then that princely teacher of the Church of
Christ Catholic goes on to tell us how Mrs. Piety handled her little
Think-well which she had borne to Mr. Meditation. After other things,
she said this every night before she took sleep to her tired eyelids,
this: 'Oh give me grace to bring him up. Oh may I always instruct him
with diligence and meekness; govern him with prudence and holiness; lead
him in the paths of religion and justice; never provoking him to wrath,
never indulging him in folly, and never conniving at an unworthy action.
Oh sanctify him in his body, soul, and spirit. Let all his thoughts be
pure and holy to the Searcher of hearts; let his words be true and
prudent before men; and may he have the portion of the meek and the
humble in the world to come, and all through Jesus Christ our Lord!' How
could a son get past a father and a mother like that? Even if, for a
season, he had got past them, he would be sure to come back. Only, their
young Think-well never did get past his father and his mother.

There was not so much word of heredity in his day; but without so much of
the word young Think-well had the whole of the thing. And as time went
on, and the child became more and more the father of the man, it was seen
and spoken of by all the neighbours who knew the house, how that their
only child had inherited all his father's head, and all his mother's
heart, and then that he had reverted to his maternal grandfather in his
so keen and quick sense of right and wrong. All which, under whatever
name it was held, was a most excellent outfit for our young gentleman.
His old father, good natural head and all, had next to no book-learning.
He had only two or three books that he read a hundred times over till he
had them by heart. And as he sighed over his unlettered lot he always
consoled himself with a saying he had once got out of one of his old
books. The saying of some great authority was to this effect, that 'an
old and simple woman, if she loves Jesus, may be greater than our great
brother Bonaventure.' He did not know who Bonaventure was, but he always
got a reproof again out of his name. Think-well, to his father's immense
delight, was a very methodical little fellow, and his father and he had
orderly little secrets that they told to none. Little secret plans as to
what they were to read about, and think about, and pray about on certain
days of the week and at certain hours of the day and the night