Year: 1874

piped without; and the keen frost
nipped within. She suffered because
she had not yet brought herself to
beg For herself, she would rather
die than become a pauper; but for
her child-"OhI God, have mercy!"


A wailing cry like this had burst
from her lips, when the tramp of feet
at her door attracted her attention,
and presently gentle rap followed.
She answered the summons, and
found four young men upon the
stoop. She knew them well, for they
had been sehool-mates with her son,
who had gone away to sea and never
returned. And they came into the
house; and they brought with them
wood and provisions; and they piled
up the fuel upon the hearth until the
bright flame leaped and roared; and
the sick child stretched out its wasted
arms to mbrace the genial warmth.
And they brought forth bread, and
tea, and sugar, and butter, and cheese.


"All right" said Sam Pepper, who
regarded these as his especial charges,
in answer to the widows calculations
of amazement. "We are John Dig
by's Reform Club; and we are going
into the missionary work; and such
folks as you are We want to convert
want to convert you from suffering to
comfort if we can. So keep up a
good heart, and let us do for you what
your own Willie would have done If
he had lived. It'll be comfort for us.
Well call often. You shan't want if
we can help it."


The widows sobbing, bursting re-
turn of gratitude, and her eager,
heart-sent prayer Of blessing cannot
be reproduced by tongue or pen.
When the young man had reached
the highway, Sam Pepper burst
forth


"Boys, as sure as Heaven, would
not exchange the blessing OF that poor
widows heart for all the joy that ever
came in the old way at the tavern.
There's something more than fun in
this"


And his companions agreed with
him. In another part of the town, on
the outskirts of the village, in poor,
thatched hut, lived Ben Driscoll and
his wife Sally. In other days they
had been well and happy, and, though
never forehanded, yet they had not
known want until old age and sick
ness had deprived them of the ability
to work. And on this cold winters
night, Uncle Ben and Aunt Sally sat
and shivered over the embers of such
poor stuff as they had been able to
gather from the snow-covered hedges,
aud the old man sighed as he thought
of the alms-house. "If we could only
get through the winter! But who's
to help us?n


And Uucle Ben and his wife were
aroused from their stupor of chill and
hunger by the tramp of feet and the
hum of voices; and very shortly the
door of their cabin was opened, and
John Digby and his companions en-
tered. A fire speedily blsZed upon the
hearth, and good store of provisions
was open upon the table.


The old man wondered, and Tom
Lowden made answer


''It's all right, Uncle Ben. This is
Jack Digby's Reform Club. We've
stopped our rations of spirits and to-
bacco, and are going to invest the re-
suit in a missionary enterprise. We
want to convert you and Aunt Sally,
If we can"


"Convert us, Tom?


nAye, convert you to comfort and
peace; and, perhaps, also convert you
to the belief that there's grain of
good left in humanity still. We
mean to take you in hand for the
winter, and you shan't suffer il we
can help it,"


The boys didn't leave the cot until
they had helped the aged couple to a
hearty meal, and had piled up fuel
enough to last until they came again;
and when they finally withdrew, the
song of blessing was sounding in their
ears.


And so the the reformers went on
until their nights work was done,
and when they came to separate, they
declared that they had found such en-
joyment as they had never known
before.


During the succeeding week, three
new members were added to the club
men who were willing to cut of ex-
penses for rum and tobacco and de-
vote the proceeds to the relief Of the
poor and distressed of the town.


And ere long Digby's Reform Club
became a noted Institution in the
/ lOWus 4hC DLOJCClOlb NuCLCOl OCaL6-
hardly credit the evidence of their
own senses in contemplating the re-
suits of three months labor. Two
land twenty members had Joined, and
! the fund for relief amounted to al
most forty dollars q week, as each
man was pledged to pay in weekly
the exact sum his spirits and tobacco
had cost him. If he continued to use
tobacco, he took a lower place in the
company, and the use of spirits rs
a beverage was sufficient cause for ex.
pulsion. When people saw the great
/ good that was being done, they were
anxious to give their aid and be count
e6 in with the happy crew; but the
laws of the club were fixed-no mon
ey could come to its fund except such
as had been saved by the donor from
the conquest of some evil habit, OF
the cutting off of some useless luXu-
~.


twas a bright Sabbath in spring.
time, and it had been talked thai
Parson Meekly was going to preach 8
sermon upon Digby's Reform Club
and the old meeting house was filled
to OVERLOOKING. The clergyman Tead
his text from st. Johns Gospel
"Can there any good thing come oui
of Nazareth? Come and see." And
when he had told the story Of Digby's
Club, and pictured the good results o
its labors, he proclaimed to all-"Gt
and do likewise'D


| Once John Digby and his eompatri.
OTIS had fancied that it would be
proud moment when they had


brought the old clergyman to fecOg'
lnize tie worth of their labors bu
the blessings of those upon whom
their bounty had fallen had made