Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1888-12-27

younger boys grew up the deacon had
ceased to hire help, and Biah had trans
fered his services to Squire Jones, rich
landhoder i'm the neighborhOod, who
wanted some one TO overlook his
place. The increased wages had enabled
him to give home to Maria Jane
and start In life to two or three
sturdy little American citizens who play
ed around his house door. evertheless
Biah never lost sight of the ''deac0n's
folks" in his multifarious cares. and
never missed an opportunity either of
doing them good turn or OF picking up
any stray item of domestic news as 10
how matters we're going on in that interl-
or. He had privately preached the sub
| ject to Miss Briskett. - hat arter all 1t
was James that Diany h, alwa,s pro-
nounced all names as il they ended I'm "
was so. on, and that she took il so hard.
his goin' off, that it aid be t AL! SCENE
to make another gal of her; he shouldn't
wonder IL she'd core out and line the
church.. And Diana not long after UNI
consciously fulfilled Bah predictions.
OF late Biah's good odces had been in
special re Iuisition as the deacon had been
for nearly a month on a sick bed, with
one of those interminable attacks of
typhus fever which used TO prevail in Oil
times when the doctor did everything he
could to make IL Ger ain that man once
brought down with sickness never should
rise again,
But Sias Pltkin had cOnstitu ion de-
rived through an Indefinite distance from
a temperate, Woodworking godly ances-
try, and so withstood both death and the
doctor, and was alive and in GONZALES
cent state which gave hope of his being
able to carve the turkey at his Thanks
giving dinner.
The evening sunlight was just fading
out of the little keeping ROOM" al DIN
ing the bed room. where the convalescent
was now able to sit up most of the day. \
cot bel ha been p aced there, designed
for him to lie do II Il on in intervals of
fatigue. vt present however, he was
sitting in his arm chair, cOmplacently
watching the blaze OF he hickory fire or
following plac ly the motions of his
wife's knitting needles.
There was AN ar of calmness and re-
pose OH his In II, worn features that never
was there in days o. old; the haggard,
an ious lines had been smoOthed away,
and tha' spiritual expression which sick
ness and sorrow sometimes develop on the
human face regned in its place 1t was
the clear shining after rain.
xvi c, he said ''rrad me something |
can't quite RENE nber out of the bible.
It's in the eighth OF Deuteronomy, the
second erSe
Mr.. itkin op ned the big family bible on
the stand and read "'And tho shalt remem-
Der all the way in which the Lord ihy
God hath led thee csc forty ears in the
wilderness to humble thee and to pro e
thee and to know what is In Thy heart,
and whether thou woud't keer his com
! ,1,,,n 70 hnI In, lnH hnn
and suffered thee to hun.er and fed thee
with mamma which thou knowe-t not
neither did thy fathers know, that he
might make thee know that man doth not
live by bread alone, but by every word
that pro eedeth ont of the mouth of the
Lord doth man live.
There, that's it,, interrupted the dea
con. That's what I've been thinking
of as I've lain here sic; and helpless.
I've 70 Ght ard to keep things straight
and clear the farm, bI, it's pleased the
Lord to bring me low. I've had to lie
still and leave all in his hands.
"And where better could you leave all?''
said his wife, W In a radi mt smile.
well just so. We been saying, Here
! am Lord; do with me as seemeth ia
thee good, and feel great quiet now.
| think it's doubtful If we make up the
interest this ear. / don know what
Bill may get for the hay but cont see
mach prospect of ra!sin' ont; and yet
don't WORT. fVen II it's ( e lords will
to have the place sold up and we be turn.
ed out in our old age, | don't seem "a
worry about it. Ills will be dom
The e was a sound of IA thing wheels
at this moment and anon there came q
brush and flutter of garments, and Diana
rushed N, all breezy with the freshness
of outdoor air. and caught Mrs. Pitkin in
her arms and kissed her first and then tho
deacon with effusion.
Here / come for thanksgiving, she
said, in a rich, clear tone, 'and here" she
added, drawing a roll of bills from hel
bosom, and putting it into the deacon's
hand, there's In in crest money for this
year. J got it all myself, because / want
ed to show you | coul be good for some
thing.
l. THANK you, dear daughter, sal Mrs
P1tkin. IL felt sure some way would be
found and now l see what. She added
! kissing Diana and patting her rosy cheek,
"a very pleasant pretty way it is too.
- was afrai that Cousin Silas would
worry and put himself back again about
the in crest money" said Diana
Well daughter" said the Deacon
tits pity we should 60 throug al we
do in this world and not learn anything
by it. / hope the Lord has taught M
!, not to worry. but Just do my best and
leave myself and everything else in his
hands, We can help ourselves-we
can't make one hair white or black.
Why should we wear our lives out fret
ting2 If Id a known that years ago II
would been letter for us all
'Never mind. father, you know II
now" said his wife, with face serene
as star. In this last git OF quietude OF
soul to her husband she recognized the
answer to her prayers of years.
''Well n0w,' said Diana, running &c
the window, 81 should like to know what
Biah Carter Is coming h re about
''Oh, Biahs been cry kind to us in
this sickness said Mrs. Pitkin, as Biah's
feet sounded on the scraper.
Good evenin', Deacon, said Biah, en-
tering Good evenin Mrs. Pitkin. Sar.
want ma am, to Diana-'how We all get
tin OH
: 'Nicely, Biah-wel a can be-" said
Mrs Pltkin.
oval, you see was up 10 the store
with some o uire Jones's bell owcrs.