Goody Two-Shoes Part 6

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Tis impossible to express the mutual Joy which this occasioned. Their Conversation was made up of the most endearing Expressions, intermingled with Tears and Caresses. Their Torrent of Joy, however, was for a Moment interrupted, by a Chariot which stopped at the Gate, and which brought as they thought a very unseasonable Visitor, and therefore she sent to be excused from seeing Company.

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But this had no Effect, for a Gentleman richly dressed jumped out of the Chariot, and pursuing the Servant into the Parlour saluted them round, who were all astonished at his Behaviour. But when the Tears trickled from his Cheeks, the Daughter, who had been some Years dumb, immediately cried out, _my Brother! my Brother! my Brother!_ and from that Instant recovered her Speech. The mutual Joy which this occasioned, is better felt than expressed. Those who have proper Sentiments of Humanity, Grat.i.tude, and filial Piety will rejoice at the Event, and those who have a proper Idea of the Goodness of G.o.d, and his gracious Providence, will from this, as well as other Instances of his Goodness and Mercy, glorify his holy Name, and magnify his Wisdom and Power, who is a Shield to the Righteous, and defendeth all those who put their Trust in him.

As you, my dear Children, may be sollicitous to know how this happy Event was brought about, I must inform you, that Mr. _Lovewell_'s Son, when the Ship foundered, had with some others got into the long Boat, and was taken up by a Ship at Sea, and carried to the East Indies, where in a little Time he made a large Fortune; and the Pirates who took his Daughter, attempted to rob her of her Chast.i.ty; but finding her Inflexible, and determined to die rather than to submit, some of them behaved to her in a very cruel Manner; but others, who had more Honour and Generosity, became her Defenders; upon which a Quarrel arose between them, and the Captain, who was the worst of the Gang, being killed, the rest of the Crew carried the Ship into a Port of the _Manilla_ Islands, belonging to the _Spaniards_; where, when her Story was known, she was treated with great Respect, and courted by a young Gentleman, who was taken ill of a Fever, and died before the Marriage was agreed on, but left her his whole Fortune.

You see, my dear _Sally_, how wonderfully these People were preserved, and made happy after such extreme Distress; we are therefore never to despair, even under the greatest Misfortunes, for G.o.d Almighty is All-powerful and can deliver us at any Time. Remember _Job_, but I think you have not read so far, take the Bible, _Billy Jones_, and read the History of that good and patient Man.

At this Instant something was heard to slap at the Window, _Wow, wow, wow_, says Jumper, and attempted to leap up and open the Door, at which the Children were surprized; but Mrs. _Margery_ knowing what it was, opened the Cas.e.m.e.nt, as _Noah_ did the Window of the Ark, and drew in _Tom_ Pidgeon with a Letter, and see here he is.

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As soon as he was placed on the Table, he walked up to little _Sally_, and dropping the Letter, cried, _Co, Co, Coo_, as much as to say, _there read it_. Now this poor Pidgeon had travelled fifty Miles in about an Hour, to bring _Sally_ this Letter, and who would destroy such pretty Creatures.--But let us read the Letter.

_My dear_ Sally,

G.o.d Almighty has been very merciful, and restored your Pappa to us again, who is now so well as to be able to sit up. I hear you are a good Girl, my Dear, and I hope you will never forget to praise the Lord for this his great Goodness and Mercy to us--What a sad Thing it would have been if your Father had died, and left both you and me, and little _Tommy_ in Distress, and without a Friend: Your Father sends his Blessing with mine--Be good, my dear Child, and G.o.d Almighty will also bless you, whose Blessing is above all Things.

_I am, my Dear Sally_,

_Your ever affectionate Mother,_

MARTHA JONES.

CHAP. III.

_Of the amazing Sagacity and Instincts of a little Dog_.

Soon after this, a dreadful Accident happened in the School. It was on a _Thursday_ Morning, I very well remember, when the Children having learned their Lessons soon, she had given them Leave to play, and they were all running about the School, and diverting themselves with the Birds and the Lamb; at this Time the Dog, all of a sudden, laid hold of his Mistress's Ap.r.o.n, and endeavoured to pull her out of the School. She was at first surprized, however, she followed him to see what he intended. No sooner had he led her into the Garden, but he ran back, and pulled out one of the Children in the same manner; upon which she ordered them all to leave the School immediately, and they had not been out five Minutes, before the Top of the House fell in.

What a miraculous Deliverance was here! How gracious! How good was G.o.d Almighty, to save all these Children from Destruction, and to make Use of such an Instrument, as a little sagacious Animal to accomplish his Divine Will. I should have observed, that as soon as they were all in the Garden, the Dog came leaping round them to express his Joy, and when the House was fallen, laid himself down quietly by his Mistress.

Some of the Neighbours, who saw the School fall, and who were in great Pain for _Margery_ and the little ones, soon spread the News through the Village, and all the Parents, terrified for their Children, came crowding in Abundance; they had, however, the Satisfaction to find them all safe, and upon their Knees, with their Mistress, giving G.o.d thanks for their happy Deliverance.

ADVICE _from the_ MAN _in the_ MOON.

_Jumper, Jumper, Jumper_, what a pretty Dog he is, and how sensible? Had Mankind half the Sagacity of _Jumper_, they would guard against Accidents of this Sort, by having a public Survey, occasionally made of all the Houses in every Parish (especially of those, which are old and decayed) and not suffer them to remain in a crazy State, 'till they fall down on the Heads of the poor Inhabitants, and crush them to Death. Why, it was but Yesterday, that a whole House fell down in _Grace-church-street_, and another in _Queen's-street_, and an hundred more are to tumble, before this Time twelve Months; so Friends, take Care of yourselves, and tell the Legislature, they ought to take Care for you. How can you be so careless? Most of your Evils arise from Carelesness and Extravagance, and yet you excuse yourselves, and lay the Fault upon Fortune. Fortune is a Fool, and you are a Blockhead, if you put it in her Power to play Tricks with you.

_Yours_,

_The_ MAN _in the_ MOON.

You are not to wonder, my dear Reader, that this little Dog should have more Sense than you, or your Father, or your Grandfather.

Though G.o.d Almighty has made Man the Lord of the Creation, and endowed him with Reason, yet in many Respects, he has been altogether as bountiful to other Creatures of his forming. Some of the Senses of other Animals are more acute than ours, as we find by daily Experience. You know this little Bird, _sweet Jug, Jug, Jug_, 'tis a Nightingale. This little Creature, after she has entertained us with her Songs all the Spring, and bred up her little ones, flies into a foreign Country, and finds her Way over the Great Sea, without any of the Instruments and Helps which Men are obliged to make Use of for that Purpose. Was you as wise as the Nightingale, you might make all the Sailors happy, and have twenty thousand Pounds for teaching them the Longitude.

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You would not think _Ralph_ the Raven half so wise and so good as he is, though you see him here reading his book. Yet when the Prophet _Elijah_, was obliged to fly from _Ahab_ King of _Israel_, and hide himself in a Cave, the Ravens, at the Command of G.o.d Almighty, fed him every Day, and preserved his Life.

_And the Word of the Lord came unto _Elijah_, saying, Hide thyself by the Brook _Cherith_, that is before _Jordan_, and I have commanded the Ravens to feed thee there. And the Ravens brought him Bread and Flesh in the Morning, and Bread and Flesh in the Evening, and he drank of the Brook,_ Kings, B.I.C. 17.

And the pretty Pidgeon when the World was drowned, and he was confined with _Noah_ in the Ark, was sent forth by him to see whether the Waters were abated, _And he sent forth a Dove from him, to see if the Waters were abated from off the Face of the Ground. And the Dove came in to him in the Evening, and lo, in her Mouth was an Olive Leaf plucked off: So_ Noah _knew that the Waters were abated from off the Earth._ Gen. viii. 8. 11.

As these, and other Animals, are so sensible and kind to us, we ought to be tender and good to them, and not beat them about, and kill them, and take away their young ones, as many wicked Boys do. Does not the Horse and the a.s.s carry you and your burthens; don't the Ox plough your Ground, the Cow give you Milk, the Sheep cloath your Back, the Dog watch your House, the Goose find you in Quills to write with, the Hen bring Eggs for your Custards and Puddings, and the c.o.c.k call you up in the Morning, when you are lazy, and like to hurt yourselves by laying too long in Bed? If so, how can you be so cruel to them, and abuse G.o.d Almighty's good Creatures? Go, naughty Boy, go; be sorry for what you have done, and do so no more, that G.o.d Almighty may forgive you. _Amen_, say I, again and again. G.o.d will bless you, but not unless you are merciful and good.

The downfal of the School, was a great Misfortune to Mrs.

_Margery_; for she not only lost all her Books, but was dest.i.tute of a Place to teach in; but Sir William _Dove_, being informed of this, ordered the House to be built at his own Expence, and 'till that could be done, Farmer _Grove_ was so kind, as to let her have his large Hall to teach in.

The House built by Sir _William_, had a Statue erected over the Door of a Boy sliding on the Ice, and under it were these Lines, written by Mrs. _Two-Shoes_, and engraved at her Expence.

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On SIN. A SIMILE.

As a poor Urchin on the Ice, When he has tumbl'd once or twice, With cautious Step, and trembling goes, The drop-stile Pendant on his Nose, And trudges on to seek the Sh.o.r.e, Resolv'd to trust the Ice no more: But meeting with a daring Mate, Who often us'd to slide and scate, Again is into Danger led, And falls again, and breaks his head.

So Youth when first they're drawn to sin, And see the Danger they are in, Would gladly quit the thorney Way, And think it is unsafe to stay; But meeting with their wicked Train, Return with them to sin again: With them the Paths of Vice explore; With them are ruin'd ever more.

CHAP. IV.

_What happened at Farmer Grove's; and how she gratified him for the Use of his Room_.

While at Mr. _Grove's_, which was in the Heart of the Village, she not only taught the Children in the Day Time, but the Farmer's Servants, and all the Neighbours, to read and write in the Evening; and it was a constant Practice before they went away, to make them all go to Prayers, and sing Psalms. By this Means, the People grew extremely regular, his Servants were always at Home, instead of being at the Ale-house, and he had more Work done than ever. This gave not only Mr. _Grove_, but all the Neighbours, an high Opinion of her good Sense and prudent Behaviour: And she was so much esteemed, that most of the Differences in the Parish were left to her Decision; and if a Man and Wife quarrelled (which sometimes happened in that Part of the Kingdom) both Parties certainly came to her for Advice. Every Body knows, that _Martha Wilson_ was a pa.s.sionate scolding Jade, and that _John_ her husband, was a surly ill-tempered Fellow. These were one Day brought by the Neighbours for _Margery_ to talk to them, when they fairly quarrelled before her, and were going to Blows; but she stepping between them, thus addressed the Husband; _John_, says she, you are a Man, and ought to have more Sense than to fly in a Pa.s.sion, at every Word that is said amiss by your Wife; and _Martha_, says she, you ought to know your Duty better, than to say any Thing to aggravate your Husband's Resentment. These frequent Quarrels, arise from the Indulgence of your violent Pa.s.sions; for I know, you both love one another, notwithstanding what has pa.s.sed between you. Now, pray tell me _John_, and tell me _Martha_, when you have had a Quarrel the over Night, are you not both sorry for it the next Day? They both declared that they were: Why then, says she, I'll tell you how to prevent this for the future, if you will both promise to take my Advice. They both promised her. You know, says she, that a small Spark will set Fire to Tinder, and that Tinder properly placed will fire a House; an angry Word is with you as that Spark, for you are both as touchy as Tinder, and very often make your own House too hot to hold you. To prevent this, therefore, and to live happily for the future, you must solemnly agree, that if one speaks an angry Word, the other will not answer, 'till he or she has distinctly called over all the Letters in the Alphabet, and the other not reply, 'till he has told twenty; by this Means your Pa.s.sions will be stifled, and Reason will have Time to take the Rule.

This is the best Recipe that was ever given for a married Couple to live in Peace: Though _John_ and his Wife frequently attempted to quarrel afterwards, they never could get their Pa.s.sions to any considerable Height, for there was something so droll in thus carrying on the Dispute, that before they got to the End of the Argument, they saw the Absurdity of it, laughed, kissed, and were Friends.

Just as Mrs. _Margery_ had settled this Difference between _John_ and his Wife, the Children (who had been sent out to play, while that Business was transacting) returned some in Tears, and others very disconsolate, for the Loss of a little Dormouse they were very fond of, and which was just dead. Mrs. _Margery_, who had the Art of moralizing and drawing Instructions from every Accident, took this Opportunity of reading them a Lecture on the Uncertainty of Life, and the Necessity of being always prepared for Death. You should get up in the Morning, says she, and to conduct yourselves, as if that Day was to be your last, and lie down at Night, as if you never expected to see this World any more. This may be done, says she, without abating of your Chearfulness, for you are not to consider Death as an Evil, but as a Convenience, as an useful Pilot, who is to convey you to a Place of greater Happiness: Therefore, play my dear Children, and be merry; but be innocent and good. The good Man sets Death at Defiance, for his Darts are only dreadful to the Wicked.

After this, she permitted the Children to bury the little Dormouse, and desired one of them to write his Epitaph, and here it is.

_Epitaph on a_ DORMOUSE, _really written by a little_ BOY.

I.

In Paper Case, Hard by this Place, Dead a poor Dormouse lies; And soon or late, Summon'd by Fate, Each Prince, each Monarch dies.

II.

Ye Sons of Verse, While I rehea.r.s.e, Attend instructive Rhyme; No Sins had _Dor_, To answer for, Repent of yours in Time.