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THE GOLD MINE. 
 
 
 «1 *>~ 
 
 "•<£ 
 
 "I wish, mother, there was a 
 gold mine in our little garden j I 
 would then soon be rich " 
 
 " Why do you wish to be rich, 
 
 George ? ' ' 
 
2 THE GOLD MItfE. 
 
 " I could then get everything 
 I want, and people would think 
 much of me as I grew up to be a 
 man. Besides, mother, you would 
 not have to w r ork so hard as you 
 do, for I would make you rich 
 too." 
 
 " But what has made you 
 think, George, about finding a 
 gold mine, and getting rich ?" 
 
 " It is because I have heard of 
 so many leaving our village, to 
 go a long way off, that they may 
 dig gold out of the ground." 
 
 u Yes, George, it is true many 
 have left their homes, and gone 
 to other lands. They hope to 
 find riches among the sands of 
 the rivers, or in the mines by the 
 sides of the hills. Bat I would 
 rather wish you to get some of the 
 
TIIE GOLD MINE. 3 
 
 1 hid treasure,' and to search for 
 it with all jour might. I should 
 then be truly a happy mother, 
 and you would be my rich son. 
 There is a mine, where you may 
 get much gain, and you need not 
 travel far to find it." 
 
 " What, as much as men do 
 who go abroad ?" 
 
 " Yes ; and what is more, it is 
 sure gain. They expect soon to 
 find wealth, and this makes them 
 willing to bear any present loss 
 and hardship. But v^ery many of 
 them, I fear, get little for all 
 their labour. And if they do get 
 that which they seek, it seldom 
 satisfies their wishes ; and at best 
 they will not hold it for many 
 years. In the ' hid treasure' 
 which I wish you to seek ? I may 
 
4 THE GOLD MINE. 
 
 promise you that it will prove 
 riches that will both satisfy and 
 last for life/ 5 
 
 " May I begin to seek now, 
 mother, or must I wait till I grow 
 up and am a man? 5 ' 
 
 " You mav begin at once, 
 George. But as I find you do 
 not see what mine I allude to, or 
 what is the gain I wish you to 
 possess, I will at once tell you. 
 The mine is The Bible, and the 
 gain is that heavenly wisdomwhich 
 you may get therefrom. 5 ' 
 
 " Oh ! mother, is that what vou 
 mean ? " 
 
 " Yes, George; and may I not 
 say that such would be to you the 
 best riches] Gold and silver are 
 not the only, nor are they the 
 true wealth. Fires may burn 
 
THE GOLD MINE. 5 
 
 them ; floods may drown them 
 moth and rust may waste them 
 and the robber may steal them 
 or, if they are held for life, they 
 must be left behind at death. 
 Those only are the best riches 
 which are not kept in the purse, 
 but are treasured in the heart, 
 and which last for ever. The 
 word of God is a large and wealthy 
 mine. If you do not know the 
 worth of its riches, no matter 
 what else you have, you must be 
 poor indeed. Young Timothy 
 and David found in it that which 
 was better than thousands of gold 
 and silver. But, what is strange, 
 since their clays this mine has 
 become larger and richer. Good 
 and wise men have been searching 
 in it for hundreds of years, but 
 
6 THE GOLD MINE. 
 
 it is still quite full, and must re- 
 main so to the end of the world. 
 Every one is invited to come and 
 search for the best treasure in 
 this mine of God's word. Open 
 your Bible, and read the fourth 
 and fifth verses of the second 
 chapter of Proverbs." 
 
 George reads : — " If thou seek- 
 est her as silver, and searchest 
 for her as for hid treasures ; then 
 shalt thou understand the fear of 
 the Lord, and find the knowledge 
 of God." 
 
 "There, George, do you not 
 see that if you would get this 
 ' hid treasure ' of heavenly wis- 
 dom, you must seek and search 
 for it ? It w T ill not do merely to 
 turn over the pages of the Bible, 
 and read without care or thought. 
 
THE GOLD MIKE. 7 
 
 You may indeed commit verse 
 after verse to memory, and yet not 
 find the treasure that is in them. 
 The mere words are not the trea- 
 sure, but the great and gracious 
 truths they express. And what 
 are some of these truths ? They 
 are, that Grod is a loving Father ; 
 and that when he saw that we, 
 his children, had become sinful, 
 he sent his Son, Christ Jesus, to 
 seek and to save us. The Bible 
 tells us how Jesus came into the 
 world as a poor babe, and that 
 for us he lived, and for us he 
 died on the cross, that we, 
 through faith in his precious 
 blood, might be forgiven. It 
 teaches us that the Holy Spirit 
 is given, in answer to prayer, 
 that we, through his grace, may 
 
8 THE GOLD MINE. 
 
 have a heart made sorry for sin, 
 and filled with holy desires. 
 Then, too, to know that God can 
 bless us, and make us happy in 
 this world, — that he will hear our 
 prayers offered to him in the name 
 of Jesus Christ, — and that at last, 
 if we believe in his Son as our 
 Saviour, he will take us to dwell 
 with him for ever in heaven; — 
 oh, mv dear boy. are not these 
 truths worthy of being sought 
 out? and are they not more pre- 
 cious than all the gold that is in 
 the world % I hope, then, that 
 instead of yainly wishing to dig in 
 a mine of gold, and getting rich 
 for this world, you will be a true 
 miner in God's holy word, and 
 become rich unto eternal life." 
 
 Benjamin Pardon, Printer, Paternoster-row. 
 

 

 
 <l* What a blessing, whrti a treasure, ^P%. 
 
 I possess in Thy dear Word ! \ 
 
 *^ There I read with holy pleasure ^P 
 
 r=sU^ 
 
 >t- Of the love o f Christ my Lord. *^Js- 
 
 <^L.> God's I less'd word reveals the Saviour /=^fe* 
 
 t Sinful children deeply need ; ^ 
 
 nt Oh ! what mercy, love, and favour, T 
 
 r^f^ That for sinnej s Christ should bleed ! r*L?\ 
 
 ^&* Oh ! the blessedness of knowing ^Sp* 
 
 «J r hrist the tender Saviour's love, 4. 
 
 V Freely on a child bestowing ^ 
 
 ^fe* Grace and mercy from abova. *^p* 
 V 
 
 {/=* 
 
 Heavenly Father ! £ive thy Bpmt ^^ 
 
 To each child who looks to thee ; ^h^ 
 
 May we thy rich grace inherit, j 
 
 ^if^ May we like our Saviour be 1 *^p 
 
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