CONTENTS. Page. V. The Soul Leaves the Body at Death. VI. "Seeing Him who is invisible" 138 Trials: Part I., Faith and Trust . . 152 XX. God's Loving Kindness in Sending 232 245 250 INTRODUCTION. WALTER was a little happy, thoughtful, loving child. His mother used to put him to bed every night. Night after night, ever since he was a very little baby, she had never forgotten to wash him, and warm him, and put him snugly into his little bed. One night, when he had been washed, and his hair combed, and he had got on his nice clean bedgown, he was sitting on his mother's knee by the bright blazing fire; there was no one else in the room but Walter and his mother; and there was no candle, but the fire blazed up so cheerily that it lighted the whole room and it was a pleasant sound to listen to the crackling of the blazing wood. Walter sat very snugly in his mother's lap, while she warmed his feet at B the fire before putting him into his little bed. She was singing to him very softly, and when she stopped singing, she looked very lovingly down into Walter's face, and the little boy looked lovingly at her too; and he raised himself, and put his little arms round her neck, and his lips close to her ear, and whispered, "I wish you had a mother to put you to bed." "Well, my child," she said, "I had a mother once; and now, though she is gone, I am still cared for-and watched over-and loved;-oh, yes! loved so tenderly and taken care of far better than I can take care of you." Walter looked wonderingly in his mother's face, and his mother looked at him a good while, then she gave him a loving kiss and put him into his little bed. Walter thought a little while who his mother could mean, that took such care of her; but he had been running about all day, so his eyes soon shut, and his little thoughts ceased, and he dropped asleep almost before his mother had reached the bottom of the stairs. Many and many times after that night did Walter and his mother talk together earnestly about great and high things, such as very little children often hardly think of; but Walter had been early encouraged to think; his father used to listen to all his little questions, and try to answer them and when his father died, his mother felt that she must now supply the place of both father and mother to him, as well as she could; and often, after his eyes had been long closed in sleep, did she sit pondering many things in her heart, and trying to see how she could best lead onwards and upwards the loving child, who as yet looked to her alone for help and guidance. Many a Scripture passage, and many a piece of sacred poetry then aptly came to her memory, and instructed and also soothed her. Some of these, and of the thoughts that came to her in the earnestness of her desires for her children's welfare, |