THE FOND FOSTER-PARENTS
Mrs. Trent hastily heated some milk, and with a small spoon she fed the
foster-child. Then she dressed it in fine clothes which had belonged to
Isabel, and brought it to Mr. Trent, saying: "See what a beautiful babe
this is, with its golden, curly hair, blue eyes and red cheeks. How
fresh and healthy it looks. But now we have a weighty matter to decide.
We do not know the baby's name and we must call it something. Let us
take your name."
"Very well," said Mr. Trent, "we will adopt him and call him Daniel
Trent. That is a very nice name. As God saved Daniel out of the lion's
den, so He saved this child from a dreadful calamity. Let us hope that
this boy will grow to be as sensible, with as much faith in God, and as
obedient to God's will, as young Daniel was."
"Let us hope it may be so," said his wife, as she cast admiring glances
upon the babe.
The faithful dog who had accompanied her now rested for awhile, as he
saw the babe in comfort and safety. After he had been fed and had
stretched himself awhile before the fire, he suddenly arose, shook
himself well, and rushed out of the house. As soon as he reached the
water's edge, he swam across the river, ran hastily up on the opposite
shore and was soon lost to view.
"Have a care, my dear," said her husband, "I fear you will soon lose
your babe. I am sure the dog has gone in quest of the child's parents
and will return here with them."
Mrs. Trent sighed. "Oh," said she, "I understand how pained those people
must be. For that reason, I would willingly restore the lost babe to its
parents. Although it would be very hard for me to part with it."
After an absence of three days, just as Mr. and Mrs. Trent were seated
at the fireside, the good, faithful dog rushed into their presence and
greeted them by barking and joyfully wagging his tail. But in a few
moments he hung his head, dropped his tail, and looked very sad; and
from that moment on he showed no desire to leave the house.
"From the dog's manner," said Mr. Trent, "I surmise that he was not
successful in finding the baby's parents, who were undoubtedly lost in
the flood. Let us take good care of him, for he has so faithfully
fulfilled his duty. We, too, have a duty to perform, for we must train
and educate this child whom we have taken into our family."
Though the child's position in life was now on a higher plane, yet his
training was no different from that which his own parents would have
given him. His new parents worked hand in hand. Daniel soon felt a
childish reverence for his foster-father, and toward his foster-mother
he showed a trusting love. He grew to be a handsome boy, displaying many
splendid talents. He was a diligent scholar and stood highest among his
classmates. He did everything in his power to give pleasure to his
foster-parents. He regarded them as his true parents, for no one had
told him otherwise. It had happened that when Daniel was two years old
his foster-parents bought a house in another section of the country and
moved into it. The new neighbors looked upon Daniel as the real son of
Mr. and Mrs. Trent.