word. We have
been grateful to God during all these days of the autumn for the
splendid qualities of consecration and courage which have come out of
our correspondence with our honored teachers. Never did their fathers
or brothers, years ago, when deadly war called them to face the perils
of battle, show higher courage or a larger sense of duty. Almost all
of our Southern schools are now in session, and begin with increased
attendance.

SCHOOL ECHO.--A teacher writes: "One of my pupils who had been
teaching during the summer came to me in despair over a sum, saying:
"I can't understand _sympathizing fractions_."

(When we went to school years and years ago, "sympathizing fractions,"
meant broken candy. We understood, but the teacher didn't. Times
change, and we change with them.)

THE SAMARITAN WOMAN.

BY REV. C.J. RYDER, BOSTON.

"And they marveled that he talked with the woman."

Why? She was a sinful woman. But these disciples must even thus early
in Christ's ministry have learned that he had come to call sinners,
not the righteous, to repentance. She was a Samaritan! That was a
larger reason for their marvel. They could rise above their hatred for
sin more easily than their race prejudice; so can we. The Samaritans
were an inferior people. Degraded they were. They had been degraded
for centuries. The Jews shunned them. Socially our Lord was making a
great blunder, perhaps a fatal blunder, in talking to this Samaritan
woman. His cause was in its infancy. The hand of social prejudice
would surely throttle it. Why antagonize the existing order of
society? How much better to utilize it for the establishment and
enlargement of the great and glorious kingdom of our Lord! This cause
needed the influence of Jewish leaders. Why risk this potent influence
for the sake of one miserable Samaritan woman, or, for that matter,
for a whole race of Samaritans? It seemed very poor management of a
cause, new in that country. "Far be such unwisdom from thee, Lord," we
can hear the impassioned and worldly-wise Peter exclaim. But our Lord
chose to sacrifice the temporary success of his kingdom that he might
be true to the eternal principles of that kingdom; and so he talked
with this sinful woman of this despised race just as considerately as
with Nicodemus. He invited her to his discipleship just as cordially,
and to the same discipleship. There is not a hint that the Good
Shepherd built another fold f