"Old Missus." "Fore God, Missus, Massa Yank hab dem same heir old-gilfins what Massa Kurnel hab, sartain, sure, on dat buzum pin of his'n; better come out and vesticulate dis cauze."

In a few minutes the kind southern lady kneeled beside the lonely pallet, and gently slipping the sleeve above the designated spot, found, sure enough, imprinted or tattoed upon the skin with India ink, the three emblamatic links, surmounted by the dove and olive branch, "messenger of peace and good will, of promise and hope." She rose promptly from her knees and said, "Take him into the house, Tom; he is your master's brother."

CHAPTER XIV.

"To heaven approached a Sufi saint,
From groping in the darkness late,
And tapping timidly and faint,

Besought admission at God's gate.

"Said God, Who seeks to enter here?'
"Tis I, dear friend,' the saint replied,
And trembled much with hope and fear.
'If it be thou, without abide.'

"He roamed alone through weary years,

By cruel men still scorned and mocked,
Until, from faith's pure fires and tears,
Again he rose and modest knocked.

"Asked God, 'Who now is at the door?'
'It's thyself, beloved Lord!'
Answered the saint, in doubt no more,
But clasped and rapt in his reward."

Oriental Poetry-Dschellpleddin Rumy.

HERMITAGE AGAIN.

Ir is again winter; not winter with the intense cold felt during the winter of three years ago, but of a mild type; soft snow falls, gentle breezes, days of sunshine and nights of sharp, white frosts, followed by bright mornings, with a crisp, clear,

invigorating air, good and bracing to man and beast.

A good winter to the sick; perfectly enjoyable and a blessed one to the poor, whose stock of fuel and clothing were poorly fitted for even the ordinary peculiarities of our fickle climate, let alone the extraordinary seasons of polar waves which sometimes strike us.

While our country has been making history so rapidly for over three years past, and changes have taken place in private circles with the rapidity of panoramic views, the hermitage has stood, as it has for years past, closed, silent and gloomy; its mistress has existed as she has for many years, priding herself in her bounty, and justice, and conscientiousness, when really she is a grand swindle to God, to fellow men and to self. The Great Master has placed in her hands an immense capital, with which she should serve and glorify him, by serving and benefiting her fellow-beings; but she folds her talents up and hides them away, to return to him when it suits her convenience to present all to God as a magnanimous gift to him, when she is through with it and needs it no more. Days come and go as they have, monotonously, until they can be numbered by thousands. She

still reads her missionary reports of the work in foreign fields; still intersperses her readings of those reports with "Baxter's Saints' Rest," or some Calvanistic sermons or dogmas; still punishes the flesh with fast days and long prayers to the good Father in Heaven, who is neither deaf nor afar off, and who delights not in melancholy looks, morbid fancies or tortured flesh of his children.

Well, it is not much wonder she was so grum and austere herself, since the God she worshiped from afar off, and of course looked to for an example, she believed was a God of wrath, dealing out punishment, and exulting over the downfall of the wicked; if she could only have brought herself to realize how near, how very near he was to her, could only have seen him in his works all around her, smiling upon her from the sunshine, singing to her with the bird, blessing her from the golden harvests, the gentle summer shower, the soft, white snow-fall, the grandly flowing river rolling toward the sea to meet with countless other tributary offerings which unite and blend in that one vast benefit to the inhabitants of the globe.

All things to which she could have turned her attention should have taught her the lesson of God's loving kindness, tender mercy and bountiful

generosity; yet, with her many annual readings of the entire Scriptures, she had failed to see and make practical application of these words: "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was an hungered and ye gave me meat; thirsty and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger and ye took me in; naked and ye clothedI was sick and ye visited me; I was in prison and ye came unto me," etc.

me;

And the King shall answer and say: "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

And yet, reader, she thought she was living a holy and acceptable life-that she was living to the glory of God. Thus, while she was groping around in the dark after religion, hunting it up, worrying it down, it was all for self-self first, self last, self all the time-mixed with a vast amount of fear of God, and really very little love for him. Her religion was a sort of automatic machine, made up of a set of opinions, a system of dogmas and views, whereas it should have been a personal, practical, living reality, manifesting itself in all the relationships of every-day life.

One of her hobbies, for years, had been the