The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1892-01-28

day; two merry young girls, WHOIu II
does ones heart good to look at; ana
in one of their merry journeyings they
passed an old negro woman making
her painful way down the slippery
sidewalk with load of stove wood III
her arms. She was old and black,
she was poor and ignorant, and not at
all the kind Of person that would De
likely, one would think, to attract the
attention of two happy girls, intent
upon their glorious winter holiday.
But they saw her, and were not too
busy or too happy to note how teeDly
she walked, under her heavy load
"Wait, Aunt Easter" one OF them
said, as they ran after her. "Put
your wood on our sled, and We'll haul
it home for your And then, as she
hesitated, scarcely able to believe her
own ears, they piled the wood upon
the little sled, and taking the rope,
went racing away, while the old ne
gro hObbled after them. Down the
street they went, and up the hill, and
on to the little cabin that shelters her
declining years; and there they laid
the wood on the doorstep and went
back to their coasting, scarcely giving
the occurrence second thought. A
little act, so easily performed; but
there is large-hearted generosity back
of such acts, and they go far toward
broadening the horizon and letting
the light of day in upon the world.
Nv
Not long since the Home Corner
came upon, a paragraph which said
that every man ought to take off his
hat to the primary teacher, and
honor her as the wisest and most eff
cient of wOmankind. She takes the
untamed young savage, fresh from
the nursery, the ruler whose word has
been law all his life, and who has
held the family in complete subjuga-
ton, and she has made very respect
able yOungster out of him, whom to
know is to love. He suddenly begins
to take on little graces of manner and
speech, which you have striven in
vain to teach him all his life; and he
tells you unblushingly that he learned
them at school. The small kinder
gartner, even, allows none of your
careless peccadilloes to pass unno-
ticed, and criticises numerically all
your breaches of etiquette. "You
wouldn't be allowed to put your
elbows on the table that way at our
school, papa" he says, much scandal
lied at your poor manners. He quotes
his teacher to you on all occasions,
and if you should happen to disagree
with any statement of hers it will be
all the worse for you. The primary
teacher has not only civilized her
horde of young savages, but has made
hem her loyal knights Grant, and
hey all know that whatever she does
s right. No teacher that comes after
ler ever gets the same amount of ad-
and fealty.
~
She was reading aloud from pa
per, bit Of verse that had attracted
her attention, but she got no further
than the first four lines:
ut isn't tn thing that you do dear;
It's the thing you leave undOne,
That gives you the bit of heartache
At the set ng Of he sum-"
81 wish that were not true,u she
wistfully. ~ believe half
Of us, who live quiet, straight and de-
cent lives, go down to our graves bur-
tened with sins of omission. had
friend once, to whom | often spoke OF
writing a long, cheering letter; TOR he
was one of Gods nOblemen, and he
needed cheering if ever a man did.
But a thousand trifing things enter
vened, and | put it off from day to
lay; and one day came message
hat he was dead. And | had let lit
lie matters of sweeping and busting,
calling and receiving calls, keep me
rom sending one last word of greet
ng to true and noble soul that stood
IN the very brink of the river, even
hen, and was about to step down into
he chilling waters. If | had only
Known! But we never know until
knowledge is too late. The truth is,
We allow so many things to come in
he way Of what few good impulses
We have, and the worthy things we
10 make a very pitiful showing, in the
md, beside the long array of things
We might have done"
w
The Home Corner has it in mind TO
preach Il few practical sermons, and {
he people at whom the sermons will
)e leveled are sitting in a good MANY 9
home corners today, and they will not !,
complain if some of the arrows fly, /
traight and true, and strike them /
between the joints of their armor. {
)ne of them is the woman who has :
lever been mother to her children. !
because she was so busy being their \
mstress. She has had no time to +
Omp with them in the evening. TO {
walk with them ON holidays, to talk +
With them and be made the recipient G
f their childish condolences at all +
ines and seasons. When they came -
o her with their childish hurts to be .
etted and comforted little, as ali =
hildren need to be, she pushed them "
way and said: "There. lun along now
IN busy" When they were sick
he gave up some time to them bnt O.
side from that they have known moth. v
NJ of a mothers care. But what a
eamstress she has been to them z