The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-01-20
TEMPERANCE NOTES.
HOW CARL SAVED HIS FATHER.
The Story of Drunken Fathers Refor-
nation.

Oh tnOSe present. lie seemed 10 llSJeu
with his eyes as well as his ears, for be
leaned OH the back of the bench before
him, and stared with big, eager eyes at
the speaker. Ths latter was telling
about the thirst of drunkard 1t was
like furnace he said, heated red-hot,
and it was asking for liquor to feed it
all the time.
Carl did not seem to notice anything
else but the minister, who was talking
20 the boys and girls of his congrega-
ton. Carl thought of his father, Abram
Hartwell, known to be drunkard,
known to have this hot thirst
"How can you cool off such thirst?'
asked the minister. II saw great
RIVER OF ice once-a glacier-oh, so cold!
Would that take out the heat from a
drunkard's thirst? know what will
take away his thirst Do you want to
know? Prayer to God will do it. And
whatever you do, whatever remedy
you try, whatever medicine, don't leave
out prayer. Add that to it,"
Carl, went away in deep thought
That thirst, the awful thirst of a
drunlSard and to think his father had
it, this hot furnace! Oh, if he could do
anything! He wanted to do so much
for his home, where the mot her had
such an anxious face, the home that was
so poor and needy and empty The
baby there was such a pining little
thing. the pantry sometimes had no
food in it, the hod ever seemed to lack
coal, the stove was SO often without
any fire. Oh, so much needed to be
done in that drunkard's home!
Well, he could do one thing which.
the minister had mentioned; yes. he
could pray. He would pray, too, that
very day. that very moment A white
little face was turned up to the sky in
its mute supplication. like a white
flower asking for rain on hot day.
God sends rain to the flowers; would
he not hear the plea of this boy-face
and send blessing?
Hank! When Carl opened his eyes
he heard rumblng 1t was not the
sound of thunder accompanying rain,
but i. was the jarring noise of heavy
ice cart coming down the hot, dusty
street
"And it Is stopping'at Stokell'sr'
thought Carl
Stokeli was the keeper of the rum
hole at the corner "And oh, there is
father! thought Carl.
Abram Hartwell was standing on
the sidewalk, looking very sad and dis
contented He was saying to himself:
"What a nobody | am! Don't do any
thing, don't amount to anything, don't
care for anything, except-to drink!
Oh dear" Yes he did seem to be
very useless being.
"What am good for?" he muttered
He looked up to the sky How he
wished he could be good!
His face was coarse and red. There
are flowers coarse and home'y, very
unlike the white ones. Does not God
send rain on those homely ones also?f
While Abram Hartwell was thinking
about his useless life ard raising his
hopeless face toward the sky. Carl was
thinking about that hot thing, the
drunkard's thirst; and oh, If ice would
only cool it and subdue it and stop it!
That ice cart, what an attractive OBJ
ject it was to all the children in the
neighborhood! Out of the close, hot,
poor homes, they rushed when they
heard the sound Of the heavy, jarring,
rumbling wheels "The ice cart! the
ice cartr they shouted. How they
gathered about the cart when it halt
ed! When Sol Stevens the ice man,
with the brown arms and iron ice pick,
broke up the white sparkling blocks of
crystal, what rush was made for any
of the cool chips flying over the side
walk!
"IIurrahr' they shouted And Sol
grinned and let his ice pick fall clum-
silly at times on the ice that there might
be shower of nice, cool bits for the
hot. thirsty children,
All this time Carl eyed first his father
and then the tempting ice shower. He
wanted to pick up cooling crystal and
hand it to his father that the awful
thirst within might be slaked, and his
father not go into Stol1ell's saloon.
II don't dare to-" Carl muttered
more than once. Sol had finished his
delivery of ice for the neigh borhood,
cried: Goodbye, Youngsters" and
mounted the drivers seat and was
turning his team away from the side
walk when Carl saw piece of ice still
ungathercd and also saw his father
| T.,
God, do help me speal; TO my father,
he quickly mustered courage TO seize
that last piece, Then, strangely, he
slipped, ana oh, so near those awful,
heavy wheels, He did not think OF
that. He only thought of his father GO
ing into the saloon, and cried: "Don't
go; OH this ice, father-take it,
1t was all Carl could do to offer his
ice and think of God in just swift lit
tie prayer!
The father turned. He saw some.
thing terrible-a big wheel rumbline
and grinding round, and so near his
boy!
whoa" the driver suddenly shouted
to his horses, fiercely pulling them
back from a big express team coming
round a corner He did not see Carl
but that halt put little space between
the child and the great threatening
wheels approaching.
God help mer' murmured Abram
Uartwell.
Does not God send rain, said, or
the coarse. homely flowers?
Abram seemed to reacn Carl in one
single. immense leap He took several