Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1898-05-05
XIX
THE PROPHET AND THE VIRGIN

/ The words at first apparently away,
I away, miles away, then close at hand,
/ aroused the fainting girl and she open
/ ed her eyes and saw the Prophet
! standing owe. 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.
4 there, was more terrifying than would
/ have been i sight o. the spectre in uH-
! clad bones and she tainted again.
The time Is ripe. Father, Thou hast
| revealed unto me the Virgini 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
| go 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 clung 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 il unto thee. Thou
| art the Inspired Mother; no man hath
| revealed it unto thee. | am that
| Prophet; but no man is good; God Is
! gcoG."
Please take me home?"
God hath prepared for thee a habi-
| tation for the nativity of His Son. For
antH 80 l.. s,-t
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 a cave as it is enormously written
| that he was afOretime.'
"Oh, take me home; please take me
home? | 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 glorihed."
Il must treat him as a 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
then hasten to town and bring some
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 1t 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 Us her servant, but
his answer raised q fear that he con-
hdered himself her only servant, and
hat he would allow no one but himself
% serve her. Therefore she remained
silent revolving what was expedient
and what was possible as he bore her
within his hut
Ge 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; 50 low that the
Prophet could not quite stand erect
In Il. 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
ion, being a triangular iron pan filed
with melted fats in which aOated a 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 u 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, fervent- |
ly pralsing jehovah for his goodness |
and mercy and lonB-suffering. He ear |
nestly petitiOned for the speedy re- |
demption Of ;he 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 |
lied that to control him she must hu-
NOR his hallucination 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
ber unfortunate position and she ut
tered her reflections TO her own ear:
Il certainly was not born for the
stage; | know that; but before this
limited and partial audience | must
venture to assume the role OF the New
Virgin and may do so with reasona-
bic anticipation Of success; but ! shall
not demand az encore"
When the Prophet arose she said to
him:
In the hollow Of His hand hath the
father sheltered thee since the first ad-
V, ut Of the Son that thou shouldst her
aid the second coming Of that Son and
prepare His way"
Il am the voice OF one crying in the
wilderness. saying: Prepare We tho
way Of the Lord; make his path
straight"
For me thou hast searched long and
to-day. through great tribulutiOn and
have ] been guided TO thco
that thy soul may rejoice and that thou
shouldst minister unto me as thou
Wouldst minister unto the Son, and /
that thy mission might at length be /
accomplished"
No mortal hath revealed IL unto
thee Men scof at the prophet OF the =
5on who cometh unite his own. In 9th
CT times he came unto his own and his
own received him not. They stoned
his prophets OF old and in these latter
days they have dcrided his messenger
whom he hath sent before his face as {
the voice of one crying in the wilder
ness, saying, Prepare ye the way Of The I
Lord, make His path straight" "
Il suffer much. Bring water that | /
may lave my limb which an accident |
lath injured. Oh. hasten, hasten, /
suffer-" l.
Behold oh Mother or tho Son, am Y
hy servant and only thine till He be
ONE, when | viii be His servant first
and In being uls servant ! shall be also L
hine. Let me therefore ho1r thy com :
nauds that ! may obey; only, til Ile y
be come, | may not leave thee"
Bring water"
The Prophet produced the great
pitcher which was full OF water and at
Ier bidding slowly poured the cooling
clement upon her tortured limb. Her