low front seat, with dangling legs and red, round faces, sat the
little ones. Some way he could not call them to his knees and teach them
to spell; he felt as if he ought to call them to him, as Christ did, to
teach them love and reverence. It was impossible that they should not be
touched by this hideous neighborhood strife.

Behind them sat the older children, some of them with rough, hard, sly
faces. One or two grinned rudely and nudged each other. The older girls
sat with bated breath; they perceived something strange in the air. Most
of them had heard his sermon of the night before.

At last he broke silence. "Children, there is something I must say to
you this morning. I'm going to have meeting here to-night, and it may
be I shall not be your teacher any more--I mean in school. I wish you'd
go home to-day and tell your people to come to church here to-night. I
wish you'd all come yourselves. I want you to be good. I want you to
love God and be good. I want you to go home and tell your people the
teacher can't teach children how to read till he has taught the older
people to be kind and generous. You may put your books away, and school
will be dismissed."

The wondering children obeyed--some with glad promptness, others with
sadness, for they had already come to like their teacher very much.

As he sat by the door and watched them file out, it was as if he were a
king abdicating a throne, and these his faithful subjects.

Mrs. Allen came over with Mattie to see him that day. She was a good
woman, gentle and prayerful, and she said, with much emotion:

"Oh, Mr. Stacey, I do hope you can patch things up here. If you could
only touch his heart! He don't mean to do wrong, but he's so set in his
ways--if he says a thing he sticks to it."

Stacey turned to Mattie for a word of encouragement, but she only looked
away. It was impossible for her to put into words her feeling in the
matter, which was more of admiration for his courage than for any part
of his religious zeal. He was so different from other men.

It did him good to have these women come, and he repeated his vow:

"By the grace of our Lord, I am going to rebuild the Cyene Church!" and
his face paled and his eyes grew luminous.

The girl shivered with emotion. He seemed to recede from her as he
spoke, and to grow larger, too. Such nobility of purpose was new and
splendid to her.

* * * * *

The revival was wondrously