The Princeton union., 1899-10-19
THE PRINa =. % III Isss

and began to eat from plate Of fruit
and cakes on the sidebnard.
: Are you going up TO see motheri"
asked Felicia after awhile She had re-
mained in front Of the drawing room
fire. h
s'No, : replied Rose from the other
room; IT won't trouble her tonight. If
you go in, tell her I am too tired to be
agreeable '., rs, =
So Felicia turned into her mothers
room. AS she went up the great stair
case and down the upper hall the light
was burning there, and the servant who
always waited on Mrs. Sterling was
beckoning Felicia to come in
''Tell Clara to go OUT exclaimed
Mrs. Sterling as Felicia came up to the
bed and kneeled by it.
Felicia was surprised, but she did as
her mother bade her and then inquired
how she was feeling. .F -
"Felicia," said her mother. "can
you pray?"
The question was so unlike any her
mother had ever asked before that Fe-
icia was startled, but she answered.:
"Why, yes, mother. What makes
you ask such question:
"Felicia, I am frightened. Your fa-
ther-I have had such strange fears
about him all day. Something is wrong
with him. I want you to pray"
"Now? Here, motherl''
Eyes. Pray, Felicia
soSo H.
her mothers. It was trembling. Mrs.
Sterling had never shown much tender
ness for her younger daughter, and her
strange demand now was the first real
sign Of any confidence in Felicia's
character.
The girl still kneeled, holding her
mothers trembling hand, and prayed.
It was doubtful if she had ever prayed
aloud before. She must have said in
her prayer the words that her mother
needed, for when it was silent in the
room the invalid was weeping softly.
and her nervous tension was over.
Felicia staid some time. When she
was assured that her mother would not
need her any longer, she rose to go.
''Good night, mother. You must let
Clara call me if you feel bad in the
night
81 feel better now Then as Felicia
was moving away Mrs. Sterling said,
"Won't you kiss me, Felicia?''
Felicia went back and bent over her
mother. The kiss was almost as strange
to her as the prayer had been. When
Felicia went out of the room, her cheeks
were wet with tears She had not cried
since she was little girl.
Sunday morning at the Sterling man
sion was generally very quiet. The girls
usually went to church at II o'clock
service. Mr.. Sterling was not mem
Der, but heavy contributor, and he
generally went to church in the morn
ing. This time he did not come down
to breakfast and finally sent word by
servant that he did not feel we'll enough
to go out So Rose and Felicia drove
up to the door Of the Nazareth Avenue
church and entered the family pew
alone
When DR.. Bruce walked out of the
room at the rear of the platform and
went up to the pulpit to open the Bible,
as his custom was those who knew
him best did not detect anything un-
usual in his manner or his expression.
He proceeded with the service as usual.
He was calm, and his voice was steady
and f-m. His prayer was the first init
nation the people had Of anything new
or strange in the service. It is safe to
say that the Nazareth Avenue church
had not heard DR.. Bruce offer such a
prayer during the 10 years he had been
pastor there. How would minister be
likely to pray who had come out of
revolution in Christian feeling that had
completely changed his definition of
what was meant by following Jesus9
No one in Nazareth Avenue church had
any idea that the Rev. Calvin Bruce,
D. D., the dignifed, cultured, refined
doctor Of divinity, had within a few
days been crying like a little child, on
his knees, asking for strength and cour-
age and Christlikeness to speak his Sun
day message, and yet the prayer was an
unconscious, involuntary disclosure of
the SOULS experience such as Nazareth
Avenue people seldom heard and never
before from that pulpit.
In the hush that succeeded the PRAYER
a distinct wave of spiritual power
moved over the congregation. The most
careless persons in the church felt it,
Felicia, whose sensitive religious nature
responded swiftly to every touch Of
emotion, quivered under the passing of
that supernatural power, and when she
lifted her head and looked up at the
minister there was look in her eyes
that announced her intense, eager an
ticipation of the scene that was to fol-
low
And she was not alone in her atti-
tude There was something in the
prayer and the result Of it that stirred
many and many a disciple in Nazareth
Avenue church. All over the house men
and women leaned forward, and when
DIR. Bruce began to speak of his visit to
Raymond in the opening sentences Of
his address, which this morning pre-
ceded his sermon, there was an answer
ing response in the church that came
back to him as he spoke and thrilled
him with the hone of q s,ir;t1o1 hon,