Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1897-01-18
THE CHILDREN.
THE STONE IN THE Road.

who took great delight in teaching
his people good habits. sBad luck
comes only to the lazy and careless y
said he; ssbut to the busy workers
God gives the good things of this
life''
One night he put large stone 10
the middle of the road near his palace
and then watched to see what the
people who passed that way would
do.
Early in the morning sturdy old
farmer named Peter came along, W it'll
his heavy OK cart loaded with corn.
zoe, these lazy people!'' he cried,
driving his oxen to one side of the
road. "Here is this big stone right in
the middle Of the road, and nobody
will take the trouble to move it,
And he went on his way scolding
about the laziness of other people,
but never thinking of touching the
stone himself.
Then came young soldier, singing
a merry song as he walked along. A
gay feather was stuck in his hat, and
a big sword hung at his side; and he
was fond of telling great stories of
what he had done in the war. He
held his head SO high that he did ont
see the stone, but stumbled over it,
and fell fat into the dust.
This put an end to his merry song:
and, as he rose to his feet, he began
to storrn at the country people.
ssSilly drone!n he said, ssto have no
more sense than to leave stone like
that in the middle of the road!''
Then he passed on, but he did not
sing any more.
An hour later there came down the
road six merchants, with their goods
on pack horses, going to the fair that
was to be held near the village. When
they reached the stone, the road was
SO narrow that they could hardly
drive their horses between it and the
wall.
"Did anyone ever see the like?"
they said. "There is that big stone
in the road, and not man in all the
country but that is too lazy to move
it!o
And so the stone lay there for three
weeks; it was in everybody's way,
and yet everybody left it for some
body else to move.
Then the king sent word to all his
people to meet together on certain
day near his palace, as he had some
thing to tell them.
The day came, and a great crowd
of men and women gathered in the
road. Old Peter, the farmer, was
there; and so were the merchants
and the young soldier.
ct hope that the king will not find
out what lazy set of people he has
around him." said Peter.
And then the sound of horn was
heard, and the king was seen coming
toward them. He rode up to the
stone, got down from his horse, and
said:
'sMy friends, it was I who put this
stone here, three weeks ago. 1t was
seen by every one of you; and yet
every one has left it just where it was
and scolded his neighbor for not NOV
ing it out Of the way"
Then he stopped down, and rolled
the stone over. Underneath the stone
was a small iron box. The king held
up the box so that all the people
might see what was written on a piece
of paper fastened to it.
These were the words,-
For him who lifts the stone"
He opened the box, turned it up
side down; and out of it fell beauti-
full gold ring and twenty bright gold
coins.
Then every one wished that he had
only thought of moving the stone,
instead of going around it and finding
fault with his neighbor.
There are many people who lose
prizes because they think it easier to
find fault than to do the work that
lies before them. Such people do
not usually blame themselves, but
think it is all on account of bad luck
and hard times.-Southern Presbyteri
an.