The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1898-09-16
XIX.
THE PROPHET AND THE VIRGIN

81 am the voice of one crying out in
the wilderness, saying, Prepare we the
way of the Lord; make his path
straight
The words at first apparently away,
away miles away, then close at hand,
aroused the fainting girl and she open
ed her eyes and saw the Prophet
standing over her.
From childhood the Prophet had
been Miss Stella's familiar terror. Now,
when she was weak exhausted, Grip
pied and helpless, the sight of him,
there, was more terrifying than would
have been sight of the spectre in un-
clad bones and she tainted again.
1.-THE time is ripe! Father! Thou hast
revealed unto me the Virgin! His
chosen one whom all creatures and
men and angels shall hallow The
virgin whom He hath blessed"
Once more she heard that deep voice
and awoke to find herself clasped in
the strong bare arms of the Prophet as
he bore her toward the ironclad door
of the stone hut. Her terror was now
so great that instead of depriving her
OF her consciousness as before, it
reused all her faculties to their high
est. She made an effort to release
herself but he was unconscious of her
purpose and chung to her with tender
care She continued her struggles as
she said:
You are the good Prophet, John the
Baptist, are you not?"
He hath revealed it unto thee Thou
art the Inspired Mother; no man hath
revealed it unto thee. l am that
Prophet; but no man is good; God is
good"
please take me homer"
God hath prepared for thee a habi-
tation for the nativity of His Son; For
as the lightning cometh out of the east
and shineth even unto the west, so also
shall the coming of the Son of Man be-.
Once was He born in a manger as it is
recorded in the sacred books of his
chosen apostles; now shall he be born
in cave as it is enormously written
that he was aforetime."
"Oh, take me home; please take me
home? l am hurt and am lost"
who can understand the deep mys-
teries of God, save them to whom He
hath revealed them? He hath chosen
thee from among all thy sex and now
art thou revealed unto me whom He
hath preserved, commanding me to
minister unto thee that His name may
be glorified."
Il must treat him as crazy man"
she said mentally; then, aloud: "Since
it is Gods will that you should minis
ter to me, bring me to the water and
hoe or tn hrip
one skilled in surgery for | am badly
hurt
Blessed among women and forever
to be revered among men art thou,
since thou art the second Mother of the
Son Surely it is His will that shall
minister unto thee"
She now felt assured that he meant
her no harm; that he regarded her as
sacred and himself as her servant, but
his answer raised fear that he con-
sidered himself her only servant, and
that he would allow no one but himself
to serve her. TheI ,fore she remained
silent, revolving what was expedient
and what was possible as he bore her
within his hut
He carried her through two dark
chambers, into third where he laid
her upon bed of hay, spread upon
rough boards that were supported by
unhewn posts.
This chamber was long, wide and
very irregular in form; so low that the
Prophet could not quite stand erect
in it. There were three stools-old
chairs without backs, given to the
Prophet by the people; large pitcher
few cheap dishes of odd sets, a wash
basin; two lamps, one of an old fash.
lon, being triangular iron pan filled
with melted fats in which f1oated bit
of cotton cloth, one end hanging over
the edge Of the pan and burning. This
lamp stood upon a small broken stand
which was arranged and draped as an
altar with curtains of old cotton prints
and an open Bible was upon the altar
beside the burning lamp.
By the dim light upon the altar Miss
Stella was able to see that the apart
ment was only chamber in the drift
of coal mine and she concluded that
the hut had been built at the entrance
to an old mine that the drift might be
thus utilized for habitation
Having deposited his burden upon
the bed the Prophet approached the al
tar where he knelt and prayed, feryent-
ly praising Jehovah for his goodness
and mercy and long-suffering. He ear
nestly petitioned for the speedy re-
demption of the world from sin and
death and the elect from suffering.
While the Prophet prayed Miss Stel-
la reflected that she must depend upon
him for relief and release She real
ICED that to control him she must hui
NOR his Authorization with which she
had been familiar since long before she
was able to comprehend it. Although
her suffering was excruciating her own
oyerpowering individuality and the
wonderful strength of will and amaz-
ing self command that she possessed
enabled her to see the lighter side of
Der unfortunate position and she ut
tered her reflections to her own ear: