THE YOUTH’S CABINET.

by the large clock on the church steeple ;
and the clock on the church steeple is
regulated by the sun, whose course God
has determined from the beginning of
time. All that man can do is to affix
hands to the sun-dial, and’ notice by the
shadow they cast the position of the
common and eternal source of light.

This is indeed a type and symbol of
the mind—a truth which I have only in
late years come to understand: at that
time my thoughts were of a very differ-
ent kind. I often stood gazing into the
watchmaker’s shop, and involuntarily I
stowed away my pen-knife in my right-
hand waistcoat pocket—the left was re-
served for something better! “A man
wears his watch next to his heart,” said
I to myself; “ there it goes tic, tac, in-
side and out.” Once I dreamed that my
gold repeater had’ been stolen from me,
and on awaking I felt quite rejoiced at
not yet possessing the watch. I could
not help telling my companions the cause
of my joy; but I did not tell them all,
and I spoke in riddles, saying that at
Christmas they would open their eyes
and ears wide, when I showed them
something that pointed and spoke of it-
self. Then off I ran, before they guessed
what it could be. It was now my turn
to open eyes and ears.

Christmas eve came, and the tapers
were lighted, and the merriment began.
When the folding-doors were at length
opened, we children rushed into the
room; but all at once we stood still in
amazement, and my heart beat violently.
“« Ay,” thought I, “there lies the watch
for me upon the table.” But, alas! it
was—a silver one! My joy was damp-
ed; but soon I collected myself, and
thought, ‘What does it matter? silver

 

59

is, after all, whiter and thicker ; and then
too it repeats so prettily, bim, bam.” I
pressed the spring with all my might,

but it did not yield—there was no

sound. A feeling of despair came over
me: “Then it is nothing after all!” I
laid the watch down, without saying a

word, hastily left the room, went up
stairs to my chamber in the dark, and
wept bitterly, until my heart was almost
broken. The thought crossed my mind
that I would kill myself, as I had been
cheated of my gold repeater ; and then
again I wept at the thought of dying so
young because my hopes had all been
destroyed. My mother soon came with
a candle, and when I poured out to her
my grief at the disappointment, she
shook her head, pressed her lips toge-
ther, and looked at me with that look of
truth and love which is still ever present
to me, although death has long since
closed her eyes. She now explained to
me how wrongly I acted, saying, that
had I never heard of a gold repeater, I
would have been satisfied with a plain
watch; that my father wished only to
try me, and teach me the lesson that we
ought to find pleasure even under dis-
appointment, and not to be ungrateful
to God and man. She said this in her
own gentle and impressive tone of voice ;
and after weeping till I could weep no
more, I went with her down into the
sitting-room.

I was no longer sad, and yet not hap-
py; the watch, however, which was now
my own, was a good and useful one.
At night, as I lay in bed, the bad spirit
came over me again; I was so excited
that I wanted to jump up and throw the
watch out of the window ; but it was too

cold out of bed, and I lay quiet in the

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