You have grown thinner, Malcolm." "Oh, I was always one of the lean kine," he returned lightly; but she seemed almost affronted at the little joke.
"Does that mean you do not intend to tell me your trouble ?" and here her eyes grew very wistful.

"You are my only son, Malcolm;" she never called him her only child, her adopted daughter was too dear to her.
"Is there anything that I can do to help you ?" "Nothing--nothing," and he kissed her hand gratefully, for her motherly tone touched his heart.

"Mother dear, forgive me if I cannot speak to you or Anna about this." "Not even to poor little Anna ?" "No, not even to her.

Mother, please do not misunderstand me, or think me ungrateful, but there are some things of which a man does not find it easy to speak." Then Mrs.Herrick said no more; she must bide her time, and until then she could only pray for him.
And up in her pretty room Anna was praying her guileless, innocent prayers, and watering every petition with her tears.
"How could she--how could she ?" she cried more than once; "how could any woman refuse my dear Malcolm ?" Can such prayers help?
Yea--a thousand times yea! Only He who reads human hearts knows the value of such prayers! When the son--the brother--the lover--has gone into the battle of life, when his strength is failing and the Philistines are upon him, it may be that the pure petition of some loving heart may be as an invisible shield to withstand the darts of the evil one, or haply that "arrow drawn at a venture" which else had pierced between the joints of his armour.

"I said little, but I prayed much for you, my son," Mrs.Herrick once said to Malcolm in after-years when they understood each other better, and he knew that she spoke the truth..