THE PEACHES

A FARMER brought with him from the city five peaches,
the finest he could meet with. It was the first time
that his children had ever seen this sort of fruit; and
they admired greatly their red cheeks and soft down.
The father gave one to each of his four boys, and the
fifth to their mother.

At night, when the children were about to retire to
their chamber, the father said, "Tell me: how did you
like the pretty fruit?"

"Very much indeed, father," replied the eldest; "it
was so juicy and of such a fine flavour. I have taken
care of the stone, which I shall plant that I may raise
a tree from it."

"Well done!" said the father, "thou hast shown
forethought and prudence."

"I ate mine at once," cried the youngest, "and
threw away the stone, and mother gave me half of
hers. Oh, it tasted so sweet; it melted in my mouth!"

"Well," said the father; "thou has acted, if not

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very prudently, at least naturally, and as a child might
be expected to do."

The second son then began: "I picked up the stone
which Alfred threw away, and broke it. There was a
kernel in it which tasted as sweet as a nut. But I sold
my peach and got so much for it, that when I go to
town, I can buy half a dozen with the money."

The father shook his head, and said, "This is prudent,
indeed, but not childlike or natural. Heaven forbid
that thou shouldst grow up a miser!"

"And thou, Edmund ?" asked the father.
Edmund modestly replied, "I carried my peach to
poor George, our neighbor's son who is ill of a fever.
He would not take it, so I laid it on his bed and came
away"

"Well," said the father, "which of you has made
the best use of his peach ?"

"Brother Edmund!" cried the other three. Edmund
was silent, and his mother tenderly kissed him with
tears in her eyes.

-- Krummacher's Parables