"I don't believe she will," said Rosella.
Rosella and Drew carried their mite boxes into their mother's tent.
"We're going to cut apricots and peaches to help the heathen!" announced
Rosella.
Mother nodded.
"We'll have a whole lot of money in our mite boxes when we carry them
back," said Rosella.
"We'll see," said mother.
For two or three mornings Rosella and Drew rose early, and after breakfast
hurried to the cutting-sheds to work. But, after a while, Rosella and Drew
grew tired. It was more fun to run over the fields, and mother never said
Rosella and Drew must cut fruit, anyhow, though she looked sober.
"The heathen children won't know," said Rosella to herself. "Suppose the
heathen children were me, I wonder if they'd cut apricots every day to send
me Bibles and missionaries? I don't believe they would."
The first month melted away. When it was over, Rosella had two nickels in
her mite box, and Drew had three in his.
"The heathen children won't know," said Rosella.
But one Saturday night Rosella and Drew were going by the tent where Louie
Ming lived. Inside the tent sat Louie Ming, with her week's pay in her lap.
In the Chinese girl's hand was her blue mite box. Louie Ming was putting
her money into her mite box, and did not notice Rosella and Drew.
"Why-ee!" whispered Rosella. "See there! Why, Drew! I do believe Louie
Ming's putting every bit of her pay into her mite box! Do you suppose she
knows what she's doing?"
Rosella and Drew stood watching.
"Do you suppose Louie Ming understands?" whispered Rosella again. "Why,
she's giving it all! Drew, she's been working in the cutting-sheds every
time I've been there. She didn't cut fruit till she got her mite box.
There, she's given every cent!"
When Louie Ming looked up, and suddenly discovered Rosella and Drew, she
looked half scared. Rosella stepped toward the tent, and said:--
"What made you give all your money? Why didn't you save some? You've worked
hard for it. The heathen children wouldn't know if you kept some for candy
and things."
Louie Ming looked shy.
"You say wha' fo' I give money?" she asked softly.
"Yes," said Rosella. "Why do you give so much?"
Louie Ming looked down at the blue mite box. Somehow it seemed hard for her
to answer, at first. Then she spoke softly: "One time I have baby brudder.
He die. Mudder cry, cry, cry. I cry, cry all time. I say, 'Never see poor
little baby brudder again, never again!' An' I love little brudder. Then I
go mission school. Teacher say, 'Louie Ming, love Jesus, an' some day you
see your baby brudder again.' O, teacher make me so happy! See little
brudder again! I go home and tell my mudder. She not believe, but I get
teacher to come and tell. She tell about Jesus to my fadder and mudder.
They learn love him. Some day we all go heaven and see little brudder! Now
I save money to put in mite box. Way over in China many little girls don't
know about Jesus. Their little brudders die. They cry, cry, all the same me
did. Maybe some my money send teacher tell those poor Chinese girls how go
to heaven, see their baby brudders again. So I work very hard to put money
in my box, because Jesus come into my heart."
Rosella did not answer, but stood looking at Louie Ming. Then she suddenly
turned and caught Drew's hand, and pulled him along till they were running
toward their own tent. Rosella rushed in. The baby was sitting on the straw
floor, and Rosella caught him up, crying:--
"O baby, baby brother, don't you ever die! I couldn't spare you!"
"Goo!" said baby brother, holding out his arms to Drew.
Drew did not say anything, but he took baby brother.
"Drew," said Rosella, "I'm going straight to work. Aren't you? I'm ashamed
of myself. To think that a Chinese girl who once did not know about Jesus,
would work so hard now for her mite box, and you and I haven't! Why, Drew
Hopkins, I haven't acted as though I cared whether the heathen boys and
girls knew about Jesus or not! I'm going to work to fill my mite box. Why,
Drew, Louie Ming's box is most full, and she used to be a heathen!"
Drew nodded, and hugged baby brother tighter.
The next Monday Rosella and Drew began working hard cutting fruit. How they
cut fruit the remaining month! How they saved! And how glad they were that
their mite boxes were heavy when the day came to carry them back!
The blind missionary woman was at Sunday-school again. After the school
closed, the superintendent, who knew Rosella and Drew, introduced them to
the missionary. And the blind missionary said, "Bless the dear girl and boy
who have cut peaches for two whole months to help send the gospel to
heathen children!"
Then Rosella, being honest, could not bear to have the missionary think it
had been two months instead of one, and she suddenly burst out,
half-crying, and said, "O, I wasn't so good as that! I didn't work two
months, and I--I'm afraid if Louie Ming hadn't loved Jesus better than I
did, Drew and I wouldn't have had hardly any money in our mite boxes."
The blind missionary wanted to know about Louie Ming, and Rosella told the
missionary all about her. Then the blind missionary kissed Louie Ming's
cheek, and said, "Many that are last shall be first."
But Rosella was glad that she and Drew had worked to send the news about
Jesus to heathen children.--_Mary E. Bamford, in "Over Sea and Land."_