They ate their dinner in the vestry. Taffy observed that his father
said: “_We_ will do this,” or “_Our_ best plan will be so-and-so,”
and spoke to him as to a grown man. On the whole, though the dusk
found them still at work, this was a happy day.
“But aren’t you going to lock the door?” he asked, as they were
leaving.
“No,” said Mr. Raymond. “We shall win, sonny; but not in that way.”
On the morrow Taffy rang the bell for service as usual. To his
astonishment Squire Moyle was among the first-comers. He led Honoria
by the hand, entered the Tredinnis pew and shut the door with a slam.
It was the only pew left unmutilated. The rest of the congregation--
and curiosity made it larger than usual--had to stand; but a wife of
one of the miners found a hassock and passed it to Humility, who
thanked her for it with brimming eyes. Mr. Raymond said afterward
that this was the first success of the campaign.
Not willing to tire his audience, he preached a very short sermon;
but it was his manifesto, and all the better for being short. He
took his text from Nehemiah, Chapter II., verses 19 and 20--
“_But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the
Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn,
and despised us, and said: ‘What is this thing that ye do? Will ye
rebel against the King?_’”
“_Then answered I them and said unto them, ‘The God of Heaven, He
will prosper us; therefore, we His servants will arise and build_.’
“Fellow-parishioners,” he said, “you see the state of this church.
Concerning the cause of it I require none of you to judge. I enter
no plea against any man. Another will judge, who said, ‘_Destroy
this temple and in three days I will rear it up_.’ But He spake of
the temple of His body; which was destroyed and is raised up; and its
living and irrevocable triumph I, or some other servant of God,
will celebrate at this altar, Sunday by Sunday, that whosoever will
may see, yes, and taste it. The state of this poor shell is but a
little matter to a God whose majesty once inhabited a stable; yet the
honour of this, too, shall be restored. You wonder how, perhaps.
_It may be the Lord will work for us; for there is no restraint to
the Lord to save by many or by few_. Go to your homes now and ponder
this; and having pondered, if you will, pray for us.”
As the Raymonds left the church they found Squire Moyle waiting by
the porch. Honoria stood just behind him. The rest of the
congregation had drawn off a little distance to watch. The Squire
lifted his hat to Humility, and turned to Mr. Raymond with a sour
frown.
“That means war?”
“It means that I stay,” said the Vicar. “The war, if it comes, comes
from your side.”
“I don’t think the worse of ’ee for fighting. You’re not going to
law then?”
Mr. Raymond smiled. “I don’t doubt you’ve put yourself within the
reach of it. But if it eases your mind to know, I am not going to
law.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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