Unshrinking, I dare meet the stoutest foe
That ever bathed his hostile spear in blood.
Now will I meet thee,

Gol.

Thou insect warrior! since thou darest me thus:
Already I behold thy mangled limbs,

Dissevered each from each, erelong to feed

The fierce, blood-snuffing vulture. Mark me well!
Around my spear I'll twist thy shining locks,
And toss in air thy head all gashed with wounds;
Thy lips yet quivering with the dire convulsions
Of recent death! Art thou not terrified?

True courage is not moved by breath of words.
Courage, the child of Fortitude and Faith,
Holds its firm empire in the constant soul;
And, like the steadfast pole-star, never once
From the same fixed and faithful point declines.
Gol. The curse of Philistia's gods be on thee!
This fine-drawn speech is made to lengthen out
That little life thy words pretend to scorn.

Dav. Ha! say'st thou so? Come on then! Mark us well! Thou com'st to me with sword, and spear, and shield!

In the dread name of Israel's God I come,

The living Lord of Hosts, whom thou defiest!

Yet though no shield I bring, no arms; except

These five smooth stones I gathered from the brook,
With such a simple sling as shepherds use:-

Yet all exposed, defenceless as I am,
The God I serve shall give thee a prey

To my victorious arm. I will give thee,

Spite of thy vaunted strength and giant bulk,
To glut the carrion kites. Nor thee alone:
The mangled carcasses of your thick host
Shall spread the plains of Elah; till Philistia,
Through all her trembling tents and flying bands,
Shall own that Judah's God is God indeed!

And fires my soul with ardor not its own.

-H. MORE.

The God of battles stimulates my arm,

FATHER

"Deer Mr. Father pleze ive got ter have a toofe yank out. pleis cum to Bess." The clergyman smiled as he read little Irish Bess's letter. How many similar ones had he received since their early acquaintance.

He had first found Bess crying and clinging to her mother's skirts as she was bending over the weekly wash-tub to help his Jane, and it only required the magic of his Father's heart, five minutes' time, and a bunch of jingling keys to have a transformed kitchen, while a happy baby crowing with delight was ensconced on a fur rug in the minister's study. From that time they had been friends, and hardly a day went by now that he was not the recipient of some childish note from his tiny friend. Jane could do her best at playing dragon over his study hours, but however successful she may have been in keeping grown people away,

between him and the children there seemed to be that rare understanding that defied even her vigilance. Like the famous early missionary he never retired to his room for study or rest without saying, "Remember, if any child wants me, be sure to tell me." So this morning when told that the minister was busy and mustn't be disturbed by little girls, the midget, not at all abashed, had hastily torn a piece of brown paper from a bag of potatoes on the kitchen table, whipped out of her pocket an ever present stub of pencil, and written her little appeal for sympathy that never yet had been given to "Mr. Father" in vain. She knew that in spite of her grunts of disapproval, Jane would eventually carry the scrawled note to him!

Let's see! Her last note of yesterday had conveyed the valuable information that her doll had lost one of its blue glass eyes, and that the wounded child refused to be comforted until she had seen "Mr. Father."

At this particular time the big-hearted clergyman was unusually busy; for it was Saturday, and his sermon was but yet in foggy outline. Then, too, the morning had been full of interruptions, and already his heart was tired with sad experiences of his callers. He had just returned from comforting a poor widow whose son had been arrested in a drunken disturbance. It was the young fellow's first offense, and when the minister found he was only twenty years of age, just the age of his Billy, it didn't take him long to furnish the requisite one thousand dollar bail to give the boy another chance.

This one thousand dollar bail of the minister's was a very peculiar thing and had been much enjoyed by his friends, It was years ago, when in a similar case, he had been called upon to appear in behalf of one of his faulty parishioners. The man had

done wrong, but he was the father of a large family. He had no security, and there were none to furnish bail.

Then "Father" with the unconscious air of a millionaire had said, "May it please your honor, I will go bail for my friend." Surprised, the Judge asked him if he had any property, and to the amazement of all he admitted he had a little cottage by the sea!

"For how much was it assessed?"

He had paid two hundred dollars for it. It was one of those seashore lots that twenty years before had been given away to anyone who would build upon it. The property had risen in value, and this summer he had been offered for land and cottage eight hundred dollars; so it was with a peculiar gratification that he answered, "Eight hundred dollars, your Honor!" If his Honor would only consider that sufficient bail!

His Honor would like to know if the gentleman ever lived in this cottage?

No, he rented it to two old ladies with a crippled grandson. How much rent? How much rent? His Honor didn't suppose that one could take rent from two homeless old ladies and a crippled child? No, certainly not. He took no rent.

The Judge smiled, and in a peculiar voice said, "Defendant admitted to bail!"

Eight times since for one or another unfortunate town disgrace when no other bondsman could be found, he had appeared with the same security, and only once had the defendant defaulted. In this special case, ten days before the case had been called, the defendant had run away!

When the minister was summoned as bondsman before the Court, no thought of personal loss seemed to trouble him, but

rather the great anxiety in regard to the coming fate of the old ladies and the crippled grandson!

The case was called. The Judge waited a moment, and then drily said that a certain crippled boy and two old ladies seemed to have more claim on a certain cottage than anyone the court could name.

And then what do you think this minister did! Breaking all court precedents, he stepped quickly forward, grasped the Judge's hand and said, with emotion, "Judge, you are a great man! I wish I could help people the way you do!" "Did ever cottage bring an owner such delight before?" he thought.

And yet that delight to-day was tinctured with sadness,the sadness that a telegram received two hours before had brought.

He sighed as he took up Bess's note. Bess wanted him. That was enough. Without hesitation he arose, reread that yellow telegram, closed his Bible, pushed back his paper, and reached for his hat. Gently brushing it with an old silk handkerchief he started for the door.

"Oh, Mr. Father, I knew you would come!" and two swimming eyes looked up to him with a devotion that even swollen cheeks could not disguise, knowing that he would understand how hot and achy the little face felt, and how awful it was for little girls to be dragged to the dentist's chair.

"And sure, yer riverince! it is after being ashamed meself to trouble yez, and Saturdays, too, but yer riverince knows this yer Bess, and the doctor man was after saying the tooth must be pulled right off or she would be that sick with the pizen, and Bess, there, the spalpeen just screamed and screamed that she