The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1897-03-12
HIS MIRACLE.
BY CARL SMITH.

hair and freckled of face, offered 30
show him the way to the church, but
he declined the pruffered courtesy, pre-
fcrring To walk up the railroad tracl,
until he should get tired Of the iaunt.
when he would stop at a cattle q ard
and rest, and tiren return in tine for
dinner. Church going had been an un-
known quantity with him in the city.
" here there were great cathcdrals I'm
half a dozen different parts Of the
.ovvn, and he hardly saw the occasion
for departing from custom simply be
cause his exile in the little country
town was 50 uninjerestingly event less.
lie started with a swinging. athletic
club stride up the line of gravel. there
fore. and the section fOreman's boy.
palpabIy starchy and awkward III his
sunday clothes. went hurrNng down
lhc street from the station. his rcd hair
crimsonly signaling his approach 10
the little frame church while he was yet
D great distance away.
Kennedy was the new telegraph oII-
rrat2r. He was an aspiring fellow and
au intelligent one. and some day n"
hoped to be trick dispatcher. and pos
~ibly, after reasonable lapse of me. the
-uperintendent of telegraph. He sprG1
The long and lonesome nights IN read
NC on social economies. and he knew
more about the history of stranc" and
peculiar things associated with govern
uent than almost anyhodv who 81 name
or fame is now suggested to mind. He
was the chief tclrgrapher of his di-
EiSion of the tclegraphcrS' labor union.
which met. in he city 30 miles ava =. AMI
ne was the man Who made the best
speeches on Tuesday nights. when
'pdge proceedings had got aS fur along
r~ the good of the order" The others
Of the division thought highly OF him.
and usually they sent him as Their
lodge delegate to the sessions of the
international convention. lie could
argue spIcndidly and he said he was an
agnostic-
rs he walked up the track this Sun
day morning the Sabbath feeling
seemed to rise up as though to offend
against his reasoning and REASONABLE
agnosticism. Across the fields came
the mcIlowness of a church bell, and
seeming far far. far away. its sound
was the sweeter for the distance. Over
to the right farmers wagon Wa
as the sleek brown horses dragged the
family toward the place of worship in
the town Around the curve ahead of
him there rose quiet rumblin"- and.
Looking to see what unexpected train
was bearing down upon him. he re
,eived the hail of Michael Doolau, fore
man of Section 43. several miles up the
parallel line of rails, who, with his
men and their women and children.
was whirring along in the direction Of
the little parish church toward which
the redheaded boy had sped several
minutes before. The men were on a
hand car. to which a little flat had been
attached, and this fat accommodated
the women and children
Il suppose it's all right for them"
Kennedy murmured. as the twin cars
disappeared around the other bend of
the curve, "but that, isn't for me. Re
ieion is a good enough thing-an in
diSpensable thing. indeed, but it hasn't
rot around TO me yet, and it never viii.
It's n good. handy thing to have for the
purpose of swearing people in courts
and impressing ignorant persons hose
characters require some sort of ballast
of mysticism, not only for their own
comfort, but for the safety of the
public Such people. without n weight
ar anchorage of some kind, would rat
tie around annoyingly and even harm
fully to others. | wish | could believe
as they do. Doubtless it is a comforting
thing to be as they are, but
And he closed his statement of opin-
ion by picking up a stone and throw
ing it. a a rabbit.
He walked to the cattIeguard, and,
resting, returned, and found he had
vastly miscalcuIated distance and time.
and that il was still very early in the
day. He looked about and saw the hand
car on a siding. and ii suggested some
thing to him. Kennedy prided himself
on being a liberal sort of person. and
the thought. came to him that il would
be "a fair and reasonable thing for him
to drop into the little church. Just to
show that he had really no feeling
against religion. He found the white
-,aiuted structure with the cross over
it's queer little cupola, and, entering.
fnol1 the rearmost seat. The services
were nearly closing. He looked forward,
over the heads of half a hundred de-
won't worshipers, at she priest in vest
not know the had brought at great
labor from the city, for the parish was
100 poor to- support a resident pastor.
He noted that the worShiPers seemed to
consider every movement of the be
rowned man as TO some especial import,
and genufiected and crossed themselves
nd murmured uninteligihle utter
iuces, which he took for prayers. 1t
was very interesting. and in his heart
he wished that reason might show hin
how to be as happily satisfied with the
priests teachings as were these
'.If miracle could be enacted il
those old days, why should not one be
-crformcd now?" he inquired inwardly
"Oh, no. 1t IS all opposed 10 sense ano
science. Faith ?"-for he had arrived
in time to hear enough OF the sermon K