moment or two in perfect silence. The soft wind played gently with his
curls, and rustled amongst the leafy boughs overhead, and in the distance
the birds' sweet voices were the only sounds that met his ears. As the
boy's eyes came back to earth they seemed to have reflected in them
something of the bright sunshine above, and then down on his knees he
dropped. Placing his little clasped hands against the old trunk in front
of him, and bending his golden head till it rested likewise against the
tree, Teddy prayed aloud, slowly, and with frequent pauses,--

'O God! here I am. Have You been waiting for me? I've come to enlist.
And, please, I forget all Mr. Upton told me to say; but will You forgive
me my sins, and write my name down in Your book in heaven?--Edward James
Platt is my name. I've come to be Your soldier for ever and ever. Will
You please keep me always? I never want to go back from being Your
soldier. Make me fight a grand fight, and help me to hold Your colours up
well; and please, God, will You tell father I've enlisted this afternoon?
Mr. Upton said You would take me. I thank You for letting Jesus die for
me, and I'm very sorry I haven't belonged to His army before, but I
didn't quite understand that He wanted me. Help me to be a good boy, for
Jesus Christ's sake. Amen.'

A child's prayer, but it was prayed with a child's strong faith, and as
Teddy rose to his feet, he had the assurance that God had accepted him.
That scene in the wood, when he dedicated himself to the service of the
King of kings, would be stamped on his memory as long as he lived. And
now that the deed was done a great load seemed to be lifted off his mind.
He came into the midst of the boys on the green a short time afterwards
with a radiant face, and took his share in fielding, bowling, and batting
with such a vigour and will, that he proved himself the hero of the hour.
Later in the evening he wandered into the dairy, where his mother was