Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1882-04-12
Sunday In the Olden Time.

We lived four miles north of the town of
F., said my mother, and the church and
graveyard were one mile south of it, so we
had five miles to ride every Sunday to at
tend church. For long time all rode upon
horseback. We children were placed in
front of the older people. remember well
of riding perched on pillow before my
grandfather. After time grandfather had
a small coach made, Just like the grand
stage coaches that rolled so grandly up to
the door every day. Grandmother, mother,
Aunt M, and we small folks were packed
into it Sunday morning, and the rest of the
family followed on horses, making quite
cavalcade. Church.going in those times was
an all-day affair. A plentiful lunch was
taken to eat between the morning and after
noon sermons. In warm weather it was
very pleasant during this interval to collect
in groups on the grassy slopes Of the church
yard and chat and eat, and then go down to
the spring for a drink. On communion
Sundays in summer the tables were spread
out in the open air in the grove. Back of
the tables was tent for the ministers and
the elderly people. | recall now how i'm
pressed l was with the large satin bonnets
Of the old ladies that saw seated in the
tent, sight more awe-inspiring to my child
ish mind than the solemn service being OBJ
served. There were no Sundsy-schools in
those early days, with attractive books and
papers, and lively and beautiful songs.
After supper, to which full justice was rem
dered, for we were all as hungry as hounds
with our long ride and light lunch, grown
folks, children, and servants gathered round
the huge open fireplace in the great kitchen.
The Bible, catechism, psalm and hymn
hoply hrnurht nt nd
questioned and expected to repeat all that
had been previously learned, and at least
| the answer to one question. Hymns were
also recited and verses from the Bible, re-
| ligious instruction was given, and the even
| ing's exercises closed with singing some of
the grand old hymns and psalms. The
books considered suitable for Sunday read
ing then would not prove very attractive to
the boys and girls of this age, when the
juvenile appetite is fairly cloyed with the
dainties in prose and verse that authors and
| publishers vic in providing the young of
this generation. Fox's Book of Martyrs,
Baxter's Saints Rest, Hannah More's Prac-
tical Piety and as somewhat more lively
reading, the cheap Repository Tracts of the
aforementioned writer, and the always de
lightful Pilgrims Progress, were the volumes
that had to content us then, if for any rea-
son we were kept at home from church
Once a year grandfather went to the capital
of the state as member of the legislature
and we youngsters were always sure of re
ceivng some new book on his return, AND
thus our library became more extensive a.
time passed but the additions made were
all of the good, substantial kind, as Edge
worth's Evenings at Home, etc. How inter
ested we children were when an older siste
returned from school in a neighboring tow
and told us about the Sunday-school she at
tended there, and the charming story book
the pupils were allowed to read. AmonJ
those she brought to US were The Broker
Hyacinth, Anna Ross, and Pierre and hi
Family. The last was the story of Wal
densian family during the terrible persecu
, tions of the seventeenth century, when thi
little band of faithful ones was almost ex
terminated by the cruelty of the Papa
church. The tenacity with which thes
poor people clung to their Bible, and tn
faith founded upon its teachings, increases
our love and veneration for the book, an
enabled us to see why we were obliged
commit 80 much of its contents to memor
! and taught to read it 30 constantly. Scant
| as the privileges of those days appear, con
pared with the present, the memory of thei
quiet, uneventful hours is very sweet.
not fed upon such variety of food as tn
1 youth of to-day find spread before then
:. what was furnished was pure and whole
y some, and if little too substantial TO
completely digested there was nothing in
Q to poison the mind, or make the truths c
the good old Bible unpalatable.-PresbI
II ferinn.