The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1888-12-05
AN INFORMAL CHRISTENING.

AN INFORMAL CHRISTENING.
one evening in December At the time
when the sinking sun made faiabo~s
,br,uyh tie western windows. and his
thoughts Travelled elsie-; The hearenwarl
ourn-v. a woman rushed up the aisle Of
the church toihe altar q pale, wild-eyed
woman. holding a bundle in her aras.
VIA Won ciiristen her. sir?-~iA you
cbr-ien hergFar Gods sake christen her,
10 save her soui
She held the bundle toward him and
bepan 10 unite. unwind, untuist it, with
fingers all disobel ieni and asiray as to
their proper vocaiions. and - SLOW ihai
her feet began 10 give way.and me wonle
have fallen on her hopelessiy e~niangieo
handle fhe had not caught il with one
hand. while with the other be- eased her
60 The ground
I'm only dizzy, sir-i'm oniy dizzy
and weak I've jns; been discharged from
the Charity Hospital
She lay back against the steIs Of The
altar and closed her ewes. shaae after
shade o. reray aud blue ralior pal'edoTer
her thin. p-nched features. Her long
limbs lay stsT and straight under her cal
leo gown. as they bad lain under the
sheets Of her cot at The hospital. As she
ribrated hack and forth IN and out ofan-
CONSCIOUSNESS her cheek sank YEARLY On
the siep. ssi il j. were a soft pillow, cor
turned away. repulsed by the GOODNESS Of
the timber She did not attempt TO rise
or 10 look az him. but talked on dreamiy,
almost deliriously.
The Sister would have ehrisiened
her. but / wouldn't let them They would
have put her in one oftheir asylums The
Sisters would nave csrisieued her, and
they would have put bier in an asylum
The Sisters
She became conscieusof the rep.dions
Of her tongue, and by a struggle raised
herselfto a sitting posture, and relieved
her thoughts.
There is no telling bow ald a sick wo-
man Is. As she liy on the ground she
looked weazenel and shriyeled get hcr
way n hiding her face in her arm. and
her petuiant opposition were very child
ish.
There is no need for her 20 be damn
ed too. isthere, sir?7
The face that looked ont from The
shawl was as ola d. the mothers and 80
red and wunkled, and with such ar nm
promising outlook for Tie soul, that the
minister felt he could assume the respon-
sibiity ola deci6ed negative.
They said she was a fine child am
sure she is very pretty don't you think
50, sir?'
There was huge stone font which the
guild had begged from 4 pious stone-cut-
Ter. II WAS as large as a child's bath-tut,
and not unlike one in shape, a font IN
which babies by tine halfdozen could
have been immersed. And there was a
small pitcher OF water WATCH the kind
old eolored sexton daily placed ia a cor
ner ofthc choir for the minister refresh
ment. AZ careless Of the ritual as tine Sa-
VIC had been before him, in all MS cere-
monies, ignonngthe printed re- uirements
Of his PRAYER book and tresplssing againsi
ecclesiastical e%tiquette ia almost every
word and gesture, Herbert administered
the rite, humbly PRAYING on his own he
half. at the end Of IL, that the good Lord
would stand by him on the last day when
his bishop, before which dignitaries min
listers like Herbsrt are the worms OF the
earth, should find out the fall iIrcsuiari-
" Of the proceeding.
What IS her name q he asked. not in
the formal, conventional tone, for be did
not venture 10 bring the dignity Of thc
church into the transaction it was only
a matter Of a l~ortnight-old soul. between
the Lord and himself.
The woman had risen. He saw now
that she was really young, and had been
pretty.
"Oh, sir" with a twist Of he' head, Edo
YOU think Daisy would be too good for
her? Daisy is such a beautiful name. !
read about a Daisy once ina novel"
Decidedly size was very young. lie
christened her Daisy, and east about fox
some saint With whom he might take a
liberty. He remembered his mother, a
saint though not in the calendar her
name was Elizabeth So he made up
Daisy Elizabeth and fr what 81 in
formal baptism was worth the Iittle chiid
in his arms lay indebted.
Il can carry he7 nov. sir 7 was only
a little weak 1 should have lea the hos
piial Yesterday my time yas up bat
the Sisters vsouidut let me. It was
raining. 30 they made me stay IA day
longer"
She was standing right in a rainbow,
looking through the colars younger and
younger, preltier and p%reitier; the church
was already beginning to get dark in the
corners.
The Sisters were very kind they
would have put her But / was an asy-
linn girl myself"
Oh, the mother. lack and the fatherlack
in that rlaintive confession It sounded
through the little church Tx q vail from
all the sun-bonneied. uniformed little
girls foredoomad 10 heart misery. ShS
turned. and with uncertain feet, unaccus
toned TO her light weight, went on; O
the church.
Il was a fiction Of his imagination, an,
he knew il: but if the good Lord ha'
been there, He would have followed her
would havetaken fhe Young woman IN
der the arm aud conveyed her 10 a SUR
comfortable retreat, just rs Herbert ha
thought He saw him do. Just Is Herber
did himself.
There were questions % be asked, il
formation siatistically nseiul 10 be Oh
tanned. As clergyman he was empoW
cred 10 satisfy his curiosity but he la.
none. Why should he surmise sixiee
instead Of kno wing it9 why stesdfastl
overlook her marriage ~ineer2-who sh
was2-what she WAS Pa little w0ma
with a child-a new mother ia the wofl
with a pathetic body staggering from h
ordeal, and a heart 50 carefully, so fen
ninety concealed.