Anonymous

“ Do you mean to tell that we came back to school after we had been sent home?" asked one of the boys, with an angry shake of the head.
"Not if I can help it, and yet tell the whole truth about what I did myself," said James.
"That is right," said Edward West. "James Black is not as old as we are, but he has more real honour about him, and is more of a man, than any of us; and I think we ought to copy him, and come out boldly too, and tell the truth of our part of the affair." ”

“ Walter started and blushed; he did not know that his mother was so near. But he replied, sullenly, "I wish I might not trouble them in any way any longer. It would be better for all if I were dead and buried; for I'm of no use in the world, and nobody loves me."
After having said these unkind words, Walter took his ball-club, and went out to the village green, where the boys were already at play. Charlie soon followed; not to mingle in the sport, for he was not strong enough for that, but he loved always to watch his brother, and felt proud of his skill and strength. ”

“ James Wallace knew well enough the selfish disposition of his master's son—older than he by two or three years—to be convinced that there was now but little hope of his having the use of his books, except by stealth; and from that his open and honest principle revolted. All day he thought earnestly over the means whereby he should be able to obtain a book on astronomy, to quench the ardent thirst that had been created in his mind; and night came without any clear answer being obtained to the earnest inquiries of his own thought.
He was learning the trade of a blind-maker. ”

“ At last wearied nature gave way, and he fell off in a slumber, filled with dreams of planets, moons, comets, and fixed stars. On the next morning the apprentice boy resumed his place at the work-bench with a new feeling; and with this feeling was mingled one of regret that he could not go to school as did his master's son.
"But I can study at night while he is asleep," he said to himself.
Just then Harman Lee came into the shop, and approaching James, said, for the purpose of teasing him,—
"How big round is the earth, Jim?" ”

“ To be a lawyer, he thought, would be much more honourable than to be a mere mechanic: for this reason alone, so far as he had any thoughts on the subject, did he desire to be a lawyer. As for James Wallace, he, as the poor illiterate apprentice of his father, was most heartily despised, and never treated by Harman with the smallest degree of kind consideration. ”

“ But, with all his varied acquirements, James Wallace felt, on attaining the age of manhood, that he knew comparatively little.
Let us turn now, for a few moments, to mark the progress which the young student, in one of the best seminaries in his native city, and afterwards at college, had made. Like too many tradesmen, whose honest industry and steady perseverance have gained them a competence, Mr. Lee felt indisposed to give his son a trade, or to subject him to [Pg 110] the same restraints and discipline in youth to which he had been subjected. ”

“ James stood as before, and made no reply: from a deadly paleness his face had grown quite red while they spoke; but this was all the change which their words seemed to make in him.
"It will be quite easy to hide the truth from the master, James," said Hiram; "and I'll tell you how. Shut up the desk now and lock it, and then, when he asks about it, we will say that we saw you put all the books and papers and other things safely away in the desk, and lock it up. That is all true, you know. Then he will think that in some way the desk has got a jolt, which upset the inkstand after it was closed." ”

“ Just as Edward landed, with his brother still clasped in his arms, safely on the right side of the fence, he came up.
Edward turned quickly toward his father, who saw that his face was very pale, and that his lips were quivering.
"It was a narrow escape, my son," said [Pg 23] Mr. Jones, "a very narrow escape. But Heaven is always on the side of those who seek to save others that are in danger. If you had hesitated a moment about acting courageously, our dear little Willie would now have been bleeding, it may be, upon the horns of that mad animal. ”

“ If he were her child, she said, she would soon whip that bad temper out of him. But Mrs. Harrison believed that one blow would put more evil passion into the heart of such a proud boy as Walter than she could ever get out. ”

“ The legitimate use of this word is to resist evil. To refuse to do a good action is wrong."
"If any one asks me, then, to do him a favour or kindness, I should not, on any account, say no."
"That will depend, Thomas, in what manner you are to render him a kindness. If you can do so without really injuring yourself or others, then it is a duty which you owe to all men, to be kind, and render favours. You know, also, the precept, 'Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye so to them.'"
"But the difficulty, I feel, will be for me to discriminate. ”

“ Yet how much better and safer was it for the boy to act as he did—safer for himself, and safer for those he loved. The fact is, my son, but little of danger presents itself, as we pass through life, which may not be escaped if we look it boldly in [Pg 20] the face, and see what it is like. Unless we understand exactly what the danger is, and in what manner it is approaching, how shall we escape it?"
The stories of bravery and self-possession which Mr. Jones related, made a very marked impression upon the mind of Edward. ”

“ From that hour James Wallace took his true place. The despised apprentice became the able and profound lawyer, and was also esteemed for real talent and moral worth, which, when combined, ever place their possessor in his true position.
Ten years from thence Wallace was elevated to the Bench, while Lee remained a second-rate lawyer, and never rose above that grade.
In the histories of these two persons is seen the difference between simply receiving an education, as it is called, and self-education. The most eminent men are self-educated men. ”

“ Walter sullen and cold, and, though he could not but see that he was an honest, intelligent boy, he was not, on the whole, pleased with him. But, like all other visitors, he was quite charmed with little Charlie; and he had not been long gone from the village, before there arrived from Boston a beautiful white pony, handsomely saddled and bridled, "For Master Charles Harrison." In a letter to his sister, Mr. Rodgers said, "Thinking that a daily ride may benefit my little invalid nephew, I send a pony, which is both spirited and docile. ”

“ You may be certain the poor lad in the water did not wait to be asked twice to do as he was told. With both hands he grasped the stick. Then George lay down at full length, and keeping one hand for support on the pole, crept up so close to the broken place in the ice, that he could grasp one of Henry's hands.
"Easy—easy," said he, in a calm encouraging voice, as the boy in the water caught his arm eagerly, and was in danger of dragging him in also. This gave Henry more confidence, and restored, in some measure, his presence of mind. ”

“ Beyond these he must go—he must continue ever after a student—or others will leave him in the rear; others of humbler means and fewer opportunities,—the apprentice of the handicraftsman, for instance, whose few hours of devotion to study, from a genuine love of learning, have given him a taste and a habit that remain with him in all after-time. ”

“ She said that Satan was called the father of lies; and that, though God does not punish them at the time they sin, he has said, 'All liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone;' and he will surely keep his word."
"Yes, that is an awful fate, which we all ought to try to avoid," said Thomas. "But see," he added, "I have wiped off all the ink I can with this piece of sponge; and as that is all we can do to repair the harm, I think we had better shut up the school-room and go home."
"I am sure you are very kind," said James, as he looked into the desk ”

“ But I do not believe that the writing that gives to Walter Harrison a large sum of money, land, and houses, will ever be so dear to him as a little scrap of paper, which he keeps among his most valuable and sacred things in his private desk, and on which he has written, "Little Charlie's Will."
[Pg 97]
WHATSOEVER A MAN SOWETH THAT SHALL HE ALSO REAP. Prov. The Student and Apprentice.
OW far is it from here to the sun, Jim?" asked Harman Lee of his father's apprentice, James Wallace, in a tone of light raillery. ”

“ And ever remember that a wrong action is always followed by pain of mind, and too frequently by evil consequences. If you would avoid these, ever act from a consciousness that you are doing right, without regard to others. If another asks you, from a selfish desire to benefit or gratify himself, to do that which your judgment tells you is wrong, surely you should have no hesitation in refusing."
The precept of his father, enforced when they were about parting, and at a time when his affections for that father were active and intense, lingered in the mind of Thomas [Pg 70] Howland. ”

“ It is not often that persons who so risk their lives receive any injury, for God protects those who seek to protect others. Let me tell you something that happened when I was a boy. Two children were playing near a spring. One of them was only four years old, and the other was seven. The larger boy's name was Frank. While Frank was building a house with sticks that he had gathered under the trees, he heard a splash, and turning round, saw that his little brother had plunged head foremost into the spring, and was struggling in the water. ”

“ THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM. Prov. Try Again.
AVE you finished your lesson, George?" said Mr. Prentice to a lad in his fourteenth year, who had laid aside his book, and was busily engaged in making a large paper kite. ”

“ This fact every student and every humble apprentice with limited advantages should bear in mind. It should infuse new life into the studies of the one, and inspire the other with a determination to imbue his mind with knowledge. The [Pg 120] education that a boy receives at colleges and seminaries does not make him a learned man. He has only acquired the rudiments of knowledge. ”

“ Away ran the two boys, with their skates hung round their necks, and their thoughts intent upon the pleasure they were to have [Pg 8] on the mill-pond. On reaching the top of a hill which overlooked the pond, they saw Henry Lee, a school companion, gliding along over the smooth surface of the ice as swiftly as a bird on the wing. Eager to join him, they ran shouting down the hill, and were soon occupied in strapping on their skates. But ere this was completed, the two lads were alarmed by a cry of terror from Henry ”

“ Lee turned to his friend, and remarked,—
"So it seems that I am doomed first to come in contact with this young mechanic. He is certainly quick on the trigger. Only admitted yesterday, and to-day pushing on a most important suit. But I will cool him off, I'm thinking."
"You must do your best, sir, for there is much at stake," said the client.
"Rely upon that. But don't give yourself a moment's uneasiness. A few years' experience at the bar is always enough to set aside your new beginners."
"I wonder if it can be my father's old apprentice?" the young lawyer remarked, after his client had gone. ”

“ The next violation of what seemed to him a right course for a young man to pursue, was in suffering himself to be persuaded to visit frequently the theatre; although his father had expressly desired that he would avoid a place where lurked, for the young and inexperienced, so many dangers. ”

“ Then he remembered the mill-pond, the boy and the mad dog, the child in the spring and his brave brother, and what his father had said about being courageous. It took scarcely an instant of [Pg 22] time for all this to be presented to the frightened boy. By a strong effort he composed himself, and then ran back to where his brother was still upon the sledge. The bull was now very near; but Edward, though he had taken the child in his arms, was able to run so fast as to reach the fence and climb over it before the mad creature could reach them. ”

“ Come, lay aside that [Pg 47] kite you are making for this afternoon, and give another effort to get your lesson ready. Be in earnest, and you will soon learn it. To show you that it only requires perseverance, I will tell you a story. One of the dullest boys at a village school, more than thirty years ago, came up to repeat his lesson one morning, and, as usual, did not know it. 'Go to your seat, you blockhead!' said the teacher, pettishly. 'You will never be fit for anything but a scavenger. ”

“ It finally occurred to him that, in passing a house near the shop, he frequently observed a pair of window-blinds with faded colours.
"Perhaps," he said to himself, "if I would do it cheap, they would let me paint and put new hangings to their blinds." ”

“ At this, Edward Jones became so frightened, that he threw off his skates and started back, screaming, toward home; but George Williams, with more presence of mind and courage, seized a long pole that lay upon the shore, and went as quickly as possible to the assistance of the drowning boy. Henry had broken into what is called an "air hole," where the ice is very thin ”