t the world and gained
his soul. At length a shepherd found him, and kindly ministered to his
wants. This good boy lived to be an old man, whose grey hair was a crown
of glory.

The young people often manifested presence of mind equal to those of
riper years. Bessie Willison was one of those brilliant characters. Once
she heard of a Field-meeting to be held under trying circumstances and
resolved to attend it. It was winter; the ground was covered with snow;
the place was distant and difficult to reach; the weather was rough; the
journey was perilous; dragoons might be met at any turn of the road.
What girl would brave such hardships for a day's preaching? Bessie
arrayed herself in her winter wraps, and started early in the morning.
She was willing to endure hardness for the Lord's sake. She could face
the driven snow, or sit on an icy stone, or laugh at the blasts that
reddened her cheeks, in order to hear the Word preached by a true
servant of God. She walked alone; yet not alone, for her heart burned
within her while the Lord talked with her by the way. As the road led
around a hill, she suddenly came upon a troop of dragoons. They drew up
their horses, soldier-like, and spoke rudely to her; she replied with
much dignity. They persisted in their vile language, taunting her and
railing on the Covenanters. But even with their horses, guns, swords,
and rough speeches, they were unable to daunt the lonely girl. Conscious
of purity, and flaming with indignation, her eyes flashing into their
faces, she administered a reproof that cut like a lancet. They shrank
and made room for her to pass on without further molestation. What
inspiration would come to the Field-meeting from the presence of a
Covenanter like that! The Lord was with her, and therefore she brought
joy and strength to others.

The little children, too, had their difficult places in Scotland's hard
fight for liberty. The persecution still increased in violence. At
length when for any reason a town had fallen under the king's
displeasure, all the inhabitants were subject to punishment. On one
occasion, the people had been warned of the coming of dragoons. The
parents, not being able to take their children with them, and hoping the
"bairns" would find pity, left them and fled to a hiding-place. The
children were sharply interrogated by the soldiers concerning their
parents, but gave no satisfaction. They were then led to a field and
placed in front of the soldi