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HISTORY OF ORRIN PIERCE.
WRITTEN FOR THE AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, AND REVISED BY THE COMMITTEE OF PUBLICATION.
Philadelphia: AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, NO. 146 CHESTNUT STREET.
_Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1847, by_ THEAMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, _in the Clerk's Office of theDistrict Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania_.
ORRIN PIERCE.
The cottage where Orrin Pierce was born stood by the side of a clearbright stream not far from the sea-shore. This cottage had a thatchedroof, and was surrounded by a plain fence.
Orrin's mother was very fond of flowers, and the little yard in frontof the cottage was filled with many beautiful plants and shrubs; someof them were trained up about the upper window and around the door. Amarten's house stood on a post one side of the cottage, where threetwittering birds built their nests in safety.
Everybody that passed Mrs. Pierce's house, looked at it with pleasure,and some even stopped to admire its neatness and comfortable appearance.
Noah.]
Mrs. Pierce was an excellent woman; she feared God and instructed herlittle son out of the Scriptures. Before he was old enough to read,she used to read to him about the creation of the world; and before hewas four years old, he could tell a great deal of Scripture history.He knew about the temptation and fall of man; the story of Noah; thedeluge; the history of Joseph; the account of the Israelites in Egypt;the plagues sent upon Pharaoh; the departure of the children of Israelout of Egypt; their journey through the wilderness, and their entranceinto the promised land. He also could relate the story of Daniel; ofIsrael, and many other accounts from the Bible.
Those who do not read the Bible are ignorant of some of the mostinteresting and important parts of the world's history.
Sometimes Mrs. Pierce would walk out with little Orrin, and she alwaysused to talk with him, so as to improve his mind. She would make himobserve the works of God, and tell him of the wonders of Creation.Orrin was very fond of going to the sea-shore, and when he had beena good boy his mother would go there with him. He always took withhim a basket to put his shells in, for there were many shells on thebeach. His little dog, Dash, always went with him, and when Orrin threwa stick into the water, Dash would plunge in, and swim after it, andbring it to his little master.
Often during the summer, when the evenings were mild and pleasant, shewould walk in the fields with Orrin, and they would sit down to enjoythe beauty of the scene. The calm, full moon, shining above them, sheda soft light on all around. Sometimes a cloud would pass over it andhide for a moment its brightness, and they would watch for it as thecloud moved on, and it would suddenly burst upon their sight; on suchoccasions, Orrin used to repeat some passages of Scripture to hismother, giving thanks to God, who made the moon and stars to shine bynight.
Orrin loved very much to see the different animals, that are for theuse of man. He liked horses and cows and dogs very much, but best ofall he liked the sheep and lambs. There was a field not far from hismother's cottage where a flock of sheep were often kept. He used towatch the shepherd taking care of the sheep, and when he noticed howreadily they followed him, he thought of the words of Christ, "My sheephear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." He also rememberedthat this harmless animal was employed as a type of Christ, who iscalled "the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world."
Mrs. Pierce gave her little son a place for a garden, which thegardener used to dig up for him. She gave him different seeds of plantsand flowers. She bought him a shovel, a rake and a hoe, of a suitablesize for a little boy. Here he used to amuse himself for hours. He hadone tree in his garden which would not thrive, though he had bestowedmuch labour upon it, but finally he determined to remove it. Indeed thebranches were many of them dead. He told his mother he was reminded ofthe passage in Luke xiii. 6, 9, for he had waited long for fruit, butfound none, and he was going to remove the worthless tree.
On a pleasant afternoon, it was very delightful to walk in Mrs.Pierce's garden. Orrin's garden spot was as neat and in quite as goodorder as his mother's. The roses were so fragrant, and the variouscolours of the numerous flowers so pleasing to the eye, that alladmired who beheld them. The butterflies roamed from flower to flowerundisturbed: the humming-birds and bees took their portion of thesweets, and pretty singing birds fluttered among the branches. Mrs.Pierce used often to point to the beautiful lilies, and say to Orrin,"Consider the lilies, how they grow, and remember the instruction theygive."
You may be sure Orrin was early taught to pray; and that he was carefulnever to forget or neglect this duty. He did not wait till after hewas in bed, either, but kneeled down before he became sleepy, so thathe might pray with the understanding. He used to pray for a new heart,so that he might love holiness and hate sin. He also prayed for theforgiveness of his sins. Sometimes he prayed when he was in the fieldor on his way to school, when he thought he should not be observed.He thanked God for all his mercies, but more than all for the gift ofthe Saviour; and when quite young, he could repeat many very pleasingverses about the love of Christ for this sinful world.
One day when Orrin was on his way to the Sabbath-school, he met a boygoing across a field with a kite in his hand. He did not know the boy,but he knew he was about to commit sin, so he asked him if he wouldnot leave his kite and go to the Sabbath-school. He opened his bookand showed him where the lesson was, and told him that he would bemuch happier in learning to keep God's commandments, than all hiskite-flying could make him. The boy thought so too, and was willing totake advice, so he hid his kite behind the fence, and went with Orrin.We should try to do good to all as we have opportunity.
The next day he met the same boy flying his kite. He stopped as Orrinapproached him, and said, "I thought yesterday when you asked me to goto the Sabbath-school that it was a pity to give up flying my kite,because there was such a good wind, but to-day the wind is just asgood, and I have had a fine time with my kite." So he lost no pleasure,but gained much good. Orrin stayed a while and played with this boy,and told him he hoped to see him again at Sunday-school; and so he did,for he continued to attend regularly from that time.
Orrin's mother was almost sorry when he was too old to be kept athome under her instruction. She felt afraid that when he began tobe more from her watchful care he might become more like those boyswhose company she had always directed him to avoid. He was very fondof study; and his teacher soon noticed him as a boy who would be anexample to the school. He was always in his place when the bell rangfor nine o'clock, and his lessons were well learned. His mother wasmuch pleased with the accounts she received from his teacher, of hisgood conduct.
When Orrin was about fourteen years old, he met with the greatestaffliction that could have been sent upon him. This was the death ofhis excellent mother. She was sick for a long time, and had a very goodphysician, but God did not see fit to restore her to health, and shewas quite ready to submit to His will. Her only anxiety was for herson, and even this care she was able to commit to the Lord, who haspromised to be a father to the fatherless. She talked much to Orrin,and told him that she had trained him up thus far, in the way he shouldgo, and charged him not to depart from it.
A great number of friends and neighbours followed Mrs. Pierce to thegrave. She was greatly beloved by all who knew her, but none couldmourn for her as her poor afflicted boy did. When he saw his motherlaid in the grave, he felt as if he had not a friend on the earth.True, he had neither sister nor brother. H
is father died when he wasan infant, and now his precious mother was taken away. But God couldsupply to him all that he had lost, and be to him more than all earthlyfriends, even one who would never leave him nor forsake him.
Day after day, Orrin went to the graveyard, to visit the tomb of hisbeloved parent. He used to take with him the Bible, which they had sooften read together, and read those passages which she delighted in.He was much comforted by these words of the Lord Jesus Christ, "I amthe resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he weredead yet shall he live, and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shallnever die. The hour is coming in the