A little boy holds out a bunch of flowers to his mother.

FLOWERS FOR MOTHER

The Blind Girl

BLIND persons can not see anything. They can not tell what any person looks like. They can not see the sun, moon, trees, birds, flowers, or any of the pretty things that we see.

They can not read as we do, but they read by feeling with the ends of their fingers. There are books with raised letters or dots on the pages for the blind, and by feeling the shape of them they can read.

See the poor blind girl reading the book. Poor girl! she can hear the birds sing, and can smell the pretty flowers, but she can not see how lovely they are.

A blind girl sits and reads a braille book.

BLIND GIRL READING

When Jesus was here on earth, he healed the blind who came to him. He is still just as able to heal the blind eyes so people can see as he was while here on earth. But it takes faith in God, who is all-powerful.

The Little Cripple

I am sitting by my window
 In my lonely little room;
 Every little boy seems happy,
 While my life is filled with gloom.
 Yonder see the children running,
 Hear them laugh in childish play;
 Like the butterflies and birdies,
 Playing all the live-long day.
Once I ran as other children;
 Now I’m but a cripple-boy.
 As I watch them through my window,
 How their games they do enjoy!
 How I’d love to hear their footsteps
 Coming to my open door!
 It would make me feel as cheerful
 As in happy days of yore.
Yet I’m thankful for dear mother,
 Who so gently smooths my brow,
 Tells me pleasant little stories
 Of her childhood days, and how
 She once wandered in the meadow,
 With the cattle and the sheep,
 Picking buttercups and daisies
 Till the stars began to peep.
A little boy sits looking out of a window; a pair of crutches are propped beside him.
Then she tells me of the Savior,
 How upon this earth he trod,
 How he came to us from heaven—
 Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
 Now his home is up in glory
 With the happy angel band;
 But he comes and blesses children
 And protects them by his hand.
Then she kneels down by my bedside,
 As the twilight shadows fall,
 And we ask the Lord to kindly
 Guide and keep us one and all;
 Then he makes us very happy,
 Gives us blessings rich and true,
 And I know with all the children,
 Jesus loves the cripples too.

Country Children

CHILDREN love to play on the bridge over the creek, or sit down in the tall grass on the banks and pick wild flowers.

Sometimes the dog swims in the water after a stick and brings it ashore. Dogs can swim in the water; but if the children should get into deep water, they could not get out, and would drown if some one did not come to help them out.

There are many, many children living in the cities who do not have the chance to play in the green grass or pick wild flowers like the children who live in the country. How much they would enjoy doing so!

Children lean over a bridge watching a dog swimming with a stick in his mouth.

IN THE COUNTRY

God made the water and land, the grass and flowers, and intended that the children and all people should enjoy them.

Jesus once said, “Consider the lilies, how they grow; they toil not, they spin not; ... if then God so clothe the grass which is today in the field, ... how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?”

God takes care of the flowers, the grass, and the trees, and he can care for us.

Two boys, a girl and a dog run and play together.

FUN ON THE FARM

The Country Boy

I love to see the country boy,
 With body large and strong.
 He sings while he is doing chores,
 And whistles all day long.
He drives the cows down to the lane,
 And feeds the chickens, too.
 He carries wood for mama dear,
 Who has so much to do.
He goes to school and studies hard
 His lessons day by day;
 He’s always ready at recess,
 To romp and jump and play.
God bless the boys! the country boys!
 They soon will be our men.
 We know not then what they may do
 With deed or thought or pen.
But other boys as well as he,
 Can study, learn, and do,
 Can live a grand and noble life,
 To right and God be true.

A boy and a girl stand in front of a tree stump.

HERE’S A PLACE SISTER WHERE WE CAN HIDE OUR BEANS

God Sees All Things

A little boy stands beside a garden gate.

ONE time a little boy was sent by his papa to plant some beans. He worked a while, then he sat down to play. While he was playing, he spilled part of his beans. At once he began to pick them up.

There were so many beans that he became tired. Then he thought he could cover them up with dirt. He thought no one would ever know he had spilled them. At last he got the rest of the beans planted and went home.

He often thought of the beans he had spilled. But he did not tell his papa. Some time after this his papa went to the patch. He wanted to see how the beans were growing. He found that all of them had come up—even those that the boy had spilled and had not picked up. The boy did not need to tell his papa then what he had done. For his papa knew it all.

So it is with some bad things you may have done. You may think that no one will ever know of them. But the secret will come out some time. Even if no person should ever find it out, God sees all you do. You can not hide anything from him.

A house in the countryside.

Be Kind to the Aged

ONE fine spring day six children went to the woods to gather wild flowers. Oh, how they enjoyed the warm sunshine while they filled their little baskets with violets, buttercups, and spring beauties! And the air was filled with the sweet perfume.

A little girl stands beside an elderly man; he is sitting holding an open book.

KIND TO THE AGED

The flowers were so pretty and there were so many that the children could hardly stop when the baskets were filled. Soon they started for home. “Let’s give some flowers to the old people,” said one. “Yes, let’s do,” said the rest, and off they went, and many were the smiles from the old people that day.

Let us be kind to the aged. When we meet any one who is old, let us speak to them kindly and give them a smile.

A girl reads to an elderly woman.

READING TO OLD PEOPLE

The old people did much for us when we were too small to care for ourselves. Let us not forget their kindness.

Two girls bring a drink for a boy who is mowing the lawn.
Little thoughts of kindness,
 Little deeds of love,
 Lead you from the wrong way
 To the heaven above.

God’s Garden

“My heart is God’s little garden,
 And the fruits that grow each day
 Are the things that he sees me doing,
 And the words that he hears me say.
“The flowers in God’s little garden
 Are ‘joy’ and ‘truth’ and ‘love’;
 And the seed by the Master planted
 Is raised in the garden above.
“There’s a spring in God’s little garden,
 Whose waters, so sweet and clear,
 Flow out into other gardens
 Which God plants very near.
“I must tend to God’s little garden,
 Lest the weeds and the sharp thorns grow;
 If the flowers should droop and wither,
 His heart would be sad, I know.”

A Baby for a Nickel

A MAN told a little girl that he would sell his baby for a nickel. She liked babies well and thought that was very cheap. She ran home quickly to get the money. Her mama was very busy. She gave her the nickel and did not stop to listen to what the little girl wanted.

The little girl ran back to the man to get the baby. Of course, the man would not give up his baby. He did not mean what he had said. This made the little girl cry very hard.

Her mama always told the truth. She thought others meant what they said, just like her mama.

It was wrong for the man not to tell the truth. We often make others feel very bad when we say things that we do not mean.

We All Must Die

SOME people are very wicked. This means that they do many bad things and do not love God. Some men swear and lie and steal and also do other sinful things.

A little girl leans on the chair arm as the woman seated in the chair reads from a book.

MARILYN’S TEACHER TELLS HER OF THE HEAVENLY HOME

To tell a lie is to say things that are not true, and to steal is to take something that belongs to some one else.

Now, it is very wrong to swear, lie, or steal. God does not want us to do any such things. All who do wicked things will some day be punished.

A man is in a rowing boat on a raging river; his oars have broken.

Some day we shall die, for all of us must die. If a man should be going some place through the deep snow and should get lost and the cold should freeze him, it would kill him. He would not live any longer, but would be dead.

If we love God and live for him, he will give us a home in heaven after we die; but if we are wicked, we shall be lost and punished for our wicked ways after we die.

We should think about our life here and see that we live to please God.

If we do not, when we come to die we may be like the man in the boat. At one time he could have been saved—while he was floating on the smooth waters. But he has let it go too far, and can only look forward to his doom.

Let us love God and live for him on earth, so we can live with him in heaven after we die. When Christ was here on earth he said: “I go to prepare a place for you, ... that where I am, there ye may be also.”

The Path of God

The path of God
 That Jesus trod
 Is just the path for me;
 I’ll walk each day
 The narrow way,
 Where all is victory.
Oh, let us fight
 For truth and right,
 And Satan e’er defeat;
 God giveth grace
 In every place
 And victory complete.
Our life we give,
 And e’er we’ll live
 For Christ, and tell his love
 To fallen man
 Where’er we can;
 At last be crowned above.

Transcriber's Note

The frontispiece illustration has been moved to follow the title page. Other illustrations have been moved, where necessary, so that they do not fall in the middle of a paragraph or verse. Omitted page numbers relate to the moved full page illustrations.

The page number in the Table of Contents for Be Kind to the Aged has been amended from 118 to 117.

Transcription of the text of the prayer on Page 15:

Now I lay me down to sleep;
 I pray Thee, Lord, my soul to keep.
 Thy love be with me through the night,
 And bless me with the morning light.

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