Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1896-08-01


cellent folk, and flouted, as appears, a
good work, and convinced everybody
who had any doubt befeNr aAat really
am an atheist?"
1t was on the face ofites2 dnfortungte
circumstance, and ufso cSeid only sray-
gest that peoples memories are WI
short in these bury days.
"The people in that room don't for
get" said Fletcher, gloomily. "And
this very day l crowned my iniquity;
it's no use fighting against fate, by
which 1 mean this hideous vice of the
ridiculous. It's in my blood-the only
bad turn my mother did me.
what happened to-day? oh, nothing
again, nothing. l simply stumbled into
the conference of the 'Sisterhood of
Female Philanthropists,' and was
dragged to the platform, where 1 sat
facing the audience" and he shuddered
at the remembrance.
"She was most eloquent speaker,
and she was enlarging on the courage
it needed to ask n stranger to join the
sisterhood. Well do l remember my
feelings and then she travelled into
autobiography. Your feelings that day
were doubtless the same as mine,' aud
again she turned aside, and we were
kept in anguish. Yes, You and l had
the same experience, and we shall never,
never forget there every one made
ready to take note. Dear sisters, did
not each of us burst that minute into
violent perspiration There seemed
no way of getting out except through
the hail. and it was really very good of
them not to hiss me.
"Of course I'll never run such risks
again, but it does not matter where am,
this evil spirit will seize me; it is my
profound conviction that there is
personal devil, and that humor is one
of his choice Instruments.
"You know that wonderful verger of
ours who IS an understudy of an alder
man? Well, he took charge of a party
of staugers at the door, who had come
in at the venite, and started procession
he leading majestically, chanting as
he went, and gencly beating time with
his left hand. Then he turned at GER
tain pew, and motioned to his convoy
to enter, but there was nobody. The
people had found seats for themselves
at the back, and the procession had
consisted of the great man himself.
When l stood at the lectern, the sight
came up before me, and Invent to pieces
over the word Nebuchadnezzar.
'As for funerals''-Fletcher was de-
termincd to make clean breast of it
they are simply a terror to me; men
play such pranks and are so unreal.
You know Bibby, what droll, chubby
faced, hearty little man he is?" Yes,
] did know Bibby. well, he came yes
terday into the room where we were all
sitting in that awful silence with an
expression so woebegone that l could
have shaken him; ne sat down beside
me, and sighed like blast furnace"
(Which was too much for your wick
edness?"
"I only said in a natural voice: Bitter
east wind and if the wretched creature
did not reply: 'Ah, yes, very uncx-
pected'-he did not know the relatives
by sight. and had mistaken the doctor
for the chief mourner-'and sad. We
are there to-day and here Tomorrow
Then if he didn't wag mis- head, and
Satan seemed to take possession of me.
1T isn't that 1 am not ashamed of my
self, or that l don't take precautions.
1 have not preached sermon for years
without reading it over once for the
special purpose of scoring out any sin
gle word that would provoke smile.
Yet people laugh when l preach in
strange churches, although am as SOL
emn as grave-digger, and rascally
newspaper called me an amusing
preacher. AS for myself, the public exc
cutions 1 have conducted"
"As counteractive, do you mean?'
Eyes, of course; the moment see any
danger, 1 condemn some poor wretch
to death without mercy, and strap his
legs and arms, and place him on the trap
door, and put on the white cap, and pull
the bolt. Surely that is enough. The
number of people bave hung at an &C.
clesiastical gathering, say the diocesan
conference, to maintain my character,
often fills me with remorse."
do ccclesiastics never laugh?" I
dared to inquire.
Never, except in quiet, regulated
fashion at some jocose, time-honored
clerical pleasantly, and then only if it
proceed from an archdeacon upwards.
If mere commoner like myself, being
suddenly overcome by the pedantic abb
surdity of ecclesiastical ways. should
express himself freely, you would see
sicltly smile on the faces of those Sill
perior men, and afterwards you might
overhear them: Great want of serious
ness; very light mettle, indeed
I'm fact" and Fletcher became al
most bitter, ''if you wish to succeed in
church or state, never jest, and remem-
ber what our English humorist said
when, with his friends, he was tasting
some agreeable tale: Look solemn,
here's n fool coming"
1t was in vain that 1 labored at con-
ISOLATION, urging the woodenness of men
that had no humor, their blunders,
weariness, and inanities, from all of
which a sense of humor surely delivers