The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1893-11-22
THREE PAIRS OF SHOES.

There they are, in neat little
row under the mantle in the chill
dren's bedroom. A pair of twelvee,
a pair Of mines and a tiny pair Of
fves, belonging to the baby. They
are all more or less wrinkled and
worn, and the pair of twelves haye
holes in the toes, which caused me
to cay little while ago to the sturdy
wsarer of them, that there was no
sense in his kicking out shoes like
that," and if he was not more care
full he would just have to 60 bare
footed. He beard me with the ut.
most Indifference, as I know from
the fact that the threat was hardly
out of my mouth when be asked
me if I knew whose little boy BE
would have been if I had never been
born.
You might have been the little
boy Of some papa who couldn't
have bought any shoes at ALL" I
said reproachfully.
20 WE'LL" be said calmly, in the
fullness and beauty of his childish
faith, God has millions and mil
lions of shoes, and I could just ask
Him for pair whenever I wanted
them. Don't you see, papa?'
Three pairs of shoes! Three
pairs of tender little feet upon the
antried border of life's mysterious
land. ! sit and look at the little
shoes, wandering where the feet that
wear them will be led in the time
to come-the little feet that
Through long years
Must wander on mid hopes and fears.
How much would I give to know
the future that I might stand be-
tween then and the temptations so
sure to assail them, that I might
guide them from pain and sorrow, ii
Icould! There is something strange
ly appealing and half pathetic to
every father and mother in the
sight of a row of little shoes I see
before me now. They arouse the
tenderest instincts of ones nature.
I don't know why.
The wearers of the little shoes
may have been very fretful or mis-
chievous or trying all day. You
may have been sail ont of patience''
with them. You may have
whipped the little hands, or put the
rebellious little ones to bed, declar.
ing that they were worrying the
life out OF you;" but they are not
worrying you now, and you 60
about picking up little stocking
here and little skirt there, with
nothing but tenderness in your
heart toward them. You think
only of how precious the wearers OF
the little clothes are, and there is
no melody on earth one-half so
sweet to you as the music Of the
baby voices when they knelt around
you little while ago, saying: "God
bless mamma and papa, and keep
US all safely through the night"
You will hear no sweeter music
than tbas this side of paridise.
You reproach yourself for lack of
tenderness and patience as you look
at that little row Of shoes, and some
times you fall to thinking of the
unutterable sorrow that would fill
your heart to breaking if tbe~earer
Of any one pair of the little shoes
would wear them NO more-if you
should awaken some morning, as
heart. broken fathers and mothers
have sometimes awakened, and frd
| that the wearer of the little shoes
had gone from you 10 the night
to wear the garments that wax moi
old.
Three pairs of flittle shoes! There
are tears in your eyes as you look
at them now, and perhaps you stea
ooftly to the bedsides of the little
sleepers to make sure that they are
sleeping sweetly and safely, and to
touch their little hands or theil
cool, moist brows with your lips
your heart filled with tender mem
ories, with hopes and fears, with
unspoken prayers. Three pairs O.
title shoes! Three little pilgrims
just setting out on a voyage of life
their frail tarks as yet untouched
and unharmed by adverse winds
| Il