"The Babtists had a powerful protracted meetin' one winter. Uncle Jim
was there to help with the singin', as a matter of course, and he
begun to git mightily interested in Babtist doctrines. Used to go home
with 'em after church and talk about Greek and Hebrew words till the
clock struck twelve. And one communion Sunday he got up solemn as a
owl and marched out o' church jest before the bread and wine was
passed. Made out like he warn't sure he'd been rightly babtized. The
choir was mightily tickled at the idea o' gittin' shed o' the old
pest, and Sam Crawford went to him and told him he was on the right
track and to go ahead, for the Babtists was undoubtedly correct, and
if it wasn't for displeasin' his father and mother he'd jine 'em
himself. And then--Sam never could let well enough alone--then he went
to Bush Elrod, the Babtist tenor, and says he, 'I hear you're goin'
to have a new member in your choir.' And Bush says, 'Well, if the old
idiot ever jines this church, we'll hold his head under the water so
long that he won't be able to spile good music agin.' And then he give
Uncle Jim a hint o' how things was; and when Uncle Jim heard that the
Presbyterians was anxious to git shed of him, he found out right away
that all them Greek and Hebrew words meant sprinklin' and infant
babtism. So he settled down to stay where he was, and hollered
louder'n ever the next Sunday.
"The old man was a good enough Christian, I reckon; but when it come
to singin', he was a stumblin'-block and rock of offense to the whole
church, and especially to the choir. The first thing Sally Ann said
when she looked at the new organ was, 'Well, Jane, how do you reckon
it's goin' to sound with Uncle Jim's voice?' and I laughed till I had
to set down in a cheer.
"Well, when the men folks found out that our organ had come, they
begun to wake up. Abram had brought it out Tuesday, and Wednesday
night, as soon as prayer-meetin' broke, Parson Page says, says he:
'Brethren, there is a little business to be transacted. Please remain
a few minutes longer.' And then, when we had set down again, he went
on to say that the sisters had raised money and bought an organ, and
there was some division of opinion among the brethren about usin' it,
so he would like to have the matter discussed. He used a lot o' big
words and talked mighty smooth, and I knew there was trouble ahead for
us women.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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