MOTHER, what do you think? a blind boy is coming to our school next week, a blind boy! Mr. Young has been telling us about him. He said when he was quite a baby he took a fever, and after he got well the doctor found out he had lost his sight; he is coming to our school just for a year, then he is going to enter a blind school at S. His mother is a widow, and he has no brothers or sisters. They have only just come to live at Rivermouth, in the little white cottage at the end of our road, and Mr. Young said, if you had no objection, it would be a good plan for me to call for him on my way to school every day, and leave him at his own gate as we come home.”
Willie Burns had said the above very, quickly, not even stopping to take breath, but he was quite sure of the interest and sympathy of his listener; he knew his mother would pity and long to help the afflicted boy, whose guide he was quite willing to become.
Mrs. Burns, who had been folding away her work, said, with a smile, "Thank you, Willie, for telling me about the poor blind boy and his mother. But come to tea now, and when you have finished your home lessons, perhaps you can take me to the white cottage; if they are strangers here, they may need friends.”
“First-rate, mother," Willie exclaimed gratefully, "I have only three sums, and they shall not take me long; then we'll be off on a visit to master Arnold Burr and his mother.”
Willie's mind was so full of the blind boy, that he only just waited while his mother asked a blessing on their evening meal, before he returned to the subject with, "How dreadful it must be to be blind, do not you think it is, mother? If I were blind, I am afraid I should not want to do anything but sit and cry all day. Poor Arnold, I am really sorry for him; I dare say he sits in a corner and frets because he cannot see. And I cannot think it will be of much use his coming to school, for he will not be able to learn anything except—perhaps," Willie added in a thoughtful tone—"how to make baskets, like that blind man we sometimes meet on the road to F.”
“You are looking on the dark side, Willie," Mrs. Burns said gently; "now I am going to try if I cannot help you to think and speak of the affliction of blindness in a more cheerful and trustful way. I too am sorry for Arnold Burr, but do not think his blindness need hinder his life from being a useful and happy one. Many blind persons have done good work of various kinds; I think you can tell me the names of more than one blind poet.”
“Oh yes, mother, now you remind me of it, I remember Mr. Young telling us that Homer, the great Greek poet, was blind, and I think I have read that Milton, who wrote a grand poem called 'Paradise Lost,' was blind for many years: but they were very clever, so perhaps losing their sight did not make much difference to them, do you think it did?
“Yes, Willie, I think the trial must have been just as great, but with brave, hopeful spirits they kept on trying till the work they had in hand was done. Handel, the famous composer of music, was blind during the last years of his life; and the hymn you are so fond of singing, ‘Safe in the arms of Jesus,' was written by an American lady still living, who has never known the blessing of sight. We cannot tell if our old friend Arnold will ever become famous, but one thing we may be sure of, that if he loves the Lord Jesus, the eye of his soul will see wondrous beauty in Him, and he will be able to say, in the words of a blind lady I know, ‘The first face I expect to SEE will be that of my Savior.' But you had better begin your sums, or we shall not have time for our visit.”
An hour later, Willie and his mother were on their way to the white cottage. As they stopped at the gate, they heard a clear sweet voice singing, and stood still to listen. The evening was very calm and still, and they were able to distinguish the words:—
“In darkest shades if Thou appear,
My dawning has begun;
Thou art my soul's bright Morning Star,
And Thou my Rising Sun.”
The quick ear of the blind boy caught the sound of footsteps, so he ceased his song, and told his mother two persons were at the gate. Mrs. Burr rose to open it, saying as she did so, "I think there must be some mistake, Arnold dear; as we do not know any one here but the schoolmaster, we can hardly expect visitors.”
A few gentle words from Mrs. Burns soon convinced Mrs. Burr that the strangers would prove friends. She was much pleased to learn Willie Burns was willing to be her son's guide to and from school. The two boys went into the garden, while their mothers remained indoors to enjoy a quiet talk.
At first Willie felt a little shy, it was a strange and new experience for him to be talking to a boy who could not see him. He could not look at Arnold's bright face, or listen to his merry laugh, and think of him as unhappy, yet he felt almost sure he should be so if not able to see. After a time he found courage to say, "Oh, Arnold, you do not know how sorry I am for you, it must be dreadful to be blind.”
Arnold turned his sightless eyes to Willie, and answered, "You are kind, and I know we shall be great friends, for I like your voice. But please do not feel so bad about my blindness, I am sure it is all right. When I was quite a baby I could see, but I cannot remember how things and people used to look; but I am not a bit dull, and dear mother is always so kind to me, she tells me Bible stories, and we sing hymns together. And, do you know, Willie, I am getting on quite nicely with my reading, and Miss Mead, the lady who taught me, gave me the Gospel of John in Dr. Moon's type. Perhaps some day I shall have a whole Bible, but one in raised type for the blind costs almost eight pounds, and mother could not afford that.”
“Learning to read!" Willie exclaimed, in quite a perplexed tone, "how can you read when you cannot see?”
Arnold smiled as he answered, "True, Willie, I cannot see your books, but mother says it is by the goodness of God that almost all blind persons have great quickness of touch, so if we do not see, we can often tell what things are like by passing our fingers over them; and Dr. Moon, a blind gentleman, who lives at Brighton, wished very much that all blind boys and girls could be taught to read the Bible. I think he must have prayed a great deal about it, for after he had tried a long time to find out the very best way of teaching the blind to read, it came into his mind to try to teach some poor blind people he knew by letters raised above the paper.
“H is first scholars got on so well that a great many books were raised, or, as it is called, embossed. But mother says when I go to the blind school at S., I shall learn another way of reading and writing too, in what is known as the dotted or pricked system. It was invented by a very clever Frenchman called Louis Braille, and is now used in many schools for the blind.
“Do you like learning Bible verses, Willie? I do dearly, but I think my favorite verses are those about light and seeing, because I know the darkness will not be for long; some day I shall see the Lord Jesus, the Savior, ‘who loved me and gave himself for me ' (Gal. 2:2020I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)), and then perhaps He will tell me why it was best for me to be blind.”
As Arnold ceased speaking, his mother came into the garden, and Mrs. Burns, who was with her, told Willie it was time to say good-night to his new friend as it was getting late, and they must make haste home.
Chapter 9—ARTHUR'S HARD LESSONS
HOW I wish Mr. Crane would give us boys sensible lessons to learn, and not all these hard names and stupid figures; I can't think why China was ever put in the geography at all. Of course, everybody knows a great deal of tea comes from China, and those very old plates mother has, with strange-looking pictures of birds and fishes on them, are, she says, real china, so I suppose they were made there; but I don't see the good of knowing any more about it.”
Mary Wells could hardly help smiling as she listened to her brother Arthur's grave statement of some of his schoolboy troubles; but she had learned from her much-loved Bible, that "A soft answer turneth away wrath" (Prov. 15:11A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. (Proverbs 15:1)), so she said, "Perhaps I can help to make your hard lesson seem not quite so difficult. When I was at Hastings last summer, I read a very interesting book about China and the Chinese; if I tell you just a few things I can remember, I am sure you will agree with me in thinking much that is worth knowing is to be known about China.”
Every trace of his recent vexation was gone from Arthur's face in a moment. There were few things he liked better than a true story, and his sister Mary's stories were all true, and seldom failed to be very interesting. So he threw himself into a chair, asking as he did so, "Do boys have to go to school in China, Mary?”
“Oh yes, Arthur, there are a great many more school-boys in China than in England, partly because China is such a large country, nearly fifteen times larger than England; and as in most parts of that great empire the people of China live very close to each other, of course the boys of China far outnumber the boys of England, and partly because every boy in China wishes to grow up a learned man.
He knows if even his father and mother are very poor people, who have to work hard all day to get a living, this need not hinder him from becoming a rich man when he is grown up, if he can only study hard and learn enough to pass some very difficult examinations, as then he will be able to teach in a school, or get a place under government, something like being in the civil service, you know; and if he works very hard indeed, he may even rise to be a Mandarin, as the great officers in China are called.
“A Chinese boy does not go to school till he is ten years old, though he has almost always been taught to read at home by his father, or elder brothers if he has any. It is a very great day for the boy when he goes to school, as for the first time in his life he is dressed like a man. He will have to get up very early in the morning if he has far to walk, as schools in China always begin at seven o'clock in the morning, and go on till four or five in the afternoon; there is no playtime or dinner hour, only when a boy has said all his lessons the master will give him leave to go home and get his dinner, which being only a little rice, does not take him very long to eat; then he goes back to school, without stopping to loiter or play on the way. And this goes on seven days in the week. There are no Wednesday or Saturday half-holidays, and no Sunday rest, where at gospel preaching or Bible class we are free to learn so much about the Lord Jesus and His great love to us.”
“Well, Mary, I am glad I don't have to go to school in China; but please tell me some more, Do they ever get any holidays at all?”
“Yes, Arthur, I believe all schools in China are closed for about three weeks at the beginning of their new year, and sometimes, but not very often, a day something like a holiday is kept in honor of one of their idols, or some wise man who lived in China hundreds of years ago.
“When a boy goes to school for the first time, I have read, he always takes with him two candles, three sticks of incense, some paper money, and three sheets of paper with pictures of clothes painted on them. In almost every schoolroom in China there is a slab or small stone table put up in honor of Confucius, a very learned man, who died in the year 477 B.C. Before this tablet the new boy, as you would call him, lights his candles and burns his sticks of incense or perfume, then the paper money and clothes.”
Why do you think that all this is done?”
“Because he has been told that these things will go to the spirit of Confucius, who in return will help him to learn fast, and so become a clever man. Then he bows very low before the schoolmaster four times, sometimes so low as to strike his head upon the ground; this is done to show he means always to obey and try to please him.
“But I have not told you anything about lessons and lesson books yet. All the lessons must be learned by heart. I mean the master does not give lessons or take any trouble to explain what his pupils are learning. Every boy goes to his seat and begins to study his lesson always by saying it over and over ALOUD. So you see it is quite impossible for the schoolroom to be quiet and orderly.
“When the boy thinks he knows his task, he goes to the teacher, turns his back to him, and begins to recite. If his lesson has been well learned he gets a fresh one, so a great part of the day is taken up with learning and repeating. When a writing lesson is given, every boy uses a small brush instead of a pen, and writes or paints upon paper so thin he can see through it, with his copy underneath. Instead of a slate and pencil, he has a board painted white, on which he writes with black paint that can easily be washed off.”
“How strange, Mary; everything in China seems to be done in just an opposite way to ours. But do you know any more about these Chinese schools?”
“When the scholars get on well with their lessons, the master, by way of reward, will often tell his boys stories of how boys whose parents were very poor studied hard and behaved well, and at last became rich and famous men. But disobedience and inattention meet with punishment in China as elsewhere Sometimes a boy who has been naughty is punished by being made to kneel before his seat or at the door till a stick of lighted incense which he holds in his hand has burnt so low as almost to burn his fingers. Another curious punishment is for a boy to hold a jar or basin quite full of water on his head. The master stands near and whips him every time he spills any.
“It is sad to think of China with all its learning, for except a bright spot here and there where the gospel has been preached, and there are a few Chinese Christians, the whole land seems given up to the darkness of idol worship. Shall not we who have so many Bibles, and who know so much about a loving living Savior, sometimes think of and pray for China, and for the Lord's servants who are seeking to serve Him there, that He may make them wise and patient, and give them the joy of seeing many souls won for Christ there? Perhaps another time I may be able to tell you more about China; for the present I would just remind you of one short text, of which very few boys in China have ever even heard. ‘Do all things without murmurings and disputings.'”
“I know what you mean, Mary, and I am going to work away with a will at my hard lesson. China is I see more interesting than I thought it was before you told me these things about it.