State Journal

WILL TRUST IN PROVIDENCE
ONE DAY LONGER.

A Short Tale. On John's River, in the
county of Burke, there lived a worthy old
gentleman by the name of Copening. He
was a man well at ease in point of worldly
substance, and was known far and near for
his charity and hospitality. There happened in the year - a remarkable scarcity
of provisions, especially grain. Money also
was scarce, and times every way hard.
Hunger, aching, maddening hunger was
felt by a few in every neighborhood, and in
some cases we have heard of its proceeding to starvation; but to the honor of our
country and to the honor of human nature
be it said, these cases were extremely rare.
In these difficult times, however, old Mr.
Copening happened to have a large and well
filled corncrib, which for a long time, he
would not open: grain became scarcer, the
prices rose higher and higher, and still the
old man held up his corn as some supposed
for a higher price. At length Mr. Copening
began to let his corn go - but money could
not buy it--to those who had money he
would say "you can get something to preserve life for your money; there are many
who have no money, and being without
food, they must perish unless those who
are blessed with the means shall feed them."
Of course, the number that came without
money and put up piteous tales was great.
But this was foreseen, and before he had
opened his crib, Copening had taken pains
to find out who were really objects requiring his assistance. One safe rule he adopted
against imposition was, not to let his
charity go too far from home. If this rule
was now generally adopted, much more
real good would be effected with the amount
annually contributed by us of the South.
This rule, however, like all general rules,
will sometimes work wrong, and it did
with our hero (and he better deserves that
name than thousands who have gained it,
by the numbers they have slaughtered of
the human family.) A man bringing a bag
with him came to Copening from a distant
neighborhood, and told the usual story of
wife and children being without bread, and
being sorely wrought with hunger, &c. but
no corn was to be had, and the disappointed man, with a heavy heart, turned his
steps home-ward, and for a time was no
more thought of. In the course of the afternoon, however, word came to old Mr.
Copening that a suspicious looking stranger
with a bag on his shoulder was seen lurking about his premises; a few particulars
more satisfied him that this was the applicant for charity who had visited him that
morning, and that he had a design to rob
his crib, that night: accordingly himself
and another of his family secreted themselves and waited events. But they did not
wait long before the stranger with the bag
on his shoulder was seen making his way
towards the crib; the crib was opened, not
a dog was heard to bark, or the least difficulty opposed to his purpose: He entered
and with a deliberation, or rather hesitation,
that surprised the observers, he proceeded
to fill the bag. This being done, he tied it,
and unlike such visitors generally he continued on the spot with his hand still on the
bag, apparently in great mental agony; at
length, he rose suddenly, untied the bag,
poured out the corn, and said, "I will trust
to Providence one day longer." He departed in peace, but he did not trust in Providence in vain: old Mr. Copening being satisfied from his own observation, that this
man was indeed in a state of extreme suffering; moreover, that he was of an honest
heart, sent his son on the next morning
with a full bag of corn, with a message that
when that was out to let him know it, and
he should have corn whenever he wished it.