The Washington herald., 1907-03-31

I
women that can't keep a secret and a
promise, and some that can. and / can
and that settled him.
| We'll 'Lizabeth never showed her face
! outside her door for more'n a month af-
! terward. and a more pitiful-lOokin' crea-
tur' you never saw than she was when
she come out TO prayeT-meetin' the night
sally Ann give her experience. She set
/ way back in the church and she was as
pale and peaked az If she had been
through a siege Of typhoid. / ricollect Il
| all as If 1t had been yesterday. We sung
| Sweet Hour of Prayer and Parsou Page
prayed, and then called on the brethren
! 70 say anything they might feel called
on 10 say concernin' their experience in
/ the past week. Old Uncle Jim Matthews
/ begun to clear his throat, and I knew.
! as well as ] knew my name, he was fxin'
/ 70 git up ana tell how precious the Lord
( had been 10 hts soul. jest like he'd been
I doin' every Wednesday night tor twenty
years. But before he got started, here
come 'Lizabeth walkin' down the side
/ aisle and stopped right in front O. the pull
pit
I've somethin' to say she says It's
/ been on my mind till l can't stand il any
1 longer. I've got to tell it, or I'll go
/ crazy. It was me that took that cyarpet
I money. I only meant 20 borrow it,
/ thought sure I'd be able TO pay it back
4 before 1t was wanted But things went
wrong. and Gint known a peaceful min
ute since, ana never shall again, / reckon.
I took It to pay my way up TO Louisville.
| the time I got the news that Mary was
! dyin'
! Mary was her daughter by her first
4 husband, you see. i begged Jacob TO give
nee the money to 60 on says she, and
/ he wouldn't do it. I tried 10 give up and
| stay, but 1 jest couldn't. Mary was all
/ l had in the world; and maybe you that
4 has children can put yourself in nay place
and know what 1t would be to hear your
/ only child eallin' to you from her death
| bed. and you not able TO go to her. 1
asked Jacob three times for the money
! she says, and when I found he wOuldn
/ give il to me, / said to myself ''Im goin'
anyhow" I got down on my knees says
/ she, and asked the Lord 10 show me a
/ way. and felt sure he would. As soon as
/ Jacob had eat his breakfast and gone
/ out on the farm, I dressed myself, and
/ as l opened the top bureau drawer 10 g.
/ out my best collar, / saw the missionary
money. II come right into my head
says she, that maybe this was the an
swer to my prayer; maybe I could bor-
row this money, and pay it oack some
way or other before it was called for.
| tried 20 put il out o. my head but the
I thought kept comm back; and when
went down into the slttin'-rOom 10 get
/ Jacobs cyarpetbag 10 carry a few things
1 in, I happened to look up at the mantel-
/ piece and saw the brass candlestieks with
prisms all round EN- that used to be-
! long to my mother; and all at once
scCmed 10 see Jest what the Lord intend
ed for me 10 do.
" You know, she says, I had a board
er summer before last-that lady from
Louisville-and she wanted them candle
sticks the worst kind, and offered me
fifteen dollars for 'em. / wouldn't part
with 'em then, but she said if ever
wanted to sell 'em, to let her know, apd
she left her name and address on a
cyard. I went to the big Bible and got
out the cyard, and / packed the candle
sticks in the cyarpetbag. and put on
my bonnet. When ] opened the door 1
/ looked up the road, and the first thing
l saw was Dave Crawford comm along
. in his new buggy. I went out 70 the gate,
and he drew up and asked me If / was
gOin to town, and said he'd take me. II
looked like the Lord was leadin' me all
the time says she. but the way things
/ turned out, Il must a been Satan. /
got TO Mary Just two hours before she
died, and she looked up in my face and
says. Mother, 1 knew God wouldn't let
me die till I'd seen you once more
Here Aunt Jane took of her glasses
and wiped her eyes.
Il can't tell this without cryin', TO save
my life said she; but 'Lizabeth never
shed "a tear. She looked like she'd got
past cryin and she talked straight on as
as il she'd made up her mind to say
jest so much. and she'd die if she didn't
git 10 say it,
As soon as the funeral was over
says she, I set out TO find the lady that
wanted the Candlesticks. She wasn't at
home. but her niece was there. and said
she d heard her aunt speak Of the candle
sticks often; and she'd be home in a feay
days and would send me the money right
of. come home, thinkin' it was all
right. and I kept expectin' the money ev-
cry day, but it never come till day before
yesterday. 1 wrote three times about Il,
but I never got a word from her tn
Monday. She had Just got home. she
said. and hoped I hadn't been inconven-
fenced by the delay. She wrote nice,
polite letter and sent me a check for
fifteen dollars and here it is. I wanted
10 confess it all that day at the Mite
Society. but somehow I couldn't till I had
the money right in my hand to pay back.
II the lady had only come back when her
niece said she was comm, It would all
have turned out right, but I reckon it's a
judgment on me for meddling with the
Lords money. God only knows what
I've suffered, says she, but II I had TO
do it over again, I believe I'd do IT,
Mary was all the child / had in the
world, and I had 10 see her once more. be-
fore she died I've been a n,cnber Of
this church for twenty years, says she.
but / reckon you'll have to turn me out
now
The pore thing stood there tremblln'
and hOldin' out the check as If she ex-
pected somebody TO come and take it
Old Silas Petty was glowerin at her
from under his eyebrows, and it put me
in mind of the Pharisees and the woman
they wanted to stone, and I ricolIect
thinkin'. oh, If the Lord Jesus would
jest come in and take her partp And
while We all set there like a passeI o
mutes. Sally Ann got Up and marched
down the middle aisle and stood right by
'Lizabeth. You know what funny
thoughts people will have sometimes.
We'll, I felt so relieved. It popped
into my head all at once that we didn't
need the Lord after all; Sally Ann would
do jest as well. It seemed sort O. like
sacrilegs. but 7 couldn't help It.
We'll. Sally Ann looked all around as
composed as you please. and says she, I
reckon If anybody's turned out o. this
church on account O. that miserable
little money, itl be Jacob, and not Liza
beth. A man that won't give his wife
money to go 10 her dyin' child is too
mean to stay IA Christian church any
how, and I'd like to know how It is that
woman that had $500 when she mar
ried has TO go to her husband and git
down on her knees and beg for what's
her own. Where's that money 'Lizabeth