.»>• 
 
 
 LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION,^ 
 
 ^j^ 200 MULBERRY-STREET, N. Y. ^^ 
 
WW 
 
 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 -♦•♦- 
 
 SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 
 
 •2(Ki MULBERRY-STREET, NEW YORK. 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 Har&y Stone was seven years 
 old. lie bad three sisters, and he 
 loved them dearly and often played 
 with them; but he was a very manly 
 little fellow, and spent the most of 
 his time with his father. It was his 
 father who heard his lessons, who 
 taught him to ride the little pony, 
 
4 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 and helped him plan and work his 
 garden. Harry loved his father very 
 
 much. 
 
 And there was one other whom 
 Harry loved. His mother ! Yes, he 
 did love his mother with a very 
 warm heart; but just at this time he 
 had a new object to love — a little 
 baby brother. what a wonder 
 was that brother in his eyes! It 
 was so weak and so helpless now, 
 and it could not hold a spoon to feed 
 itself, nor even sit up alone. But then 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 5 
 
 he knew that at some time it would 
 grow up to be a big boy like him- 
 self, so he waited and watched. 
 Each day, after his lessons were 
 done, he went up to his mother's 
 room to rock the cradle if the little 
 brother was asleep, or to play with 
 him and talk to him if he was awake. 
 And when spring came it was Har- 
 ry who drew the little wagon with 
 its baby burden up and clown the 
 walk, while nurse might sit still in 
 the doorwa} r and look on. 
 
6 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 As little James grew older Harry 
 loved him more and more. He did 
 not, like some naughty brothers, try 
 to tease him and run away from him, 
 but he always liked to have him at 
 his side, and to attend to all his little 
 wants. how nice it would be if 
 all brothers would do so ! 
 
 So things went on till James was 
 five, and Harry was twelve } T ears 
 old, and then their father died. It 
 was a sad, sad stroke for them all, 
 and perhaps to Harry more than 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 7 
 
 any of the rest, for he had been 
 with him so much. Had it not been 
 for his little brother James his life 
 would have been sad enough, lie 
 taught him his daily lessons, and 
 this served to divert his mind very 
 much from the great grief that would 
 have rested upon it. 
 
 When affairs were settled after 
 Mr. Stone's death, Mrs. Stone began 
 to think what she could do with 
 Harry. 
 
 It would cost quite a sum to send 
 
8 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 him away to school, but this seemed 
 to be the best plan on the whole, 
 as she had not time to teach him at 
 home. And what made her still 
 more willing to do this was the 
 coming of her father with a cousin of 
 Harry's, whom he was taking to 
 school. Edward Gordon, or Ned, as 
 he was called, was a fine young lad 
 just one month older than Harry. 
 They had never seen each other be- 
 fore, but they had heard much, and 
 were ready to like each other at 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 9 
 
 once. Harry did not know whether 
 it was best to be pleased or not with 
 the prospect of going away from 
 home, his happy home, and more 
 than all from his little brother. So, 
 like a good boy, he waited till his 
 mother and her father had talked the 
 matter over, and then he was ready 
 to do as they might say, and they 
 said it was best that he should go. 
 
 It was a sad good-by that Harry 
 said to his kind mother, and sisters, 
 and little brother. The tears would 
 
 1* 
 
10 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 come as lie stood there with the 
 hands of James and his sister Mary 
 in his. 
 
 " Be very kind to little brother for 
 my sake, Mary," he said softly in her 
 ear, "for yon know he will be very 
 lonely when I am gone." 
 
 " I will, Harry, for your sake and 
 for his own too," said Mary warmly, 
 "for 1 love him very much." 
 
 The good -by kiss was given all 
 around, and Harry was off with his 
 grandpa and cousin. 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 1 1 
 
 A few hours by the cars brought 
 them to the place where the school 
 was kept. Harry had not yet quite 
 dried the tears for the dear ones at 
 home, when they were set down at 
 the door of Mr. Mace, the teacher. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Mace gave them all 
 a hearty welcome, and made them 
 quite at home. 
 
 Before Mr. Gordon left he called 
 his grandsons to him and gave them 
 each a gold dollar, and told them 
 what he meant to do by them. 
 
12 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 " I shall give you each twenty-five 
 cents a week for spending money, 7 ' 
 lie said, "and I want you to break 
 and tear just as little beyond that as 
 you can. I shall take note how 
 much I shall have to pay for each of 
 you, and the one who breaks the 
 least shall have the odds to do what 
 he likes with. So if I pay three dol- 
 lars for In ed and only two for Harry, 
 I will give Harry one dollar to him- 
 self. What do you think of that, 
 Ned?" 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. lo 
 
 "I am afraid I shall get no money 
 in that way, I am so careless, grand- 
 pa," and the tears came in his eyes; 
 "but, indeed, I will try to do better. 
 I love to do right, but I am so apt to 
 forget," 
 
 After Mr. Gordon was gone the 
 boys were soon settled in their rooms, 
 and then they went out into the 
 play-ground. It was quite a task 
 for a timid boy like Harry to go 
 among so many strange ones, but 
 Ned had been there before and was 
 
14 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 liked by them all, and this was a free 
 pass to Harry. He did not have to 
 endure so much as other new pupils 
 did, and was soon hard at work 
 with his books. 
 
 All went off well, and Harry was 
 feeling quite at home, though he 
 missed that little brother's hand that 
 used to be in his when he went out 
 to walk, and in his little bed when 
 he went to sleep at night, and he 
 missed him from his side at the table. 
 He heard from home often, and they 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 15 
 
 said James was doing well, and the 
 little fellow sent many a message of 
 
 love. 
 
 But by and by word came that he 
 was sick, and then Harry knew for 
 the first time that the child was pin- 
 ing away for the brother that he 
 loved so dearly. It was Mary that 
 wrote the letter. She said: " AVe 
 have not told you before because we 
 hoped he would get over it, but he 
 grows worse and worse. He cries 
 for 'Harry, Harry,' all the day long. 
 
16 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 He has grown quite tliin and pale, 
 and often asks how long it will be 
 before Christmas when Harry shall 
 come home. Indeed, Harry, I have 
 done my best to comfort him and be 
 kind to him, but nothing will do but 
 Jiis brother. You must write to him, 
 Harry, and tell him something that 
 will divert his mind if you can." 
 
 This is only a part of the long letter 
 that she wrote, and as Harry sat alone 
 in the school-room reading it with 
 tears oti his cheeks, Mr. Mace came 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 17 
 
 in and kindly asked what was the 
 matter. Harry had learned to love 
 and trust his good teacher in all 
 things, and so now, without a word, 
 lie put the letter into his hand. 
 Mr. Mace read it in silence, and the 
 tears came in his own eyes. He asked 
 how old James was, and many other 
 things, and then went out without 
 saying any more. That afternoon 
 he sent for Harry and said: "Mrs. 
 Mace sends her love, and asks vour 
 ma to let James come and make vou 
 
18 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 a visit. Go to her room and you may 
 get her own note to send with your 
 letter." 
 
 Harry walked as if in a dream, 
 and he could hardly think it was all 
 true till the next week he saw the 
 pale, thin-faced little James put 
 down at the house door by a friend 
 who was coming that way. 
 
 what a nice visit that was ! The 
 little fellow's face began to grow 
 plump and bright, and his voice gay; 
 and when the two weeks were up, 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 19 
 
 and he must go home, he told Harry 
 that he would try to be good now 
 and not cry for him any more. And 
 he kept his word very well after he 
 got home again, so Mary wrote in 
 her letters, but he would talk about 
 Harry all the time. 
 
 Now it was that Harry set his 
 heart to get his little brother to come 
 to school with him. He knew that 
 his mother could not afford it, and 
 he did not want to ask it of his 
 grandpa who had done so much for 
 
20 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 Hm, but somehow it must be clone, 
 lie asked Mr. Mace how much he 
 would charge to take such a boy for a 
 year, and lie told him one hundred 
 dollars ; but if he would take him into 
 bis bed and take care of him, as he 
 did when on the visit there, he would 
 let him come for seventy-five dollars. 
 Then Harry wrote to know how 
 much it cost his ma to keep him at 
 home, and she said fifty dollars She 
 could not afford to pay out for him 
 one cent more than that. Then there 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 21 
 
 was his pocket money for a year, 
 which would be thirteen dollars, and 
 the one dollar that was his grandpa's 
 present, that made in all sixty-four 
 dollars. That left him eleven dollars 
 
 short. 
 
 Time passed on, the end of the 
 term came, and Grandpa Gordon 
 with it to take the boys home. 
 And what do you think was the first 
 thing that he found out? Why, the 
 wild, fun-loving Ned had broken five 
 dollars' worth of glasses and win- 
 
22 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 clows, and a fence, and— well, I can't 
 tell you all about it, for it is a long- 
 story; but the five dollars went to 
 the good and careful Harry. " Sixty- 
 nine dollars," said he to himself as 
 he was putting up his clothes ; " only 
 six more, and I don't see how I can 
 get them.'' 
 
 Just then a bright thought struck 
 him, and away he ran to find Mrs. 
 Mace. He told her how near he came 
 to the sum, " and now," said he, "I 
 have just thought if you would not 
 
THE LITTLE BROTHER. 2 
 
 o 
 
 please allow me the rest if I will go 
 without tea and coffee the whole 
 year?" Mrs. Mace smiled, kissed 
 him, and said u yes/" 
 
 Ah, was not Harry a happy little 
 boy when he came back to the school 
 the next term with his little brother ? 
 And did not his dry morsel of bread 
 and butter at supper taste sweeter 
 to him, with his brother by his side, 
 than if he had had all the tea of China 
 to drink with it ? 
 
 After a time the bovs left school 
 
24 THE LITTLE BROTHER. 
 
 and went to college with each other, 
 for Harry would not go alone, and 
 they are there yet. I shall keep my 
 eye on them, for I expect a very good 
 man will grow up from the little boy 
 who was so very kind to his little 
 brother. 
 
 THE EM). 
 
 353^063 
 
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