kept out, that was quite evident, and at length Thomas sat down again, with the air of an ill-used man, resigned to his fate.

He had slept late, as it was a holiday, and had come downstairs to find his breakfast comfortably laid in a tidy front kitchen, whilst through the half-closed door that led into a little scullery behind came sounds of his wife busily at work, and singing pleasantly as she bustled about. Outside the house the children were making great merriment amongst the snow, and their voices were as full of glee as the bells themselves. How could any one be so happy, Thomas wondered, in a world where everything was going wrong? He had begun lately to read "The Universal Reformer," and had got amongst a set of companions whose sole mission in life seemed to be to find out abuses, and make themselves, and all they came in contact with, as miserable as possible about them; and the effect of such influences was to change Thomas Crane from a contented, cheerful workman into a morose fault-finder; for if any one chooses to look at everything through a medium of smoked glass, he must not expect very bright and enlivening views.

"A happy new year to you, Tom!" said a bright voice; and Isaac Clarkson, his wife's father, came into the room, letting in with him through the opened door a current of air musical with merry voices and pealing bells.

"The same to you, I suppose," said Thomas, in a tone about as cheerful as if he had been exchanging greetings at a funeral.

"But what's the matter, lad? What are you doing inside, a grand morning like this? You should trot yourself out for a mile or two, and take the bairns with you; it is a pity not to make the most of a holiday now you have to work nine hours every day."

"And so it is a pity, so few as we get hold of," said Tom, gloomily, and taking no notice of the pleasant raillery in Isaac's words; "it's fairly more than I can stand to sit here and think how I have to work and slave, almost every day

of my life, for them tyrants; and then, when they can't help themselves, they give us a day like this, just as you would throw a bone to a dog; and we must make the most of it indeed, forsooth, because it will be long enough before we can get another. Why should such as us work all our lives, and those big folks idle away their time to fatten on our labours? Look where you will there is oppression and injustice, and I am about tired of it."

"And how would you arrange things if you had the management, Tom ?" asked Isaac, quietly.

Tom looked a little disconcerted at being required, on so short notice, to put his theories of reform into a brief statement, and what he lacked in clearness he made up in warmth. "Why," he said, "I would soon put things rather more on a level; I would not let some roll in their carriages whilst I, who reckon myself as good as them any day, have to tramp it on foot. I would cut down the Queen's allowance, too, and not have poor folks taxed to keep up grand establishments and pampered menials that do nobody any good; and then I'd take the great estates from the aristocracy, who have got so much more than their share, and divide them amongst those who deserved it better."

Isaac smiled. "You would have the hardest day's work you ever did in your life, Tom, if you tried to parcel them out so as to give general satisfaction, and I should pity you, or any other reformer who attempted it. You must remember, Tom, that though there are many in the world who are better off-as you call it-than yourself, there are still more who are worse; and whilst you tried to bring the higher classes down to your level, you would be equally bound, on your own principle, to raise the lower classes up to it; and a difficult matter you would find it! Look at the thousands, in London alone, who are complete outcasts of society the drunkards and thieves and city arabs-who would soon run riot over all your schemes of equality."

"I would give them over to the police," said Tom, stoutly. "But are you sure you would have any police, Tom ?"

asked his father-in-law.

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"When you are all equal, perhaps no one would be anxious for the job, for it isn't one of the pleasantest, any way; and then where would be your protection for life and limb, and for the share of common property that fell to you? I often think," the old man continued, that the best way of bringing those so-called reformers to their senses would be to let them have their own way for a fortnight; I fancy they would be only too thankful to come back to the present state of things as by law established. Perhaps I am in danger of going to the other extreme, and being too much in love with royalty, and feeling that its cost to the nation is a small price to pay for the honour and stability of our national institutions; but I always feel as if we could not be loyal to the King of kings above without getting broken in a bit to honour our earthly sovereign, especially when it's such a kind and gracious one as Queen Victoria, God bless her! Dear me! I could not find in my heart to grudge her a shilling of her allowance, poor thing, with all those fine bairns to provide for, and nobody but herself to look after them."

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"I haven't a word to say against the Queen," replied Thomas, who had not, I am thankful to say, learned the lesson of disloyalty at all thoroughly. 'But now, what have you to say to all the men with titles to their names, and all their landed property that they have never worked for? What more right have they to it than such as ourselves?"

"Well," said Isaac, "I cannot give you the history of all the estates in the country; but I suppose, for the most part, they have come into the hands of the families that hold them either by grant or by purchase. You know well enough, Tom, that if everybody could be made equal to-day by a sort of social straightedge, there is such a difference in people, some saving and some wasting, and some always pushing up and some always grovelling down, that by this time next week there would be ever so much difference again. The lazy ones would have given some of their property to others to do their work for them; the drunkard's money

would have burned a hole in his pocket and found its way

gambler would, perhaps, have Now fancy that going on for and it is easy enough to see

to the publican's till; and the staked all he had, and lost it. a year, and then for centuries, how property changes hands. But for myself I cannot see how its rights should be weakened by age. There's that good chest of drawers you bought for Sarah when your wages were raised, and the beautiful watch you are so proud of, and well you may be, because it was given to you as a testimonial from the master and men when you left Kermister and came here; I hope your children will keep them in the family for generations to come; and it would not be fair, to my thinking, if, long after your head is laid low, those heirlooms were to be taken from your descendants by a set of people who did not happen to have either watch or chest of drawers, and thought they had as much right to these as any one else had."

"But about the titles," said Tom, glad to create a diversion; "what have you to say about them? You must own they are just a bit of empty pride."

"No, no, my lad, I don't agree with thee there; there's nought wrong in titles, and I do not think any of us object to any we can get. You don't like a letter any the worse when it is directed Mr. Thomas Crane, instead of plain Thomas; and if your Willy, who has been so sharp at school, and is getting on now so wonderful in the works, was to struggle up, as many a man from the ranks has done before him, I don't think his own father would complain much if he became Sir William Crane! And more than that," the old man went on, an expression of deep feeling taking the place of the merry twinkle that had been dancing in his eyes, "there is one title that puts me in love with all the rest, and that is the blessed title of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is many years since I began to think more of it than any other name in the world, and it was when I felt what a bad thing sin was, and came to Him with my heart all stained and degraded by it, and He washed it whiter than

snow, and has been my Saviour and Friend ever since. It isn't often I can say as much as that about myself," continued Isaac, wiping away the grateful tears from his eyes ; "but New Year's Day always brings it to my mind, because it was on that day, long years since, that I looked my bad ways full in the face, and was so ashamed of them that I determined, by God's grace, that with the new year I would turn over a new leaf. And if you will listen to a man who has seen more of the world than thou hast, Tom, and has thought and read a decent bit in his time about all these subjects, this is the advice I would give thee. There's a little kingdom that God puts every man to rule in, and that is his own heart and his home; and to those who are faithful in this earthly kingdom He promises a heavenly one, and a crown of glory that fadeth not away. Now, Tom, as far as my experience goes, I have found that any man who sets himself to attend to the affairs of this kingdom generally has quite plenty to do; and in doing it, by the Holy Spirit's help, he grows happier and wiser, and more meet for the inheritance of the saints in light; whilst those who are so anxious to be reformed on a large scale too often neglect the abuses that lie nearest home, and become unhappy, dissatisfied, and useless men into the bargain."

This was tolerably plain speaking for Thomas Crane, who knew well enough that since he had fixed his attention on national grievances, and given his evenings to meetings for discussion and agitation, his own character and his own family had been little thought of, and the reins of household government bid fair to slip through his fingers altogether. He knew, too, that it was as Isaac said, that he was forming the habit of discontent and complaining, and that all the good gifts that crowded his path were to him as if they had not been. Happily for him, his spirit was candid and teachable, and moreover his father-in-law, in his strong Christian consistency, was a man whom he so thoroughly esteemed, that he could tolerate from him the most unpalatable truth.