A Little Girl’s Wisdom

A little girl came very early one morning to her mother, saying, “Which is worse, Mama, to tell a lie or to steal?” The Mother replied that both were so sinful she could not tell which was worse. “Well, Mama,” replied the little one, “I’ve been thinking a good deal about it, and I think it’s ever so much worse to lie than to steal.” “Why, my child?” asked the mother. “Well, you see Mama, it’s like this,” said the girl. “If you steal a thing, you can take it back, unless you’ve eaten it, and if you’ve eaten it, you can pay for it; but a lie is forever.” (Encyclopedia of Illustrations #13768).