The Poorhouse Waif and His Divine Teacher

The Poorhouse Waif and His
Divine Teacher

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Teacher
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Title: The Poorhouse Waif and His Divine Teacher
Author: Isabel C. Byrum
Release Date: December, 2004 [EBook #7036] [Yes, we are more than
one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on February 26,
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THE POORHOUSE WAIF
and
HIS DIVINE TEACHER
A True Story
BY ISABEL C. BYRUM

CONTENTS
Preface
I The Deserted Child
II Life in the Almshouse
III From Bad to Worse
IV Finding Friends
V Suffering for the Faults of Others
VI The Strange Visitor
VII Mysteries Unfolding
VIII Discovers the Existence of God
IX In the Home of a Witch
X A Contrast
XI Searching for Light
XII A Revelation on Eternity
XIII Puzzled about Prayer
XIV A Prayer-Meeting
XV A Star of Hope
XVI A Revelation on Tobacco

XVII The Camp-Meeting
XVIII Discovers the Existence of God's Word
XIX Devotion and Works
XX Called to Service
XXI Discovers God's Church
XXII Visits the Poorhouse

CHAPTER I
THE DESERTED CHILD
In this wide world the fondest and the best Are the most tried, most
troubled, and distressed.
--Crabbe.
"Why, woman, you are not thinking of leaving that child in this place
for us to look after, I hope! Our hands are more than full already. You
say that the child is scarcely a month old. How do you suppose that we
could give it a mother's care? More than this, the board that governs the
affairs of this institution has given us orders to accept no children under
seven months of age whose mothers are not with them. So if we should
take the child, as you say we must, you would be obliged to remain for
that length of time, at least, to help us care for it."
It was August Engler, steward of the county poorhouse in one of the
eastern counties of Pennsylvania during the sixties, that spoke these
words, and the circumstance that called forth the language was the
appearance and request of Mrs. Fischer, a well-dressed young widow.
The latter had come to the poorhouse with the intention of leaving her
infant child. To this plan Mr. Engler had objected unless she was
willing to comply with the rules of the place.
Mrs. Fischer, the mother of three little children, had recently heard that
her husband, a soldier in the Civil War, had been killed in battle, and
immediately she had gone into deep mourning as far as her dress was
concerned. The care of her family, however, she felt was too great a

responsibility to assume alone, and she had decided that the best thing
for her to do was to give her three small children away and that the
sooner it was done the better it would be. It was not hard to find homes
for the girl and the boy, but with baby Edwin it was different He was so
young that nobody cared to be bothered with him, and although she had
tried hard, she had not succeeded in finding him a home.
In her perplexity she rushed to the infirmary. So confident had she been
that it would be the duty of this institution to help her out that she had
not thought of asking the privilege of leaving her baby as a favor.
As steward and matron of the poorhouse, Mr. and Mrs. Engler did what
they could to keep things going smoothly and in order, but the work
was too large for them to handle it properly. At that early date no
special place except the poor farm had been provided for the simple
and the insane; so it was necessary to have