The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1894, Page 11

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‘The Lutheran Pioneer. bl

How Jake Traphagen died. walley and ’long the river is better than us.| man’s. Hark to me, neighbors! if He came
I reckon He must ha’ come to save the folks| to save sinners, He’ll do it; and I’m chief on
‘*Ts the Dominie to home?”’ ‘| that’s in State Prison, for horse-stealin’ and|’em all! I’ve got my memory back, and I’ve
‘No; he has gone away to preach, and will| such like. I’m a poor, miserable, simple know- | thought on a himm they used to sing to Blitter-
not be back till Monday afternoon.”’ nothin’ but I don’t believe I’m a sinner. Iwish| man’s ;’’ and he mangled it thus:
‘*Well, I do hate to go back and tell old| I knowed more about God and everythin’. I’m “My sins is great, but they can’t pass
Jake Traphagen, that’s dyin’, that he can’t} sick o’ my poor life, but I’m skeart o’ death pate nbsedens Weenesanararaa! SIOCes
have nobody with enfluence up thar, to get] ’cause I reckon my chance is mighty poor up Mayn’t a poor sinner trust in Thee?’
him ready fur heaven. He knowed a con-|there. And yit, arter all, I’m a ’Merican “There! Old Job Blitterman used to hoe,
sid’able ’bout ’ligion when he was a boy, kase} citizen, as free and equal as anybody, and} and rake, and mow, and drive, to the tune o’
he lived ’long o’ old Job Blitterman that’s|I don’t see why I hain’t as good a right to] that, sixty years ago; and I, aside o’ him,
buried close to your husband’s church, thar; | heaven as I have to the polls. Mebbe it’s for| used to wonder and amaze where he found
and was a awful good old man. Old Jake|the same reason that I can’t go to church, | his sinners! I thought I’d forgot all I’d heerd
keeps a-talking ’bout him and his teachin’s,|’cause I ain’t respec’able enough. I can go} there, but the words had stuck some’here into
and frettin fear he won’t be let in, up thar. | to the polls, and to the store, with my elbows| me, and now they’re come up, and I’ve dared
I told him he was all right, and so is all that’s} and knees out, and barefoot, if I’ve a mind| to talk to the old man’s God. ‘Then it come
done the best they could.’’ ter, and nobody notices me. But, if I go} to me that he read, ‘Though your sins be scar-
“But has he, and have you and I, done the| nigh to the church, even into the hoss-sheds] let and crimson, you shall be as white as wool
best we could?’’ asked the lady, who stood] of a Sunday, why, I’m starred at as if I was} and snow.’ ‘Think o’ me, Abe, bein’ whiter
in the porch of the parsonage. a wild tiger!”’ than snow, and goin’ in at the shinin’ gate old
‘*Wall, him and me’s been putty decent — And so the poor, ignorant, simple man con-| Job used to tell on, and lookin’ at God! He
for mountain folks. We never killed nobody, | versed and argued with himself, as with the] came to save sinners. Now, I don’t see how
nor never stole nothin’ 0’ consekence. And_| aid of his oaken staff he walked and stumbled | He can help savin’ me, the head one on ’em
we’ve done heaps o’ good to neighbors poorer | up the rocky road-bed that led to a group of| all! Oh, neighbors, heave away your whisky
than us. I’ve lugged bags o’ meal, and cod-| poor log cabins and rough board houses. jugs, quit swearin’, be kind to your wives and
fish and sich like, up the mountain on my| He passed by his own door, and entered] children, and seek the Lord while He may be
shoulders many a time for widders and sick] that of old Jake Traphagen. found. Good-bye.’’
men; and everybody up thar sends me for} The old man was bolstered up on his poor} The minister came to the funeral, and stand-
the doctor—day or night; and I’ve dug lots| pallet, the sun lighting his wan and wasted ing beside old Jake’s open grave, he told the
0’ graves, and helped bury lots o’ folks for| features. Several neighbors were with him. poor people—‘‘who saved all their jobs for
nothin’. Butit’s old Jake I’mworryin’ about.”’ “Is the Dominie coming?’’ he asked, as} him,’’ but who never paid even his horse hire
Such were the claims that Abe Van Schaick| the long, awkward shadow of Abe fell across] for the rough journey—of the seed sown by
put forth to a high seat in heaven. the door-way. old Job Blitterman sixty years old, that had
“Tell him from me,’’ said the lady, ‘“‘that) ‘‘No, not till day arter to-morrow; but I| just borne its harvest, and reminded them of
Christ Jesus came into the world to save) got all the di—rections from the lady; and|the words that lingered on their aged neigh-
sinners; and that whosoever believeth on Him| she’s lived with him so long she knows all| bor’s lips while he was dying: ‘‘Christ Jesus
shall not perish but have everlasting life.’’ about it, just as good as he does! She says] came into the world to save sinners.’
The man who was trying to comprehend | you’re all right—no danger o’ you; that Christ :
this message belonged to a class scattered | Jesus came down here to save—folks, and that
through the rough mountainous regions of| if you’ll believe it, you won’t perish but have
New York. everlastin’ life. There now!’’ cried poor Abe
These people pick berries in summer, and| triumphantly.
cut fence-rails, and shave barrel-hoops atother| ‘‘Not to save folks—it was to save sinners!’
seasons, for a living; and a.poor living they | said the old man.
have, far from public roads and schools and| ‘‘Well, but you hain’t done nothin’,: you’ll
churches. They never went to church, ‘‘kase} get in all right any way.’’ ,
folks starred at ’em,’’ and their children did| ‘‘Stop that,’’ cried the old man, almost
not go to school with other children. fiercely. ‘‘I’ve sinned all my days. If it’s
This poor, ignorant, and simple man, who| sinners He’s after, wher’ll He find a wuss one
expected heaven, for ‘‘luggin’ meal and diggin’ | than I be? If you’d made me a promise you
graves for nothin’,’’ asked the lady if he might | wouldn’t break it now when I’m old and sick
‘say them words arter her slow, so’s to get| and poor, Abe?”’
em tight fixed into his head.’’ ; **1’d cut off my right hand fust!”’ replied
“Certainly, my friend; they are worth re-| Abe.
peating a thousand times,’’ was the reply. ‘tWell, then, isn’t God better, and truer,
He followed her through the wondrous words| and faithfuller, and mercifuller than a poor,
carefully, and then, after assuring her that ‘‘all| miserable, good-for-nothin’ like you?’’
the jobs should be kept for her husband,’’) This doubtful compliment made poor Abe
walked off toward the mountain pass, mutter-| wince, and he said: ‘‘I took your part te the
ing to himself: ‘‘Christ Jesus come along to/| lady, place o’ callin’ you names. I told her
save sinners, and, if you believe it, He’ll give| you’d always been a good man, and no sinner
you everlastin’ life. But whar’s your sinners? | at all!” ; ;
The old man ain’t so very bad, and I’m sure}; “Y’ve a great mind to send you straight
T ain’t, and I don’t know who’ll own up to back!’’ said the old man. ‘I am a Seat
bein’ a yillyan! Still, there must be some sinner; but since you went away, Abe, I’ve
sinners some’heres, or else He’d never ’a’| had mighty words come back to me that I
come to save ’em. lyerybody down in the| heerd when I was living at old Job Blitter-

24 0 <a oe

Love for God’s House.

An old man of the Coranna tribe in South
Africa, 70 years of age according to the reck-
oning ef his sons, and feeble in body, was ac-
customed to walk every Saturday a distance
of 16 or 17 miles from his home to the mission
station, in order to attend the services on Sun-
day, and return the next day. In one hand
he would carry a jackal’s tail, with which he
would wipe the sweat from his face, and in
the other a staff for his support. From one
of the button-holes of his coat hung his calen-
dar. It consisted of a small, narrow board, in
which 7 holes were punched. Every morning
he would stick a peg into one of the holes, and
.as he began on Sunday he knew, whenever he
reached the last hole in the row, that it was
Saturday. Then he would set out on his tedi-
ous journey, which he performed, however,
so cheerfully and eagerly. In addition to his
other burdens the old man also carried a chair
strapped to his back, in order that he might
have his own seat in the house of the Lord.
*€One thing have I desired of the Lord, that
will seek after; that I may dwell in the house
of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold
the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His
temple.’? Ps. 27, 4. eee i

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