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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



July 



Will not the kind readers of Gleanings gather up 

 all the good reading matter that they can spare, and 

 send it to the Rev. W. D. A. Mathews, of Onarga, 

 Ills., for distribution among such of the prisons and 

 jails of the United States as are not supplied. 



Such books and papers as the following will be 

 thankfully received: old S. S. libraries, S. S. papers, 

 magazines to be bound, tracts and Testaments, all 

 good religious, scientific, and agricultural papers; 

 no political or sensational matter is desired, and no 

 other secular papers than those mentioned alio ve. 

 Prisons will not distribute them. 



For several years, Mr. Mathews has been connect- 

 ed with the missionary work of the Seamens' Friend 

 Society, and has been traveling in bethel work. In 

 following up some of the legitimate lines of that 

 work, he was made acquainted with the pressing 

 need of jails and penitentiaries for suitable instruc- 

 tion and religious reading, and at first presented the 

 cause to a congregation, then invited special gifts 

 of books, &c. 



This seems providentially to have grown upon his 

 hands. During the year 1877 he gathered and dis- 

 tributed over one million pages. Last year, '78, two 

 million pages were distributed to the various prisons 

 of Cal., Tex., Tenn., Ga., Ky., "Wis., la., and Minn., 

 as well as to quite a large number of smaller jails 

 and city prisons. 



He says "I could use about 200,000 pages monthly, 

 if I could get them." 



Before sending him packages write him that yon 

 have reading matter for him, and he will cheerfully 

 answer telling you how to have it sent him free of 

 expense, as the R. R., Ex. Cos., and Steamboats have 

 different rules for bringing matter free. 



It is a remarkable fact, that, up to the present 

 time, not a dollar has been expended in the gather- 

 ing and distribution of so large an amount of read- 

 ing matter. The rail-roads, steamboats, and ex- 

 press com panies freely and cheerfully frank packages 

 and boxes, from N. Y. to Cal., and from Ga. to Minn., 

 this being the already wide field of labor. 



Mr. Mathews says, "The officials of the state pris- 

 ons welcome me at all times, and often assure me 

 that our efforts to lift men to a better life, through 

 good reading, is a welcomed movement in the right 

 direction." 



Especially to the ladies would we appeal for aid. 

 If you have but a few papers, give what you have, 

 and get some of the neighbors to put theirs with 

 yours and make up a package, sending all you can. 

 It is the little brooklets that swell the mighty river. 



Roseville, 111. Mrs. S. J. W. Axtell. 



"Well, my friends, you can see clearly 

 where you can help in the matter. I know 

 of no better indication that God is in it, than 

 the fact that the different transportation 

 companies have agreed to forward the mat- 

 ter free of charge. No wonder the officials 

 are glad to see friend Mathews. There is 

 not a man, woman, or child in our nation 

 scarcely, whose heart will not throb with 

 sympathy, in a movement which promises 

 to heal these poor unfortunates who are 

 wounded and scarred by sins and crimes, 

 rather than by bodily ailments. Our Savior 

 used to make 'these people whole, by rebuk- 

 ing the evil spirits. Ours seems to be the 

 mission of rebuking the evil spirits also, by 

 giving them good books and papers. How 

 is it. my friends V Shall we not let our kind 



friend Mathews feel that the readers of the 

 Home Papers are a power in our land, by 

 sending him such a flood of reading matter 

 that he will hardly know what to do with it V 

 As it must take a good many postal cards to 

 answer all the questions in regard to this 

 business, I will send him $5.00 worth of 

 stamps, to help defray this expense. 



Father, mother, sister, brother, how do 

 you know that some one near and dear 

 to you may not receive these very books and 

 papers we are sending out V "Will you help 

 in the spirit of the text V — 



For I was a hungered, and ye" gave me meat: I 

 was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, 

 and ye took me in: 



Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye vis- 

 ited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 

 Matt. 25; 35,36. 



Now. my friends, although I do not mean 

 to excuse the inmates of our jails, by any 

 means, or even to intimate that they should 

 not be considered as disgraced by getting in- 

 to jails, I want to show you that' there is not 

 so very wide a difference, after all, between 

 the poor fellows inside of our brick jail, and 

 some others right across the street, in our 

 brick meeting house. I have an opportuni- 

 ty of knowing something about it, for I 

 cross over from one place to the other, al- 

 most every Sabbath. Let me relate a little 

 incident. 



A Aery bad, intemperate man, in our vi- 

 cinity was converted. He was badly in 

 debt, his family were in want, and every 

 thing about him seemed most disheartening 

 and discouraging. Notwithstanding all this, 

 he rose up a new man, and went to work. 

 So zealous was he and faithful, that he very 

 soon was appointed superintendent of the 

 Sabbath school of the little community near 

 him, and by his faithful, quiet work, en- 

 deared himself to all about him. To clear 

 off the debt on his little farm, lie drew wood 

 during- the worst of the winter weather, into 

 our town. A member of our church, an old 

 one, and one in regular standing, ordered of 

 him— say 10 cords, expressly stipulating 

 that the'money should be ready when the 

 wood was delivered, for that was his way of 

 doing business, etc. Our newly converted 

 friend, whom we will call Mr. A., drew a 

 few loads, and then asked for some money, 

 as he needed it badly. The other party, 

 whom we will call B., refused to pay any, 

 saying the bargain was that the money was 

 to'be paid when all the wood was delivered. 

 A. went to work and drew all the wood, and 

 then asked again for the money ; it was now 

 refused, on the ground that it had not been 

 delivered as soon as agreed upon. 



""Well.'" savs A., "what do you propose to 

 do. Mr. B.¥" 



"Why, if you had drawn the wood as soon 

 as you promised to. you would have had 

 your money, for I had it then ; but now it is 

 gone, and you must wait until I get some 

 more."' 



A. waited patiently, and called again, and 

 again. B. never had any money. As I had 

 been on quite friendly terms with both par- 

 ties, more especially with A., after his con- 

 version, he came to me for advice. I at 

 once went and had a talk with both parties. 



