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 ^ APPLIED IM/OE 
 
 Inc 
 
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 Rocheeter. New York 14609 USA 
 
 (716) 482 - 0300 - Phone 
 
 (716) 288 - 5989 - Fa« 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 

 , 
 
 THE 
 
 NORTH LAND 
 SCHOOL 
 
 BY 
 
 GEO. M. WEARDALE 
 
 «S[i5 
 
 TORONTO 
 
 THB HUSTIR, ROSB CO., IIMIT«I> 
 
 1901 
 
C.2. 
 
 Entered according to Act of Parliament of 
 Canada, in the year one thousand nine hundred 
 and one, by The Hunter. Rose Company, 
 LiMiTBO, in the office of the Minister of 
 Agrriculture. 
 
 '^ 
 
 •0il39S»31 
 
DEDICATION 
 
 TO THE ARMY OF SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS AND 
 
 CHRISTIAN WORKERS WHO, "WITHOUT MONEY 
 
 AND WITHOUT PRICE." ARE STRIVING TO 
 
 MAKE THIS WORLD BETTER 
 
 THIS VOLUJLJ: IL RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 I. 
 
 n. 
 
 III. 
 
 IV. 
 
 V. 
 
 VI. 
 
 The Dai of Dkrds 
 
 Skelktons 
 
 Pratbb Mkbtino - 
 
 One Session With the School 
 
 Weddqto Bells 
 
 The Vision of Isauh 
 
 PAOK 
 1 
 
 10 
 41 
 47 
 86 
 106 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 QTANDING on a Canadian pier at the opening 
 of one of our "great lakes," a large steamer, 
 The North Land, passed, throwing huge waves on 
 both sides of her. An old seaman volunteered the 
 information that out on the lake, so far away that 
 the boat could not be seen, the influence of her 
 motion through the water could be felt. 
 
 Are not schools, churches, charitable and relig- 
 ious organizations but ships that help us over the 
 sea of life ? The influence of The North .ad 
 was bounded by the shores, but that of sc jols, 
 churches, and of men has no bounds, but goes on 
 forever. How necessary that the influence should 
 be good and all-powerful, a condition that is within 
 our reach ! 
 
 The commotion in the water varied with the 
 speed of the steamer, and, if the boat should drift 
 with the current, there would be no influence on 
 the water whatever. 
 
 The race is to be run. 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 I 
 
 THE DA Y OF DEEDS 
 
 TN the North Land of fair Canada, beyond the 
 Rocky Mountains, there was, and is, a school— 
 a Sunday School that has a history which is 
 worthy the reader's careful perusal. It was bom, 
 like other schools, very small; a log shanty is not 
 pretentious, yet from this beginning we have a 
 largo building with mission schools in all direc- 
 tions. Its Home Department embraces the red 
 man and the white, the rich and the poor, the bed- 
 ridden, the healthy, and indifferent. Sunday 
 Schools never die. New teachers may come and 
 the old may go, but the school "goes on forever." 
 In this particular institution, the teachers had been 
 scholars, and their parents had likewise been 
 scholars and teachers before them, but the school 
 went on. They have a legend in this country, and 
 it is generally believed, to this effect :— When 
 teachers or officers go to the Higher School, the in- 
 habitants of those celestial regions stand on the 
 battlements, and with loud huzzas give a royal 
 welcome, " Here they come from the North Land ! " 
 and there they watch and wait until the keeper at 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 the gate lets all their scholars in. The secretary 
 of this school can give the attendance for yeant 
 back; the librarians stick to their work like the 
 clerks in a bank. They have now the bent ma- 
 chinery, including a first-class orchestra, printed 
 orders of service, and everything moves smoothly. 
 
 At the time this story commences, all the teach- 
 ers, about fifty in nnmber, were converted. The 
 Superintendent was a man of few words — per- 
 haps for this reason he was popular; his eloquence 
 consisted of " brilliant flashes of silence." He was 
 a man who said little, but he was aware of every 
 turn in the school's experience, he was watching 
 for the best for it, be it teachers, music or novel- 
 ties in teaching. The most friendly relations ex- 
 isted between Superintendent and teachers, and, 
 remarkable to relate, in spite of the friction conse- 
 quent on continual changes in the grading of such 
 a large school, there was no unkind feeling shown 
 among the teachers. It might be said, as of the 
 early Church, " Behold, how these brethren love 
 each other ! " 
 
 A time came in the history of this school when 
 dissatisfaction was general among the teachers at 
 the seemiag small progress that was made. They 
 worked, studied and prayed ho hard, and yet the 
 results seemed so little; it looked as if they had 
 gotten into a swamp out of which there was no 
 escape. The Superintendent called them together 
 one Sunday and said, " Teachers, we must get out 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 8 
 
 of this sUte; these little tots are falling contims. 
 ally, and our only hope is in a permanent way a 
 highway, where there is solid footing. To-mor- 
 row morning you will please come with your axes 
 and chop down these trees, and we will build a 
 walk that will not be slippery, and where no ' lion 
 or ravenous beast shall come.' " 
 
 The morning came— it was in the month of 
 November-with a heavy hoar frost covering all 
 the trees. On the mountein side, the tall elms 
 and the taller oaks, stood, " like Druids of eld. with 
 voices sad and prophetic." The words of the 
 teachei-8 could now be heard in the frosty air; they 
 were full of hope; they were going to chop down 
 the forest, and they were all armed with cuce. 
 handles. Just then the sun shone out in all his 
 beauty, covering the trees with diamonds, rubies 
 and emeralds. " Surely these are the trees that 
 grow by the banks of the river of life; what a 
 dazzhng vision ! and these cruel teachers are deter- 
 mined to destroy it." They commenced to vork, 
 and all sorts of axe-handles were used, from the 
 home-made hickory to the most expensive; but 
 there was no impression made on the forest One 
 old Elm. a patriarch among the trees, had his little 
 say; ,t was like this: "Comrades, we have seen 
 many changes with the march of the centuries. 
 We have watched the rise of the red man and his 
 extinction by the white man's fire-wat«r; and nof 
 having any ooet, they are dead and xorgotten ' We 
 
4 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 h«ve M«n generations of white men in their mad 
 msh in search of the yellow dast, and we have all 
 said, ' What fools these mortalM be.' But we never 
 yet saw anythinjf like these teachers trying by 
 might and main and handles to chop us down." 
 Then the old Elm laughed and shook himself, 
 and the oaks followed suit; while down on the 
 river bank the pines caught the infection, and all 
 the trees of the forest laughed until their old ribs 
 cracked. The hoar frost came down in clouds; 
 the very air was thick with ice and snow ; and in 
 the midst of it all the Supermtondent called a 
 halt, and ordered all hands to thuir claii«>-room. 
 
 Then followed the Superinter.dsnt's address :— 
 " Teachers, we have ^-4 a good object lesson in 
 handles, and they are not very effective tools in 
 this forest. Xow, what are handles / I am 
 pleased you are so well equipped. Education is a 
 necessity, as a teacher, so is your dramatic art ; 
 your imagination is also necessary, and you use it 
 effectively in your illustrationa Your knowledge 
 of the lesson, as experienced in your own life, is a 
 great power; but all these — even the love you 
 have for your pupils, and that, I am certain, is 
 not small — is but a handle. 
 
 " I would be glad if all teachers had the equip- 
 ment you have ; but the bill is not filled, the forest 
 would not come down. This want is felt in other 
 quarters beside the North Land. In the east 
 there arc clergymen who profess to preach the 
 
THE NORTH LAND HCHOOL ft 
 
 ' unsearchable riches,' with the hont eduoation the 
 schoolH can afford, and they give leame<l t-asays on 
 the higher criticism, and hold Sun. lay evening 
 concerts, while the people are in the swamp. 
 What is ti.e remedy ? • Not by ...ij^ht nor power, 
 but by my Spirit, saith the Lord.' Job said] 
 'Thou hast garnished the heavens with thy 
 Spirit' Elisha, ' Qive me a double portion of thy 
 Spirit.' Jesus Christ said. ' Tarry ut Jerusalem 
 until endued with power from on high.' Now, 
 will you pay the price? All our work is a 
 labor of love ; the price for this necessity in your 
 life and work is an absolute surrender of self. 
 • I beseech you.' says Paul. • that ye present your 
 bodies, a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto 
 Ood, which is your reasonable service.' 
 
 " Present yourselves ; give yourselves ; and then 
 like the potter with *,he clay. He will mould you 
 to His own use. and make you a tit vessel for His 
 royal presenc. Teachers, we liavo been together 
 through years of trial ; you know your wants as 
 much as I do, and it is. perhaps, now or never. 
 This is a time of deeds; words are idle things. 
 We hide our thouj/hts with words ; but deeds tell 
 for all time. What do we know of men or nations 
 but their deeds ? Deeds are the loudest things of 
 which we know anything ; they are louder than 
 the thunder's roar, and they reverberate through 
 the ages. The woman gives two mites, all she 
 has, and it is known everywhere. Paul gives 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 himself, and his history reads like a dream that 
 is all true, and to-day Paul is a greater power 
 than when he tabernacled in the flesh. On that 
 awful day of the Crucifixion Jesus Christ gave 
 Himself ; and that act is peopling Heaven ; and His 
 life is the greatest power the universe has ever 
 known. 
 
 "The devout men say the death of Our Saviour 
 has not only purchased pardon for a fallen race, 
 but it gives men the power to die to all sin. 
 They live most who are most useful; they live 
 longest who live best. We want one hour of deeds 
 to fit us for a life of usefulness and the life ever- 
 lasting. 'He that loseth his life for My sake 
 shall save it.' Now, teachers, a life hid with 
 Christ in Qod is your privilege, and your duty. 
 You want it ? Will you pay the price NOW ? " 
 
 Mr. Jinks, a very hopeful teacher, a man who 
 was always going to do something, took the floor. 
 He was like old To-morrow, his deeds were always 
 in the future. " Mr. Superintendent, I am deeply 
 in sympathy with what you have said ; you are 
 the right man in the right place ; we need a man 
 to lead us on to better things, I am with you 
 through thick and thin, I will pay the price — in 
 fact, I have been praying along that line for years. 
 Just this morning at family worship my petition 
 was, 'Create in me a clean heart, O God, and 
 renew a right spirit within me.' " 
 
 " Whtn will you pay the price, Mr. Jinks ? " 
 said the Superintendent. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 7 
 
 " Oh ! pretty soon ; my iniud is about made up ; 
 in fact, my intention has been growing stronger 
 on this question for years." 
 
 " Mr. Jinks, it will not do. It's now or never. 
 
 ' I know of a land where the streets are paved 
 
 With the things we meant to achieve ; 
 It is walled with the money we meant to have save<1 , 
 
 And the pleasures for which we grieve. 
 The kind words unspoken, the promises broken, 
 
 And many a coveted boon. 
 Are stowed away there in that land somewhere — 
 
 The land of " Pretty Soon." 
 
 ' There are uncut jewels of possible fame 
 
 Lying about in the dust. 
 And many a noble and lofty aim 
 
 Oovered with mould and rust. 
 And oh ! this place, while it seems so near, 
 
 Is farther away than the moon. 
 Though our purpose is fair, yet we never get there — 
 
 To the land of "Pretty Soon." 
 
 ' The road that leads to that mystic land 
 
 Is strewn with pitiful wrecks, 
 And the ships that have sailed for its shining strand 
 
 Bear skeletons on their decks. 
 It is farther at noon than it was at dawn, 
 
 And farther at night than at noon ; 
 O let us beware of that land down there — 
 
 The land of " Pretty Soon." ' 
 
 " It is now or never. Away off in fair Ontario 
 there are people who have been praying for this 
 
8 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 / ■ 
 
 equipment since Confederation, but have never 
 paid the price, and they are dissatisfied yet. Year 
 after year the petition goes up, and along with that 
 petition there is a stubborn will, and the good Lord 
 who is waiting to be gracious cannot answer, 
 because we will not let Him. On all sides men are 
 resisting God. Teachers, let us quit our meanness, 
 and let the potter have His way." 
 
 At this stage the youngest lady-teacher in the 
 school got up, saying, " I will pay the price now." 
 Then the devotional committee, consisting of three 
 male and three female teachers, volunteered to 
 surrender. One of the King's Daughters got up 
 next, saying, " I wish I were one thousand times 
 as valuable ; yes, I will pay the price now." 
 
 Mr. Jinks once more got the floor. "Mr. 
 Superintendent, I never felt so mean in all my 
 life ; to see these young ladies, who were girls but 
 yesterday, taking this stand so fearlessly and so 
 honestly, is an object lesson I cannot forget. I 
 present myself now, a Uving sacrifice, and I hope 
 the Lord will accept the oflTering and use me to 
 His honor and glory." 
 
 The Superintendent passed over his penknife, 
 a thing he had used ii' the same way before! 
 " Brother, that is your knife now. As I give you 
 that knife, you must give yourself to God. Carry 
 ,the knife in your pocket ; and every time you feel 
 it or think of it, please remember you are not 
 your own, you are bought with a price. Owner- 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 9 
 
 ship and control go together ; you own the knife 
 and you control it. Brother, when God owns you 
 completely, He will control you; and the way of life 
 will have no fear in it, and the unclean thing will 
 take its departure from your inner life forever. 
 Thirteen teachers have paid the price, but thirteen 
 strands are a small rope, and there are fifty teach- 
 ers in th's school." 
 
II 
 
 SKELETOhr 
 
 "IjjTE have now to draw your attention to a 
 ^ character that is known all through that 
 country. Look at him carefully, for he is every 
 inch a man; tall, very thin, sun tanned and wind- 
 tanned, with small, twinkling eyes that are never 
 at rest. He is a man with a histor and the his- 
 tory of this man, James John, Esquire, is the history 
 of the North Land Settlement, and the North Land 
 City, and the North Land School. It was believed 
 he had Indian blood in his veins ; at any rate, he 
 was the friend of the red man. His home was 
 north from the city, on the prairie, over the river ; 
 it could be discerned from the top of the school, 
 and it was often seen by the boys, who all had a 
 welcome there. "Jim John" was the name by 
 which he generally went, but the Indian boys 
 called him "King John"— he kept them in 
 boots, moccasins, and everything necessary to 
 fit them for attendance at his greatest idol, the 
 school. The white boys called him " Uncle John," 
 for he was an uncle to all the poor children when 
 in need of help. 
 
 In the spring, as regularly as the clover 
 blossoms appeared, he would call on the Super- 
 intendent, Mr. Blank, either at his office or 
 
 10 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 11 
 
 home, with this little speech: "Mr. Superinten- 
 dent, my wife and I are artists of no mean 
 ability; we love to paint peaches on boys' 
 cheeks. Now please send us a half dozen of 
 the leanest, poorest, unhappiest boys in the 
 school to spend tho summer with us; you know 
 my boys are all girls." The law for the govern- 
 ment of the boys on the farm was short and to 
 the point: " You must all be on hand for morning 
 and evening prayers; you must eat three meals 
 a day ; the boy that goes to bed hungry must go 
 back home." Before the boys came, there was 
 always a cheque for the Superintendent to get 
 anything necessary. There is a history about 
 Jim John's cheques ; the signature was unlike any 
 signature presented at the ISorth Land bank; 
 there was plenty of ink used, but what the 
 signature was, no person could tell that did not 
 know it; but it would empty the bank, if neces- 
 sary. The Superintendent had a whole bundle 
 of these cheques not cashed ; he never used them 
 ir he could avoid it, but every time they met, 
 Jim John would hand another over, saying, " Just 
 fill in the amount yourself, there is no telling 
 what may spring up with some of these young- 
 sters, and you know my boys are all girls." 
 
 One day he called to see Mr. Blank and he 
 seemed excited. He said, "Brother, I have got 
 an idea." " Well, let us have it." said Mr. Blank ; 
 " your ideas are worth attention." 
 
12 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 " I have been thinking," snid Jim John, " that 
 we could have a livery stable under the school : 
 I mean, in the basement. You see the rich man's 
 boy rides a wheel, and the poor man's boy would 
 enjoy one just as much as the other ; now, what 
 is the matter with having a dozen of the best 
 aud strongest wheels placed there in racks, for 
 the use of the boys who are poor? No person 
 would know who is the author of the idea, or 
 who provides the funds. Now, if you think it 
 wise, here is a cheque which you can fill out to 
 the amount required." 
 
 The Superintendent was heartily in sympathy 
 with the movement; but, in spite of his closed 
 lips, the boys soon found out the author of the 
 idea and the provider of the wheels, and there 
 was no place for an objective point like 
 Jim John's ranch. Once a year the old veteran 
 would go to Ontario, the rich Province to the 
 south, to take in the fall fairs, and he was gene- 
 rally gone two or three weeks. Before starting 
 he made a rule of calling to give Mr. Blank a 
 cheque. " You know, brother, there is no telling 
 what is going to happen in two weeks." One time 
 the Superintendent put up a trick on him. after 
 considerable trouble, and this is the way it was 
 done: 
 
 It was known that Uncle John was going to 
 the south for his usual holiday on a Monday even- 
 ing; and, as it was necessary for him to drive 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 18 
 
 I 
 
 to the city to catch the midnight train, he would 
 leave the ranch about eleven o'clock. The Super- 
 intendent got twelve of the best boy-singers in 
 the school to meet him in the basement night 
 after night, and there they practised riding in a 
 circle until proficient ; and then he trained them 
 to sing a hymn while riding. To every wheel 
 was attached a red, white and blue lamp, with a 
 cover to hide the light, which could be shown at 
 will. Monday night came, as it always comes, 
 and -the Superintendent was at the ranch to bid 
 Jim John farewell. The boys outside were per- 
 fectly still; the house was all alight, and the 
 inmates were at family worship. Everybody 
 could hear the old veteran, as he committed 
 family, school, and himself, to the care of " Him 
 who never slumbers nor sleeps " ; it is said the 
 old man could sometimes be heard at the next 
 concessioa Bye and bye, Nick, the servant- 
 man, who was in the scheme, led the horse 
 and family carriage away from the gate far 
 enough to allow ample room for a roadway on 
 either side ; and then the lamps commenced to 
 fly around them in a circle. 
 
 Jim John said, " It is Elijah's chariot come 
 for you, brother." 
 
 "No, it's a mistake; it's for you," said the 
 Superintendent. 
 
 Then from a dozen young voices was heard 
 the hymn, " God be with you till we meet again " ; 
 
14 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 around and around they went until the whole 
 hymn was sung. During the song the old man 
 was continually saying, "God bless the young 
 rascals, God bless the young rascals." As the 
 hymn was finished, the boys jumped from their 
 wheels, and, forming in a circle, gave three cheers 
 for Uncle John. The coyotes out on the prairie 
 were as frightened as if all the hounds in the 
 North Land were after them. The last words of 
 the old man were to his wife—" Jane, whatever 
 you do. keep plenty of pumpkin pies on hand 
 while I am away, in case those young rascals 
 come out." 
 
 But we must go back to the class-room, for Jim 
 John has the floor. Whenever he spoke, you 
 could hear a pin drop ; he always had an experi- 
 ence. As soon as a Christian has no experience, it 
 is safe to say he is not doing much at it. The 
 first thing was to get his red bandana ready— 
 " Mr. Superintendent, I often feel mean, but I can 
 hardly remember when I felt so mean as to-day. 
 I was a teacher in this school before some of these 
 young ladies were bom; I was Superintendent 
 also before many of you took any interest in Sun- 
 day School work. Here I am, like an old wreck 
 on the shores of Time; and every bone in my 
 body seems to prompt me to be a man, but I can't. 
 I am deeply touched with the noble step so many 
 have taken, I feel it is real on their part, and I 
 know it is the path of victory for every individual 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 15 
 
 and for the school. My make-up is different than 
 yours, and my experience is full of failure. In 
 fact, I have a skeleton in my cupboard— a skeleton 
 as old as my memory of anything good, a skeleton 
 that has given me the heart-ache many and many 
 a time ; no matter how I watch and pray, and 
 what resolves I make, he will not stay down. Mr. 
 Superintendent, I do not want to look like a hypo- 
 crite and so far I have not been one ; but if I take 
 the step the others have taken, I shall fall again, 
 and will cause a scandal and a slur on the deepest 
 experience of the heart. Let me tell you, if you 
 please, how I get tripped up, and you will see, and 
 the teachers will see, that my want of action on 
 this occasion is not from cowardice, but is the 
 wisest thing I can do. To start on— I have 
 always had a hot temper, and, under some circum- 
 stances, it seems uncontrollable. We will go to 
 work on the farm in the morning after family 
 worship, and I will be at peace with everybody 
 and everything. During the afternoon, perhaps, 
 the mules may kick over the traces, and then I 
 will flare up ; Nick, my man, will come along, and 
 I will say something cross to him. After a while, 
 I get ashamed, and I go over and say, ' Nick I am' 
 awfully sorry for what I said to you ; will you 
 please forgive me V Nick smiles all over his great 
 broad face and says ' All right. Boss, it isn't you ; 
 Its the old man.' Crestfallen, I go up into the 
 hay mow ; and then, with cries and tears, I tell 
 
16 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 1 
 
 the good Lord what a fool I have been, and ask 
 forgiveneee; and come down with the peace of 
 God, 'which passeth all understanding/ all com- 
 parison, and all illnstration. as my portion. And 
 then, strange to relate, somnthing goee wrong; 
 and, though I try so hard to contain myself, yet 
 I speak out sharply to Nick, and of course, must 
 apologize again. What a good man Nick is ! he 
 never flares up, he only says ' All right, Boss, it's 
 the old man ; ' and it has been the ' old man ' ever 
 since he came to the farm. Nearly every week 
 day, for years, I have had to go to the hay mow ; 
 up in that quiet place, alone with Ood, I have ex- 
 perienced many a Waterloo of victory ; from that 
 upper room, I have come down to walk with God, 
 my soul continually on its knees ; but the ' old 
 man ' is not dead, and without any premonition 
 he reasserts himself, and the whole outlook is 
 changed. The west was bathed in gold, the birds 
 sang a hymn of praise, ' Peace on earth and ffood- 
 will to men ; ' I seemed to be in love with every- 
 body and everything ; then again the sky looks 
 angry, it is 'blue Monday ' or ' black Friday,' and 
 the change is instantaneous. The skeleton in my 
 cupboard is the ' old man,' and he won't die." 
 
 "Mr. Jim John," said the Superintendent, 
 " your story is a thrilling one ; and I myself sym- 
 pathize with you deeply, for I have been there 
 also. Your difficulty is too deep for human effort; 
 it requires the hand and touch of Omnipotence. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 17 
 
 you must watdi »nd pray, for if an ftof^l live«| 
 here it would be necessary ; but, watch and pray 
 as we win. the traito- iu the heart will aasert hiuT- 
 self. Absolute, unconditional surrender is the 
 price that will drive this traitor out. Forts are 
 safe from outside attack, but the foe inside the 
 walls unlocks the ^ate, lets down the bars, and lo ! 
 the enemy is in. When you pay the price, this 
 will be your experience-you will have tempta- 
 tions in abundance, but they will all be on the out- 
 side ; you will know positively that your heart is 
 pure and the 'pure in heart see God.' Brother 
 Jim John, please believe what I am saying, pay 
 the price the same way you pay for everythii.if 
 else one hundred per cent, consecration, and the 
 Hkeleton that has saddened your life so many times 
 will march off down the street, his old bones rat- 
 tling m the wind, and he will bury himself in 
 oblivion, never more. I hope, to be resurrected." 
 
 Brother Jim John got up to reply, and there 
 was not a dry eye in the room. " Mr. Superin- 
 tendent and comrades, as much as I know how I 
 otter myself to God. I'll do what He tells me to do 
 1 11 go where He leads me, even if it is to ridicule or 
 to death ; and I hope you will all help me. if human 
 help can be of any use in such a critical case " 
 
 " Praise the Lord ! " came from all over the 
 room. 
 
 Mr. Burnip, a man «ho very rarely spoke in a 
 meeting, got the floor, to the surprise of everybody. 
 
1ft 
 
 THK NORTH LAND KOHOOL 
 
 " Mr. Huperintendeni, thi>i m a qaeer world ; light, 
 M it inoreMea, reveals the diiferenee between what 
 ia a real and what is a fictitious value. I am, it is 
 currently reported, and perhaps truly reported, 
 the wealthiest man (in the world's estimation), 
 there is in the North country ; and yet perhaps 
 there are none here so poor as to do me reverence. 
 I own all the cattle on the prairie branded with 
 my initials, though I do not know their number ; 
 I have been blessed with wonderful success in my 
 business, but have never had enough ; I have always 
 wanted a little more. My wife says I am getting 
 harder as I get older, and I think now I am su old 
 man, for I have (tassed three score. I have no 
 family; and, as a school and church, you know 
 little of nie; I have lived to make money and have 
 been very succet-aful When I look over this 
 audience, and see the step you are taking, I feel 
 that I am the poorest person in the house; you 
 can pay the price but I cannot afford it I am 
 proud of my wealth, I love money because it is 
 money. In my youth, I was taught, in school and 
 in church, to make the most of both worlda I 
 experienced a change of heart in my teens, after 
 some weeks was admitted to church membership, 
 and for a while everything went well. For about 
 a year I tried to be of some use, took considerable 
 interest in other people, if they were nice; but 
 then I gradually lost interest in everything but 
 buying and selling cattle. I have always kept up 
 
THE NOHTH LAND HCHOOL 1» 
 
 my meiubowhip in the chnrch (m a iimttfr of 
 policy— to provide for the other world), have 
 given to its support what to some peopTe wf.uM 
 ■eein a large sum, but to me it was never felt and 
 I deserve no credit for being charitable. I have 
 Uught in the school lately because I have enjoyed 
 teaching bright young ladies ; their fresh faces 
 and their cheerful, innocent voices have been more 
 pleasant to me than poring over account books 
 Sunday afternoons. They come out to my home 
 some times, and they think I am conferring a 
 favor, while the favor is all the other way for 
 they make my home so bright with their presisnce 
 and cheer my wife and me so I forg6t about 
 cattle, the rise and fall in the price of beef, and 
 other questions which fill my mind to the exclu- 
 sion of everything better. Pride of wealth and 
 position seem to have killed all the flowers of 
 beauty and of value in my hearf. and to-day I am 
 the poorest person in this audience. I have often 
 thought I would commence, some day, to live; 
 other people have thought the same thing, for we 
 all believe there is abundant life, deep, inexpressible 
 spiritual life to be enjoyed on the earth ; but, Mr.' 
 Superintendent, I have gone too far. I don't 
 think I can turn back; in place of making so 
 much of this world, I should have been seeking 
 first the 'Kingdom of God and His Righteousness ' 
 all the time. My membership in the church I 
 realize to-day, is a hindrance to its progress. 
 
20 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 People can say—' There goes Mr. Burnip, a Chris- 
 tian, and he can drive the hardest bargain of any 
 man in the city and he is a millionaire.' The 
 money I pay you will not counteract my worldly 
 life ; I must resign my position in the school and in 
 the church to be as honest as the rest of this 
 audience." 
 
 Mr. Blank spoke as follows : " Brother, your 
 confession is, I think, the best action of your life, 
 but we all can say you are harder on yourself than 
 if you were judging some other person. Your 
 case is far from hopeless. Now, suppose the young 
 man that was very rich, who went away sorrow- 
 ful because of the asked-for sacrifice of his wealth, 
 was in this room, what would you say to him ? " 
 
 " This is what I would say," replied Mr. Bur- 
 nip : " 'Young man, you were foolish ; when Jesus 
 Christ commanded you to go and sell all you had 
 and give to the poor, you should have done it. He 
 was the Maker of this world ; His favor was of 
 more value than all the wealth of tho Indies, and 
 He was here on earth in your presence.' " 
 
 " Now," said the Superintendent, " please take 
 that message home to yourself, for Jesus Christ is 
 as much here as He was in Jerusalem, though not 
 in physical form, and I assure you that when you 
 pay the price you will substantiate that statement 
 in your own case from the every-day experience of 
 the nearness of God. All this wealth is not yours; 
 you are but the steward to give an account of the 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 21 
 
 use you have made of that money. This may 
 seem strong language from a man as poor as I am 
 but think it out for yourself. The young man in 
 the Bible was sorrowful, for he was young ; he 
 might have lived fifty years to enjoy this wealth. 
 On your own statement of your age, how long do 
 you expect to carry the burden of looking after a 
 million dollars ? Brother, the happiness you have 
 the power to bestow might be envied by the angels 
 before the throne. I do hope, for your own sake, 
 you will rise to the emergency, die to self and for 
 the rest of your days live the life more abundant, 
 the life that God gives, clear, happy, joyous life- 
 intense life ; for, after all, life is the most earnest 
 thing of which we know anything. Lay yourself 
 on the altar, and the fire of God's Spirit will burn 
 out the pride, and the love of money, and every- 
 thing mean and little, and you will be a new ma'n. 
 whose look and walk will make you a light that 
 cannot be hidden. If you will be guided by my 
 advice you will never, never regret it ; life will bo 
 a song of victory in place of a dry lesson in arith- 
 metic Now is the constant syllable ticking from 
 the clock of time ; now is the watchward of the 
 wise ; now is the banner of the prudent. Brother 
 now 18 the only time for you ; that 'now'iH you.^' 
 and in your case it appears to be ' now' or ' never} 
 will you pay the price-an actual, unconditional 
 surrender of time, money, cattle, lands, and of 
 yourself, once for all ? " 
 
33 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 " Mr. Superintendent, the young man went 
 away sorrowful, for he had much wealth. The 
 way you have put this question has made the 
 matter plainer than ever before, and while you 
 have been speaking, the Spirit has been showing 
 me myself in such a sorry plight that I am glad to 
 get rid of the ownership of a vampire that has 
 sucked the spiritual life-blood from me for years. 
 Henceforth I hope to be a steward, to use this 
 wealth, which has never been mine, as God would 
 have me use it In the interest of the community 
 at large of my cowboys on the prairie, and of the 
 church, I ask for a committee of two or three to 
 help me dispose of this money to the best advan- 
 tage." At this stage the audience sang "Praise 
 God, from whom all blessings flow." 
 
 Then Miss Martin, a wealthy, cultured lady, 
 rose to her feet. She was as handsome as a 
 Madonna, and as cold as an iceberg. " Mr. Super- 
 intendent, I have a skeleton also ; but, unlike that 
 of the others, it cannot be reached by any known 
 remedy. I am pleased with the action our teach- 
 ers have taken ; it is just like them, and they will 
 do everything their action indicates, but I am a 
 superficial girl. I have gone to consecration 
 services in church and in league until it is all 
 formal with me, and I thought we were all alike ; 
 I see we are not. I am sorry I cannot be really in 
 earnest about anything. Oh ! if I could only be as 
 real a woman as the sisters who have taken this 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 28 
 
 Step ! My parents have been at a great expense 
 for my education, and when I graduated from 
 college I was. put to the study of music; you all 
 know my ability as a singer. I do not know that 
 I have been of any use to anybody, have taught 
 in school as a disagreeable duty, for it is now 
 fashionable to be a Sunday School teacher. I feel 
 deeply humiliatod at the useless life I have lived, 
 and I can say with far more truth than Mr. Jim 
 John could, that I am heartily ashamed of my.self. 
 
 ' Oh, to be nothing, nothing, 
 
 Only to be at His feet, 
 A broken and emptied vessel, 
 
 For the Master's use made meet ! ' 
 
 I use this language often, although I mean very 
 little of it. If I did I do not think my name 
 would be on the programme for two concerts next 
 week before fashionable audiences in two fine 
 churches. I ride horseback a great deal through 
 the Stoney Indian reservation, and I have often 
 thought what a pleasure could be given those poor 
 people if I sang to them some of the songs of Zion. 
 But the good I would do and could do I leave 
 undone, and the evil I would not that I da Now, 
 next week I feel that I ought to sing for the 
 thoughtless people before whom I expect to stand, 
 something to take their minds from this world 
 and its fleeting values ; I have thought of ' Depth 
 of mercy, can there be mercy still reserved for me'; 
 
34 
 
 r 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 also, ' Jesus, I my cross have taken,' but the cross 
 is right here, and I am not equal to it. What 
 ridicule would be mine were I to sing with pathos 
 and feeling 'What a friend we have in Jesus '; I 
 am afraid the audience with its silks, satins, flow- 
 ers and jewelry would think I was crazy. I wish 
 I were real. In what a superficial world some of 
 us live ! The solo in the church receives more 
 attention than the message from Heaven. Mr. 
 Blank, I cannot fill the bill ; so, as I do not believe 
 in shams, I must tender my resignation, for which 
 I feel very sorry. Some of the best people I 
 know in the world are on the staff of this school, 
 and our relations have always been pleasant. 
 There is one thing for which I will ever feel grate- 
 ful, and that is the profit of their company, for I 
 assure you if it had not been for their example I 
 should have made shipwreck of what little faith I 
 had years ago. There is one kindness I can never 
 forget: when I made my first appearance as a 
 singer the staff of the school stood by me and 
 encouraged me by every means in their power. 
 Since those days I have had many successes as the 
 world considers them, plaudits loud and long 
 from audiences all over the broad land, but they 
 are of no value to me; they do not satisfy the soul. 
 The Rread of Heaven is the food alone for which I 
 hunfifer. I wish I were a real, earnest woman, like 
 the sisters who have so nobly borne their part in 
 this school, and have stepped so high in their 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 20 
 
 experience in this one eventfrl, never-to-be-forgot- 
 ten hour. I heartily endorse your remarks, Mr. 
 Blank, about deeds ; the deeds of this day will be 
 felt all through the length and breadth of the 
 North Land. Now, teachers, farewell. I know 
 you are going up because you have gone down ; 
 we stoop to conquer, and victory will be your 
 portion continually. As for myself, time will tell. 
 I shall always be glad of having known you; 
 please remember me in prayer occasionally,* and 
 as much as I know how I shall imitate your 
 every-day walk." 
 
 The Superintendent got up. "Miss Martin, 
 there is not a teacher nor an officer in the room' 
 but will suffer the deepest grief if you leave us 
 the way you intend. You have been honest and 
 smcere in your statement of your difficulty, and in 
 so doing you have come up to the standard as well 
 as any of us. The lack of sincerity, which you so 
 deeply deplore, can be overcome. Satan is an able 
 enemy; and, in keeping you from taking this 
 step, he has played his last and best card. Nr,w 
 Miss Martin, I have known you from childhood' 
 and am deeply interested in your experience, and 
 I assure you there is really no . .ficulty beyond 
 a remedy. Just as much as you know how, give 
 yourself; and, if you cannot be real, just be as 
 real as you can ; your circumstances are difficult 
 but the good Lord knows all about your case' 
 .*ud the 'present help in the time of trouble' 
 will be your help." 
 
96 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 Misi Martin arose ooce more. "Mr. Blank, 
 your character is such that anything you say 
 carries great weight with me, and, in fact, with 
 every member of the school. I obey, and present 
 myself; and I hope the King I have so poorly 
 served will give me the power to be as honest, 
 as sincere, and as earnest as the sisters who have 
 preceded me." 
 
 Mr. Johnstone, the best-natured man in the 
 North Land, rose to speak. " Mr. Superintendent 
 and teachers, I never in my life was at a service 
 so deeply interesting, so thrilling, as the present 
 one ; and if I have to be as honest as my pre- 
 decessors have been, I must tender my resigna- 
 tion. My feelings, I imagine, must be akin to 
 those Adam experienced, when he was driven out 
 of the garden of Eden. You talk about skele- 
 tons; but I have one that I have hidden for 
 years. I am ashamed of it, and so, if you will 
 allow me to retire from the teaching staff, it will 
 save me much pain and a great fall in the esti- 
 mation of every person present Please let me 
 go now, for I cannot pay the price, and there is no 
 remedy for me known to science or religion. Will 
 you try to feel kindly towards me? I know, if I 
 had to unlock my skeleton, I should lose the 
 respect of every teacher in the school." 
 
 Mr. Blank said : " Brother Johnstone, I know 
 all about your skeleton, though I suppose none of 
 the teachers have ever thought of it. The 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 27 
 
 difficulty in your case has been experienced in 
 my own, and the best thing you can do is to make 
 a clean breast of it. This meeting is a gathering 
 of Christian men and women; your secret will 
 be. safe here; and I assure you we are deeply 
 anxious for you to stay with us; I am certain. also, 
 that the skeleton, no matter how strong and oldi 
 can be sent away with the rest." 
 
 Mr. Johnstone said, " Friends and comrades in 
 many a hard day's work, do not condemn me 
 altogether, when I unveil this thing that has been 
 hidden so long. My secret is an old skeleton, a 
 strong skeleton, stronger than I am, for I have 
 wrestled with him many a time, and he has 
 always overcome me, and gained the victory. 
 When I pet out on the prairie, where there is no 
 boy to learn from me, and no person to know me, 
 I have a comfortable smoke, and it is a real 
 comfort too. I do not smoke for asthma, bron- 
 chitis or indigestion ; I smoke because I like it. 
 Now, every teacher will say right away, that the 
 wisest course out of the difficulty is to quit the 
 habit at once, and with one stroke to rid myself 
 of this nauseous idol. How easy it is to say that ! 
 Words are so easily Fpoken ; but this is a meeting 
 for deeds, and words will not suffice. In the art 
 of quitting this habit, I am a star of the first 
 naagnitude; I am the champion quitter, having 
 given It up more frequently than any other person 
 m the broad land. I have quit for conscience' 
 
ill 
 
 M THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 aake frequently, and as many more times in 
 consideration of other people's fe€.ing8; I have 
 often quit on the New Year's morning. I have quit 
 in the summer, in the winter, in the spring, and 
 in the fall; but I have never lost the appetite for 
 nicotine. I suppose you all despise me now ; but 
 what am I to do ? I am helpless to help myself, 
 and this seems to be a case in which prayer has 
 no effect." 
 
 The Superintendent then said : " Brother John- 
 stone, the honest way in which you have stated 
 your difficulty ought to be a lesson to us all ; this 
 18 certainly an hour of deeds, of which none are 
 braver than your act in telling your trouble. I 
 understand the hankering and the hungering 
 when every nerve in the body is begging to be 
 fed, and I am certain there is a remedy. How often 
 has your faith carried you over difficulties that were 
 like mountains in the way : difficulties that we 
 know woul(^ have staggered any other person in 
 the school ! The trouble in this instance is that 
 you are too aware of your own weakness, and, in 
 looking at your feeble will, you lose sight of the 
 power of Omnipotence. Your past trials should 
 have increased your faith, for along other lines 
 there are none of us who have so often been 
 victorious. In fact, we would all learn of you 
 The case stands this way; if a great difficulty 
 was in the way, we would say, ' Brother Johnstone 
 this IS too hard for us; will you please pray u 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 29 
 
 way out'; and many times your mighty faith has 
 saved the scholar and helped the school. You are 
 m just such a dilemma where you cannot help 
 yourself Now here are fifty praying Christian 
 men and women, who will exercise more faith 
 to-day than ever they did in all their experience. 
 X am going to ask every person in this room to 
 make your case the object of their most earnest 
 petitions; and, if you do not resist the will of 
 God, I feel certain before the week is over all the 
 desire will be taken away. This is not a hard 
 task, when you take into consideration the fact 
 tm Omnipotence has been used with power in 
 similar cases. We are all children of God, and we 
 are all interested in your welfare. We will just 
 claim the promise, that what we are agreed on 
 must be done. How simple it all is ! Brother 
 Johnstone pay the price, and I will guarantee the 
 ^d Idol, the skeleton of your life, will leave 
 Now for the result : your health will be better- the 
 old, morbid feeling of years will be absent; your 
 disposition, which is naturally hopeful, will be 
 more so than ever it was; conscience, which has 
 troubled you on this question, will give you a 
 rest; and your now useful life will accomplish 
 even more work, and achieve grander results." 
 
 Mr. Johnstone arose, and, with the deepest feel- 
 ing, said, " Comrades, you see my trouble, and you 
 know the remedy. As the Sui>erintendent says I 
 cannot exercise any fai^b on this question ; my 
 
80 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 liie at preawut in in your ImmU How powerful 
 p»yer is ! What a responsibility reats on human 
 beings I ' Am I my brother's keeper ? ' has come 
 down through the ages, and the answer is always 
 ' yes.' How wide is human influence ! How far- 
 reaching ! It has stirred oven Heaven. The faith 
 which I cannot exercise for myself, I have gener- 
 ally employed successfully for others. Now it is 
 your turn. I will not throw any hindrances in 
 the way, but will expect, with one stroke of His 
 mighty power, in answer to the prayer of faith, 
 that the old habit and appetite of a life-time will 
 be taken away. I give myself, with this foolish 
 habit, to God, and ask the Lord to take me as 
 I am, and own, and control me from this day for- 
 ward." 
 
 Ruby Bill, a cowbo}', hurriedly jumped to his 
 feet " Mr. Superintendent, I ain't used to making 
 speeches, they ain't in my line ; but I feel more 
 excited than if I was in a cattle stampede. Guess 
 I will look foolish to you all; but something is 
 forcing me to talk, before the best audience I ever 
 saw. I can say that I never met such earnest 
 people as you all seem to be. My life has been 
 spent in the saddle, I don't know how to talk 
 church talk ; but we wild men of the plains are 
 just the people to know men and women that are 
 good gold, and I never saw so much real gold 
 together at one time. I have taught a few lessons 
 in your school, so, when in the forest, cutting, this 
 
THE NOKTR LAND HCHOOL 81 
 
 morning, I learneU the lei«on for next auuilay- 
 It WM plain enough even for a cowboy. My 
 object in standing before you is for myself and 
 wmrades to enter a denial of that setting-out our 
 boHs has given himself. At our camp fires, we 
 talk so kindly of Mr. Burnip; when any of the 
 boys are hurt by the cattle or horses, it is to the 
 master's house we are taken; and we all feel 
 towards the missus as boys feel towards their 
 mother. When one of our chums gets on a jam- 
 bouree. and takes to mischief in the city, we ride 
 up and surround him. and take his pistols and 
 asso away, and then, keeping close to him, we 
 lead him out on to the prairie, and keep him there 
 until he is sober. Now. Mr. Burnip has said 
 things about himself which are not true We 
 would go through fire and water for him • we 
 never knew a better boss; for. though he ain't the 
 preaching sort, wo know he is gold without any 
 telling. He is u man every inch of him, and if 
 the boys were here, and we knew enough we 
 would corral him so he could not say mean things 
 aoout himself. I ain't a regular teacher, I ain't fit 
 to teach at all; but the bass gives me the papers 
 and I generally read up the lesson ; but I wish I 
 could know a little more myself before tryin^r to 
 teach the young una Mr. Superintendent, ''you 
 will think I am pretty cheeky to talk so much 
 to-day but you are all so kind and so honest I 
 would like to tell you about myself, for I. too am 
 

 8*i 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 in trouble. The school used to nin^, ' There'i* a 
 widenen in Qod's mercy like the widenetts of the 
 ■ea,' and so one midnight, a year ago, I was born 
 attain on the prairie, where I waf all alone, lending 
 an ear and an eye for the cattle, but thinking as 
 hard as if the top of my head wan coming off. If 
 they had only sung ' like the widenesti of the 
 prairie ' I could have understood it ; but I never 
 saw the sea; I knew it was wider than the 
 plains ; and so I thought perhaps there was mercy 
 for the cowboy. I was certain there was mercy 
 for other people ; but I felt so wicked, so con- 
 demned. Oh ! if there had only been somebody at 
 that camp who could have told me what to do! 
 But for miles and miles there was no one to whom 
 I dare apply for direction. In my extremity, I 
 remembered the prayer of the publican, and so, 
 out loud, I repeated that simple petition, and I 
 felt better ; 8u, taking fresh courage, I once 
 more asked for mercy, und like a flash in the 
 darkness, I was a new man. On account of the 
 cattle being restless, ten of us were stationed in a 
 semi-circle, about one half a mile apart, all 
 facing the river, which was to the south ; and, as I 
 felt the wonderful change, I had to sing, shout, or 
 do something in that line, so I started singing the 
 flrsr. verse of that hymn ; but, as I knew no more 
 of it, I repeated it over and over, until the eastern 
 sky was tipped with gold. The west wind carried 
 it to the next patrol, who caught the refrain, and 
 
THE NOHTH LAND HOHOOL 88 
 
 sang it al8o, and the Name me«Haj;o wliicli I had 
 received from the school was carried by the wind 
 and repeated by the cowboys until we all knew 
 the one verse. At noon, the next day. at the 
 general camp, the question of the hymn came up 
 and I was accused of bein- the originator of the 
 singing That was the time to be a hero; but. you 
 know. I ain't built that way. so I just told the 
 boys what had happened, and. being very tender- 
 hearted. I had to cry during the recital Of 
 course they said I was • a tenderfoot/ • a morocco- 
 bound, psalm-singing gentleman,' and 'certainly a 
 parson/ • but I would never be of any more use as 
 a cowboy.' They have called me ' the weeping 
 «ky-p,lot, and ' the hero that can't keep his eyes 
 from sweating,' but I think they would really 
 sooner have me as I am if I was not such an 
 arrant coward. I have never touched the cards 
 since that day. nor drunk any liquor; I think 
 I have some influence with my comrades, but I am 
 so awfully frightened to speak out as I could and 
 should. Is there such a thing as a church-arsenal 
 where cowards can lay in a supply of courage to' 
 fat them for saying what they feel, for there is 
 nothing I know of that I would not do for those 
 large-hearted, rough 'children of the prairie V" 
 
 As Ruby Bill sat down, Mr. Bumip went over 
 
 and Bhook him heartily by the hand, saying 
 
 Brother, you have won all our hearts; your 
 
 unexpected, unprepared speech is the best thing 
 
: . 
 
 I 
 
 84 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 we have heard in a long time. What a revelation 
 to me about my own men ! I thank you heartily 
 for your defence of a poor master ; and your kind 
 words about my wife will, I know, gratify her 
 more than anything she has heard for years. I 
 am not in charge of this meeting ; but Mr. Blank 
 will tell you, and so will every teacher in the 
 room, that the arsenal is here, and that there is an 
 abundant supply of what you are in need." 
 
 Mr. Bumip sat down, and the Superintendent 
 rose, and, walking down to Ruby Bill, who sat, 
 blushing like a schoolgirl, took him by the hand, 
 saying, " Brother, I am so pleased to hear your 
 touching little speech ; every teacher in the room 
 is in sympathy with you ; I think the angels, if 
 they had the power, would encourage you in your 
 search. It is not education, elocution, ' might nor 
 power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord.' I just 
 \/ant you, like the others, to pay the price, an 
 unconditional surrender, a giving of self, a giving 
 of Ruby Bill, and the victory is yours ; the fear of 
 man will leave you ; but the price must be paid 
 now" 
 
 Ruby got up once more, " Mr. Superintendent, 
 I have no home except the prairie and the school, 
 no relations, and but few friends; I have no 
 wealth ; and it is perhaps easier for me than for 
 anybody else to give myself; but I have been 
 afraid that a cowboy is not a fit person to take 
 such a step. If you say it is not cheek, but wis- 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 86 
 
 dom. I will gladly give myself, but with very little 
 hope of being accepted. ^ 
 
 i. "^'''^^''"^'^ Mr. Blank, "you have nothing 
 to do with receiving, for, if you are given away 
 you are not responsible any longer. Ownei^hip 
 and control go hand-in-hand. Don't think about 
 
 His rights, and fill you with His presence then 
 ^o^bye to the fear of man. I do not know any 
 pkce where you can be of more service than on 
 the plains, among your comrades, and with the 
 , Indians. There is no joy like the \JJ 
 iLnA *k^ u- u X . ''^ ''^® J°y o' service. 
 
 andUie h.ghert service, one in which the an<rels 
 
 powerful «, the pl«n. or in the druwing-room, by 
 wLf •'^ or m the simple talk of theStoniee. 
 
 when iUled with the Deity, the influence is intent 
 fled, and is always invariably for good. It is „ot 
 
 ..:,-,/ . * '*''y "^'^'P'"' ">« example of 
 
 Ti^ffiT he r '"'"^"''■- '"'^"""e"* "" 
 
 f«„«r^' J"° """""gi"-; and those Qali. 
 
 l«n fishermen and tax-collecto« kindled the fires 
 
 mJT^I"^' "^"8'' f »'«'«"«. Asia Minor 
 
 et II broadening to^ay ; and on the plains, in the 
 «t,es, and by the wayside, the deepis^ed nL^L 
 «. wmmng Ired. foUowers. They "Ire being w" 
 
86 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 from vice to virtue, from the drunkard's haunt 
 to the home of peace and comfort ; the hard- 
 hearted, money-grinding capitalist is learning that 
 there is something better than money, there is 
 something of more value than self. ' None of self, 
 but all of Thee' might be a motto for every 
 teacher, a safe text for every day. Brother Ruby, 
 do right, though the heavens fall ; be afraid of 
 nothing but sin ; remember that ' around you are 
 the everlasting arms,' and ' the Lord hath set apart 
 him that is godly for Himself.' " 
 
 Over in the corner, perfectly still, but with 
 tear-stained cheek, sat Mrs. Nixon, a lady living 
 on the other side of the river. For years she had 
 been in charge of the " Busy Bees," and she was, 
 with the exception of Jim John, the oldest teacher 
 on the staff; her name was as ointment poui'ed 
 forth. Widowed during her early wifehood, all 
 her energies had been devoted to the good of 
 others, and, like a certain woman of old, her alms 
 and prayers had come up as a memorial before 
 Heaven. Catching the seat before her so as to 
 steady herself she rose to her feet, and briefly told 
 the story of her connection with the school. 
 
 " How many times have we longed for a day 
 like this ! We have been hungering and thirsting 
 for righteousness so long, but we did not pay the 
 price. Meeting time after time during the past 
 twenty-five years, we have resolved we would do 
 this and that, but we have never done it. I my- 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 87 
 
 self realize that all is not right, for I, like the 
 ancient Hebrews, through fear of death, have been 
 in bondage all these years. I had thought my 
 surrender was real until to-day. Though expect- 
 ing the Lord's coming so long, and looking for 
 Him yet, still I am afraid of the cold, dark grave ; 
 those creeping things that destroy the body are 
 often in my mind. Sometimes the thought of 
 dying grace gives me comfort, for I have seen 
 many people, a few hours before death, take on so 
 much hope and new spiritual life, that the grim 
 reaper seemed a friend. Unhappily I cannot find 
 any Scripture to satisfy me on that point, so I 
 must confess that there is a skeleton in my cup- 
 board also." 
 
 Mr. Blank said, "Dear sister, or mother it 
 ought to be, I hope you will not think me pre- 
 sumptuous in attempting to direct one who is the 
 Dorcas of our city, whose life has been a blessing 
 to hundreds of people. Many a minister has said 
 to me that he felt mean and sordid in your pres- 
 ence, and I feel unworthy now. But I think your 
 difficulty can easily be surmounted ; in fact, those 
 people you speak of must have done just as we are 
 doing to-day ; they paid the price, but did it of 
 necessity ; and you, of your own free will, are 
 going to make this thing real; and there is no 
 doubt in my mind that all the fear and bondage 
 will leave you. As a consecrated Christian, it 
 requires far more courage to live than to die ; this 
 
88 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 is the experience of many. ' To live is Christ, to 
 die is gain.' Yon have not lived for self ; all your 
 trouble seems to be in the will, and Satan has been 
 the cause of it all. Now, Uke the brave woman you 
 have alway been, stand up, and by that act give 
 yourself away; and all Satan's efforts will not 
 rob you of the joy there is in the thought of 
 dying." 
 
 Mrs. Nixon rose to her feet once more, amid 
 absolute silence; and then, after collecting herself 
 so as to have strength for her task, she recited in 
 her rich, silvery voice : 
 
 " ' My body, sotd and epirit, 
 Jeans, I give to Thee, 
 A ooneeorated offering, 
 Thine evermore to be. 
 
 • Higher than the highest heavens, 
 
 Deeper than the deepest sea, 
 Lord, Thy love at last has conquered, 
 None <4 self and all of Thee. 
 
 < I'm thine, O blessed Jesus, 
 
 Washed by precious blood ; 
 Now seal me by Thy Spirit, 
 A sacrifice to Qod." 
 
 The next speaker was Mr. Holt, a young mis- 
 sionary to the Indians, who was an occasional 
 teacher in the school. "Mr. Superintendent, 
 though I came into this class-room through curi- 
 osity, I shall never regret it; in fact, I doubt if I 
 
THE NORTH LAND BOHOOL 
 
 89 
 
 shall ever forget it. The subject of surrender hM 
 been with me for a long time ; but I never was 
 able to make it real until lately, and the last 
 three months of my life has been like fairyland. 
 I am a graduate of Toronto University, and 
 many a time, while camping with the Lidians, 
 have I wished to be back in the business world, 
 or some other world, in preference to working so 
 hard without any resulta But lately my words 
 seem to be charged with power I never knew 
 before. I do hope every person present will pay 
 the price, for there are avenues for service on 
 every side, particularly among my red frienda 
 Many a time I have wished Miss Martin would 
 come and sing for the poor people, who, I can 
 promise, will be a most appreciative audience. 
 She could sing such songs as, ' What a Friend we 
 have in Jesus.' The red people are hungry for 
 the Bread of Life ; and oh ! I wish so much some 
 of these teachers would come out of an evening, 
 and for an hour teach the lesson they studied the 
 Sunday previous. There will be the best order, 
 and the most careful attention, if you only speak 
 to them as you would to children." 
 
 At this stage Miss Martin sprang to her feet, 
 saying, "Mr. Superintendent, I have really paid 
 the price ; I will sing for the Indians, and I do 
 hope it will be of service to them. Plaudits and 
 remuneration are of no significance now. I wish 
 to serve ; and. ' Where He leads I'll follow.' " 
 
 mam. 
 
40 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 Mr. Blank rose and said, " Teachers, our time 
 is up; if there is one person in this room who will 
 not pay the price, you will please retire ; we wish 
 to be alone with God with not a discordant heart 
 in our midst Mr. Holt, will you lead us in our 
 petition ? " 
 
Ill 
 
 PRAYER MEET J NO 
 
 TUTR. HOLT'S prayer: "Our Father, Thou hast 
 ^-y^ borne with our divided affecti .as so long; our 
 sinful, selfish lives have been in the road of our 
 progress continually. This meeting has been an 
 hour of deeds, and we ask Thy presence and help, 
 that our part shall be done completely, that when 
 we leave this room, we shall be aware of one fact, 
 never to be forgotten, that we are not our own, we 
 are bought with a price. We ask forgiveness for 
 not seeing the light when it was shining so 
 brightly; we have been looking for straws, and 
 all the time there was a crown awaiting us. We 
 are sorry to-day that the King's children have 
 been feeding on husks, while the new wine, and 
 the old com Wcas proffered. We really do not 
 know how foolish we have been; we have been 
 asking so little, when to ask much would have 
 been the wisest and best course, and the one most 
 pleasing to Thee. Our sins have risen as a thick 
 cloud, darkening the heavens. Though we are all 
 sorry for the past, yet, if we have the control of 
 the future, it will be but the same thing over 
 again. This is an hour of deeds, and, if there 
 is one insubordinate thought in our hearts, please 
 drive it out; oh ! take us and own us for all time 
 
 41 
 
 ■■llllHAHii&f 
 
41 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 »nd for ftU eternity. We plead Hie beautiful life 
 and Hia awful death. We aak that the blood may 
 speak flo loudly that answers shall immediately 
 come down from Thy throne. We know we are 
 Thy children, and we have a right, from Thine 
 own commands, to approach boldly. We are 
 aware of our unvrorthiness, but it was for the 
 unworthy that the sacrifice was made. We are 
 now waiting, in the North Land School, to be 
 accepted by Thee; we are waiting as they waited 
 on another occasion, 'with one accord, in one place •' 
 we desire to be accepted ; • our all is on the altar!' 
 Now, Father, we are going to stay at Thy feet in 
 silence for some time, with one supreme objects 
 the knowledge of our acceptance, for we do give 
 ourselves, and we ask, with aU the faith Thou hast 
 given us, that the sacrifice be accepted, and the 
 witness of the Spirit be given us, so that every 
 person shall know from this day forward that he 
 or she is Thine forever. We are not asking from 
 any selfish motive, but we wish to be fitted for 
 better service. Life is so short, eternity is so long 
 and hell is awful Oh ! hear Thou in Heaven,' 
 Thy dwelling-place, and in mercy and in one 
 more manifestation of Thy wonderful love make 
 us free, free from the old life of sinning and 
 repenting, the old life of fear, the old life of 
 failure. Our Father, not for our great asking, not 
 for our deserving, but because of our extreme 
 necessity and of our great, loving High Priest, 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 48 
 
 hear m, and help as. We are now waiting, 
 expecting Thee. Let every heart be unlocked for 
 Thy entrance ; we think every heart is open ; we 
 know the world is driven out; and if Satan is 
 still hindering anyone, please send aid,- for Thy 
 help gives immediate relief. Our Father, we are 
 asking, and expecting, in the name of Him who 
 gave Himself for us ; and, though sorry our love is 
 so weak, yet we do give ourselves. Accept us 
 now, and give us the answer of peace. Amen." 
 
 A great calm came down; the air seemed 
 charged with silent, earnest prayer, until by-and- 
 bye one teacher after another forgot time and 
 place, and expressions of praise and of thanks- 
 giving filled the room. The noon hour has 
 passed and the shadows from the Rockies are 
 beginning to lengthen; the meeting should be 
 closed, but in such an atmosphere it looked sin- 
 ful. Mr. Blank arose, and, going to the black- 
 board, wrote, " W. H. Blank paid the price, as in 
 Romans 12 and 1, April 10th. 1892. The pastor 
 wrote underneath, "James Williams paid the price, 
 as in Romans 12 and 1, May 1st, 1888." The 
 missionary, Mr. Holt, was the first teacher to go 
 forward, and he signed his name, with the date, 
 "April. 1896." John Jinks also wrote opposite 
 his signature, "November 20th, 1896." The 
 signing went on rapidly until fifty teachers had 
 written their names and the date, "November 
 20th, 1896," when the old chief, Tom the Leopard, 
 
a THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 wishing m show his decision aiso, made a eross on 
 the blackboard, as it was the best he could do. 
 Other names followed, until the last was written, 
 when the Superintendent rose, saying, •• How long 
 do you want your names to stay here ? Don't 
 speak hastily. If your consecration is real, you 
 wiU have lost all fear of what people will say. all 
 fear of the future." 
 
 Miss Martin said, " I don't care how long mine 
 aUys here; I have given myself. I am not my own 
 any more, ' My times are in His hands.' It makes 
 little odds what people think of me; it may stay 
 forever." 
 
 " Amen " came from many voices. 
 
 Here the old veteran, James John, spoke. 
 "Comrades, we have enlisted for all time; this 
 18 the day of days with us, for it is the day 
 of deeda I do not regret my action; I know 
 already that it is the si ame decision of my life 
 I move that our nar i be left on this board 
 until some other means are found to perpetu- 
 ate, for the future members of this school, the 
 fact that the North Land teachers in the year 
 eighteen hundred and ninety-six did surrender 
 themselves to God. Now, self must die, and self 
 will die, and the new resurrection life, 'the life 
 hid with Christ in God' will be our portion" 
 This resolution was carried cheerfully, without 
 one dissenting voice; and so the names were left 
 undisturbed until engraven on the pastor's heart 
 
THE NORTH LAND HOHOOL 
 
 45 
 
 and on the heartM of the people whom they had 
 benefited. 
 
 Though the shadows bad grown long, there 
 wav no eagerness to leave the building, and, as the 
 Superintendent rose to dismiss the assembly from 
 the most momentous meeting they had ever at- 
 tended, there was a sound heard that had never 
 before been heard by mortal man. It was start- 
 ling, because it seemed unearthly; it was deep; 
 and at times it increased to a roar, but ever and 
 anon it faded until it resembled the soughing of 
 the wind through the pines on the banks of the 
 river. Then it sounded like a chorus of deep bass 
 voices, coarse and strong, as if a multitude were 
 talking loudly and all at the same time ; and again 
 it seemed like a nation weeping for a lost king. 
 There was a hush in the claas-room. Mr. Blank 
 understood the noise first, and said, "Teachers, 
 the old elms have ears, and those tall oaks have 
 eyes, so they have both learned of the deeds of 
 this eventful day. An old Oak has told the start- 
 ling news, that the teachers of this school are 
 armed with axes ; and, though the trees have been 
 sentinels to the march of the centuries, they know 
 that their doom is sealed; this startling, weird 
 sound is the wail of the forest. Now, teachers, I 
 never in my life was so proud of you ; and the 
 day has gone all too quickly. You have each 
 done something that will brighten every conscious 
 hour of your existence, and your dreams will be 
 sweet with the nearness of God. When the just 
 
ii 
 
 46 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 n»n sleeps, his soul is in Hearen ; thi» will f« 
 your experience in the future ; hut I love you too 
 much to let you leave without pointing out the 
 two dangers that may entei voir pathway. The 
 one ,s that in your great enjoyment you aw in 
 dat^r of getting fanatical, the other is the tend- 
 - : -conform to the world. 'Be ye not con- 
 I .med, said Paul, 'but be ye transformed/ or 
 I -ansfigured." 
 
 K.,.^**I* Jrief prayer, the meeting was closed, 
 bui the teachers had no wish to retire, though the 
 darkness was clo«e at hand. How much there 
 was to talk about of which they had never 
 dreamed before ! What a BeuUhland is the class- 
 room! How tender their voices I How freely 
 the U^vB come ! There is not a haughty look on 
 any face all the pride has been exterminated. 
 The • old man." the bane of many an anxious 
 heart, has been crucified, and put off to stay off. 
 Humility seems the most noticeable feature in the 
 faces and voices of every person present; any task 
 IS suitable now. But we must leave them, to be 
 the salt, the light, the hope of the North Land 
 TTie day of ups and downs has gone forever ; sin- 
 ning and repenting will not be their experience 
 aiiy more ; but victory, continuous victory, will be 
 their portion. The pastor has now what he has 
 prayed for many a year, a people alive, a church 
 and a school aggressive, whose influence wiU be 
 felt throughout the length and breadth of the 
 country. 
 
IV 
 
 ONE SKaStON WITH THE SCHOOL 
 
 Sundifcy, Nov. 26th, 1896. 
 ^HE day was all beautiful; the sun shone 
 * bright and strong; the frost of the preceding 
 iuight h^ made the air crisp and bracing, and the 
 fresh breeae from the prairie seemed to carry with 
 it an elixir of health and strength. There are 
 days in the North when it i^ really a luxury to 
 live. The teachers came to their work full of 
 hope, without any self-sufficiency, but seeing Him 
 that is invisible. There was a large attendance on 
 this aft<rnoon, over six hundre(. together. Some 
 of the children had come out of curiosity, for it 
 was general]} k lowi that a great revival had 
 broken out amonj. the tchers. Perhaps common 
 talk was right it to revive is to get new life; but 
 there must tx; a startling' and a radical change in 
 these teach 'rs, or street gossip would not have 
 taken i ui so. The difference can be seer- and 
 felt ; tht ir voices are so tender now, the hau^'hty 
 look 3 gone and they are so quiet, so cheerful, for 
 "the peac ) ot God which passeth all understanding" 
 is thejr p rtion. Oh teacher! this is your equip- 
 ment no T deliver your message simply, lovingly, 
 and le. ve the result to the Lord of the harvest. 
 
 47 
 
48 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 The school, comprising about fifty chwses, was 
 in the form of a semicircle, every scholar being 
 able to see the pulpit, which stood on a platform 
 at the south end of the building. During the les- 
 son each class could shut the doors or draw the 
 curtains to separate them from their neighbors ; 
 but, during the opening and closing exercises each 
 member could be seen by the Superintendent. Mr. 
 Button's Bible class met in a wing built on the 
 west side ; but it too, by means of folding-doors, 
 could be thrown in with the main school. On this 
 particular day the school opens as usual The 
 scholars are particularly quiet, and the teachers 
 are different, though it is difficult to describe 
 wherein the difference lies. Their love for their 
 scholars has suddenly taken on an intensity never 
 known before. Though it had been their custom 
 for years to pray for their pupils, now, with the 
 sudden increase of faith, it seems right and proper 
 to look for results ; so, to-day, in every movement 
 can be seen the energy and the longing to do any- 
 thing and everything in their power to assist those 
 over whom they have charge. 
 
 The adult class consisted of about sixty mem- 
 bers, men and women of various circumstances. 
 There were clerks, manufacturers, farmer? ranch- 
 men, and a few Indians ; most of the lad vere 
 wives of the officers and teachers in the .uool. 
 Mr. Hutton was the teacher of this clss; and 
 though a keen business man, he found time during 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 49 
 
 tt|eweek to get up the lesson perfectly, so as to 
 present it in a way that was interesting to the 
 dullest mind. The meeting was held in the We 
 room m which was the blackboard still bearinir 
 the sixty names written there on the Monday pre- 
 vious^ The doors being closed, and the class alone. 
 Mr. Hutton said. " Friends, my name i. on this 
 board, and I mean all it says. I do not think it 
 wise to go over our usual course to-day; but I will 
 just tell the story of Naaman, his disease, the 
 remedy, and the action of the Jewish maiden" 
 At the close of these remarks he added- "There 
 are so many things in this world that I do not 
 understand I have taught this class for years 
 and I have done the very best I could, and all my' 
 efforte have been to convince of sin, hoping you 
 would apply the remedy, but as far as I can see 
 my teaching has been all failure ; why that is so is 
 a mystery, unless I have failed in my duty; but 
 from this day forward my effort shall not be so 
 much to teach as to get you cured of sin. This 
 leprosy affects us all ; it can be seen in our faces 
 heard m our words, and stands out glaringly in 
 our daily acts. It is an awful disease, it means 
 sure death ; and there is only one Physician can 
 
 It IS look and live;' it is 'seek and find;' it is 
 
 knock and the door shall be opened.' There is a 
 
 human side to it ; will you fill your part ? I have 
 
 done^U I can as teacher, but I have not seen any 
 
 I^MrfU 
 
60 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 Mr. Wilson jumped up and said, " Mr. Huttor, 
 your teaching; has been a great help and a great 
 trouble to me. The only service I regularly attend 
 is this class. At the hotel where I live your words 
 are the subjects of considerable criticism and 
 debate, your arguments and illustrations are 
 talked of in the bar-room where I spend so much 
 of my time. I have gone from this class several 
 times, feeling myself a worse leper than Naaman 
 ever knew how to be, and just then I have longed 
 for some Christian counsel. I have walked past 
 your store, and wondered what my reception would 
 be if I had gone in and ssked you for help. In 
 the bar the opinion is freely expressed that teach- 
 ing and preaching are alike, but that we must not 
 look for any practice. I have gone near your 
 house several times, hoping to meet you ; and, if I 
 could have seen you while in that frame of mind, I 
 would certainly have asked you to tell me some 
 way of ridding myself of my awful burden. 
 Unhappily, we never met on any of these occa- 
 sions, and so I returned to the hotel, and drank 
 whiskey, the only relief I could find. You all 
 know that alcohol soon overcomes worry ; but to- 
 day I am perfectly sober ; and I know once more 
 that I am a leper. Though I have tried and tried 
 again to reform, I am not able to apply the rem- 
 edy, but the evil, that is part of my being, asserts 
 itself, and I am aware to-day I am a lost man, 
 without any hope of recovery. I expect when I 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL si 
 
 We thw room to find my old relief i„ whfakev 
 Ladies and gentlemen. I «n not fit to be Tn 'o^r 
 company ; the lepers of old l»d to c.^ • uLcC • 
 
 t.W^' ^'""f "f^^ ^"^ ^ "here he eat ; and 
 takmg h.m by both hande, he said, « Brother the 
 dwe^e can be cured now; don't you leave thi! 
 nTTIt"' -look and live," -aTkand r^^^ 
 
 ence, aak God to help yon come to Him ; asfc Him 
 now and see how soon the answer of U«ce^d 
 forgiveness will come."' peace and 
 
 in 'thl°t";'/T ■>. 1 am too bad ; I am of „„ „« 
 m this world. I aw a drone, a wr^k. an old m^ 
 
 ^yKt^^"", "^"'-"-'o- act in:S 
 my life that IS good ; I am not fit to approach God • 
 now can I do what you wk ? " ' 
 
 " Brother." said M>-. Hnttnn ■• w. 
 sniner.»and he gasped ^ ^^iiteS. ZlXZ 
 than ever. Perhaps there is «ower in ,1?^ 
 ^»oh. where there^s apirit-filCwrfo^tZ 
 the simple message was sent up '0 Lo^ Jli 
 me to oome to Thee,' and instanUy the^M ' h^^ 
 
 new Tu "^ "*°y """"'» ™ aiuniin r;ith^ 
 new light never seen there before. Every ~1' 
 
 m the room saw that a miracle had talTn^^^: 
 and .t was an inspiration to both teacher and cZ 
 
 ^v ?w^%T ""' 'Pofee." Friend,, on M^ 
 day. I was ,t the meeting of deeds. «,d I see tte 
 
62 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 effect of that service already. It is said that the 
 grave buries all distinctions ; and, in the spiritual 
 world, death to self removes all social differences ; 
 henceforth 1 live to serve. I am sorry I have not 
 been more of a friend to you, but in the future I 
 mean to improve in that respect My address is 
 • 366 River Avenue,' you can easily remember the 
 number. Now, if ever I can be of service to any 
 of you, please call and give me a chance to live up 
 to my professioa This ought to be a day of sal- 
 vation ; we have all suffered from the leprosy of 
 sin ; but is there any other person anxious to be 
 delivered from it ? " 
 
 There was a short pause; then one after an- 
 other of the members said they were tired of sin- 
 ning and of trying unsuccessfully to be good, but 
 to-day they were willing to do anything in order 
 to receive new life. After seven of them had 
 spoken, the chief, Tom the Leopard, rose to his 
 
 feet 
 
 "Friends," said Tom, "my mark is on the 
 board ; me do not speak like white man, me not 
 know enough, but the black inside can be white. 
 He took all black out of Tom. Just ask Him, 
 white people, and quick, like lightning, the black 
 all go ; de fight, de steal, de firewater and all will 
 be white like snow on Pike's Peak." 
 
 " Now, friends," said Mr. Hutton, " have you 
 uttered that simple petition ? If you have, will 
 you stand up, then you have done your part It 
 is ' ask and' receive.' " 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 68 
 
 To the teacher's great joy. seven of them arose 
 to their feet, looking as if they had come into an 
 inheritance, as indeed they had. How the angels 
 wjoice over such scenes, for " there is joy in 
 Heaven over one sinner that repenteth !" 
 
 "Now," said Mr. Hutton, "confession has to do 
 with salvation ; you have just come into a new 
 life; dont be ashamed of it, but confess Christ 
 whenever you have the opportunity. You are all 
 children m God ; grow by study of the Word ; and 
 by your life and testimony you will be a blessinir 
 wherever you go. In your pathway to the skies 
 you may fall many times, but just get up and 
 keep moving in the same direction, and. in spite of 
 all opposing forces, you will reach the goal" 
 
 In one of the rooms. Mr. James John's Indian 
 class met. It was composed of ten boys of whom 
 some could read, and a few were taught their 
 letters and small words along with the lesson. 
 Now boys," said he. "here is the story of the 
 afternoon. A great chief, a wa ior called Naa- 
 man, was sick and he knew it; Js sickness was 
 worse than smaU-pox, for it always kills. He 
 knew, as well as everyone else, that no medicine 
 man could help him; but a young maid in his 
 house, told his wife that God's prophet lived in 
 Israel, and that he might cure him. God alone 
 can cure sm, the disease that affects the whole 
 
 ThT r' t r.u^ ^""^^My^ white, red or black- 
 The rich and the poor, the young and the old-»U 
 
64 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 are aflfected by this disease. Some years ago I saw 
 some real cases among you'Stonies; there had 
 been a spree — the chiefs and the boys were fight- 
 ing, and the women in the tents were screeching 
 at the top of their voices. What was the matter, 
 boys? Some of you were there." 
 
 One young fellow called out, "Firewater ! " 
 
 " But," said Jim John, " what had the firewater 
 to do with the bleeding faces, the torn clothes, the 
 overturned tents ? It seemed to me that the Ston- 
 ies, usually so quiet, had all gone crazy, for I had 
 never before heard them use such language." 
 
 The son of Tom the Leopard said, " The bad all 
 inside, the firewater bring it out." 
 
 "Then," said the teacher, "the 'bad' was the 
 leprosy of sin. What makes Indians swear, steal, 
 gamble and fight? Some time ago, Mr. Bumip 
 saw on the market some hides on which was his 
 brand, that bad been bought from the Stonies." 
 
 One young Indian said, "Red man owned all 
 the country, white man took it away ; when red 
 man hungry he must eat." 
 
 " Boys," said Jim John, " did you ever go 
 hungry from my ranche ? " 
 
 " No, no," came from every scholar in the class. 
 
 "Did your chiefs ever ask a steer from Mr. 
 Bumip and be refused ? " 
 
 " No," said the boys again. 
 
 " Then why do you steal ? " 
 
 One young fellow jumped up. " Me don't steal 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 66 
 
 no more ; the missionary say Qod see Indian steal, 
 so me afraid to steal more. Me like missionary, 
 he say God care for Indian boy; me like to be 
 missionary; me no steal, no lie ; me swear no more. 
 Me feels so white and warm inside ; me like to go 
 to King John's, me always feel warm when me 
 come back. Please, why all white men not like 
 missionary and King John?" 
 
 " Well," said Jim John, " they have the leprosy 
 of sin ; but when the sickness is taken away, they 
 will all be like Mr. Holt. Now, do you want to be 
 like the missionary ? If you do you mast get rid 
 of sin." 
 
 One of the boys jumped up saying, " My father 
 be chief ; he say whatever King John say me do. 
 You say to leap oflF Pike's Peak, me do it ; you say 
 run through the prairie fire, me do it." 
 
 Jim John said. " I would not ask anything as 
 hard as that, but I want you to ask God to help 
 you come to Him." 
 
 " I can't do that," said one ; " me too black 
 inside ; me afraid, me do any udder ting." 
 
 "No other thing will do," replied the teacher." 
 "Now, take hold of each other's hands to form 
 a circle ; but do not say a word unless you mean 
 it. If you do mean it, say after me, 'O Lord, 
 Indian sick of sin, Indian don't want to sin any 
 more ; he can't help sinning, so please help Indian 
 to come to Thee, who can make him well, for 
 Jesus' sake. Amen.' " 
 
S6 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 "f. 
 
 Four of the yoanff fellows earaestly recited the 
 prayer, word for word; then, in their native 
 tongue, they pled with others; and, when the 
 petition was again offered, every voice was heard. 
 What a remarkable change! How their words 
 and signals to each other testified to their sincer- 
 ity. If it had not been for the presence of Jim 
 John, whom they loved to obey, the whole school 
 would have been disturbed with their noise. The 
 words he could make out most, were, " All clean 
 inside, all clean inside." But just then the bell 
 rang that closed the lesson, and the doors were 
 opened, and all faced the Superintendent. 
 
 Class No. 12 was taught by Mr. Jinks. It 
 was composed of young ladies of whom nearly all 
 were from River Avenue, the wealthiest part of the 
 city. They were a difficult class to teach, being 
 very intelligent, but at an age when it requires 
 considerable tact to keep their attention to a 
 Sunday School lesson. Mr. Jinks was just the 
 man for the positioa He could say the- nicest 
 things, which meant nothing, and always had the 
 most apt words right at the end of his tongue. 
 He was uever known to mention anything dis- 
 agreeable; but was ever hopeful, as, behind the 
 darkest cloud, he could alw i see the sunshine. 
 He was a perfect treasure in N'iting the sick, who 
 would almost forget their illness while he was 
 there. As a general rule, Mr. Jinks met his class 
 as if he had just come out of a bandbox. There 
 
THE NORTH LAND MOHOOL 
 
 67 
 
 were always the same creases in his clothes ; and 
 his necktie was immaculate, though he was far 
 from being vain of outward adornment. It was 
 as much a part of his creed to dress well as to be 
 honest, for, to his mind, dressing well was shun- 
 ning the appearance of evil. Mr. Jinks never 
 lacked words. He was always nioe; he did not 
 know how to be otherwise; and of course was 
 very popular wherever he went. 
 
 The class were deeply interested in the teacher, 
 who spared no pains to give the historical side to 
 the lesson, in which he could trace the cause to the 
 effect so graphically. And, during the recital, he 
 never said anything personal; if these young 
 ladies could not see the weak spot, the dangerous 
 place, or emulate the example of the best character 
 in the lesson, it was none of his business ; he must 
 not be disagreeable. But a change has come over 
 the teacher. Waterloo means victory to one side ; 
 and he has the victory; the old self-life of ex- 
 pediency has gone ; it is principle now. Mr. Jinks 
 is nervous to-day; the bald spot on his head is 
 exposed to the gaze of the pupils for the first time, 
 his necktie is not straight, and he actually stam- 
 mers. When a nervous man stammers it is from 
 lack of words ; but when an orator has an impedi- 
 ment in his speech, it is because of too many 
 words. Mr. Jinks kept playing with his watch 
 chain; and everyone knew there was something 
 wrong, as it was never this way before. " Ladies, 
 
M 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 please rttad tho louson," he aaiU, aiid, carofuUy, 
 verse after verae, ihe story of Naaman was read. 
 When a person tells ns oar house is on tire he does 
 not waste words ; in fact, it is hardly the words 
 that affeet na, it is earnestness, the meaning and 
 the feeling in the voice. Mr. Jinks stammers 
 again; and then, like a creek that has been 
 dammed back and suddenly breaks through all 
 impediments, he speaks out his thoughts, and, 
 better still, his feelings. " Ladies, I never knew 
 until Monday what it was to be cured of leprosy. 
 Naaman took quite a journey to get relief; but I, 
 for twenty years, have been trying to get rid of 
 inbred sin. It is in you all, every one of you, and 
 you must be cured or die. I ask your pardon 
 most humbly for not putting this thing plainly 
 before you in the past, but I did not see it myself. 
 A little maid helped the great general to the 
 Jordan ; and though I have been your teacher for 
 years, I have never led one of you to the healing 
 crimson flood. Oh ! how helpless I have been ! so 
 many precious opportunities wasted ! But to-day, 
 though I have not studied the lesson, I must teach 
 for eternity." 
 
 How many things are infectious ! The earnest- 
 ness of the teacher stimulates and is caught by the 
 scholar. Mr. Jinks was an orator of considerable 
 ability and an influential, wealthy citizen of no 
 mean city, but these are not thought of to-day. 
 The shine has come into his face, the stammering 
 
 IF 
 
 liiij. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL fi9 
 
 has gone, the wordH come with a rush unknown to 
 hitufielf, the toara are dropping from hin eytn. 
 The story of the wonderful love of Qw\ is told ho 
 graphically, the remedy of sin is spoken of with 00 
 much confidence, that everything is real and per- 
 sonal to each pupil. Now he reaches the climax in 
 his remarks; then asks boldly, yet so tenderly, 
 " Ladies, will you accept this remedy ? " 
 
 There was a hush, then a few sobs were heard ; 
 finally, one lady, perhaps the oldest pupil in the 
 class, spoke out : " Mr. Jinks, I need the remedy ; 
 I have been af laid for some time that I am loHt, 
 and I do not know what to do. Everything I can 
 think of I have tried to get relief, but there is no 
 rest for the wicked. In the superficial world in 
 which I live there seems to be nothing real. To- 
 day you have spoken as never before, and my life 
 utterly condemns me." 
 
 On hearing this, the teacher said, " I am so 
 glad, I hope there are more in the same condition. 
 You know, He came for the lost. If there are any 
 others in need, will you just stand up till we see 
 who you are ? " 
 
 Five more of these children of wealth arose to 
 their feet. 
 
 " Now," said Mr. Jinks, " we are going to pray ; 
 aiid. »^ you do not resist God, there will be 
 rejoicing in Heaven over this meeting." 
 
 Simply, tearfully, the teacher told the King of 
 the hunger of these young hearts, their thoughtless 
 
^ 
 
 II', I 
 
 I'lj 
 
 I"' 
 
 M THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 lives, and their anxiety for merey and forgivene«% 
 Naamaii was cured by bathing in the Jordan ; but 
 these girii wished to bathe in another •». am, 
 opened for sin and uncleanness. "Our Fatter, 
 please help ; all our hope is in Thee." 
 
 At the conclusion of his petition, they all 
 remained on their knees for some time. Then one 
 young lady, with sobs that shook her body, 
 returned thanks for a present, real salvation, and, 
 forgetting self, she begged for help for her com- 
 rades. Sympathy and love are very powerful, for, 
 as the one girl stops, another, seemingly in ^ite of 
 herself, has to cry for mercy. This is a meeting 
 too sacred for our gaze so we drop the curtsin, 
 but the angels carry the news to the Celestial 
 City, and there is rejoicing over repenting sinners. 
 
 Class No. 18, composed of eighteen young 
 women, was taught by Miss Keene. Of this 
 number, some were employed in the city stores ; 
 others worked but at service, while a few came 
 from homes of wealth ; but all, by means of care- 
 ful, loving effort, had professed salvation. How 
 much unselfish labor the teacher gives! The 
 policeman and the legislator receive pay ; yet the 
 greater work is done by the teacher, without 
 money and without price. Take the influence of 
 the Christian men and women out of the North 
 Land city, and the police would be powerless to 
 keep order. Though the legislator may draft 
 laws, stringent as those of the Medes and Persians, 
 
 I. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 61 
 
 it reqniren a Christian Mntiment to keep them. 
 On this first Sunday of the new regime, Miss 
 Keene's face shone with a liHle of the brilliancy 
 that frightened the Israelites when Moses came 
 down from the mount; and, though unconscious 
 of it herself, all the girls saw that quiet, restful 
 eountenance lit up as never before. This bright- 
 nesH wa8 a characteriHtie of every teacher in the 
 Bchool on this afternoon ; and it is the privilege 
 of the Christ i. ill everywhere. Stephen was in 
 hard ircainstances, with not a friend to help ; but 
 "Ho who never Bleeps nor slumbers" filled him 
 with His presence, causing his face to shine as 
 if it had been the face of an angel. 
 
 Miss Keene commenced by saying, " We will 
 not go through our regular course to -^iy : we all 
 know the remarkable story of K tu\nv.. « leper, 
 who was told of a remedy by . i. , ^i* w^aiden. 
 Suppose all the outward sores wc* Mt. kui, out the 
 disease was left in the blood, wouhi > u think this 
 a real cure ? " 
 
 " No ! " came from all the class. 
 " Well, we are going to look at leprosy as sin, 
 and I wish you to notice of what I never was 
 aware until Monday, that eventful day with the 
 staff of the school, that sin and sins are two 
 different thinga How often in this room have we 
 prayed for a pure heart, and I think we have been 
 in earnest; yet we have never bet-n certain of 
 having received it. Now, girls, I wish to lead 
 
63 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 III 
 
 i 
 
 I! 
 
 f,-'i 
 
 you up into the delectable mountains of this 
 experience. Since I have reached there myself, it 
 seems so simple. We must be, not whitewashed 
 but washed white. I have here eighteen bright 
 new cents, the initials of every scholar's name 
 being stamped on them ; and they are for you, to 
 be your own ; there is to be a complete change of 
 ownership. Here every young woman, with a 
 wondering look on her face, received her piece of 
 money. "Now," said the teacher, '• can you girls 
 not give yourselves to the Lord as absolutely as I 
 have giv^n you these coins ? The Beulahland is 
 before you; and we cannot be together much 
 longer. You will all be going to homes of your 
 own before long, and I shall be glad if I know 
 that my pupils of many years have surrendered 
 themselves, to be owned and controlled by the 
 Deity." 
 
 Any reference to marriage in a class of girls 
 will invariably produce a laugh. There was no 
 exception to the rule in this case ; but it was not 
 loud, and was easily suppressed. "I have not 
 faith enough, nor am I so sanguine as to expec*^^ 
 that, on this occasion you will be able to perform 
 this deed to-day, for it is an act of the deepest 
 importance ; it brings peace like a river, the 
 conscious indwelling of the Comforter. The way 
 to this experience will be fought hard by our 
 common enemy, who, even now, has frightened 
 you into thinking your task is impossible and the 
 
 :";! 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 68 
 
 results disastrous. He always is deceptive ; he is 
 the father of lies, and his business is to keep 
 people from the rest • that remaineth for the people 
 of God' on the earth. For years T have been 
 pleading for you at the throne of {(race. You will 
 never, while memory holds its seat, forget this 
 lesson, for the Spirit, in answer to prayer, does 
 strive with men, and I have no intention of 
 ceasing to express to God the deep interest I take 
 in your welfare. The years will roll round, they 
 never stop, and I expect as they pass to have 
 those coins returned in acknowledgment of your 
 surrender and your entrance into rest. It is not 
 necessary to wait at all; the price can be paid 
 now; but Satan's an awful foe, he is working 
 harder in our room to-day than ever before in our 
 history. He knows that, when the surrender is 
 made, you are lost to him forever. I know him 
 well, as he lives on my street, and has caused me 
 more trouble than all you girls have, and you 
 must acknowledge that the best of you are a liUie 
 lower than the angels." 
 
 When the teatjher stopped speaking, the still- 
 ness in the room could be felt; then, from the 
 last seat, a girl with golden hair jumped up, and 
 started to the teacher's desk with the cent in her 
 hand ; then blushing, stopped, and went back to 
 her place. The quiet continued. What thinking 
 there was ! What praying ! And once again the 
 golden-haired maiden walked to the front, and. 
 
64 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 ■|:: 
 
 w. 
 
 Ifi '!! 
 
 ■slapping the cent down, said, "Teacher, I do mean 
 what this act indicates ; I have caused you more 
 trouble than all the other girls together; I am 
 sorry now, and I ask pardon; but from this 
 moment I want to be the Lord's entirely. Oh 
 please, help me, teacher; you have been a saviour 
 to us all in the past ; please continue your loving 
 care, for we do need it" There is a sense in which 
 Pentecost is of our own making. Miss Keene had 
 been living in an atmosphere of prayer since Mon- 
 day, the day of deeds; her spirit-filled presence 
 would be a power anywhere; and among these 
 young women, unknown to herself, she ^as almost 
 irresistible. As Miss Kelly sat down, some person 
 started singing: 
 
 " Take my life, and let it be 
 Consecrated, Lord, to Thee ; " 
 
 and it was sung by them all, but more intelligently 
 by Miss Kelly and the teacher. When the hymn 
 was finished, Miss Keene said, " I suppose we all 
 dislike (deception; we do not deceive each other, 
 and we cannot deceive God. Did you think, while 
 you were singing those beautiful lines, what it all 
 meant ? Oh, I do wish you could mean what you 
 say. I know you hope to mean it, you are not 
 trying to deceive God ; bub hoping and doing are 
 so diflferent. But, now, we will have a season of 
 prayer. I wish you all to pray, for we are alone 
 in this room, and there is nobody of whom we 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 65 
 
 need be afraid. Just tell the King freely what 
 you are, what you want; and, if you can give 
 yourself in prayer, do so." 
 
 Miss Kelly, though the youngest member, start- 
 ed, for courage had come already and her petition 
 was one of thanksgiving for this wonderful salva- 
 tioa " It is all true that Thou canst create a clean 
 heart within us, O Father. Bless these girls ; may 
 they learn for themselves the rest and peace of 
 surrender." 
 
 Another girl, with many sobs, said she wished 
 all the bad thoughts could be taken out of her A 
 third prayed for the teacher, that she might be 
 able to lead them to better thinga But just then 
 the beil sounded to indicate the opening of the 
 doors; and, as they rose from their knees, three 
 more of the girls walked up and laid their bricht 
 coins on the table. 
 
 " You must not give these to me," said the 
 teacher, « unless you mean exactly what the action 
 indicates." 
 
 " We do," said one of them ; " come what will, 
 I, for one, am entirely the Lord's, but I feel so un- 
 worthy I do not deserve any consideration at His 
 hands." 
 
 Unwillingly the doors were opened, and the 
 scholars faced the Superintendent The Jewish 
 maiden has become famous, and her exaniple will 
 be followed by many a young girl in the future 
 history of the school. Naaman, bebg a leper, 
 
 
 
66 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 rt ^ 
 
 
 I 
 
 would have died but for the action of a little girl. 
 The world is full of lepers, who will surely perish 
 if the young women and men of our leagues 
 and schools do not arise to the call of duty. Of 
 what value are pledges which are not fulfilled ? 
 Oh, Leaguer ! do you ever think what your oath 
 means ? A King's Daughter should be willing for 
 any task or any sacrifice ; and how can you be if 
 your own will is supreme ? " The fruits of the 
 Spirit are love, joy, peace, long-sufiering, gentle- 
 ness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance, against 
 such there is no law." How can long-suffering 
 and meekness reign in our lives if we love our 
 own way ? All of the fruits in this beautiful 
 cluster are necessary if we are to live the " life 
 more abundant" We would all like more faith 
 and more love, and let us be just as anxious for 
 the other graces; but to reach this point the Potter 
 mutt have His way, and we will be His workman- 
 ship. 
 
 Class No. 50 is the latest addition to the 
 school, and, being tiie hardest to teach, that duty 
 falls to the lot of the best-natured man on the 
 staff, Mr. Johnstone. This class is migratory ; it 
 was c(mnected with the school last winter, but 
 during the summer the teacher lost all track of 
 his boys. They w^ere boot-blacks by trade ; and, 
 during the warm weather, the front of a baggage- 
 car would take them anywhere and everywhere to 
 find businesa But, with the approach of frost 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL $7 
 
 and snow, thefe was one place dearer than all 
 
 other places-that was Mr. Johnstone's brickyard • 
 
 around the kiln the bricks were always warm.' 
 
 When they arrived there, it was. in reality 
 
 home, sweet home " to them, and certainly it was' 
 
 the most comfortable place to which they had a 
 
 nght. For had not the proprietor said that as 
 
 long as they behaved, they were to be aUowed to 
 
 sleep there? This class, commonly known as 
 
 "Johnstone's Pets," had heard of the revival 
 
 among the teachers, and were on hand out of 
 
 Blmky Bob." as he was afflicted with weak eyes • 
 next to him came " Limpy Moses." who had one 
 leg longer than the other ; another was « Squint" 
 
 Whitey, whose hair was very light in color; the 
 fifth was called "The Bishop." why. wo do not 
 know, only his decision was law among the party 
 and the sixth boy was known as "Slick"; he was a 
 diminutive little fellow, and it was whispered 
 around that he could pick a pocket as well as a 
 professional. 
 
 The whole party were loyal to each other, and 
 when they went away, they all kept together.' 
 Mr. Johnstone has been thinking hard since la«t 
 Monday; conscience, that awful voice, has been 
 speaking louder than ever before. He felt that in 
 some way, he was responsible for these boys who 
 were waifs, without any homes, and who were put 
 
68 
 
 THE NOBTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 in his charge. " For I was an hangered, and ye 
 gave me no meat ; I was thirsty, and ye gave me 
 no drink ; I was a stranger, and ye took me not 
 in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick and in 
 prison, and ye visited me not." Then the voice 
 that will not hash said, " Inasmuch as ye did it 
 not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to 
 me." So before the week was out, Mr. Johnstone 
 had found oat every member of his class, and 
 pressed him once more to come to school.* On this 
 particular Sunday he is very hopeful; for five 
 days the nicotine has been withheld, leaving his 
 mind clearer and his appetite better ; and his love 
 for his pupils has grown so rapidly, he feels they 
 are in reality his own boys. Arrangements have 
 been made for their care for the winter; homes 
 have been found for them all ; and he feels that 
 there is nothing he will not do to prove^to himself 
 that he has paid the price, and henceforth is going 
 to live for others. Mr. Johnstone, who is a largo 
 man with a large heart, has been disappointed 
 with his class lately ; but to-day he loves them so 
 much they are sure to find it out, and that itself is 
 half a victory. The boys who were there early 
 had the door of their room closed ; and " Blinky 
 Bob" was standing on his head, while "The 
 Bishop," with a Waterbury watch, was timing 
 him. " Slick " was walking on his hands around 
 the room, with " Whitey " following, holding his 
 feet up for him. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 69 
 
 In the midst of these interestinjf Sabbath 
 exercises the teacher walked in, and, shakinff 
 hands with them all, said :— 
 
 "Now, boys, to-day is Sunday, it is wrong to aet 
 that way. It would be all right on any other day, 
 and I would enjoy a little fun myself, but to-day 
 is a holy day. Where have you been this fall ? 
 Tell me all about it." 
 
 "Oh," said The Bishop, who was the talker 
 as well as the leader of the party, " we have been 
 off through Ontario to the fall fairs, attending 
 strictly to business. We have been doing well, 
 and been to the show nearly every night We 
 have no more money than when we started, but 
 we have had an elegant time, and have seen the 
 world." 
 
 " Then," said the teacher, " what broui?ht vou 
 back?" * ^ 
 
 " Well, the fairs are over, and the weather is 
 getting cold, and we have never found any place 
 like our home in the brickyard." 
 
 "Now," said Mr. Johnstone, "I want your care- 
 ful attention while I tell you something you don't 
 know. Since last Monday I have thought of 
 hardly anything else but you boys. Though I 
 have not done my duty by you in the past, I ask 
 your pardon for my neglect, and I will try and 
 make amends in the future, if you will let me. 
 You need not sleep any more at the brick-kilns, 
 for I have homes for you all, and I want you to 
 
70 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 fe' 
 
 I'i 
 
 
 tarn out good, usefal men. Two of yon will live 
 with me, and the rest are fi;oing to a real nice 
 home not far away. To-morrow, a tailor will 
 measure each of yon for a new suit of clothes, for 
 all winter you must go to school regularly ; and 
 my friend, Mr. Bumip, has promised that if I can 
 give him a good report of yon, he will allow the 
 whole party next snmmer to spend two months 
 on the prairie with the cattle. Tou shall all ride 
 ponies and carry a lasso like a regular cowboy." 
 
 Slick speaks up, and wants to know what sort 
 of clothes they will be, and if they will have brass 
 buttons on. 
 
 " Yes," said the teacher, " they will have brass 
 buttons, and will be of whatever sort you like 
 best, as long as my wife thinks they are good 
 enough and suitable. Now, I just want you to 
 look to me as if I was really your father, for I 
 mean to do the father's part with you." 
 
 There was a full pause ; it hod almost taken 
 their breath away. 
 
 Then The Bishop, said. "Air. Teacher, why 
 are you so kind to us kids ? " As they had never 
 been treated so kindly before, he felt suspicioua 
 
 ^ " Well, I have no boys now ; mine have gone to 
 another home ; I have plenty of money, and, if 
 you will only let me do my best, I hope to make 
 your lives as bright and happy as those of any 
 boys in the city. There will be no more cold or 
 hunger or blacking boots, for I love yon too well 
 
 11 
 
THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 71 
 
 to let you live such gipsy lives any longer. Now, 
 are you going to be my boys, and be respectable, 
 or boot-blaclcH, and be kicked from pillar to post?" 
 
 Then Mr. Johnstone told the story of the lesson 
 about Naainan, the great soldier, being afflicted 
 with leprosy, and he hung on the wall a picture of 
 the chain-gang in the penitentiary, with their 
 striped clothes and locked stap, a set of hard-look- 
 ing, drunken loafers, and of a gallows with a 
 prisoner condemned to be hung. •' The leprosy of 
 sin leads to these results, and the end is everlast- 
 ing death. Of course, you think you will not go 
 that far, but these people thought the same, and 
 no matter how far you go, there is punishment, if 
 you do not get the remedy. Here is the cure— 
 • God so loved the world, that He gave His only 
 begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him 
 should not perish, but have everlasting life.' 
 Naaman could not be healed, until he went to 
 God's prophet ; and you cannot be rid of sin until 
 you go to God. I myself never knew what it was 
 to be entirely cured until last week. Now, boys, 
 God loves you as you are, but there is so mach sin 
 in your hearts, you can't believe it. When the 
 leprosy is out of your lives, it will be altogether 
 different. Now, are you going to be my boys and 
 go up, or boot- blacks and go down ? " 
 
 Limpy made the first reply. "Guess The 
 Bishop will thump me, but I'm wid de teacher." 
 
 Blinky spoke out. " I don't care for de 
 thumpin'; I's wid de teacher too." 
 
n 
 
 THE NORTH LAND 80R00L 
 
 if'' 
 
 Sliek Mid, ■ If te«oher will talce a tou;?h like 
 me, rm on his side." 
 
 Then followed Whitey's assent, and Squint 
 stepped over to Mr. Johnstone, saying, " So is I." 
 And last, sententionsly, like the judge on the 
 bench, The Bishop said, " So I is." 
 
 ♦• Now, boys," said the teaeher, " I want to take 
 two of you to my house, and the rest to your new 
 home." 
 
 "It won't do." said The Bishop; "we is on 
 your side; but we must have one more night 
 among de warm bricks, where we can talk things 
 over, but we will be on hand to-morrow, any spot 
 you say." 
 
 " Then be at my house for breakfast at eieht 
 o'clock." 
 
 " All right," said the boys; " we'll be there." 
 Just then the bell rang, and the doors were 
 opened. But this lesson is not finished ; are there 
 any lessons finished ? Let us follow the class to 
 their home in the brickyard. It is midnight, 
 clear and frosty. The teacher has a right to visit 
 his own property at any time ; but, on this occa- 
 sion, he walks into the building, as if he was tres- 
 paflsing. Up and down, between the rows of 
 bricks, he moves quietly, until, in the vicinity of 
 the furnaces, he hears the voices of his pets. 
 Limpy Moses is talking; The Bishop is on the 
 highest tier of brick ; but he is fast losing his 
 authority. Progress towards the Light makes a 
 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 78 
 
 change in leailenthip. Limpy, inMnHibiy. has oome 
 to the front The teacher cannot very well help 
 being an eaveadropper, and he heam Limpy say- 
 ing, " Mr. Johnaing in a angel, his face shined, he 
 said he was better of the eposj-, and we all have 
 the epoey. and I knows we has it. We all swears, 
 and steals; and Mr. Johnsing is a angel, his face 
 shined." 
 
 "Iseedittoo/'saidBlinky. 
 
 "So did I." 8aid Whitey; " I wa« feared to look 
 at him," said Slick ; " his face shined so." 
 
 •• I wish," said Limpy, *• we was all a little like 
 Mr. Johnsing ; and if we are his boys, we must try 
 and get like him." 
 
 "Maybe if he gets road he won't have m kids." 
 said The Bishop. 
 
 " If the epoay is gone, he won't get mad," said 
 Limpy; "and he said it was gone, and his face 
 shined. Mr. Johnsing is a angel ; he won't get 
 mad." 
 
 " I wish we was all rid of the eposy," said 
 Slick, "and had blue coats with brass buttons, and 
 rode ponies. " 
 
 But just here The Bishop resigned his leader- 
 ship. He Slid, "Limpy, I think somebody oughter 
 pray, I's too wicked ; so is all the rest but you, 
 and you must pray for us. We don't none of us' 
 want to be tough no more ; we is Mr. Johnstone's 
 boys. I move that Limpy prays." 
 
 " So do I," say all the rest. 
 
MICROCOrY RBOUITION TEST CHART 
 
 (ANSI and ISO TEST CHART No. 2) 
 
 1^ |2£ 
 
 ■ 2.5 
 
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74 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 " Well," said Limpy, " I thiuks somebody 
 oughter, but I's afraid I's too wicked." 
 
 " Go on," said the pets ; and Limpy sent this 
 simple petition to Him, who loves the boot-black as 
 much as the king on his throne: "O God, we is 
 toughs, we all knows it, and Limpy is the worst of 
 them all ; we is in de brickyard. We is sorry we 
 all has de eposy; we wants to be like Mr. Johnsing, 
 he's so good his face shined ; we don't want to be 
 toughs no more ; we want to please Mr. Johnsing, 
 and wear blue coats with brass buttons, and ride 
 ponies. If you can't make us like de teacher, 
 make us just a little like him ; and take out all 
 de eposy, for Mr. Johnsing's sake. Amen." 
 
 The teacher, with a lump in his throat and a 
 rejoicing in his heart, went out onto the street, 
 and, bare-headed, sang the doxology. When he 
 arrived at home he told his wife all about it, and 
 once ihore that brief hymn of praise was uttered 
 from hearts too full to express gratitude in any 
 other way. Mr, Johnstone is no pdorer for his 
 action ; the boys are incalculably wealthier — new 
 homes, new clothes, education, and new hearts are 
 of inestimable value. The country is not impov- 
 erished but enriched by such deeds, for the most 
 expensive citizen is the criminal. A poor man's 
 first duty is to his family ; but he who has means 
 owes his highest allegiance to the State. It is 
 ignoble for a mortal being to heap money on 
 money ; we are made for better things. " He that 
 
 BHii! 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 76 
 
 is greatest, let him be your servant." For even 
 " the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, 
 but to minister." What means this strife between 
 capital and labor? Men are brothers, yet they 
 are at war. The King is coming with a great 
 spiritual awakening, and the capitalist and the 
 laborer will be tyrants no more. " Righteousness 
 shall cover the earth as waters cover the sea," and 
 there will be no mo^e waifs, tramps and dangerous 
 unemployed classes. 
 
 Reader, do your part, even if it be humble ; die 
 to self, and live the Christ-life. We learn so much 
 by example ; the boot-blacks will grow into good 
 and useful men, and Mr. Johnstone's action will be 
 imitated by others. Dear reader, work for the 
 individual, the heathen of the past and of the 
 present. A'sd, look on men in the mass. The 
 people who do the world's work are considered as 
 hands. Jesus Christ knows neither masses nor 
 hands, but individuals. You are His followers— do 
 likewise. 
 
 Class No. 27 was taught by the paster's 
 daughter, a girl who, strange to say, never found 
 it difficult to be good. There are few people can 
 say this ; but Grace Williams, from her even tem- 
 perament, inherited tendencies and environment, 
 found the good way an easy way. Of her class 
 of -'iven boys, six had been led through her 
 instrumentality to acknowledge Christ as their 
 Saviour, but the seventh v « j still stubborn and 
 
76 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 m- 
 
 :ii 
 
 Helf-willed. If it was easy for the teacher to 
 be good, it was terribly hard for Jack ; in fact, it 
 was impossible, so he never tried. He came to 
 school because his parents compelled him, but for 
 no good ; and so, instead of entering a race up- 
 ward with his teacher, he was going the other 
 way. From the infant class up to the present he 
 never knew anything of the lesson, but was 
 always a thorn in tho side of his instructors. 
 Unhappily, in nearly every class of boys since 
 Sunday schools began there has been a Jack ; on 
 his account teacher after teacher has given up in 
 despair, and yet he is a benefactor. The very 
 effort to make the lesson interesting to h'Tx hrs 
 brougnt out the best in the teacher. Besides hav- 
 ing the subject thoroughly understood, the ques- 
 tion, the startling introduction, and the anecdote 
 must be employed to cat<;h his attention ; for, if 
 this one scholar does not listen, the rest will be 
 hindered in their study. Neither prayers nor 
 tears, nor the most loving care have any effect on 
 him. 
 
 Miss Williams walks into her class-room to-day 
 with confidence in her face. She knows she has 
 the witness of the Spirit, and, having entb sur- 
 rendered herself, the result is like life in fairy- 
 land. She shakes hands with all her scholars, 
 though having the usual trouble to find Jack's 
 hand, and perhaps the clasp is more hearty or 
 more tender than usual, for his attention is in- 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 77 
 
 stantly arrested. The preliminary exercises being 
 soon over, the curtains are closed so that teacher 
 and pupils are alone. As usual, Miss Williams 
 centres all her teaching on Jack, her large, lus- 
 trous eyes seem to look and look him through, 
 and to-day he doesn't know what is the matter; he 
 wishes he was somewhere else, for. everything the 
 teacher says seems for him. He doesn't care 
 about Naaman; he is more anxious about the 
 lump that has come into his throat, and which he 
 felt once before when they took a white casket 
 out of his home to be buried in the graveyard 
 near the river. The lump and death must go 
 together ; perhaps the teacher is going to die ; he 
 believes that people get very good before they 
 leave this world. But she is the picture of health. 
 Her voice is so tender, she is so humble, and her 
 words thrill him through and through, still the 
 lump gets larger, and will not go down ; and Jack, 
 who has almost defied the best teachers in the 
 school, actually cries. The French say that it is 
 the impossible that happens, and Miss Williams, 
 watching the boy, sees the result of the day of 
 deeds already, and, throwing her arm around him, 
 she tells him that the leprosy of sin can be got 
 rid of so easily. 
 
 " John, ray boy, I have been praying for you 
 for a year ; will you not settle this question of sal- 
 vation now ? You are the only boy in the class 
 out of the Ark of Safety." 
 
ii f 
 
 78 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 Jack breaks all up ; he has never seen it this 
 way before, and is greatly sarprised that a young 
 lady has been praying for a tough like him. So 
 Ja<dc has to suirender. Every boy in the class 
 is glad of it, they show it in their looks, and 
 some of them speak their gratification in their 
 own abrupt yet kind way. No matter how awk- 
 ward and full of fun boys are, they like good peo- 
 ple, and they rejoice for Jack's sake that the 
 impossible has happened. A short time was 
 being spent in testimony when the bell rang ; the 
 curtains were folded back, and the class faced the 
 Superintendent. 
 
 Miss Martin taught a class of boys at the 
 age when they know more than their parents, 
 teacher and Superintendent put together. The 
 information, self-confidence and assurance of a 
 boy fourteen or fifteen years old, is something 
 wonderfdi. It is a pleasant fact that as the years 
 roll on, his knowledge of himself gets consider- 
 ably larger, and he finds that it is possible that 
 other men, whom he considered before as being 
 away behind the times, are a real necessity in the 
 world, while he, in his inexperience, is the back 
 number. Miss Martin, with her beauty and intel- 
 ligence, can be very interesting; but she has never 
 yet seen one of these young men bom again. To- 
 day there is to be a change, and, instead of teach- 
 ing as usual, she tells simply the story of Naa- 
 man's leprosy. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 79 
 
 '•Now, boys, I owe you an anology, for I have 
 been trying to teach you for year, and do not 
 know of any good that I have ever done you. 
 But this afternoon I feel that I love you too well 
 and understand my responsibility too much, to 
 mince matters. The leprosy of sin affects you 'all • 
 can you deny it ? I myself have been rid of it only 
 a week, and I do not want you to suffer from the 
 disease in this world and from the awful conse- 
 quences in the next. You know your lives better 
 than I do. Are they not full of wrong deeds, and 
 do you not want to get rid of this .oad and of this 
 sin-principle, 'for the soul that sinneth it shall 
 die'? Last night I never slept, but walked the 
 floor most of the night in prayer for you. ' It is a 
 faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that 
 Jesus Christ tasted death for every man.' As I 
 have never done any personal work like this 
 before. I do not know how to talk to you about 
 this question, but if any or all of you really want 
 salvation, we will kneel down right here, and 
 decide the matter for all time." 
 
 One young man, the quietest in the class, spoke 
 out. ^ 
 
 " Miss Mp-tin. I profess to be a Christian ; but, 
 for fear of the rest, I have not been as decided as I 
 should be ; will you please help me to get some of 
 your spirit, so that I will have the courage of my 
 convictions in the future ? " 
 
 Another young man said, "If I could be a 
 
80 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 ;■ ' 
 
 Christian like Miss Martin, I would be so glad, but 
 so many fellows run for a while, and then fall 
 away, that they are a stumbling-block in the way 
 of oihera" 
 
 One after another said they would be glad to 
 be able to stand, but they were all afraid of failure. 
 
 *• Well," said the teacher, " I can only say thai 
 I would be pleased to be of any help to you ; but 
 do you not think that you are judging something 
 of which you are ignorant ? When you get the new 
 heart, the old inclinations will be taken away ; and 
 I would advise you to go forward, for I think that 
 your argument is suggested by the evil one. Now, 
 if you mean what you say, will you please rise to 
 your feet ? " Out of ten young men six took the 
 floor ; then Miss Martin put self aside, and tear- 
 fully pleaded with the others until every member 
 of the class was asking for prayer. And wh 
 petition ! Between tears and sobs she beggec 
 interceded for these young men with all the ;- 
 neatness of her new spirit-filled life. 
 
 The pastor, who was in the school, watching 
 intently every phase of the wonderful work going 
 on, peeped into this room ; then went over to the 
 Superintendent, saying, " There is joy in Heaven 
 now over Miss Martin's class." And the boys, who 
 were eager to talk of their new life, spent the rest 
 of the time in congratulating each other, until the 
 bell was heard, and all faced the Superintendent. 
 
 After the study of the lesson, the Secretary 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 81 
 
 read the report ; then Miss Martin went to the 
 platform, and sang as never before, her giorious 
 voice so deep, so full, and yet so tender, being 
 heard through the great building, "The whole 
 world was lost in the darkness of sin." Neither 
 piano nor orchestra assisted ; not another sound 
 could be heard ; and even the breathing seemed to 
 be repressed to drink in the beautiful words ex- 
 pressed by the wonderful voice. When she had 
 finished the hymn, there was hardly a dry eye in 
 the room ; and then, as if inspired from on high, 
 she commenced singing " The Great Physician now 
 is near, the sympathizing Jesus;" and in the 
 chorus, the piano, orchestra, and five hundred 
 voices joined, 
 
 " Sweetest note of seraph song, 
 Sweetest name on mortal tongue, 
 Sweetest oarol ever snng, 
 Jesus, blessed Jesus." 
 
 Then the pastor rose to give a five-minute 
 address. " Scholars, Naaman was a very sick man, 
 and he was aware of his own condition ; if this 
 had not been the case, he would have died. Sin is 
 the worst disease of which we know anything. In 
 this school, to-day, the Great Physician has made 
 many cures ; but of this number every one knew 
 of his own malady; yet there may be some in 
 this room who do not understand the perils of 
 their state. To these, let me say that sin brings 
 
Sa THE NORTH LAND HOHOOL 
 
 punishment ; it bringH death, eternal iloath. Your 
 teachers are aware of your disease, they are 
 anxious about you ; and in some cases, you have 
 been the subjects of earnest prayer for years. Do 
 you not want this leprosy taken away forever ? I 
 would like every scholar who has been cured to- 
 day to stand up " 
 
 Twenty-seven members of this school, some of 
 them old in years, rose to their feet. 
 
 *' Now let us all rise and sing ' Praise Qod from 
 whom all blessings flow.' " As they sat down the 
 pastor continued his remarks : " There are a score 
 of people here, who will perhaps never have an 
 opportunity like this again ; Qod is wonderfully 
 present in our midst ; there will never be a time 
 when you can be cured of your sin easier than 
 now. If you want to be clean, washed white, all 
 condemnation taken away stand up." Twelve 
 scholars rose to their feet, turee from the Bible 
 class, and nine from the intermediate. "Now," 
 said the pastor, " the teachers will please look after 
 these members and we will be dismissed with the 
 benediction." 
 
 The school dispersed very slowly. The children 
 wished to stay, and talk with each other, and with 
 their teacher. They had never seen things in such 
 a light before. Naaman had become a real person ; 
 and how many sin-cured Naaman s walked the 
 streets to their homes with glad hearts ! 
 
 When the scholars were gone, the teachers got 
 
 ii 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 88 
 
 toffother, and Mr. Blank, a^-^^r apologizing f(»r 
 liaving to mako anotlier addmsH, .said " Comrados, 
 I congratulate you on your work. To inost of you 
 the day has been a surpriBe, you have wondered at 
 yourselveii ; and this is only the beginning. Your 
 faith will grow until all doubt and unbelief, even 
 in the darkest hour, will vanish ; and, if we will 
 it, God will so endue us with His Spirit, that faith 
 will be as natural as breathing. For some months, 
 at least, these children will need your attention as 
 much as an infant needs its mother's care. Couid 
 you not look after them through the week, take 
 them to your homes, find means to meet them on 
 tho street, and, of course, keep on praying? I 
 know you will be faithful to your trust. You 
 might also visit every home represented in your 
 class and have conversation with the parents, not 
 about the weather, or the crops, but about salva- 
 tion. I do not ask you to make any partic aar 
 effort, for, you know, strength is perfect a in 
 weakness, but, from the fulne .s of a spirit-filled 
 heart, tell them o*" the wonderful love of God 
 Your visit will help the scholar in the home, and 
 you will have a royal welcome in every house you 
 enter, where you might also endeavor to interest 
 the older members in the pleasures and profite of 
 the Home Department of tue Sunday School. The 
 salvation that has commenced will be carried all 
 through the city, if we do our duty. All fear 
 must depart Keep consecrated ; perhaps in every 
 
 fl 
 
84 
 
 THE NORTH LAND ?'0HOOL 
 
 week of your life there will be somothing which 
 must be Rurrendered, but the path will grow 
 brighter continually. The joy of service in the 
 greatest happiness known. Live to serve. Ood 
 is Ood because His is the greatest service." 
 
 The shadows from the mountain had grown 
 very long; and, as the darkness was near, the teach* 
 ers, though all glad, rejoicing at victory, reluctantly 
 left for their homes. 
 
 The good work goes right into the church ; 
 and in the services men and women, who have 
 resisted the gospel all their lives, fall as the slain 
 of the Lord. The spirit of prayer that pervades 
 the meetings makes preaching a delight, it being 
 now safe for the pastor to insist on holiness of life. 
 Before the day of deeds was a year old, tea-meet- 
 ings were given up, grab-bag entertainments for- 
 bidden, concerts to pay debts condemned, and the 
 proposal was brought up to do away with the 
 renting of pews in God's house. What the church 
 needs is, not money or education, but holy char- 
 acter. Hov poor the early church was ! Only, 
 rich in faith and in love. We stoop to conquer, 
 for, from the deepest humility comes the greatest 
 strength. The resurrection life is now the happy 
 experience of most of the leading members of the 
 church and of the staff of the school. It is safe 
 now to leave them, knowing that their history is 
 continued along the lines so beautifully described 
 by Isaiah. The highway i» built, showing pro- 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 86 
 
 greMB along all lines — without swamp or bog; "anv 
 it shall be called the way of holinen ; the unclean 
 shall not pass over it ; but it shall be for those ; 
 the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err 
 thereia No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous 
 beast shall go up thereun, it sh»"' jot be found 
 there ! but the redeemed shall v JV there. And 
 the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to 
 Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their 
 heads: They shall obtain joy and gladness, and 
 sorrow and sighing shall flee away." 
 
 
WEDDINO BELLS 
 
 ^T^HE year has rolled around, and the seasons 
 *• have been abounding with results. How full 
 of events our time can be if we will it ! The 
 steward of the church, the man who carries all the 
 financial responsibility, is losing the wrinkles on his 
 face, for the so-called revival in the school has 
 swept with resistless force into the church, and the 
 people have been very much benefited. Of course, 
 as is always the case, when great spiritual move- 
 ments occur, some persons were hurt ; the enter- 
 tainment committee found that their vocation was 
 gone, and had not risen to the new responsibility 
 which comes of larger light. The language of 
 their hearts, if expressed, would be, that the 
 church had become too religious altogether. 
 Meanwhile the Connexional funds were in good 
 condition ; the pastor received his salary in ad- 
 vance ; and the school had adopted and made 
 wards of the Stony Indians of whom there were 
 more than one thousand, and to whom the pittance 
 from the Government was not enough to keep 
 body and soul together. 
 
 These people needed a leader, and they found 
 what they wanted in Mr. Uolt, a man of varied 
 
 86 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 87 
 
 talent Besides being a good preacher, he had 
 quite a knowledge of instrumental music and was 
 trying to organize a band among the Indian boys. 
 The Stonies were not migratory, like some tribes, 
 but had lived for years in their present home, on 
 a hillside, sheltered from the north wind by a deep 
 forest of tamarack. The place could be easily 
 drained, and the leader set to work to get the 
 Indians interested in the idea. He received the 
 first help from the young members of his band ; 
 but, as soon as the older men were made aware of 
 the results they might expect, they lent a hand ; 
 and, though the system was crude, it was eiSective. 
 Then he promised that, when the camp was 
 cleared up and the debris, lying around, burned, 
 he would give his attention to the building of a 
 church. In the meantime, his study of medicine, 
 with the large practice he had among the Indians, 
 who never had to pay anything for treatment, had 
 made him very popular. Mr. Holt's creed was 
 " Prevention is better than cure," and he tried his 
 best to keep the people well. Fire-water and 
 feasting were the things he most feared ; and, as 
 it had been " feast and famine " all their lives, it 
 was difficult to teach these lessons. 
 
 On one occasion, after one of the chiefs who 
 had been sick for some time was again able to 
 come into the council meeting, he got up, and 
 made a speech — "Stonies, the missionary is the 
 best friend we ever had. He has cured me when 
 
 M 
 
88 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 our medicine-men could not help, and he will do 
 the same, without pay, for every one that is sick. 
 Now, whatever he wants done you must do, and I 
 myself will help." 
 
 Mr. Holt nearly took their breath away as he 
 said, " Friends, I want one thousand acres of thin 
 prairie land broken and ready for cultivation in a 
 month, and we will put a fence around it before 
 the wheat is up. You have never in any year of 
 your life had enough to eat all the time; but 
 next season you are going to make your own 
 bread. I want volunteers right away. We must 
 have twenty ploughs and five drags going for 
 thirty days." 
 
 Willing workers were soon on hand, and then 
 commenced the hunt on the prairies for the 
 ponies, and the repairing of harness. Mr. Holt 
 was in the midst of it all, giving inspiration and 
 courage, when necessary, and taking the lead in 
 the ploughing, until, long before Christmas, the 
 wheat was planted, the fence was up, and, all 
 along the line of the last furrow, two hundred 
 apple, pear and peach trees were placed, which are 
 a monument to-day of his leadership. Then Mr. 
 Holt wanted a building erected for public worship 
 among the Indians, large enough to seat the whole 
 tribe ; and, as he, like other missionaries, had no 
 money, he went to prayer about it. Five days 
 afterwards he met Mr. Bumip, who had been 
 looking for him. 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 89 
 
 " Say, Brother Holt, I have an interest in an 
 old mill, about ten miles up the river, and, with it, 
 there are some thousands of feet of tamarack for 
 which there is no sale. What is the matter with 
 building that church of tamarack ? " 
 
 " It is the very thing," said Mr. Holt " You 
 give us the lumber and I will find a wa}' to get 
 the building up." 
 
 " Along with the tamarack I will supply all 
 the nails and the oil for the paint. The best 
 color you can get is the red rock, which the 
 Indians can work up for you." 
 
 " Mr. Bumip, I can't thank you as I should, 
 but just wait until the building is finished, and I 
 think you will be the most pleased man in the 
 city." 
 
 When a good person works and prays, and is 
 not praying for himself, there has to be a result, 
 for which he should look. Mr. Holt was not an 
 architect, but he told his trouble to some of the 
 people, and Mr. Jones, a young draughtsman in a 
 builder's office, volucteered to draft his first build- 
 ing. It was to be a plain oblong house, built by 
 men who had perhaps never driven a nail. Mr. 
 Jones went to the mill, and, just where they were, 
 marked the large timbers to be cut ; fifty young 
 Indians soon had it ready, and, with the planed 
 boards, it was put upon rafts, and floated down to 
 the reservation. 
 
 The new year has come and a flag floats from 
 
90 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 the top of the bell tower, for the church is built, 
 and fifty young men are painting away as fast as 
 they can. The building, outside and in, seats, 
 platform and pulpit are all painted dark red. The 
 only difficulty is the heating, and once more Mr. 
 Holt goes to the Great Provider, with the result 
 that two large box stoves about ten feet long are 
 received from some person in the city. 
 
 Miss Martin has been out often, watching the 
 work, and giving counsel and help, when needed. 
 Mr. Holt looks for her every day, for they are 
 getting to be inseparable. Besides being so handy, 
 and her purse so large, her interest in the Stonies is 
 as great aa that of the missionary himself. But we 
 must hasten, for there is to be a public opening. The 
 lady teachers of the school had taktn on themselves 
 the task of decorating the building; and having, by 
 stratagem, obtained the photographs of the many 
 Indian benefactors, they, at their own expense, had 
 them enlarged to life size. Around the walls were 
 great bunches of yellow maple leaves ; the plat- 
 form was decorated with large bouquets of many 
 colored roses, while, behind the pulpit and choir 
 gallery, were the words in white— "Let every- 
 thing, that hath breath, praise the Lord." On the 
 walls were the pictures of Mr. Blank, Mr. Williams, 
 Jim John, Mr. Holt, Mr. Burnip, Mr. Jinks, Ruby 
 Bill, and, last of all, in her regal beauty. Miss 
 Martin, who was known to the Indians as the 
 " White PrincesB." 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 91 
 
 The day came, bringing a crowd from the city. 
 In the council-room, next door, a number of huge 
 kettles were filled with cofiee, for no person was 
 to go home for the evening meal, as ample provi- 
 sion was made for everybody. At two o'clock the 
 meeting opened. The Bishop who had come a 
 long distance to the North for his health, was 
 invited by the pastor to take part in the service. 
 Few of the audience had ever seen a real, live 
 Bishop, and this man was an American ; and in 
 all his experience he had never been in such a 
 meeting. The dedication service was short and 
 simple, and then the meeting was thrown open for 
 impromptu speeches. The first call was for Mr. 
 Bumip. He took the platform, and in two 
 minutes said enough to make everybody feel that 
 there was one real, modest Christian man, who had 
 no thought of self. One of his statements was, 
 " This is to me the happiest hour of my life. The 
 old mill and lumber yard have been an eyesore 
 for years, but they have been of use after all. If 
 it is not selfish, I would like to be responsible for 
 the running expenses of this church as long as I 
 live." • 
 
 The next speaker was Mr. . t. He said, 
 "Stonies, cowboys and friends, there has never 
 bf)en a hitch in the building of this church ; the 
 King has moved on the hearts of all the people. 
 Mr. Burnip gave us the material ; Mr. Jones drew 
 the plans ; the Indians did the work ; and I hope 
 
92 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 i 
 
 it will stand a long time to be a blessing to all 
 who come under its roof. As I. look over your 
 faces, I see so much sympathy for us, I must 
 tell what else we need. Next season we expect 
 twenty thousand bushels of wheat, and we must 
 have our own mill to grind it. We r juire also, 
 in which to bake the bread, a large, brick 
 oven, which we could make, if we only had the 
 bricks. I need an office or surgery, where I can 
 keep a collection of drugs, in readiness for the 
 fever season, which commences here in the spring. 
 I don't know how much these things will cost, 
 but you are going to pay for them." 
 
 Up jumped Ruby Bill, saying, "The cowboys 
 will give two hundred dollars." Mr. Blank said, 
 "The school will do the same." The pastor said, 
 the church would contribute five hundred dollars, 
 and the Bishop said, "Put me down for one 
 hundred." 
 
 "Now," said Mr. Holt, "there is one thousand 
 already." 
 
 Mr. Johnstone got up, and said, " You can send 
 your Indian teams to my brickyard and draw 
 brick until I tell them to stop." 
 
 Having thanked the people, Mr. Holt then 
 asked the old chief, Tom the Leopard, to say 
 something. The old man apologized for his poor 
 English, then spoke like this : " When we look but 
 can't see de stars at night, we don't know what 
 the day will be like. When we signed the black- 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 98 
 
 board, we never saw dis church ; but dis church 
 was there, and de mill waa there, and de wheat 
 was there. When Tom put his mark on de board, 
 all de night went out, and de daylight come in 
 also to the teachers; and Tom tink now nearly 
 all de white people are trying to be like de 
 missionary, Jim John, and de White Princess. Me 
 and my tribe tanks yon all for being kind to red 
 man, and red man never forget. If white man 
 ever cold, or hungry, we warm and feed him ; red 
 man never forget." 
 
 At the close of Tom's little speech, calls were 
 made for Jim John and Miss Martin ; but the 
 afternoon had fled, and the whole company 
 repaired to the council room. Here the guests 
 were waited upon by bright Canadian and dark- 
 skinned Indian girls, for a royal feast had been 
 provided by the ladies of the North La' church. 
 
 At half-past seven o'clock the build ^ was lit 
 np for an evangelistic service. The Bishop took a 
 back seat, to see for himself the effect of consecra- 
 tion in the efforts of those who might take part 
 in the service. Mr. Williams had said to him in 
 conversation, " There are a score of teachers in our 
 school, who could conduct this meeting acceptably ; 
 I have in my church two hundred and fifty 
 members, who will do whatever they are bidden ; 
 my church-life is a little heaven ail the time, for 
 my members are conscientious about the smallest 
 things." So the Bishop sat away off in a comer 
 
f 
 
 fM 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 of the largo building. The service opened w..!i the 
 pastor in the chair, and the Indian band, in charge 
 of Mr. Holt, led the singing. The first hymn 
 was, " \ shelter in the time of storm." Tom the 
 Leopard then offered prayer: "Our Father, we 
 tank Thee for Thy care. Thou art always caring 
 for us, for Thou dost care for de flowers on de 
 prairie. We tank Thee for de missionary, for Jim 
 John, de Princess, Mr. Bumip, Mr. Williams, and 
 de Bishop. We tank Thee for light ; de light dat 
 has come since we put our mark on de blackboard. 
 May de h^;. t come to all de white people and de 
 red people. We tank Thee for dis church, de 
 wheat, de mill ; we tank Thee that Indian will be 
 hungry no more. We ask Thee to forgive red 
 man for stealing Mr. Bumip's cattle ; Indian never 
 steal no more. We ask Thee to help white man 
 talk at dis meeting, and may we hear right. Take 
 out de black in red man and white man; give 
 good words to speakers, for Je.sus' sake. Amen." 
 
 As Tom concluded, the organist of the largest 
 church in the city, a master in his profession, 
 commenced playing a voluntary on the little organ 
 on the platform. The Indians were amazed at the 
 beautiiiil strains which were drawn from the 
 instrument. What a difference between the touch 
 of the student and that of the artist! Then 
 Miss Martin, dressed in plain black, with a white 
 rose at her throat, stepped to the front, and, with- 
 out any accompaniment, san^^ : 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 »fi 
 
 •' Profliona promise, God bath given, 
 To the wfeorj piuwer-bj. 
 On tbe way from eartb to Ilenven, 
 I will gnide thee witb Mine eye." 
 
 Mr. Jinks, who was the first speaker, was at his 
 best Daring the last year he had been speaking 
 in different pulpits all through the country ; and, 
 though he had only a few subjects, yet those he 
 thoroughly understood. On this evening his topic 
 was " The goodness of God; " and what a theme for 
 an orator ! His address lasted thirty minutes, and 
 was thrilling in its effect, even though the speaker 
 was a business man. The good Bishop forgot 
 where he was, in his enjoyment, and listened 
 iiitently. Miss Martin then sang, " Jerusalem the 
 Golden." 
 
 The next speaker was Ruby Bill, and what a 
 change a year had made in him ! He stepped to tho 
 platform as if he was bom to the duty. No fear 
 now ; all his thoughts are centred in his theme, 
 " The mercy of God." " Stonies, white people and 
 cowboys, Mr. Jinks has spoken of the goodness of 
 God, which is infinite ; but it is equalled only by 
 His mercy, free, boundleas mercy. We are all 
 under the deepest obligations for this gift, for we 
 all deserve the most severe penalty ; but mercy, 
 which is an attribute of tho Deity, has been mani- 
 fested, and some of us have even refused it." 
 
 After speaking for some time on this subject, 
 he said, " I am not able to do justice to this ques- 
 
96 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL. 
 
 iion ; it is too deep for human power ; but just 
 picture in your miud the mountain-brow along the 
 snow-line. Now fancy all the inhabitant8 of the 
 city, the Indians, and a regiment of British sol- 
 diers, surrounding a cross on the awful day of the 
 Crucifixion. Suddenly it is dark ; the mountain 
 shakes, the graveyards give up their dead, the sun 
 in shame hides himself; and what is it all but 
 mercy, and that for us ? Will you accept this 
 pardon, which is purchased at such a price ? If 
 you will, say so." 
 
 There was a pause, and then from the comer 
 where the cowboys sat came several " I wills " 
 from the visitors ; then the Indians in their deep, 
 guttural voices said, "I will" Twenty five re- 
 sponses had been given when Ruby Bill once more 
 spoke. " Friends, the price was paid to take the 
 sin principle out of the human heart ; as Tom said, 
 the black can come out of each of us. If you want 
 it all out, say so by standing up." About twelve 
 more, among whom was the Bishop, rose to their 
 feet. 
 
 Here Mr. Williams once more took charge. 
 "Now, friends, we want you people who have 
 responded to the call to come to the front, 
 for there are about forty people here who are 
 eager to help you. Remember, it is not repression, 
 but extinction of the sin-principle that is needed." 
 As the audience retired the front seats were 
 filled by about thirty-five people who were deeply 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 97 
 
 anxious about their oonditton. and an equal num. 
 ber of Sunday School teachers. On a comer aeat 
 was the Bishop, for, though a good man. he had 
 nevt-r Meen things in this light before ; certainly he 
 was sometimes impatient, for which he repented 
 " m sackcloth and ashes." As the enquiry meeting 
 proceeded, the light broke on his mind, and he 
 said to Mr. Holt. " I would like lo be on your staff 
 for a while: I feel to-night that I have never 
 given myself as I should. There is no deception 
 among these people; everything is real, and a 
 bishop of the Methodist church should go as far as 
 anybody." 
 
 After an hour of reai loving counsel, and the 
 most tender words, the gathering broke up, after 
 having imparted joy to nearly every person pres- 
 ent. The Bishop, with his heart full, walked 
 home, arm-in-arm, with the pastor. He had come 
 to the North Land for health, and had received it 
 and Pentecost, too. 
 
 But this chapter is about " wedding bells," •o 
 we must hasten. The Princess, as usual, waited 
 for Mr. Holt ; their horses had become acquainted, 
 and seemed to like each other's company. Mr.' 
 Holt commenced the conversation by saying he 
 wished that Miss Martin lived twice as far away 
 so their ride could be longer. It seemed strange' 
 he should say " Miss Martin," for lately it had 
 been " Alice ; " but Mr. Holt is not himself on this 
 occasion. The night was beautify.; the stars 
 
 9 
 
THE NORTH LAND 80H00L 
 
 
 never seemed so bright There is be»aty in vast- 
 neet, and they were iJone on the prairie. A long 
 panae ensues ; then the missionary heaves a great 
 sigh ; and his companion wants to know what is 
 the matter with a hero that can control a nation 
 of red men, empty the pockets of white people, 
 build a large church without money, cure the ail> 
 ments of a thousand Indians, run a brass band, 
 build a mill, and grow wheat 
 
 " Miss Martin, the difficulty is too deep for 
 
 me." 
 
 " Well, then, let someone cIpj solve the trouble ; 
 I am deeply interested in all your "-hemes, and 
 am only too willing to help. Juf t trust a woman's 
 wit for your casa" 
 
 " Miss Martin, if you were a poor girl in place 
 of a princess, in wealth and appearance, I would 
 have no difficulty, but would just do as mother 
 wrote, which was to proflFer heart and hand and 
 fortune, and bring the bride to pay her a visit on 
 Lake Huron's shore." 
 
 Miss Martin said, " You had better do it," at 
 the same time wishing she were out of sight. 
 
 " But," said Mr. Holt, " I have no fortune. The 
 missionary society keeps us poor, so we will not 
 get proud. My salary is five hundred dollars a 
 year, and even that is never paid up. I expect in 
 a year to go to the coast, and to go alone will be a 
 dreadful trial ; but I dare not ask you to go with 
 me ; I think it would be selfish, for, as far as I 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 90 
 
 know, my life in future will be among the rmlians 
 near the ocean." 
 
 Mise Martin, in the moonlight, suddenly awoke 
 to the fact that the hero of her life was the rnout 
 unMlfiah man she had ever met Her old humor 
 came back ; her eyes fairly glistened, as Hhe asked 
 him if she was to take that as an offer of marriage, 
 for it was unlike any she had ever ha<l before. 
 
 " Miss Martin, if it was right and not selfish, 
 there would be no impediment could hinder me^ or 
 no sacrifice I would not suffer to make you my 
 wife. You are a princess, indeed, worthy the best 
 man in the world, while I am a poor missionary. 
 I dare not ask you to do what may not be wise for 
 yourself. Let us pray about it for a few days ; do 
 • not think of me, but of yourself : your position in 
 society, your wer.ith, and your future so full of 
 promise." 
 
 By this time they had crossed the bridge and 
 were at the house. The hostler, who had heard 
 the clatter of the pony's feet, was out to take him 
 in charge, for he had little else to do except to 
 look after "White Stockings." He had taught 
 Miss Martin to ride him, and he idolized the pony 
 nearly as much as she. Mr. Holt said nothing at 
 parting, nerely raising his hat as if to some 
 crowned head, and then rode off once more to the 
 prairie. As Miss Martin caressed the pony, the 
 hostler felt a chill go through his heart at the ten- 
 derness in the tones of his young mistress. How 
 
100 
 
 THE NORTH LAND 80HOOL 
 
 thrilling, tale-telling is the human voice ! As Patsy 
 u»ed the brush on the horse, he talked to him- 
 self in this wise : " I guess my occupation's gone ; 
 I'll never see her like again, but I don't know a 
 man anywhere worthy of her but the missionary." 
 
 The days roll round — they never stop, and two 
 afternoons later Mr. Holt was ridi'ag towards the 
 city on his broncho when his thoughts were inter- 
 rupted by the neighing of " White Stockings " 
 alongside, and the horses slowed down to a walk 
 naturally. Miss Martin was as radiant as ever, a 
 bantering smile on her face ; but the missionary 
 looked as if he had tried to bring a reform bill into 
 Parliament, and had been defeated. 
 
 " What is the matter with the man who holds 
 the destiny of a nation in his hands ? " asked Miss 
 Martin. 
 
 " I have never slept since we parted," he said. 
 " I have had wideawake visions of a little home, a 
 home of poverty, within hearing of the breakers 
 of the Pacific, and in that little home a vacant 
 chair for a princess that never came ; and consci- 
 ence has said that it served me right, some people 
 want the whole earth." / 
 
 " Well," replied Miss Martin, " I have had visions 
 also, {(sleep and awake, and in every one of them 
 I saw myself the helpmate of one man, and he a 
 missionary, and the poverty that you dread so 
 much never entered into my dreams. I have 
 wealth in my own right; I am ready to be the 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 101 
 
 missionary's wife, but I think I am worth the 
 asking." 
 
 " AUce," said Mr. Holt, " if Jacob had been here 
 in my position, seven years of service would have 
 been nothing ; and, in fact, a life-time of waiting 
 and working to me is nothing, if only I can be 
 near you during that time." 
 
 "Now, then, am I to consider myself en- 
 gaged ? " asked Miss Martin. 
 
 " No, not yet," was the answer ; " I must see 
 your parents ; their loss will be great and irrepar- 
 able." 
 
 Then Mr. Holt gave himself to the enjoyment 
 of the hour until the shadows came down from 
 the Rockies, and still the two were talking. The 
 missionary's face is now as bright as that of his 
 companion ; and, as they cross the bridge, there is 
 not a happier couple in the city. Of course he 
 accepts the invitation to tea, at which, as he asks 
 blessing on the food, and gives thanks for all the 
 good things in this life, the new happiness that 
 shows itself in his face indicates to the old folks 
 the state of affairs; and there is no opposition. 
 How can there be when they were intended for 
 each other ? In order to keep Alice at home, Mr. 
 Martin offers to start the missionary in business ; 
 but she is as enthusiastic over the work of the 
 future as Mr. Holt is, so this plan would not do. 
 Let us give them our best wishes, for they will be 
 a success wherever they go. 
 
102 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 One year from the date of the openin^^ of the 
 new church, the Indians, the cowboys, and the 
 teachers of the North Land School, assembled in 
 the red buildinfir, which was crowded to the doors. 
 Truly they live most who are most useful; the 
 young couple had been a help to everyone present, 
 and they were to leave for the far west that night. 
 The Indians had made a canoe, for a present, that 
 was ii gem, and on which an artist had painted in 
 golden letters, " The Princess ; " the cowboys gave 
 them a pair of bronchos; Jim John, a handful of 
 cheques all signed, and the teachers of the school 
 presented them with suits of sealskin. As Mr. 
 Williams concluded the marriage ceremony, old 
 Tom the Leopard stepped forward, and, with the 
 tears coursing down his cheeks, placed his hands 
 on their heads, and, on behalf of the thousand red 
 people, tisked the blessing of the Great Spirit on 
 their new life. Afterwards he said that even the 
 wedding was on the blackboard. But now the 
 carriage was at the door, and there was no fun, 
 only a fervent " God bless them " from hundreds 
 of tongues. It is certain He will bless them, for 
 hath not the Lord " set apart the godly man and 
 the godly woman for Hii.iself ?" 
 
 How wonderful is the effect of faith on human 
 lives ! This young couple leave their home, civili- 
 zation, hundreds of friends, and a large sphere of 
 usefulness, for what under other circumstances 
 would be considered an Utopian scheme. They 
 
i 
 
 THE NOBTH LAND 8CH00L 
 
 108 
 
 were to go among strangers, but " He who never 
 slumbers nor sleeps" was guarding them, and a 
 hearty welcome was waiting th^n ; so with strong, 
 loving hearts, they set about making the best of 
 their new condition. In the path of duty we 
 never get away from Qod. On the prairie, by the 
 sea, on the mountain, in tbe bowels of the earth, 
 on the i^vlde-spreading ocean, it is always the same 
 — the path of duty means continual surrender, and 
 " the pure in heart see God." What does it matter 
 wher«» we go, if we are in His presence, for " there 
 is the fulness of joy." The young couple are as 
 safe in the new country as in the old, for even the 
 hairs of their heads are numbered. They will 
 carry light and blessing wherever they go, for 
 light cannot fail to shine. 
 
 To the average Christian, the most trying ex- 
 perience is the freezing, starving, farness, when 
 God seems to l.a e left us to ourselves ; and this 
 invariably arises from inbred sin, which, when 
 removed, allows the Sun of Righteousness to be 
 seen as near as ever. F'^m the island of Patmos, 
 deserted by all human friends, a prisoner gives us 
 the most wonderful account of the New Jeru- 
 salem; messages of love and warning have come 
 to him for all the Eastern churches, and a loving 
 invitation to all the children of men, " Wh(»oever 
 will, let him take the Water of Life freely." In 
 the Lammertine cells was imprisoned an old man 
 awaiting the crown of life, yet from him we have 
 
104 THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL " 
 
 the beautiful Pauline epistlea The Christian is 
 never alone. Though Bedford jail secluded John 
 Banyan, the Comforter was there, and " The Pil- 
 grim's Progress" comes forth to be a blessing to 
 thousands upon thousands. We envy the king on 
 his throne, while, if the truth was told, his is a 
 hard lot The missionary in the far-off land is 
 pitied because he never hears the beautiful Eng- 
 lish, his native tongue : he sees Jot the faces that 
 are so dear to him ; b it he is not alone, for he can, 
 like Enoch of old, "walk with Go i ' In such 
 company we can never be lonesome, nor unhappy, 
 for the "joy of the Lord is our strength ; " rejoic- 
 ing continually in His presence, the well of water 
 becomes more abundant, for " from his heart shall 
 flow rivers of living water" — love to God and love 
 to man. 
 
 Mr. Holt and his wife will enjoy life in the 
 path of duty far more than the lover of ease with 
 his millions. Now let us leave them ;— they are 
 not seeking happiness, but are looking to do their 
 duty, which, in all ages, is the path of the just, 
 shining brighter and brighter to the perfect day. 
 
VI 
 
 THE VISION OF ISAIAH 
 
 r\EAR reader, it was in the year of King Uzzi- 
 «-^ ah's death that Isaiah had his wonderful vis- 
 ion. Down in the fogs there are no such privileges ; 
 we live too low for them, yet they are for us, if we 
 could only reach higher. If the atmosphere is 
 clear, how far the eye can distinguish objects from 
 Pike's Peak ! And this is due to the great alti- 
 tude, for we are far above the clouds and the 
 mists surrounding the earth. There are great 
 spiritual truths so infinitely above Nature that 
 she furnishes no symbols that would assist us in 
 understanding them. It, therefore, pleased God to 
 flash upon the souls of great men, celestial visions 
 whose significance the Divine Spirit afterwards 
 interpreted. 
 
 In a dream Isaiah stood in the temple, near the 
 altar, when the veil that hid the Holy of Holies 
 was withdrawn, and he beheld One whose face no 
 man might look upon and live. The vision was 
 appropriate to the time. The wicked king, having 
 just died of leprosy, had been buried, not in the 
 tombs of the royal families, but in a field close by ; 
 and, perhaps, Isaiah had stood by the solitary 
 grave, which proclaimed the vanity of human 
 
 106 
 
 ii 
 
106 
 
 THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 pomp and presumption. Now he beheld the Great 
 King, the universal sovereign before whom all the 
 princes of the earth are but as grasshoppers. " I 
 saw also the Lord, sitting upon a throne, high and 
 lifted up, and His train filled the temple." Above 
 him, on expanded pinions, floated the seraphims, 
 from whose lips burst forth the ascription, " Holy, 
 holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts : the whole earth is 
 full of His glory." At their cry, the foundations of 
 the temple rocked, the house was filled with the 
 smoke of the Shekinah ; and, in his awe, the 
 prophet cried, " Woe is me, for I am undone, be- 
 cause I am a man of unclean lips : for mine eyes 
 have seen the King, the Lord of hosts." Then one 
 of the seraphims, having in his hand a live coal, 
 which he had taken from the altar, flew to him, 
 and laid it upon his mouth, saying, " Lo, this hath 
 touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken 
 away, and thy sin purged." Such was Isaiah's 
 vision ; nor was it wholly singular, for, although 
 it may not be accompanied by such glorious acces- 
 sories, the vision of God is essential to every soul. 
 We are imprisoned in the realm of the senses. 
 If you look about you, and consider what are the 
 thoughts of men, their plans, their purposes, you 
 will begin to realize what a small sphere is open to 
 humanity. There goes the average man between 
 his place of abode and the scene of his daily occu- 
 pation ! The calm blue sky is over him, but 
 clouds of passion hide it from his spirit. There 
 
THE NOBTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 107 
 
 are so many prizes of wealth and fame he longs to 
 win, and so intent is he in the grim game against 
 ruthless odds, that he will not look up and see the 
 crown of life. Beyond are the infinite universe, 
 the l^ons of angels, the glorified dead, and high 
 above all the King eternal, immortal, invisible, 
 yet, to the average man, who is a slave, these 
 things are as if they were not. Never shall he 
 live, never can he live, until his soul be uplifted to 
 the plane where the celestial vision is possible. 
 As he is; he could not undertand such a revelation; 
 and yet the Bible abounds in the records of these 
 manifestations of the Divine. If it is objected 
 that these narratives are myths, then human des- 
 tiny has turned upon myth, and legend grown 
 mightier than reality. 
 
 In what we en 11 profane history, also, the vision 
 of God has been proved to be the animating 
 power. What sustained Socrates when he drank 
 the hemlock, or illumined Plato amid the heathen 
 darkness with the light of immortality ? What 
 but the splendid vision gave courage to Luther in 
 his awful peril, to Frederick the Great in the 
 seven years' war, to Gustavus Adolphus, as, with 
 his heroic band of Swedes, he swept down from 
 the north to determine the fate of Europe; to 
 Cromwell, at the head of his Ironsides, as he 
 exclaimed, " Arise, O God, and let Thine enemies 
 be scattered ; " to William of Orange, as, wasted 
 x by disease, he boldly rode, mid shot and shell. 
 
108 THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 on the field of Namur? John Wesley, in his 
 wonderful wDrk, most have seen this vision, and 
 the effeet of the live coal has been beheld in thou- 
 sands of his followers, who, in poverty and in 
 wealth, by sea and by land, have zealously testi- 
 fied to the witness of the Spirit In our own day 
 men and women have been transformed into 
 heroes and heroines, thereby giving to us a Dwight 
 L. Moody, a John G. Paton and a Father Damien. 
 Frances O. Willard seems like a star that for a 
 while shone, to enlighten the way to the Holy of 
 Holies, and thousands of her sex are following in 
 her pathway with radiant and beneficent foot- 
 steps. 
 
 O wonderful vision ! Thy revelations are possi- 
 ble to all, but generally more manifest to the 
 lowly— a vision, not of power, not of love, but of 
 the infinite holiness that cannot look upon sin but 
 with abhorrence. It is the evidence of the sweet- 
 ness and purity of the Father's house, arising mid 
 the deep despondency and degradation bom of the 
 knowledge of sin in the heart 
 
 In the case of Gideon, Peter, Paul, and of 
 every hero of faith, its eflTects are self-abasement 
 and the consciousness of guilt and helplessness. 
 Men even as Isaiah are prostrated, yet they are not 
 
 left 80. The first vision is succeeded by another 
 
 the appearance of no strange, unintelligible seraph, 
 but of One fashioned like ourselves, who, with 
 pierced hands, takes a coal from the altar of His 
 
THE NORTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 109 
 
 own passion and lays it, not apon our li|)6, but 
 upon our hearts, wherein the old begins to be oon- 
 sunied, and we rifie into the dignity of new crea- 
 tures in Him. " Ring out the old, ring in the 
 new," ring in the Christ*life that is to be. Men 
 could be serene all the time ; adversity would 
 bring a blessing in deeper humility, a plainer view 
 of our own unworthiness. Before seeking for a 
 remedy we must know our disease ; then help is 
 at hand, a real, radical, ever-present help. Down 
 through all the ages, though blinded by ignorance 
 and superstition, men have been hungry for some- 
 thing better, and, in our own day, the devout 
 members are coming to the front, and the deepen- 
 ing of Christian life is the great theme from hun- 
 dreds of pulpits. Instead of, " If a man die, shall 
 he live again ? " it is, " Can a man die to self, and 
 live t^e resurrection life here on the earth, in full 
 view of the world's criticisms?" The remedy 
 only needs trying to be proved ; Qod is in touch 
 with us on every side, but, though living, we are 
 dead to the magic call, and the "Lazarus, come 
 forth," is not heard. 
 
 Dear reader, shall we commence to live 1 " In 
 Him was life, and the life was the light of men ; 
 and the light shineth in darkness, and the dark- 
 ness comprehended it not." All men do not love 
 darkness, but our arch-enemy disputes every inch 
 of the road to the light, wherein we have an ad- 
 vantage, for the way is straight, and no person can 
 
no THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 
 
 be lost in it. The experience of the teachers of 
 the North Land School can be duplicated in every 
 diurch on the wide earth. Jesus said, " I am the 
 light of the world ; he that followeth me shall not 
 walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." 
 Let us get nearer to Him by our surrender, and a'l 
 the opposition in our nature will in time be 
 removed. Has there ever in this world's history 
 been anybody with whom the King could do His 
 best? Unbelief has been a weakness with the 
 human family ever since Adam doubted God ; but 
 when the surrender is made, the increase in faith 
 —a fruit of the Spirit— is surprising, yet quite 
 natural. Let us allow the light to come in and 
 growth commence, for we are mere babes, when 
 we might, like Caleb of old, be strong and able. 
 Christians will not believe it, yet it is true that 
 " If thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be 
 full of light" 
 
 One morning in the North Land there was a 
 peculiar experience. A heavy, gray, wet fog, 
 which was something almost unknown in that 
 beautiful country, covered the prairie, the river, 
 the city and the mountain Voices did not sound' 
 natural, and how much uncertainty there was 
 about everything! What queer shapes objects had 
 taken ! The sumach bushes looked like some wild 
 denizen of the forest, or some reptile from the 
 river, that had a number of long arms, every one 
 of which was extended to grasp the spectator. 
 
THE NORTH LAND SCHOOL 111 
 
 The elms seemed like mighty giants who were on 
 hand for the general destruction of the people, so 
 fearful they looked, and su quiet— like the calm 
 before the storm. About noon the north wind, 
 carrying with it the scent of the wild flowers, 
 lifted the fog from the river, and there was a 
 change. Light always makes change, as was seen 
 in Peter, Saul of Tarsus, Luther, Wesley, and mil- 
 lions more of the race, and is now working in 
 human character, in the reader, as well as in the 
 author. As the fog lifted off the city and the 
 light grew brighter, those uncouth sumach bushes, 
 that had stood like upecires, became things of 
 beauty, with their front-touched, crimson-red 
 leaves glistening in the sun ; above them, the pines 
 gradually came into view in everlasting green. 
 The prairie to the north is clear now and, as the 
 fog lifts still higher, the belt of beeches can be 
 seen, with their leaves painted in nature's own 
 way. Bohind them emerges a long gray line of 
 rock as far as the eye can see to the east and to 
 the west. How strong this mountain is, and how 
 high ! Yet it is not without its pathway. Then a 
 large belt of maple trees comes into view, with 
 their leaves as yellow as gold, glistening in the 
 sun ; above them, the elms, then the fir trees ; and 
 towering above them all, the snow-line of royal 
 beauty, shining in eternal white. 
 
 And lo ! it is a perfect day. What a wonder- 
 ful transformation ! How easy the transition ! 
 
/ 
 
 lit THE NOBTH LAND SOHOOL 
 
 Tet this is oar privilege, for the pAthwAy extends 
 higher and grows brighter itll the way. " It shall 
 be called the way of holiness; no lion shall be 
 there, nor any ravenous beast ;" and it is too high 
 for any "andean thing to pass over it" The 
 journey commeneed where it did, with Isaiah- 
 down in the valley of self-loathing. Dear reader, 
 if yoa have paid the price, this is your privilege. 
 Expecting that your path, whether it be short or 
 long, will be brightened by His presence, 
 
 I bid you farewell, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
I 41 
 
 I: 
 
 ■ i 
 
 fi