Newspaper Page Text
24 TH
The Family
-MY FRIEND."
By Sara V. Long.
All that's earthly, all that's holy.
All that angels would defend;
All that's pure and fair and lovely.
Is my Friend.
All that's good and true and honest.
All that liarmnnv i>on Klon-1
All that's gentle, sweet and tender,
Is mv Friend.
All that's patient, kind and helpful.
Aught that never could offend;
All that's faithful, valiant, loyal.
Is my Friend.
liver watchful, stanch and steadfast,
Ever eager to befriend
Those in sorrow or in suff'ring,
Is my Friend.
Have you one to trust entirely.
One whose goodness does nortend?
He will guide and guard the friendless,
14ke my Friend.
Is there one to light your pathway
When the darkness shall descend?
Was there ever such another
As my rriend?
If you wish a peace eternal,
That which only one can send.
Then accept and love and trust him,
This, my Friend.
Friend of friends, the great Redeemer,
Ever faithful to the end;
Jesus Christ, the blessed Savior,
Is my Friend.
?Cumberland Presbyterian.
THE MORNING GLORY THAT TRIED.
Once upon a time a morning glory lay
dying, as all flowers must. Calling her
children (seeds) to her bedside she whispered
:
"Dear ones. I am going to leave you
for a time. Don't waste any time or
strength in mourning for me, but put
both into your very best efforts for yourselves
and the world. Use every power
that is within you for a complete development.
Then see how much each can do
to make the world brighter, better, more
beautiful, and happier for your having
lived in it. Then I shall live agaiD in
your beauty and in your usefulness, and
I shall be so proud of my sons and my
daughters (for there are male and female
in all plant life, as in human life), and
remember that nothing is impossible if
you work hard enough and wa't long
enough, no matter how difficult it may
seem at first. If you find a homely spot
on eartn, beautify it; if you see an unhappy
mortal, carry joy to him; if one
is sick or sunering, you can maker him
forget pain in looking at your bright
colors, your lovely blossoms; is one discouraged,
cheer him as best you can, and
always try."
Then she lay back on her bed?an old
wooden fence, in a back yard, in Dayton,
Ohio, which she had made beautiful for
many months, and gently breathed her
la*t. It was a bright, crisp morning in
r
[E PRESBYTERIAN OF THE SOUT
October when she so beautifully gave up
her life, and as Annabel started for
school that morning she saw her beautiful
vine, frost bitten, wilted, drooping and
called back to her mother:
"Mamma! I think these morning glory
seeds ought to be gathered now, before
they are scattered, if we are to sell them
to the florist. May 1 stay at home and
help you?" for it was monthly "examination"
day at school, and Annabel hadn't
been over-industrious.
"No. dear; that wouldn't be best," said
Mrs. Myers, gently, even for her. "But
work hard, so as to get home early, and
then you can be of real help."
In the early afternoon the seeds were
gathered, sorted, put into packages and
sold to a florist who had long ago bargained
for the'm. He put a part of them
with his own stock and shipped the rest
to customers who had ordered seeds trom
him.
Among these that went in a big box,
tagged "New York." was one that had
been deeply touched by her dear mother's
last message, and she had made up
her mind then and there to work industriously
whenever she had opportunity,
and to always do her very best.
Miss Lizzie Rector, principal of the
Primary Department of Public School No.
4, on Rivington street, bought the package
in which the dear little seed lay,
and took it to school for the children to
plant in their window garden. But this little
seed had gotten folded into the paper
and was hidden, so went into the waste
basket and was carried about in the street
for a while, until Jimmy Noonan found It
and took it home to his mother, who
was rubbing away at her wash-tubs.
"What is it, darling?" she asked, as
Jimmy, breathless, rushed in.
"I don't know, but it says 'morning
glory, on the paper. See, I've heard
you tell so much about your morning
glory vines out on the farm, and 1
thought you'd know."
She did know; and her tired face fairly
beamed with pleasure as she said:
"Get a nail, Jimmy, and punch a hole
in that tomato can, and we'll fill it with
dirt and plant the precious seed."
now jouy! And will it grow and
have pretty bell-flowers on It, like those
you had at the farm?" and he clapped
his hands and danced as only an eightyear-old
coy can dance when he has an
unexpected pleasure.
"I think so. We'll wait and see," replied
the mother. And they did wait, oh,
' so long, before even a tiny sprout began
to show a green tip, for their one window
in the two-room tenement taced the
north, and as they were on the "first
floor, rear," with high buildings all
around, theie was no sun and but little
ligbt.
But the dear little seed had been so
happy in the thought that she was to
go on wiiii her dear mother's work, even
althought it might be under very desperate
circumstances, that although she
preferred bright, pleasant surroundings,
she didn't waste time in regret for what
she could not have, but she now put ail
her effort into getting up from the deep
bed where Jimmy had planted her. She
waved her handkerchief as she broke
through the earth, unbuttoned her jacket,
and looked right up into Jimmy's face.
H. March 10, 1909.
for he happened to be watching her as
she came out of her "prison."
"Oh, mamma! the plant's here!" he
fairly screamed.
"Sure enough," said Mrs. Noonan.
"Suppose you take it up to the roof and
warm it a bit in the sun," for it was a
sunny day, although you never would
have guessed it down at the bottom of
the five-story building!
So Jimmy climbed flight after flight of
stairs, and on the roof he found the very
sunniest spot, and put. his precious treasure
down while he watched it, feasted his
eyes on the pale green beginning of a
truly morning glory vine. This he did
every day for a week and the little plant
struggled and grew, and sent out a newleaf
and then another, and another, until
Mrs. Noonan said:
"We must fix a stick for it to run up
cn. It's a climber."
And it was done. Then the dear little
morning glory seemed to 'fairly stretch
an inch a day, until one day Jimmy
yelled: "Mamma, there's a bud!" and
sure enough a bud had started, and after
a time that became a beautiful pink
blossom, which was followed by another
and another, soft, delicate, of untold
teauty, and giving pleasure to all in the
great building, for Jimmy didn't keep his
treasure all to himself. No, indeed! First
he tcok it up into the room where a bedridden
grandmother lived with her only
grandson, who was not always kind to
her. She was so pleased, and it made
her so happy, that when the little lame
girl (who lived across tue hall) said to
him: "I wish I had such a pretty thing,
Jimmy offered to let her keep it a week,
only he must run in to water it in the
morning and to say "good-night" in the
evening.
Next it went into the shop of the
Italian cobbler, in the basement, where
no sun ever came, and there was even
less light than in the Noonan rooms.
And how the dark-eyed children in there
did enjoy its beauty. It made t>nn??r.
sation and pleasure for the entire family
during its three days' stay.
And finally Jimmy said: "Mamma,
let's put Beauty-Spot out in the back
yard, where everybody can see it all the
time!" That was a big proposition; but
it came about, and the next year the
seeds were planted in one of Mrs. Noonan's
old tubs, and the blossoms and vines
covered the fence and ran over into the
next yard!
Really, even so small a thine as a
morning glory can make life happier "for
a great many.
What can yon do? What will yon
do to help scatter "sunshine" wherever
you are, to make the world brighter, better,
happier, more useful, through your
loving service for others? ?New York
Observer.
I am sure that our friends must be
more and not less to us in the other
world, and that this world only begins
wviiuouiii. riuillj>S MTOOKS.
V
The prudent sees only the difficulties,
the bold only the advantages, of the
great enterprise; the hero sees .both,
diminishes those, makes these predominate.
and conquers.?Lavater.
't
I
\
\
\
1 i