THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, THURSDAY, MAY 13, 1897.
GOLDEN THRONE
[A ROMANCE BY SAMUEL P. PUTNAM.]
Old Chum —Once more in New
England! And I can ’t tell you
how jolly I feel, with the gold
jingling in my pockets, and the
world fresh as a May day. I’ve
had some fun, and I don’t know
w hereto begin. There’s a volume
to write, and a lot of postscripts in
addition. I pointed tor New York
the first thing, and went toDelm on-
ieo’s and then to W allack’e, and
begin to feel like a man. A good
meal and a splendid play are
m ighty good enliveners. Of course,
I went to church on S unday; but I
wanted to get as near as possible
Io som ething like a theatre, aixl so
I went to hear Talmage. 1 happen­
ed to catch him when he attacked
Ingersoll, and it was quite am using.
He fixed things up to suit himself
very nicely. H is interpretations
of scripture would have m ade John
Calvin tu rn in his grave.
He
d id n ’t stick to the bible, but he
stuck to Talm age; and, when the
bible wasn’t sufficient, he pieced it
out with a plenty of himself, and
his audience took it for the genuine
gospel. If he said the Hood wasn’t
universal, why, they all believed it,
although from childhood they had
been taught th a t it was universal,
and th esh ellso n the m ountain-tops
had been adduced as evidence of
it. Poor old by-gone interpreters
of the bible, how the orator did
demolish them ! And I was th in k ­
ing just how easily his own new
verson would be rejected when the
exigencies of science dem ands it.
W hat a kaleidoscope the Bible is!
It takes new colors and shapes
every time the lingers of science
give it a turn. You sec, the Christ­
ian apologist nowdays don’t read
the bible first to learn wliat it says
and means but, be studies science,
and finds w hat its dem ands are;
and then he shrew dly tw ists the
scriptures into any form to suit
those dem ands. If science says six
periods, then the bible says six
periods, and now six days; and so
on. Science goes ahead, and the
bible tam ely follows, it am used
me to notice th a t T alm age in his
reply to Ingersoll said those things
th a t three hundred years ago would
have convicted him of heresy and
burned him a t the stake. So the
world does progress, and Talm age
is a straw to show it. He is valu­
able as a straw, otherwise he is of
little note.
He dances on the
stream of public opinion, and helps
to show ju st about how things are
going.
I was delighted with Boston. I
felt aesthetic at once. I went to the
Common and quoted Greek, and
in the evening went to the Greek
play, and applauded just in the
right place— th an k s to a libretto.
Isn ’t it queer th at Boston should
he going crazy over a pagan dram a?
W hat would ihe P uritans sav? I
hear 1 Savage while here—a tip-top
liberal preacher, who don’t mince
m atters at all. It stirred me like
a trum pet to hear him. I only
wish I could take the same stand
he does, ami he as hold and m anlv.
But I ca n ’t. I’m all bound up and
twisted with the past, so far as my
feelings are concerned, and I can ’t
follow my head. But I like to have
the tru th spoken bravely, though I
haven’t the backbone to do it m y­
self.
I suppose I must always
belong to the M ethodist Church.
I ca n ’t sunder myself. A thousand
associations cling about mv heart,
tender and subtle, and I cannot
fling them off and go fourth u n ­
tram m elled. I cannot express the
the feeling that swept over me like
a flood, when I reached old scenes,
when I saw the old church where I
used to preach, the village so lovely,
the trees, the hills, the sky. I
flung myself down and kissed the
earth , sweet to me as a m other’s
bosom.
But the way people met me was,
as you m ight say, edifying. They
regarded me as a lost sheep, most
of them , and were very careful
w hat they said and did. They
d id n ’t w ant to com m it themselves.
I saw a great m any, when I
happened along, walk over to the
other side like the priest and Levite,
and pass me bv. They d id n ’t wish
to snub me, and they did n ’t w an’t
to shake hands with me. I quietly
suffertd m yself to he tabooed, for I
knew it would come out all right
in the end. You see, I d id n ’t put
on any new clothes to begin with,
nor even a new hat. I d id n ’t even
consult a boot-black or a barber.
I just w anted to see how much
genuine hum anity there is in the
church. Some of course treated me
decently, and were really glad to
give me a hearty shake of the hand;
hut, on the whole, my reception
was very form al. I felt alm ost as
if I had discovered the North Pole,
w ithout m aking an Arctic journey
It is quite cool weather.
G randm other H arris was as true
as steel, and greeted me as w arm ly
as if I were her child, though I did
look so outlandish.
You don’t
know’ her. Well, she is one of
those dear souls th at live t<> lie a l­
most a hundred years old, but are
as lively as a cricket,and chock-full
of hum an kindness.
She has
lived, I don’t know how long, in
the village. She isn’t rich, hut
somehow she manages to help
everybody. O h , the good talks I
used to have with her! Moreover,
she was one of the best of cooks,
and such delicious meals as she
used to provide when I made
pastoral calls! I was just hungry
for one of them , and I dropped in
alm ost the first thing. She never
said a word about my shortcomings.
You w ouldn’t have known by her
talk hut w hat I was the bishop
himself, and im m aculate as an
angel. She d id n ’t seem to have the
least suspicion th at I was a m iser­ I had about a thousand dollars for
I discovered her hard at
able sinner. In fact, she m ade me her.
feel like a mao, ami put a hope and work, struggling along, with scarce­
courage into me th a t ten thousand ly a friend to help. The money
gospels could not. I know this was a joyful surprise to her, and it
world won’t go to the dogs with did mv soul good to p«,ur the sh in ­
such women in it. You ought to ing dollars into her lap. B ut I
have seen how it helped things, w ant to tell you she’s ju st the
when I put on a knew coat and a prettiest, sweetest girl I ever saw,
stove-pipe hat. People were much and I loved her at first sight, and
more respectful, though m any still it d id n ’t take me loug to find out
hung off. Then, I went to Confer­ th a t she loved me. I assure you
ence.
My m inisterial brethren she is no ordinary woman. She
were dead set against me. They has a wonderful stren g th of mind,
felt well enough tow ard me at overfiowin; m h vivacity. She is
heart, the generality of them ; hut like a fairy. She is like a bird too,
they d id n ’t dare to m ake any full of melody. But I w on’t trouble
public expressions, for they d id n ’t you with my ecstasies. I am
know exactly what people m ight happy, and th a t’s enough. I
think. And you know m inisters haven’t any plan for the future.
never do anything, unless they feel Possibly, I m ay come to C alifornia,
pretty sure th a t the crow’d will hut the m arriage bells m ust ring
back them up. Well, I kept a still’ first. Yours truly,
JA M ES DEM OREST,
upper lip, and jingled the gold in
or Jim m y, if you like.
my pocket. I knew my tim e was
coming. There was one old elder
“ T h a t’s good,” said Charlie. “ A
awfully stiff. He looked as if my
presence were a contam ination. I lost sheep is com fortably fixed the
only said, You’ll come down, old m om ent he gets money.”
“ I am sorry he is in love,” said
fellow. W ait until they take up a
collection. I’ll join in th a t re­ the deacon. “ I am afraid it will
ligious service, and make you smile. ruin him , and m ake him forget
So I listened to the speeches and God. He ought to tu ru to the
prayers, and stood the cold weather Saviour.”
“ Bosh!” said Charlie. “ Love is
u n til the contribution-box came
round. Then, with a good deal of the only thing th at can save him.
quiet observation, I dropped in live It’s the best religion a m an can
tw enty-dollar gold pieces. Well, I have. W h a t’s the use of talking
was in the tropics a t once. You about God? If one ca n ’t love a
ought to have seen the elder. He pretty woman th at he sees, I am
smiled all over, and cried out, sure he c a n ’t love God whom he
“ T hank the Lord, brother.’’ The doesn’t see. T h at's Scripture, isn’t
welcome th a t I received, and the ' it? ”
“ I t ’s a carnal affection,” snuffed
hand-shakings! I subscribed five
hundred dollars to the m issionary the deacon. “ We m ust give up all
cause. From th a t mom ent, my such things, and serve the L ord.”
“ W hat do you mean by serving
trium ph
was
com plete.
The
bishops all crowded about, and I the L ord?” asked Charlie.
“ W hy, praying and fasting, and
was invite«! to preach at once before
some of the most fashionable reading the bible and th in k in g of
churches. I have received several your sins.”
“ W hat good does th a t do the
calls, and my sins are now’ all for­
L ord?”
given.
“ He dem ands it, and we should
I have indeed preached, and have
been applauded to the echo. 1 obey.” said the deacon, hnm bly.
“ How do you know he denands
haven’t given them a bit of hell­
fire, and they all like it. They sav. it? If there is a God, it seems to
How beautiful, how gospel-like! me the best way to w orship him is
People don’t like hell-fire now; and to help our neighbor.”
“ T h at won’t do,” said the deacon.
yet, if I should say th a t I d id n ’t
believe in hell-fire, they would hold “T h a t’s n atu ral goodness, and it
up their hands in holy horror, and don’t count. We m ust do some­
w ouldn’t listen to me. Isn ’t it a thing we don’t w ant to do. We
m ust crucify ourselves.”
queer mess?
“ I don’t care to go to heaven th at
But the best is to come yet. I’m
in love, and th a t’s the solvent of way. I t ’s a poor bargain. I prefer
all the problem s of life. If a man to enjoy life as I go long. As for
can find a good wamnn to love and Jim m y, I ’ll bet on him , now th at
he true to, he can let all the th e­ he’s in love.”
ologies go by the l>oard. But love
The deacon turned away, g ro an ­
is a thing of chance. It comes and ing. He was indeed a m elancholy
goes like the wind, and we connot saint. B ut with all his m elancholy
tell whence it com eth and w hither he was shrewd enough to look after
it goeth. I ’ve never such an ex­ the dollars. He d id n ’t serve the
perience before; for the whole depth Lord so faithfully but w hat he
of mv nature is stirred, and I seem could dig gold and pack it away.
to b«* in a new heaven and earth.
He was a cold-blooded fellow, and
Maddox’s daughter lived aw ay was careful to tu rn everything to
up in the Connecticut valley, in his advantage. As luck would
Guilford, where I myself was horn. have it, he struck a pretty rich