United States -- Social life and customs -- Fiction
Fowler put the key carefully into his pocket. "If anything should
happen to that chapel, it would break my heart," he said.
"We mustn't let anything happen to it. That's our job," returned Douglas
stoutly.
The next morning, Saturday, Douglas left the preacher while he went down
to his father's place for his day's work. He was as nervous as a mother
with her first baby all day and he galloped the Moose back up the trail
long before sunset. When Mr. Fowler waved at him from the door of the
cabin, he gave a gusty sigh of relief.
While Doug was cooking the bacon for supper he asked the preacher what
was to be the subject of the morrow's sermon.
"I was going to preach on the Golden Rule," replied Mr. Fowler.
"No," said Douglas decidedly. "You give 'em a talk on the hereafter and
why you think there is one." He lighted a cigarette and cut more bacon.
"Young man, are you presuming to dictate to me how to preach the word of
God?"
"I sure am!" grinning with the cigarette between his white teeth. "I'm
in this thing up to my horns and I don't aim to make any false moves
that I can help. I've been reading the New Testament this summer. So
far, the most I've got out of it is that Christ was the most diplomatic
preacher that ever lived. Let's be as diplomatic as we can. What's the
use of preaching slush to a lot of sensible, hard-thinking folks who
don't believe in anything."
The preacher bit his knuckles and took a turn or two up and down the
cabin. Douglas noted with a little sense of pity the extreme thinness of
the rounded shoulders under the denim jumper. Douglas dished the bacon
and put a loaf of Mary's bread beside the fried potatoes.
"Show us that our souls go marching on like old John Brown's," said the
young man, persuasively, "and you'll have all Lost Chief eating out of
your hand."
"You talk of faith," cried Fowler impatiently, "as if it were a problem
in algebra."
Douglas hesitated. "Maybe I do." His voice suddenly trembled.
Fowler paused as he was about to seat himself at the table. "I hear a
horse!" he said.
Douglas went to the door.
"It's just me!" called Grandma Brown's voice. "Come and help me down. I
was up to see your mother this afternoon," she went on as Douglas helped
her dismount, "and I thought I'd come along up and have a visit with the
preacher."
"That's fine!" exclaimed Douglas. "Come in, Grandma. We're just drawing
up to the table."
"Good," sighed the old lady; "I'm half starved. Howdy, Mr. Fowler!
Haven't had enough of Lost Chief yet, huh?"
The preacher rose and shook hands. "Not yet, Mrs. Brown! Will you draw
up?"
The old lady plumped down at the table and Douglas, loaded her plate and
poured her a cup of coffee. "The older folks," she said abruptly, "won't
make you any trouble. Charleton Falkner and some of his pals will be
smarty, but the young fry will sure try to break up every meeting you
have."
"The modern youngster is pretty rough!" sighed the preacher.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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