the ground.

"You have spoken rightly," he said. "Hazael, I once led you, and you
followed me. Now, I follow where you lead. I have lost my road, and
forgotten where I am going. So have you. You set me the example. You are
wandering round without purpose. Which is the greater fool, you or I? I
have forgotten my destination. You have forgotten your high duties as a
prince, and your manhood."

Thus spoke the wise man, and Hazael saw his folly.

"That story is solemn enough for Sunday-school," said Jimmy Jackson. "But
it isn't bad. Sharp old fellow that Jerushy or Serujy, or whatever his
name was. But I don't believe it's true. When a fellow gets a-going to
the bad you can't turn him around so easy as that."

THE YOUNG SOAP-BOILER.

It was a mild evening in the early fall, when the boys got together for
the next story, which of course fell to the lot of Tom Miller, the
minister's son, whom the boys familiarly called "The Dominie." No boy in
the cellar-door club was more obliging to his friends, more forgiving to
those who injured him, than "The Dominie," and none was more generally
loved. But Tom had some strong opinions of his own. He was a believer in
"the dignity of work," and when he wanted a little spending money, would
take a saw and cut wood on the sidewalk, without any regard to some of
the fellows, who called him wood-sawyer. He was given to helping his
mother, and did not mind having the boys catch him in the kitchen when
his mother was without "help." If anybody laughed at him he only replied,
"There is nothing I am more proud of than that I am not afraid to be
useful." This independence, this utter contempt for the sneers of others
when he was right, made the boys look for something a little peculiar
when Tom should come to his story.

"G-g-gentlemen! this c-c-cellar-door society will come to order. Tom
Miller, the dominie----"

"The wood-sawyer?" said Jackson, good-naturedly.

"Y-yes, the w-wood-sawyer, the f-fearless reformer, the b-b-believer in
hard work, the bravest member of the c-cellar-door cl-club, has the
slanting floor, the cellar-door itself, and I hope he will st-st-stand by
his colors, and give us a story that has the meanest kind of work in it,
made honorable by d-d-dig-dignity of character." I think Sampson
stammered a little on "dig-dig" just for the fun. But the boys all agreed
to his request and so they heard

_TOM MILLER'S