The Young Lady's Counsellor by Daniel Wise

76 THE YOUNG LADY S COUNSELLOR.
though you are a lonely orphan girl, dependent upon
others for your support. That timely word of affectionate
interest for her lord, dropped by the Syrian
damsel in the ear of her mistress, is an example. It
brought health to a great warrior, — it led him to a
knowledge of the true God ; to the spread of the
Divine name ; and it has lived through centuries,
stimulating untold thousands to speak words of love
and to do deeds of benevolence. Obscurity has no
power, therefore, to neutralize this gift. If you exist,
you must exert power over others, for weal or woe.
At the close of a summer's day, a group of laughmg
girls sat on the steps of a pavilion which stood, a
summer residence, in the midst of beautiful
grounds.
The air rung with their merry voices, and the groves
echoed back their laughter. " What," said one of
them, " should we choose for our lot, if some good
(airy should stand before us, and grant us each a
wish?"
" I would choose to be a countess, with my hawks
and hounds to hunt withal," cried
one, her dark eye
gleaming with the pride which inspired the wish.