THE LITTLE ARMY. becomes cool at night, and turns to dew. But why was the fleece alone wet, and everything else dry? Be- cause God had heard the prayer of Gideon, and He wished to show him that He can do all things, and to teach him to trust in Him. The next night, Gideon asked God to let him try the fleece again. He said, “ 'To-night, let the fleece alone _ be dry, and all the ground wet, and then I shall know that thou wilt save Israel.” God again attended to Gideon; and the next morning, all the ground was wet with dew, and the wool alone was dry. Was this wonderful? Yes, it was a mir- acle God alone could do; and when Gideon saw it. he felt he might trust his powerful, kind, and wonderful God. His faith was strong now, for he thought, if this powerful friend were with him, he need not fear the Midianites. Gideon was not going to fight alone; he had many thousand men with him. But God wished to teach the Israelites, that their soldiers had no power to gain the victory, and that He alone could save them; and so He told Gideon to say to the sol- diers, that if they were afraid, they might return home, and not come to the battle; and 22,000 went away. They could not have had much faith in God, nor much holy courage; they were weak, fearful men, who would not have helped Gideon to fight against the enemy. The army was small now; only 121 10,000 men; but God said, “I do not want so many; if all these sol- diers go, the Israelites will say that their own power and courage gained the victory. Bring the 10,000 down to the water, and let them drink; notice the men who lap the water like a dog, and put them on one side; and the men who kneel down to drink water, put on the other side; and I will tell thee whom I choose to fight against the Mid- lanites.” Gideon obeyed God, with- out murmuring, or asking why. He brought all the soldiers-to the water, and told them to drink.