The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-06-28

back to town and get his few stckfuls
| OF slusb into the paper in good time"
Angel od'naturedly consented, say
ing:
"Well, why not?"
Before service, deacon or vestry-
man or elder or trustee, or whatever
the church dignilary may have been,
came up to the pulpit stairs, watched
by curious eyes and told Angel that the
requisite number of members had
signed and presented request that a
meeting should be called to inquire into
certain grievances alleged against him,
and that he bad ordered the meeting,
and asked that the usual notice be read
among the other notices after sermon.
Well, why not?" assented the pas
tor, in visible and audible whisper.
And the other squeezed his hand
with reassuring smile.
But, in the minister's pew, there
were no smiles that day-tears, rather;
either shed or so nearly shed as to
be visible from the pulpit, all through
the line discourse on the need the
world has, not for almsgiving, but
for northumberland sisterhood. Luck
lily have the reporters synopsis of it:
Gifts OF goods were all very well in
their place, and their place was in
those rare cases where they did not,
directly or indirectly, advantage the
beershop, and where they did not tend
to pauperize the receiver and give
false self-satisfaction to the giver,
quoting his conscience as audanum
quiets pain without removing its cause.
Gift of self, of heart and soul, of sym.
patty and encouragement, was the only
safe outlet for the promptings of our
religion and our better nature.
What does do as you would be
done by" mean? Does it mean any
thing? Does it mean that when one
asks bread we shall give him a stone,
merely because to part with the stone,
is easiest and lessons most our load of
obligation?
AS a general rule in ethics, that
which is easiest to do is least worth
doing. One may say over an Ave or
Paternoster so often that at last it
doesn't interfere with thought, fancy
action, emotion, or even sleep; but our
blessed promises do not promise an
swers to such petitions. There are ma
tons where the pious votaries write
their prayers on bits of paper and put
'ilCiht Wy tiO lnbO d
which they afterward turn over aud
over in order that the prayers may
present themselves to heaven, even
going so far as to connect them with
water-wheel that they may turn them
selvesl Do we laugh at this? What
right have we to do so, when we try to
make our acts of faith and duty to be of
the least possible trouble to ourselves?
| h., Il -, 1,.11
and please our self-conceit by benevo-
lent act, do we ask C. what would be
best for him or her?"
Do as you would be done by. Do
unto others as we would that others
should do unto you. But do not con-
fuse and confound the two forms of the
precious precept by making it read
"Do unto others as we would that
others should be done BY"
Finally, what would be the conduct
toward our humber equals - man,
woman, and chld-of our great Ex-
emplar?
Eft cetera.
After service, the same friendly
church dignitary walked home with
Mr.. and Mrs. Angel and talked cheerily
of everything except the pending
trouble, until they parted at the gate,
!, when he said, with troubled air and
apropos of nothing
"Ye see, Brother Angel, they're
afraid that the piano would be only the
entertaining wedge, as we might say;
aud the next thing might be books out of
the library, yesterdays paper, after
noon company, evening walk along the
water side, the sewing the
the-the bath tub, may bel"
Well, why not?',
Again the other squeezed his hand,
then departed.
The Hateful evening arrived; the
meeting convened-the pastor in the
: chair, as the church regulations re-
, CURED. The case was stated, and a
resolution of censure offered and de-
bated.
One shrewd sister, knowing the fool
ishness of the young workers of the
church, who had been drawn into sun.
: dry schemes that seemed almost social
y istic in their leveling tendencies, moved
that only married people should vote
=, on the resolution, and the motion was
carried. Then the friendly old church
dignitary before mentioned moved that
the vote should be by secret ballot, yea
or nay; and this was also carried.
The voting, then restricted, was con-
fined to sixty people-thirty couples,
including the minister and his wife.
Sixty blank bits of paper were dis
tributed, and pencils borrowed, until
the ballots were all ready and the
boxes passed around to collect them.
Angel had received enough handshakes
aid glances from the male members of
his flock to let him know that he bad at
least few friends, and he wondered
what was before him.
Something he did not expect
The chairman announced the vote
Twenty-nine yeas and twenty. nine
nays. 1t takes a majority to prevail
and the resolution is lost" Every
woman had voted yea, and every man
nay
A shout went up from the excluded
element, the young women and youns
men, &" helpers " and workers anC
"brothers " and sisters " of this anC