The Little Swearer


LITTLE FRIENDS: I thought I would relate a

little circumstance for the benefit of young 

children.

In the course of my walk one day, I knocked

at a door where I heard a great noise produced

by a number of children within. The mother

was absent, and the children were all wide 

awake, and made such a racket that they did not

 hear me rap for a long while. At length they 

grew quiet, and I heard a little girl's voice saying

 something that I don't want to repeat. But the

 amount of it was, a prayer that God would-----

 the boys. I suppose she thought that the little

 boys without were rapping to deceive her. So I

 kept on knocking and at length the little 

girlcame to the door, and as soon as she had

 opened it and saw me, she blushed, dropped her

head, and looked ashamed.

You can guess what made her feel so ashamed.

She knew me, and knew I had heard the

wicked words she said, and she also knew it was

very wrong. But she invited me in, sat a chair

for me, and asked me to sit down. I soon  

enquired of the welfare of the family, and began

to converse quite freely with her. "I understand,"

said I, "that your brother has lately

died." "Yes," she replied, "John died about

three weeks ago." "Well, how did he feel?

What did he say on his dying bed," I asked. "O,

he said if God would forgive his sins he should

be willing to die. And he had left off swearing

a good while before he died." "I am glad of

that with all my heart; I am sorry he ever

used wicked language. But I have known a

great many little boys who swear," said I. "So

have I," said she. "And I once heard a little

girl swear" I added. At this she blushed, hung

her head and looked exceedingly ashamed.

Now my little readers will all think what it

was that made her so ashamed. She was not

troubled when I said I had heard little boys

swear, but when I told her I had heard a little

girl swear, she looked ashamed. Now why was

this? She had something within which told

her she had been doing wrong, and this we call

CONSCIENCE. Every child has something within

them which tells when they do right, and also

when they do wrong. And if we will hearken

to this monitor we shall be kept from doing

what we shall be ashamed of. Then keep a living

sense of God's presence before your mind,

and you will not have cause to be ashamed of

your conduct.





 B. SPAULDING.


Eddington,  Me.