The festival was closed by the singing of the hymn:—
"Praise to God, immortal praise,
For the love that crowns our days,"
as the children marched back to the schoolroom.[4]
The whole performance was considered a great success. The superintendent and his young assistants received many congratulations, and the parents carried their little ones home well satisfied with their share in the exercises.
——- [Footnote 4: The above programme was actually carried out in a country school of the writer's acquaintance, and is given in full for the benefit of others who may be inclined to try a similar festival. It may bevaried and prolonged by the introduction of poetical passages concerning autumn, etc.]
CHAPTER XXIII.
SERVICE.
The first meeting of the "Do Good Society" had proved so successful that another was appointed for next week, at the request of the little members. Mr. Morven came in and opened the meeting with a prayer this time, after which he retired while the children were singing their first hymn. Then the president read and explained the pledge again, and asked all who had not done so already to sign it, after which she again produced the box with a slit in the cover, into which she asked every one to drop the papers on which they had written whatever they would like to have read to the society.
There was a little tittering, a little rustling, some blushing, and considerable hesitation, after which a good many of the girls and some of the boys came up in a confused mass, and dropped some folded papers into the box.
"Now," said Miss Etta, when all was quiet again, "I call upon the secretary to read what is on these papers without the names,—for that is the Bible way of not letting our right hand know what the left does,—and if any of our little members, who don't know how to write, have anything to report to the society, they may get some of the bigger ones to write it down for them. Here are some slips of paper and pencils I have provided on purpose."