WHAT WALTER FOUND
Dinner over, they all arose from their seats at the table, and the
father asked, "Walter, what part of the Bible shall we start to study
first?"
"I hardly know, father," said Walter.
"Well, you can take the old family Bible, look it over and then decide.
As for myself I have very little choice; I have read and studied it
so often that I feel very familiar with all it contains."
"All right; father, may I go up to my room now?"
"Yes, certainly, if you choose, but I should think you would rather
be outside to-day, it is so warm, and there won't be many more days
like this this year."
"I believe I would rather go to my room," said the boy, starting in
that direction.
"Just as you please, son," said the father, as he stepped through the
hall to enter the library. Walter went quickly up stairs to his room,
and his mother wondered greatly at his hurry.
Once in his room he closed the door and quietly locked it, then going
to his trunk, he excitedly pulled forth a little book with a black
leather cover which looked very much like a small Bible. He opened it
and began reading in a low tone. "_Science and Health, with Key to
the Scriptures, by Mary Baker G. Eddy_." "Yes, I am sure it is the
same book that lovely lady down south told me about, and asked mother
to get me one, but mother had said, 'no, we will never try Christian
Science; we are real Christians and believe in God.' I could not hear
everything they said, but I did hear the lady say, 'I don't see how
you can say that you believe that God is all Good, and at the same
time think He made your lovely boy sick.' I did not hear mother's
reply, but I know she was angry. Now I wonder who lost this book? I
saw no one in sight when I picked it up this morning; there is no name
in it, so I can't return it to the owner. I wonder if I ought to read
it? I don't need to believe it if I do read it. Anyway, that lady did
not look like a person that was bad, and she said she read Science and
Health every day, and that it had healed her of a severe sickness."
As he talked he turned a few pages and then read, "Contents, Chapter
I, Prayer. I wonder if that chapter is in favor of prayer or against
it. I suppose though it must be against it by the way mother acted
towards that lady." He laid his head upon his hands and thought silently
for some time, then raised his head and said, "Well, I am going to
read it. That lady said reading 'Science and Health' cured her, and
I am going to see if it will cure me if I read it. I suppose the place
to start is Chapter I."
Walter began to read to himself: "Science and Health. Chapter I, Prayer.
"_For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this
mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea, and shall
not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he
saith shall come to pass, he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore
I say unto you, what things whatsoever ye desire when ye pray, believe
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Your Father knoweth what
things ye have need of before ye ask him. Christ Jesus_."
Then he stopped and said, "Why that is just the same as I read in our
Bible; there certainly can be no bad in that. But maybe they only
printed that so as to ridicule it farther on in the book; anyway, I
wonder what Jesus Christ meant, when he said, '_therefore I say unto
you, what things whatsoever ye desire when ye pray, believe ye shall
receive them and ye shall have them_.' Oh, how often and how earnestly
have I prayed for health, with tears running down my cheeks, but my
prayers never seem to have been answered; now I wonder why, for I know
that what Jesus Christ said must be true, for He was the Son of God, and
would not deceive us; why, oh why, doesn't God answer my prayers?"
He stopped to consider for a moment, then turned pale as death, pressed
his thin hands to his breast, as a new thought came to his
consciousness, then he gasped in a whisper, "I--believe--I--know."
He paused a moment, then continued, "It must be that--I see it all
now; I see my mistake. I prayed to God for health, and in the next
instant doubted Him, doubted that He would heal me. In fact, I never
really believed that He would heal me, and Jesus said, 'Believe that
ye receive.' Oh, can this really be true. I am so excited I can hardly
think. Here I am again, this time doubting the word of Christ." Then
he jumped up with the exclamation, "I must tell father, for his prayers
are not answered, and it must be for the same reason. No, I don't mean
that. My father is a minister and he could not doubt God. But why
aren't his prayers answered? I don't know what to do. If I tell father
or mother, they may take the book away, and then my last hope would
be gone. I think I will read it first." So saying, he sat down in an
easy rocker, and was soon absorbed in what he was reading, nor did he
notice how the time flew until he heard his mother's anxious voice and
knock at the door.
He answered at once, and hastily put the book back in his trunk, then
went to the door and opened it.
His mother greeted him with, "Why, Walter, what is the matter? Since
when have you taken to locking your door in the daytime? You look so
flushed and excited, and we haven't heard a sound from you all the
afternoon. We were beginning to get alarmed about you, so I came up
to see what was the matter, and to tell you that supper was ready.
What have you been doing? Don't you feel as well as usual? Tell me,
Walter, are you worse?"
"No, mother, I am not worse, I only became so absorbed in reading that
I forgot all about time, and also that I had locked the door."
His mother did not think to ask him what he was reading, as she had
always been very careful to see that no reading matter that was at all
questionable was brought into the house, so she had no idea that he
had been reading anything but what she had read and deemed proper.
"We had better hurry down, Walter, as father is waiting for his supper."
They both started down the stairs, his mother still talking to him;
but he scarcely heard a word she said, for his thoughts were still
centered on what he had read. And now that his excitement had abated,
there seemed to be a hopeful gleam in his eyes. As soon as they entered
the room, his father noticed that his eyes were brighter, but took it
as a bad sign.
All through the evening meal they had to address him several times
before he would answer, and his father's heart grew heavy as he noticed
the thoughtful mood of his son.
When they had finished their meal, Walter asked to be excused, and
immediately went to his room.
As soon as he was gone the pastor said, "Lillian, did you notice how
Walter acted to-night? It seemed to me that he was very much more
thoughtful than usual."
"Yes," answered the mother, "he seemed confused, and his eyes were so
bright, but he ate a very hearty supper."
"I also noticed that," said the pastor, then added, "It seems there
is a change, but I hardly know whether to say the change is for better
or worse. I hope it is for the best; it may be that the medicine has
just taken effect."
"God grant that this may be so," reverently said the mother. They were
both silent for some time, then the pastor said, "I never heard Walter
speak as he did this noon. I wonder how he thought of such an absurd
thing, as sending me to jail because some one else stole some chickens."
"I know, James, that it does seem absurd at first thought, yet it seems
to me to be just as sensible to punish the wrong person for stealing,
as it would be to punish the innocent with sickness because some one
else had sinned. I have been thinking seriously of this all the
afternoon, but have not arrived at a satisfactory conclusion," said
Mrs. Williams.
The pastor slowly turned toward his wife and said, "Lillian I am
astonished beyond measure to hear this from you; it was bad enough to
hear it from my own son, but to hear it from you is worse. Don't you
think that Almighty God knows what is best for us, do you dare question
anything He does? Do you think the allwise Creator would have made him
sick if it were not for the best?"
"James, do you really believe God made our boy sick?"
"It must be so," answered James, "for we read in the Bible, that God
made everything that was made."
"If this be true James, it would be a sin to give him medicine, for
we would be trying to undo the work of God."
To say the pastor was astonished would be putting it mildly. Never in
his whole life had he been so shocked as on this day, and each shock
was greater than the preceding one.
He now stood perfectly still for a full minute, then said, "It seems
high time that we begin the study of the Bible in this house, for from
what I have heard to-day it is very apparent to me that my wife and
son are quite ignorant of what the Bible contains." Then turning, he
strode from the room.
The pastor was a good and kind man. He had always been a good husband
and father, always patient and sympathetic with his invalid wife and
son; but this day had been a very trying one to him, first in hearing
his son say things that he considered little less than blasphemous,
then to notice that the mother seemed to indorse what the son had said,
and to make matters worse, to actually hear his wife questioning the
doings of God, as he understood them. This was the last-straw. He was
really angry and out of patience, and somewhat confused, so he decided
to go to his library and think it all over. As soon as he arrived there
he impatiently seated himself in an easy chair and began to soliloquize
after this fashion: "I wonder where Walter got that idea about sending
me to jail, what can that have to do with his sickness; then to think
my wife agreed with him. Let me see, what did she say? I was so outraged
I can scarcely recall what was said. I believe though she said something
about some of the apostles doubting at times. What has that to do with
sending me to jail? I don't seem able to think clearly to-day. Then
this other matter, about giving medicine being a sin. Why everybody
takes medicine; the most pious and devout Christians that ever lived
have taken medicine, and this has been so for thousands of years. The
Bible says that the leaves of the trees are for the healing of the
nations. Then why may not the roots and the bark be used as well? Of
course Jesus Christ did not heal with medicine. He was the Son of God
and was endowed from on high with supernatural power. He didn't need
the medicine. Well, all I can say is that I am glad we are going to
have those Bible lessons, for I know that as soon as we get to studying
them they will get the truth, and then I will hear no more of this
nonsense. I don't think I will mention the matter again until we get
to studying the lessons; then as we get to this medicine question, I
will point it out to them."
So the pastor, after having thought himself into a better frame of
mind, dismissed the subject from his thoughts, arose, and walked over
to the bookcase, selected the book he wanted, and was soon absorbed
in reading.
In the meantime Walter had hurried to his room and was soon busily
engaged in reading "Science and Health."
About nine o'clock he heard his father and mother coming upstairs to
retire for the night. He hastily turned out his light and scrambled
into bed, clothes and all.
A few moments later when his mother looked in she found him in bed
nicely covered up, and supposing him asleep, quietly left the room.
As soon as Walter was sure they had retired, he arose, relit the gas,
and continued reading. It was after midnight when he laid down the
book and said, "I feel sure this book is true, and that God made only
the good, and never made me or any one else sick. I believe I will get
well when I understand how to pray aright." Then he undressed and got
into bed, a happier and more hopeful boy than he had ever been.
After saying his usual prayers, he added, "And now, God, I wish to
thank you for all the good things you have given me. I could not thank
you this morning, for then I thought you had made me sick. But now I
know that you are all good and could not make evil; truly I now have
something to be thankful for and shall always remember this Thanksgiving
day."