“The pudding was warmed up on Wednesday, and a cabbage, with a few potatoes, cooked. On Thursday the rest of the meat was boiled, and the liquor added to the stock. A few turnips, with a Norfolk dumpling, eked out that day's meal; and Mrs. Pearson made that at a cost of little more than ld. On Friday Mary bought, by her advice, half a pint of oatmeal, to stir into the stock; to which she added more water, not forgetting the pepper and salt. A baked rice pudding was also allowed for a treat half a pint of milk, and a small tea-cupful of rice, which astonished Mary, because she had always packed her rice quite tight, and her husband said he could not get his teeth into it.

"On Saturday the stock was warmed, and with a few cuttings of bacon, potatoes, and fried onions, made a substantial stew; and when Tom brought his wages home that night his wife showed him money in hand, even though the club and the rent were paid.

"Are you satisfied now?' she asked, 'for I have really tried to do better." Tom made no answer, but he drew his Mary nearer to him and gave her such a hearty kiss that she needed no other assurance.

"Tom had always stoutly maintained that a working man should have a hot dinner on Sunday, if he went without all the other days, but before long he even suggested that it would be better to have no cooking on Sundays, so that he and his wife might go twice a day instead of once to God's House of Prayer. Once Tom had only studied to please himself, now he sought to fight the good fight of faith and lay hold on eternal life."

We hope that the attention of our Ladies, as well as Biblewomen and Nurses, will be incidentally called to this subject of improving the management of poor mothers. We hear so constantly of the woes of families when the husband drinks, and beats the wife and children, that we have come to a fresh conviction that the evil has not been met by enough practical provision for making his home more comfortable to him; good food would best fight the drink with 9 men out of 10, and as our workers have much influence in between 200 and 300 districts this subject is not at all beneath their notice, and would make way for their higher spiritual aims meanwhile.

NURSE B AND HER CASES.

IN Nurse B's district there is a nice hall, with an adjoining room in which the Mothers' Meeting is held. In another

part of the building is a large copper, and a room where all the blankets and linen are disinfected after being let out among the poor and sick. This seems an excellent idea.

Nurse is not very strong, but works very cheerfully and tenderly among her grateful patients. She carries her black bag well filled with all that is needful for her work, and a bright tin of hot cereal food, for which many are thankful after the fatigue of washing and dressing.

An old Mrs. K

has been attended for more than a year, her amputated but unhealed arm being daily syringed and bound

up.

M

Mrs. M——, a consumptive patient, works with her daughter, aged 12, at making match-boxes. The exertion, however, seems too much for her, the damp boxes with the paste making her cough worse. She was left a widow with six children, three of whom are in the workhouse school.

The help of the Nurse and the teaching of the Bible-woman have done much good here. This Nurse has always as many cases as she can manage, and has been useful to many young mothers, especially one whose confinement was hastened by a severe beating from the husband. Also to another, whose child was born the day after a night spent in watching her husband die in the Victoria Park Hospital.

Nurse has also a poor little new patient, Mrs. G's child, fourteen months old, who pulled scalding water over his face, some going down his throat. The mother has to work very hard at washing, though the father earns 24s. as a labourer. Just before the accident the mother complained to nurse that the children were so tiresome; also saying to a neighbour she should not mind if they all lay dead at her feet. But how differently she behaved when only one seemed likely to do so; for at her feet this dear baby lay scalded so dreadfully, the doctor would have nothing to do with it, telling her to take it to the hospital.

The father said, if it was to die, it should die at home, and fetched Nurse, who found the child with throat so scalded, it could not swallow; and its face, as well as nostrils, all bladders. She opened them, and enabled him to breathe, but

scarcely knew how to treat the throat, as he seemed likely to be suffocated. However, it seemed the idea was given her at the time that oil and milk were soothing, and she sat with it on her lap while, drop by drop only, she let it fall into the mouth, having first oiled the lips; in a short time it ran down the throat. She persevered, and though the child looks frightful, still it is better, and the doctor, who says he did not think of Nurse at the time, calls it a Hospital Case in Kensall. The mother sat with it on her lap to-day, and seems softened. The father, who scarcely believed anything, is going to a tea given by the Missionary, and Nurse says "She could never get in to speak to him before." "I mention the oil and milk," says our Pioneer, "I thought it so good a remedy for bad throats."

Nurse has lost poor Mrs. C-, so long suffering from consumption, and from such a bad husband,-a brute indeed he must have been, for he would insult even children; and she told Nurse a little before her death, she really thought he would be better out of the world, and ought not to live; so bought poison, and put it in his cup, but did not give him enough. A second time she did so, still not enough; and then she prayed the Lord to keep her from it. The Lady visitor could never account for the absence of joy in this poor woman, as she became really a Christian; but ere she passed away she told Nurse she could rejoice in Jesus at last, and had deeply repented

of her sin.

The Pioneer says:-Mrs. F-, a poor, simple young woman, has a husband who drinks. Nurse said when she first saw them they had no bed, until she went to the minister, who gave a tick and two shillings to buy straw to fill it, as she suggested. The home is cleaner to-day. The patient was busy, and had put clean newspaper over the hole in the wall, and Nurse gave her a picture of the Sower to put upon it. When her husband came home he read it, saying, "It looked now like God's House," and somehow he liked that woman (the Nurse) who met him, and told him of his fault plainly, but he took it in good part, and his wife said he had not drank so much since. The poor woman is very badly off for clothes, and needs a warm skirt, or anything else you thought fit to give.

Nurse took

She is very

She has scalded her foot, which is getting better. her a pair of her old stockings to keep it warm. thankful, but has no idea of laying out her money, and as her husband has just got a situation, Nurse is to go with her and try and make her a better manager. To give some idea of the kind of work on this district, Mrs. G- was confined with a dead baby through fighting with her husband a week before. Nurse saw she had nourishment, and continues to call. Kindness shown when they are ill seems really to have influence even on these half-savage people.

A BIBLE-WOMAN'S REPORT OF NURSE WORK IN HER DISTRICT.

"As Nurse and I were going through Black Horse Court, a man came up to us making many bows to Nurse. He said, 'You're the Lady, Ma'am; you are the Medical Lady.' 'No,' said Nurse, I am a nurse.' 'Yes, that's right; you cure all the bad legs. Well, it is not my wife, it's my sister. Nurse asked where she lived. 'Well, I can't just tell you; wait a bit, I'll fetch her.' So he rushes into the Black Horse public-house and brought out two women. One of them limped. Nurse said, 'Are you the woman with the bad leg ?' 'Yes, Ma'am.' 'Where do you live?' 'Next door to the coal-shed.' When Nurse went to dress it she said she hadn't got a home; her husband had sold it up on Sunday, so she took Nurse into a kitchen. This place was so dark, and full of vegetables, she couldn't dress the wounds there, so they had to resort to the back yard. The woman sat down on the door step, and Nurse spread the plaister on the window-sill. Since then she comes to the Mission Room. Her daughter came first to know if that was the house to cure bad legs. Meanwhile Nurse lets her know that she cannot cure legs that are made bad ones by drinking.

A KIND HUSBAND.

'Would I

"Mrs. P――, another Bible subscriber, is always pleased to hear the Bible read. She too had a favour to ask. visit another poor woman; her name is Mrs. A

- She was

very shy when I first went in. She has cancer under her right arm. Her sufferings are very great. Her husband could only work half-time, as he was so kind as to wait upon her. She had good clothing, and a good watch, but as her husband had to lose so much time these things were sold to procure her nourishThey had sold the last of her clothing the very day I I told her of Nurse, and said I would ask her to visit

ment. went. her.

"What would the charge be?' I explained to her about Nurse and myself. She told her husband that a Nurse was going in to dress her wounds. He thought there must be some mistake; it was a thing unheard of that a stranger should go, and then to send such a friend, and just at the right time; and if Nurse did go, why, he could earn more money, and he could keep his best coat at home, for that was destined to be pledged. He didn't much like going to church in his old one, but then he could not see his wife want; so, being a Christian, he prayed God would bless the kind friends who took such an interest in suffering ones, and makes Nurse very tender with his poor wife. I never knew people so grateful as they are. They both say that dear Nurse is such a boon to them they can't find words to express their gratitude. They are very thankful when she reads with them; it seems to comfort them.

THE BIBLE AS AN EDUCATING POWER AMONG THE NATIONS.

We have received from an American friend a pamphlet published at Philadelphia a good many years since, but which contains thoughts which it appears well worth while to condense and compress for our own readers. The author, Dr. John S. Hart, appears also to have written on the "Mistakes of Educated Men."

He commences with observing that it is a tendency of the human mind to grow into the likeness of those with whom we are brought most into contact; and, after alluding to home and family influences, and to those obtained over young men at