Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-05-15
A Meeting HoHse in the Tennessee
Mountains.

The little log meeting house at the
Notch stood high on a rugged spur OF
the Great Smoky. Dense forests en-
compassed it on every hand, obscuring
that familiar picture OF mountain and
cloud and cove. From its rude, glass
less windows one could look out on no
distant vista, save perhaps in the vision
nry glories of heaven or the climatic
discomforts of he'll, according to the
state Of the conscience, or perchauce the
liver. The sky was aloof and limited
The laurel tangled the aisles OF the woods
Sometimes from the hard benches a
weary, tow-headed brat might rejoice to
mark in the monotony the frisking of a
squirrel on a bough by, or q wood
pecker solemnly tapping. The acorns
would rattle on the roof, if
the wind stirred, as IL in punctuation of
the discourse. The pines. mastering
strong among the oaks, joined their mys-
tic threnody TO the sad-voiced curing
within. The frs stretched down long.
pendulous, dark,ing boughs, and filled
the mir with their balsamic fragrance.
Within the house the dull light fell over
a few rude benches and platform with
chair and table, which was used IS
pulpit. Shadows Of many deep, rich
tones Of brown lurked among the raftcrs.
Here and there cobweb, woven to the
oonsistencc of fabric swung in the air.
he urone Of bme-bottle, fluttering in
ana out CT the window in a slant
Of sunshine, might invade the rev.
erent silence, as Brother Jake Tobin
turned the leaves TO read the chapter.
a.
commotion among the horses without,
unhafncssed. from tie wagons and
hitchcd to the trees; then in more than
one of the solemn faces might be de-
serted an anxious perturbation-not fear
because Of equine perversities, but because
Of the idosyncrasies of callow human
nature in the uchins left in charge of
the tcams. No one yenturcd to investi
gate, however. and. with that worldly
discomfort contending with the spiritual
civilizations they sought TO foster, the
rows of religionists swayed backward
and forward in rhythm TO the readers
Voice, rising and falling in long, bill
lowy sweeps of sound, like the ground
swell of ocean waves.
IL was strange. looking upon their
faces, and with 4 knowledge Of the linn
tied phases Of their existence, their SINH
larity Of experience here, where hun
dred years might come aud go, working
no change save that, like the leaves, they
huttercd awhile in the outer air with the
spurious animation called life, and fell
IN death, and made way for new bour-
geonings like unto thcmselves--str
10 mark how they differed. Here was
man of stern, darkly religious con-
yiction, who might either have writhed
IA the stake or stopped to kindle tho
DANES; and here was an accountant soul
that knew only those keen mercantile
motives-the hope of reward and the
fear Of hell; and here was an enthusi-
aBt's eye, touched by the love Of God
and here was an unfinished, hardly hui
manized face, that it seemed as pre-
sumptuous to claim as the exponent of q
soul as the faces of the stupid oxen out
of-doors All were earnest many wore
an expression Of excited interest, as the
details Of the chapter waxed to climax,
like the tense stiffness of metropolitan
audience before an unimagined coup do
theatre. The men oil sat on one side,
chewing their guilds: the women on the
other, almost masked by their limp sun
bonnets The ubiquitous baby-several
Of him--was there, and more than once
babbled aloud aud cried out peevishly.
Only one, becoming uproarious, wss
made . public example; being quietly
borne out and deposited in the OK wagon,
at the mercy of the urchins who presided
over the teams, while his mother creaked
q again on the tips of deprecating. anx-
ious toes, to hear the Word. -Atiantic
Monthly.