"I do; it was the cause of my first promotion."

"Was it, indeed! I'm afraid it will never be the cause of poor Joseph's; it seems to be mastering him."

Mr. Burrows was engaged with a grammar cla.s.s, and Edward offered to a.s.sist the bewildered Joseph.

"I remember those sheep of old," he said kindly, as he turned to the board. "Isn't it the 'stood him in' that troubles you?"

"Yes, it is," Joe answered grumbly. "I don't see no sense to it."

"Let me show you. Suppose"--And he went through with the well--remembered explanation. It was successful, Joe understood it, and went on briskly with the figures.

Edward turned towards Mr. Burrows. "It was the way my father explained it to me," he said, with eyes that glistened a little.

Some one brought Mr. Burrows a note, and, as he read and laid it down, he said, "Now, Edward, if you had continued at school instead of running away from us, I should get you to hear this recitation in algebra, and take leave of absence for a few minutes. There is a friend in town whom I would give much to see before the next train leaves."

"Suppose you set me at it as it is."

Mr. Burrows looked surprised.

"Have you been studying algebra, Edward?"

"Somewhat."

"How far have you been?"

"Through."

"Do you feel _positive_ that you could do examples over here?" turning to "Evolution."

"_Entirely,"_ Edward answered, smiling at Mr. Burrows' doubts. Ray had been a thorough teacher.

So Mr. Burrows went away, and Edward took his seat on the stage and commenced the recitation. At first the boys were disposed to be wise, and display their knowledge; when they had known him last, he was in division. But he was in algebra now, or rather through it, and they speedily discovered that he seemed to have every example in the lesson committed to memory.

Meantime, Mr. Burrows returned, and listened with astonishment and delight.

"Thank you heartily," he said afterwards. "You ought to fit yourself for teaching. But, Edward, you did not get through algebra alone?"

"No," said Edward, flushing at the thought of Ray; "I had the best and wisest teacher on earth."

Well, he sat down in what had been his seat, and tried to imagine that it was his seat still; that Bob would be in pretty soon, and plague him while he studied his spelling-lesson. But he could not do it. "Things were different,"--very different. First and foremost, there was Ray: he had not known _him_ in those days; if he had, he said to himself, things would have been different long before they were.

Going back up town he met Mr. Holbrook, who turned and walked with him.

"And so," he said, after the long talk was concluded, "you go next week, do you?"

"Next Tuesday, sir."

"Well, G.o.d bless you, my friend, as He has, and will." Then, after a minute, "Edward, my son is a wanderer yet: do you still remember him?"

"Always, sir," Edward answered, in firm, steady tones; "and, Mr.

Holbrook, G.o.d _never_ forgets!"

As he went on past Mr. Minturn's store, could he have heard the remarks that were made there, very likely he might have remembered a certain statement which he made to the little fishes that summer morning.

Mr. Minturn, looking out after him, said to Mr. Dewey,--

"There goes one of the finest and most promising young men in this town."

"Yes," answered Mr. Dewey, laughing a little; "I used to notice that he improved every day after he brought back those circus tickets."

CHAPTER XXVIII.

"For them shalt find it after many days."

"Come in;" and the Rev. Edward Lewis laid down his book, pushed back his study chair, and was ready to receive whoever was knocking at his study door.

"Mr. Lewis," said the little girl who came in in answer to his invitation, "father has just come from the post office, and he brought you some letters, and here they are."

Mr. Lewis thanked his little next-door neighbour, took his letters, and, when the room was quiet again, settled back in his chair to enjoy them.

The first one was from a brother minister, begging an exchange. The next brought a look of surprise and delight to his face, for he recognised Ellis Holbrook's handwriting. And the delight spread and deepened as he read; especially when he came to one sentence: "I asked father what message he had for you, and he replied, Send him this verse, and tell him that again it is peculiarly his, 'I love the Lord, because He has heard my voice and my supplication.'" That, you see, would have told me the whole story, without this long letter. "I thank G.o.d that He put it into your heart to pray for me, as also that He has heard your prayers. G.o.d bless you. By the way, father wants you to a.s.sist him on the first Sabbath in July. I earnestly hope you can do so; he thinks you will be coming east about that time."

Was there ever a more thankful heart than was that minister's as he laid down his old schoolfellow's letter? How constantly, how sometimes almost hopelessly, had he prayed for Ellis Holbrook! How many times had he been obliged to rea.s.sure himself with the promise, "In due season we shall reap, if we faint not." And now again had G.o.d's word been verified to him. He took the letter up once more, to look lovingly at that closing, never before written by Ellis,--"Your brother in Christ."

There was still another letter to read. That writing, too, was familiar; he had received many reminders of it during the past years. He laughed as he read, it sounded so like the writer:--

ALBANY, _June_--, 18--.

"DEAR TIP,--Do you have Fourth of July out your way this year? We do here in Albany; rather, I'm going to have one in my yard. Perhaps you remember a Fourth of July which you took me to once, when we were ragged little wretches at home? I do, anyhow, and this is to be twin-brother to that time. All the ugly, dingy little urchins that I know have been invited.

We're to have fine fireworks and fine singing and fine _eating_. My wife added that last item,--thought it a great improvement. I'm not sure but it is; most things are that she has a hand in. Now, to come to the point of this letter,--you're to make the speech on that occasion. No getting out of it now! I planned this thing one day in the old schoolhouse. Oh, did you know Mr. Burrows had given up teaching? Grown too old. Queer, isn't it? Don't seem as if anybody was growing old except me. At first I wasn't going to have my feast on the Fourth, because, you remember, it was on _that_ day that our blessed Ray left us; but, talking with Mr.

Minturn about it, he said Ray would have been delighted with it all,--and so he would, you know. Don't think we are going to gather in all Albany; it's only the younger scholars of the mission school, in which my wife and I are interested.

"Tell Howard and Kitty to be sure and come; they can put their visit a few weeks earlier as well as not.

"Oh, by the way, if you have heard from Ellis Holbrook lately, you are singing 'Glory Hallelujah' by this time!

"I am writing this in the counting-room, and am in a great hurry, though you wouldn't think it. Shall expect you by the third, _certainly_.--

"Yours, etc.,

"BOB TURNER."

These letters came on Sat.u.r.day evening. The next morning, in Sabbath school, when the superintendent's bell rang, the minister left his cla.s.s of mission scholars, and went up the aisle towards the altar, pausing first to speak with a bright-eyed little lady, who sat before her cla.s.s of bright-eyed little girls.