New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-05-12
Outdoor Preaching.


Outdoor Preaching.
By 3. F. TAYLOR.
This sermon was reported twelve months ago, bet
as nature has seen fit 70 preach the same sermon
again, we do not hesitate to revive the record that
was made Of III
The miracle Of Spring is beginning Leafess. in
deed, stand the great woods and shiyering in the
cool wind. The joints of rheumatic oaks creak dis
maly, and there Is moan In the naples the ske
etoa orchards brown and gray upon the southern
slopes, but the Is shining and the clock OF time
ticks ia the heart Of April.
A Jannary fire rolls and roars up the chimneyis
cspacious throat, In the evenings but the birds are
abroad, and their songs are In all the air.
Hardly wisp OF hay remains In the broad, deep
Ebay Of the barn, aud the cows decline :" to give
down." and the lambs are going where the good
lambs 20, though the lilacs budding, and the will
lows have fringed the streams with green.
How full Of the dear old music of summer are
wood, and orchard, and field. Even the great empty
barn yard, with its ribs Of oak, Is atwitter with
swallows, vino dart in aud out Of the diamond doors
in the gable. and the pastered cottages that are
built along the rafters.
The robins are singing the self-same songs they
sang thousand years ago, and the inches are I'M
furnished and golden as ever. Down by the marsh
the bobolinks ringing their little BELLS and swing
ing 70 aud fro upon the little bushes that sway in the
wind.
The brown thrushes have built their nests in the
fepce corners, and the heaps Of brush a Baltimore
oriole hickered like 6ake Of fire through the gar
den this morning. and driiied away behind the barn:
we frightened up poor whip-poor-wil yesterday
from among the dead leaves +; aud we found blue
birds nest begun in hollow stump in the pasture
little gray couple are busy building In cleft Of
the doorpost aud small Trojan in speckled Jacket
i about TO begin housekeeping the loaded end Of
the welsweep, that goes up forty times day, and
comes down with a bang. Why didn't the little
idiot take up his quarters in the buckefl The other
day John hung bis ia ket upon the fence and this
morning he shook out nest from Of the pockets
afr.
grass there comes small tune of two notes and a
rest, and then two from the sec9nd rail of the
fence gush Of melody; from the roofridge, solo;
from the depths Of the air, as Of angel calling unto
April 1t shall be.
Last sunday was as clear and as cool as charity in
our rural latitude. and last Sunday we got into good
company, for once in way and went to church in the
woods.
The gray temple that God built, looked dull and
empty as we approached, but entered the birds
were singing an anthem, and nature had begun to
work miracle.
Last winter, we foundered to the January service.
aud the drifts-h how huge they were and the white
arms of the forest stretched out in silent bene
diction. stern and cold like the blessing Of old Pur
tans. Now, the earth is strown with the withered
leaves OF gone summer, that rusted articulatey be-
meath the thoughtful foot, and said, as words can
never say it, In the midst OF liie we are in death "
and thus the sermon began.
And then the birds all around began TO sing and
the wood-doYe 10 mourn with her mate, and so this
passage OF Scripture was read out. "The winter is
over and gone the time OF the singing of birds has
come, aAd the voice of the turtle Is heard in the
land
And after that, two sparrows that were blown
away last autumn, by the keen northeastern and that
nobody thought to see again, sang simple song the
burden whereof was Not sparrow faleth 10 the
ground without Him.
A delicate white flower that had lifted away
counserpane Of damp gray leaves. stood up in Its
place. az the loot OF great tree, and what did we
have then, but, +" That which thou sowest is not
quickened except it die. Behold | show YOU a ulys.
terry we shall not all sleep, but we shall ali be
changed aud the little stars Of pink and white
flowers, that we're clustered in dim constellation
about the messy rock lifted up their voices and sang
even rs they did In times morning: Zone glory
there Is Of the SUM- and another OF the moon and an.
other glory of the stars for star a1eth from star
In glory; so also i the resurrection of the dead y
and thus the doctrine was demonstrated, and robin
that minute, began TO sing.
Then, there went noiselessly over the dead leaves
as they lay, and over the preachers and over them
that prayed, small shadow and looking up a white
fleece Of cloud was drifting by, and it said as it
went thus passeth life, y and the wind breathed
low sigh and the service went on.
And all the while, the birds were as busy as busy
could be, carrying tmhers and tapestry and couches
Of down for the homes they were building and one
sang she wrought, " the better the deed Do and
her mate took il np, with the better the deed and
the Sabbath unbroken, shone on.
A few bees, brave as their fellows that dared the
dead lion Of old SIMPSONS time, went bugling along
the neghboring fields, a feeble charge against the
living hon of the North.
Walking along the grand, old aisles, uson whose
moor last summers dead were lying. we recalled the
time ere the nrst snow fakes FELL and the relentng
year looked back and smiled so sad and sweet a
smile, even as our dead who stand sometimes mon
the holy threshold of a dream the time when the
last breath OF those dead leaves went heavenward
IKE a prayer, and Indian summer charmed the
drowsy earth and golden air.
But there Is no dying now. The graves are opened .
10 the Violet comes the Lady Slippers soon viii
dance upon the air, white wild Sweet Williams stand
admiring by.
Grand sermons preached they all. Of faith and
hope. and beauty yet to be and as we turned away.
10 there in the Held passage from the Sermon
on the Mount" wrapped in green silk, was living /:
aud what could It have been but. Behold the lille,
Of the Held, how. they grow they toll not neither
do they spin. and yet Solomon in all his glory was
not arrayed like one OF these
SO, with fragments OF sermons and snatches Of
songs strewn along the way, we left the temple o.
the Lord and bore away with us some Of the preach
ers and some OF the singers and some of the beauties
q the great congregation In that mighty minister
we dlsmanted fallen tree of of nature studies
"a broad green mat Of moss piece OF velvet from
the very loom that woye the glory of the morning
and bore II home for Sunday reading
HOW earnest Nature is, In all she does how finished
! ner work, from moss to mountain. And so that
maj Oh moss "reads like q book = and so In tina,
small landscape we look upon the Droeyamn,s 81
what earth shall be the finished miracle Of Sprina
Take Nature at her word. even as the birds that
trust her and 50 toll and sing though SHOWS NAV
oEis even into the heart of May. No tssscopic ras
shall eer descFy times brown October hnt when ~
birds forget 70 build their summer homes and hes.
me woods when roses lose their fragrance and tel
nasn when on just such another scroll Of moss,
landscape as we are reading now, no promises ar,
made then know that earnest Nature has wearied 4
her work, and seeks holiday at last -
----> 60
He who rises late may trot all day but never over
take bis business So said DR.. Franklin. A con
Temporary says; = We have watched those fellow
vhoare early rsers, and as general thing they an
the first chaps who go to the groceries Of morn
ing