Litchfield enquirer., 1874-01-08
From The Atlantic Monthly. LiDA ANN.
An Adirondack Sketch.

and it was in the heart of an Adirondack winter. A bell, composed of a cheap pat ent mixture of pig iron. pot-metal, an. lead, was sending forth it's dismal metal lie clangor into the dark, sleety, bitin evening air. The frosted panes of tn church windows were of dull chees complexion. indicating that the tallo1 dips used for illumination were in ful
 flame.
 Sleigh-loads of people were arriving
 and by half past seven o'clock three h1n
 dred and fifty persons had been deposit
 ed at the door, when they had all gon
 inside, inc little structure was densel
 packe and very warm.
 Perhaps the heat aided the excitemen of the hour. A spiritual agitation ik the surglng of flood was sweeping ove the people of the neighborhood, and stir ring the remote social life of the localit, to its depths. There was to be sermon As preliminary to the sermon, d prayer circle was formed.
 The pastor exhorted his flock in an agi tated manner. urging upon them the i'm portance of earnestness in prayer. He de did not care what people thought of him and that, even. although they should talk him for lunatic, he had come to the con clusion ''to get out of the way and let thu blessing come down"
 Perhaps there was too much excitement The brethren of a sister denomination said afterward, that they feared 1t was ex c1tement only. But the pastors zeal wa! great, and he evidently had no apprehen. sion, except that he might fail to arouse his people from their lethargy. His word: brought out in response tall, spare man who began praying in a vehement tone ol voice. He continued to pray. Five min utes passed, ten. fifteen, twenty minutes and still he prayed; and as he went on he increased in power. There seemed not the slightest probability of his ceasing because he reached new and more excit ing themes at every step of his advance There was a little brief whispering neal the pastor, and then the brethren broke out into hymn.
 The praying brother did not cease his petitlon; on the contrary, he redoubled his earnestness, alluded to the sentiment of the hymn with provoking aptness and felicity, and exhorted the brethren to sing and shout ''glory, glory"
 The deacons of the church were finally compelled to take bodily hold of this brother and eject him from the building, as the only possible mode of bringing his prOtracted devotions to conclusion. He was passed out into the cold night air, still praying and blessing the brethren, and congratulating himself upon suffer ing this persecution.
 ''Crazy Elkins," as the boys called him, or 'poor Brother Elkins," as the church people termed him, having thus been dis posed of, hymn was sung, and the pas tor apologized for '.the excessive zeal, without knowledge, of our poor dear, and perhaps unbalanced, brother" At about this time MT. Elkins was permitted to re- turn and occupy a seat quietly by the stove
 The pastor announced that the hour for the sermon had arrived. He introduced to the congregation, as an evangelist who had been sent by guiding Providence to aid them, Elder Hetchel, who was to preach the sermon upon this occasion. The pastor characterized this newcomer as one crying in the wilderness, a young evangelist of great promise.
 Elder Hetchel stood up in the pulpit and preached He was man of reddish and black curling hair. He was not young, as the pastors words had seemed to imply, but in the meridian of life. His discourse indicated that he was an illiterate person. There was, however, 0 coarse magnetism about his presence and speech that to some extent attracted the people.
 After the sermon came solemn hour, when the anxious seats were filled and weird spiritual songs were sung.
 The pastor and Elder Hetchel were not in dealing with the young peo- pie upon the anxious-seats. They called them out by name as pointedly as possi- ble before the entire congregation. and them to rise up and speak, and not to be ashamed of the cause.
 Some of the young people did rise up and speak, and the prevailing ejaculations were stilled to catch the few faltering words which were uttered by these youths and maidens.
 Among the young girls who spoke was little Lida Ann, the daughter of Deacon Fernwell, who was himself engaged with all his heart and soul in the good work.
 The neat little figure of Lida Ann caught the eye of Elder Hetchel. She was still a schoolgirl, and wore short dresses. True she was fifteen, but then she was small of her age She was so ex- tremely nimble and spry that Logan. a hunter used to say he could never think of anything but saucy little red squir- rel when he saw her tripping along to school. She was i'll truth as complete and perfect a mountain daisy as ever bloomed ill the chill air of the Northern Adirondacks. Such she was at that even- ing meeting when Elder Hetchel looked upon her and listened to her little speech.
 Lida Ann described her feelings, as the custom was, but in a manner more child ish than womanly. When she concluded the account of her experience by saying that she never felt ESQ sentimental before in all her life," there was an amused tit ter among few young fellows from Whis- key Hollow. who occupied back seats. But the people generally understood that Lida Ann was only child, and pardoned the mistake of a word; and Elder Hetchel, as Lida Ann sat down, pronounced an Amen" with so much power and solem- nity that it quite hushed the entire con- gregation. He exhorted the young sister to be faithful, and having once put he1 hand to the plow not to turn back.
 The winter, with it's raging storms and evening meetings and wild excitement had passed away, and the tender wood violet was springing up in the wilderness solitudes. It was day of April sunshine and the sweet plaintiva notes of the first bluebird of the season were heard among the elm trees in the yard of Farmer Fern wells home. Elder Hetchel, with his big red face. white necktie, and suit of sombrt black, stood beside little Lida Ann in the parlor. She was dressed in long white silk robe, and had orange flowers in hel hair. Some of Iida Ann's little play mates were there, half scared by the pom posity of the bridegroom; and a few el derly staid church people were there also
 The Elder and little Lida Ann wer, married by justice of the peace, the good pastor having discovered that h, had business elsewhere on that particu lar day. The ceremony was quite impos ing The majestic little ways of tn
 bride. as she endeayored to assume tli airs due to that highest of social position
 in the country, minister's wife, were s' exceedingly funny that they amused nor
 than they provoked her playmates ant
 friends. -t
 The neigLbors declared that cit was