Northern Ohio journal. [volume] (Painesville, Ohio) 1872-1896, 1873-06-21
WHOLE NO. 1O2.
cHILDREN's COLUMN
Alice Norman.
"BLKssED ARE THE POOR IN spIIIr.'

| BY C. j. G.
NrM LICE Norman had very little
In in this world of which she
MN could boast, and no reason
A whatever to ''set herself up"
as you little girls would call it. Her
father and mother lived in small
| house, with the merest morsel of Il gar
den, and they had five children younger
| than Affective little mischievous,
hungry children. Though every one
of them was very sweet and cheering to
| Alice, rs a ray of sunshine about the
house, yet. you know, they each needed
dresses and shoes, bread and molasses,
and a great. deal of thought and care.
| So it came to pass that the dresses were
| sometimes very coarse, and the shoes
showed great patches in their sides.
Sometimes, too-a good mary times,
| think--there had only been bread and
potatoes for dinner. But certainly love
| went with them as sauce, and you
know solomon has said "dinner of
herbs, where love is, is better than a
| stalled OK" with hatred.
Alice had no more than the others
no possession that belonged quite to
herself. except her little red leather
Bible, which had been given her as
prize in Sabbath school. Then, of
course, you may well believe that there
was no money with which to send her
to school, and for some time she had
kent patiently at home, and tried to pick
mp what learning she could by herself.
But the master in the village, who had
a warm, tender heart for the children,
having seen Alice's bright, happy little
face, and heard someone speak of the
efforts she made to teach herself at
home, made up his mind to lend her
helping hand. So he had made n little
arrangement with Alice's parents, by
which Alice should dust off the desks
ia the school-rOom, keep the books in
order, and his water pitcher filled, to
pay for her own tuition.
Alice had not curled her lip at this
offer, as perhaps you should think she
would, for she knew it had been made
i'm the truest kindness, and accepted it
gladly. l wonder if you were surprised
when 1 spoke of her "bright happy
face" for she seemed to carry the sun
shine with her even on cloudy days.
Alice had a secret for this--a wonderful
secret--which was simply this; she had
chosen Jesus for her master, and she
trusted him to take care Of her, and all
life, in his own best way. "If Jesus
wanted me to have money to go to
school," he said, 81 suppose he has
plenty to give me, and he is very wise
So she very seldom drew her forehead
into ugly knots, or concerned herself at
all about these little troublesome mat
| ters. Indeed, this sunshine that she
had IN her heart sometimes made the
plain bread and potatoes seem almost
| like roast turkey and ice-cream.
However, you know perhaps, that
| schoolgirls are not always wise or kind,
and perhaps you have heard of those
| who acted very much in the same way
as those PlumptOn schoolgirls. Some
of them had very silly and selfish fam
cies. Indeed, two or three of them
seemed to think that if a little girl could
wear a silk dress, with two or three
rings upon her fingers, and perhaps a
| gold chain around her neck, she was a
| great deal better than the little girl who
knew her lessons perfectly and kept the
rules, yet who only wore the ornament
| of "a meek and quiet SPIRIT" which ST.
4 Paul thought best of all. Alice's gentle
heart had been grieved again and again
at the pride of these little Timetables
about her. But the girls said she was
so "poor-spirited, that she could only
| wipe II few tears away, and let an Of
Tense go by.
| Allce Cdtlit W SCiiOOl TiJtltT ltttT tfldn
usual one morning, and rs she brought
ont her spelling book, she saw party OF
girls in the bay window, talking over
their lessons and fun. 1t was mostly
fun, to be sure, as they was getting up
a picnic for Saturday afternoon, and il
was rather hard to think of anything
else. What sheuld they take? how far
should they go? and where should they
eat their dinner? were the most impor.
tant questions.
"But oh! girls" cried Dora Smith
shave you heard what Mr.. Dean sait
yesterday afternoon? He is going tt
try his new row-boat on the river mex
week Saturday, and he says the CIR
who stands best in his opinion for al
the time until then, as reward shal
go with him, and choose three others t,
60 too"
, "Oh, how nice it will be- erie,
Fanny Day; "I'm sure to stand as vel
J as any one, for I've had perfect mark
nearly every day for the last month";"
: 81 only had one imperfect mark las
week. said Dora, stoutly.
"Who will you choose. Dora, if yol
go?" and "Fanny if it's you, choos
me,' were heard on all Sides.
s.Oh, I'll see, I'll see, girls" sal,
Fanny. "Do look at Alice starev' An,
Alice had been staring true enough
, but only because she had forgotten her
l self, in thinking how kind her teacfe
was, and what a charming thing it mus
be to go out OH the river in his beauti
D full, new row-boat.
, ssXou didn't suppose for moment
|! Mr.. Deane meant to take shoemaker
: child, did you?" said Fanny curlin
her pretty lip. She spoke very unkind
ly, and very carelessly too, for | don
| mi cf,o r,,,tta np1arctnAI MI,
ugly thing she had been saying.
The tears rose to Alice's eyes.
"Hush Fanny, aren't you ashamed !?
y said Nelly Beers.
{ 81 don't care" Fanny persisted, q
: don't want to go with such girls"
"Alice," said Dora Smith, "whateve
3 makes you wear such patched old dres!
e es, any way? I'd coax my father for
new one--it isn't neat, you know"
"Whv because" said Alice, cheerily
|, though there were two or three tears i
her eyes--''father's poor, you know"
:; "POor! 1 should think so! poor as
q church mouse" said Fanny; g
n wouldn't come to school, if l eouldn
II afford to pay for it,
n "But father wants me to learn, an
people can't help being poor" sal
Alice gently, and still keeping up
brave little heart. 1t was hard to
Al poor, but she remembered Jesus ha
,e been poor and despised as well rs she.
Dt s.Poor little thing" said Fanny Da.
re scornfully, 81 shouldn't think she
ID feel at home here anyway"
a. "Children," said a voice close /
a Fanny's side, ''it wants only five mil
ID utes of nine o'clock, and the bell wi
1t sound directly"
A. Fanny turned quickly, with her SCI
tence only half uttered, and her cheel
a. covered over with blushes; the 9th
I'd girls all opened their eyes and moutl
OF in guilty frightened way, while on
ar s.poor-spirited" little Alice, was II
as ashamed. The master looked at the
8. all very closely through glasses, tn,
4. bowling as though he had nothir
~, against them, he passed on quickly
Is. his study. But you may suppose Il
We girls were little troubled in their ov
he minds, for they dearly loved the
ns teacher, and valued his approval,
of more than any prize he might give.
al wonder if he heard; oh! wo
der if he heard" whispered Fam
ry greatly distressed. SITS all your fan
ng you mean little troublesome thing.