The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-01-05


Tie time You see If Rachel doesn't
give it up soon It's a great pity she
| doesn't come TO Chicago and sing in
the Auditorium concerts heard today
she had received an offer I'm going to
write and urge her to come I'm just
dying TO hear her sing.
Felicia looked out of the window and
was silent The carriage rolled on past
two blocks Of magnificent private resi-
dences and turned into wide drive
way under q covered passage, and the
sisters hurried into the house 1t was
ar elegant mansion of @raystone fur
nished like y palace, every coTno. uf
warm with the luxury of paintings.
sculpture. art and refinement.
The owner of it all. Mn Charles R.
Sterling, stood before an open CRATE fire
smoking cigar. He had made his
money in grain speculation and rail
road ventures and was reputed to be
worth something over two millions
His wife was q sister of Mrs. Winslow
OF Raymond. She had been an invalid
for several years. The two girls, Rose
and Felicia, were the only children
Rose was 81 years old fair, vivacious
educated in q fashionable college, Just
entering society and already somewhat
cynical and Indifferent, a very hard
young lady to please her father said
sometimes playfully, sometimes sternly
Felicia was 19, With tropical beauty
somewhat like her cousin, Rachel Wins
low, with warm, generous impulses
just waking into Christian feeling ca
pable of all sorts of expression, IL puzzle
to her father a source of irritation to
her mother and with a great, unsur-
veyed territory of thought and action
in herself of which she was more than
dimly conscious There was that in
Felicia that would easily endure any
condition in life if only the liberty to
act fully on her conscientious convic-
tions We're granted her.
Here's letter for you, Felicia, ;"
said Mr.. Sterling. taking it out of his
pocket.
Felicia sat down and instantly opened
the letter, saying as she did SO. cit S
from Rachel y
"Well, what's the latest news from
Raymond?" asked Mr.. Sterling, taking
his cigar out of his mouth and looking
at Felicia. as he often did, with half
shut eyes, as if he We're studying her.
'Rachel says DR.. Bruce has been
studying in Raymond for two Sundays
and has seemed very much interested
in Mr.. MaSwell's pledge in the First
church.
"What does Rachel say about her
self?' asked Rose, who v;Gs lying on a
couch almost buried under half dozen
elegant cushions.
"She is still singingat the Rectangle
Since the tent meetin.. s closed she sings
in an old hall until the new buildings
her friend Virginia Page is putting up
are completed.
81 must write Rachel to come to Chi
cago and visit us. She ought not to
throw away her voice in that railroad
town upon all those people who don t
appreciate her y
Mr.. Sterling lighted new cigar. and
Rose exclaimed
Rachel is awfully queer, think
She might set Chicago wild with her
voice if she sang in the Auditorium,
and there she goes on, throwing her
voice away on people who don't know
what they are hearing.
''Rachel won't come here unless she
can do it and keep her pledge at the
same time. said Felicia after pause.
"What pledge?'' Mr.. Sterling asked
the question and then added hastily
ooh, | know! Yes; very peculiar
thing that. Powers used to be friend
of mine. We learned telegraphy in the
same office; made a great sensation
evidence to the interstate commerce
commission and he's back at his te-
legraphy again. There have been queer
doings in Raymond during the past
year l wonder what DR.. Bruce thinks
of it, on the whole. | must have tall
with him about it. .
'He breaches tomorrow, said Fell
cha. perhaps he will tell US something
about it. .
There was silence for minute Their
Felicia said abruptly, as if she haj
gone on with spoken thought to som,
invisible hearer, "And what if h,
should propose the same pledge to tn.
Nazareth Avenue church2"
"Who? What are you talking abouts'
asked her father, little sharply.
''About Dr. Bruce. say what if h,
should propose to our church what Mr.
Maxwell proposed to his and ask fo
volunteers who would pledge themselve
to do everything after asking the ques
ton, What would Jesus dol? .
There's no danger of it, . said Rose
rising suddenly from the couch as tn
tea bell rang
cts very impracticable movemen
to my mind, said Mr.. Sterling sharply
81 understand from Rachels lette
that the church in Raymond is goin.
to make an attempt to extend the ide;
of the pledge to the other churches.
they succeed, they will certainly max
great changes in the churches and i,
peoples lives, said Felicia
'sOh, well, lets have some tea first
said Rose. walking into the dinin: