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SKETCHES THA T MAKE YOU SMILE
The Writing Master at Briar Patch
By BETSY HAMILTON.
(From an old scrap book.)
One day last fall Caledony and the
Roberson gals and Arizony
was all a-spendin’ the day at our house.
We didn’t know what else to git at.
so we let in to tryin’ of our fortunes
with chestnuts on the hath. Caledony
was doin’ most of the talkin’; the
chestnuts was a-poppin’ all over the
floor ever-which-away, and we was all
laughin’, and carryin’ on like we al
ways do when Caledony is around;
when we heard the dog bark and seed
the new writin master a-comin’. Maw
she jerked the broom quick and swept
up the hath —chestnuts ana all —and
yelled at us to hush that foolishness,
and go wash the ashes off’n our
mouths, whar we’d been a-eatin’ roast
ed chestnuts.
She went to the door and axed the
man to light and hitch his critter and
come in. We gals got back in the
shed room and peeped through the
crack of the door at him, and Arizony
snickered so loud I was skeered he’d
hear her. She’s the biggest goose
ever I seen about laughin’. She claim
ed him for her sweetheart the minute
she seen him. Caledony told her she
was welcome to him, she didn’t want
nim. Maw give him a gourd of water
to drink, and he ’lowed he’d like to
take a wash.
Flurridy Tennysy, she nz the chist
lid and give him a new comp’ny towel,
one of the store-bought hand toweis
that hadn t been washed. He scrub
bed and scrubbed and scrubbed a try
in' to dry his face. “Them as never
has tried to dry their faces on one
of these here new stiff towels, ’fore
the sto’ starch is biled out’n it,” says
Aunt Nancy, tryin’ to be civil mannered
towards him, “don’t know ha’f how
aggervatin’ it is; here’s a o’e sass one
1 wove, hit beats that’n all to pieces,”
and the man looked thankful to git it.
We gals primpt up and went in to
see him. The minute the Gooden chil
lun sees anybody at our house or a
ndin’ nag nitched at the gate, they
come a-flyin to see who it is.
They come in, all out of breath, and
stood around watchin’ the man when
he untied his bundle of copy books
THE SIGN AND THE LEAVEN.
Nov. 3rd, 1912.
Time, 29 A. D.
Mark 8:11 to 26.
Places: Dalmanutha.
THE GOLDEN TEXT—“Jesus
spoke unto them saying, I am the light
of the world; he that followeth me
snail not walk in the darkness, but
shall have the light of life.” —John 8:
12.
SUGGESTIVE THOUGHTS.
What Should I do?
I. Believe God’s Word. Vs. 11 to
13.
Those who will not believe God’s
Word, will not believe if signs are
given, would not believe though one
rose from the dead (Luke 16:27 to 31).
The Pharisees were not sincere in
asking of Jesus a sign, but were
seeking to confuse and entrap Him.
Re had given abundant signs that He
was the Messiah. The hardness and
blindness of their hearts that lead
them to ask for ft sign deeply grieved
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
By B. LA C Y HOGE, Richmond, Va.
pine blank like he had a monkey show,
showed us the speciments of his hand-
We gals watched him, too, and he
write and all sorter little birds draw
ed in red and blue ink, some a-settin’
on quill pens, some with leaves in
their mouths, and some with love let
ters in their mouths, and he had a
goose a-swimmin’ on the water that
he said he made all at once t without
takin’ up his pen. Aunt Nancy, she
winked at maw; she didn’t believe nai
ry word of it. By that time Mis’
Gooden had come in. She ’lowed she
seed the chillun runnin’ over here like
the house was on fire, and she come
to see what was the matter. But
Sister Gooden’s got right smart chance
of curiosity herse’f. ’Beared like
them chillun would jist bardaciously
climb all over the man, spite of all
they mammy could do. She kep’ a
jerkin’ of ’em back and a-yellin’ at
’em. ‘Stan’ back, chillun', ” says she,
“the gentleman don’t want to nuss
you’uns. Set down, Jackey, ’fore I
slap you; come here, Sweety, you are
too big a gal to act that -away; you
chillun act thes like you never seen
no handwrite afore, and you know your
Uncle Harry Miller drawed birds, and
tarrapins, too, out’n red and blue ink,
and make all them sorter curly-cues —
tain’t nothin’ to do. Stan’ back, ’fore
I knock you sprawlin’. '
They wouldn’t stand back long at a
time; they wanted to take a-holt of
ever’thing. Some chillun can’t see
nothin’ without tetchin’ of it.
Pap come in and the writin’ master
got after him to let him put our names
down to take lessons. Pap ’lowed: “I
don’t know as I keer about it; my
folks can all write tohible fair fists;
leastways they can read it theyselves.
But I reckin they’ll want to take, they
inginnerly takes ever’ fool thing that
comes along —even to the measles.
They buy goods from al l the peddlers,
and always gits cheated. They tuck cy
pherin’ lessons from that rethmetic
man; and he was a-gwine to learn ’em
all so fast how to do any sum in the
United States, in two minutes and a
half; and he never so much as larnt
’em to count a settin’ of aigs. Then
our Lord. (V 12). He refused to give
them a sign because they were, not
sincere seekers after truth. Our
Lord will not cast pearls before swine.
(Matt. 7:6). His spirit will not al
ways strive with man. (Gen. 6:3;
Hos. 4:17; Acts 18:6.) The man that
w ill not believe the Word of God and
accept Jesus will not receive any
other evidence of the Deity of Jesus
than what he has received. But the
man who believes God’s Word and
owns Jesus as Lord and seeks for
more truth, will receive more light and
guided into all truth by the spirit of
Christ. (John 16:13 to 15.)
ll—Beware cf False Doctrines. Vs.
14 to 21.
Leaven is always used in Scrip
ture as a symbol of corruption of life
or doctrine. (Ex. 12:15 to 19; Lev. 2;
11 R. V.; Lev. 6:17; Matt. 16:6-12;
Mark 8:15; Luke 12:1; I Cor. 5:6 to 8;
Gal. 5:7 to 9.) Our Lord uses it here
as a symbol of corruption in doctrine.
The leftven of the was hy-
The Golden Age for October 24, 1912.
they tuck singing’ from that-ar do-ray
me, far-so-lar, trout-mouth fiddler that
come along here last year; and he
never larnt ’em to sing even so much
as ‘Old Dan Tucker.’ But the sack of
the business is this here whole settle
ment is about half-crazy. They runs
wild after any new-fangled humbug
that happens to come along. But,
nevertheless, howsomever, notwith
standing, singin’, you know, is one
thing and writin’ is tother; and while
1 maintains to the doctrine that a purty
hand-write hain’t no sign of smartness,
nevertheless, notwithstanding, I never
stands as no stumblin’ block in the
way of my chillun lamin’ nothing’.
‘Live and larn,’ have always been my
martow. But I’ll tell you the truth
and stake my arfidavy on it, that the
biggest fool I ever seen writ the beau
tifullest hand-write.”
Maw she was a-feared the man
would take it to hisself, so she tried
to smoothe it over, and ’lowed: “But
it takes mighty smart folks to draw
all them purty birds and things.”
“Nevertheless, notwithstanding,” pap
went on to say, “you ’uns can all take
lessons es you’r mine to. I know in
reason taint a-gwine to be nothin’ but
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ters from physicians and relieved pa
tients.
pocrisy, outward display without in
ner reality. A religion of formalism.
(Luke 12:1; II Tim. 3:5; Matt. 15:1 to
9; Matt. 23:13 to 26.) The leaven of
the Sadducees was nationalism, was
unbelief (Matt. 16:6 and 12; Matt. 22:
23; Acts 23:8). The leaven of Herod
was materialism (Mark 8:15). These
are the false doctrines and evils that
are cursing the Church of the indi
vidual believer today. We are com
manded to purge out the old leaven,
because a little leaven will corrupt the
whole. (I Cor. 5:6 to 8.) Leaven is
that which hinders us from living right
and from obeying the truth of God.
(Gal. 5:7 to 9.) Leaven will darken
tht r understanding so that we cannot
understand the Word of God, but if
we will purge out the leaven and let
the Holy Spirit come in, He will il
luminate our minds and hearts and
guide us into the truth. (John 16:12
to 15; John 2:20 to 27.)
111. Take the Blind to Jeeye. Vs.
£2 to 26.
a frolic, but I never stands in the way
of no fun, nuther.”
So the writin’ master tuck down all
our names. And pap was right; it was
a frolic. Ah the young folks in the
settlement tuck lessons jist fur the
fun of gettin’ together; and some of
the old folks tuck for the same reason.
Old man Loftis ’lowed he had allers
heard it said it was never too late
to larn, and he was a-gwine to larn
how to sign his name if nuthin’ more
—’peared like he had been a-makin’ of
his X mark long enough. Old man
Wiggins ’lowed Brother Loftis
shouldnt’ come ahead of him, and told
the writin’ master to put his name
down, too. Old Mrs. Strong ’lowed
to Aunt Nancy: “I been a-gwine all
my life without writin’, and I git along
about as well as them that writes, and
my chillun can do the same thing;
they hain’t no better’n me; I got no
money to fling away on no sich tom
foolery.”
Next day we all met at the “Briar
Patch” school house. The boys
tacked a shelf up ag’in the side of the
house for us to write on, and fixed a
long bench side of it, and we scrouged
in close and the teacher walked back
of /Us. Me and Caledony sot togeth
er, and had a sight of fun laughin’ at
tothers, but never larnt much our
selves. I looked away down at tother
end of the bench and seed Iky Rober
son writin’ slow and twistin’ his mouth
ever’ word he writ, and lookin’ solemn.
I nudged Caledony to look at him, and
we got to gigglin’. Caledony whisper
ed to me to look at Cap Dewberry.
“Do look at Cap,” says she, “he’s a-fix
in’ to whistle.” “Look at Aunt Nan
cy,” says I, “She’s a-cuttin’ out a frock
with the scissors.” “And look at old
Wiggins. He looks like he had et a
green ’simmon,” says Caledony.
“Watch ever last one of ’em,” says
she. Ever’ one twistin’ and screwin’
their mouths ever’ word they wrote;
but Iky Roberson’s mouth was the
funniest of all and her and me got in
such a tickle and gigglement the
teacher had to come and see what was
the matter, and Caledony she ’lowed:
“Hain’t ther some way to larn a body
to write without twistin’ ther
mouths?”
(Continued on Page 16.)
This blind man did not come to
Jesus himself. He was brought by
others. In this case Jesus touched
his eyes the second time. We are not
told why the first touch did not com
pletely heal in this case. We are
sure that the trouble was not with
the Lord, but that it was with the
man. In dealing with this man, He
did not follow the method he used
in dealing with others. He never
used precisely the same method in
dealing -with the sick or blind. He
is the same today. We cannot dic
tate to Him. We must come to Him
and ask Him and He will use what
ever method He wishes. He can and
will heal today, with or without
means. There are many blind ones
among us. (II Cor. 4:3 and 4.) Some
aie blind to all truth. Some see im
perfectly, blind in part, seeing things
as this man saw men like trees walk
ing. (Rom. 11:25.) Bring them to
Jesus and He will open their eyes.
(II Cor. 3:14 to 16.)
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