Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-07-07

Dur host In the Georgia parsonage,
and there is.more shade than light in
the pictures OF life presented to me-
Of life, did / say? might add the
qualifying presence Of death. Some
Of these touches furnish the light
that makes the shade endurable. Here
Is one for instance:
was called one day to the death
bed of an aged woman, Georgia
field hand, who lived in a rude cabin
in the mountains surrounded by gen.
erations of her kin. was recent
conner then, and new to this strange
ministry, SO dreaded TO go among
people believed to be Ignorant and
superstitious. In this spirit / went
there to teach. remained to be
taught.
found a crowd OF colored people
in and around the cabin, and l
thought they were there to make a
holiday and get rid of work, but they
had been holding meeting, singing
the songs Of their people and prayin
for the sick woman. and as caught
fragments OF song and prayer, won
dered that they should send for me.
The scene was strongly spiritual; l
felt myself lifted on the tide of ma
tive eloquence and with. all my col
lege learning and pulpit experience 1
could think of nothing as fine TO say
as the eloquence Of these natural or a
tors, whose perverted texts were the
very poetry and rhythm OF nature.
But they expected me, and | sat
down by the bed on which the dying
woman lay, and saw that she was one
of those mothers in Israel who had
been a leader with her people.
"Wha dc light?" she asked uneasily,
and then l saw that death had strick-
en- her blind.
at done gone out, nanny" said a
little pickaninny, who could tell lie
for loves sale.
"Ain't yo' got 10 cannal-ends?"
"Dey done burn up"
"Wha' de pine-knot?"
"Dey done gone, suah.
40, yese Oh lilli faith" said the
strong voice of the dying woman.
"Wha / done do, when dc cannel-en
done gone, de pine-knot buhn out,
de sun shut heseff off, ef l doan see
wifi de faith OBJ de Lawd? l keant
see yose, but kin heah; kin heah
de roll OBJ de chawiot wheels-de
chawiot wheels oh Israel"
And now happened one Of those
strange incongruities of time and
circumstance which seem TO be de-
veloped by perversity OF occasion.
The old woman did hear wheels, for
at that moment there drove up To the
door with a great dash and display
one of those cumbersome red wagons,
with high tops and gold mountings,
that are used by manufacturers to
attract attention to their wares. A
gold-palnted telescope was focused on
the top. The superstitious negroes
gave way to this unaccustomed vehi-
Gle with its dashiug pair of white
horses, and stared at it with starting
eyes. At once a shout was raised.
"De chawiot of fire! De chawiot an
de bosses! Dey's come for Nanny
Tirzy-Ann, suah enuff !"
The dying woman heard it; over
her furrowed features flowed light
of great joy.
"Tell de Lawd Use comm! hol' him
still till l gets dar. Dress his name.
He amt done forgotten his servantl
Use waitin', Lawd, Use ready"
She rose, majestic in her blindness,
and leaning on thOe nearest her
made a step or two forward. Then
she began to falter:
Use goin' up-all His ribbers hes
flowed ober me, but Use goin' up-the
chawiot am come-I's r-e-d-d-y."
/ helped to lay her on the bed she
had Just left. AS L did so, the words
seemed to form themselves on my lips:
"The chariot OF Israel and the
horsemen thereofw
"JesS so, she answered. ale neber
done forgit His promise"
And the smile that left the seal OF
Immortality on her ashen face fixed
every wavering faith in my soul, and
united me to these lowly people by a
tie that will never be broke II.