376 



GLEA:t^mGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Kov. 



liad him arrested and fined, witli a severe 

 rebuke, and reminder that tor the next sim- 

 ilar (itt'ense, he would go to jail without cer- 

 emony. Did I do right ? lie threatened 

 me, of course, and tinally in a talk after- 

 ward, told of being so short of money, that 

 it was with difficulty he could raise the hne, 

 and that his family were thereby deprived 

 of the necessaries of life. He said I had al- 

 ways been held a peaceable man, tliat he had 

 never known of my having a quarrel before 

 in the world, aiul that I had certainly hurt 

 myself in the opinion of all good i)eople, by 

 thus pouncing on a poor, hard working man. 

 I plead with him, pointed out the effect of 

 such an example on his own boys, until he 

 tinally shook hands and forgave it all, but 

 warned me never to do so again ; I took his 

 hand, but earnestly assured him, I should 

 fetch him to justice, for the very next of- 

 fense. This was the first I ever had to do 

 with the law, in my life. 



That same afternoon, the mayor suggested 

 to me, that another man w^as going from 

 one saloon to another so much intoxicated 

 that he apparently knew little of wliat he 

 was doing. Soon, another individual called 

 my attention to the same case, and then 

 still anotiier. .Said I, 



"My friends. I will have the man taken 

 care of, but before trying law, I wish first 

 to try the i)ower of kind words." 



I thought, but I did iu:)t say, that I would 

 try a chapter in the Bible, and the most ear- 

 nest prayer and entreaties I was master of. 

 I prayed over the case, and other similar 

 cases. Go to him, said the still small voice, 

 when he is at home, and sober. I pondered, 

 over it, on my way to the mission Sabbath 

 school. 



During the school, the matter was upi)er- 

 most in my mind, and, meditating that tiie 

 best way to get rid of an xmpleasant duty 

 is to do it and have it done with, I turned 

 my horse's head in the direction in which I 

 supposed he lived. As I passed tlirough the 

 town of Abbey ville, it occurred to me that my 

 horse should be watered, and I drove irp to 

 my friend Simon's saloon. Simon, since the 

 promise he gave me in the brewery, has done 

 some better, although I have been told that 

 he has been drinking hard, at times, since 

 then. He came out and took me by the 

 hand as he always does, offered to water my 

 horse, and showed himself a good, kind 

 friend, as usual. 



'SSimon, where does Mr. B., live.? The 

 man who sells fruit, grapes, etc. V" 



"Mr. B. V Oh, he lives away up in Strongs- 

 ville. You surely are not going there yet 

 to night V" 



"I w^as thinking of doing so ; how far is 

 it?" 



"Why it is over 7 miles, and the sun is al- 

 most down now. You will have to take an- 

 other day for it." 



"I am afraid I shall", said I, as I felt the 

 air was already getting frosty, and I had 

 nothing in the shape of a buffalo robe. I 

 turned my horse around to go home. "You 

 will have a good hour to visit your mother", 

 said a voice. "But", said another, "you had 

 started on one of God's errands, and you 

 will not be happy even with your mother. 



if you turnback, and become fainthearted." 

 I pulled the other line, and told Jack to hur- 

 ry up, saying to myself, "(iod's work first, 

 and your own afterward." By the way, 

 both Jack and the light new buggy seem to 

 have been sent me, on purpose to do mission 

 work , for, as yet, neither have cost me a 

 cent of money." I forgot the chilly air, as I 

 got in the riglit track, and sped along with 

 that peace of mind, that"tlowethasariver," 

 when one is in the right way. Satan did 

 not let me off so easily, however, for when I 

 was within a mile or two of the place, and 

 saw the fine residences that lined the road- 

 sides, it began to seem a terrible task to ap- 

 proach one I did not know, and take him to 

 task for his intemperate habits. I presume 

 I harbored the feeling a little, for it soon be- 

 gan to appear as tlie most singular and un- 

 reasonable thing that mortal ever did; and, 

 feeling sure I should meet with rebuff and 

 be driven from his door as soon as my er- 

 rand was made known, I actually studied 

 for some excuse for turning Jack's head 

 about, and going home to my own business. 

 Alone in my buggy, in the still night, I 

 ])rayed God to take the evil spirit away, but 

 it only came the stronger. Most earnestly 

 did I fight and struggle in 'prayer, for cour- 

 age to do the work I had commenced, and I 

 remember vividly, how I promised my 

 Savior, that if he Avould bless this visit, as 

 he had so many others before. I would try 

 no more to doubt, nor to be infiuenced by 

 these foolish doubts and fears. As I came 

 to the house, I fairly importuned God to be 

 witli me, and to give wisdom as well as en- 

 ergy, for the work that lay before me. As I 

 sprang out of the buggy, my .missionary 

 spirit returned, and I felt at home, though 

 intensely anxious for the salvation of the 

 man who turned the corner, just as I was 

 about to rap at the door. There was light 

 enough so that I could see the evidences of 

 the work that drink had done about his home, 

 in the state of the fences and gate, in the 

 lack of paint, and dilapidation generally. In 

 a moment, I was by his side. 



"Mr. B., I have come to see you on a 

 strange errand. After I have stated it, if 

 you Avish me to go away, I will go at once, 

 without blaming you in the least, for I have 

 come here to take a great liberty." 



He bowed his head, but made no answer. 

 I then went on. I told him of the boys in 

 our town ; of the example he was setting be- 

 fore them. He said he knew it all, and was 

 glad I had come. That he had been think- 

 ing on that pleasant Sabbath afternoon, that 

 if he continue-tl thus, he woidd soon be past 

 hope or help ; that his property too, could 

 not hold out long, against such wasteful- 

 ness. He told me how, again and again, he 

 had come to our town, thinking he would 

 keep away from the saloons, and drink no 

 more, how he had been drawn in and treat- 

 ed under one pretext or another, how they 

 had wanted to buy his fruit, and had insisted 

 on his coming in to see it weighed, how he 

 had yielded, and come home in a state of in- 

 sensibility, with his money all gone, and his 

 hope and self respect with" it. 



"No one has ever talked with me before 

 as you have, Mr. Root, and I am glad, very 



