fermi g eitta
[For the American Presbyterian.]
OUR FATHER.
BY REV. EDWIN IL NEVIN
Is He among the stars, my God, my King?
From Him do all their light and glory spring?
Does He uphold and poise their ponderous
weight,
And bid them. march in such majestic state?
Is He among the clouds and winds and storms;
Directing, shaping all their wondrous forms?
Dp`eliAbreornmand - theircrUb*eirieuts as they fly
Like frenzied demons through the darkened
sky?
Is He among the angels, pure and bright,
Who live above all clouds and storms and
night?
Does He inspire their souls with love and song,
And clothe in beauty all the countless throng?
Is He among, the waves that dash and roar
And wildly toss from distant shore to shore ;
-Beholding all the conflicts of the deep
Till He shall bid the angry. tempests slgep ?
Is He among the myriad groves and flowers
That grow and bloom 'mid summer's sun and
showers ;
Painting each leaf, imparting every hue,
Till Eden seems to burst upon the view?
Yes! He is everywhere o'er earth and sea,
He knows no bound but vast infinity ;
'Mid burning suns and laughing flowers He
lives, .
To all things life, and form and beauty gives.
Then He is with me too, His tender love
Is near to me as living ones above ;
I cannot, should not doubt His watchful care,
For God is always with me, with me every
where.
Trust, then, my soul I give to the winds thy
fear
Hope thon'in Him for He is ever near;
He that binds worlds and atoms in one whole
Will not neglect the priceless, deathless soul
THE GERMAN FAMILY IN LONDON.
FROM GUTHRIE' S SUNDAY MAGAZINE
One September day there was an
open-air missionary meeting in the
neighborhood of Barmen, in the lovely
Wupperthal. The friends of missions
in the vicinity had flocked together
from all quarters. There was scarcely
a village within a circuit of ten miles
which did not send its minister with
his deacons and the better portion of
his church members. Men and women,
old and young, rich and poor, crowd
ed together,, exhibiting that true and
wonderful equality and fraternity,
which political communism can at
best but caricature, and nothing but
Christian communion can realize. On
a small platform, under the broad
foliage of a gigantic beech tree, some
of the leaders of the mission were sit
ting in committee, directing the pro
ceedings of the day. At a distance,
amidst the slender stems of tall firs,
between which the. September sun cast
his cheerful rays, long rows of tables
and forms were placed to accommo
date the numerous guests at dinner
time, when a roll, a bit of meat, and a
cup of coffee would refresh them for
the work of the afternoon.
Several speakers, famous for their
eloquence or their practical knowledge
of mission -work, addressed the assem
bly. Each speech was closed with a
hymn, and in the pauses, hymn after
hymn was raised by the people them
selves, making the forest and the
neighboring hills resound with the
sweet melodies of the Deutschen Kir
chenlieder. And when afterward the
people were seated at the tables, and
the blessing was asked by the chair
man, the speeches and the hymns
were continued in uninterrupted suc
cession, every one being desirous of
expressing the feelings of his heart on
this happy day, and of contributing
something toward building up the
congregation in their faith, hope, and
love. And so it'went on from hour
to hour, till at last the long shadows
of the firs announced the setting of
the , sun, and gave the signal for depar
tuie. In numerous groups, dotting
the roads that crossed the hills in all
directions; the people returned to their
homes, keeping up the enthusiasm of
the "day by their evening 'hymns,
which echoed through the valleys.
A. little group walked up the steep
road leading to the village of Sirch
helm. It consisted of Hermann Stahl,
the farther, Peter Vormann, the school
master, with their wives and children,
and a • few neighbors of the working
class. Hermann and Peter were en
gaged in a lively conversation, to
which the rest of thecompany listened
evidently with great interest, the wo
men now and then dropping in a word
of affirmation explanation, or correc
tion. 'The subject regarded Hermann's
plan of emigrating to America in the
spring.
Hermann Stahl was a man in the
prime of life, with a robust appear
ance, broad shoulders, and a manly
face. On his little farm, which he cul
tivateci with the ability, of a well
taught husbandman, he 'had brought
up a family of' six children, who pos
sessed in his wife a most kind and
tender-hearted mother. With , the ex
ception of •the eldest, a girl of eighteen,
the children were boys, of whom the
eldest was sixteen and the youngest
six. They were a happy family, living
in the midst of charming scenery, se
cluded, from the din and bustle of the
world, and enjoying the privileges
and blessings of a truly Christian • so
ciety, such as the little village of
Kirchheim was blessed with. The
minister of the place—for • there was
only one, church at Kirchheim—wass.
pious man, a good preacher, and a
still better pastor. Peter Vormann,
the gchoolmaster, was his friend; and
everybody knows that when, in a
small village, the pastor and the teach
er agree, the whole population is in
their handA, for good or for evil.
Happily, in this case it was for good,
fo i l . Peter spoke to the children at
schOol of no other way of salvation
than his friend the minister recom
mended to their parents at church.
The . people having thus, from- time
immemorial, been accustomed to meet
as children in one and the same schOol,
and as adults in One and the same
church, it could not be any matter of
wonder that the whole population of
Kirchheink looked like one fatally, of
which the minister was
.the father and
the schoolmaster the eldest brother.
Kirchheim was one of those happy
villages, of which the remote hilly dis
tricts of Rhenish Prussia have always
possessed'a considerable number. The
various changes in theological systems
have found as little access to them as
the shifting caprices of fashion, and,
consequently, the old faith of the Re
formers is there maintained intact, as
well as the simplicity of patriarchal
life. In those villages the pattern of
the first Christian Church at Jerusa
lem, the members of which " were of
one heart and of one soul, having all
things in common," is preserved as far
as it is possible in our day. The peo
ple go in and out of each other's
houses with as much freedom as
though they were their own ; and no
wonder, for they were wont to do so
as children, and the time for dropping
the good custom has not, in their
opinion, come round. They call each
other, and each other's wives, by their
Christian names, as familiarly as if
they were brothers and sisters. They
are often seen in summer time sitting
in rows of six or eight on the benches
near the front doors of the cottages,
cheerfully chatting till the setting sun,
or the chiming of the evening bell,
calls them to their homes. In 'winter,
they spend their evenings in small
companies, assembling in the houses
by rotation, when many a good book
is read, and many an interesting sub
ject discussed. At these gatherings
either the minister or the schoolmas
ter is generally present, end he usually
gives such a tone to the conversation
as promotes the religious knowledge
and edification of the people. Pau
perism or destitution is impossible in
those places, unless some general ca
lamity, such as a failure of the crops
or an inundation, throws the whole of
the population into distress. The peo
ple know each other too well not to
know each other's wants, and they
love one another too well not to try to
help where help is possible.
Now Hermann Stahl was a member
of one of these happy communities.
Nor was he an insignificant member.
He was an elder of the church, and
was held in high esteem on account of
his piety and respectable conduct. It
would have been difficult to point to a
man, in his position in life, who found
himself in happier circumstances. His
farm, though not very large, was yet
sufficient for the support of himself
and his family. He had attained the
highest honors within the reach of an
inhabitant of Kirclaheim. He was
everywhere received with cordial af
fection ; all houses were open to him,
and many hearts likewise, and into
them be knew how to pour the conso
lations of the Gospel. No wonder,
then, that the population was smitten
with surprise when it was rumored
that Hermann contemplated emigrat
ing to America. Everybody was put
Oout by the news, for Hermann was
always thought to be the most un
likely to need to have recourse to such
a measure. The minister, the school
master, and -the elders of the church
took the highest interest in the matter,
for nobody'desired to - miSs sii - ch - a, good"
man from the Kirchheim society, And
besides, people thought, if he set the
example, it was likely that more would
follow, and what_would then become
of good. old Kirchheim ? So the first
few days after the report had gone
forth, Hermartn's house was besieged
by people inquiring whether it was
really true, and trying to dissuade
him from such an "'absurd plan." In
fact, he could ,scarcely,show himself in
the village street, without being ac
costed by friends, some of whom be
sought him with tears in their eyes to
consider well before it was too late.
Now, the reasons which induced
Hermann to think of such a plan as
exchartging the dearly beloved " fath
erland" for a new and unknown world,
were perhaps not so urgent as he
thought, but neither were , they so ab
surd as his friends and neighbors tried
to make them appear. His first and
chief reason was that he had little or
no prospect of seeing his children es
tablished. in. circumstances similar to
his own. Had they: all -been girls he:
might have cherished the hope of see
ing them one day married to, respect
ble farmers or tradesmen. But they
were boys, as I have: said, with : the
exception of Hannah, the, eldest, and
there was no opportunity in the vil-
lage of training them up for anything
but farming. Now, it was as clear as
day that only one of them could get
his father's farm after his death, and it
was equally clear that the other bro
thers would have to hire themselves
out as servants, without any prospect
of becoming masters and owners of
farms of their own. In America, on
the contrary, they, would have the
world, : as it were, before them His
brother DietriCh, ,of Hildesheim, had
emigrated to Wisconsin six years be
THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 1866.
fore, with his wife and nine children,
and had not only found himself in the
most prosperous circumstances, but
four of his sons were already owners
of farms as thriving and productive as
his own. In every letter his brother
urged him to follow his example and
cross the Atlantic. *He wrote that
there were " hundreds and thousands
of acres of the most splendid arable
land in the neighborhood to be had
for :7, mere trifle." Hermann would
only have to come across and take
possession, and within a few years he
would see himself and-his sons living
like independent princes on their own
estates.
On this Peter Vormann, the school
master, would remark that it was all
very plausible and alluring to read
about in brother Dietrich's letter, but
that it might turn out very different
in reality. He remembered many
who, with similar sanguine expecta
tions, had emigrated to America only
to die in poverty and destitution. He
always repeated those beautiful words
of the Psalmist in the 37th Psalm :
" Trust in the Lord and do good, so
shalt thou &Well in the land, and verily
thou shalt be fed." It was true that
he (Peter) could not show Hermann
how his four soniwere to be provided
with farms ten or fifteen years hence.
But it appeared to him that Hermann
might safely leave that matter in the
hand of the Lord, .who ten or fifteen
years hence would prove the same
'faithful, wise, and mighty God and
Helper that he had always proved be
fore. It there were some urgent cause
which imperatively necessitated his
departure ; if, for instance, it was
shown that from year to year he was
going backward in his domestic and
monetary affairs, then Peter would be
inclined to regard brother Dietrich's
letters as so many voices from Heaven
calling him from Germany to Ame
rica, in the same way that Abraham
had been called from Ur, or Israel out
of Egypt, to emigrate to the land
which the Lord had destined for them
to dwell in. But since no each urgent
cause existed, he thought it would be
reckless imprudence and a presump
tuous anticipation of God's dealings if
he broke up his farm, and undertook
such a long, perilous and uncertain
voyage wholly of his own accord. He
would be afraid lest the Lord might
turn his antagonist, and withhold from
him all those favors, without which
the most prosperous country becomes
a desert, and the happiest home an
abode of misery.
Hermann felt that there was much
truth in this reasoning, although he
could not quite share his friend's
gloomy fears as to the possible conse
quences of his emigration. He could
not see how the Lord could becomet
an antagonist to a' Man Who tried to;
improve his condition, since the desire'
for improvement was an instinct which
had been implanted by God himself.
It was true that as yet there was no
urgent reason for removing, and he
might quietly leave it t® God, to an
swer the question how to provide for
his sons when they would come of age.
But, thought he, Peter must admit
that that sort of passive waiting upon
the Lord might be dictated not only
by pious humility, but also by easy-.
going selfishness, inasmuch as it was
less trouble to him to leave matters as
they were, and to tell his sons to care
for themselves than to travel to a dis
tant country, and provide them with
farms in time. He could not help re
membering that text of Scripture,
where the Apostle says that the chil
dren ought not to care for their par
ents, but the parents for their children.
In his opinion, it was now the time to
strike the iron. His sons were all of
them young, and at the age when one
easily learns a foreign language, and
without much trouble adapts oneself
to .the national character, the 'habits
and customs of a foreign people. And
as to the breaking up of his farm, he
believed that he would have to do that
even apart from the emigration plan,
owing to a railway which was to 13;
made through the district. He saw no
reason why, in that case, he should
not go to America, where the largest
farms. were to be got - at , scarcely one
half the price of his own.-
The next- afternodu, the,-minister
stepped into Hermann's room. He
found Frau Stahl alone, and engaged
in mending clothes. Hannah was in
the dairy, and Hermann was away
with the two eldest boys in the fields,
plowing up a piece of land. The
schoolmaster had taken the other boys
out; for a walk to the top of the Brun
nenberg, which commanded a magni
ficent view •iif the surrounding district.
The sun was now about setting, so
that it was likely the father and the
tchoolmaster and the boys would be
home shortly.
"Do you come to take coffee with
us to-night, Herr Pahtor 7" asked Frau:
Stahl, rising with a smile, and throw
ing the clothes on a chair in the cor
ner. Of course you do. Hermann
will be back soon, and so will the
master with-the boys."
" Well, it was ; not exactly my in
tention to stay," answered the minis
ter, in a cordial tone; " but since you
are bent on detaining me for a couple
of hours, I suppose I must submit.
But then, you know, I must go and
I fetch my wife, for she would be sure
to lecture me if I left her alone at
home." .
" Of course, of, course, Herr Pastor ;
and I will send Hannah round to the
Fallmings and the Mullers, that they
also may come with Their wives, and
we'll have a nice evening together,
with God's blessing."
An. hour later a happy company of
friends was gathered round Frau
Stahl's white-scoured tea-table, which
was bending under the weight of the
bread and" - butter, and other dainties,
which were all produced on Hermann's
own farm, and made by the skill of
hirWife arid' 'daughter. While the
guests enjoyed their neighbor's hospi
tality, the conversation chiefly con
"cerned. the missionary meeting of the
preceding day.. Portions of the speeches
which had been delivered were recall
ed to memory, and incidents from the
various missionary reports which had
been read to the congregation were re
hearsed with great sympathy. It was
again observed that the difficulties and
dangers which the faithful messengers
of the Gospel had to encounter in the
midst of uncivilized and often savage
nations, and in unhealthy and inhospit
able quarters of the globe, were very
great ; and at the close of the meal,
the minister gave out a missionary
hymn, after which he and two or three
other friends engaged in prayer, for
the Divine protection to the Gospel
preachers in heathen countries, and
for the spread of the knowledge of
Christ. among those ignorant peoples.
'Coffee over, the men took their pipes
and the women their knitting-work,
and opportunity was given for general
conversation on interesting questions
of the day. Usually, on such occa
sions, the host read a portion of the
Bible or a page of some other religious
book by way of suggesting a subject.
This time Hermann, who was anxious
to hear the opinions of his friends
about his plan of emigration, read the
first chapter of the book of Ruth,
which tells of the emigration of Eli:
melech with his wife and sons to the
country of Moab. This story, he said,
clearly showed that emigration, though
often attended with many trials and
difficulties, might yet be a good thing,
inasmuch as it might proceed from a
justifiable motive, and be productive
of excellent effects, both spiritual and
temporal. That Elimelech's motive in
emigration from a land of starvation
to a land of abundance was quite jus
tifiable, nobody could reasonably deny.
And that great blessings had been the
consequence of his emigration was
equally clear, since in the hand of Je
hovah it was instrumental in restoring
Naomi to honor and peace, and in
bringing Ruth to the service of the
only true and living God.
To this Fallming, the shoemaker,
replied that the blessings which his
friend pointed to were certainly con
sequences of Elimelech's emigration;
Abut he held it was equally true that
dose blessings were brought about by
Naomi's return. In his opinion, a matt
who could find no bread in his own
country was perfectly justifiable in
stepping over into another country,
where he might find bread; but as, by
God's blessing, matters were not yet at
that pass in Germany, he did not see
how his dear friend and brother Her
mann could, with any show of reason,
point to his position as being a par
allel to that of Elimelech. Thank
God, famine was unknown in the good
country of the; Ruhr and the Wupper.
There was plenty of bread; both wheat
and rye, and. carrots in summer, and
sour-trout in winter, and therefore he
could not see why people should go
1,!,4 the way to America to seek for
provisions, which they could find in
their own country quite as well.
In this view of the matter Frau
Faliming perfectly agreed with her
husband. Besides, she would have
her dear friend Hermann observe that,
whatever may have been the blessings
which accrued to others from Blime
hisch's emigration, no blessings flowed
from it to himself. He died, and so
did his sow, and it might be that these
fatal calamities were chastisements
from God, showing his displeasure at
the step the family had taken. It
would be a fearful thing even to sup
pose that Heimann and his sons might
die in America in the same way, and
that dear Fran Stahl and' Hannah
should come back, like Naomi and
`Ruth, clad in mourning and bathed in
ream
Tears filled the eyes of the good
Frau, and the other female portion of I
the company were likewise moved;
handkerchiefs soon covered their faces,
and there was a solemn pause for a
minute or two. Human faces, how
ever, are very changeable in their ex
pressions, as are human passions. The
tears soon gave way to smiles, and
even to scarcely-suppressed laughter,
When Johann,.Herman's eldest son, a
boy of sixteen, observed, with much
gugaplicity, that, as it was not toktin
- the chapter that they died from God'a
displeasure, it was much more natural
to suppose that Elimelech and his
sinks having come from a famine
stricken land to a country abounding
with provisions, might have over
eaten themselves, and died from want
of due self-restraint. Therefore, to
guard against such a temptation, he
thought it would be wise not to delay
emigration till famine came into the
land, but to start in such circumstan
ces as would
with
one to enter the
new country with a full stomach.
Muller, the grocer, hereupon ob
' served that there was sense in what
the lad said. If emigration .was in.
eiritable f it was far better to carry it
out in affluent than in straitened cir
cumstances. But it was not certain
that affluence at the beginning always
secured affluence in the end. Many a
well-to-do family, who set out with a
nice sum of money, lost the whole of
it on the other side of the ocean. He
could not help here referring to the
case of Henry Prizel, who went to
London a few years before, with five
hundred gold English sovereigns in
his pocket, and set up a turner's shop,
which, however, proved a complete fail
ure, so that he died in utter misery, leav
ing his son Daniel in the workhouse.
To this Hermann observed that he
knew Henry's case very well, since he
was a far-off cousin of his own ; but
Henry's history could not justly be
quoted as a specimen of wise emigra
tion. His case entirely differed from
that. To settle down in a European
town as a tradesman was one thing,
and to emigrate to America to become
a farmer there was another. The two
things, in fact, admitted of no com
parison. As to Daniel, he was happy
to be able to tell tolerably satisfactory
news, for he had recently received a
letter from him. He was not in the
workhouse, but employed in a sugar
house near the Thames, where he
earned a sovereign a week. It was
hard work; and he was afraid his
health would not be able to stand it.
But he hoped that his cousin Hermann
might find some employment for him
in Germany, since he had not yet alto
gether forgotten the German language.
" How old was he when he left this
country ?" asked the minister.
" Twelve or thirteen, I think," an
swered. Muller. "He cannot have been
older than that."
"So he must be about twenty now,"
said the minister. "Why, Hermann,
if your mind is made up to travel to
America, you could easily take him
along with you."
" No, no. You shall not go—you
must not go," cried several voices ;
and. again the conversation as to whe
ther it was according to God's word to
leave one's country without urgent
necessity, took a fresh start. The
minister now expressed his opinion,
and so did the schoolmaster. Many
texts were quoted, and many sayings
of wise, godly men, who had express
ed themsejves against what they called
the emigration-fever, were called to
remembrance.
(TO RE CONTINUED.)
THE LITTLE STRANGER.
Though a man of very strict princi
ples, no man ever enjoyed a joke more
than Dr. Bryon; he had a vast fund of
humor, and very ready wit, and with
children, particularly, he loved to chat
familiarly and draw them out. As he
was one day- passing into the house, he
was accosted by a very little boy, who
asked him . if he wanted. any sauce„
meaning vegetables. The Doctor in
quired if such a tiny thing was a
market man. "No, sir; my father is,"
was the prompt answer.
The Doctor said, "Bring me in some
squashes," and passed into the hohse,
sending out the change. In a few mo
ments the child returned, bringing
back part of the change. The Doctor
told him he was welcome to it; but the
child would not take it back, saying
his father, would blame him. Such
strange manners' in a child attracted
his attention, and he began to examine
the boy attentively ; he was evidently
poor, his jacket was pieced and patched
with every kind of cloth, and. his trow
sers darned with so many colors that
it was difficult to tell the original fa
bric, but scrupulously neat and clean
withal. The boy very quietly endur
ed the scrutiny of the Doctor, while
holding him at arm's length, and ex
amining his face. At last he said':—
"You seem a nice little boy ; won't
you come and live with me and be
a doctor ?"
" Yes, sir," said the child.
"Spoke like a man," said the Doctor,
patting his head as he dismissed him.
A few weeks passed on, when one
day Jim came to say there was a
little boy with a bundle down stairs,
waiting to see the Doctor, and would
not tell his business to any one else.
"Send him up," was the answer ;
and in a few moments he recognized
the boy of the squashes—but no
squash himself, as we shall see; he
was dressed in a new, though coarse
suit of clothes, and his hair very nicely
combed, his hoes brushed up, and a
little bundle tied in a homespun
checked handkerchief, on his arm.
Deliberately taking off his hat, and lay
ing it down with his bundle, he walked
up to the Doctor, saying : " I have
come, sir."
"Come for what, my child?"
" To live with you and be a doctor,"
said the child, with the utmost naivete.
The first itapulse of the Doctor was
to laugh immoderately; but the imper
tUrbable gravity of the little thing
rather sobered him, as he recalled, too,
his former conversation, and he vowed
he never felt so perplexed in his life.
At the time, he felt he needed no addi
tion to his family.
"Did your father consent to your
coming ?" he asked.
... es
"What did he say ?"
"Yes, sir."
"I told him that you wanted me to
come and live with you and be a doc
tor ; and he said you were a very good
man, and I might come .as soon as my
clothes were ready."
"And your mother, what did she
say ?"
"She said Dr. Bryon would do just
what he said he would, and God had
provided for me. And," said. he, ‘ , I
have on a new suit of clothes," si ll ..
veying himself, " and here is another
in the bundle," undoing the handker
chief and displaying them, with two
shirts, white as snow, and a couple of
neat checked aprons, so carefully
folded it was plain none but a
_mother
would have done it. The sensibilities
of the Doctor were awakened to se e
the fearless, the undoubting trust with
which the poor couple had bestowed
their child upon him, and such a child.
His cogitations were not long; he
thought of Moses in the bulrushes,
abandoned to Providence ; and above
all, he thought of the child that wa s
carried into Egypt, and that the Divine
Saviour had. said, "Blessed be little
children;" and he called for the wife of
his bosom, saying, " Susan, dear, I
think we pray in church that God will
have mercy upon all young children."
"To be sure we do," said the won
dering wife, " and what then ?"
"And the Saviour said, 'Whosoever
receiveth one . such little child in my
*name, receiveth me ;' take this child
in His name and take care of him ;"
and from that hour this good couple
received him to their hearts and home.
It did not then occur to them that one
of the most eminent physicians and
best men of the age stood before them
in, the person of that child ; it did not
occur to them that this little creature,
thus thrown upon their charity, was
destined to be their staff and stay in de
clining age—a protector and more than
son to themselves; all this was then un
revealed ; but they cheerfully received
the child they believed Providence had
committed to their care; and if ever
beneficence was rewarded, it was in
this instance.—Family Circle.
SUMMER VACATIONS,
We read that Jesus was wont at
times to go apart into a " desert place."
Probably he went to such localities,
not for the desert, but for the quiet and
seclusion which it afforded, and where
He might find opportunities for unin
terrupted religious thought. In this
respect it is not. to be supposed that
His disciples should exactly copy His
example, and give up every hour of
their summer vacation to pious medita
tion and prayer ; yet they are very
much at fault who undertake to reverse
His practice, and who consume the
time generally allotted by society at this
season to rest, in following the pursuits
of pleasure with a giddiness and hilari
ty which mark no other part of the
year. This is at least a gross violation
of all the rules of physiology, which
teach us that the summer vacation
should be substantially a season of
quiet and repose. Still, the most su
p.4fLeifil observer meat have -noticed
how little the dictates of a sound phil
osophy are observed at the various
summer resorts. With far too large a
proportion of the visitors, there is a
general neglect of the laws of health.
In more fashionable circles, the time is
often spent in a ceaseless round of gaie
ty. The chief efforts are made to
dress, to see, and to be seen. Miss
Starch and Madam Coupon are in the
ascendant, while all bow at the shrine
of worldliness and folly.--Episcopalion.
WAS IT INSTINCT OR PROVIDENCE?
The following circumstance is re
lated by Dr. Dwight, as having oc
curred at the great bridge in the town
of Great Barrington, Mass.: "A Mr.
Van Rensselaer, from Albany, came
one evening to an inn at the eastern
end of the bridge. The innkeeper,
Mr. Root, asked him where he had
crossed the river. He answered, On
the bridge. Mr. Root replied that
was impossible, because it had been
raised that very day, and that not a
plank had been laid upon it. Mr. Van
Rensselaer said that his horse had
come over without any reluctance or
difficulty, that the night was so dark
as to prevent him from 'seeing any
thing distinctly. Neither believed the
story of the, other. In the morning
both went to the bridge, and. Mr. Van
Renssel a er, looking at the naked frame
with astonishment, fainted."
We all very often go near death's
door without being aware of it.
CHICKEN IN THE HAT.
Nat is very poor, rather light-finger
ed, and, it is said, not so bright as his
parents could wish. The other day,
while passing a neighbor's, Nat saw a
brood of chickens, and immediately
caught one to carry home. He had
not gone far, however, before he
saw the owner coming up the road,
and not knowing what to do with the
chicken to conceal it, at last succeeded
in crowding it into his hat, which he
again placed upon his head. But the
chicken, having a long neck, and being
also pressed for=air, managed to thrust
its head through an opening in Nat's
old straw hat. Nat was presently
accosted with :
" What have you got in your
hat ?"
" Nothing but my head," said Nat.
"But I see a chicken's head sticking
through the top of it."
Nat taking off his hat, and looking
at it in feigned astonishment, es
claimed
.s; l ' Wal, how do you 'spore that crit
ter came in there ? He must have
crawled up my trowsers' leg."