HIS MOTHER’S TRAINING

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Apr 18, 1906

HIS MOTHER’S TRAINING.

ROLAND stopped and looked at the sign “BOY WANTED.” It hung outside a large cutlery establishment next door to a store where there had been a big fire. He had made up his mind that he was old enough to look for work and try to relieve mother. Should he go in?

He hesitated, then with all the courage he could command went inside. He was sent back to a room where men on high stools were writing in big books, too busy to notice him; but a tall gentleman did, and questioned him so fast that he could hardly answer.

“What kind of work do you expect to do? Don’t know? Most boys do. Never worked out before? Suppose you think it’s all play. Well,” pointing to some steps, “go down there, and the man at the foot will tell you what to do.”

Roland went down and found half a dozen boys at work, with their sleeves rolled up,

cleaning and polishing knives. The man at the foot of the steps looked up and said:

“Come to try your hand? Well, three boys have just left in disgust; doesn’t seem to be boys’ work, somehow, but it’s got to be done. You see,” he said, picking up some knives and scissors and showing spots of rust on them, “the water that saved our building the other night, injured some of our finest goods. If you want to try your hand at cleaning, I’ll show you how. We pay by the dozen.”

“’Tisn’t fair,” said one of the boys, “some have more rust on than others.”

“If you don’t like our terms you needn’t work for us,” said the foreman; and the boy, muttering that he wanted to be an errand boy and see something of life, left, while Roland went to work with a will. As he finished each piece, he held it up, examined it critically, and wondered if mother would think it well done.

When the hour for closing came, the gentleman who had sent him downstairs appeared, and looking round at the boys, said:

“Well?”

“There is the boy we want,” said the foreman, pointing to Roland. “‘Boy wanted’ doesn’t mean any kind of a boy. Mother know you came? No? Well, take her your first wages, and tell her there is a place open to you here. Then put your arms around her neck, and thank her for teaching you to be thorough. If more boys were thorough, more boys would succeed in life.”

“I guess, mother,” said Roland, when he told her about it, “it was because I tried to do everything as you would like it. I forgot I was doing it because there was a ‘boy wanted.’”—Sunday-School Advocate.