Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB
[ocr errors]

soul which is converted, Behold, thou art fair, my love: behold, thou art fair: thou hast doves' eyes.' (Cant. i. 15)."

By this time the cart had passed through the wood, and they were come in sight of Mrs. Goodriche's white house, standing in a little garden under a hill. This was the house (as I before said) where Mrs. Howard lived, as much as fifty years ago.

"Oh! Mamma, Mamma!" said Emily, "there is Mrs. Goodriche's house! and I shall see my dear Lucy and Henry in a very little time."

Just as Emily spoke, they saw Lucy and Henry step out of the house-door, and come running towards the cart. It would have pleased you to the heart had you seen how rejoiced these dear children were to meet each other. Mr. Fairchild lifted Henry and Lucy into the cart; and they cried for joy when they put their arms round their dear Emily's neck.

[ocr errors]

« Oh, Emily, Emily !” said Henry, " if you had "if died, I never would have played again."

"God be praised," said Mr. Fairchild: "our dear Emily has been spared to us."

When the cart came up to Mrs. Goodriche's garden-gate, the good old lady came to receive Mr. and Mrs. Fairchild, and to kiss Emily; and Sukey peeped out of the kitchen window, not less pleased than her mistress to see Emily in good health.

Whilst Sukey was getting the dinner, Emily and her brother and sister went to play in the garden. Henry shewed Emily some rabbits which Mrs. Goodriche had, and some young ducks, whichi had been hatched a few days before, with many other pretty things. When dinner was ready, Mrs. Fairchild called the children in; and they all sat down, full of joy, to eat a roast fowl and some boiled bacon, with a nice cold currant-and-rasp

berry pie. When Mr. Fairchild was saying grace, he said, "Indeed, indeed, I must thank God with all my heart and soul for his goodness to us. What blessings have we about us even in this world! "And what blessings we may enjoy in the world to come, through our dear Saviour!" added Mrs. Goodriche.

After dinner, Mr. and Mrs. Fairchild and Mrs, Goodriche, with the children, walked as far as the wood where Emily had seen the doves, to gather strawberries, which they mixed with some cream and sugar at night for their supper. Before bedtime, Mr. Fairchild prayed, and sung a hymn the subject of his prayer was thanksgiving to God for all his goodness; and the hymn was in praise of the "Lamb without blemish and without spot." I shall copy both in this book for your use, altering only a few words.

A Prayer in Praise of God.

O Almighty and Glorious Father, who made me and all the world; and Thou, dear Redeemer, who died for me; and Thou, O Holy Spirit, who art always willing to come into our wicked hearts, to cleanse them and make them white; accept the praises of a poor child. Where shall I begin to praise or to speak my thanks for all thy goodness! It was Thou, O Father, that madest me a little tender baby; and it is Thou who hast taken çare of me to this hour. It is from Thee that I receive meat, and drink, and clothes; and that I have a house to live in, and a comfortable bed to lie down in. It is Thou, O Lord, that sendest thy angels to guard me from danger in the night season, and who makest the bright sun to rise upon me every day. But, above all, I thank thee for having sent thy beloved Son to die for me upon the cross.

What man is there who would give his son to die for any friend? yet Thou, O Lord, gavest thy only Son to die for me, a sinful and miserable wretch, and one who by nature is the child of the devil, and at enmity with thee! O thou bleeding Lamb! how can I utter thy praises with these my sinful lips! Oh, Thou that art all fair! Thou, in whom there is no spot! Thou, who art most lovely! I cannot praise thee now; but I desire to praise thee in heaven', where I shall be free from sin, and where I shall stand in thy presence, clothed in the garment of salvation, and clad with the robe of righteousness. There, in that blessed place, are millions and tens of millions of holy spirits, who have been washed from their sins by thy blood: there they behold thy beauty, and rejoice in thy presence. O blessed Lamb! make me one of the redeemed! draw my heart unto thee by the power of thy Holy Spirit, and fill my mouth with thy praises Glory, glory, glory be unto God, and to the Lamb without spot; and to Thee, O Holy Spirit. Praised be the holy Three in One, now and for evermore. Amen.

"Our Father," &c. &c.

HYMN XV.

JESUS my All to heaven is gone;
He whom I fix my hopes upon :
His track I see, and I'll pursue
The narrow way till him I view.

The way the holy prophets went,
The road that leads from banishment,
The King's highway of holiness,
I'll go; for all his paths are peace.

This is the way I long have sought,
And mourn'd because I found it not:
My grief a burden long has been,
Because I could not cease from sin.-

The more I strove against its pow'r,
I sinu'd and stumbled but the more;
Till late I heard my Saviour say,
"Come hither, soul! I am the Way."

Lo! glad I come; and Thon, blest Lamb,
Shall take me to thee as I am :
Nothing but sin I thee can give,
Nothing but love shall I receive.

Then shall I tell to sinners round
What a blest Saviour I have found:
I'll point to thy redeeming blood,
"Behold the Way to God!"

And say,

SECOND DAY AT MRS. GOODRICHE'S;

WITH

THE OLD STORY OF MRS. HOWARD.

The Subject, Good Manners a Christian Virtue.

THE next morning, after breakfast, when Mr. Fairchild had prayed and read a chapter with the family, he went out to take a walk. Then Mrs. Goodriche called the three children to her, and said, “Now, my dear children, I will tell you a story come, sit round me upon these little stools, and hearken."

The children were very much pleased when they heard Mrs. Goodriche say she would tell them a story; for Mrs. Goodriche could tell a great many pretty stories.

THE STORY.

"About fifty years ago," said Mrs. Goodriche, a little old lady, named Mrs. Howard, lived in this house with her maid Betty. She had an old horse, called Crop, who grazed in that meadow, and carried Betty to market once a week. Mrs. Howard

was one of the kindest and most good-natured old ladies in England: three or four times every year Betty had orders, when she went to market, to bring all manner of play-things and little books from the toy-shop. These play-things and pretty little books Mrs. Howard used to keep by her, till she saw any children whom she thought worthy of them: but she never gave any playthings to children who did not obey their parents, or who were rude and ill-mannered; for she used to say, that God has commanded us to be kindly affectioned one to another, with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.' (Rom. xii. 10): on which account,' she would say, it is a

great sin in the eyes, of God for children to be rude and unmannerly.' All the children in the neighbourhood used from time to time to visit Mrs. Howard; and those who wished to be obliging never came away without some pretty play-thing or book.

"At that time there were in this country two families of the names of Cartwright and Bennet : the former much beloved by the neighbours, on account of their good qualities; the latter as much disliked for their bad ones.

"Mr. Bennet was a rich farmer, and lived in a good old house, with every thing handsome and plentiful about him; but nobody cared to go near him, or to visit his wife, because their manners were so rough and disobliging; and their two chil dren, Master Jackey and Miss Polly, were brought up only to please themselves, and to care for nobody else. But, on the contrary, Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright made their house so agreeable by their civil and courteous manners, that high and low, rich and poor, loved to go there: and Master Billy and Miss Patty Cartwright were spoken well of throughout the whole neighbourhood, for their pretty and mo

« AnteriorContinuar »