THE AFTER-GRASS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2426, 12 September 1900, Page 60

THE AFTER-GRASS.

Ah, happy meadow, in the sunlight shining! Ihcugh the first gioiy puss, gieen its the aftcrgrafos, i Giicf's bitterness is gone, and its repinir.g. Oh, fend hcari, wounded soro, and nigh to breaking! The spring's bud ever-blown, the flower of The light all turned i.o gloom, the joy ro aching : J<3 this tho end? Sh n il all be parched and dreary ? ]STo sweet imaginings, no dream of Letter things, Only a. bavren v.-astc, and footstep weaiy? Are there no dews fiom pitying skies descenchng '•" No flash of hidden ii!ls fioi.i the eternal hill-3 To the ■sore heart reviving nimsUirc lending ' Famt :iot- Time's losses, Time itself lepayeth; E'en new, a softer green peers the dry stalks between, '2lid ialle.i leaves the leaf thai ne'ei dccayeth. You v. ho live in tLe country knoAV it well — -his soft, after-grass, coining up with such verdure after the field has seen its fiist gioiy s"«cpt aAvay before the sharp blade of the leipcr. Fcv <i Avhile the field lie-- bare, shorn of what it had taken ma 1177 months to bring to perfection. Well might we f-uppofi'o it mourning ii desolation foi ib, depjrted j,lory ; yet. after a while, comcn th-j sAvcet afior-jnaih.

As I Avrite, before my mental vision pa.-&es a fair-hdircd ynung mother, whose deep-loving, passionate heirt rebels hotly agaiiiM c\ r eiy affliction laid upon those she loves. "Why f-hould they suffer?*' °he asks bitterly : "Avhy be always oppressed, overijAU'dened?"' 1 r-ee her p^din. bending in p >in 01 heart oA*er her fir.st-boii: — -:i fair, fragile child. Every quaint, old-fashioned sentence tears the tende 1 ' heart of the mother, yet strangely soothes at the Fame time, for the little die's ' talk is of that bright home to which she is hastening — that home prepared by the loving Saviour for just such little ones. And one day the angel Death entered the little chamber to bear away Avith him the child-spirit, so purified by pain, leaving the nfbther crushed, bleeding, and sorely wounded in heart. Rhe looked forward through the years A\hieh she had thought to see the

child brighten and make beautiful. oii<l fees but desolation there. The tendrils which the mmother-barty rt tAvines lowid her child are strong, and Avhen they are Avrenched asunder pain lingers long. But months roll on to years, and I see that same fair-haired mother once more ; see, too, that in her heart the aftei -grass has j,i'oami verdant, tender, beautiful. Every touch of hardness has ]ri.«sed from out her life, c\ T ery drop of bitter rebelliousnes?. She looks "now bej'ond the sharp blade that hurts her or her loA-ed ones to the Hand that holds ii, from that to the pitying face of the great Father bending in love above it, and re>ts in the assurance that, He wounds bnt for his mercy's sake, He wounds to heal, and fri_>m the deep source of comfort wherewith she herself is comforted draws rich supplies with which to comfort cvher heavy-laden, oft rebellious, hearts. Sweet, indeed, in her case is the after-grass. — swe=t as the sickle Aras keen Avhich prepared the way for it. A pastor is about to be parted from the xJoek he had gathered in his Master's name ; there are souls among them for Avhom he had agonised in prayer, wrestling for them Avith strong crying and with tears, for Avhoin he had thanked Gcd Avith all the fervour of a soul-loA'ing heart as he saAV them ttu'n from leckiessness to Avalk in the narrow Avay. He kneAv and sympathised with the joys and sorrows of every home— had knelt vi supplication Avith the sorroAvful and the oA-erburdened ; but uoav the parting Avay has been reached, and his soul is t filled with pain, even at times with rebellion, as he forgets for a moment ihe great First Cause and looks only on those Avho work out His purposes here. The fiaal wrench Avas given, pastor ancl people part ; he sorrowed deeply, yet even in the parting hours the after-math began to spring. A young man has pressed steadily on, Mvexving neither to the right hand iicv to the left. Step by step he has climbed the steep hill Difficulty, on the summit of Avhich_ rests the ladiant croAA-n called Success. He is almost at the top, stretches forth his hand to grasp it, misses hi& hold, and grasps — Failure. Some grievous thing has intervened — what matters it, whether sickness, accident, loss of friend, or a mistaken step.. All for. which he had laboured so long ancl Avell is in one clay swept from his sight ; the field of life lies bare before him, stripped of the harvest of golden gram. Hope has died ere yet reality filled in the picture she had sketched — bub, "Is this the end?'' No, many times nc — hoAvever closely the field of one effort may have been cropped the after-math may still come vp — .may still be rich, close, verdant. Comrades avlio have known sorrow, loss, adversity, do 3-011 fear that because your life just iioav seems to you like a, barren plain — shorn alike of beauty,

strength, and usefulness — it must ever remain ,so, devoid of eA*ery green ancl liA r ing thing, hard, empty, purposeless. Brush the tears or the close cobweb of cynicism from your eyes, and Avait patiently a Avhile,- - ancl you shall see the bare plain groAV richly,; soft and green. Remember, that the verdure may be delayed by fierce storms of rebellion ancl pride, by numbing frosts of despair, by sullen lethargy ; but give but a chance to the sunbeams of a Father's love to touch your life, and, bare 'and unlovely' as it seems just iioav, there shall spring ere long upon it God's sAA-ijet compensating After -grass. VIOLET. &f Descriptions of balls, <Uc, nmsl he endorsed bij either the Witness correspondent for the district or by the icoretcuy to Hie bell canmiltee. The MS of any correspondents uho do not comply with this rule toill be sent lo the secretary for endorsement vrior to appearing.— EMMßLlNE. To cmui-c publication in the forthcoming issue, Men ihoul'l reach the IVUness office if pokible on batuiclay iitphl, but on 010 account later than Monday night. bachelors' ball at tv \ff.ka avest. Dear Kmmehne, — The bachelors of Tutvoeka Wet held their annual ball m the schoolhouse on Fiicljy, 31st hist, and, as usual, it piovccl a^gieat success, visitors being present from the .Beaumont, Lawrence, Clark's Flat, Turoeka Mouth, JRanklcburn, Tuapeka. Flat, and \Vaitahuna. Great credit is due to the com-omi-tee for tae successful manner in which tho aifangementb were carried out. 'Excellent; music was stipfched bj' Messrs J. T. Smith pnd A. M'Corkmclaie, while Mr Bert Bulfin made! an efficient M.C. Songs Avere rendered at intervals during the, evening by Messis John Smith, .1. Roughan, J. T. Smith, and E. Johnson, and a hiunoious recitation was given by Mr D. Piobeitson. The refreshments were provided by iJr Swanwiclc, of .Lawrence. The Grand iiaich was led oif by !Mr Bulfin and Miss Cameron, followed by about 30 couples. Amongst so many pietty faces and dresses it Avas impossible to decide who was belle. ML-'B liuthciford wore a cream rashmere evening clre&s, trimmed with white silk and Ince; Miss Loan, white muslin evening dress, trimmed with nanow bands of blue ribbon; Miss Hewitt, white dress, blue ribbons; Miss Eowe, brown velvet skirt, blue &ilk blouse and sash, trimmed with cream lace; Hiss Dalziell, blue, evening bodice trimmed with white lace, silk Sfish; Miss Eoss, heliotrope blouse, black skirt ; Miss Hall, white muslin dress ; Miss Cameron, cea green evening dress trimmed with c_-eaiu Jace, fdlk =,ic-h ; jNlisr Moore, black skirt, pink crepo.i b.ouse, Blue silk tic : Miss Bulfin, blue bioiisc, black skirt ; Miss Howe, maioon blouse, black skirt; Miss Bcllany, black skiit, white blouse, pink ribbon ; Miss May Bulfin, black dross, trimmed with cream, chiffon ; Miss Cormack, white blcuse, lace fichu, biack pkirt; Miss A. Uaiziell, dark skirt, pink blouse; Miss Jones, grey skirl, white blouse; Mi°s,lii"jdic, black die=b, trimmed with white silk; Mis? Hart, check blouse, black skirt; 2iiss Gxinn, biown blouse, Irhiimed with white biaid, black skirt; Miss Bessie Bulfin, N browa costume, white silk vest ; Miss Taylor, white blouse, cream silk hash, black skirt, Miss Hall, delaine skirt, white blouse —AN OLD MAID.