As he opened it, several verses on the page before him gleamed into light.  In mute wonder he read:—­

“And I will say to my soul, ’Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.’

“But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee:  then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided?’

“So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Gabriel scarcely dared to lift his eyes toward his father, much less would he have offered to read to him again the flaming words.

All through the supper time he thought of them and kept very still, for the others were unusually talkative, his father seeming in such excellent spirits that Gabriel knew the figures on his desk had brought him satisfaction.

“But if he did not oppress Mother Lemon,” thought the boy, “he would be richer toward God.”

When the meal was over, Gabriel took a piece of paper and went quietly to the back of the house where, in a box, was the refuse of the day’s cooking.  He found some bones and other scraps, and, running across the fields to Mother Lemon’s, tiptoed to the low shed which held Topaz, and, finding a wide crack, pushed the bones and scraps within.

Then he fled home and to bed, for he had always found that the earlier he closed his eyes, the shorter was the night.

This time, however, when his sleepy lids opened, it was not to the light of day.  A candle flame wavered above him and showed the face of his stepmother, bending down.  “Gabriel, Gabriel,” she whispered; then, as he would have replied, she hushed him with her finger on her lips.  “I felt that I must warn you that your father is sorely vexed by the reproof you gave him to-day.  He will send you out into the world, and I cannot prevent it; but in all that lies in my poor power, I will be your friend forever, Gabriel, for you are a good boy.  Good-night, I must not stay longer,” and a tear fell on the boy’s cheek as she kissed him lightly, and then, with a breath, extinguished the candle and hastened noiselessly away.

Gabriel lay still, thinking busily for a while; but he was a fearless, innocent boy, and this threatened change in his fortunes could not keep him awake long.  He soon fell asleep and slept soundly until the dawn.

Jumping out of bed then, he washed and dressed and went downstairs where his father awaited him.

“Gabriel,” he said, “you do not grow brighter by remaining at home.  I wish you to go out into the world and shift for yourself.  When your fortune is made, you may return.  As you go, however, I am willing to give you a small sum of money to use until you can obtain work.”

“I will obey you, father,” returned the boy, “but as a last favor, I ask that, in place of the money, you give me the cottage where Mother Lemon lives.”