Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1878-11-28

mrS. NoWton, tnougn farmers
wife. country reared girl, had al
instructive delicacy and tact which
told her, however much man might
love his wife, there were times when
her silence was deafer to HIM than
her words. So she sat still Till the
clock struck nine, then she moved
quietly about, preparing Tor the
night, saying, VI think l will 70 no
now; you will come soon, Andrew?''
But he made no answer.
After she had gone, he continued
his restless walk for many minutes
then he paused to trim the lamp
and then he turned toward the side
board, and, with only minutes
irresolntion, he opened the drawer
aao took out the much. wornacco ant
book.
tits close on to Monday, "he said,
hali-alond, as though 10 still the
quiet rebuke. of conacienoa which
came like an echo of his wifss words:
"Wai., and do week days' work on
week days." but he put 1t aside.
and in it's place admitted tho evil
thought which had flashed into his
mind an hour before :-ant vet he
was a Christian man he thonght he
had been trying TO follow Christ for
years. Had it been all thetime in
his own strength ? lie had always
been honest /; but had his honesty
never been really tried before He
had always been truthful bit had
he never been really tempted before
to deceit?
The Bible says: s.Let hin that
thinketh he standeth take heed, lest
he fall" "The devil" says wise
man of old, "does not tenn. bad
men, because he has got then Als
ready he tempts good men, b,canse
be has not got them, but wants to
got them" In the darkness Of that
night, Farmer Newton forgot for a
while these trutbs-forgol that
temptation met and resisted, O.. met
and yielded to, is the test of what a
man really is.
mot Tor myself," he said to him.
self, as he sat down to count ard re.
count the limos of figures in the
book "not for myself, but for Molly
and the children" 1t could bo done
80 easily by recording profits-that
well could be done so easily, if
on the morrow he faced Squire
Forbes with a promise to pay later
on, giving that book as a pledge,
with it's fiction, of money coming to
him, when he knew there was none
to come.
And a subtle voice seemed to
whisper in his heart You will only
be doing what hundreds of men in
trade are doing every day you will
only be giving wrong impression"
and, then; there came to Andrew
Newton a temptation so fierce, so
powerful, that, strong man though
be was, he bowed before it as a reed
before the wind. But, as he almost
yielded, he. heard another whisper
in his heart saying: "If you do You
will be acting he, Andrew you
will be losing what is worth more
than house or land-losing honor and
truth )" and those two voices kept
up their strife in Andrew Newton's
heart, till the autumn night gave
place to morning; and nights end,
just as Temptations do, either In
a bright sunrise of victory won, or
dreary dawn, dark with clouds
How did Farmer Newton's end i? In
sunrise: for right conquered; God
helped him TO resist. though he did
uvt arh tho L,rd's beip siIi ,Lo ulgn,
had well nigh waned then, finding
his own strength utter weakness, he
cried aloud at last: "Lord, help me-"
and no sooner did he cry than the
help came. For, over and over, the
experience of Gods children of old
is lived in the story of his children
nowadays. Do you remember
"And the Lord said unto Moses !.
Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it
upon. pole, and it shall come to
pase that every one that is bitten
[surely that means tempted, when
he looketh upon it, shall live: and
it came to pass that if serpent had
bitten any one, when he beheld the
serpent of brass he lived'? The only
con dition of healing, the looking Is
the Lord commanded; just as tho
only strength to resist temptation is
found in asking the Lords help. with
faith in his promise : ASK, and We
shall receive"
And SO tn, Newton famsiy kept
Thanksgiving that year. after an,
though only such brief time does
il take for change to do it's work.
when lie appointed day came, I'd !
rooms OF tho old farmhouse reson, d.
ed with The voices and laughter of
children other than the Newtous':
another husband aud wife sat toreth.
OF 10 the cheerful sitting-rocm. and
yet, spite of it all, the Newton chill.
dren said: 1--WE never had such 8
good Thanksgiving BEFORE" And
at nightfall. when they had all gone
to slecp, Farmer Newton and bis
wife repeated the chiIdren's words !:
for it was then that Molly of the
night when temptation bad assailed
him, when, because he had at first
tried to resist in his own strength.
he had almost yielded "You see, if
| had, Molly be said, "the old farm
house might still have been our
home, but il would have been by the
loss of my honor and my truth and
as that voice IN my heart, which
sounded so like yours, though l
know it was the voice of conscience.
kept repeating: 'Without- honor
there can be no Thanksgivirg for
you, your wife, or your children =
and yet | rehelled sorely against
that voice." he added, still, all of q
Sudden, in answer 10 M prayer for
help, / seemed TO see how much
more they were worth than al nv
worldly property put together" As
she listened 20 his story, again Mrs
Newton laid her hand on her hus~
hands kpea-thA hand vb;ab 10