hands of God. I have told you all the reasons
we have to hope; we have the same reasons still. Only a few hours ago,
the sea supplied us with food, and the clouds with drink: why may we not
hope for future supplies according to our need? I think we yet have
more reason to hope than to despair."

"Did you ever know, or hear of such a thing," inquired Johnny, after a
pause, "as a company of boys, like us, starving at sea?"

"I do not remember that I have, under circumstances at all similar to
ours," answered Arthur.

"It is too dreadful to believe! Is not God, our Father in heaven? He
will not surely let us perish so miserably."

"_Yes_, Johnny," said Arthur gently, but earnestly, "God is our heavenly
Father; but we must not make our belief in his love and goodness, a
ground of confidence that any suffering, however terrible, shall not
befall us. The young suffer and die, as well as the old; the good, as
well as the bad. Not only the strong martyrs, who triumphed while they
were tortured, but feeble old men, and little children, have been torn
in pieces by wild beasts, or burned alive, or cast down precipices. And
these things, that seemed so very hard to us, God has permitted. Yet he
is good, and loves and cares for us as a father. This we must believe,
and hold fast to, in spite of every thing that in our ignorance may seem
to contradict it. If we feel as we ought, and as by his grace we may,
we shall be able to trust all to him, with sweet resignation."

"But is it not very hard, dear Arthur, to be left to die so!--and God
can save us so easily, if he will."

Arthur was deeply affected: the tears filled his eyes as he took Johnny
upon his knee, and tried to explain to him how wrong and selfish it
would be, to make our belief in the goodness of God, depend upon our
rescue and preservation. It was a difficult task, perhaps an untimely
one, as Max hinted. But Johnny gradually sobbed away his excitement,
and became soothed and calm.

"Well," said he, after a while, drawing a long breath, and wiping away
his tears, "I know one thing: whatever may happen, we will be kind and
true to one another to the last, and never think of such inhuman things
as I have read of shipwrecked people doing, when nearly dead with
hunger, though we all starve together."

"Come to me, Johnny," cried Browne, with a faltering voice, "I must kiss
you for those words. Yes, we will perish, if we must, like brothers,
not sullenly