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THE YOUNG 
 
 SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 The village of B 
 
 — stands on 
 the bank of a lovely lake. There 
 are a great many beautiful houses 
 on the principal street of this vil- 
 lage, and the gardens slope down 
 the hill to the water's edge. Many 
 
 , 
 
2 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 of these gardens, too, are filled with 
 choice fruit of every kind. 
 
 But there was at one time a set of 
 very bad boys in this village, who 
 strolled about on Sunday; and, 
 when the houses were shut up, and 
 the people that lived there were 
 all at church, these boys would 
 come along the shore of the lake, 
 and go up into the gardens, and 
 carry off all the ripe fruit. 
 
 There is a beautiful cottage on 
 the bank of this lake, in which 
 lived an old lady whose name was 
 Williams. Her daughter lived with 
 her, and in their garden they had 
 very fine peaches and pears and 
 plums. They were very kind peo- 
 ple too, and were always in the 
 habit of sending fruit to sick peo- 
 
 •••. 
 
YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 3 
 
 pie, and to their neighbours who 
 had none. Now, this old lady's 
 two sons came home from college 
 to visit her one Saturday afternoon, 
 and they had not been long in the 
 house before they said, 
 
 " Well, mother, I suppose you 
 have got plenty of nice fruit for us. 
 We have been talking about your 
 fine peaches all the way home." 
 
 But the old lady told them that 
 she might as well have no garden 
 at all, as to live in the way she 
 did. Her fruit was all stolen before 
 it was ripe, "and," said she, "I have 
 not had a ripe peach for myself, or 
 my neighbours, this summer." She 
 told them that it was usually on 
 Sunday afternoon that the trees 
 were stripped : " but," said she, " it 
 
4 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 does no good for either myself or 
 your sister to stay at home, for if we 
 tell them to go away, they take no 
 notice of us, knowing that we have 
 no men about the house. 55 
 
 The old lady's sons were very 
 angry at this, and determined to 
 stay at home the next afternoon, and 
 watch for the boys; and they said, 
 they should take up the very first 
 that they found stealing fruit from 
 the garden, and have them sent to 
 jail as a warning to others. 
 
 There was a boy in this village 
 whose name was Robert Ward. 
 rfis parents were thought to be 
 very good people, and they tried, 
 as they said, to bring up their chil- 
 dren well. They were very proud 
 too, and they would not have had 
 
YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 5 
 
 one of their children do a mean act 
 for the world ; but they were not 
 in all things as careful as they 
 should have been of the conduct 
 of Robert ; for, upon his urging it 
 very much, they allowed him to sit 
 in the gallery at church, on Sun- 
 day ; and, as their pew was directly 
 under the side of the gallery where 
 the boys sat, his parents never 
 could be sure whether he was at 
 church or not, nor how he behaved 
 when he was there. Robert be- 
 came acquainted in some way with 
 a very bad set of boys, and was 
 very fond of their society. 
 
 Now, on the Sunday of which I 
 speak, as he was hanging about the 
 church door, and waiting till the 
 last minute, before he would go Li, 
 
6 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 two or three of these bad boys came 
 along, and said to him, 
 
 " Bob, what a fool you are, to go 
 and sit in church this warm after- 
 noon. Come, go with us, and take 
 a pleasant walk on the bank of the 
 lake. 55 
 
 Robert hesitated a moment. He 
 wanted very much to go with the 
 boys, but he knew his father would 
 be very angry if he should hear 
 that his son had been seen walking 
 with such boys, especially on Sun- 
 day afternoon ; but he thought, it 
 would never be found out. And 
 then he was afraid the boys would 
 laugh at him if he went to church, 
 instead of going with them; so he 
 joined them, and they walked 
 
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 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 7 
 
 along together by the shore of the 
 lake. 
 
 At last, they sat down under z 
 tree at the foot of Mrs. Williams* 
 garden to rest, and they heard the 
 bells of the churches tolling, and 
 then the village was all quiet. 
 
 The fact was, these other boys 
 came on purpose to take the 
 peaches and pears from this gar- 
 den ; but they did not venture to 
 tell Eobert so at first, for fear he 
 would not join them ; but they 
 knew, that if they could once get 
 him away from church, and induce 
 him to do what he knew to be 
 wrong, they could easily lead him 
 on to do whatever else they 
 wished. 
 
 So, after a little while, one of 
 
8 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 them said, "Bob, do you know 
 what nice peaches and pears there 
 are up in this garden ?" 
 
 " Yes," said Robert, " I krow 
 Mrs. Williams has very fine fruit. 
 She has often sent some of it to my 
 
 mother." 
 
 " Well," said one of the boys, 
 "the old lady and her daughter 
 are at church; what is there to 
 hinder us from going up into the 
 garden, and picking up a few of 
 those same fine peaches ?" 
 
 " Why," said Robert, " do you 
 
 steal fruit ?" 
 
 " Who calls it stealing ?" said 
 one of the boys. " I dare say they 
 have plenty of fruit for themselves, 
 and what objection can they have 
 to our taking a little of it ? I can 
 
YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 9 
 
 tell you, I have picked up peaches 
 many a time in a garden, and yet I 
 do not call myself a thief, by any 
 means. 55 
 
 Robert knew that he was a thief, 
 whatever he might call himself, and 
 he knew that it was very wicked to 
 go up and take the peaches ; but 
 he had not the courage to say so. 
 So, when the other boys started to 
 go up the hill, he went along with 
 them. 
 
 The old lady's two sons, James 
 and Henry Williams, were lying 
 behind some bushes, and heard the 
 conversation of these boys. They 
 waited quietly till they came up, 
 and finding no fruit on the ground, 
 they began to shake the trees. As 
 soon as they began to pick up the 
 
10 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 peaches, the young men sprang out 
 upon them. The boys scampered 
 off down the hill, as fast as they 
 could go, and the young men after 
 them. They did not mean to arrest 
 them on Sunday, but wanted to see 
 their faces, that they might know 
 them, and bring them up for trial 
 the next day. They succeeded in 
 stopping them all, till they could 
 see their faces plainly, but held 
 one little boy fast. The little fel- 
 low was almost frightened to death, 
 and trembled and turned pale. 
 James Williams said to him, 
 
 " Do you want to go into court, 
 sir, and be tried, and sent to jail?" 
 
 " Oh sir," said the little boy, 
 " please let me go ; I shall lose my 
 good place, and father will beat me 
 
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 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 11 
 
 so. Please let me go, and I never 
 will come into this part of the village 
 again. 5 ' 
 
 " Well," said James, " we will 
 let you off if you will tell us the 
 names of those three large boys 
 who were stealing peaches in the 
 garden." 
 
 " One of them is named Dick 
 Handy. He works in Mr. Frank- 
 lin's shoe-shop." 
 
 " And the next?" 
 
 " His name is Robert Ward ; 
 he lives with his father, and goes to 
 the Academy." 
 
 " And the third?" 
 
 " Oh, sir, I don't like to tell." 
 
 « Very well," said the young 
 men, " take your choice ; tell us, or 
 tell the court to-morrow." 
 
12 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 The little boy looked down and 
 hesitated, and then bursting into 
 tears he said, " Oh, sir, that was my 
 brother, but I did not want to tell 
 of him. 5 ' 
 
 " What is his name, and where 
 does he live ?" 
 
 " Charles Curtis is his name, 
 and he works in Mr. Brown's car- 
 penter shop. 55 
 
 They then let the little boy go, 
 and he went home, crying all the 
 way. The next morning the young 
 men took out a warrant, and sent a 
 constable after these boys. They 
 were soon found, and brought into 
 court, tried, and sent to the county 
 jail for thirty days. And how do 
 you think Robert felt on his way to 
 jail, for stealing on the Sabbath-day? 
 
YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 13 
 
 He thought of the disgrace he had 
 brought upon his parents and 
 friends. He thought that no decent 
 boys would ever associate with him 
 again. He thought he never 
 should dare to go back to school, 
 or show his face among his old 
 companions. 
 
 Poor Robert had to stay for thirty 
 days in jail ; and his companions 
 all this time were the vilest of boys 
 and men. He heard every thing 
 good sneered at, and ridiculed; 
 while they boasted of their exploits 
 in cheating and stealing, and all 
 other crimes. And do you think he 
 came out no worse than he was 
 when he went in ? 
 
 Robert's time is but just out; so 
 that T cannot tell you what the effect 
 
14 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 of this punishment will be. It may 
 be that it will keep him from ever 
 committing a like fault again ; but 
 is it not to be feared, that, finding 
 himself disgraced in the eyes of the 
 good and decent, he may begin to 
 practise those crimes that he heard 
 of among his vile companions in 
 the jail, and may end his days in a 
 prison ? 
 
 Children, beware of having any 
 thing to do with bad boys ; for you 
 cannot tell where you may be led, 
 if you once join them. Robert's sin 
 began by his acquaintance w r ith 
 wicked boys. This led him to 
 leave the house of God and go off 
 for amusement on Sunday. And 
 now I want you to try and think 
 how many of the commandments of 
 
YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 15 
 
 God Robert broke, that afternoon. 
 I can think of at least four. He 
 disobeyed his parents. It was on 
 the Sabbath. He wished for what 
 did not belong to him, and at last, 
 he took it. Here are the fourth, 
 fifth, eighth, and tenth command- 
 ments broken ; his parents and fa- 
 mily brought to sorrow and dis- 
 grace ; his own soul loaded with 
 sin, and he sent to jail ; all because 
 he had not courage enough to re- 
 fuse to go with these wicked boys. 
 You see how sin brings misery upon 
 us even in this life. But oh, when 
 we think of that prison of despair 
 to which those are sent who die in 
 their sins, and from which there is 
 no escape! who will not be per- 
 suaded to shun wicked company 
 
/ 
 
 J 
 
 16 YOUNG SABBATH-BREAKERS. 
 
 as they would the plague? Never, 
 never, let them persuade you to 
 leave your Sunday-school or church ; 
 for depend upon it, if they can in- 
 duce you to commit one sin, they 
 will soon lead you into others. 
 Learn these words of Solomon, the 
 wisest of men, and never forget 
 them : " My son, if sinners entice 
 thee, consent thou not. Walk not 
 in the way with them ; refrain thy 
 foot from their path. Enter not 
 into the path of the wicked, and go 
 not in the way of evil men. Avoid 
 it — pass not by it — turn from it,— 
 and pass away." 
 
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