MYSTERIES UNFOLDING
The brave are ever tender.
And feel the miseries of suffering virtue.
--Martyn.
Hedged about by such walls of difficulty, Edwin seemed to be shut entirely
away in a little world that was all his own. As he had no one to help him
to understand the every-day happenings about him, it was not strange that
the mysteries of nature were hidden as well. Shunned and abused as he was,
even curiosity was almost of no avail. But although he knew it not, the
all-seeing Eye was watching over him and angels were rejoicing over the
manner in which he was laying a foundation for a strong and noble Christian
character.
Edwin's holding no revenge in his heart toward those who had so repeatedly
wronged him made it easier, in a way, for him to endure his hardships. And
by constantly being watchful and on his guard, he was many times able to
improve little opportunities to assist either his mother or his uncle, and
in this way he sometimes evaded punishments that he would have otherwise
received. His always being on the alert made it easier for him to become
familiar with the names of various things that he could not have otherwise
known. To gain any knowledge at all was indeed a pleasure, and it enabled
him to escape so much unjust abuse.
As his love for doing good increased, so also his admiration for and
interest in the things of nature and that which was strange and mysterious
were deepened. He often wondered about the blue arch above his head, and,
supposing it to be an upper story to the earth, believed it to be inhabited
by a family similar to St. Nick and his elves. He often tried to imagine
what kind of man this being could be and wondered whether in any way he
resembled St. Nick.
In electrical storms he supposed that the man must be very angry and that
the sounds and flashes were the result of throwing or rolling heavy or
combustible articles of furniture as he had so repeatedly known his mother
and uncle to do. As such a view of life was all that he knew, it was not
strange that he could make no better comparison.
Occasionally he noticed his uncle and Elmer throwing stones high up in the
air, and sometimes when the stones went too high to be followed by the
naked eye, he supposed that they pierced the arch and lodged on the other
side.
The fact that while he was at the poorhouse a few persons had died and been
buried in the ground was till fresh in his memory, and from the oaths and
unkind language of his mother he had come to the conclusion that all must
die and be buried in the same manner. What became of them after death he
could not fathom, but he concluded that the frost in the winter-time was a
sort of cold vapor arising from the bodies of those who were dead and that
such things were all governed by the great man above the arch.
In the village where his mother had lived, very little attention was given
to family quarrels or to the troubles of children, but in this new
neighborhood it was different. A dear old couple by the name of Hahn,
living very close, soon became greatly interested in the child Edwin. Many
times they listened with deepest sympathy to his cries of agony and terror,
knowing that his cries were caused by cruel blows or kicks. Then when the
little fellow, all bleeding and bruised, would be discovered hobbling about
and endeavoring to comprehend what was expected of him that he might the
more perfectly perform the task THat had been assigned him, their hearts
were filled with indignation and pity.
"I don't see how it is," said Mrs. Hahn one day to her husband at the close
of the midday meal.
"Now, that Mrs. Fischer seems in some ways to be a pretty good sort of
woman, but when she speaks to her son, she acts like Satan himself. Only
yesterday I saw her out cleaning up the yard, and she seemed quite
good-natured until she discovered Ed coming out to help her. Then, without
telling him where to get it, she told him to hustle around and find her a
picket, for she wanted to fix the fence. I saw right away that he didn't
know what a picket was, but I wanted to see what he would do. He didn't
ask. Instead he ran around the house looking in every direction and came
back to tell her that he couldn't find any. Then, in a tone that she would
not have used for the dog she yelled at him that it was of no use to expect
an idiot like him to find anything. Next she went to a pile of pickets that
was near the barn and easily got herself what she was wanting. Still she
didn't explain anything to Edwin, but I could see that the boy knew then
what a 'picket' looked like.
"Now, Pa, I'll tell you what I'd like to do. Since his mother acts toward
him as she does, I'd like to ask him over here whenever he can come, just
as though he were coming to help us, you know, and then we could tell him
about many of these things that he doesn't know. Perhaps if he knew better
what they meant, it would not be so hard for him, and he would escape some
of the abuse."
"That's a bright idea, my good little wife," said Mr. Hahn smiling his
approval. "I believe that we ought to help the boy all that we can, for
he's sure having a hard time of it. Do what you think is best, but be
careful not to let Mrs. Fischer think you want to help her son, or all your
plans will be upset. She doesn't care what becomes of the boy, and I think
she would be glad to see him die, but doesn't dare to be the one to end his
life. But she'll do it if she keeps on as she is going."
"Well, with your consent I'll do what I can," replied Mrs. Hahn, and with a
relieved expression she hastened to make some plans that were to amount
very much to Edwin.
Mrs. Fischer graciously consented to let her son go to help the old couple
now and then, "but," she added, "you'll soon find that he's no good to
anybody. I find him lots more bother than he's worth."
"I'll risk that part of it," Mrs. Hahn answered, and from that day a great
change came into the poor boy's life.
In the home of Mr. and Mrs. Hahn, Edwin was still very timid, but they were
so kind and considerate that his intense fear gradually gave way to
confidence and trust. It seemed that his new friends were never vexed
because of his extreme ignorance. Instead of reproaching him for what he
did not know or understand, they took extra pains to explain their meaning
in the simplest language possible. To Edwin the explanation of the most
trifling every-day occurrences seemed wonderful, and to the unenlightened
child it opened up many avenues for thought that had hitherto been closed.
Never once while he was with them did they seem to grow weary of trying to
make things more simple and plain for the inquiring child.
The more Edwin associated with these friends, the more he began to
understand how he had been wronged; for many questions concerning the
earth, the sky, and himself were corrected. In explaining about St. Nick,
Mr. Hahn said:
"Edwin, that terrible creature that treated you so shamefully on Christmas
eve was not St. Nicholas at all. It was your uncle, who had, with the
consent of your mother, dressed himself in the hideous clothing in which he
appeared to you. He must have wanted to see just how much he could deceive
and frighten you."
"But how about his home in Blue Mountain?" Edwin asked in amazement. "If
Santa Claus doesn't make the toys up there, where does he make them?"
"Edwin, don't you believe those stories any longer," Mr. Hahn answered.
"Your uncle bought from a store in the city of M----all those presents that
he gave to his children. The stories that he told you about the elves
visiting the homes to discover who were bad are untrue. I know it seems
very strange to you, but what is the most difficult for me to understand is
how your mother and uncle could find pleasure in frightening and deceiving
you in such a way.
"Well, if Blue Mountain isn't the home of St. Nick, what is it?" Edwin
asked in a mystified tone.
Then in very simple words Edwin heard for the first time the real facts
regarding the great mountain that had until then been as an awful nightmare
to the unenlightened boy. Pointing away toward the line of blue and white
domes and peaks that grew more and more faint as they faded away in the
distance, Mr. Hahn explained that they were only high parts of the earth.
"Blue Mountain," he said, "is only one part of the range, and those dark
places that you see on its sides are just trees and bushes such as grow
right here in our yard. Then there are large rocks, some of them the size
of this house, and springs of water where many animals and birds may drink.
And in some places there are large flower-gardens, where the flowers grow
without the use of the spade or the hoe. I would certainly like to take you
to see the mountain, Edwin, if it were not so far away, but it would take
us too long to go and come, for it is very much farther away than it
seems."
Reasons were given also for the strange noises that Edwin had attributed to
the rolling of heavy articles of furniture, and the names sky, thunder, and
lightning were rightly applied. But with all their information, Mr. and
Mrs. Hahn gave no hint that there was a great and supreme Being over all,
one who had created all the wonders that they had been describing, for they
were not Christian people and were not acquainted with the love of God.
They were greatly interested in the things that pertain to this life, but
seemed unconcerned about heaven, eternity, and the Bible. So Edwin
continued to believe that some great man who had died and left the earth
was living above the blue arch and that the electrical storms were in some
way the result of fireside quarrels and confusion.
To Edwin it seemed that every moment that he from time to time spent with
these kind friends was precious indeed, but the effect upon the mother was
not what Mrs. Hahn had desired. Finding that her son could understand more
about the work, she became more particular and increased his tasks
accordingly until it seemed that he could do nothing to suit her. Poor
nervous child! if only he could have known the words of the Psalmist, what
a comfort they would have been--"He shall deliver the needy ... and
precious shall their blood be in his sight." (Psa. 72:12, 14).