The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-02-18
Strange and Beautiful Dream.
IcITIzEN OF MoRGANTowN, WEST VA.

W4cITIzEN OF MoRGANTowN, WEST VA.
~ first day of returning health,
after manv weeks of severe illness
va bright Sunday in this month.
L Waswell enough to sit at an open
wIQa,v in my easy chair, and scent
thelsdt breeze that famed my pale
cheek and revived my languid
frafne The bell of our church was
just hginning to ring and the famil-
larsond awakened in me an intense
longing to be with my family once
mofea worshiper in the house of
God.T took up my Bible and Prayer
Book which had been placed ready
on Irritable beside me, intending to
begiTto read when the hour of the
Sts5s sa--o'clock service should com
meme, and in the meantime closed
my eyes. and soothed my impatient
wishing by picturing to myself the
streets that led to our church, and
the throngsthat would now be enter
ing it fer the public worship of the
day.
All at once I seemed to be walking
toward the church yet prevented
from gratifying my eager wish to
enter by some irresistible though un-
seen hand. Ont by one the congre-
CATION, in their gay Sunday dresses,
passed me by, AVID went in where |
vainly strove to follow. The chill.
dren, from the Sunday School, filed
up the staircases into the audience
room, and except a few stragglers,
huraying in as feeling themselves
late, | was left alone.
Suddenly l was conscious of some
awful presence, and felt myself ad-
dressed by a voice of most sweet
solemnity in words to this effect:
"Mortal, who by divine mercy has
just been permitted TO return from
the gates of the grave, pause before
thou enterest Gods holy house
again; reflect how often thou hast
profaned His solemn public worship
by irreyerence, or by inattention,
which is in His solemn sight irrev.
erence ; consider well the privilege
the urspeakable benefit and blessing
of united prayer, lest, by again abus.
ing it, thou tire the patience of thy
long suffering God, and tempt Hin
for ever to deprive thee of that which
hitherto thou hast so little Valued"
's''-.-,s- '-'~ 49, q .',.:1s ,s nv avne-ane
blush with conscious guIII, the gra
cious being continued in a milde
tone: 81 am one of those angel
commissioned to gather the prayer
of the saints, and form them int
Wreaths of OdorOus incense, that they
may rise to the throne of God. En-
ter now with me, and thou shalt, TO
thy warning, be enabled to discern
those among the deYOtiOns about tt
be offered which are acceptable t.
Him, and to see how few in number
how weak and unworthy they are,'
AS ne ceased speaking l found my
self by the side of the angel still, bu
within the church. and 50 PLACED
that | could distinctly see every par
of the building.
"Obserye," said the angel, "tha
those prayers which come from tn,
heart, and which alone ascend OF
| high, will seem to be uttered aloud
They will be more or less audible il
proportion to their earnestness whel
thoughts wander, the sounds will
grow faint, and even cease altogether
This explained to me why the or
ganist, though apparently playing
with all her might, produced n
sound. and why, presently after tn
service began, though the lips c
many moved, and all appeared at
tent;ve, only few faint murmuring
were heard.
How strange and awful it was t
note the sort of death.like silenc
that prevailed in whole pews, j
| | Svhich, as was thus evident, no hear
was raised in gratitude to HEAVIER
There was a low murmuring, an
then, distant and clear above a
other sounds, sweet childish voiC
softly and reverently repeated tn
Lords Prayer. 1 turned in the d
rection of the sound. and distir
guished among the children a yer
: little boy. His hands were claspe
together as he knelt his eyes wei
closed, his gentle face composed
reverence and as the angel wrote 0
his tablets the words that fell froI
those infant lips, his smile, like
/ sunbeam, Illuminated the church ft
a moment, and l remembered ii
) words of holy David, where he say
"Out of the mouth of babes an
sucklings Thou hast perfected praise
Presently was again reminded
a Scripture passage-the prayer