Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-07-25

narrowly.
Evidently he felt called upon to see who and
what were TO occupy that pulpit in his masters
absence.
Up rose Parson Summeral, and up went Trips
nose, vibrating with intense attention.
The parsOn begun in his high-cracked voice TO
intone the hymn
II Sing to the Lord aload,'
when Trip broke into dismal howl.
The parson went on TO give directions TO the
deacon, in the same voice in which he had been
reading, so that the whole effect Of the perform
ance was somewhat as follows;
"'Sing to the Lord aloud
"(Please to turn out that dogl-
"'And make joyful noise"
The dog was turned out, and the choir did
their best to make joyful noise; but we boys
were unset for the day, delivered over to the
temptations Of Satan, and plunged iu waves and
pillows of hystercal giggle, from which neither
winkS nor frowns from Aunt Lois, nor the
awful fear of the tithing man, nor the comfort
ing bits of fennel and orange peel, passed by
grandmother, could recover us.
Everybody felt, TO be sure, that here was Il
trial that called for SOME indulgence. Hard
faces. even among the StOnieSt saints, BETRAYED
a transient culver of the risible muscles, old
ladies put Up their FANS youths and maidens in
the singers seats laughed outright, and for the
moment general smoker among the children
was pardoned. But was one of that luckless
kind whose nerves, once set in vibration, could
could not be composed. When the reign of
gravity and decorum had returned, Harry and
| sat by each other, shaking with suppressed
laughter. Everything in the subsequent eXer-
cises took funny turn, and in the long prayer,
when everybody else was still and decorous,
the whole scene came over me with such over
towering force that | exploded with laughter,
and had to be taken ont of meeting and marched
home by Aunt Lois as a convicted criminal.
What especially moved her Indignation was
that the more she rebuked and upbraded, the
more l laughed, till the tears rolled down my
cheeks. Which Aunt Lois construed into will
full disrespect to her authority, and resented ac-
cordingly.
BY Sunday evening, as we gathered around
the fire, the reaction from undue gayety to So
briefly had taken place, and we were in pen
Sive and penitent state. Grandmother was graz
cious and forgiYing, but Aunt Lois still pre-
served that frosty air of reprobation which she
held to be sautary means of quickening our
consciences for the future. 1t was, therefore,
with unusual delight that we saw our old friend
Sam come in and sit himself quietly down on
the block in the chimney corner. With Sam
we felt assured ofindulgence and patronage for,
though always rigidly moral and instructive in
his turn of mind, he had that fellow,ieeliug for
transgressors which is characteristic of the
loose;joiuted, easy.going style of his indvidu.
ality.
"Lordy massy, boys-yis," said Sam, virtu-
ously, in view of some of Aunt Lois thrusts,
eye ought never to laugh nor cut up in meetin',
that ares SO, but then there is times when the
best on us gets took down. We let's took una
wares, We see-even ministers does. Yis, natur'
will git the upper hand afore they know it,"
"Why, Sam, ministers don't ever laugh in
meetin', do theyP
We put the question with wide eyes. Such a
SuppoSition bordered on profanity, we thought;
it was approaching the sin of Uzzah, who I'M
wariy touched the ark of the Lord.
Laws, yes. Why, haven't you never heard
how there was a council held to try Parson
Morrel for laughing out in prayer timer
Laughing in prayer timel" we both repeat
ed, with upltted hands and eyes.
My grandfather's mild face became luminous
with a suppressed smile which frightened it as
the moon does cloud, but he said nothing.
Eyes, yes" said my grandmother, "that af-
fair did make dreadful scandal in the time
ont. But Parson Morrel was q good man,
and Pm glad the council wasn't hard on him."
wal" said Sam Lawson, "alter all, it was
more Ike Rabbits fault than twas anybody's.
1e Sc, Ike, he was alters for gettin' what he
could out o. the town, and he would feed his
sheep on the meetin' house green. Somehow or
other, lke'S fences alters contrived to give out,
come Sunday, and up would come his sheep,
and Ike was too piouS 10 drive 'em back Sun
day, and so there they was. He was talked to
enough about it, case we see, to have sheep
and lambs a ba-a-in' and a blatin' all PRAYER
and sumon time, Wa mt the thing. Member
down under Burberry hill, the land sort o.
sloped down, so as body he'd to come into the
meetin' house steppin' down instead O. up.
Fact was, they said twas put there cause
the land want good for nothin' else, and the
folks thought putin a meetin' house ont
would be a clear sayin'-but Parson Morrel he
didn't like it-and was free to tell 'em his mind
ont, that twas like bringn' the lame and the
blind to the Lords sarvice,-but there twas.
There warn't better minister nor no one
more set by in all the state than Parson Morrel.
His doctrines was right up and down good and
sharp, and he give saints and sinners their meat
in due season, and for consolin and cOmfortin'
widders and orpans Parson Morrel hadn't his
match. The women sot lots by him and he was
alluS' ready to take tea round, and make things
pleasant and comfortable, and he had good
story Tor every one and word for the children,
and may be an apple or cookey in his pocket
for 'em. Wal, you know the amt no peasn'
everybody, and eff Gaberiel himself, right down
out o heaven, was to come and be minister |
expect there'd be plckin' at his wings, and a
sort O. fault tndin'. Now Aunt Jerushy Scran
and Aunt Polly Hokun they said Parson Morrel
want solemn enough. Ye see there's them that
thinks that minister ought to be Jest like the
town hearse, so that We think O. death, judg-
ment and eternity, and nothin' else, when We see
him round; and eff they see man rosy and
clipper and havn' pretty nice sociable sort of
time, why they say he amt spiritooal minded
But in my times PVe seen ministers, the most
awakenin' kind in the pulpit that was the live
Hest when they was out ont. There is a time
to laugh, scripture says, tho some folks never
seem TO remember that are"
"But Sam, how came you TO say it was Ike
Rabbits fault? What was it about the Sheep"
"Oh wal, yis-Tm comm to that are. 1t was
all about them sheep expect they was the in
strument the devil set to work. to tempt Parson
Morrel to laugh in prayer time.
I'VE see there was old Dick, lke's bell wether
was tho 6UhfiutpCt old hot
Why Dick would butt at his own shadder and
everybody said it was a shame the old crittur
should be left to run loose, cause he ran at the
children and scared the women half out their
wits. Wal, use to live out in that parish in
them days and Lem Sudoc and used TO 90 out
sparkin' Sunday nights to see the Larkn gals
and we had TO go right cross the lot where
Dick was-so we used to 90 and stand at the
fence and call, and Dick would see us and put
down his head and run at US full chisel, and
come bunt agin the fence and then I'd catch him
by the horns and hold him while Lem run and
got over the fence t'other side the lot, and then
I'd let go and Lem would boiler and shake a
stick at him and away he would go full butt at
Lem, and Lem would ketch his horns and hold
him till came oyer-that was the way we man
aged Dick-but eff he come sudden up behind
Teller, he'd give him butt in the small of the
back that would make him run on all
fours one while-he was great
rogue Dick was. Wal, that summer | re-
member they had old Deacon Titkins for tthing-
man, and tell you he give it to the boys lively.
There warn't no sleepin' nor no playin', for the
deacon had eyes like gimblet, and he was quick
as a cat, and the youngsters he'd to look out for
themselves. 1t did really seem as if the deacon
was like them four beasts in the Revelations
that was full O. eyes behind and before, for
whichever way he was standn', if you gave
only wink he was down on you, and hill you
tap with his stick. knew once Lem Sudoc list
wrote two words in the psalm-book and passed
it TO Keziah Larkin, and the deacon gave him
such tap that Lem grew as red as a beet, and
vowed he'd be up with him some day for that.
"Well, Lordy massy, folks that is so clipper
and high steppin' has TO have their come downs,
and the deacon had to have his"
That are Sunday, remember it now Jest as
well as if twas yesterday. The parson he give
us his great sermon, reconciln' DEGREES and free
agency-everybody said that are sermon was a
masterpiece. He preached it up to Cambridge at
commencement, but it so happened it was one o.
them blin' hot days that come in August when
you can fairly hear the huckleberries sizzlin'
and cookin' on the bushes, and the locust keeps
a gratin' like red-hot saw Wal, such times,
DEGREES or no DEGREES, the best on us will pet
sleepy. The old mectn'-house stood right down
at the foot Of hill that KEEP off allIthc wind, and
the sun blazed away at them great west winders,
and there was pretty sleepy time there. Wal,
TIE deacon he few around spell, and woke uD
the children and tapped the boys on the head,
and KEEP everything straight as lie could till the
sermon was most through, when he rally rot
most tnckered out, and he took chair and he
sol down in the door riUht onnogitp Tim tniuis.o-