<h2>CHAPTER I.</h2>
<div class="blockquot"><p>Jacky.—His brothers and sisters.—His cottage home.—What
happened to the little pet-dog.—How Jacky's father forgave the wicked
men of Epworth.—"Fire! Fire!"</p>
</div>
<div class="figleft"> <ANTIMG src="images/cap-l.png" width-obs="102" height-obs="100" alt="L" title="" /></div>
<div class='unindent'><br/>ONG, long ago, more than one hundred
and fifty years, lived the hero of this
book. Because his name was John, everybody
called him Jack or Jacky; and by
everybody I mean his dear, good father and mother,
and his eighteen brothers and sisters. Eighteen, did
I say? Yes, indeed, they counted eighteen; and
seeing there were so many, I will not trouble you
with all their names. I will just tell you three.
Samuel was the eldest, he was the "big brother";
Jacky was number fifteen, and Kitty and Charlie
came after him.</div>
<p>But Jacky did not mind all this houseful, I think he<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[2]</SPAN></span>
rather liked it, for you see he always had plenty of
playmates. His home was in a country village called
Epworth, in Lincolnshire. If you look on your map
I think you will find it. The house was like a big
cottage; the roof had no slates on like ours, but was
thatched with straw, the same as some of the cottages
you have seen in the country; and the windows had
tiny panes of glass, diamond-shaped, and they opened
like little doors. The walls of the cottage were
covered with pretty climbing plants, and what was
best of all, there was a beautiful big garden where
apple and pear trees grew, and where there was lots
of room for Jacky and Charlie and the others to run
about and play "hide and seek."</p>
<p>But I must tell you that a great many wicked
people lived at Epworth, and Jack's father, who was
a minister, tried to teach them how wrong it was to
steal and fight, and do so many cruel things. But his
preaching only made them very angry with good
Mr. Wesley, and one of the men, out of spite, cut off
the legs of his little pet-dog. Was not that a dreadfully
cruel thing to do?</p>
<p>But Jack's father, because he loved Jesus so much,
loved these wicked men, and always forgave them.
He knew if he could get <i>them</i> to love Jesus, they
would soon stop being cruel and unkind.</p>
<p>One night in winter, when everybody was fast
asleep, Kitty woke up feeling something very hot on
her feet. Opening her eyes she was dreadfully<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[3]</SPAN></span>
frightened to see the bedroom ceiling all on fire.
She was only a very little girl, but she jumped out of
bed, and ran to the room where her mother and two
of her sisters were sleeping. Her father, who was
in another room, hearing a great noise outside, and
people calling "Fire! Fire!" jumped up and found
it was his own house that was in flames. Telling the
elder girls to be quick and get dressed and to help
their mother, who was very ill, he ran to the nursery,
and burst open the door. "Nurse, nurse!" he shouted,
"be quick and get the children up, the house is on
fire."</p>
<p>Snatching up baby Charles in her arms, and calling
to the other children to follow her, the nurse hurried
down-stairs. But there they found the hall full of
flames and smoke, and to get out of the front-door
was impossible. So some of the children got through
the windows and some through the back-door into
the garden.</p>
<p>Just as the minister thought he had all his family
safe, he heard a cry coming from the nursery, and on
looking round, he found Jacky was missing. He
rushed into the burning house, and tried to get up the
stairs, but they were all on fire. What should he do?
He didn't know. So he just knelt down in the hall
surrounded by the dreadful flames, and asked God to
take care of little Jack, and if he couldn't be saved to
take him to heaven.</p>
<p>Now I must tell you how it was Jack was still in<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[4]</SPAN></span>
the burning house. He had been fast asleep when
the nurse called, and did not hear her and the other
children go out of the room. All at once he woke
up, and seeing a bright light in the room, thought it
was morning. "Nursie, nursie!" he called, "take me
up; I want to get up." Of course there was no answer.
Then he put his head out of the curtains which
surrounded his little bed, and saw streaks of fire on
the top of the room. Oh, how frightened he was!</p>
<p>Jacky was only five years old, but he was a brave
boy, and instead of lying still and screaming and
crying, he jumped up and ran to the door in his
night-gown. But the floor and the stairs were all on
fire. What should he do? He ran back again into
the room, and climbed on a big box that stood near
the window. Then some one in the yard saw him
and shouted: "Fetch a ladder, quick! I see him."</p>
<p>"There's no time," called out somebody else; "the
roof is falling in. Look here!" said the same man,
"I'll stand against this wall, and let a man that's not
very heavy stand on my shoulders, and then we can
reach the child."</p>
<p>So the strong man fixed himself against the wall,
and another man climbed on his shoulders, and Jacky
put out his arms as far as he could, and the man lifted
him out of the burning room, and he was safe. Two
minutes afterwards the roof fell in with a big crash.</p>
<p>Jack was carried into a neighbour's house, and they
all knelt down while the minister thanked God for<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[5]</SPAN></span>
taking care of them, and so wonderfully preserving
all their lives.</p>
<p>Jack never forgot that terrible night, and all his life
afterwards he felt that God had saved him from being
burnt to death, in order that he might do a great deal
of work for Him.</p>
<p>You will not be surprised to hear, that it was the
wicked people in Epworth who had set the minister's
house on fire. But as Jesus forgave His enemies, so
Mr. Wesley forgave these men, and tried more than
ever to show them how much Christ loved them.</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i-020.png" width-obs="158" height-obs="169" alt="Bird and nest" title="" /></div>
<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[6]</SPAN></span></p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i-021.png" width-obs="563" height-obs="189" alt="Two sailboats" title="" /></div>
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