soul,
before it be too late."

"Yes, dear, you know I will; but you must help me. Come sit by me,
and read to me a little."

"Not to-day," she answered.

He lay in bed all that day, suffering much. The next day his head, at
least, was clear, but the pains in his stomach troubled him, and he
found it best to remain lying down.

From time to time Sarah visited his room, and he begged her piteously
to come and sit by him; for when he was alone, he was troubled by
many evil and dismal thoughts.

She seated herself by the window, with some small books--like her
mother, she had also taken to small books.

"I suppose you will repent, and seek forgiveness for your sins,
Worse; or will you persist in putting it off?"

"No, no, dear. You know how gladly I would repent. But you must help
me, Sarah; for I know not what to do."

"Well, I will begin by reading to you from an excellent book on nine
important points, which should arouse us to a feeling of our
sinfulness, and lead us to repentance and amendment. Listen to me,
not only with your ears, but with your stubborn heart, and may a
blessing accompany the words."

Upon this she read slowly and impressively: "'The mercy of God first
leads us to repentance; as the Apostle says (Rom. ii. 4), "The
goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance."

"'Secondly, the Word of God clearly points to contrition. As the
prophets of old were sent, even so preachers and other means of grace
are now sent to us, daily sounding forth His Word as with a trumpet,
and arousing us to repentance.

"'We should take heed to the judgments which, ever since the
beginning of the world, have fallen upon hardened sinners; for
example, floods, tempests, thunder and lightning in the heavens
above, and destructive earthquakes from underneath our feet.'"

"Lisbon," muttered Worse. He had a picture of the great earthquake
over the sofa in the sitting-room.

"'The fourth is the vast multitude of our sins which we committed
when we lived in wantonness, drink, gluttony, and godlessness.

"'The fifth is the shortness of life, calling us to repentance; for
our life passes quickly away, and we spend our years as a tale that
is told.

"'The sixth is the small number of the saved; for strait is the gate,
and narrow is the way, and few there be that enter therein.

"'For the seventh, death threatens us, and is a terror to the flesh.
Its anticipation is bitter to all who are sunk in worldly
pleasures.'"