The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1883-09-14

the miserable man began" all thu
chief priests and elders Of the people
took counsel against Jesus to put Hin
to death. And when they had bound
Him, they led Him away
Rapidly, and yet with perfect accu.
racy, as 1t seemed, he recited the words,
and the gentleman was so amazed that
he let him go on, standing there in the
cold, till he had finished the sixty-six
verses of the twenty-seventh chapter Of
Matthew-the whole story of the Cruel
fxion!
"Come in here with me; I want tc
| give you Breakfast" said the gentle
man. He was religious man, and a
benevolent one. The sight of wretched
] fellow-being was no novelty to him.
But he had never met subject precise
ly like this
While the stranger ate, he sat at the
! table with him, slipping a cup of coffee
| that he had ordered for himself, and
/ chatting pleasant commonplaces mean
l time keeping his eyes busy and wonder
| ing who the poor fellow could be. He
| saw that he was young and had been
good looking. The wreck of once
graceful frame showed through the rags
! and dirt. There was high forehead,
marked with lines of vice and murdered
sleep. There were the fine eyes, sunken
AID infiamed by dissipation; the hand.
some nose Redeemed by indulgence in
strong drink, the mouth and chin grown
heavy and gross from the indulgence Of
animal appetite.
"My boy, said the gentleman, kindly,
when he had seen the stranger warmed
and fed. "you do not look as if you had
many friends. l did not bring you in
here to let you go back to this desolate
life. If you are to be saved from it, /
pledge myself to be the man to save
you. One so familiar with the Bible as
you are must carry with him some ele.
ments of hope and recovery; and can
not be without memories that are sacred.
Teh me frankly about yourself" And
SO he won the young man to relate his
history.
81 am the son of clergyman" he
said. But as he went on describing his
happy childhood, he suddenly broke
down.
His new friend waited while he gave
way to his tears. There were tears in
his own eyes. At length he gently
prompted him to resume his story.
"And then-after the happy child
hood, what?"
81 went to college-and was the
leader of my class" said the young
man, drying his tears and steadying his
voice. al was popular, and I chose
for my companions clever fellows, bur
conyivial and wicked. / fell into dis
sipated habits, and finally, while intoxi-
Gated, did deed that led to my ex-
pulsion.
"I could not go home with my dis
grace, and went to large city and
found employment. But my habits
caused my discharge. Then 1 drifted
from place to place, picking up employ
ment where l could, till my habits de-
graded me so low that no one would
hire me.
"Here 1 am, I acknowledge it, with
health, character, and ambition gone
a wreck-and Dilling to remain so. /
swore l would never enter my fathers
house again, and never will. You can
do nothing for me. Thank you for
your kindness, for you mean well; but
1t is too late"
He rose quickly from the table, hur-
ried out of the door, and was gone,
It may be that the prodigal kept his
desperate resolve. Self-destruction is
always possible to one who is de-
termined on it-and it is fearful thing
to deliberately accept course of evil,
having clear view of its wickedness.
The death of the soul to holy influence
is more terrible than the rending
asunder of soul and body by what we
call physical death.-KoutFs Conapan-
ION