"Home."


Is it the walls of your house that make it

home? Is it the chairs and tables? Is it the

books and pictures? Is it the fire, and bread

and butter? Is it your playthings and a piece

of cake?

A little boy ran home from school one day,

and as he bounded into the entry, "This is

my home! This is my home!" he cried, in a

merry tone all his own.

A lady visiting his mother, said, "The next

door is just the same as this. Suppose you

go in there and hang up your hat, would not

that be home just as much as this?"

"Oh, no!" said Willie, very earnestly, "it

would not, indeed."

"Why not?" asked the lady.

The little fellow never thought why, before.

It would not; but why? After thinking a

minute, he ran up to his mother, and throwing

his arms around her neck, said, "Because

my dear mother lives here."

You see it is the society of those we love which

makes our earthly home. Somebody to love

somebody to love us; that indeed is what

makes life sweet.

And it is just so in our heavenly home.

We must know and love somebody there, to

make it seem like home. Your Heavenly Father

is there; but you must know him, love

him, mind him, talk to him, before it can be

like home. Your best Friend is there, the

Lord Jesus; but you must know and love him

here, so that he shall not be a stranger to yon

there. It is not pleasant to go among strangers.

Heaven would not be home if nobody

but strangers were there. 


Child's Paper.


Stretch It A Little.


A LITTLE girl and her brother were on their

way to the store the other morning. The

grass on the common was white with frost,

and the wind was very sharp. They were

both poorly dressed, but the little girl had a

kind of cloak over her which she seemed to

have outgrown.

As they walked briskly along, she drew

the little boy closer to her, and said,

"Come under my cloak, Johnny."

"It isn't big enough for us both, sister."

"Then I will try and stretch it a little;"

and they were soon as close together and as

warm as birds in the same nest.

Now why can't we all stretch our comforts

a little? There are many shivering bodies,

and sad hearts, and weeping eyes, in the

world, just because people do not stretch their

comforts beyond themselves.




 Well-Spring.