The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1894-12-21

ample time to atone for all this.
She arose and prepared for the
; usual duties of the day, but the ques-
ton arose What should these duties
be ?' Heretofore she had little tC
think of except to provide for her own
amusement. But this was now all
changed, for what gave her pleasure
yesterday, was entirely distasteful to
her to-day. Fortunately for her ii
was but three days until Christmas,
and this gave an opening to her to
commence the new work. She deter
mined that many persons who were in
want or distress, should be happier on
Christmas day through her instrument
tality. She had no living parents and
she was entirely mistress of her own
actions. She was acquainted with a
policeman whom she knew she could
trust, and she sent him word to meet
her at her home at o'clock that even
ing. Although Esther lived in rich
and aristocratic part of the city, you
could go but few squares until you
came to district of squalid wretch
edness, and she knew that the police
man she had sent for was we'll ac-
quainted in that section, as his official
duties lay there The policeman
him of what she required of him,
which was to accompany her to this
section OF poverty, crime and wretch
edness, and to protect her and show
her as far as he knew the worst cases
of suffering. The policeman was as
tonished at her quest and endeaVor
ed to diss uade her from her undertake
| ing. But she was not to be thwarted
at the very threshold of her new career
and the only thing she required
to know of him, was could he protect
her from insult and injury? He re-
piled that everyone in that much fear
ed locality knew, respected and feared
him, and he said also they were not
all bad but that they were all poor, and
that if she insisted on going, he would
| go with her and protect her with his
life if necessary, but that he did not
really look for any trouble. Esther
was soon ready and she started out on
her first errand of mercy. In the first
home they entered they found sick
child, lying on a pallet of straw on the
| floor, and its mother and an aged doc
tor by its side. Learning that the
man was a physician, Esther in
| quired of him what allied the child.
| He replied that the child had no par
| ticular disease, but that it was suffer
| ing for want of nourishmenta and with
| the chilliness of the room, in which
| there was no fire. He said that he
| had not the means to provide for it,
but if nourishment and warmth were
not soon furnished, it would be too late.
| He said also that he had long known
| the mother and he knew that she had
| done every thing in her power for the
| child, even starving and denying her
| self necessaries to add to its comfort.
Esther took the policeman aside and
asked what he knew of the doctor
and he informed her that he knew him
| to be very skillful and honest, but his
| softness of heart always kept him
poor. She then returned and asked
the doctor if he could procure what
was needed for the child, provided the
necessary means were furnished. He
said that he could and would willing
| ly do so. She then procured her
| check book and made out check for
use it to the best advantage
that if anything else was wanted to
call on her, at the same time giving
| him her card. She then left with the
| and with the good old doctor forcing
| a sneeze to account for his tears
Her next visit was to a young girl
some twelve or fourteen years of age,
| evidently slowly dying with consump-
ton. The girl seemed to look on her
with suspicion, and was not at all in
clined to talk to her. After some kind
words, however, and after Esther had
| given her an orange, she melted some
what and conyersed more freely
Esther told her that she hoped she
would soon be better and in time get
we'll and strong again. She replied
that she did not wish to get well,
| that she wanted to die and the sooner
the better, for then she would be out
of her suffering. She was then asked
if she had made her peace with God
She replied that she did not believe
there was any God, and when she died
that was all of it. Esther asked her
if she had ever been to church, and
what she knew about Jesus. She re-
piled the churches were for the rich,
and people who were as poor and as
of little account as she, had no bust
ness there. As to Jesus, she had
heard men and boys use the name
when they were swearing, but she
knew nothing about Him herself. AS
Esther dill not feel herself capable of
undertaking her spiritual enlighten-
ment she left a check to provide for
her temporal necessities and departed.
The next person visited was very
old man whose locks were bleached
by the SHOWS of nearly century of
winters. By this mans bed sat a
young and very handsome clergyman
| H. I, = nh Of mig cIn on
chapel in that district of poverty and
crime. Esther had a slight acquain-
lance with this man, having met him
at Ole of the missionary meetings
which she had attended. The sands
in the old mans glass were very low,
indeed, for they had been running far
beyond the span usually allotted to
the life of man, but his soul appeared
as vigorous, as young and as happy
as though ne had just been launched
on the sea of life with the brightest of
all prospects before him. And this,
he said, was his case-that he soon
would enter into that new life where
immortal youth would never change
to age, where sin and sorrow could
never enter, and where he could be-
hold his Creator and fulfill the design
for which he was created.
Before leaving this happy old man
Esther made known to the young
clergyman, whose name was Thomas
Walters, the condition of the young
girl she had lately visited and request
ed him to visit her. She also left a
check for the old man, to provide
what might be necessary for him dur
ing his few remaining days, and to
give him a decent funeral when he
should be called home. She also re-
quested the clergyman to call and see
her, so that she might enlist him in
the good work she had undertaken,
as she knew she must have agents
amongst the stronger sex to assist her.
The next visit she made was to the
children's hospital where she found
misery enough concentrated to need
all the care and bounty she could be-
stow, and even then, but a small
amount of this misery could be alleviat-
ed. The matron of the hospital re-
ceived her very cordially and showed
her every patient in the house. Els
Their could do but little for these suf-
ferers. but she had kind word, for
each of them and promised that she
would remember each one of them on
Christmas day. Before leaving she pre-
sented the matron with a check suffi-
Gent to provide bountiful Christmas
festival for the poor unfortunates, and
also sufficient to give each inmate of
the institution a present suitable to
his or her condition. She now return
ed to her home happier than she had
ever been before.
This day was the commencement,o of