826 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 1 



was not worth while, anyhow. Satan (of 

 course) helped me in my decision. 



Now, dear reader, let me jump forward 

 to the present month, July, 1905. We might 

 as well begin with the Uh of the month. It 

 will sound more patriotic, you know. After 

 I got home I told Mrs. Root that God had 

 called me to go to Nineveh, and, like Jonah 

 of old, I did not want to go. She replied 

 something like this: 



"If God calls you, I think that, unlike 

 Jonah, you will go. But how do you know 

 he calls you ?" 



I related the circumstances, and told her 

 that it would lie heavily on my conscience 

 until I responded. Of course I could say "it 

 is too hot weather for such work, and I am 

 getting to be rather old;" that it was well 

 enough for me in my prime, but nobody 

 expects me to do such work now. 



My friend, when you are talking to some 

 friend of yours, or even to your wife, you 

 can hunt up reasonable excuses for not do- 

 ing certain things; but when God calls, and 

 that all-seeing eye is over you and all around 

 you, what folly to try to excuse yourself! 



I knew from past experience (I am asham- 

 ed to confess it) that I should have but little 

 peace or enjoyment until I responded to 

 God's call. I went into the jail and found 

 quite a good-sized class there, as I expected. 

 As I had had years of experience in this 

 work, it was not hard for me to read a part 

 of a chapter, start a gospel hymn, and close 

 with prayer. My talk I made personal so 

 far as I could make it. I asked each one 

 whose fault it was that they were in jail 

 during this beautiful summer weather — 

 whether it was the fault of our laws, the 

 fault of somebody else, or their own per- 

 sonal fault. We had quite a friendly talk 

 all around. But I did not feel very much 

 faith I had accomplished any thing of any 

 account until I was just about to leave. A 

 boy in his teens beckoned me off to one side. 

 He said he came from*Pennsylvania. He 

 was something of a bee-keeper and knew 

 The A. I. Root Co., and something of my 

 life personally. This he explained briefly, 

 and said that he had just been brought to 

 jail for stealing a ride on a freight train. 

 His companion denied being on the train 

 when they came to a stopping-place; but he 

 replied that he was going to tell the truth, 

 even if it got him into trouble; and he was 

 in jail when, perhaps, by denying the offense 

 as his companion did, it would have let him 

 go free. He was under a sentence of 30 

 days and a fine of $10. He said if I would 

 advance the money for his fine he would 

 work for me harder than he had ever worked 

 for anybody else— in short, that he would do 

 any thing in the world to get out of that place 

 and go where he could get some honest work. 



As I had heard many such promises during 

 the years past, and some of them were not 

 kept, I confess I did not have very much 

 faith; but I made up my mind that, if the 

 sheriff thought best, I would give him a 

 chance to go to work. My sympathies were 

 strongly enlisted; but I had learned by expe- 



rience not to trust too fully to my sympa- 

 thies or emotions. Our sheriff is a very 

 good man— one who is not easily humbug- 

 ged, but one who, at the same time, loves 

 righteousness and hates iniquity. I was 

 pained and surprised to learn from him that 

 this boy's record was not very good. He 

 said the boy had a very bad temper; that he 

 did not hesitate to use bad language when 

 provoked; furthermore, that he had grown 

 up without schooling, and could hardly read 

 or write his own name; and, finally, that he 

 would be out very soon any way, and then I 

 could give him a chance if I saw fit. As I 

 had made no promise I let the matter drop, 

 I expected to make another visit the follow- 

 ing Sunday; but a thunderstorm hindered 

 me at the usual hour, and I had an appoint- 

 ment Sunday evening out of town. To tell 

 the truth, I rather forgot that I had prom- 

 ised Ransom (his name is Ransom Murray) 

 that I would look into the matter; but some 

 time during the week, about ten days after 

 I first saw Ransom, a boy came up where I 

 was at work, and seemed surprised that I 

 did not remember him. With some reluc- 

 tance he confessed he had just come out of 

 jail, and I presume he felt a little hurt that 

 I did not remember him nor my talk with 

 him. He expressed a readiness to go to 

 work at any thing I wanted done, and also 

 added that he would try hard to be faithful. 



Dear friends, I have been setting boys 

 at work through much of my busy life. I 

 have seen lots of them start out with good- 

 natured enthusiasm ; but I do not know that 

 I ever saw a boy before who tried as hard 

 to please as Ransom did. He was one of my 

 "happy surprises;" and yet when I talked 

 with him there in the jail I had but little 

 faith in him. I have quoted that beautiful 

 little verse a good many times, right on 

 these pages; but all at once it began to 

 shine out with new and wonderful meaning. 

 It was the Savior's inquiry to poor halting 

 stumbling Peter when Peter started to walk 

 on the water in response to the Master's call 

 — "0 thou of little faith! wherefore didst 

 thou doubt?" 



Dear friends, the beloved Master would 

 speak these words to us all along through 

 life if we would but listen to them, and then 

 go forward trusting him. 



After Ransom had been at work three or 

 four days, Mrs. Root wanted to know if 

 he could not find a few raspberries down in 

 the lot. The grandchildren said there were 

 none worth picking; but she thought some 

 older person might find enough for a pie. 

 Ransom had already begun to make himself 

 a favorite with the women-folks, as he was 

 so ready to beat rugs or carpets, or do any 

 sort of work about the house. He took a 

 big tin pan and started for the berries. 

 After he had been gone an hour or more I 

 went down through the orchard but could 

 not find him anywhere. I inquired of others 

 who worked around there, but no one had 

 seen him. 



At this point Satan began to whisper, 

 ' ' There you are, old chap. Your new boy 



