short duration. Their divided cake was soon eaten, leaving them still hungry. Beseechingly they looked up into the mother's face for another. But the poor mother had no more money. My inmost heart was moved with pity. I broke off a piece of my cake and handed it to the children. They looked at me shyly and at my cake tenderly; but neither touched it. When I kindly urged them, the younger one at length ventured to take a piece, and the elder, tremblingly followed her example. What joy I now felt in my heart, as they felt it in theirs. We together formed a close covenant of friendship. We ate and talked together, and thereby forgot our sorrows. For I, too, was one of the poor children, who was to be hired or sold to somebody. For one whole hour we three children were happy together. Then our band of innocent love was severed. The poor widow and her two children were called away. After awhile they returned-the two children returned with gladness. I could see their joy beaming from their smiling faces.

Next came my turn. As they led me away to the place where the people who wanted children were standing, I overheard some rudely exclaiming as they saw me passing by them: "Let us see. Who would

have such a dull, cheerless boy." Others said: "He is nicely clad, and even now might do half the work of a servant." I was closely examined. Some praised, others condemned me. At length a ragged fellow bid one dollar for me.

He may have intended to clothe his ragged children with good clothes. But he was not allowed to have me. I was, put up for sale or hire a second time, and greatly praised. I believe that I was a smart boy. I was tall, well built, somewhat pale, and had much clothing, which had its influence with some people. I was examined anew. One said this about me, another that. One after the other crowded around me. I became frightened, and began to cry, and caught hold of my mother, and begged her to take me away.

At length a pretty decent-looking farmer agreed to take me. I was to take care of his little children, as the boy he had before, had been taken from him. He consented to give ten dollars a year for me. With an admonition to be a good boy, since they had found such a good master for me, we were both dismissed.

To please my new master, my mother entertained him with a half bottle of wine. He said he would give me a good home, and would be kind to me, if I would obey him. Then he came to praise and boast of everything that belonged to him, from himself down to the back dog, which crouched beneath his legs. This gave me good cheer, and enabled me to part from my mother without much pain.

A DRINK OFFERING.-Great sacrifices are made by some Christians in order to send out over the globe the missionary message.

Recently, some one in Illinois wrote, "I drink no tea this year, and so save five dollars to send John Chinaman a draught of the water of life.' Please to find the money inclosed, and enter it thus-T., for China.' "Missionary News.

CHILDREN-APOTHEGMS.

BY PERKIOMEN.

Bacon writes on the "Wisdom of the Ancients," and we will write on the Wisdom of the Little Ones. The Philosophy taught in the Schools has its uses, to be sure; but there is an order of it in the Nursery, which has its place, as well, and ought not to be ignored. The children do verily cry out, wherever the stone-dead hearts of adults betray no feeling. We have a little pouch full of Children-Apothegms which we are anxious to empty out, for the benefit of their like, and, forsooth, to the edification of their elders.

Helen had a playful Gold Fish sunning itself in her Father's office window. She could stand for hours and watch it darting up and catching with its awkward mouth the crumbs of bread, ere they touched the surface of its artificial sea. One morning she came to the Vase andlo! There lay the Gold Fish-dead in the bottom! Of course, Father, Mother and Helen must hold an inquest. The verdict had been fully as intelligent and satisfactory as that of many a Coroner and his Jury-viz: Died from cause unknown. Helen thought awhile and said

Father, did God take it to his Fish-Heaven ?"

Verily, it seemed as though his child had been comforted by a presentiment of an Hereafter for the whole animal creation-of a Restoration of all things, and that too, without ever knowing a mite of the discoursing of Divines on St. Paul's words: "For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope: Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now."

Helen's was the shortest commentary we have ever been permitted to learn on this text-before or since.

The redemption of the whole man-Body and Soul-is certainly a great mystery for adult minds. The resurrection of the dead and their inheritance of life everlasting, are facts which stagger sense, reason— every function of the human mind, save Christian faith. And yet our little friend, John, realized it as completely as ever did a saint. Some weeks after the death of his kind Grandmother, who had been an habitual smoker, he laid his eyes and hands on her whilom pipe, which had been stored away in the side room closet. Dancing for joy at the thought of the great favor which he might confer on his dear Grand

mother, and positively certain of meeting her, just as he had known her on earth,

he prayed;

In the Islands of the Blessed,
In the Land of the Hereafter,

"Mamma when I die, put this pipe in my coffin-I want to take it to Grand-mam!"

His mother turned away, with eyes all dim, whilst we could not resist the thought, that the child's Heaven was after all less smoky than it is to many, who make the whole virtue of the Creed to consist in mouthing it aloud before men.

Was it not an Ultimatum, when James answered his Sunday-School Superintendent's question-" What is Prayer?"-in the words: "It is to talk to God in earnest ?" It is pretty natural for every child, when asked "Where is God?"-to reply:-" God is everywhere!" But Joseph was the only one, in a crowded School, who spoke up, when asked-" Where is God not ?"-in the words :

"God is not in a bad man's heart!"

He had memorized the commandment-" Honor thy Father and thy Mother, &c.," when yet a small boy. But it was only in long after years, that little Benjamin impressed it more indelibly on our heart, than ever a Sunday School or sermon could, He whittled away at a wooden block diligently and in earnest, when his father inquired: "What are you doing, Bennie?" Without interruption he said

"Only making a trough for Pa to eat out of when he gets old-as Grandpap does now!"

It is said, that the Grandfather had a good place assigned him at the family table, ever after that.

Ida, though only three years old, could not understand why the Infant School should close its doors during the Winter months. Neither can many older ones. But so it is, in our rural districts. In October last, as she left the chapel, for the last time of that year, she looked back, sighed and said :

"Now the mice will keep school in there, all Winter!"

Just so, dear child, we thought. And we left our eye wander over all East Pennsylvania, in which our country churches stand for owls and bats to congregate in, all the year round, save perhaps twelve or twice twelve days, when the people want them.

Mary stood at the window of her bed-chamber, one morning in December. Noticing the great change of scenery which had occurred, between evening and morning, she exclaimed:

"Just see! God painted the world white, by starlight!"

We call that a thousand fold more emphatic than to say-"It snowed." Yea, no philosopher can go beyond that.

Sancta, like all mortals of her age, believes that language is given to

express our thoughts by-not to conceal them. Hence she is not given to circumlocution. She is not at all verbose, though she talks all day. Her's is a plain terse, Saxon style.

One fine morning her father was preparing to give her a ride across the country, which is the pinnacle of her ambition, by the way. She tripped in all haste into the yard and called aloud :—

We opened the stable-door and showed her "Bill" all ready caparisoned for a trot. She was satisfied, but we wondered why older people could not accustom themselves thus to talk across the Continent, and not for ever to sail around by the Gulf and stand in danger of losing themselves, in speech at least?

Peter had a father of unequal and irritable temper. He could be mild and morose, within one moment. He would frequently start from home in the kindest mood, and return all contrary. Peter had learned to notice the weather-sorted mind of his father, and would stand like a sentinel, on his return, in order to divine the state of his father's mental barometer. One day he watched at the gate, glanced up at the parental countenance and, suddenly turning on his heels, galloped into the house, clapping his hands and apprising the family of the fact, that

"Pap's all right! Pap's all right!"

Thomas had long been accustomed to old Pastor Moody's sermonizing. His was a quiet, easy and solemn style. Little Tom felt very devotional under his sermons, even though he understood but little. He never dared to talk in meeting. That was sacrilege to his mind. On a certain Lord's day the Reverend Boanerges stood in the pulpit. He preached a sound sermon. It fact it was all sound-and perspiration-and pockethandkerchief and a sipping of water-and an angry beating of air. Tom sat and looked with eyes as big as saucers. Irreverence is contagious, hence the boy was lifted clean out of his wonted reverential mood in church. And at last, forgetting all propriety, he leaned up against his fond mother, and whispered:

"Mamma, why don't Father Moody let that man out?"

We came to the conclusion, that children are competent to render an impartial criticism on pulpit manners.

Sarah had been sent to the door to answer the bell a few times. Whenever it was not convenient for her mother to see the visitor, Sarah was told to report: "My mother is not at home." Now it so happened on a certain "Thanksgiving Day," that the family had just been preparing a big dinner of turkey and its additionals, when the door-bell tinkled. Sarah hopped to the front-door and met Pastor Grant. He familiarly moved forward without awaiting any invitation to pass in. But Sarah hailed him and gravely spoke; "Mr. Grant, my mother told me to say she was not at home. We are just ready to eat a turke

dinner ?"

Pastor Grant smelled-well, no turkey, any how-and beat a hasty

retreat and muttered considerably above a whisper: Kinder und Narren sagen die Wahrheit.

ence.

Mrs. Brown had the habit of frightening her little Susan into obediShe would call in a beggar to take her along, or bring a boog-aboo down the chimney, or do something of this order to make Susie be good. One day Susie thought her mother did not obey her as she wanted her to do, and so she walked to the fire-hearth, removed the board and called lustily up the dark flue :

:

"Santa Claus! come down the chimney and make my mother 'have herself!" Of course, "Peltz-Nickle" didn't come. And ever after that, Susie would not believe that her mother could make him come either.

Mrs. Jones fell into the foolish and wicked custom of continually threatening her little daughters to "tell the minister on them," whenever she felt that they out-generaled her maternal authority. Thus the Pastor became, in the eyes of the little ones, not a father confessor, but a sort of constabulary or police-officer. The least of the band observed this threat falling from her mother's lips, and spoke up tartly:

"Well, the minister ain't God!"

After being thus answered Mrs. Jones would rather always remember this saying-Thou God seest me!"

Our young nephew was born and used to a populous town. Whilst on a visit to his uncle, we took him to a country wedding. He saw no houses about neither many faces. An old gentleman asked him, how he would like to live there? Willie spoke his mind at once :It's too young a place."

"Not at all.

The boys standing around him laughed right out, at the thought of "Will" imagining a country farm house being the nucleus of a future town. And we too thought, that whilst the dwellers in cities are apt to style the denizens of the country, as behind themselves, there are nevertheless times and occasions, when the latter are ahead of the former. But, whether before or behind his surroundings now, Will was certainly original. And it is this feature, which renders the sayings of our Little Folks so pleasant to the ear. Originality crops out on one or on the other side of it. Original are they in thought, expression or in the application.

Jesus regarded the children as a race separate and distinct, as it were, from the adult generation. It was one of their representatives that He took and held up before the grown ones of his time, as a model for all the more aged to pattern after. "Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of Heaven." We confess that we have never yet been fully satisfied with the current exegesis of that wonderful and beautiful saying.

USEFUL AFFLICTIONS.-"The softest road is not always the best road. It is on the smooth ice we slip; a rough path is usually safer for our feet. Our difficulties make us watchful. They plainly show us our weakness, and send us to Christ for help. They humble us before God."