On Envy
"How lovely! How beautiful!"]
"Who can go with me to the village this morning," said Mr. Fairchild,one winter's day, "to carry this basket of little books to the school?"
"Lucy cannot go," said Mrs. Fairchild, "because her feet are sore withchilblains, and Henry has a bad cold; but Emily can go."
"Make haste, Emily," said Mr. Fairchild, "and put on your thick shoesand warm coat, for it is very cold."
As soon as Emily was ready, she set off with her father. It was a verycold day, and the ground was quite hard with the frost. Mr. Fairchildwalked first, and Emily came after him with the little basket. Theygave the basket to the schoolmaster, and returned. As they were comingback, Emily saw something bright upon the ground; and when she stoopedto pick it up, she saw that it was a ring set round with little whiteshining stones.
"Oh, papa, papa!" she said, "see what I have found! What a beautifulring!"
When Mr. Fairchild looked at it, he was quite surprised.
"Why, my dear," said he, "I think that this is Lady Noble's diamondring; how came it to be lying in this place?"
Whilst they were looking at the ring they heard the sound of acarriage; it was Sir Charles Noble's, and Lady Noble was in it.
"Oh, Mr. Fairchild!" she called out of the window of the carriage, "Iam in great trouble; I have lost my diamond ring, and it is of verygreat value. I went to the village this morning in the carriage, and asI came back, pulled off my glove to get sixpence out of my purse togive to a poor man somewhere in this lane, and I suppose that my ringdropped off at the time. I don't know what I shall do; Sir Charles willbe sadly vexed."
"Make yourself quite happy, madam," said Mr. Fairchild, "here is yourring; Emily just this moment picked it up."
Lady Noble was exceedingly glad when she received back her ring. Shethanked Emily twenty times, and said, "I think I have something in thecarriage which you will like very much, Miss Emily; it is just comefrom London, and was intended for my daughter Augusta; but I will sendfor another for her."
So saying, she presented Emily with a new doll packed up in paper, andwith it a little trunk, with a lock and key, full of clothes for thedoll. Emily was so delighted that she almost forgot to thank LadyNoble; but Mr. Fairchild, who was not quite so much overjoyed as hisdaughter, remembered to return thanks for this pretty present.
So Lady Noble put the ring on her finger, and ordered the coachman todrive home.
"Oh, papa, papa!" said Emily, "how beautiful this doll is! I have justtorn the paper a bit, and I can see its face; it has blue eyes and redlips, and hair like Henry's. Oh, how beautiful! Please, papa, to carrythe box for me; I cannot carry both the box and the doll. Oh, thisbeautiful doll! this lovely doll!" So she went on talking till theyreached home; then she ran before her papa to her mamma and sister andbrother, and, taking the paper off the doll, cried out: "How beautiful!Oh, what pretty hands! What nice feet! What blue eyes! How lovely! howbeautiful!"
Her mother asked her several times where she had got this pretty doll;but Emily was too busy to answer her. When Mr. Fairchild came in withthe trunk of clothes, he told all the story; how that Lady Noble hadgiven Emily the doll for finding her diamond ring.
When Emily had unpacked the doll, she opened the box, which was full ofas pretty doll's things as ever you saw.
Whilst Emily was examining all these things, Henry stood by admiringthem and turning them about; but Lucy, after having once looked at thedoll without touching it, went to a corner of the room, and sat down inher little chair without speaking a word.
"Come, Lucy," said Emily, "help me to dress my doll."
"Can't you dress it yourself?" answered Lucy, taking up a little book,and pretending to read.
"Come, Lucy," said Henry, "you never saw so beautiful a doll before."
"Don't tease me, Henry," said Lucy; "don't you see I am reading?"
"Put up your book now, Lucy," said Emily, "and come and help me todress this sweet little doll. I will be its mamma, and you shall be itsnurse, and it shall sleep between us in our bed."
"I don't want dolls in my bed," said Lucy; "don't tease me, Emily."
"Then Henry shall be its nurse," said Emily. "Come, Henry, we will gointo our play-room, and put this pretty doll to sleep. Will not youcome, Lucy? Pray do come; we want you very much."
"Do let me alone," answered Lucy; "I want to read."
So Henry and Emily went to play, and Lucy sat still in the corner ofthe parlour. After a few minutes her mamma, who was at work by thefire, looked at her, and saw that she was crying; the tears ran downher cheeks, and fell upon her book. Then Mrs. Fairchild called Lucy toher, and said:
"My dear child, you are crying; can you tell me what makes youunhappy?"
"Nothing, mamma," answered Lucy; "I am not unhappy."
"People do not cry when they are pleased and happy, my dear," said Mrs.Fairchild.
Lucy stood silent.
"I am your mother, my dear," said Mrs. Fairchild, "and I love you verymuch; if anything vexes you, whom should you tell it to but to your ownmother?" Then Mrs. Fairchild kissed her, and put her arms round her.
Lucy began to cry more.
"Oh, mamma, mamma! dear mamma!" she said, "I don't know what vexes me,or why I have been crying."
"Are you speaking the truth?" said Mrs. Fairchild. "Do not hideanything from me. Is there anything in your heart, my dear child, doyou think, which makes you unhappy?"
"Indeed, mamma," said Lucy, "I think there is. I am sorry that Emilyhas got that pretty doll. Pray do not hate me for it, mamma; I know itis wicked in me to be sorry that Emily is happy, but I feel that Icannot help it."
"My dear child," said Mrs. Fairchild, "I am glad you have confessedthe truth to me. Now I will tell you why you feel so unhappy, and Iwill tell you where to seek a cure. The naughty passion you now feel,my dear, is what is called Envy. Envy makes persons unhappy when theysee others happier or better than themselves. Envy is in every man'sheart by nature. Some people can hide it more than others, and othershave been enabled, by God's grace, to overcome it in a great degree;but, as I said before, it is in the natural heart of all mankind.Little children feel envious about dolls and playthings, and men andwomen feel envious about greater things."
"Do you ever feel envious, mamma?" said Lucy. "I never saw you unhappybecause other people had better things than you had."
"My heart, my dear child," answered Mrs. Fairchild, "is no better thanyours. There was a time when I was very envious. When I was firstmarried I had no children for seven or eight years; I wished very muchto have a baby, as you wished just now for Emily's doll; and whenever Isaw a woman with a pretty baby in her arms, I was ready to cry forvexation."
"Do you ever feel any envy now, mamma?" said Lucy.
"I cannot say that I never feel it, my dear; but I bless God that thiswicked passion has not the power over me which it used to have."
"Oh, mamma, mamma!" said Lucy, "how unhappy wickedness makes us! I havebeen very miserable this morning; and what for? only because of thenaughtiness of my heart, for I have had nothing else to make memiserable."
Then Mrs. Fairchild took Lucy by the hand, and went into her closet,where they prayed that the Holy Spirit would take the wicked passion ofenvy out of Lucy's heart. And as they prayed in the name of the LordJesus Christ, who died upon the cross to deliver us from the power ofsin, they did not doubt but that God would hear their prayer; andindeed He did, for from that day Lucy never felt envious of Emily'sdoll, but helped Emily to take care of it and make its clothes, and washappy to have it laid on her bed betwixt herself and sister.
"_She saw that it was a ring._"--Page 19.]