Huntsville gazette., 1889-07-20
FARMER BROWN.

''Ses' TO wife (for wife an me goes ham in
hanD,
Ses l. I'll tell ye what, I've got a plan
I've ben a-thinkin' on for quite timel
To-mo-rer, eff it hol's eff fair an fine,
I'll go into the city, with "a load
The haulin's.easy, on q level road!
Ill sell it out, an put up for the night,
An in the mornin' I'll fresh me up, all clean
an bright
An 60 to mcetin' an hear. the blessed word
From them as truly knows the meanin's OF the
Lordt -
I'll do it, sure as am Farmer Brown,
An livin here fnJenkinstownl
F. zsss
$50 Sunday KEN an went alone,
Through miles of streets on walks of stone,
Till the meetin' House. at last was found,
An l stopt jes still an look't aroundi
1t ulmos' took my bre th to see.
That towerin church, an it seemed to me
AS eff the doors, what was swingin' wide,
Was beck min all the world inside.
sAn slept sof-lite, and kinder slow.
For ses' I, ] feel to know,
This is OF all a holy place.
An the air of it is the air OF grace;
AN | walk't strait in, an strait ahed,
For m cant to hear all the preacher sed;
An | sOt rite down in cushioned pew,
Close up in front, with a ra' al good vlewl
THE light lzem through the painted pane,
An lit The place like Il holy fame
] sat, an tho't OF the hurnin' bush,
An my heart beat loud in the still an hush,
TIL the organ spoke, so sof an low.
Like the pleadn' tones of child, you know
An then the soun's grew loud an clear,
AS ef the Lord Himself was near,
Seems like l hearn His voice in the organs
Seems Ike felt His strength lift up my soul!
'Jes' then lady KEN, with chill, white face,
picter of ice in frame of lacei
She stopt an she loolt, an moved along,
But still she stood, like suthin was wrong
She 1oed so cold that she froze me through,
An didn't know what I orter to do;
80 Sos 1: Kin help ye, ma'am? I'm Farmer
Brown, ~s
An | live to home, in Jenk;nstOwn.
Then man KEN up, an he ses, ses he:
III fin you seat--lem along with me
Il follered him down thelong, long lie,
An the fo'ks all comm in the while
felt so strange,an' st1ff, an queer,
] couldn see, an l couldn't hear,
An when We got to the ebackmost seat OF all
My knees they shook likeI would fall,
But the slick young man with the bright breast
He ses to me: Pass in. pass inr
sot rite down. but my heart was sore,
An rose in my throat like an applec core.
The preacher got up, an he prayed a prayer,
But my mind it couldn't follow him fair
/ tho't of the stranger before the gates
Ses l to myself, I'm him that waits,
An faint the sears nor the stains of sin,
Tis ies' my clothes went let me inI
AN all OF q suddint, the glory and grace
Was lost in the dark ana the gloom of the place
The soul of the sermon seemed starvin' an
lean:
] couldn't make out what the preacher did
mean.
/ tho't Of the Master with sandaled feet,
] wondere if He should chance to meet
The lady fair, with the chill. white face,
In the house OF Col, in II holy place,
II she'd look 1T Him as she looked at me;
II she'd curl her lip as haughtilyl
q! wondered, too, if the slick young man,
With his spine as stiff as a battering ram,
Would lead Christ back. cause His robe was
coarse,
an wasn't expressed from fashions source!
Il took my hat, an still as any mouse,
! Slid rite down them stairs, an lef the house!
In my old soul there was u sigh, an not song
An sech puzZlin, rs | slowly walll't along!
All to wunst, it was as cf l spoke directly with
the Lord,
1t was as if hearn the Spirit Of the Word,
An plain emmy thing, II sed to me-
BE STILL my son, an lis'cn patiently!
My church can nol be built Of earthly wood or
My temple true is reared within the heart
alone!
Now seek no longer for the outer sign,
But feed thy soul from inner founts divine!
Nor wander farther, Farmer Brown,
I'll bide by thee in Jenkinstownr"