cottage, and
from these she had to feed and clothe herself and the little one, and
besides furnish rent for the little house.

Elsbeth had only one consolation, but one that always supported her when
pain and care oppressed her; she could pray, and although often in the
midst of tears, still always with the firm belief that the dear Lord would
hear her supplication.

When at night she had put little Toni in his tiny bed she would kneel down
beside him and repeat aloud the old hymn, which now came from the depths
of her heart, as never before:

Oh, God of Love, oh Father-heart,
In whom my trust is founded,
I know full well how good Thou art--
E'en when by grief I am wounded.

Oh Lord, it surely can not be
That Thou wilt let me languish
In hopeless depths of misery,
And live in tears of anguish.

Oh Lord, my soul yearns for thine aid
In this dark vale of weeping;
For thee I've waited, hoped and prayed
Assured of thy safe keeping.

Lord let me bear whate'er thy Love
May send of grief or sorrow,
Until Thou, in thy Heaven above
Make dawn a brighter morrow.

And in the midst of her urgent praying, the mother's tears flowed
abundantly, and little Toni, deeply moved in his heart by his mother's
weeping and earnest prayer, kept his hands folded and wept softly too.

So the time passed. Elsbeth struggled along and little Toni was able to
help her in many ways, for he was now seven years old. He was his mother's
only joy, and she was able to take delight in him for he was obedient and
willing to do everything she desired. He had always been so inseparable
from his mother that he knew exactly how the tasks of the day had to be
done, and he desired nothing but to help her whenever he could. If she
was working in the little field, he squatted beside her, pulled out the
weeds, and threw the stones across the path.

If his mother was taking the goat out of the shed so that she could nibble
the grass around the hut, he went with her step by step, for his mother
had told him he must watch her so that she would not run away.

If his mother was sitting in winter by her spinning-wheel, he sat the
whole time beside her, mending his winter shoes with strong strips of
cloth, as she had taught him to do. He had no greater wish than to see his
mother happy and contented. His greatest pleasure was, when Sunday came
and she was resting from all work, to sit with her on the little w