FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104  
105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   >>   >|  
church by the evergreens. Preston Gary was a good deal surprised to find them some time later in another part of the grounds and going in a different direction. "Where are you bound, Daisy?" he asked. "To church, Preston." "Church is the other way." "Yes, but Mr. Pyne is sick and the church is closed, and we are going over to that little church on the other side of the road." "Why that is a dissenting chapel, isn't it?" "There's no more dissent amongst 'em than there is among other folks!" broke in Miss Underwood with a good deal of expression. "I wish all other folks and churches was as peaceable and kept as close to their business! Anyhow, it's a church, and the other one won't let us in." Preston smiled and stepped back, and to Daisy's satisfaction they met with no further stay. They got to the little church and took their places in the very front; that place was empty, and Joanna said it was the only one that she could see. The house was full. It was a plain little church, very neat, but very plain compared with what Daisy was accustomed to. So were the people. These were not rich people, not any of them, she thought. At least there were no costly bonnets nor exquisite lace shawls nor embroidered muslin dresses among them; and many persons that she saw looked absolutely poor. Daisy however did not see this at first; for the service began almost as soon as they entered. Daisy was very fond of the prayers always in church, but she seldom could make much of the sermon. It was not so to-day. In the first place, when the prayers and hymns were over, and what Daisy called "the good part" of the service was done, her astonishment and delight were about equal to see Mr. Dinwiddie come forward to speak. It is impossible to tell how glad Daisy was; even a sermon she thought she could relish from his lips; but when he began, she forgot all about it's being a sermon. Mr. Dinwiddie was talking to her and to the rest of the people; that was all she knew; he was not looking down at his book, he was looking at them; his eyes were going right through hers. And he did not speak as if he was preaching; his voice sounded exactly as it did every day out of church. It was delightful. Daisy forgot all about it's being a sermon, and only drank in the words with her ears and her heart, and never took her eyes from those bright ones that every now and then looked down at her. For Mr. Dinwiddie was telling of Him "who though
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104  
105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

church

 

sermon

 

Preston

 
people
 
Dinwiddie
 

thought

 
looked
 

forgot

 

prayers

 

service


delightful
 

entered

 

absolutely

 

persons

 

seldom

 
telling
 

bright

 

impossible

 

forward

 
talking

dresses

 
relish
 

preaching

 

sounded

 

delight

 

astonishment

 

called

 
dissenting
 

chapel

 

closed


Underwood

 

expression

 

dissent

 

surprised

 

evergreens

 

grounds

 

Church

 

direction

 

compared

 

accustomed


Joanna

 

exquisite

 

shawls

 

embroidered

 

bonnets

 

costly

 
Anyhow
 

business

 

churches

 

peaceable