Sioux City register. [volume] (Sioux City, Iowa) 1858-1871, 1865-01-07


hear as much preaching as l want
to on Sunday; so none of that now. What
| want is to have my books squared
But don't you want them squared so
that they will stay square? You may
foot up your columns so that the accounts
will look oil square and right in the sight
of men, but"
And here Simon was about to lay his
hand over the strangers mouth to prevent
him from speaking, but he, taking him by
the hand which he had lifted up for this
purpose have seen how your account
stands in your book, and see how they
stand in Gods book!" and taking up the
great volume which be had brought ia
under his arm, with his other hand, be
laid it down On the top Of Simon's books,
and began 10 turn over the leaves slowly
Alih ugh it was full Of writing, with
names in great letters over the top of each
page, still SImon could not read them so
rs to tell whose names they were, till, by
and by, the pNga opened which contained
hls own account, and where he saw his
own Lame written as plainly as copper.
p1ae.
Did you not know. Simou,' said the
stranger, That Goi kept an nccoun, Of
Il tie thoughts aud deeds of men, and
that at the last. every one must be iad4el
according 10 wha, is written in the BOOKS.
AS S'mou contiuuDd to look. h" say
that NOT ouy all his evil deeds and !rnu.i
"ere plainly written there. bat all that he
had ONLY thoue ht u: doing hu: had not
done Tor want OF opportunity, and that
these were al, to-, Set down to his dis
cr1IIt And he noticed, still farther. that
tie god which he had neglected to do,
WAS ago iut down against Air, on the
debtor std'' o! The Leaf; tor, Us it appeared
t. L'tn, ii Was sort Of account ok, in
which us evil deeds were recorded on
the LETT side 0: the page, while tie ri sht
side. letI for the good aud vrluuu. de"is
which should have teen placed to his
credit, was almost entirely blank 81
mon answered at length, "a he continued
looking, that he had hs ard the ministers
tell, in ther seruo on 5 O! some such kind
Of book, bat be never really believed that
it existed
Blu, row you cannot deny the evidence
Q. your own eyes; for you we'll know that
10 mortal could lave known and written
the ,hings which you SEQ there
Simon keps uu reading. for it seemed
indeed, as though he could not lift up his
eyes too look AWAY, which he attempted 70
do several times. Bat before h.. had fin
lshed reading his account the stranger
took the book nr. closed It, LAID i. unf~r
his am, AS tie brought It, and stood still,
hooking at Simon. Simon. too. looking at
BIN and ns lie looked, bis singui.r visi.
ter seemed TO become nearly twice a tall
n h" was when he eIt@rei the room
hen be lalt the great /. ok uron >lin0u's
shoulders The weight seemed t, crush
him u the toUr, 80 that he uwUkr, all in
a fright and We, with sweat, groaniug So
loudly as 10 wake bis wife, who inquired
in an anxious voice.
VIA: is tie matter, Sinoc:'
Simon after some rubbing Of his eyes,
an1 sosne disconnected mutIering and
N mlmbl,ny. managed TO give his wife some
idea Of his dream aud consequent fright
WeII,' said she, Ait is bu, dream,
after all, and BY no means as bad as j.
nigh, be-
"Yes," said Simon; "Lut it's true
enough, wife, tha, have not done Jst as
| ought. know it,
Although Simon could 10. keep the
dream out OF his mind, he was not Dis.
posed to think at all times alike about it.
Some etimes he woaId feel rather penitent,
aud promise b,mself that be would try to
come a little nearer to honesty and justice;
snd not only SO, but that he would now
and then give something to the needy; or
that he wonid even put little silver into
the contribution box, instead OF coppers.
At other times, however, he was very much
inclined to .reat the whole matter as
something about which Ae need not be
much concerned; tha. it was natural
enough for one who was more than usually
PEI picked to dream disturbing dreams
and that it was 40 strangc thing that
some scraps Of Par,on Dunewel's sormon
should G., mixed up in his dreams.
But while he found it dilicut, even in
his most pen!tt Mt moods to resist his fond.
ness for driving hard bargains, so. in his
most hard heated ones, be could not
wholly throw off the claimsso conscience
aud right, and it mus, be said, to do him
justice, that be more than once or twice,
did yield up some whole dollars Of antici
pated gain to the claims of honest deal.
ing. To be sure it was not done wholly
from a, love Of honesty, for he had some
vague fears hanging about him of repo-
ti,lon, on the next New Year $ eve Of the
strange visit which had given him the
alarm But it did not come Sill anoth.
er year, and YET it did not come. The
impression of the dream began to grow
dull, aud fade away, and Simon at times
(thOugh not all the time cither.) to be as
hard customer as formerly. He was by
no means entirely given over to business
yet, though there was danger that he would
by and BY become so if he kept on. Al.
though he had some conscience left, be
was slowly wearing it out.
One day, which happened to be his
birthday, he had made as he imagined,
some unusually favorable trades, not al.
together on the side of honesty either. lie
Walked hams reckoning up his gains in
his own mind, and laying plans for their
most profitable investment. As be az,