ar, and was civil to
all people. There was one thing James wanted. It was religion. He did
not care to please God, though he read the Bible and said his prayers.
James knew that his uncle. Farmer Grey, did not think well of Mark
Page. So James did not tell the farmer that he went to Mark Page's
house, and that he loved Mary Page, and thought that he would ask her to
be his wife some day. If he had told his uncle what he wished, the
farmer would have said, "If Mary Page is a good girl, though I cannot
think well of her father and her mother, she shall be your wife if you
wish it and she wishes it."

But James did not say a word of Mary to his uncle, and the farmer did
not think that James even knew her. Mary thought very well of James.
He seemed to her a good young man, and much more steady than Ben. So
she was very glad to see him when he could come to the mill, and
by-and-by she gave him her whole heart; James, too, gave her his heart.
Yes, he loved her, he thought, very much; but, in truth, he did not love
her by half so much as she loved him. Mary might have done James much
good at this time if she had had him to herself; but he and Ben became
great friends, and Ben undid all the good she had done James, and did
him much harm. Ben took good care not to show James at first what bad
things he did. He talked of others getting drunk, and said there was no
great harm in it, and then he said how fine it was to go out with a gun
at night and kill game, and what bold chaps did that sort of thing; and
then he went on to boast of all sorts of bad things which he did.

Now if James had been wise he would not have stopped to hear all this,
but would have said, "I am sure that is bad, and harm must come of it,"
and would have kept out of Ben's way. When a bad person tries to make
another do ill, the only safe plan for the other is to keep out of the
bad person's way. James did not do that, and more than once he went
with Ben to the ale-house and got drunk. From the first day James did
this, Ben made him do just what he liked. James went out shooting at
night with Ben--that is, poaching; he was often at the ale-house with
him, and in bad company, and many other evil things they did together.

Poor Mary did not know this, but thought rather that James would do good
to Ben, and lead him right. She had to learn the sad truth that all men
are prone to do ill, and that the bad are more apt to lead than to be
led.

S