ght," said he, at last; "it must be
something in the air of Christmas that gives me this feeling of
thankfulness for the many mercies that have been bestowed upon me. All
the principles by which I have tried to guide my life have been
justified. I have never made the value of this salted almond by
anything that the courts would not uphold, at least in the long run,
and yet--or wouldn't it be truer to say and therefore?--my affairs
have been wonderfully prospered. There's a great deal in that text
'Honesty is the best'--but no, that's not from the Bible, after all,
is it? Wait a moment; there is something of that kind, I know."

"May I light a cigar, father," said Harold, turning away to hide a
smile, "while you are remembering the text?"

"Yes, certainly," answered the elder man, rather shortly; "you know I
don't dislike the smell. But it is a wasteful, useless habit, and
therefore I have never practised it. Nothing useless is worth while,
that's my motto--nothing that does not bring a reward. Oh, now I
recall the text, 'Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.' I
shall ask Doctor Snodgrass to preach a sermon on that verse some day."

"Using you as an illustration?"

"Well, not exactly that; but I could give him some good material from
my own experience to prove the truth of Scripture. I can honestly say
that there is not one of my charities that has not brought me in a
good return, either in the increase of influence, the building up of
credit, or the association with substantial people. Of course you have
to be careful how you give, in order to secure the best results--no
indiscriminate giving--no pennies in beggars' hats! It has been one of
my principles always to use the same kind of judgment in charities
that I use in my other affairs, and they have not disappointed me."

"Even the check that you put in the plate when you take the offertory
up the aisle on Sunday morning?"

"Certainly; though there the influence is less direct; and I must
confess that I have my doubts in regard to the collection for Foreign
Missions. That always seems to me romantic and wasteful. You never
hear from it in any definite way. They say the missionaries have done
a good deal to open the way for trade; perhaps--but they have also
gotten us into commercial and political difficulties. Yet I give to
them--a little--it is a matter of conscience with me to identify
myself with all the enterprises of the Church; it is the mainstay