The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1898-09-09
In THE PINY WOODS.

An usher, dressed neatly and in style
suited to his office, showed me to seat, and
I followed his light and springy footsteps
over the carpeted aisle, for was in church
"a city church. the most stylish" one of its
kind j had been told, to be found in st.
Louis, or in parts roundabout. leT the mat
ter of that
The building, | noticed, was good one.
The walls were frescoed, and behind the
pulpit there were two large and not iDartistic
stained glass windows. The big pipe organ
and the choir were at the left of the pulpit
in a small room that opened into the church
proper with quite imposing arches.
My gaze wandered from the parsons cor
rect suit of black. spotless shirt front and
white lawn tie to q row Of modish headgear
that bobbed in front Of me, and then back
to the preachers face, which was nearly az
black as the clothes he wore.
This was negro church, yes, surely, but
oh, shade of progressiveness where were
the old time characteristics that
But hush Tho minister Is giving out a
hymn. 1t is not unfamiliar; | had heard it
before. 1t sounded now like thing heard in
a dream
"I'n be there, I'll be there,
I'll be there, I'll be there.
When the general roll is called
I'll be therA"
The choir stood up 10 sing, the organ
pealed forth, and the soft melody of negro
voices blended with it. The gayly turbaned
head down in the lar corner was bent in rev
erent attitude, and / watched it, the while
saw-in memoiy's eye-s humble little
church all whitewashed inside and out
1t stood among the trees, this little church
tall, straight pine trees that strewed their
brown needles SO thickly in the fall that the
spring violets We're hidden each year until
the feet-often shoeless-ambling slowly to
the whitewashed church pushed them aside,
or the tiny hands Of the little children from
the big house" scattered the glossy spear
points about in quest Of the damp purple
blossoms
Up toward the front, In the "mouners'
corner" sat Uncls Jake Sloan tone of the
"elders'') }, and Aunt Rachel Whitcomb, with
others.
Nanny Liza was little removed from
the rest, with Flora in tow. Flora's propen-
sity for Shouting" was we'll known, and
her inability to rise betimes the next morn
ing to get breakfast for the white folks
after an afternoon and evening of shout
ing" gave nanny much concern.
Nanny Liza looked at the big dancing
red cotton roses and yellow ribbons on
Flora's hat and shook her head. There was
no use trying to reconcile Nanny Liza to a
hat, especially hat with gay roses and
ribbons Since Flora had spent a whole
months wages on that hat Nanny Liza
concluded she'd bear watching. " Vanity,
vanity. all is vanity says de preacher" she
had quoted to Flora.
Away hoated the sound of voices on the
murmuring breezes that slipped through
the tops OF the tall pines.
| Elora's big, chinalike ewes rolled.
amen" came from the corner where
| Uncle Jake Sloan sS..
"l'll be ther, brother Yes, Lord, III be
Their"
Nanny Liza has ceased to watch Flora
now, and her portly body sways from side
TO side.
DE spirit am movin' all de sinners might
ily," shouted the preacher. Come down
tro de roof, o Lord. Yves heah swaitin' fur
you"
A tall darby with skin like bronze
slipped from the third bench and stretched
out convusively on the floor. There was
no notice taken of this. Probably he would
lie there all night in trance frances"
were not uncommon in the little ''piny
woods church.
"An' de Lord came down tro de roof an
took 'Iiger up in chariot of fire. But
'Liger werpt no sinner. DE Lord'n send
FIRE datll burn de sinner up, continued the
preacher.
Aud then another burst of song:
Army, army, army crossin' ovah.
Wen cross de Uibber oh Jordan
Army crossin' ovab
"When de fire oh de Lord comes de sin
uers III burn. q, Lord, save de sinnerst
Anybody heah what amt no sinner had
better be happy
This was The signal. Flora was happy.
She'd experienced 'lgon' long ago. Away
went the hat with its big red roses. Flora s
arms were moving wildly above her head.
Her body swayed with weird, lithesome
grace One woman joined her I'm the holy
dance" aud then another.
A tall, slim, ebony man who had fervently
clapped his bands at the preachers eXcla-
nations got up and caught the now wav-
erng Flora by the wrists. The girls kinky
hair had come unbound and was flying Wild
" about her face as she shook off the mans
restraining grasp, chanting breathlessly:
81 done want Brer John to hol' me,
wants Brer Pete to hol me;
III git in SIGH a way derrectly
Itll take two tree 10 hoP me-"
"Oh, you mus be a lubber of de Lo-ord
or you can't go TO Hebben when you die, -
somebody sung out. The tune was caught
up and over and ever again sounded the re-
frain:
-Oh. you mus be lubber of de Lo-ord
} Or you can't go to Hebben when you die
Slowly the fantastic. graceful swaynG
stopped. Some, exhausted, sank down upon
/ the rough benches. The preacher-in his
| long black coat that was fast turning greer
, --benmed from under his shock of grizzled
, hair and shaggy brows upon his fervent con
, gregation. At the door of the little church
he paused to say to Nanny Liza that de
spirit of de Lord had shore been wild dat
D getherin'."
The sun was getting lower and the shad
l Ows that the pines cast across the hard
5 beaten path to the church door were grow
ing longer The breathing of the trance
) man on the sawdust floor could be hearC
!. plainly. Uncle Jake Sloan stood in pioui
, attitude with other of the elders" lii
would presently walk slowly to his hom'
a and after saying grace" eat his Sunday
9 evening meal OF chicken-there was al