Earlier text: The Prophecy of ZechariahOUR LONDON LETTER.
By M. Ellsworth Olsen
The Education Bill—Ritualism and Liberalism—Progress of Romanism—Increase of Crime—Condition of the Poor. The Education Bill, treated at some length in our previous communication, has passed the committee stage in the House of Commons, and Mr. Balfour expects to finish with it before the Christmas holidays. Naturally the opposition party has been doing its utmost to delay and possibly ward off the bill entirely; but the government, with its large majority, has been able to make steady progress by vigorous use of the closure. Moreover a few very slight changes have been accepted; which, while not altering the essential character of the bill, have made some of the nonconformists look on it with a degree of tolerance. In its main features, however, it is the same, and means added influence on the part of the Church of England over the children and youth of this country. Heresy, Higher Criticism, and Creed.
Another matter has come up to set people in church circles to talking. Dr. Fremantle, the dean of Ripon, a church dignitary of considerable prominence and popularity, astonished his friends and the public at large a few weeks ago by an address in which he practically denied the virgin birth, the miracles, and the resurrection of Christ. The daily papers took up the matter, especially the London Daily Express, and much was said on both sides: “I was very pleased to read the splendid speech of the Dean of Ripon,” writes one correspondent of the Express, “and more especially the broad views expressed therein. I think his critics would do well to bear in mind that the Bible was not written for people with a twentieth-century education.” Another of different convictions asks: “In the face of his recent statements how can the Dean of Ripon stand up and publicly recite the Apostles’ Creed, not to speak of the Nicene and the so-called Athanasian Creeds? . . . If the dean has any sense of the fitness of things, he will resign his preferment.” “Do those,” writes another correspondent, “who ask the Dean of Ripon to resign his position also require the resignation of every clergyman who disbelieves in eternal torment in a physical hell? If so, there will be some thousands of vacant pulpits.” These quotations give a fairly correct view of the opinions expressed by the laity. There will be seen to be two general classes, the sticklers for the creed and those of so-called liberal views who entirely side with the dean. There has been a notable absence of reference to the Word of God itself as settling the matter. The same is true of the editorials dealing with the controversy. The Guardian, for instance, says of the dean’s teaching, that it is impossible “to reconcile it with even the loosest interpretation of the creeds; and the Church Times, organ of the Ritualists, condemns the dean in a two-column editorial, on the ground that his teaching ‘looses the bands of orthodoxy.’” Reference has been made by several to the still more “advanced” views advocated by Dr. Cheyne, canon of Rochester in his “Biblia Encyclopedia,” and now it is advertised that Dr. Cheyne will answer his critics in an article to appear next month in a popular review. Meanwhile a book which Dean Fremantle wrote some time ago on various religious themes is having a rapid sale. There can be no reasonable doubt that England is following very rapidly in the wake of Germany as regards higher criticism. Strange to say, too, the very ones, in many instances, who reject the Bible, on the ground of its not being reliable, turn most ardently to Ritualism. The human soul seems bound to have something it can lean on. When the Word of God with its living oracles is laid aside, ceremonials, costly pageants, and arbitrary human authority and leadership are soon taken up with. A correspondent of one of the daily papers says he doubts whether “one-half of the clergy of the Christian Church and their followers9unfeignedly believe even half of what they say they believe.” He is probably right. The Christian World, a prominent religious paper of independent views, calls it a sign of the times that a “Society of the Catechism” has just been formed, and has held its first public meeting under the presidency of the Bishop of Rochester. The founders express their dissatisfaction with religious teaching based upon the Bible, whether in day-schools or Sunday-schools. They propose to promote religious teaching which shall be “all based upon the Church Catechism,” as this, to their mind, is “more scientific.” Romanism is, of course, making steady progress, largely through the dissemination of literature. Here is a specimen taken from a pamphlet dealing with “confession”: “Ought young people to go to confession without the leave of their parents? This I grant is a difficult question sometimes; but we can answer that on one occasion the child Jesus (the example for young people), tarried behind, tho Joseph and His mother ‘knew not of it,’ etc., etc. The argument finally closes with the statement ‘that there may be circumstances under which even parental authority must bow to that of the Power which created it.’ It is not difficult to imagine the effect of such literature industriously circulated all through the kingdom. ‘The priest in the family,’ says one writer, ‘is evidently becoming as great a danger in Protestant England as in Roman Catholic Spain and Italy.’” “Crime’s Growing Army” is the title of a brief but startling article in a recent London daily. The Chief Commissioner of Police for Greater London reports that the criminal offences for 1901 exceeded those of 1900 by 838. One of the leading criminal lawyers has called attention to the marked increase in crimes of violence and suicide. Perhaps the saddest feature of it all is the strange development of the criminal instinct in children. A ten-year-old lad has just died of drunkenness. The other day three lads aged thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen respectively, were “birched” at Edinburgh for drunkenness. And very recently a woman was most brutally assaulted by a child of four. This infant terrible was incited by his brother, a lad of twelve. These poor children are the product of the slums. They have been brought up “on the bottle,” and in knowledge of evil things are old beyond their years. Even the homes of respectable working people are bare and cheerless, and anything but tidy, owing to the appetite for drink which is more or less freely indulged by both parents. The writer spent the better part of a day recently visiting the homes of the working classes in Walthamstowe, a suburb of London, and was surprised beyond measure to note the squalor and filth, and utter destitution that reigned within, tho the houses appeared fairly respectable on the outside. Of course it need not be said that the public houses (saloons) were doing a thriving business, with a stream of customers, mostly women, coming and going. This is a dark picture, but London, viewed as a whole, has little of encouragement to offer. The crime and want and ignorance are simply appalling. The faces of the people one meets on the street are careworn, anxious, dissatisfied. Disease is rapidly increasing. The very poor live on the free hospitals, which treated considerably over a million cases last year. Overcrowding is a terrible and growing evil. A fire which happened the other day in the East End, and caused the death of three persons, revealed the fact that in one small tenement with four or five rooms, thirty persons were domiciled. It was a marvel that all were saved except three. The only result of present conditions would, in the natural order, be some great social upheaval that would wreck the present social system and precipitate a civil war. M. ELLSWORTH OLSEN. As such Edgar Saltus, the popular writer and critic, treats the Darwinian theory. He says in the Examiner of December 12:— The evolution theory is very beautiful. It explains everything. But it is not very valuable. It demonstrates nothing. The transition from animal to man has never been shown. It is fair to assume that it never will be. It has another charm. Its premises are faulty. It ascribes the origin of life to spontaneous generation. Pasteur took that bubble and blew on it until it broke. It has never been mended since, in spite of which, or perhaps precisely on that account, Haeckel, not long ago, built from that broken bubble the whole structure anew. The effort was very diverting. Dr. Haeckel is a practical joker. There is reason for his jests. Industrial Germany is in the dumps. The Kaiser can not do everything. The public must be amused. Hence this entertainment. The descent of man is just the subject for hard times. When the latter get here we will have the leisure to take it up ourselves. But not now. The country is too prosperous. We all are—or we ought to be—too occupied with the possibilities of the present to care a rap for the impossibilities of the past. And he speaks truth. Evolution is what the late Virchow declared “in the restrained speech of erudition,” rubbish. We are told that the greatest, most pushing, most enterprising publisher of newspapers in the United States, Mr. W. R. Hearst, does not make use of alcohol or tobacco in any form, and has not done so for many years. The great newspaper cartoonist, Homer Davenport, has throughout his life been a total abstainer, not only from whisky and tobacco, but also from tea and coffee. His work shows it. Lady Henry Somerset finds “greater alertness and energy” in Americans than in other people. Is it not because they are more temperate? Of beer, spirits, and wine, Great Britain consumes 33.21 gallons per person; Germany 30.89 gallons per person; France 33.62; while the United States consumes 14.73 gallons. Of beer, Great Britain consumes 31.7 gallons per head; Germany 27.5 gallons; France 6.2 gallons; United States 13.3 gallons. Of spirits, Great Britain 1.12 gallons; Germany 1.94; France 2.02; United States 1.13. Of wines France leads with 27.4 gallons per head; Germany 1.45; England 3.9; United States 3.3. But, O, think of it all—the great sea of woe and misery which engulfs in its relentless depths millions of the children of earth. A French expert, M. Borel, quoted in the Literary Digest, says that the secret of the introduction and spread of the plague in carefully quarantined cities is the rats which accompany the ships, and which suffer from the disease several weeks before they transmit it to human beings. About the only protection in such a case would be to destroy the rats in every ship which sailed from any plague-infected port or region. The Spanish Government is planning to increase its naval estimates for 1903 by $5,000,000, and after that gradually to increase its expenditures until $20,000,000 a year is devoted to the rebuilding of its navy.10 Another War Cloud.—War has not yet been declared by England and Germany against Venezuela; but a number of warlike acts have already been committed, and events seem to be leading up to an actual state of war. On December 8, the British and German Governments delivered an ultimatum to Venezuela, stating that if a satisfactory reply was not forthcoming at a specified time, the Venezuelan customs would be seized. Venezuela seems to have taken little notice of this. At least no formal reply had been received when, on the following day, the combined fleet captured the Venezuelan fleet. It is reported that some of the captured vessels were sunk, although they had been surrendered without a battle. British and German marines were landed and escorted their consular representatives on board their vessels. The Venezuelans regard the action of the two powers in the matter as unwarrantably precipitate, even charging that action was taken before the expiration of the time specified. In view of this action, President Castro has called all Venezuelans between the ages of 18 and 50 to take up arms in defense of their country, and there has been a quick response to the call, except on the part of the revolutionists. His officials at once arrested all the British and German subjects within reach, but later these were released on demand of United States minister Bowen, who had been requested to look after British and German affairs during the trouble. Venezuelan troops have been rushed to the seaport towns, and these are being put in as good condition as possible to resist attack. President Castro requested the United States Government to seek to induce England and Germany to submit the matter to arbitration. The State Department at once undertook the work; but at this date the public has not been informed of the acceptance or rejection of America's proposal. On the 12th the war vessels of the two nations drew up in line of battle before the port of La Guayra as if to bombard the town. On the following day one British and one German cruiser bombarded and silenced the fortress of Cabello, and then destroyed the custom house with their shells. The bombardment was begun while the Italian consul was signaling to the war vessels that President Castro had complied with their demands. This act also is looked upon in many quarters as entirely unwarranted, and as intended to aggravate a situation already painfully acute. There is now an indication that other South American countries may join Venezuela in resisting England and Germany, among them Argentina and Chile. European sentiment is divided in regard to the wisdom or justice of the course of the stronger powers. It is stated that both of these countries have assured America that it was not their intention to seize territory in Venezuela, but only to collect their claims and enforce respect for the rights of their subjects. President Roosevelt and Secretary Hay have assured members of Congress that the interests of America would be in no way affected by the action of the powers in Venezuela, and yet there are many who feel that a situation may be developed there which none of the interested powers have foreseen or desired, and which will draw America into the difficulty. Italy also has presented demands for the settlement of the claims of certain of her subjects against Venezuela, but her vessels have not taken part in the acts of the other powers. A report from Vienna states that America's arbitration proposal is received sourly by the German press, and that great activity now prevails in all the German shipyards, where war vessels are being rapidly fitted for service. The war vessels of the two powers now maintain a blockade of the entire Venezuelan coast. Another insurrection has broken out in the province of Chihli, China, where a large body of rebels has assembled. Their banners are inscribed “Kill the officials and save the people.” Troops are marching against them. The Boxer movement in Szechuen province continues unabated, but both the Boxers and the troops seem to be holding aloof from each other. In Kwangsi province the rebels are becoming troublesome again. The famine is causing many to join the insurrection. The Boxers have captured the city of Fen Chuen, killing many of the inhabitants, and looting the city. A number of vessels loaded with rice for the poor of Canton were attacked by pirates on the river and robbed of their cargoes. Famine and destitution are causing an increase of such acts of violence in China. The situation is also aggravated by the increased taxation of the people to pay the war indemnity. Thirteen persons were instantly killed at Chicago on November 29, by the explosion of a boiler. On November 27 the steamer S. J. Macy foundered on Lake Erie, and all her crew was lost, believed to number 18. On the same day 13 persons lost their lives in the sinking of the steamer Ventor near New Zealand. The steamer Progreso, while at the wharf in San Francisco, on December 3, was blown asunder by an explosion of gas from crude oil, and 11 persons were killed. At Chicago, on December 4, 14 persons lost their lives in the burning of a hotel. The British Education Bill, which, it was reported last week had passed, was so modified in passing the House of Lords that it is reported the government will not accept it. This, if true, will mean the defeat of the bill in its present form. A million newly made cigars went up in smoke during a fire in Montreal on December 14. Some will not regard this as a calamity when they think of the amount of poison which the race is thus relieved from. This kind of tobacco consumption does injury only to those who have their money invested in it. The other kind brings untold injury to the consumer, mentally, morally, and physically. All this has been proved and is being proved continually in all lines where clear heads, strong hearts, and a high standard of morality is demanded—all this in addition to the millions of dollars that are worse than thrown away every year in tobacco consumption. Money has never yet been so plentiful that its expenditure for that commodity could be justified in any sense. Better that free smoke in Montreal than a million smokes through human lungs. One of the measures attracting the most attention in the deliberations of the German Reichstag is the bill providing for the revision of the German tariff and treaties with foreign countries. The bill is aimed principally at the United States, and from the remarks of its advocates and those standing close to the government, it is evident that its passage will inaugurate a tariff war with America. The “most-favored-nation” advantages are to be withdrawn from all nations that are thought to discriminate against German goods or products. The general superintendent of the Chicago Bureau of Charities has made a public statement to the effect that 400 couples were divorced in Chicago last year because of poor cooking and poor housekeeping. That was the charge brought in the 400 cases, and evidently the court was satisfied of the correctness of the charge. This ought to put a premium on cooking schools and lead to the establishment of schools of general housekeeping. Savaii, one of the Samoan Islands belonging to Germany, was visited by a severe earthquake and volcanic disturbance recently, which so terrified the inhabitants that they left the island, the governor of German Samoa having provided the necessary transportation facilities. Many stone buildings were completely destroyed by the earthquake, and great fissures are said to have been opened in the ground. The great dangers which confront this country are not external but internal. She has not so much to fear from England, Germany, and Italy, however much they may despise the Monroe Doctrine and desire to humble the United States, as she has from the inroads of the Papacy, the tyranny of capital, and the slavery of trades unionism. All these strike at the very foundations of civil and religious liberty. The executive committee of the New York Board of Education is now seriously considering a plan for the construction of school buildings which will be eight and nine stories high. This seems to be demanded by the continued and increasing congestion of the present school buildings in that city. These buildings will be of steel and stone, and in each 5,000 pupils are to be accommodated. A definite treaty of commercial reciprocity between the United States and Cuba was signed at Havana on December 12, by representatives of the two governments. It requires now the signatures of Secretary Hay and the Cuban minister at Washington and the approval of the Senates of the two countries to make it operative. The laying of the submarine cable between San Francisco and Honolulu was begun on December 14, when the land portion of the cable was spliced on the beach, and the steamer Silvertown sailed away unrolling her great spools of what is the first link in the cable from the Pacific Coast to the Orient. A joint resolution has been introduced in Congress proposing an amendment of the Constitution of the United States, providing that the term of the President shall continue until April 30, 1905, and thereafter substituting April 30 for March 4 as the beginning and ending of presidential terms. The faculty of the University of Michigan has warned its students that betting on the college games must cease, on pain of instant dismissal. It had been ascertained that large sums of money had changed hands among the students over the result of the college games. The volcano of Santa Maria, in Guatemala, is reported to be still spouting mud and pouring out a stream of white-hot lava. The inhabitants continue to desert that portion of Guatemala. Vesuvius is again showing signs of agitation. Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant died at her home in Washington on December 14, her death being due to a combination of heart trouble and bronchitis. Mrs. Grant was born in St. Louis, Mo., in 1826, and was thus 76 years old. Catholics of New York City are planning the erection of a cathedral on Fifth Avenue which will rival the great cathedral of St. Peters at Rome. The cost of the structure will be about $25,000,000. The reorganization of the army and the question of the admission of the three southwestern territories as States of the Union are occupying the attention of Congress the present week. The police of St. Petersburg have begun the arrest of Nihilists and Nihilistic sympathizers to prevent the introduction of revolutionary proclamations into Russia. Many bills have been introduced in Congress during the week past proposing remedies for the regulation or control of trusts. MORE THAN A MILLION PENSIONERS.
The report of the Secretary of the Interior discloses the fact that during the last fiscal year the pension list passed the million limit—reaching the high-water mark of 1,041,687. And this thirty-seven years after the close of the war! There were added to the rolls during the year 40,121 new pensioners—greater than the increase in any one of the twenty years next following the end of the war, in 1865. There was 37,000 deaths of pensioners last year, and 40,000 are expected this year; but the Commissioner expresses the opinion that “owing to new legislation enacted by Congress the number on the roll at the end of this fiscal year will be above 1,000,000.” The total cost of the system last year was $141,000,000. The total male population of the United States of voting age, according to the last census, was a little over 21,000,000. So that reckoning each pensioner as a man, one in twenty-one of the population is in receipt of government bounty. The cost of the list exceeds that of any two standing armies in Europe.—N. Y. World. [The following editorial from the New York World shows the trend of things in the so-called era of peace.] THE biggest gun in the world will come floating down the Hudson from Watervliet next month bound for Sandy Hook. Without its carriage it weighs 130 tons—260,000 pounds. It will use 1,000 pounds of powder at a discharge to send twenty-one miles a shell weighing 2,370 pounds. A company of soldiers could use it for breastworks if it lay flat on the ground, for it is more than forty-nine feet long and is fifty inches in diameter at the breech. This gun has cost about $130,000 in the making. Transportation will add $5,400. And even now it may not stand the tests. If it does it will become one of forty giants for our coast defense. Of course this monster cannon represents the highest development of the steel-maker’s craft. But to what end is a marvel of modern accomplishment here directed?—In effect, to nothing greater than a tremendous magnifying of the club with which primeval man knocked down an intruder upon his premises. We have to reach further than he did—if we reach at all—and hit harder. Under the conditions it is a part of discretion to have the club ready. But the hope that it need never be used in earnest is as patriotic as it is humane. AN AWFUL, SIGNIFICANT EVENT.
Herewith I attach a brief account taken from the Sydney Daily Telegraph of an awful storm, which swept over Victoria, Australia, on November 12. The phenomenon is attracting wide attention. A London scientific authority decides that the fire-balls were electrical, and similar in character to those discharged at Mt. Pelee. The effects of the storm were very wide, having been reported from New Zealand and adjacent coasts and islands. Many vessels at sea have been delayed by dust storms, which obscured every object. What with storms, terrible shipwrecks, drought, and famine, Australasia is furnishing a full quota of the signs of our times. Men's hearts are filled with apprehension of the future. But to the people of God the word comes: “When these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21: 28. The account is as follows:— Melbourne, Wednesday, November 12. — The weather throughout the State to-day was phenomenal. Dust storms, accompanied by great heat, raged violently in all parts. At Boort great balls of fire fell in the paddocks and in the streets, throwing up showers of sparks as they struck the earth. Wycheproof had a trying experience. The whole air appeared to be on fire. Lanterns had to be used during the daytime. Trees and buildings were blown down in all directions, and boughs of trees were blown about in the air like feathers. At Langdale a house was set on fire by the fire-balls, and destroyed. The Sealake Presbyterian Church was so injured by the wind that it will have to be pulled down. Balls of fire burst on the poppet-heads of the New Barambogie mine, at Chiltern, and the fire which resulted spread to the timber in the shaft, and was, with great difficulty, extinguished. Bush fires spread in every district. The extent of the damage can not be learned at present, as nearly all the telegraph lines are down. Almost every station heard from makes the same report. Gales, dust, lightning, balls of fire, and darkness in the daytime, so intense that fowls went to roost in the afternoon, while the people were stumbling around trying to find their way by the aid of lanterns. People thought the world had come to an end. The storm struck Melbourne to-day, and was strongly reminiscent of “black Thursday.” The wind came whistling along from the northwest at fifty miles an hour, sweeping dust, stones, and debris into the air until the sun was obscured, and it was difficult for people to make their way through the streets. Many shops were forced to close their doors in order to avoid serious damage to the stock. The heat was stifling. Every water cart in the city was turned out, and extra men were put on with hydrants to endeavour to lay the dust, but the water fell as on red-hot stone. It sizzled and evaporated in a few minutes. Increasing Wealth a Tyrant.
—Mr. Henry Watterson, editor of the Courier-Journal, says: “Our capital is fast becoming the most inhumane, the most iniquitous tyrant the world has ever known. Its tyranny is a blight and curse to those who exercise it as to the multitude, who are its victims. We are hypnotized by the glare and glitter of wealth, are becoming incapable of a rational view of life. We have lost taste for simple things and simple ways. We are the victims of commercialism. We have lost sight of the eternal principle that riches are akin to fear and death; that by the soul only can a nation be great. Here is a citation from that hard-headed old jurist, James C. Carter: ‘Can a candid answer avoid the admission that our society is under the control, abject in thought and action, of an enormous pressure of material interests and personal ambitions which disdain any appeal to what is everlastingly true and right?’ There is but one religion; Christ and Him crucified, with all that implies.” The apostle tells us: “They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.” 1 Tim. 6:9. Public Interest in Coal Mining
A decision of the United States Supreme Court holds that there is a limit to the right of individuals or corporations to do as they please with enterprises in which the public have an essential interest by virtue of necessity. Even in running grain elevators, an Illinois statute regulating the service and fixing the prices is sustained. The court holds that “property does become clothed with a public interest when used in a manner to make it of public consequence, and affect the community at large. When, therefore, one devotes his property to a use in which the public has an interest, he in effect grants to the public an interest in that use, and must submit to be controlled by the public for the common good to the extent of the interest thus created.” It would seem that this principle would apply with even greater force to the working of coal mines. The coal originally belonged to the people, who received nothing in return for it. The operators have brought it out to possible use, but it is hardly just that the interest of the unremunerated owners should have no consideration in the disposal of the product. Religion in This Country to an Outsider.
A French writer has recently published a book on religion and society in the United States. He writes with no prejudice, rather with commendation. He tells us that morality, not dogma, is considered essential; that the Christianity of America is an evolved Christianity; that it is evangelical in the sense that it “keeps the figure of Christ before all, even when it does not recognize His divinity;” that “the worship of humanity is established in America without displacing the worship of God, almost in the same manner as, sixteen [hundred?] years ago, Christian images were insensibly substituted for pagan idols on rustic altars;” that “therefore it is not Protestantism;” it is an American religion. A religion of this character—and none can truly deny that it is quite prevalent—is not Christianity. It is as truly pagan as the national religions of old. Intemperance the Working Man’s Worst Foe
The worst foe the working man has is not the trust nor the labor-union bosses, tho both are bad enough; it is the demon of intemperance. Alcohol and tobacco sap his strength, stupefy his brain, impoverish his home, disgrace, and beggar, and many times destroy, his wife and children. Not all are intemperate, but the vast majority drink and smoke; two utterly needless things; two habits that freedom from would bring untold blessings. “A Touch of Nature Makes the Whole World Kin.” THIS story speaks of the common ground of peace and good-will among men at Christmas-tide, altho the daily paths of the lonely lady, the dainty girl, and the messenger boy lie far from each other. It is given as related by an eyewitness of the graceful deed. It was the night before Christmas. I had gone to Oakland in the afternoon with some bundles for my small nephews, and was returning to San Francisco on the 7:30 boat. Going over, the steamer had been crowded with tired shoppers, their arms full of boxes and bundles of all sizes and descriptions, the gleanings of the city shops; but on the return trip the assemblage was different altogether—one of beautiful women, successful business men, merry girls and gay collegians, all going to spend the evening in the great city whose illuminated hills arose skywards along the horizon, and whose lights rivaled the twinkling stars. The passengers were all well dressed and in high spirits. The atmosphere of Christmas was everywhere—a Californian Christmas, full of flowers and plenty. All over the great boat were sounds of laughter and merriment. I took a seat well forward and began to watch the throng about me. To the left a chattering flock of girls came to rest like so many birds. Their fresh faces, their dainty clothes, and their laughing voices made a pretty picture. Opposite them sat a richly dressed woman with gray hair; she was alone, and there was a hungry look in her eyes as she watched the gay group, which made me remember that the richest are sometimes the loneliest at Christmas time. Along the deck to join the others came another girl, who attracted my attention at once. She was tall and slight, with a poise to her figure that told of perfect health. Her eyes were clear and fearless; her hair was brown with a glint of gold, and curled softly around her face, which was all alight with merriment. Her dress, rich but in perfect taste, stamped her as the daughter of a refined and cultivated home. In her hands she carried a great bunch of brilliant manzanita berries. Just as the boat was starting, a small boy entered the cabin and took a seat opposite mine. He was evidently an errand boy, and carried a covered basket, which he placed at his feet. His suit was worn and too small for him, his shoes were parting company, and at his wrists showed the sleeves of a ragged shirt. The child, for he was little more, was tired out; the cabin was warm, the boat rocked softly, and presently his head fell back against the seat and he was asleep. There was a sudden silence in the laughing group of girls; some one said, “Poor little chap!” in a low voice, and then the girl with the manzanita berries crossed the deck and sat down softly at his side. She had an open box of bonbons in her hand, and she began deftly slipping caramels and creams in their paper covers into the boy’s ragged pockets. The lad roused once at the sound of the steamer’s whistle signaling, and looked sleepily around him; but the girl swiftly hid the box beneath her berries and gazed calmly out at the lights on the water, and he never connected the smiles on the faces around with himself, nor dreamed that the elegant creature beside him was even conscious of his existence. When he fell asleep again the girl quietly finished, then bent and gently lifted the cover of the basket at his feet. It was empty, and after a moment’s thought she laid the red bunches of manzanita in it. Then she returned to her companions. I heard her say, “Girls, you don’t need that second box,” and she went back with an unopened case of French candy. By this time all the passengers in that end of the boat were interested, and when the girl rose to her feet, after placing the box with the berries, a man came softly forward with a package in his hand. “It’s skates,” he said, as he gave it to her. “I’ll tell my boy about it, and he won’t mind waiting.” Then a motherly-looking woman at the end of my seat passed a book, and from somewhere behind me came a wonderful Chinese top. One of the college students took a knife from his pocket, another a whistle, and presented them with low bows to the girl. The girl passed again behind the sleeping boy, and placed the bundles one by one in the basket. As she softly closed the lid, the lonely lady beckoned to her with a sudden eager light in her eyes. “I have no toys to give,” she said in a low tone, “nothing but this.” There was a sound of money, and a shining gold piece made its way to the girl’s outstretched hand. “From Santa Claus,” she said, softly, and the girl wrapped it carefully in a bit of paper and tucked it in the messenger’s inner pocket. The boy woke again at the steamer’s warning signal as she entered her slip, and felt mechanically for his receipt book. He drew out his hand suddenly staring in amazement at the bonbons. His surprised face was the target of many eyes, but without noticing them he searched one pocket after another, his bewilderment deepening at every moment. Then, as the boat struck against the swinging piles and was made fast, he crammed the candy hastily back and took up his basket—and as hastily sat down again to investigate the reason of its unexpected weight. Then the surging crowd hid him from my view. Later, as I came through the nave and down the stairs of the depot, the boy passed me, whistling gaily through his teeth, the basket on his arm and a broad grin upon his face. And farther on, outside the colonnade, I saw the lonely lady and the girl standing together. I could not hear what they said, but I saw the woman bend forward and take the slender figure in her arms. Then the girl went, with a quick, light step, in the direction of a whirling turn-table and the older lady turned to get in a carriage which drew up beside me. The sadness and the lonely look were all gone from her face, and in their stead there shone a tender light in her eyes and a soft smile on her lips.—Anon.