The Family Circle

New Zealand Tablet, 3 July 1913, Page 61

The Family Circle

THE BEST YOU CAN i - The boys of whom the time lias need Are boys that will not shirk, But bring to tasks they undertake - A love for honest work. - It is from stuff like this, my lad, The years will make the man, So face the future with a will To do the best you can. It may not be your lot to lead To vict'ry in the fight Upon a bloody battlefield Where men may die for right, But you may wage a silent war Against all wrong and sin, And be a hero, all the same, Because you fight and win. It takes true bravery to be A champion of right In days like these, where men bow down Like slaves to worship might. But know, my lad, that he who fights For love and fellow-man And truth will surely win, .because He'll do the best he can. WHAT GOLDIE FOUND IN THE PATH Perhaps no one in the country was more pleased to learn that spring was coming than Grandpa Ashton. Winter had been long and cold, and Grandpa Ashton didn't like winter. He preferred freezing weather when he was a boy, but after he had rheumatism winter was a different thing. - It meant, ' Stay in the house, Mr. Ashton, and sit by the fire. Wait for spring, Mr. Ashton wait for spring!' Grandpa Ashton waited for spring because he was obliged to do so; but Grandpa Ashton says he was often rather cross during that long, cold winter. His rheumatism was worse than usual and he couldn't walk a step without two canes; which may be the reason. Every day when school was out Grandpa Ashton used to sit by the window and bow and smile to the passing children. He liked to see the seven children go hopping, and skipping along the road, swinging their dinner-pails, kicking the snow, or playing snowball; he said it cheered his heart to see their rosy cheeks. The day Grandpa Ashton knew that winter had packed up his overcoat and icicles and was surely gone, he watched for the school children. When they appeared, laughing and shouting for joy because it was Friday, Grandpa Ashton tapped loud on the window and motioned for them to come. 'Spring is here!' he announced after Grandma Ashton had opened the window. 'We know it, we know it!' shouted the children. 'We'll bring you pussy willows next week!' 'That is the very reason I called you!' declared Grandpa Ashton. 'I wish to tell you this: I'll give a dollar to see a violet growing. The first child who brings me a violet, roots and all, shall have a dollar!' The only one of the seven who didn't dance joyfully and promise to search through the woods for a violet the very next day, was Goldie Brown. She trudged soberly home. The next day was Saturday; and Saturday was Goldie busiest day. ~ She always washed the breakfast dishes, did the dusting, and took care of the three little ones, while her mother baked bread, cake, pies, cookies, and got the house in order for Sunday. ' It seems to me as if I couldn't get through with' the Saturday work without Goldie's help,' Mrs Brown often told her neighbors. Goldie, short for Goldilocks, was a nickname.

The following morning six children called at the farmhouse for* Goldie. ;v,- ■.'-■■-"■■- ' Grandpa Ashton is going to give a dollar to the one who finds the first- violet,' one of the children explained, ' and it wouldn't be fair: ; if we didn't stop for Goldie!' : ; : -". v fV ■'■' . r . ■ : 'I am sorry,' replied Mrs. Brown slowly, ' but I can't spare Goldie this morning!' ■.->■■■;-:■:■.-■■ /■■■■ At first Goldie Brown couldn't help crying but she washed the dishes, did the dusting and took care of the three little sisters as if nothing had happened; as if she didn't long to be with the care-free children searching for violets. By the time Mrs. Brown- asked Goldie to go to the bottom of the garden" after horseradish roots the little girl was happy and smiling. She ran with a hop, skip, and a jump to do the errand. After she reached the horseradish -patch and had secured her roots, what did that little girl see in a clump of grass beside the sunny path but a blue violet blossom stretching toward the sun. It didn't take her long to dig the treasure and run with it to the house. „ 'See what I have found!' she exclaimed. Take it immediately to Grandpa Ashton!' advised her delighted mother, ' and tell him that 1 say it grew in the path of duty !' Somewhat puzzled, Goldie repeated her mother's message when she carried the violet, roots and all, to Grandpa Ashton. "* ' Nine cases out of ten,' observed Grandpa Ashton solemnly, as he placed a shining dollar in Goldie's hand, ' nine cases out of ten, you will find the choicest treasures in the path of duty!' The violets are not out yet,' declared the six children, when at last they returned, tired and disappointed, from the woods. 'One violet was out,' corrected Grandpa Ashton, ' it was out looking for Goldie Brown who stayed home to help her mother !' and until Grandma Ashton planted that violet in the yard a week later, Grandpa Ashton told all his callers about the violet that bloomed in Goldie Brown's path of duty. He sometimes tells that story to this day! • THE POSTAGE STAMP The little story which gives the credit of the postage stamp to Mr. Bowland Hill seems to be generally accepted. •Something more than eighty years ago he happened to be travelling in the north of England, and was stopping at a country inn when the postman brought a letter to the innkeeper's young daughter, who, after looking intently at the address for a while, declared that she could not receive it, as she was not able to pay the postage due, which amounted to a shilling. As she handed it back to the postman, Mr. Hill was moved, to pity, and insisted upon paying the bill himself. During the evening the girl, truly grateful to him and ashamed of her deception, confessed that there was no writing in the envelope; that certain marks upon it gave her information as to her brother, and that the two had devised that means to avoid the postal dues. Mr. Hill thought that the system which encouraged such fraud must be wrong, and set about devising a better plan. The result was the postage stamp, which has proved itself practical in all respects. GIVING HIM A FRESH START The prominent citizen stormed into the editor's sanctum, and without any preliminaries began: 'See here, you, what in thunder do you mean by printing my name in your death notices' . column Can't you wait till a man's death before you bury him? It's hurt my business fearfully. I want a contradiction in to-morrow's paper without fail.' ' I'm sorry, Mr. Blank,' said the editor, but that is out of the question. We never apologise' and we never withdraw a statement. But I'll tell you what we'll do; we'll put you in the "Births" next week

; A PROSPECTIVE CUSTOMER - The English sergeant's eyes glistened; at last he had struck a likely recruit. The youth 'pushing. a milk cart along the street was far too good for such work. He was cut out for the army. Going up to the milkboy, he asked, smiling the while: - . :-:■' ' Would you like to serve your King and country, my lad?' ' J 'Yes, rather,' came the reply, as the boy picked up his measure. 'Pint or a quart?' A PRINTER'S MISTAKE A funny mistake occurred lately in printing labels for a meat-preserving company. The printer had been in the habit of labelling tins of beef or mutton, as the case might be, with the words .' without bone' prominently displayed. The company having added kidney soup to its list, the new article was duly ticketed as Kidney without bone.' NOT ON THE MAP Joan was a most conscientious pupil, eight years old. During one of the school study periods the teacher noticed her searching a large atlas intently with a most puzzled expression. After a few minutes she asked the child what she was looking for. 'Oh,' said the anxious student, ' Miss Kane said we were to find all the places spoken of in the history lesson on the map, and it says that '' Columbus was at the Point of Starvation," and I can't find it anywheres !' . A BIG DOSE - A doctor once sent his man with a box of pills to a patient, and a hamper containing six live pullets to be left at the house of a friend. Unluckily the messenger bungled over bis errand, and took the hamper to the patient and the pills to his master's friend. Imagine the consternation of the patient on receiving along with the fowls the following prescription: ' Two of these to be taken every half-hour.' NOT QUITE A farmer in great need of extra hands at haying time finally asked Bill Smith, who was accounted the town fool, if he would help him out. Wha'll ye pay?' asked Bill. ' I'll pay what you're worth,' answered the farmer. _ Bill scratched his head a minute, then announced decisively: 'l'll be durned if I'll work for that!' CORRECT A Sunday school teacher who had asked his class what weapon Samson used to slay the Philistines, and failed to get an answer, sought to assist the young ones by tapping his jaw with his finger, saying at the same time: 'What is this?' Promptly came the response, ' The jawbone of an .ass, sir.' A TALENTED ARTIST He thought he was a connoisseur, and he was lamenting the decadence of art. 'Look,' he said, 'at the great Italian school of painters. Look even at the old Greeks ! Why, Zeuxis painted grapes so naturally that birds came to peck at them.' 'He did, did he?' said a hearer. 'That's nothin'. I've got a friend who paints a dog so natural that he has to paint a muzzle on him to keep him from biting.'