Wayside Courtships

among men, he lost the equipoise of the scholar and student of modern history. He grew narrower and

schoolhouse on Sunday afternoon, and at the hour set he

king men, who studied him with keen, unsympathetic eyes. He had hard, unfriendly material to work with. There were but few

reacher to come among them as an

g very white and weak, and began his prayer. Some of the boys laughed when his voice stuck in his t

e front seat sat three beautiful little girls huddled together with hands clasped; they were inexpressibly dainty by contrast. As he looked at them the thought came to him, What is the goodnes

unite and rebuild the church again. Let me say now, friends, that I was educated a Baptist. My father was a faithful worker in the Baptist C

here say I am no longer a Baptist or Methodist. I am only a preacher, and I will not rest until I rebuild the c

t. When he began again it was to describe that hideous wreck. He delineated the falling plaster, the l

s were speaking through him; and yet he was not so impassioned that he did not see, or at least feel, the eyes of the st

h him, awkwardly wordless, and the pressure of their hands helped him. Many of the Baptist

scowl on his face, but Mattie smiled at him, with tears still in her eye

struck the right trail now, parson," said Chapman, as they walked homeward

as gone. He remembered his debt to his college, to his father, to the d

still with him, and involved itself with his dreams; but always the young girl s

n his scarred and dingy desk, while they took their places, and his eyes had a passionate intensity of prayer in them which awed the pupils. He had ass

to his knees and teach them to spell; he felt as if he ought to call them to him, as Christ did, to teach them lo

inned rudely and nudged each other. The older girls sat with bated breath; they perce

school. I wish you'd go home to-day and tell your people to come to church here to-night. I wish you'd all come yourselves. I want you to be good. I want you to love God and be good. I wan

promptness, others with sadness, for they had

king abdicating a throne, and these his faithful subjects. It was the

that day. She was a good woman, gentle and

u could only touch his heart! He don't mean to do wrong, but

o put into words her feeling in the matter, which was more of admiration for his courage than for any part

have them come, and

to rebuild the Cyene Church," and his

ecede from her as he spoke, and to grow larger, too.

vor of the young evangelist's utterances. His voice took on wild emotional cadences without his conscious effort, and these cadences sounded deep places in the heart. To these people, long unused to religious oratory, it was like the return of John and I

g events took place

the men held out-old Deacon Allen and his antagonist, Stewart Marsden. Grim-visaged old figures they were, placed among repentant men and weeping women. They sat like rocks in the rush of the two factions moving

leep till far toward morning. The food he ate did him little good, while his heart went out constantly to his people in strenuous supplication. It was testimony of his human qu

, amid all the rest, came to him, and uttered poetry and peace like a rill of cool sweet water. And afterward, when he walked home under the stars,

eat day came-t

by some interior slow weakening of stubborn will, Deacon Allen gave way; and when the preacher called for penite

my sins-here-before ye all." He broke into sobbing terrible to hea

two cried, "Praise God!" but most of

shake hands with you all-and I ask your prayers." He bent down and thru

electric shock. "Amens!" burst forth. The preacher began a fervent prayer, and came down toward the grizzled, weeping old men, and they all embraced

and his wife. "My boy

hining temple of God's grace, and the regenerated seemed to fear that to go home might become

minister with glad heart consented, for he hoped he might walk beside Mattie; but this was not possible. There wer

nothing of the low murmur of talk, conscious only of his great plan

of the significance of sitting again with these people. He gave the girl his coat and hat, and then watched her sli

ion, his eyes grew soft and his limbs relaxed. His silence was