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LESSON 13
1. In the city of Bath, not many years since, lived a barber who made a practice of following his ordinary occupation on the Lord’s day. As he was on the way to his morning’s employment, he happened to look into some place of worship just as the minister was giving out his text—“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” He listened long enough to be convinced that he was constantly breaking the laws of God and man by shaving and dressing his customers on the Lord’s day. He became uneasy, and went with a heavy heart to his Sabbath task.
2. At length he took courage, and opened his mind to his minister, who advised him to give up Sabbath work, and worship God. He replied that beggary would be the consequence. He had a flourishing trade, but it would almost all be lost. At length, after many a sleepless night spent in weeping and praying, he was determined to cast all his care upon God, as the more he reflected, the more his duty became apparen
.
3. He discontinued his Sabbath work, went constantly and early to the public services of religion, and soon enjoyed that satisfaction of mind which is one of the rewards of doing our duty, and that peace which the world can neither give nor take away. The consequences he foresaw actually followed. His genteel
customers left him, and he was nicknamed “Puritan” or “Methodist.” He was obliged to give up his fashionable shop, and, in the course of years, became so reduced
as to take a cellar under the old market house and shave the poorer people.
4. One Saturday evening, between light and dark, a stranger from one of the coaches, asking for a barber, was directed by the hostler to the cellar opposite. Coming in hastily, he requested to be shaved quickly, while they changed horses, as he did not like to violate
the Sabbath.This was touching the barber on a tender chord. He burst into tears; asked the stranger to lend him a half-penny to buy a candle, as it was not light enough to shave him with safety. He did so, revolving in his mind the extreme poverty to which the poor man must be reduced.
5. When shaved, he said, “There must be something extraordinary in your history, which I have not now time to hear. Here is half a crown for you. When I return, I will call and investigate
your case. What is your name?” “William Reed,” said the astonished barber. “William Reed?” echoed the stranger: “William Reed? by your dialect
you are from the West.” “Yes, sir, from Kingston, near Taunton.” “William Reed from Kingston, near Taunton? What was your father’s name?” “Thomas.” “Had he any brother?” “Yes, sir, one, after whom I was named; but he went to the Indies, and, as we never heard from him, we supposed him to be dead.”
6. “Come along, follow me,” said the stranger, “I am going to see a person who says his name is William Reed, of Kingston, near Taunton. Come and confront
him. If you prove to be indeed he who you say you are, I have glorious news for you. Your uncle is dead, and has left an immense fortune, which I will put you in possession of when all legal doubts are removed.”
7. They went by the coach; saw the pretended William Reed, and proved him to be an impostor. The stranger, who was a pious attorney
, was soon legally satisfied of the barber’s identity
, and told him that he had advertised him in vain. Providence had now thrown him in his way in a most extraordinary manner, and he had great pleasure in transferring
a great many thousand pounds to a worthy man, the rightful heir of the property. Thus was man’s extremity
God’s opportunity
. Had the poor barber possessed one half-penny, or even had credit for a candle, he might have remained unknown for years; but he trusted God, who never said, “Seek ye my face,” in vain.
【中文阅读】
1 ．前些年，巴斯城内有位理发匠，他一直保留星期日不休息、照常理发的习惯。一天，在他早晨去理发店的路上，他碰巧看见教徒做礼拜的一处地方，有位牧师正在分发布道经文，“别忘记安息日，请维护它的神圣”。他听了很久，终于相信自己所作所为确实违背了上帝与人类的法则，安息日里，他竟然还在为顾客打理胡须、修剪头发。想到这里，他心里变得纠结不安，反复琢磨安息日的道理。
2 ．他终于鼓起勇气，向牧师袒露了他的忧虑。牧师建议他安息日向上帝祈祷，不要干活。他回答，如果不做生意的话，他就得到处去乞讨。他生意一向兴隆，周日不做活，他的生意可能会垮掉。经过不少辗转反侧的难眠之夜，不停地哭泣祷告，他最终决定全身心地信奉上帝，愈是反省，他愈感到他的职责至关重要。
3 ．从此，每逢安息日，他不再干活，总是早起去参加公共宗教礼拜，不久，他便感到心灵的满足，这种满足来自履行宗教职责的馈赠，还有那份尘世既不能给予他、亦不能从其内心取走的安宁。他的预言很快得到应验，那些有教养的顾客不再光临他的理发店，他甚至还被封为“清教徒”、“卫道士”的绰号，被迫卖掉他那间时尚理发屋。随后岁月里，他生活日渐窘困，不得不租住在一家破旧市场地下室里，为穷人做点生意谋生。
4 ．一个周六的晚上，天快擦黑了。一位从马车上下来的陌生人想要理发，原来，带客人来的人就是他理发店对面的马夫。匆忙走进小店后，客人一边将马缰递给马夫，一边催促理发匠尽快给他理发，他可不想破了安息日规矩。这句话，触动了理发匠心思，他不禁涕泗横流。原来屋里太黑，他唯恐做起活来不稳当，只有开口向客人先支借半便士买根蜡烛，客人照他的吩咐做了。理发匠贫困潦倒如此，让来客思忖良久。
5 ．“你的经历肯定与众不同，”理发完毕后，客人说道：“我现在没有时间，先付你两个半便士，等会回来，我再找你好好聊聊。你叫什么名字？”“威廉 · 瑞德。”理发师告诉陌生人，心里有点吃惊。“威廉 · 瑞德？” 陌生人问道，“你的方言听起来，好像西边来的？“不错，先生，我老家在陶顿旁边金斯敦。”“来自陶顿旁边金斯敦的威廉 · 瑞德，你父亲叫什么？”“托马斯。”“他有兄弟吗？”“有，先生，他有一个兄弟，在我洗礼后，他便去了西印度群岛，此后就再也没有音讯了，我们觉得他已经不在人世了。”
6 ．“哎，先听我说，”陌生人说，“我正在找从金斯敦来的一个叫威廉 · 瑞德的人，不错，金斯敦确实离陶顿很近。倘若你能证实你所言不虚，我可有天大好事要告诉你。你的叔叔去世了，他留下一笔巨额遗产，你可以拥有这笔财产，当然你必须通过所有相关的法律认证。”
7 ．两人坐马车赶回威廉 · 瑞德的家乡，见到了那个冒牌的威廉 · 瑞德，最后查明他是个骗子。原来，那位陌生人是位敬业的律师，他很快便获得了理发匠威廉 · 瑞德的合法身份证明，他还告诉理发匠自己曾登过广告寻找，最终一无所获。如今天遂人意，能将这份巨额财产交给值得拥有的人，一份财产的合法继承人，他感到非常高兴，这真是踏破铁鞋无觅处的天赐良机。倘若，当时那位贫困潦倒的理发匠手里还有半便士，如果不是一根蜡烛的诚信，或许接下来很多年，理发匠仍然默默无闻。他，相信上帝，而上帝将证明，“信任，永远不会徒劳。”
