'No, none;' then following the clerk on his way to the door, he exclaimed, 'Jones! turn round and shake hands with me, sir. I respect and esteem you, Jones-I very greatly respect and esteem you. You are a good man, sir-a thoughtful man-you remember the wants of your fellow-creatures, while I-well, well! he muttered as he went back to his seat, 'He is merciful, and so will forgive.'

James's gratitude was great when Mr. Jones informed him that for the future he was to take up his abode on the premises with one of the porters, who always slept there. He felt very happy indeed that night when he lay down on his pallet of straw, and felt that God had so mercifully provided a shelter for him. James always set down whatever blessing he enjoyed to God's goodness-do we do the same?

a spirited lad, and did not always bear their taunts philosophically, answering them in his turn, and telling them that some day they would have to respect him, which speech used to cause them to break out into roars of laughter.

'Listen to Pickles'-that was the name they had given him they would say, 'he's prophesying for himself a brilliant career! Pray, sir, do you intend being his Majesty's footman or the keeper of Queen Charlotte's snuff boxes? alluding to the well known fact of her Majesty's partiality for snuff. Our hero, however, got on very well during office hours, when the head clerks were present, and business went on like clock work; you might even have heard a pin drop, so intense was the stillness that prevailed. He could read and write when he entered the firm, but in casting up accounts he had not the slightest idea, so he determined to learn; and what cannot a strong will effect? He used at the first to pick up the little refuse bits of paper from the office floor on which were any figures, and teach himself to form them; then by degrees he got to know their names, and what they stood for, then taught himself to add them up. He had a great aptitude for learning in all its

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branches, especially for casting up accounts. He would rise in the morning as soon as it was light in the summer, and begin to sum; and it was surprising what progress he made.

One day, when he had been there about a yearit was close on closing time and the clerks were busy putting the finishing touches to their work-he stood waiting to go round the premises with Mr. Jones, the manager, to see that all was safe before leaving for the night, when just opposite to him was a lad about 18, fuming about, evidently in great distress about something or other. Going a little nearer, James saw he had before him a long array of figures, which, no doubt, he thought to himself was the cause of his trouble. Acting on the impulse of the moment, he went up to him and said: 'Please sir, I think I could do that.'

'You duffer!' was the rejoinder, 'what do you know about figures? get away and don't bother me!'

was the bold reply. Now I'll give you leave it-and I know pretty

‘I'm sure I could do it!' 'Oh! you are, are you? to try, and if you can't do well you can't-I'll give you one of the soundest thrashings when we leave as ever you've had in your life, mark that!'

'You may, if I can't do it,' was the reply.

Hastily taking a pencil out of his pocket-for the young gentleman never dreamt of offering him his pen-he began to cast up, and in less time than it takes to write it, he had added the long line of figures up, and, pocketing his pencil said, 'I think that's right, sir!'

'By the powers if it isn't!' was the rejoinder, 'I say, Pickles-' but Mr. Jones had called, and he was with alacrity obeying his summons.

After this Mr. Hobson would often condescend to accept James's services when he was 'in a fog,' as he called it, and he could do it without being perceived, and he began to have a little more respect for him than he had hitherto done, and would even answer a few questions if he put them to him, which occasionally the lad would do, being so anxious to know, as he would say to him.

Mr. Harvey had his eye on him, though James was unconscious of it, marked all his efforts for knowledge, and determined to assist him. Ordering him to come to his room one afternoon, he told him that he had engaged a gentleman to teach him for four hours a week-two on Tuesday, and two on Thursday-reading, writing, and arithmetic, and

gave him directions where the teacher lived, as he would have to go to his house to be instructed.

'Now, sir!' said the old merchant, looking at our hero sternly out of his kind old eyes, which somehow he never could put a very stern expression into -'I shall require you to be very diligent-very painstaking. For six months will Mr. Williams teach you, then you ought to do, and not a word of this to anyone do you hear me, sir? I will not have my affairs talked about; you understand me sir, eh?' he said, rising from his seat, and eyeing the lad before him keenly.

'Yes, sir, I quite understand; I shall never be able to thank

'Hush, hush, boy; no words, no words; go on well, make progress, do your duty, sir; that will be sufficient thanks for me. Deeds, sir, not words-now you may go. Stay! Now mind, if I find you neglecting any of your work, your duties as errand boy in this great establishment, because you are being put in the way of bettering yourself, I shall --I shall-punish you, sir, very severely. Now mark my words. What does the Bible say about Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do

'Do it with thy might !'

Good, very good! you read your Bible?' he said inquiringly.

'Yes, sir, every night; my mother made me promise when she was dying that I should do it, and I've never missed yet.'

"That's right, boy, that's right! Oh the blessing of a good mother!' he muttered to himself; 'can anything be equal to it?' then aloud, 'You can go, sir, this time. You'll do! you'll do !'

James set out in high spirits for Mr. Williams's address in the Strand, which Mr. Harvey had given him. He had rooms over a baker's shop, not very far from where Charing Cross Station now stands. He found him a tall, stern-looking man of some fifty years of age, with piercing grey eyes, which seemed as if they would pierce your very soul, while the firm set of his mouth betokened him to be a man whom it would be no joke to trifle with. Some boys would have been afraid of him at the very outset, and in consequence totally unable to learn what he was so well calculated to teach, for I have known boys--and boys with moderate abilities, too-who, from nothing but absolute terror of their master, were utterly unable to attain the very rudiments of knowledge. I grant that such cases are rare, and I also grant that it shews a very sensitive and nervous temperament on the part of the boy; still, the

fact remains the same. However, the sense of fear was not at all strongly developed in our hero, he 'took to,' as they call it, Mr. Williams at once, for he detected at a glance that here was one who had fought well the battles of knowledge, and come off victor! James had a reverence for genius in any shape, as all great and pure minds have. He regarded it as something grand and ennobling, emanating as it were from the very Deity himself.

Mr. Williams was very grave, even taciturn in his manner, sometimes not addressing a single word to his pupil, except in the way of teaching during a whole lesson. And James respected him for his very silence; his mind he thought was occupied with the wonderful discoveries which he had made, or with some deep problem he was anxious to penetrate.

One night when James reached his tutor's rooms, he was not in, so he sat down and waited for his coming. How long he had been there when he arrived he had no conception, for all his faculties were centred in the book which he had found open on the table, the contents of which he was devouring greedily. So absorbed was he that he had no idea when Mr. Williams entered the room, and was only conscious of his presence by feeling him touching him on the shoulder. He jumped up from his seat hastily, his cheeks and forehead crimson, saying, ‘I beg your pardon, sir, I hope I have not been doing wrong; but that book,' pointing to the one over which he had been poring, was open on the table, and when I had read from it a few minutes I could not leave off. I am very sorry, sir, indeed I am, if· I have done wrong,' he said, as he marked the strange expression on his teacher's countenance, which was inexplicable to him.

6

'Did you care for the book, then?' inquired Mr. Williams, eyeing him curiously.

'Care for it, sir?' he repeated in surprise, 'why I think its the most wonderful book after the Bible that could be written !'

'You think the Bible then more wonderful than this?' laying his hand on the work in question, and fixing his keen grey eyes on the lad.

'Oh, yes, sir!' James replied readily, 'there never could be another such book as the Bible; for how could we know about God if it wasn't for it? But somehow, sir, that book is about God also, for all the things mentioned in it are wonders formed by Him, are they not, sir?'

Mr. Williams made no reply, but after a second or two asked, 'Would you like me to give you a few lessons in Geology?'

'Oh, sir!' said James, with a gasp of pleasure, looking gratefully into the speaker's face. He could not for the world have added another word, so taken by surprise was he.

'Very well!' Mr. Williams said, the suspicion of a smile lurking about the corners of his mouth, 'then we will consider it settled. You shall come to me at the usual time, but stay an hour longer; so then it will not interfere with the course of instruction which I was desired by Mr. Harvey to give you.'

It would be impossible to describe James's gratitude; words failed him utterly. Mr. Williams seemed satisfied, however, and his manner grew less stern every time they met. James soon proved himself an apt scholar, and it was difficult to say which enjoyed the lessons most, master or pupil. Mr. Williams was very kind in answering James's questions-and they were not few either-for he felt that the boy's whole heart was in his work; and even when the six months' course of instruction was over

he invited him to go to his rooms twice every week, when the study of Geology went on.

I ought to have told you that Mr. Harvey had presented him, before going to Mr. Williams, with a nice new suit of clothes, which he had great pride in wearing-for did they not prove that he had done his duty and which he always wore when he went to the Strand, so that with his bright open countenance and pleasant manners, he looked in every way superior to the station in life which he filled.

So time passed on, every day saw an improvement in our hero, although he was but an errand boy, and his daily duties were very mean and commonplace; yet he did them well and heartily, as though he had been doing them to God himself. And that is the way work should always be done, no matter whether it be head work or brain work, small or great.

Even in learning lessons there is a way of pleasing God, for it is not so much what we do, as how we do it,

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that he looks at; and as it is the motive which determines the value of the action, so also is it the spirit in which we do a thing that God notices. And you know that His eye is always upon us, and that He reads the very secrets of the heart. (To be continued.)

The Rescue.

ETHEL was much given to solitary musings. It did not much matter where she was, at home or abroad, in company or alone, she was apt to forget her surroundings, and have long fits of abstraction. If you spoke to her, when she answered at all, it would be as if she had just woke from a dream, or spoke from a far distant land. She did not like company, and contrived to escape it as much as possible. Nothing pleased her more than to be shut up in her room alone, or to wander by herself into the country, or along the sea banks, her sole companion being some choice book. The sea banks even more than the country lanes, were her favourite resort; and as her home was only about a quarter of a mile from the banks, she was often there. During the long summer days she would stroll out, book in hand, and remain for hours and hours, sitting or lying on the grassy banks, and when tired of this, wandering along the gravelly shore, or sitting beside the rocky pools, lost in thought. I'm not sure that at these times she was always engaged in thinking. She might rather be said to be dreaming day-dreams, half asleep and half awake. One day this dreaming mood had nearly cost her her life. She had wandered far along the shore, and had got among some of the rockfringed pools, where, seated in a recess, quite hidden from the shore, she gave herself up to her dreamy musings. There she sat, lost to everything around her, and quite unaware of the fact that the tide was quickly rising, and cutting her off from the shore. The sudden rush of a wave, which covered her with spray, aroused her from her dreams, and made her aware of her danger. Looking round, she saw to her dismay that the tide had completely surrounded her, and that there was no way of escape. Fortunately, or we should rather say, providentially, her brother Walter, who had been dispatched in quest of her, on account of her long absence from home, caught sight of her, and at once rushed to her rescue. Walter was naturally brave, and then he was a splendid swimmer, so that he had not much to fear. The

water, however, though reaching to his chest, was not so deep as to require him to swim, and he succeeded in bringing Ethel to shore at the expense of her getting a good drenching and a good fright.

Wise and Witty Sayings of
Children.

THE GOLDEN CALF.-At a school examination in Scotland a little girl was asked, 'Why did the Israelites make a golden calf?' She answered, ‘Because they hadna as muckle siller (money) as would make a coo' (cow).

GOING TO BED.-Aunt Esther was trying to persuade little Eddy to retire at sunset, using as an argument that the little chickens went to roost at that time. 'Yes,' said Eddy; 'but then, Aunty, the old hen always goes with them.'

A GOOD REASON.-A little boy, running along the street, struck his toe and fell on the ground. 'Never mind, my little fellow,' said a bystander; 'you wont feel the pain to-morrow.' Then he blubbered out, 'I wont cry to-morrow, either.'

WHY HE WAITED.-A Scotch boy had delivered a message to a lady, but did not seem in a hurry to go. Being asked if there was anything else his mother had bidden him say, he whimpered out, 'She said I was'na to seek anything for coming, but if ye gave me anything I was to take it.'

DEFINITION OF GENEROSITY.-A Sunday-school teacher, after reading to her class the story of a generous child, asked them what generosity was. One little fellow shook his hand vigorously, and on being requested to answer said, 'It's giving to others what you don't want yourself.'

DEFINITION OF PATIENCE.-A little Scotch girl was being examined at school. The examiner asked her, 'What does patience mean? Her answer was, 'Wait a wee (a short time) and dinna weary' -certainly a very beautiful definition.

DEFINITION OF ICE.-Little Nellie was reading a lesson about ice to her grandmother. 'Do you know what ice is, Nellie? Yes, grandmother; it is water fast asleep.'

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"The title of the lesson was, 'The Rich Young Man,' and the golden text was, 'One thing thou lackest.' A Sunday-school teacher asked a little tot to repeat the two, and looking earnestly into the young lady's face the child said, 'One thing thou lackest a rich young man.'

My Little Labourec.

A TINY man, with fingers soft and tender
As any lady's fair;

Sweet eyes of blue, a form both frail and slender,
And curls of sunny hair,

A household toy, a fragile thing of beauty-
Yet with each rising sun

Begins his round of toil—a solemn duty,
That must be daily done.

To-day he's building castle, house, and tower,
With wondrous art and skill;

Or labours with his hammer by the hour
With strong, determined will.

Anon, with loaded little cart, he's plying

A brisk and driving trade;

Again, with thoughtful, earnest brow, is trying
Some book's dark lore to read.

Now, laden like some little beast of burden,
He drags himself along ;

And now his lordly little voice is heard in
Boisterous shout and song-
Another hour is spent in busy toiling

With hoop and top and ball---
And with a patience that is never failing,
He tries and conquers all.

But sleep at last o'ertakes my little rover,
And on his mother's breast,
Joys thrown aside, the day's hard labour over,
He sinks to quiet rest;

And as I fold him to my bosom sleeping,
I think, 'mid gathering tears,

Of what the distant future may be keeping
As work for manhood's years.

Must he with toil his daily bread be earning,
In the world's busy mart

Life's bitter lessons every day be learning,
With patient, struggling heart?

Or shall my little architect be building
Some monument of fame,

On which, in letters bright with glory's gilding,
The world may read his name?

Perhaps some humble, lowly occupation,
But shared with sweet content;

Perhaps a life in loftier, prouder station,

In selfish pleasure spent ;

Perchance these little feet may cross the portals
Of learning's lofty fame,

His life-work to scatter truths immortal
Among the sons of men!

Neptune's Nurses.

NEPTUNE had performed a grand feat the day before; he had saved his young master Harry's life.

Harry and his sister Fanny, in company with Neptune, had gone down to the river side to play. Some pretty water lilies, close to the banks, caught Fanny's eye, and she expressed a strong wish to have one. They were, however, too far out for her or Harry to reach, and after several unsuccessful attempts to draw one in by a long stick, it seemed as if they were going to be altogether defeated. Just then Harry caught sight of a branch over-hanging the spot where the lilies grew, and he thought by catching hold of the branch with one hand he might pluck the lilies with the other. Without stopping to examine whether the branch was strong enough to bear his weight, he at once proceeded to carry out his purpose; but, alas! no sooner did he trust his weight to the branch than it snapped in two, and down he fell into the water. In the utmost horror and fright Fanny uttered a dreadful scream, which rang far and wide, reaching to her own house, and bringing several persons to the spot in a short time. But it is not likely Harry's life could have been saved had it not been for Neptune. He happened to be poking among the bushes some fifty yards off at the time, when, hearing Fanny's scream, and judging something wrong, he was instantly by her side. Comprehending the situation in a moment, he plunged into the water, and before you could count fifty he had hold of the little fellow's jacket, and was bearing him to the shore. Soon he was carried home, wrapped in warm blankets, and put to bed, where in a short time he fell into a nice sleep, and next morning he was all right again. If Neptune was prized and loved before, you may be sure he was more highly prized and loved now. The children fairly idolized him. It was rather funny to see how they treated him the day after his noble feat. They thought he must have caught cold by his bath in the river, and so Fanny tried to make him take a tea-spoonful of Gregory's mixture, as a means of putting him all right again. This he could not be persuaded to do, but actually turned away his head in disgust. Emma, with better judgment, brought him a saucer of milk, which he lapped with relish, and from the wagging of his tail, and the eagerness of his looks, it might have been thought he could have taken a good drop more of the same beverage. It is worth noticing that in saving his young master's life Neptune did not seem to think he had done anything remarkable; he had only done his duty, and did not consider himself deserving of special thanks, or special indulgence.