, 1891-07-01

cory passed round, ana then as the Dens
was a-ringin' we perceeded to the church.
1t want but a few steps. jest acrost the
common.
And we walked up the broad aisle ter
gether, Hannibal and me. 1 a-leanin' on
his arm, lookin' my best, and he his'n,
with everybody's eyes upon usl l tried
not to feel proud, but it was a happy
for me, ! tell ye. And when
we set down in the old pew where I'd
set ever sence l was a baby, mother on
Dne side, Hannibal on t'other, and me in
the middle, it seemed awful pleasant,
somehow; seemed as if / never loved the
old church so we'll Not that there's
anything nice or harnsome bout our
meetin' house in Craney Holler; it's al
most a barn compared ter city churches,
but ii had one recommend. 1t vas sur
rounded by natur', whose God we had
come to adore The great wiuders was
wide open and | could look out on to the
common, all green and wavy with ma
pies, then away off acrost the medders,
and up, up to the woody hilltops that
touched the blue canopy O. heaven.
Oh, how can anybody that lives in the
country ever lack for religious privi-
leges? God is 80 nigh everywheres in
natur', and he speaks through her so
plain and so direckl Why, il l could git
the time, if l hadn't 50 much homework
ter dew and n thing a. mother, I'd
make a practice O. goin' every day,
as reglar as l say my prayers, to some
beautiful, sullum spot, a purpose ter
commune with my Maker through ma
tur. In no other way can we git so near
to God.
AS / said, it seemed uncommon pleas
ant to me in meetin' that Sunday morn
in. The horses stompin' in the sheds
didn't seem ter disturb me as usual, and
the chirpin' of the birds and the dronin'
of the crickets through the drowsy air
sounded awful nice and soothin'. In
side, the house wa full of good, old
fashioned smells. Patigony mint and
boys love and tanzy and cammomile;
for all the old ladies, and a good many
of the young folks, had a bunch o one
or the other, and perhaps a sprig o green
caraway seed ter MUNICH away on in case
they's inclined to be sleepy.
l looked down to where old Squire
Brown set in his pew in front o. the pull
pit-asleep and noddin' so quick he was
and l noticed that one hand wisely sup
ported his head in order ter keep on his
red wig o. hair. But he want alwers sc
careful, for l remembered how nigh he
often come ter losin' ont, and how, one
Sunday, it did actewally slip clear off'n
his bald pate, and how he jumped and
clapped his hand to his head. and all the
young folks laughed, and some o. the old
ones. Even Parson Lamson jest barely
saved himself by a timely sneezel
Strange that all this should come back
to me 8 % on my weldin' mornin', but it
did, and a good deal more, and l had a
hard tussle bringin' myself into a proper
frame o mind TO tend to the service.
Mother alwers had a him book to her
self, on account o SEEM better, We know,
30 Hannibal and me we looked on ter
gether, and had the proud pleasure o
hearin' him sing for the fust time. He's
got a most powerful voice, and his ex-
preston does beat ALL Everybody was
lookin' at him. Why, he acted it all ont
so, as you might sayl When he struck a
high note he riz up to his full statur',
balanced himself kinder teenterin' on his
toes, stretched up his neck, rolled his
eyes way inter the back part of his head,
and sec n tone as he fetched-high-oh.
terrible highl and on the contr'y, when
he sung n low note, he jest ~scrooched all
down inter his stummuck and chist, and
somethin' rumbled way down in his in
sides, low-oh, terrible low and sollum!
| think his 'low A" was the very lowest
one | ever heerdL His singin' was sart-
inly imposin', and / know II imposed on
everybody that heerd it. AS for me, !
felt so excited and lifted mn nv il that
KEEP awake all through the sermon, didn't
even nod once, and was right on hand
ter rouse up mother and Hannibal in
season for the doxology. Then come the
benediction, and we walked tergeth-
er as we come in, with everybody lookin'
and admirin' and envyin'. And tried
ter realize that | was married, and that
this was my weddin'day. but somehow l
couldn't; it all seemed like a dream
Belle @. Greene in Portfolio.