Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1894-05-11
THE MINISTER'S Wife.

The clereymen who had success
sively. but, alasl not successfully,
filled the pastorate of Farmingvale,
had had good reasons to cOnPratu
late themselves when they left the
place. They had all been mar.
ried men; they had all had large
families and small salaries and they
had never given satisfaction. AT
ter the first few months the trus
tees had groaned over the salary;
the elders decided that Brother A
"wasn't gifted in prayer" tie con
gregatlon complained of not being
visited enough, of not being sufi
ciently edited, and wondered
whether the minister couldn't dc
more good in another place. And
then matters came to a crisis, and
there was vacancy IN the Farm
ingyale pulpit, and a succession
OF ministers young and old, who
preached by request and general
ly made a favorable impression
And finally another call was made
another pastor came, who was wei
coined cordially, treated 20 dona
tiOn parties, and then descended
in popular favor until his light
died out In darkness.
Farmingvale was particularly
unfortunate in this respect; it wal
in fact famed for its dismission o.
pastors without peculiar provOca
ton. Many a grave. middle-aged
man gave good advice to Arthur
Bartlett, the newly. .dedged clergy
man, who had proclaimed himself
ready to be installed as pastor OF
the church in Farmingvale. Men
of much experience had failed
there-able men, too whose ortLo.
doxy could not be doubted. Bart
lett was a man of promiSe-why y
should he doom himself to disap
pointment at the beginning Of his
careerf Nobody approved OF the
act; bat Bartlett, ardent, hopeful,
and only twenty-five, was all the
more resolved to accept the call
He hoped to succeed where no one
else had eyer succeeded; to dc
good, to become beloved, and to
end his days whore he had begun
his work. 1t was a pure and
beautiful ambition, although world
ly men might smile at 1t az being
very humble. SO Arthur Bartlett
came to Farmingvale, aud stood
before the pulpit during the cere'
mony of installation, and received
the charge With an humble deter
mination God being bis helper to
obey it; and the next Sabbath
stood iu the pulpit and preached
unto the people.
Tnere are some young men who
have a wOmsn's beauty without
being efieminate. Arthur Bartlett
was one of these. He had soft,
golden brown hair, which could
not be called red by his
greatest enemy, a broad, high fore
head, white as flesh and blood
could 6e, aud a color that came
and went, now the faintest tinge
of rose, now deepest carnation
Moreover, he was neither puny nor
ungrace tul, stood straight as an
arrow, and had a voice clear and
singularly musical, and powerful
enough to fill the church without
an effort.
That day bright eyes lookt d up
at the young minister, and many a
girl, If the truth were known,
thought more of his fair face than
of his sermon. BIT he preached
with all his heart 10 the words he
uttered, and thought not at all of
anyone OF them.
Perhaps they did not quite IN
derstand this: for that day the
yOung ladies took violent fiucy
to the new minister; and most OF
them resolved to do all thew could
to make FArmlrgvale pleasant for
him. Ofcourse be would marry
soon. He needod wife, they de
clded. Sewing societies, fairs ant
tea.drlnklngs followed each othel
in quick succession. Farmingvale
Is, to speak, caroused. though in
gsnteel and vIrtuous, fashion, fol
1.-The next three months, and Mis-