The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-07-02
To a Church ChOrister.


Junction Il have always wished to belong
to church choir. My ambition, however,
has never been gratiied, except on one
occasion many years ago, when it became
my humble privilege to furnish inspira-
ton for the organ. The defeat of my
cherished desire attribute to two reasons
first, that my voice has not been trained
for singing and, second, that l have no
voice to train. AS l think of certain
church choirs which l have heard, these
objections do not seem insuperable. It is
not uncommon in choirs, think, to have
three persons who can sing and one who
cannot, or to have one person who can
sing and three who cannot. But l am
assured that position in such choirs is
only obtained in cases where there is q
temporary or permanent deafness in the
music committee. All applications on my
part to act as such a musical dummy have
been unavailing. My object in wishing
to join some regular choir is not on ac-
count of the salary. There are public
offices the perquisites of which form
much more valuable inducement than the
salary. 1t is for the perquisites that
should like to join the choir at Sectarian
Junction. 1t has seemed to me that
church choirs enjoy a good many privi-
leges not awarded to other people. l do
not speak here of the opportunities they
have for social enjoyment and the large
income they derive from simply tickling
the ears of their hearers, but refer to
the unusual advantages which they enjoy
at public worship. 60 to church myself
from sense of duty. The choir seem
30 t<, fv0sv, Nf v@la
Their pleasure, too, does not seem to be
confined to their own part of the service.
l enjoy the singing myself when it is
good, and perhaps like it more than most
people that attend your church, because l
have not all ear for music. But the SER
mon, confess, is great bore. do not
know that our minister is worse than the
average. should hope not but find it
very difficult, in these days, to listen to
sermon that is more than twenty minutes
long from any one. Nevertheless, notice
that the choir always seem to have the
best time when the sermon is going on. l
confess to being somewhat devoid of a
sense of humor, and to this reason / have
sometimes ascribed the fact that the choir
seem to get 80 much more amusement out
of the sermon than the pastor evidently
put into it. have often wondered how
they could chatter and giggle during its
most serious passages and my explana-
ton has uniformly been that there is but
step between the sublime and the ridic-
ulous, and that that which seemed sub
lime to the minister, somehow seemed
ridiculous to the choir. Having secured,
however, better point of observation,
oh
of the phenomenal and social idiosyncra-
sizes of church choir, l have learned
that, instead of deriving their amusement
from the sermon, as had supposed, they
paid no attention whatever to that part of
the service. Their position in the gallery
at the back part of the church, where
they are not seen by the deacons or the
music committee, does not make that
necessary. In churches where the choir
is at one side or behind the pulpit, ad-
NIT that it is less difficult to avoid the
public eye. But, by means of a curtain
stretched across the front of the choir
stall, they are able to protect themselves
against the fmpertinent curiosity of Off
cious meddlers. The immunity which
choirs enjoy from observing the ordinary
laws of good behavior in a public assem-.
bly, is one of the privileges which most
earnestly covet. To be able to read ex-
tracts from comic paper during sermon
time, to retail the latest bit of gossip in
the neighborhood, to peep through the
curtain and make fun of the congrega-
ton, to write notes, to conduct an anus.
ing filtration, to practice the art of pen.
manship on the leaves of the hymn. books,
| To u,rsk 10 30 Sbo
gentlemen in the gallery, to keep up an
incessant chatter like so many jackdaws
all these seem to me resources by which
the dullest and the longest sermon could
be transmitted into an occasion of un.
stinted hilarity. If these diversions could
only be extended to the pews, church
going would be one of the most popular
amusements of the week. have oc.
casionally seen disposition to rebel on
the part of the clergy against the special
privileges accorded to the choir. As the
ministers objections were based on the
narrow ground of the disrespect offered to
the worship of God and did not affect the
salaries of the choir, they were happily
not effectual. AS despair of effectine
any reform in the church service by which
the behavior of the choir shall become
general in the congregation, I am ex
tremely DESTROYS of securing a position
where l may enjoy all the rights and i'm
munities of the most frivolous soprano OF
the jolliest bass. If possible, l should
like to be elected an honorary member Of
your choir. But, if this is not practica
BILE, will you please secure me position
as chief blower, with all the liberties thai
attach to the most accomplished choir
especially the privilege, when l 60 t.
church, Of leaving my manners behind me-
P. ST. hear there is vacancy in tn,
choir at Broad Meadow; but, as thes,
singers seem TO adhere to the ordinary
rules of good behavior when they go t.
church, it would be of no advantage to mi
to join them.-Chesterfed, in Christian
Register.
Nor all good men can work together
but all good men can and will worl
somehow, somewhere, and in some com
partnership.
THE most important part of every bust
ness is to know what ought TO be done.