Litchfield enquirer., 1878-03-28


 l so. Yet, being so, must not hinder by any disappointed strivings the progress of the great | mission. l will go back among my own kind; It may be that some whom I shall teach may l yet succeed where have failed" The letter could not go until the next morning. He went out and walked up and down in the 1 forest A sudden impulse came to him !; he crossed over to the school l-house and rang the little tinkling belfry-bell His evening class | had disbanded some time before; the poor old aunties and uncles crept of to bed very early now in order to be safely out of the way when their disorderly sons and grandsons came home But something moved the master to see them all together once more. They came across the green, wondering, and entered the school -room some of the young wives came, too; and the children. The master waited, let ter in hand. When they were all seated,
 Friends" he said, q have called you. to- gether to speak to you of a matter which lies very near my own heart. Things are not go- ing on we'll at Jubilee The men drink the children go in rags. Is this true?"
 Groans and slow assenting mods answered him. One old woman shrieked out shrilly, "1t is de Lords will, and rocked her body to and | fro
 ''No, it is not the Lords will" answered the l i You must strive toreclaim those who have gone astray; ''you must endeavor to inspire them with renewed aspirations toward higher plane of life you must-I mean" he said correcting himself, ''you must try to keep the men from going over to the Corners and getting drunk. "
 "But dey will do it, sah what can we do?" said Uncle Scipio, who sat leaning his chin upon his crutch and peering at the teacher with sharp intelligence in his old eyes. 'If dey wont stay fo' you, sah, will dey stay fo' us!"
 ''That is what was coming to-" said the master CThey had opened the subject even before he could get to it ? They saw it too, then,-his utter lack of infuence.) 'Ihave not succeeded here as I hoped to succeed, l friends; I have not the influence ought to have" Then he paused Perhaps the best thing can dc will be to go away" he added, looking quickly from face to face to catch | the expression. But there was nothing visible. The children stared stolidly back, and the old people sat unmoved; he even fancied that he could detect relief in the eyes of one or two, quickly suppressed, however, by the innate politeness of the race. A sudden mist came over his eyes; he had thought that perhaps 1 some of them would care a little. He hurried on: q have written to the North for a new teacher for you, man of your own people, who will not only teach you, but also, as 6 minister, hold services on the Sabbath; you can have little church of your own then. Such man will do better for you than have done, and I hope you will like him, he was going to say, ''better than you have liked me, :" but putting down all thoughts of self, he ad- ded, land that his work among you will be abundantly blessed"
 'Glory glory !" cried an old aunty. "A color'd preacher ob our own,-glory glory ]"
 Then Uncle Scipio rose slowly, with the aid of his crutches, and, as orator of the occasion, addressed the master.
 'You see, sah, how it is; you see, Mars King David" he said, waving his hand apolo- getically. "a color'd man will unnerstan us, specially ef he hab libed at de Souf; we don't want no Nordern free niggahs hyar But a 'spectable color'd preacher, now, would be de maxim ob Jubilee, fo dis worP an de nex'." "Fo, dis worI an de nex'," echoed the old woman.
 'Our service to you, sah, all de same" con- tinued Scipio, with grand bow of ceremony 1; ''but you hab nebber qaCite unnerstan us, sah, nebber quite 1; an you can nebber do much fo us, sah, on count ob dat fack, k,-ef you'll scuse my saying so. But it is de trouf. We give you our tanks and our congratturrurlations, an we hopes you'll go j'fyful back to your own people, an be shinin' light to em forebber more"
 "A shinin light ferebber more" echoed the rest. One old woman, inspired apparently by the similarity of words, began hymn about ''the shining shore," and the whole assembly i, thinking no doubt that it was an appropriate | and complimentary termination to the proceed ings, joined in with all their might, and sang the whole six verses through with fervor.
 ''I should like to shake hands with you all as you go out" said the master, when at last the song was ended, "and, and 1 wish, my friends that you would all remember me in your prayers to night before you sleep.
 What sight that was when the pale Cau- casian, with the intelligence of generations on his brow, asked for the prayers of these sons of Africa, and gently, nay almost humbly, re- ceived the pressure of their black toil-hardened hands as they passed out They had taught him great lesson, the lesson of failure,
 The school master went home and sat far in the night, with his head bowed upon his hands. "Poor worm 7" he thought, 'poor worm," who even went so far as to dream of saying, Here am l, Lord, and those brethren whom Thou hast given mel" a% ~ @
 The day came for him to go; he shouldered his bag and started away. At turn in the road, some one was waiting for him it was dull-faced Esther with bunch of flowers, the common flowers of her garden-bed. Good bye Esther" said the master touched almost to tears by the sight of the solitary little offer ing. e-...r9s
 "GQod-bye, mars" said Esther But she was not moved she had come out into the woods from sort of instinct, as dog follows a little way down the road, to look after de- parting carriage. ...
 'David King has come home again, and ta- ken the district school" said one village gossip to another.
 EHas he now Didn't find the blacks what he expected, guess"