The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1875-03-24
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FoR THE CENTRAL PRESBYTERIAN.
LISTEN! GIRLS.

If somebody knows helpful little story
of how something that needed to be done
was accomplished, ought'nt somebody to tell
it? This question has been following me
about good while, because 1 think know
such story which may, if it gets into the
corner of one of our dear Sunday papers,
that we all love to read every day and Sunday
too, start some little heart to beating quicker,
with the thought, "Why, Icould do that too
(And please, Mr.. Editor, put this in the part
you think the girls will read, because its only
meant for them.)
Five years ago, girls, in the heart of lit,
tie Lucy, there bloomed beautiful thought,
as sweet as this winter violet growing in my
south window. At first it only put up
timid little shoot, then the green leaf came,
then the blossoms, and now it is vigorous
little plant, whose fragrance reaches as far
as China, Mexico, South America, and
faint Whit to Greece. But l must tell you
about its beginning. I'm crazy to tell you
"what's its name, and where's its home,
and will do it in a minute if you'll come and
ask me easy; but you know l couldn't do it
in DR.. Browns paper, that so many people
read.
Well, lassies, one bright fall morning,
Lucy came to school early, and said to half
a dozen schooLmates, who were playing
checks on Mary's shawl, Girls, let's have
Sewing Society" That was the first lit
tie green shoot, you see.) And because
Sewing Society needed somebody to manage,
they asked two of US that had quit being
girls good while ago, to take charge of
them. So we met every Wednesday after
noon, and began by working for poor people.
We made great collection of old clothes,
and cut them down, and mended them up,
darning, patching, turning, and many lit
tie Sunday School scholar battered about
that winter, snug and comfortable, because
of the Little Society" Then as the
Church's Spring Fair drew near, the "big
ladies" told US we might have table there,
and keep all we made. My how fast we
worked, at pin cushions, needle-bO books, dolls
and the ike, working all Wednesday even
ing, and taking work home to do in our
spare minutes. By May our table was quite
full. We put uery small price on every
thing, and 10 and behold las you girls say
everything was sold, and we had fifty dollars!
l don't know exactly how we got the Chi
nese into our heads and hearts but when
we found ourselves so rich as to have $50 in
Bank, we knew that meant there was some
thing for us to do, besides mending clothes for
little poor folks. We were going to keep on
doing that, but we could do more. | think
the China idea came from our knowing Mr..
Houston, who had gone to spend his life
preaching the glad tidings in that great
darkened land. He had boys school then
in Hangchow, and we wrote to him very
.hesitatingly and timidly, and asked him if
he would trust US to undertake little boys
support in his school. He wrote straight
back, saying "of eOurse-would any people,
big or little, fail in doing Gods work." So
he put new boy in his school, [" Using
Mob" his name is, we've got his red card y
and at the end of the year we sent our fifty
dollars. But as Mr.. Houston found that
Tsing-Moh hadn't made the school cost any
more, scarcely, he used our $50 in fin
ishing the boys school house at HangchOw.
1 may as well tell you here, that the little
boy never needed our help, as the Church's
appropriation covered his expenses, and at
Mr.. HoustOn's suggestion, We devoted our
money to paying the salary of the native
assistant at SOochow, Mr.. Dzen, to whom
we now send S115 year.
Well, we worked on steadily, sometimes
having as many as forty members, but not
often; for you see there are always people in
the world, and it was so in our little world,
who start with great blaze, and then get
dim, and sometimes go out entirely. How
ever, it is only fair to say that We didn't
have many such members; most Of them
blazed array steadily, came to the meetings
in bad weather; came when maybe they'd
rather have been reading a new story; and
then they worked so cheerfully. 1 know