cheerful saloon warmed by a bright fire, a ready welcome, a fragrant steam from the hot drink profferred him, and the society of other men, a very pleasant exchange for a dull kitchen and tired-out wife. Now, duty to God, like encircling arms, possessed and protected him. It needs divine strength to conquer the habits of years, whatever it may be; but divine strength is always ready, and in its almighty power lies the only hope of the slave to appetite. When Mr. Packard and his wife both began to believe in Christ, their first aim was for better things in daily living, led by Happy's example; and now this aim bore fruit. She had died in peace and trust; he took up the dull burden of life and made manful endeavor to endure to the end. He had, to be sure, some help from his work, which was now constant and paid well, and kept him from home except at his meal-times; but his heart often sank within him at the dirt and confusion, he could not escape there, and when Maria began to try to do better he recognized the effort at once, and met it with eager praise and thanks, as encouraging to her to receive as it was pleasant to him to bestow.

Spring was close at hand in reality, midway over in name, when Julia Calhoun told her class, one Sunday, that she should be away the next two meetings, and therefore Miss Dodd would take them

under her charge till she came back. This was received in silence; none of the children expressed regret by word or look, and Julia was deeply wounded. With all her fine traits, she was yet self-conceited and over-confident, and she felt acute mortification to think the class cared so little for her absence. But a sharper lesson awaited her.

After school was over, and she went from the door, she missed her handkerchief, and came back for it. As she walked up-stairs, she heard talking in the school-room., Polly Lagré and Nan were waiting for Jack to shut the fires up securely, and set the room in order before he left. Polly was in Julia's class, and pausing on the upper stair her teacher heard her say :

"Ain't I orful glad she's goin'!"

66

Why, Poll, what's the matter of you?" asked Jack.

"I don't like her not one single bit, and I love Miss Happy."

"I guess everybody does," said Nan, quietly. "Well, everybody don't love her, so there now!" retorted Polly.

"She's jest as stuck up as she can live 'n breathe 'n stick. She scolds orful! Miss Happy don't never. She jest looks at you so kinder good and's if she wanted to cry; but Jooliar — "

"Shut up!" said Jack, harshly. "Don't you

know Miss Happy said you shouldn't talk bad about folks.

"H'm! I've heered her say plenty 'nough times folks hadn't ought to be hateful. If Jooliar wa'n't bad, I couldn't talk bad, could I? heh?"

"Stop it!" said Jack again, imperatively. "I'm boss here now, Poll; you shan't sass the teachers here. Miss Happy said we was fust-chop scholars, and she 'pended on us to behave; and if you can't behave, you clear, Poll Lagré."”

Julia waited to hear no more.

She turned to go

home in a miserable humor. Was it true that she could not make the children love her? Was it not true that she had always talked to and taught them from a conscious height above their plane? She remembered hearing her mother laugh at the story of a young girl who began to teach a class in a mission-school by saying, "We rich, come to you poor." But had she not acted out the same spirit? A Bible verse suddenly seized hold of her:

66

Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich."

It was an arrow that pierced through the joints of the harness. Julia was sensible, clear-headed, and candid; she could not avoid the conclusions her mind drew from her own conduct set beside the life of Christ; and in her three weeks' absence she

found that there was neither hope nor help for the harm she had done to herself and others except in a total change of heart and life.

Naturally proud and reticent, her struggle was long and severe, but at last the confident heart laid itself humbly and utterly at the feet of her Lord, and was at peace. Another of Happy's little flock had found the kingdom.

CHAPTER XXV.

It was with deep joy and gratitude that Happy received a letter from Julia recounting her new experience and avowing her change of feeling. "Dear Miss Happy," the closing sentence ran, “I don't believe I ever should have been a Christian if you had not been our teacher. You don't know how I thank you for all you have said to me, and for being so good yourself it made me want to be good too." The tears came to Happy's eyes as she read this; she felt, indeed, that Julia overrated her; but with this first impulse of humility came also the quick giving of thanks that she had been helped to bear witness to the power of God in the life of his humblest servant. It gave her strength to go on, and courage to endure, to know that two of her dear girls were at last gathered into her Master's service, and she prayed more and more earnestly for the rest.

This summer her little school increased greatly. Maria Packard drew in some of her girl-friends to