"Oh! had not God heard his prayer and speedily answered it. Mercy! how
freely, how bountifully, it was bestowed on him.
"At last the words burst from his lips: 'Oh, God! I thank Thee.'
"Early the following morn the pocketbook was restored; everything save
the miniature. This he kept, yet all the while feeling keenly that he
was guilty of a theft. Yet in this he did not feel that God was
offended. And often as he gazed at his little 'guardian angel,' as he
called her, he would say, smilingly:
"She does not look reproachfully or seem to say, 'Thou shalt not steal
me.'
"His mind was determined on the purpose to work every spare moment,
night and day, denying himself in every way, until he had secured
money sufficient to get the picture copied, and then return the
original.
"Months passed on, prosperity smiled on him. His best friend, the
doctor, had full confidence in him. His teachers encouraged and
approved. All was well.
"His miserable lodgings were before long resigned for a comfortable
room in the happy home of Dr. Perry, who insisted on this arrangement,
saying:
"'George, your services fully repay me. My little son loves you
dearly, and has wonderfully improved in his studies, since he has been
under your charge.
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