Year: 1877

are decent fellow yourself has mad


drinking halfway respectable in Bar


ton. The crimes right at your owl


door, and you ought to pay for il
| YOU


The Squire paused. Mr.. Crupp'


face was very white and his teeth wer


tightly set. Mr.. Crupp had bee,
known to throw disorderly visito


vt his bar halfway across the street


and although the Squire knew tha


his own avoirdupois was too great L


be treated SO contemptuously, he hat


no desire to feel the weight Of Crupp'.


fist. Besides, Crupp was a CUSTOMER


who bought great deal and pait


promptly, and the Squire did not lik,


to offend him and lose his custom


So the Squire paused.


''Go right on" said Mr.. Crupp yer,


quietly. "Pll not bear any malice


I've said great many worse things Il


myself. Don't hold in anything
you We got on your mind.


"l'm DONE" said the Squire, look


ing relieved and extending his hand


"Crupp, think good deal Of you
and I'm ashamed Of myself for boiling
over rs | did. But folks talk to me a
If was made of money. paid out q
good deal on the expense Of the meet
ing, the parsons been at me to help
every lazy drunkard to get work
George Doughty wants mere pay OF
less work so he won't have such a
hankering after liquor, and now to be
asked to help old Bunley, that's owed
me money a long time and never paid
it, that came near helping one of my
boys to a taste for liquor, that helps
himself at my woodpile-it's too much,
that's all"


Squire" said Crupp, isn't there
something in your Bible that's not
complimentary to men who say to the
needy, Depart: be ye warmed and
fed but don't put their hands in their
pockets to help the poor wretches
along: l tell you that n man that's
got the love of drink fixed in every
muscle in his body and every drop of
his blood is worse off than any cold
and hungry man you ever saw. Such
men sometimes help themselves out of
I. al III ,,I 80 inL IN
but the man that does it is more OF a
hero, and he's got better stuff in him.
than any other sort of sinner that
repents. He's got to DO helped just
like drowning men have to be, and
you've got to take hold of them just
as you do of u drowning man, by
whatever part you can get the tight
est grip on. Bunley's pride's the only
handle you can find OH him, and you
can't get at that except by showing
him that you think enough Of him to
sink money in him."


The Squire east about in his mind
for some argument in defense of his
money, but as he found none he acted
like good diplomatist and started
to talk against time by uttering some
promising generalizations.


II always meant, and still mean
to do good with my money. That's
what it was given me for. I'm the
Lords steward, ,-"


"And right here in Barton is where
the Lord put you to do it, ''said Crupp.
Here's where you made your money;
here are the people who know you
and don't suspect you OF caring any
less for your money than other folks
do for theirs. Here are the people
you know all about; you know their
weakness and their good points:
and every dollar you spend OH them
you can watch, and see that it does its
duty"


when | know that helping man
will be sure to reform him." began
the Squire, when again his compan-
ion interrupted him:


Ibid you ever read Of Christ's let
ting man suffer for fear that If he
might get sick again? If | read
straight, he helped everybody that
came to him that needed help. sup
pose loafers were as thick in Judsea rs
they are in Barton-why, when he
healed those ten lepers there was only
one of them decent enough to come
back and say thank you. TEE got
money enough to take Bunley on my
for little while, and I'm
going to spend a good deal on such
but they want to see that
they're thought something of by men
who never sold whiskey, who never
made anything out of them, who are
enough in earnest to do something
for them that costs more than talk
does. know it isn't easy, but it's
got to be done-that is, if Christianity
is true"


Crupp's last shot told. Squire Tom
pie WAS orthodox, but he was not
without reflective capacity, and many
had been twinges Of conscience at his
practical rejection Of undoubted de-
ductions which he had drawn from
Chrisi's teachings and example. But
on this particular occasion, as on many
others, he was not defeated-he was
only temporarily demoralized. In u
moment he was on the defensive
again, and suddenly raised his head
and opened his lips, but whatever
his idea was it remained unspoken,
for in the eye of Crupp, which had
been intently scruntinizing his face
and through his heart, he detected a
and haziness unusual in the
eyes of men. The squire, not with
out a struggle, became at once shame
faced and ohedient, and said hurried
ly:


"Crupp, you're good, square man
Pm proud to know you, and I'll do
what you like-for old Bunley, that
is"


Great was the surprise of Bunley
when he answered knock at
his door few minutes later to find
Squire Tomple and Mr.. Crupp upon
a, c.nn< .<ocx~ l,otl, 1~f th~.,, loal;n a.