ork had secured provision for several
days to come.

When Naomi saw what a quantity of barley Ruth had brought home, she
asked in whose field she had gleaned. Then Ruth related all the events
of the day, and how Boaz had been kind to her.

It pleased Naomi to hear that Boaz had shown kindness to Ruth and to
her, because he was a relation of her husband, and one whose duty it
was to care for a widow, and one who had a right to help them by law.
Such a relative was called a goel, meaning a "redeemer."

So the days of the harvest passed. Every day Ruth gleaned in the
fields, and at night returned to Naomi. Each day she kept close by the
maidens of Boaz, through the barley harvest, and then to the last
ingathering of the wheat.

[Illustration: "EVERY DAY RUTH GLEANED IN THE FIELDS."]

The harvest finished, the threshing of the grain began. Naomi was
anxious that the "redeemer" should exercise his right. According to
Israelitish law, when a man died and left his wife childless, his
nearest of kin was to take the widow to be his wife, and any son born
of this marriage should inherit the name and possessions of the first
husband.

In this way he kept his brother's name and inheritance from being
blotted out. Naomi saw with thankfulness that Divine Love had led Ruth
to the protection of her rightful guardian.

So Naomi planned how Ruth should have an opportunity of speaking to
Boaz. She told her to take off the sign of her mourning and widowhood,
and go to the threshing-floor when the grain was beaten out.

These threshing-floors were either natural spaces of rock, or open
places covered with large flat stones, so that the grain could be
readily separated from the husk without waste, and the chaff easily
blown away.

The sheaves of grain were spread on these places, and a wooden sledge,
covered with iron teeth, was dragged over them by oxen until all the
grain had fallen from the dry ears. It was a joyful time, the oxen
were not muzzled, so they could eat while they worked, and the master
and his servants feasted.

[Illustration: "THE OXEN WERE NOT MUZZLED."]

When the grain was threshed, it was cleaned by the cool winds of
morning or evening, and by the aid of large fans. As this winnowing
had to be done when the breezes sprang up, master and servant often
slept all night at the threshing floors, so as to be ready for the
first breath of wind, and to see that the grain was not stolen.

Naomi told Ruth to go to