“I can easily explain this to your satisfaction,” answered the young man, “if you will give me leave;” and they desiring him to proceed, he spoke as follows:  “I have observed that the greatest blessings in life are often looked upon as the greatest distresses, and are, in fact, made such by means of imprudent conduct.  My father and mother died a few years ago, and left a large family.  My father was a waterman, and I was his assistant in the management of a ferry-boat, by which he supported his family.  On his death, it was necessary, in order to pay his just debts, to sell our boat.  I parted from it, even with tears; but the distress that I felt spurred me on to industry, for I said, ‘I will use every kind of diligence to purchase my boat back again.’  I went to the person who had bought it, and told him my design; he had given five guineas for it, but told me, as I was once the owner, that I should have it whenever I could raise five pounds.  ’Shall the boat be mine again?’ said I; and my heart bounded at the thought.

“I was at this time married to a good young woman, and we lived at a neighboring cottage; she was young, healthy, and industrious, and so was I, and we loved one another.  What might we not undertake?  My father used to say to me, ’Always do what is right; labor diligently, and spend your money carefully, and God will bless your store.’  We treasured up these rules, and determined to try the truth of them.

“My wife had long chiefly supported two aged parents:  I loved them as my own; and the desire of contributing to their support was an additional spur to my endeavors to repurchase the boat.  I entered myself as a day-laborer in the garden of our squire; and my wife was called occasionally to perform some services at the house, and employed herself in needle-work, spinning, or knitting at home.  Not a moment in the day was suffered to pass unemployed.  We spared for ourselves, and furnished all the comforts we could to the poor about us; and every week we dropped a little overplus into a fairing-box, to buy the boat.  If any accident of charity brought us an additional shilling, we did not enlarge our expense, but kept it for the boat.  The more care we took, the more comfortable we felt, for we were the nearer the possession of our little boat.  Our labor was lightened by looking forward to the attainment of our wishes.

“Our family indeed increased, but with it our friends increased also; for the cleanliness and frugality which furnished our cottage, and the content and cheerfulness that appeared in it, drew the notice of our rich neighbors—­of my master and mistress particularly, whose rule was to assist the industrious, but not to encourage the idle.  They did not approve of giving money to the poor, but in cold winters, or dear times, allowed us to buy things at a cheaper rate; this was money to us, for when we counted our little cash for the week’s marketing, all that was saved to