In those days the wandering Christian Jews undertook to instruct the
polished Greeks-why could not Americans at this day inculcate the
doctrines of Jesus to these educated heathen? It was a bold and daring
experiment, but he was willing to try it. The All-wise worked his
wonders in a mysterious way. In this irrelevant and somewhat mystical
style, Brother Spyke continues nearly an hour, sending his audience
into a highly-edified state. We have said mystical, for, indeed, none
but those in the secret could have divined, from Brother Spyke’s logic,
what was the precise nature of his mission. His speech was very like a
country parson’s model sermon; one text was selected, and a dozen or
more (all different) preached from; while fifty things were said no one
could understand.
Brother Spyke sits down-Sister Slocum rises. “Our dear and very
generous guest now present,” she says, addressing the good-natured fat
man in the chair, as Lady Swiggs bows, “moved by the goodness that is
in her, and conscious of the terrible condition of the heathen world,
has come nobly to our aid. Like a true Christian she has crossed the
sea, and is here. Not only is she here, but ready to give her mite
toward getting Brother Spyke off to Antioch. Another donation she
proposes giving the ‘Tract Society,’ an excellent institution, in high
favor at the South. Indeed I may add, that it never has offended
against its social—”
Sister Slocum hesitates. Social slavery will not sound just right, she
says to her herself. She must have a term more musical, and less
grating to the ear. A smile flashes across her countenance, her
gold-framed eye-glasses vibrate in her fingers: “Well! I was going to
say, their social arrangements,” she pursues.
The assembly is suddenly thrown into a fit of excitement. Lady Swiggs
is seen trembling from head to foot, her yellow complexion changing to
pale white, her features contorting as with pain, and her hand
clutching at her pocket. “O heavens!” she sighs, “all is gone, gone,
gone: how vain and uncertain are the things here below.” She drops,
fainting, into the arms of Sister Slocum, who has overset the wise man
in the spectacles, in her haste to catch the prostrate form. On a bench
the august body is laid. Fans, water, camphor, hartshorn, and numerous
other restoratives are brought into use. Persons get in each other’s
way, run every way but the right way, causing, as is common in such
cases, very unnecessary alarm. The stately representative of the great
Swiggs family lies motionless. Like the last of our chivalry, she has
nothing left her but a name.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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