p. 10 | AN ORIENTAL STORY

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Dec 23, 1897

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 23, No. 50.

AN ORIENTAL STORY.

AN eastern king was once in need of a faithful servant and friend. He gave notice that he wanted a man to do a day's work, and two men came and asked to be employed. He engaged them both for certain fixed wages, and set them to work to fill a basket with water from a neighboring well, saying he would come in the evening and see their work. He then left them to themselves, and went away. After putting in one or two bucketfuls, one of the men said:—

"What is the good of doing this useless work? As soon as you put the water in on one side, it runs out on the other."

The other man answered:—

"But we have our day's wages, haven't we? The use of the work is the master's business, not ours."

"I am not going to do such fool's work," replied the other; and, throwing down his bucket, he went away.

The other man continued his work till, about sunset, he exhausted the well. Looking down into it, he saw something shining at the bottom. He let down his bucket once more, and drew up a precious diamond ring.

"Now I see the use of pouring water into a basket," he exclaimed to himself. "If the bucket had brought up the ring before the well was dry, it would have been found in the basket. The labor was not useless, after all."

But he had yet to learn why the king had ordered this apparently useless task. It was to test their capacity for perfect obedience, without which no servant is reliable.

At this moment the king came up to him, and, as he bade the man keep the ring, he said:—

"Thou hast been faithful in a little thing; now I see I can trust thee in great things. Henceforward thou shalt stand at my hand."

—The Sunday Hour.