rcourse with rough men had
worn off much of at least the superficial amiability of his character,
and to some extent blunted the finer feelings of his nature, it clung
faintly to him still, in the memory of his mother's gentle look and
tender voice, and never forsook him altogether. Home had a blessed and
powerful influence on Harry. May God bless such homes, where the ruling
power is _love_! God bless and multiply such homes in the earth! Were
there more of them there would be fewer heart-broken mothers to weep
over the memory of the blooming, manly boys they sent away to foreign
climes--with trembling hearts but high hopes--and never saw them more.
They were vessels launched upon the troubled sea of time, with stout
timbers, firm masts, and gallant sails--with all that was necessary
above and below, from stem to stern, for battling with the billows of
adverse fortune, for stemming the tide of opposition, for riding the
storms of persecution, or bounding with a press of canvas before the
gales of prosperity; but without the rudder--without the guiding
principle that renders the great power of plank and sail and mast
available; _with_ which the vessel moves obedient to the owner's will,
_without_ which it drifts about with every current, and sails along with
every shifting wind that blows. Yes, may the best blessings of
prosperity and peace rest on such families, whose bread, cast
continually on the waters, returns to them after many days.

After Harry had lain down, Charley, who did not feel inclined for
repose, sauntered to the margin of the lake, and sat down upon a rock.

It was a beautiful calm evening. The moon shone faintly through a mass
of heavy clouds, casting a pale light on the waters of Lake Winnipeg,
which stretched, without a ripple, out to the distant horizon. The
great fresh-water lakes of America bear a strong resemblance to the sea.
In storms the waves rise mountains high, and break with heavy, sullen
roar upon a beach composed in many places of sand and pebbles; while
they are so large that one not only looks out to a straight horizon, but
may even sail _out of sight of land_ altogether.

As Charley sat resting his head on his hand, and listening to the soft
hiss that the ripples made upon the beach, he felt all the solemnising
influence that steals irresistibly over the mind as we sit on a still
night gazing out upon the moonlit sea. His thoughts were sad; for he
thought of Kate, and his m