_"Sow in the morn thy seed."_




HELPING FINGERS


For three years I lived in Manila, Philippine Islands. Not far from my
home was an orphanage for children who were deaf and dumb. Frequently
these children were seen at different entertainments that were given
about the city. One evening I went to attend a lecture in the Y.M.C.A.
Right in front of me sat three children. They were very quiet and
orderly. When the lecture began the boy who sat in the middle began to
make his fingers go as fast as he could, the two children on either side
watching him intently. That center boy could hear, the other two were
deaf. So he heard the lecture for them and told it to them by the finger
language.

One day a girl, coming out from school, got on a street car to go to her
home. The car was crowded. She found a seat next to a woman who was
heavily laden with bundles. She had all she could do to hold those
bundles in her lap and keep them from falling and scattering their
contents on the floor. Then a string about one of the packages became
untied. She struggled to get that string fastened securely. She had so
many packages, her fingers were numb with cold, and again and again the
string slipped just at the crucial time. Finally this school girl, who
was an attractive, well-dressed girl, reached over and placed her nicely
gloved finger on the obstreperous knot. There was a grateful smile from