The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-05-11
COMPOSING HIS SINS
BY ELSIE DESMOND.

mad never been absent a single Sun.
DAY. He had the largest and most
popular church in the little town, and
had married at least half the adult
lnhaDltants. He had baptized per-
maps three-quarters of the children,
and had watched them grow I'D
from blinking, squalling infants into
hard-headed men and comelv women
or otherwise.
And now Rev. John Curtice was to
take holiday.
I'm going to run up to New York
for couple of weeks and see nv
brother" he said I'VE haven't met
since We were boys. And maybe that
will give me leisure to think over
| my novel"
For almost as many years as he
had been pastor Rev. John Curtice
| had been going to write his novel,
| great human novel of minister's Ia
! bors 1t was known that he had got
| as far as the middle of the book, but
he always stuck there
!
elderly spinster who was an ardent
member of his congregation, Il hope
to get my ideas in shape at last during
my vacation, And perhaps | shall
come back better man and bet
ter minister
'Oh, no, Mr. Curtice!" exclaimed
Miss Bennett
| Il have made mistakes, | know,
Miss Bennett, | know / have mar
ried people whom should never have
married. who threw it up against me
in their hearts
The fact was that Miss Bennett had
been working on the pastors mind for
a long time, and had got him into a
rather melancholy mood According
to Miss Bennett there never was such
town as Stapleville for matrimonial
discord Miss Bennett ran to the
minister with some tale of trouble
every week. If he had been a less
charitable man he might have placed
the origin of many of these stories in
Miss Benefits mind. But, rather
overworked as he was, he attributed
to himself good deal for which he
was in no wise to blame.
Two days later the locum tenens
Mr. Halford, arrived, was introduced
to the parishioners, and the pastor de
parted
Then came the debacle, which was
| N 70 II
vile than a presidential election OF
an earthquake, or the fall of the Met
ropolitan Life tower-if it could fall
Miss Bennett was the retailer Of thi:
choice piece of news.
Il heard him with my own ear!
last night she told the excited lis
teners at the Dorcas meeting. g
had gone to his house to ask hin
whether he had told Mr.. Halfort
about that new altar cloth we wer'
to have next Sunday, but seeing Mr.
Halford sitting with Mr.. Curtice b.
. the window, l naturally hesitated t
60 in, being single woman. Ant
then heard Mr. Curtice say, in mos
solemn voice:
ayes, l have deceived everybody
have lived lie all these years, Blu
now | can live it no longer, and | an
: going away to hide my head fron
these good people whom hav
wronged. have never been or
A dained minister. am an impos
tori"
"Sakes alive, you must have bee
= dreaming. Bessie!' exclaimed Mrs
Bates II met him on his way t
the depot this morning, and | neve
saw a cheerier man or one with tn
look of better conscience on hi
face
The CONSERVATION in Stapleville ca
be better imagined than described
The whole town was buzzing abot
Mr.. Ealford's ears. In vain he pr
tested that, to the best OF his belle
Mr.. Curtice was an ordained clerg.
man; he told how highly he was e.
! teemed in the diocese. Finally a tie
= egram was sent to the pastor urgin
MIN to return at once
He came on the next train, sensin
misfortune. He was met by an e
cited crowd They surrounded hir
accusing, clamoring; they followe
him to his home, and it was only whe
he laid his proofs of ordination o
fore them that they turned upon Nil
Bennett, who had prudently fed
soon as she saw that Mr.. Curtice ia
justified himself.
II "If she were a man, I'd shoot her
said Horace Howard, sliding his ar
= round his wifes waist.
: And that's just where agree WI
Z YOU said Timothy Ranger, embra
ing his wife openly in the presen
Z of all.
! They we're still in the pastors stu'
Z when a little party of them returne
! bringing with them the weeping al
Z lamenting Miss Bennett.
! "Here is the mouth that spread tn
Z story" cried her captor, Mrs. Ca
Z the caretaker of the parish hou'
Z and | was saying to her, it's up
4 her to own in the presence OF y
! all that it was a wicked inventor
a But | heard you," wept Miss be
nett. do you dare to tell me. =
= Curtice, that you didn't tell Mr.. II
ford YOU had never been ordained, a
that YOUR life had been lie!'
suddenly the pastor burst 'cto
roar of laughter.
.sWhy-why-" he exclaimed 1
You see, he. being literary man
4 was reading to him the opening s.
u tence OF chapter nine of my novel;