now
unanimously assured him that he might properly follow it, and entreated
him to do so. It was to enter the ministry. A church was required at
Ashton--the funds were forthcoming--before it was completed Philip was
ordained and became its minister. Few rejoiced as much as his devoted
wife at seeing his talents employed in the noblest cause in which a
human being can engage.

There was one cloud in Mary Ashton's otherwise serene life--not one of
her family wrote to her, and she could hear nothing about them. Mr and
Mrs Ashton had their hearts gladdened with a visit from their sailor
son Leonard, now a lieutenant, his ship having come to Quebec. From him
Philip first heard of the fate of any of the John Ashtons. "I was
surprised," said Leonard, "to hear among a batch of lads just joined,
the name of Thomas Ashton. He was not a prepossessing youth, but as he
had evidently had a better education than the generality of those who
enter the service, he had a fair prospect of doing well if he behaved
properly. He did not though, and was constantly in scrapes, drunk, and
disorderly. He was under confinement for such offences, when he caught
the fever in the West Indies. The surgeon came one day and said that he
was very ill and wished to see me. I of course went to the lad, who
then told me that he knew who I was--that he was the son of John Ashton
who got our property. It was dreadful to hear him speak of his father
who had cheated us he declared, and cheated all his family, and every
body else. He seemed to consider that he had a claim on me in
consequence of our relationship. I did all I could for him by procuring
him better attendance than he would otherwise have had, and by shifting
him into comfortable quarters where he would get the benefit of pure
air. He soon began to mend, and then I took the liberty of reading him
some serious lectures as to his past conduct and scandalous mode of
life. He took my reproof in good part; and you will be pleased to hear
that when he was at length restored to health, he became quite a new
man--scrupulously faithful in discharge of his duty, sober to
abstinence, and cheerfully obedient to orders. He has had a narrow
escape from death, and is, I trust, thankful to God that he was not cut
off suddenly in his mad career. He is grateful to me for the service I
rendered him--says, indeed, that I saved his life; I shall take
advantage of that feeling to keep him right, if I ca