The Little Pavior.
"Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and
whether it be right,"--PROVERBS, xx. 11.
Happy the child who is active, intelligent and obliging, and who takes
pleasure in serving those that are about him! Happy above all is the
child, who, fearing and loving the Lord, shows himself thus zealous and
obliging, from a feeling of piety, and a desire to please God.
Such was Francis, and this we shall soon see, from the following
narrative:
Francis, who was about eight years old, was spending the month of June
with his Grandpapa in the country.
His Grandpapa lived in a pretty house, roofed with slates, and
surrounded with a verandah, in which were seats, and between each seat,
some flower-pots. Jessamine and roses entwined themselves around the
verandah, and adorned it with elegant festoons of flowers.
Behind the house was a yard, where chickens, turkeys, and guinea-fowls,
were kept; and in the front, looking towards the west, was laid out a
fine garden, well provided with evergreens, such as holly, yew, and
pine-trees, and amongst these, also, many birch and ash-trees
flourished.
At the bottom of the garden, which sloped a little, flowed a pure, but
shallow stream, which was crossed by means of a wooden bridge,
surrounded with elders and large hazels.
This was a delightful dwelling-place, but those who inhabited it, were
still more delightful than the beautiful garden or the smiling groves.
For it was the beauty of piety which was found in them, united with
that gentleness and amiability of character, that humble spirit of
cordiality, which our Saviour enjoins upon all his true disciples.
These inhabitants, so good and so amiable, were the Grandpapa and
Grandmamma of Francis, and their domestics, who, with them served the
Lord, and lived in that peace, which His Spirit gives to such as
delight in His Word.
This dear Grandpapa then, since he was pious, was charitable, and took
particular pleasure in visiting his aged neighbors, especially the poor
peasants, to whom he always carried comfort and encouragement from that
gracious God, with whom he himself daily endeavored more and more to
live. He used generally to pay these charitable visits in the middle of
the day; after having read the Holy Bible for the second time, in a
retired summer-house in the garden, near which a little gate opened
upon a footpath, which, passing through the orchard, led to the village.
Francis, who was already acquainted with his Grandpapa's habits, never
came to disturb him while he was in the summer-house, and whenever he
saw his Grandpapa going out of the little gate he took good care not to
follow him.
But in about an hour or two, he would go to meet him, sometimes towards
the road, at others, as far as the bridge over the stream;--his
Grandmamma was never uneasy, because she knew that Francis was a
prudent boy, and that God watched over him, as one of the lambs of the
good shepherd.
Grandpapa then, had just finished reading; he had put on his hat and
taken his cane, and had gone out through the gate.
Francis, who was sitting before the house, under the pretty green
verandah, saw him pass behind the garden hedge, and was already
thinking of going to meet him at the end of an hour, when to his great
surprise he saw his Grandpapa pass again behind the hedge, and then
enter the garden through the little gate, walking apparently with much
difficulty.
"What is the matter, dear Grandpapa?" cried Francis, springing towards
the garden.--"Oh! how you are covered with mud! It must be that rude
Driver who wanted to fawn upon you. He has always such dirty paws."
"You must not scold Driver, but _me_," mildly replied his Grandpapa,
"for I incautiously, and most imprudently, walked upon that part of the
path which has been inundated by the water from the fountain."
"Grandpapa, did you fall?" asked Francis, quite alarmed.
"Yes my boy, your Grandfather fell like a heedless man.... But thanks
to our gracious God, who ever takes care of us! it was nothing; I was
only a little frightened. You see, Francis, you must not forget that we
only stand, because God supports us."
So saying, his Grandfather entered the house, and with the same
serenity related his accident to his wife, who bestowed every attention
upon him.
Whilst his Grandfather was resting himself, and Francis had ascertained
that he had not suffered much, he hastened to look at the spot where
his kind Grandpapa had slipped and fallen. It was a little bit of the
path, perhaps about three paces long, covered with the water which was
issuing from the fountain, and which being of clay, had become very
slippery.
The trench round the fountain had been already deepened more than once,
in order to turn its course from that part of the orchard, but as the
ground was rather low, the water always returned.
Francis examined all this, and tried to find out what could be done to
remedy the evil, in a more durable manner.
"_I know!_" he cried at last. "I must make a pavement here, a little
higher than the path is at present!"
"Come! cheer up! 'Where there's a will,' says Grandpapa, 'with God's
help there's a way.' To work, to work! 'For he who does nothing makes
little progress,' says also, my dear Grandpapa."
It may be here well asked, how a little child, eight years of age,
could even conceive such a project, and much more how he could have had
sufficient strength to accomplish it.
But Francis was not a thoughtless or inattentive child; on the contrary
he observed on his way _to_, and _from_ School, and when he walked out
with his Papa, everything that workmen did.
It was thus that he had often noticed how the Paviors first laid down
the stones, and then pressed them together, and as we shall soon see,
he found no difficulty in what he was going to attempt.
"First and foremost," said he, "the tools!" and immediately he ran off
to look for a little wheel-barrow which his Grandpapa had made for him;
with the spade, the trowel, and the iron rake, which were at his
disposal.
When the tools were collected, Francis, having taken off his jacket,
traced out the portion to be paved.
"Now," said he, "I must take away two or three inches of earth, that
the stones may fit in."
He then took away the earth, and piled it up on the upper side of the
path, in order to compel the water to pass by the drain.
"Now," he said, "I must find some sand; where is there any? Oh! behind
the hen-house; the masons, who plastered the walls of the yard over
again, have left a large heap of it there"--and then he quickly ran
with his wheelbarrow, once, twice, and even three times, and soon had
as much as was necessary. He spread it out, and arranged it, and then
pronounced the great word of all his work, "_Stones!_ No stones, no
pavement! I must have at least fifty of them!" He ran about, searched
and gathered, near the fountain, round the house, and along the wall of
the yard, and soon brought back four wheelbarrows full of nice stones,
well shaped, and not too large.
But there were not enough, for he was obliged to put five or six
abreast. Where are there any more to be found?
"In the brook," cried he! "It is rather far off, but I shall soon be
there!" And indeed in about a quarter of an hour, he had collected all
the proper materials.
Then should he have been seen at work! The trowel in his right hand, a
stone in his left; the sand which he placed between each stone, and the
blows which forced it down, these things succeeded each other rapidly,
and were often repeated; till at length, at the end of the third hour,
the slippery bit of foot-path was no longer in existence, but in its
stead was to be seen a pavement slightly raised, which could never be
wetted by the overflowing of the fountain.
"That will not do well," said Francis, when he had finished, and was
walking over the pavement; "it is uneven, Grandpapa will hurt his feet
upon it." And so saying, he ran to the woodhouse in the yard, and
returned, bending under the weight of the mallet, with which Thomas
used to strike the axe and wedges, when he split the large pieces of
oak.
"Here is _my_ rammer," said Francis, laughing, as he thought of those
used by the paviors; and holding the mallet perpendicularly, he struck
with the butt-end, first one stone, and then another, until at length
the pavement was completed! It was solid, even and clean, and Francis,
repeating in truth, "Where there's a will, with God's help, there's a
way," gave thanks in his heart to that good heavenly Father, who gave
him both the idea and the will to do this act of filial love, and
enabled him to accomplish it.
Some sand and a few stones remained; Francis took them up and carried
them back near to the house. Then he cleared away the rubbish, and
having put on his coat again, returned joyfully to replace his tools in
the green-house.
All this was done after dinner, between the hours of three and six. The
evening passed quietly away. Grandpapa had not received any bruises,
and he could not sufficiently thank the Good shepherd, the Lord Jesus,
who had, as it were, "carried him in his arms," and "kept all his
bones."
Grandmamma joined in his praises and thanksgivings, and these two
faithful servants blessed the Lord together, whose mercies are over all
his works.
"To-morrow, please God," said Grandpapa to Francis, "I shall go and see
old George. He must have expected me to-day! But be assured, my dear
Francis, that your Grandpapa will walk no more like a giddy child; and
if the path is still slippery, I shall place my foot prudently upon it."
Francis said he hoped the path would be better; and however that might
be, that the Lord would preserve him thenceforth from slipping, and
above all, from falling.
Grandpapa made Francis read the Bible as usual to the whole household.
He spoke piously of God's paternal care for our bodies as well as for
our souls, and in his prayer he gave abundant thanks to the Saviour who
had so graciously preserved him.
The morrow came. Grandpapa had quite recovered his accident of the
preceding day, and after reading in the summer-house, he got up to go
and see old George.
Francis, who was observing him from beneath the verandah, no sooner saw
him come near the little gate, than he ran round the house to hide
himself behind a hazel bush, a short distance from the pavement, in
order to see what his Grandpapa would do.
Grandpapa walked on towards the orchard, and as soon as he set his foot
on the path, he prepared to proceed very carefully. He took three or
four steps, and then suddenly stopped, and raising his hands,
exclaimed, a "pavement! a pavement here already! How does this happen?
Who could have done this? It must be my faithful Thomas!"--he
continued--"I must thank him for it;" and he called out loudly,
"Thomas! Thomas!" Thomas, who was in the cow-house, heard his voice,
and ran to him in alarm.
"Have you tumbled again, sir," he asked anxiously?
"On the contrary," said Grandpapa, "thanks to _you_, Thomas, for having
made this good substantial pavement so quickly and so well; it is
really excellent," said he, stamping upon it with his foot, and walking
over it in every direction. "It is solid, and even, and slopes on
either side! I am very much obliged to you, Thomas."
"Alas! sir," said the man, "it is not I who did it--how vexed I am that
I did not think of it what stupidity!"...
"Who is it then?" asked Grandpapa, "for this has been done since
yesterday, and surely these stones are not mushrooms! Who could have
thought of this?"
"I think I know who it is, sir," answered Thomas, "for yesterday in the
afternoon I saw master Francis going down to the brook with his
wheelbarrow. I could not think what it was for, but now I understand."
"Francis! did you say," exclaimed Grandpapa; "how could that child have
done it even if he had wished? Are these stones only nuts, that _that_
dear boy's little hands could have been able to knock them into the
ground?"
"Do you wish, sir, that I should look for him and bring him here?"
asked Thomas.
Francis could no longer remain concealed. He ran from behind the bush,
and threw himself into his Grandpapa's arms; saying, "Dear Grandpapa,
how happy I am to have been able to succeed."
"It is _you_ then, indeed, my son!" cried Grandpapa, as he shed tears
of joy. "God bless your filial piety towards me! May He return you
two-fold all the good you have done my heart. But how did you manage?"
"You have often told me, dear Grandpapa, that 'Where there's a will,
with the help of God, there's a way,' and I prayed to God, and was able
to do it."
"Well then, dear Francis," said Grandpapa, solemnly, "I promise you,
that every day of my life, as long as I shall walk here below, when I
pass over this pavement, which your affection has made for me, I will
say to God 'O Lord, prevent Francis from falling in his way! May thy
goodness _pave_ for him the path of life, whenever it becomes
slippery.'"
Francis understood, and respectfully received this blessing; and whilst
his Grand father paid his visit, the little pavior went and told his
Grandmamma, what he had been able to do, and how God had already
blessed him for it.