Arthur Hamilton, and His Dog - 9

Rover refused at first to leave Arthur, but John lifted him into the
wagon, and drove off.

It was a lonely evening to Arthur. There was no frolic with Rover and
the children on the green; no kind mother's voice to call him in; no
affectionate good-night kiss for the little stranger. Mr. and Mrs.
Martin were very kind-hearted people, but they had little sympathy with
a child, and made no conversation with him. There was no hardship
imposed on Arthur; indeed they required less of him than he had been
accustomed to doing at home, and had he been a courageous, light-hearted
boy like his brother James, he would soon have been very happy in his
new home. But we have said he was shy and sensitive; like a delicate
plant he needed sunshine to develope his nature, and shrank from the
rough chilling blast.

None, who has not experienced it, can know any thing of the suffering
such a child endures when deprived of the sweet influences of home. Such
an one often appears dull and stupid to a careless observer, when there
is throbbing under that cold exterior, a heart of the keenest
sensibility. Let the bold, healthy, active boy be sent from home, if
necessary; a little hardship, and a little struggling with the rougher
elements of life, will perchance but strengthen and increase his
courage, and prepare him for the conflicts and struggles of after years;
but oh, fond mother, keep that delicate, timid child which nestles to
thy side with such confiding trust, which trembles at the voice of a
stranger, and shrinks like the mimosa, from a rude and unfamiliar touch,
under thine own sheltering roof-tree, for a time at least; there seek to
develope and strengthen his delicate nature into more manly strength and
vigor; there judiciously repress excessive sensibility, and increase
confidence in himself and others; if it can possibly be avoided, do not
expose him, while a child, to the tender mercies of those who do not
understand his peculiar temperament, and who, however kind their
feelings, cannot possess his confidence.