“E'en now let my ways, Lord,
Be bright with Thy praise, Lord,
For brief are the days ere
Thy coming again;
I'm waiting for thee, Lord,
Thy beauty to see, Lord,
No triumph for me like Thy coming again.”
NOW, dear young friends, shall I tell you of a pleasant holiday visit Lizzie and Ivy paid to Hastings? It was a bright spring morning, the sea was almost as smooth as a sheet of glass, while close to the shore tiny wavelets danced and rippled in the sunshine. The heights leading to the ruins of the old castle, always an attractive object to visitors, were covered by the yellow blossoms of the wallflower; while in the castle grounds primroses grew on mossy banks or nestled almost lovingly at the roots of trees. It was a fair scene, and for a little while Lizzie and her friend enjoyed its beauty. Some such words as "O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches" (Psa. 104:2424O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches. (Psalm 104:24)) may have awoke a praise song in their hearts. They talked for a few minutes about the history of the castle, for the gray ivy covered ruin has a history, and an interesting one.
Built in Saxon times, it seems to have been an important stronghold when William the First, then Duke of Normandy, landed at or near Pevensey, on the coast of Sussex, and as it is only seven miles from Battle, where, after hard fighting, the Saxons, overcome by the Norman troops, were forced to yield, and so William was placed upon the throne of England, Hastings Castle is believed to have been one of the first places in which the Conqueror held his court.
An old MS. book still kept in the British Museum tells us that at one of the gatherings of knights and nobles so frequent in those far-away times, his daughter, Adela, gave prizes to those who had fought most bravely. We, as we think of those days, cannot help feeling both glad and sorry, can we? Sorry, when we think of all the fighting and bloodshed, and of how often the lives of brave men were wasted over some foolish quarrel; glad that we have been taught such words as "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, and persecute you."
On leaving the castle grounds our two friends found a seat in a quiet spot, not far from the sea front. They had not sat long before they were joined by a middle-aged woman, whose dress and manner marked her as belonging to the working class. Hard lines, too, on her face told their own tale of how hard work rather than the weight of years had bowed her once upright form.
A gospel book was offered to and accepted by her. Some conversation followed, in which the stranger said “No, I am not what you would call a Christian. I have not taken salvation as the free gift of God in the way you speak of, but I cannot complain; God has been very good to me. I am poor, and I have had to work hard; but I am not so badly off as many. I have a niece living not an hour's walk from here who is deaf and blind too, poor girl.”
“Can she read with her fingers and write?" asked Lizzie's friend.
It took some thinking on the part of the stranger before Ivy's question could be answered. But, after a pause, she remembered having seen Annette, as we will call the afflicted girl, with some books which, as she said, would be of no use to a person who could not read them. She did not think much of her niece's writing, it being only, she said, like pinpricks all over the paper. Our friends smiled; she was, they knew, speaking of the Braille or dotted system of writing and reading which so many of the blind are now taught.
It was rather a long walk to Annette's home, but on the evening of the same day they found themselves at the address given. Annette could neither see her visitors nor hear what they said to her, but as one of them, who had been used to talk to deaf mutes, took her hand and finding she understood the sign and manual language began talking to her, Annette was able to enjoy their visit.
It was a great joy to find in Annette one of the Lord's hidden ones, one who really knew and trusted the Lord Jesus as her own Savior. She was, she said, very fond of reading, and was much pleased by the promise of some new books-a promise which was faithfully kept.
Annette is still living, and the books which have been sent to her from time to time-many of them portions of Scripture -have, there is reason to hope, been a real help and blessing to her soul.
Very few of the blind have a whole Bible, as one in raised, embossed or dotted type has to be divided into so many parts or volumes that it is not only very large but very expensive. A Bible in Moon's type is divided into sixty-four volumes and costs nearly £7. One in Braille type is much smaller, and can be bought for about £3 15s.