EVIL PRACTICES.


DEAR YOUTH: I am an old man of threescore

years, and I thought I would say a few words to

you on this subject. How much lying, stealing,

cheating, deceiving, and gambling there is in the

world. And in addition to these out-breaking sins,

how much pride and covetousness, how much 

speaking evil one of another, how much vain and

 foolish talking, and a great many other evils 

that we cannot now name.

Now it is certain that we must be cured of every

evil, whatever it is, or we shall never see the

 kingdom of God. If children in early life would

 avoid evil practices, how much sorrow they 

would save themselves, and the exposure to 

eternal ruin. We become so much habituated to

 evil we almost forget it is evil, and then God in

 mercy sometimes uses extraordinary means to

 let us see our wrongs.

I will here relate an incident in my father's life

that I have often heard him tell. He was in the

habit from a child of playing cards. He delighted

in this as he grew up. His trade was that of a blacksmith.

One long winter evening as he and another

laborer with him came in from the shop at usual

bed-time, with a piece of a candle in their hand

some two or three inches long, they said they

would play cards while that piece of candle lasted.

They continued the play, thoughtless of the

 passing hours, when to their surprise it was 

broad daylight, and the little piece of candle was

 yet burning! They were alarmed, as an ancient 

king was at the handwriting on the wall, rose up

 in haste and resolved to have no more to do 

with playing cards. This circumstance, among

 others, no doubt led to my father's conversion

 and his becoming a preacher of the gospel of

 Christ.

Dear youth, let us avoid all evil.

JOHN Byington.