Never Tire of Doing Good

Extract

A peasant proprietor had two sons. The elder was impressed for military service and sent to America, where he had to remain for many years. On his return he found his father dead and his brother rich in the possession of all the family property. He went, therefore, to his brother’s house, and to his question, ‘Don’t you know me?’ he received for reply only a surly ‘No.’ When he humbly made himself known, his brother told him to go to the granary, and there in the loft he would find an old chest, which was all his father had left him in his will; and with that the uncouth brother turned on his heel and left him without further welcome.

Our traveller, therefore, went up to the loft and found there only an old worm-eaten chest. ‘What in the world,’ said he to himself, ‘can I do with this rotten old box? However, blessed be the will of God ! it will perhaps do to make a fire with,’ for it was winter and extremely cold. He, therefore, put it on his back and, returning to his lodgings, borrowed an axe, and, as he was chopping it up, he came on a piece of paper which was behind a secret sliding panel at the bottom. He took it up and, reading it, found it to be a receipt for a large sum of money deposited on loan by his father. On presentation the sum was given up to him, so that now he was rich.