Overshadowed: A NovelGriggs, Sutton E. (Sutton Elbert)
General
Overshadowed: A Novel
Griggs, Sutton E. (Sutton Elbert)
African Americans -- Fiction
Erma Wysong was now happily located at Mrs. Turner's, little dreaming,
innocent soul, of the motives and midnight plottings that had brought
her there. Ignorant of all this, she was giving God thanks for having
secured for her such an ideal place of service. In this happy, joyous,
light-hearted frame of mind, she clads herself in her most lovely
apparel on the Sabbath and goes forth to church. While she is on her way
there, let us acquaint ourselves with the preparations made to receive
her.
The fact that Erma Wysong, a graduate of the High School, had entered
service, shocked the Negro population of the city. Educated members of
the race, the school teachers, the doctors, the lawyers and the recent
girl graduates were simply enraged. Ellen Sanders and Margaret Marston
had canvassed the whole city and had persuaded the entire circle of
educated colored persons in the city to come out to Erma's church to aid
them in giving her such a snubbing as had never as yet been administered
to a mortal. This was their ambition's end just now, the complete
snubbing, crushing of Erma for "throwing away her education in a most
shameful and disgraceful way by going to work." Their plan was to have
the educated and professional people to sit together in that section of
the church where Erma usually sat; and she was to be thus forced out of
her seat and out of their midst. If by any means she got a seat near
them they were to get up in a body and move to another part of the
church. So, on Sunday morning this group was out early and in full
force. As the hour of the service drew on they grew restless from
thinking over the stinging rebuke that they were about to administer to
Erma. Ellen Sanders had turned her head and shoulders completely around
from facing the pulpit and her large flashing eyes were keeping guard on
the door so that she might see Erma when she first appeared in the
doorway.
"There she is," said Ellen, flopping herself around, assuming an
attitude apparently as stiff and immovable as a granite cliff.
All turned to look and then snatched their eyes away in disdain. Erma
came forward unsuspectingly, a sweet smile upon her lovely face. Her
glistening black hair nestled in lovely coils on her queenly head. Her
brown eyes, resting complacently beneath lovely eyebrows, sparkled with
a quiet glow and a tenderness known only to the innocent and happy at
heart. Her dress was a flawless fit and brought out all the graces of
her divinely moulded form. This pure, blushing, aspiring, orphan girl
went up the aisle of her church and stopped opposite her accustomed
seat, expecting the occupants to make room for her. Instead of doing
this, they got closer together.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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