The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1880-01-24

intention Of going to hear the bishop, and |
added, laughingly, "to see the fun"
"What fun p asked In surprise
"The fun Of seeing six thousand squeez-
ed out Of the people. If they are all as
dry an orange as | am they'll raise about
ten cents, and he thrust his hands into
his trousers empty pockets, Then, kiss
ing me, he walked away. I watched him
as far as the gate, taking pride in his tall,
manly figure and distinguished air that
asserted itself in spite Of his somewhat
seedy church suit.
Dinner hour came, but 0bed had not
yet returned. | remember | was sitting
on the back porch of our cottage waiting
for him, when, like q fash, came the
thought in my mind "what if Obed should
be induced to subscribe r. The thought
actually made me faint for moment but
| quickly dismissed it as being unworthy
Of him. lie knew our struggle with pow
erty, aud especially appreciated the sacri.
fees that | was constantly called upon to
make, and, as you know, had been reared
in afiluence. No, Obed was not of that
class Of men who send money to the heath
en- while wife and children actually suffer
for the necessaries Of existence.
That ignoble thought quite passed away,
aud half an hour later heard Obed step
on the walk, little less eager than usual,
it seemed to me, and the moment he
reached the porch knew something was
wrong, for can always tell from 0bed's
face the state of his feelings.
"Well, back again, are you, 0bed2" |
said by way of greeting, as he threw his
hat down with boyish fling.
"Yes; and what do you think I've done,
Nell2" he asked vehementy.
81 couldn't say. 0bed," | replied qui-
etly.
Subscribed hundred dollars TO that
pssky church! Tn ashamed of myselfl
| despise myself never felt so mean
in all my life hundred dollars !-and
you here slaying your fingers ends off 1!
| deserve to be shot for my ignominy r.
"a hundred dollars :" | echoed family,
feeling the blood rushing to my heart.
1t may seem silly to you that for that
paltry sum of money We should have been
made so miserable; but to US, at that time,
it was like a million.
"0bedl" | cried, after some moments
Of silence, "not for ten thousand one hun
dre1 dollars would | have lost my faith 10
your strength to do right"
"Oh, Nell, It's just that which cuts me
to the quick" he quickly retorted, "No-
body could have made mo believe that /
would do such thing. am as surprised
and panied as you can possibly be, for
had no idea that | had such streak Of
weakness within me St. Paul must have
forseen me, for sure, when ho warned men
to take heed lest they fall, while thinking
that they stand.
Poor Obed | had never seen him so
mortified aud humilinted, and all on ac.
count Of that "pesky church"
Then ! asked him to tell mo how it
happened, and he described the method
employed BY the bishop and his officials
TO raise the six thousand dollars. The
officials each went among the congrega.
tion, soliciting subscriptions from occu.
pants of each pew; then, as the amount
subscribed failed to reach the desired sum,
a new appeal was made, and persons who
had refused to subscribe at the first round
were again besieged. There was much
joking by the various persons brought
there to "talk" money out of the people,
and one Of them, in speaking of certain
pews, said the 'iswathi had not been moved
clean So the moving was done over
and over, and it was in the last knowing, y
when the last thousand dollars was being
raised, that Obed, after repeatedly saying
he could not subscribe, was overcome by
the combined persuasions Of two parsons
to allow his nanie to be put down for a
hundred dollars-surprised, the moment
he yielded, and regrettiDg it as you have
heard
"But We cant pay il, so what was the
use 2 argued in woman fashion.
ooh, | shall pay it, Nell" he cried des
perately, "if for no better reason than as
punishment for my weakness. But
yOu shan't suffer from it," he added
stoutly,
"Dou't be too sure" i said quietly.
He winced'and replied ~ =. y
"True, Nell, | can never again feel sure
of anything"
We concluded the talk by 0bed's ask
ing me to promise never to allude to the
matter again until the subscription was
paid, which | did, and then freeing him.
self of q final anathema against his own
weakness and that "pesky church So
We dropped the subject, aud went to the
dinner table, which we had for the time
being forgotten.
Well, within the following two years
Obed paid that dreadful subscription. |
remember well the night when he came
home and catching me up in bis arms, as
If he had gone daft, explained his beha.
vior by saying that the "unmentlonablo
horror was ut last cancelled, the hundred
dollar subscription was paid, and that If
we only had "fattcd calf we would kill
it in honor Of the occasion.
Although neither 0bed nor | during
these two years had mentioned the mat
ter, II was like a skeleton behind the door.
My keen eyes detected his new economies;
the retrenching screw had received anoth.
or turn, and it made my heart ache. Tn.
known TO him |, too, made my new econ.
omies, 10 behalf Of the same cause, until
felt mean and skimped to the furthest de-
gree. | can't tell you how much we
endured because Of that hundred dollars,
which went toward paying for carpets and
cushions and other luxuries that tho wor.
shippers in the old church had always done
without.
OF course that "pesky church" still
stands, but from that day to this we have
never entered it. The effort to make il
aristocratic failed, and its entire history
has been series Of struggles to pay the
preacher and keep up style.H i IS n
Two years ago 0bed, almost entirely at
his own expense, for he had come into
possession OF his patrimony then, re6tted
the old church, which, after all, has come
to be fashionable as wella useful. When
the suggestion was made to have the old
church repaired 0bed made little speech,
in which he said that rather than have q
single man or woman subscribe farthing
beyond what he or she was abundantly