THE LOSINGS BANK.



You know very well, undoubtedly, what a savings bank is. You have already put some of your money in it, and have your book in hand, in which your deposits are all accredited, so that you know just how much belongs to you; and, when you need it, you can draw it out. But did you ever hear of a losings bank?  I have just been reading an article upon this subject, written by a minister, and he says that in the city where he lives, there is one on almost every corner; and that, in New York, there are six thousand of them. There are probably a great many, too, in Washington, Baltimore, Charleston, Savannah, Mobile, New Orleans, Memphis, yes, and in every little country place between.

You can guess what he means, can't you? Every liquor-store is a losings bank, where young and old, men and women, go to deposit their money, and not only that, but their health, good looks, reputation, happiness, yes, and their very souls, too. Satan keeps the losings bank; and, when you go in to make a deposit, he will have all or nothing. And what you once put in you never can get out again. When a rainy day comes, when you are sick so that you cannot work, or your house is burned, or any misfortune happens, you can go to your savings bank, and draw out some of the money you have put in there to help yourself with; but, if you deposit in the losings bank, you can never get one cent.

This good minister says, and his words are so true that I will give them to you just as they are, "The best savings bank for a young man's money is the total-abstinence pledge. The best for his time is honest industry and a good book. The best for his soul is a faith in the Lord Jesus Christ."

But beware, beware, of the losings bank! Keep outside the door; pass by on the other side; do not cast your eye toward its glittering array; do not come near enough to breathe the air of the dangerous place; keep as far away from it as you possibly can, lest, if you, draw near, you may be enticed, entrapped, caught in the snare of the tempter, and drawn in to ruin and death.