THE HARVEST OF THE RICH.
By A. Smith
MRS. ALTON was wealthy. Her husband was considered a millionaire, and she had large moneyed interests in her own name. She had been trained in childhood by a devoted Christian mother; but the wealth that came to her in after years had made her indifferent to nearly everything but her own interests and pleasures. One day she casually took in her hand a Bible that she kept upon her center-table more as an ornament or a sort of talisman than for any practical use it had ever been to her as the Word of God. Opening it at random, the first sentence that caught her eye was, "Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you." She at once became interested, and, seating herself, she read on and on, wondering what it could mean, and how the prophecy applied to her own case in particular, and was especially impressed with the sentence, "Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton." Meditating upon these things, that night she fell asleep and had an impressive dream. She seemed to be riding in her beautiful launch on the clear blue waters of a lake; and as the boat swiftly sped along, it drew near to a poor open skiff, in which were seated a woman and a boy. The woman she recognized as a poor neighbor whom she had often employed to do drudgery at a mere trifle in wages. She seemed to be able to read the thoughts that were passing through their minds. The woman thought: "There is Mrs. Alton in her beautiful launch, covered with an awning that screens her from the sun, while I am compelled to ride in this poor old skiff, and that very seldom. She has every comfort and pleasure that money can buy. See how the beautiful boat moves swiftly over the water; but we poor people can have no share in such pleasure. Why is it that many must suffer without any fault of their own, while to others almost every pleasure comes almost without bidding?" The woman then seemed to change slowly into the person of Jesus of Nazareth, in His seamless coat of gray. He looked sorrowfully into the eyes of Mrs. Alton, and said, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these, ye have done it unto Me." The poor woman's boy thought: "Why won't the rich folks give us poor fellows a chance sometimes? It seems as if they just tried to treat us as mean as they can. See her boy there, how nice he is dressed, and just look at my old clothes. Just look at that beauty of a boat, and then at our old skiff. We poor fellows can't ride in such a launch, and if we only go near to look at her we are ordered away. Old man Alton just cheated my father out of his home. We had half paid for it, and had made improvements that were worth as much more; but old Alton wouldn't allow my father a cent for it. When I get to be a man, I'll be revenged." Then his form changed slowly into that of Satan himself; and Mrs. Alton was glad to see the skiff fall rapidly behind, and at length disappear.13 Mrs. Alton then seemed to be in her own beautiful home, when she heard without a great and ominous roar, as of an angry sea, and a voice near by in solemn cadence saying: "The harvest of the rich has come. They must now reap that which they have sown." Looking out of the window, she saw a vast crowd of men, women, and children armed with all sorts of weapons. They were cursing and swearing, and surging in awful confusion. Instinctively, she saw the rich men driven hither and thither, unable to escape. They were scattering gold and silver among the crowd, but it only momentarily diverted their attention, tho it did not appease their wrath. She was terrified when she saw her husband among them, and dark-visaged men consulting together and pointing at him, and she momentarily expected to see him killed; but she heard one say: "He is the husband of Mrs. Alton. For her sake let the old reprobate live." She then saw many beautiful mansions of the rich in flames, and their inmates flee, screaming, into the streets, only to be insulted and trampled upon by the maddened crowd. The beautiful lawns and choice flora, upon which the owners had lavished so much care, were completely ruined, and the iron fences broken down. A great crowd then surged toward her own home, and she almost fainted with fear. But she saw a tall person who seemed to be a commander wave his hand, and the crowd was stayed; and she heard him say: "For the life of you, men, don't meddle with anything here. This is Mrs. Alton's home. She is our friend. Walk through these beautiful grounds if you wish to, for I know that she would bid you welcome, but don't touch a shrub or flower that is hers." He then turned to Mrs. Alton and said, "I have made a hedge about thee, and about thy house, and about all thou hast on every side." She then seemed to be at the lake-side, and saw her beautiful launch, with many others like it, moored near the shore. A great crowd surged towards the boats, destroying them, or appropriating them to their own use. But the same commanding figure that she had seen before stood in her launch with a banner in his hand upon which was inscribed her name. As the men saw it, they swung their hats and cheered, and she heard one say: "That boat has been used to bless the poor and needy, by giving them many a pleasure that they would never otherwise have enjoyed. For our lives we will not injure it." She then saw stores looted, banks robbed, and general desolation; but she heard a voice say, "He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." She then awoke, and resolved that, with the help of God, that portion of the dream that related to her own experience should be realized. Henceforth the study of her life was how she could best minister to the happiness of others. In doing so her heart became compassionate and tender, and the Bible became the Book of books to her. She delighted in its daily study. She had found her Saviour. Grandville, Mich. A. SMITH.