,transcriber's note3 ,unusual and inconsistent spelling is as printed4 ,illustration3 ,,new ,,stories ,,by ,a ,l ,o ,e ,illustration3 ,,hold ,,fast4 ,hold fast1 brother1 hold fast6 shouted poor ,sam in mortal terror at my danger4 ,,hold ,,fast4 ,new ,stories ,no4 #e4 ,,by ,a4 ,l4 ,o4 ,e4 ,t4 ,,nelson ,,and ,,sons4 ,,london1 ,,edinburgh1 ,,and ,,new ,,york4 ,illustration3 ,,hold ,,fast4 ,,by ,a ,l ,o ,e ,,hold ,,fast4 ,,by ,a ,l ,o ,e ,,nay1 my child1 ,i've nothing else to hold by1 either in life or death1 but the great truth1 that ,christ died for sinners4 ,it's a joyful thing to hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life which ,god hath given us through our ,lord ,jesus ,christ6 ,the speaker was ,peter ,ross1 a blind and aged man1 with bald head and silvery beard1 who1 clad in a pauper's dress1 had come1 as he was allowed once a fortnight to do1 to visit the house of his son4 ,the listener was a rosy-checked girl1 about nine years of age1 who1 seated at his feet1 and resting her little arms on his knee1 looked up lovingly into his face4 ,illustration3 ,he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise ,ah6 grandfather1 said ,rose1 if you did not hope to go to heaven1 ,i don't know who else could6 ,you are so good1 so patient1 so kind2 you have served ,god all your life long2 you have never been given to drinking and swearing1 like the wicked men in our court1 and ,i really think that you know nearly half of the ,bible by heart6 ,i'm certain that you deserve heaven6 ,rose1 ,rose1 cried the old man earnestly1 my only plea for heaven is this1-- ,i'm a poor sinner1 and nothing at all2 ,but ,jesus ,christ is my all in all6 ,i can't tell how it is1 said ,rose1 looking into his face with a puzzled expression1 the best people seem to think themselves the worst4 ,if ,i was half as good as you are1 grandfather1 ,i'd be quite sure of getting to heaven4 ,by your good works1 my child6 ,yes1 by my good works1 repeated ,rose4 ,i can see why bad people hope to be saved only by the ,lord2 but it must be so very different with pious people like you6 ,rose1 said the blind old man1 do you think that ,i ever pass one day without sin8 ,i'm sure that you do1 replied ,rose1 ,i never knew you do anything wrong4 ,if my salvation were to depend upon my passing one waking hour without sin1 ,rose1 my poor soul would be lost6 ,remember that ,god looks at the heart4 ,his pure eyes read the evil thought2 he knows not only the sinful things that we do1 but the duties which we leave undone4 ,all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags2 that truth is written in the ,bible4 ,but ,i can't see1 persisted the little girl1 that you need to be saved by the ,lord just in the same way as ,luke ,dobson did1 who was run over by a cart when he was drunk4 ,he lay ill for months and months1 and father says that he repented1 and hoped to go to heaven at last1 because the ,lord died for sinners4 ,now there must be a very great difference between his case and yours1 for he was once a very bad man1 and treated his wife very cruelly when he had been at the public4 ,my dear child1 said the aged ,christian1 laying his thin hand on the curly head of ,rose1 ,i have no more power to reach heaven by my works than poor ,luke ,dobson had by his4 ,the blood of ,jesus ,christ which cleanseth from all sin1 is just as much needed to wash away mine as it was to wash away his4 ,he depended on the mercy of the ,saviour1 and ,i have nought else to depend on4 ,i can't understand that1 said ,rose4 ,i'll tell you what happened to me in my youth1 ,rose1 nigh three score years ago1 when ,i was not much older than you are4 ,it seems to me a sort of picture1 as it were1 of the way in which sinners are saved1 and how there's nothing that we have to trust to but ,god's mercy in ,christ4 ,i should like to hear what happened to you1 grandfather2 but ,i want to ask just one question first4 ,if the wicked and the steady all need mercy alike1 where's the use of doing good1 and trying to put away our sins8 ,why should we not live as we choose1 and trust that all will come right in the end8 ,old ,peter looked grave as he replied4 ,because no one who really belongs to the ,saviour can bear to continue in wickedness4 ,the ,lord died not only to save ,his people from hell1 but from sin2 and they hate and dread the one as they hate and dread the other4 ,i'll try and show you what ,i mean by my story4 ,it's nigh sixty years ago1 as ,i said1 when ,i was a young1 strong1 active lad1 that ,i lived for some months by the sea-shore4 ,our dwelling was near the beach1 in a place where the cliffs were rugged and high--so high1 that when we looked front the top of one of them1 men walking on the sands beneath seemed little bigger than crows4 ,i set out one day to gather shells--for that was a wonderful place for shells--and the gentry as came to the village hard by1 used often to buy them from us4 ,i wasn't going alone4 ,i took with me my brother1 poor ,sam4 ,he and ,i went together1 each with a bag to hold the shells1 which was hung by a long string round our necks1 so as to leave our hands quite free4 ,the last thing our mother said to us afore we started was this1 ',mind1 lads1 and don't go too far2 for the tide is on the turn1 and the waves be running high1 and if ye go as far as ,high cliff1 there's danger that ye both may be drowned4' ',no fear1 mother6' said ,i2 'even if the tide should come in upon us1 ,i reckon that ,i'm active and strong enough to climb to the top of the cliff2 but ,i could not say as much for ,sam1 with his weak arms and the swelling on his ankle1 ,i know he has no chance of climbing1 so ,i'll keep out of harm's way for his sake4' ',and for your own1 too1 ,peter1' said ,sam1 as we walked along the beach together2 'you are strong and active1 to be sure1 but you are no more able than ,i be1 to climb up such a mighty high cliff4' ',there may be two opinions as to that1' said ,i1 for ,i had a great notion of my own powers1 and prided myself on being agile as a goat on the rocks4 ,well1 pursued the blind pauper1 we had plenty of luck that day in finding shells on the shore2 both of us filled our bags1 and we were so eager and pleased with our success1 that we wandered on farther and farther1 and scarce gave a thought to the tide1 till we saw the white creamy foam tossed on the sand from the waves that came rolling and tumbling in shore1 and we looked up and saw the great white cliff rising high and bluff before us6 ',i say1 ,sam1' cried ,i1 'just see how the tide's coming in6 ',tis time for us to make the best of our way back to mother6' ,my brother turned white as a sheet4 '',tis too late for that1' said he1 giving a wildered gaze at the waste of heaving billows4 ,for the coast just there made a bend like a crescent1 and though we stood upon dry land still1 the white-topped waves1 both afore and ahind us1 were rolling right up to the cliff6 ,where we had walked dry-shod not an hour before1 there was nothing to be seen but the waters which soon would cover the place where we were6 ',what's to be done6' cried my brother1 as he looked up at the great rocky wall before us4 ',keep a good heart6' said ,i1 ',i'll climb up to the top o' the cliff1 and then ,i'll get help and a rope1 and we'll draw you up to safety4' ,so ,i put down my bag1 and ,i pulled off my jacket1 for it was clear enough that ,i could not climb with them4 ,i knew well1 though ,i didn't choose to say it1 that it would be hard work to get to the top of so high and steep a cliff2 but ,i did not know1 ,i would not believe that it was impossible for me to do so4 ,by dint of straining every muscle1 clasping1 clutching at every jutting crag or little rock-plant that offered a hold1 ,i managed to struggle up a few yards4 ,but the way grew steeper and harder4 ,i could scarcely find place for my foot1 or hold for my hand2 the earth was slipping beneath me6 ,i panted--,i gasped--,i strained--feeling myself falling1 ,i tried1 with a violent effort1 to catch hold of a little stump that secured to be just beyond my reach4 ,i caught it1 but lost my footing--hung for a moment by one hand1 then the stump gave way1 and with a cry of fear ,i fell heavily down the rock6 ,oh6 grandfather1 were you much hurt8 exclaimed ,rose1 who had listened with breathless interest to ,peter's account of his perilous adventure4 ,not badly hurt1 said the blind man2 but enough bruised and shaken to be kept from the folly of trying the climbing again4 ,then you were just in the same case as your brother1 though you had fancied yourself so much better able to get to the top than he4 ,that's it2 that's what ,i wished you to see1 cried ,peter4 ,it is for that ,i tell you the story4 ,we were alike helpless1 my child1 the strong and the weak1 the active and the maimed1 neither could reach the top2 both were just in the same danger of being drowned by the coming tide4 ,and so it is with the matters of the soul4 ,one man seems wiser1 another better1 another bolder than his fellows2 but the wisest1 the boldest1 the best1 can never reach heaven by their efforts4 ,the way is too high1 too steep1 to be climbed6 ,their good deeds break away2 they can't support them2 they can't hold them up from destruction6 ,but how were you saved8 exclaimed ,rose1 more eager to hear the story than to gather its moral4 ,my brother and ,i felt that there was but one thing which we could do--we must loudly call out for assistance4 ,we cried aloud again and again2 we lifted up our voices with all our might1 and as ,god in his mercy ordered1 the sound of our cry was heard from the top of the cliff4 ,and so it is with the sinner1 my child1 when he feels that he is in danger of eternal death1 when he finds that he has no power in himself to help himself1 and that unless ,god come to his aid1 he is lost and ruined for ever4 ,the cry1 ,god be merciful to me a sinner6 is heard even above the heavens1 and mercy comes to the rescue6 ,was a rope let down from the top of the cliff8 asked the impatient ,rose4 ,a rope was let down1 replied ,peter1 and it was long enough1 and strong enough to save us4 ,it was let down not a minute too soon1 for already the sand on which we stood was washed by every advancing wave6 ,sam1 who was terribly frightened1 at once caught hold of the rope1 and clung to it as for his life4 ,nay1 if ,i remember right1 he fastened it round his body4 ,but my courage1 or rather presumption1 had risen once more1 as soon as ,i found that means were provided to draw us up safely beyond the reach of danger4 ,i put on my jacket again1 and passed the string of my bag of shells round my neck4 ',since ,i have not to climb1' cried ,i1 'there's no use in leaving them behind2 ,i've no mind to part with one of 'em6' ,now1 mark my words1 ,rose1 my child1 ,i was thinking in an earthly matter as you thought just now when you said1 'if the wicked and the steady all need mercy alike1 what's the use of doing good1 and putting away our sins8' ,i believed that the rope was enough to save me2 and so in truth it was2 but how could ,i hold fast by the rope1 when ,i carried a weight round my neck6 ,i see--,i see6 exclaimed ,rose2 you must leave your heavy bag behind you2 for though the rope might not break1 you could not keep your hold on it1 while the weight was dragging you down6 ,no more than any man who wilfully keeps one sin1 can continue safely to hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life4 ,he but deceives himself if he ever tries to do so4 ,i soon found out1 as ,i was drawn upwards1 what a fearful mistake ,i had made6 ,i had not risen many feet above the sands when a horrible dread arose in my mind that ,i should never be able to hold on till ,i had reached the top of the cliff6 ,the muscles of my arms ached terribly1 my fingers could scarcely keep their grasp1 and the string round my neck seemed to choke me1 like the gripe of an iron hand6 ',make haste6' ,i gasped out in agony1 scarce able to bring out the words4 ',oh6 be quick--be quick--or ,i shall be forced to let go6' ',hold fast1 brother1 hold fast6' shouted poor ,sam in mortal terror at my danger4 ,the men above were straining every nerve to pull us up before my strength should fail me2 but oh1 how fearfully slowly we seemed to ascend6 ,the strain on my arms now was torture6 ,my brain grew dizzy4 ,i could scarcely breathe4 ,i had but one thought--one maddening wish--to get rid of the fatal bag6 ,it seemed to grow heavier every moment2 it was as if some barbarous foe were pulling me down to destruction6 ,i felt that unless ,i could be relieved of the weight1 ,i must let go1 and be dashed to pieces6 ,i dared not attempt to cling by one weary hand1 so as to use the other to untie the fatal string6 ,i cried in despairing agony to ,god1 for ,i was beyond all help from man4 ,i know not to this day how his mercy wrought1--whether the weight on it snapped the string1 or whether in my struggles the knot was untied2 but never1 till my dying hour shall ,i forget the sense of relief1 when suddenly something gave way1 ,i felt that the weight was gone2 ,i heard a splash in the waters below1 and in another minute was firmly grasped by a hand stretched out from above6 ,oh6 grandfather1 what a mercy6 exclaimed ,rose1 drawing a long breath4 ,her heart had beat fast at the account of such terrible danger4 ,a mercy1 indeed6 said the old man solemnly1 clasping his hands together1 as memory recalled the awful scene4 ,had that bag1 instead of shells1 contained all the wealth of the world1 how thankful should ,i have been to have dropped it into the sea for ever6 ,as that weight was to my body1 so is sin to the soul6 ,in vain do we grasp the hope of salvation1 in vain do we seem to be raised from a state of danger by the mercy of ,christ1 if we resolve not to try to cast from us every sin that our ,god condemns6 ,without holiness no man shall see the ,lord4 ,we must cast away every weight1 and the sin that doth so easily beset us2 not in our own poor strength1 but in the power of prayer1 looking to ,god1 trusting to ,god1 ready to give up everything for ,god6 ,then will ,his love never fail us2 ,he will never leave us to perish4 ,by ,his grace shall we hold fast to the end1 and rejoice for ever in ,his presence6