The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-03-07

l.
it was shame to be always beggin'
so of the board.
Mrs. Puffy is good, only she alters
wanted to talk SO pious, and she put
down her two shillin', and then hove
sigh. Then I found the boys at the
coopershop, and got seven names
there at one lick, and when the list
began to grow, people seemed
ashamed to say no, and / kept gain
in till l had just an even hundred,
and then l went home.
Well, it was pretty we'll toward
candlelight when l got back, and l
was that tired I didn't know much of
anything. I've washed and I've
scrubbed, and I've baked and I've
cleaned house, and I've billed soap,
and I've moved, and | lowed that al
most any one of that sort of things is
a little exhaustin'. But put your
bakin' and movin' and bilin' soap and
all together, and it won't work out as
much tired soul and body as any one
day with a subscription paper to
support the gospel. So when [ sort
O dropped into chair, and Hezekiah
said, "Well7" was just past speak
in and put my check apron up to
my face as l hadn't done since l was
a young, foolish girl and cried. l
don't know what felt so bad about;
| don't know as l did feel bad. But
l felt cry and | cried. And Kiah,
seem how it was, felt kind O. sorry
for me, and set some tea a-steepin';
and when I had my tea and my cry,
and mingled my drink with weepin',
felt better.
l handed him the subscription pa
per, and he looked it over as if he
didn't expect anything; but soon he
began saying, Il neverl l neverp
And l said, "Of course you didn't,
you never tried. How much is it?"
"Why, don't you know9" says he.
"No," said, 81 amt quick in figures,
and l hadn't time to foot it up; hope
it will make us out this year three
hundred dollars or So"
Amy" says he, "you're prodigy
"a prodigal, l may say-and you
don't know it. A hundred names at
two shillin' each gives us twenty-five
dollars Sunday. Some of 'em may
fail, but most o. 'em is good, and
there is ten, eleven, thirteen, that
sign fifty cents. Thatll make up
what fails. That paper of yourn II
give us thirteen hundred dollars
year," jumped up like 1 was shot.
eyes," he says, 1--WE shan't need
anything this year from the Board.
This church, for this year at any rate,
is self-supporting."
We both sot down and KEEP still
minute, when I said kind O. softly,
"Hezekiah," says l, isn't it about
time for prayerss" 1 was just chok-
in; but as he took down the Bible
he said, 81 guess we had better sing
somethin'." l nodded like, and he
just struck in. We often sing at
prayers in the morning, but it now
seemed like the scripture that says,
"He giveth songs in the night"
Kiah generally likes the solemn tunes,
too; and we sing, "Show pity, Lord"
great deal; and we had sung,
"Hark, from the tombs a doleful
sound" cause Kiah was not feeling
very we'll, and we wanted to chirk
up little.
So l jest waited to see what meter
he'd strike to night, and would you
believe it? 1 didn't know that he
knew any such tune. But off he
started on "Joy to the world, the
Lord is come" I tried to catch on,
but he went off, lickerty-switch. like
a steam engine, and l couldn't keep
up. 1 was partly laughing to see
Kiah go it, and partly cryin' again,
my heart was SO full; SO l doubled
up some of the notes and jumped
over the others, and so we safely
reached the end. But tell you Hez-
ekiah prayed. He alters prays we'll;
but this was bran new prayer. ex-
actly suited to the occasion. And
when Sunday came, and the minister
got up and told what had been done,
and said, at is all the work of one
good woman, and done in one day."
| just got scared and wanted to run.
And when some of the folks shook
hands with me and said with tears in
their eyes, how I'd saved the church,
and all that, l come awful nigh get
tin proud. But, as Hezekiah says,
"we're all poor Sinners" and so l
choked it back. But l am glad l did
it; and l don't believe our church
will ever go boarding any more
Dora Dennis, in the PRESBYTERIAN