The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1894-03-09
THREE PAIRS OF SHOES.

brain and stone dead.
THREE PAIRS OF SHOES.
Detroit Tribune.
There they are, in neat little row
under the mantle in the children's
bedroom. A pair of twclyes, Il pair
of mines, and a tiny pair of tlves, be-
longing to the baby. They are all more
or less wrinklcd and worn, and the
pair Of twelves have holes in the toes,
which caused me to say little while
ago to the sturdy wearer of them,
that there was mo sense in his
kicking out shoes like that" and if he
was not more careful he would just
have to 60 barefooted. He heard me
with the utmost indifference as |
know from the fact that the threat
was hardly out of my mouth when he
asked me il knew whose little boy
he would have been If l never had
been born.
"You might have been the little boy
of some papa who couldn't have
bought any shoes at ALL" l said re-
proachfully.
"Oh, WE'LL" he said calmly, in the
fullncss and beauty of his perfect
childish faith, "GOd has millions and
millions of shoes, and | could just ask
Him for pair whenever | wanted
them. Don't you sce papa"
Three pair Of shoes Three pair of
tender little feet upon the untried
border of lfe's mysterious land. ! sit
and look at the little shoes, wonder
ing where the feet that wear them
will be led in the time to comc-the
little feet that
| Through long years
Must wander on mid hopes and fears.
How much would Igive to know the
future that | might stand between
them and the temptations so sure to
assail them, that might guide them
from pain and sorrow if l could !!
There is something strangely appeal
ing and half-pathetic to every father
and mother in the sight of row of
little shoes before me now. They
arouse the tenderest instincts of ones
nature. | don't know why.
The wearers Of the little shoes may
have been very fretful or mischievOus
or crying all day. You may have been
all "out of patience with them. You
may have whipped the little hand, or
put the rebellious little ones to bed,
declaring that they were worrying
the life out of you;" but they are not
worrying you now, and you are going
about picking up little stocking
here and a little skirt there, with
nothing but tenderness in your heart
toward them. You think only Of how
precious the wearcrs 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 mama and papa,
and keep us all safely through the
night" You will hear no sweeter
music than that this side of paradise.
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 II the
wearer of any ore pair OF shoes would
wear them no m0re-if you should
awaken some morning, as heartbroken
fathers and mothers have sometimes
awakened and find that the wearcr of
the little shoes had gone from you in
the night-tO wear the garments that
wax not old.
Three pairs Of little shoes There
are tears In your eyes as you look at
them now, and perhaps you steal
softly to the bedsides OF the little
slccpers to make sure that they are
sleeping sweetly and softly, and to
touch their little hands or their cool,
moist brOws with your lips, your heart
dlled with tender memories, with
hopes and fears, with unspoken pray
ers. Three pairs of little shoes.
Three little pilgrims just setting out
on voyage Of life, their frail barks
as yet untouched and unharmed by
adverse winds and waves. God bring
them all to port.