T was on a spring morning, some years since, that a young minister of the gospel, who was just commencing his labours, took his seat in a railway carriage. His heart was full of love to Christ, and he had devoted himself prayerfully and hopefully to the work on which he had entered. It was not, however, till within the last few months that he had had any idea of the suffering and sin which may be found in some of the narrow streets and alleys of a large town, and the burden lay heavily on his spirit. His means for helping others were not large. He had but just concluded an expensive education, but he resolved to spend as little as possible on himself; and it was his prayer every morning that he might not, in the coming day, lose even the smallest opportunity of doing good. The young man seated himself in a third-class carriage on its way to London, and, taking a book out of his pocket, began reading. Looking up, after a time, at his fellowpassengers, he saw that a woman sitting opposite to him had eyes wet with recent tears, and he saw, too, that she was making a great effort to repress fresh tears, which would, in spite of her pains, find their way down her cheeks. There is, to every right-feeling person, a sacredness in sorrow which makes him shrink from intrusion, and the traveller looked down again at his book. There were no other persons in the compartment except three neatly-dressed little girls, who were evidently the children of his opposite companion, and who were looking piteously up at their mother; and the young man, after a time, in hopes of giving some comfort, determined that it would be better to speak than to travel on in silence. "You are in some trouble," he said; "I wish I could help you or cheer you." "Ah yes, trouble enough," said his companion. "A very great misfortune has happened to us, and one thing after another has worried me dreadfully. I have borne up as long as ever I could, but now I have been so vexed with these railway people that I feel as if I should quite break down at last." "Well, I hope not," said her hearer; "there is an old proverb, you know, which says, 'It is the last straw that breaks the camel's back; but there's another that says, 'When things are at their worst they begin to mend;” so cheer up and tell me, if you think right to do so, what is the matter. What have these people done?" "Why, sir," said the woman, "I have to take these three children all the way up to London; and I was told that I should not have to pay for the youngest one, who can sit on my knee; and I really believe I have no right to pay for her, but the man made me pay half-a-crown. I thought I should have seven and sixpence at the end of my journey, and now I shall have only five shillings; and I am not sure that my poor husband will have any money to give me, for he is lying at a hospital, and has had a terrible accident." There was an air of truth and sincerity in the speaker which convinced her hearer that she was relating a true tale. "How did the accident happen ?" he asked. "He is a bricklayer, sir," replied the woman; "he had just finished a good job in the village we come from, and he had a new one offered him in London. He went up a fortnight ago with another man from our place, and the day before yesterday he was going up a ladder with a hod of bricks on his back. It was a very high ladder, and somehow his foot slipped, and he fell down on the pavement. He was very much hurt, and his mates carried him to a hospital. He was living with my sister, whose husband was working there too, and she wrote to advise me to come up at once. Really I have had such a number of worries lately, and it does seem hard. It is very hard!" 66 said her companion; "that Oh, you must not say so," would be like finding fault with God; and I am sure you cannot wish to do that. You know God gives us our life, our health, and every blessing we have. And yet perhaps. you do not remember Him, or pray to Him, or serve Him; yet He has borne with you all these years. Depend upon it, God is not a hard Master to them that serve Him. He is a God of love and compassion. But I dare say when you made that remark you did not mean to blame our Father in heaven. But now," he added, taking out his purse, "you must not grieve any more about the half-crown, for I shall be happy to give you one." The poor woman thanked him very warmly, and the young minister expressed his hope that her husband was good and kind to her and his children. "Yes, sir," she said; "he is as kind-hearted a fellow as ever lived, and never minds how hard he works. But you see these bricklayers are so tempted by the public-houses, and their hard work makes them thirsty; and then my husband is very good company, and the other men like him ; and I'm sorry to say he has lately got into a sad way of drinking. He was not always like this. He always liked a pint of beer now and then, but for the last year he has got into the habit of going almost every evening to the public-house, and he never comes home till the house is shut up; and sometimes he has to be led home. Poor fellow, I don't want to blame him," she continued; "for even when he has been drinking he is not ill-tempered nor rough, like some men; but he says such foolish things, and I do feel quite ashamed to see him lying all across the floor in a stupid state; and I'm glad the children can't see him like that, for I always get them off to bed. But then, instead of our getting on a bit, and having a little money put by for a rainy day, we get poorer and poorer, and the children can't get any new clothes, and there's no money to pay for their schooling." "Do you think he feels sorry to see all this?" "Oh yes, sir," she replied; "he sometimes feels quite cast down next morning, when he has been at his worst the night before; and he will eat his breakfast and go off to work and never speak a word to any of us. Really, sometimes I think he can't help it; he can't cure himself of it. I don't think it's altogether his own fault." 66 I am afraid I cannot say that," said the young man. "He can understand what he is doing, and he is quite accountable for it. We are certainly not obliged to live in any sinful habit. The Bible, which tells us what sin is, always mentions drunkenness among the worst of sins." He then opened a New Testament which he took from his pocket, and read these words from 1 Cor. vi. 10: "Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God ;" and turning to a list of evil deeds named by the Apostle Paul in Gal. v. 21, he pointed out to his companion that drunkenness was mentioned among them, in connection with murders, envyings, and others. "I do not name this," he said, "to make you feel unkindly towards your husband, for I am truly glad to see that you love him, in spite of his faults; but I want you to do all you can to reclaim him. You must make home as comfortable as you can, you know, and be as cheerful and pleasant as you are able to be, so that he may think there's no place like home. And then I wish you would pray to God to enable him to strive against this wrong conduct." “Oh, sir!" she replied, "I do make the home as happy as I can, and I take care not to say cross words to him; but really sometimes I have not even money to buy coals, so as to make up a cheerful fire against he comes home; and there have been days this winter when I have not had even a good piece of bread and cheese to give him. I'm sure I would pray for him if I knew how, but I'm no scholar." "Well," said the minister, "just think over what you want to ask of God, and then put your prayer into your own words, and ask that your desires may be granted for the sake of Jesus Christ. It does not matter how simple and plain your words are just tell all your troubles to God. It is a real prayer if we sincerely believe that God is able and willing to hear us, and if we speak to Him from our own heart. There are many descriptions of God's character in the Bible, and among those which are most to be prized is that which describes God as the hearer and answerer of prayer. And then, you know, you must not forget to pray that husband's and your sins your may all be |