The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1910-05-12
By Maud Ballington Booth
Jumbo: A Heart Story
The Little Mother" OF


asked for my verdict Say, Little
Mother, will you have me In Hope
nall. Is 1t worth having try ut me ?
! don't know that I'll like a straight
HE, don't know that I'll want to stay.
| don't know IS | can be honest but
| am willing to let you try II you think
IT'S any use" assured him that |
did think 1t well worth while. des.
cribed the Home we had opened for
Just such men. told how well many
OF them were doing. and then | wrote
a letter OF introduction to the super.
intendent In charge OF Hope hall
which would insure him n welcome.
Before he left. az he stretched out his
mana TO bid me good.hy, said. Now,
before you go, | want you to kneel
down with me, we will pray for Gods
! pressing In the step you are taking"
| look Of bewidered terror swept
across his face. Evidently this was
/ not In his line, for he gasped out. ooh
no! couldn't, | never prayed in my
| whole life" But seeing the look Of
| resolution in my face, he added polite.
I ~ We'll, I'll knecl down. but you will
| have to do the praying" So we knelt
! together In the presence of the One
who can gather in his tender and low.
Ing hands the broken and contrlte
! hearts OF men. changing them and
| glftlng them with the wondrous new
things Of life. My friend knelt hold.
ing tight to his hat for moral support.
| while his eyes, wide open, were fixed
upon my face, ready to take alarm at
/ any unexpected religious manifesto.
tlon' and | tried to talk as simply and
naturally as | could to the God whom
knew to be very near at hand.
When he left me, knew that Jumbo
would turn up at Hope hall, and that
ne would give the new life at least n
ialr trial. What a wonderful change
was wrought in tho next few months
JUMBO became very earnest. indus.
trious member OF our Hope hall fam.
Ivy. lie came forth n truly converted
man. and his heart was filled with
simple. earnest faith which made him
realize that after all, religion was very
much In his line, when that line WINS
TO lead him to a straight path and
honest work for living.
The day came at last when Jumbo
was to graduate and take a new place
IN the world. and / might say that
now he was known by his own name.
and his prison nickname dropped from
him to be used only by a few OF those
whom he had known in the old life
Again he was announced at nv office
Again / wrote him n letter of intro |
duction. this time to the emnIovor
VINO was to give him his first chance
and then ms he arose to leave mo ne I
held me tightly In his clasp and tears
gathered in his eyes as he said "TIt,Io .
Mother, | cant tell you all tho dear
Home has meant to me. or how grata. .
ful | am. but am going ont to nv
new life to prove it. tell you the
Hope Hall boys shant be ashamed nj
me. | will be worthy Of the trust
placed in me; will be n credit IN rho
Home, and make II easier for those
that come after me-" Again said
as | had said before. Shall we kneoI
together and ask Gods blessing on
this new step you are taklng?" His
face lit up with Joy. Indeed We will
Little Mother" he responded, and ne
we knelt to pray he opened his henri
to his God with the simple, unstudled
fervor Of child. He went to his new
place full OF hope and ambition, and
letters full of his new experience came
to me through the mails. Very orig.
lnal and very earnest reports tbev
proved to be.
I was starting for a visit to Sing
Sing one day about six months Iotar
and for lack of time at the office
brought quite batch of mail to road
on the train. 1t so happened that I'm
the mail there were two letters abou,
Jumbo. one from his employer, one
from himself, both OF them such n
revelation OF his new life that do.
termined to share them with my Vol.
unteer League Boys" who would no
gathered In the prison chapel TO meot
me. When the time came, | told tb,
story as have told 1t here. of the man.
ner of the mans coming, avoiding
only the name. Then / read the Ietter
from his employers In which thew
thanked me for sending them such n
man. SO earnest, so hard-workinr an
Christian In his life, that, they added
he had been blessing to them nil
Then came the letter from the man
II was written as a Bowerv
boy would write, with plenty of quaint
humor between the lines. But there
was one sentence especially calculated
to strike that audience. He was speal.
of what 1t meant to be trusted after
all his years of haunting distrust and
then said, Just think, Little Motber
what happened to me today was
with my employer at n far.
away part Of the farm, and he had On
go In before me. but wanted mo to
be on time for the noon meal and
what do you suppose he did? WHY he
left his gold watch with me In aoe
the time by! What do you think NJ
that" To understand fully the nur.
port Of this, the reader should know