1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



823 



A RUINED LIFE. 



A SAD BUT TRUE STORY. 



O you know what has become of Alice B , 



or do you ever hear any thing about her 

 any more? " 



"No," was the reply; "I have not 

 heard of her for a long time; but the 

 last time I heard, she was in California. Her par- 

 ents are living next door to me, and I see them 

 quite frequently; but she has been such a source of 

 grief to them that I never mention her name in 

 their presence any more. She quite broke their 

 hearts." 



Hearing the above conversation as it passed be- 

 tween two elderly ladies of my acquaintance, and 

 having seen the person they were speaking of, and 

 knowing something of the latter part of her career, 

 I felt somewhat curious to know more of her early 

 life. Hence I embraced this opportunity of mak- 

 ing some inquiries of one who knew the whole sad 

 story. Here it lis in brief, and from one who had 

 been her friend : 



Alice B was a very pretty girl, and when quite 



young was married to Mr. W , with a fair prospect 



of a happy life. But she was exceedingly fond of 

 admiration and gay society, and it was not long be- 

 fore she began to neglect husband and home for 

 other society and gayer scenes. Only a few years 

 of such a life— for they were years of misery and 

 unhappiness— and then her husband left her, and 

 she went home to her father's house, taking her 

 two little children with her. Leaving them there, 

 she went to another town and soon obtained a di- 

 vorce. 



About that time she became acquainted with a 

 widower, a very respectable man, nearly twice her 

 age, and possessed of considerable property. Aft- 

 er a very brief courtship they were married, and 

 went to reside in the vicinity of her former home. 

 For a time all seemed to be going on quietly and 

 happily; and for the sake of her friends as much as 

 for her own, she was received in the best circles, 

 and her past life ignored. 



But, alas! a quiet life did not satisfy her; and her 

 love of admiration, and her flirtations, became so 

 notorious that people shook their heads, looked 

 askance, and began to shun her. Friends talked 

 with her, urging her to live a different life, but 

 without avail. 



ODe day, when in the midst of a gay company, 

 she received a message summoning her home. 

 Her husband had met with an accident, been seri- 

 ously injured, and was thought to be dying. He 

 was unconscious, and, after lingering in great ago- 

 ny for two days, death came to his relief. In the 

 two years of their married life a little boy had 

 come to their home; but the father had scarcely 

 been laid to rest ere the little one sickened, and he, 

 too, passed away. For a few months the mother 

 seemed very penitent, and almost crushed by her 

 great sorrow. Then the charms of the old life re- 

 turned, and, seeming to forget every thing else, she 

 went from bad to worse, and, becoming infatuated 

 with a married man of bad repute, eloped with him 

 and went west. She had hit all for him; but he 

 soon tired of her and deserted her, leaving her a 

 stranger in a strange land. 



What a wretched ending to what might have 

 been a happy life! Can you imagine any cause for 



such a ruined life? Let me tell you what her old 

 father said: 



"Alice was ruined by reading novels! We knew 

 she was fond of reading, but we did not know the 

 character of the literature in which she indulged 

 until it was too late, and the mischief was done. 

 She had spent much of herjtime poring over sensa- 

 tional novels — books filled with descriptions of 

 flirtations, jealousy, and divorce— until her whole 

 being became imbued with the poison, and she 

 lived the characters over again in her own life. 

 Her mind was poisoned, and so filled with 'blood- 

 and-thunder' stories that every good impulse seem- 

 ed destroyed." 



" Yes, Alice was ruined by reading trashy, sensa- 

 tional books and papers." 



How many lives have been wrecked and sadden- 

 ed in this subtle way! Dear reader, does not this 

 story contain a warning? Should not parents, and 

 others who have young people in their care, con- 

 sider it as much of a duty to feed the minds of the 

 young with good, pure literature, as to feed the 

 bodies with healthful food? The mind must have 

 food, just as certainly as the body; and if it does 

 not find healthful food, it generally finds plenty of 

 a poor character. In these days, when so much 

 good literature can be obtained for a small sum of 

 money, is it not a duty to make provision for the 

 home? Children crave something more than the 

 Bible and Bible stories; and though these should 

 always have a prominent place, if something more 

 is not furnished them they will be sure to And it for 

 themselves. Will it be " Broken Hearts," and such 

 trash, or something good and helpful, stimulating 

 them to live good, pure lives? 



Ipava, Ills. Anna B. Qitillin. 



My good friend, there Jare many and many 

 cases like the one you mention, "where lives 

 have been ruined by reading trashy, sensa- 

 tional novels and papers. When in my 

 teens I was greatly given to such reading 

 myself ; and the memory of the false im- 

 pressions and false teaching that I then re- 

 ceived will haunt me till death. Had I not 

 been turned squarely about by giving my 

 heart to Christ Jesus, there is no knowing 

 where I might have been by this time ; and 

 I think now that the very best safeguard 

 for any one is a complete surrender to Him 

 whose spirit was lt not to minister unto, but 

 to minister." Sometimes, during late years 

 I have been foolish enough to waste a little 

 time in reading something that has no point 

 or moral to it ; and I always feel guilty and 

 ashamed of myself afterward. Perhaps 

 many will think it too strict, but I do be- 

 lieve that great good would follow if it were 

 a custom for every child in his teens to sub- 

 mit to his father or mother every book be- 

 fore reading it. The careful and prayerful 

 parent can in five minutes determine wheth- 

 er the book be a profitable one or not. I 

 would first turn to the introduction, to see 

 what the author has to say, or what reasons 

 he has to give for writing a book. Then 1 

 would read perhaps half a page in the mid- 

 dle, and may be as much at the close. Five 

 minutes is enough to decide whether the 

 book is for or against righteousness. If it 

 has nothing to say either way, I would re- 

 ject it. " He that is not for me is against 

 me." Many of us are in the habit of keep- 



