The Iola register., 1898-03-25

There has been trouble among the do
mestics. Hagar, an assistant in the
household, and her son, brisk lad of
10 years, have become impudent and
insolent, and Sarah, the mistress of the
household, puts her loot down very
hard and says that they will have to
leave the premises. They are pack
ing up now. Abraham, knowing that
the journey before his servant and her
son will be very long and across desc
late places, in the kindness of his
heart sets about putting up some
bread and bottle with water in 1t.
1t is very plain lunch that Abraham
provides but | warrant you there
would have been enough of it had they
not lost their way God be with
you~ said old Abraham, as he gave the
lunch to lIagar and n good many
charges as to how she should conduct
the journey. Ishmael. the boy, | sup
pose, bounded away in the morning
light. Boys always like change.
Poor Ishmael! lie has no idea of the
disasters that are ahead of him. Hagar
gives one long. lingering look on the
familiar place where she had spent so
many happy days, each scene associ-
heart, young Ishmael.
The scorching noon comes on. The
air is sitting and moves across the
desert with insufferable suffocation.
Ishmael, the boy, begins to complain
and lies down, but Hagar rouses him
up, saying nothing about her own
WEAKNESS or the sweltering heat; for
mothers can endure anything. Trudge
trudge, trudge. Crossing the dead level
of the desert, how wearily and slowly
the miles slip! A tamarind that seemed
hours ago to stand only just a little
ahead. inviting the travellers to come
under its shadow, now is as far off as
ever, or seemingly so. Night drops
upon the desert and the travellers are
pillowless. Ishmael, very weary, |
suppose, instantly falls asleep. Hagar,
as the shadows of the night begin to
lap over each other--lIagar hugs her
weary boy to her bosom and thinks of
the fact that it is her fault that they
are in the desert. A star looks out,
and every falling tear it kisses with
sparkle wing of wind comes over
the hot earth and lifts the locks from
the fevered brow of the boy. llagar
sleeps itfully, and in her dreams
travels over the weary day, and half
awakes her son by crying out in her
sleep: "Ishmael Ishmaelw
And so they go on day after day and
night after night, for they have lost
their way No path in the shifting
sands; no sign in the burning sky.
The sack empty of the flour; the water
gone from the bottle. What shall she
A. CHI - fai nj ipp lei al
under a stunted shrub of the arid
plain, she sees the bloodshot eye, and
feels the hot hand, and watches the
blood bursting from the cracked
tongue, and there is II shrek in the
desert of Beersheba: 1--WE shall die!
We shall diew Now, no mother was
ever made strong enough to hear her
son cry in vain for drink. Hereto
fore she had cheered her boy by prom.
Using a speedy end of the Journey and
even smiled upon him when she felt
desperately enough. Now there is
nothing to do but place him under a
shrub and let him die. She had
thought that she would sit there and
watch until the spirit of her boy would
go away forever, and then she would
breathe out her own life on his silent
heart; but as the boy begins to claw
his tongue in agony of thirst and
struggle in distortion, and begs his
mother to slay him, she cannot endure
the spectacle. She puts him under a
shrub and goes off bow-shot, and be
gins to weep until all the desert seems
sobbing, and her cry strikes clear
through the heavens; and an angel OF
God comes out on a cloud. and looks
down on the appalling grief and cries
"Hagar, what aileth thee?' She looks
up, and sees the angel pointing to 6
we'll of water, where she fills the bot
tie for the lad Thank God! Thanb
God!
| learn from this Oriental scene, il
the first place, what a sad thing it il
when people do not know their place
and get too proud for their business
Hagar was an assistant in that house
hold, but she wanted to rule there
She ridiculed and jeered until her son
Ishmael got the same tricks, Sh'
dashed out her own happiness, ant
threw Sarah into n great fret; and !
she had stayed much longer in tina
household she would have upset cain
Abraham's equilibrium. My friends
one-half of the trouble in the world to
day comes from the fact that peopl
do not know their place, or, finding
their place will not stay in 1T. Whel
we come into the world there is alway
place ready for us. A place for Abra
ham. A place for Sarah. A place fo
Hagar A place for Ishmael. A plac
for you and place for me.
Our first duty is to find our sphere
our second is to keep It, We may b
born in Il sphere far off from the on
for which God finally intends Us
Sixtus V. was born on the low ground
and was a swineherd; God called hin
mp to wave a scepter Ferguson spen
his early days in looking after sheel