sullenly to feed -again, when the chicken continued: - -“If you had done us this favor willingly and kindly, we would have -eaten the grasshoppers and returned you our thanks; but, as you do -it against your will, we will eat them just the same, and return you -nothing.” - - * * * * * - -In serving our own interests we sometimes, without intending it, serve -the interest of others. It is better to do this graciously and make -them our friends than to do it grudgingly and make them our enemies. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE BARK AND THE LIGHTSHIP. - - -A BARK on her outward voyage passed the lightship moored on a shoal -that lay in the track of vessels near the coast. Said the bark as she -sailed by: - -“Here you are still, held fast by your chain, for ever tossing and -uncomfortable, but making no headway, or profits, either.” - -“True,” replied the lightship. “Yet this is my appointed work. I am no -idler.” - -Long months rolled around; the bark had crossed the ocean, and was -on her homeward voyage. She neared the land in stormy weather. Night -came on, and the lead, though it was kept going, failed to show just -where she was drifting. Then anxious fears arose, and were growing each -moment more intense, when suddenly a bright flash gleamed through -the darkness. It was the lightship, giving warning of the shoal and -pointing out the deeper channel. - -Once more the vessels lay side by side. - -“You have saved me,” cried the bark, “and the rich cargo that I carry. -Now I understand why you seek not selfish profits, and most gladly, out -of gratitude, will I share mine with you.” - -“Oh no,” replied the lightship; “you have sailed over perilous seas to -gain them, and they justly belong to you. That is your calling; and the -greater your gains, the better am I pleased. But my calling is to lie -here and do what good I can. For this I receive wages sufficient for my -need, and with them I am content.” - - * * * * * - -While some men devote their lives to business and accumulate -fortunes—properly and honestly, it may be—others devote theirs to the -good of their fellow-men, knowing they will receive in return a bare -living, and nothing more. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE UNHONORED SERVANT. - - -A CERTAIN king was accustomed from time to time to appoint the members -of his household, some of them to be rulers over provinces, some over -cities, and some to fill private positions of honor and profit. It was -considered not only a reward of obedience, but a special mark of his -confidence and approval, to receive such appointment. - -After many had been thus promoted, one remained in the palace who -seemed to be overlooked and neglected. It was evident that this was not -from any fault of his own, or from any want of regard on the part of -the king, for all could see that he was loyal and upright and enjoyed -the king’s favor; yet others who had come later into the palace were -chosen before him. - -[Illustration] - -At length one of the king’s counsellors ventured to ask him the reason -of this, saying: - -“This man for many years has obeyed you with all faithfulness and -devotion, yet others are sent forth to fill stations of honor, while he -remains here in his place as a servant. Why is this?” - -The king answered: - -“I keep him thus, not as a mark of my displeasure or of his want of -desert, but because he is the one whom I cannot part with, even to -bestow honors and riches upon him, but must have ever near me. Neither -will he be a loser by it in the end.” - - * * * * * - -A place in the heart is better than a gift from the hand, and he whom -the King will reward may well wait patiently. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -WINGS. - - -ONCE a caterpillar, as it fed on a tree, was given the power of speech. -It said: - -“What wonderful eyes I have! I can see the whole of this leaf at one -time—not only the part I am feeding on, but its whole length and -breadth.” - -“Let me tell you,” replied the tree, “there are eyes that can see -not only one leaf, but all the leaves on a tree—yes, and on a whole -woods—at a glance.” - -“It may be so,” said the caterpillar, “and then it is only doing what -I do, though on a larger scale.—And what wonderful feet I have!” -continued the caterpillar. “I can creep from the ground up to your -topmost bough, between the rising and the setting of the sun.” - -“And I can tell you,” replied the tree, “there are feet that can pass -over a space equal to that in a moment, and in one short hour can go -farther than you in all the days of your life.” - -“It may be so,” said the caterpillar, “and then it is only doing what I -do, though on a larger scale.” - -“But this is not all I have to tell you,” continued the tree. “There -are beings that can dart from the ground up to my highest branch -without so much as touching me with their feet, and that can pass -swiftly from tree to tree, borne through the air on wings.” - -“That is impossible,” said the caterpillar. “There may be stronger eyes -that can see farther even than mine, and quicker feet that can travel -faster; but, as for wings to fly through the air with, that cannot be. -You are talking of things you know nothing about, or else are only -trying to deceive me. After such an absurd statement, I will not listen -to you any more, or believe anything you say.” - -The summer passed, and autumn came with its cloudy days and chilly -nights. The leaves of the tree shrivelled up and dropped to the ground, -and one frosty morning the caterpillar was found suspended from a naked -twig by a thread of its own spinning, shut up in its cocoon. And there -it slept, unconscious from day to day, and month to month, through the -long winter. The fierce storm could not weaken its hold, or shake it -loose, as it hung secure, tossed to and fro by the blast. - -[Illustration] - -But at length spring approached. The buds began to swell and the young -leaves to appear. The blossoms on the fruit trees opened, and the birds -sang among them. And one morning the imprisoned caterpillar revived in -its narrow cell, and, rending its walls asunder, came forth and basked -in the sunshine. But what are these at its side gently expanding and -unfolding? It spreads them forth, and, loosening its hold upon the -twig, floats away on the breeze. It mounts up, it flies, it lodges on a -lofty bough, and flies from one to another again and again. - -“Was it I,” it says, astonished, “that declared there were no beings -with wings, and that to pass from place to place through the air was -impossible? Now am I made to see that it was not the tree, but myself, -who spoke about things I knew nothing of; now am I made to feel the -denseness of my own ignorance. If this, which is so unlooked for and -so far beyond the reach of my understanding, has been done to me, I -will wait and see what yet remains to be done, nor ever again limit the -power that created me at first, and still goes on perfecting its own -work.” - - * * * * * - -He who can speak most wisely within the circuit of his knowledge if he -venture beyond it utters foolishness. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -STANDPOINTS. - - -A POOR man who supported his family by daily labor used to deal with -the two storekeepers of his native village. Of one he bought flour and -meat; of the other, materials for his own and his children’s clothing. -Being a good workman and honest as well as industrious, he was -accustomed to settle his accounts at both stores every Saturday night. - -All went on well and to the satisfaction of both buyer and seller -as long as health lasted. But at length sickness came, and Saturday -brought the laborer no wages. Still, he hoped for the return of -strength by another week, and then to be at work again. But strength -did not return. Week after week passed, and it seemed farther away than -ever. The storekeepers’ accounts remained unsettled. The matter was -becoming a serious one for them. What should they do? - -At this point one of them opened his ledger, went over every item set -down there, and, after footing up the total amount, calculated the -interest on it to the last cent. Then he sat thinking about what he -could do with the money if he only had it in hand; and this was the -standpoint from which _he_ looked at the debt. - -The other storekeeper also went over his ledger and footed up the -amount. But after doing so he shut the book up again, and, putting -on his hat, went to see the man who owed him the money. Entering his -humble cottage, he sat down at his bedside and looked into his honest, -suffering face, and on his wife and children in poverty around him; and -here was the standpoint from which _this_ storekeeper looked at the -debt. - -The sick man died, and his family was left penniless. The storekeeper -who had visited him, still looking at the debt, as it were, from the -lowly bedside, thought it was right to cross it off his books and -forgive it altogether. The other storekeeper, viewing it from his -counting-room only, thought it right to get the money if he could. -Had he not furnished all the articles that were charged for? Had not -the man’s family taken them and used them? The money was his, and -he meant to have it. So he held the dead man’s wife and children -responsible, and, though they had a hard time to earn their daily -bread, he made it harder by demanding something each month till the -last cent was paid. - -[Illustration] - -Time rolled on, and the years that gather, an ever-increasing -load, upon poor and rich alike, began to bow the forms of the two -storekeepers. Old age overtook them, and finally the hour when each -in turn must leave store and ledger to know them no more. Then it was -found that he who had remitted the poor man’s debt had left to his -family a moderate competency, with a good many accounts in his ledger -balanced by the one word written over against them, “FORGIVEN.” - -[Illustration] - -The other storekeeper had left his family rich, with scarcely an -account that had ever been due him unpaid, and the few that were, -remained so only because neither force nor persuasion could bring the -money. But in the village where they had lived and died it was noticed, -long after both storekeepers and their ways of doing business were -forgotten, that the smaller inheritance increased in the hands of those -who received it, while the larger one, in the hands receiving it, -seemed mysteriously to melt away. - - * * * * * - -According to the standpoint from which we look at a thing will be our -views of right and wrong respecting it; but we are accountable for the -choice of that standpoint. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE MAN WITH A MENAGERIE. - - -A MAN who kept a menagerie had trouble with several of the wild -beasts, which, although they were confined in strong cages, sometimes -became excited and made violent efforts to escape. There was one in -particular—a tiger—that caused him special concern. By continued -watchfulness and careful treatment, however, the animal was at length -brought into a quiet and submissive state, seeming to be asleep most -of the time. Nevertheless, knowing his savage nature, his owner was -diligent in examining the different parts of his cage—the iron bars in -front, and the bolts in the rear—every day. - -But, after doing this for many weeks without a recurrence of any cause -for alarm, the man dismissed his fears and began to forget there had -ever been any cause for them. Then, insensibly to himself, he relaxed -his vigilance, until the matter passed out of his mind and he thought -no more about the tiger than he did about the antelope, the deer, or -any other harmless specimens in his collection. - -This state of things had lasted without any mishap for a long time, -when one day, while passing through his menagerie, as he came in front -of the tiger’s cage he made a misstep; his foot slipped, and he fell. -Like a flash—as soon as he saw him fall—the tiger sprang to his feet -and dashed with savage fury against the bars in front of him, which, -not being properly secured, parted and allowed him to pass between them. - -As he lighted on the ground all the weak and defenceless animals around -him were panic-stricken, uttering cries of terror. And truly it looked -for the moment as though he might slay both them and their fallen -master unrestrained. To make it worse, his keeper, who alone had any -control over him, was absent, but fortunately not beyond the sound of -the tumult. This man hastened to the rescue, and by skill in soothing -as well as courage in quelling succeeded after a time in getting the -brute back to his den. - -Then was the owner glad, breathing freely once more. Yet for hours -afterward his face remained pale and his hand trembled. - -[Illustration] - -“I am thankful,” he said, “for this great deliverance. Never shall I -forget it, nor lessen my watchfulness over this furious beast’s cage; -for no matter how silent it seems, or how little danger appears to be -within, I know only too well that the tiger is there still.” - - * * * * * - -Our evil passions may lie dormant until we almost think they have -ceased to exist, and yet, if not sleeplessly guarded, may rise up and -gain the mastery over us at any time. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -TWO OUTLOOKS. - - -TWO persons live in the same house, which has both a front and a back -view. The front view is over a quiet lake, with green fields and -mountains beyond—beautiful always, in summer, in autumn, in winter. The -back view is hemmed in by old broken-down walls, ruinous outbuildings -and a pigsty. - -One of the inmates of the house takes her work and sits habitually by -the front window. Her face is bright and beaming, and the neighbors -often hear her sing. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - -The other inmate sits constantly looking out of the back window. The -gloomy prospect depresses and sours her; and when she does open her -lips, it is generally to complain. Yet neither of these persons is -forced to gaze thus on the prospect which so affects her. Each sits by -the window she has chosen for herself. - -Now, we all live in houses with front windows and back windows. At -which of them do we choose, for the most of our time, to sit? - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -JOB NICKEL. - - -A MAN by the name of Job Nickel, who was about emigrating to a new -home, bought a stout horse and strong wagon—the best his means would -afford—and, packing his family into it, with such household goods -as could be carried beside, started on his journey. He had not gone -far when he was overtaken by another family travelling in the same -direction, but driving a pair of fine horses to a handsome carriage. -The difference in outfit, however, did not prevent the occupants of the -carriage from making acquaintance with the family in the wagon. They -first looked at them smilingly, then nodded, and presently got into -conversation. - -As their destination was the same and it was pleasanter to travel in -company than alone, Job gave his horse a sharp cut, to keep up with his -new friends; and the travellers kept together until night, when, coming -to a green spot with a spring of pure water upon it, they encamped -there, as is the custom with emigrants on the road. - -The next morning, before harnessing up, the occupants of the carriage -begged Job to let his eldest daughter—a bright little girl of -twelve—ride with them. The child’s mother and Job himself were pleased -at this attention, and after fishing out her best dress from the bottom -of a chest, and hastily putting it on, the invitation was accepted. But -when they started for the day, the pair travelled so much faster than -the one horse that the carriage soon left the wagon behind; sometimes -it was visible a good way ahead, and sometimes was quite out of sight. -Yet, as his little girl was in it, Job felt bound to keep as near it -as he could, though this required, especially in going-up hill, the -constant urging of his horse and not unfrequent use of the whip. - -While hurrying along the road in this way Job came up with a neighbor -who, like himself, drove only one horse. But so anxious was Job to get -on that he passed his old friend without speaking. It must be admitted, -too, that Job felt with his new acquaintance, if he could only keep up -with them, he was travelling in more distinguished company. Thus the -second day passed, and the travellers again encamped together, Job, -after taking the harness off his own horse, helping to unharness the -pair. - -The next morning his friends consented to let the little girl return -to her parents in the wagon provided her brother be allowed to take -her place. So the girl went back, very much dissatisfied, and the boy -succeeded her. And thus the two vehicles continued in company day after -day. Sometimes the boy was in the carriage, and sometimes the girl; and -once one of the children from the carriage came and rode in the wagon. -Meanwhile, the intimacy between the families constantly increased, -no account being taken of their differing circumstances. While these -things were going on, both Job and his wife could not help secretly -thinking that, as their children happened to be of like ages, this -intimacy might some day become closer still; yet neither one (as they -felt in their hearts ashamed of it) mentioned this thought to the other. - -[Illustration] - -But all this time, notwithstanding his apparent friendship, the owner -of the carriage never once slackened his pace to accommodate Job. As a -consequence, the work of keeping up with him became harder than ever. -Job had now to lash his horse at almost every step, by doing which he -was just able to follow close at the tail of the carriage. But in dry -weather he was always in a cloud of dust, and in wet weather was being -splashed with the mud thrown up by the wheels in front of him; so that, -wet or dry, he was equally miserable. - -[Illustration] - -But the worst was yet to come. After Job had been thus laboriously -working his way for about half the distance he was to travel, one -morning, on going out early to feed his horse, the animal was found -still lying down; and when Job tried to rouse him, he refused to get -up—alas! with good reason: he could not. And within an hour the poor -overworked beast was dead. - -By this time the sun had risen, and the carriage was all ready to -start; but before doing so the family that travelled in it came over to -where Job stood, showing great pity for him. They were loud in their -expressions of sorrow, but the father said, as he had promised to be -at a point beyond by a certain hour, he would have to go on. Just then -another carriage, containing some of his acquaintance, came along, and -he cracked his whip and was soon out of sight. As he drove off Job saw -for the first time the man’s name—S. Silver. It was printed upon the -end of a trunk which they had taken from the inside and put on the top -of the carriage. - -“Ah!” exclaimed Job, “now I know who he is. His first name is Sterling. -He had a bank in the county-town next to ours, and a sad fool has poor -Job Nickel been in trying all this while to keep up with Sterling -Silver! I deserve all I have got.—Well, wife,” he continued, “here we -are with our horse dead, our grand acquaintances gone, and plenty of -time to reflect on our folly.” - -[Illustration] - -As he spoke his old friend with the one horse, whom Job had passed -on the road without noticing, came trudging comfortably by. Job turned -toward him ready to speak, but the man did not notice him. As he -disappeared Job looked around at his wife, and, seeing her wiping her -eyes with the corner of her apron, he said: - -“Happily, my dear, we’ve got a small sum left in the bottom of the -chest, with which we’ll try to buy another horse—the best we can get -for it. But after this we’ll go along at our own gait, no matter who -goes before or follows after us.” - - * * * * * - -He who is dissatisfied and unthankful in his own proper sphere, by -trying to climb higher sinks lower than ever before. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE UNUSED LOOM. - - -A MAN who had inherited a plain but comfortable house with a lot of -ground around it went there to live. He found, on looking through the -house, that, beside the furniture it contained suitable to his daily -wants, there was in one of the upper rooms a curiously-made loom. It -was a complicated machine, and he could see at a glance a valuable one; -but he could see also that it would require his best skill as well as -a good deal of hard work to keep it in motion. Not caring to put these -forth just then, instead of attempting to run it, he let it stand. - -As he had to earn his living, however, and was not, in truth, a lazy -man, he employed himself in other ways, tilling his ground and, when he -had that in perfect order for the time being, hiring himself out to do -farm-work for his neighbors. But he was, at best, a poor hand at this -sort of work, an ordinary day-laborer easily outstripping him; so that, -although he managed to live, by the end of the year, if he was not -actually behindhand, he was sure to have nothing over. - -But while he worked in the soil he never forgot his loom. And sometimes -when the work was harder and money scarcer than usual he would go up to -the room where it was stored, and open the door and stand looking at -it. Yet as soon as he realized afresh the labor both of mind and body -required to run it, he shut to the door again and went back to day’s -work with his pick and shovel. - -But at length his pressing needs and a deepening conviction that he -could better his condition induced him to undertake what he had shrunk -from so long; he began clearing away from his loom the dust and dirt -that had accumulated about it, determined to persevere until he had put -it in perfect running order. And, having once begun the work, he found -at each step of its progress that his interest increased, and that the -strength and skill required were forthcoming as occasion demanded. - -[Illustration] - -Finally, every part being ready, he put in the warp and the shuttle, -and set it in motion. Then he himself was surprised at the result. The -fabric it wove was both serviceable and beautiful, and there was at -once a demand for all he could make. The people of the village where -he lived, and of the neighborhood for miles around, flocked to his -house to secure it; and he felt for the first time, though after many -precious years had been wasted, that he was engaged in the work he was -best qualified for. And while serving others he was also benefiting -himself; for, instead of making but a bare living, as before, he was -able now to lay up a considerable sum from his earnings every year. - - * * * * * - -We may possess valuable talents without profiting by them. Talent -furnishes the machinery; application, the power to drive it. It is only -by putting the two together that we shall secure the prize within our -reach. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CROWING. - - -EARLY one morning, while the fowls were waiting around the kitchen door -for their breakfast, a spring chicken attempted to crow, but succeeded -only in uttering a feeble squawk. - -A young cock, hearing this, stood up and crowed loud and clear, saying -to the other: - -“You’d better be still till you can crow like that.” - -To which a guinea-hen that was restlessly flitting about replied with a -shrill, high voice: - -“It was only the spring before last when you did no better yourself!” - -[Illustration] - -“Impossible!” said the cock. “It must be some other chicken you are -thinking of.” - -“Not so,” replied the guinea. “I remember you ever since you were -hatched—while you were a little chick sleeping under your mother’s -wing, when you grew bigger and first flew up to the roost, and how like -this spring chicken’s your crowing was then, only with this difference: -you were so conceited that the whole barnyard was laughing at you. All -this is forgotten now, luckily for you. But take my advice: be tender -of the failings of others, lest your own be recalled and displayed in -full light.” - - * * * * * - -Let us not refuse to pardon in others what we, through others’ -kindness, have been pardoned for ourselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -PETER CRISP’S SPECTACLES. - - -PETER CRISP had something the matter with his eyes; he needed -spectacles to help him see. But this was no uncommon misfortune: -hundreds of people who do ten good hours’ work every day, use -spectacles, and cannot get along without them. No; the trouble -in Peter’s case was not in having to wear spectacles, but in the -particular kind of spectacles that he wore. They seemed to have the -strange quality of undergoing a change of color at certain times; so -that everything seen through them underwent a corresponding change. - -[Illustration] - -At one time they took on a dark color—almost black. And, as this made -everything look dark and gloomy, he was made to feel accordingly. - -“I could iron these collars better myself,” he exclaimed one morning -as he was dressing, after putting on these glasses. And a few moments -later: “Not a single pin in this cushion, as usual!” And presently -again: “Who _has_ taken away my comb and brush?” though both of these -useful articles were lying within his reach, and just where he himself -had left them. - -Had any of the children chanced to come into the room about that time, -it would have been an unlucky visit for them. - -[Illustration] - -When he sat down to breakfast, it was with a frown upon his brow, and a -deep wrinkle between his eyes, caused, apparently, by the weight of the -spectacles. - -“Bridget never did make a good cup of coffee in her life,” he -remarked.—“My dear,” he continued, turning to his wife, “I do wish you -would take the trouble to go down once—_only_ once—and show her how.” - -[Illustration] - -Mrs. Crisp ventured to answer in a meek voice that she went down every -morning. Peter had no reply—especially no thanks—to offer for this; but -he took another sip, puckered up his lips as though he had swallowed a -dose of medicine, and pushed the cup away from him. - -[Illustration] - -After this cheerful breakfast he put on his hat to go to the store (for -Peter was a business-man); but when he had gone as far as the front -door, he came back with a quick step to the foot of the stairs, and -there stood calling out in a loud voice that he really felt ashamed -at the condition of the steps and the sidewalk. No others in the -neighborhood, he declared, looked so shabby. - -[Illustration] - -In the street a few minutes afterward he was joined by a fellow -business man, and as they walked down town together Peter was as gay -and lively as any one could have wished him to be. The two talked with -each other about the fine weather and their prosperous trade, and even -touched on their happy families. And when they spied a bachelor-friend -in the distance, Peter grew merry at his expense, and expressed pity -for him as a poor fellow who had no home! - -[Illustration] - -But when, a little later, he entered his counting-room alone, it -was plain he had the dark glasses on still. Not a man about the -establishment worked as he should do, he said. It used to be different -when he was a boy. Then he turned and went out of the house with a look -of disgust. - -[Illustration] - -As soon as he was gone the bookkeeper scolded the clerk, the clerk -scolded the boy, and the boy went out to the front door and abused the -porter. And after that, throughout the day, everything seemed to go -wrong with Peter himself and all who were about him; yet surely the -fault was his own. - -[Illustration] - -A few mornings after this it seemed as though Peter’s glasses had -undergone another change. They appeared now to be of a blue color. He -was in a milder frame, but low in spirits. He was sorry to see the -nursery carpet wearing out, for he did not know where another would -come from. At breakfast he watched the children taking butter, and -took hardly any himself. He begged Mrs. Crisp to put less sugar in his -coffee. The frown was gone from his brow but a most dejected look had -taken its place. Spying a hole in the toe of his boy’s shoe, he drew -a long breath; and, hearing that the dressmaker was engaged to come the -next week for his daughters, he sighed aloud. On his way down town, -walking alone (for he avoided company), he looked as if he had lost a -near relation, and at the store all day seemed to feel like a man who -was just on the eve of failing in business, though there was, in truth, -no danger of his doing any such thing. - -[Illustration] - -There was one more change that Peter’s glasses used to undergo. The -color which they then assumed could never be exactly made out, but -it seemed to be more of a smoky hue than anything else. This did not -come upon them so often as either of the others, but when it did it -had a very singular effect. The glasses then seemed to befog Peter -rather than help him see. For after putting them on when he got up of a -morning, he would dress without speaking a word. At breakfast he would -say nothing, and make it plain that he did not want anybody else to. -Consequently, the whole family, little and big, would sit and munch -their food in silence. Then he would rise up from the table and walk -out of the house as if he were dumb. And although it was a relief when -he had gone, and made matters something better, a chilling influence -remained behind him the whole day. - -[Illustration] - -Peter had been wearing these glasses a good many years, when, as he -was meditating alone one evening, he thought to himself that things -never looked very cheerful in his eyes and he was never very happy, and -it occurred to him that perhaps his spectacles had something to do with -it. Then he remembered that a neighbor of his, one Samuel Seabright, -who also wore glasses and often used to complain of them, now seemed -to have gotten over his trouble and always to have a pleasant face on. -Meeting Samuel the next morning, he said: - -“Neighbor, if it is not making too free, may I ask what was the matter -with your spectacles when I used to hear you find fault with them so -often?” - -“Certainly you may,” replied Samuel, “for I have not the least -objection to tell you. They used to get strange shades and colors over -them; so that nothing looked natural or as it ought to look, and of -course this affected my spirits.” - -“Is it possible?” said Peter. “And have they got perfectly clear and -transparent now?” - -“Clear as crystal; so that everything looks just right, and they give -me no trouble at all.” - -“And would you mind telling me how you got them so?” - -“I went to the doctor’s, and did exactly as he directed.” - -“And can you tell me where that doctor lives?” - -[Illustration] - -“Of course I can. You remember that large stone building with a -beautiful stained-glass window at one end of it, and a high tower on -top, with a chime of bells in the tower?” - -“Oh yes; I pass it every day.” - -“Well, the doctor lives next door to that.” - -That very day Peter stopped at the doctor’s house and rang the bell, -and was shown into his office. The doctor himself was there, and after -looking into Peter’s eyes began to ask him questions. - -“Do you walk much in the open air?” said he. - -“Yes, every day,” replied Peter, “but it is mostly in going down to my -store and back again. Though sometimes of an afternoon my wife and I -stroll out together.” - -“What streets do you generally walk in?” - -“Only the best-kept and most respectable streets.” - -“Are you in the habit of visiting much?” - -“A good deal.” - -“I suppose, then, you are kept up late at night sometimes?” - -[Illustration] - -“I can’t help it. You see, my relations, almost all of them—I may say -all that I keep up any acquaintance with—are rich people. Now, last -night I was at my uncle’s house. He had just finished papering his -parlor with the most beautiful paper I ever saw. Then he had newly -covered his furniture with satin damask, and bought carpets and -curtains to match, and he kept me looking at these things ever so long.” - -“Are you often kept up in this way?” - -“Yes, quite often. The night before that I went to my cousin’s. He gave -a very handsome dinner. There were fifteen courses set on the table. -I am sure his dinner cost enough to feed a plain family of moderate -size, for half a year. But nobody was there except the most select and -fashionable people. To tell you the truth, doctor, these are pretty -much the only kind of people I visit. They live in fine houses, with -large rooms that are well ventilated and well lighted, and I don’t see -how my eyes, or my spectacles, either, can get any harm while I am -there. Indeed, I am longing all the time for the day when I can live in -such a house myself, instead of the little pinched-up dwelling I have -to stay in now.” - -“Well, I have formed my opinion about your case,” said the doctor, “and -am ready to say what you should do. But I must tell you beforehand that -it will be different from what you expect, and probably from what you -would choose.” - -“Oh, as for that,” replied Peter, “I am not at all particular; you will -find me willing to do whatever you say.” - -[Illustration] - -“The first thing I want is that you should stop walking in those broad, -sunny, handsome streets, and walk through the narrower and poorer -streets, where there is not such a glare of light.” - -“I wouldn’t like to walk in them, for I don’t care to be seen in any -but the most respectable streets.” - -“Well, then there is no use of my prescribing for you any further.” - -“Oh, if it comes to that, I’ll do it; for I want to get my eyes well -more than anything else.” - -“The next thing is that you should stop occasionally and rest while you -are walking there, and call at some of the houses in those streets.” - -“Why, doctor, I can’t see how that could possibly do me any good. As I -have told you already, the houses where I visit are among the finest in -town, well ventilated and heated, and some of them are just getting in -the new electric—” - -“Very well,” interrupted the doctor; “it is for you to say whether you -will do as I prescribe or not.” - -“I suppose I will have to do it, then, though I have never visited such -places in all my life.” - -“Stop here to-morrow afternoon, after business-hours,” continued the -doctor, “and, as you are not used to such calls, I will go with you to -make a beginning.” - -[Illustration] - -The next day Peter’s glasses gave him more trouble than usual, and he -was at the doctor’s office punctually by the time appointed. The doctor -did not keep him waiting, but put on his hat and led him a considerable -distance, to quite another part of the town from that in which he was -in the habit of walking. It had once been a fashionable part, but was -deserted long ago by the richer class, and was now tenanted by only the -poorest people. The houses had a decayed, tumble-down look; the front -doors (once so jealously guarded) were standing wide open, the halls -scarred and bare-looking, every room being occupied by an entire family. - -Going into one of these houses, the doctor led Peter up to the third -story. There he knocked at a door. - -“Come in,” said a faint voice. - -Entering, they saw a poor woman sitting in an armchair. She was moving -her head from side to side in the effort to get her breath. A bottle of -medicine stood on a rickety table near by. The bedstead at her side, -covered over with a counterpane, was evidently without a mattress, or -anything else save the canvas sacking, to lie on. Two little girls, -pale and scantily clad, shrank back to a corner as the visitors entered. - -[Illustration] - -The doctor sat down beside the poor sufferer, and after inquiring -about her sickness led her on gently to tell something of her past -history—how in her youth, in her father’s house, she had every want -supplied; how she had married with bright prospects, and for a time -been happy, until her husband, fallen through drink from one depth of -poverty to another, had at last left her and her little ones to starve, -except for the kindness of those who took pity on them. - -“Yet God has taken care of me,” she said, “in all my troubles, and I -know he will keep on doing so. Yesterday I awoke in the morning and -sat up on the edge of my bed, and cried, for I did not know where a -mouthful of food was to come from for me and my children. But before -night I had plenty.” - -Peter looked from her face to the doctor’s while she was speaking. He -knew that the doctor was familiar with such scenes, yet he saw him put -his finger up to his eye and draw it across the lids to prevent a tear -from falling. - -Coming out of this house and walking a little way, the doctor turned -into a narrow alley that led back from the main street. Here he entered -a house that was shut in from the air and the light by high walls on -every side. In a lower room of this house was a man, tall and of large -frame, once evidently very strong, but now pale and weak, looking as if -he were hardly able to stand. Five young children, in various degrees -of raggedness, and the man’s wife were with him. - -[Illustration] - -Peter looked around the room. The walls had been so often covered with -whitewash that it stood out in layers and ridges upon them, except in -some spots where the plaster had fallen off, leaving the lath bare -underneath. Peter could not help thinking of the beautiful paper in his -rich uncle’s house. - -The doctor asked how they had got along since he last saw them. It -was but poorly, they said. The father had been able to work only a -few days—two or three in a week—and the mother had to make up for the -rest. Beside doing the work at home, she went out washing and scrubbing -almost every day. - -“But it is hard on us,” she said; “he needs good food, and we can’t get -it. I do all I can, but it’s not a great deal, for it pulls me down so. -I feel tired all the time—when I go to bed at night, and when I get up -in the morning.” - -As she spoke Peter thought that her thin, worn face told her story even -more pitifully than her words did. - -It was quite late when they got through this visit, but the doctor -walked with Peter all the way to his home, talking with him about his -own ailment and telling him what he ought to do. “For,” he said, “the -trouble with your eyes is a serious one which comes from something -worse than poor spectacles, and is often more deeply seated even than -the eye itself.” - -[Illustration] - -As they parted he said: - -“I want you to be at my office again at the same hour to-morrow -afternoon.” - -Peter was there at the time named, and the doctor took him in still -another direction, to a street near the water. Here, entering a narrow -but very high house, the doctor led him up a dark winding stair. It was -so dark that Peter had to grope his way, for he could not see a step -before him. They came at last to the garret, which the doctor entered -without knocking. The windows of this room opened toward the river, and -the masts of ships were visible rising above the roofs of the houses -that stood between. A seaman’s chest, a chair and a broken, propped-up -bedstead were all the furniture the room contained. - -On the bed lay an old white-haired man. He had been a sailor, and his -seamed and rugged face still told of his hard life upon the deck, and -on the mast, amid wind and storm. - -“What is the matter with him?” asked Peter, in a low voice. - -“Nothing but old age,” replied the doctor. - -“And what has he to live upon?” continued Peter. - -“Only the wages of his weak and sickly boy,” said the doctor, “who -leaves him in the morning to go to his work, and returns at night when -his day’s work is done. The long hours between he spends here alone.” - -The old man put his hand upon his breast, saying that he felt pain and -a smothering feeling there. - -“And what do you do, my old friend,” asked Peter, “while you are lying -here all by yourself, if you want anything? Suppose you want a drink?” - -“I do without it,” replied the old man. - -The doctor leaned over the bed and talked kindly to him, comforting -him, and then placed a piece of money in his trembling hand. - -As he and Peter came down the winding stair together the doctor said in -a low voice, “It is not likely he will suffer long.” - -When they regained the street, the doctor told Peter there was yet -another visit they could pay that same afternoon if they quickened -their steps; and he led the way to a neighborhood not far off, where -some great cotton-mills stood. Here, in a small house, and living in -one little room, were two old women who were sisters. A tiny stove -stood in the room with about a double handful of coal burning in it. A -bucket partly filled with coal (which they bought by the bucket only) -stood beside it. A single strip of rag carpet lay along the middle of -the well-scrubbed floor. - -[Illustration] - -In a tin cup over the fire a small quantity of meal was boiling, and in -a bowl on the table was a little milk. A few pieces of bread were lying -near it. (His cousin’s elegant dinner here recurred to Peter’s mind.) - -One of the old women was bedridden, but was now sitting up in her bed; -and both were at work unwinding great skeins of yarn, parting the -different colors and winding these up again into separate balls. This -was for one of the mills in the neighborhood. Both of the old bodies -were cheerful, and showed great pleasure when the doctor came in. The -well one bustled about and set out a chair for him, and another for -Peter. The doctor sat down and talked with them, and listened to all -they had to say. - -“Sister has been a good deal better for the past week,” said the well -one, “and the mills are busy, and we have plenty of work.” - -“But your rent?” asked the doctor. “It comes due soon, doesn’t it?” - -“We have it all made up,” said the old woman, triumphantly. “It is in -yonder bureau-drawer, ready now. God has been very good to us. We don’t -want any help this time.” - -It was nearly dark when the doctor and Peter came out of the little -house. As they were about to part, the doctor said: - -“To-morrow I will take you to another quarter and introduce you to some -of my friends there.” - -“I believe, my kind friend,” replied Peter, in a subdued voice, “that -this will be needless. Your wise treatment has reached the seat of the -disease. I feel my sight growing clearer every hour.” - -Then, hastily bidding his companion “Good-bye,” Peter turned toward -his home. He walked with a brisk step, feeling, somehow or other, as -if he could hardly get there soon enough. As he entered the door he -heard the merry voices of his children up stairs. He went into the -dining-room. No one was there, but the fire was burning brightly in -the stove, and a plentiful evening meal was already spread upon the -table. Peter stood for a moment silent and alone. The sofa, the chairs, -all the objects around him—-not luxurious and elegant, but comfortable -and abundant—-looked different from what they used to look. The place -seemed filled with blessings. - -“And is it possible,” he exclaimed, “my eyes have been so blinded that -I have never before been able to see them?” - -Just then his wife came into the room. He went to her, took her hand -tenderly in his, and told her where he had been, what he had seen, and -how differently he felt. - -“But,” said she, with a loving smile and an arch look, “how about those -badly-ironed collars that we heard of the other morning, and the -dusty steps, and the weak coffee?” - -[Illustration] - -“Oh,” he cried, “how could I ever let such trifles trouble me?” - -“And then,” she continued, “the nursery carpet that is wearing out, and -the boy’s shoes, and the girls’ dresses?” - -“As for them,” he said, “we will hope to get more when they are gone. -But with even half our present comforts and indulgences, and with you, -my dearest, and our precious children about me, I trust I may feel too -rich ever again to utter one complaining word.” - -So the dark shadows were driven away from Peter Crisp’s spectacles, and -he and all his family ever after led a happier life, because he had -found what he never possessed before—A THANKFUL HEART. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE TWO APPLE TREES. - - -TWO apple trees that stood on opposite sides of the road, being both of -them neglected by their owners, used to sympathize with each other’s -misfortunes. - -“Just look at the suckers that are allowed to spring up about my -roots!” said one. - -“And see the great nests of caterpillars that remain undisturbed among -my branches!” said the other. - -But after a while the farm on which one of the trees stood was sold, -and it soon became evident that its new owner was a very different -farmer from the old one. He began straightening up his fences, -whitewashing his buildings, and putting things to rights all over his -farm. His fields were ploughed, his garden planted, his fruit trees -attended to—among the rest, the apple tree that stood near the road. -Its dead wood was cut out, the caterpillars it had complained of were -cleared away, and the ground about its roots was loosened and enriched. - -[Illustration] - -As a consequence, when spring arrived, it was covered with blossoms, -and later in the summer loaded down with fruit. - -But while all this was going on it had noticed a strange alteration in -its opposite neighbor. Formerly the two trees used to talk together -every day, but now very little passed between them. The one across the -road seemed unwilling to talk and grew more and more silent, until, -when autumn came and the great red apples were being gathered from the -branches of its old acquaintance, it would scarcely return an answer -when spoken to. The other bore this for a time, but at length could -bear it no longer, and then spoke out plainly, as follows: - -“You will hardly answer me when I speak to you. What a change is this -in an old friend! Yet I have done nothing to make you dislike me. I -am left to imagine only one cause for it, and that is jealousy, and -regret, at my greater good fortune.” - -“You wrong me,” replied the fruitless tree—“not in charging me with -unkind treatment, which I acknowledge, but in the motive you have -imputed it to. It is not because I am sorry for your good fortune, but -because I am ashamed of my own unhappy condition, that I am so silent. -I would not strip from you one green leaf or have you to bear one apple -less, but in looking at your prosperous state I am made more conscious -of my own poverty, and realize what a poor barren stock I am.” - -“Pardon me,” said the other. “Instead of being angry I am sorry for -you, and hope with all my heart that by next spring you may fall into -better hands, and by autumn be more heavily loaded down with fruit than -myself.” - - * * * * * - -An appearance of ill-will does not always prove its existence. We -should be sure of the motive before judging the act. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE SPRING IN THE WOODS. - - -A SPRING of pure water bubbled up from the ground in the midst of -a wood, but the trees, after sheltering it for a season, began to -complain of it as an intruder. - -“You take up too much of our room,” they said, “where more trees might -grow. Then, our underbrush, that we depend on for the future, is -trampled down and spoiled by the animals that come trooping every day -to your side. You have no right to occupy our space, and we warn you to -be gone.” - -Hearing this, the spring sent word down to its hidden source, deep in -the ground, bidding its streams seek another outlet in a grove near by. -Soon afterward its waters began to disappear from the wood, sinking -lower and lower, until, instead of the glassy mirror in which the trees -used to see their branches reflected, only a dusty hollow remained. -Nor was this all. Hot and dry weather came on soon after, and the -trees, missing the moisture about their roots, many of them lost their -freshness and verdure, and some of them died. - -[Illustration] - -Meanwhile, the spring reappeared in the grove, with waters more -abundant than ever, and the trees there grew thicker and greener, and -bushes and wild flowers sprang up on every side. There, too, the birds -and the beasts, deserting the woods where they had formerly gone, -thronged to drink and rest in its shade. - - * * * * * - -Because we fear a little trouble and expense, or, it may be, the -humbling of our pride, we let those pass by our doors who would profit -us in the best things and perhaps prove to be angels entertained -unawares. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE DISTANT VIEW. - - -A MAN who came as a stranger into a country neighborhood bought a -cottage there which stood on rising ground. Before his porch, and -gently declining from it, was a velvet-like green sward, and farther -off a thick growth of trees on every side. These quite surrounded him, -and gave him from his cottage door a limited but beautiful prospect. A -neighbor who came to pay him a friendly visit, on seeing it, said: - -“You are here in a little world of your own, with every object that is -disagreeable to look at shut out.” - -But the man himself was not satisfied. Beyond the woods, on one side, -was a river, and beyond the river far-spreading green fields. He wanted -to bring these within sight. There was no way of doing this except by -cutting down some of his trees. So, regardless of what others might -think or say, he took his axe on his shoulder one morning, and went to -the spot where the trees stood that interrupted the desired view. - -Upon examining them, he found they were among the handsomest on his -place. There was a chestnut already in tassel, an elm with spreading -top and fringed trunk, a sugar-maple that he knew would turn to crimson -and gold in the autumn, and beside it a tall evergreen. But he did not -hesitate. The end to be gained would more than compensate for his loss, -and he went to work with a strong arm and determined will, and soon -laid the trees low. - -When the distant landscape burst upon his sight, he felt amply rewarded -for the sacrifice he had made. After this he was careful to keep the -avenue which he had cleared always open, coming down there again with -his axe whenever a young tree or a branch of an old one, or even a bush -or shrub, interfered with the view. - -[Illustration] - -And now it seemed as though he never wearied of looking at the river -and the green fields beyond. Every morning, before going to his work, -he stood a few moments gazing at them. Again, at the close of the day, -on returning to his cottage, he looked at them in the soft sunset -light. When working in his garden or about his lawn, they were in sight -all the time. And on Sundays, or whenever he had a few hours’ rest, he -would take his favorite seat before the door that looked out toward -that view. - -Of course there were cloudy days when the view was interrupted, but -even then he used to gaze in that direction, knowing that the scene he -loved was there. And so he continued to do year after year. And though -you may hardly believe it when I tell you, yet it is true, that as the -years rolled on there came a changed expression upon his face—as if he -saw something which others could not see—which never again left it. - -After this had become so evident (though unknown to himself) that his -friends and neighbors observed it, one of them made bold to ask him -whether there was anything more than a love of Nature that so attracted -him to the river and the green fields. - -[Illustration] - -Then for the first time he opened his heart to another, and said: - -“You know, my friend, that I came to this country a stranger, but you -do not know that I came also an outcast, disinherited justly, and -banished from my Father’s house. That house stands across yonder river, -and through all these years I have been catching glimpses of it, and -hoping some day to return there. This reveals to you the reason for -what seems so strange in my life since I came here. And now I know that -I shall return thither. I am but a sojourner here, and am longing to -see my Father’s face—yes, and the face of my Elder Brother, who it is -that has brought about (at His own cost) a reconciliation between us.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE TWO VINES. - - -A MAN came out into his garden one spring morning to prune his -grape-vine. Wherever its branches were growing too freely, or in -a wrong direction, he cut them off. Then he bound them to a low -wooden frame he had placed there, so that they might grow only in -the direction he intended. Now, as the day was warm and the sap was -beginning to flow, the branches bled, as the vine-dressers say, in the -places where he had pruned them. - -[Illustration] - -It happened that just outside of the garden wall a wild vine was -growing, having twined itself around a tall forest-tree that stood -there. When this wild vine saw what was done to the vine in the garden, -it cried: - -“I pity you, wounded and bleeding, and not allowed to grow aloft, as -your nature demands.” - -“It is not because he delights in wounding me,” replied the other, -“that my master has done this. I was once a wild vine too, but he took -me up tenderly, and planted me in his garden, and has watered and cared -for me ever since. I am willing to submit myself to his hands.” - -Not many weeks after this rich blossoms burst forth on both vines, -giving to each an equal promise of fruit. Before long the blossoms -dropped off and the embryo fruit appeared. As the summer advanced -_these were tried_. Such as were destined to ripen lived on through the -heat and the drought, and such as were destined to perish fell to the -ground. - -At length autumn came. The wild vine had climbed up to the topmost -boughs of the forest-tree and was waving its unfettered branches in the -air, but on those branches were found only a few withered grapes. But -the vine in the garden, tied down to its low frame, was loaded with -purple clusters; and the gardener came, and gathered them into baskets, -and carried them to his home. Afterward he returned to his vine and -bound straw around it, to protect it from the winter’s cold. But going -through the forest with his axe in his hand, seeking for fuel, he cut -down the wild vine and cast it on the heap for the winter’s burning. - - * * * * * - -He who believes that a loving, and all-powerful Hand is ordering his -lot should see a token of future blessings in the visits of adversity. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE OLD CHESTNUT AND THE YOUNG OAK. - - -AN old chestnut tree that had been condemned to the axe a generation -ago, being overlooked by the woodman from year to year, still stood in -its place among the trees of the forest, and on the return of spring -feebly put forth a few leaves at the end of its branches. - -A strong young oak that stood near, seeing this, said to it proudly: - -“What is such a fag-end of life worth, any way? Why not give up the -struggle and die?” - -[Illustration] - -“It is not for us to die when we choose,” replied the chestnut, “but to -cherish what of life is left to us.” - -A century rolled round. The chestnut had fallen and gone to dust, -but now the oak had grown old. A yawning cleft down its trunk showed -where the lightning had blasted it long years before. Its once mighty -branches were decayed, and broken off by winter storms; only here and -there a tuft of green remained amid the vast ruin. Viewing these sadly -one day, it said: - -“I am made to look back a hundred years! It is my turn now to be asked -why I do not give up the struggle and die. Ah! how little I knew what -my own lot was to be when I mocked another with the question!” - - * * * * * - -Let us not add to the burden which old age will lay upon us hereafter -by want of sympathy for those who are bearing this burden now. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CORN-CRIBS. - - -A POOR man having died and left his widow with little children to -support, a neighbor of hers—who was known by the name of Kris, and who -was almost as poor as herself—borrowed a horse and cart to go around -among the farmers he was acquainted with, and beg some corn for her. - -“All of them,” he said, “knew her husband and hired him now and then to -do day’s work; I’ll go and see what they will give.” - -[Illustration] - -He came to the first farmer, who listened to his story and without -saying a word went to his corn-crib, filled his bushel-measure heaping -full, and emptied it into the cart. Kris thanked him warmly for this, -but the man, not seeming to notice what he said, returned to his crib, -heaped up the measure once more, and emptied it also into the cart. -Then for the first time he spoke, saying: - -“I can give to so worthy an object with a clear conscience. When she -wants more, come again.” - -As Kris drove out to the road he said to himself: - -“I’ve made a mistake: I ought to have borrowed a wagon instead of a -cart. This will be full presently, and I could just as easily have -hauled her a two-horse load.” - -Turning in at the next gate, he told his story to the farmer there, -who, as soon as heard it, said: - -“Why, if a man’s got any conscience at all, he can’t help giving to -such a hard case.” - -Saying which, he walked to his corn-crib, but with not quite so brisk a -step as the first, and filled his bushel-measure, but not quite so full -as the other, and, handing it to Kris, let him carry it out and empty -it into the cart himself. Kris thanked him, but noticed that he did not -say he was welcome. - -About half a mile farther on Kris came to the third farm. As he drove -in he met the farmer on the way to his barn. He stopped and listened to -what his visitor had to say. - -“I thought maybe,” said Kris, closing, “you’d like to give her some -corn to help her out through the winter.” - -[Illustration] - -“Of course I would,” replied the farmer. “I hate tramps and beggars, -but she’s none of them. I knew her husband well; he gave an honest -day’s work for a day’s wages. Besides, it’s a duty to give. I’d do it -to ease my conscience if it wasn’t for anything else. Come over to the -crib.” - -Kris followed him to the door and went in. The bushel-measure was lying -there, but the man looked around, as if something were still wanting, -and then hurried over to the stable. - -“His big scoop is missing,” thought Kris. “He’s going to do the best -yet.” - -In a moment he was back again carrying a peck-measure in his hand (it -looked scant even for a peck); filling which, he handed it to Kris, -who, mute with surprise, silently emptied it into the cart. - -From this farm Kris drove on to the one beyond. He passed by the -farmer’s house—a comfortable stone dwelling—and turned into the -barnyard. As he did so he noticed how fat the cattle and the pigs -looked. The farmer came out to him, and Kris made his appeal. - -“Well,” said the man, “I s’pose I’ll have to help too; and even if I -didn’t want to, my conscience would make me. But I should think such a -stout-lookin’, able-bodied woman ought to be able to help herself.” - -[Illustration] - -By this time they reached the corn-crib, which Kris noticed was full -up to the very top; and the farmer, gathering up a dozen ears in his -hands, pitched them into the cart, exclaiming: - -“Whew! what a heap you’ve got there! Mind, Kris, don’t you come for any -more.” - -Kris drove out of the gate and turned his horse’s head toward home. - -“The cart’s too big, after all,” he said. “It’s of no use to go any -farther; the next one would want to take away some of what I’ve got. -It’s wonderful what a crop of consciences grows in these parts! But -I’ve a notion that a good deal of it’s only ‘cheat’ after all, and we -might as well call it by the right name.” - - * * * * * - -Men who can be satisfied without any conscience are very uncomfortable -without a base imitation of one to stand in its place. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE OLD CLOCK IN THE NEW HOME. - - -A CLOCK that had been handed down from generation to generation and -brought from the old country homestead to a new city home, as it was -being wound up one day, said, impatiently: - -“I have been running for a hundred years. Let me rest now. Are not your -fathers, whom I served so long, at rest?” - -“It shall be as you say,” replied its master, laying aside the key and -shutting up the glass door that enclosed its tarnished metal face. - -In a few hours the old clock was silent. Its great leaden weights hung -suspended near the floor; its broad old-fashioned hands ceased to move, -and its pendulum, no longer flashing from right to left through the -little round pane of glass in front of it, hung motionless and still. - -The day ended; the long night passed, and the morning appeared. The -same stirring sounds as on other mornings were ushered in from the -streets; the other clocks, within and without, went on striking as -usual. The family rose up for the duties of the day, but as they came -down to the morning meal each member stopped on the stairs and looked -regretfully at the old clock, saying: - -“How we miss it! How strange it seems not to hear it going!” - -“I lay awake last night,” said the mother, “listening for it to strike.” - -And so the second day passed. But toward evening, as the master came in -sight, suddenly the old clock cried out: - -“Come, wind me up and set me going again; and when at last I can go no -longer, take me to pieces and sell me for old brass. For I would rather -not be at all than to exist without taking part in the busy life that -is throbbing around me.” - -[Illustration] - -He who abandons his work (thinking to unburden himself) while he still -has the strength to perform it, lays down the lighter for the heavier -load. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE GREAT SECRET. - - -WE keep our hearts shut up, as it were, in a safe, or strong box, many -doors deep. The first door opens from the surface, or outside; it is -like the door to the vestibule of our house, and is open to all comers. -The second door admits to the halls and parlors, as we might say, and -is open to our acquaintances generally. The third door gives access to -the living-room of the family, wherever that may be; it is opened to -relatives and intimate friends. The door next to this admits into the -chambers where only the nearest and dearest may come. - -[Illustration] - -But beyond all these is another door, to which none in the house may -be likened; in this room are things which may not be shown—our most -secret thoughts and desires, the best and the noblest as well as the -lowest and the basest. The door to this room is never opened to human -eyes. And yet only the eye that can see within it discerns our true -character, for here, hidden away from mortal sight, dwells the real -man; and as the outward husk and shell are stripped off to come at the -kernel and the grain, so all the rest of us will be torn away and cast -aside when the final estimate comes to be made. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE HOUSE-BUILDER. - - -A CERTAIN man who owned a lot of ground determined to build a house on -it. There was a good quarry in his lot, but to get the stone out of -it required hard labor. This, however, was all that was needed; so he -went to work with a good will, and made a prosperous beginning. First -he laid the foundation, and then several courses of the superstructure. -But the toil was severe, the wall progressed slowly, and the work grew -wearisome. - -[Illustration] - -One day, while digging in his quarry, he discovered a new vein of -stone, which ran over his neighbor’s line, and he picked up a block -of it that came easily into his hand. He found that it was more -easily worked than his own, and that he could almost save the labor -of squaring, and dressing, by using it. The next day he took out some -more, until he had taken enough to lay one course of it all around the -walls of his house. But this carried him so far into his neighbor’s -premises that he dared go no farther; he filled up the opening he -had made with rubbish and earth, and went to work again on his own -land. Months, and even years, passed by; but he worked on faithfully, -day by day, and at last his house was finished. Then he furnished it -comfortably, and, taking his family with him, moved into it, to stay -there for the rest of his days. - -Now, while his hands were busy and his mind engaged in building, he -never once thought of the course of stone that he had taken from his -neighbor. But after all was done, and his long task completed, as he -stood one day in front of his house, admiring it, he observed that -course. It had settled into a different color from the rest—not so -different as to be noticed by others, but enough to make it evident to -himself. He found the next day, as he passed through his garden, that -he saw it again; and after that it seemed to stand out conspicuously -whenever his face was turned toward his home. This began to annoy -him. It was only one course, to be sure; there were full fifty courses -in the wall between the roof and the foundation. Why did this single -one attract his attention before all the rest? His conscience answered -the question. It did not rightly belong there; it never had been, and -was not now, his own. - -[Illustration] - -A year passed from the time when his house was finished, then another -and another. It was astonishing how quickly they sped. Yet there was -not a day in all those years that his eye did not, some time between -the rising and the setting of the sun, rest on that course of stone. - -At length old age crept on. He had time now to sit still and think of -the past, and he did not sleep at night as he used to. But both by -day and by night the course of stone was in his mind. Most willingly -he would have gone to his neighbor and paid him ten times its value -(for he had prospered and grown rich), but in doing so he would have -confessed himself a thief and disgraced his family for ever; he could -not do this. Or gladly he would have torn it from his walls and placed -it back in the quarry from whence he had taken it, but that was -impossible. So he lived on, brooding over it until it drove all better -and happier thoughts out of his mind, and at last he died, bowed down -and crushed, as it were, under its weight. - -[Illustration] - -There is an interest account, so to speak, running on against every -amount, be it small or great, that we have ever gotten dishonestly. And -the worst of it is that if it be not settled now we shall find it still -standing and accumulating in the long hereafter. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -PIGEONS. - - -SOME pigeons that had their home over a rich man’s stable came to visit -a pair that lived near by in a poor man’s barn. - -“You’d better come and live with us,” said the rich man’s birds, “for -we not only have a beautiful new house with partitions inside for our -nests, but we’re fed every day on the best that the farm affords.” - -“Who feeds you?” asked the poor man’s birds. - -“Our master’s servants, of course.” - -“But _our_ master,” replied the others, “feeds us himself. We thank you -for your invitation, but would rather stay where we are.” - -Summer passed and cold weather came on, and one snowy morning the -pigeons at the barn were astonished to see their grand neighbors alight -near them again. - -“We are of the same mind still,” the poor pigeons cried, “and can only -repeat what you have heard already. We will not go with you.” - -“Ah!” said their rich neighbors, “we have not come, this time, to ask -it, but rather to ask whether you haven’t got a corner here in the -barn where we may come and stay; for our master has gone away for the -winter, and his servants have forgotten us, and we’re likely to starve -in our beautiful home.” - - * * * * * - -The nearer we get to the source of the good that we need, the more sure -we may be of a continued supply of it. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE CLOCK ON THE DESK. - - -A LITTLE round nickel-plated clock stood on a certain man’s desk -measuring out his hours of work. One day, after he had been wrestling -with his thoughts and vainly endeavoring to order them to his bidding, -he leaned back in his chair, and, setting them at liberty, let them -wander whither they would. - -In a few moments, and while he still remained in this idle posture, -he was startled at hearing from his clock, instead of its accustomed -“Tick-a-tick!” the words, “Keep at it! Keep at it!” - -“Do you mean those words for me?” cried the man, and then, before -the clock had time to answer, continued: “It is because I am resting a -moment you presume thus to rebuke me. Must a man be for ever at work? -May he not take time even to look round him, or to yawn or wait for a -new idea? Your words are insulting.” - -[Illustration] - -Here, being out of breath, he paused long enough for the clock to reply: - -“Indeed, sir, I said nothing. You heard only my heart beat -‘tick-a-tick, tick-a-tick,’ as usual. When this stops, you know as well -as I that my life will be ended and my work for you done.” - -“Pardon me,” said the man. “Because I deserved a rebuke, I was so quick -at finding one. Though you did not utter the words, they fit my case -well. I would that you ever might go on repeating them.” - - * * * * * - -When we feel conscious of deserving reproof, its arrow lights upon us -from many a bow that was drawn only at a venture. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE WATCH-DOG. - - -A MASTIFF that had received a severe kick from his master thus -soliloquized as he walked slowly and sadly toward his kennel: - -“I guard his house by day and by night, securing for him undisturbed -rest, but hardly ever getting for myself so much as an hour’s sleep -at a time. He never comes near me that I do not show my pleasure by a -wag of my tail; and when he speaks to me and pats me on the head, my -delight is so great that I can hardly control myself, and behave as a -sensible dog ought to behave. And yet, because I happened, by accident, -to be in his way, he has thus ill-used and disgraced me! What a -shame, when he has the power so easily to make me happy that he abuses -it in making me miserable!” - -[Illustration] - -By this time the mastiff had reached his kennel, at the farther end -of the garden; but, as he was about entering it, one of his own pups, -that had been playing on the grass with a little terrier from the next -house, caught sight of him. In a moment both the pup and the terrier -let their tails drop and slunk out of sight. The old dog watched them -as they disappeared, and after pausing a moment said to himself: - -“This ought not to be. The harsh treatment that I have received makes -me examine my treatment of others. I am afraid I’m as bad as my master. -It is because they are growled at and snarled at so often these pups -run away as if their innocent gambols might cost them a cudgelling. My -master did not mean it; yet when he kicked me, he did me a favor, for -so have my own faults been brought to my view, and from this very hour -I mean to correct them.” - - * * * * * - -Before we judge those who have the rule over us, let us stop and ask, -“What would they say whom we rule over?” - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE OPENED EYES. - - -A BLIND man whose disposition had been soured by his misfortune refused -to credit anything his friends said about the objects that surrounded -him. He would not believe that the flowers he smelt were clothed in -brilliant colors, or that the birds he heard singing were covered with -beautiful feathers. He would not believe there was a regular succession -of night and day and light and darkness. He could give no reason for -his obstinate unbelief except that he could not imagine any of these -things; which, of course, was not to be expected of him, since he had -always been blind. - -It happened that after a time the man recovered his sight; whatever had -obscured it seemed slowly to pass away. At first only a faint glimmer -of light was visible. This increased from day to day, until at length -the last film disappeared from before his eyes, and he looked out upon -the world and saw everything clearly. - -Then he was like a person struck dumb and unable to speak with wonder -and astonishment. At this his friends followed him as he walked forth -unaided, and began to explain to him what he saw. - -“Yonder,” they said, pointing up to the sky, “is the great sun that -we have so often told you about, though you would not believe us. But -for it your eyes would be opened in vain; you would still be in utter -darkness.” - -[Illustration] - -But the man, suddenly regaining his speech, cried out: - -“Ah, my friends! I do not need to be told this now. Whereas all your -arguments failed to convince me while I was blind, now, though you -and all the world should tell me it was not the sun, I would know -differently. For I see him myself. He has shined into my eyes—yes, and -into my heart; and he is his own best argument. How can I remain in -ignorance of him while I am walking in his light?” - - * * * * * - -One clear view of the truth for ourselves is more convincing than all -that others can say to us in its favor. - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE LANTERN-PEOPLE. - - -[Illustration] - -I HAD been thinking how strange a thing it was that I disliked so many -people and liked so few. Only to look at some persons seemed enough -to put me out of humor and make me feel like saying cross things. -But there were others, though not near so many of them, whom I loved -to meet and whom I could hardly be cross to if I tried. I had been -thinking about this, when I fell asleep and had a dream. - -I thought I was carried away to a strange country where it was always -dark. No morning ever came there, the sun never shone, and there were -no stars in the sky. Yet people were living there, and I could see -them walking about. But they were very strange people, such as I had -never seen before, nor heard of, nor even thought of. I called them -the lantern-people because they looked like great lanterns with lights -inside of them that shone through. - -And they were of a very strange shape, for they had ever so many sides, -and on every side was a picture. Some were pretty and some were ugly -pictures. Every person I saw had both pretty and ugly sides. - -Of course I was very much surprised and stood looking a long while, for -the people could not see me though I could see them and was close to -them. On some of their sides were pictures of snakes, wasps, and pigs; -on other sides, of doves, lambs, flowers, and such beautiful things. - -And now I want to tell you a very curious thing about the way the -people acted when they met each other. I noticed, when a man met -another in the street, he would quickly turn around one of his sides, -so that the man he met could see it, and nothing else—that is, nothing -but the picture that was on the side turned toward him. - -[Illustration] - -While I stood watching I saw a man coming along who turned almost the -whole way around, so as to bring the picture of a dog in front, where -it could be most plainly seen. It was a bull-dog—one of the sort that -shows its teeth—very ugly and cross-looking. I could not understand -why he should take so much trouble to turn out that ugly picture (for -he had prettier ones that I could see) until I saw another man coming -toward him, who turned out a picture uglier still. It was of a bear. - -As soon as they came close up to one another the pictures seemed to -be alive. I was astonished to see their eyes move and their mouths -open and shut, seeming to snap at one another. And all I could hear -were barkings and growlings until they were gone, the dog and the bear -trying to bite each other as far as I could see them. - -[Illustration] - -Next came a little girl. Happening to look behind her, she saw another -little girl following her. At once she turned round one of her sides, -that had the picture of a wasp on it. But the little girl who was -coming after her turned out the picture of a beautiful butterfly. As -soon as they met, the wasp began to buzz and dart out its sharp sting, -and I saw the butterfly fluttering and fluttering, till presently it -was scared away and the picture of a great spider came in its place. -Then the spider seemed to dart at the wasp, and the wasp tried to sting -the spider; and the little girls went off quarrelling as fiercely as -the two men had done. - -Next I saw a young woman. She was prettier than any of the -lantern-people I had yet seen. I saw her coming from a long way down -the street, and she never turned her sides, no matter whom she met, but -always kept one picture in front, and that was of a dove. It had a ring -of black around its neck and an olive-leaf in its mouth. I thought to -myself: - -“What a beautiful picture!” - -Just then another young woman came up and pushed rudely against her, -and I saw this rude one turn out the picture of a snake. And the snake -hissed and darted out its forked tongue, but the dove would not go. All -it did was to coo softly and flutter with its wings and hold out the -olive-leaf. - -[Illustration] - -When the snake found that it could not frighten the dove away, it began -to creep off itself, as if ashamed; and what was my surprise to see, -presently, another dove come in its place! And the doves began to coo -to each other, and to look pleased and happy, and the two young women -took hold of each other’s hands; then they put their arms around each -other’s neck and kissed each other and so they passed happily by. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - -After this I walked about the streets looking at the strange people I -met there, and, seeing a crowd of them going into a building that had -wide-open doors, I went in with them. I found it was a church. In a -little while the minister stood up in the pulpit and began to preach to -them about being kind to one another and loving one another, very much -as the ministers do that we hear. I was up in the gallery, and could -see all the people as they sat listening to him. As he went on in his -sermon I saw how they turned out their good sides, one by one, some -quickly, some more slowly, until hardly an ugly side could be seen in -the whole congregation. - -[Illustration] - -But no sooner was the sermon finished, and the blessing pronounced, -than there was a shifting round of sides again, some doing this before -they left their pews, some as they passed down the aisle, some as they -walked down the church-steps; so that most of them came out pretty much -the same as they went in. - -[Illustration] - -After leaving the church, I passed before a large private house where -a servant-man was standing at the door. As he could not see me I stole -by him softly and went into the house. I found everything very elegant -there. Beautiful furniture filled the rooms, and costly paintings -covered the walls. But I soon learned that these things were not for -use or enjoyment, but only for show. - -The family was a fashionable one that had a great deal of company and -visited a great deal. The mother, a tall, fine-looking woman, was -evidently the ruling spirit among them. Whenever she and her daughters -were getting ready for a walk, or a drive, she turned out the picture -of a large peacock, and her daughters turned out little peacocks. I -followed them into the street, and as they walked along could see the -people bowing and smiling to them; but as soon as they had passed, -these same people made fun of them. - -[Illustration] - -In a second house that I entered the family was seated at dinner. -Though not so fine a house as the first, nor so expensively furnished, -I could tell at a glance it was a far happier home. I looked round to -see if I could discover the cause of this difference, and here again my -eye rested on the mother, who sat at the head of the table; but what -a contrast with the other! The dove was on her breast, and a brood of -doves on the breasts of the little ones who were gathered around her. -There was cheerful, innocent talk in which all took part, without a -word of unkindness for any one, present or absent. - -I stayed about this house for the rest of the day—it was a pleasant -place to be in—and when, toward its close, the mother stole apart to a -little room alone, I peeped in and saw there a chair, and a table with -an open book on it, and a kneeling-cushion, well used, on the floor -beside the table. Then I said to myself: - -“Perhaps here is the secret of the difference between this and the more -elegant home.” - -I cannot close this account of what I saw while I was in that strange -country without telling of a difference that I noticed between the old -and the young people there. The young were constantly changing their -sides; the old did not change them nearly so often. It appeared that -if they had turned out their ugly sides for the most part during their -former lives, they lost the power, as they grew old, to draw them back -again. On the other hand, if they had struggled against the bad and -kept out the good, the good became fixed there. - -[Illustration] - -My dream seemed to last a long time, and I visited a great many places -and saw a great many persons that I have not told about here. But this -I noticed everywhere I went—that those who kept out their good sides -had the best time of it. They were contented and cheerful themselves, -and helped to make others so. The doves, as we have read, brought out -other doves, and the flowers brought out other flowers. Whoever turned -out these saw them turned out by other people also. And so, with a -pleasant prospect without and a kindly spirit within, the good-sided -people experienced a happiness which the ugly-sided people never knew. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -GRAND RELATIONS. - - -A BLACKBIRD that wanted to impress on his neighbor the wren a proper -sense of his great importance took occasion every now and then to -remark that he was related to still larger birds. - -“My cousin the crow,” he would say, “did so and so,” or “invited me to -his nest at such a time.” - -After hearing this over and over again, the wren answered one day, - -“When I used to look at you alone and by yourself, you appeared as a -very large bird in my eyes; but since I’ve got to contrasting you with -the crow, you seem to have grown smaller even than myself.” - - * * * * * - -Better be satisfied with our own significance than seek to array -ourselves in the consequence of other people. - - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -FAIR AND FOUL WEATHER. - - -A SHOWER having come up suddenly while the chickens were scattered over -the barnyard, they ran from every direction to the chicken-house and -disappeared, one by one, through a hole near the ground that had been -left open for them to enter. - -A young cock, however, that happened to be in an adjoining field, took -refuge under a tree, where he straightened himself up, letting his tail -droop, so that the water would trickle off from it. But when he found -that the shower did not pass over, as he expected, he too took to his -heels and joined the rest under shelter. And there they all stood, -chickens, ducks, and guinea-fowls, dolefully watching the rain. - -After waiting for a time, and finding it likely to continue, the cock, -shaking out his feathers, said: - -“I’m going out to hunt for my dinner.” - -“What! in such a pour as this?” exclaimed an old hen. - -“And what would you have us do?” replied the cock. “We cannot carry -umbrellas, like our master and mistress. And, for all we know, it may -rain the rest of the week.” So saying, he walked boldly out into the -shower. - -Now, the wet having brought the worms to the surface, he soon picked -up a good meal; which the others descrying, they quickly came after -him, until the whole flock was scratching about the barnyard, quite -contented notwithstanding the rain. Seeing this, the rooster flew up on -a fence and crowed. Then, looking slyly at the old hen that had opposed -him, he said: - -“Which is best—to work only in fair weather, or to keep on scratching -whether it rain or shine?” - - * * * * * - -He will gather most in the end who does not easily give way to -discouragement when success is hard to attain. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -WRECKAGE. - - -TWO men were walking along the sea-beach together. The sand, as far as -the eye could reach, was swept clean and smooth by the falling tide, -but here and there at intervals lay fragments of wrecked vessels, some -made of heavy timber, some of lighter weight. Now, the men, who were -both of them well on in years, lived in a port near by on that same -coast, and as they walked they recognized some of these wrecks. - -“I remember the night when this came ashore,” said one, stopping before -a huge piece of keel half buried in the sand. “She was a fine ship, -well manned, and the bar on which she struck was laid down plainly on -the chart; but her master thought he could come close in, and yet -just miss it. But the current caught him, and he was lost.” - -[Illustration] - -Then, stopping before another fragment: - -“And I recollect this one too: she was a stanch bark, and I saw -her heaving up her anchor on a fine morning with the promise of a -prosperous voyage; but she tried to go out without a pilot, and she too -came ashore. Ah, my friend!” the speaker continued. “As I look up and -down this coast, and see so many wrecks whose history I know, a gloom -settles over me that makes life seem, as I look back on it, more like a -time of clouds and storms than of pleasant, sunny weather.” - -“There are wrecks enough to sadden us, that is true,” replied the -other; “but do not let us forget the good ships we have known that -sailed the seas for many a long year, and at last came back to lay -their old bones down in quiet waters on the flats behind our harbor. -Yes, and many another is still ploughing the deep, to return safe in -due time, bringing joyful crews and rich cargoes with them.” - - * * * * * - -The evil that sometimes darkens the path before us should not prevent -our seeing the good that is spread above, beneath, and around us on -every side. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE ROBIN. - - -A POOR widow who was all alone in the world earned her living by going -out to wash and scrub, day after day. She left her room early in the -morning, and did not return to it until night. Then she had but one -living thing to keep her company, a pet robin. That it might catch a -glimpse of the blue sky, from the narrow alley in which she lived, she -used to hang it on a nail quite outside of her window, before she left. -On her return she took it down and suspended it again near the head of -her bed. - -One evening on coming home she found the cage with its door open, and -empty. After searching again and again, through every corner and cranny -of her room, thinking her bird could not have left her, she was forced -to admit it was gone. - -Now, those who are surrounded with objects on which to bestow their -affections, know not what a loss such an insignificant creature may -be to one who has no other familiar thing to love. The poor woman -missed her bird when she awoke in the morning, when she went out to her -day’s work, and when she came back, tired and sad at heart, after her -work was over. The cage still hung near her bed; she looked at it and -grieved—yes, more than she ought to have done. - -While it was thus with her she had, one night, a dream. She thought -she was walking through a forest. The air was pure, the shade was cool -and delightful, and every leaf around her looked fresh and green. She -stood comparing the scene, in her thoughts, with the crowded alley in -which she lived, when suddenly the silence was broken by a loud note -far above her head. She looked up, and recognized her robin. It was -leaping from bough to bough, and its song was not as it used to be, -with a note of sadness in it, but glad and full of joy—the song of -the prisoner set free. - -[Illustration] - -She awoke, rose up, took down the cage and put it in a closet out of -sight, not forgetting its former inmate, but thinking of it as she had -seen it, since its escape, in her dream. - -“I am satisfied,” she said, “and would not call it back. Its prison -door has been opened; I will wait patiently until mine is opened for -me.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -RIDDLES. - - -THE ground was barren and wet, and covered with stagnant pools. Only -rank weeds grew on it, and venomous reptiles crawled through it. But -at length the husbandman came and labored over it. He dug trenches and -ditches that drained it, and turned a stream of pure water to flow -through it. Then he hedged it, and set up a fence around it; and now -flocks pasture there, and flowers bloom on every side. - - * * * * * - -A GARDENER planted some seed in his garden in the early spring, but -no sooner had it grown up than the frost nipped it. It sprang up a -second time, and a bird flew down and plucked off the tender shoot. -Once more it grew, but now, summer having come, the sun scorched it. -Nevertheless, because the root remained, it sprang up again and again, -until the gardener, rejoicing, gathered in his fruit. - - * * * * * - -A MOUNTAIN-STREAM ran over the edge of a precipice. In its descent -to the valley below it fell upon a point of projecting rock. On this -rock clods of earth were continually dropping from the ground it was -imbedded in. Sometimes they fell of their own weight, sometimes were -loosened by the foot of a wild beast in passing. There was never a day -that the rock was not soiled by them. But the stream, in flowing over -it, washed away each stain as soon as it appeared; so that to the eye -looking from above, it seemed always pure and clean. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE EMIGRANT’S WAGON. - - -AN emigrant who started in a new wagon for his far-off Western home -seemed to forget, because the wagon was new and strong then, that it -would ever wear out. As a consequence, he was very careless in his way -of using it, driving as fast down hill as up, and over rough places as -smooth. Sometimes he raced with other wagons, and occasionally loaded -his own so heavily and drove so recklessly, it was upset. - -[Illustration] - -In spite of all this ill-usage, however, the wagon seemed to remain -almost as good as new until it had travelled over about half of its -journey, when it began to show the effects of abuse. First some -rivets broke, leaving the floor-boards loose; next a spoke in one of -the wheels began to rattle; then a tire rolled off. After this, one -breakage followed another so rapidly that its owner was often forced -to stop for repairs. Neither could he always make these by himself, but -was obliged to call on the blacksmith and the wheelwright to help him. -As he waited at their shops day after day he could not help thinking of -his past folly, and saying to himself: - -“Oh that I had the first part of the road to go over again!” - -But, as this was impossible, it only remained for him to use the utmost -care while passing over the portion that was left. - -And so he did, creeping along slowly, avoiding every little jolt and -rut by the way, and often turning out to let others, who had started -after him, pass by. For the farther he went, the weaker his wagon grew, -until it fell into such a decrepit state that it was threatening all -the time to break down under him, and travelling in it, instead of -being a pleasure, as it was at first, became only labor and pain. - -But at last, though in miserable plight, he came to his journey’s end. -It is true that his wagon could not have remained new until then, no -matter what care he had taken of it; on the contrary, it must have been -well worn, and old, beside, for it had come a great distance and been a -long time in doing it. But if he had used it properly, and as a wagon -ought to be used, from the start, without doubt it would have carried -him all the way safely and comfortably. - -[Illustration] - -And then what a different account of his coming would have been -written! For, in the first place, he could have given the time to -pleasanter things that, as it was, he had to spend in patching up his -wagon. Then he could have occasionally helped some poorer and more -heavily-loaded emigrant that he came up with along the road. And lastly -(beside escaping numerous bruises and pains) he would have been saved -many poignant regrets and recollections, which added greatly to the -burdens he had to bear during the latter part of his journey. - - * * * * * - -We are all emigrants, and our bodies are the wagons given us to travel -in. If we abuse them in youth, we shall ride uncomfortably for it in -our later years. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -BIG AND LITTLE LANTERNS. - - -TWO countrymen who were neighbors started out on a dark night for the -nearest market-town, each carrying a basket of butter and eggs and -garden-produce on his arm. They took different roads, which were, -however, of about equal lengths. One of the men—the taller and stronger -of the two—carried a large and heavy lantern on a pole high above his -head, by means of which he was enabled to see far over the road in -front of him; and he set out with long and rapid strides. - -The other man carried a light and small lantern, which he held down -close to the ground, by his side, so that he could see no farther than -the spot on which to plant his foot, as he moved on more slowly and -cautiously, step by step. - -Some time during the night the latter reached his destination and -quickly sold out his basketful of produce to the early risers of -the town; but afterward, on looking around for his neighbor, was -surprised to learn that he had not yet appeared. He waited a while, -and then, fearing the man had met with some disaster—for the two were -friends—started back to find him; and about midway of the road he found -him, sure enough, fallen down into a pit that he had not seen, because, -instead of looking well to the ground that was close around him, he -was, by means of his great lantern, gazing far ahead. - -But, though he could not get out, happily none of his bones were -broken; and when his friend had torn a rail from a fence near by and -thrown it to him, he managed to clamber up the side and escape from his -trap. Yet his butter and eggs were spoiled and his lantern damaged, -and, as he was badly bruised by the fall, he begged his neighbor to -remain with him, saying: - -“There is nothing left for me but, by your help, to hobble back to -where I started from as best I can.” - -[Illustration] - -And so it came to pass that he who was the better furnished and more -confident at the start, came out a good deal worse off at the end. - - * * * * * - -Not always does he who can see the farthest travel most safely; and a -lowly talent well improved may gain more than a lofty one wasted or -misapplied. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE CAT AND THE TIGER. - - -A CAT that was a pet in a farmer’s family, understanding from the talk -of the children that a show of wild animals had come to the neighboring -village, stole off one morning to see it, and, creeping in under the -edge of the great canvas tent, proceeded to walk around the ring and -look in at the cages. - -She had not gone far when she came opposite to the tiger’s cage, and, -looking up, saw there a creature of her own species so powerful, -so immense, and withal so beautifully marked, that she was lost in -admiration and felt almost ready to bow down and worship it. - -[Illustration] - -“Great king of our race,” she cried, “I admire, and am willing to obey -you!” - -But the tiger, insensible to her praise, replied with contempt: - -“You poor little mouse-eating creature, do you come here to claim -relationship with one so great and strong as I am?” - -At this the cat, quickly regaining her composure, answered: - -“If your strength is so great that it must be restrained, and causes -you to be shut up where it is only a torment to you as you walk up and -down before the bars of your cage, then I would rather be as I am, weak -and little, but suited to my place in the farmer’s kitchen.” - - * * * * * - -The qualities which make men great often make them miserable while they -see around them those of lowlier station, and humbler abilities, more -happy and useful than themselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHARITY. - - -A CERTAIN rich man appointed an hour when the poor people of his city -had permission to call at his house and ask for charity. When the hour -arrived, the man sat in his parlor, while his servant stood at the door -to question those who called and report what they said to his master. - -The first one who came was a day-laborer. He was willing to dig or to -carry, or to work at anything he could find, but he could find nothing. -To him the rich man sent a piece of silver. - -The second one was a sailor. Only a few weeks before, he had sailed, -full of hope, out of the harbor; but his ship was wrecked in a storm, -and he saved only the clothes that covered him. To him also was sent a -piece of silver. - -The one who came next had seen better days; he had owned the little -house he lived in, with enough out at interest beside to keep the wolf -from its door. But misfortune had robbed him of all, and now he was in -want. To him were sent two silver pieces. - -After him came a mechanic who long ago had worked for the rich man’s -father, and helped to build the beautiful house that his father once -lived in. To him the rich man sent a piece of gold. - -Then came an old man who was still erect and vigorous, but with silvery -locks and flowing beard. In his younger days he had been a merchant. He -well remembered the rich man’s father when he was a merchant too, and -told of his honor and influence, and spoke feelingly of the favors he -had often done him. To him the rich man sent two golden pieces. - -When the next person called, the servant came in and told his master -that this one seemed to be the most needy of all. He was bowed down -with age and leaning upon a staff, and had travelled a long and weary -journey from the place where the rich man’s father was born, and used -to live before he came to the city and made his fortune. - -[Illustration] - -“Your master’s father and I were boys together,” he said, “and, in -truth, I was a near relation to him, and so I am to your master. But -sickness and misfortune have left me without bread to eat, or a place -to lay my head.” - -But when the rich man heard this sad story, he looked at his watch, -saying: - -“The hour is past that I appointed to listen to the poor. Go tell the -man he is too late; and when he is gone, shut the door, and bolt it -after him.” - - * * * * * - -If we will analyze our motive in giving, and take from it all that -issues of pride, we shall, many a time, be astonished to find how -little is left. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE DAY-LABORERS. - - -A CERTAIN land-owner called two of his hired servants early in the -morning and sent them out to work in his field. On the way there one of -them said to himself: - -“Though I do not care for my master, I care for the wages he will pay -me; therefore I will do a good day’s work, not for him, but for myself.” - -But the other man said: - -“Though I take wages, my master’s profit is dearer to me than my own; -therefore the work that I do is not so much for myself as for him.” - -[Illustration] - -So the men went out into the field to do their master’s bidding. And -while they labored there the sun rose up high above them, and his -fierce rays beat down on their heads. Yet they did not rest from their -labors, but toiled on until he passed through the heavens and began -slowly to descend again. And in the evening, after he had sunk below -the horizon, they came and stood before their master to give account of -the day. - -The first one said: - -“I have ploughed deep in your field and cast out the heavy stones that -were buried there.” - -The second one said: - -“I have gathered up the stones, and carried them to the edge of the -field, and set up a strong fence around it.” - -[Illustration] - -And as the master looked at their soiled and toil-worn garments and -their sunburned arms and hands, he knew that what they told him was -true. But when he looked in their faces, on one was the expression of -coldness and on the other was the expression of love. Then he gave to -each of them his wages, but the one who loved him he called into his -house, to be with him and wait on him continually. - - * * * * * - -The work brings the wages, but the motive the reward. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE ARTIST’S ANSWER. - - -A MAN who had accompanied an artist around his studio, admiring his -pictures, exclaimed, - -“What an easy and privileged life is yours, calling forth and putting -into visible shape such beautiful forms from day to day! You give -delight to others, it is true, but surely the largest share must remain -for yourself.” - -Said the artist, - -“Name to me some object in nature that you admire.” - -“This rose,” replied the other, “which you have placed as a model on -your table.” - -“We will take that,” said the artist. “Now, what is its history? First, -the parent slip was laid in the ground, and at once began its struggle -for life. It put forth tender roots, doubtful of the result, but the -soil received them kindly, and it lived. Then the tiny stalk appeared -above, and at length an embryo bud. But suppose the sun had scorched -this bud or the storm destroyed it? They destroyed many another, yet it -was spared, and at last opened in full bloom as you see it here. - -“Now, if the plant that bore it could speak, what would it say? -Something like this: ‘The rose you admire did not spring up uncalled, -like a beautiful thought, but is the result of slow development. -I could not but labor to bring it forth, for such was the work -appointed me. But the throes of effort were needed, and, now that -it is perfected, my delight is not in looking at it as a brilliant -flower, but as the fruit of my labor, hoping it may fill its place -among beautiful things and accomplish that for which it was called into -being.’ - -“So, my friend,” continued the artist, turning to his companion, “if -you think that these pictured forms which you delight in were of easy -creation, springing up spontaneous like a passing emotion, you have in -what the flowers says my answer.” - - * * * * * - -Each beautiful work costs labor, but how much only he knows whose hands -have formed it. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE HEMLOCK AND THE SUGAR-MAPLE. - - -A SUGAR-MAPLE tree and a hemlock grew close together, high up on the -side of a mountain. All summer they were, alike, covered with green, -so that they could hardly be distinguished one from the other. But as -autumn approached, the maple put on gayer colors. Branch after branch -changed to orange, and crimson, and gold, until the whole tree seemed -to be robed in these gorgeous tints. Seeing this, the hemlock said -discontentedly to its neighbor: - -“Why am I not beautiful like you? While your branches are growing -brighter every day, mine do not change at all, unless it be to a duller -hue. I am tired of this stale, old-fashioned green.” - -But the maple made no answer. - -[Illustration] - -A little while after this there was a change in the weather. Heavy gray -clouds covered the sky. A cold rain came on, and the sun was not seen -for several days. And now the leaves of the maple began to wither and -lose their bright hues, and as the gusts of wind shook them they fell -in showers from the branches. Then the maple, looking down upon them, -said to the hemlock: - -“You envied my beauty, but where is it now? See the remains of it lying -scattered over the ground! My branches are being left bare for the long -winter’s cold, while yours are still clothed with their thick, warm -foliage.” - - * * * * * - -He whose good fortune we covet has also, linked with it, some -compensating evil which we would not be willing to take off his hands. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -BREAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL. - - -A MAN who was strolling through the country for his own enjoyment -came to the top of a hill, where he stopped to admire the view. While -he was standing there a laborer with pick and shovel on his shoulder -and dinner-basket on his arm passed by. The man spoke to him and the -laborer answered civilly, but, hurrying on, was soon out of sight. - -After viewing the prospect from the hilltop, the man proceeded on his -way until he came to a waterfall on the edge of a wood. Here he rested -for a good while watching the stream break into foam and spray as it -flowed over the rocks into the deep basin below. - -From here he proceeded along the lonely road, wondering what beautiful -object would next appear, when presently he saw, spread out before him, -a lake of blue water with bushes and wild flowers growing around its -edge. It was almost noon by the time he was satisfied with gazing on -this charming scene. - -Then he started on his ramble again, but had not gone far when he spied -the laborer who passed him earlier in the day, digging away with his -pick and shovel in a rocky field beside the road. Leaning against the -fence, the pleasure-seeker stopped, and said: - -“Rather hard work grubbing at these stones?” - -“You are right,” replied the laborer, “but nothing else will bring them -out of the ground.” - -“This is a pleasant country to look at,” continued the other, “but not -to make your living out of, I should think.” - -“You’d say so if you tried it. I suppose you’re a stranger about here?” - -“Yes; this is my first visit, and I’m just sauntering along feasting -on the beautiful view. You people who live in the country don’t half -appreciate its charms.” - -[Illustration] - -Here the laborer, looking up at the sky and seeing the sun just over -his shoulder, dropped his shovel, and, going to a shady spot beside -a spring, where he had deposited his dinner-basket, opened it and -began to eat. His new acquaintance looked on until he had seen slice -after slice of bread and meat emerge from the clean white napkin and -disappear, when he said: - -“My friend, would you mind sparing me a bit? This walk has made me -hungry.” - -“Well, now,” replied the laborer, “you’ve been feasting on the view all -the morning, while I’ve been grubbing at the stones. If I give you my -dinner, then you’ll have two feasts, and I’ll have none.” - - * * * * * - -If we cultivate our taste for the beautiful, to the neglect of earning -our bread, we cannot expect those who deny themselves this luxury, to -supply our needs when we come to want. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE HARPER. - - -A HARPER stood before the door of a house and played a number of tunes -without seeming to attract the attention of any one within until he -played a sad and plaintive air, when an upper window opened and a hand -reached out and dropped a coin into the hat that he held beneath. - -From this house he went to another, and played the same air; but no -notice was taken of him until he changed from it to a more cheerful -tune, when a piece of money was again thrown to him. - -After this he was careful to note down in a little book that he carried -what sort of music pleased the inmates of the different houses in his -round; and whenever he selected a new tune, it was always with some -special hearers in view, to whom he went and played it as soon as it -was learned. In this way he was kept busy from day to day, and by means -of his harp earned a good living. - -Now, although he played a variety of tunes to please many different -hearers, he had strong preferences of his own. There were a few of his -pieces that he loved better than all the rest, and at the houses where -these were played his music was at its best, because he played it out -of his heart. - -So, one day, as he was trudging along with his harp on his back, he -said to himself: - -“A portion of my work is a joy and delight to me, but the rest is -labor and toil. Why should I not play that music only that I love, and -to those alone who can appreciate it? In it lies not only my chief -pleasure, but my real power as well. I am resolved henceforth to adopt -this plan.” - -[Illustration] - -So he gave up all but the few tunes in which he himself delighted, -and played only at the houses where these had been enjoyed. But in a -little while he noticed that he was not welcomed at these houses as he -used to be, and the cause (though he was loath to acknowledge it) was -not hidden from him. His favorite airs, by their sameness and constant -repetition, had ceased to stir his own heart as they once did; hence -his music had lost its fervor, and with this its power over the -hearts of others. Then he said to himself: - -“The plan which necessity imposed on me was better than my own. Its -discords tended to heighten its harmonies. Experience having taught me -this, I will now return to that plan.” - -So he took up all his old pieces, practising them over again, and -playing them, as he used to do, from door to door. And in thus doing -(mingling the bitter with the sweet) he soon prospered again. - - * * * * * - -In a higher state of being we shall be able to sustain the purest joys -uninterruptedly. But here, that we may only taste of them, our joy must -alternate with sorrow—our pleasure, with pain. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE UNAPPRECIATED GIFT. - - -A HUSBANDMAN was at work in his field, earning his living by the sweat -of his brow, when there came a man carrying a young tree in his hand, -which he planted at one side of the field, saying: - -“Give this the space that it needs, let it spread and grow, and wait -patiently: in due time its fruit and shade will repay you;” having said -which, he departed. - -The husbandman heard the man’s words, but went on with his labor from -day to day without much regarding them. The tree remained where it had -been planted, putting out new branches and growing higher and stronger. - -But after a time strange doubts and suspicions concerning the tree -entered the husbandman’s mind. As it took up more ground, he looked on -it grudgingly, and said to himself: - -“This is not a fruit tree at all, but a thorn. If I let it stand, it -will send up its evil shoots all over my field.” - -Then, taking his axe in his hand, at one stroke he severed the stalk -from the roots. - -After this the seasons came and went as they ever had done. The -husbandman sowed in the spring and reaped in the harvest. And so he -continued to do from year to year, until his labors began to tell upon -his strength, and he felt stealing upon him the infirmities of an old -man. His field still yielded its crop, but was bare and sunny, without -a sheltered spot in which he could sit down and rest. - -It happened one day after hours of toil that he sank exhausted, and -slept even under the burning rays of the sun. In his sleep he dreamed -that he was sitting in the shade. Over him green branches were spread. -They were loaded with fruit, which hung so near the ground that he put -forth his hand as he sat, and plucked and ate. Birds were also singing -in the branches, and a cool breeze passed through them, fanning his -brow. He said: - -“Surely these have been growing, and their shadows deepening, to cover -my head and refresh me in my old age.” - -[Illustration] - -As he spoke suddenly the man who had long ago appeared to him again -stood before him, saying: - -“Such would have been the tree that I planted on this spot had you not, -in unbelief and self-will, cut it down.” - -The husbandman awoke from his sleep and found it was only a dream, and -that he was still lying alone and unsheltered under the burning rays of -the sun. - - * * * * * - -Not recognizing the Sender, we refuse the gift, to bewail our folly -when it is too late. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE WORN-OUT TEAM. - - -TWO horses, a bay and a gray, were bred on the same farm. Being -nearly of an age and about equal in size, they were mated in harness, -and, working well together, were kept as a pair. They went to the -plough, the harrow, and the hay-wagon season after season. In this -close companionship there grew up something of an attachment between -them, although they differed in disposition. The gray was patient and -uncomplaining, while the bay, though quite as good a worker, was not of -so good a temper. - -[Illustration] - -The seasons came and went. In the spring they toiled together turning -up the heavy sod, in the autumn hauling in great loads of hay and -grain, until at length, as years passed by, their bulky forms began -to shrink and ribs and thigh-bones to appear. More than this, the -gray lifted one hind leg higher than formerly, giving a hint of the -string-halt, and the bay panted so violently after a short journey as -to suggest a thought of the heaves. But they had done their share of -work, and the farmer was not the man to sell them off now to some hard -fate: they were allowed to stand in the stable or given lighter tasks, -while a pair of young horses, that had come on in the mean while, were -put to the heavy work about the farm. - -One summer day, while the old horses were resting in their stalls, the -hay-wagon came in with a load from the field. As it drew near the barn -the farmer’s son shouted to encourage his young team up the rise that -led on to the barn-floor, and the old pair heard them, as they entered, -pounding overhead. - -“That is what we used to do,” said the bay, “until they put the colts -in our place.” - -“We never thought then of getting old and past work,” said the gray. - -“But we’ve come to it now.” - -“Many a heavy load have we hauled up that rise before them.” - -“Yes, I think of it often,” said the bay, “and of something else too: I -think of that hard hill over across the bridge. I was not always good -to you when we were climbing up that.” - -“You always pulled your full share, though.” - -“But I needn’t have put back my ears and snapped at you angrily every -few steps.” - -“Let that go; think no more of it,” said the gray. - -“And not only the hill do I remember,” continued the bay, “but many a -hot day on the road, while you were doing your best, I jerked in the -harness and jeered at you because my nose happened to be a few inches -ahead.” - -“Think of the pleasant trots we had together, instead,” persisted the -gray—“the gambols in the clover-field, and the rolls in the sand down -beside the creek. As for the rest, they’re past and forgiven; let them -be forgotten.” - -“You may forgive them,” said the bay, “but I can’t forgive them myself. -And now, while I stand here by your side, both of us grown old, they -come back and worry me—yes, more than ever the heavy loads did, or even -the driver’s whip.” - - * * * * * - -Youth is the time of anticipation and of sowing the seed; age is the -time of recollection and of reaping the fruits of what we have sown. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE WISE FARMER. - - -A FARMER came into possession of some new land. It consisted of three -fields that lay adjoining each other, but on going to examine them he -was astonished at the difference in their quality. The first was stony -ground; the next, though not stony, was of a thin and light soil; while -the third, lying lower and being meadow-land, was covered with rich, -dark loam. As a whole, the ground was not what he had expected, and -in his disappointment he hardly knew what to do. But after consulting -with his wife, who was a prudent adviser, he concluded to do his best -with all three fields, and not, on account of its inferior quality, to -neglect either one. - -[Illustration] - -The stony field was hard to cultivate. The ploughing was laborious, and -so were all the other processes of farming it. Yet he persevered till -it was well seeded down with grass and clover. The middle field—the one -with the thin light soil—required a great deal of help. He had to spend -largely for different kinds of fertilizers, and afterward was at much -trouble in clearing the ground to receive them. But by hard work he got -this field also planted with oats in good time. - -The rich loamy field, which from the start he had longed to begin on, -was left, purposely, till the last. As he took down the bars and drove -his team into it day after day he chuckled to himself, saying: “I do -love to farm this field!” - -It required but half the expense and labor to make it ready that either -of the others required, and no sooner had he drilled in the wheat than -there came a shower that made it spring up, so that he could almost see -it growing. - -The planting being done, he waited patiently for the harvest. Then the -stony field yielded him a good crop of hay, which he got safely into -his barn without a single wetting; the field with the thin light soil -gave a fair crop of oats—enough to feed his stock during the winter; -and the rich loamy ground yielded a splendid crop of wheat—sufficient -not only to furnish his family with flour, but also to let him sell a -portion, that brought in enough money for all his other needs. - -[Illustration] - -“How much better are we off,” he said to his wife one day after the -harvesting was over, “that we took the land willingly, just as it came -to us, instead of finding fault with it and neglecting the poorer -fields because they did not equal our expectations! And, now that we -have got them so well started, we may expect them, with proper care, to -go on improving from year to year.” - - * * * * * - -Among those who come under our care (our own children, it may be) we -shall find some less answerable to our wishes than others. But our duty -to all is alike, and by performing it we shall not only do justice to -them, but secure a recompense, in the end, to ourselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -WAYFARERS. - - -A MAN who had an ugly limp in his gait, but was nevertheless a good -walker, sat down on a bench by the wayside one day, saying, impatiently: - -“This lameness embitters my life. I cannot for a moment lose sight -of it. I go limping along, my legs are unlike, my steps are uneven, -and, though I do not suffer positive pain, I very often experience -discomfort. Beside all this, I fear, as I grow older, my halt will -increase upon me, so that I shall be even more of a cripple then than -I am now. How I wish I could change places with yonder cheerful-looking -man who is coming this way with such an even, measured tread!” - -As he ceased speaking the man he referred to suddenly turned toward the -bench on which the speaker was resting and took a seat at his side, but -rather closer than was needful, as they two had it alone. - -“Excuse me,” said the new comer as he felt himself crowding his -neighbor; “I am blind, and, although I know this path so well that I -can walk along it without a guide, I could not see that another was -seated here before me.” - -“I am sorry for you,” said the lame man, feelingly. “Surely, no one -would suspect you were blind from your firm step and your cheerful -countenance. May I ask how it is you preserve so happy an aspect under -so great a misfortune?” - -“By looking at what I have, and not at what I have lost,” replied the -blind man. “Though I cannot see, I can hear the voice of my friends, -the sound of music, the singing of birds. I can taste three good meals, -and enjoy them, every day. I can smell a rose in bloom farther than you -can, for all my senses that remain are keener for the absence of the -one that is gone. My health, too, is good, and I have learned to work -so skilfully at basket-making that, with a little I have beside, I am -able to pay my own way without being a burden to others. Thus, in the -apportioning of my lot, so much more has been given than taken, that I -consider life’s bargain a good one for me.” - -[Illustration] - -Having thus spoken, the blind man, after a few moments’ rest, bade his -new acquaintance “Good-bye,” and, rising from the bench, felt his way -cautiously, counting each step, until he reached the middle of the -sidewalk, when he wheeled around and proceeded on his way with the same -measured tread that had first attracted his companion’s attention. As -he disappeared the latter said: - -“What is my limp, which still permits me to walk wherever I will, -to his blindness, which shuts out every ray of light? Yet he is the -happier of the two! After all, blind as he is, I was doing myself no -unkindness in wishing I could take his place.” - - * * * * * - -How often does he who has the most go poor because he is unconscious of -it! while he who has the least is made rich by being able to appreciate -what he has. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -OTHER BIRDS’ FEATHERS. - - -A GANDER and a cock lived on the same farm. They were young and -handsome birds, each well satisfied with himself, but, unfortunately, -jealous of the other. This made them always ready to pick a quarrel. -Chancing one day to meet beside a brook that ran by the farmhouse, the -cock straightened himself up and said: - -“Look at my long and graceful tail-feathers, and compare them with the -short stubby quills in your tail.” - -To which the gander replied: - -“Look at the soft white down on my breast, and compare it with the -frowsy black stubble on yours.” - -“I can crow,” said the cock, “but you can’t.” - -“I can swim,” said the gander, “and you can’t.” - -“I can!” “I can!” cried both birds in a rage; and with that the cock -jumped into the water and nearly drowned himself in attempting to swim, -and the gander strutted up and down trying to crow. - -Just then a goose, with her brood of goslings passing by, looked at -them, and said: - -“My children, take warning from these two fools. Be content, when you -grow up, to wear your own feathers, and to let other birds wear theirs.” - - * * * * * - -There are always persons about us who possess some gifts that we lack. -To deny them credit for these only makes our defects more plain, and -brings disgrace on what good qualities we have. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE NIGHT-WATCHMAN. - - -A CERTAIN man who prided himself upon his infidel opinions desired to -employ a watchman around his house during the night. This it was no -more than prudent for him to do, as he was very rich, keeping up an -expensive establishment and known often to have a large amount of money -about his person. - -[Illustration] - -Many came to apply for the position he wanted filled, some of whom -he dismissed at a glance, some after a brief interview; but others -appeared well qualified for the place. Of these, three came equally -well recommended, and he determined to make his choice from among -them. He therefore took them apart separately, and after inquiring more -particularly into their former occupations and history wrote down the -places of their residence, and also, without letting them know it, a -careful description of their dress and appearance. As soon as they were -gone he called three of his servants to him and said: - -“You know I am looking for a man as night-watchman; I think he can be -found among those who have just left, and I want you to assist me in -making a selection. To-morrow will be Sunday. Be up, all of you, bright -and early, and one go and stand near the lodging-place of each of these -men. Watch them when they come out in the morning, keep near them all -day, and come here at night and report what you have seen.” - -The servants, promising obedience, retired, and the next night, -according to orders, returned to their master. - -“And what have you to tell about your man?” he said to the first who -appeared. - -“He spent the day in the country,” replied the servant. - -“Sensible fellow!” said his master. “And did you go with him?” - -“Indeed I did—got off at the same station, took dinner at the same -table, and came back in the same train.” - -“And how did he behave himself?” - -“Like a sensible fellow, sir, as you called him. He had a friend with -him, and they just smoked their cigars and lay about in the shade all -day; took a glass of beer now and then—nothing more. I believe he’s the -very man that would suit you.” Here the second servant came in. - -“And what have you to say?” asked his master. - -“My man,” replied the servant, “went to the tavern.” - -“He’s none the worse for that, if he didn’t take too much after he got -there.” - -“And he didn’t; only three glasses—I counted them—between breakfast and -dinner.” - -“Little enough!” - -“You’d have thought so if you had only seen how his friends pressed -him, a dozen times, to take more.” - -“But he wouldn’t?” - -“They couldn’t make him. He’s just the man for a watchman, I’m sure.” -The third servant now appeared. - -“And where did your man go?” asked his master. - -“To church,” replied the servant. - -“Did you follow him?” - -“You told me to, and I did, and sat in the pew right behind him.” At -this the other men laughed. - -“Well, did he gape around at his neighbors, and then fall asleep, like -the rest of the hypocrites who go there?” - -“No; I must tell you the truth.” - -“Let’s have it, then.” - -“I watched him and never took my eyes off him, and I tell you he’s in -earnest.” - -“What do you mean?” - -“I mean he’s among them that believe there’s a God, and have made up -their mind to serve him.” - -“That’ll do,” said the master. “You have made your report, and now you -may go.” - -The next night there was a new watchman around the rich infidel’s -house. It was he who went to church on a Sunday. - - * * * * * - -When they must commit themselves, or their substance, to another’s -keeping, both good men and bad men want good men to serve them. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -SINGLE AND DOUBLE. - - -A FARMER who owned a lazy horse was riding him barebacked one day, when -the beast began to complain of his load, saying: - -“Such a heavy man as you ought to ride in a wagon and have a pair -instead of one poor overworked horse to carry him.” - -The farmer made no reply, but jogged on quietly. Presently he came up -with one of his neighbors afoot. The farmer slackened his pace and the -man walked beside him in the road, the two talking together about their -corn, and oats, and clover. They had not gone far before the farmer -noticed a limp in his neighbor’s gait. - -“What is the matter?” said he. - -“A sharp peg in my boot,” replied the other, “seems to object to my -walking.” - -[Illustration] - -“Then you’d better get up and ride behind me,” said the farmer. - -“That I will,” said the man—“gladly; and thank you.” - -As he clambered on to the horse from the top of a fence beside which -his friend had stopped, the animal said to himself: - -“Ah! I did not know when I was well off. Willingly now would I carry my -master alone, but another behind him almost breaks my back. Never again -will I complain of my load until I have asked myself how I should feel -if it were suddenly made twice as heavy.” - - * * * * * - -When real discomforts come, we look back and wonder how we could have -fretted under those which were only imaginary. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE BOASTFUL FLY. - - -A FLY that had lodged on a crumbling wall, seeing other flies swarming -around it, began to boast about their numbers, saying: - -“Look at us! Multitudes in this little space! We are everywhere—in the -garden among the flowers, in the field amid the clover, in the woods -darting in and out of the sunbeams that fall between the branches.” - -Here a humming-bird lighted in a trumpet-vine that grew over the wall. -Said the fly: - -“You are a traveller, sir, I hear, and have been to other countries. -Pray, have you ever been in any place where there are no flies?” - -“Never,” said the humming-bird. - -“Oh that I had your strong wings,” cried the fly, “to carry me where I -could see the flies that live far away as well as those that live here! -But you have seen them; maybe, now, you can guess how many flies there -are?” - -“Impossible!” said the bird. “You cannot be counted. Why, all the -bluebirds and blackbirds, the humming-birds, and birds of every kind, -put together, are as nothing compared with you!” - -“We are the people,” continued the boastful fly, raising its tiny -voice—“not so big as some others, we’ll admit, but look at our numbers: -myriads upon myriads!” - -“Great in numbers, it is true,” said a mossy stone in the wall, “but -one thing you’ve forgotten.” - -“What is that?” asked the fly. - -“That midsummer is already past, and in a few short weeks the green -will have faded from the fields, and frost will cover the ground; and -then, though we look diligently for you, not one of all your myriads -shall be found.” - - * * * * * - -[Illustration] - -That which seems great in the light of the present, when looked at in -the light of the future shrinks into nothingness. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE MENDED BOOTS. - - -A MAN who had a pair of boots that needed mending carried them to the -cobbler’s and dropped them beside his bench, saying, “They’ll do any -time to-day; send them home as soon as they are finished,” and without -waiting for an answer departed. - -While the cobbler was examining the boots and preparing to go to work -on them, another man, with a badly-worn pair in his hand, came into the -shop, and said: - -“I want you to mend these at once; I’ll send for them in the evening.” - -At this the cobbler let the first pair fall upon the floor, saying to -himself: “As he will send, I must be sure and have them ready.” - -And, going to work on them, he kept at it until they were done. In the -evening the man’s little son called, and carried them away with him. - -The next day, after breakfast, as he sat down on his bench, the cobbler -said: - -“Now I must get at the other pair, that was left first.” - -But just as he was putting the last into one of them, a man entered the -shop with a quick step and handed him a pair of shoes that were almost -worn to pieces: - -“I must have these, without fail, in the morning,” he cried, “and will -call for them myself. On no account disappoint me.” - -The cobbler at once dropped the boot that was in his lap, and, seeming -to have caught the man’s ardor, thrust the last into one of his shoes -and continued to work diligently until evening, and so finished them. - -In the morning the man appeared, with as rapid a step as ever, and, -finding his shoes done, paid for them, and was quickly gone. - -A little while after this, as the cobbler sat calmly reading his -newspaper, the man who left the first pair strolled into the shop. - -[Illustration] - -“As I happen to be passing,” he said, “I’ll just take my boots with -me.” But, seeing a confused look on the cobbler’s face, he added: - -“Of course they’re ready; you know they were to be done the day before -yesterday.” - -Then, looking on the floor, he saw them lying exactly where he had left -them. - -“I’ve been so very bu—busy,” stammered the cobbler, “that I haven’t got -’em quite finished yet.” - -“‘Quite finished’!” exclaimed the man. “Why, you haven’t touched them!” - -“But I’m going to begin this minute,” said the cobbler, “and you shall -have them to-morrow, for certain.” - - * * * * * - -He who is the least urgent is apt to be the last served. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE CRIPPLE AND HIS STAFF. - - -A POOR cripple who had to go on foot to the hospital (where only he -could be cured) cut a staff to help him in walking. It was the best he -could get from the woods that grew by the way, and was just like those -that other cripples used on that same road. - -[Illustration] - -For a time, as long as the road was smooth, the staff seemed to be all -that he needed; but when he came to an uneven place, he found that it -did not answer. It was too short, though as long as that sort of wood -grew, and it was too rough, hurting his hand as he leaned upon it. -Beside this, it did not take a firm hold on the ground, but slipped -from under him, giving him many falls. - -[Illustration] - -After one of these falls, while he was lying prostrate and hardly able -to rise, a man came to him with a pair of crutches in his hand. The man -raised him up from the ground, put the crutches under his arms, and -showed him how to walk with them. - -[Illustration] - -And now the poor cripple was overjoyed to find that he could walk with -comparative ease and with perfect safety. Yet he kept the staff that he -had cut for himself, carrying it, thrust under his girdle, across his -back, behind him. - -He walked leaning on his crutches for a considerable distance and over -a good deal of rough ground, and then came to another smooth spot. - -[Illustration] - -Here a desire seized him to try his staff again. But why should he want -to do this? In the first place, he had forgotten in that short space of -time the falls it had before given him. Then it seemed as if the staff -would be lighter and more easily handled than the crutches. But perhaps -the chief reason was that he would not appear so great a cripple with -the staff as with the crutches; for above all things else the cripple -desires to appear not a cripple, and to seem to walk as if nothing were -the matter with him. - -So he tried his staff again, and for a time got along quite well. - -[Illustration] - -While he was walking at his best, hardly limping, as he thought, a man -came to him saying: - -“How well you walk! That staff is just the thing for you. But you don’t -need the crutches; why do you cumber yourself with them?” - -With this the man took hold of the crutches to take them from him, -but the cripple would not let go of them. The man stood and reasoned -a while with him; but when he found it was of no use, he turned away, -disgusted, saying, as he left him: - -“Any way, you are a fool, to keep both.” - -[Illustration] - -The cripple had not gone much farther, leaning on his staff, when he -came to some more rough ground, where he floundered about for a while -and then fell to the earth, striking his head and bringing the blood. -Then he was glad that he had not parted with the crutches. He drew them -out from behind him, put them under his arms, and proceeded on his way. - -Now we should think that he would never trust to his staff again. -But it was not so. He hardly ever came to a smooth place that he did -not draw it forth and walk with it, till he learned again, by sad -experience, that it would not support him; so that this was, in fact, -the history of his going—toiling along with his staff and falling, and -then betaking himself to his crutches once more. - -[Illustration] - -At last he came to the foot of the hill on the top of which was the -hospital. But the ascent of that hill! he was terrified as he looked at -it. It was covered with rocks and rolling stones, and beside its steep -path was a yawning chasm. He stood gazing at it for a moment, and then, -as if realizing for the first time his actual needs, he drew forth his -staff and cast it from him as far as his strength would send it. - -Now, he had not known himself what a weight that staff had been to him, -for no sooner was he rid of it than it seemed to him almost as if he -had wings. Then, resting wholly on his crutches, he addressed himself -to his last labor. And, truly, those who looked after him saw that he -made that most difficult ascent (up to the place where he knew there -was a Physician who would heal him) as if it were the easiest part of -his journey. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE SEARCH. - - -A MAN had a never-failing spring in his grounds, the water from which -he brought through pipes to his house. There it was used for drinking, -cooking, washing, and all domestic purposes. After a time, however, the -family became aware that, from some cause, the water was tainted. They -were loth to acknowledge this, but it was so evident that all their -wishes to the contrary could not deceive them. - -The first thing the man did was to go to the spring and examine it. No -water could look purer. He dipped a cupful from the surface, and drank -it without detecting any unpleasant taste. What was next to be done? -He had heard of a filter for sale at the village store. It would cost -several dollars, but the doctor’s bill might come to a great deal more. -There was no help for it: the filter was bought and placed where -every drop from the spring passed through it before being used at the -house. Reluctant indeed were the man and his family, after such an -expense, still to recognize, without being able to detect the cause of, -the impurity. - -[Illustration] - -But one course was left, and that was to take up and examine every -foot of pipe through which the water ran. This required a whole day’s -labor. Nevertheless, it was done. No dead toads or frogs were found in -it, so it was carefully cleaned and laid back in its place. The water -was turned on again, and, although there was in reality no reason to -look for an improvement, the family felt disappointed when it became -evident, after all this additional trouble, that the disagreeable taste -remained. - -[Illustration] - -The man sat silent all the evening after his hard day’s work, -discouraged, but still trying to devise some means of prosecuting his -search. The next morning he rose up bright and early, and without -saying a word to any one put his long post-spade over his shoulder and -walked out to the spring. There, beginning a little way back from its -edge, he began to dig. Finding nothing but good top-soil, with clay -underneath, he pursued his labors until he had gone almost the whole -way around it. Then he came suddenly upon a dark spot in the earth. -He dug into it still deeper; the odor that arose from it revealed its -nature: it was a mass of decay. He uncovered it to the spring’s -side, and found that it cropped out there at the very spot where his -pipe opened into the water. At last the cause of all his trouble was -revealed. - -It was no small task to dam back the rising tide, so that the foul -matter could be removed and replaced with pure earth. But, now that -he could see where to direct his efforts, this was a simple matter, -requiring only persevering labor, which was willingly bestowed; and -so in due time the work was well and thoroughly done and the object -attained. And the man and his family continued ever afterward to enjoy -the pure water of the spring. - - * * * * * - -As long as we allow the source to remain impure, we will try in vain to -purify that which issues from it. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE SWALLOWS AND THE WINDMILL. - - -A PAIR of swallows, while looking for a barn in which to build, came -across a windmill, with its sails furled and its great wheel standing -motionless. - -“What sort of a place is this?” they said. “Surely no better can -be found for our home. We’ll let other swallows go into the old -tumble-down barns around, but this beautiful tower we will secure for -ourselves.” - -Then, flying below the dome-like roof of the mill, they discovered a -small window, just under the eaves, with a pane of glass broken out, -through which they darted, and soon picked out a spot under a rafter -inside for their nest. At once they went to work building it. A pond -near by supplied them with mud. Working up little balls of this with -their bills, they carried them into the mill and fastened them against -the rafter they had chosen. In this way, adding little by little, as a -bricklayer builds up a house, they built up the walls of their nest. -Then they brought grass to line the inside, coiling it around nicely -that it might be smooth and even. Last of all, above the grass, they -made a bed of soft feathers. - -Now, it happened, the very next night after all this was finished, that -a strong wind sprang up, and the next morning early the miller appeared -and went into his mill. Presently he came out again, and, standing on -the ground, under the great wheel, began to unfurl the sails on each of -its four arms, one after the other. As soon as this was done, loosening -its fastenings he let the wheel go; and the wind, filling the sails, -began to turn it around—at first slowly, but gradually faster and -faster, until it was running at full speed. - -The swallows, that were taking a holiday after their labors, and flying -about joyously up in the air, looked down surprised at what was going -on. But their surprise was turned to dismay when they found that the -wheel was revolving directly in front of the little window through -which they gained entrance into the mill. They flew from side to -side, hour after hour, hoping the wheel would stop; but it never once -rested through the day or the night, and continued to go until another -morning appeared. Then, wearied out and in despair, they lodged on a -fence near by. - -[Illustration] - -Here another swallow, that had her home in a neighboring barn, saw them -perched with drooping wings. Lighting beside them, she asked what was -the matter. - -“‘Matter’!” cried they. “We are ruined. The man in yonder mill tied up -his horrid wheel just long enough for us to build our nest under his -roof, and then set it going. Look at it! Were we inside, we could never -get out; and now that we are out, we can never get in. So cruelly have -we been deceived!” - -“You have been deceived, my friends, that is true,” replied the other, -gently, “but not by the miller: you have deceived yourselves. What does -he care for swallows? It was your place to inquire how the building was -used, before making your nest in it. Instead of doing this, you took -the risk, and so have lost your labor. But do not despair as though all -had been lost. If you will be satisfied to lodge like other swallows, -and will come to our barn, across yonder field, there is plenty of room -left over the haymow, and time enough too, for you to build another -nest; and there you may yet rear your brood in peace and content.” - - * * * * * - -When we take for granted what we ought to prove by careful research, we -are apt to be disappointed in the result; especially is caution needed -when, leaving the old beaten track, we venture to mark out a new path -for ourselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE MEDICINE-MAN. - - -A MAN who lived in an unhealthy region of country supported himself -by preparing and selling a medicine which acted as an antidote to the -malarial or other poison prevailing there. This poison was taken into -the system through the air the people breathed, the water they drank, -and the food they ate. The entire population was suffering from it. -Unless its effects were arrested, they became in the end fatal. The -medicine, however, was a certain cure. Nature had evidently provided -it as a remedy for a people otherwise incurably smitten, and the man -who made a business of preparing it put it up in such quantities that -there was an abundant supply within the reach of all by whom it was -needed. - -But here was a curious thing: The man himself neglected to take of the -medicine. This was not because he had escaped the prevailing infection. -Signs of it in his own person were evident enough to his friends, and -some of them who had been cured through his means took occasion to -speak with him on the subject. Said one of them: - -“No one knows better than yourself the value of this remedy. And though -it be not always pleasant to take, and requires some self-denial while -using, what is this to the risk of one’s life?” - -To this reasonable appeal the man at first made no answer; but when -further pressed, he replied as follows: - -“Am I doing any harm, that I should be thus annoyed and interfered -with? Is it not better that I should deal out this medicine than poison -to the people?” - -“It is indeed,” said his friend. “You are doing no harm, but good, to -others, but are not resisting the harm that is being done to yourself.” - -“That is a personal matter,” said the man, “with which nobody else has -anything to do. I can attend to my own health, and have no wish that -another should prescribe for me.” - -So they could do no more, but had to stand by and see the fatal malady -increasing upon him. - -It was like looking at a man standing in the water, breast-deep, with -the vessel sinking under him, and he, after handing all the rest into -the lifeboat, turning a deaf ear when they begged him to come too, and -be saved. - - * * * * * - -Leading another into the right path does not excuse me for continuing -in the wrong one. Neither can his reaching the goal help me to get -there while I walk in a different way. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE EAGLE AND THE WREN. - - -A WREN that came into a mountainous region where mining was carried on, -having found a deserted pit, made her nest in a hole in its side. One -hot summer day an eagle lodged on the branch of a pine tree that stood -near the pit, and spied the little wren coming up out of its mouth. -Said the eagle: - -“So you are not satisfied with getting down on to the ground? You must -burrow under it to make your nest! Well, every creature finds its own -proper level; but can you see so far as that lofty crag on the top -of yonder mountain? There, up among the clouds, is where I sit with my -young, looking down on you little birds that dare not fly to the height -of our home.” - -[Illustration] - -The wren, overawed by the eagle’s voice, made no answer, but flew down -into the pit again. - -The day grew hotter and hotter; the birds through the woods ceased -singing and the insects chirping; all nature seemed oppressed by the -heat. In the afternoon a small black cloud appeared in the west. It -rose rapidly, and soon spread over the whole sky. Then there was a -strange sound heard in the distance. It grew louder and nearer. As it -approached, tall forest trees bent over and snapped asunder, and great -branches, and heavy stones even, were seen flying through the air. It -lasted but a moment, and then all was still again. - -Now, the wren, hidden in the hole in the pit’s side, had not heard the -noise of the storm; but, coming up soon afterward to hunt for a worm, -she was dismayed at the scene of desolation that met her eye. Great -trunks of trees, and rocks, were strewn over the earth, while among -them lay prostrate the eagle and her young. The young ones were dead, -and their mother, with a broken wing, in her effort to rise, was vainly -beating the ground. - -“Alas!” cried the wren, “what has wrought such sad ruin? And how is it -that I have escaped, when a strong eagle has been cast down?” - -“Ah!” replied the eagle, “had I been a wren with a lowly nest, like -you, instead of a proud eagle with her nest built on high, the tornado, -which you did not even hear, would have left me and mine, too, -unharmed.” - - * * * * * - -Persons who fill lofty stations are subject to dangers which others -know not of, and many a time, when no one suspects it, would be glad to -change places with those who envy them. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE TWO SAPLINGS. - - -TWO slender saplings were planted on the same day—one before the house -of a rich man, and the other at a poor man’s door. - -The summer passed, and winter came. Then, as the rich man saw his young -tree tossed to and fro by the storm, he was afraid it would be broken; -so he went to it and built a fence around it and spread a roof over it. -But the poor man, because he had to labor out in the storm himself, -never thought of sheltering his tree. - -Season followed after season; the rich man was still nursing his tree, -and, as it grew, building his fence up higher and higher. But the -poor man’s tree was left to the sunshine, the wind, and the rain. - -[Illustration] - -And now long years have gone; youth has fled, and age has come. The -rich man can no longer keep up his watchful care, nor the poor man go -forth to his labor. But, as they sit resting at their doors at the -close of the day, the poor man sees, towering above him, a strong oak -in its prime, spreading its protecting branches over his roof; while -the rich man sees a weak and unhealthy trunk that is already decaying -at the root, and destined hardly to outlast himself. - - * * * * * - -Parents who shield their children from the hardships which they ought -to bear in youth, unfit them for the hardships which they must bear in -maturer years. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE COG-WHEEL. - - -A SMALL cog-wheel in the upper part of a great printing-press came to -the conclusion that it was not turned by the steam-engine, but turned -of its own accord. Having taken up this notion, in a little while it -brought itself to believe that it drove the whole press. - -“It is easy to see,” it said, “that the other wheels keep time with my -movements, going slow when I go slow, and fast when I run at greater -speed. From this it is plain that I give motion to the whole, and that -all the work of the press depends upon me.” - -Then it began to boast about that work. - -[Illustration] - -“Look,” it said, “at that great sheet of white paper. It is laid -on my feed-board blank and meaningless, but comes out from under my -cylinder covered with the clearest print. It is a newspaper, which is -distributed by tens of thousands over the land. At other times I print -books. Some are learned ones, for scholars to read; some are children’s -books filled with pictures, and of these last I assert that nothing -made of paper and ink can be more beautiful. But it is all my work, -neither could it possibly be done without me, as I will now prove by -holding back for a moment the entire press.” - -Saying which, the wheel turned a little on its side, thus hindering -the one next to it. But just at that moment the pressman, stepping up -and seeing some derangement in its movement, stopped the press. Then, -calling to a boy, who was covered with printer’s ink from head to foot, - -“Run quickly,” he said, “to the store-room and bring me another -cog-wheel.” - -No sooner had the boy brought it than the pressman, slipping off the -old wheel, put the new one in its place. - -“Take this,” he said, handing the old one to the boy, “and throw it on -the scrap-heap.” - -In another moment the press was running again at full speed. - - * * * * * - -Because some good work prospers in our hands we presently think -ourselves the author of it, forgetting that we are only instruments -appointed to carry it on, and that there are many others who are ready, -if need be, to take our place. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE PLOUGH AND THE MOWING-MACHINE. - - -A FARMER, having bought a new mowing-machine, brought it home and put -it in the barn where his plough was housed, waiting for the opening of -spring. - -When the mower, in its bright paint and glossy varnish, saw the soiled -and toil-worn plough, it said, with a scornful look: - -“Why am I placed in such low company?” - -[Illustration] - -“You think yourself better than I am,” said the plough, “but where -would you be without me? If I did not first turn up the soil for the -planting, you would never be wanted for the mowing. You only finish -where I have begun, and on my work your very existence depends.” - - * * * * * - -We sometimes look down on those who are not only our equals in -usefulness, but whose honest labor has helped to make us better off -than themselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -FAT AND LEAN. - - -A STRONG fat ox stood with his eyes half shut, chewing the cud, while -his driver heaped up a heavy load of stone on the cart he was yoked to. - -A neighbor, who chanced to be riding by on a fast but very lean horse, -stopped to speak to the man. The horse, on being held in, began to paw -the ground, as if impatient to go on, then, looking around scornfully -at the ox, said: - -“What do you stand there chewing the cud for now?” - -“Why shouldn’t I?” asked the ox. “What harm does it do?” - -“When I’m in harness,” replied the horse, “I like to work, and not go -to sleep.” - -“I have to do my share of work,” said the ox; “there’s no doubt about -that. If you’ll wait till I get the word, you’ll see how I pull. When I -come to a heavy hill, I stop chewing the cud; but as soon as I come to -a level place, I begin again. For even while I’m at work I take all the -comfort I can.” - -“‘Comfort’!” exclaimed the horse. “Is that your aim? Mine is to pass -every other team on the road.” - - “Ah, well!” said the ox, “that sounds very fine, - But just look at your ribs, and then look at mine!” - - * * * * * - -He who cannot be happy as long as he sees another more fortunate or -successful than himself, whatever else he may gain, will never know -peace and content. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -HALF EMPTY AND QUITE FULL. - - -IN a quiet, lonely spot, beside a mountain-road, a half barrel stood -partly sunk in the ground. A small wooden trough resting on its rim led -the water from a spring that was hidden a little way back in the woods. -The water was for ever running into it, yet the half barrel was never -full. Its hoops were loosened, its joints opened, and much of the pure -stream that it received escaped, trickling down its sides and sinking -into the earth. But while it was never full, except perhaps once or -twice in a summer, when there fell such a flood of rain as overcame all -its leaks and openings, neither was it ever quite empty; for, although -it was a poor leaky vessel at best, it had never quite fallen to -pieces. - -[Illustration] - -A few miles beyond this spot, on that mountain-road, stood what looked -to be the other half of the same barrel. A trough exactly similar to -the first led a stream of water into it, but this half barrel, compact -and tight, was always full to the brim ready to spare some of its -refreshing contents to the tired traveller, who, after he had quenched -his own thirst, unreined his horse and allowed him to sink his mouth -deeply into it and drink. - - * * * * * - -Some men, retaining their gracious gifts, are ever ready to impart to -those who need; while others, suffering the loss of theirs, are ever in -need themselves. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE SNAKE. - - -A BEAUTIFUL and harmless little garter-snake was gliding across the -road, when a man who happened to be passing seized a club and struck it -a crushing blow. As it writhed in agony it turned to its assailant and -said: - -“Why do you kill me?” - -“Do you suppose,” replied the man, “I will let anything in the form of -a snake live, when I know there are venomous copperheads in this very -woods?” - -“And are there no men,” asked the snake, “that are revengeful and -dangerous, and would you destroy all men for their sake?” - - * * * * * - -Let us not be prejudiced against a whole family for the faults of one -member of it, or be unable to see any merit in a thing because it is -not wholly free from defect. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -RICH AND POOR. - - -TWO men were neighbors—one rich, the other poor—and both of them had -children of whom they were fond. The children of the rich man received -many costly presents of such things as young people prize, but the -children of the poor man had only their food and clothing, and that of -the plainest sort. - -Years passed by. Both families grew up like young trees in an orchard, -and in due season began to display the fruits of their training, when -the rich man, meeting his poor neighbor one day, said to him: - -“I have been watching your children, and I notice they appear to feel -as though they could never see enough of you or do enough for you. -It is not so with mine. I wonder if you can tell the secret of this -difference?” - -[Illustration] - -“Perhaps it lies here,” replied the poor man: “As I am unable to draw -my children to me by what I can give them, I have to try and accomplish -it by what I can do for them. To this end I am careful about four -things—viz.: To be as sparing as I can of my censure when they do -wrong; to be as liberal as I can of my praise when they do right; to -take an interest in whatever interests them; and to let them see that I -deny myself to supply their needs as far as I can.” - -“I see,” replied the rich man, “wherein our plans have differed: you -have worked for what I have tried to buy. I gave of my money, you of -what costs more—forbearance, consideration, and love. So I have been -shut out of my children’s hearts, while you have gained an entrance -into yours. I thank you for the lesson you have taught me, and purpose, -though I begin late, to profit by it.” - - * * * * * - -We cannot buy affection at any price, or retain it by the mere tie of -kindred, however close. We must secure it in each case by deserving it, -and hold it by continuing to deserve it from day to day. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE HAWK AND THE CHICKEN. - - -A HAWK, as it soared on high, seeing a young chicken in the field -below, rapidly descended, and seized it in his talons. - -“Alas!” said the chicken, “I have no power to struggle, or any hope of -saving myself by resisting you in any way. But I pray you listen to me. -I am yet young, hardly grown, and am just beginning to enjoy roaming -through the fields by myself. Do not cut off my days. I beg you out of -pity to spare my life.” - -“What you say may be all true,” said the hawk. “I don’t pretend to know -whether it is, or is not; all I do know is that I am hungry, and that -you are the only food provided for me. I can’t go into any reasonings -behind that.” - -[Illustration] - -Saying which, he dug his talons deeper into the flesh of his victim, -and, carrying it off, devoured it on a neighboring tree. - -At this a horse that was feeding in the meadow below, and had heard the -birds speaking, said to himself: - -“As I don’t wear feathers or fly with wings, I won’t presume to judge -those who do. But, as for me, I know it is my duty to earn my living by -honest labor and let other people alone.” - - * * * * * - -What may be lawful for others who are living under different conditions -from ourselves, affords us no excuse for ever departing from the strict -course of mercy and justice. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE SERVANT’S MONEY. - - -A CERTAIN king sent a message to one of his servants who lived in a -distant part of his kingdom, bidding the servant come to him, and -promising that henceforth all his wants should be supplied in the -king’s palace. - -The servant, overjoyed at the message, prepared at once to obey it; -but, being a poor man who through long years of saving and pinching had -come to set great store by small possessions, it went very hard with -him to leave behind such things as he could call his own—the little -house he lived in, with the plot of ground around it, and the few -rude implements with which he tilled the soil. As it was impossible, -however, to take them with him, he sold them for what he could get -(which was not much); and then, packing up his clothes in divers -parcels and hiding his little store of money among them, he started on -his journey. - -The first part of this, which led through well-tilled fields and among -people whom he knew, was very pleasant. Many who were his friends came -out, as he passed by, to meet him, begging him to stop and rest a while -in their houses. And when it happened to be toward evening, he went in -and supped and lodged with them. - -But after leaving this part of the country he came to a bleak and -lonely region abounding in rocks and caves. Here, as he was pressing -on, hoping to get through it safely, some robbers rushed out from their -hiding-place upon him. Hastily looking through the bundles with which -he was loaded, and finding they were made up of old worn-out clothes, -they refused to take them. But, in making the search, they spied his -money, and, seizing it, quickly disappeared. - -[Illustration] - -When the poor man saw them hurrying away with his treasure—which, -small as it was, represented his lifelong labors—his grief overcame -him, and he sat down and wept. But, presently recovering himself, he -said: - -“Shall I stay here crying in this wilderness, when I am sent for by the -king?” - -Then he rose up from the ground, and pursued his way without further -interruption, though with a heavy heart and faltering step, until he -came to the gates of the king’s palace. There he found many others -assembled from different parts of the kingdom, who had also come at the -king’s command—some of them poor like himself, some rich; and they all -waited for the day when the gates should open. - -But while they were waiting for this what was his surprise to see the -poor draw forth their pence, and the rich their silver and gold, and -throw them away! For they had been told they would have no need of -them within the gates, and that until they had parted with them they -could not enter. So they all cast their money from them, whether it -was little or much, and it lay scattered over the ground, with none to -gather it. Neither was the servant any poorer than the richest of them, -though he had been robbed of all. Then he said to himself, “How foolish -was I to set such store by, and grieve so much after, what was of no -real value!” - -[Illustration] - -And after that, with nothing except the garments that they wore (and -even these had been given them), he and all who waited with him entered -joyfully into the palace-gates. - - * * * * * - -It is of little account what we lose by the way if we keep that which -alone has any value at the end of our journey. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -FUTURE GREATNESS. - - -TWO young colts, each by the side of its mother, were at pasture in -adjoining fields. The mother of one, coming to the dividing fence, and -putting her head over it, said to her neighbor: - -“Just look at the color of my colt! Was there ever a lovelier bay? -Before another spring has passed over his head I expect to see him in -the stable of some millionaire. You know what a rage there is among -rich men for fast horses. Now, look at the points in my colt—his long, -clean limbs, his deer-like shape, his full eye and broad nostril. I am -as certain of his speed as if he had just been around the track and I -heard the time-keeper calling out: - -“‘Two minutes ten and a half seconds!’” - -“I have been looking at your colt,” replied the other, “and admit -he promises well; but what do you think of the little roan on this -side the fence? Now, I wouldn’t care to have him in a millionaire’s -stable, or put him there, if I could, by a wish. Those rich men think -of nobody but themselves, and keep fine horses only to swell their own -importance. Then they are speculators, to a man; there’s no telling how -long they’ll keep their money. Let that go, and their horses go with -it, to the jockey and the race-course, to be abused and betted on and -driven to death. - -“No; I would rather see my colt in the hands of some grand, rich -lady—the gem of her stable, her daily companion and pet. And is he not -made for it? Look at his round, short body, so plump and easily kept; -his strong, arched neck, and his beautiful thick mane and tail. And -mark my words: it won’t be long before all that I predict about him -comes true. In fact, I think I know who the lady is already. She drives -by here in her barouche with liveried coachman and footman, each with a -bouquet in his buttonhole, and as she passes I can see her looking over -the fence.” - -[Illustration] - -Here we will imagine that several years have suddenly vanished, and we -are again visiting the fields where the above interview took place. -One of them is being ploughed, and a stout roan horse is stepping -briskly in front of the furrow; the other field its owner is clearing -of stones, and a young bay is hauling out a heavy cart-load of them. -Both horses are strong and willing helpers on the farm, earning an -honest living, valued and well cared for by their masters, and far -better off than they would be if left to the heedless servants of the -fashionable lady or the proud millionaire. - - * * * * * - -What weakness and folly do we often show in the secret expectations we -cherish concerning those who are to come after us! And how well it is -for them that the shaping of their destinies is not in our hands! - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE OLD MAN’S WATCH. - - -AN old man and a young one were walking together over a rough and hilly -road. Said the old man: - -“Though I detain you by being unable to keep up with your rapid step, -yet, in spite of this feeble frame, I am feeling in spirit as young as -you. Perhaps you can hardly believe this?” - -“I can believe it if you say so,” replied the young man, “but confess -that when I look at your snowy locks and your bent form, I cannot -understand it.” - -“Stop a moment,” said the old man, drawing out his watch and exposing -its works to view. “You see that, like myself, this watch has seen -its best days. Its case shows wear, and so do its works. These little -cog-wheels do not fit into each other as closely as they once did, and -they are growing farther apart, by wear, every day. But now look at the -mainspring, where it lies, here, coiled up by itself. It shows no wear. -The same power and elasticity it has had all along remain in it still.” - -“I see,” replied the other; and, becoming so interested in the watch as -to forget it was being used only as an illustration, he continued: “Why -do you not have the rest of the works repaired?” - -“Your question is natural,” said the old man. “So I might have these -worn-out works repaired, but not this worn-out body. Neither do I -desire it. It will soon have done its work and lasted out its appointed -time here. But in another state of being the immortal part—the -mainspring, so to speak—will live on, clothed with a new body as -immortal as itself. It is this that still remains as vigorous as ever, -and makes me feel, in spirit, as young as yourself.” - - * * * * * - -As we advance in years we are conscious of that within us which does -not grow old, but which, having learned that this world cannot satisfy, -grows weary of it, and peers anxiously into the next. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE TEACHER. - - -I DREAMED that I had started on a journey, and as I trudged along the -path alone a man carrying a mirror, stopped me, saying: - -“I want to speak with you.” - -I replied: “From whence do you come, and what may your calling be?” - -He answered: “I come from beyond that steep hill in front of you which -you have yet to climb; and I am a teacher, teaching by the things that -I show in my mirror.” - -Then he held his mirror up before my eyes and told me to look. I -obeyed, and saw a ship tossed in a storm. The sails were blown to -pieces, the boats were broken, the deck was swept by the waves, and -the ship was ready to sink. Then I saw the master come to the side, -and stand there pouring oil from a vessel in his hand on the angry -waters. And presently, although the storm continued to rage over the -rest of the ocean, the ship seemed to be rocked in a little basin that -was calm. - -Said the teacher: “Gentleness overcomes where resistance would be in -vain.” - -He held up the mirror again, and I saw two stone-cutters at work -dressing a great block of granite. On the wall above them was a clock. -Now, one of the men stood with his back to the clock, so that he could -not see it, and his arm dealt strong and rapid blows on the stone, -seeming never to tire. But the other man stood facing the clock, and -was constantly lifting up his eyes to it; and I noticed that his arm -was raised slowly and feebly, as if losing its strength, and his face -wore an expression of weariness. - -The teacher said: “He who does not set his heart on his task, but on -the rest that comes after it, makes poor work for his employer and long -hours for himself.” - -Again he held the mirror up, and I saw a vine planted in the ground, -with branches growing out of each side. Now, the vine was as if it -were made of glass, so that I could see the sap running from the stalk -into the branches. And as it did this they all put forth leaves and -blossoms. But suddenly, as I looked, the sap ceased to flow into one -of the branches. Then the buds and blossoms fell from it to the earth, -and the branch withered and died before my eyes. - -[Illustration] - -Said the teacher: “It is not what the branch gives, but what it -receives, that makes it of value in the vineyard.” - -He held up the mirror again, and I saw a man with a lantern leading -a company that followed him on a dark and narrow path. But presently -he closed his eyes, and, as he did so, stumbled and fell. Then one of -his followers seized the lantern from his hand and led the others in -safety, but the one who had fallen did not return again. - -The teacher said: “Even the guide who points out the way must tread -carefully, or he may step aside and be lost.” - -Again he held up the mirror, and I saw a great fire burning—not near, -but, as it were, in a far-off abyss. In it were being consumed what -I had always looked upon as the greatest works of men. And those of -my own works in which I had taken the greatest pride were also being -devoured by the flames. Only a few of the deeds that had seemed to me -of lesser value, but that had been done for love (the love of One who -first loved me), stood unconsumed in the fire. - -And the teacher said: “Behold true and false immortality.” - -[Illustration] - -Once more he held up the mirror, and I saw a man carrying a heavy load -up a hill. The hill grew steeper at every step, and the man bent down -under the weight of the load until his forehead nearly touched the -ground in front of him. Then I saw one having a face full of love and a -strong arm come up beside the man. But just as I supposed he was going -to help him, what was my surprise to see this strong one pick up a -heavy stone and put it on the top of his burden! Then I looked to see -the man sink down, crushed, to the earth, but I saw the other touch -him, and by that touch new strength was given him; so that he bore this -heavy burden more easily than he had borne the lighter one. - -And the teacher said: “No load is to be feared if only the strength be -given to bear it.” - -Then he took the mirror from before me and held it up to his own lips, -breathing upon it. And I saw the vapor gather on its surface for a -moment and then disappear. - -And the teacher said: “Such are good impressions when made on the heart -of man unless a higher Power fix them there.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CLOUD-SHADOWS. - - -A CLOUD came sailing on the wind, which died away just as it reached a -fruitful field. - -“Pass on,” said the field, “and let me see the blue sky.” - -The cloud spread itself out to catch the little air that was left, and -slowly passed on to a field beyond. There it hung motionless. In the -night it began to drop its watery contents upon the thirsty sward -beneath, so that every green blade glistened as the sun rose upon it, -and sprang up with renewed freshness and beauty. The field that had -complained, seeing this and being parched with the sun’s rays, said: - -“Ah that I had borne the cloud’s presence a while for the sake of the -blessing it contained! I was impatient under its shadow, and now long -for that which my neighbor has gained who submitted to its visitation -without murmuring.” - - * * * * * - -We put out our hand and thrust away an imagined evil, to find out -afterward that, if we had but welcomed it, it would have filled that -hand with good. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE PENITENT TRANSGRESSOR. - - -A GOOD natured poodle-dog, while trotting along the street one day, saw -a friend of his, an ugly pug, lying on a doorstep looking very much -dejected and out of spirits. - -“Why do you look so mournful?” asked the poodle. “What has happened?” - -“I feel sorry for something I’ve done,” replied the pug. - -“What is it? Have you been peeping into your master’s looking-glass?” - -“No, but I’ve bitten another dog.” - -[Illustration] - -“Well, I suppose he took a bone away from you or snarled at you, or did -something else to deserve it.” - -“He did snarl at me, that’s true, but I don’t think I ought to have -bitten him.” - -“Didn’t he bite you back again?” - -“No, and that makes me feel all the worse.” - -“Oh, well, cheer up; it’s over now, and very likely you’ll never see -him any more.” - -“Yes, I will, though, for he’s a relation of mine.” - -“But you’ll never bite him again after being so sorry for it—I’m sure -of that—and that’s some comfort.” - -“But I’m not sure, for I’ve done it before, and been sorry too. When -anything doesn’t please me, all at once I get so mad that I hardly know -what I’m about, and then I’m ready to bite my dearest friend.” - -“Do you mean that you get crazy and lose your senses?” - -“No, I only mean that I lose my temper. I’m sorry for it every time, -but I go on losing it and biting my friends over and over again; and -I’m discouraged about it, and don’t know what to do.” - -“Well, if you haven’t got sense enough to stop it, right now and -without any more whining, the sooner you go and give yourself up to the -dog-catchers, the better.” - - * * * * * - -Persons who easily fly into a passion forfeit not only the regard and -confidence of other people, but also their own self-respect. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE DRY WELL. - - -A MAN who had always been able to get as much water from his well as he -wanted, on drawing up the bucket one hot summer day, found less than -a cupful in it. There was so little water at the bottom of the well -that the bucket could not turn over and fill itself. As soon as the man -discovered this he began abusing his well, saying: - -“Is that all you can do? You are not worth the room you take or the -money you cost to dig. If there is any one thing more useless and -contemptible than another, it is a well that holds no water.” - -“Does all my past service go for nothing, then?” asked the well. “I -have filled your bucket, year after year, with unfailing streams, as -you yourself know. And even now what I have I willingly offer, to the -last drop.” - -[Illustration] - -“‘Drop’ indeed, and little more!” said the man. “But what good will -that do me? What I want is a barrelful or a hogsheadful if I need it.” - -“I have not the ocean to draw from,” replied the well, “or even a -river, but only one trickling spring. If that fails, I have no other -resource, but must wait till its dried-up current begins to flow again. -Can you, at all times, command the same fulness and excellence in your -own work? Pray, do your powers never fail?” - - * * * * * - -How often are we intolerant of a single failure on the part of those -who have generally succeeded in pleasing us, and who are still doing -their very best to accomplish that end! - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE FRUIT TREE. - - -A FRUIT tree sprang up from a seed in the corner of a certain man’s -field. It grew rapidly and put forth branches. Great was the man’s -delight when he saw these bearing blossoms. - -“Now I shall have fruit of my own,” he said. - -Autumn came and the fruit appeared, but as it ripened, instead of -growing round and rich and mellow, it grew knotted and hard and bitter -to the taste. - -“’Tis because it is young and the soil where it stands thin and poor,” -the land-owner said. - -Then he loosened the ground around its roots and enriched and watered -it, and afterward waited for spring. Spring came, and again the tree -put forth blossoms and bore fruit, more abundantly than before; but it -was worthless and unfit to be eaten. - -Another winter passed and spring returned once more, and one sunny -morning, as the land-owner stood looking at his tree and repining over -it, there came a gardener by that way. - -“What troubles you?” he said, seeing the man’s sad face. - -“My tree has proved worthless,” replied the other. “Yet I have done all -that could be done to it, and still it bears only evil fruit.” - -At this the gardener took out his pruning-knife and opening it, he -came to the tree and at one stroke severed its top, with all its -spreading boughs, so that they fell down on the ground, as fit only for -the burning. Then he made a deep cleft in the stock of the tree, and -into this he inserted a young shoot that he carried with him. Next he -anointed, with clay, the wound that his knife had made, and wrapped it -about carefully, and, turning to the land-owner, said: - -“Be patient; give it time. All yet will be well.” - -Another season came. The new shoot put forth buds; it blossomed, and -then (after the gardener had grafted it, but not before) the tree -brought forth good fruit. - - * * * * * - -There is a life which is ours by natural inheritance, and another which -comes only as a free gift. Though both are housed in the same body, -they are received at different times and have each a separate existence -and destiny. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE DEER. - - -A DEER that lived in a country far from the abodes of men used to stay -during the winter on some low-lying lands where she could find patches -of grass growing through the cold weather, and thick coverts, also, -among the evergreens, in which to hide while the fierce snow-storms -were prevailing. But as soon as spring returned she left the low-lands -and hastened to a mountain many miles away, and there, roaming over its -wooded heights and drinking from a quiet lake that lay spread out on -its very top, she stayed, rejoicing, all the summer long. - -After she had been doing thus for many years, and when she was no -longer young, it happened one winter that certain strange sensations -crept through her frame such as she had never before known. She rose -from her lair with more difficulty than formerly, and walked at times -with an unsteady step. She grew weak and thin, and afraid of the storms -that she used to face boldly when going forth in search of food. Then -she began to wonder, and say: - -“What ails me, and what do these feelings mean?” - -But presently she answered: - -“I know what I need: it is a drink from the lake on the mountain-top. -When I can taste of it once more, these feelings will pass away.” - -So she waited in her low-land home, through the cold and dreary winter -days that remained, for the opening buds and singing birds of spring. -As soon as these appeared she started on her journey to the mountain. -But now that journey seemed longer than it used to seem. She had to -rest oftener by the way. Instead of leaping from crag to crag as she -ascended the mountain-side, she found herself picking out the easiest -and safest paths. Still laboring on up the steep ascent, she at last -reached the summit and stood beside the lake that she loved. It looked -the same. The rocks around its shores were reflected in its bosom, the -water-lilies floated on its surface, the trees and wild-flowers grew -down to its very edge. All was as it had ever been. She said: “I shall -soon be well again;” and, putting her mouth down to the water, drank. -But presently she raised it slowly, saying: “Either it is changed, or I -am. It does not taste as it once did, or bring the refreshment it has -always before brought to my wearied frame.” - -Then, turning with feeble step to the bed of moss under the thick -bushes where she had so often rested in years gone by, she lay down, -to rise from it no more. The fresh, pure mountain-breeze was still -blowing; other deer came and drank in new life and vigor at the lake; -it was as beautiful and its surroundings were as health-giving as ever; -but they could not recall the life that, having reached its farther -bound, had passed away. - - * * * * * - -There is a day coming when the scenes and influences that once revived -our failing strength will do so no more, and their failure will be a -token that to us the end of earthly things is at hand. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -HOMELY AND HANDSOME. - - -A HORSE and a cow that were turned out to pasture together cropped the -grass in company until they came to a tree in the middle of the field, -where they stopped to rest in the shade. The cow lay down and chewed -the cud, but the horse stood switching off the flies with his long tail. - -While doing this he turned to the cow and said: - -“I’ve just been thinking what a contrast there is between us two. I -am so swift, and you are so slow. You travel only from the barn to -the field in summer, and hardly get out of the barnyard in winter. -Your walk is clumsy and awkward; and when you try to run, you seem -to have our old master’s rheumatism in every joint. How different it -is with me, galloping swiftly over the country around, visiting our -neighbors’ farms and hearing of all that is going on! But then it is -not your fault that you were made to be only a cow, while I was made a -fleet-footed horse.” - -“I’m very glad,” said the cow, “that you are so well satisfied with -your lot, but I don’t want you to think I am dissatisfied with mine. -When our mistress pats me on the side and calls me kind names, after -milking, I feel proud too. For this I go through the fields picking -out the freshest grass and the richest clover, saying to myself, ‘I’ll -give her a good pailful to-night.’ Then, when I see the red cheeks of -the children, I know I’ve had something to do with them; and when our -master drives you to market with his butter-tub well filled, I have a -notion he would miss me, as well as you.” - -“I don’t deny,” replied the horse, “that you have your good points and -are useful in your way. I was only pitying you for being so slow and so -ugly.” - -As he spoke these words he saw the farmer coming through the gate into -the field and bringing a strange man with him. They came directly to -the tree where the horse and the cow were resting. - -“Yes,” said the stranger, looking at the horse; “he’s a smart, -good-looking colt, and by putting him through some pretty hard training -I reckon I can work him off at a fair profit. I’ll give you your price -for him.” - -“Then you can have him,” said the farmer. “If he’s worth that, I can’t -afford to keep him; a lower-priced beast will do just as well for me.” - -With that the old man slipped a halter over the horse’s head and led -him away. As he sadly followed his master he looked back at the old -cow, still contentedly chewing her cud, and said: - -“I go from this pleasant farm, where I was bred and have lived so long, -to be driven and beaten, and then sold I know not where. Ah, my old -friend! I wish now that I was as ugly and as slow as you.” - - * * * * * - -If we have any gifts beyond our neighbors, let us possess them humbly; -for we cannot tell but what those very gifts may some day cause our -happiness to be less than theirs. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE COLT AND OLD GRAY. - - -A COLT that had just been broken to harness was driven in a milk-wagon -every day to the city, where he was fastened to a hitching-post, and -left standing, while the farmer went around to the neighboring houses -serving milk. - -A boy on the way to his work one morning chanced to rap against the -post in passing, when the colt put back his ears. Seeing this, the boy -stopped and gave him a thrust in the side, when the colt snapped at him -and raised his hind foot, showing that he was angry. - -Instead of checking the boy, this only encouraged him; so that the -next morning he repeated his offence, and continued to do it afterward -every morning, seeming to take a wicked delight in rousing the colt’s -temper. Yet the colt, being tied, could do nothing to revenge himself, -as the boy took good care to keep out of the reach of both his teeth -and his heels. - -[Illustration] - -One day, on going back to the stable, the colt told an old gray horse -that stood in the next stall how cruelly he was tormented, without -being able to stop his tormentor. - -“I know how you could stop him,” said the old gray, “and that without -giving yourself the least trouble.” - -“Tell me,” said the colt. - -“What will you give me for my secret?” asked Old Gray. - -“My share of the feed that we’ll get for our dinner.” - -“All right,” said Old Gray; “I’ll tell you as soon as I have eaten it.” - -In a little while the farmer passed through the stable, and poured out -six quarts of oats for each horse. And the colt, although he was very -hungry and his mouth watered for them, allowed the old horse to put his -head over and eat up every grain in his manger. - -“Now,” said the colt, impatiently, “tell me, as you promised, how I can -stop that young rogue from poking at my ribs every morning.” - -[Illustration] - -“In this way,” said the old horse. “Let him do it, and pretend you -don’t feel it.” - -“Is that all you have to say?” said the colt, angrily. “I could have -done that without being told, or being cheated out of my dinner, -either.” - -“But you never thought of it till I told you,” said Old Gray. “Now, -just try it.” - -As the oats were all gone and could never be gotten back, the colt -concluded there was no use in fretting any more about them. Yet he -found himself thinking over Old Gray’s advice, and before night -concluded to try it. - -The next morning the boy came along as usual, and, stealing up softly -by the colt’s side, gave him a thrust in the tender spot just behind -his shoulder. The colt never winced, nor even turned his eyes toward -him. The boy tried it again and again, with no better success, until he -had to hurry away, for fear of a scolding from his master. - -For several mornings after this he renewed the attempt (though with -less spirit each morning), until, finding it made no impression, he -gave it up altogether, and passed by whistling, with his hands in his -pockets, as if no colt were there. - -Shortly after this, one evening about sundown, as the colt was drinking -in the stable-yard, Old Gray came in from ploughing. - -[Illustration] - -Said the colt, raising his head from the horse-trough: - -“Your advice was good and worth the oats, after all. I ask your pardon -for being so rude the other morning.” - -“I can easily forgive you,” said Old Gray. “Trifles do not worry me. -You are only a colt yet, just put to the milk-wagon. You’ll be wiser by -the time you get to the plough.” - - * * * * * - -By noticing small affronts, we give every passer-by the power to vex -us; by overlooking them, we take that power away. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE KING’S ALMONER. - - -A KING was told that his subjects in a certain city were suffering from -hunger and cold and nakedness. Then he said to himself, - -“What man is there among them, of prudence and charity, with whom I can -intrust supplies for their relief?” - -And one being named he sent to him stores of food and raiment and -money, with this message: - -“These things are for the benefit of all the dwellers in your city. -Not that you should be neglected while others are provided for; on the -contrary, as you will have to wait on the rest as my almoner, you may -keep somewhat the largest share for yourself.” - -So the man received what the king sent, and divided it in due -proportion between himself and the sufferers around him. - -But after doing this justly and generously for a time he began, as new -supplies came in, to increase his own portion and diminish that which -he divided among his neighbors, thus making himself richer and richer, -while they became poorer and poorer. - -Now, it was the king’s custom at certain seasons to leave his royal -palace and travel through his dominions, visiting his people in every -city; and, the time for his departure having come, he set out on his -journey, and at length came to the city which he had befriended. And he -went among the people, visiting them in their houses, and found great -poverty and distress among them. - -Then he came to the house of his almoner, and walked through its -spacious rooms (for the man had built himself a new house) and saw his -children richly clothed and his table covered with dainties. And the -king sat down with them and partook of the rich fare that was provided, -and afterward went to his own home. - -As soon as he came there he called his chief servant and commanded him -to send fresh supplies of food and money and raiment—greater and more -abundant than ever before—to the suffering city. And these, being sent -forth in haste, quickly reached their destination. And the king’s -almoner received them, and after giving a very little to the people -around him laid up the rest for himself. As he did so he said, - -“Now am I sure of the king’s love and favor, for behold by his bounty -how my wealth has increased!” - -But not many days after this the almoner’s servant who had charge of -his storehouse came to him, saying, - -“The food which you have laid up has bred worms and is spoiled.” - -Then the servant who kept his raiment came and said, - -“The rich garments sent by the king, which you have laid by so -carefully, are being consumed by the moth and destroyed.” - -And the keeper of his gold came, saying, - -“The treasure-boxes which appeared so strong are falling to pieces; -much gold has already been lost from them, and because they are opening -of themselves they invite the hand of the pilferer and robber.” - -Then the rich man was in great trouble, and he went in haste to the -king and told him of the losses which had so suddenly befallen him. - -The king replied, - -“How can that be lost now which was given long ago to the poor?” - -The rich man answered, - -“I have done wrong in keeping for my own what did not belong to me.” - -So he returned to his house sad at heart, to find all his riches melted -away, and truly (as he knew) it was by his own act, and not by the hand -of an enemy. - - * * * * * - -He who will be richer than he ought to be shall be poorer than he need -to be. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -PANSIES. - - -TWO purple pansies opened their velvet-like leaves one summer morning, -but on looking around them saw that they had not the garden-bed alone. -On one side a clump of crimson poppies towered above their heads, and -on the other some tall golden lilies were nodding in the breeze. - -When the lowly pansies saw their lofty neighbors, the joy which at -first they felt in their new being quickly waned. They looked up -enviously, first at the poppies, and then at the lilies, saying to one -another, - -“Between these haughty flowers, there is nothing left us but to hang -our heads in shame.” - -Just then the gardener passing by, they cried, - -“Take us from here, we pray you, and plant us in a bed of flowers yet -lowlier than ourselves.” - -“And why do you ask this change?” he said. - -“Do you not see,” they replied, “how our gorgeous neighbors overshadow -us, and by contrast how poor and mean we seem?” - -“Then it is nothing but pride,” the gardener answered, “that prompts -the request: you would be to others what these gorgeous neighbors are -to you. Be satisfied rather to remain where you are. And know that it -is not for the glory of the flower its place in the garden is chosen, -yet its greatest beauty may be attained where it stands in fulfilling -my design.” - - * * * * * - -A desire to be the greatest as well as a willingness to be least may -lead us to choose our place in a lower sphere. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE BIRDS AND THE BELLS. - - -A VILLAGE church was presented with a chime of bells, which were rung -for the first time on a bright spring morning. The country-people were -delighted with the unusual sounds, but there was one class of hearers -displeased. These were the birds. Heretofore they had made all the -music for the fields and hills, and the sound of the bells seemed to -them an invasion of their rights. They met together in an evergreen -hedge to talk over the matter. - -Said the robin: - -“My notes can no longer be heard.” - -The bluebird said: - -“I might as well have no voice at all.” - -The wrens and swallows whose nests were in the church-tower declared -they were driven out of house and home. The meeting appointed the -oriole and the dove to wait on the pastor and lay their grievance -before him. - -The next morning, as the good man was at work in his garden, the two -appeared in a pear tree near by. - -“Good-morning, sir,” said the oriole. - -“Good-morning, my feathered friend,” replied the pastor. “When did you -arrive from the South?” - -“Only a few days ago, but it was to find a sad change here.” - -“Pray, what may it be? Not gunners already, nor boys after your nests?” - -“Not these, but the bells in your church-tower.” - -“Why, do not they please you?” - -“No, indeed! and all the birds have sent us to protest against them. We -and our forefathers have enlivened these hills with our songs time out -of mind, and we believe the air, for music, belongs to us still. And we -have come to give you your choice: Take down the bells, or we will be -still and never sing for you again.” - -The pastor was dumb with astonishment as the birds flew away. He held -the hoe in his hand full five minutes without moving, deep in thought -concerning the strange interview. But of course submission to so -unreasonable a demand was not to be thought of, and the next Sunday -morning the bells again sent forth their glad peal. The ringers were in -earnest, and their chimes floated far over hill and vale. But for the -rest of the sacred day, and - -[Illustration] for full twenty-four hours afterward, not a bird -uttered a note. They could be seen flitting through the bushes and the -trees, but all was perfectly still. - -“How I miss their sweet voices!” said the pastor to his wife. “Though -the leaves are unfolding and the rosebuds are swelling, without the -birds’ voices it does not seem like spring.” - -“Never fear,” replied his wife; “it will all come right again.” - -Now, the birds, in resolving not to sing, had forgotten that, besides -disobliging the people, they might inconvenience themselves. The spring -was the season for their songs, and they soon found this out. After -being silent for two whole days, the robin said: - -“I really cannot keep still any longer. I will fly down to the other -end of the woods, beyond the creek, where nobody can hear me, and sing -a little song to myself.” - -But great was his surprise, on reaching the woods, to hear the oriole, -who had come there for the same purpose a little while before him. And -presently the cuckoo, and a number of other birds, joined them at the -place. - -“What does this mean?” they said, looking round at each other. - -“It is not hard to guess,” said the wren. “I don’t doubt we have all -gone through the same experience. To confess the truth, I believe we -are spiting ourselves more than anybody else.” - -“Well, now,” said the owl, who spent his days asleep in that dark -woods, but had been waked up by the voices, “let us reconsider our -vote. Long ago, in the days of our fathers, these hills remained the -same from age to age; but now the world has changed, and we must put -up with it. The bells are not so bad as they might be, after all. They -don’t ring all the time, and though they are not as musical as your -songs, or as my hoot, yet they are not altogether without harmony. I -move it be left to each bird to do as he chooses.” - -The vote was taken and carried, and the birds flew off merrily; but the -owl went to sleep again. - -The next morning, as the pastor and his wife were in their garden -tending their flower-beds, and both longing for the songs of the birds, -suddenly the voice of the oriole was heard in the pear tree. He was -leaping from branch to branch, singing as if to make up for lost time -and as though he could not utter the notes fast enough. - -“Here I am!” he said to the pastor. “We have thought the matter over -and concluded to let the bells ring.” - -The pastor looked up delighted, and his wife shared his joy. - -“Did I not tell you,” she cried, “that it would all come right? For -when no harm is intended and both sides mean to be fair, though they -may sometimes get crooked, they are pretty sure to come straight again.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -JACK AND JENNY. - - -A SPARROW that lived with many others in a public park offended his -neighbors by getting up too early in the morning and beginning to chirp -before they were willing to be waked. They called a meeting of all the -flock, and after considering the matter told him that he and his mate -must look for another home. - -This he refused to do, saying that he had as good a right to stay where -he was as they had. - -“These trees do not belong to you,” he said, “and you don’t pay rent -for the bird-boxes we live in. They were put up by the people who own -the park, because they love to see us building our nests and flying -about here. - -“Beside this,” he continued, “I have done nothing with which you ought -to find fault, for I never wake till the break of day, and do not begin -to chirp for several minutes after that, when all industrious sparrows -should be ready for breakfast. This very morning I heard a cock crow -before I opened my bill, and what sparrow would not be ashamed to be -lazier than the chickens?” - -[Illustration] - -When the other birds heard this speech, they did not try to answer -it—for, indeed, it was every word true and they could say nothing -against it—but, having the power on their side, they all at once -fiercely attacked the sparrow with their beaks and claws. Nor did they -attack him alone, but they flew at his innocent mate also, and hurt -her more than they hurt him; for after they were both driven out of the -park and had lodged on a neighboring fence it was found not only that -her feathers were badly tumbled and torn, but, alas! that one of her -eyes was pecked out. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - -As winter was just coming on, they knew not where to go or what to do. -For the first few nights they roosted on the roof of a stable; but this -was a forlorn, lonely place, and, as they had no perch to clasp with -their little feet, the wind almost blew them away. Beside this, the -man who kept the stable was so saving of his corn, and swept the yard -so clean, that they could hardly pick up as much as would make a good -meal in a whole day. - -[Illustration] - -From the roof of the stable they moved under the eaves of a -carpenter-shop, and thought they were nicely fixed, until one dark -night a cat stole softly along the roof to the spot where they were -sleeping, and, suddenly putting out her paw, almost caught them both in -her sharp claws. As it was, she caught poor Jenny’s tail and pulled -out every feather of it, which did the cat no good, but was a great -loss to Jenny, for she could hardly guide herself in flying, and looked -very odd beside. - -After this they led a sad wandering life for the rest of the winter, -always sleeping in fear on clothes-lines and fences, and picking up a -poor living—mostly from frozen slop-buckets and around kitchen doors. - -But toward spring better fortune came to them, for a little girl, -looking out of the dining-room window one morning, spied them hopping -about the pavement below, and threw them some crumbs. Her joy was great -when she saw them quickly eat what she had thrown and then seem to look -up for more. She ran back to the table, and brought them as much as -they wanted. - -[Illustration] - -The next day they came again, and after this, every day, almost as soon -as it was light, they might be seen waiting for their breakfast from -the hands of their little friend. - -[Illustration] - -But think of their surprise one April morning, when the sun was shining -brightly and the buds were just beginning to swell on the rose-bushes, -to see the carpenter come in at the garden-gate carrying a new bird-box -fastened to the top of a high pole, which he at once began to set up in -the middle of the grass-plot, digging a deep hole to set it in, so that -it would stand firm in spite of wind and weather. - -[Illustration] - -Their kind little friend ran out from the house and almost danced for -joy around the pole while it was being planted. And her father and -mother, and brothers and sisters, sharing in her delight, all left the -breakfast-table to watch the carpenter at his work. - -[Illustration] - -That very day the happy pair—little Jack and Jenny—went into their new -home, and before night were picking up dried grass and twigs with -which to begin building their nest. - -[Illustration] - -Now, it happened, not long after this, that a young sparrow who lived -at the park, in taking a longer flight than usual one morning, spied -the pretty bird-box with her old acquaintances perched at its door. - -“Oh ho!” said she to herself, “is this where you have come? and to such -a fine house, too!” and in a lower voice, which no one could hear, she -whispered, “I would like to live in it myself.” - -[Illustration] - -She waited till Jenny had gone off in search of a twig; then she -quickly flew down to Jack, who was singing on the roof. - -“Don’t you remember me?” she asked. “My parents lived next door to you -at the park. But I was not one of those who drove you away; indeed, I -never raised my wing against you.” - -“I remember you,” replied Jack. “But how in the world did you get -here?” - -“I came to admire your beautiful new home,” said Pert, “and to tell you -how glad I am that you have got up in the world.” - -[Illustration] - -“Thank you for your kindness,” replied Jack. - -“There is something else,” said Pert, “that I want to say, but I don’t -like to mention it.” - -“Speak out,” said Jack; “I want ever so much to hear it.” - -“Well, then,” replied Pert, “to tell you the truth, I am afraid that -all the other birds, when they hear of your good fortune, will laugh at -your wife.” - -“What ails her?” asked Jack. - -“She is not the one,” replied Pert, “for so handsome a sparrow as you, -and for such a fine house.” Here Miss Pert turned all the way round to -show her fine feathers. “And I have come as a friend,” she continued, -“to ask if I can help you in finding a prettier mate.” - -“I don’t want one,” said Jack. - -“What?” exclaimed Pert. “And Jenny with only one eye and all her -tail-feathers pulled out?” - -“Ah, but,” said Jack, “her other eye is the brightest and softest that -ever was seen. And, as for her tail-feathers, they are all growing -again.” - -“Pooh!” said Pert, “she is too old for you, beside being ugly.” - -[Illustration] - -“Oh no,” said Jack; “she is just the right age. And if she _has_ lost -her good looks, she has lost them for me. When you were against me, -then she was my friend; and now, when you are willing to be my friend -because I have grown rich, I will not turn her off to please you. Go -home again, Miss Pert, for nobody but Jenny shall share my fine house.” - - * * * * * - -That person seems the prettiest whom we love the best; and the one who -was faithful to us when we were in trouble is the one we should remain -faithful to when our troubles are taken away. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE MEETING OF THE WINDS. - - -THE north and the south winds met one day in a field beside a river. -The north wind had brought some snow the night before, but the south -wind blew soon after, and melted nearly all of it. Only a few white -patches were left, here and there, along the sunny banks of the stream. - -As soon as the winds came near each other the south wind said: - -“Good-morning, brother! I am glad to meet you, though your cold breath -quite chills me.” - -“But I am not glad to meet you,” answered the north wind. “Why did you -melt my snow so quickly? Could you not let it lie for one day?” - -[Illustration] - -“The time has come for the grass and flowers, you know, brother, and I -must be at work,” said the gentle south wind. - -“There was no need of such haste,” said the burly north wind; “when -friends meet, they should be polite.” - -“I have to call up the daisies and to waken the roses,” said the south -wind, “and to make all the fields green by the first of May. I have no -time to lose. Look at yonder meadow how brown it is, and at these trees -how bare! Scarcely a fly is buzzing in the sunshine, and not a tortoise -has yet crept out of his hole in the ground.” - -“I do not care for your daisies and your tortoises,” muttered the north -wind; “you want to hurry me off, but I will not go so soon.” - -[Illustration] - -“Have you not had the whole winter to yourself,” asked the south wind, -“freezing the brooks, driving away all my birds and my butterflies, -and covering the fields and roads and bushes and barns with snow? If -I chanced to come then and pay you a visit some bright morning, how -quickly you drove me away again! Never might I stay till the sun went -down!” - -“The winter is my time,” said the north wind; “it belongs to me, and -you had no right to come then.” - -“And the spring is my time,” answered the south wind; “you know the law -is that I must have the fields now.” - -[Illustration] - -“You think a great deal of yourself,” said the north wind, angrily, -“but I am stronger than you. I can fly farther, and I see things that -you never see. Where do you think I came from this morning?” - -“Tell me, I cannot guess?” answered the south wind. - -“I came all the way from the icy pole, where the sea is frozen over, -and the land is covered with snow that never melts. The white bear -lives there. I saw one but a few hours ago, watching for fish by a hole -that he had broken through the ice.” - -[Illustration] - -“But you never saw my home, nor the strange sights that are there,” -said the south wind. “I come from the far-off torrid zone, where the -snow never falls, and the frost never kills the buds and the flowers. -There the panther lives. I passed by one last night in the forest lying -out on the branch of a great tree, watching for his prey, that he might -spring down on it as it passed beneath.” - -[Illustration] - -“But I see the Esquimaux,” answered the north wind, “in their strange -skin dresses, living in houses of snow. They fight the fierce walrus on -the ice, and spear the fur-covered seal from their little boats that -dance on the waves. I watch the Northern Lights, so red and beautiful, -shooting up like bright flames in the sky, and the night is almost -as light as the day. Then the Esquimaux harnesses his dogs, and the -Laplander his reindeer, and they travel swiftly over the frozen plain.” - -[Illustration] - -“Yesterday I blew with all my might until I loosed a field of ice -and sent it out to sea. A white bear was on it, and he sailed on his -ice-boat across the sea to Iceland. As I passed the steep, high rocks -on the shores of Greenland I saw the eider-ducks brooding there. Each -one had lined her nest with soft down plucked off of her own breast. -Then I frightened them with my hoarse voice, and thousands—yes, -hundreds of thousands—rose up in the air like a cloud.” - -[Illustration] - -“But let me ask you,” murmured the south wind, “did you ever hear among -your icebergs and your frozen wastes the song of the oriole and the -mocking-bird, that I hear every day in the woods where I live? You look -at your Esquimaux in their snow houses, but I peep in at the hut of the -Indian that stands under the forest shade, or I blow against the sail -of his canoe and waft it up some quiet river where the trees grow thick -on each side and meet overhead. The red flamingo wades out into the -water, and the monkeys and parrots chatter among the branches. - -“I see the boa-constrictor coiled among the roots on the shore, or -watch the alligator floating down the stream. My home is among the -orange trees and in the fields where the sugar-cane grows. There I lie -still and sleep, or awake to go forth on my journeys over the earth—not -to freeze up the ground and make it barren and bare, but to cover it -with green and bring out the buds and flowers on every bush and tree.” - -[Illustration] - -While the winds were talking in this way, the river, that had been -listening to them, said: - -“Why do you thus boast and provoke one another? Why not speak gently -and kindly of the wonderful things you have seen? You would not change -homes, would you?” - -“No, indeed!” each one replied; “I love my own the best!” - -“Then,” said the river, “what good can come of disputing when both are -satisfied? As for me, I love you both. I am glad for the north wind -to blow cold, and cover me with ice in the winter, so that the merry -skaters can come and glide swiftly over my smooth surface. - -[Illustration] - -“And I love the south wind to breathe softly in the spring, and make my -banks green again, and waken the frogs along my shore, and bring the -fisherman in his boat, and the boys to swim. - -“Let us all be friends, then, and love each other, and be satisfied -with what our kind Creator has given us, and happy in doing what will -please Him.” - -[Illustration] - -Then the north wind said: - -“I am willing to be friends again. It is true that the spring is your -time, gentle south wind; I will not stay to nip your opening flowers, -but will fly away to my cold home.” - -And the south wind said: - -“Forgive me if I was rude, brother. When November shall come once more, -I will leave the fields and woods to you. Take this sprig of evergreen -to remember me by, and may it not fade till we meet again! Farewell!” - -[Illustration] - - * * * * * - -Transcriber’s Notes: - -Obvious punctuation errors repaired. - -Page 172, “lookod” changed to “looked” (Peter looked around the) - -Page 457, “ou” changed to “on” (but on looking around) - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's New Lights on Old Paths, by Charles Foster - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NEW LIGHTS ON OLD PATHS *** - -***** This file should be named 51062-0.txt or 51062-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/1/0/6/51062/ - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Emmy and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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position: relative; z-index: 1;} -span.bgcolor {position: relative; left: -1000em;} - - h2.no-break - { - page-break-before: avoid; - padding-top: 0; - } - - .poetry - { - display: block; - margin-left: 1.5em; - } - .drop-cap:first-letter - { - float: none; - margin: 0; - font-size: 100%; - } - - img.drop-cap - { - display: none; - } - - .drop-cap:first-letter - { - color: inherit; - visibility: visible; - margin-left: 0; - } -} - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of New Lights on Old Paths, by Charles Foster - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: New Lights on Old Paths - -Author: Charles Foster - -Release Date: January 28, 2016 [EBook #51062] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NEW LIGHTS ON OLD PATHS *** - - - - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Emmy and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<h1 class="faux">New Lights on Old Paths</h1> -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 608px;"> -<img src="images/cover.jpg" width="608" height="800" alt="Cover" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[1]</a></span></p> - - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 502px;"> -<img src="images/title-page.jpg" width="502" height="600" alt="Title page" /> -</div> -<div class="figleft" style="width: 117px;"> -<img src="images/cover-spine.jpg" width="117" height="500" alt="book spine" /> -</div> - -<div class="maintitle"><br /><br /><br /><br /><span class="smcap">New Lights -on -Old Paths</span></div> - -<div class="center"><br /><br /><br />BY CHARLES FOSTER,<br /> -<span class="authorof">AUTHOR OF THE “STORY OF THE BIBLE,” Etc.</span><br /> - - -<br /><b>350 ILLUSTRATIONS.</b><br /><br /> - -<br /> -<small>PUBLISHED AT THE OFFICE OF</small><br /> - -<i>CHARLES FOSTER’S PUBLICATIONS</i>,<br /> -<small>No. 118 SOUTH SEVENTH STREET,</small><br /> -PHILADELPHIA, PA.<br /> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[2]</a></span></p> - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 101px;"> -<img src="images/decoration.jpg" width="101" height="14" alt="decoration" /> -</div> -<div class="copyright"> - -Copyright, 1885,<br /> -By CHARLES FOSTER.<br /></div> -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 101px;"> -<img src="images/decoration.jpg" width="101" height="14" alt="decoration" /> -</div> - -<div class="copyright"><br /><br /><br /> -——————<br /> -<span class="smcap">Electrotyped by Westcott & Thomson, Philadelphia.</span><br /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[3]</a></span></p> - - -<h2 class="faux">PREFACE</h2> -<div> - <img class="splitr2" src="images/illus003a.jpg" alt="Preface with landscape" width="600" height="756" /> - <img class="splitr" src="images/illus003b.jpg" alt="bottom of landscape" width="199" height="75" /> -</div> - - - - - - -<p class="drop-cap">THE author is expected -to say something by -way of introducing, or apologizing -for, his book. What is its object? Why did he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[4]</a></span> -write it, when there are already so many more than are -wanted? In reply to these questions he would say (what -is evident, indeed, without saying) that nobody adds another -to the long list who does not believe that—on -<i>his</i> subject, at least—there is room for one book more. -And he proves the sincerity of his belief by making the -venture.</p> - -<p>The writer of this volume does not claim to present in -it a single new truth. In the sphere of morals, of which -it treats, he believes there is no such thing. It is not new -truths that we need, but the application of old ones to our -daily life and practice. Any device that may assist in securing -so desirable a result is of value; in the hope that -these Fables may not be wholly useless to this end he -hazards their publication. As their title indicates, they will -be found to vary widely in subject and mode of treatment.</p> - -<p>One word about the illustrations: these all, without -exception, were drawn for the book. Much time, labor, -and expense have been bestowed upon the effort to make -them appropriate and entertaining. The illustrations of a -story may be compared to the music of a song. We can<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[5]</a></span> -bear with some defect in the verse if the music awakens -the sentiment the verse was intended to express. So the -author hopes that the excellence and originality of many -of these designs will in some measure make amends -for whatever deficiencies the reader may discover in -the text.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 318px;"> -<img src="images/illus005.jpg" width="318" height="193" alt="landscape" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[6]</a><br /><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[7]</a></span></p> - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents1.jpg" width="600" height="770" alt="Contents page 7" /> -</div> - -<div class="center"> -<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Contents"> -<tr> -<td align="left"> </td> -<td align="right">Page</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Innkeeper.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_13">13</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Brook and the Waterwheel.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Court-House Steeple.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_41">41</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Crooked Horn and Old Brindle.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_46">46</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Millers Tenth.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_51">51</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Lark and the Whippoorwill.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_69">69</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Gate and Gate Post.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_73">73</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="center" colspan="2"><div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents2.jpg" width="600" height="703" alt="Contents page 8" /> -</div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[8]</a></span></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Weedy Farm.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_78">78</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The King Seeking Content.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_84">84</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Learned Owl.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_94">94</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Horse and the Grasshoppers.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_98">98</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Bark and the Lightship.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_101">101</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Unhonored Servant.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_104">104</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Wings.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_107">107</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Standpoints.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_111">111</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Man with a Menagerie.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_117">117</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Two Outlooks.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_121">121</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Job Nickel.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_125">125</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Unused Loom.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_133">133</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Crowing.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_137">137</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Peter Crisp’s Spectacles.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_140">140</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Two Apple Trees.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_182">182</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Spring in the Woods.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_186">186</a></td> -</tr> - -<tr> -<td align="center" colspan="2"><div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents3.jpg" width="600" height="731" alt="Contents page 9" /> -</div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[9]</a></span></td> -</tr> - -<tr> -<td align="left">The Distant View.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_189">189</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Two Vines.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_195">195</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Old Chestnut and the Young Oak.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_199">199</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Corn-cribs.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_202">202</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Old Clock in the New Home.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_209">209</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Great Secret.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_213">213</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The House-Builder.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_216">216</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Pigeons.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_223">223</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Clock on the Desk.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_225">225</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Watch-Dog.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_228">228</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Opened Eyes.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_231">231</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Lantern People.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_235">235</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Grand Relations.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_253">253</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Fair and Foul Weather.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_255">255</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Wreckage.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_258">258</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Robin.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_261">261</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="center" colspan="2"><div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents4.jpg" width="600" height="687" alt="Contents page 10" /> -</div> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[10]</a></span></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Riddles.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_265">265</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Emigrants Wagon.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_268">268</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Big and Little Lanterns.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_273">273</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Cat and the Tiger.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_278">278</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Charity.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_281">281</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Day-Laborers.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_286">286</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Artist’s Answer.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_291">291</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Hemlock and the Sugar-Maple.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_294">294</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Bread and the Beautiful.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_297">297</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Harper.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_301">301</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Unappreciated Gift.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_305">305</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Worn-Out Team.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_310">310</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Wise Farmer.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_314">314</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Wayfarers.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_319">319</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Other Birds Feathers.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_323">323</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Night-Watchman.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_326">326</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Single and Double.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_332">332</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Boastful Fly.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_335">335</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="center" colspan="2"><div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents5.jpg" width="600" height="703" alt="Contents page 11" /> -</div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[11]</a></span></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Mended Boots.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_339">339</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Cripple and his Staff.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_344">344</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Search.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_360">360</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Swallows and the Windmill.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_365">365</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Medicine-Man.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_370">370</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Eagle and the Wren.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_374">374</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Two Saplings.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_378">378</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Cog-Wheel.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_382">382</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Plough and the Mowing-Machine.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_386">386</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Fat and Lean.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_389">389</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Half Empty and Quite Full.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_392">392</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Snake.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_395">395</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Rich & Poor.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_398">398</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Hawk and the Chicken.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_402">402</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Servants Money.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_405">405</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Future Greatness.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_411">411</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Old Mans Watch.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_415">415</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Teacher.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_418">418</a></td> -</tr> -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/contents6.jpg" width="600" height="755" alt="Contents page 12" /> -</div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[12]</a></span></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Cloud Shadows.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_426">426</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Penitent Transgressor.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_428">428</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Dry Well.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_432">432</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Fruit Tree.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_435">435</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Deer.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_438">438</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Homely and Handsome.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_442">442</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Colt and Old Gray.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_446">446</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The King’s Almoner.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_453">453</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Pansies.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_457">457</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Birds and the Bells.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_459">459</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">Jack and Jenny.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_465">465</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td align="left">The Meeting of the Winds.</td> -<td align="right"><a href="#Page_476">476</a></td> -</tr> -</table></div> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[13]</a></span></p> - -<h2>THE INNKEEPER.</h2> - - -<div> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013a.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="299" height="74" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013b.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="344" height="54" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013c.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="382" height="51" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013d.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="351" height="36" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013e.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="311" height="49" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013f.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="272" height="37" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013g.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="174" height="59" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus013h.jpg" alt="birds at birdhouse" width="120" height="145" /> -</div> - - - -<p><span class="smcap">There</span> was once a -man who kept an inn -on a country road. -Just back of his -house stretched a -dark forest in -which a number -of bad -men lived. -Some of these men -were great fighters, -some were robbers, -some had even murdered -people. And they were all in -the habit of coming to the inn. They -were very glad to have some place -where they could meet together and talk -over the wicked things they had done, and lay -plans for more that they wanted to do.</p> - -<p>In that same country, but farther off, there -was a rich plain which was covered with beautiful -farms. The people who lived on these -farms were very different from those who lived in the forest. -They were honest and industrious; they had ministers and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[14]</a></span> -schoolmasters living among them; on every weekday they -might be seen working in their fields, and on every Sunday -going to their churches. And they too used to stop at the -inn as they went to the city to sell the butter, and eggs, -and poultry, they had raised, and to buy the tea, and coffee, -and clothing, and other things, that they needed.</p> - -<p>It happened, one day when these good men stopped at -the inn, that the bad men out of the forest were there. -Then the good men went to the landlord, and said:</p> - -<p>“Give us a room away from these men where we cannot -hear their evil talk.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[15]</a><br /><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[16]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;"> -<img src="images/illus015.jpg" width="402" height="531" alt="couple walking in woods and a house" /> -</div> - -<p>So the landlord put them in his parlor on the opposite -side of the house; but though the doors were shut tight, -the noise came through, and was so loud that the men in -the parlor could hardly hear themselves speak. Then they -said to one another:</p> - -<p>“What shall we do to get beyond the reach of these -horrid sounds? Truly, we can do nothing else but leave -the place.”</p> - -<p>So they went out and harnessed up their horses and -drove off.</p> - -<p>The next time they stopped at the inn the bad men were -there again. Then the farm-people called the landlord, and -said to him:</p> - -<p>“We want to stay and take dinner here. Bring us -therefore to a room much farther away from these men -than the parlor where you put us before.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[17]</a><br /><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[18]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 392px;"> -<img src="images/illus017.jpg" width="392" height="512" alt="people greeting man at door" /> -</div> - -<p>So the landlord took them up stairs into the best room -on his second floor, and gave them the key of the door, -that they might lock themselves in and stay as long as -they wanted. But the bad men had seen them going up, -and presently they seized the great clubs that they always -carried, and hurried up after them.</p> - -<p>“Let us in!” they cried.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 398px;"> -<img src="images/illus019.jpg" width="398" height="546" alt="two men talking to man in doorway inset of people running upstairs background of birds flying in wind" /> -</div> - -<p>But without waiting for any answer they broke down -the door and rushed at the men who were sitting around -the table, until they had to run for their lives.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[19]</a><br /><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[20]</a></span></p> - -<p>That night, after everybody had gone to bed and the -landlord had locked up the inn, as he sat alone by the fire, -he said to himself:</p> - -<p>“I must do one thing or the other. I must turn away -either the good men or the bad men, for it is plain they -cannot both come to my house. Which shall it be?”</p> - -<p>After thinking a while longer he said:</p> - -<p>“I admit that the people from the forest buy a good deal -more out of my bar-room—wine, brandy, and whiskey—but -then they get drunk and break my furniture, and often -refuse to pay for what they have had; so that, in truth, I -do not make any great profit out of them, after all—not -near enough to make up for the bad example they set my -children and the bad name they give my house. But the -people from the farms, though they do not buy any brandy, -or whiskey, buy a good deal more of bread and meat, and -they always pay for what they get. By the end of the -year I am sure that I make more out of them than I do out -of the others. Then they are kind to my family, and they -make my house respectable and give it a good name. I am -resolved what to do, and which to turn away. These shall -stay, and the others shall go; and to-morrow I will tell -them.”</p> - -<p>So, after making up his mind, he went to bed and slept -all night.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[21]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 396px;"> -<img src="images/illus021.jpg" width="396" height="530" alt="Inn with words above: Out of the Heart are the Issues of Life" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[22]</a></span></p> - -<p>Early the next morning he opened his house. As soon -as the door was unlocked in came the men from the forest, -and they kept on coming till the bar-room was full. Then, -while they were making a great noise, talking very loud, -and calling for drink, the landlord rapped on the top of -the bar and cried:</p> - -<p>“Silence, and listen to me! You men have been coming -here and doing as you pleased, until you seem to think -the house belongs to you, and that you can turn people out -of it whenever you like. But I am the one who has to pay -the rent, and I think it is for me to say who shall come and -who shall go. And now I say that I want you to go and -never come back.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[23]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 403px;"> -<img src="images/illus023.jpg" width="403" height="518" alt="man at bar talking to group of men; inset of man sitting alone by fire" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[24]</a></span></p> - -<p>As soon as the landlord had spoken in this firm way -the men out of the forest—who, in spite of their boasting, -were great cowards—began to steal off one by one, until -they were all gone; at which the landlord was glad, for he -thought he had gotten rid of them altogether. But in this -he was mistaken, for in a few days they were back again, -standing about the doors and watching for a chance to -get in.</p> - -<p>To keep them out the landlord shut up all but the front -door, and tried to keep his eye on that. But so impudent -had the men grown that they began to climb into the windows -when no one was looking. Then the landlord sent -for the blacksmith and had iron bars put across every -window. But after he had done this the men even got -up on the roof in some way, and came down the chimney -like so many sweeps; at which the landlord told his hired -man to build a hot fire, and to keep it blazing no matter -how much wood it burned.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[25]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 388px;"> -<img src="images/illus025.jpg" width="388" height="509" alt="men trying to get in" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[26]</a></span></p> - -<p>But it was not possible to close every door, and window, -and chimney, and keep them always shut. There -was the side door, that opened into the flower-garden, -where sometimes persons wanted to walk; and there was -the back door, out of which the cook must go to the -woodpile many times every day. Some of the windows -opened on beautiful prospects, where the boarders liked -to sit and look out. So that, do what he would, the -landlord often found places left open.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[27]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 393px;"> -<img src="images/illus027.jpg" width="393" height="525" alt="maids peeking in door, man starting fire in fireplace, inset of man sneaking in" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[28]</a></span></p> - -<p>And, beside this, the men out of the forest had lately -changed their plan. They came now dressed up like the -farm-people, and sometimes the landlord could hardly tell -one from the other. In short, they were too clever for -him; and so, in spite of -all he could do, they got -in, and every day he -would meet some of them -sneaking about the house, -or hidden in some closet -or corner, or under a -bed.</p> - -<div class="figleft" style="width: 284px;"> -<img src="images/illus028.jpg" width="284" height="262" alt="Man peeking through keyhole" /> -</div> - - -<p>While things were in -this sad state he was sitting -one night before the -fire by himself, just as he sat on the night that he made up -his mind to order the bad men out of his house. But how -differently he felt now from what he felt then! Then he -thought he could have everything his own way, but now -he had done his utmost, and, instead of getting better, -things were getting worse and worse. He was very much -discouraged and low-spirited.</p> - -<p>Then he began to think of some of the wrong things -that he had done himself. He had been too friendly with -these bad men, and not as kind as he should have been to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[29]</a></span> -some good men that he knew. Especially he remembered -how unkindly he had treated one good man. It happened -in this way.</p> - -<p>When he first came to the inn, after renting it, he found -a watchman there. The owner of the inn had sent him to -watch it, and keep it safe. When the landlord came, this -watchman did not go away, but stayed on. The owner had -told him to stay and watch the house; for, although the -owner had rented it, the house still belonged to him.</p> - -<p>So the watchman stayed and tried to make himself useful -to the landlord. But the landlord paid no attention to -him; in truth, he often treated him rudely, until one day, -when the watchman was warning him against these very -men out of the forest, the landlord told him he could take -care of his house himself, and that he did not want his help -any further.</p> - -<p>Since that time the poor man had been staying about -the inn wherever he could find a place. Sometimes he -slept down in the cellar, sometimes out in the wood-house; -and when he got anything to eat, it was always -after the servants were done, and only such food as was -left from their table. And now the landlord remembered -all this. While he sat thinking about it before the fire, -there was a knock at the door.</p> - -<p>“Come in,” said the landlord; and the door opened, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[30]</a></span> -in walked this same watchman. He did not say a word, -but stood still, looking right at the landlord.</p> - -<p>“Watchman,” said the landlord, “I have treated you -very unkindly, and I am sorry for it. Are you willing to -forgive me and be watchman again?”</p> - -<p>“I am,” said the watchman, “if you will promise to pay -attention when I warn you of danger.”</p> - -<p>“I promise,” said the landlord; “I will do anything to -get out of the trouble I am in.”</p> - -<p>“Very well, then,” replied the watchman; “it is a bargain -between us. But now go to bed and get some rest, -for you need it.”</p> - -<p>So the landlord went to bed, and because his worry of -mind had worn him down a good deal he soon fell asleep.</p> - -<p>Early the next morning, before any one else was awake, -the watchman was up and at work. The first thing he did -was to build up the little room, or watch-box, that used to -stand in front of the house. It was placed there on purpose -for him when the house was first built, but because it -had not been taken care of it had long since tumbled down. -But now the watchman built it up again, setting in windows -all around it, so that as he stood there, he could look out -on every side. As soon as he had built up his watch-box -he fixed the cord, or bell-rope, that reached from there -into the landlord’s chamber.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[31]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 389px;"> -<img src="images/illus031.jpg" width="389" height="534" alt="older man sitting by fire, man in uniform standing beside him; inset of man in uniform knocking on door" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[32]</a></span></p> - -<p>And no sooner was this done than, seeing one of the -forest-people coming toward the house, he pulled the cord -and rang the bell. At this the landlord awoke. He knew -what it meant. He did not need any one to tell him, for he -used to hear that bell long ago, although he then paid no -attention to it. But now he jumped up and dressed -quickly, and ran to the door just in time to shut out one -of the very worst of the men from the forest.</p> - -<p>After that the bell went on ringing every day, and the -landlord was kept busy shutting doors and windows. It -must be confessed that he got tired of hearing it sometimes; -but he was so much happier, he ate so much -better and slept so much sounder than he did before, -that, even when it put him to a good deal of trouble, he -was always careful to obey the bell.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 399px;"> -<img src="images/illus033.jpg" width="399" height="525" alt="Life time scenes" /> -</div> - -<p>All this time the good farm-people were made welcome -at the inn. The door was always wide open to them, and -the best of food was put on their table. As they never -went into the bar-room to buy anything to drink, and as -they disliked very much to see drunkards about, the landlord -concluded to take away his bar and make the inn a -temperance house. Being pleased at this, the farm-people -came oftener and stayed longer than ever before, until the -landlord found himself growing rich on the money they -paid him. Then he painted his house inside and out, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[33]</a><br /><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[34]</a></span> -added some new rooms to it, and made it more comfortable -every year.</p> - -<p>When the forest-people found that the watchman was -always looking out for them, and that the landlord always -paid attention to his bell—and when they saw, too, that the -company in the house was such as would make them feel -ashamed, even if they should get in there—they did not -try to get in as often as they used, and so the bell did -not ring nearly so often. Then the landlord had time to -walk in his garden and to sit down in the shade of his -favorite tree, which he had not been able to do for long -years before.</p> - -<p>And so things went on from year to year. The landlord -never ceased to mind the bell, and gradually, as he grew -older, it rang more and more seldom, until, during his last -sickness, while he was shut up in his chamber, growing -weaker and weaker every day, it stopped ringing altogether. -And this was not because the watchman (whose name was -Conscience) was unwilling to disturb him, but because the -forest-people (that is, wicked thoughts and bad desires) did -not trouble him any further.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 398px;"> -<img src="images/illus035.jpg" width="398" height="542" alt="two young people crying about old man in bed; inset two children sitting outside" /> -</div> - -<p>So the old man lay in peace and quietness until he died. -Then his son took the inn and carried it on. It is true that -the men out of the forest knew as soon as the old man was -dead, and thinking that now, as there was a new master,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[35]</a><br /><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[36]</a></span> -they might perhaps be able to get in, they came and tried -again and again. And the son had to fight his own battles -with them like his father. But he kept the watchman in -his house, and minded the bell; and in the end he gained -the victory, as his father had done before him.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 167px;"> -<img src="images/illus036.jpg" width="167" height="257" alt="Keys with the words: LET NOTHING EVIL ENTER TRUST WATCH" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[37]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 431px;"> -<img src="images/illus037.jpg" width="431" height="211" alt="landscape of watermill" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE BROOK AND THE WATER-WHEEL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">THE water-wheel in a grist-mill went round and round, -by day and by night, without stopping. Said the -brook one day, as it passed over the wheel:</p> - -<p>“Are you not tired of being always at work, and of -doing the same thing to-day that you did yesterday? -When I have done my work in making you turn, I glide -on and take my pleasure in flowing through the fields -and the woods.”</p> - -<p>“But my pleasure,” replied the wheel, “is in continuing -to work, and go round and round, grinding up the corn.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[38]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Yesterday,” continued the brook, “as I flowed through -the meadow, I heard some people who were wandering -there say how beautiful I was, and what sweet music I -made as I rippled over the stones.”</p> - -<p>“And no doubt they said what was true,” replied the -wheel, “but it could never be said of me. How would I -look rolling through the meadow? I would not be admired -by others, nor would I enjoy it myself.”</p> - -<p>“You are to be admired for your humility,” said the -brook, “in being contented with so dismal a place.”</p> - -<p>“Not at all,” replied the wheel, “for when this place -was given me, I was given also a liking for it.”</p> - -<p>“But do you not long for the sunlight and the breeze -and a sight of the birds and the flowers?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus039.jpg" width="520" height="576" alt="Different mill" /> -</div> - -<p>“No more than you do for this dim chamber under the -mill. Here I was made to dwell, and here I am satisfied to -be. I greet you tumbling in from the mountain-side over -my head, and I bid you adieu as you flow out joyously -under my feet; but I do not long to follow you. The -summer’s heat does not parch me here, nor the winter’s -frost stop me from turning. Ever in this dim twilight I -revolve and listen to the sound of the grinding. I delight -to hear the farmer drive his team to the mill door loaded -with grain, and afterward haul it away when I have made -it into flour for his wife and children to eat. I am content<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[39]</a><br /><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[40]</a></span> -to stay here and labor—not by constraint nor for duty’s -sake alone, but because the place accords with my nature, -and therefore it is my choice.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We often err in judging the lot of others by our own -feelings and preferences, forgetting that, from differences -in taste or training, what would be pain to us may be -pleasure to them.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 296px;"> -<img src="images/illus040.jpg" width="296" height="184" alt="landscape" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[41]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"> -<img src="images/illus041.jpg" width="600" height="347" alt="people on street" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE COURT-HOUSE STEEPLE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">THE steeple on a country court-house was built to -hold a clock. But when a year or more had passed -after it was finished, and no clock appeared, it began to -complain that the promise made to it had not been -kept.</p> - -<p>“I expected to be of some consequence in the village,” -it said, “but with these ugly round holes in my side left<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[42]</a></span> -boarded up, I am of no more account than if I did not -exist.”</p> - -<p>The town council, having heard of what it said, met -together to talk over the matter, when they had to admit -that the complaint was just; so an extra effort was made -to raise the money needed, and, this being successful, the -clock was ordered, and in due time put in its place.</p> - -<p>And now the steeple’s ambition was fully gratified. -The clock kept good time and was the standard for the -whole village. The farmers went to their work by it, and -the children to school; the people also who drove in from -the country might be seen, as they passed the court-house, -leaning forward, with upturned faces, to get the correct -hour.</p> - -<p>Week after week passed, and month after month, and -still the steeple was gazed at by old and young a hundred -times a day. But after a good many months had rolled -round, notwithstanding all this attention, it began to be -conscious of a change within itself.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 507px;"> -<img src="images/illus043.jpg" width="507" height="651" alt="man inside clockworks" /> -</div> - -<p>“It is true I have got what I asked for,” it said, “and -my proudest wishes have been fulfilled; but, after all, what -have I gained by it or how am I any better off? I am just -as much exposed to the winter’s cold and the summer’s -heat, to the risk of storm and lightning and fire, as ever. -And, as for being looked at—which I once thought so<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[43]</a><br /><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[44]</a></span> -much of—I’m tired of it, and could wish myself back to -what I was before, instead of being forced to listen to the -click of these wheels and the banging of that great iron -hammer by night and by day. I believe I’d rather be the -empty steeple on the church, across the street.”</p> - -<p>At length its complainings reached the ears of one of -the council, who, though an old man, climbed up the -steeple’s winding stair and listened patiently to what it -had to say. When it had finished, he answered:</p> - -<p>“My friend, I think I can put my finger on the cause -of your discontent. You were very anxious to have the -clock, you remember, but perhaps you never recognized -the reason, which was only a desire to increase your own -importance. You thought that all the watches and all the -little clocks in town would be regulated and ruled over by -you. Your motive was wholly selfish, and, as a consequence, -when you got what you wanted, it failed to -satisfy.</p> - -<p>“Now, as for taking the clock down again, that is out -of the question. It was put here for the benefit of all, and -here it must stay. Nevertheless, if you will take an old -man’s advice, I think your troubles will soon come to an -end. Instead of thinking only of yourself, your own comfort, -and your own consequence, think of other people. -Remember the good you have the power to do them, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[45]</a></span> -for their sakes be willing to do it. Then you will find that -the possessions which yield no satisfaction while hoarded up -only for self, impart a real joy when shared with others in -the uses of charity.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 174px;"> -<img src="images/illus045.jpg" width="174" height="170" alt="cupola" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[46]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 622px;"> -<img src="images/illus046.jpg" width="622" height="328" alt="cow running at fence" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>CROOKED HORN AND OLD BRINDLE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A COW that had a crooked horn learned to open gates -and let down bars with it, and, as her master took no -pains to keep her at home, she roamed the roads unrestrained. -One day, in passing a neighbor’s meadow, she -saw an old brindled cow inside hobbled by a rope and -clog of wood fastened to one leg.</p> - -<p>“Who put that on you?” asked Crooked Horn.</p> - -<p>“My master,” replied Brindle.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[47]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus047.jpg" width="514" height="669" alt="cow looking through fence talking to another cow" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[48]</a></span></p> - -<p>“What for?”</p> - -<p>“To keep me from jumping fences.”</p> - -<p>“I’m glad he’s not my master. Why don’t you leave -him and take to the woods?”</p> - -<p>“Well, he’s kind to me in other ways. He gives me -a warm bed, and plenty to eat, in the winter, and beside, -I have a notion that I’ve got myself to blame.”</p> - -<p>“Nonsense! I’m allowed to jump all the fences I like. -Whenever I see a good dinner through the bars, over I go, -no matter whom it belongs to.”</p> - -<p>“I wish I could do so,” said Brindle.</p> - -<p>“But you can’t,” cried Crooked Horn. “I’m on -my way now into yonder clover-field, over across the -railroad.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus049.jpg" width="514" height="668" alt="cow in ditch" /> -</div> - -<p>Saying which, she kicked up her heels and galloped -away. But just as she reached the track an express train -dashed past, and old Brindle saw the engine toss her boastful -acquaintance into the air as a mad bull tosses a dog. -Another moment, and poor Crooked Horn lay in the ditch -mangled and dead.</p> - -<p>“Oh,” cried Brindle, shuddering and looking down -affectionately at the rope and block of wood, “how glad -I am now that my master hobbled me!”</p> - - -<hr class="tb" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[49]</a><br /><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[50]</a></span></p> - -<p class="moral">If we only knew how much worse ills our troubles save -us from, we would often welcome them, instead of trying -to free ourselves from them.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 278px;"> -<img src="images/illus050.jpg" width="278" height="288" alt="cow's head" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[51]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 489px;"> -<img src="images/illus051.jpg" width="489" height="204" alt="mill" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE MILLER’S TENTH.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A YOUNG miller who had succeeded to his father’s -business, made flour for the people of his native -village, and also for the farmers of the country around, -receiving for his pay, or toll, one-tenth of the grain that -he ground. He measured this out in a round box—called -a “toll-dish”—which contained just one-tenth of a bushel.</p> - -<p>Among his customers was an old farmer who, having -his farm all paid for and well stocked, with some money -out at interest beside, was looked upon by his neighbors as -a rich man. He used to come about once a fortnight to -the mill, bringing four or five bags of wheat to be -ground.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[52]</a></span></p> - -<p>One day, after the old man had left, as the miller began -pouring his wheat into the hopper, the thought occurred to -him that if he should take a little more than a tenth the -farmer would never miss it.</p> - -<p>“Other millers do it,” said he, “and so might I as -well. Beside, I will make it up to him by extra care in -grinding his flour.”</p> - -<p>So, after he had taken out the tenth that he was entitled -to, he filled the toll-dish twice again and emptied the contents -into a barrel of his own wheat that stood near.</p> - -<p>But the miller did not feel altogether satisfied with what -he had done. The thought of it disquieted him more than -once. Yet he could not quite persuade himself to put -the wheat back.</p> - -<p>“I think I’m fairly entitled to something more,” he -said, “from such a rich man.”</p> - -<p>Then a bright thought struck him. There was in the -mill some corn that belonged to a widow. She had -wheeled it there in a barrow—poor woman!—with her -own hands, and left it to be ground into meal.</p> - -<p>“I’ll take something less than my full toll from her,” he -said, “and so will make matters square by remembering the -poor.”</p> - -<p>This seemed for a time to overcome his scruples, and, -having made a beginning, he gradually increased the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[53]</a><br /><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[54]</a></span> -extra toll that he took from the rich farmer, but soon -discontinued making any allowance on his poor customer’s -grist.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 515px;"> -<img src="images/illus053.jpg" width="515" height="664" alt="miller working" /> -</div> - -<p>But, though the miller had made a correct calculation -concerning the farmer—viz., that he would not miss what -was unjustly taken from him—he had made a wrong -estimate of his own conscience. He found by thus testing -it that it was not of the sort to heal while he kept -on wounding it afresh, or to accept as true what he knew -to be false. It was rather of the kind that we find it -so inconvenient to have when we want to do wrong and -still be as comfortable as if we were doing right.</p> - -<p>The miller was in the habit of going to the village -church on a Sunday, where he sat in the pew with his -wife and little children, taking part in the service and listening -to the minister’s sermon. But now, whenever the -eighth commandment was repeated, or so much as alluded -to, he grew restless and uneasy and anxious for the service -to be over.</p> - -<p>On week-days the stage-driver, as he passed the mill -door, threw out a newspaper that the miller subscribed -for, and it had long been his favorite pastime, as the -great water-wheel was revolving and the millstones -were grinding, to sit among the bags of grain in his flour-besprinkled -clothes and read his paper through and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[55]</a><br /><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[56]</a></span> -through. But of late he found himself avoiding all -paragraphs headed: “<span class="smcap">Defalcation</span>,” “<span class="smcap">Embezzlement</span>,” -“<span class="smcap">Breach of Trust</span>,” “<span class="smcap">Conscience Fund</span>.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus055.jpg" width="517" height="667" alt="people in church" /> -</div> - -<p>Now and then he stumbled on an account that was published -there of some honest debtor who as soon as he was -able paid up his back debts, or of some repentant thief -who made restitution of the things he had stolen. This -was unpleasant reading to the miller.</p> - -<p>In the village there lived a man who had done just the -reverse of these things, and in consequence bore a bad -name. The miller disliked to meet this man. Occasionally -he had to go on business to the county-town, and on -his way passed the jail. Peering through the bars he -often saw the evil countenances of the prisoners.</p> - -<p>“What are they in there for, I wonder?” he said -to himself. “The truth is I deserve to be there with -them.”</p> - -<p>And this finding of a rebuke in whatever he came -across went on until everything about him seemed to join -in a dreadful chorus, accusing him of his crime.</p> - -<p>But at last the load on his conscience became too -heavy, and he could bear it no longer. But what should -he do to get rid of it? To confess his guilt would crush -him to the earth. There was but one thing more dreadful, -and that was to go on hiding it. But was there no way of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[57]</a><br /><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[58]</a></span> -escaping an open confession? Ah! happy thought! This -would not be necessary. The farmer was still confidingly -bringing his grain every two weeks to the mill.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus057.jpg" width="517" height="665" alt="Miller driving cart past jail" /> -</div> - -<p>“I will go over my accounts,” said the miller, “and -add up to the last pound all I have ever taken from him, -and this I will return gradually, from time to time, with -his flour, in quantities that will not be noticed; so I shall -pay my debt and clear my conscience without being even -suspected of wrong.”</p> - -<p>Having made this resolve, he longed to put it in -practice, and could hardly wait for the next appearance -of the farmer’s wagon. In a few days, however, it drove -up to the mill door as usual. The miller with a glad -heart (which he was careful to conceal) carried the bags -it was loaded with into the mill, and bade the farmer a -cheerful “Good-bye” as he drove away.</p> - -<p>“Now,” he said, “I will take out of this grinding a -part of my toll, lest, if I should take none, the difference -may be noticed and some inquiry made.”</p> - -<p>So he filled the toll-dish three times instead of six, -as he was entitled to, and ground up the rest of the -wheat.</p> - -<p>But while he was thus carrying out, in secret, his plan -at the mill, he little suspected how matters stood at the -farmhouse. The farmer’s wife, who was a more shrewd<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[59]</a><br /><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[60]</a></span> -observer than himself in such things as came directly -under her charge, had noticed for some time past that the -returns from the mill seemed short in weight, and at length -she confided her suspicions to her husband.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus059.jpg" width="523" height="674" alt="flour brought back to farmer" /> -</div> - -<p>“Nonsense!” said he. “I’ve known the miller all his -life, and his father before him: his father had a conscience, -and so has he.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” replied his wife, “there’s one way of testing it -that neither you nor anybody else can object to. I weighed -what we last sent him; now we’ll weigh what he sends back -to us.”</p> - -<p>As the farmer could find no fault with this proposal, he -called it a bargain, and the next day went to the mill for -the grinding. The miller received him gladly and hastened -to carry out his grist to the wagon. As he drove homeward -the farmer said to himself:</p> - -<p>“How strange that wife should speak so about the -flour! But women do sometimes take up such queer -notions. I’ll be bound, now, that she will be waiting, -when I get home, to have the bags put on the scales as -soon as they are unloaded.”</p> - -<p>He was not wrong. As he drove through the gate -around to the side porch his wife appeared in her great -white apron, hardly able to keep quiet until the wagon -was backed up, and as the bags were taken out of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[61]</a><br /><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[62]</a></span> -it they were laid, one by one, on the scales that stood -near.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus061.jpg" width="520" height="671" alt="farmer and wife weighing bags" /> -</div> - -<p>“How does it come out, wife?” cried the farmer as she -set down the pounds contained in the last bag.</p> - -<p>But she kept on going over the figures again and again -without answering, at which the old man put on his spectacles -and hastily footed them up.</p> - -<p>“Didn’t I tell you so?” he exclaimed, with a reproachful -look for her and a triumphant one for himself. “Why, -instead of cheating us, he has cheated himself! What -a pity it is for a woman to be suspicious!”</p> - -<p>“Don’t brag too soon,” said his wife, piqued at his -words; “you’d better put that off till we’ve weighed -another grinding.”</p> - -<p>The hungry mouths on the farm soon demanded a -fresh supply of flour, and before many weeks had passed -another load of wheat, after being weighed with extra -care, was hauled to the mill. The miller, in the mean -time having found some relief to his conscience by the -little he had already done, was more eager than ever to -carry out his plan and remove his burden altogether.</p> - -<p>“It is certain,” he said, “they have not noticed anything -unusual in the last grist. I might just as well hurry matters -up a little. This time I’ll take out no toll at all, and -after this will begin adding some of my own flour.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[63]</a></span></p> - -<p>Putting off other farmers who had brought their grain -before him, the miller ground the old man’s wheat first, -out of its turn, and sent him word it was ready. His -wife, still smarting under the charge of being unjustly -suspicious, hurried him away after it, and waited his -return even more anxiously than she had for the former -load. It came in due time, and was promptly laid on -the scales as the other had been. But if she was surprised -before, she was dumb with wonder now, and her -husband—who, in truth, thought there was no better -woman—seeing her embarrassment, was considerate enough -to do no more than join in expressing his astonishment at -the unlooked-for result. The flour was quietly put away in -the store-room, and other matters requiring attention about -the farmhouse were looked after.</p> - -<p>That evening, just before bedtime, as they sat together -in their old-fashioned comfortable kitchen, the farmer said -to his wife:</p> - -<p>“I’ve been thinking about that last grist. There must -be something the matter with our young miller’s scales, -and you know that we don’t want to take without paying -for it what belongs to him. I mean to go over to the -mill to-morrow on purpose to look into it.”</p> - -<p>“That’s exactly what I want you to do,” replied his -wife, seriously. “Short of weight more than once I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[64]</a></span> -know the grinding was, and over-weight twice we both -know it was; the thing keeps worrying my mind, and -troubling me.”</p> - -<p>The next morning, as soon as breakfast was over, the -farmer harnessed up his horses and drove to the mill. -The miller, who was standing in the door, looked surprised -to see him when there was neither wheat to bring -nor flour to haul away. And not only surprised: there -came a look of apprehension over his face, for there is -always a lurking fear of evil in the heart that is conscious -of hiding some wrong.</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe you can guess what I’ve come over -about,” cried the farmer as he got down from the wagon.</p> - -<p>The miller said nothing.</p> - -<p>“Did you weigh the last grinding?” asked the old -man.</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“And the one before that?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“And don’t you know they weighed too much? But -perhaps you wanted to make us a present,” he continued, -good-humoredly, “or maybe, as winter is coming on, you -thought we stood in need.”</p> - -<p>The miller’s face grew scarlet. He attempted to speak, -but his voice stuck in his throat and he could not utter a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[65]</a><br /><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[66]</a></span> -word. Perceiving at a glance that he was in trouble, the -farmer’s manner changed.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 522px;"> -<img src="images/illus065.jpg" width="522" height="668" alt="man and wife talking by fire" /> -</div> - -<p>“Tell me all about it,” he said. “I was your father’s -friend, and am yours.”</p> - -<p>Then the miller took the old man into the mill, and, -shutting the door, told him, in a trembling voice, the whole -sad story.</p> - -<p>“I’ve found out,” he said, “that the wrong way is a -hard way, and I’m in that way yet, but I long to get out -of it. I’d give this mill—yes, and all that is in it—were -that needful to make me feel myself once more an honest -man. I have set it all aside. Those bags over there contain -every pound I have ever taken. But I shall never know -a happy moment till I see them hauled away from here -and put into your barn.”</p> - -<p>“My dear young friend,” said the farmer, drawing his -sleeve across his eyes, “I care nothing for the flour, -yet it is mine, and it is right I should take it. Carry it -out yourself and load it on the wagon, and I’ll soon put -it where you want it to be. I believe you have been -taught, by the best of teachers, such a lesson as you’ll -never forget. And be assured that after it I will never -fear to trust you. Take my word for it, too, that no -one but wife—and she can keep a secret—shall ever -hear of this.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[67]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus067.jpg" width="518" height="667" alt="miller trying to explain" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[68]</a></span></p> - -<p>The next Sunday the miller went to church, and, whatever -else he might dread to hear about, it was not the eighth -commandment. And the following week, and for many a -week afterward, he read his newspaper as he did in former -times—all through, skipping nothing, from beginning to end.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">The way out of the path of uprightness is smooth and -easy; the way back to it, rough and difficult. The one -is ever open to the erring, but the other is never closed -against the penitent.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 262px;"> -<img src="images/illus068.jpg" width="262" height="159" alt="flour and mill equipment" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[69]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 366px;"> -<img src="images/illus069.jpg" width="366" height="219" alt="lark flying" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE LARK AND THE WHIPPOORWILL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A LARK had nearly fallen asleep in the dusk of the -evening, when a whippoorwill began calling loudly -to its mate, that was lodged in another part of the -wood:</p> - -<p>“Whippoorwill! Whippoorwill!”</p> - -<p>“Why do you disturb me,” asked the lark, “here at -the close of the day, when I am so tired and just ready -to take my rest?”</p> - -<p>“I will try to be quiet, then,” replied the whippoorwill.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[70]</a></span></p> - -<p>So, with a great effort, the bird kept still. Occasionally, -when its mate called from a distance, its bill <i>would</i> open -and a faint note, “Whip! Whip!” escape. But a look at -the lark, with its head under its wing, was enough to -quiet it again. And so all night long it hopped about -in silence hunting its food.</p> - -<p>At last the rosy dawn appeared, and it flew down to -its humble perch near the ground and made ready to go to -sleep for the day. But just then the lark suddenly burst -forth with a loud song, and started up in its flight toward -the sky.</p> - -<p>“Stop! stop!” cried the whippoorwill. “How is this? -You made me keep silence when you wanted to sleep, and -now, when it is my turn, you make more noise than I -did.”</p> - -<p>“It is my nature,” cried the lark, “in the early morning -to shout out my glad song.”</p> - -<p>“And it is mine,” replied the whippoorwill, “in the quiet -twilight to call to my loving mate.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose what you say is true,” said the lark, “but I -am sure that I can’t help singing. Why do you not sing in -the daytime, as I do? That is the proper time.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 539px;"> -<img src="images/illus071.jpg" width="539" height="645" alt="lark and whipporwill" /> -</div> - -<p>“Nay,” replied the whippoorwill; “as you are made -to wake and sing in the daytime, I am made to wake -and sing in the night. Now, as we can neither of us<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[71]</a><br /><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[72]</a></span> -have the woods alone, let us try and put up with one -another’s songs, and so each of us enjoy its lot.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">As long as we live we shall find something to put up -with in other people. It will be easier to do this if we -remember that they in like manner have to put up with -something in us.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 205px;"> -<img src="images/illus072.jpg" width="205" height="147" alt="bird flying alone" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[73]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 406px;"> -<img src="images/illus073.jpg" width="406" height="233" alt="gate surrounded by trees" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE GATE AND GATE-POST.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A GATE and the post that it latched to could not get -along peacefully together. The gate swagged somewhat, -and the post, instead of leaning back a little to -accommodate it, seemed purposely to lean forward. As -a consequence, there was difficulty whenever they met. -The gate accused the post of getting in the way, and the -post charged the gate with striking against it. Things<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[74]</a></span> -remained in this unhappy condition for a long while, and -very often the gate might be seen swinging back and forth -in the wind, unable to latch itself, while the post showed -ugly scars on either side, which were growing uglier and -deeper every day. Neither seemed willing to yield, or even -to make the first movement toward a reconciliation.</p> - -<p>At length, on a gusty morning, after a squall had -banged the gate against the post with unusual violence, -the latter said:</p> - -<p>“You needn’t think I’m going to give in. That last -blow did you as much damage as it did me.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t want you to give in,” replied the gate; “all -I ask is that you lean back a little, so that I can swing -free and fasten my latch as I used to do.”</p> - -<p>“It’s your own fault that you cannot do so still,” said -the post; “you began to swag and bear down on me, -and then, of course, I began to butt against you.”</p> - -<p>“Well, now,” replied the gate, “though I don’t agree -to all you say, I am willing to admit this much—that -there may be faults on both sides. But here we are -together, and here we’ve got to stay. I can’t go off to -look for another post, and you can’t go and hunt up -another gate. Why can’t we try and get along as we -did at first? I’m sure we were a great deal more comfortable -then.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[75]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 526px;"> -<img src="images/illus075.jpg" width="526" height="657" alt="gate open in front of house" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[76]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Agreed,” said the post; “I’m as tired of it as you -are. Let us from this time do all we can to keep out of -each other’s way.”</p> - -<p>As this conversation took place in the early spring, -when the ground was freezing and thawing almost every -day, the two had the best possible chance of carrying -out their good resolutions; and by the help of wind and -rain, with an honest purpose on both sides, their efforts -at last were crowned with success. Then all was pleasant -and serene again. The gate swung free, the latch -caught on the post without fail, and they upheld and -supported each other, without either one trespassing on -the other’s rights.</p> - -<p>But after this tranquil state of things had lasted for -some time, one day the latch, in passing, left a slight -scratch on the post’s fresh paint. At once there was -scolding and faultfinding on both sides. It was only a -scratch, to be sure, and neither seemed disposed to make -it any more; but, on the other hand, neither would recede -enough to make it any less. And so, after they had -overcome far greater difficulties, and proved that peace -and harmony were attainable, they sacrificed them both -because they could not overlook a very small offence. -The consequence was that discord reappeared between -them. When I last saw them, they were still giving<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[77]</a></span> -each other (not at all times, but every now and then, -when the wind was from a certain quarter) this irritating -little scratch. I suppose it is thus with them still, and -probably will be so to the end.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">After surmounting great and serious difficulties in the -way of our happiness, we often allow insignificant ones -to keep us back from its possession.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 309px;"> -<img src="images/illus077.jpg" width="309" height="129" alt="two cats" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[78]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 346px;"> -<img src="images/illus078.jpg" width="346" height="224" alt="farm in background" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE WEEDY FARM.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A POOR but industrious man who rented a farm that was -badly overgrown with weeds set his heart on getting -rid of them. To do this he worked early and late. By -the dawn of day he might be seen ploughing his fields, -and because his own team (two rather sorry-looking horses) -were not strong enough to turn up the deep soil he hired -a pair of oxen and ploughed with them.</p> - -<p>Afterward he went over the ground with his harrow, -from one side of the field to the other, and again across it -from end to end. He did this to break up the hard clods -and throw out the roots of the weeds, that the sun might<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[79]</a></span> -scorch and kill them. Then he sowed the ground thickly -with good seed, so that if any of the roots were left they -might be crowded out by the grain. He kept on patiently -working in this way until he had gone over every part of -his farm.</p> - -<p>And his labor was not in vain, for in the fields where -the corn and the oats and the rye were growing the weeds -almost disappeared. Nevertheless, as soon as it came in -turn for a field to rest and lie fallow for a season, they -were sure to show themselves again. And in the pasture-land, -that was never ploughed, they sprang up plentifully -among the grass and the clover.</p> - -<p>In vain the farmer took out his scythe, searching for -the places where they grew, and cutting them down with -his own hands. There were some places that he did not -reach, and some where the roots were hidden from sight; -so that every summer they continued to mar the prospect -around him. And, as time went on, instead of getting -used to them, it seemed as if he worried over them more -and more.</p> - -<p>At length, after he had been worrying thus from year -to year, he went out one gloomy autumn afternoon to walk -alone, and, seeing patches of the hated weeds here and there -all over his farm, he grew very despondent. He turned, -and came back with a heavy step to his cottage. His<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[80]</a></span> -wife, having gotten through the rest of her work, was -sitting by the window mending his well-worn coat.</p> - -<p>“You know,” said he as soon as he came in the door, -“how I’ve tried to get rid of these weeds. I’ve worked -early and late, in season and out of season, and yet there’s -not a field that has not got some of them in it. And down -in the low-lying land back of the meeting-house—I’ve just -been there—it seems to me they’re thicker than ever. I’m -discouraged. I feel like throwing up my lease and giving -up the farm, and fighting against them no longer.”</p> - -<p>“Well, now,” said his wife as she threaded her needle -and sewed away at his patched coat, “I think you’re looking -only on one side. You haven’t worked all these years -for nothing. You’ve had pretty good crops, I think, -and it seems to <i>me</i>, the way I look at it, that this is a -very good farm, after all, the way farms go. As for -getting rid of the weeds, they were here when you came. -It’s a weedy country. I don’t believe you’ll ever be able -to get them clean out of the land. But then you’ve succeeded -in keeping them under. I reckon that if we work -hard, with the help of a kind Providence this farm will do -till we get a better. For you know we hope to move to a -better country some of these days, and to get new land -that hasn’t any weeds in it.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 530px;"> -<img src="images/illus081.jpg" width="530" height="652" alt="man holding cane leaning against fence" /> -</div> - -<p>“I declare, wife,” said the farmer, brightening up, “I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[81]</a><br /><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[82]</a></span> -do believe there’s something in what you tell me. I never -looked at it so before. I’ve been looking at the weeds, and -nothing else. We ought to look at the crops too, no doubt -since they’ve been given us in spite of the weeds. We must -put up with something, I reckon, wherever we go; so I -think we’ll just do as you say, and stay where we are, trying -nevertheless, to get the weeds out, harder and harder. -I’m glad I came straight to you. You always were a -good, sensible wife, and now I admire you more, and set -greater store by you than ever.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We must not despair because evil is still present with -us, but rather take courage from whatever growth in good -our past lives may show.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 362px;"> -<img src="images/illus082.jpg" width="362" height="214" alt="flowers" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[83]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 511px;"> -<img src="images/illus083.jpg" width="511" height="663" alt="woman sitting with feet on small footstool, man bending over her shoulder" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[84]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 452px;"> -<img src="images/illus084.jpg" width="452" height="280" alt="king in tunic sitting by table with cloth" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE KING SEEKING CONTENT.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN king who was weary of the cares of his -high office determined to seek among his subjects for -a perfectly contented man, and, when he found him, to -exchange his throne for that man’s place, whatever it -might be. “For,” he said, “peace of mind is worth more -than even royal honors and dignities.”</p> - -<p>So he disguised himself in a way that no one would -know him, and went forth on his search through the streets -of the city. And first he came into the house of a man<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[85]</a><br /><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[86]</a></span> -who by long years of labor had heaped up great riches, -and now, having withdrawn from all business affairs, was -living in ease and luxury. But in a little while the king -saw that this life, so different from that he was accustomed -to, had become irksome and tedious, and that in -his heart he wished himself back at buying and selling -again. He looked out of his front window and said:</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 521px;"> -<img src="images/illus085.jpg" width="521" height="647" alt="king on throne, head on hand" /> -</div> - -<p>“Oh that I were only in the place of my opposite -neighbor, whom I see going out early to business every -morning!”</p> - -<p>Leaving this man’s house, the king found an entrance -into that of the neighbor whom he envied, who was still engrossed -in trade as the other had formerly been. Already -rich, he was adding to his wealth year by year; but in -doing this he had to labor so hard, and to carry so heavy -a load of care, that no time or space for enjoyment was -left him.</p> - -<p>“I am living but a slave’s life,” he said. “Would that -I were well out of it, like my neighbor across the way, -whom I see driving out in his carriage every afternoon!”</p> - -<p>Passing out of this street, where many rich merchants -lived, the king went into another, near by, and entered the -house of a man whom he himself had appointed to a responsible -post under his own government.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[87]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 512px;"> -<img src="images/illus087.jpg" width="512" height="660" alt="king in disguise visiting carpenter" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[88]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Without the weight of anxiety which oppresses me,” -said the king, “yet with honors sufficient, and an ample -provision for all his wants, shall I not here find a happy -man?”</p> - -<p>But it was not long before the king heard him, one day -when he thought he was alone, muttering to himself:</p> - -<p>“Why did I ever accept this post, or choose this service -for my calling, only to bear the envy of those below -me, and the scorn of those above? How much better off -and more independent would I have been engaged in some -business of my own, like my well-to-do friends around the -corner!”</p> - -<p>“I will seek for my object in a lower sphere of life and -occupation,” said the king; and, passing into an obscure -back street, he went into the shop of a mechanic who was -working at his bench with saw and plane as a carpenter.</p> - -<p>“Below the level of ambition and above that of want,” -continued the king, “surely here I shall find the object of -my search.”</p> - -<p>So he entered into conversation with the man, talked -with him about his trade, admired his handiwork, and -said:</p> - -<p>“Whatever else you lack, my friend, I am sure that -here in perfect independence you enjoy content.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[89]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Content at this trade!” exclaimed the man. “I would -rather have been brought up to any other. What with low -wages and high lumber, there is nothing left when your -work is done. I don’t know who you may be; but if -you’re thinking of going into this business, let me warn -you against it. For my part, I don’t see why some people -have it so hard and others so easy. There’s a couple of -rich men that I work for over in the main street, that have -both of them made big fortunes since I came into this -miserable little shop. And around the corner from them -is another man I do odd jobs for—one of the king’s officers; -he has I don’t know how many servants to wait on him, -and plenty of money. Yes, and even the king himself, if -a poor man may look so high—there he is with nothing to -do but enjoy himself and rule over the rest of us. What -justice is there in all this? Everybody has all he wants, -and is happy, but me.”</p> - -<p>Discouraged at his repeated failures, the king turned -away from the crowded city and went into the country. -There, as he walked along a quiet road by himself, he -came to a little cottage with a bench beside the door. In -front of it was a flower-bed filled with pinks and lady-slippers; -in the rear, a small plot of ground that appeared to -have been just digged. A shovel and a hoe were lying -there, evidently left only for the dinner-hour. The door<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[90]</a></span> -of the cottage was open, and a laboring-man well on in -years was seen within at his noonday meal.</p> - -<p>The king, in the guise of a wayfarer, stopped before the -gate, and was at once asked to enter and be seated at the -table. Accepting the invitation, he sat down and partook -of the humble repast. As soon as it was finished the two -betook themselves to the bench beside the door. Said the -king:</p> - -<p>“You have a hard time, I fear, my friend. This is but -a little plot from which to get your living.”</p> - -<p>“But you’ve no idea,” replied the man, “how much -this ground yields. It is planted in potatoes, and a finer -crop you never saw. I’m just digging them, and shall have -enough to last me on till spring, with some to sell—yes, -and a few to give a poor neighbor, beside.”</p> - -<p>“But is that all you have to depend upon?” asked the -king.</p> - -<p>“Oh no,” replied the man; “I go out to day’s work on -the farms around, and, beside being able to pay for some -new clothes, I’ve put by a barrel of flour for the winter; -it stands over in that far corner. And you see my woodpile -stretching along the fence yonder. I’ve had to work -hard for these things, but they are all that I need, and I -am content.”</p> - -<p>“‘Content’!” cried the king, as though he could not<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[91]</a><br /><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[92]</a></span> -believe his own ears. “But have you no other wants beside -these?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus091.jpg" width="520" height="661" alt="king seated on bench outside with older laborer" /> -</div> - -<p>“I might have,” said the man. “There are plenty that -offer me their company, but I refuse to entertain them.”</p> - -<p>“Are you, then, quite satisfied?”</p> - -<p>“Not with myself, but I am with my lot.”</p> - -<p>At this the king was silent, for he saw that his companion -was speaking the truth, though he could not comprehend -it.</p> - -<p>“But understand me,” continued the man. “It is not -because I have no trials to bear that I am content, for I -have my share of them. Here is the rheumatism in this -arm, which often will not let me sleep, and sometimes -keeps me from work for days together. And then, what -is harder still, my landlord is not always kind, or even -just.”</p> - -<p>“Why, is not this cottage your own?” said the king.</p> - -<p>“Oh no,” replied the man; “I’m not so rich as that. -And yet, as I was going to say, taking it all in all, I have -in my lot a bigger proportion of good than most people, -and a better chance to be what I ought to be. And to -this end I can see how even my trials are a help.”</p> - -<p>The king, rising from the table, bade his humble friend -adieu and went his way, but pursued his search no -farther.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[93]</a></span></p> - -<p>“I have found content in another,” he said, “and -learned, too, how to get it for myself. It is to accept not -only my good things, but also my evil things, as a precious -part of my portion. I will go back to my throne esteeming -even it in this light, and so, instead of trying to cast -them off, shall be happier in bearing the burdens which -it lays upon me.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Were we able to look into the secret thoughts of those -whom we envy, we should often find that what we covet -in their lot, is borne by them as a trial and a cross.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 238px;"> -<img src="images/illus093.jpg" width="238" height="214" alt="pile of things: crown, shovel, saw, gavel, etc." /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[94]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 361px;"> -<img src="images/illus094.jpg" width="361" height="179" alt="owl" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE LEARNED OWL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">AN owl that had long separated himself from his companions -that he might devote his nights to study and -become learned, employed himself afterward in trying to -impart his learning to the other owls. Having called them -together, he discoursed about different animals and reptiles -and fishes which they had never heard of before; but he -found that, while a few seemed anxious for instruction -and listened patiently, the most of his hearers made -some excuse for flying away while he was still talking, -so that by the end of his discourse scarcely a half dozen -of them remained.</p> - -<p>As he was ambitious to be considered an interesting as -well as instructive speaker, he was greatly discouraged at<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[95]</a><br /><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[96]</a></span> -this result, and at once retired to the woods, into a thick -clump of hemlocks whose dark shadows never admitted -a ray of the sun, and there, all alone, he thought over -the matter, trying to decide what was best to be done.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 515px;"> -<img src="images/illus095.jpg" width="515" height="664" alt="parliment of owls" /> -</div> - -<p>He remained for several days thus engaged, when suddenly, -as if the whole difficulty were solved, he gave a -cheerful hoot, and flying forth, summoned all the owls -to a meeting in the apple-orchard near by at twelve -o’clock the following night. When the time arrived, but -a small audience appeared in the trees immediately around -him, though many were on those farther off—as we might -say, on the back seats—from which, in case they grew -weary, they could retire unseen.</p> - -<p>“I’ve come this time,” he began, “not to talk about -animals or reptiles or fishes, but about owls.”</p> - -<p>At once he could see an awakening of interest in the -birds that were near him. Then he went on to tell all -he knew about owls—their ancestors who had lived long -ago, the different kinds that are living now, the big owls -and the little owls, their habits, their dispositions, their -pleasures, and their pains, not, of course, omitting courtship -and marriage. Very soon he saw the birds that had -lodged on the distant trees flying nearer, and as he went -on they came one by one into the very tree where he -stood, until all the owls that lived in the neighboring<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[97]</a></span> -woods were gathered close around him; nor were they -willing to leave while he continued his discourse. And -after that, all he had to do was to vary somewhat his -treatment of the same theme to secure a punctual and -full attendance.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">This fable proves that owls, like men, prefer to hear -about things in which they feel the interest of kindred. -The speaker or the book that can awaken our human -sympathies is the one, as we know, that commands the -largest audience and the closest attention.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 234px;"> -<img src="images/illus097.jpg" width="234" height="164" alt="owl and crescent moon" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[98]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 463px;"> -<img src="images/illus098.jpg" width="463" height="225" alt="chickens in long grass" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE HORSE AND THE GRASSHOPPERS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A HORSE, while feeding in a meadow, frightened the -grasshoppers at his feet, so that they flew up thickly -on every side. Some chickens, discovering this, gathered -around and accompanied him, eagerly devouring the insects. -The horse did not notice them for a time and continued -to move slowly along, thus providing them with an -abundant supply. But, at length spying them at their -repast, he suddenly raised his head, saying:</p> - -<p>“How are you going to pay me back for all this trouble -I am taking for you?”</p> - -<p>At which one of the chickens replied:</p> - -<p>“You don’t eat grasshoppers yourself, neither are you<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[99]</a><br /><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[100]</a></span> -going out of your way to stir them up for us. Why, then, -should we pay you at all?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 504px;"> -<img src="images/illus099.jpg" width="504" height="660" alt="horse by fence, chicken at feet" /> -</div> - -<p>The horse, not able to answer this question, began -sullenly to feed again, when the chicken continued:</p> - -<p>“If you had done us this favor willingly and kindly, we -would have eaten the grasshoppers and returned you our -thanks; but, as you do it against your will, we will eat -them just the same, and return you nothing.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">In serving our own interests we sometimes, without -intending it, serve the interest of others. It is better to do -this graciously and make them our friends than to do it -grudgingly and make them our enemies.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 267px;"> -<img src="images/illus100.jpg" width="267" height="162" alt="grasshopper on leaf" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[101]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 451px;"> -<img src="images/illus101.jpg" width="451" height="204" alt="ships at sea" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE BARK AND THE LIGHTSHIP.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A BARK on her outward voyage passed the lightship -moored on a shoal that lay in the track of vessels -near the coast. Said the bark as she sailed by:</p> - -<p>“Here you are still, held fast by your chain, for ever -tossing and uncomfortable, but making no headway, or -profits, either.”</p> - -<p>“True,” replied the lightship. “Yet this is my appointed -work. I am no idler.”</p> - -<p>Long months rolled around; the bark had crossed the -ocean, and was on her homeward voyage. She neared -the land in stormy weather. Night came on, and the -lead, though it was kept going, failed to show just where -she was drifting. Then anxious fears arose, and were -growing each moment more intense, when suddenly a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[102]</a></span> -bright flash gleamed through the darkness. It was the -lightship, giving warning of the shoal and pointing out -the deeper channel.</p> - -<p>Once more the vessels lay side by side.</p> - -<p>“You have saved me,” cried the bark, “and the rich -cargo that I carry. Now I understand why you seek not -selfish profits, and most gladly, out of gratitude, will I -share mine with you.”</p> - -<p>“Oh no,” replied the lightship; “you have sailed over -perilous seas to gain them, and they justly belong to you. -That is your calling; and the greater your gains, the -better am I pleased. But my calling is to lie here and -do what good I can. For this I receive wages sufficient -for my need, and with them I am content.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">While some men devote their lives to business and -accumulate fortunes—properly and honestly, it may be—others -devote theirs to the good of their fellow-men, -knowing they will receive in return a bare living, and -nothing more.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 301px;"> -<img src="images/illus102.jpg" width="301" height="124" alt="ship on side in water" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[103]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus103.jpg" width="516" height="663" alt="ship with lights on masts guiding larger ship" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[104]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 484px;"> -<img src="images/illus104.jpg" width="484" height="232" alt="people bowing down to two men" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE UNHONORED SERVANT.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN king was accustomed from time to time to -appoint the members of his household, some of them -to be rulers over provinces, some over cities, and some to -fill private positions of honor and profit. It was considered -not only a reward of obedience, but a special -mark of his confidence and approval, to receive such -appointment.</p> - -<p>After many had been thus promoted, one remained in -the palace who seemed to be overlooked and neglected. -It was evident that this was not from any fault of his -own, or from any want of regard on the part of the -king, for all could see that he was loyal and upright<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[105]</a><br /><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[106]</a></span> -and enjoyed the king’s favor; yet others who had come -later into the palace were chosen before him.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus105.jpg" width="516" height="660" alt="man telling story to ruler on throne" /> -</div> - -<p>At length one of the king’s counsellors ventured to -ask him the reason of this, saying:</p> - -<p>“This man for many years has obeyed you with all -faithfulness and devotion, yet others are sent forth to -fill stations of honor, while he remains here in his place -as a servant. Why is this?”</p> - -<p>The king answered:</p> - -<p>“I keep him thus, not as a mark of my displeasure -or of his want of desert, but because he is the one whom -I cannot part with, even to bestow honors and riches -upon him, but must have ever near me. Neither will -he be a loser by it in the end.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">A place in the heart is better than a gift from the hand, -and he whom the King will reward may well wait patiently.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 180px;"> -<img src="images/illus106.jpg" width="180" height="153" alt="mantle and sceptor" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[107]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 435px;"> -<img src="images/illus107.jpg" width="435" height="180" alt="cocoon on tree branch in wind" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>WINGS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">ONCE a caterpillar, as it fed on a tree, was given the -power of speech. It said:</p> - -<p>“What wonderful eyes I have! I can see the whole of -this leaf at one time—not only the part I am feeding on, -but its whole length and breadth.”</p> - -<p>“Let me tell you,” replied the tree, “there are eyes that -can see not only one leaf, but all the leaves on a tree—yes, -and on a whole woods—at a glance.”</p> - -<p>“It may be so,” said the caterpillar, “and then it is -only doing what I do, though on a larger scale.—And what -wonderful feet I have!” continued the caterpillar. “I can -creep from the ground up to your topmost bough, between -the rising and the setting of the sun.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[108]</a></span></p> - -<p>“And I can tell you,” replied the tree, “there are feet -that can pass over a space equal to that in a moment, and -in one short hour can go farther than you in all the days -of your life.”</p> - -<p>“It may be so,” said the caterpillar, “and then it is -only doing what I do, though on a larger scale.”</p> - -<p>“But this is not all I have to tell you,” continued the -tree. “There are beings that can dart from the ground up -to my highest branch without so much as touching me with -their feet, and that can pass swiftly from tree to tree, -borne through the air on wings.”</p> - -<p>“That is impossible,” said the caterpillar. “There may -be stronger eyes that can see farther even than mine, and -quicker feet that can travel faster; but, as for wings to fly -through the air with, that cannot be. You are talking of -things you know nothing about, or else are only trying to -deceive me. After such an absurd statement, I will not -listen to you any more, or believe anything you say.”</p> - -<p>The summer passed, and autumn came with its cloudy -days and chilly nights. The leaves of the tree shrivelled -up and dropped to the ground, and one frosty morning the -caterpillar was found suspended from a naked twig by a -thread of its own spinning, shut up in its cocoon. And -there it slept, unconscious from day to day, and month to -month, through the long winter. The fierce storm could<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[109]</a><br /><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[110]</a></span> -not weaken its hold, or shake it loose, as it hung secure, -tossed to and fro by the blast.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 452px;"> -<img src="images/illus109.jpg" width="452" height="640" alt="stages of butterfly's life cycle" /> -</div> - -<p>But at length spring approached. The buds began to -swell and the young leaves to appear. The blossoms on -the fruit trees opened, and the birds sang among them. -And one morning the imprisoned caterpillar revived in its -narrow cell, and, rending its walls asunder, came forth and -basked in the sunshine. But what are these at its side -gently expanding and unfolding? It spreads them forth, -and, loosening its hold upon the twig, floats away on the -breeze. It mounts up, it flies, it lodges on a lofty bough, -and flies from one to another again and again.</p> - -<p>“Was it I,” it says, astonished, “that declared there -were no beings with wings, and that to pass from place to -place through the air was impossible? Now am I made to -see that it was not the tree, but myself, who spoke about -things I knew nothing of; now am I made to feel the denseness -of my own ignorance. If this, which is so unlooked -for and so far beyond the reach of my understanding, has -been done to me, I will wait and see what yet remains to -be done, nor ever again limit the power that created me at -first, and still goes on perfecting its own work.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who can speak most wisely within the circuit of his -knowledge if he venture beyond it utters foolishness.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[111]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 489px;"> -<img src="images/illus111.jpg" width="489" height="230" alt="man working at desk" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>STANDPOINTS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A POOR man who supported his family by daily labor -used to deal with the two storekeepers of his native -village. Of one he bought flour and meat; of the other, -materials for his own and his children’s clothing. Being -a good workman and honest as well as industrious, he was -accustomed to settle his accounts at both stores every Saturday -night.</p> - -<p>All went on well and to the satisfaction of both buyer -and seller as long as health lasted. But at length sickness -came, and Saturday brought the laborer no wages. Still,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[112]</a></span> -he hoped for the return of strength by another week, and -then to be at work again. But strength did not return. -Week after week passed, and it seemed farther away than -ever. The storekeepers’ accounts remained unsettled. The -matter was becoming a serious one for them. What should -they do?</p> - -<p>At this point one of them opened his ledger, went over -every item set down there, and, after footing up the total -amount, calculated the interest on it to the last cent. Then -he sat thinking about what he could do with the money if -he only had it in hand; and this was the standpoint from -which <i>he</i> looked at the debt.</p> - -<p>The other storekeeper also went over his ledger and -footed up the amount. But after doing so he shut the -book up again, and, putting on his hat, went to see the -man who owed him the money. Entering his humble -cottage, he sat down at his bedside and looked into his -honest, suffering face, and on his wife and children in -poverty around him; and here was the standpoint from -which <i>this</i> storekeeper looked at the debt.</p> - -<p>The sick man died, and his family was left penniless. -The storekeeper who had visited him, still looking at the -debt, as it were, from the lowly bedside, thought it was -right to cross it off his books and forgive it altogether. -The other storekeeper, viewing it from his counting-room<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[113]</a><br /><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[114]</a></span> -only, thought it right to get the money if he could. Had -he not furnished all the articles that were charged for? -Had not the man’s family taken them and used them? The -money was his, and he meant to have it. So he held the -dead man’s wife and children responsible, and, though they -had a hard time to earn their daily bread, he made it harder -by demanding something each month till the last cent was -paid.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 519px;"> -<img src="images/illus113.jpg" width="519" height="664" alt="family gathered around man sick in bed" /> -</div> - -<p>Time rolled on, and the years that gather, an ever-increasing -load, upon poor and rich alike, began to bow the -forms of the two storekeepers. Old age overtook them, -and finally the hour when each in turn must leave store -and ledger to know them no more. Then it was found -that he who had remitted the poor man’s debt had left -to his family a moderate competency, with a good many -accounts in his ledger balanced by the one word written -over against them, “<span class="smcap">Forgiven</span>.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus115.jpg" width="517" height="668" alt="man talking to seated sewing woman" /> -</div> - -<p>The other storekeeper had left his family rich, with -scarcely an account that had ever been due him unpaid, -and the few that were, remained so only because neither -force nor persuasion could bring the money. But in -the village where they had lived and died it was noticed, -long after both storekeepers and their ways of doing -business were forgotten, that the smaller inheritance increased -in the hands of those who received it, while<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[115]</a><br /><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[116]</a></span> -the larger one, in the hands receiving it, seemed mysteriously -to melt away.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">According to the standpoint from which we look at a -thing will be our views of right and wrong respecting it; -but we are accountable for the choice of that standpoint.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 339px;"> -<img src="images/illus116.jpg" width="339" height="184" alt="book" /> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[117]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 473px;"> -<img src="images/illus117.jpg" width="473" height="235" alt="man on floor with tiger that just burst through wall" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE MAN WITH A MENAGERIE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who kept a menagerie had trouble with several -of the wild beasts, which, although they were confined -in strong cages, sometimes became excited and made -violent efforts to escape. There was one in particular—a -tiger—that caused him special concern. By continued -watchfulness and careful treatment, however, the animal -was at length brought into a quiet and submissive state, -seeming to be asleep most of the time. Nevertheless, -knowing his savage nature, his owner was diligent in -examining the different parts of his cage—the iron bars in -front, and the bolts in the rear—every day.</p> - -<p>But, after doing this for many weeks without a recurrence<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[118]</a></span> -of any cause for alarm, the man dismissed his fears -and began to forget there had ever been any cause for them. -Then, insensibly to himself, he relaxed his vigilance, until -the matter passed out of his mind and he thought no more -about the tiger than he did about the antelope, the deer, -or any other harmless specimens in his collection.</p> - -<p>This state of things had lasted without any mishap for -a long time, when one day, while passing through his menagerie, -as he came in front of the tiger’s cage he made a -misstep; his foot slipped, and he fell. Like a flash—as -soon as he saw him fall—the tiger sprang to his -feet and dashed with savage fury against the bars in front -of him, which, not being properly secured, parted and -allowed him to pass between them.</p> - -<p>As he lighted on the ground all the weak and defenceless -animals around him were panic-stricken, uttering cries -of terror. And truly it looked for the moment as though -he might slay both them and their fallen master unrestrained. -To make it worse, his keeper, who alone had -any control over him, was absent, but fortunately not -beyond the sound of the tumult. This man hastened to -the rescue, and by skill in soothing as well as courage in -quelling succeeded after a time in getting the brute back -to his den.</p> - -<p>Then was the owner glad, breathing freely once more.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[119]</a><br /><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[120]</a></span> -Yet for hours afterward his face remained pale and his -hand trembled.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus119.jpg" width="518" height="667" alt="tiger over man on floor; man in background with stick" /> -</div> - -<p>“I am thankful,” he said, “for this great deliverance. -Never shall I forget it, nor lessen my watchfulness over -this furious beast’s cage; for no matter how silent it seems, -or how little danger appears to be within, I know only too -well that the tiger is there still.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Our evil passions may lie dormant until we almost think -they have ceased to exist, and yet, if not sleeplessly -guarded, may rise up and gain the mastery over us at -any time.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 182px;"> -<img src="images/illus120.jpg" width="182" height="156" alt="tiger's face" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[121]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 417px;"> -<img src="images/illus121.jpg" width="417" height="204" alt="cherub" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>TWO OUTLOOKS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO persons live in the same house, which has both a -front and a back view. The front view is over a quiet -lake, with green fields and mountains beyond—beautiful -always, in summer, in autumn, in winter. The back view -is hemmed in by old broken-down walls, ruinous outbuildings -and a pigsty.</p> - -<p>One of the inmates of the house takes her work and -sits habitually by the front window. Her face is bright -and beaming, and the neighbors often hear her sing.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 525px;"> -<img src="images/illus122.jpg" width="525" height="612" alt="girl in window looking up; beautiful landscape" /> -</div> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 504px;"> -<img src="images/illus123.jpg" width="504" height="605" alt="woman in window looking down; pigsty and shed for a view" /> -</div> - -<p>The other inmate sits constantly looking out of the -back window. The gloomy prospect depresses and sours -her; and when she does open her lips, it is generally to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[122]</a><br /><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[123]</a><br /><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[124]</a></span> -complain. Yet neither of these persons is forced to gaze -thus on the prospect which so affects her. Each sits by -the window she has chosen for herself.</p> - -<p>Now, we all live in houses with front windows and -back windows. At which of them do we choose, for the -most of our time, to sit?</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 210px;"> -<img src="images/illus124.jpg" width="210" height="160" alt="cherub in shadow looking down" /> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[125]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus125.jpg" width="516" height="137" alt="wagon following a coach" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>JOB NICKEL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN by the name of Job Nickel, who was about -emigrating to a new home, bought a stout horse and -strong wagon—the best his means would afford—and, -packing his family into it, with such household goods as -could be carried beside, started on his journey. He had -not gone far when he was overtaken by another family -travelling in the same direction, but driving a pair of -fine horses to a handsome carriage. The difference in -outfit, however, did not prevent the occupants of the -carriage from making acquaintance with the family in -the wagon. They first looked at them smilingly, then -nodded, and presently got into conversation.</p> - -<p>As their destination was the same and it was pleasanter -to travel in company than alone, Job gave his horse a sharp -cut, to keep up with his new friends; and the travellers -kept together until night, when, coming to a green spot -with a spring of pure water upon it, they encamped there, -as is the custom with emigrants on the road.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[126]</a></span></p> - -<p>The next morning, before harnessing up, the occupants -of the carriage begged Job to let his eldest daughter—a -bright little girl of twelve—ride with them. The child’s -mother and Job himself were pleased at this attention, -and after fishing out her best dress from the bottom of a -chest, and hastily putting it on, the invitation was accepted. -But when they started for the day, the pair -travelled so much faster than the one horse that the -carriage soon left the wagon behind; sometimes it was -visible a good way ahead, and sometimes was quite out -of sight. Yet, as his little girl was in it, Job felt bound -to keep as near it as he could, though this required, especially -in going-up hill, the constant urging of his horse -and not unfrequent use of the whip.</p> - -<p>While hurrying along the road in this way Job came -up with a neighbor who, like himself, drove only one -horse. But so anxious was Job to get on that he passed -his old friend without speaking. It must be admitted, too, -that Job felt with his new acquaintance, if he could only -keep up with them, he was travelling in more distinguished -company. Thus the second day passed, and the travellers -again encamped together, Job, after taking the harness off -his own horse, helping to unharness the pair.</p> - -<p>The next morning his friends consented to let the little -girl return to her parents in the wagon provided her brother<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[127]</a><br /><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[128]</a></span> -be allowed to take her place. So the girl went back, very -much dissatisfied, and the boy succeeded her. And thus -the two vehicles continued in company day after day. -Sometimes the boy was in the carriage, and sometimes the -girl; and once one of the children from the carriage came -and rode in the wagon. Meanwhile, the intimacy between -the families constantly increased, no account being taken -of their differing circumstances. While these things were -going on, both Job and his wife could not help secretly -thinking that, as their children happened to be of like -ages, this intimacy might some day become closer still; -yet neither one (as they felt in their hearts ashamed of it) -mentioned this thought to the other.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus127.jpg" width="517" height="668" alt="loading up the wagon" /> -</div> - -<p>But all this time, notwithstanding his apparent friendship, -the owner of the carriage never once slackened his -pace to accommodate Job. As a consequence, the work -of keeping up with him became harder than ever. Job -had now to lash his horse at almost every step, by doing -which he was just able to follow close at the tail of the -carriage. But in dry weather he was always in a cloud -of dust, and in wet weather was being splashed with the -mud thrown up by the wheels in front of him; so that, -wet or dry, he was equally miserable.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 511px;"> -<img src="images/illus129.jpg" width="511" height="655" alt="Job striving to keep upover hard road" /> -</div> - -<p>But the worst was yet to come. After Job had been -thus laboriously working his way for about half the distance<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[129]</a><br /><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[130]</a></span> -he was to travel, one morning, on going out early -to feed his horse, the animal was found still lying down; -and when Job tried to rouse him, he refused to get up—alas! -with good reason: he could not. And within an -hour the poor overworked beast was dead.</p> - -<p>By this time the sun had risen, and the carriage was all -ready to start; but before doing so the family that travelled -in it came over to where Job stood, showing great pity for -him. They were loud in their expressions of sorrow, but -the father said, as he had promised to be at a point beyond -by a certain hour, he would have to go on. Just then -another carriage, containing some of his acquaintance, -came along, and he cracked his whip and was soon out -of sight. As he drove off Job saw for the first time the -man’s name—S. Silver. It was printed upon the end of a -trunk which they had taken from the inside and put on the -top of the carriage.</p> - -<p>“Ah!” exclaimed Job, “now I know who he is. His -first name is Sterling. He had a bank in the county-town -next to ours, and a sad fool has poor Job Nickel been in -trying all this while to keep up with Sterling Silver! I -deserve all I have got.—Well, wife,” he continued, “here -we are with our horse dead, our grand acquaintances gone, -and plenty of time to reflect on our folly.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus131.jpg" width="518" height="614" alt="family saddened over loss of horse" /> -</div> - -<p>As he spoke his old friend with the one horse, whom<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[131]</a><br /><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[132]</a></span> -Job had passed on the road without noticing, came trudging -comfortably by. Job turned toward him ready to -speak, but the man did not notice him. As he disappeared -Job looked around at his wife, and, seeing -her wiping her eyes with the corner of her apron, he -said:</p> - -<p>“Happily, my dear, we’ve got a small sum left in the -bottom of the chest, with which we’ll try to buy another -horse—the best we can get for it. But after this we’ll go -along at our own gait, no matter who goes before or follows -after us.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who is dissatisfied and unthankful in his own proper -sphere, by trying to climb higher sinks lower than ever before.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 166px;"> -<img src="images/illus132.jpg" width="166" height="220" alt="outline of wagon in dark" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[133]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 483px;"> -<img src="images/illus133.jpg" width="483" height="225" alt="man sitting in chair in store-room" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE UNUSED LOOM.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who had inherited a plain but comfortable house -with a lot of ground around it went there to live. He -found, on looking through the house, that, beside the furniture -it contained suitable to his daily wants, there was in one -of the upper rooms a curiously-made loom. It was a complicated -machine, and he could see at a glance a valuable -one; but he could see also that it would require his best -skill as well as a good deal of hard work to keep it in -motion. Not caring to put these forth just then, instead -of attempting to run it, he let it stand.</p> - -<p>As he had to earn his living, however, and was not, in -truth, a lazy man, he employed himself in other ways, -tilling his ground and, when he had that in perfect order -for the time being, hiring himself out to do farm-work for<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[134]</a></span> -his neighbors. But he was, at best, a poor hand at this -sort of work, an ordinary day-laborer easily outstripping -him; so that, although he managed to live, by the end of -the year, if he was not actually behindhand, he was sure -to have nothing over.</p> - -<p>But while he worked in the soil he never forgot his -loom. And sometimes when the work was harder and -money scarcer than usual he would go up to the room -where it was stored, and open the door and stand looking -at it. Yet as soon as he realized afresh the labor both -of mind and body required to run it, he shut to the door -again and went back to day’s work with his pick and -shovel.</p> - -<p>But at length his pressing needs and a deepening conviction -that he could better his condition induced him to -undertake what he had shrunk from so long; he began -clearing away from his loom the dust and dirt that had -accumulated about it, determined to persevere until he -had put it in perfect running order. And, having once -begun the work, he found at each step of its progress that -his interest increased, and that the strength and skill required -were forthcoming as occasion demanded.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 521px;"> -<img src="images/illus135.jpg" width="521" height="662" alt="man looking in storage room" /> -</div> - -<p>Finally, every part being ready, he put in the warp and -the shuttle, and set it in motion. Then he himself was surprised -at the result. The fabric it wove was both serviceable<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[135]</a><br /><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[136]</a></span> -and beautiful, and there was at once a demand for all -he could make. The people of the village where he lived, -and of the neighborhood for miles around, flocked to his -house to secure it; and he felt for the first time, though -after many precious years had been wasted, that he was -engaged in the work he was best qualified for. And while -serving others he was also benefiting himself; for, instead -of making but a bare living, as before, he was able -now to lay up a considerable sum from his earnings every -year.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We may possess valuable talents without profiting by -them. Talent furnishes the machinery; application, the -power to drive it. It is only by putting the two together -that we shall secure the prize within our reach.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 212px;"> -<img src="images/illus136.jpg" width="212" height="257" alt="Man digging" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[137]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 464px;"> -<img src="images/illus137.jpg" width="464" height="245" alt="rooster and a turkey" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>CROWING.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">EARLY one morning, while the fowls were waiting -around the kitchen door for their breakfast, a spring -chicken attempted to crow, but succeeded only in uttering -a feeble squawk.</p> - -<p>A young cock, hearing this, stood up and crowed loud -and clear, saying to the other:</p> - -<p>“You’d better be still till you can crow like that.”</p> - -<p>To which a guinea-hen that was restlessly flitting about -replied with a shrill, high voice:</p> - -<p>“It was only the spring before last when you did no -better yourself!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[138]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus138.jpg" width="518" height="637" alt="rooster amongst hens and guinea hen" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[139]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Impossible!” said the cock. “It must be some other -chicken you are thinking of.”</p> - -<p>“Not so,” replied the guinea. “I remember you ever -since you were hatched—while you were a little chick -sleeping under your mother’s wing, when you grew bigger -and first flew up to the roost, and how like this spring -chicken’s your crowing was then, only with this difference: -you were so conceited that the whole barnyard was laughing -at you. All this is forgotten now, luckily for you. -But take my advice: be tender of the failings of others, -lest your own be recalled and displayed in full light.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Let us not refuse to pardon in others what we, through -others’ kindness, have been pardoned for ourselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 355px;"> -<img src="images/illus139.jpg" width="355" height="245" alt="rooster on fence" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[140]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 414px;"> -<img src="images/illus140.jpg" width="414" height="272" alt="man at desk looking at glasses" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>PETER CRISP’S SPECTACLES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">PETER CRISP had something the matter with his eyes; -he needed spectacles to help him see. But this was -no uncommon misfortune: hundreds of people who do ten -good hours’ work every day, use spectacles, and cannot -get along without them. No; the trouble in Peter’s case -was not in having to wear spectacles, but in the particular -kind of spectacles that he wore. They seemed to have the -strange quality of undergoing a change of color at certain -times; so that everything seen through them underwent a -corresponding change.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[141]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 403px;"> -<img src="images/illus141.jpg" width="403" height="520" alt="man putting on collar" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[142]</a></span></p> - -<p>At one time they took on a dark color—almost black. -And, as this made everything look dark and gloomy, he -was made to feel accordingly.</p> - -<p>“I could iron these collars better myself,” he exclaimed -one morning as he was dressing, after putting on these -glasses. And a few moments later: “Not a single pin in -this cushion, as usual!” And presently again: “Who <i>has</i> -taken away my comb and brush?” though both of these -useful articles were lying within his reach, and just where -he himself had left them.</p> - -<p>Had any of the children chanced to come into the room -about that time, it would have been an unlucky visit for -them.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[143]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus143.jpg" width="401" height="522" alt="man standing scratching head looking at floor" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[144]</a></span></p> - -<p>When he sat down to breakfast, it was with a frown upon -his brow, and a deep wrinkle between his eyes, caused, -apparently, by the weight of the spectacles.</p> - -<p>“Bridget never did make a good cup of coffee in her -life,” he remarked.—“My dear,” he continued, turning to -his wife, “I do wish you would take the trouble to go down -once—<i>only</i> once—and show her how.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[145]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 403px;"> -<img src="images/illus145.jpg" width="403" height="529" alt="man complaining about coffee at breakfast table with family" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[146]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mrs. Crisp ventured to answer in a meek voice that she -went down every morning. Peter had no reply—especially -no thanks—to offer for this; but he took another sip, -puckered up his lips as though he had swallowed a dose -of medicine, and pushed the cup away from him.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[147]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 395px;"> -<img src="images/illus147.jpg" width="395" height="518" alt="pushing cup away at table" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[148]</a></span></p> - -<p>After this cheerful breakfast he put on his hat to go to -the store (for Peter was a business-man); but when he had -gone as far as the front door, he came back with a quick -step to the foot of the stairs, and there stood calling out -in a loud voice that he really felt ashamed at the condition -of the steps and the sidewalk. No others in the neighborhood, -he declared, looked so shabby.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[149]</a></span></p> - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 404px;"> -<img src="images/illus149.jpg" width="404" height="525" alt="man shouting up stairs complaining about stairs" /> -</div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[150]</a></span></p> - -<p>In the street a few minutes afterward he was joined by -a fellow business man, and as they walked down town -together Peter was as gay and lively as any one could -have wished him to be. The two talked with each other -about the fine weather and their prosperous trade, and -even touched on their happy families. And when they spied -a bachelor-friend in the distance, Peter grew merry at his -expense, and expressed pity for him as a poor fellow who -had no home!</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[151]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 406px;"> -<img src="images/illus151.jpg" width="406" height="520" alt="Peter chatting cheerfully with his friend" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[152]</a></span></p> - -<p>But when, a little later, he entered his counting-room -alone, it was plain he had the dark glasses on still. Not -a man about the establishment worked as he should do, he -said. It used to be different when he was a boy. Then he -turned and went out of the house with a look of disgust.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[153]</a></span></p> - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;"> -<img src="images/illus153.jpg" width="402" height="532" alt="Peter being disgruntled with his workers" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[154]</a></span></p> - -<p>As soon as he was gone the bookkeeper scolded the clerk, -the clerk scolded the boy, and the boy went out to the front -door and abused the porter. And after that, throughout -the day, everything seemed to go wrong with Peter himself -and all who were about him; yet surely the fault was -his own.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[155]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 406px;"> -<img src="images/illus155.jpg" width="406" height="530" alt="three men in office looking cross" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[156]</a></span></p> - -<p>A few mornings after this it seemed as though Peter’s -glasses had undergone another change. They appeared -now to be of a blue color. He was in a milder frame, but -low in spirits. He was sorry to see the nursery carpet -wearing out, for he did not know where another would -come from. At breakfast he watched the children taking -butter, and took hardly any himself. He begged Mrs. -Crisp to put less sugar in his coffee. The frown was gone -from his brow but a most dejected look had taken its place.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[157]</a><br /><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[158]</a></span> -Spying a hole in the toe of his boy’s shoe, he drew a long -breath; and, hearing that the dressmaker was engaged to -come the next week for his daughters, he sighed aloud. -On his way down town, walking alone (for he avoided -company), he looked as if he had lost a near relation, and -at the store all day seemed to feel like a man who was just -on the eve of failing in business, though there was, in truth, -no danger of his doing any such thing.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 404px;"> -<img src="images/illus157.jpg" width="404" height="526" alt="Peter looking sadly at carpet while wife looks at him" /> -</div> - - -<p>There was one more change that Peter’s glasses used to -undergo. The color which they then assumed could never -be exactly made out, but it seemed to be more of a smoky -hue than anything else. This did not come upon them so -often as either of the others, but when it did it had a very -singular effect. The glasses then seemed to befog Peter -rather than help him see. For after putting them on when -he got up of a morning, he would dress without speaking -a word. At breakfast he would say nothing, and make it -plain that he did not want anybody else to. Consequently, -the whole family, little and big, would sit and munch their -food in silence. Then he would rise up from the table and -walk out of the house as if he were dumb. And although -it was a relief when he had gone, and made matters something -better, a chilling influence remained behind him the -whole day.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus159.jpg" width="401" height="527" alt="Peter sees hole in son's shoe" /> -</div> - - -<p>Peter had been wearing these glasses a good many years,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[159]</a><br /><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[160]</a></span> -when, as he was meditating alone one evening, he thought -to himself that things never looked very cheerful in his -eyes and he was never very happy, and it occurred to him -that perhaps his spectacles had something to do with it. -Then he remembered that a neighbor of his, one Samuel -Seabright, who also wore glasses and often used to complain -of them, now seemed to have gotten over his trouble -and always to have a pleasant face on. Meeting Samuel -the next morning, he said:</p> - -<p>“Neighbor, if it is not making too free, may I ask what -was the matter with your spectacles when I used to hear -you find fault with them so often?”</p> - -<p>“Certainly you may,” replied Samuel, “for I have not -the least objection to tell you. They used to get strange -shades and colors over them; so that nothing looked -natural or as it ought to look, and of course this affected -my spirits.”</p> - -<p>“Is it possible?” said Peter. “And have they got -perfectly clear and transparent now?”</p> - -<p>“Clear as crystal; so that everything looks just right, -and they give me no trouble at all.”</p> - -<p>“And would you mind telling me how you got them -so?”</p> - -<p>“I went to the doctor’s, and did exactly as he directed.”</p> - -<p>“And can you tell me where that doctor lives?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[161]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 396px;"> -<img src="images/illus161.jpg" width="396" height="525" alt="Peter talking to neighbour" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[162]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Of course I can. You remember that large stone -building with a beautiful stained-glass window at one end -of it, and a high tower on top, with a chime of bells in the -tower?”</p> - -<p>“Oh yes; I pass it every day.”</p> - -<p>“Well, the doctor lives next door to that.”</p> - -<p>That very day Peter stopped at the doctor’s house and -rang the bell, and was shown into his office. The doctor -himself was there, and after looking into Peter’s eyes -began to ask him questions.</p> - -<p>“Do you walk much in the open air?” said he.</p> - -<p>“Yes, every day,” replied Peter, “but it is mostly in -going down to my store and back again. Though sometimes -of an afternoon my wife and I stroll out together.”</p> - -<p>“What streets do you generally walk in?”</p> - -<p>“Only the best-kept and most respectable streets.”</p> - -<p>“Are you in the habit of visiting much?”</p> - -<p>“A good deal.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose, then, you are kept up late at night sometimes?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 407px;"> -<img src="images/illus163.jpg" width="407" height="530" alt="talking with the doctor" /> -</div> - -<p>“I can’t help it. You see, my relations, almost all of -them—I may say all that I keep up any acquaintance with—are -rich people. Now, last night I was at my uncle’s -house. He had just finished papering his parlor with the -most beautiful paper I ever saw. Then he had newly<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[163]</a><br /><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[164]</a></span> -covered his furniture with satin damask, and bought carpets -and curtains to match, and he kept me looking at -these things ever so long.”</p> - -<p>“Are you often kept up in this way?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, quite often. The night before that I went to my -cousin’s. He gave a very handsome dinner. There were -fifteen courses set on the table. I am sure his dinner cost -enough to feed a plain family of moderate size, for half a -year. But nobody was there except the most select and -fashionable people. To tell you the truth, doctor, these -are pretty much the only kind of people I visit. They -live in fine houses, with large rooms that are well ventilated -and well lighted, and I don’t see how my eyes, or -my spectacles, either, can get any harm while I am there. -Indeed, I am longing all the time for the day when I can -live in such a house myself, instead of the little pinched-up -dwelling I have to stay in now.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I have formed my opinion about your case,” -said the doctor, “and am ready to say what you should -do. But I must tell you beforehand that it will be different -from what you expect, and probably from what you would -choose.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, as for that,” replied Peter, “I am not at all particular; -you will find me willing to do whatever you -say.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[165]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 413px;"> -<img src="images/illus165.jpg" width="413" height="528" alt="eating with people in fine dining room" /> -</div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[166]</a></span></p> - -<p>“The first thing I want is that you should stop walking -in those broad, sunny, handsome streets, and walk through -the narrower and poorer streets, where there is not such a -glare of light.”</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t like to walk in them, for I don’t care to be -seen in any but the most respectable streets.”</p> - -<p>“Well, then there is no use of my prescribing for you -any further.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, if it comes to that, I’ll do it; for I want to get my -eyes well more than anything else.”</p> - -<p>“The next thing is that you should stop occasionally -and rest while you are walking there, and call at some of -the houses in those streets.”</p> - -<p>“Why, doctor, I can’t see how that could possibly do -me any good. As I have told you already, the houses -where I visit are among the finest in town, well ventilated -and heated, and some of them are just getting in the new -electric—”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” interrupted the doctor; “it is for you to -say whether you will do as I prescribe or not.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose I will have to do it, then, though I have -never visited such places in all my life.”</p> - -<p>“Stop here to-morrow afternoon, after business-hours,” -continued the doctor, “and, as you are not used to such -calls, I will go with you to make a beginning.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[167]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 399px;"> -<img src="images/illus167.jpg" width="399" height="531" alt="showing Peter a tenement house" /> -</div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[168]</a></span></p> - -<p>The next day Peter’s glasses gave him more trouble -than usual, and he was at the doctor’s office punctually by -the time appointed. The doctor did not keep him waiting, -but put on his hat and led him a considerable distance, to -quite another part of the town from that in which he was -in the habit of walking. It had once been a fashionable -part, but was deserted long ago by the richer class, and -was now tenanted by only the poorest people. The houses -had a decayed, tumble-down look; the front doors (once so -jealously guarded) were standing wide open, the halls -scarred and bare-looking, every room being occupied by -an entire family.</p> - -<p>Going into one of these houses, the doctor led Peter up -to the third story. There he knocked at a door.</p> - -<p>“Come in,” said a faint voice.</p> - -<p>Entering, they saw a poor woman sitting in an armchair. -She was moving her head from side to side in the -effort to get her breath. A bottle of medicine stood on a -rickety table near by. The bedstead at her side, covered -over with a counterpane, was evidently without a mattress, -or anything else save the canvas sacking, to lie on. Two -little girls, pale and scantily clad, shrank back to a corner -as the visitors entered.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;"> -<img src="images/illus169.jpg" width="402" height="532" alt="visiting a poor woman and her family" /> -</div> - -<p>The doctor sat down beside the poor sufferer, and after -inquiring about her sickness led her on gently to tell something<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[169]</a><br /><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[170]</a></span> -of her past history—how in her youth, in her father’s -house, she had every want supplied; how she had married -with bright prospects, and for a time been happy, until her -husband, fallen through drink from one depth of poverty to -another, had at last left her and her little ones to starve, -except for the kindness of those who took pity on them.</p> - -<p>“Yet God has taken care of me,” she said, “in all my -troubles, and I know he will keep on doing so. Yesterday -I awoke in the morning and sat up on the edge of my bed, -and cried, for I did not know where a mouthful of food was -to come from for me and my children. But before night I -had plenty.”</p> - -<p>Peter looked from her face to the doctor’s while she was -speaking. He knew that the doctor was familiar with such -scenes, yet he saw him put his finger up to his eye and -draw it across the lids to prevent a tear from falling.</p> - -<p>Coming out of this house and walking a little way, the -doctor turned into a narrow alley that led back from the -main street. Here he entered a house that was shut in -from the air and the light by high walls on every side. -In a lower room of this house was a man, tall and of large -frame, once evidently very strong, but now pale and weak, -looking as if he were hardly able to stand. Five young -children, in various degrees of raggedness, and the man’s -wife were with him.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[171]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 407px;"> -<img src="images/illus171.jpg" width="407" height="534" alt="visiting a poor man and his family" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[172]</a></span></p> - -<p>Peter looked around the room. The walls had been so -often covered with whitewash that it stood out in layers -and ridges upon them, except in some spots where the -plaster had fallen off, leaving the lath bare underneath. -Peter could not help thinking of the beautiful paper in -his rich uncle’s house.</p> - -<p>The doctor asked how they had got along since he last -saw them. It was but poorly, they said. The father had -been able to work only a few days—two or three in a week—and -the mother had to make up for the rest. Beside -doing the work at home, she went out washing and scrubbing -almost every day.</p> - -<p>“But it is hard on us,” she said; “he needs good food, -and we can’t get it. I do all I can, but it’s not a great deal, -for it pulls me down so. I feel tired all the time—when I -go to bed at night, and when I get up in the morning.”</p> - -<p>As she spoke Peter thought that her thin, worn face -told her story even more pitifully than her words did.</p> - -<p>It was quite late when they got through this visit, but -the doctor walked with Peter all the way to his home, -talking with him about his own ailment and telling him -what he ought to do. “For,” he said, “the trouble with -your eyes is a serious one which comes from something -worse than poor spectacles, and is often more deeply seated -even than the eye itself.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[173]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 408px;"> -<img src="images/illus173.jpg" width="408" height="534" alt="visiting sick man in bed" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[174]</a></span></p> - -<p>As they parted he said:</p> - -<p>“I want you to be at my office again at the same hour -to-morrow afternoon.”</p> - -<p>Peter was there at the time named, and the doctor took -him in still another direction, to a street near the water. -Here, entering a narrow but very high house, the doctor -led him up a dark winding stair. It was so dark that -Peter had to grope his way, for he could not see a step -before him. They came at last to the garret, which the -doctor entered without knocking. The windows of this -room opened toward the river, and the masts of ships were -visible rising above the roofs of the houses that stood -between. A seaman’s chest, a chair and a broken, -propped-up bedstead were all the furniture the room -contained.</p> - -<p>On the bed lay an old white-haired man. He had been -a sailor, and his seamed and rugged face still told of his -hard life upon the deck, and on the mast, amid wind and -storm.</p> - -<p>“What is the matter with him?” asked Peter, in a low -voice.</p> - -<p>“Nothing but old age,” replied the doctor.</p> - -<p>“And what has he to live upon?” continued Peter.</p> - -<p>“Only the wages of his weak and sickly boy,” said the -doctor, “who leaves him in the morning to go to his work,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[175]</a></span> -and returns at night when his day’s work is done. The -long hours between he spends here alone.”</p> - -<p>The old man put his hand upon his breast, saying that -he felt pain and a smothering feeling there.</p> - -<p>“And what do you do, my old friend,” asked Peter, -“while you are lying here all by yourself, if you want -anything? Suppose you want a drink?”</p> - -<p>“I do without it,” replied the old man.</p> - -<p>The doctor leaned over the bed and talked kindly to -him, comforting him, and then placed a piece of money -in his trembling hand.</p> - -<p>As he and Peter came down the winding stair together -the doctor said in a low voice, “It is not likely he will -suffer long.”</p> - -<p>When they regained the street, the doctor told Peter -there was yet another visit they could pay that same -afternoon if they quickened their steps; and he led the -way to a neighborhood not far off, where some great cotton-mills -stood. Here, in a small house, and living in one -little room, were two old women who were sisters. A tiny -stove stood in the room with about a double handful of coal -burning in it. A bucket partly filled with coal (which they -bought by the bucket only) stood beside it. A single strip -of rag carpet lay along the middle of the well-scrubbed -floor.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[176]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 403px;"> -<img src="images/illus176.jpg" width="403" height="525" alt="visting two old sisters" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[177]</a></span></p> - -<p>In a tin cup over the fire a small quantity of meal was -boiling, and in a bowl on the table was a little milk. A -few pieces of bread were lying near it. (His cousin’s -elegant dinner here recurred to Peter’s mind.)</p> - -<p>One of the old women was bedridden, but was now -sitting up in her bed; and both were at work unwinding -great skeins of yarn, parting the different colors and winding -these up again into separate balls. This was for one of -the mills in the neighborhood. Both of the old bodies were -cheerful, and showed great pleasure when the doctor came -in. The well one bustled about and set out a chair for him, -and another for Peter. The doctor sat down and talked -with them, and listened to all they had to say.</p> - -<p>“Sister has been a good deal better for the past -week,” said the well one, “and the mills are busy, and we -have plenty of work.”</p> - -<p>“But your rent?” asked the doctor. “It comes due -soon, doesn’t it?”</p> - -<p>“We have it all made up,” said the old woman, triumphantly. -“It is in yonder bureau-drawer, ready now. -God has been very good to us. We don’t want any help -this time.”</p> - -<p>It was nearly dark when the doctor and Peter came out -of the little house. As they were about to part, the doctor -said:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[178]</a></span></p> - -<p>“To-morrow I will take you to another quarter and -introduce you to some of my friends there.”</p> - -<p>“I believe, my kind friend,” replied Peter, in a subdued -voice, “that this will be needless. Your wise treatment -has reached the seat of the disease. I feel my sight growing -clearer every hour.”</p> - -<p>Then, hastily bidding his companion “Good-bye,” Peter -turned toward his home. He walked with a brisk step, -feeling, somehow or other, as if he could hardly get there -soon enough. As he entered the door he heard the merry -voices of his children up stairs. He went into the dining-room. -No one was there, but the fire was burning brightly -in the stove, and a plentiful evening meal was already -spread upon the table. Peter stood for a moment silent -and alone. The sofa, the chairs, all the objects around -him—-not luxurious and elegant, but comfortable and -abundant—-looked different from what they used to look. -The place seemed filled with blessings.</p> - -<p>“And is it possible,” he exclaimed, “my eyes have been -so blinded that I have never before been able to see them?”</p> - -<p>Just then his wife came into the room. He went to -her, took her hand tenderly in his, and told her where he -had been, what he had seen, and how differently he felt.</p> - -<p>“But,” said she, with a loving smile and an arch look, -“how about those badly-ironed collars that we heard of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[179]</a><br /><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[180]</a></span> -the other morning, and the dusty steps, and the weak -coffee?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus179.jpg" width="401" height="526" alt="man looking about room with new eyes" /> -</div> - -<p>“Oh,” he cried, “how could I ever let such trifles -trouble me?”</p> - -<p>“And then,” she continued, “the nursery carpet that is -wearing out, and the boy’s shoes, and the girls’ dresses?”</p> - -<p>“As for them,” he said, “we will hope to get more when -they are gone. But with even half our present comforts -and indulgences, and with you, my dearest, and our -precious children about me, I trust I may feel too rich -ever again to utter one complaining word.”</p> - -<p>So the dark shadows were driven away from Peter -Crisp’s spectacles, and he and all his family ever after led -a happier life, because he had found what he never possessed -before—<small>A THANKFUL HEART</small>.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 208px;"> -<img src="images/illus180.jpg" width="208" height="190" alt="three pairs of glasses and a pair of binoculars" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[181]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 405px;"> -<img src="images/illus181.jpg" width="405" height="526" alt="the man and his wife" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[182]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus182.jpg" width="401" height="247" alt="one full tree, one sparse tree" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE TWO APPLE TREES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO apple trees that stood on opposite sides of the -road, being both of them neglected by their owners, -used to sympathize with each other’s misfortunes.</p> - -<p>“Just look at the suckers that are allowed to spring -up about my roots!” said one.</p> - -<p>“And see the great nests of caterpillars that remain -undisturbed among my branches!” said the other.</p> - -<p>But after a while the farm on which one of the trees -stood was sold, and it soon became evident that its new -owner was a very different farmer from the old one. He -began straightening up his fences, whitewashing his buildings,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[183]</a><br /><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[184]</a></span> -and putting things to rights all over his farm. His -fields were ploughed, his garden planted, his fruit trees -attended to—among the rest, the apple tree that stood near -the road. Its dead wood was cut out, the caterpillars it had -complained of were cleared away, and the ground about -its roots was loosened and enriched.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 530px;"> -<img src="images/illus183.jpg" width="530" height="672" alt="apple trees with road between" /> -</div> - -<p>As a consequence, when spring arrived, it was covered -with blossoms, and later in the summer loaded down with -fruit.</p> - -<p>But while all this was going on it had noticed a strange -alteration in its opposite neighbor. Formerly the two trees -used to talk together every day, but now very little passed -between them. The one across the road seemed unwilling -to talk and grew more and more silent, until, when autumn -came and the great red apples were being gathered from -the branches of its old acquaintance, it would scarcely -return an answer when spoken to. The other bore this -for a time, but at length could bear it no longer, and -then spoke out plainly, as follows:</p> - -<p>“You will hardly answer me when I speak to you. -What a change is this in an old friend! Yet I have done -nothing to make you dislike me. I am left to imagine only -one cause for it, and that is jealousy, and regret, at my -greater good fortune.”</p> - -<p>“You wrong me,” replied the fruitless tree—“not in<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[185]</a></span> -charging me with unkind treatment, which I acknowledge, -but in the motive you have imputed it to. It is not because -I am sorry for your good fortune, but because I am ashamed -of my own unhappy condition, that I am so silent. I would -not strip from you one green leaf or have you to bear one -apple less, but in looking at your prosperous state I am -made more conscious of my own poverty, and realize what -a poor barren stock I am.”</p> - -<p>“Pardon me,” said the other. “Instead of being angry -I am sorry for you, and hope with all my heart that by next -spring you may fall into better hands, and by autumn be -more heavily loaded down with fruit than myself.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">An appearance of ill-will does not always prove its -existence. We should be sure of the motive before judging -the act.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 253px;"> -<img src="images/illus185.jpg" width="253" height="150" alt="apple baskets" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[186]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 476px;"> -<img src="images/illus186.jpg" width="476" height="305" alt="stream" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE SPRING IN THE WOODS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A SPRING of pure water bubbled up from the ground -in the midst of a wood, but the trees, after sheltering -it for a season, began to complain of it as an intruder.</p> - -<p>“You take up too much of our room,” they said, -“where more trees might grow. Then, our underbrush, -that we depend on for the future, is trampled down and -spoiled by the animals that come trooping every day to -your side. You have no right to occupy our space, and -we warn you to be gone.”</p> - -<p>Hearing this, the spring sent word down to its hidden -source, deep in the ground, bidding its streams seek another -outlet in a grove near by. Soon afterward its waters<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[187]</a><br /><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[188]</a></span> -began to disappear from the wood, sinking lower and -lower, until, instead of the glassy mirror in which the -trees used to see their branches reflected, only a dusty -hollow remained. Nor was this all. Hot and dry weather -came on soon after, and the trees, missing the moisture -about their roots, many of them lost their freshness and -verdure, and some of them died.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 515px;"> -<img src="images/illus187.jpg" width="515" height="669" alt="stream in woods" /> -</div> - -<p>Meanwhile, the spring reappeared in the grove, with -waters more abundant than ever, and the trees there -grew thicker and greener, and bushes and wild flowers -sprang up on every side. There, too, the birds and the -beasts, deserting the woods where they had formerly gone, -thronged to drink and rest in its shade.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Because we fear a little trouble and expense, or, it may -be, the humbling of our pride, we let those pass by our -doors who would profit us in the best things and perhaps -prove to be angels entertained unawares.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 178px;"> -<img src="images/illus188.jpg" width="178" height="165" alt="tree without leaves" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[189]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 473px;"> -<img src="images/illus189.jpg" width="473" height="224" alt="man standing with axe on log" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE DISTANT VIEW.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who came as a stranger into a country neighborhood -bought a cottage there which stood on rising -ground. Before his porch, and gently declining from it, -was a velvet-like green sward, and farther off a thick -growth of trees on every side. These quite surrounded -him, and gave him from his cottage door a limited but -beautiful prospect. A neighbor who came to pay him a -friendly visit, on seeing it, said:</p> - -<p>“You are here in a little world of your own, with every -object that is disagreeable to look at shut out.”</p> - -<p>But the man himself was not satisfied. Beyond the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[190]</a></span> -woods, on one side, was a river, and beyond the river far-spreading -green fields. He wanted to bring these within -sight. There was no way of doing this except by cutting -down some of his trees. So, regardless of what others -might think or say, he took his axe on his shoulder one -morning, and went to the spot where the trees stood that -interrupted the desired view.</p> - -<p>Upon examining them, he found they were among the -handsomest on his place. There was a chestnut already -in tassel, an elm with spreading top and fringed trunk, a -sugar-maple that he knew would turn to crimson and gold -in the autumn, and beside it a tall evergreen. But he did -not hesitate. The end to be gained would more than compensate -for his loss, and he went to work with a strong arm -and determined will, and soon laid the trees low.</p> - -<p>When the distant landscape burst upon his sight, he felt -amply rewarded for the sacrifice he had made. After this -he was careful to keep the avenue which he had cleared -always open, coming down there again with his axe whenever -a young tree or a branch of an old one, or even a -bush or shrub, interfered with the view.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 524px;"> -<img src="images/illus191.jpg" width="524" height="675" alt="man swinging axe at tree" /> -</div> - -<p>And now it seemed as though he never wearied of looking -at the river and the green fields beyond. Every morning, -before going to his work, he stood a few moments gazing -at them. Again, at the close of the day, on returning<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[191]</a><br /><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[192]</a></span> -to his cottage, he looked at them in the soft sunset light. -When working in his garden or about his lawn, they were -in sight all the time. And on Sundays, or whenever he -had a few hours’ rest, he would take his favorite seat -before the door that looked out toward that view.</p> - -<p>Of course there were cloudy days when the view was -interrupted, but even then he used to gaze in that direction, -knowing that the scene he loved was there. And so -he continued to do year after year. And though you may -hardly believe it when I tell you, yet it is true, that as the -years rolled on there came a changed expression upon his -face—as if he saw something which others could not see—which -never again left it.</p> - -<p>After this had become so evident (though unknown to -himself) that his friends and neighbors observed it, one -of them made bold to ask him whether there was anything -more than a love of Nature that so attracted him -to the river and the green fields.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 524px;"> -<img src="images/illus193.jpg" width="524" height="676" alt="man in cleared field" /> -</div> - -<p>Then for the first time he opened his heart to another, -and said:</p> - -<p>“You know, my friend, that I came to this country a -stranger, but you do not know that I came also an outcast, -disinherited justly, and banished from my Father’s -house. That house stands across yonder river, and through -all these years I have been catching glimpses of it, and hoping<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[193]</a><br /><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[194]</a></span> -some day to return there. This reveals to you the reason -for what seems so strange in my life since I came here. -And now I know that I shall return thither. I am but a sojourner -here, and am longing to see my Father’s face—yes, -and the face of my Elder Brother, who it is that has brought -about (at His own cost) a reconciliation between us.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 200px;"> -<img src="images/illus194.jpg" width="200" height="257" alt="man in Biblical dress walking" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[195]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 491px;"> -<img src="images/illus195.jpg" width="491" height="276" alt="grape vine over fence" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE TWO VINES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN came out into his garden one spring morning to -prune his grape-vine. Wherever its branches were -growing too freely, or in a wrong direction, he cut them -off. Then he bound them to a low wooden frame he had -placed there, so that they might grow only in the direction -he intended. Now, as the day was warm and the sap was -beginning to flow, the branches bled, as the vine-dressers -say, in the places where he had pruned them.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus196.jpg" width="516" height="672" alt="man picking grapes" /> -</div> - -<p>It happened that just outside of the garden wall a wild<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[196]</a><br /><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[197]</a></span> -vine was growing, having twined itself around a tall forest-tree -that stood there. When this wild vine saw what was -done to the vine in the garden, it cried:</p> - -<p>“I pity you, wounded and bleeding, and not allowed -to grow aloft, as your nature demands.”</p> - -<p>“It is not because he delights in wounding me,” replied -the other, “that my master has done this. I was once a -wild vine too, but he took me up tenderly, and planted me -in his garden, and has watered and cared for me ever since. -I am willing to submit myself to his hands.”</p> - -<p>Not many weeks after this rich blossoms burst forth on -both vines, giving to each an equal promise of fruit. Before -long the blossoms dropped off and the embryo fruit -appeared. As the summer advanced <i>these were tried</i>. Such -as were destined to ripen lived on through the heat and the -drought, and such as were destined to perish fell to the -ground.</p> - -<p>At length autumn came. The wild vine had climbed -up to the topmost boughs of the forest-tree and was waving -its unfettered branches in the air, but on those branches -were found only a few withered grapes. But the vine in -the garden, tied down to its low frame, was loaded with -purple clusters; and the gardener came, and gathered them -into baskets, and carried them to his home. Afterward he -returned to his vine and bound straw around it, to protect<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[198]</a></span> -it from the winter’s cold. But going through the forest -with his axe in his hand, seeking for fuel, he cut down the -wild vine and cast it on the heap for the winter’s burning.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who believes that a loving, and all-powerful Hand -is ordering his lot should see a token of future blessings in -the visits of adversity.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 222px;"> -<img src="images/illus198.jpg" width="222" height="201" alt="cluster of grapes" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[199]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 497px;"> -<img src="images/illus199.jpg" width="497" height="354" alt="damaged tree trunk" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE OLD CHESTNUT AND THE YOUNG OAK.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">AN old chestnut tree that had been condemned to the axe -a generation ago, being overlooked by the woodman -from year to year, still stood in its place among the trees -of the forest, and on the return of spring feebly put forth -a few leaves at the end of its branches.</p> - -<p>A strong young oak that stood near, seeing this, said -to it proudly:</p> - -<p>“What is such a fag-end of life worth, any way? Why -not give up the struggle and die?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[200]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus200.jpg" width="516" height="624" alt="tree grown oddly over damage" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[201]</a></span></p> - -<p>“It is not for us to die when we choose,” replied the -chestnut, “but to cherish what of life is left to us.”</p> - -<p>A century rolled round. The chestnut had fallen and -gone to dust, but now the oak had grown old. A yawning -cleft down its trunk showed where the lightning had blasted -it long years before. Its once mighty branches were decayed, -and broken off by winter storms; only here and -there a tuft of green remained amid the vast ruin. Viewing -these sadly one day, it said:</p> - -<p>“I am made to look back a hundred years! It is my -turn now to be asked why I do not give up the struggle -and die. Ah! how little I knew what my own lot was to -be when I mocked another with the question!”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Let us not add to the burden which old age will lay -upon us hereafter by want of sympathy for those who -are bearing this burden now.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 333px;"> -<img src="images/illus201.jpg" width="333" height="150" alt="chestnut seed pod" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[202]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 486px;"> -<img src="images/illus202.jpg" width="486" height="216" alt="farm with cart and chickens" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>CORN-CRIBS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A POOR man having died and left his widow with little -children to support, a neighbor of hers—who was -known by the name of Kris, and who was almost as poor -as herself—borrowed a horse and cart to go around among -the farmers he was acquainted with, and beg some corn -for her.</p> - -<p>“All of them,” he said, “knew her husband and hired -him now and then to do day’s work; I’ll go and see what -they will give.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus203.jpg" width="514" height="645" alt="funeral procession" /> -</div> - -<p>He came to the first farmer, who listened to his story -and without saying a word went to his corn-crib, filled his -bushel-measure heaping full, and emptied it into the cart. -Kris thanked him warmly for this, but the man, not seeming -to notice what he said, returned to his crib, heaped up<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[203]</a><br /><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[204]</a></span> -the measure once more, and emptied it also into the cart. -Then for the first time he spoke, saying:</p> - -<p>“I can give to so worthy an object with a clear conscience. -When she wants more, come again.”</p> - -<p>As Kris drove out to the road he said to himself:</p> - -<p>“I’ve made a mistake: I ought to have borrowed a -wagon instead of a cart. This will be full presently, and I -could just as easily have hauled her a two-horse load.”</p> - -<p>Turning in at the next gate, he told his story to the -farmer there, who, as soon as heard it, said:</p> - -<p>“Why, if a man’s got any conscience at all, he can’t -help giving to such a hard case.”</p> - -<p>Saying which, he walked to his corn-crib, but with not -quite so brisk a step as the first, and filled his bushel-measure, -but not quite so full as the other, and, handing it to -Kris, let him carry it out and empty it into the cart himself. -Kris thanked him, but noticed that he did not say he was -welcome.</p> - -<p>About half a mile farther on Kris came to the third -farm. As he drove in he met the farmer on the way to -his barn. He stopped and listened to what his visitor had -to say.</p> - -<p>“I thought maybe,” said Kris, closing, “you’d like to -give her some corn to help her out through the winter.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 524px;"> -<img src="images/illus205.jpg" width="524" height="674" alt="man asking for corn" /> -</div> - -<p>“Of course I would,” replied the farmer. “I hate tramps<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[205]</a><br /><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[206]</a></span> -and beggars, but she’s none of them. I knew her husband -well; he gave an honest day’s work for a day’s wages. Besides, -it’s a duty to give. I’d do it to ease my conscience if -it wasn’t for anything else. Come over to the crib.”</p> - -<p>Kris followed him to the door and went in. The -bushel-measure was lying there, but the man looked -around, as if something were still wanting, and then -hurried over to the stable.</p> - -<p>“His big scoop is missing,” thought Kris. “He’s going -to do the best yet.”</p> - -<p>In a moment he was back again carrying a peck-measure -in his hand (it looked scant even for a peck); filling -which, he handed it to Kris, who, mute with surprise, -silently emptied it into the cart.</p> - -<p>From this farm Kris drove on to the one beyond. He -passed by the farmer’s house—a comfortable stone dwelling—and -turned into the barnyard. As he did so he noticed -how fat the cattle and the pigs looked. The farmer came -out to him, and Kris made his appeal.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the man, “I s’pose I’ll have to help too; -and even if I didn’t want to, my conscience would make me. -But I should think such a stout-lookin’, able-bodied woman -ought to be able to help herself.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 515px;"> -<img src="images/illus207.jpg" width="515" height="649" alt="properous man gives handful of corn" /> -</div> - -<p>By this time they reached the corn-crib, which Kris -noticed was full up to the very top; and the farmer, gathering<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[207]</a><br /><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[208]</a></span> -up a dozen ears in his hands, pitched them into the -cart, exclaiming:</p> - -<p>“Whew! what a heap you’ve got there! Mind, Kris, -don’t you come for any more.”</p> - -<p>Kris drove out of the gate and turned his horse’s head -toward home.</p> - -<p>“The cart’s too big, after all,” he said. “It’s of no use -to go any farther; the next one would want to take away -some of what I’ve got. It’s wonderful what a crop of consciences -grows in these parts! But I’ve a notion that a -good deal of it’s only ‘cheat’ after all, and we might as -well call it by the right name.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Men who can be satisfied without any conscience are -very uncomfortable without a base imitation of one to -stand in its place.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 233px;"> -<img src="images/illus208.jpg" width="233" height="186" alt="baskets of corn" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[209]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 466px;"> -<img src="images/illus209.jpg" width="466" height="270" alt="fireplace, grandfather clock two chairs" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE OLD CLOCK IN THE NEW HOME.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CLOCK that had been handed down from generation -to generation and brought from the old country homestead -to a new city home, as it was being wound up one -day, said, impatiently:</p> - -<p>“I have been running for a hundred years. Let me rest -now. Are not your fathers, whom I served so long, at -rest?”</p> - -<p>“It shall be as you say,” replied its master, laying aside -the key and shutting up the glass door that enclosed its -tarnished metal face.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[210]</a></span></p> - -<p>In a few hours the old clock was silent. Its great -leaden weights hung suspended near the floor; its broad -old-fashioned hands ceased to move, and its pendulum, no -longer flashing from right to left through the little round -pane of glass in front of it, hung motionless and still.</p> - -<p>The day ended; the long night passed, and the morning -appeared. The same stirring sounds as on other mornings -were ushered in from the streets; the other clocks, -within and without, went on striking as usual. The family -rose up for the duties of the day, but as they came -down to the morning meal each member stopped on the -stairs and looked regretfully at the old clock, saying:</p> - -<p>“How we miss it! How strange it seems not to hear -it going!”</p> - -<p>“I lay awake last night,” said the mother, “listening -for it to strike.”</p> - -<p>And so the second day passed. But toward evening, as -the master came in sight, suddenly the old clock cried -out:</p> - -<p>“Come, wind me up and set me going again; and -when at last I can go no longer, take me to pieces -and sell me for old brass. For I would rather not be -at all than to exist without taking part in the busy life -that is throbbing around me.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[211]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus211.jpg" width="518" height="657" alt="mother and daughter looking at clock on stair landing" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[212]</a></span></p> - -<p>He who abandons his work (thinking to unburden -himself) while he still has the strength to perform it, -lays down the lighter for the heavier load.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 194px;"> -<img src="images/illus212.jpg" width="194" height="298" alt="woman holding child up to clock" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[213]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 408px;"> -<img src="images/illus213.jpg" width="408" height="227" alt="man sitting at table with head on hand" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE GREAT SECRET.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">WE keep our hearts shut up, as it were, in a safe, or -strong box, many doors deep. The first door opens -from the surface, or outside; it is like the door to the -vestibule of our house, and is open to all comers. The -second door admits to the halls and parlors, as we might -say, and is open to our acquaintances generally. The -third door gives access to the living-room of the family, -wherever that may be; it is opened to relatives and -intimate friends. The door next to this admits into the -chambers where only the nearest and dearest may come.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 522px;"> -<img src="images/illus214.jpg" width="522" height="671" alt="man with open doors,family and one vault with iron doors locked tight" /> -</div> - -<p>But beyond all these is another door, to which none -in the house may be likened; in this room are things which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[214]</a><br /><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[215]</a></span> -may not be shown—our most secret thoughts and desires, -the best and the noblest as well as the lowest and the -basest. The door to this room is never opened to human -eyes. And yet only the eye that can see within it discerns -our true character, for here, hidden away from mortal sight, -dwells the real man; and as the outward husk and shell are -stripped off to come at the kernel and the grain, so all the -rest of us will be torn away and cast aside when the final -estimate comes to be made.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 184px;"> -<img src="images/illus215.jpg" width="184" height="194" alt="heart shaped padlock on hasp" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[216]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 489px;"> -<img src="images/illus216.jpg" width="489" height="253" alt="man making brick wall" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE HOUSE-BUILDER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN man who owned a lot of ground determined -to build a house on it. There was a good quarry in his -lot, but to get the stone out of it required hard labor. This, -however, was all that was needed; so he went to work with -a good will, and made a prosperous beginning. First he -laid the foundation, and then several courses of the superstructure. -But the toil was severe, the wall progressed -slowly, and the work grew wearisome.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus217.jpg" width="528" height="678" alt="man with pick=axe by rocks and fence" /> -</div> - -<p>One day, while digging in his quarry, he discovered a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[217]</a><br /><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[218]</a></span> -new vein of stone, which ran over his neighbor’s line, and -he picked up a block of it that came easily into his hand. -He found that it was more easily worked than his own, and -that he could almost save the labor of squaring, and dressing, -by using it. The next day he took out some more, -until he had taken enough to lay one course of it all around -the walls of his house. But this carried him so far into his -neighbor’s premises that he dared go no farther; he filled -up the opening he had made with rubbish and earth, and -went to work again on his own land. Months, and even -years, passed by; but he worked on faithfully, day by -day, and at last his house was finished. Then he furnished -it comfortably, and, taking his family with him, -moved into it, to stay there for the rest of his days.</p> - -<p>Now, while his hands were busy and his mind engaged -in building, he never once thought of the course of stone -that he had taken from his neighbor. But after all was -done, and his long task completed, as he stood one day -in front of his house, admiring it, he observed that course. -It had settled into a different color from the rest—not so -different as to be noticed by others, but enough to make -it evident to himself. He found the next day, as he -passed through his garden, that he saw it again; and -after that it seemed to stand out conspicuously whenever -his face was turned toward his home. This began to annoy<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[219]</a><br /><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[220]</a></span> -him. It was only one course, to be sure; there were full -fifty courses in the wall between the roof and the foundation. -Why did this single one attract his attention before -all the rest? His conscience answered the question. It -did not rightly belong there; it never had been, and was -not now, his own.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 521px;"> -<img src="images/illus219.jpg" width="521" height="671" alt="man sitting outside looking at door of brick house" /> -</div> - -<p>A year passed from the time when his house was finished, -then another and another. It was astonishing how quickly -they sped. Yet there was not a day in all those years that -his eye did not, some time between the rising and the setting -of the sun, rest on that course of stone.</p> - -<p>At length old age crept on. He had time now to sit still -and think of the past, and he did not sleep at night as he -used to. But both by day and by night the course of -stone was in his mind. Most willingly he would have -gone to his neighbor and paid him ten times its value (for -he had prospered and grown rich), but in doing so he would -have confessed himself a thief and disgraced his family for -ever; he could not do this. Or gladly he would have torn -it from his walls and placed it back in the quarry from -whence he had taken it, but that was impossible. So he -lived on, brooding over it until it drove all better and -happier thoughts out of his mind, and at last he died, -bowed down and crushed, as it were, under its weight.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[221]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus221.jpg" width="528" height="678" alt="door of brick house has black crepe bow on door, bottom half of picture shows man in bed" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[222]</a></span></p> - -<p>There is an interest account, so to speak, running on -against every amount, be it small or great, that we have -ever gotten dishonestly. And the worst of it is that if -it be not settled now we shall find it still standing and -accumulating in the long hereafter.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 232px;"> -<img src="images/illus222.jpg" width="232" height="179" alt="pile of rocks, wheelbarrow and pick-axe" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[223]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 478px;"> -<img src="images/illus223.jpg" width="478" height="199" alt="pigeons and a turkey" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>PIGEONS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">SOME pigeons that had their home over a rich man’s stable -came to visit a pair that lived near by in a poor -man’s barn.</p> - -<p>“You’d better come and live with us,” said the rich -man’s birds, “for we not only have a beautiful new house -with partitions inside for our nests, but we’re fed every day -on the best that the farm affords.”</p> - -<p>“Who feeds you?” asked the poor man’s birds.</p> - -<p>“Our master’s servants, of course.”</p> - -<p>“But <i>our</i> master,” replied the others, “feeds us himself. -We thank you for your invitation, but would rather stay -where we are.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[224]</a></span></p> - -<p>Summer passed and cold weather came on, and one -snowy morning the pigeons at the barn were astonished to -see their grand neighbors alight near them again.</p> - -<p>“We are of the same mind still,” the poor pigeons cried, -“and can only repeat what you have heard already. We -will not go with you.”</p> - -<p>“Ah!” said their rich neighbors, “we have not come, -this time, to ask it, but rather to ask whether you haven’t -got a corner here in the barn where we may come and stay; -for our master has gone away for the winter, and his servants -have forgotten us, and we’re likely to starve in our -beautiful home.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">The nearer we get to the source of the good that we -need, the more sure we may be of a continued supply -of it.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[225]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 464px;"> -<img src="images/illus225.jpg" width="464" height="312" alt="man slouched in chair at desk" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE CLOCK ON THE DESK.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A LITTLE round nickel-plated clock stood on a certain -man’s desk measuring out his hours of work. One -day, after he had been wrestling with his thoughts and -vainly endeavoring to order them to his bidding, he leaned -back in his chair, and, setting them at liberty, let them -wander whither they would.</p> - -<p>In a few moments, and while he still remained in this -idle posture, he was startled at hearing from his clock, -instead of its accustomed “Tick-a-tick!” the words, “Keep -at it! Keep at it!”</p> - -<p>“Do you mean those words for me?” cried the man, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[226]</a><br /><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[227]</a></span> -then, before the clock had time to answer, continued: “It -is because I am resting a moment you presume thus to -rebuke me. Must a man be for ever at work? May he -not take time even to look round him, or to yawn or wait -for a new idea? Your words are insulting.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus226.jpg" width="520" height="672" alt="man with elbow on desk" /> -</div> - -<p>Here, being out of breath, he paused long enough for -the clock to reply:</p> - -<p>“Indeed, sir, I said nothing. You heard only my heart -beat ‘tick-a-tick, tick-a-tick,’ as usual. When this stops, -you know as well as I that my life will be ended and my -work for you done.”</p> - -<p>“Pardon me,” said the man. “Because I deserved a -rebuke, I was so quick at finding one. Though you did not -utter the words, they fit my case well. I would that you -ever might go on repeating them.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">When we feel conscious of deserving reproof, its arrow -lights upon us from many a bow that was drawn only at a -venture.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 218px;"> -<img src="images/illus227.jpg" width="218" height="162" alt="little man sitting next to alarm on clock" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[228]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 492px;"> -<img src="images/illus228.jpg" width="492" height="244" alt="a dog by a fence" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE WATCH-DOG.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MASTIFF that had received a severe kick from his -master thus soliloquized as he walked slowly and -sadly toward his kennel:</p> - -<p>“I guard his house by day and by night, securing for -him undisturbed rest, but hardly ever getting for myself so -much as an hour’s sleep at a time. He never comes near -me that I do not show my pleasure by a wag of my tail; -and when he speaks to me and pats me on the head, my -delight is so great that I can hardly control myself, and -behave as a sensible dog ought to behave. And yet, -because I happened, by accident, to be in his way, he has<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[229]</a><br /><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[230]</a></span> -thus ill-used and disgraced me! What a shame, when he -has the power so easily to make me happy that he abuses -it in making me miserable!”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 501px;"> -<img src="images/illus229.jpg" width="501" height="644" alt="large dog looking at cowering dog" /> -</div> - -<p>By this time the mastiff had reached his kennel, at the -farther end of the garden; but, as he was about entering -it, one of his own pups, that had been playing on the -grass with a little terrier from the next house, caught -sight of him. In a moment both the pup and the terrier -let their tails drop and slunk out of sight. The old dog -watched them as they disappeared, and after pausing a -moment said to himself:</p> - -<p>“This ought not to be. The harsh treatment that I -have received makes me examine my treatment of others. -I am afraid I’m as bad as my master. It is because they -are growled at and snarled at so often these pups run -away as if their innocent gambols might cost them a -cudgelling. My master did not mean it; yet when he -kicked me, he did me a favor, for so have my own faults -been brought to my view, and from this very hour I mean -to correct them.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Before we judge those who have the rule over us, let us -stop and ask, “What would they say whom we rule over?”</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[231]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 488px;"> -<img src="images/illus231.jpg" width="488" height="262" alt="girl leading blind man" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE OPENED EYES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A BLIND man whose disposition had been soured by his -misfortune refused to credit anything his friends said -about the objects that surrounded him. He would not -believe that the flowers he smelt were clothed in brilliant -colors, or that the birds he heard singing were covered -with beautiful feathers. He would not believe there was -a regular succession of night and day and light and darkness. -He could give no reason for his obstinate unbelief -except that he could not imagine any of these things;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[232]</a></span> -which, of course, was not to be expected of him, since -he had always been blind.</p> - -<p>It happened that after a time the man recovered his -sight; whatever had obscured it seemed slowly to pass -away. At first only a faint glimmer of light was visible. -This increased from day to day, until at length the last -film disappeared from before his eyes, and he looked out -upon the world and saw everything clearly.</p> - -<p>Then he was like a person struck dumb and unable to -speak with wonder and astonishment. At this his friends -followed him as he walked forth unaided, and began to -explain to him what he saw.</p> - -<p>“Yonder,” they said, pointing up to the sky, “is the -great sun that we have so often told you about, though -you would not believe us. But for it your eyes would -be opened in vain; you would still be in utter darkness.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus233.jpg" width="523" height="674" alt="four men in Biblical clothes talking" /> -</div> - -<p>But the man, suddenly regaining his speech, cried -out:</p> - -<p>“Ah, my friends! I do not need to be told this now. -Whereas all your arguments failed to convince me while -I was blind, now, though you and all the world should -tell me it was not the sun, I would know differently. -For I see him myself. He has shined into my eyes—yes, -and into my heart; and he is his own best argument.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[233]</a><br /><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[234]</a></span> -How can I remain in ignorance of him while I am walking -in his light?”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">One clear view of the truth for ourselves is more convincing -than all that others can say to us in its favor.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 233px;"> -<img src="images/illus234.jpg" width="233" height="201" alt="man in Biblical clothes with arms open" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[235]</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2>THE LANTERN-PEOPLE.</h2> - -<div> - <img class="split" src="images/illus235a.jpg" alt="man asleep at table" width="600" height="359" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus235b.jpg" alt="man asleep at table" width="218" height="222" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus235c.jpg" alt="man asleep at table" width="106" height="148" /> -</div> - -<p class="unindent"><span class="big">I</span> HAD -been thinking -how -strange a -thing it -was that I -disliked so -many people -and -liked so -few. Only to look at some persons -seemed enough to put me out of humor -and make me feel like saying cross -things. But there were others, though -not near so many of them, whom I loved -to meet and whom I could hardly be -cross to if I tried. I had been thinking about this, -when I fell asleep and had a dream.</p> - -<p>I thought I was carried away to a strange -country where it was always dark. No morning -ever came there, the sun never shone, and there were no -stars in the sky. Yet people were living there, and I could -see them walking about. But they were very strange people,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[236]</a></span> -such as I had never seen before, nor heard of, nor even -thought of. I called them the lantern-people because they -looked like great lanterns with lights inside of them that -shone through.</p> - -<p>And they were of a very strange shape, for they had -ever so many sides, and on every side was a picture. Some -were pretty and some were ugly pictures. Every person I -saw had both pretty and ugly sides.</p> - -<p>Of course I was very much surprised and stood looking -a long while, for the people could not see me though I -could see them and was close to them. On some of their -sides were pictures of snakes, wasps, and pigs; on other -sides, of doves, lambs, flowers, and such beautiful things.</p> - -<p>And now I want to tell you a very curious thing about -the way the people acted when they met each other. I -noticed, when a man met another in the street, he would -quickly turn around one of his sides, so that the man he -met could see it, and nothing else—that is, nothing but -the picture that was on the side turned toward him.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[237]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 395px;"> -<img src="images/illus237.jpg" width="395" height="492" alt="two men talking" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[238]</a></span></p> - -<p>While I stood watching I saw a man coming along who -turned almost the whole way around, so as to bring the -picture of a dog in front, where it could be most plainly -seen. It was a bull-dog—one of the sort that shows its -teeth—very ugly and cross-looking. I could not understand -why he should take so much trouble to turn out that -ugly picture (for he had prettier ones that I could see) until -I saw another man coming toward him, who turned out a -picture uglier still. It was of a bear.</p> - -<p>As soon as they came close up to one another the pictures -seemed to be alive. I was astonished to see their eyes -move and their mouths open and shut, seeming to snap at -one another. And all I could hear were barkings and -growlings until they were gone, the dog and the bear -trying to bite each other as far as I could see them.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[239]</a></span></p> - -<div> - <img class="split" src="images/illus239a.jpg" alt="two girls" width="238" height="267" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus239b.jpg" alt="two girls" width="361" height="140" /> -</div> - -<p>Next came a little girl. Happening to look behind her, -she saw another little girl following her. At once she turned -round one of her sides, that had the picture of a wasp on -it. But the little girl who -was coming after her turned -out the picture of a beautiful -butterfly. As soon as they -met, the wasp began to buzz -and dart out its sharp sting, -and I saw the butterfly fluttering -and fluttering, till presently -it was scared away and -the picture of a great spider -came in its place. Then the -spider seemed to dart at -the wasp, and -the wasp tried to -sting the spider; -and the little -girls went off -quarrelling as fiercely as the two men had done.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[240]</a></span></p> - -<p>Next I saw a young woman. She was prettier than any -of the lantern-people I had yet seen. I saw her coming -from a long way down the street, and she never turned -her sides, no matter whom she met, but always kept one -picture in front, and that was of a dove. It had a ring -of black around its neck and an olive-leaf in its mouth. -I thought to myself:</p> - -<p>“What a beautiful picture!”</p> - -<p>Just then another young woman came up and pushed -rudely against her, and I saw this rude one turn out the -picture of a snake. And the snake hissed and darted out -its forked tongue, but the dove would not go. All it did -was to coo softly and flutter with its wings and hold out -the olive-leaf.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[241]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 391px;"> -<img src="images/illus241.jpg" width="391" height="455" alt="two young women" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[242]</a></span></p> - -<p>When the snake found that it could not frighten the -dove away, it began to creep off itself, as if ashamed; and -what was my surprise to see, presently, another dove come -in its place! And the doves began to coo to each other, -and to look pleased and happy, and the two young women -took hold of each other’s hands; then they put their -arms around each other’s neck and kissed each other -and so they passed happily by.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[243]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 339px;"> -<img src="images/illus243.jpg" width="339" height="387" alt="two young women holding hands and talking" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[244]</a></span></p> - -<div> - <img class="split" src="images/illus244a.jpg" alt="two girls" width="397" height="229" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus244b.jpg" alt="two girls" width="77" height="244" /> -</div> - - -<p>After this I walked about the streets -looking at the strange people I met there, -and, seeing a crowd of them going into a -building that had wide-open doors, I went -in with them. I found it was a church. -In a little while the minister stood up in -the pulpit and began to preach to them -about being kind to one another and loving -one another, very much as the ministers -do that we hear. I was up in the gallery, and could -see all the people as they sat listening to him. As he went -on in his sermon I saw how they turned out their good -sides, one by one, some quickly, some more slowly, until -hardly an ugly side could be seen in the whole congregation.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[245]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 405px;"> -<img src="images/illus245.jpg" width="405" height="507" alt="two women in finery at church with crowd" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[246]</a></span></p> - -<p>But no sooner was the sermon finished, and the blessing -pronounced, than there was a shifting round of sides again, -some doing this before they left their pews, some as they -passed down the aisle, some as they walked down the -church-steps; so that most of them came out pretty much -the same as they went in.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[247]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 384px;"> -<img src="images/illus247.jpg" width="384" height="508" alt="two younger women following older woman out of church; all dressed very well" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[248]</a></span></p> - -<p>After leaving the church, I passed before a large private -house where a servant-man was standing at the door. As -he could not see me I stole by him softly and went into the -house. I found everything very elegant there. Beautiful -furniture filled the rooms, and costly paintings covered the -walls. But I soon learned that these things were not for -use or enjoyment, but only for show.</p> - -<p>The family was a fashionable one that had a great deal -of company and visited a great deal. The mother, a tall, -fine-looking woman, was evidently the ruling spirit among -them. Whenever she and her daughters were getting -ready for a walk, or a drive, she turned out the picture of -a large peacock, and her daughters turned out little peacocks. -I followed them into the street, and as they walked -along could see the people bowing and smiling to them; -but as soon as they had passed, these same people made -fun of them.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[249]</a></span></p> - -<div> - <img class="splitr" src="images/illus249a.jpg" alt="family at dinner" width="398" height="369" /> - <img class="splitr" src="images/illus249b.jpg" alt="family at dinner" width="201" height="55" /> -</div> - - -<p>In a second house that I -entered the family was seated -at dinner. Though not so fine a house as the first, nor -so expensively furnished, I could tell at a glance it was a -far happier home. I looked round to see if I could discover -the cause of this difference, and here again my eye -rested on the mother, who sat at the head of the table; -but what a contrast with the other! The dove was on -her breast, and a brood of doves on the breasts of the -little ones who were gathered around her. There was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[250]</a></span> -cheerful, innocent talk in which all took part, without a -word of unkindness for any one, present or absent.</p> - -<p>I stayed about this house for the rest of the day—it -was a pleasant place to be in—and when, toward its close, -the mother stole apart to a little room alone, I peeped in -and saw there a chair, and a table with an open book on it, -and a kneeling-cushion, well used, on the floor beside the -table. Then I said to myself:</p> - -<p>“Perhaps here is the secret of the difference between -this and the more elegant home.”</p> - -<p>I cannot close this account of what I saw while I was -in that strange country without telling of a difference that -I noticed between the old and the young people there. -The young were constantly changing their sides; the old -did not change them nearly so often. It appeared that if -they had turned out their ugly sides for the most part -during their former lives, they lost the power, as they grew -old, to draw them back again. On the other hand, if they -had struggled against the bad and kept out the good, the -good became fixed there.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 340px;"> -<img src="images/illus251.jpg" width="340" height="540" alt="woman praying alone in alcove flying birds in foreground" /> -</div> - -<p>My dream seemed to last a long time, and I visited a -great many places and saw a great many persons that I -have not told about here. But this I noticed everywhere -I went—that those who kept out their good sides had the -best time of it. They were contented and cheerful themselves,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[251]</a><br /><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[252]</a></span> -and helped to make others so. The doves, as we -have read, brought out other doves, and the flowers brought -out other flowers. Whoever turned out these saw them -turned out by other people also. And so, with a pleasant -prospect without and a kindly spirit within, the good-sided -people experienced a happiness which the ugly-sided people -never knew.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 347px;"> -<img src="images/illus252.jpg" width="347" height="317" alt="one girl holding up mask to other girl" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253">[253]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 484px;"> -<img src="images/illus253.jpg" width="484" height="235" alt="larger bird to smaller ones" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>GRAND RELATIONS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A BLACKBIRD that wanted to impress on his neighbor -the wren a proper sense of his great importance took -occasion every now and then to remark that he was related -to still larger birds.</p> - -<p>“My cousin the crow,” he would say, “did so and so,” -or “invited me to his nest at such a time.”</p> - -<p>After hearing this over and over again, the wren -answered one day,</p> - -<p>“When I used to look at you alone and by yourself, -you appeared as a very large bird in my eyes; but since<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[254]</a></span> -I’ve got to contrasting you with the crow, you seem to have -grown smaller even than myself.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Better be satisfied with our own significance than seek -to array ourselves in the consequence of other people.</p> - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 260px;"> -<img src="images/illus254.jpg" width="260" height="206" alt="blackbird all alone" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[255]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 449px;"> -<img src="images/illus255.jpg" width="449" height="264" alt="girl standing on stoop holding umbrella down and hand up to check for rain" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>FAIR AND FOUL WEATHER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A SHOWER having come up suddenly while the -chickens were scattered over the barnyard, they -ran from every direction to the chicken-house and disappeared, -one by one, through a hole near the ground -that had been left open for them to enter.</p> - -<p>A young cock, however, that happened to be in an -adjoining field, took refuge under a tree, where he -straightened himself up, letting his tail droop, so that -the water would trickle off from it. But when he found -that the shower did not pass over, as he expected, he too<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[256]</a></span> -took to his heels and joined the rest under shelter. And -there they all stood, chickens, ducks, and guinea-fowls, -dolefully watching the rain.</p> - -<p>After waiting for a time, and finding it likely to continue, -the cock, shaking out his feathers, said:</p> - -<p>“I’m going out to hunt for my dinner.”</p> - -<p>“What! in such a pour as this?” exclaimed an old hen.</p> - -<p>“And what would you have us do?” replied the cock. -“We cannot carry umbrellas, like our master and mistress. -And, for all we know, it may rain the rest of the week.” -So saying, he walked boldly out into the shower.</p> - -<p>Now, the wet having brought the worms to the surface, -he soon picked up a good meal; which the others descrying, -they quickly came after him, until the whole flock was -scratching about the barnyard, quite contented notwithstanding -the rain. Seeing this, the rooster flew up on -a fence and crowed. Then, looking slyly at the old hen -that had opposed him, he said:</p> - -<p>“Which is best—to work only in fair weather, or to -keep on scratching whether it rain or shine?”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He will gather most in the end who does not easily -give way to discouragement when success is hard to -attain.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[257]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus257.jpg" width="528" height="674" alt="barnyard scene" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[258]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 494px;"> -<img src="images/illus258.jpg" width="494" height="188" alt="seascape; lighthouse in farground" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>WRECKAGE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO men were walking along the sea-beach together. -The sand, as far as the eye could reach, was swept -clean and smooth by the falling tide, but here and there -at intervals lay fragments of wrecked vessels, some made -of heavy timber, some of lighter weight. Now, the men, -who were both of them well on in years, lived in a port -near by on that same coast, and as they walked they -recognized some of these wrecks.</p> - -<p>“I remember the night when this came ashore,” said -one, stopping before a huge piece of keel half buried in -the sand. “She was a fine ship, well manned, and the -bar on which she struck was laid down plainly on the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259">[259]</a><br /><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[260]</a></span> -chart; but her master thought he could come close in, -and yet just miss it. But the current caught him, and -he was lost.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 509px;"> -<img src="images/illus259.jpg" width="509" height="667" alt="ship in top scene; two men talking on shore in middle scene;shadow of ship in bottom scene" /> -</div> - -<p>Then, stopping before another fragment:</p> - -<p>“And I recollect this one too: she was a stanch bark, -and I saw her heaving up her anchor on a fine morning -with the promise of a prosperous voyage; but she tried -to go out without a pilot, and she too came ashore. Ah, -my friend!” the speaker continued. “As I look up and -down this coast, and see so many wrecks whose history -I know, a gloom settles over me that makes life seem, as -I look back on it, more like a time of clouds and storms -than of pleasant, sunny weather.”</p> - -<p>“There are wrecks enough to sadden us, that is true,” -replied the other; “but do not let us forget the good ships -we have known that sailed the seas for many a long year, -and at last came back to lay their old bones down in quiet -waters on the flats behind our harbor. Yes, and many -another is still ploughing the deep, to return safe in due -time, bringing joyful crews and rich cargoes with them.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">The evil that sometimes darkens the path before us -should not prevent our seeing the good that is spread -above, beneath, and around us on every side.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[261]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 485px;"> -<img src="images/illus261.jpg" width="485" height="260" alt="room wiith chair and birdcage by window" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE ROBIN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A POOR widow who was all alone in the world earned -her living by going out to wash and scrub, day -after day. She left her room early in the morning, and -did not return to it until night. Then she had but one -living thing to keep her company, a pet robin. That it -might catch a glimpse of the blue sky, from the narrow -alley in which she lived, she used to hang it on a nail -quite outside of her window, before she left. On her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[262]</a></span> -return she took it down and suspended it again near the -head of her bed.</p> - -<p>One evening on coming home she found the cage with -its door open, and empty. After searching again and -again, through every corner and cranny of her room, -thinking her bird could not have left her, she was forced -to admit it was gone.</p> - -<p>Now, those who are surrounded with objects on which -to bestow their affections, know not what a loss such an -insignificant creature may be to one who has no other -familiar thing to love. The poor woman missed her bird -when she awoke in the morning, when she went out to -her day’s work, and when she came back, tired and sad -at heart, after her work was over. The cage still hung -near her bed; she looked at it and grieved—yes, more -than she ought to have done.</p> - -<p>While it was thus with her she had, one night, a dream. -She thought she was walking through a forest. The air -was pure, the shade was cool and delightful, and every -leaf around her looked fresh and green. She stood comparing -the scene, in her thoughts, with the crowded alley -in which she lived, when suddenly the silence was broken -by a loud note far above her head. She looked up, and -recognized her robin. It was leaping from bough to -bough, and its song was not as it used to be, with a note<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[263]</a><br /><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[264]</a></span> -of sadness in it, but glad and full of joy—the song of the -prisoner set free.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus263.jpg" width="520" height="664" alt="woman by birdcage; woman walking in woods" /> -</div> - -<p>She awoke, rose up, took down the cage and put it in -a closet out of sight, not forgetting its former inmate, but -thinking of it as she had seen it, since its escape, in her -dream.</p> - -<p>“I am satisfied,” she said, “and would not call it back. -Its prison door has been opened; I will wait patiently until -mine is opened for me.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 218px;"> -<img src="images/illus264.jpg" width="218" height="178" alt="bird singing on branch" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[265]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 395px;"> -<img src="images/illus265.jpg" width="395" height="236" alt="landscape" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>RIDDLES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">THE ground was barren and wet, and covered with -stagnant pools. Only rank weeds grew on it, and -venomous reptiles crawled through it. But at length the -husbandman came and labored over it. He dug trenches -and ditches that drained it, and turned a stream of pure -water to flow through it. Then he hedged it, and set up -a fence around it; and now flocks pasture there, and -flowers bloom on every side.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="drop-cap">A GARDENER planted some seed in his garden in the -early spring, but no sooner had it grown up than the -frost nipped it. It sprang up a second time, and a bird<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[266]</a></span> -flew down and plucked off the tender shoot. Once more -it grew, but now, summer having come, the sun scorched -it. Nevertheless, because the root remained, it sprang up -again and again, until the gardener, rejoicing, gathered in -his fruit.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="drop-cap">A MOUNTAIN-STREAM ran over the edge of a precipice. -In its descent to the valley below it fell upon a -point of projecting rock. On this rock clods of earth were -continually dropping from the ground it was imbedded in. -Sometimes they fell of their own weight, sometimes were -loosened by the foot of a wild beast in passing. There -was never a day that the rock was not soiled by them. -But the stream, in flowing over it, washed away each -stain as soon as it appeared; so that to the eye looking -from above, it seemed always pure and clean.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 170px;"> -<img src="images/illus266.jpg" width="170" height="181" alt="waterfall" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[267]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 519px;"> -<img src="images/illus267.jpg" width="519" height="669" alt="three landscapes" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[268]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 487px;"> -<img src="images/illus268.jpg" width="487" height="168" alt="fireside scene with covered wagon and horse" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE EMIGRANT’S WAGON.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">AN emigrant who started in a new wagon for his far-off -Western home seemed to forget, because the wagon -was new and strong then, that it would ever wear out. As -a consequence, he was very careless in his way of using -it, driving as fast down hill as up, and over rough places -as smooth. Sometimes he raced with other wagons, and -occasionally loaded his own so heavily and drove so recklessly, -it was upset.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 508px;"> -<img src="images/illus269.jpg" width="508" height="666" alt="overloaded wagon in top scene, wagon racing in bottom scene" /> -</div> - -<p>In spite of all this ill-usage, however, the wagon seemed -to remain almost as good as new until it had travelled over -about half of its journey, when it began to show the effects -of abuse. First some rivets broke, leaving the floor-boards -loose; next a spoke in one of the wheels began to rattle; -then a tire rolled off. After this, one breakage followed<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[269]</a><br /><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[270]</a></span> -another so rapidly that its owner was often forced to stop -for repairs. Neither could he always make these by himself, -but was obliged to call on the blacksmith and the -wheelwright to help him. As he waited at their shops -day after day he could not help thinking of his past -folly, and saying to himself:</p> - -<p>“Oh that I had the first part of the road to go over -again!”</p> - -<p>But, as this was impossible, it only remained for him to -use the utmost care while passing over the portion that -was left.</p> - -<p>And so he did, creeping along slowly, avoiding every -little jolt and rut by the way, and often turning out to let -others, who had started after him, pass by. For the farther -he went, the weaker his wagon grew, until it fell into such -a decrepit state that it was threatening all the time to break -down under him, and travelling in it, instead of being a -pleasure, as it was at first, became only labor and pain.</p> - -<p>But at last, though in miserable plight, he came to his -journey’s end. It is true that his wagon could not have -remained new until then, no matter what care he had taken -of it; on the contrary, it must have been well worn, and -old, beside, for it had come a great distance and been a -long time in doing it. But if he had used it properly, and -as a wagon ought to be used, from the start, without doubt<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[271]</a><br /><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[272]</a></span> -it would have carried him all the way safely and comfortably.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 512px;"> -<img src="images/illus271.jpg" width="512" height="665" alt="wagon looking worse and worse in two travel scenes" /> -</div> - -<p>And then what a different account of his coming would -have been written! For, in the first place, he could have -given the time to pleasanter things that, as it was, he had -to spend in patching up his wagon. Then he could have -occasionally helped some poorer and more heavily-loaded -emigrant that he came up with along the road. And -lastly (beside escaping numerous bruises and pains) he -would have been saved many poignant regrets and recollections, -which added greatly to the burdens he had to -bear during the latter part of his journey.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We are all emigrants, and our bodies are the wagons -given us to travel in. If we abuse them in youth, we -shall ride uncomfortably for it in our later years.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 289px;"> -<img src="images/illus272.jpg" width="289" height="197" alt="wagon broken down completely at journey's end" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[273]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 492px;"> -<img src="images/illus273.jpg" width="492" height="242" alt="two men with lanterns one holding a smaller one close to the ground, the other holding his up on a stick over his shoulder" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>BIG AND LITTLE LANTERNS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO countrymen who were neighbors started out on a -dark night for the nearest market-town, each carrying -a basket of butter and eggs and garden-produce on his arm. -They took different roads, which were, however, of about -equal lengths. One of the men—the taller and stronger -of the two—carried a large and heavy lantern on a pole -high above his head, by means of which he was enabled -to see far over the road in front of him; and he set out -with long and rapid strides.</p> - -<p>The other man carried a light and small lantern, which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[274]</a></span> -he held down close to the ground, by his side, so that he -could see no farther than the spot on which to plant his -foot, as he moved on more slowly and cautiously, step by -step.</p> - -<p>Some time during the night the latter reached his destination -and quickly sold out his basketful of produce to -the early risers of the town; but afterward, on looking -around for his neighbor, was surprised to learn that he -had not yet appeared. He waited a while, and then, -fearing the man had met with some disaster—for the two -were friends—started back to find him; and about midway -of the road he found him, sure enough, fallen down into -a pit that he had not seen, because, instead of looking -well to the ground that was close around him, he was, -by means of his great lantern, gazing far ahead.</p> - -<p>But, though he could not get out, happily none of his -bones were broken; and when his friend had torn a rail -from a fence near by and thrown it to him, he managed -to clamber up the side and escape from his trap. Yet his -butter and eggs were spoiled and his lantern damaged, -and, as he was badly bruised by the fall, he begged his -neighbor to remain with him, saying:</p> - -<p>“There is nothing left for me but, by your help, to -hobble back to where I started from as best I can.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus275.jpg" width="523" height="669" alt="two men walking separately" /> -</div> - -<p>And so it came to pass that he who was the better<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[275]</a><br /><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[276]</a></span> -furnished and more confident at the start, came out a -good deal worse off at the end.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Not always does he who can see the farthest travel most -safely; and a lowly talent well improved may gain more -than a lofty one wasted or misapplied.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 207px;"> -<img src="images/illus276.jpg" width="207" height="146" alt="basket of food" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[277]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 526px;"> -<img src="images/illus277.jpg" width="526" height="673" alt="man in pit with other man helping him out" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[278]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 483px;"> -<img src="images/illus278.jpg" width="483" height="240" alt="very small tiger walking in tall grass" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE CAT AND THE TIGER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CAT that was a pet in a farmer’s family, understanding -from the talk of the children that a show of wild -animals had come to the neighboring village, stole off one -morning to see it, and, creeping in under the edge of the -great canvas tent, proceeded to walk around the ring and -look in at the cages.</p> - -<p>She had not gone far when she came opposite to the -tiger’s cage, and, looking up, saw there a creature of her -own species so powerful, so immense, and withal so beautifully -marked, that she was lost in admiration and felt -almost ready to bow down and worship it.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[279]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 510px;"> -<img src="images/illus279.jpg" width="510" height="670" alt="Tiger in cage talking to house cat outside of cage" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[280]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Great king of our race,” she cried, “I admire, and am -willing to obey you!”</p> - -<p>But the tiger, insensible to her praise, replied with contempt:</p> - -<p>“You poor little mouse-eating creature, do you come here -to claim relationship with one so great and strong as I am?”</p> - -<p>At this the cat, quickly regaining her composure, -answered:</p> - -<p>“If your strength is so great that it must be restrained, -and causes you to be shut up where it is only a torment to -you as you walk up and down before the bars of your cage, -then I would rather be as I am, weak and little, but suited to -my place in the farmer’s kitchen.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">The qualities which make men great often make them -miserable while they see around them those of lowlier -station, and humbler abilities, more happy and useful than -themselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 230px;"> -<img src="images/illus280.jpg" width="230" height="143" alt="housecat lying down, relaxing" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[281]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 488px;"> -<img src="images/illus281.jpg" width="488" height="260" alt="old man walking in cold" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>CHARITY.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN rich man appointed an hour when the poor -people of his city had permission to call at his house -and ask for charity. When the hour arrived, the man sat -in his parlor, while his servant stood at the door to question -those who called and report what they said to his -master.</p> - -<p>The first one who came was a day-laborer. He was -willing to dig or to carry, or to work at anything he could -find, but he could find nothing. To him the rich man -sent a piece of silver.</p> - -<p>The second one was a sailor. Only a few weeks before,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[282]</a></span> -he had sailed, full of hope, out of the harbor; but his ship -was wrecked in a storm, and he saved only the clothes that -covered him. To him also was sent a piece of silver.</p> - -<p>The one who came next had seen better days; he had -owned the little house he lived in, with enough out at -interest beside to keep the wolf from its door. But misfortune -had robbed him of all, and now he was in want. -To him were sent two silver pieces.</p> - -<p>After him came a mechanic who long ago had worked -for the rich man’s father, and helped to build the beautiful -house that his father once lived in. To him the rich man -sent a piece of gold.</p> - -<p>Then came an old man who was still erect and vigorous, -but with silvery locks and flowing beard. In his younger -days he had been a merchant. He well remembered the -rich man’s father when he was a merchant too, and told -of his honor and influence, and spoke feelingly of the -favors he had often done him. To him the rich man -sent two golden pieces.</p> - -<p>When the next person called, the servant came in and -told his master that this one seemed to be the most needy -of all. He was bowed down with age and leaning upon a -staff, and had travelled a long and weary journey from the -place where the rich man’s father was born, and used to -live before he came to the city and made his fortune.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[283]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus283.jpg" width="518" height="662" alt="rich man receiving card of mechanic who is waiting in hall to see him" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[284]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Your master’s father and I were boys together,” he -said, “and, in truth, I was a near relation to him, and so -I am to your master. But sickness and misfortune have -left me without bread to eat, or a place to lay my -head.”</p> - -<p>But when the rich man heard this sad story, he looked -at his watch, saying:</p> - -<p>“The hour is past that I appointed to listen to the -poor. Go tell the man he is too late; and when he is -gone, shut the door, and bolt it after him.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">If we will analyze our motive in giving, and take from -it all that issues of pride, we shall, many a time, be astonished -to find how little is left.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 260px;"> -<img src="images/illus284.jpg" width="260" height="221" alt="rich man sitting in comfortable chair" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[285]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 513px;"> -<img src="images/illus285.jpg" width="513" height="661" alt="poor old man turned away by rich man" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[286]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 491px;"> -<img src="images/illus286.jpg" width="491" height="260" alt="Biblical man working in field" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE DAY-LABORERS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A certain land-owner called two of his hired servants -early in the morning and sent them out to work in -his field. On the way there one of them said to himself:</p> - -<p>“Though I do not care for my master, I care for the -wages he will pay me; therefore I will do a good day’s -work, not for him, but for myself.”</p> - -<p>But the other man said:</p> - -<p>“Though I take wages, my master’s profit is dearer to -me than my own; therefore the work that I do is not so -much for myself as for him.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[287]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 526px;"> -<img src="images/illus287.jpg" width="526" height="680" alt="two men working together" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[288]</a></span></p> - -<p>So the men went out into the field to do their master’s -bidding. And while they labored there the sun rose up -high above them, and his fierce rays beat down on their -heads. Yet they did not rest from their labors, but toiled -on until he passed through the heavens and began slowly -to descend again. And in the evening, after he had sunk -below the horizon, they came and stood before their master -to give account of the day.</p> - -<p>The first one said:</p> - -<p>“I have ploughed deep in your field and cast out the -heavy stones that were buried there.”</p> - -<p>The second one said:</p> - -<p>“I have gathered up the stones, and carried them to the -edge of the field, and set up a strong fence around it.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[289]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 513px;"> -<img src="images/illus289.jpg" width="513" height="668" alt="landowner puts hand on worker's shoulder" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[290]</a></span></p> - -<p>And as the master looked at their soiled and toil-worn -garments and their sunburned arms and hands, he knew -that what they told him was true. But when he looked -in their faces, on one was the expression of coldness and -on the other was the expression of love. Then he gave -to each of them his wages, but the one who loved him -he called into his house, to be with him and wait on him -continually.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">The work brings the wages, but the motive the reward.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 232px;"> -<img src="images/illus290.jpg" width="232" height="259" alt="man carrying sythe over shoulder" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[291]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 484px;"> -<img src="images/illus291.jpg" width="484" height="318" alt="man and artist talking" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE ARTIST’S ANSWER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who had accompanied an artist around his studio, -admiring his pictures, exclaimed,</p> - -<p>“What an easy and privileged life is yours, calling forth -and putting into visible shape such beautiful forms from day -to day! You give delight to others, it is true, but surely -the largest share must remain for yourself.”</p> - -<p>Said the artist,</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[292]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Name to me some object in nature that you admire.”</p> - -<p>“This rose,” replied the other, “which you have placed -as a model on your table.”</p> - -<p>“We will take that,” said the artist. “Now, what is its -history? First, the parent slip was laid in the ground, and -at once began its struggle for life. It put forth tender roots, -doubtful of the result, but the soil received them kindly, -and it lived. Then the tiny stalk appeared above, and at -length an embryo bud. But suppose the sun had scorched -this bud or the storm destroyed it? They destroyed many -another, yet it was spared, and at last opened in full bloom -as you see it here.</p> - -<p>“Now, if the plant that bore it could speak, what would -it say? Something like this: ‘The rose you admire did not -spring up uncalled, like a beautiful thought, but is the result -of slow development. I could not but labor to bring it -forth, for such was the work appointed me. But the throes -of effort were needed, and, now that it is perfected, my delight -is not in looking at it as a brilliant flower, but as the -fruit of my labor, hoping it may fill its place among beautiful -things and accomplish that for which it was called into -being.’</p> - -<p>“So, my friend,” continued the artist, turning to his -companion, “if you think that these pictured forms which -you delight in were of easy creation, springing up spontaneous<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[293]</a></span> -like a passing emotion, you have in what the flowers -says my answer.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Each beautiful work costs labor, but how much only he -knows whose hands have formed it.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 308px;"> -<img src="images/illus293.jpg" width="308" height="240" alt="rose" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[294]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 450px;"> -<img src="images/illus294.jpg" width="450" height="241" alt="two trees" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE HEMLOCK AND THE SUGAR-MAPLE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A SUGAR-MAPLE tree and a hemlock grew close -together, high up on the side of a mountain. All -summer they were, alike, covered with green, so that they -could hardly be distinguished one from the other. But as -autumn approached, the maple put on gayer colors. Branch -after branch changed to orange, and crimson, and gold, until -the whole tree seemed to be robed in these gorgeous tints. -Seeing this, the hemlock said discontentedly to its neighbor:</p> - -<p>“Why am I not beautiful like you? While your -branches are growing brighter every day, mine do not -change at all, unless it be to a duller hue. I am tired -of this stale, old-fashioned green.”</p> - -<p>But the maple made no answer.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[295]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus295.jpg" width="514" height="669" alt="landscape: hillside of trees, bird flying in background" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[296]</a></span></p> - -<p>A little while after this there was a change in the -weather. Heavy gray clouds covered the sky. A cold -rain came on, and the sun was not seen for several days. -And now the leaves of the maple began to wither and lose -their bright hues, and as the gusts of wind shook them -they fell in showers from the branches. Then the maple, -looking down upon them, said to the hemlock:</p> - -<p>“You envied my beauty, but where is it now? See -the remains of it lying scattered over the ground! My -branches are being left bare for the long winter’s cold, -while yours are still clothed with their thick, warm -foliage.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He whose good fortune we covet has also, linked with -it, some compensating evil which we would not be willing -to take off his hands.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 221px;"> -<img src="images/illus296.jpg" width="221" height="198" alt="two trees" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[297]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 483px;"> -<img src="images/illus297.jpg" width="483" height="202" alt="man on road" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>BREAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who was strolling through the country for his -own enjoyment came to the top of a hill, where he -stopped to admire the view. While he was standing there -a laborer with pick and shovel on his shoulder and dinner-basket -on his arm passed by. The man spoke to him and -the laborer answered civilly, but, hurrying on, was soon out -of sight.</p> - -<p>After viewing the prospect from the hilltop, the man -proceeded on his way until he came to a waterfall on the -edge of a wood. Here he rested for a good while watching -the stream break into foam and spray as it flowed over the -rocks into the deep basin below.</p> - -<p>From here he proceeded along the lonely road, wondering<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[298]</a></span> -what beautiful object would next appear, when presently -he saw, spread out before him, a lake of blue water -with bushes and wild flowers growing around its edge. -It was almost noon by the time he was satisfied with -gazing on this charming scene.</p> - -<p>Then he started on his ramble again, but had not gone -far when he spied the laborer who passed him earlier in -the day, digging away with his pick and shovel in a -rocky field beside the road. Leaning against the fence, -the pleasure-seeker stopped, and said:</p> - -<p>“Rather hard work grubbing at these stones?”</p> - -<p>“You are right,” replied the laborer, “but nothing else -will bring them out of the ground.”</p> - -<p>“This is a pleasant country to look at,” continued the -other, “but not to make your living out of, I should -think.”</p> - -<p>“You’d say so if you tried it. I suppose you’re a -stranger about here?”</p> - -<p>“Yes; this is my first visit, and I’m just sauntering -along feasting on the beautiful view. You people who -live in the country don’t half appreciate its charms.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 521px;"> -<img src="images/illus299.jpg" width="521" height="676" alt="triptych: main: man leaning on fence talking to man sitting on ground with bucket; top inset man sitting on ground; bottom inset: man digging" /> -</div> - -<p>Here the laborer, looking up at the sky and seeing the -sun just over his shoulder, dropped his shovel, and, going -to a shady spot beside a spring, where he had deposited -his dinner-basket, opened it and began to eat. His new<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[299]</a><br /><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[300]</a></span> -acquaintance looked on until he had seen slice after slice -of bread and meat emerge from the clean white napkin -and disappear, when he said:</p> - -<p>“My friend, would you mind sparing me a bit? This -walk has made me hungry.”</p> - -<p>“Well, now,” replied the laborer, “you’ve been feasting -on the view all the morning, while I’ve been grubbing -at the stones. If I give you my dinner, then you’ll have -two feasts, and I’ll have none.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">If we cultivate our taste for the beautiful, to the neglect -of earning our bread, we cannot expect those who deny -themselves this luxury, to supply our needs when we come -to want.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 207px;"> -<img src="images/illus300.jpg" width="207" height="207" alt="loaf of bread" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[301]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 394px;"> -<img src="images/illus301.jpg" width="394" height="190" alt="harp in branches with two birds flying by" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE HARPER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A HARPER stood before the door of a house and played -a number of tunes without seeming to attract the -attention of any one within until he played a sad and -plaintive air, when an upper window opened and a hand -reached out and dropped a coin into the hat that he held -beneath.</p> - -<p>From this house he went to another, and played the -same air; but no notice was taken of him until he changed -from it to a more cheerful tune, when a piece of money was -again thrown to him.</p> - -<p>After this he was careful to note down in a little book -that he carried what sort of music pleased the inmates of -the different houses in his round; and whenever he selected -a new tune, it was always with some special hearers in view,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[302]</a></span> -to whom he went and played it as soon as it was learned. -In this way he was kept busy from day to day, and by -means of his harp earned a good living.</p> - -<p>Now, although he played a variety of tunes to please -many different hearers, he had strong preferences of his -own. There were a few of his pieces that he loved -better than all the rest, and at the houses where these -were played his music was at its best, because he played -it out of his heart.</p> - -<p>So, one day, as he was trudging along with his harp on -his back, he said to himself:</p> - -<p>“A portion of my work is a joy and delight to me, but -the rest is labor and toil. Why should I not play that -music only that I love, and to those alone who can -appreciate it? In it lies not only my chief pleasure, but -my real power as well. I am resolved henceforth to adopt -this plan.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 493px;"> -<img src="images/illus303.jpg" width="493" height="651" alt="man playing full sized harp on street" /> -</div> - -<p>So he gave up all but the few tunes in which he himself -delighted, and played only at the houses where these -had been enjoyed. But in a little while he noticed that he -was not welcomed at these houses as he used to be, and -the cause (though he was loath to acknowledge it) was not -hidden from him. His favorite airs, by their sameness and -constant repetition, had ceased to stir his own heart as -they once did; hence his music had lost its fervor, and with<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[303]</a><br /><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[304]</a></span> -this its power over the hearts of others. Then he said to -himself:</p> - -<p>“The plan which necessity imposed on me was better -than my own. Its discords tended to heighten its harmonies. -Experience having taught me this, I will now -return to that plan.”</p> - -<p>So he took up all his old pieces, practising them over -again, and playing them, as he used to do, from door to -door. And in thus doing (mingling the bitter with the -sweet) he soon prospered again.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">In a higher state of being we shall be able to sustain -the purest joys uninterruptedly. But here, that we may -only taste of them, our joy must alternate with sorrow—our -pleasure, with pain.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 210px;"> -<img src="images/illus304.jpg" width="210" height="252" alt="girl dropping coin out of window" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[305]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 404px;"> -<img src="images/illus305.jpg" width="404" height="212" alt="tree with farm in background" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE UNAPPRECIATED GIFT.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A HUSBANDMAN was at work in his field, earning his -living by the sweat of his brow, when there came a -man carrying a young tree in his hand, which he planted -at one side of the field, saying:</p> - -<p>“Give this the space that it needs, let it spread and -grow, and wait patiently: in due time its fruit and shade -will repay you;” having said which, he departed.</p> - -<p>The husbandman heard the man’s words, but went on -with his labor from day to day without much regarding -them. The tree remained where it had been planted, putting -out new branches and growing higher and stronger.</p> - -<p>But after a time strange doubts and suspicions concerning<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[306]</a></span> -the tree entered the husbandman’s mind. As it took up -more ground, he looked on it grudgingly, and said to himself:</p> - -<p>“This is not a fruit tree at all, but a thorn. If I let it -stand, it will send up its evil shoots all over my field.”</p> - -<p>Then, taking his axe in his hand, at one stroke he -severed the stalk from the roots.</p> - -<p>After this the seasons came and went as they ever had -done. The husbandman sowed in the spring and reaped -in the harvest. And so he continued to do from year to -year, until his labors began to tell upon his strength, -and he felt stealing upon him the infirmities of an old -man. His field still yielded its crop, but was bare and -sunny, without a sheltered spot in which he could sit -down and rest.</p> - -<p>It happened one day after hours of toil that he sank -exhausted, and slept even under the burning rays of the -sun. In his sleep he dreamed that he was sitting in the -shade. Over him green branches were spread. They -were loaded with fruit, which hung so near the ground -that he put forth his hand as he sat, and plucked and -ate. Birds were also singing in the branches, and a -cool breeze passed through them, fanning his brow. -He said:</p> - -<p>“Surely these have been growing, and their shadows -deepening, to cover my head and refresh me in my old age.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[307]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 515px;"> -<img src="images/illus307.jpg" width="515" height="665" alt="man beside newly planted tree talking to farmer; second scene: farmer cutting down new tree" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[308]</a></span></p> - -<p>As he spoke suddenly the man who had long ago -appeared to him again stood before him, saying:</p> - -<p>“Such would have been the tree that I planted on this -spot had you not, in unbelief and self-will, cut it down.”</p> - -<p>The husbandman awoke from his sleep and found it was -only a dream, and that he was still lying alone and unsheltered -under the burning rays of the sun.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Not recognizing the Sender, we refuse the gift, to bewail -our folly when it is too late.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 288px;"> -<img src="images/illus308.jpg" width="288" height="166" alt="man lying uncovered in sunlight" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[309]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus309.jpg" width="514" height="660" alt="inset dream of sleeping under cool shade of tree; main picture man sitting in sun" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[310]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 410px;"> -<img src="images/illus310.jpg" width="410" height="169" alt="two horses running on farm" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE WORN-OUT TEAM.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO horses, a bay and a gray, were bred on the same -farm. Being nearly of an age and about equal in -size, they were mated in harness, and, working well -together, were kept as a pair. They went to the plough, -the harrow, and the hay-wagon season after season. In -this close companionship there grew up something of an -attachment between them, although they differed in disposition. -The gray was patient and uncomplaining, while -the bay, though quite as good a worker, was not of so -good a temper.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 458px;"> -<img src="images/illus311.jpg" width="458" height="564" alt="barnyard scene" /> -</div> - -<p>The seasons came and went. In the spring they toiled -together turning up the heavy sod, in the autumn hauling -in great loads of hay and grain, until at length, as years<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[311]</a><br /><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[312]</a></span> -passed by, their bulky forms began to shrink and ribs and -thigh-bones to appear. More than this, the gray lifted one -hind leg higher than formerly, giving a hint of the string-halt, -and the bay panted so violently after a short journey -as to suggest a thought of the heaves. But they had done -their share of work, and the farmer was not the man to -sell them off now to some hard fate: they were allowed -to stand in the stable or given lighter tasks, while a pair -of young horses, that had come on in the mean while, -were put to the heavy work about the farm.</p> - -<p>One summer day, while the old horses were resting in -their stalls, the hay-wagon came in with a load from the -field. As it drew near the barn the farmer’s son shouted -to encourage his young team up the rise that led on to the -barn-floor, and the old pair heard them, as they entered, -pounding overhead.</p> - -<p>“That is what we used to do,” said the bay, “until they -put the colts in our place.”</p> - -<p>“We never thought then of getting old and past work,” -said the gray.</p> - -<p>“But we’ve come to it now.”</p> - -<p>“Many a heavy load have we hauled up that rise before -them.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I think of it often,” said the bay, “and of something -else too: I think of that hard hill over across the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[313]</a></span> -bridge. I was not always good to you when we were -climbing up that.”</p> - -<p>“You always pulled your full share, though.”</p> - -<p>“But I needn’t have put back my ears and snapped at -you angrily every few steps.”</p> - -<p>“Let that go; think no more of it,” said the gray.</p> - -<p>“And not only the hill do I remember,” continued the -bay, “but many a hot day on the road, while you were -doing your best, I jerked in the harness and jeered at you -because my nose happened to be a few inches ahead.”</p> - -<p>“Think of the pleasant trots we had together, instead,” -persisted the gray—“the gambols in the clover-field, and -the rolls in the sand down beside the creek. As for the -rest, they’re past and forgiven; let them be forgotten.”</p> - -<p>“You may forgive them,” said the bay, “but I can’t -forgive them myself. And now, while I stand here by -your side, both of us grown old, they come back and -worry me—yes, more than ever the heavy loads did, or -even the driver’s whip.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Youth is the time of anticipation and of sowing the -seed; age is the time of recollection and of reaping the -fruits of what we have sown.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[314]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 471px;"> -<img src="images/illus314.jpg" width="471" height="195" alt="wheat and shed" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE WISE FARMER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A FARMER came into possession of some new land. It -consisted of three fields that lay adjoining each other, -but on going to examine them he was astonished at the -difference in their quality. The first was stony ground; -the next, though not stony, was of a thin and light soil; -while the third, lying lower and being meadow-land, was -covered with rich, dark loam. As a whole, the ground -was not what he had expected, and in his disappointment -he hardly knew what to do. But after consulting with his -wife, who was a prudent adviser, he concluded to do his -best with all three fields, and not, on account of its inferior -quality, to neglect either one.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[315]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 526px;"> -<img src="images/illus315.jpg" width="526" height="670" alt="farmer working in three scenes" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_316" id="Page_316">[316]</a></span></p> - -<p>The stony field was hard to cultivate. The ploughing -was laborious, and so were all the other processes of farming -it. Yet he persevered till it was well seeded down with -grass and clover. The middle field—the one with the thin -light soil—required a great deal of help. He had to spend -largely for different kinds of fertilizers, and afterward was -at much trouble in clearing the ground to receive them. -But by hard work he got this field also planted with oats -in good time.</p> - -<p>The rich loamy field, which from the start he had -longed to begin on, was left, purposely, till the last. -As he took down the bars and drove his team into it day -after day he chuckled to himself, saying: “I do love to -farm this field!”</p> - -<p>It required but half the expense and labor to make it -ready that either of the others required, and no sooner had -he drilled in the wheat than there came a shower that made -it spring up, so that he could almost see it growing.</p> - -<p>The planting being done, he waited patiently for the -harvest. Then the stony field yielded him a good crop -of hay, which he got safely into his barn without a single -wetting; the field with the thin light soil gave a fair crop -of oats—enough to feed his stock during the winter; and -the rich loamy ground yielded a splendid crop of wheat—sufficient -not only to furnish his family with flour, but also<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_317" id="Page_317">[317]</a><br /><a name="Page_318" id="Page_318">[318]</a></span> -to let him sell a portion, that brought in enough money -for all his other needs.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 530px;"> -<img src="images/illus317.jpg" width="530" height="674" alt="farmer by horses talking to wife and baby" /> -</div> - -<p>“How much better are we off,” he said to his wife one -day after the harvesting was over, “that we took the land -willingly, just as it came to us, instead of finding fault with -it and neglecting the poorer fields because they did not -equal our expectations! And, now that we have got them -so well started, we may expect them, with proper care, to -go on improving from year to year.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Among those who come under our care (our own children, -it may be) we shall find some less answerable to our -wishes than others. But our duty to all is alike, and by -performing it we shall not only do justice to them, but -secure a recompense, in the end, to ourselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 157px;"> -<img src="images/illus318.jpg" width="157" height="113" alt="wheat bundle" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_319" id="Page_319">[319]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 292px;"> -<img src="images/illus319.jpg" width="292" height="304" alt="man walking" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>WAYFARERS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who had an ugly limp in his gait, but was nevertheless -a good walker, sat down on a bench by the -wayside one day, saying, impatiently:</p> - -<p>“This lameness embitters my life. I cannot for a -moment lose sight of it. I go limping along, my legs are -unlike, my steps are uneven, and, though I do not suffer -positive pain, I very often experience discomfort. Beside all -this, I fear, as I grow older, my halt will increase upon me,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_320" id="Page_320">[320]</a></span> -so that I shall be even more of a cripple then than I am -now. How I wish I could change places with yonder -cheerful-looking man who is coming this way with such -an even, measured tread!”</p> - -<p>As he ceased speaking the man he referred to suddenly -turned toward the bench on which the speaker was resting -and took a seat at his side, but rather closer than was -needful, as they two had it alone.</p> - -<p>“Excuse me,” said the new comer as he felt himself -crowding his neighbor; “I am blind, and, although I -know this path so well that I can walk along it without a -guide, I could not see that another was seated here before -me.”</p> - -<p>“I am sorry for you,” said the lame man, feelingly. -“Surely, no one would suspect you were blind from your -firm step and your cheerful countenance. May I ask how -it is you preserve so happy an aspect under so great a misfortune?”</p> - -<p>“By looking at what I have, and not at what I have -lost,” replied the blind man. “Though I cannot see, I can -hear the voice of my friends, the sound of music, the singing -of birds. I can taste three good meals, and enjoy -them, every day. I can smell a rose in bloom farther -than you can, for all my senses that remain are keener -for the absence of the one that is gone. My health, too,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_321" id="Page_321">[321]</a><br /><a name="Page_322" id="Page_322">[322]</a></span> -is good, and I have learned to work so skilfully at basket-making -that, with a little I have beside, I am able to pay -my own way without being a burden to others. Thus, in -the apportioning of my lot, so much more has been given -than taken, that I consider life’s bargain a good one for -me.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 527px;"> -<img src="images/illus321.jpg" width="527" height="680" alt="one man resting on bench one man standing" /> -</div> - -<p>Having thus spoken, the blind man, after a few moments’ -rest, bade his new acquaintance “Good-bye,” and, rising -from the bench, felt his way cautiously, counting each -step, until he reached the middle of the sidewalk, when -he wheeled around and proceeded on his way with the -same measured tread that had first attracted his companion’s -attention. As he disappeared the latter said:</p> - -<p>“What is my limp, which still permits me to walk -wherever I will, to his blindness, which shuts out every -ray of light? Yet he is the happier of the two! After -all, blind as he is, I was doing myself no unkindness in -wishing I could take his place.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">How often does he who has the most go poor because -he is unconscious of it! while he who has the least is made -rich by being able to appreciate what he has.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_323" id="Page_323">[323]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 354px;"> -<img src="images/illus323.jpg" width="354" height="228" alt="peacock feather and another feather" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>OTHER BIRDS’ FEATHERS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A GANDER and a cock lived on the same farm. They -were young and handsome birds, each well satisfied -with himself, but, unfortunately, jealous of the other. This -made them always ready to pick a quarrel. Chancing one -day to meet beside a brook that ran by the farmhouse, the -cock straightened himself up and said:</p> - -<p>“Look at my long and graceful tail-feathers, and compare -them with the short stubby quills in your tail.”</p> - -<p>To which the gander replied:</p> - -<p>“Look at the soft white down on my breast, and compare -it with the frowsy black stubble on yours.”</p> - -<p>“I can crow,” said the cock, “but you can’t.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_324" id="Page_324">[324]</a></span></p> - -<p>“I can swim,” said the gander, “and you can’t.”</p> - -<p>“I can!” “I can!” cried both birds in a rage; and with -that the cock jumped into the water and nearly drowned -himself in attempting to swim, and the gander strutted up -and down trying to crow.</p> - -<p>Just then a goose, with her brood of goslings passing -by, looked at them, and said:</p> - -<p>“My children, take warning from these two fools. Be -content, when you grow up, to wear your own feathers, -and to let other birds wear theirs.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">There are always persons about us who possess some -gifts that we lack. To deny them credit for these only -makes our defects more plain, and brings disgrace on what -good qualities we have.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 306px;"> -<img src="images/illus324.jpg" width="306" height="186" alt="woman holding hat with featehrs" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_325" id="Page_325">[325]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 512px;"> -<img src="images/illus325.jpg" width="512" height="669" alt="upper scene rooster and gander; bottom scene: Sopping wet rooster and frustrated gander" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_326" id="Page_326">[326]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 478px;"> -<img src="images/illus326.jpg" width="478" height="271" alt="watchman with lantern" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE NIGHT-WATCHMAN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN man who prided himself upon his infidel -opinions desired to employ a watchman around his -house during the night. This it was no more than prudent -for him to do, as he was very rich, keeping up an expensive -establishment and known often to have a large amount of -money about his person.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 527px;"> -<img src="images/illus327.jpg" width="527" height="681" alt="four men talking in room in top scene; two men sitting under trees in bottom scene" /> -</div> - -<p>Many came to apply for the position he wanted filled, -some of whom he dismissed at a glance, some after a brief -interview; but others appeared well qualified for the place. -Of these, three came equally well recommended, and he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_327" id="Page_327">[327]</a><br /><a name="Page_328" id="Page_328">[328]</a></span> -determined to make his choice from among them. He -therefore took them apart separately, and after inquiring -more particularly into their former occupations and history -wrote down the places of their residence, and also, -without letting them know it, a careful description of their -dress and appearance. As soon as they were gone he -called three of his servants to him and said:</p> - -<p>“You know I am looking for a man as night-watchman; -I think he can be found among those who have just left, -and I want you to assist me in making a selection. To-morrow -will be Sunday. Be up, all of you, bright and -early, and one go and stand near the lodging-place of -each of these men. Watch them when they come out -in the morning, keep near them all day, and come here -at night and report what you have seen.”</p> - -<p>The servants, promising obedience, retired, and the next -night, according to orders, returned to their master.</p> - -<p>“And what have you to tell about your man?” he said -to the first who appeared.</p> - -<p>“He spent the day in the country,” replied the servant.</p> - -<p>“Sensible fellow!” said his master. “And did you go -with him?”</p> - -<p>“Indeed I did—got off at the same station, took dinner -at the same table, and came back in the same train.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_329" id="Page_329">[329]</a></span></p> - -<p>“And how did he behave himself?”</p> - -<p>“Like a sensible fellow, sir, as you called him. He had a -friend with him, and they just smoked their cigars and lay -about in the shade all day; took a glass of beer now and -then—nothing more. I believe he’s the very man that -would suit you.” Here the second servant came in.</p> - -<p>“And what have you to say?” asked his master.</p> - -<p>“My man,” replied the servant, “went to the tavern.”</p> - -<p>“He’s none the worse for that, if he didn’t take too -much after he got there.”</p> - -<p>“And he didn’t; only three glasses—I counted them—between -breakfast and dinner.”</p> - -<p>“Little enough!”</p> - -<p>“You’d have thought so if you had only seen how his -friends pressed him, a dozen times, to take more.”</p> - -<p>“But he wouldn’t?”</p> - -<p>“They couldn’t make him. He’s just the man for a -watchman, I’m sure.” The third servant now appeared.</p> - -<p>“And where did your man go?” asked his master.</p> - -<p>“To church,” replied the servant.</p> - -<p>“Did you follow him?”</p> - -<p>“You told me to, and I did, and sat in the pew right -behind him.” At this the other men laughed.</p> - -<p>“Well, did he gape around at his neighbors, and then -fall asleep, like the rest of the hypocrites who go there?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_330" id="Page_330">[330]</a></span></p> - -<p>“No; I must tell you the truth.”</p> - -<p>“Let’s have it, then.”</p> - -<p>“I watched him and never took my eyes off him, and -I tell you he’s in earnest.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean?”</p> - -<p>“I mean he’s among them that believe there’s a God, -and have made up their mind to serve him.”</p> - -<p>“That’ll do,” said the master. “You have made your -report, and now you may go.”</p> - -<p>The next night there was a new watchman around the -rich infidel’s house. It was he who went to church on a -Sunday.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">When they must commit themselves, or their substance, -to another’s keeping, both good men and bad men want -good men to serve them.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 212px;"> -<img src="images/illus330.jpg" width="212" height="179" alt="lantern and stick" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_331" id="Page_331">[331]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus331.jpg" width="528" height="673" alt="people in church; top inset three men drinking; bottom inset: night watchman" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_332" id="Page_332">[332]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 464px;"> -<img src="images/illus332.jpg" width="464" height="234" alt="man on horse talking to man standing" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>SINGLE AND DOUBLE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A FARMER who owned a lazy horse was riding him -barebacked one day, when the beast began to complain -of his load, saying:</p> - -<p>“Such a heavy man as you ought to ride in a wagon and -have a pair instead of one poor overworked horse to carry -him.”</p> - -<p>The farmer made no reply, but jogged on quietly. -Presently he came up with one of his neighbors afoot. -The farmer slackened his pace and the man walked beside -him in the road, the two talking together about their corn, -and oats, and clover. They had not gone far before the -farmer noticed a limp in his neighbor’s gait.</p> - -<p>“What is the matter?” said he.</p> - -<p>“A sharp peg in my boot,” replied the other, “seems -to object to my walking.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_333" id="Page_333">[333]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus333.jpg" width="516" height="670" alt="two men on horse" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_334" id="Page_334">[334]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Then you’d better get up and ride behind me,” said -the farmer.</p> - -<p>“That I will,” said the man—“gladly; and thank you.”</p> - -<p>As he clambered on to the horse from the top of a -fence beside which his friend had stopped, the animal -said to himself:</p> - -<p>“Ah! I did not know when I was well off. Willingly -now would I carry my master alone, but another behind -him almost breaks my back. Never again will I complain -of my load until I have asked myself how I should feel -if it were suddenly made twice as heavy.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">When real discomforts come, we look back and wonder -how we could have fretted under those which were only -imaginary.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 251px;"> -<img src="images/illus334.jpg" width="251" height="224" alt="horse lying down" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_335" id="Page_335">[335]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 329px;"> -<img src="images/illus335.jpg" width="329" height="268" alt="hummingbird and blossoms" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE BOASTFUL FLY.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A FLY that had lodged on a crumbling wall, seeing other -flies swarming around it, began to boast about their -numbers, saying:</p> - -<p>“Look at us! Multitudes in this little space! We -are everywhere—in the garden among the flowers, in the -field amid the clover, in the woods darting in and out of -the sunbeams that fall between the branches.”</p> - -<p>Here a humming-bird lighted in a trumpet-vine that -grew over the wall. Said the fly:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_336" id="Page_336">[336]</a></span></p> - -<p>“You are a traveller, sir, I hear, and have been to -other countries. Pray, have you ever been in any place -where there are no flies?”</p> - -<p>“Never,” said the humming-bird.</p> - -<p>“Oh that I had your strong wings,” cried the fly, -“to carry me where I could see the flies that live far -away as well as those that live here! But you have -seen them; maybe, now, you can guess how many flies -there are?”</p> - -<p>“Impossible!” said the bird. “You cannot be counted. -Why, all the bluebirds and blackbirds, the humming-birds, -and birds of every kind, put together, are as nothing compared -with you!”</p> - -<p>“We are the people,” continued the boastful fly, raising -its tiny voice—“not so big as some others, we’ll admit, -but look at our numbers: myriads upon myriads!”</p> - -<p>“Great in numbers, it is true,” said a mossy stone in -the wall, “but one thing you’ve forgotten.”</p> - -<p>“What is that?” asked the fly.</p> - -<p>“That midsummer is already past, and in a few short -weeks the green will have faded from the fields, and -frost will cover the ground; and then, though we look -diligently for you, not one of all your myriads shall -be found.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_337" id="Page_337">[337]</a></span></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 460px;"> -<img src="images/illus337.jpg" width="460" height="559" alt="hummingbird in larger scene " /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_338" id="Page_338">[338]</a></span></p> - -<p class="moral">That which seems great in the light of the present, -when looked at in the light of the future shrinks into -nothingness.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 204px;"> -<img src="images/illus338.jpg" width="204" height="93" alt="fly on rock" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_339" id="Page_339">[339]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 396px;"> -<img src="images/illus339.jpg" width="396" height="236" alt="man mending boots" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE MENDED BOOTS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who had a pair of boots that needed mending -carried them to the cobbler’s and dropped them beside -his bench, saying, “They’ll do any time to-day; send -them home as soon as they are finished,” and without waiting -for an answer departed.</p> - -<p>While the cobbler was examining the boots and preparing -to go to work on them, another man, with a badly-worn -pair in his hand, came into the shop, and said:</p> - -<p>“I want you to mend these at once; I’ll send for them -in the evening.”</p> - -<p>At this the cobbler let the first pair fall upon the floor,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_340" id="Page_340">[340]</a></span> -saying to himself: “As he will send, I must be sure and -have them ready.”</p> - -<p>And, going to work on them, he kept at it until they -were done. In the evening the man’s little son called, -and carried them away with him.</p> - -<p>The next day, after breakfast, as he sat down on his -bench, the cobbler said:</p> - -<p>“Now I must get at the other pair, that was left first.”</p> - -<p>But just as he was putting the last into one of them, a -man entered the shop with a quick step and handed him a -pair of shoes that were almost worn to pieces:</p> - -<p>“I must have these, without fail, in the morning,” he -cried, “and will call for them myself. On no account disappoint -me.”</p> - -<p>The cobbler at once dropped the boot that was in his -lap, and, seeming to have caught the man’s ardor, thrust -the last into one of his shoes and continued to work diligently -until evening, and so finished them.</p> - -<p>In the morning the man appeared, with as rapid a step -as ever, and, finding his shoes done, paid for them, and was -quickly gone.</p> - -<p>A little while after this, as the cobbler sat calmly reading -his newspaper, the man who left the first pair strolled -into the shop.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus341.jpg" width="520" height="673" alt="man bringing shoes to cobbler" /> -</div> - -<p>“As I happen to be passing,” he said, “I’ll just take my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_341" id="Page_341">[341]</a><br /><a name="Page_342" id="Page_342">[342]</a></span> -boots with me.” But, seeing a confused look on the cobbler’s -face, he added:</p> - -<p>“Of course they’re ready; you know they were to be -done the day before yesterday.”</p> - -<p>Then, looking on the floor, he saw them lying exactly -where he had left them.</p> - -<p>“I’ve been so very bu—busy,” stammered the cobbler, -“that I haven’t got ’em quite finished yet.”</p> - -<p>“‘Quite finished’!” exclaimed the man. “Why, you -haven’t touched them!”</p> - -<p>“But I’m going to begin this minute,” said the cobbler, -“and you shall have them to-morrow, for certain.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who is the least urgent is apt to be the last served.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 236px;"> -<img src="images/illus342.jpg" width="236" height="164" alt="cobbler's bench" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_343" id="Page_343">[343]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus343.jpg" width="528" height="676" alt="man finds cobbler reading paper instead of working on boots" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_344" id="Page_344">[344]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;"> -<img src="images/illus344.jpg" width="402" height="231" alt="man on crutches looking at distance" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE CRIPPLE AND HIS STAFF.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A POOR cripple who had to go on foot to the hospital -(where only he could be cured) cut a staff to help him -in walking. It was the best he could get from the woods -that grew by the way, and was just like those that other -cripples used on that same road.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_345" id="Page_345">[345]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 519px;"> -<img src="images/illus345.jpg" width="519" height="673" alt="man resting beside road with staff" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_346" id="Page_346">[346]</a></span></p> - -<p>For a time, as long as the road was smooth, the staff -seemed to be all that he needed; but when he came to -an uneven place, he found that it did not answer. It was -too short, though as long as that sort of wood grew, and -it was too rough, hurting his hand as he leaned upon it. -Beside this, it did not take a firm hold on the ground, but -slipped from under him, giving him many falls.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_347" id="Page_347">[347]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 508px;"> -<img src="images/illus347.jpg" width="508" height="653" alt="man struggling with harder path and stick" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_348" id="Page_348">[348]</a></span></p> - -<p>After one of these falls, while he was lying prostrate -and hardly able to rise, a man came to him with a pair -of crutches in his hand. The man raised him up from -the ground, put the crutches under his arms, and showed -him how to walk with them.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_349" id="Page_349">[349]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 513px;"> -<img src="images/illus349.jpg" width="513" height="658" alt="man helping fallen man up and holding crutches" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_350" id="Page_350">[350]</a></span></p> - -<p>And now the poor cripple was overjoyed to find that -he could walk with comparative ease and with perfect -safety. Yet he kept the staff that he had cut for himself, -carrying it, thrust under his girdle, across his back, -behind him.</p> - -<p>He walked leaning on his crutches for a considerable -distance and over a good deal of rough ground, and then -came to another smooth spot.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_351" id="Page_351">[351]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus351.jpg" width="518" height="666" alt="man gives him crutches" /> -</div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_352" id="Page_352">[352]</a></span></p> - -<p>Here a desire seized him to try his staff again. But -why should he want to do this? In the first place, he -had forgotten in that short space of time the falls it had -before given him. Then it seemed as if the staff would -be lighter and more easily handled than the crutches. -But perhaps the chief reason was that he would not -appear so great a cripple with the staff as with the -crutches; for above all things else the cripple desires to -appear not a cripple, and to seem to walk as if nothing -were the matter with him.</p> - -<p>So he tried his staff again, and for a time got along -quite well.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_353" id="Page_353">[353]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus353.jpg" width="523" height="679" alt="man on crutches looking at staff" /> -</div> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_354" id="Page_354">[354]</a></span></p> - -<p>While he was walking at his best, hardly limping, as -he thought, a man came to him saying:</p> - -<p>“How well you walk! That staff is just the thing for -you. But you don’t need the crutches; why do you cumber -yourself with them?”</p> - -<p>With this the man took hold of the crutches to take -them from him, but the cripple would not let go of them. -The man stood and reasoned a while with him; but when -he found it was of no use, he turned away, disgusted, saying, -as he left him:</p> - -<p>“Any way, you are a fool, to keep both.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_355" id="Page_355">[355]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus355.jpg" width="520" height="674" alt="man trying to take cruches from lame man" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_356" id="Page_356">[356]</a></span></p> - -<p>The cripple had not gone much farther, leaning on his -staff, when he came to some more rough ground, where -he floundered about for a while and then fell to the earth, -striking his head and bringing the blood. Then he was -glad that he had not parted with the crutches. He drew -them out from behind him, put them under his arms, and -proceeded on his way.</p> - -<p>Now we should think that he would never trust to his -staff again. But it was not so. He hardly ever came to -a smooth place that he did not draw it forth and walk with -it, till he learned again, by sad experience, that it would -not support him; so that this was, in fact, the history of -his going—toiling along with his staff and falling, and -then betaking himself to his crutches once more.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_357" id="Page_357">[357]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 512px;"> -<img src="images/illus357.jpg" width="512" height="675" alt="man fallen again" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_358" id="Page_358">[358]</a></span></p> - -<p>At last he came to the foot of the hill on the top of -which was the hospital. But the ascent of that hill! he -was terrified as he looked at it. It was covered with rocks -and rolling stones, and beside its steep path was a yawning -chasm. He stood gazing at it for a moment, and then, as -if realizing for the first time his actual needs, he drew forth -his staff and cast it from him as far as his strength would -send it.</p> - -<p>Now, he had not known himself what a weight that -staff had been to him, for no sooner was he rid of it than -it seemed to him almost as if he had wings. Then, resting -wholly on his crutches, he addressed himself to his last -labor. And, truly, those who looked after him saw that -he made that most difficult ascent (up to the place where -he knew there was a Physician who would heal him) as if -it were the easiest part of his journey.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 167px;"> -<img src="images/illus358.jpg" width="167" height="193" alt="Biblical man kneeling, arms outstretched to heaven" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_359" id="Page_359">[359]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus359.jpg" width="516" height="671" alt="man climbing hard path to city of light" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_360" id="Page_360">[360]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 454px;"> -<img src="images/illus360.jpg" width="454" height="211" alt="water trough with birds around it" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE SEARCH.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN had a never-failing spring in his grounds, the -water from which he brought through pipes to his -house. There it was used for drinking, cooking, washing, -and all domestic purposes. After a time, however, the -family became aware that, from some cause, the water -was tainted. They were loth to acknowledge this, but -it was so evident that all their wishes to the contrary could -not deceive them.</p> - -<p>The first thing the man did was to go to the spring and -examine it. No water could look purer. He dipped a cupful -from the surface, and drank it without detecting any -unpleasant taste. What was next to be done? He had -heard of a filter for sale at the village store. It would -cost several dollars, but the doctor’s bill might come to -a great deal more. There was no help for it: the filter<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_361" id="Page_361">[361]</a><br /><a name="Page_362" id="Page_362">[362]</a></span> -was bought and placed where every drop from the spring -passed through it before being used at the house. Reluctant -indeed were the man and his family, after such an -expense, still to recognize, without being able to detect -the cause of, the impurity.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus361.jpg" width="523" height="670" alt="family checking water in house" /> -</div> - -<p>But one course was left, and that was to take up and -examine every foot of pipe through which the water ran. -This required a whole day’s labor. Nevertheless, it was -done. No dead toads or frogs were found in it, so it was -carefully cleaned and laid back in its place. The water -was turned on again, and, although there was in reality -no reason to look for an improvement, the family felt -disappointed when it became evident, after all this additional -trouble, that the disagreeable taste remained.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus363.jpg" width="520" height="666" alt="man digging by well" /> -</div> - -<p>The man sat silent all the evening after his hard day’s -work, discouraged, but still trying to devise some means -of prosecuting his search. The next morning he rose up -bright and early, and without saying a word to any -one put his long post-spade over his shoulder and walked -out to the spring. There, beginning a little way back from -its edge, he began to dig. Finding nothing but good top-soil, -with clay underneath, he pursued his labors until he -had gone almost the whole way around it. Then he came -suddenly upon a dark spot in the earth. He dug into it -still deeper; the odor that arose from it revealed its nature:<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_363" id="Page_363">[363]</a><br /><a name="Page_364" id="Page_364">[364]</a></span> -it was a mass of decay. He uncovered it to the spring’s -side, and found that it cropped out there at the very spot -where his pipe opened into the water. At last the cause -of all his trouble was revealed.</p> - -<p>It was no small task to dam back the rising tide, so that -the foul matter could be removed and replaced with pure -earth. But, now that he could see where to direct his -efforts, this was a simple matter, requiring only persevering -labor, which was willingly bestowed; and so in due -time the work was well and thoroughly done and the -object attained. And the man and his family continued -ever afterward to enjoy the pure water of the spring.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">As long as we allow the source to remain impure, we -will try in vain to purify that which issues from it.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 256px;"> -<img src="images/illus364.jpg" width="256" height="245" alt="child drinking water" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_365" id="Page_365">[365]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 408px;"> -<img src="images/illus365.jpg" width="408" height="195" alt="landscape with windmill and birds" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE SWALLOWS AND THE WINDMILL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A PAIR of swallows, while looking for a barn in which -to build, came across a windmill, with its sails furled -and its great wheel standing motionless.</p> - -<p>“What sort of a place is this?” they said. “Surely no -better can be found for our home. We’ll let other swallows -go into the old tumble-down barns around, but this beautiful -tower we will secure for ourselves.”</p> - -<p>Then, flying below the dome-like roof of the mill, -they discovered a small window, just under the eaves, -with a pane of glass broken out, through which they -darted, and soon picked out a spot under a rafter inside -for their nest. At once they went to work building it.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_366" id="Page_366">[366]</a></span> -A pond near by supplied them with mud. Working up -little balls of this with their bills, they carried them into -the mill and fastened them against the rafter they had -chosen. In this way, adding little by little, as a bricklayer -builds up a house, they built up the walls of their -nest. Then they brought grass to line the inside, coiling -it around nicely that it might be smooth and even. -Last of all, above the grass, they made a bed of soft -feathers.</p> - -<p>Now, it happened, the very next night after all this was -finished, that a strong wind sprang up, and the next morning -early the miller appeared and went into his mill. Presently -he came out again, and, standing on the ground, -under the great wheel, began to unfurl the sails on each -of its four arms, one after the other. As soon as this -was done, loosening its fastenings he let the wheel go; -and the wind, filling the sails, began to turn it around—at -first slowly, but gradually faster and faster, until it -was running at full speed.</p> - -<p>The swallows, that were taking a holiday after their -labors, and flying about joyously up in the air, looked -down surprised at what was going on. But their surprise -was turned to dismay when they found that the wheel -was revolving directly in front of the little window -through which they gained entrance into the mill. They<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_367" id="Page_367">[367]</a><br /><a name="Page_368" id="Page_368">[368]</a></span> -flew from side to side, hour after hour, hoping the wheel -would stop; but it never once rested through the day -or the night, and continued to go until another morning -appeared. Then, wearied out and in despair, they lodged -on a fence near by.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 507px;"> -<img src="images/illus367.jpg" width="507" height="656" alt="windmill and swallows; horse and cart" /> -</div> - -<p>Here another swallow, that had her home in a neighboring -barn, saw them perched with drooping wings. -Lighting beside them, she asked what was the matter.</p> - -<p>“‘Matter’!” cried they. “We are ruined. The man -in yonder mill tied up his horrid wheel just long enough -for us to build our nest under his roof, and then set it -going. Look at it! Were we inside, we could never -get out; and now that we are out, we can never get -in. So cruelly have we been deceived!”</p> - -<p>“You have been deceived, my friends, that is -true,” replied the other, gently, “but not by the -miller: you have deceived yourselves. What does -he care for swallows? It was your place to inquire -how the building was used, before making your nest -in it. Instead of doing this, you took the risk, and -so have lost your labor. But do not despair as -though all had been lost. If you will be satisfied to -lodge like other swallows, and will come to our barn, -across yonder field, there is plenty of room left -over the haymow, and time enough too, for you to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_369" id="Page_369">[369]</a></span> -build another nest; and there you may yet rear your -brood in peace and content.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">When we take for granted what we ought to prove -by careful research, we are apt to be disappointed in -the result; especially is caution needed when, leaving -the old beaten track, we venture to mark out a new -path for ourselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 325px;"> -<img src="images/illus369.jpg" width="325" height="229" alt="swallows" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_370" id="Page_370">[370]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 463px;"> -<img src="images/illus370.jpg" width="463" height="219" alt="man and woman at a table" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE MEDICINE-MAN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A MAN who lived in an unhealthy region of country -supported himself by preparing and selling a medicine -which acted as an antidote to the malarial or other -poison prevailing there. This poison was taken into the -system through the air the people breathed, the water -they drank, and the food they ate. The entire population -was suffering from it. Unless its effects were -arrested, they became in the end fatal. The medicine, -however, was a certain cure. Nature had evidently provided -it as a remedy for a people otherwise incurably -smitten, and the man who made a business of preparing<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_371" id="Page_371">[371]</a></span> -it put it up in such quantities that there was an abundant -supply within the reach of all by whom it was needed.</p> - -<p>But here was a curious thing: The man himself neglected -to take of the medicine. This was not because he -had escaped the prevailing infection. Signs of it in his -own person were evident enough to his friends, and some -of them who had been cured through his means took -occasion to speak with him on the subject. Said one of -them:</p> - -<p>“No one knows better than yourself the value of this -remedy. And though it be not always pleasant to take, -and requires some self-denial while using, what is this to -the risk of one’s life?”</p> - -<p>To this reasonable appeal the man at first made no -answer; but when further pressed, he replied as follows:</p> - -<p>“Am I doing any harm, that I should be thus annoyed -and interfered with? Is it not better that I should deal -out this medicine than poison to the people?”</p> - -<p>“It is indeed,” said his friend. “You are doing no -harm, but good, to others, but are not resisting the harm -that is being done to yourself.”</p> - -<p>“That is a personal matter,” said the man, “with which -nobody else has anything to do. I can attend to my own -health, and have no wish that another should prescribe for -me.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_372" id="Page_372">[372]</a></span></p> - -<p>So they could do no more, but had to stand by and see -the fatal malady increasing upon him.</p> - -<p>It was like looking at a man standing in the water, -breast-deep, with the vessel sinking under him, and he, -after handing all the rest into the lifeboat, turning a deaf -ear when they begged him to come too, and be saved.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Leading another into the right path does not excuse -me for continuing in the wrong one. Neither can his -reaching the goal help me to get there while I walk in -a different way.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 209px;"> -<img src="images/illus372.jpg" width="209" height="156" alt="hand pouring out medicine" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_373" id="Page_373">[373]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus373.jpg" width="514" height="641" alt="people in lifeboat pleading with man to get in the boat" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_374" id="Page_374">[374]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 490px;"> -<img src="images/illus374.jpg" width="490" height="281" alt="Eagle flaying toward nest holding eaglets" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE EAGLE AND THE WREN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A WREN that came into a mountainous region where -mining was carried on, having found a deserted pit, -made her nest in a hole in its side. One hot summer day -an eagle lodged on the branch of a pine tree that stood -near the pit, and spied the little wren coming up out of -its mouth. Said the eagle:</p> - -<p>“So you are not satisfied with getting down on to the -ground? You must burrow under it to make your nest! -Well, every creature finds its own proper level; but can<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_375" id="Page_375">[375]</a><br /><a name="Page_376" id="Page_376">[376]</a></span> -you see so far as that lofty crag on the top of yonder -mountain? There, up among the clouds, is where I sit -with my young, looking down on you little birds that -dare not fly to the height of our home.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 524px;"> -<img src="images/illus375.jpg" width="524" height="676" alt="eagle lying on ground with broken wing talking to starling" /> -</div> - -<p>The wren, overawed by the eagle’s voice, made no -answer, but flew down into the pit again.</p> - -<p>The day grew hotter and hotter; the birds through the -woods ceased singing and the insects chirping; all nature -seemed oppressed by the heat. In the afternoon a small -black cloud appeared in the west. It rose rapidly, and -soon spread over the whole sky. Then there was a -strange sound heard in the distance. It grew louder and -nearer. As it approached, tall forest trees bent over and -snapped asunder, and great branches, and heavy stones -even, were seen flying through the air. It lasted but a -moment, and then all was still again.</p> - -<p>Now, the wren, hidden in the hole in the pit’s side, had -not heard the noise of the storm; but, coming up soon -afterward to hunt for a worm, she was dismayed at the -scene of desolation that met her eye. Great trunks of -trees, and rocks, were strewn over the earth, while among -them lay prostrate the eagle and her young. The young -ones were dead, and their mother, with a broken wing, in -her effort to rise, was vainly beating the ground.</p> - -<p>“Alas!” cried the wren, “what has wrought such sad<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_377" id="Page_377">[377]</a></span> -ruin? And how is it that I have escaped, when a strong -eagle has been cast down?”</p> - -<p>“Ah!” replied the eagle, “had I been a wren with a -lowly nest, like you, instead of a proud eagle with her nest -built on high, the tornado, which you did not even hear, -would have left me and mine, too, unharmed.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Persons who fill lofty stations are subject to dangers -which others know not of, and many a time, when no -one suspects it, would be glad to change places with -those who envy them.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 265px;"> -<img src="images/illus377.jpg" width="265" height="183" alt="bird drinking water from stream or pond" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_378" id="Page_378">[378]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 470px;"> -<img src="images/illus378.jpg" width="470" height="207" alt="House with tree in front" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE TWO SAPLINGS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO slender saplings were planted on the same day—one -before the house of a rich man, and the other -at a poor man’s door.</p> - -<p>The summer passed, and winter came. Then, as the -rich man saw his young tree tossed to and fro by the -storm, he was afraid it would be broken; so he went to -it and built a fence around it and spread a roof over it. -But the poor man, because he had to labor out in the -storm himself, never thought of sheltering his tree.</p> - -<p>Season followed after season; the rich man was still -nursing his tree, and, as it grew, building his fence up<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_379" id="Page_379">[379]</a><br /><a name="Page_380" id="Page_380">[380]</a></span> -higher and higher. But the poor man’s tree was left to -the sunshine, the wind, and the rain.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 509px;"> -<img src="images/illus379.jpg" width="509" height="670" alt="top scene: Rich man building shelter for tree; lower scene: poor man heading off to work in storm" /> -</div> - -<p>And now long years have gone; youth has fled, and -age has come. The rich man can no longer keep up his -watchful care, nor the poor man go forth to his labor. But, -as they sit resting at their doors at the close of the day, the -poor man sees, towering above him, a strong oak in its prime, -spreading its protecting branches over his roof; while the -rich man sees a weak and unhealthy trunk that is already -decaying at the root, and destined hardly to outlast himself.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Parents who shield their children from the hardships -which they ought to bear in youth, unfit them for the -hardships which they must bear in maturer years.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 181px;"> -<img src="images/illus380.jpg" width="181" height="118" alt="Little roof above small tree in front of large house" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_381" id="Page_381">[381]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus381.jpg" width="523" height="672" alt="healthy tree at poor man's little house; sickly tree in front of rich man's hosue" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_382" id="Page_382">[382]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 412px;"> -<img src="images/illus382.jpg" width="412" height="216" alt="parts of a printing press and newspapers" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE COG-WHEEL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A SMALL cog-wheel in the upper part of a great printing-press -came to the conclusion that it was not turned -by the steam-engine, but turned of its own accord. Having -taken up this notion, in a little while it brought itself to -believe that it drove the whole press.</p> - -<p>“It is easy to see,” it said, “that the other wheels keep -time with my movements, going slow when I go slow, and -fast when I run at greater speed. From this it is plain that -I give motion to the whole, and that all the work of the -press depends upon me.”</p> - -<p>Then it began to boast about that work.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 522px;"> -<img src="images/illus383.jpg" width="522" height="672" alt="printer handing cog to printer's boy" /> -</div> - -<p>“Look,” it said, “at that great sheet of white paper.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_383" id="Page_383">[383]</a><br /><a name="Page_384" id="Page_384">[384]</a></span> -It is laid on my feed-board blank and meaningless, but -comes out from under my cylinder covered with the -clearest print. It is a newspaper, which is distributed -by tens of thousands over the land. At other times I print -books. Some are learned ones, for scholars to read; some -are children’s books filled with pictures, and of these last -I assert that nothing made of paper and ink can be more -beautiful. But it is all my work, neither could it possibly -be done without me, as I will now prove by holding back -for a moment the entire press.”</p> - -<p>Saying which, the wheel turned a little on its side, thus -hindering the one next to it. But just at that moment the -pressman, stepping up and seeing some derangement in its -movement, stopped the press. Then, calling to a boy, who -was covered with printer’s ink from head to foot,</p> - -<p>“Run quickly,” he said, “to the store-room and bring -me another cog-wheel.”</p> - -<p>No sooner had the boy brought it than the pressman, -slipping off the old wheel, put the new one in its place.</p> - -<p>“Take this,” he said, handing the old one to the boy, -“and throw it on the scrap-heap.”</p> - -<p>In another moment the press was running again at full -speed.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Because some good work prospers in our hands we<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_385" id="Page_385">[385]</a></span> -presently think ourselves the author of it, forgetting that -we are only instruments appointed to carry it on, and that -there are many others who are ready, if need be, to take -our place.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 196px;"> -<img src="images/illus385.jpg" width="196" height="118" alt="cog among rubbish" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_386" id="Page_386">[386]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 391px;"> -<img src="images/illus386.jpg" width="391" height="181" alt="man sitting in plow behind horse" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE PLOUGH AND THE MOWING-MACHINE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A FARMER, having bought a new mowing-machine, -brought it home and put it in the barn where his -plough was housed, waiting for the opening of spring.</p> - -<p>When the mower, in its bright paint and glossy varnish, -saw the soiled and toil-worn plough, it said, with a scornful -look:</p> - -<p>“Why am I placed in such low company?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 530px;"> -<img src="images/illus387.jpg" width="530" height="675" alt="plow in barn with some chickens" /> -</div> - -<p>“You think yourself better than I am,” said the plough, -“but where would you be without me? If I did not first -turn up the soil for the planting, you would never be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_387" id="Page_387">[387]</a><br /><a name="Page_388" id="Page_388">[388]</a></span> -wanted for the mowing. You only finish where I have -begun, and on my work your very existence depends.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We sometimes look down on those who are not only -our equals in usefulness, but whose honest labor has helped -to make us better off than themselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 213px;"> -<img src="images/illus388.jpg" width="213" height="135" alt="hand plow in field" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_389" id="Page_389">[389]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 460px;"> -<img src="images/illus389.jpg" width="460" height="225" alt="man's hat flying off as he rides a fast horse" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>FAT AND LEAN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A STRONG fat ox stood with his eyes half shut, chewing -the cud, while his driver heaped up a heavy load -of stone on the cart he was yoked to.</p> - -<p>A neighbor, who chanced to be riding by on a fast but -very lean horse, stopped to speak to the man. The horse, -on being held in, began to paw the ground, as if impatient -to go on, then, looking around scornfully at the ox, said:</p> - -<p>“What do you stand there chewing the cud for now?”</p> - -<p>“Why shouldn’t I?” asked the ox. “What harm does -it do?”</p> - -<p>“When I’m in harness,” replied the horse, “I like to -work, and not go to sleep.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_390" id="Page_390">[390]</a></span></p> - -<p>“I have to do my share of work,” said the ox; “there’s -no doubt about that. If you’ll wait till I get the word, -you’ll see how I pull. When I come to a heavy hill, I -stop chewing the cud; but as soon as I come to a level -place, I begin again. For even while I’m at work I take -all the comfort I can.”</p> - -<p>“‘Comfort’!” exclaimed the horse. “Is that your aim? -Mine is to pass every other team on the road.”</p> - -<p> -“Ah, well!” said the ox, “that sounds very fine,<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">But just look at your ribs, and then look at mine!”</span><br /> -</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who cannot be happy as long as he sees another -more fortunate or successful than himself, whatever else -he may gain, will never know peace and content.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 245px;"> -<img src="images/illus390.jpg" width="245" height="184" alt="a cart and yoke" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_391" id="Page_391">[391]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 524px;"> -<img src="images/illus391.jpg" width="524" height="653" alt="man on horse talking to man in cart behind ox" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_392" id="Page_392">[392]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 404px;"> -<img src="images/illus392.jpg" width="404" height="189" alt="stream" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>HALF EMPTY AND QUITE FULL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">IN a quiet, lonely spot, beside a mountain-road, a half -barrel stood partly sunk in the ground. A small -wooden trough resting on its rim led the water from a -spring that was hidden a little way back in the woods. -The water was for ever running into it, yet the half barrel -was never full. Its hoops were loosened, its joints opened, -and much of the pure stream that it received escaped, -trickling down its sides and sinking into the earth. But -while it was never full, except perhaps once or twice in a -summer, when there fell such a flood of rain as overcame -all its leaks and openings, neither was it ever quite empty; -for, although it was a poor leaky vessel at best, it had never -quite fallen to pieces.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_393" id="Page_393">[393]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 518px;"> -<img src="images/illus393.jpg" width="518" height="667" alt="top picture: spring pouring into leaking barrel; bottom picture: man on horse heading toward sound barrel" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_394" id="Page_394">[394]</a></span></p> - -<p>A few miles beyond this spot, on that mountain-road, -stood what looked to be the other half of the same barrel. -A trough exactly similar to the first led a stream of water -into it, but this half barrel, compact and tight, was always -full to the brim ready to spare some of its refreshing contents -to the tired traveller, who, after he had quenched his -own thirst, unreined his horse and allowed him to sink his -mouth deeply into it and drink.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Some men, retaining their gracious gifts, are ever ready -to impart to those who need; while others, suffering the -loss of theirs, are ever in need themselves.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 264px;"> -<img src="images/illus394.jpg" width="264" height="196" alt="another landscape" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_395" id="Page_395">[395]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 398px;"> -<img src="images/illus395.jpg" width="398" height="237" alt="snake crossing road" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE SNAKE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A BEAUTIFUL and harmless little garter-snake was -gliding across the road, when a man who happened -to be passing seized a club and struck it a crushing blow. -As it writhed in agony it turned to its assailant and -said:</p> - -<p>“Why do you kill me?”</p> - -<p>“Do you suppose,” replied the man, “I will let anything -in the form of a snake live, when I know there are -venomous copperheads in this very woods?”</p> - -<p>“And are there no men,” asked the snake, “that are<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_396" id="Page_396">[396]</a></span> -revengeful and dangerous, and would you destroy all men -for their sake?”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Let us not be prejudiced against a whole family for the -faults of one member of it, or be unable to see any merit -in a thing because it is not wholly free from defect.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 166px;"> -<img src="images/illus396.jpg" width="166" height="109" alt="snake around a plant" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_397" id="Page_397">[397]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 520px;"> -<img src="images/illus397.jpg" width="520" height="680" alt="man beating snake with club" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_398" id="Page_398">[398]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 308px;"> -<img src="images/illus398.jpg" width="308" height="167" alt="two people's hands clasping" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>RICH AND POOR.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO men were neighbors—one rich, the other poor—and -both of them had children of whom they were -fond. The children of the rich man received many costly -presents of such things as young people prize, but the children -of the poor man had only their food and clothing, and -that of the plainest sort.</p> - -<p>Years passed by. Both families grew up like young trees -in an orchard, and in due season began to display the fruits -of their training, when the rich man, meeting his poor neighbor -one day, said to him:</p> - -<p>“I have been watching your children, and I notice they -appear to feel as though they could never see enough of -you or do enough for you. It is not so with mine. I -wonder if you can tell the secret of this difference?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_399" id="Page_399">[399]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus399.jpg" width="517" height="671" alt="children gathered around father who is working on a toy sailboat" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_400" id="Page_400">[400]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Perhaps it lies here,” replied the poor man: “As I am -unable to draw my children to me by what I can give them, -I have to try and accomplish it by what I can do for them. -To this end I am careful about four things—viz.: To be as -sparing as I can of my censure when they do wrong; to -be as liberal as I can of my praise when they do right; to -take an interest in whatever interests them; and to let them -see that I deny myself to supply their needs as far as I -can.”</p> - -<p>“I see,” replied the rich man, “wherein our plans have -differed: you have worked for what I have tried to buy. I -gave of my money, you of what costs more—forbearance, -consideration, and love. So I have been shut out of my -children’s hearts, while you have gained an entrance into -yours. I thank you for the lesson you have taught me, -and purpose, though I begin late, to profit by it.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We cannot buy affection at any price, or retain it by the -mere tie of kindred, however close. We must secure it in -each case by deserving it, and hold it by continuing to deserve -it from day to day.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 233px;"> -<img src="images/illus400.jpg" width="233" height="99" alt="man's hand putting coin in child's hand" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_401" id="Page_401">[401]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 514px;"> -<img src="images/illus401.jpg" width="514" height="669" alt="Man in top hat talking to children in foyer; maid or nanny behind them" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_402" id="Page_402">[402]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 485px;"> -<img src="images/illus402.jpg" width="485" height="234" alt="hawk flying" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE HAWK AND THE CHICKEN.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A HAWK, as it soared on high, seeing a young chicken -in the field below, rapidly descended, and seized it in -his talons.</p> - -<p>“Alas!” said the chicken, “I have no power to struggle, -or any hope of saving myself by resisting you in any way. -But I pray you listen to me. I am yet young, hardly -grown, and am just beginning to enjoy roaming through -the fields by myself. Do not cut off my days. I beg you -out of pity to spare my life.”</p> - -<p>“What you say may be all true,” said the hawk. “I -don’t pretend to know whether it is, or is not; all I do -know is that I am hungry, and that you are the only food<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_403" id="Page_403">[403]</a><br /><a name="Page_404" id="Page_404">[404]</a></span> -provided for me. I can’t go into any reasonings behind -that.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus403.jpg" width="516" height="673" alt="hawk capturing chicken and flying away with it" /> -</div> - -<p>Saying which, he dug his talons deeper into the flesh -of his victim, and, carrying it off, devoured it on a neighboring -tree.</p> - -<p>At this a horse that was feeding in the meadow below, -and had heard the birds speaking, said to himself:</p> - -<p>“As I don’t wear feathers or fly with wings, I won’t -presume to judge those who do. But, as for me, I know -it is my duty to earn my living by honest labor and let -other people alone.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">What may be lawful for others who are living under -different conditions from ourselves, affords us no excuse -for ever departing from the strict course of mercy and -justice.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 290px;"> -<img src="images/illus404.jpg" width="290" height="182" alt="chicken with chicks and hawk circling overhead" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_405" id="Page_405">[405]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 484px;"> -<img src="images/illus405.jpg" width="484" height="277" alt="man sitting by roadside, head in hands" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE SERVANT’S MONEY.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CERTAIN king sent a message to one of his servants -who lived in a distant part of his kingdom, -bidding the servant come to him, and promising that -henceforth all his wants should be supplied in the king’s -palace.</p> - -<p>The servant, overjoyed at the message, prepared at -once to obey it; but, being a poor man who through long -years of saving and pinching had come to set great store<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_406" id="Page_406">[406]</a></span> -by small possessions, it went very hard with him to leave -behind such things as he could call his own—the little -house he lived in, with the plot of ground around it, and -the few rude implements with which he tilled the soil. -As it was impossible, however, to take them with him, he -sold them for what he could get (which was not much); -and then, packing up his clothes in divers parcels and -hiding his little store of money among them, he started -on his journey.</p> - -<p>The first part of this, which led through well-tilled -fields and among people whom he knew, was very pleasant. -Many who were his friends came out, as he passed by, to -meet him, begging him to stop and rest a while in their -houses. And when it happened to be toward evening, he -went in and supped and lodged with them.</p> - -<p>But after leaving this part of the country he came -to a bleak and lonely region abounding in rocks and -caves. Here, as he was pressing on, hoping to get through -it safely, some robbers rushed out from their hiding-place -upon him. Hastily looking through the bundles with -which he was loaded, and finding they were made up -of old worn-out clothes, they refused to take them. -But, in making the search, they spied his money, and, -seizing it, quickly disappeared.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 533px;"> -<img src="images/illus407.jpg" width="533" height="678" alt="story: man recieves summons; loses belongings on way; struggles on" /> -</div> - -<p>When the poor man saw them hurrying away with his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_407" id="Page_407">[407]</a><br /><a name="Page_408" id="Page_408">[408]</a></span> -treasure—which, small as it was, represented his lifelong -labors—his grief overcame him, and he sat down and wept. -But, presently recovering himself, he said:</p> - -<p>“Shall I stay here crying in this wilderness, when I am -sent for by the king?”</p> - -<p>Then he rose up from the ground, and pursued his way -without further interruption, though with a heavy heart -and faltering step, until he came to the gates of the -king’s palace. There he found many others assembled -from different parts of the kingdom, who had also come -at the king’s command—some of them poor like himself, -some rich; and they all waited for the day when the -gates should open.</p> - -<p>But while they were waiting for this what was his -surprise to see the poor draw forth their pence, and the -rich their silver and gold, and throw them away! For -they had been told they would have no need of them -within the gates, and that until they had parted with -them they could not enter. So they all cast their money -from them, whether it was little or much, and it lay -scattered over the ground, with none to gather it. Neither -was the servant any poorer than the richest of them, -though he had been robbed of all. Then he said to -himself, “How foolish was I to set such store by, and -grieve so much after, what was of no real value!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_409" id="Page_409">[409]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus409.jpg" width="528" height="670" alt="people at gates throwing coins into a big pile" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_410" id="Page_410">[410]</a></span></p> - -<p>And after that, with nothing except the garments that -they wore (and even these had been given them), he and -all who waited with him entered joyfully into the palace-gates.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">It is of little account what we lose by the way if we -keep that which alone has any value at the end of our -journey.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 204px;"> -<img src="images/illus410.jpg" width="204" height="155" alt="hobo's kit" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_411" id="Page_411">[411]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 496px;"> -<img src="images/illus411.jpg" width="496" height="241" alt="woman and child in carriage talking with man on road" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>FUTURE GREATNESS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO young colts, each by the side of its mother, were at -pasture in adjoining fields. The mother of one, coming -to the dividing fence, and putting her head over it, -said to her neighbor:</p> - -<p>“Just look at the color of my colt! Was there ever -a lovelier bay? Before another spring has passed over -his head I expect to see him in the stable of some millionaire. -You know what a rage there is among rich -men for fast horses. Now, look at the points in my colt—his -long, clean limbs, his deer-like shape, his full eye -and broad nostril. I am as certain of his speed as if he -had just been around the track and I heard the time-keeper -calling out:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_412" id="Page_412">[412]</a></span></p> - -<p>“‘Two minutes ten and a half seconds!’”</p> - -<p>“I have been looking at your colt,” replied the other, -“and admit he promises well; but what do you think of -the little roan on this side the fence? Now, I wouldn’t -care to have him in a millionaire’s stable, or put him there, -if I could, by a wish. Those rich men think of nobody -but themselves, and keep fine horses only to swell their -own importance. Then they are speculators, to a man; -there’s no telling how long they’ll keep their money. Let -that go, and their horses go with it, to the jockey and the -race-course, to be abused and betted on and driven to -death.</p> - -<p>“No; I would rather see my colt in the hands of some -grand, rich lady—the gem of her stable, her daily companion -and pet. And is he not made for it? Look at -his round, short body, so plump and easily kept; his strong, -arched neck, and his beautiful thick mane and tail. And -mark my words: it won’t be long before all that I predict -about him comes true. In fact, I think I know who the -lady is already. She drives by here in her barouche with -liveried coachman and footman, each with a bouquet in his -buttonhole, and as she passes I can see her looking over -the fence.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 527px;"> -<img src="images/illus413.jpg" width="527" height="672" alt="two mares discussing their foals in top scene; bottom left horse pulling cart; bottom right: horse pulling plow" /> -</div> - -<p>Here we will imagine that several years have suddenly -vanished, and we are again visiting the fields where the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_413" id="Page_413">[413]</a><br /><a name="Page_414" id="Page_414">[414]</a></span> -above interview took place. One of them is being -ploughed, and a stout roan horse is stepping briskly in -front of the furrow; the other field its owner is clearing -of stones, and a young bay is hauling out a heavy cart-load -of them. Both horses are strong and willing helpers -on the farm, earning an honest living, valued and well -cared for by their masters, and far better off than they -would be if left to the heedless servants of the fashionable -lady or the proud millionaire.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">What weakness and folly do we often show in the -secret expectations we cherish concerning those who are -to come after us! And how well it is for them that the -shaping of their destinies is not in our hands!</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 288px;"> -<img src="images/illus414.jpg" width="288" height="242" alt="horse falling badly after jumping brick wall with his rider" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_415" id="Page_415">[415]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 482px;"> -<img src="images/illus415.jpg" width="482" height="259" alt="Old man showing watch to little girl" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE OLD MAN’S WATCH.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">AN old man and a young one were walking together over -a rough and hilly road. Said the old man:</p> - -<p>“Though I detain you by being unable to keep up -with your rapid step, yet, in spite of this feeble frame, I -am feeling in spirit as young as you. Perhaps you can -hardly believe this?”</p> - -<p>“I can believe it if you say so,” replied the young -man, “but confess that when I look at your snowy locks -and your bent form, I cannot understand it.”</p> - -<p>“Stop a moment,” said the old man, drawing out -his watch and exposing its works to view. “You see<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_416" id="Page_416">[416]</a></span> -that, like myself, this watch has seen its best days. Its -case shows wear, and so do its works. These little cog-wheels -do not fit into each other as closely as they once did, -and they are growing farther apart, by wear, every day. -But now look at the mainspring, where it lies, here, coiled -up by itself. It shows no wear. The same power and -elasticity it has had all along remain in it still.”</p> - -<p>“I see,” replied the other; and, becoming so interested -in the watch as to forget it was being used only as an -illustration, he continued: “Why do you not have the -rest of the works repaired?”</p> - -<p>“Your question is natural,” said the old man. “So I -might have these worn-out works repaired, but not this -worn-out body. Neither do I desire it. It will soon have -done its work and lasted out its appointed time here. -But in another state of being the immortal part—the -mainspring, so to speak—will live on, clothed with a -new body as immortal as itself. It is this that still remains -as vigorous as ever, and makes me feel, in spirit, as young -as yourself.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">As we advance in years we are conscious of that -within us which does not grow old, but which, having -learned that this world cannot satisfy, grows weary of -it, and peers anxiously into the next.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_417" id="Page_417">[417]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 527px;"> -<img src="images/illus417.jpg" width="527" height="680" alt="two men talking on road" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_418" id="Page_418">[418]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 411px;"> -<img src="images/illus418.jpg" width="411" height="162" alt="people coming upon man in ravine" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE TEACHER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">I DREAMED that I had started on a journey, and as I -trudged along the path alone a man carrying a mirror, -stopped me, saying:</p> - -<p>“I want to speak with you.”</p> - -<p>I replied: “From whence do you come, and what -may your calling be?”</p> - -<p>He answered: “I come from beyond that steep hill in -front of you which you have yet to climb; and I am a -teacher, teaching by the things that I show in my mirror.”</p> - -<p>Then he held his mirror up before my eyes and told me -to look. I obeyed, and saw a ship tossed in a storm. The -sails were blown to pieces, the boats were broken, the deck -was swept by the waves, and the ship was ready to sink. -Then I saw the master come to the side, and stand<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_419" id="Page_419">[419]</a><br /><a name="Page_420" id="Page_420">[420]</a></span> -there pouring oil from a vessel in his hand on the angry -waters. And presently, although the storm continued to -rage over the rest of the ocean, the ship seemed to be -rocked in a little basin that was calm.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 517px;"> -<img src="images/illus419.jpg" width="517" height="649" alt="traveler meeting man in road carrying mirror" /> -</div> - -<p>Said the teacher: “Gentleness overcomes where resistance -would be in vain.”</p> - -<p>He held up the mirror again, and I saw two stone-cutters -at work dressing a great block of granite. On -the wall above them was a clock. Now, one of the men -stood with his back to the clock, so that he could not -see it, and his arm dealt strong and rapid blows on the -stone, seeming never to tire. But the other man stood -facing the clock, and was constantly lifting up his eyes -to it; and I noticed that his arm was raised slowly and -feebly, as if losing its strength, and his face wore an -expression of weariness.</p> - -<p>The teacher said: “He who does not set his heart -on his task, but on the rest that comes after it, makes -poor work for his employer and long hours for himself.”</p> - -<p>Again he held the mirror up, and I saw a vine planted -in the ground, with branches growing out of each side. -Now, the vine was as if it were made of glass, so that I -could see the sap running from the stalk into the branches. -And as it did this they all put forth leaves and blossoms. -But suddenly, as I looked, the sap ceased to flow into one<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_421" id="Page_421">[421]</a><br /><a name="Page_422" id="Page_422">[422]</a></span> -of the branches. Then the buds and blossoms fell from it -to the earth, and the branch withered and died before my -eyes.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 506px;"> -<img src="images/illus421.jpg" width="506" height="656" alt="ship at sea in storm" /> -</div> - -<p>Said the teacher: “It is not what the branch gives, -but what it receives, that makes it of value in the vineyard.”</p> - -<p>He held up the mirror again, and I saw a man with a -lantern leading a company that followed him on a dark -and narrow path. But presently he closed his eyes, and, -as he did so, stumbled and fell. Then one of his followers -seized the lantern from his hand and led the others in safety, -but the one who had fallen did not return again.</p> - -<p>The teacher said: “Even the guide who points out the -way must tread carefully, or he may step aside and be lost.”</p> - -<p>Again he held up the mirror, and I saw a great fire -burning—not near, but, as it were, in a far-off abyss. In -it were being consumed what I had always looked upon -as the greatest works of men. And those of my own -works in which I had taken the greatest pride were also -being devoured by the flames. Only a few of the deeds -that had seemed to me of lesser value, but that had been -done for love (the love of One who first loved me), stood -unconsumed in the fire.</p> - -<p>And the teacher said: “Behold true and false immortality.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_423" id="Page_423">[423]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 519px;"> -<img src="images/illus423.jpg" width="519" height="672" alt="two stonecutters working" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_424" id="Page_424">[424]</a></span></p> - -<p>Once more he held up the mirror, and I saw a man -carrying a heavy load up a hill. The hill grew steeper -at every step, and the man bent down under the weight -of the load until his forehead nearly touched the ground -in front of him. Then I saw one having a face full -of love and a strong arm come up beside the man. -But just as I supposed he was going to help him, what -was my surprise to see this strong one pick up a heavy -stone and put it on the top of his burden! Then I looked -to see the man sink down, crushed, to the earth, but I saw -the other touch him, and by that touch new strength was -given him; so that he bore this heavy burden more easily -than he had borne the lighter one.</p> - -<p>And the teacher said: “No load is to be feared if -only the strength be given to bear it.”</p> - -<p>Then he took the mirror from before me and held -it up to his own lips, breathing upon it. And I saw -the vapor gather on its surface for a moment and then -disappear.</p> - -<p>And the teacher said: “Such are good impressions -when made on the heart of man unless a higher Power -fix them there.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_425" id="Page_425">[425]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 519px;"> -<img src="images/illus425.jpg" width="519" height="656" alt="angel putting heavy stone on man's back" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_426" id="Page_426">[426]</a></span></p> - - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 450px;"> -<img src="images/illus426.jpg" width="450" height="317" alt="Landscape" /> -</div> - - - -<h2>CLOUD-SHADOWS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A CLOUD came sailing on the wind, which died away -just as it reached a fruitful field.</p> - -<p>“Pass on,” said the field, “and let me see the blue -sky.”</p> - -<p>The cloud spread itself out to catch the little air that -was left, and slowly passed on to a field beyond. There -it hung motionless. In the night it began to drop its<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_427" id="Page_427">[427]</a></span> -watery contents upon the thirsty sward beneath, so that -every green blade glistened as the sun rose upon it, and -sprang up with renewed freshness and beauty. The field -that had complained, seeing this and being parched with -the sun’s rays, said:</p> - -<p>“Ah that I had borne the cloud’s presence a while for -the sake of the blessing it contained! I was impatient -under its shadow, and now long for that which my neighbor -has gained who submitted to its visitation without -murmuring.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">We put out our hand and thrust away an imagined evil, -to find out afterward that, if we had but welcomed it, it -would have filled that hand with good.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 320px;"> -<img src="images/illus427.jpg" width="320" height="103" alt="Landscape in dark rain" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_428" id="Page_428">[428]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 347px;"> -<img src="images/illus428.jpg" width="347" height="228" alt="Pug looking down street at relative" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE PENITENT TRANSGRESSOR.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A GOOD natured poodle-dog, while trotting along the -street one day, saw a friend of his, an ugly pug, -lying on a doorstep looking very much dejected and out -of spirits.</p> - -<p>“Why do you look so mournful?” asked the poodle. -“What has happened?”</p> - -<p>“I feel sorry for something I’ve done,” replied the -pug.</p> - -<p>“What is it? Have you been peeping into your master’s -looking-glass?”</p> - -<p>“No, but I’ve bitten another dog.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_429" id="Page_429">[429]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus429.jpg" width="523" height="660" alt="Poodle talking to pug who is lying on front stoop" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_430" id="Page_430">[430]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Well, I suppose he took a bone away from you or -snarled at you, or did something else to deserve it.”</p> - -<p>“He did snarl at me, that’s true, but I don’t think I -ought to have bitten him.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t he bite you back again?”</p> - -<p>“No, and that makes me feel all the worse.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well, cheer up; it’s over now, and very likely -you’ll never see him any more.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I will, though, for he’s a relation of mine.”</p> - -<p>“But you’ll never bite him again after being so sorry -for it—I’m sure of that—and that’s some comfort.”</p> - -<p>“But I’m not sure, for I’ve done it before, and been -sorry too. When anything doesn’t please me, all at once I -get so mad that I hardly know what I’m about, and then -I’m ready to bite my dearest friend.”</p> - -<p>“Do you mean that you get crazy and lose your -senses?”</p> - -<p>“No, I only mean that I lose my temper. I’m sorry -for it every time, but I go on losing it and biting my -friends over and over again; and I’m discouraged about -it, and don’t know what to do.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if you haven’t got sense enough to stop it, right -now and without any more whining, the sooner you go and -give yourself up to the dog-catchers, the better.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_431" id="Page_431">[431]</a></span></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">Persons who easily fly into a passion forfeit not only -the regard and confidence of other people, but also their -own self-respect.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 221px;"> -<img src="images/illus431.jpg" width="221" height="207" alt="Pug dog" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_432" id="Page_432">[432]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 488px;"> -<img src="images/illus432.jpg" width="488" height="251" alt="farmer looking into well bucket" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE DRY WELL.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A man who had always been able to get as much water -from his well as he wanted, on drawing up the bucket -one hot summer day, found less than a cupful in it. There -was so little water at the bottom of the well that the bucket -could not turn over and fill itself. As soon as the man discovered -this he began abusing his well, saying:</p> - -<p>“Is that all you can do? You are not worth the room -you take or the money you cost to dig. If there is any -one thing more useless and contemptible than another, it -is a well that holds no water.”</p> - -<p>“Does all my past service go for nothing, then?” asked<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_433" id="Page_433">[433]</a><br /><a name="Page_434" id="Page_434">[434]</a></span> -the well. “I have filled your bucket, year after year, with -unfailing streams, as you yourself know. And even now -what I have I willingly offer, to the last drop.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 528px;"> -<img src="images/illus433.jpg" width="528" height="672" alt="farmer tipping over mostly empty well bucket" /> -</div> - -<p>“‘Drop’ indeed, and little more!” said the man. “But -what good will that do me? What I want is a barrelful -or a hogsheadful if I need it.”</p> - -<p>“I have not the ocean to draw from,” replied the well, -“or even a river, but only one trickling spring. If that fails, -I have no other resource, but must wait till its dried-up -current begins to flow again. Can you, at all times, -command the same fulness and excellence in your own -work? Pray, do your powers never fail?”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">How often are we intolerant of a single failure on the -part of those who have generally succeeded in pleasing us, -and who are still doing their very best to accomplish that -end!</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 150px;"> -<img src="images/illus434.jpg" width="150" height="207" alt="bucket floating in water in well" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_435" id="Page_435">[435]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 431px;"> -<img src="images/illus435.jpg" width="431" height="257" alt="two Biblical men looking at young tree" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE FRUIT TREE.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A FRUIT tree sprang up from a seed in the corner of -a certain man’s field. It grew rapidly and put forth -branches. Great was the man’s delight when he saw these -bearing blossoms.</p> - -<p>“Now I shall have fruit of my own,” he said.</p> - -<p>Autumn came and the fruit appeared, but as it ripened, -instead of growing round and rich and mellow, it grew -knotted and hard and bitter to the taste.</p> - -<p>“’Tis because it is young and the soil where it stands -thin and poor,” the land-owner said.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_436" id="Page_436">[436]</a></span></p> - -<p>Then he loosened the ground around its roots and enriched -and watered it, and afterward waited for spring. -Spring came, and again the tree put forth blossoms and -bore fruit, more abundantly than before; but it was worthless -and unfit to be eaten.</p> - -<p>Another winter passed and spring returned once more, -and one sunny morning, as the land-owner stood looking at -his tree and repining over it, there came a gardener by -that way.</p> - -<p>“What troubles you?” he said, seeing the man’s sad -face.</p> - -<p>“My tree has proved worthless,” replied the other. -“Yet I have done all that could be done to it, and still -it bears only evil fruit.”</p> - -<p>At this the gardener took out his pruning-knife and -opening it, he came to the tree and at one stroke severed -its top, with all its spreading boughs, so that they fell -down on the ground, as fit only for the burning. Then -he made a deep cleft in the stock of the tree, and into -this he inserted a young shoot that he carried with him. -Next he anointed, with clay, the wound that his knife -had made, and wrapped it about carefully, and, turning -to the land-owner, said:</p> - -<p>“Be patient; give it time. All yet will be well.”</p> - -<p>Another season came. The new shoot put forth buds;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_437" id="Page_437">[437]</a></span> -it blossomed, and then (after the gardener had grafted it, -but not before) the tree brought forth good fruit.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">There is a life which is ours by natural inheritance, and -another which comes only as a free gift. Though both are -housed in the same body, they are received at different -times and have each a separate existence and destiny.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 231px;"> -<img src="images/illus437.jpg" width="231" height="208" alt="brambles on fire" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_438" id="Page_438">[438]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 480px;"> -<img src="images/illus438.jpg" width="480" height="294" alt="mother doe and two fawns" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE DEER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A DEER that lived in a country far from the abodes -of men used to stay during the winter on some -low-lying lands where she could find patches of grass -growing through the cold weather, and thick coverts, -also, among the evergreens, in which to hide while the -fierce snow-storms were prevailing. But as soon as spring -returned she left the low-lands and hastened to a mountain -many miles away, and there, roaming over its wooded -heights and drinking from a quiet lake that lay spread<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_439" id="Page_439">[439]</a></span> -out on its very top, she stayed, rejoicing, all the summer -long.</p> - -<p>After she had been doing thus for many years, and -when she was no longer young, it happened one winter -that certain strange sensations crept through her frame -such as she had never before known. She rose from -her lair with more difficulty than formerly, and walked -at times with an unsteady step. She grew weak and -thin, and afraid of the storms that she used to face -boldly when going forth in search of food. Then she -began to wonder, and say:</p> - -<p>“What ails me, and what do these feelings mean?”</p> - -<p>But presently she answered:</p> - -<p>“I know what I need: it is a drink from the lake -on the mountain-top. When I can taste of it once more, -these feelings will pass away.”</p> - -<p>So she waited in her low-land home, through the cold -and dreary winter days that remained, for the opening -buds and singing birds of spring. As soon as these -appeared she started on her journey to the mountain. -But now that journey seemed longer than it used to -seem. She had to rest oftener by the way. Instead of -leaping from crag to crag as she ascended the mountain-side, -she found herself picking out the easiest and safest -paths. Still laboring on up the steep ascent, she at last<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_440" id="Page_440">[440]</a></span> -reached the summit and stood beside the lake that she -loved. It looked the same. The rocks around its shores -were reflected in its bosom, the water-lilies floated on its -surface, the trees and wild-flowers grew down to its very -edge. All was as it had ever been. She said: “I shall -soon be well again;” and, putting her mouth down to the -water, drank. But presently she raised it slowly, saying: -“Either it is changed, or I am. It does not taste as it -once did, or bring the refreshment it has always before -brought to my wearied frame.”</p> - -<p>Then, turning with feeble step to the bed of moss -under the thick bushes where she had so often rested -in years gone by, she lay down, to rise from it no more. -The fresh, pure mountain-breeze was still blowing; other -deer came and drank in new life and vigor at the lake; it -was as beautiful and its surroundings were as health-giving -as ever; but they could not recall the life that, having -reached its farther bound, had passed away.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">There is a day coming when the scenes and influences -that once revived our failing strength will do so no more, -and their failure will be a token that to us the end of -earthly things is at hand.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_441" id="Page_441">[441]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 525px;"> -<img src="images/illus441.jpg" width="525" height="674" alt="life of the deer" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_442" id="Page_442">[442]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 493px;"> -<img src="images/illus442.jpg" width="493" height="263" alt="woman, child and a cow" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>HOMELY AND HANDSOME.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A HORSE and a cow that were turned out to pasture -together cropped the grass in company until they -came to a tree in the middle of the field, where they -stopped to rest in the shade. The cow lay down and -chewed the cud, but the horse stood switching off the -flies with his long tail.</p> - -<p>While doing this he turned to the cow and said:</p> - -<p>“I’ve just been thinking what a contrast there is between -us two. I am so swift, and you are so slow. You -travel only from the barn to the field in summer, and -hardly get out of the barnyard in winter. Your walk<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_443" id="Page_443">[443]</a></span> -is clumsy and awkward; and when you try to run, you -seem to have our old master’s rheumatism in every joint. -How different it is with me, galloping swiftly over the -country around, visiting our neighbors’ farms and hearing -of all that is going on! But then it is not your fault that -you were made to be only a cow, while I was made a fleet-footed -horse.”</p> - -<p>“I’m very glad,” said the cow, “that you are so well -satisfied with your lot, but I don’t want you to think I -am dissatisfied with mine. When our mistress pats me on -the side and calls me kind names, after milking, I feel proud -too. For this I go through the fields picking out the freshest -grass and the richest clover, saying to myself, ‘I’ll give -her a good pailful to-night.’ Then, when I see the red -cheeks of the children, I know I’ve had something to do -with them; and when our master drives you to market with -his butter-tub well filled, I have a notion he would miss -me, as well as you.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t deny,” replied the horse, “that you have your -good points and are useful in your way. I was only pitying -you for being so slow and so ugly.”</p> - -<p>As he spoke these words he saw the farmer coming -through the gate into the field and bringing a strange -man with him. They came directly to the tree where -the horse and the cow were resting.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_444" id="Page_444">[444]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the stranger, looking at the horse; “he’s -a smart, good-looking colt, and by putting him through -some pretty hard training I reckon I can work him off at -a fair profit. I’ll give you your price for him.”</p> - -<p>“Then you can have him,” said the farmer. “If he’s -worth that, I can’t afford to keep him; a lower-priced beast -will do just as well for me.”</p> - -<p>With that the old man slipped a halter over the horse’s -head and led him away. As he sadly followed his master -he looked back at the old cow, still contentedly chewing -her cud, and said:</p> - -<p>“I go from this pleasant farm, where I was bred and -have lived so long, to be driven and beaten, and then sold -I know not where. Ah, my old friend! I wish now that I -was as ugly and as slow as you.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">If we have any gifts beyond our neighbors, let us possess -them humbly; for we cannot tell but what those very -gifts may some day cause our happiness to be less than -theirs.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_445" id="Page_445">[445]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus445.jpg" width="516" height="674" alt="top scene: horse boasting of own beauty to cow; bottom scene: horse being sold" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_446" id="Page_446">[446]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 485px;"> -<img src="images/illus446.jpg" width="485" height="223" alt="horse pulling milk cart" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE COLT AND OLD GRAY.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A COLT that had just been broken to harness was -driven in a milk-wagon every day to the city, -where he was fastened to a hitching-post, and left standing, -while the farmer went around to the neighboring -houses serving milk.</p> - -<p>A boy on the way to his work one morning chanced to -rap against the post in passing, when the colt put back -his ears. Seeing this, the boy stopped and gave him a -thrust in the side, when the colt snapped at him and raised -his hind foot, showing that he was angry.</p> - -<p>Instead of checking the boy, this only encouraged him;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_447" id="Page_447">[447]</a><br /><a name="Page_448" id="Page_448">[448]</a></span> -so that the next morning he repeated his offence, and continued -to do it afterward every morning, seeming to take -a wicked delight in rousing the colt’s temper. Yet the -colt, being tied, could do nothing to revenge himself, as -the boy took good care to keep out of the reach of both -his teeth and his heels.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 522px;"> -<img src="images/illus447.jpg" width="522" height="675" alt="boy taunting horse" /> -</div> - -<p>One day, on going back to the stable, the colt told an -old gray horse that stood in the next stall how cruelly he -was tormented, without being able to stop his tormentor.</p> - -<p>“I know how you could stop him,” said the old gray, -“and that without giving yourself the least trouble.”</p> - -<p>“Tell me,” said the colt.</p> - -<p>“What will you give me for my secret?” asked Old -Gray.</p> - -<p>“My share of the feed that we’ll get for our dinner.”</p> - -<p>“All right,” said Old Gray; “I’ll tell you as soon as -I have eaten it.”</p> - -<p>In a little while the farmer passed through the stable, -and poured out six quarts of oats for each horse. And the -colt, although he was very hungry and his mouth watered -for them, allowed the old horse to put his head over and -eat up every grain in his manger.</p> - -<p>“Now,” said the colt, impatiently, “tell me, as you -promised, how I can stop that young rogue from poking -at my ribs every morning.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_449" id="Page_449">[449]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 516px;"> -<img src="images/illus449.jpg" width="516" height="658" alt="old gray horse eating colt's dinner" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_450" id="Page_450">[450]</a></span></p> - -<p>“In this way,” said the old horse. “Let him do it, and -pretend you don’t feel it.”</p> - -<p>“Is that all you have to say?” said the colt, angrily. -“I could have done that without being told, or being -cheated out of my dinner, either.”</p> - -<p>“But you never thought of it till I told you,” said Old -Gray. “Now, just try it.”</p> - -<p>As the oats were all gone and could never be gotten -back, the colt concluded there was no use in fretting any -more about them. Yet he found himself thinking over Old -Gray’s advice, and before night concluded to try it.</p> - -<p>The next morning the boy came along as usual, and, -stealing up softly by the colt’s side, gave him a thrust in -the tender spot just behind his shoulder. The colt never -winced, nor even turned his eyes toward him. The boy -tried it again and again, with no better success, until he -had to hurry away, for fear of a scolding from his master.</p> - -<p>For several mornings after this he renewed the attempt -(though with less spirit each morning), until, finding it made -no impression, he gave it up altogether, and passed by -whistling, with his hands in his pockets, as if no colt were -there.</p> - -<p>Shortly after this, one evening about sundown, as the -colt was drinking in the stable-yard, Old Gray came in -from ploughing.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_451" id="Page_451">[451]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 523px;"> -<img src="images/illus451.jpg" width="523" height="674" alt="Old horse pulling plough into yard while colt thanks him from the trough" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_452" id="Page_452">[452]</a></span></p> - -<p>Said the colt, raising his head from the horse-trough:</p> - -<p>“Your advice was good and worth the oats, after all. -I ask your pardon for being so rude the other morning.”</p> - -<p>“I can easily forgive you,” said Old Gray. “Trifles do -not worry me. You are only a colt yet, just put to the -milk-wagon. You’ll be wiser by the time you get to the -plough.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">By noticing small affronts, we give every passer-by the -power to vex us; by overlooking them, we take that power -away.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 364px;"> -<img src="images/illus452.jpg" width="364" height="247" alt="plow and milk cans" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_453" id="Page_453">[453]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 487px;"> -<img src="images/illus453.jpg" width="487" height="287" alt="crowd of people" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE KING’S ALMONER.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A KING was told that his subjects in a certain city were -suffering from hunger and cold and nakedness. Then -he said to himself,</p> - -<p>“What man is there among them, of prudence and charity, -with whom I can intrust supplies for their relief?”</p> - -<p>And one being named he sent to him stores of food and -raiment and money, with this message:</p> - -<p>“These things are for the benefit of all the dwellers in -your city. Not that you should be neglected while others -are provided for; on the contrary, as you will have to wait -on the rest as my almoner, you may keep somewhat the -largest share for yourself.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_454" id="Page_454">[454]</a></span></p> - -<p>So the man received what the king sent, and divided it -in due proportion between himself and the sufferers around -him.</p> - -<p>But after doing this justly and generously for a time he -began, as new supplies came in, to increase his own portion -and diminish that which he divided among his neighbors, -thus making himself richer and richer, while they became -poorer and poorer.</p> - -<p>Now, it was the king’s custom at certain seasons to leave -his royal palace and travel through his dominions, visiting -his people in every city; and, the time for his departure having -come, he set out on his journey, and at length came to -the city which he had befriended. And he went among the -people, visiting them in their houses, and found great poverty -and distress among them.</p> - -<p>Then he came to the house of his almoner, and walked -through its spacious rooms (for the man had built himself a -new house) and saw his children richly clothed and his -table covered with dainties. And the king sat down with -them and partook of the rich fare that was provided, and -afterward went to his own home.</p> - -<p>As soon as he came there he called his chief servant -and commanded him to send fresh supplies of food and -money and raiment—greater and more abundant than ever -before—to the suffering city. And these, being sent forth<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_455" id="Page_455">[455]</a></span> -in haste, quickly reached their destination. And the king’s -almoner received them, and after giving a very little to the -people around him laid up the rest for himself. As he did -so he said,</p> - -<p>“Now am I sure of the king’s love and favor, for behold -by his bounty how my wealth has increased!”</p> - -<p>But not many days after this the almoner’s servant who -had charge of his storehouse came to him, saying,</p> - -<p>“The food which you have laid up has bred worms and -is spoiled.”</p> - -<p>Then the servant who kept his raiment came and said,</p> - -<p>“The rich garments sent by the king, which you have -laid by so carefully, are being consumed by the moth and -destroyed.”</p> - -<p>And the keeper of his gold came, saying,</p> - -<p>“The treasure-boxes which appeared so strong are falling -to pieces; much gold has already been lost from them, -and because they are opening of themselves they invite the -hand of the pilferer and robber.”</p> - -<p>Then the rich man was in great trouble, and he went in -haste to the king and told him of the losses which had so -suddenly befallen him.</p> - -<p>The king replied,</p> - -<p>“How can that be lost now which was given long ago -to the poor?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_456" id="Page_456">[456]</a></span></p> - -<p>The rich man answered,</p> - -<p>“I have done wrong in keeping for my own what did -not belong to me.”</p> - -<p>So he returned to his house sad at heart, to find all -his riches melted away, and truly (as he knew) it was by his -own act, and not by the hand of an enemy.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">He who will be richer than he ought to be shall be -poorer than he need to be.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 359px;"> -<img src="images/illus456.jpg" width="359" height="367" alt="man bowing before king" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_457" id="Page_457">[457]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 492px;"> -<img src="images/illus457.jpg" width="492" height="259" alt="man on road with garden blooming beside him" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>PANSIES.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">TWO purple pansies opened their velvet-like leaves one -summer morning, but on looking around them saw that -they had not the garden-bed alone. On one side a clump -of crimson poppies towered above their heads, and on the -other some tall golden lilies were nodding in the breeze.</p> - -<p>When the lowly pansies saw their lofty neighbors, the -joy which at first they felt in their new being quickly -waned. They looked up enviously, first at the poppies, -and then at the lilies, saying to one another,</p> - -<p>“Between these haughty flowers, there is nothing left -us but to hang our heads in shame.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_458" id="Page_458">[458]</a></span></p> - -<p>Just then the gardener passing by, they cried,</p> - -<p>“Take us from here, we pray you, and plant us in a bed -of flowers yet lowlier than ourselves.”</p> - -<p>“And why do you ask this change?” he said.</p> - -<p>“Do you not see,” they replied, “how our gorgeous -neighbors overshadow us, and by contrast how poor and -mean we seem?”</p> - -<p>“Then it is nothing but pride,” the gardener answered, -“that prompts the request: you would be to others what -these gorgeous neighbors are to you. Be satisfied rather to -remain where you are. And know that it is not for the -glory of the flower its place in the garden is chosen, yet -its greatest beauty may be attained where it stands in fulfilling -my design.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">A desire to be the greatest as well as a willingness to be -least may lead us to choose our place in a lower sphere.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_459" id="Page_459">[459]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 293px;"> -<img src="images/illus459.jpg" width="293" height="103" alt="string of bells" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE BIRDS AND THE BELLS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A VILLAGE church was presented with a chime of -bells, which were rung for the first time on a bright -spring morning. The country-people were delighted with -the unusual sounds, but there was one class of hearers -displeased. These were the birds. Heretofore they had -made all the music for the fields and hills, and the sound -of the bells seemed to them an invasion of their rights. -They met together in an evergreen hedge to talk over -the matter.</p> - -<p>Said the robin:</p> - -<p>“My notes can no longer be heard.”</p> - -<p>The bluebird said:</p> - -<p>“I might as well have no voice at all.”</p> - -<p>The wrens and swallows whose nests were in the -church-tower declared they were driven out of house and -home. The meeting appointed the oriole and the dove -to wait on the pastor and lay their grievance before him.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_460" id="Page_460">[460]</a></span></p> - -<p>The next morning, as the good man was at work in -his garden, the two appeared in a pear tree near by.</p> - -<p>“Good-morning, sir,” said the oriole.</p> - -<p>“Good-morning, my feathered friend,” replied the pastor. -“When did you arrive from the South?”</p> - -<p>“Only a few days ago, but it was to find a sad change -here.”</p> - -<p>“Pray, what may it be? Not gunners already, nor boys -after your nests?”</p> - -<p>“Not these, but the bells in your church-tower.”</p> - -<p>“Why, do not they please you?”</p> - -<p>“No, indeed! and all the birds have sent us to protest -against them. We and our forefathers have enlivened -these hills with our songs time out of mind, and we -believe the air, for music, belongs to us still. And we -have come to give you your choice: Take down the -bells, or we will be still and never sing for you again.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 531px;"> -<img src="images/illus461.jpg" width="531" height="663" alt="birds flying by belfry window" /> -</div> - -<p>The pastor was dumb with astonishment as the birds -flew away. He held the hoe in his hand full five minutes -without moving, deep in thought concerning the strange -interview. But of course submission to so unreasonable -a demand was not to be thought of, and the next Sunday -morning the bells again sent forth their glad peal. The -ringers were in earnest, and their chimes floated far over -hill and vale. But for the rest of the sacred day, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_461" id="Page_461">[461]</a> -<br /><a name="Page_462" id="Page_462">[462]</a></span> -for full twenty-four hours afterward, not a bird uttered -a note. They could be seen flitting through the bushes -and the trees, but all was perfectly still.</p> - -<p>“How I miss their sweet voices!” said the pastor to -his wife. “Though the leaves are unfolding and the -rosebuds are swelling, without the birds’ voices it does -not seem like spring.”</p> - -<p>“Never fear,” replied his wife; “it will all come right -again.”</p> - -<p>Now, the birds, in resolving not to sing, had forgotten -that, besides disobliging the people, they might inconvenience -themselves. The spring was the season for their -songs, and they soon found this out. After being silent -for two whole days, the robin said:</p> - -<p>“I really cannot keep still any longer. I will fly -down to the other end of the woods, beyond the creek, -where nobody can hear me, and sing a little song to -myself.”</p> - -<p>But great was his surprise, on reaching the woods, to -hear the oriole, who had come there for the same purpose -a little while before him. And presently the cuckoo, and -a number of other birds, joined them at the place.</p> - -<p>“What does this mean?” they said, looking round at -each other.</p> - -<p>“It is not hard to guess,” said the wren. “I don’t<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_463" id="Page_463">[463]</a></span> -doubt we have all gone through the same experience. -To confess the truth, I believe we are spiting ourselves -more than anybody else.”</p> - -<p>“Well, now,” said the owl, who spent his days asleep -in that dark woods, but had been waked up by the voices, -“let us reconsider our vote. Long ago, in the days of our -fathers, these hills remained the same from age to age; but -now the world has changed, and we must put up with it. -The bells are not so bad as they might be, after all. They -don’t ring all the time, and though they are not as musical -as your songs, or as my hoot, yet they are not altogether -without harmony. I move it be left to each bird to do as -he chooses.”</p> - -<p>The vote was taken and carried, and the birds flew off -merrily; but the owl went to sleep again.</p> - -<p>The next morning, as the pastor and his wife were in -their garden tending their flower-beds, and both longing -for the songs of the birds, suddenly the voice of the oriole -was heard in the pear tree. He was leaping from branch -to branch, singing as if to make up for lost time and -as though he could not utter the notes fast enough.</p> - -<p>“Here I am!” he said to the pastor. “We have -thought the matter over and concluded to let the bells ring.”</p> - -<p>The pastor looked up delighted, and his wife shared -his joy.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_464" id="Page_464">[464]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Did I not tell you,” she cried, “that it would all come -right? For when no harm is intended and both sides mean -to be fair, though they may sometimes get crooked, they are -pretty sure to come straight again.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 313px;"> -<img src="images/illus464.jpg" width="313" height="61" alt="birds on a line" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_465" id="Page_465">[465]</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2 class="faux">JACK -AND -JENNY.</h2> - -<div> - <img class="split" src="images/illus465a.jpg" alt="birds around birdhouse" width="388" height="183" /> - <img class="split" src="images/illus465b.jpg" alt="birds around birdhouse" width="178" height="126" /> -</div> -<div class="adtitle2"><br /><br />JACK<br /> -<small>AND</small><br /> -JENNY.<br /><br /><br /></div> - - -<p class="drop-cap">A SPARROW -that -lived with -many others -in a public park offended his neighbors -by getting up too early in the -morning and beginning to chirp before -they were willing to be waked. -They called a meeting of all the -flock, and after considering the matter told him that he -and his mate must look for another home.</p> - -<p>This he refused to do, saying that he had as good a -right to stay where he was as they had.</p> - -<p>“These trees do not belong to you,” he said, “and you -don’t pay rent for the bird-boxes we live in. They were -put up by the people who own the park, because they love -to see us building our nests and flying about here.</p> - -<p>“Beside this,” he continued, “I have done nothing with -which you ought to find fault, for I never wake till the -break of day, and do not begin to chirp for several -minutes after that, when all industrious sparrows should<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_466" id="Page_466">[466]</a></span> -be ready for breakfast. This very morning I heard a -cock crow before I opened my bill, and what sparrow -would not be ashamed to be lazier than the chickens?”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 388px;"> -<img src="images/illus466.jpg" width="388" height="392" alt="sparrows on a branch" /> -</div> - -<p>When the other birds heard this speech, they did not -try to answer it—for, indeed, it was every word true and -they could say nothing against it—but, having the power -on their side, they all at once fiercely attacked the sparrow -with their beaks and claws. Nor did they attack him alone,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_467" id="Page_467">[467]</a></span> -but they flew at his innocent mate -also, and hurt her more than they -hurt him; for after they were -both driven out of the park -and had lodged on a neighboring -fence it was found -not only that her feathers -were badly tumbled -and torn, but, -alas! that one of her -eyes was pecked out.</p> - -<div class="figright" style="width: 303px;"> -<img src="images/illus467a.jpg" width="303" height="338" alt="two sparrows cuddled on fence" /> -</div> - -<div class="figleft" style="width: 326px;"> -<img src="images/illus467b.jpg" width="326" height="217" alt="one sparrow covering other in rainstorm on roof" /> -</div> - -<p>As winter was just -coming on, they knew -not where to go or -what to do. For the first few nights they roosted on the -roof of a stable; but this was a forlorn, lonely place, and, -as they had no -perch to clasp with -their little feet, the -wind almost blew them -away. Beside this, the -man who kept the stable -was so saving of his corn, -and swept the yard so -clean, that they could<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_468" id="Page_468">[468]</a></span> -hardly pick up as much as would make a good meal in a -whole day.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 497px;"> -<img src="images/illus468.jpg" width="497" height="434" alt="staying out of cat's reach on eaves" /> -</div> - -<p>From the roof of the stable they moved under the -eaves of a carpenter-shop, and thought they were nicely -fixed, until one dark night a cat stole softly along the roof -to the spot where they were sleeping, and, suddenly putting -out her paw, almost caught them both in her sharp claws.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_469" id="Page_469">[469]</a></span> -As it was, she caught poor Jenny’s tail and pulled out -every feather of it, which did the cat no good, but was a -great loss to Jenny, for she could hardly guide herself in -flying, and looked very odd beside.</p> - -<p>After this they led a sad wandering life for the rest of -the winter, always sleeping in fear on clothes-lines and -fences, and picking up a poor living—mostly from frozen -slop-buckets and around kitchen doors.</p> - -<p>But toward spring better fortune came to them, for a -little girl, looking out of the dining-room window one -morning, spied them hopping about the pavement below, -and threw them some crumbs. Her joy was great when -she saw them quickly eat what she had thrown and then -seem to look up for more. She ran back to the table, and -brought them as much as they wanted.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_470" id="Page_470">[470]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 391px;"> -<img src="images/illus470a.jpg" width="391" height="350" alt="Girl putting birdseed on window-ill" /> -</div> - -<p>The next day they came again, and after this, every -day, almost as soon as it was light, they might be seen -waiting for their breakfast from the hands of their little -friend.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 405px;"> -<img src="images/illus470b.jpg" width="405" height="167" alt="eating the birdseed" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_471" id="Page_471">[471]</a></span></p> - -<p>But think of their surprise one April morning, when the -sun was shining brightly and the buds were just beginning -to swell on the rose-bushes, to see the carpenter come in at -the garden-gate carrying a new bird-box -fastened to the top of a high pole, -which he at once began to set up in -the middle of the grass-plot, digging a -deep hole to set it in, so that it would -stand firm in spite of wind and -weather.</p> - -<div class="figleft" style="width: 163px;"> -<img src="images/illus471a.jpg" width="163" height="408" alt="Bird house high on stick" /> -</div> - -<p>Their kind little friend ran out from -the house and almost danced for joy -around the pole while it was being -planted. And her father and mother, -and brothers and -sisters, sharing -in her delight, -all left the breakfast-table -to -watch the carpenter -at his work.</p> - - -<p>That very day the happy pair—little -Jack and Jenny—went into -their new home, and before night -were picking up dried grass and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_472" id="Page_472">[472]</a></span> -twigs with -which to -begin building -their nest.</p> -<div class="figright" style="width: 193px;"> -<img src="images/illus471b.jpg" width="193" height="260" alt="Little girl looking up at birdhouse" /> -</div> - -<div> - <img class="splitr" src="images/illus472a1.jpg" alt="bird flying toward birdhouse" width="377" height="69" /> - <img class="splitr" src="images/illus472a2.jpg" alt="birdhouse pole" width="115" height="251" /> -</div> - - -<p>Now, it happened, not long after this, -that a young sparrow who lived at the -park, in taking a longer flight than usual -one morning, spied the pretty bird-box -with her old acquaintances perched at its -door.</p> - -<p>“Oh ho!” said she to herself, “is this -where you have come? and to such a fine -house, too!” and in a lower voice, which -no one could hear, she whispered, “I would -like to live in it myself.”</p> - - -<p>She waited till Jenny had gone off in search of a -twig; then she quickly -flew down to Jack, who -was singing on the roof.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you remember -me?” she asked. “My parents lived next door to you at -the park. But I was not one of those who drove you -away; indeed, I never raised my wing against you.”</p> - -<p>“I remember you,” replied Jack. “But how in the -world did you get here?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_473" id="Page_473">[473]</a></span></p> - -<p>“I came to admire your beautiful new home,” said Pert, -“and to tell you how glad I am that you have got up in -the world.”</p> - - -<p>“Thank you for your kindness,” replied Jack.</p> - -<p>“There is something else,” said Pert, “that I want to -say, but I don’t like to mention it.”</p> - -<p>“Speak out,” said Jack; “I want ever so much to -hear it.”</p> - -<p>“Well, then,” replied Pert, “to tell you the truth, I am -afraid that all the other birds, when they hear of your good -fortune, will laugh at your wife.”</p> -<div class="figleft" style="width: 282px;"> -<img src="images/illus472b.jpg" width="282" height="88" alt="bird getting stick" /> -</div> - -<p>“What ails her?” asked Jack.</p> - -<p>“She is not the one,” replied Pert, “for so handsome -a sparrow as you, and for such a fine house.” Here Miss -Pert turned all the way round to show her fine feathers. -“And I have come as a friend,” she continued, “to ask if -I can help you in finding a prettier mate.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t want one,” said Jack.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_474" id="Page_474">[474]</a></span></p> - -<p>“What?” exclaimed Pert. “And Jenny with only one -eye and all her tail-feathers pulled out?”</p> -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 383px;"> -<img src="images/illus473.jpg" width="383" height="149" alt="birds singing on gingerbread of birdhouse top" /> -</div> - -<p>“Ah, but,” said Jack, “her other eye is the brightest -and softest that ever was seen. And, as for her tail-feathers, -they are all growing again.”</p> - -<p>“Pooh!” said Pert, “she is too old for you, beside -being ugly.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 349px;"> -<img src="images/illus474.jpg" width="349" height="207" alt="Bird sending Miss Pert off" /> -</div> - -<p>“Oh no,” said Jack; “she is just the right age. And -if she <i>has</i> lost her good looks, she has lost them for me. -When you were against me, then she was my friend; and -now, when you are willing to be my friend because I have -grown rich, I will not turn her off to please you. Go home -again, Miss Pert, for nobody but Jenny shall share my fine -house.”</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="moral">That person seems the prettiest whom we love the best;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_475" id="Page_475">[475]</a></span> -and the one who was faithful to us when we were in trouble -is the one we should remain faithful to when our troubles -are taken away.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 246px;"> -<img src="images/illus475.jpg" width="246" height="233" alt="birds snuggled in door of their house" /> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_476" id="Page_476">[476]</a></span></p> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 409px;"> -<img src="images/illus476.jpg" width="409" height="143" alt="dogsled" /> -</div> - - - - -<h2>THE MEETING OF THE WINDS.</h2> - - -<p class="drop-cap">THE north and the south winds met one day in a field -beside a river. The north wind had brought some -snow the night before, but the south wind blew soon after, -and melted nearly all of it. Only a few white patches were -left, here and there, along the sunny banks of the stream.</p> - -<p>As soon as the winds came near each other the south -wind said:</p> - -<p>“Good-morning, brother! I am glad to meet you, -though your cold breath quite chills me.”</p> - -<p>“But I am not glad to meet you,” answered the north -wind. “Why did you melt my snow so quickly? Could -you not let it lie for one day?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_477" id="Page_477">[477]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus477.jpg" width="401" height="533" alt="moutainscape" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_478" id="Page_478">[478]</a></span></p> - -<p>“The time has come for the grass and flowers, you -know, brother, and I must be at work,” said the gentle -south wind.</p> - -<p>“There was no need of such haste,” said the burly -north wind; “when friends meet, they should be polite.”</p> - -<p>“I have to call up the daisies and to waken the roses,” -said the south wind, “and to make all the fields green by -the first of May. I have no time to lose. Look at yonder -meadow how brown it is, and at these trees how bare! -Scarcely a fly is buzzing in the sunshine, and not a tortoise -has yet crept out of his hole in the ground.”</p> - -<p>“I do not care for your daisies and your tortoises,” -muttered the north wind; “you want to hurry me off, -but I will not go so soon.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_479" id="Page_479">[479]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 399px;"> -<img src="images/illus479.jpg" width="399" height="538" alt="girl walking in woods" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_480" id="Page_480">[480]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Have you not had the whole winter to yourself,” -asked the south wind, “freezing the brooks, driving away -all my birds and my butterflies, and covering the fields and -roads and bushes and barns with snow? If I chanced to -come then and pay you a visit some bright morning, how -quickly you drove me away again! Never might I stay -till the sun went down!”</p> - -<p>“The winter is my time,” said the north wind; “it belongs -to me, and you had no right to come then.”</p> - -<p>“And the spring is my time,” answered the south wind; -“you know the law is that I must have the fields now.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_481" id="Page_481">[481]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 373px;"> -<img src="images/illus481.jpg" width="373" height="397" alt="farm scene" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_482" id="Page_482">[482]</a></span></p> - -<p>“You think a great deal of yourself,” said the north -wind, angrily, “but I am stronger than you. I can fly -farther, and I see things that you never see. Where do -you think I came from this morning?”</p> - -<p>“Tell me, I cannot guess?” answered the south wind.</p> - -<p>“I came all the way from the icy pole, where the -sea is frozen over, and the land is covered with snow that -never melts. The white bear lives there. I saw one but -a few hours ago, watching for fish by a hole that he had -broken through the ice.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_483" id="Page_483">[483]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 394px;"> -<img src="images/illus483.jpg" width="394" height="534" alt="polar bear" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_484" id="Page_484">[484]</a></span></p> - -<p>“But you never saw my home, nor the strange sights -that are there,” said the south wind. “I come from the -far-off torrid zone, where the snow never falls, and the -frost never kills the buds and the flowers. There the -panther lives. I passed by one last night in the forest -lying out on the branch of a great tree, watching for his -prey, that he might spring down on it as it passed beneath.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_485" id="Page_485">[485]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 397px;"> -<img src="images/illus485.jpg" width="397" height="536" alt="panther in tree in jungle" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_486" id="Page_486">[486]</a></span></p> - -<p>“But I see the Esquimaux,” answered the north wind, -“in their strange skin dresses, living in houses of snow. -They fight the fierce walrus on the ice, and spear the fur-covered -seal from their little boats that dance on the waves. -I watch the Northern Lights, so red and beautiful, shooting -up like bright flames in the sky, and the night is almost -as light as the day. Then the Esquimaux harnesses his -dogs, and the Laplander his reindeer, and they travel -swiftly over the frozen plain.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_487" id="Page_487">[487]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 406px;"> -<img src="images/illus487.jpg" width="406" height="537" alt="reindeer pulling a sled" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_488" id="Page_488">[488]</a></span></p> - -<p>“Yesterday I blew with all my might until I loosed a -field of ice and sent it out to sea. A white bear was on it, -and he sailed on his ice-boat across the sea to Iceland. As -I passed the steep, high rocks on the shores of Greenland I -saw the eider-ducks brooding there. Each one had lined -her nest with soft down plucked off of her own breast. -Then I frightened them with my hoarse voice, and thousands—yes, -hundreds of thousands—rose up in the air -like a cloud.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_489" id="Page_489">[489]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 404px;"> -<img src="images/illus489.jpg" width="404" height="536" alt="ducks on seacoast" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_490" id="Page_490">[490]</a></span></p> - -<p>“But let me ask you,” murmured the south wind, “did -you ever hear among your icebergs and your frozen wastes -the song of the oriole and the mocking-bird, that I hear -every day in the woods where I live? You look at your -Esquimaux in their snow houses, but I peep in at the hut -of the Indian that stands under the forest shade, or I blow -against the sail of his canoe and waft it up some quiet river -where the trees grow thick on each side and meet overhead. -The red flamingo wades out into the water, and the monkeys -and parrots chatter among the branches.</p> - -<p>“I see the boa-constrictor coiled among the roots on the -shore, or watch the alligator floating down the stream. My -home is among the orange trees and in the fields where the -sugar-cane grows. There I lie still and sleep, or awake to -go forth on my journeys over the earth—not to freeze up -the ground and make it barren and bare, but to cover it -with green and bring out the buds and flowers on every -bush and tree.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_491" id="Page_491">[491]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 401px;"> -<img src="images/illus491.jpg" width="401" height="542" alt="Native man paddling canoe in jungle" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_492" id="Page_492">[492]</a></span></p> - -<p>While the winds were talking in this way, the river, that -had been listening to them, said:</p> - -<p>“Why do you thus boast and provoke one another? -Why not speak gently and kindly of the wonderful things -you have seen? You would not change homes, would -you?”</p> - -<p>“No, indeed!” each one replied; “I love my own the -best!”</p> - -<p>“Then,” said the river, “what good can come of disputing -when both are satisfied? As for me, I love you -both. I am glad for the north wind to blow cold, and -cover me with ice in the winter, so that the merry skaters -can come and glide swiftly over my smooth surface.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_493" id="Page_493">[493]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 405px;"> -<img src="images/illus493.jpg" width="405" height="539" alt="Children ice skating" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_494" id="Page_494">[494]</a></span></p> - -<p>“And I love the south wind to breathe softly in the -spring, and make my banks green again, and waken the -frogs along my shore, and bring the fisherman in his boat, -and the boys to swim.</p> - -<p>“Let us all be friends, then, and love each other, and -be satisfied with what our kind Creator has given us, and -happy in doing what will please Him.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_495" id="Page_495">[495]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"> -<img src="images/illus495.jpg" width="400" height="530" alt="Man fishing from boat" /> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_496" id="Page_496">[496]</a></span></p> - -<p>Then the north wind said:</p> - -<p>“I am willing to be friends again. It is true that the -spring is your time, gentle south wind; I will not stay to -nip your opening flowers, but will fly away to my cold -home.”</p> - -<p>And the south wind said:</p> - -<p>“Forgive me if I was rude, brother. When November -shall come once more, I will leave the fields and woods to -you. Take this sprig of evergreen to remember me by, and -may it not fade till we meet again! Farewell!”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 268px;"> -<img src="images/illus496.jpg" width="268" height="129" alt="birds singing on branch" /> -</div> - -<hr class="full" /> -<div class="tnote"><div class="center"> -<b>Transcriber’s Notes:</b></div> - -<p>Obvious punctuation errors repaired.</p> - -<p>Page 172, “lookod” changed to “looked” (Peter looked around the)</p> - -<p>Page 457, “ou” changed to “on” (but on looking around)</p></div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's New Lights on Old Paths, by Charles Foster - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NEW LIGHTS ON OLD PATHS *** - -***** This file should be named 51062-h.htm or 51062-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/1/0/6/51062/ - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Emmy and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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