The sentinel-journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1906-1909, December 17, 1908, Image 5
Rr rW,~
N,
By MAA
HE, with her- sweet
young. 9ntltuiasm,
- told ti of - the
first ' ristInastide
-of - he'Christ
Child cradled in
the manger'because
there was no room
fifftbe inn; of the Christmas carol of
Ve" and goo4 will sung by the an
geI to the shepherAs watching their
1100 by night.
Clarice's face was raot; her, eyes
adorjlkg. Of all the teachers in the.
Sunilay-school, none was so lovely as
hereown Miss Maud. She was certain
that .the Christmas angels had the
sanA shining yellow hair. Did they
AW
wear those fqscinating gold hairpins,
too? One was slipping out from the
soft fluff over Miss Maud's left ear.
'4If only she dared tell ber! But that
morning she had asked the awful
privilege of holding Miss Maud's muff
-a rich sable with a beautiful bunch
of violets fadtcned to it-and there
was no courage left for further Inti
mate speech. Suddenly the spell was
broken, and Clarice turned with
angry jerk from the object of her
worship, and fiercely scowled at an
inoffensive little girl seated beside
her.
"Excuse me," meekly apologized
Agnes, the new scholar.
Clarice drew her light blue silk
skirts away from the dingy brown
cashmere tcuching them; held herself
very straight; and, with a superb dig
nity, sniffed the violets on the muff.
"And now, my dears," said Miss
Maud, "as you know, We'dnesday will
De another birthday of the Christ
Child, and who wants every one here
to give Him a present-just as you
would give a present to your own
little brother on his birthday at
home." She smiled radiantly. "Do
you wonder howv you can do that
when the Christ Child has become a
King in Heaven? I'll tell you. He
left in is place all the poor little
girls and boys in this big- world, and
told us that in giving to them we give
to Him. Not. far awai is a great hos
THE ANGEL AND
And the angel said ttthem. r"em
RINGWOLT.
pital for little childrien who )ai4
crippled legs sn4 al'is, and
crooked baqks, 4ak- children - 6
can't run anWd ki4 but have to hZble
about on crutohe or lie in. bed-l
daj. Wouldn'$ *4, like to malt
their ChristBas so happy that they'd
forget th9ir painf"
- Her smile gathered up their eager
node of assent, as a golden tlfread
gathering petrls. "1 Inew you wgqkd.
Well, I'p going to tell you a seciet."
Sh4 Iean4dofi*de#t1l1y near. "the
dai ;before Christinas we're to have.
a dear little service down beref, and
over there on the platform w.i.be jn
empty manger,' td, am we s0g 6ur
Christmas carols, we are ioWng to
march up to the manger and. uach
put in a gift for some little Christ
child at the hospital. Won't we have
a Jolly time deciding what to bring!
Why, it will be almost s exciting as
if every girlie of. you were: playing
Santa Claus!"
Aga.in Clarice's. smiling face was
clouded'. by a scowl,. and one rude
elbow poled the new scholar's arm.
"ClArice! exclaimed Miss Maud,
severely.
"She's crowdiqg me!" defended a
sulky voice.
Miss Maud looked up at the little
brown fgure shrinking back into a
corner. The child's eyes were lumin
ous; her face flushed, her lips parted.
"Agnes was so intently listening to
me that I'm sure she didn't realize
that she was leaning against anyone.
I'm surprised at ypu, Citrice!" A
cheek hid its shamed crimson in the
soft muff. To have Miss Maud "sur
prised" at you was ignominy itself!
Her tears wet the violets. It was all
Agnes' fault. She would never for
give her-never!
And when Sunday-school was over
and Agnes, with a timid snile, asked
if she might walk up the street with
Clarice, that unladylike little girl
slipped her arm through that of her
chum, Anabql, and, whispering and
giggling, stalked by Agnes without a
word.
The tears came into Agnes' eyes,
I. I
for mother would not let her play
with the little girls in the new neigh
borhood into wyhich they had moved,
because the children there were rough
and boisterous, and used -naughty
words, and she was very lonely. But
she was a brave little soul, and dash
iug away the tears, she was soon
skippIing along in t.he sunshine, think
THE SHEPHERDS.
'not; for, behold, I bring' uc good
(rerrnt invy
r ti,wh
a 0 ttage 4
a f nue,
f and, only 6ou'dI
"top o y hou'e 0
'back a till, as.h6fj
up t rk, ung Ph
r hear full of
~~ even" a room 1)oit
shej~ ler 0s4ed.
P oxclaimed a
Wach .to tell youl. And
1.0i~ Another a lap, an ari Obaout.
.* , hand pattng het' cheeki
xli ly ptattled of the Christ
Ilad so, how His birthday
*4t by giving presents to
t$ 10.;cjhildren left . W'.1415
1ae. mother," she crie4,
I'm -o tgive a doll just like
Jny Owfn Wgy! Do you think,
tNthei j- I sewed, tbo, you
know-poy _Iuld get the .dollie
4ressedl ht I
the smil 4ded from mother's
lips, a id ,t)I. ' m -about her girie
'trembled. .-" dear little' Agnes."
she mudftAi "*ith a catch In -her
voice, "mOtOVx. so sorry to disap
poiqt you." :ie paused, then brave
1l went '4.nes has grown to be
such -a. itte eman that mothe.r is
going to eXpiAn everything to her.
You kfiow,).er,, for three whole
weeks mothier.had no work to do."
."Yes," chie4d in Agnes. gaily,
"ahd it iaw'JusVbeautiful!. We took
long walks, and, in the evening, in
stead of tho stupid sewing, you told
me the lovlis.t ptories.!"
"But, love," explained mother, with
a Oad smile,.'when there is no work
there is no pay-no money to buy
anythipg to eat nor coal to keep us
warm."
"We ate every day, though, mother
dear, and most generally always we
had a fire."
"Yes, dear, because a,kind man let
us have, all that, we'oeeded, and
trusted mbther to. pay for it when she
got work again. So, you'-see, Agnes,
the'money that mogher- is making now
does not really belong to. us, but every
cent must. go.to pay our debts."
.A small- head solemnly noddod.
-"It hurts-mother very much 'not -to
give her .darling aify Christmas toys
nor let her girlie's kind heart have
its wish about the dollie for the poor
cick little:.ntid at dhe~ hospital, but
Agnes will try to bea good little girl
about it, won't she?"
The arms abotit mother's .nect
tightened .their hold, but Agnes'
mouth twitched, and she had to blink
very hard to keep back the tears, If
she had no present to lay in~ tge
Christmas manger, how would the
Christ Child know that she -loved
Him? "Of course," she r.rgtied to
herself, "1 could 'splain in my. prayers
that I had nothing to give."
But had she nothing? He r(ace
suddenly' crimsoned, and .a g'reat
lump choked her little throat.' yThere
was Peggy herself!
Without speaking, she goi "down
from mother's lap, and darted4 across
the room to her little bed -There,
propped up by a pillow, sat Peggy in
a stiff pink calico dress. :,'he curls
had all been combed out 'df Peggy s
straggling hair; the roses had long
ago faded from her cheeks, and in' a
sad accident Perry had pkirted com
pany ,ith the end of her .nose.
"Yoti dear!" whispered Agnes.
Her, lips formed a determined~line.
How oQuld she have thought of giving
Peggy up! What would she dol all
day without a dollie to play with?
Whiat would she do at night wi,thout
'bnie to sleep on the. pillow beside
r~ disappointed her sick
*the hospital waoild be
* ,i'i.i ringlI when aji the
b1)e had lovely presents,
i-'that she had been left
.stooped over the" bed,
gy in her arms,'and
Ie . her aching heart.
hie day before Christmas.
v ren had du g all but
k.' al, whieh tho war.e tt
si y iiA,rcd to t~ maniger
a . a w t er g-i 4 n
474'
TSFOR
44,
68bject: Christmv
Luke 2: 2o 0
Luke 2:11
--Com1ment :jr
)lnR.-DecembO -9 -i
isXPOSITIONi-4
Tod of the Birth of 40-b.W4, -
8-1#. Seven 'w*d
Micah had propheig
was to "be ruler in I1'ael;h
ings forth axe .frw6n eli dtidl4r
lasting" was ,to come, ou 0.. '
hen' (ie. 5:2). Not)o, %Vi
crees and'.deeds of'me in' p0on
of God's' purpose . and
worked together to fulill
and'carry out His. eternai A r.
Saviour of the. world, the Christj
Lord, began in a stable the lit. n
was to close upon the ci.oSS. T
was "o' room" for Uim In the . '
There is "no rooln" for Him t
in the hearts of most men,' In
home, in business, -in society, in pRK_
tics. The annpuncement of the adf'.
vent of the King was made to- shep
herds. The shepherds proved ther
fitness to receive the announcen P k
(v. 15). They were men of fatb
with' a deep, appreciation of spirftua"
truth, In spilte of their lowly positian.
They seem to have been waitiug,
longing, l6king for the coming of the
Christ (v. 16). They were faithfully
attending to their lowly duties whem
the revelation came. It was' not
pleasant work, but it was their work
and- while at it the angels met the.a
(comp. Ex. 3:1, 2; Judg. 6:11, 12;
1 K. 19:19; Luke 1:8,11). The glary
that -shone around them was the an
cient Shekiiah that betokened God"s
presence. At a later day the disciples
were to behold the glory of God Ja
the person 'of Jesus Himself (Jao
1:14; 2 Cor. 3:18; 4:6). The shep
herds were "sore afraid" when tI
beheld this glory. The supernatui
by bringing Godnear, always fills i -
heart of sinful man 'with fear (R
1:17; Luke 5:8; Isa. 6:5). But I
angelic message at once. dispelled .
fear. They came to'announce sali
tion, not judgment. They begap wit
one of God's most frequent mesgagx
to men, "fear not." But the auggls
not only bade them "fear not," be&t
broilght fo'rward the only real cure for
fear, the Gospel. They brought "good
tidings of great joy." The coming of
Jesus the Saviour, Christ and Lord, L"
the best news this old, sin-cursed and
Satan-governed world ever heard. -It
was a strange place to be sent to seek
aiking-a barn. And it was a strangMp
sign to mark "a Saviour, which Is
Christ, the Lord"-,babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes, and lying In a
manger." The world receives this
wonderful proclamation to this day
witi indifference, but the heavenly
army received it with exultant shouts
of praise to God. Well they might.
The Word "suddenly" shows that th6-y
could hardly restrain themselves util
the -message was fully delivered.
They all but interrupted their spoee.
man's proclrmation with their gla
chorus. -There was to. be a twofod
result of the Saviour's birth---"glory ,
to God in the highest," "on eartha
peace among mn of Iis good pleas
ure."
II. The Shepherds Hastening so,
P1ind the Christ, 13S, 16. The sheg
herds, though humble and illiterae,
wero wise men. They showed it har
believing God's word and going tedes
for themselves the glorious truth, thest
had been proclaimed to them. .Q;tiker
truth of what had been told them the~
had not a doubt. They spoke of It as.
"this thing' (or word) which Is corn,
to pass." Wise and happy the mnga
who when God tells him anything
counts it done (Lukre -1: 45- Joe.
20:-29). They knew it was go.ledaiss
the Lord had made it known. T1htk
faith (Heb. 11:1, R. V.; see contest).
They did not "go" to test the truths a
the word of God, but to "see" wlu
they already fully believed.- Whews
God makes any great fact or truths
known to us we should at once believe
it and then "go and see this wore
which the Lord hath -made known t.
us," 1. e., enter into it exl>erimentaly.
Note the eagerness and whole-lWi.t.
sdness of these shepherd-saints, /theby
earne'with haste." Surely they wggg
rise up in the judgment agaiigt on
sold-hearted slowness in appropriat--.
ing the fullness of blessings that. go
makes known to us. "They oan
will haste" to find the Chrst,-. iu$ .
clay'imen ii pi~.arce conme et all.
if they do '3, it is wt suicih.,
luctance th Kv must be urged A**'
reasoned ul* i plead With, an&!
Theses,hep .*were r4re souli,
They fou'nd just asB God said I
would be (v. 1 c f. v. 20; ch, '39:3
Acts 27:25). herein a '"babie
In.the manger" they gaze4; 'ponl~~~
D)ne who was to be the Aurist ot
and Saviour of the world
Ill. The Shephercisa jti,5nes
thue ChisJt Th'iey flad Voundl, ~
They did not keep;Vp thieni,se~0 .~
good3 news. '1 hey told onl''
'Which was spolio[ to the {
was the wvholo gugject 0) o eI'
mony. Their testimo,ya~
little besides 'onde ie
ilored'" al ieseon fu
~ions. Tha( 15 the wuoo i
her' head a
Thle 'd:,l pa little
brown shi of a g small
.ink ob hugged. kk,Ak reaA%
d in. '6 n6r
Agnes 5" 4szed, as it sh6l 0-Sud
denly fairyland, for - re
Walls room, wene ed
wit,l as of Chr'stma, g
t4e ah at the windowi w .0
'ti thl&-chandeliers b)
liant ..1hted, while above the awat'
.hni _t-vhon--a -gloriotis electria'
tar1 eA,. ashamed of being so late,
she 0u ix4y ;tiptoed to her .plAce,
the aOlt seat beside Clarice.
lartigiet her with a c61d tare,
but the gas.i of Agnes' eyes n9ver
.feachedthe MAliAO. little girl's fate,
for it rested In fascinated awe upon
a vision of beaUty. in Clarice's arms.
It' was a doll such 'a fairfps might
dream of. She had dar, clustering
curls, and magniifetnt 'brown -eyes.
Her cheeks glowed. with color, and
there' was the cunningelt diniple in
her round qhin. She was dressel in
claret velvet trimnied in white silk.
and wore a claret velvet poke bonnet
with. white silk strings and an ex
quisite'white plume' gracefully toiich
ing the brown curls on the right side.
And belt of all, she had a necklace
of gold beads, and gold bead brace
lets dangling over her hands.
"Oh," murmured Agnes, "won't.
your little hospital girl be pleased?"
"My little hospital girl!" scorn
fully whispered back Clarice. "You
don't suppose I'd give my best doll
awayl Here's my present"-she held
E STOCKING.
out a box of jack-atraWs-,Lady Lu
cile ahd I simply stopped in." She
airily tossed her. head. "We're on
our way. to a Christmas EVe party."
"Form ij lipe,..my .dear;s," inter
rupt6d Miss -Makid, tbriskly. "Yes,
our class comes lait, but, you* must
sing all the tie .we're marching."
The children'sWoices caroled joy
ously as the procession pressed for
ward, hut' one little singer wan mute.
She was tho last in the line, a little
brown shadowv of a girl with a small
pink object hugged to her breast.
Miss Mand stood by the manger, now
heaped with all sQrts of playthings,
and nodded and smiled as each wee,
member' of her class ap)proached.
Puzzled, she watched Agnes pause,
look at the manger with frightened
eyes, and hesitate. Then she -saw
the small pink object lifted to the
child's lips, and heard the sound of
a smacking kiss of farewell before)
trembling hands laid a 'doll with
'straggly hair. faded cheeks and a
bi'o.ken nose among t he new toys.
S"Why, my dlear," biod Miss Maud,
putting her arms about Agnes, "wvhat
is the matter?"
A great sob shook the tiny figure.
"Tell me all about it," comforted
Miss Maud.
And Agnes brokenly confided the
whole story. Blut as she explained
how motpier's money belonged 'to
somebody else, and how she had noth
ing to give the Christ Child except
her only doll, neither of them noticed
a little listener who drew nearer and
nearer.
"No, no," cried Agnes, "I wouldn'X
take her back. I want the little hos
pital girl to have her-she'll 'preciate
Peggy's crippled niose, won't- she?"
Agnes forced h smile through her
ter's. "Only," she faltered, "it will
be so-so lonesome witbout any
doll-ie."
Solnething tugged at Miss Maud's
skirtsi She tur'hed, and with a sta't'
of. -surprise, loogced dIown into Clar
ice's eager fade..
"I've lots mo,re' at homne, you
know," she whisper'd. And, laying
lad1y Lucile in Agnes' alstonished
arteis, Clarice, ran after her chum,
Ag ~1el. -The interior.
ForTaliy o5fTwo7,
b er Soup, Gher'dna. Roas~*I#d
;Aple-ab-Celery Scala;
dhdesAiobd Gur,aAai