n
up to canker and rust!" Then he would meditate on the uncompromising
declarations of Christ--"How hardly shall they that have riches enter into
the Kingdom of God!" "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a
needle, than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God." He trembled
as he read; but, pondering, he took heart again. Though hard, it was not
impossible, for a man of wealth to enter into the Kingdom of God. "Camel!"
"Eye of a Needle!" He did not know exactly what this strange saying meant;
but he thought he had heard the minister say that it was intended to show
the great difficulty involved in the salvation of a rich man. Then he read
further, "How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the
Kingdom of God," and that seemed to make the matter plain. "Ah," he
thought, "may I be saved from ever trusting in my riches!"

He plucked an ear of wholesome admonition from the parable of the Sower.
"The deceitfulness of riches!" he murmured. "How true!" And he subjected
himself to the most vigilant scrutiny, lest he should be beguiled by the
unlimited possibilities of self-indulgence which his wealth supplied. He
turned frequently to the emphatic declaration of Paul to Timothy. "They
that will be rich," it runs, "fall into temptation and a snare, and into
many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and
perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some
coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves
through with many sorrows." "Ah!" he would exclaim, "I didn't want to be
rich. At the very most Agur's prayer would have been mine: 'Give me
neither poverty nor riches.' But it's quite true that riches bring
'temptations' and are a 'snare,' whether people 'will' be rich or become
rich against their will; and I must be on the watch. And then there's that
about 'the love of money' being 'the root of all evil!'" As he spoke, he
drew a handful of coins from his pocket, and eyed them askance. "Queer
things to love!" he mused. And then, as he thought of his balance at the
bank, his large rent-roll, and his many profitable investments, his face
grew very grave. "Ah," he sighed, letting copper, silver, and gold, slide
jingling back into his pocket, "I think I have an idea how some people get
to love their money. Lord save _me_."

He was very fond of the book of Proverbs. Its short, sententious sentences
were altogether to his mind. "There i