The Minister's Charge; Or, The Apprenticeship of Lemuel BarkerHowells, William Dean
General
The Minister's Charge; Or, The Apprenticeship of Lemuel Barker
Howells, William Dean
Boston (Mass.) -- Fiction; Clergy -- Fiction; Poets -- Fiction
ears their cry for help was a perpetual voice, for that man, whatever
his creed, knew God and could never forget him. In his responsibility
for his weaker brethren he was Godlike, for God was but the
impersonation of loving responsibility, of infinite and never-ceasing
care for us all.
When Sewell came down from his pulpit, many people came up to speak to
him of his sermon. Some of the women's faces showed the traces of tears,
and each person had made its application to himself. There were two
or three who had heard between the words. Old Bromfield Corey, who was
coming a good deal more to church since his eyes began to fail him,
because it was a change and a sort of relief from being read to, said--
“I didn't know that they had translated it Barker in the revised
version. Well, you must let me know how he's getting on, Sewell, and
give me a chance at the revelation, too, if he ever gets troublesome to
you again.”
Miss Vane was standing at the door with his wife when Sewell came out.
She took his hand and pressed it.
“Do you think I threw away my chance?” she demanded. She had her veil
down, and at first Sewell thought it was laughter that shook her voice,
but it was not that.
He did not know quite what to say, but he did say, “He was sent to
_me_.'”
As they walked off alone, his wife said--
“Well, David, I hope you haven't preached away all your truth and
righteousness.”
“I know what you mean, my dear,” answered Sewell humbly. He added, “You
shall remind me if I seem likely to forget.” But he concluded seriously,
“If I thought I could never do anything more for Barker, I should be
very unhappy; I should take it as a sign that I had been recreant to my
charge.”
XXXVI
The minister heard directly from Barker two or three times during the
winter, and as often through Statira, who came to see Mrs. Sewell.
Barker had not got the place he had hoped for at once, but he had got a
school in the country a little way off, and he was doing something; and
he expected to do better.
The winter proved a very severe one. “I guess it's just as well I stayed
in town,” said Statira, the last time she came, with a resignation which
Mrs. Sewell, fond of the ideal in others as most ladies are, did not
like. “'Manda Grier says 'twould killed me up there; and I d' know but
what it would. I done so well here, since the cold weather set in that
'Manda Grier she thinks I hadn't better get married right away; well,
not till it comes summer, anyway. I tell her I guess she don't want I
should get married at all, after all she done to help it along first
off. Her and Mr. Barker don't seem to get along very well.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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