HAVE A CHOICE IN YOUR COMPANIONS.



ARE you sure you saw Harry walking with John Dickson, the boy who stole the money from our till?" asked a master one day of his Manager.

"Yes, sir, I am," was the reply.

"Then be particular to check his accounts, and keep an eye upon him." 

That one of their clerks had been seen walking with a dishonest lad, seemed to them a sufficient reason to set a watch over him, they believing the adage that a man is known by the company he keeps.

Simply walking once with a bad person may not be a sure sign that you are bad too, for it might happen accidentally, or he might be in distress, and you acting the part of the Good Samaritan. Those men were not sure that Harry was a bad fellow, but his being seen with John Dickson gave them cause to fear, and to watch him. It is a fact that those persons who love purity of character shun evil associates as they would poison. It is also a fact that evil-minded persons do not love the society of the good, unless they are tired of sinning, and decide upon a better life. From these facts the wise and good have said that the best way of knowing a person is to observe who he chooses for his companions. 

It is our duty to be kind to the erring, and to try to lead them to the Saviour. 

This we must do in order to be like Christ. But to choose such for our intimate friends is like taking coals of fire into our bosoms, which, you know, we cannot do without being burned.

Dear reader, do you desire to live above suspicion, to be preserved from the corruption that is in the world and to possess purity of soul, choose the pure-minded for your companions. "Nothing so well tells the changes in a boy's character" as to know his associates. 





M. J. C