ed the door and found that the
room was empty. More than that, he discovered, to his surprise and
alarm, that Sammy's bed was unruffled, so that Sammy himself must have
slept elsewhere!

In silent consternation the father descended to his bedroom and said,
"Mariar, Sammy's gone!"

"Dead!" exclaimed Mrs Twitter with a look of horror.

"No, no; not dead, but gone--gone out of the house. Did not sleep in it
last night, apparently."

Poor Mrs Twitter sank into a chair and gazed at her husband with a
stricken face.

Up to that date the family had prospered steadily, and, may we not add,
deservedly; their children having been trained in the knowledge of God,
their duties having been conscientiously discharged, their sympathies
with suffering humanity encouraged, and their general principles carried
into practical effect. The consequence was that they were a
well-ordered and loving family. There are many such in our land--
families which are guided by the Spirit and the Word of God. The sudden
disappearance, therefore, of the eldest son of the Twitter family was
not an event to be taken lightly for he had never slept out of his own
particular bed without the distinct knowledge of his father and mother
since he was born, and his appearance at the breakfast-table had been
hitherto as certain as the rising of the sun or the winding of the
eight-day clock by his father every Saturday night.

In addition to all this, Sammy was of an amiable disposition, and had
been trustworthy, so that when he came to the years of discretion--which
his father had fixed at fifteen--he was allowed a latch-key, as he had
frequently to work at his employer's books till a lateish hour,--
sometimes eleven o'clock--after the family, including the domestic, had
gone to rest.

"Now, Samuel," said Mrs Twitter, with a slight return of her wonted
energy, "there can be only two explanations of this. Either the dear
boy has met with an accident, or--"

"Well, Mariar, why do you pause?"

"Because it seems so absurd to think of, much more to talk of, his going
wrong or running away! The first thing I've got to do, Samuel, is to go
to the police-office, report the case, and hear what they have to
advise."

"The very thing I was thinking of, Mariar; but don't it strike you it
might be better that _I_ should go to the station?"

"No, Samuel, the station is near. I can do that, while you take a cab,
go straight away to his office and find out a