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diff --git a/old/65365-0.txt b/old/65365-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 0dd1aa1..0000000 --- a/old/65365-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3630 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Story of a Needle, by A. L. O. E. - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Story of a Needle - -Author: A. L. O. E. - -Release Date: May 17, 2021 [eBook #65365] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Richard Hulse, Barry Abrahamsen, and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was - produced from images generously made available by The Internet - Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF A NEEDLE *** - - - - - THE - - STORY OF A NEEDLE - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -[Illustration: - - A black stream was flowing down on the carpet. - _Page 32._ -] - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -THE STORY OF A NEEDLE - - ❧ BY A. L. O. E. - - - - - - - - - LONDON, EDINBURGH, - DUBLIN, AND NEW YORK - - THOMAS NELSON - AND SONS - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - _CONTENTS_ - - -_THE STORY OF A NEEDLE_:— - - _I._ _My Education_ 9 - - _II._ _My First Adventure_ 14 - - _III._ _Conversation in a Work-box_ 21 - - _IV._ _A Mother’s Delights_ 26 - - _V._ _A Perfect Metal_ 35 - - _VI._ _A Piece of Mischief_ 40 - - _VII._ _The Lively Metal_ 48 - - _VIII._ _Packing the Box_ 54 - - _IX._ _Gold on a Dark Ground_ 63 - - _X._ _The School-boy’s Return_ 72 - - _XI._ _Home Hints_ 79 - - _XII._ _The Story of a Needle and a 90 - Compass_ - - _XIII._ _Gold brought to the Proof_ 100 - - _XIV._ _Conclusion_ 111 - - ────────── - - _GLORY_ 120 - - _THE VICTORY_ 130 - - _BEARING BURDENS_ 147 - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - _LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS_ - - - _A black stream was flowing down on the _Frontispiece_ - carpet_ - - _“Mamma, please, will you lay down the hem 27 - for me?” said Lily_ - - _Eddy was delighted with his teacher_ 80 - - _Eddy tells his story_ 116 - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - THE STORY OF A NEEDLE. - - ───── - - - - - CHAPTER I. - - MY EDUCATION. - - -I REALLY can say nothing of my earliest days except from report. I have -heard, but I can hardly believe it, that I was once part of a rough mass -of iron ore, that had lain for ages in a dark mine in Cornwall; that I -was dug out, and put into a huge furnace, and heated till I became -red-hot, and melted; that I was made into part of an iron bar, and when -in a fiery glow was suddenly plunged into cold water, which changed my -whole constitution and name, for iron was thenceforth called steel. I -can just fancy how the water fizzed and hissed, and how my fiery flush -faded suddenly away, and I became again quite black in the face! I can -fancy all this, as I said, but I really remember nothing about it. - -Nor have I any recollection of being drawn out into wire, forced to push -myself through little holes, smaller and smaller, till I was long enough -and slim enough for the purpose for which the manufacturer designed me. -My very earliest remembrance is of finding myself lying on an anvil, -along with thousands of others of my species. But you must not fancy me -then, gentle reader, in the least like the neat, trim, bright little -article that now has the pleasure of addressing you. I fancy that I -looked uncommonly like a bit of steel wire, neither useful nor -ornamental. - -While I lay quietly reflecting in a kind of dull, sleepy doze, for at -that time I was not sharp at all, a violent blow on one end of me -startled me not a little—I had been hit on that side as flat as a -pancake! - -“What next?” thought I. I had little time for thinking. I was popped -into the fire in a minute, but taken out again before I had time to -melt. Then down came another blow upon me, which had quite a different -effect from the first. It pierced out a little hole in my flat head, and -I received the advantage of having an eye. No sooner did I possess it -than I began to use it. I peered around me with much curiosity, now on -the long brick building in which I found myself; now on the rough -care-worn faces of the workmen, reddened by the glow of the fire-light; -now on the multitude of baby needles around me, all looking up with -their little round eyes. - -I was now placed upon a block of lead, and my eye was punched to bring -out the little bit of steel, which was neither tidy nor convenient. -Then, to improve the shape of my flat head, it was filed a little on -both sides. - -I felt now tolerably well satisfied with myself—something like a child -(for I have since seen a good deal of the world) when it has mastered -the first difficulties of learning, and begins to fancy itself a genius. -But there was a good deal more of filing, and heating, and polishing -before me; education is a slow and troublesome matter, whether to -children or needles! - -I am afraid that I should tire you, dear reader, were I to give you the -whole story of how I was filed into a point; how I thought the file -hard, disagreeable, and rough, as many young folk have thought their -teachers; how I was then heated in a fire till I grew as red as naughty -boys who have been caned by their master; then left to cool in a basin -of cold water, like the same boys shut up to think over the matter. - -Then I and a number of my companions were held in a shovel over the -fire, and stirred about, and then straightened with blows of the hammer. -I thought that I must now be quite perfect; but never was needle more -mistaken. How could I go through linen, cloth, and silk—how could young -gentlemen and ladies go through the world—without a proper degree of -polish! Thousands of us were put on a piece of buckram sprinkled with -emery dust; more emery dust was thrown over us, and then a small -quantity of oil; for I wish that every teacher would remember that -though the emery of discipline is necessary enough, it works best when -laid on with the sweet oil of kindness. - -Oh, if I could only describe the rolling backwards and forwards, the -rubbing and scrubbing again and again, the washing, the wiping, the -smoothing on a stone, thought necessary to complete a good needle! -Depend upon it, dear reader, your reading and writing, your sums and -your tables, nay, even the terrible dog’s-eared grammar, are nothing to -what the smallest needle must go through before it is fit to appear in -the world! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER II. - - MY FIRST ADVENTURE. - - -OUR education being now finished, two hundred and fifty of us were -packed up together, and remained in darkness and seclusion for some -time. We were then removed, separated, and in smaller numbers placed in -neat little dark-coloured papers, and kept in a box in a shop. Of all -the tiresome parts of my life, this was the most tiresome by far. I -longed for the moment when I should be taken from the prison, and see a -little of the world. I was quite discontented with my state. - -“Why was I made, if not to be used?” thought I. “Why have I undergone -all this heating, hitting, and polishing? why am I so sharp, so neat, so -bright, if not to make some figure in the world?” I was only a young -needle, you see, and impatience is natural to youth: I am not the only -one who has found it hard to stay contentedly in the position in which -he has been placed. - -At length I felt myself moved (you know that I could see nothing out of -my paper). I believe that I had been bought and sold; and though not at -once released from my confinement, I felt reasonable hopes that I soon -should be so. Nor were my expectations disappointed. - -“Oh, mamma! dear mamma! what a sweet little work-box—and all fitted up -so nicely!” exclaimed a childish voice near me. I longed to have a peep -at the speaker. - -“I hope that it may assist my Lily to be a tidy, useful little girl, -such as her mother would wish to see her.” - -“What a pretty silver thimble! and it fits me exactly; just see! You’ve -left a place for my scissors, as I have a nice pair already. What neat, -tiny reels!—and what’s this? a yard measure—ah! and here is wax to make -my thread strong! Thank you, dear mamma, again and again!” - -I confess that I was rather in a state of irritation. Nobody seemed to -be thinking in the least about me; after all my finished education, it -was not thought worth while even to give me a look. At length my paper -was moved, very roughly torn open, light flashed upon its contents, and -I and my companions were scattered in every direction, I alighting on -the Holland pinafore of a fair, chubby-faced boy, who had been the -author of the mischief. - -“Oh, Eddy! you tiresome child! if you would only leave my box alone—just -see what you’ve done with my needles!” - -I seized the opportunity of looking around me, in no hurry for my -resting-place to be discovered. I found myself in a very comfortable -room, full of so many things to excite my curiosity, that I felt as -though I could have gazed for ever! But perhaps what interested me most -was my first sight of the human beings who occupied the apartment. They -were so unlike the workmen to whom I had been accustomed, that I -examined them just as a philosopher might examine some newly-discovered -curiosity. - -In the first place, there was a gentle, blue-eyed lady, who sat near the -table on which the work-box was placed; while on her knee rested a very -plump little child, calmly engaged in sucking her thumb. A girl of about -ten years of age (I knew nothing of ages then, and had not a notion of -anything growing, but I have since learned much from observation) was on -her knees, searching for her needles. She was evidently to be my future -mistress, and I anxiously glanced into her face to read what sort of a -child she might be. I scarcely knew whether her countenance pleased me -or not. She had light eyes, like her mamma; rather a turned-up little -nose, which gave her a somewhat saucy expression; and I am sorry to say -that, just at that moment, I saw on her brow sundry creases, which did -not give me an idea of good temper. I know that it is a foolish feeling -of mine, but whenever I see those ugly creases rising on the brow of a -little boy or girl, I always feel inclined to bestow on them a little -prick, just by way of good counsel, you understand! I have seen lines, -and very deep lines, made on the forehead by care; I could just faintly -trace some on that of Mrs. Ellerslie; they became only too distinct in -the course of time, but they never for a moment altered the gentle -expression of her face. - -I think now that I hear her soft voice as she said,— - -“Oh, Lily, do not be so much vexed with your brother. You know that he -is only a little boy. Come, my Eddy, let us help to look for the -needles; you must not touch the papers again!” - -I cannot say much for Eddy’s skill or industry in the search; he was -much more intent on making baby laugh by snapping his fingers and -grinning at her, turning his head knowingly first on one side, then on -the other, till he succeeded in drawing from her a merry crow, and a -smile showed her little toothless gums. - -Such success elated Eddy, and, determined to press a good kiss on that -sweet little mouth, he came close—too close to her, alas! for he caused -me to inflict, I am sorry to confess it, a very tiny scratch on the -baby’s plump white arm. - -You should have heard what a scream she set up! I really felt quite -embarrassed: was this to be the commencement of my career, was I to -begin my services by mischief? You must consider also, gentle reader, -that my astonishment was very great at the effect produced by my head -simply rubbing against a child’s arm! I myself, though not a thousandth -part of the size of the baby, had borne hammering, bruising, and -battering, not only in silence, but with little inconvenience; and here -the smallest touch seemed to excite terror and pain such as had never -even entered into my fancy. Ah! I soon found how very different the -human species is from ours; how easily their tender flesh is wounded, -and—what I thought still more strange—how easily their feelings are -pained! It has seemed to me, from what I have observed in life, and from -what I have heard from companions of my own, possessing greater -experience, that there are some human beings whose great business seems -to be, pricking and paining the hearts of those around them; as if life -were not full enough of sorrows without our wilfully bringing them upon -our neighbours. - -Eddy seemed much more penitent for having hurt baby than for having -overthrown Lily’s paper of needles, though the latter action had been -the cause of the former. He joined his mother and sister in trying to -soothe little Rosey, and assured her so often that he was “very, very -sorry,” and called her by so many sweet names, “little pet, darling, and -duck,” and kissed the scratched arm so often, that she soon appeared -quite pacified. I was not so well pleased at the titles which he gave -me, throwing all the blame on “the naughty, ugly needle,” that had been -the innocent cause of her pain. I was rather in ill humour when Lily -hastily replaced me in the work-box, not dreaming of putting me back in -my paper, but sticking me unceremoniously into the red silk which lined -the top of the box. And there I was to remain, in company with other -articles of metal, with which I soon entered into acquaintance; for all -the metals are naturally related to each other, and I was able to make -myself understood by everything bearing the nature of a mineral. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER III. - - CONVERSATION IN A WORK-BOX. - - -“WELL, what do you think of your new life?” said the Scissors, as soon -as we were left quietly in the box. Perhaps I had better pause for a -moment to describe my new companion, before I record our conversation. - -The pair of Scissors, with which I had now to make acquaintance, had -rather an old-fashioned air. One end was rounded, the other had been -sharp, but a little piece had been broken off the point. I fancy that I -detected on one of the handles something reddish, like a little speck of -rust, and the brightness of the whole article was dimmed. This was -doubtless a mark of antiquity, and it was in the patronizing manner of -one who was aware of her own superiority, that Mrs. Scissors repeated -her question, “Pray, what do you think of your new life?” - -“I have hardly had time to judge,” was my reply; “but I am rather hurt -at the way in which that little boy laid the whole blame of his own -fault upon me.” - -“Oh, that is what you must always expect,” laughed the Scissors; “a bad -shearer never has good shears. I’ve been these ten years in the family, -and I’ve always found it the same. When Miss Lily took it into her head -to imitate the hairdresser, and practise upon Eddy’s flaxen poll, when I -glanced aside, and snipped his little ear, whose fault was that but ‘the -stupid Scissors’!’ And when I was seized upon to open a nailed box, -whose contents the young lady was impatient to see, whose fault was it -when my poor point suddenly snapped? why, ‘the good-for-nothing -Scissors’,’ to be sure.” - -“I hope that I shall not be treated in such a way,” said I, rather -alarmed at her words; “it would be too bad, after the trouble that has -been taken to form me, after having had to pass to perfection through so -many hands, to be snapped by a careless child.” - -“You would have nothing but the dust-hole before you,” said the -Scissors. I thought the remark very unpleasant. - -“I almost wish that I had remained in my mine,” sighed I. - -“Oh no,” said a soft voice beside me, and I remarked a beautiful little -Thimble, of a metal unknown to me before, so bright, and white, and -shining, that I felt at once that it was of superior nature. - -“Would you wish,” she continued, “to lie useless, to be of no benefit to -any? Has not man refined, formed, polished, improved you, and exerted -the powers of his reason to render you an instrument of good?” - -“What has man’s reason to do with us?” said I. - -“I know not whether I can explain myself clearly,” replied the Thimble, -“but I will endeavour to show you what I mean. Man has been gifted with -a power called reason; by this he governs the world, by this he subdues -creatures stronger than himself, and makes all things combine to serve -him. He has discovered that iron possesses a strength which he may turn -to valuable account. It would be endless labour to plough the fields, if -the ground had to be torn up by the hand; it would be terrible work to -reap the corn, if each blade had to be pulled off by the fingers. Man -determined to aid his own weakness by the wonderful strength of iron. He -made the ploughshare, and the furrows are turned up; he made the sickle, -and the sheaves are gathered; huge trees, which he would never have had -force to pull down, are laid low by a few strokes of his axe.” - -“There is no doubt but that ours is the most useful metal by far,” said -the Scissors, with something of a sneer. “Who would use ploughshares, or -sickles, or axes of silver? Precious little work they would do!” - -“I grant it,” said the Thimble, with perfect good-humour; “but we all -have our place in the world, we all have some good purpose to fulfil. -Zinc, lead, tin, arsenic, platina, nickel—” - -“Stop, stop,” I exclaimed, overwhelmed with such a list; “I never knew -there were so many metals before.” - -[Illustration: - - “Mamma, please, will you lay down the hem for me?” said Lily. - _Page 27._ -] - -“Nay,” replied the Thimble gaily, “I have not numbered one half of -them,— - - “Manganese, cobalt, rhodium, - Copper, potassium, sodium—” - - “Who ever such names bestowed on ’em? - Such long names I hold in odium!” - -cried I. - -“There’s rhyme, but not reason,” laughed the Thimble. - -“If it is hard to number up the metals,” I observed, “how impossible -must it be to count all the uses to which they are put!” - -“Impossible indeed,” said the Thimble. “Man avails himself every day, -every hour, of the treasures which he has won from the mine—for - - “Ploughing, digging, and hoeing; - Cooking, ironing, mowing; - Cutting, sawing, and sewing; - Holding the embers glowing; - Speeding the vessel’s going; - Music, when horns are blowing; - Money, when debts are owing; - Bridges, where streams are flowing, - Lace, where finery’s showing; - Greenhouse, where plants are growing—” - - “In short, there’s no counting or knowing - All that man to metals is owing!” - -cried I. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER IV. - - A MOTHER’S DELIGHTS. - - -“SEWING! how I hate sewing! I wonder what use there is in my learning to -sew,” exclaimed Lily, in rather a fretful tone, as she took me out of -the box. - -“I wonder what’s the use of learning to spell!” yawned little Eddy over -a dog’s-eared book, as he sat on a stool close by his mother. - -Mrs. Ellerslie was busy at her desk, examining her monthly accounts, -with a grave and anxious expression. She was interrupted, in the midst -of summing up a long bill, by her little girl bringing her work to her. - -“Mamma—” - -“Yes, my dear,” said Mrs. Ellerslie, without raising her eyes, and -continued murmuring half aloud, “Thirteen pounds and a half at -seven-pence three-farthings—I thought there must be an error somewhere.” - -“Mamma, please will you lay down the hem for me?” - -“Really, my love, I am very busy at present. I think that, after all the -trouble which I have taken to teach you, you might manage to do that for -yourself;” and again she went on with her accounts; while Lily, looking -rather discontented, slowly returned to her seat. - -“Mamma,” said Eddy, rising, and laying his book on her knee, “I know my -lesson.” - -“Wait a minute, my boy; I will hear you almost directly.” - -So Eddy waited cheerfully enough, and, to amuse himself in the meantime, -began trying to mend his mother’s pen, to the no small damage of the -pen, and the imminent risk of his own fingers. - -“Oh, Eddy, put that knife down!” exclaimed the harassed lady, when she -had raised her head for a moment to see the nature of his occupation. -“Come, you had better say your lesson at once,” she continued, -hopelessly laying down the bill, and taking up the spelling book. She -was too gentle, too loving, to be irritable or peevish; but petty cares -and petty troubles were wearing out her strength, and damping the -spirits which had once been so light. I saw that though Mrs. Ellerslie -fondly loved her children, she could not help feeling them a weariness -to her; and though they had much affection for their mother, they had -little consideration for her comfort. - -“Now, Eddy,” said Mrs. Ellerslie, as the little gentleman stood with his -arms pressed down to his sides before her, “how do you spell the word -_pan_?” - -“B-o-y,” replied Eddy, with emphasis. - -“Oh, fie! that’s not knowing your lesson. You had better look it over -again,” she continued, as a servant brought in a note with the words, -“The messenger is waiting for an answer.” - -In the meantime, I was making my first essay in sewing; and though, I -assure you, it was from no fault of mine, a lamentably bungling essay it -was. The hem laid down by my little mistress was in some parts twice as -broad as in others, while in one place the edge was scarcely turned in -at all. I was quite hurt at the crooked stitches which Lily forced me to -make, and I wondered to myself whether she worked thus from stupidity or -a wilful temper. - -While the lady read and answered the note in haste, Eddy sat demurely on -his stool, leaning his elbows on his knees, and his chin on the palm of -his hands, as if buried in profound study. As soon as the servant had -left the room, he came again to his mother with,— - -“Mamma, I know my lesson now.” - -“What do p-i-n make?” said the lady. - -“_Pin_,” replied Eddy; for which correct answer he received a smile and -a quiet “That’s right.” - -“And what do p-i-n-e make?” continued his mother. - -“_Needle!_” shouted out the child with decision. Mrs. Ellerslie laid the -book down on her knee. “I’m afraid that I must turn you again, Eddy.” - -Eddy pouted as he took back his lesson, and before Mrs. Ellerslie -resumed her accounts, she said to Lily, “Let me see how you are getting -on with your work.” - -Lily brought it reluctantly to her mother. - -“Oh fie! this will never do! Are you not ashamed of such hemming?” - -“I couldn’t lay down the hem right,” said Lily very dolefully. - -“Could not, or would not, Lily? I am sure that you can work more neatly -than that. Just take it back and unpick it nicely.” - -Lily coloured, and as she bent over me again, I saw a big tear fall -close beside me. - -“Three and eight, nine and four,” murmured Mrs. Ellerslie over her -accounts. “Lily, hold up your head; you must not stoop so my child. -Eddy, do not pull off your buttons.” She leaned her head upon her hand. -I believe that it was aching, and so Lily would have suspected had she -looked at that pale face; but the young lady was gloomily proceeding -with her work, and perhaps grumbling in her heart at the little task -which she might so easily have performed. - -It was clear to me that the poor mother was to have no peace, for again -she was interrupted to pay the washerwoman, and had scarcely finished -that small piece of business, rendered troublesome by not having enough -of change, when there was a sound of crying from the room above. - -“Is not that baby’s voice?” exclaimed Mrs. Ellerslie, half rising from -her seat. She glanced at Lily, probably intending to send her on a -message—at least it appeared so from the movement of her head; but Lily -had no idea of reading the wishes of her mother, and kept sullenly -pricking me in and out, sitting as if fastened to her seat. Mrs. -Ellerslie, therefore, took the shortest way of settling the matter, and -herself ran upstairs to the baby. - -Master Eddy took advantage of her absence to clamber up her vacant -chair, and make himself acquainted with the contents of her desk. A very -little care on the part of Lily might have prevented him from doing any -mischief; but, whether from ill-temper or inattention, she took no -notice whatever of his pranks. When Mrs. Ellerslie re-entered the room, -she found her ink-bottle overturned on the table, and a black stream -flowing down on the carpet, which her little boy was attempting to stop -with a handful of bills. - -“Oh, Eddy, Eddy, what have you done!” cried the poor lady. “Lily, run -quickly and call down the housemaid. I cannot leave the room for a -minute,” she added, provoked beyond even her powers of endurance, “but -some mischief is sure to occur.” - -“Mamma, I didn’t know there was ink in the bottle—I only turned it up to -see if there was any; but I’m trying to wipe it all up.” - -“Oh dear! the bills!—and your hands and pinafore; just see what a state -they are in! You must run up to Sarah directly!” - -“I’ll never do so any more!” cried Eddy, looking at his blackened -fingers, and beginning to whimper. - -When the housemaid had performed her office, and the children had been -sent up to prepare for their walk—happily the weather was not rainy—the -weary, delicate mother again took her place before the table, and -pushing aside the blackened heaps of bills, which she had now hardly a -hope of being able to make out, she leaned back upon her chair and -sighed. - -“The children are too much for me!” she murmured to herself; “I really -have not the strength to do them justice. I must ask Edward to let me -have a governess. But no; how could I think of such a thing, after the -hint which he gave me about expense, after his parting with his own -horse and gig, and giving up the trip into Wales? He spoke, too, of the -expense of keeping George at school! I am sure that there is something -weighing upon his mind; shall I add to it the burden of my petty cares? -No, no; whatever my dear husband finds to annoy him in the busy, -bustling world, he must find his own home a quiet haven of rest. I must -manage as well as I can, and always have a cheerful smile for him! One -comfort is, that George’s holidays are so near;—my own boy, what a -welcome he shall have!” and her lips parted with a pleasant smile, and -the lines upon her pale brow quite disappeared, as if smoothed down by -an invisible hand. - -“This is odd enough!” thought I, as I lay half out of the work-box, -sticking in my unfortunate hem; “three children are more than this poor -lady can manage. I should have thought that a fourth would have driven -her wild!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER V. - - A PERFECT METAL. - - -“I AM not very sorry,” observed I to the Thimble, “that careless Miss -Lily has forgotten to replace our companion, Mrs. Scissors, in the box. -Her manners are so sharp, her remarks so cutting, that I take little -pleasure in her society.” - -“She has a little speck of rust on her, I own,” quietly replied my -philosophic friend; “but we must all learn to bear patiently with the -weaknesses of others, and see that we keep our own metal bright.” - -“You have no difficulty about that,” I observed. - -“Pardon me,” answered the Thimble; “silver is not subject to rust, but -it tarnishes, especially if exposed to impure, smoky air.” - -“And was your origin as low as mine?” I inquired; “were you also dug -from the earth?” - -“I was dug out of a mine in Norway; I have been, like you, purified in a -furnace, and exposed to heavy blows of the hammer.” - -“I wonder how long it is,” exclaimed I, “since man first found out the -use of metals, and employed them in making whatever he requires!” - -“The use of metals was known before the time of the Flood, more than -four thousand years ago. Tubal-Cain is the name of the first man who is -recorded to have worked in metals.” - -“Oh!” cried I, “how much I should like to know who it was who first -invented needles!” - -“I dare say that the invention is of early date,” replied the Thimble, -“though the needles of ancient times were probably far inferior to the -polished, delicate articles of which I see so fine a specimen before me. -I have heard that needles were first manufactured in England by an -Indian, in the reign of stout Harry the Eighth, upwards of three hundred -years ago.” - -“Well,” I exclaimed in admiration, “what it is to have a thimbleful of -information! I shall always couple silver and knowledge together, the -best metal and the best thing in the world!” - -“Ah, there you are wrong!” said my bright companion; “there is a metal -far more precious than silver, and a possession even more valuable than -knowledge. What is learning compared to virtue! what is silver compared -to gold!” - -“Gold! what is that?” said I. You must remember that I was but a young -needle, with little information, but eager to obtain more. - -“Gold is what is called a perfect metal,” replied the Thimble; “it is -injured by neither fire nor water, and it is reckoned of great value in -the world. It is found chiefly in South America, California, and lately -in the immense island of Australia.” - -“And has it to submit to the hammer as well as we?” I inquired. - -“It has much more wonderful power of enduring it than either silver or -steel,” replied the Thimble. “It never breaks beneath the heaviest -stroke, but it spreads itself out beneath it, and that to such an -amazing extent that I have heard that a bit of gold not so large as a -halfpenny can be beaten out into a wire a thousand miles long.” - -I was not a little astonished to hear this, and I was still more so as -the Thimble proceeded. - -“Look around you, and, even in this room, you will see wonderful proofs -of the malleability of gold—that is the name given to this curious -property which it possesses. See the picture-frames glittering in the -light, the shining pattern on the paper on the wall, the edge of all -those gaily bound books; they owe their beauty to a layer of gold so -thin that, though that metal is one of the heaviest known, the gentlest -sigh would have blown the leaves away.” - -“And is gold useful for anything but gilding?” said I. - -“It is much used in various ways,” she replied; “amongst others, it was -formerly much employed in medicine, and is now used in giving a fine red -colour to glass.” - -“And is this beautiful and wonderful metal also dug out of the earth?” - -“It is procured in some places,” answered the Thimble, “by washing -carefully sand drawn from the beds of some rivers, which is mixed with -particles of gold; but it is chiefly found by digging.” - -“Well, then,” cried I, rather triumphantly, “though silver and gold be -both esteemed more perfect and more precious than iron and steel, man -would have very little chance of gaining either of them without the help -of a humbler metal! If silver be like knowledge, and virtue like gold, -to what shall iron be compared.” - -“To firm resolution,” said the Thimble thoughtfully, “without which man -would acquire little of either.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VI. - - A PIECE OF MISCHIEF. - - -THE next day I found that the lesson of work was to be omitted. Little -Miss Lizzie Baker came to spend the day with my young mistress, who was, -therefore, excused from performing her tasks; which, I could not help -imagining, would be felt quite as great a relief by the teacher as by -the pupil. - -I was not, however, to be left in complete idleness. Mrs. Ellerslie -entered the sitting-room in which the work-box of her daughter was kept. -She was dressed in her bonnet and shawl; and seeing me close at hand, -sticking in Lily’s piece of work, she threaded me with a piece of dark -silk, and mended a small hole in her glove. There was a great sound over -head, as of little feet running about, and now and then a fretful cry -from the baby. The lady rose and opened the door, and then I could -plainly distinguish a voice speaking from an upper room in the house. - -“Indeed, Miss Lily, I shall never get the child to sleep if you make -such a constant noise. You’ve woke her up these three times already!” - -“Lily! Lily!” called her mother at the foot of the stairs. Whether her -call was heard by the little lady I know not, it certainly was not -answered, and Mrs. Ellerslie had walked half-way up to the nursery -before I heard the servant exclaiming in a sharp tone, “Now do you be -quiet, Miss Lily; don’t you hear that mistress is calling you?” - -“You had better come to the drawing-room, my darlings,” called the -gentle mother, “and then nurse can put poor baby to sleep. I am obliged -to go out to make purchases, and to execute commissions for my sister; -but I am sure that you will be good and happy while I am away; and do -not be too noisy, my pets.” - -So Lily and Lizzie Baker, a plump, dark-eyed little girl, came into the -room, and seated themselves on an ottoman, near the table on which my -work-box was placed. Eddy followed, jumping step by step down the -stairs, and trotting up to his sister, said, “Lily, won’t you let me -play with you?” - -“Oh, we don’t want you here,” was the reply; “we are going to have a -quiet chat together. Just you amuse yourself, and don’t trouble us.” - -The little fellow turned dolefully away, went up to the window, and -flattened his nose against the pane, looking after his mother as she -crossed the street; soiled his finger by drawing lines across the glass -which he had dimmed with his breath; then, tired of that diversion, -tried to pull off the little twists of wool which formed the fringe of -the curtain; and then suddenly making up to the table, laid his -exploring hand on the work-box. - -“There now, Eddy, you tormenting boy, just take your hands off,” cried -Lily, turning round just in time to prevent its contents being scattered -on the floor. She roughly snatched the box from the child, and giving -him something very much like a shake, sent him half crying to another -end of the room. - -“He is the most mischievous little monkey,” she said to her companion; -“would you believe it, he pulled off the wig of my new doll!” - -“I think that brothers are great torments,” observed Lizzie. - -“Oh, not such brothers as George,” replied Lily; “he is always like -sunshine in the house. I am so glad that he is coming from school. I -have been counting the days to the holidays.” - -“Well, that’s odd,” said Lizzie; “I always dread them. In the morning of -the day when our boys return, I always think as soon as I awake, ‘Dear, -dear, we’ll have no more peace in the house!’ They are so noisy, so -rude, so troublesome, so fond of worrying and teasing us girls, I’m sure -that it’s a happy day for us when the coach comes to take them back to -school.” - -“They must be very different from George. I always am happier when he is -with me; and it seems as if he made me better too.” - -“But he cannot amuse himself with you. Does he not like hocky, and -cricket, and football, and despise the diversions of girls?” - -“He does like cricket, and that sort of thing, and is a capital hand at -it too, but he does not despise playing with us. I do not think that he -despises anything but what is mean or wrong. You don’t know how fond -little baby is of him; and as for Eddy, he is never so merry as when he -is at romps with Georgie, or listening to one of his stories. I don’t -know how it is, but every one seems more happy, and everything looks -brighter, when Georgie is at home.” - -A funny fancy came into my head at this moment. I could not help -recollecting what the Thimble had told me about gold—how that metal, -which is so weighty and precious, yet can be spread into leaves so thin -as to brighten the paper on the wall and adorn the leaves of the book. I -wondered if there were anything like this to be found in human life; if -the precious thing called virtue, which my companion had likened to -gold, could also be found to extend to trifles, and in the smaller -occurrences of life show its power to brighten and adorn. It was an odd -idea, but it arose from what I heard Lily say that morning of her -brother; and when I had an opportunity of watching George myself, it -recurred to me again and again. - -So the young ladies sat there chatting and diverting themselves for an -hour or more, playing at cat’s-cradle, comparing their dolls, telling -stories of the past, and building castles in the air for the future. -Eddy more than once broke in on their _tête-à-tête_, but was told to go -away, and not disturb them. Driven to his own resources, the child rode -round the room on a footstool; but this amusement was stopped, as being -too noisy. He then kicked his heels for some time on the sofa, till, -finding the occupation tiresome, he made the discovery of a little hole -in a cushion, from which he managed to abstract several tiny feathers, -which amused him for a quarter of an hour. Then I watched him—for no eye -seemed to watch him but mine—when he wearily sauntered to the other side -of the room, and fixed his round eyes upon an instrument which, as I -have since learned, is called a thermometer. He stared up at this, till -his curiosity grew strong. He dragged, with some labour, a chair to the -spot, and scrambling up upon the seat, brought his face to a level with -the glass. He put out his hand and touched the round ball at the bottom -of the instrument, examining it like any little philosopher; he then -pressed it a little harder, I suppose, for I saw the child give a slight -start, as if some mischief had been done, and then scramble from the -chair faster than he had got up, and throw himself down on the floor. - -Glancing up at the thermometer, I could see that the little silver ball -had disappeared; but I was at a loss to account for Eddy’s movements -now, as, half-stretched on the carpet, leaning on one elbow, he seemed -to be attempting to pick up something which eluded his grasp, pouncing -down his hand now here, now there, and laughing to himself merrily all -the while. - -“I think it’s alive,” he said softly; “how funnily it runs about when I -try to get hold of it!” and opening his mouth, he stooped closer to the -ground, as though to draw up with his lips the something which always -slipped from his fingers. He was startled by a frightened exclamation -from his mother, who at this moment entered the room. - -“Eddy, my child! oh, don’t touch that! it’s quicksilver—poison—it might -kill you! Oh, what a mercy that I came just in time!” and weary, -agitated, and alarmed, the poor lady drew him close to her bosom and -wept. - -“Mamma!” exclaimed the child, frightened at her tears, “I didn’t mean—I -didn’t know—it looked so funny; I never will do so any more!” - -“Oh, Lily, Lily!” cried Mrs. Ellerslie, with something of bitterness in -her tone, as both the little girls hurried to her side, “could you not -have looked a little after your brother? If I had returned but one -minute later your carelessness might have cost the life of my child!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VII. - - THE LIVELY METAL. - - -“WHAT was that extraordinary metal,” cried I, “which I took for a ball -of silver, till I saw the drops running about on the carpet?” - -“Ha! ha!” laughed the spiteful old Scissors, which, speck of rust and -all, had been replaced in the box, “you never saw the solemn -philosopher, Mrs. Thimble, ever cutting a dance like that!” - -“The lady called it quicksilver,” I observed. “Was it, then, no relation -of my friend?” - -“Relation!” again exclaimed the Scissors; “a relation that would eat -her, rim, top, and all; make holes for her knowledge to run out of! -Quicksilver is a dangerous neighbour.” - -“Dangerous both to metal and to man,” quietly rejoined my learned -companion. “Its power can dissolve both silver and gold; and to the -human species it acts as a powerful poison.” - -“I wonder that they do not leave it alone, if it does such mischief,” -said I. - -“Do you not know,” replied my friend, “that reason and knowledge can -find valuable uses even in those things which at first sight appear only -hurtful? From quicksilver, also called mercury, a medicine is prepared, -which, under the name of calomel, has helped to preserve many a life.” - -“How strange!” I exclaimed; “medicine and poison, safety and danger, -both from the same curious metal! But is it always a liquid like that?” - -“Oh no!” replied the Thimble; “mixed with other metals, it becomes staid -and quiet enough. Look at that beautiful mirror in the gilded frame, -which reflects every object in the room. To what, think you, does it owe -its beauty? To an amalgam (that is the title given to the mixture)—an -amalgam of mercury and tin, which lines the glass at the back.” - -“And makes it a pretty aid to vanity and folly,” said the broken-pointed -Scissors, with bitterness. “If there is one thing which silly mortals -like better than another, it is to look at their own faces in a glass.” - -“If mercury has often ministered to vanity and folly,” said the Thimble, -“I remember hearing of one curious instance where it served to mortify -them both. A dashing lady, who was absurd enough to try to increase her -beauty by covering her yellow complexion with a delicate coating of -white paint, once visited a quicksilver mine. She must have felt it -strange to find herself in that gloomy place, where the sickly miners, -by the glare of torch-light, pursue their unwholesome occupation.” - -“Why should it be unwholesome?” I asked. - -“Because mercury is of that poisonous nature, that it is said that those -employed to procure it seldom live longer than two years in the mine.” - -“I should think that after learning that,” observed I, “the dashing lady -would have a feeling of pain when next she looked in a mirror.” - -“Probably she had,” replied the Thimble, “but from a different cause. -While she had been examining the mine, she little thought of the strange -effect which the mercury would have on the paint which covered her face. -She entered the place white like a lily; she left it black like a -negro!” - -The idea of the poor lady with her black face mightily tickled the fancy -of the Scissors, who wished that she had been there to see her. But my -curiosity about the strange metal mercury was not quite satisfied yet. - -“What was the use of that instrument hung on the wall, where the -quicksilver lay in its little glass ball, till Master Eddy broke its -prison and set it free?” - -“That instrument is called a thermometer. It is employed to measure the -heat of the weather.” - -“I cannot imagine how it can do that.” - -“It is the nature of mercury to expand—that is, grow bigger—whenever it -is exposed to heat. At the top of the glass ball there is a slender -glass tube. When the weather is warm, the mercury swells; and the ball -being too small to hold it, it is forced up the tube to a greater or -less height, according to the amount of the heat.” - -“Then, if plunged into boiling water, the mercury would rise very high -indeed.” - -“And plunged into ice it would sink very low.” - -“Would it ever squeeze itself down into a solid?” said I. - -“You mean, would it freeze as water does? It requires very, very intense -cold to freeze mercury; but it is not impossible to do it. I have heard -the master of the shop in which I lay unsold for years, who was himself -something of a philosopher, and from whose conversation with others I -have learned the little that I know,—I have heard him say that he has -seen quicksilver frozen quite hard, so that even a medal was made of it; -but it was not from the mere effect of winter weather.” - -“And, of course, if any one had put the medal into his warm pocket, it -would have begun to run about again directly. The best way to keep it -quiet seems to be to make an am—— What did you call its mixture with -some other metal?” - -“Amalgam,” replied the Thimble. - -“Ah, yes! behind the mirror is an amalgam of quicksilver and tin.” - -“Like energy united with common sense.” - -“And taught to _reflect_,” added the Scissors. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VIII. - - PACKING THE BOX. - - -THE next day’s lessons passed over with the usual amount of weariness on -the part of the teacher, dulness on that of little Eddy, and -carelessness on that of his sister. It was with great difficulty that -Mrs. Ellerslie could keep the attention of Lily to the tasks which she -had to learn. The thoughts of the little girl were constantly wandering, -now to her brother, now to her play, now to some project in her mind, -while she tried the patience of her mother almost as much by the -numerous little bad habits which seemed to spring up like weeds in -neglected ground. - -“Lily, do hold up your head!—My child, you must not stand upon one -foot!—Little girls ought not to bite their lips!—What! you have been at -your nails again!” Such were the sentences which, from the lips of the -anxious parent, constantly interrupted the course of the studies. I -began to wonder whether little girls could find any peculiar enjoyment -in biting their finger-ends—whether they thought it becoming to look -hunchbacked, or merely delighted in teasing their teachers, and -defeating the efforts of those who love them to make them lady-like and -agreeable. As I am a needle, and not a little girl, I cannot tell which -of these three motives it was that influenced the conduct of Lily. If -any of my young readers ever follow her example, I beg them to decide -the question. - -At length lessons were finished, and the tired teacher was free, but not -to rest. Oh no! but to pack up a box for her sister in India, which must -be despatched before one o’clock. - -“Now, my darlings, run up and get ready for your walk.” - -Lily sauntered slowly up to the window. “Oh, I’m so glad! it’s raining -fast!” said she. “I have something that I particularly want to do. See, -mamma, what Lizzie gave me yesterday!” And she drew, from a little -pocket in her dress, a very small parcel, and opening it, displayed to -view a reel of bright, glittering gold thread. - -“Very pretty; and what will you make of it, my dear?” said Mrs. -Ellerslie, kindly pausing in her occupation of clearing away -school-books and slates, Lily never dreaming of offering her assistance. - -“I’m going to ornament a pen-wiper for George,” replied the child; -“don’t you think that it will please him very much? May I stay here and -work it beside you?” - -Mrs. Ellerslie nodded her head in assent, but looked a little grave; -perhaps she would have preferred being left for an hour in quiet, and -had some idea what the permission would cost her. - -“And may I stay here too, mamma?” inquired Eddy. “I want to look at you -packing all these things. Do let me stay, darling mamma!” - -She could not resist his entreaty; so there he pretty quietly stood, -watching his mother as she hastily spread the table with various -parcels, brown paper, oil-skin, a tin box, and string. - -“Mamma,” said Lily, standing on one foot, with the golden thread -dangling from her hand, “don’t you think that this will look well upon a -dark ground?” - -“Yes, my love,” answered Mrs. Ellerslie, her voice half drowned in the -rustling of paper. - -“Mamma, do you think blue or green would look best?” - -“I really cannot think about it at all just now. My box must be ready -before one. Now, my Eddy, you must not open the parcels.” - -“I was just peeping in a little, mamma.” - -“Don’t come to the table, my sweet boy! Mamma is very busy indeed.” - -Eddy trotted off without saying another word. - -“Mamma,” began Lily again, “do you think that you have a bit of -dark-blue cloth or velvet, whichever you please, to give me for the -sides of my pen-wiper?” - -“I dare say I have some upstairs in my wardrobe.” - -“Could I go and get it, mamma?” - -“No; you know that I never allow you to search there,” said the lady, -who, having lined the bright tin box with paper, was trying every -possible position in which an awkward shaped parcel could take up least -room. - -Lily remained silent for a few minutes, but without occupying herself -with anything but the thought how she could persuade her mother to give -her at once what she had set her heart upon obtaining. At length she -cautiously commenced with, “I am rather in a hurry to begin.” - -“I will look out the piece for you when next I go upstairs.” - -Lily gave a very audible sigh. - -“This would be just the time for working,” murmured she. - -“I shall have no peace till I get it for the child,” exclaimed Mrs. -Ellerslie, half to herself; and the too indulgent mother left her -parcels and her box, to commence a search for some small remnants of -cloth, which, to judge by the length of her absence, she had a good deal -of trouble in finding. - -“Now, do not interrupt me any more,” she said, as she placed them in the -eager hand of Lily, and turned, by more active exertions, to make up for -the time which she had lost. - -The girl bore them off in triumph to her work-box; but here a new -difficulty arose. She snipped off this corner and that corner, by the -aid of Mrs. Scissors, but could not satisfy herself with the shape. -Again she approached her mother at the table: “Please to make me a good -round, mamma. I have tried, but I cannot do it myself.” - -“You can wait a little, my dear.” Mrs. Ellerslie was pressing down the -lid of the box, which seemed evidently determined not to close, and she -looked certainly heated and tired. - -Again I heard that naughty, impatient sigh; again the tender mother -yielded to importunity; the round was cut out, and a minute’s peace -secured. - -“Where’s the string?” said Mrs. Ellerslie quickly, moving the box, -lifting paper, glancing under the table. The lines on her forehead were -plain enough now. - -Lily was busily employed trying to force the bright golden thread though -my little eye. I saw plainly that she could never succeed, and I felt -exceedingly mortified; for what could be a higher object of ambition to -a needle than to be threaded with gold? Lily saw that her mother was -hunting and searching for the lost piece of string, but she never -stirred to assist her. - -“Where can it be? I’m sure that I brought some down! Where can I have -laid the string?” - -“Here it is!” cried Eddy, suddenly becoming aware that his mother wanted -something which he had himself carried off. He had been quietly amusing -himself in his corner, tying chairs, stool, sofa, and bell-rope -together, with a liberal expenditure of string and a very large -allowance of tight knots. - -It was Mrs. Ellerslie’s turn to be impatient, as, hastily endeavouring -to undo the child’s work, she exclaimed, “How on earth shall I unfasten -all this?” - -“It’s my harness, mamma, and these are my horses! Oh, are you vexed?” he -added, looking up in her face, and reading, from her harassed -expression, that he had again been guilty of causing her trouble. “I’m -very sorry, mamma; I’ll never do so any more.” - -Even in the midst of her hurry, the gentle mother stooped down to give -him a kiss. She had another hurried run upstairs to bring more string, -for she had not the spare time to undo all his knots; but no angry word -passed her lips. She let Eddy stand beside her at the table, even -trusted him to hold a match which she had lighted, and employed him to -ring the bell. - -“I am so glad that it is done at last!” cried the lady, sinking wearily -on the sofa, as the box—it was barely packed in time—was carried by a -servant from the room. - -“And I helped you, mamma!” said Eddy proudly. - -“I shall never manage this!” cried Lily impatiently. “Oh, the tiresome -needle!—stupid thread!” - -“I am at leisure now,” said her mother; “bring your work to me, my dear -child.” - -“One would need a bodkin to hold such great coarse cord,” exclaimed -Lily. - -What a name to give to the most delicate flexible thread which had ever -employed the ingenuity of man to beat out from a single grain of gold! - -“If you had waited a little, I should have shown you what to do. The -gold thread must not be passed through the thick cloth at all, but be -fastened down to it with a little fine cotton. Thread your needle, and I -will show you the way.” - -Oh, the patience and love of a mother! Alas, that it should often be -met, if not with actual ingratitude, yet with that selfish want of -consideration which receives every kindness as a matter of course, and -never makes the smallest sacrifice in return! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER IX. - - GOLD ON A DARK GROUND. - - -“OF what a fine bright metal that box is made,” said I; “I should almost -have taken it for silver.” - -“Your learned friend here would be shocked to be mentioned in the same -breath with tin!” observed the Scissors. - -“Far from it,” said the bright silver Thimble. “If usefulness to man -gives value to metal, few can rank more highly than tin. England owes to -it her earliest fame; for long before her flag waved o’er distant -seas—long before her conquering armies trod foreign shores, while her -fields were wild forests, and her people barbarians, the Phœnicians -sought her coasts for tin, for which her mines in Cornwall are yet -famous.” - -“Ah! I remember,” I observed, “that it is when mixed with tin that -mercury forms the amalgam used for the backs of mirrors.” - -“Mercury is not the only metal which unites in a friendly manner with -tin. Joined to copper, it becomes bronze, of which those pretty -chimney-piece ornaments are made; and pewter, so useful to the poor, -comes from tin united with lead. It is also very commonly used to line -copper pots and pans, which, without such a coating of tin, might poison -the food which they contain.” - -“Poison!” I exclaimed in surprise. - -“Yes; many serious accidents have arisen from the tin lining wearing -away from cooking vessels made of copper. The rust of copper is called -verdigris; it is of a bright green colour, and of a most poisonous -nature.” - -“Ah!” said the Scissors, “that accounts for our good lady’s alarm, when -she found one morning, about two years ago, Master Eddy sucking a copper -halfpenny! A precious deal of trouble that young gentleman has given -her. He’s as active as quicksilver, and as mischievous.” - -“Pity that we can’t make an amalgam of him,” laughed I, “and teach the -little rogue to reflect.” - -“He, Miss Lily, and the baby are killing their mother by inches between -them,” said the Scissors. - -I felt rather afraid that she spoke truth, when I saw how faint and -exhausted the poor lady appeared, when at length she found a few minutes -for repose. She looked so very thin and so pale, as she stretched -herself on the sofa, when the light of day began to grow dim. She opened -a book with gilt edges, which I had observed to be her favourite -companion, and which my friend had told me was, as she believed, a great -mine from which man drew all the virtue which he possessed. She read a -little, until her worn, anxious face assumed a peaceful expression. She -raised her eyes, and looked upwards; I thought that they were moistened -with tears; and her pale lips silently moved, as if she were speaking to -some unseen friend. Then she shut the book, and placed it beside her, -and her blue eyes languidly closed; and she lay so still, so very still, -that she looked as though she never would move again. - -The sound of the opening of the outer door seemed to awaken her in a -moment. She started up with quite a changed look, so bright, so -animated, so cheerful; passed her hand hastily over her hair to smooth -it, and then ran out of the room: and I heard her voice below in lively -tones giving a fond welcome to her husband. - -It must have been difficult, however, for the poor lady to keep up a -cheerful manner in his presence. I never saw so gloomy a man. It was in -vain that she troubled him not with a single care of her own,—that she -spoke not a word of her failing health, her difficulties with servants, -her troubles about the bills, her ceaseless anxieties with the children. -I watched him where I lay beside my thread of gold; for Lily’s habit of -filling her box so full that she never even attempted to close it, gave -me constant opportunities of looking about me, and seeing what passed in -the room. When the children were called down to see their father, the -stern gloom in his face never changed. Even when his wife placed little -Rosey in his arms, he kissed her soft cheek with an air so sad, that the -babe, half frightened, held out her hands to be taken back to her -mother. Lily could not win his attention at all, and left the room -mortified and vexed; and Eddy received no answer when he said, “Are you -not glad that Georgie is coming home to-morrow?” - -“I’m sure that there’s something the matter with that man,” said the -Thimble, when the sound of the dinner-bell had cleared the room. - -“There’s something weighing on his heart, you may be sure,” observed the -Scissors, “for he used to be as merry as a child. I’ve seen him -galloping up and down this very room, with Master Eddy perched upon his -shoulders, and Lily scampering at his heels; and it would have puzzled -even our sharp friend the Needle to say which was the liveliest of the -three.” - -“He’s in trouble, then,” said the Thimble: “I’ve seen enough of life to -know that mortals have their trials, which are to them as the hammer and -the furnace to us.” - -The opinion of our philosophic friend was confirmed that evening, as, -when the lamp was lighted, and the curtains drawn, and the children all -quiet in bed, the husband and wife sat together in deep, earnest -conversation. - -“You will hide nothing from me, my beloved,” said the lady, laying her -hand fondly on his, and looking anxiously into his face. “I have felt -for a long time that something was wrong; suspense is worse than the -truth could be. I can bear all, all but to see you unhappy, and not be -able to lighten, or at least share your trials!” - -He drew her closer to him. I could not see his face; it was turned from -the place where I lay; and he spoke so low, in a hoarse, agitated voice, -that I could catch but few of his words. They were such as “ruin,” -“bankruptcy,” “poverty;” the meaning of which I could scarcely -comprehend; but I saw the lady’s cheek grow very pale, though her manner -was quiet and composed. - -“Well, dearest,” she said softly at length, “there are far greater -trials than poverty. It will only draw us closer together. I can be -happy in a very small abode—a cabin, a hut—so that my dear husband and -children are with me. I will be Rosey’s nurse myself. We can manage on -little; so little, you shall see what a housewife I shall be!” - -“Ah!” thought I, as I looked on that sweet loving face, “the gold indeed -looks brightest on the dark ground, and virtue most lovely in -affliction.” - -“It may not come to that; all may yet be well,” said the husband, rising -and pacing up and down the room. “If I only could meet the present -difficulty! A loan at this time would keep us all afloat; one good -friend at this crisis might save us.” - -“George Hardcastle,” suggested the lady. - -“I have thought of him a thousand times,” replied her husband, stopping -in his agitated walk. “He is rolling in wealth; he is generous; he is -our cousin; our boy was named after him. But then—” He paused, and -looked at his wife. - -“We have quarrelled with him.” - -“_I_ have quarrelled with him. We have not met for months. I could not -stoop to write to him now.” - -“Not for your children’s sake?” said the mother, rising and laying her -hand on his arm. “Oh, Edward, we must think of our helpless babes! Even -if he refused to lend money to you, he might, I think that he would, do -something for our George.” - -Mr. Ellerslie uttered a sigh that was almost a groan, and threw himself -down on his chair. - -“It seems to me as though we should lose no time,” continued his anxious -wife; “so much is at stake! Let’s see: this is Wednesday,” she -continued, pressing her hand on her forehead. “I think there are two -posts to Bristol; if we wrote at once, we might have an answer on -Friday. Edward, when all depends on it, why should there be one hour’s -delay?” - -I could see that it went sorely against the will of Mr. Ellerslie to -yield to the persuasions of his wife. It seemed to me, from words that -dropped from him, that he was conscious of having behaved ill towards -his cousin; that he regarded Mr. Hardcastle with a feeling of dislike, -and almost preferred remaining in difficulties to asking assistance from -him. I saw, though no mortal ever saw it, that Mrs. Ellerslie had a good -deal to endure from her husband, however dear she might be to his heart. -What patience she required, what earnest persuasion, to induce his proud -spirit to bend so far as to write at all to his offended relative! And -then, when the desk was opened, what a painful task was hers to make him -write what would not offend, to alter sentences and soften expressions, -and stoop to explain the greatness of his need. Often the ink dried on -the pen, twice was the half-written sheet pushed angrily away, and -bitter things were uttered, even to her whose every look and every tone -was love. I scarcely believed that the letter would ever be finished. -But finished it was at last; and Mr. Ellerslie hastily quitted the room, -impatient with his wife, with himself, with all the world! - -The lady took the sealed letter in her tremulous grasp, folded her -hands, and again looked upwards: again her lips moved; and this time the -big tears rolled slowly down her cheeks. - -“We must do all that we can,” she faintly murmured to herself. “The -hearts of men are in His hands. We must leave no proper means untried, -and then commit all to a higher Power.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER X. - - THE SCHOOL-BOY’S RETURN. - - -CONSIDERING the heavy weight of care which I knew lay on the heart of -the lady, it was wonderful to me how quietly she went through the -ceaseless petty trials of her life. - -Lily and Eddy came as usual to their lessons next morning, the former -with her dress a good deal torn. - -“Please, mamma, nurse says that I want a new frock.” - -“It is not long since I purchased this, Lily. You must have treated it -very carelessly indeed,” replied the mother, looking somewhat grave. - -“Oh, it’s poor stuff!” cried Lily, giving a little pull, which confirmed -her assertion, by making the rent a good deal wider. - -“There is no use in making it worse, Lily. I cannot afford to be buying -new clothes. We must do the best we can with the old.” - -“Nurse says that she has no time for mending.” - -“I think that these lazy little fingers might make themselves useful,” -said Mrs. Ellerslie, with a gentle smile; “those who mar things ought at -least to mend them.” - -“I cannot mend such a frock!” - -“Then _I_ must,” said the lady. - -Lily glanced at her mother’s face for a moment; perhaps she saw -something there that pricked her conscience a little, for she said in an -altered tone, “Dear mamma, I should like to be useful, but I do not like -mending at all!” - -“Nor do I, my love,” answered her mother. - -There was nothing more said on the subject at that time. The lessons -proceeded as usual. Lily, whose thoughts were very full of the expected -arrival of her brother, broke off several times in the midst of her -tasks, when she heard the sound of a carriage, and rushed to the window, -whither she always was followed by Eddy, though assured each time that -it was impossible that George could arrive till after early dinner. - -If Lily had known all that I knew, I cannot but think that for once she -would have shown some consideration for the teacher, whose mind was so -full of troubles and cares; I cannot but think that she would have known -her verse correctly, held up her head, and kept her finger-ends still; -but, as it was, the old story was repeated again, and when lesson-time -was over, the child did not even seem conscious that she had been doing -anything wrong! - -But oh! the bustle and commotion that there were when a cab, with a -black trunk on the coachman’s box, did at length actually drive up to -the door! The whole house resounded with the cry, “It is George! it is -George! he has come!” I heard little Eddy swinging himself downstairs so -fast, that it must have been at the peril of his neck; I believe the -coachman had not even time to ring, so eagerly the door was opened; and -there was such a medley of eager voices in the hall, that all the -neighbourhood must have known of the arrival! I soon saw Mrs. Ellerslie -enter the drawing-room, with a colour on her cheek and a sparkle in her -eye; her arm was round the neck of her son, and she surveyed him with -mingled pride and joy! - -I shall not attempt to repeat the conversation which passed; every one -seemed so eager to ask questions, that there was scarcely a possibility -of reply; but I noticed that whenever his mother spoke, George was -instantly silent and attentive; and that though he laughed, played, and -chatted merrily with all, his eye most frequently rested on her. Then he -had to go upstairs to see the baby, followed, of course, by Lily and -Eddy, who pursued him like his shadow; and it was not till an hour or -two afterwards that he re-entered the drawing-room with them. - -“And now, Georgie, you must show us your prize!” cried Lily, with eager -pleasure. - -They sat down on the ottoman together, just as Lizzie and Lily had sat, -and Eddy crept up close to his brother. This time no one sent him away. - -“A book! what a beauty!” cried Lily; but on turning over some of the -pages, she added, with a look of disappointment, “But what a stupid book -it must be! all about metals, and things no one cares for!” - -“Well, I’ve been reading a little in the train, and I do not find it -stupid at all. It tells one so much that is curious and new. Did you -ever hear, Eddy, of metal spoons that would melt in hot tea like sugar?” - -Eddy opened his eyes very wide. - -“Well, men really make such spoons—I mean, that they would, if they -thought that any one would buy them—of a mixture of bismuth, lead, and -tin!” - -“I never heard of bismuth before,” cried Lily. - -“It is a white metal, of a reddish-yellow tinge, used with others in -making solder for the plumbers. There’s the beauty of my book, Lily; it -tells one so much that one never heard of before. Did you know that -there was a wine made of steel?” - -“Steel wine? Oh yes! that is what mamma has to take every day, to make -her strong. But it is not at all nice; it does not taste in the least -like other wine.” - -“Then there’s sugar of lead.” - -“I’d like that!” cried Eddy, smacking his lips at the idea of a -sweetmeat. - -“Would you, my little man? But it would not like you. Sugar of lead is -that metal dissolved in spirit of vinegar; and that, you must know, -makes it a poison.” - -“Well,” said Lily, “I always considered lead as a dull, heavy metal, fit -for nothing but making water-pipes.” - -“My book would tell you a different tale. Why, you forget black lead -pencils, and the types used in printing. It is employed also in making -clear glass, the varnish on china, and beautiful white paint, for all -that it looks so dull! Then, it’s so odd to think that from mixing some -metals together you can get quite a new one! Look at the bright brass -rods upon which the curtains are hung; brass is a mixture of copper and -zinc.” - -“They look like gold!” cried Eddy, looking up. “What do people mix to -make gold?” - -“You funny little philosopher,” said George, playfully tapping his -brother on the cheek, “that’s the very question which for ages puzzled -the brains of the learned. They wanted to discover some way to mix up -metals and make gold. Even the wonderful Sir Isaac Newton was very -anxious to find it out! Men were always searching and searching for what -they called ‘the philosopher’s stone;’ and they read old books, and -looked at the stars, as if they could see the secret written there; and -they kept up fires for years and years, and mixed together all sorts of -things; and some spent all their money, and some all their lives, in -trying to find out how to make gold!” - -“And never found out at last?” inquired Lily. - -“It was like running after a rainbow, that searching for the -philosopher’s stone. But look at Eddy; he is yawning. He is not quite a -Sir Isaac Newton yet; so I think, Lily, that we had best shut the book, -and be off for a game at hide-and-seek!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XI. - - HOME HINTS. - - -“YOU won’t do any lessons, George, during the holidays, I suppose?” said -Lily, as she slowly and reluctantly brought her lesson-books to her -mother the next day. - -“That’s as mamma likes,” answered George. - -“I think,” said Mrs. Ellerslie, replying to his glance, “that as you -have been working so hard, my boy, you might indulge in a few days’ -complete rest.” - -“I must not be quite idle,” said George cheerfully; “will you not let me -teach Eddy while I am at home?” - -“I think that you would be soon tired of the business,” replied Mrs. -Ellerslie, with a smile. - -“I’ll try my skill as a tutor, at least;” and there was a bright look -about the boy, which seemed to say, “I am determined _not_ to be tired.” - -So George set about the task of tuition with wondrous good-humour and -patience; and Eddy was delighted with his teacher, who really succeeded -in persuading him at last that twice two does _not_ make three. I must -own that Eddy persisted to the end in calling _no_—_on_, and _of_—_for_; -but then he was but a little boy, and George said that he would do -better in time. It was certainly a relief to Mrs. Ellerslie not to have -her attention diverted from Lily; but I could not but fancy, from the -anxious, abstracted expression of the poor lady’s face, that her own -thoughts were often wandering from the lessons to the difficulties of -her husband and the expected letter from Bristol. - -As soon as the studies were over she quitted the room, doubtless glad -that the drudgery was ended for the day; and merry as a bird from a -cage, Lily flew to the side of her brother. - -[Illustration: - - Eddy was delighted with his teacher. - _Page 80._ -] - -“It’s raining, so we need not go out. Oh, what a delightful chat we -shall have! Just sit down beside me, Georgie, and tell me how you feel -now that you are at home.” - -“I should feel very happy indeed, but that I think mother is looking -very ill.” - -“Do you?” exclaimed Lily, with a look of alarm. “Well, I hoped that she -was better, for she never complains. The doctor saw her about a month -ago; he gave her something to strengthen her, and said that she must be -taken care of, and then there would be nothing to fear.” - -“And is she taken care of?” said George. - -“Well, I don’t know—I don’t see what we can do,” replied Lily, looking -perplexed; “I would gladly sit up all night, if it could do her any -good.” - -“She does not want any one to sit up with her all night,” said George; -“but I cannot help thinking that we could do more for her, Lily, than -the cleverest doctor could. The lessons are a great fatigue to her, I -fear.” - -“Well, I’m sure that I should be delighted to leave them off, every one -of them!” exclaimed his sister. - -“That would not do,” answered George; “they must be learned; and I am -afraid that I could not teach you as well as Eddy. But it does seem to -me, Lily,” he continued, speaking more slowly and looking on the ground, -“that you might save mother just half the trouble that you give her at -your lessons.” - -“I! what do you mean?” said Lily quickly. - -“Well, dear, I don’t wish to vex you; but you know that I could not help -hearing what went on all the time that you were at your tasks. Mother -had to tell you this thing and that—just what, I suppose, she had told -you a hundred times before: and you were watching the butterfly -fluttering about while she was explaining the rule of three; so of -course you did not understand it one bit, and she had to begin from the -beginning again. Mother is so kind and gentle—it seems as though her -goodness made you careless. I am sure that you would learn your lessons -much better if she had taught you with a rod in her hand.” - -“George, I never expected this from you!” cried Lily, her eyes filling -with tears. - -“Forgive me, dear, for speaking so plainly; but when I look at mother, -and see her so thin and so pale, I can’t help telling you a little what -I think. Now, it’s just like this,” continued George, searching in his -mind for a simile. “Suppose that you were lame, and that it was my duty -to lift you into the baby’s little carriage, and give you a turn round -the square.” - -“You could manage it, I dare say,” said Lily. - -“Ah! but suppose that, as I was drawing you along, you caught at every -bush, and clung to the palings, and held the wheels, so that they could -not be turned round.” - -Lily could not refrain from laughing. “You would have hard work, -Georgie, dragging me along! But I should never make you so unkind a -return, if you were so good as to draw me round the square!” - -“And yet, when dear mother gives her time and her strength to getting -you on with your learning, you act just as if you wished to make her -pull in vain; and I am sure that she is just as much tired as I should -be after giving such a drive. Now, Lily, I am certain that you love dear -mamma—” - -“I love her—I dote on her—I would do anything for her!” exclaimed the -little girl, fairly bursting into tears, for she was much wounded by the -words of her brother. - -George kissed her again and again, as if angry with himself for having -vexed her; but as soon as Lily was more calm, he resumed the subject -once more. - -“Now, dear, suppose that you and I resolve in future to do our very best -to make mother strong and well. There are three things which I think -will do her more good than all the steel wine in the world. First, let -her never say anything _twice_—what a saving of her strength that would -be! Then let us always determine to think of her pleasure before our -own. And lastly, in every little thing, let us save her all the trouble -that we can. Oh, Lily, let us only consider what a blessing God has -given us in such a parent; we cannot love her too much, nor care for her -too much, nor too earnestly try to obey that commandment, ‘_Honour thy -father and thy mother_.’ And now, will you forgive me for what I have -said?” George added, gently laying his hand upon his sister’s. - -Lily threw her arms around his neck. “George, you are a darling!” she -exclaimed. - -“And so we will be merry again! Come, dry up those eyes, dear Lily; I -cannot bear to see you cry.” - -Lily smiled through her tears, dried her eyes, and then, taking her -work-box from the table, she drew out her beautiful pen-wiper. “Can you -guess for whom this is?” said she; “do you think that it will be pretty -when it is done?” - -“Very pretty indeed,” answered George; “how beautiful the gold looks on -the dark blue!” - -“It is for a certain brother of mine,” said Lily, with an arch, pleasant -smile. - -“For a brother who will value it very much—I think that I can answer for -that,” replied George. - -“I’m going to work it now,” said the little girl, as she passed a thread -through my eye. - -“Have you nothing else that you wish to do first, dear Lily?” - -“No, nothing;—oh, you are looking at that hole in my dress; but I never -mend my own clothes.” - -“I thought that I heard mother say something about that very hole -to-day,” observed George, with a little hesitation. - -“Well, I suppose that I ought to run it up; but I do so detest mending.” - -“I wish that I could help you, Lily; but I fear that my fingers are too -clumsy. Here is an opportunity for you to begin to follow up your good -resolutions. Here is something which you dislike to do; but then your -doing it will give pleasure to mother. What is trouble to you will save -trouble to her, and you will be so glad when the effort is made.” - -“Must I put this by?” said Lily, looking sadly at her pen-wiper. - -“For a while, dear—only for a while. I shall always look with more -pleasure at my beautiful present when I remember that my Lily would not -let her own will come before her duty and her love to her mother.” - -The pen-wiper was replaced in the box, and I felt myself hastily run -into the dress. - -“I will sit beside you while you work,” said George, “and tell you a -story to amuse you.” - -“A story! a story!” exclaimed Eddy, running up to his brother in high -glee at the word. - -“Oh, Eddy! what have you been about?—pulling the horse-hair out of the -chair!” - -“He is always at some mischief,” said Lily. - -“I think,” observed George, “that it must be because he is idle, and -cannot keep those little fingers still. Now, Eddy, would you not rather -be a comfort to mamma, and help her?” - -“I do help mamma!” exclaimed the little boy, with a look of injured -innocence; “I helped her a great deal to pack her box; I wish mamma had -a box to pack every day.” - -“Perhaps mamma would not join in that wish. But if there is not a box to -pack, here is a great skein of wool to wind. Will you hold it on your -hands, little man, while I try to find out the knot?” - -“He’ll let it slip off to a certainty!” cried Lily; “you had much better -put it over a chair.” - -“Will you let it slip off, Eddy,” said his brother, “and spoil all the -skein for mamma?” - -“I’ll hold it as tight—as tight as a drum!” cried the child, indignant -at his carefulness being doubted. “I will be useful—I will help mamma!” -his face quite flushed as he spoke. - -“You’ll be her comfort, Eddy; I’m sure of it,” said George. “Now, -softly; you need not stretch it so hard; just hold your hands a little -nearer to the light; I can wind all the time that I am telling the -story.” - -“Oh, how nice it will be! how happy we are! What shall the story be -about?” cried Eddy. - -“Let me see,” said George, shaking out a knot. “Why, Lily, how famously -you are getting on with your hole! We shall be puzzled to find out the -place where it was. I think that, in compliment to your work, I will -tell you a story of a needle and a compass.” - -“Of a needle!—oh, what fun!” cried little Eddy. A jovial little fellow -he was, and very merry sounded his laugh; but it was not merrier than -mine, if the children could have heard it; for never had it entered my -thoughts for a moment that any one would ever make a story about me; and -I felt amazingly complimented by the idea. - -“What sort of needle?” asked Eddy; “a big needle—a darning needle—a -bodkin?” - -“Oh no!” replied George, with a smile; “we need nothing so grand as -that. We’ll have a story of a nice little needle, just like that with -which Lily is sewing.” - -With eager curiosity I listened, and the Scissors and the Thimble were -all full of attention, as George commenced his story. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XII. - - THE STORY OF A NEEDLE AND A COMPASS. - - -“ONCE upon a time, in the days of fairies—” - -“How long ago?” inquired Eddy. - -“Well, you must not ask too particularly about that,” laughed George; -“but I suppose that, as there is a compass in my story, it must have -been after the compass was invented—about the thirteenth century, that -is to say, though some believe that the Chinese had it more than two -thousand years before.” - -“But what is a compass?” said Eddy, looking up. - -“Oh, Eddy,” cried Lily with impatience, “you must not interrupt us every -minute!” - -“Poor little fellow! it is very natural that he should like to -understand,” observed George “I’ll try to explain it to you, Eddy. There -is a strange substance, called loadstone, dug out of the ground, for -which iron has a wonderful fancy. If a lump of it were placed in Lily’s -work-box, all her needles and scissors, and her keys, if she had any, -would jump to it, and cling to it in a minute, just as you would jump -into mother’s arms.” - -“Oh, I wish that I had a lump as big as my head! I should like to see -the poker and the tongs and the shovel all jumping!” exclaimed Eddy, -full of merriment at the thought. - -“And the odd thing is,” continued George, “that when iron is well rubbed -with this loadstone, it seems as though it grew just like it, for it -gets the very same curious property of attracting other bits of iron. -One of the boys at my school had a large steel magnet—that is, steel -that had been rubbed with the loadstone—and it was the funniest thing in -the world to see a dozen needles sticking to it at once, like so many -quills upon a porcupine.” - -“But what has this to do with the compass?” inquired Lily. - -“It has a great deal to do with the compass. It has been discovered that -magnets, when put in such a position that they can freely move in any -direction, are sure always to turn towards the north: so little -instruments are formed, holding a small piece of steel made into a -magnet, not fixed, but left to tremble and tremble, till, like a tiny -finger, it points towards the North Pole.” - -“What is the use of that?” said Eddy. - -“It is of wonderful use,” answered George. “Why, only think of poor -sailors at sea; when there is nothing but water, wide water, around -them, and when the clouds hide the sun or the stars, how can they tell -which way to steer?” - -“I don’t know,” said Eddy, quite puzzled. - -“They look at their clever little compass—they see in what direction it -points—they know from it where the north and south lie; and the tiny -magnet serves as a guide.” - -“What a clever little compass!” cried Eddy; “now, please go on with your -story.” - -“Well, as I said, once upon a time, in a beautiful garden, near a -beautiful palace, there sported two beautiful children. They were the -little son and daughter of a king; and they were brought up with such -foolish indulgence, that in all things they had their own way. They did -not like spelling, so they never learned to spell; they did not know -their tables; they never looked at maps; they could not so much as count -their fingers!” - -“Oh!” exclaimed Eddy, “the stupid little things!” - -“They were not naturally more stupid than others,” replied George; “but -then they were terribly idle. They were of no use to any one in the -world. They did nothing but gather fruit and eat it, and make garlands -of pretty flowers, and sing aloud their foolish little song— - - ‘I love to be idle, I love to be gay, - I’ll throw my books and my work away; - From morning till night—all play, all play!’” - -There was a twinkle in Eddy’s merry eye that seemed to say that he felt -no surprise at the idle taste of the children. - -“Well,” continued George, winding rapidly all the time that he spoke, -“one day they were playing together in the garden, when they were -surprised to hear a low, soft sound, which came from a bed of flowers. -They ran eagerly to the spot, and, standing in the cup of a tulip, a -fine tulip, all streaked with crimson and white, what do you think they -saw?” - -Eddy suspected a wasp, or a dragon-fly. - -“No; a lovely little fairy, with gossamer wings, all spangled with -silver and gold; and she held in her hand a fine glittering wand, not -half so big as the tiniest needle! - -“‘Oh, foolish children!’ she cried, in a soft, sweet voice, which -sounded like the tinkling of a bell, ‘do you think life was made only -for a plaything, and time given to be thrown away in folly! There is -work in this world for every one to do, and everything is created for -some use. As you have never, with your wills, done any service to -mankind, it is your doom to do service without them. Your eyes, your -ears, your hands, your tongues, have been given you to no purpose; their -powers shall now be taken quite away; for seven long years you shall -toil in humble estate, till you have learned how great is the value of -time, and opportunity to do some good to others!’ - -“While the little prince was wondering what the fairy could mean, she -stretched her gossamer wings, and flying towards him, she touched him on -the face with her wand. A very odd feeling came over him at once. He -seemed to be contracting like an india-rubber ball, when some one has -let out the air. Feet and legs, hands and arms, appeared drawn into his -body; and the body itself became smaller, and rounder, and harder, every -minute, till nothing was left of the poor little prince but a mariner’s -compass in a neat brass case, with its slender finger trembling, -trembling, till it found its resting-place towards the north!” - -Eddy opened his blue eyes very wide at the idea of such a strange -transformation, and nearly let the skein of wool slip over his fingers. - -“The little girl stood amazed, as you may suppose, at the singular -change in her brother. In her surprise to see him shrink into so curious -a shape, she was uttering a cry of dismay, when her tongue, all on a -sudden, ceased to move, her fingers appeared fastened to her sides, her -feet joined together and grew into a point—she shrank, shrank, as if -going to disappear altogether—till, where the little princess had stood, -there only lay on the ground a small needle!” - -“Oh, George, what a comical story!” cried Lily, smoothing down the -dress, which she now had finished mending. - -“Please, go on,” exclaimed Eddy; “what did the fairy do next?” - -“Turning towards the mariner’s compass, and waving her wand to the sound -of strange wild music in the air, she sang the following words:— - - ‘Upon the stormy tide - The weary seaman guide, - And point to the North across the ocean wide!’ - -Then bending over the needle, she continued the lay— - - ‘What is marred, make right; - What is severed, unite; - And leave where’er you pass a golden thread of light!’ - -Then in what manner they were conveyed away I know not, but suddenly the -compass found itself on the deck of a ship, and the needle in the -work-box of a young lady.” - -“That was Lily,” suggested Eddy. - -“Oh! as if we lived in the time of the fairies!” exclaimed his sister, -now busy again with her pen-wiper. - -“Well, we may call industry and affection good fairies,” said George, -“for what wonderful changes they make! But to go on with my little -story. - -“For seven long years the compass and the needle were as clever and -useful, and did as much work, as compass and needle could do. The one -was tossed on the stormy sea, was nearly lost in a shipwrecked vessel, -and when it was deserted by its crew, and almost everything else left -behind, they took it with them, as something more precious than gold, -and by it were guided to safety! It were endless to tell all the good -deeds of the tiny needle in its quiet little home; how many holes it -mended, how many poor it clothed, what beautiful pen-wipers it made,” -George added, glancing playfully at his sister, “till at last—” - -“Well, what happened at last?” said Eddy. - -“At last, one lovely summer morn, when all the birds were singing, and -the flowers smelling sweet, and the trees waving softly in the air, in -the beautiful garden of a beautiful palace the two beautiful children -found themselves again, with their arms closely twined around each -other!” - -“Had they not grown in all that time?” inquired Lily. - -“They had grown wiser, dear; but the years that had passed seemed to -them like nothing but a dream; and a dream they would have thought them, -so exactly did everything appear as it had done before, had not the same -silvery voice come from the centre of a rose, and the same fairy form -appeared with spangled wings, and tiny glittering wand! - -“‘Let not the lessons which you have learned be forgotten!’ she cried. -‘Follow the same path of usefulness now with your wills as you have -lately been doing without them. Let not lifeless brass and steel do more -than beings with reason, judgment, and affection. Let the heart still -point to the pole-star of duty in every danger and trouble; and your -home be cheered by the quiet virtues which adorn the peace-maker, the -comforter, the friend!’ Then bursting into song as she vanished into -air, the fairy’s musical voice was heard:— - - ‘On life’s ocean wide - Your fellow-creatures guide, - And point to a shore beyond the stormy tide! - What is marred, make right; - What is severed, unite; - And leave where’er you pass love’s golden thread of light!’” - -“That’s a pretty little story!” said Eddy, as his brother wound off the -end of his skein. “You must teach me the tiny fairy’s song— - - ‘_What is marred, make right._’ - -Just say it over again once or twice, Georgie.” - -“What do you think of it?” said I to Mrs. Scissors. - -“Oh, you know very well that it is not in my line,” she replied, in a -snappish manner; “I sever what is united, and cut right and left! I -would not stoop to the office of a needle!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XIII. - - GOLD BROUGHT TO THE PROOF. - - -THE story told by George, however gratifying to my feelings as a needle, -did not prevent me from dwelling a good deal on the troubles of his -parents, and wondering if any letter had arrived from Bristol. I seldom -saw Mr. Ellerslie in the drawing-room, where I was kept, till he -returned from business late in the afternoon. This day, when he entered -the apartment with his wife, he looked gloomy and anxious as ever. - -“There is a late post; we may hear to-night,” the lady said. He muttered -something, I could not make out what. - -Mr. Ellerslie was very irritable that evening; he could scarcely bear -the children near him at all. Eddy made a vain attempt to repeat to him -the fairy’s song, of which the rhyme had caught the child’s fancy. He -and his sister were soon sent up to the nursery; but George, as being -older and more quiet, was suffered to remain behind. - -Mrs. Ellerslie, with forced cheerfulness, did all that she could to make -the heavy time pass pleasantly. She carefully avoided rousing her -husband’s temper, and when, without reason, his peevishness broke forth, -she bore it without a murmur or complaint, and kept down the tears which -struggled to rise. I saw plainly that iron is not the only thing liable -to a speck of rust, nor broken-pointed scissors the only articles formed -to cut and divide. - -Mrs. Ellerslie took up a book, a very amusing volume it was, and read -till her voice grew hoarse and faint. - -“May I read a little, mother?” said George; “it is good practice for me, -you know.” - -She placed the book in his hand; but it soon became evident that George -was not accustomed to read aloud. He never varied his tone, missed the -short words and mispronounced the long, and certainly made a very poor -figure as a reader. - -“How you drawl! it is a penance to hear you!” cried his father. - -“Shall I take the book now?” said Mrs. Ellerslie faintly. - -George was flushed. I could see that he felt his father’s taunt. I -believe that he would gladly have given up the reading; but his mother’s -feeble tone seemed to touch his heart, and still retaining his hold of -the volume, he said, “If you please, I would rather try a little longer; -I will try to read better, if you will let me.” - -“There’s the post!” exclaimed Mrs. Ellerslie, with a start, as the -double rap was suddenly heard. - -George saw that his mother was anxious: he sprang out of the room in a -moment. - -Mr. Ellerslie rose, as if too impatient to be able to sit still; his -wife clasped her trembling hands; but neither of them uttered a word -till George returned with a letter. - -“The Bristol post-mark!” muttered Mr. Ellerslie, as he broke the seal. - -“George, my son,” said the lady, “go to the dining-room for a few -minutes. You can take the book with you, if you like.” - -George instantly obeyed, without speaking; and Mrs. Ellerslie fixed her -blue eyes, with a look of intense anxiety, on the changing countenance -of her husband. - -“There—read it,” he exclaimed, when he had finished perusing the letter; -“what do you say, Eliza, to that?” and he threw himself again on his -chair. - -“He writes kindly of George,” said the mother, after looking over the -first page of the letter,—“‘_I was much pleased with what I saw of your -boy last year,—I don’t forget that he is my namesake._’” The poor -mother’s face brightened up. - -“Read on,” said her husband abruptly. - -“It does not seem that he declines to assist you,” said the lady, still -anxiously endeavouring to make out the crabbed handwriting before her; -“on the contrary,” he writes, ‘_I shall have a large sum at your -disposal, such as I think will remove every difficulty._’” - -“There’s an _if_ to that. Read on a little farther.” - -“Oh, Edward!” exclaimed the lady, almost dropping the letter, “can he -ask us to give up our boy—our dear son?” - -“He offers to adopt him as his own.” - -“My George! oh! no, no, no!—we can never, never consent to that!” - -“Why, you see, Eliza,” said her husband, speaking rapidly, “if I have -not assistance now, all will be ruin—I shall have no means of supporting -my family. Perhaps this is the best thing for George himself—” - -“I can hardly think it,” said the mother, with a look of intense pain. -“Hardcastle gives us to understand that the separation from our boy must -be ‘_complete—final_’—these are his very words—that ‘_George must not -look to two fathers or two homes_—’” - -“Hardcastle dislikes me,” muttered Mr. Ellerslie to himself. - -“And even if we could bear to part,” continued his wife, with something -like a stifled sob, “Hardcastle is not one to whom our boy could look up -with the affection—the reverence—” she stopped for a moment, as if to -swallow down her tears. “Hardcastle has temper, he is strange, -eccentric. Our George would be wretched with him. Oh no! it cannot be!” -she added with energy; “it would be like sacrificing—selling our child!” - -“If we refuse Hardcastle’s offer,” said her husband, “we offend him for -ever; and you know the consequences, Eliza.” - -She sat with her hand pressed over her eyes, while Mr. Ellerslie -continued to speak, - -“He can afford George advantages, comforts, which it would not be in our -power to bestow. I am not certain whether, all selfish motives set -aside, the boy would not be happier at Bristol than here.” - -“Let us consult George himself,” said the unhappy mother. “On a question -which concerns the welfare of his whole life, we at least should know -what are the poor child’s feelings.” - -“I have no objection,” replied the father, walking to the door; “but you -must command yourself, Eliza. This is weak, foolish—not what I expected -from you. We must think calmly, and decide firmly, and not give way to -emotions which injure ourselves and can do good to none.—George!” he -called out, after opening the door, while his wife, after one look of -anguish, such as I never can forget, sat quiet and submissive on the -sofa, like one whose spirit is broken and crushed. - -“Did you call me, father?” said George, as he entered with his light -step and cheerful glance. - -“Yes; I wish to speak to you, my boy. You remember your visit to Bristol -last summer?” - -“That I do!” replied the school-boy with a meaning smile; “I know that I -was precious glad when it was over!” - -“You had nothing to complain of—Mr. Hardcastle was kind?” - -“Well, kind after his fashion,” said George, with a little hesitation. -“I did not mean to say anything against him. But what with the smoke and -the dirt, and the noise of the great manufactory close by, and the ways -of the house—not one bit like ours—I know that I felt like a bird in a -cage, and was heartily glad when I was set free!” - -“I knew it!” murmured the mother; but I believe that no one overheard -her but myself. - -Mr. Ellerslie knitted his brow. “Hardcastle wishes you to go to him,” he -said. - -“Not another visit, I hope?” exclaimed George with animation; “you do -not know how much I should hate it.” - -“Not for a visit—he would have you for good and all.” - -“But he won’t get me!” cried the school-boy with playful confidence. “I -would not change my own dear home for that smoky prison, no, not for all -England—and Ireland to boot!” - -“He shall not go!—oh, Edward, he cannot go!” exclaimed the mother, -rising and throwing her arms round her son, and pressing him -convulsively to her heart. “I would sooner starve than send him away!” - -George was startled and alarmed at the sight of her agitation, and -looked anxiously at his father for an explanation of an emotion which he -could not understand. - -“It is as well that he should know all,” said Mr. Ellerslie; “let the -boy decide for himself.—George, driven by circumstances which I need not -explain, I have asked a favour of Mr. Hardcastle, on which the comfort, -the independence, I may say the very living, of this family depend. This -is his answer; read it.” He pushed the letter across the table to -George. - -All the healthy glow in the boy’s cheek faded away as he slowly made out -the closely-written scrawl. His father folded his arms, and fixed his -gaze sternly on the carpet; but his mother watched him with glistening -eyes. George stopped more than once as he read, as if to make sure that -he rightly understood, and repeated the words “_final and complete -separation_” as he might have done a sentence of death. When he had -finished he laid down the letter, and turning towards the sofa, said, in -a low, agitated tone, “Mother, what would you wish me to do?” - -She buried her face in her hands. - -“Do not further distress your mother,” said Mr. Ellerslie, rising with -emotion. “I leave the question in your own hands, George; I will never -dispose of you without your own consent:” and as he spoke I thought that -the hand which he laid on the shoulder of his first-born trembled. - -George had evident difficulty in speaking. He could scarcely command his -voice. I expected him to break down every moment; but he manfully -struggled with his feelings. - -“I should like one night, dear father, to think over it, before I make -up my mind. Mr. Hardcastle says in his postscript”—he took up the letter -and read—“‘_As business takes me to London, I shall arrive almost as -soon as my letter, and will see you on Saturday morning_;’ so, -doubtless, he will be here to-morrow. May I wait till the morning before -I give you my answer?” - -“Certainly,” replied Mr. Ellerslie, with a heavy sigh. “You had better -retire to rest now; it is late. I shall wait at home to-morrow to see -Hardcastle when he calls. You will tell me your wishes in the morning. -George, my dear boy, good-night.” - -He pressed his son for a moment closely to his breast, and then himself -rapidly quitted the room. George sprang to the side of his mother. - -“Mother—darling mother!” his arms were around her, his head buried on -her bosom. - -“Oh, George, my heart will break—will break! I cannot part with you!—I -can never consent!” - -“We will think, we will reflect over it, mother.” - -“And pray—oh, my child! we will pray!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - - CONCLUSION. - - -“THAT’S right, Lily, place the books ready; get everything right for -dear mother,” said George, as, with a step and manner, oh, how changed! -he entered the drawing-room the next morning. - -“I want you to see that I do not forget your advice. I am going to be a -real comfort to mamma.” - -“And so am I!” cried Eddy, with glee. - - “My healthy arm shall be her stay, - And I will wipe her tears away!” - -He stopped short, and stared in wonder at his brother. “Are you going to -cry, Georgie?” he exclaimed. - -“What is the matter, George, dear George?” cried Lily, looking alarmed. - -“Sit down beside me, dear Lily and Eddy,” said George, when he had -recovered his voice. “I want to speak with you quietly and seriously—I -want to speak to you about our dear parents.” - -“But is anything the matter?” repeated Lily. - -“I am going to leave you—I am going to Bristol—I—” - -He was interrupted by a passionate exclamation from Lily, and something -like a howl from Eddy. - -“I wish you to take my place—to be to those dear parents all that I once -hoped to be; to obey them cheerfully, without a murmur; to try and find -out their wishes, even before they can speak them; to—” - -“But you shan’t go, Georgie; I won’t let you go!” cried Eddy, seizing -his brother’s arm with both his hands, as if to detain him by force. - -At that moment there was a knock at the door, and George turned very -pale at the sound. The next minute Mrs. Ellerslie entered the -drawing-room to receive the expected visitor. The lady’s eyes looked -swollen and red, and her form drooped like a withering flower. Eddy -popped a cushion on her chair, and Lily drew a footstool before it. - -Mr. Ellerslie, whose voice had been heard on the stairs in conversation -with some one whose cracked, peculiar tones grated harshly on the ear, -now threw open the door and followed into the apartment a little -shrunken figure, dressed in a snuff-coloured coat, considerably the -worse for wear. I could not wonder, when I looked at the visitor, at -poor George’s reluctance to exchange the society of all whom he loved so -well for that of his cousin at Bristol. There was something shabby, -mean, even dirty, in his appearance, which gave the impression that he -was out of place in a gentleman’s house; while a terrible squint in his -left eye, and a strange twitch in his face, which set Eddy laughing, -made his countenance the reverse of agreeable. - -Mr. Hardcastle, in an uncouth, awkward manner, shook hands with Mrs. -Ellerslie, nodded to Lily, and chucked Eddy good-humouredly under the -chin; then, clapping George heartily on the back, he said, “So, my man, -you are going back with me to Bristol! That’s right. See that your trunk -is packed by Monday; we’ll be off by the early train.” - -“I shall be ready, sir,” answered the boy. - -Mr. Hardcastle sat down, pulled out his snuff-box, took a pinch of its -contents, part of which he bestowed on the carpet, then held out the box -to Eddy, who examined with interest the picture on the lid. - -“I’ll arrange it with you, Ellerslie, to-day,” said the old gentleman; -“we’ll go to the city together, make all right, set all smooth.” He -passed his fingers through his hair, and stretched out his legs with an -air of satisfaction, in marvellous good-humour with himself. - -“I am very sensible how much I am indebted to you,” began Mr. Ellerslie, -making an effort to speak. - -“Say nothing about it, say nothing about it—it’s all settled and done. -When a man comes half-way to meet me, why it’s my way to go the other -half to meet him. Eh, George?” he added, as if appealing to the boy, who -stood silently and sadly leaning against the arm of the sofa. - -George’s answer was a half-suppressed sigh. - -“You look glumpish,” said the old gentleman, fixing the eye which did -not squint on the boy. “You don’t wish to go with me, eh?”—the cracked -voice had impatience in its tone. - -“I wish to do—whatever is best for my parents.” - -“But you don’t like going, eh?” said Mr. Hardcastle, resting his bony -hands on his knees, and leaning forward with a look of peevish -irritability. - -“I cannot like—leaving my home for another,” answered George gravely; -“but I am ready to do it—I do not complain.” - -Mr. Hardcastle continued his sharp scrutiny of the boy’s countenance, as -if he would read him through and through. There was a painful moment of -silence—it was broken by little Eddy. - -“You shan’t take away George,” said he, going close to the old man, and -looking earnestly up into his face. - -“I shan’t! shall I not? and why not, my little man?” said Mr. -Hardcastle, lifting the child on his knee. - -“Because—because—Georgie must not be sent far away like the compass, but -stay here at home like the needle.” - -“Like what?” exclaimed Mr. Hardcastle, laughing. - -“It’s a story Georgie told us,” said the child, pulling the buttons on -the coat of the old gentleman. - -“Let’s hear his story, by all means, my dear.” - -Poor Eddy looked exceedingly puzzled, for he had very little command of -language, and did not know how to put his thoughts into words. At last -he said, “Georgie told it to make us good, and busy, and kind, and a -comfort to papa and mamma.” - -“Ah! that must have been a capital story; I should like to hear you tell -me all about it.” - -“Eddy,” said his father, “how can you plague Mr. Hardcastle with your -nonsense?” - -“I beg your pardon, he does not plague me at all. It amuses me to hear -what the little fellow has to say. So out with your improving story, -Master Eddy!” - -[Illustration: - - Eddy tells his story. - _Page 120._ -] - -Poor Eddy turned round and looked at his brother; but George seemed -disposed to render him no assistance. He glanced at Lily—she would not -utter a word. He was left to his own resources. - -“Well, once upon a time,” he began, but stopped short. “I can’t tell a -story,” said the child; “it is too hard—I can only remember a bit of the -fairy’s pretty song.” - -“A little is better than nothing,” cried the old gentleman, much amused -at the perplexed look of the child. “Let’s hear what the fairy sang.” - -“It was something about what we all should do, Georgie said. It made me -think I should like to do it too. This was it;” and keeping time with -his fore-finger, he slowly repeated— - - “What is marred, make right; - What is severed, unite; - And leave where’er you pass love’s golden thread of light!” - -The hard features of the old man softened as he listened to the lisping -child. “That’s the song, is it?” said he, stroking Eddy’s locks in -rather an abstracted manner. “What is severed, unite,” he repeated to -himself;—“here it is, _What is united, sever!_” and he glanced at George -and his mother. - -“That won’t do at all,” said Eddy, overhearing him; “that sounds -bad—shocking bad!” - -“Does it?” said Mr. Hardcastle, laughing. “Well, I really believe that -it does. So George teaches you to be busy, and obedient, and kind, and -makes you all happy; does he, eh?” - -“Oh yes!” cried Eddy, jumping down and running up to his brother. - -“It would be a shame to part you, then, it would be a shame!” said the -old man, rising. “No, no; I am not so bad as that! George, stay with -your parents; you are an honour to them, my boy! stay and be a comfort -and blessing in your home!—And now, Ellerslie, shall we start for the -city?” - -I shall not attempt to describe the deep, intense joy which followed the -utterance of these few words, the delight which sparkled in the eyes of -George, or the fervent exclamation of thankfulness from his mother!—but -none looked merrier than the kindhearted old man himself, unless it were -our little friend Eddy. - -I have often thought of that scene since, and talked it over with the -Thimble. She has become too small for Lily’s finger now, but occupies a -quiet corner in the box. The broken-pointed Scissors I have lost sight -of for years. Lily has grown into a sweet, gentle young maiden, ever -watchful to show kindness to those who need it, ever thoughtful of the -feelings of others. Her mother speaks of her now as her “right hand;” -and the bloom has returned to the lady’s pale cheek, and her brow is -calm and serene. George has entered the Church, I understand; and Eddy, -like the compass in the story, is pursuing his way on the wide ocean. -But I have reason to believe that, in their different paths, both are -pressing forward to the same happy goal, and in their intercourse with -the world, as well as in their peaceful home, are living in the spirit -of the song— - - “On life’s ocean wide, - Your fellow-creatures guide, - And point to a shore beyond the stormy tide! - What is marred, make right; - What is severed, unite; - And leave where’er you pass love’s golden thread of light!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - GLORY - - -“WHAT a proud, happy young fellow that Prince Imperial must be!” -exclaimed Harry Lance, as he glanced up from the newspaper which he had -been reading by the light of a lamp, on the evening of the 4th of -August. “Why, here is this young Louis, not a year older than myself, -and already there is a telegram about him darting all over Europe, and -the world will soon know how calm and brave he was the first time that -he ever saw fighting, how he picked up the Prussian ball which had -fallen near his feet, and how old soldiers had tears in their eyes to -see their boy Prince so firm in the moment of danger. I dare say that he -will live to cover himself with glory, and be as famous as was his -great-uncle, Napoleon the First. I only wish that I were the son of the -Emperor of the French!” - -“I should not care to change places with the Prince Imperial,” observed -Arthur Lance, who was seated by the open window, to enjoy the fresh -evening air, and watch the stars gleaming out one by one in the sky. - -“What! not to have his chance of winning glory, and of being talked -of—like his great-uncle—years and years after his death?” - -Arthur smiled at the question. “I don’t think that would do him much -good,” observed he. - -“You’ve not a spark of spirit in you Arthur!” cried Harry; “at least not -a spark of the spirit of a hero. I do believe that you would rather have -been that missionary who went to teach woolly-haired niggers, and died -of yellow fever, than the glorious Napoleon Buonaparte himself!” - -Arthur was silent; but his mother, who had just joined him by the -window, observed, “I believe that the missionary’s was the nobler life, -the happier death, and the more lasting glory.” - -[Illustration: - - NAPOLEON AS A BOY DIRECTING A SNOW-BALL FIGHT. -] - -“Oh, not _glory_, mother!” exclaimed Harry. “There was no glory in the -humdrum life which he led, and ten years hence no one will so much as -remember his name. Napoleon had glory indeed! From his very boyhood he -was a leader of others. If his schoolfellows had a mimic fight, it was -Napoleon who directed the battle, and taught future soldiers to pelt -each other with snow-balls, as they would one day pelt their foes with -something more deadly. What power Napoleon had over his men! How his -words could rouse them to rush to battle as if to a feast! How grand and -glorious he must have looked on a field of battle, as he glanced down -the columns of armed men eager to follow him to victory, and heard their -shouts of _Vive l’Empereur_, as they pressed forward to glory! One such -hour of Napoleon’s life must have been worth ten years of the life of a -drudging teacher of niggers!” The boy’s eyes sparkled with animation as -he spoke. - -“There was one hour of Napoleon’s life when he is said to have himself -played the teacher, and I think that he appeared greater then than on -the battle-field,” said Mrs. Lance. “I will show you a large print which -I have representing the scene. It describes an incident which is said to -have occurred on the deck of a vessel in which Napoleon, then a young -officer, was making his voyage to Egypt. A group of French officers had -been conversing together, speaking like the fool of whom we read in the -Bible, who says that _there is no God_. The glittering stars were -spangling the sky above them, shining down as they have shone for -thousands of years, and bearing witness to the power of their great -Creator. _The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament -sheweth his handywork._ Napoleon approached the unbelievers, lifted up -his hand towards the stars, and said, ‘Gentlemen, who made _these_?’ The -officers could not reply; even their blinded souls could see the awful -truth taught by the stars—that there is, that there must be, a great and -glorious Creator!” - -“But was Napoleon himself a religious man?” inquired Arthur. - -“I fear that he was far from being so,” was the reply. “No real -Christian could for his own wild ambition plunge nations into war, and -sacrifice the lives of hundreds of thousands of men. If Napoleon -Buonaparte’s name is written in history, it is written in blood, and -fire, and tears. I have often wished that the stars, which preached one -text to Napoleon, could have preached one other to his heart; then the -conqueror would have felt that there is a glory greater and more lasting -than that which earthly triumphs can give.” - -“I cannot think what text you mean,” said Arthur. - -“Nor can I,” added his brother. - -Their mother left them to find it out, and continued her observations. -“The same stars on which Napoleon had looked from the deck of the ship, -must often have met his gaze in the distant lands to which he led his -hosts—those lands in which so many gallant soldiers were to find their -graves.” - -“Ah! how fearfully the French suffered in Russia,” interrupted Harry; -“certainly there Napoleon’s history was written in blood, and fire, and -tears. I’ve read how the Russians burned their own beautiful city of -Moscow, that it might not give shelter to the invaders.” - -“The Russians showed themselves to be ready to make any sacrifice in -order to drive the French out of their land,” observed Mrs. Lance. “The -Russians fought bravely, but it was the rigour of their wintry clime, -the icy wind, the falling snow, that proved more deadly to the French -than even the swords of their foes. Multitudes of gallant men, who had -entered Russia full of hope and courage, perished miserably under the -snow. And who can tell the grief in thousands and thousands of homes in -France, where widows and orphans wept for fathers, brothers, sons, whom -they never should see again?” - -“I own that Napoleon bought his glory too dear,” said Harry gravely. - -“No doubt he thought so himself,” observed Arthur, “when, as a prisoner -in St. Helena, he had plenty of time to remember all these terrible -things.” - -“Yes,” said Mrs. Lance; “on that dreary rocky isle bitterly must the -mighty conqueror have recalled the past. There, unchanged in their calm -brightness, the quiet stars shone over him still, and they may have -reminded the exile—” - -[Illustration: - - NAPOLEON AT ST. HELENA. -] - -“Ha! what’s that?” interrupted Harry, suddenly starting from his seat -and rushing to the window, as, with a rushing, whizzing noise, a rocket -shot up into the deep blue sky. - -“Oh! don’t you remember that we heard that there were to be fireworks -to-night in the Earl’s grounds?” said Arthur. “I am so glad that we -shall be able to see the rockets over the trees. Look—oh! look—there’s -another! it rises higher than the first!” - -“How beautiful—how grand—how glorious it is!” exclaimed Harry, clapping -his hands with delight. “It darts aloft like a conqueror rising upwards -and upwards; and there—see how it bursts into a shower of stars—much -brighter than stars—filling the sky with its spangles of light! There is -nothing so glorious to look upon as a rocket!” - -For nearly an hour the mother and her sons watched the beautiful -fireworks over the trees, the rockets bursting on high into showers of -many-coloured sparks which entirely hid the stars from view. Then, after -the grandest display of all, the sight concluded; all was over, the -beauty and the glory. Quiet night reigned around, and the stars which -had gemmed the sky since the days of Adam, glimmered again in their -silent beauty on high. - -“The rockets were very fine, but their glory was soon over,” observed -Harry, as he turned from the window. “They have gone, and have left -nothing behind.” - -“They are types of worldly glory,” said his mother. - -“And the stars are like—oh, mother,” exclaimed Arthur, interrupting -himself in the midst of his sentence, “I have just remembered the text -which you wished that the stars had preached to the heart of Napoleon—it -makes me think of the young missionary who died amongst the Africans -whom he had led to the Lord: _They that be wise shall shine as the -brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as -the stars for ever and ever!_” (Dan. xii 3.) - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - THE VICTORY. - - -FRITZ ARNT was the son of a poor widow, who dwelt near the shore of the -Rhine. He had been her chief comfort and helper since the day when Carl -Gesner, the hard-hearted farmer, had turned her and her three children -out of their cottage the very afternoon on which the funeral of her -husband had taken place. In the middle of winter the sobbing widow had -to go forth from her home; carrying little with her, for Carl had seized -on most of her goods for the rent, which during her husband’s long -illness had fallen into arrears. Yes! he had kept the very bed upon -which her husband had breathed his last; and but for the kindness of -neighbours, Frau Arnt and her children would have had to sleep on straw. - -Fritz had been but a young boy then; but he had never forgotten the -bitterness of that moment when his mother, sad, sick, and desolate, had -pleaded with clasped hands to her hard-hearted landlord for a little -delay, and had pleaded in vain. Fritz had helped to nurse her through a -dangerous illness which followed. The boy had never forgiven the farmer, -but had often said in his heart that a time would come when he should -make Carl Gesner bitterly repent having nearly caused the death of a -sorrowing widow. - -Since that sad winter Fritz had worked hard to help to support the -family, and with increasing success. His wages for field labour eked out -what Frau Arnt earned at the lace-pillow; and something like comfort was -beginning to be enjoyed in his humble home, when the sound of the -war-bugle was heard in his native valley, and the news spread far and -wide that a fierce and terrible foe was on the march to invade the -German’s Fatherland. Fritz was under the age for military service which -all Prussians are bound to give; but he had a strong arm, and his -country needed strong arms. He was eager to serve his king, and be one -of the throngs that from every hamlet were hasting to join the ranks of -the army. - -But Fritz was too good a son to go without his widowed mother’s consent. -He had not only learned, but kept, that divine commandment, HONOUR THY -FATHER AND THY MOTHER. The lad would not quit his home without obtaining -that leave which he was almost afraid to ask. - -Frau Arnt was sitting with her lace-pillow on her knee, the glow of the -evening sun shining on her thin, worn face, when Fritz drew near. He -watched for some moments her busy fingers plying the threads, before he -observed,— - -“My brother Wilhelm is a strong boy now, and older than I was when we -first came here.” - -He paused: there was no reply. The widow guessed what was coming, and -her fingers moved faster than before. - -“Farmer Schwartz says that he would give Wilhelm my place, mother, and -make his wages the same as mine, if—” - -Fritz stopped again, and glanced anxiously into the face of his mother. -She suddenly paused in her work; her hands were trembling too much to -guide the threads, and her eyes were swimming in tears, so that she -could not see the pattern. Fritz knew then that his mother read his -thoughts, and that there was a struggle in her mind between her love for -him and a sense of duty. It was some time before, in a very low voice, -he spoke again:— - -“Mother, men are needed to guard your home and other homes. You have two -sons; will you not spare _one_ to your Fatherland?” - -The widow suddenly rose; her pillow dropped from her knee; her arms were -thrown around the neck of her son, and her face was buried on his -shoulder, as she sobbed forth,— - -“Go, and the Lord be with thee, my son!” - -[Illustration: - - FRITZ BIDDING GOOD-BYE TO HIS FRIENDS. -] - -Very little time was spent in preparation by Fritz. The very next day he -set out for the army. But before doing so, Fritz, accompanied by Wilhelm -and their sister, went round the hamlet to bid good-bye to his friends. -There was but one house which Fritz would not enter: it was that at -whose door stood Carl Gesner and his wife, watching him as he bade -farewell to friends on the opposite side of the road. At that time of -excitement all Prussians were ready to show kindness to the brave -defenders of their land; and Fritz knew that even Carl might be willing -to make friends with a young soldier then, for the farmer had such -patriotic zeal as to talk of joining the army himself. But Fritz would -have nothing to do with Carl Gesner. “I will never cross the threshold -nor grasp the hand of a man who turned us all out of doors, and nearly -killed my mother,” muttered Fritz to himself, as he strode past the -house of the farmer. - -I will not dwell upon the bitter parting. Frau Arnt felt as if her heart -would break; for she had heard so much of the power of France, that she -deemed that her country was entering on a desperate struggle indeed, and -that there was small chance that she would ever again behold her gallant -young son. But the frau was a pious woman: she committed her boy to the -care of a heavenly Father; and her last words to Fritz as they parted -were, “Remember that it is God that giveth the victory.” - -Often these encouraging words came back to the young soldier’s mind, as -he marched with his comrades singing the soul-stirring song,— - - “Dear Fatherland! no fear be thine; - Firm hearts and true watch by the Rhine!” - -The regiment to which Fritz was attached was not engaged in the first -battles. Several weeks passed before the youth was brought face to face -with strife and death. The time was not spent idly. Fritz learned much -that a soldier must know: he learned not only his drill exercise, but -also how to endure hardship and toil. - -At last Fritz’s regiment joined one of the army corps on the eve of a -great battle. At the end of a long march Fritz reached the Prussian -camp, and from a hill-side looked for the first time on the enemy’s -hosts ranged on the opposite slopes. They were near enough for Fritz to -catch the faint sound of their trumpet-call as the sun went down—near -enough for him to distinguish the colour of their flags, before night -shut out all but camp-fires from his view. And Fritz heard and saw what -made his heart beat fast—the booming of French cannon, and the puffs of -white smoke which rose above them; for a few shots were exchanged on -that evening between the two armies that were so soon to close in deadly -strife. - -The eve of a first battle is a solemn time even to the bravest of men. -“One of these cannon may bring _my_ death-summons to-morrow,” thought -Fritz, as he stood leaning on his gun, with his eyes turned towards the -enemy’s quarters, which darkness was now shrouding from his sight. Then -from the lad’s lips rose the German battle-prayer—that noble hymn -composed by the poet Körner, who fell defending his country against the -First Napoleon:— - - “Father, I call on Thee! - Through the dense smoke the war-thunder is pealing; - Over my head the fierce lightning is wheeling: - Ruler of armies, I call on thee; - Father, O guide Thou me! - - “Father, now lead me on! - Lead me to slaughter, or lead me to glory; - Since Thou ordainest whatever is before me, - Whate’er Thou willest, Thy will be done - To Thee I bow alone! - - “Father, O bless and guide! - Thine is my life, and to Thee I commend it; - Thou didst bestow it, and Thou canst defend it: - In life, in death, with me abide, - And be Thou glorified!” - -“And can I thus calmly commend my spirit to my heavenly Father?” thought -Fritz. “If, as is likely enough, I am to be one of those who will lie -stiff and stark in yon valley before the setting of to-morrow’s sun, am -I sure that I have made my peace with God so that death need have no -terrors for me?”—In how many brave souls must such thoughts arise on the -eve of battle! - -“My mother has often told me that we are saved by _faith_”—thus Fritz -went on with his musings—“and I can say from my heart that I do believe. -Yes! I believe in Him through whom is forgiveness of sins; I believe in -His mercy, His merits, His Word”—Fritz almost started, for at that -moment one sentence spoken by the Holy One flashed across his memory, -and by that sentence he stood condemned:—“IF YE FORGIVE NOT MEN THEIR -TRESPASSES, NEITHER WILL YOUR FATHER FORGIVE YOUR TRESPASSES.” Fritz -Arnt thought of Carl Gesner. - -“Have I not nourished hatred and malice in my heart for years?” thought -the young soldier. “Then have my very prayers been a mockery; then am I -still UNFORGIVEN. I dare face an earthly foe, but how dare I face a -heavenly Judge? But how can I conquer these feelings of dislike and -revenge—these enemies in my heart? They seem to be part of my very -nature.” - -Then the night breeze seemed to whisper to the young soldier the words -last heard from the lips of his mother,—“_It is God that giveth the -victory_.” Fritz sank on his knees and prayed, not now for help in the -coming strife with the enemies of his country, but for help in the -present struggle with the enemies of his soul. - -Very fearful was the battle on the following day. Let us pass over the -fearful details, nor describe how God’s creatures destroyed each other -by thousands, till the Germans fought their way to victory over heaps of -the slain. Their triumph was dearly purchased indeed; numbers of their -bravest fell beneath the deadly fire of the French. Fritz rushed -forward, with a few soldiers of his own and of another regiment, to -seize a French gun which had made terrible havoc in the Prussian lines. -Almost before the smoke from the last discharge of that gun had cleared -away, there was a hand-to-hand struggle around it. In the confusion of -that struggle Fritz saw a Prussian fall under a blow from a Frenchman’s -sword. Even as he fell, Fritz caught a glimpse of his face: begrimed as -it was with smoke and dust, the young soldier recognized the features of -Carl Gesner! The Frenchman’s sword was raised again to kill the -prostrate Prussian; but Fritz sprang forward, warded the blow, and at -the same moment himself fell to the earth, struck in the thigh by a -musket ball from another quarter. - -Sudden darkness seemed to come over the wounded youth. A rushing noise -in his ears drowned even the roar of cannon and the sound of tumult and -shouting. Fritz Arnt swooned, and lay for many hours senseless under the -muzzle of the gun which he had helped to capture. - -When Fritz again opened his eyes, the tumult had died away; the battle -was over; the calm stars were looking down from the midnight sky upon -heaps of dead and dying. Fritz was in severe pain, but gradually quite -recovered his senses, and could think again on his mother, and silently -lift up his heart in the battle-prayer. - -“Oh for one drop of water! I am dying of thirst!” groaned a wounded -Prussian beside him. - -The voice was that of Carl Gesner, who lay within a yard’s length of the -youth who had saved his life from the Frenchman’s sword. Fritz made no -reply. His lips too were parched and dry, and the fever thirst was upon -him. Oh, how he longed for one draught of the pure fresh spring which -gushed forth near the home of his widowed mother! - -Presently lights were seen moving over the dark field: helpers of the -wounded were going about on their errand of mercy. But there were too -few of them to do the work quickly; for so many poor soldiers lay low -that it was impossible in one night to relieve the terrible wants of -all. With keen anxiety Fritz watched the distant lights, while Carl -Gesner lay groaning beside him. At last a torch-bearer drew near, with a -companion who bore a red cross on his arm and a large water-flask in his -hand. - -“I must go back to refill the flask; there are but a few drops of water -left in it,” observed one of the men. - -Fritz half raised himself on his elbow with a desperate effort. - -“Help! help!” he cried out; for the very name of water made his thirst -more intense. - -“Here, my poor fellow! would that I had more with me!” said the bearer -of the flask, stooping down to pour its last contents into the mouth of -the wounded young soldier. - -There was again a faint groan from Carl Gesner. He was then too faint to -speak, but his groan fell on the ear of Fritz Arnt. “IF THINE ENEMY -THIRST, GIVE HIM TO DRINK.” Fritz in the midst of his pain and want -remembered the Lord’s command. - -“Give it to that man instead,” he murmured; “he is more badly wounded -than I am.” And with the generous request on his lips the brave soldier -fainted again. - -There lay Fritz, twice a conqueror—over the foe, and over himself. God -had given him the victory. - - * * * * * - -When Fritz awoke again from what had seemed the slumber of death, he -found himself in an hospital, to which the helpers of the wounded had -borne him. There he lay for many weeks, during the latter part of the -time nursed by his own dear mother. During his slow recovery, Fritz was -cheered by the knowledge that he had been enabled to do his duty, and by -tidings of one triumph after another gained by the arms of Prussia. - -Fritz was at length able to leave the hospital, but he was too lame to -rejoin the army. He had to go back with his mother to their poor home, -which would be poorer, Fritz thought, than ever; for he was too weak for -labour, and while his mother had been nursing him, she could not earn -money by work. - -On a morning in September, Frau Arnt and her wounded son returned to -their native village. Fritz, weak and lame, had to lean on his mother’s -arm for support, as the two walked the short distance from the railway -station. - -“Strange that Wilhelm should not have been here to welcome us!” observed -the widow. “He cannot have received my note to tell of our coming.” - -“Don’t let us pass our old cottage, mother,” said Fritz faintly. “I have -never liked to go near it since Carl Gesner turned us out of it.” - -“Nay, my son; we must take the shortest path home,” said the widow. “And -as for Carl Gesner, have you not told me how freely you have forgiven -him?” - -Turning a corner of the road as she spoke, the old cottage lay straight -before her. - -“Why, there is Carl Gesner himself,” exclaimed Fritz, “nailing something -to the wall!” - -“And Wilhelm helping him in his work!” cried the widow, in great -surprise. - -At the sound of his mother’s voice, Wilhelm turned suddenly round, and, -at the sight of her and his brother, uttered a loud exclamation. The boy -then bounded towards them, his eyes sparkling with joy at Fritz’s -return, and with another joy the cause of which he had yet to keep a -secret. - -It was not a secret long. The glad exclamation uttered by Wilhelm drew -the attention of Carl Gesner, whose back had been turned. The moment -that he saw Fritz Arnt he hastened towards him. - -“My brother-soldier, my brave young preserver, welcome!” cried Carl, -holding out his hand; and Fritz would not now refuse to exchange a -cordial grasp with the man whom he once had hated. “I joined the army -soon after you did,” continued Carl Gesner. “Like yourself, I have had -to leave it on account of my wounds, though my recovery has been more -rapid than yours. You look weary, but rest is at hand. Here is your -home; it is put into perfect repair. Let us enter it now together.” - -“_Our_ home!” exclaimed Fritz and his mother in a breath. - -“Yes, yours to the end of your days,” said Carl Gesner. “Frau Arnt, I -owe to your noble boy my life; and more than my life. I do not attempt -to repay my debt by the gift of his father’s cottage, which I would that -you had never left. I but show that I acknowledge that debt. You will -find the place improved,” he added, more cheerfully. “We have been -planting creepers to train up the wall; and I have had a board painted, -to be hung up just below the lattice, to serve as a memorial of the -battle in which Fritz and I fought side by side.” - -Carl Gesner took up the board as he spoke, and turned it so that all -could see the gilded letters upon it. Fritz glanced at the inscription, -then at his mother, and smiled. Was it not strange that Carl Gesner -should have happened to choose for the motto on the wall of the cottage -the very words which had had such a deep effect on the heart of Fritz? -There they were, to shine brightly from henceforth on his happy home, -the parting words of his mother,— - - It is God who giveth the Victory. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - BEARING BURDENS. - - -“_BEAR ye one another’s burdens_,” said David Jones to himself, -repeating the text as he walked home from church. “Our pastor has made -it very plain. In this world, he says, every soul has some burden of -sorrow or trial to bear, and every one who loves God must try to help -his neighbour to bear it. Now it is clear enough that the squire does -this when he gives blankets and coals to the poor at Christmas; and our -parson does this, for every one in trouble is sure to go straight to -him; but I can’t see how a boy like me is to do it. I can’t give like -the squire, or talk like the parson; yet I should like to help to bear -some one’s burden; for, as it was said in the sermon, it is a blessed -thing to do anything for the Lord who has done everything for us; and -when we help a poor neighbour for His sake, He counts it as done to -Himself. I’ll pray God to show me some way of bearing another’s -burdens.” - -So before David went to rest that night, he made a little simple prayer -that God would give him some work, however small, to do for Him, and let -him be useful to others. - -The first thought of David, when the bright rays of the sun awoke him on -Monday morning, was,—“Here is another day; I hope that it will not pass -over without my helping some one to bear his burden;” and again he -turned the thought into a prayer. While David was putting on his -clothes, an idea came into his mind,— - -“Poor old Mrs. Crane, she is almost bent double with age, and hard work -it is for her to draw up water from her well. She is a good old woman, -Mrs. Crane, and was always ready to help others before she grew so -feeble. I’ll have time, before I set out for school, to draw up a pail -of water and carry it to her door. Won’t it be a nice surprise to her, -when she comes out to draw, to find the water all ready! Old age is her -burden—I can help her a little to bear it.” - -David was soon off to the well. He let down the bucket and filled it; -and as he turned the windlass to raise it again, a very sweet thought -came into the mind of the boy. “Our Lord asked the woman of Samaria to -draw water for Him, and she did not do it; yet what an honour it would -have been to her—had she been a queen—to have drawn water for the Son of -God! Now the Lord said, _Inasmuch as ye did it unto the least of these -my brethren, ye did it unto Me_;” so I really am doing what the woman -would not do,—I am drawing water for the blessed Saviour; for I am sure -that Mrs. Crane is His servant, and so, working for her, I am working -for Him.” - -The boy cheerfully placed the pail of water at the door of Mrs. Crane, -and soon after set out for school, carrying with him his dinner of bread -and cheese, wrapped up in a bit of brown paper. “I am glad that I have -done one little kind act to-day,” thought David; “but it does not seem -very likely that I shall be able to do any other.” - -He very soon found that he was wrong. There are so many burdens, great -and small, in the world, that even a child who is on the look-out for an -opportunity of doing good, will not wait long before he find one. - -David overtook on the road little Steeney Clark, who was slowly walking -towards school. - -“Good morning, Steeney,” cried David. “Why do you look so dull and sad?” - -“’Cause I’m sure Mr. Day will punish me again,” answered the poor dull -boy, who was always getting into trouble with the master at his school. -“I didn’t know my lesson yesterday, I don’t know it to-day, I don’t -think as I ever shall know it!” and the boy rubbed his forehead hard, as -if he fancied that he could make his wits brighter by rubbing. - -“Let’s see what you have to learn,” said David. “Maybe if you and I go -over it together as we walk along, you may understand it a bit better. -Pluck up a brave heart, Steeney. You know ‘perseverance conquers -difficulties,’ and ‘slow and steady wins the race.’” - -It was very cheering to poor Steeney to have some one to help and -encourage him, instead of laughing at his natural dulness. David was one -of the sharpest boys in the school, but he did not despise his poor -young companion for not being so clever as himself. As the two walked on -together, David explained all the difficulties of the lesson so clearly -to Steeney, that the dull face of the boy brightened. He was able at -last to master the task—he would not be set down as a hopeless dunce by -his master. David entered the school-room feeling very happy. He had -helped a fellow-creature again to bear a burden. - -“How pale Mr. Day looks,” thought David, as the schoolmaster stood up -behind his desk and rapped with the ruler to command silence. Mr. Day -was not a great favourite with the boys, for he was sometimes severe, -and easily put out of temper. The truth was that his work was too much -for him, as any one might have seen by looking at his thin worn face -with its deep furrow between the brows. Mr. Day would have liked David -for his quickness in learning, but for the trouble which he gave by his -love of frolic and fun; for David was a very merry boy, and could -scarcely keep quiet in school-time. He would drum on a desk, or kick on -the floor, and set the other boys laughing. David had never seen much -harm in this, though it had often brought him into a scrape with the -master; but it struck him this day for the first time that it was not -fair to a tired hard-worked master to add to the labour of teaching. - -“Mr. Day looks as if he’d a mighty heavy burden to bear, and I’m afraid -I’ve often helped to make it heavier. I’ll try and be quiet and steady -to-day, and set a good example to the boys about me,” thought David. - -He kept his resolution; and glad indeed would he have been that he had -done so, had he known with what an aching heart and aching head the poor -master had begun his day’s work. Mr. Day had private griefs, about which -his pupils knew nothing, which sorely imbittered his life. He was also -subject to racking headaches, which the noise of a school-room increased -to such a painful degree, that he would long before have given up his -office, had he not had a wife and children to support. - -“I fear that I cannot stand this work much longer,” poor Mr. Day had -said to himself that morning. He was like a weary pack-horse dragging a -weight beyond its strength up a steep hill; and, from mere -thoughtlessness, his pupils had often acted like boys dragging on -behind. But things went on better on this Monday; and Mr. Day told his -wife as they sat down to dinner that he had had much less worry than -usual with the boys. He did not guess the cause of the relief—that one -of his best scholars had been on that day helping to bear his burden. - -David Jones, as I have said, had brought with him his dinner of bread -and cheese, as his home was at some distance from the school. He sat -down under a hedge with a good appetite to enjoy his simple meal. -Scarcely had David begun it, when, chancing to raise his eyes, he saw a -ragged half-starved-looking child, wistfully watching him as he ate. - -“I dare say that poor little creature has had no breakfast to-day,” -thought David, “and maybe no supper last night. Should I not be doing a -little thing to please my Lord if I shared my dinner with her?” - -He broke off a piece of bread, and, smiling, held it out to the girl, -who eagerly ran forward to get it, and ate it as if she were famished. - -“And there’s a bit of the cheese too,” said David kindly, watching the -hungry girl’s enjoyment with a pleasure which made his own scanty meal -appear like a feast. David knew well that our best works _deserve no -reward from God_, yet he could not but recall with joy the gracious -promise to those who feed the poor: _They cannot recompense thee; for -thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just_. - -When afternoon lessons were over, David, whistling as he went, set out -on his homeward way. “It is a strange thing,” thought he, “but whenever -we try to bear other people’s burdens, it seems as if our own hearts -grew lighter and lighter!” - -As David passed by an orchard, divided from the road by a rough stone -wall, he heard a voice calling to him, and came up to Owen Pell—a boy of -about his own age—who was looking up at the fine ripe fruit hanging -almost over the wall. - -“I say, Davy; lend me a hand. I think I can climb over here.” He was -already mounting the wall. “Let’s fill our pockets with apples. Don’t -they look tempting and nice?” - -“Nice or not, they’re not ours,” replied David, who remembered that -God’s commandment, _Thou shalt not steal_, is broken not only by robbers -who take a man’s purse, but by boys who take his apples. - -“We’ll soon make ’em ours,” laughed Owen. “If you don’t choose to climb -yourself—though I know you’re active as a kitten—just lend me your -stick, and I’ll knock some fruit off from that bough.” - -“No, no, Owen,” said David; “leave the apples alone. Farmer Ford does -not grow them for you or for me. I’ll neither pluck nor help you to -pluck them.” - -“Oh, indeed!” cried the angry Owen. “You’re afeard of a thrashing from -the farmer, are you?” - -“It’s not that I’m afraid of,” said David, turning quickly away; for he -felt his passion rising, and was much inclined to use his stick in a -very different way from that which the insolent boy had requested, by -knocking him down instead of the apples. - -“I can’t bear that Owen,” muttered David to himself. “How he is yelling -after me, calling me all sorts of bad names, just because I won’t join -him in theft!” - -Before David reached his home, he came on a wide tract of common, and -noticed a number of ducks splashing about in a pool half hidden by -rushes. - -“Why, these are Mrs. Pell’s ducks, that her boy Owen ought to be -watching on the common, instead of hunting after apples. I heard her -scolding him yesterday for leaving them out so late, and promising him a -sound beating if any should stray and get lost. There’s Brown’s big dog -coming this way; he has had a mind to a duckling for supper before now. -If Owen does not keep a better look-out, it’s not many of the brood that -he’ll ever drive home. What a scrape he’ll be in! When Mrs. Pell -promises a beating, she is certain to keep her word. Well, let Owen be -beaten,—what do I care!” - -That was David’s first thought; but a more generous one succeeded. “I -might drive home these ducks for Owen, and keep them and him out of -trouble. To be sure, he deserves nothing from me; but are we not told to -be kind even to the unthankful and the evil? I should think that God is -pleased when we bear the burdens of our friends; more pleased when we -bear the burdens of strangers; but most pleased of all when, for His -sake, we show kindness to those who have done us a wrong.” - -In the meantime, Owen Pell had had cause to regret that he had neglected -his mother’s ducks to go after the farmer’s apples. Owen was not an -active boy. In struggling to climb up the wall, he missed his footing, -and came down with a heavy bang on the back of his head. He had just -scrambled on his feet again, bruised and crying with pain, when who -should ride up to the spot but Farmer Ford, with a great horse-whip in -his hand! - -“What are you crying for?” called out the farmer. - -“I’ve had a tumble,” whined the frightened boy. - -“Climbing my wall to get at my apples! I’ll give you something to cry -for!” and the rough farmer bestowed two or three sharp cuts with his -lash on poor Owen, which made him yell with the smart, and sent him -running home in such haste to escape from the farmer’s whip, that he -never once thought of the ducks, till he saw his mother—a tall, bony -woman—standing with a broom in her hand at the gate of her little -garden. - -“Where are the ducks?” shouted she. - -Owen stopped, breathless and gasping, and looked around in dismay. -Evening was closing in; his ducks had wandered he knew not whither. Mrs. -Pell came angrily towards him. “I told you yesterday,” she exclaimed, -raising the broomstick, “that if one of them ducks was lost—” - -“None are lost!—none are lost!” called out a cheerful voice near; and -from behind a knoll covered with furze, which had hidden him from view, -appeared David Jones, driving home the ducks for Owen. - -“Well, Davy, you’re a good-natured boy if ever there was one!” cried -Mrs. Pell, her hard features relaxing into a kindly look. “Owen has -escaped a beating this once, but next time he shall not be so easily let -off. You look tired and heated, Davy,” she added. “Just step into my -cottage and rest; and if you’d like a sup of new milk and a slice of -plum-bread, you’ll be heartily welcome to both. There’s none for you,” -she said sharply to Owen. “Go and shut up those ducks.” - -David glanced at the boy as he slunk away. “I’m glad,” he thought, “that -I did a good turn to that poor fellow, and saved him a beating.” - -“You’ll always get on well in the world, Davy,” observed Mrs. Pell, as -she cut for him a large slice of her home-made plum-bread. “You always -keep steady to your duty, and you make friends wherever you go.” - -Mrs. Pell was right. David passed through boyhood, youth, and manhood, -prospering in what he undertook, till he became a wealthy farmer. Always -ready to help others, he found others ready to help him. He made many -friends on earth, but it was through earnestly seeking to please an -Almighty Friend above. David had grown rich; and a noble use he made of -his riches. The more he gained, the more he gave; and truly it appeared -that the more he gave, the more he had. When David Jones had built the -new aisle to the church, and set up a village lending-library, sent -twenty pounds at once to the Bible Society, pensioned several poor -widows, and feasted a hundred school children,—he might smile at the -remembrance of the day when he had begun his work for God by such things -as filling an old woman’s pail, feeding a hungry little girl, and -driving home ducks from the common. But perhaps the kind acts of the -penniless boy were as pleasing in the sight of God as the great gifts of -the rich farmer; for they both sprang from the same motive,—a desire to -show grateful love to his Lord by bearing the burdens of others. - - - - - FINIS - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - ● Transcriber’s Notes: - ○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. - ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected. - ○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only - when a predominant form was found in this book. - ○ Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_). - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF A NEEDLE *** - -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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