People's voice., 1900-01-18
win its way anywhere.

win its way anywhere.
"The service, aside from the singing,
was peculiar. The evangelist. man Of
apparently very simple, unassuming
style, spoke a few words, and he was
followed by fine looking man, the Rev.
Henry Maxwell, pastor of the First
church of Raymond Mr.. Maxwell
spoke of the fact that the dead woman
had been fully prepared to go, but he
spoke in peculiarly sensitive manner
of the effect of the liquor business on
the lives of men and women like this
one. Raymond, of course, being a rail
road town and the center of the great
packing interests for this region, is full
of saloons l caught from the minister's
remarks that he had only recently
changed his views In regard to license.
He certainly made very striking and
yet it was in no sense an inappropriate
address for funeral
"Then followed what was perhaps
the queer part of this strange service
The women in the tent, at least large
part of them up near the coffin, began
to sing in a soft. fearful way, 4 was
wandering sheep
"Then, while the singing was going
on, one row of women stood up and
walked slowly past the casket, and as
they went by each one placed flower
Of some kind on it Then they sat down.
and another row filed past, leaving
their flowers. All the time the singing
continued softly, like rain on a tent
cover when the wind is gentle. II was
one of the simplest aud at the same
time one Of the most impressive sights
l ever witnessed. The sides of the tent
were up, and hundreds of people who
could not get in stood outside, all as
still as death, with wonderful sadness
and solemnity for such rough looking
people. There must have been hun
dred Of these women, and l was told
many Of them had been converted at
the meetings just recently. Icannot de-
scribe the effect of that singing. Not a
man sang note, all women's voices,
and so soft and yet 80 distinct that the
effect was startling
1.-THE service closed with another solo
by Miss Winslow, who sang There
were ninety and nine, and then the
evangelist asked them all to bow their
heads while he prayed l was obliged,
in order to catch my train, to leave
during the prayer, and the last view l
caught Of the scene as the train went
by the shops was sight Of the great
crowd pouring out Of the tent and
forming in open ranks while the coffin
was borne out by six Of the women. 1t
is long time since have seen such a
picture in this unpoetical republic. "
If Loreen;s funeral impressed pass
ing stranger like this, it is not difficult
to imagine the profound feelings of
those who had been so intimately con-
nected with her life and death. Moth
ing had ever entered the Rectangle that
had moved it so deeply as Loreen's body
in that coffin, and the Holy Spirit
seemed to bless with special power the
use of this senseless clay, for that night
at the meeting he swept more than a
score Of lost souls, mostly women. into
the fold of the Good Shepherd.
1t should be said here that Henry
Maxwell's statement concerning the
opening of the saloon from whose win
dow Loreen had been killed proved
nearly exactly true. 1t was formally
closed Monday a1.l Tuesday while the
authorities arrested the proprietor.
charged with the murder, but nothing
could be proved against any one, and
before Saturday of that week the saloon
was running as regularly as ever. No
one on the earth was ever punished by
earthly courts for the murder of Loreen
No one il all Raymond, including
the Rectangle, felt Loreen's death more
keenly than Virginia. 1t came like
distinct personal loss to her. That short
week while Loreen had been in her
home had opened Virginia's heart to a
new life. Sha was talking it over with
Rachel the day after the funeral They
were sitting in the hall of the Page
mansion
II am going to do something with
my money to help these women to
better life " Virginia looked over to the
end of the hall where the day before
Loreen's body had lain. 81 have decid-
ed on a good plan, as it seems to me. l
have talked it over with Rollin. he
will devote large part Of his money to
the same plan.
"How much money have you. Vir-
ginia, to give in this wayI" asked
Rachel. Once she would never have
asked such personal question. Now it
seemed as natural to talk frankly about
money as about anything else that be-
longed to God.
81 have available for use at least
$3.50, 600. Rollin has as much more. 1t
is one of his bitter regrets now that his
extravagant habits of life before his
conversion practically threw away half
that father left him. We are both eager
to make all the reparation in our pow
er. What would Jesus do with this
money! We want to answer that ques-
ton honestly and wisely. The money l
shall put into The News is, / am con-
fident, in line with Jesus probable ac-
ton. 1t is as necessary that we have a
daily Christian paper in RAYMOND.