St. Tammany farmer., 1905-12-02

cheered my heart. shall sleep now.
The terrors Of the morrow shall not
rob me of my rest
And the keeper, standing there In
the darkness. waited until the deep
regular breathing told that sleep had
come and then, wondering and trou.
bled, he quietly stole away. Never
before had he had such a prisoner
as was this servant of Potiphar. Never
before had he found an accused and
imprisoned man who was not willing
to do most anything to escape punish
ment. He felt uneasy and anxious.
and troubled dreams broke his rest.
The next morning, as he was prepar.
ing to carry out the decree Of Pharaoh,
he received message from the palace,
on which the seal Of the king was yet
fresh, ordering that the condemned
servant be restored to his place and
the sentence of death rescinded.
The conversation Of the night before
flashed across his mind, and as he
turned towards the dungeon he NUT.
tered:
by the gods of all the Egyptians. It
beats even the great god Osiris.
What would the priests think to hear
Joseph speak of his 49,. I fear to
trouble the man further. Surely he
is more righteous than his accusers."
He drew the bar back with a thud.
The great door creaked on its
hinges as he. pushed it open and
stepped within. In the dim light he
could see the two prisoners seated
side by side talking together, and as
he became accustomed to the gloom
Of the place he could see that the look
of abject terror which had distorted
the face Of sthe kings servant the
night before was gone and in its
place there rested an expression OF
resignation mingled with hope. Al
soon as he had been released and re-
turned to his place in the palace the
keeper had Joseph brought to him,
determined to learn more fully con.
cerning him.
"Tell me Of thyself," he demanded.
bluntly, when Joseph appeared. Up
to the present time he had not given
the man an opportunity to speak for
himself, having demanded only that
he confess his guilt and plead for
mercy.
.But of what avail is 1t that /
should speak? Have I not already
told thee that I am not guilty Of the
crime charged against me?"
"But / would hear thy story-thy
side of the case,' persisted the keeper.
II may only declare my innocence.
may not speak against the wife OF
my master"
The keeper looked into the clear-cut,
earnest face before him. He noted the
frank, Straightforward expression OF
the eye. He felt the power OF that
quiet voice which protested his limo.
cence. And he liked the magnanimous
spirit which prompted him to refuse
to make any charges against the wom-
an who had been. responsible for his
downfall. But he was puzzled to-
know the secret of the young mans
reserve and quiet self-possession in
the face OF his difficulties and dangers.
"Carest thou not that these troubles
have come upon thee? How canst
thou be cheerful and hopeful in the
face of thy misfortunes?
Joseph searched the face Of the man
who up to the present moment had
done his utmost to break him down.
He saw that it was no idle curiosity
which had prompted his questions.
HE only needs to fear who does
wickedly. Why should not hope I'LL
the heart and cheerfulness rest on the
countenance of him whose God Is the
Lord Of Heaven? The God of my
fathers Who has been with me in
prosperity will not leave me now that
the clouds of adversely have settled
about me- God can make even the
darkness to bring blessing to the day
which follows, for is 1t not In. the
night that the refreshing dew falls.
and is 1t not then that nature gathers
strength and inspiration for the
growth Of another day?'
"But thou art in prison, and in the
shadow of the hangman's moose. Can
thy God be with thee still to give thee
help?" asked the keeper, more than
ever mystified by the confidence Of
Joseph.
"Yea, the true and living God is not
kept back by prison bars, and even
the plots of the wicked come to naught
when He puts forth His hand to save" :"
"And is your God greater than the
gods OF the Egyptians, the gods who
have their dwelling place in our
mighty temples?
"It must be so, for He is above all
and over all. No other god can stand
in His presence"
The fearlessness and earnestness Of
the young man in lenouncing even
the great gods Of the Egyptians
startled and yet impressed the Egyp-
tian jailer, and after he had dismissed
Joseph from his presence he sat long
and studied over what the young man
had said. There was genuineness
about the young man which captiyated
him, and from that day he became mir
friend, and It was not long ere he had
committed to his hand all the prison.
ersS that were in the prison: and
Whatsoever they did there was under
the Wise management Of Joseph, 60
that the jailer looked not to anything
that was under his hand; for tho
Lord was with Joseph, and that which
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