Certainly the boys had never talked so much about any prayer-meeting in their lives as they did about this one. So that was the way it commenced; such a little fire kindled it. Tip didn't know it; he never found it out; probably he never will, until he takes his crown in heaven. From the humble little prayer which Tip had offered sprang the first buddings of the great revival which God sent down to them.
"Say," said Howard Minturn to Ellis on the next Thursday evening, "let's go over to prayer-meeting to-night. I really am dreadfully anxious to hear Tip speak."
"No," answered Ellis, speaking hastily, more hastily than he often did to Howard. "I'm sure I don't care in the least to hear him, and I have enough to do without going there."
Howard was determined to go, and to find company.
"Will, let's go to meeting to-night," he said, the next time he came across Will Bailey.
Will looked at him in amazement. "What for?"
"To hear Tip."
"Oh!" said Will; "good! I'll go. Let's get a lot of the boys and go over; just to encourage him, you know."
And they went. Tip and Kitty were there again; and again, with Tip, the struggle had to be gone through; his coward spirit whispered to him that the boys would only make fun of him if he said a word, and it would do more harm than good. His conscience answered, "Whosoever will deny Me on earth, him will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven." The solemn words conquered, and again Tip knelt down and prayed.
"My!" said Mr. Minturn, talking with his wife after they reached home; "when I thought of the bringing up which that boy has had,—no bringing up about it, he has just come up, the easiest way he could,—but when I heard him pray to-night, and then thought of our boy, who has been prayed for and watched over every day since he was born, I declare I felt as though I would give all I'm worth to have Howard stand where Tip Lewis does now."