Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1852-07-14

passage, she left the house without attract
ing the notice Of any one. Towards tn
woods, the same woods where we first saw
her-she directed her steps, and soon he
childish form was lost to view amongs
the deep shades of the beautiful wood.-
A strange impulse led her on to certain
spot in the woods, and strange instinc
told her that he whom she sought was there
She knew that Mr., Burton loved to linge
amongst the cool shadows and waving foil
age of the pleasant woods-she herself hat
often been his companion, his favorlte lit
tie companion, sitting upon the moss-bed
and listening to the low, breezy murmur o
the wind in the pines. the t'many-fngeret
breeze, harping upon thousand strings
He had tod her of so many holy and beau
tiful things opening quite little new worle
to her young and susceptible Imagination
and she loved him SO dearly,so very dearly
and she had thought she could never do any
thing to displease him. But she had forgot
ten 10 "watch and pray" she had yielded
to the temptation, the petty, trifling tempt
alton of a mellow apple upon the tree anc
now! She sat down and cried bitterly, ,hel
heart ached so. And she was disappointed
too, for she had reached the secluded spol
shut in by an underground ofmyrtle, and
the wild, climbing grape-vines, and rend-
cred cool and refreshing from the shallow
streamet that rippled on through the moss
and ferns-but he was not there after all.
She felt as if she wished to tell him ALL but
now she could not do it; he was not there,
and she wept in, despairing wretchedness,
burying her face in the moss-bed, and sob
bing as if her heart would break.
"Why, Sophie, my dear childP' said
some one suddenly, in tone of anxious
solicitude; and Sophie did not wait for any
more, but sprang from her recumbent posi-
tion, and next moment lay sobbing hysteri-
cally in Mr.. Burton's arms. -
"What is il that troubles my little Sophie
so % he asked tenderly, pushing away the
long curls from her flushed forehead, and
pressing his lips fondly tolt.
Well! Sophie told him. Slipping from
his clrcling embrace, and the support Of
his arms, she sank down upon the moss
at his feet, COUGHING there in the depth of
humiliation, ard told him of the sin she
had committed. How she had broken her
promise made to him-how she had forgot
ten the command "IHou shall mol cOvet," and
thus been tempted to break the command,
% Thou shalt not steal.' And when she
thought no eye was upon her, she had pull
ed the mellow apple, and fallen into
sin, merely for such paltry qualification
as that The child uttered no words of
penitence, no promise of amendment, no
petitions for forglveness--she was too fright.
ened and wretched for that, and she only
hid her face when the story was told, & try
ed to choke back the heaving sobs that
kept struggling up to her lips with fright
| full force.
And Mr.. Burton, he did not spurn the
child, he did not push her from him with
cold and scornful words, and naughty re-
proof. No he saw the great suffering and
the great sorrow, and he lifted her from the
earth and folded her closely t. his bosom
closely that nothing sould separate them;
and then he SAID seriously and sadly, but
yet lovingly =
.You have indeed sirned grievouly, Sp-
phie, but the act of confession shows sin
cere penltence-and If we confess our sins,
He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.'
Far then be it from me, so weak and er-
ring myself, to withhold my forgiveness
from another weak and erring. forgive
you freely, and we will ask God to forgive
YOU, and help you, hcnceforth to watch and
pray, that you may resist temptation
Kneeling down upon the moss-bed with
Sophie by his side, and none but God to
hear, he prayed that the erring and the pen
itent might be forgiven. Sophie rose up,
feeling like different creature; she was
enabled to look down with searching,
self-examining eye into the troubled depths
OF her heart and see its sinfulness, its vain,
weak, worthless self-righteousness BY the
power and mercy of God was she, drought
out of darkness into marvellous light"
Let none scorn the religion of a child
am telling you true story now; and So
phie will, in after years, for she is as yet
but child, look back to that evening spent
in the lonely wood, in penitence and pray
er, as the blessed era of her life, when first
she could lift up her heart and say
My Father, thou art the Guide of my youth.
Perseverance.
The most profitable and praiseworthy
genius in the world is untiring industry
and in the vocabulary of him who posses
ses this attribute ''there is no such thing as
fail" Many persons are obliged to com,
mence the voyage of life against both wind
and tide. These are greatly tempted to
complain Of their hard fortune; some are
always just ready to give up, and for that
reason arc both helpless and good for moth
| ing. Whereas, if they would only perse.