HELENE was a Swiss girl who had Christian parents. They longed to see Helene saved, but their daughter loved the world, its pleasures and companions. One day she promised to join a party climbing a certain mountain. Her father and mother did not wish her to go with this company, but Helene insisted on fulfilling her promise. The Lord was watching over her, and when the day came, it was foggy, so the outing was postponed. Helene never took this mountain climb for the Lord had otherwise planned.
A dear Christian friend was visiting Helene’s home, and had asked her again and again to cross the ocean to America with her. Helene’s parents wished her to go to break up an undesirable friendship she had made. You know evil communications corrupt good manners.
Helene always refused her friend’s request. At last, one day, she said impatiently, “O, yes! I will go.” She did not really think she would go, but it was so ordered that so many of her friends spoke to her of the trip, when the time came she saw she would have to go. Her friend Miss B. went before, and Helene was to follow shortly with a brother of Miss B.
The vessel was so well filled, a passage could not be had in the same class as the brother. Helene went in the steerage, but paid extra for a room and better food. Her expense was the same as a better class passenger, but when the vessel arrived in New York, Helene was treated as a steerage passenger, and shipped off with all the emigrants to Ellis Island. The brother expected Helene to return at once, as she had money and friends. Miss B. was awaiting her arrival at New York, and when Helene did not come, she went down to the Island. There, after keeping her waiting, she was told that Helene had been sent on to Boston, which was to be the end of her journey, as her ticket stated.
Helene had not gone to Boston, for a man, who pretended to be a representative of the company, had asked her where she was going. She told him she must return to New York where her friends were waiting, but the company was sending her to Boston. He said he would take her to her friends and asked for her ticket. Helene gladly gave him: an envelope, which contained her ticket and all her money. As he returned the envelope, Helene saw him pass something to a man standing by. She looked in the envelope, and when she saw her money was gone, began to cry. To the man she said in German,
“Please give me my money, I can go nowhere without it.”
The man said, “I haven’t your money. Come with me and I’ll take you to your friends. If we cannot find them, I’ll take you to a hotel.”
“But,” said Helene, “I have no money to pay the hotel.”
“Never mind,” said he, “I’ll attend to that, and you will soon get a place.”
He took her to a German mission in New York, not far from the boat landing. Poor Helene, how sad she was without money and without friends, in a strange city! She knew not where she was going. But One, whose watchful eye never wearies, was looking at her. On arriving at the mission, which was carried on by a Christian man, Helene noticed familiar texts hanging on the walls. It was soon time for service, and imagine her surprise when the speaker read the same Scripture her own dear father had read when she left home in Switzerland. The hymn was the same her brother had sung. Helene thought of home and wept bitterly. The Lord began a work in her soul right there, which continued till she was happy in the knowledge of Jesus Christ as her Saviour.
ML 11/16/1924