LESSON 18
THE WIDOW AND THE MERCHANT

WORD LIST

died woman convinced amazed wrote pity

mistake rewarded grateful check distress

hesitation husband musician widow assistance

1. A merchant, who was very fond of music, was asked by a poor widow to give her some assistance. Her husband, who was a musician, had died, and left her very poor indeed.

2. The merchant saw that the widow and her daughter, who was with her, were in great distress. He looked with pity into their pale faces, and was convinced by their conduct that their sad story was true.

3. “How much do you want, my good woman? ” said the merchant.

4. “Five dollars will save us, ” said the poor widow, with some hesitation.

5. The merchant sat down at his desk, took a piece of paper, wrote a few lines on it, and gave it to the widow with the words, “Take it to the bank you see on the other side of the street.”

6. The grateful widow and her daughter, without stopping to read the note, hastened to the bank. The banker at once counted out fifty dollars instead of five, and passed them to the widow.

7. She was amazed when she saw so much money. “Sir, there is a mistake here, ” she said, “You have given me fifty dollars, and I asked for only five.”

8. The banker looked at the note once more, and said, “The check calls for fifty dollars.”

9. “It is a mistake—indeed it is, ” said the widow.

10. The banker then asked her to wait a few minutes, while he went to see the merchant who gave her the note.

11. “Yes.” said the merchant, when he had heard the banker's story,“I did make a mistake. I wrote fifty instead of five hundred. Give the poor widow five hundred dollars, for such honesty is poorly rewarded with even that sum.”

STUDY GUIDE

A. Vocabulary Matching—Match the vocabulary word in A with the meaning in B.

A

convinced

rewarded

amazed

grateful

pity

distress

widow

musician

hesitation

assistance

B

greatly surprised

thankful toward someone

a lot of trouble

given a prize for doing good

help

a woman whose husband has died

to believe what someone says

a person who makes music

feeling sad for another's condition

to feel unsure

B. Discussion questions—Talk about these questions.

1. Why did the widow ask the merchant for help?

2. Why did the merchant give the widow more money than she asked for?

3. The merchant rewarded the widow for her honesty. Have you ever been rewarded for your honesty?

4. What do you think the widow will do with the money?

5. What lesson does this story teach?

C. True or False—Write T (true) or F (false) for each sentence. Explain your answer.

_____1. The merchant pitied the widow.

_____2. The banker talked to the merchant.

_____3. The widow was honest.

_____4. The bank was closed.

_____5. The widow got 50 dollars.

_____6. The widow is a musician.