CHAPTER XXI
The next day was the Sabbath, the first since the return of our friendsfrom Viamede. They attended, as usual, the morning services of thesanctuary, and in the afternoon gathered upon the veranda at Woodburnfor the private, conversational study of some scriptural theme.
"What is to be our lesson for to-day, captain?" queried Mr. Lilburnwhen they had seated themselves, each with Bible in hand.
"I have thought of the sacrificial shedding of blood," was the reply."Here in Hebrews 9:22, 'And almost all things are by the law purgedwith blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.' The bloodof sacrifices was typical of the atoning blood of Christ. Paul tellsus, 'Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own bloodHe entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternalredemption for us.... So Christ was once offered to bear the sins ofmany.' Now let us read in turn texts bearing upon this great subject.Violet, my dear, will you begin?"
"Yes," she replied. "Matthew, Mark and Luke each tell us of Jesus'words in giving His disciples the cup of wine at His last supper onearth; He said to them, 'This is my blood of the new testament, whichis shed for many for the remission of sins.'"
It was now Harold's turn, and he read: "'Then Jesus said unto them,Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye eat the flesh of the Sonof man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth myflesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise himup at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drinkindeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me,and I in him.'"
It was now Grace's turn, and she read: "'Take heed, therefore, untoyourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hathmade ye overseers to feed the church of God, which He hath purchasedwith His own blood.'"
Then Elsie read: "'Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation throughfaith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission ofsins that are past through the forbearance of God.'"
Then Ned: "'Much more, then, being now justified by His blood, we shallbe saved from wrath through Him.'"
Grandma Elsie, sitting next, now read from Ephesians: "'But now inChrist Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the bloodof Christ.... In whom we have redemption through His blood, theforgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.'"
Then Lucilla: "'Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by Hisblood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternalredemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and theashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifyingof the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who throughthe eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge yourconscience from dead works to serve the living God?'"
Then Chester read: "'Having, therefore, brethren, boldness to enterinto the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, whichHe hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say His flesh,of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthywho hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the bloodof the covenant, wherewith He was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hathdone despite unto the Spirit of Grace?'"
Evelyn, sitting next, then read: "'Unto Him that loved us and washed usfrom our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and priests untoGod and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.'"
Then Mrs. Annis Lilburn, sitting next, read: "'And they sung a newsong, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book and to open the sealsthereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy bloodout of every kindred and tongue and people and nation.'"
Walter sat next, and he read: "'These are they which came out of greattribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in theblood of the Lamb.'"
Then Mr. Lilburn, next and last, read: "'And they overcame him by theblood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.' The one therespoken of as overcome is, as doubtless you all know, Satan, spoken ofin this chapter of Revelation as the accuser of our brethren, accusingthem before God day and night; but by the blood of the Lamb of God, andonly by that, could they or any one overcome him."
"'Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we,being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripesye were healed,'" quoted Grandma Elsie in low, moved tones. "Oh, howcan we help loving Him with all our hearts and serving Him with all ourpowers?"
"'For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust,that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, butquickened by the Spirit,'" quoted the captain, then added: "'The bloodof Jesus Christ His son cleanseth us from all sin.'"
Lucilla followed: "'Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that Heloved us, and sent His son to be the propitiation for our sins.'"
Evelyn followed: "'Ye know that He was manifested to take away oursins; and in Him is no sin.... He is the propitiation for our sins; andnot for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.'"
"'And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to bethe Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is theSon of God, God dwelleth in him and he in God,'" quoted Violet withfeeling, then she started a hymn, in which all joined with fervor:
"Come, let us sing of Jesus, While hearts and accents blend; Come, let us sing of Jesus, The sinner's only Friend; His holy soul rejoices, Amid the choirs above, To hear our youthful voices Exulting in His love.
"We love to sing of Jesus, Who wept our path along; We love to sing of Jesus, The tempted and the strong; None who besought His healing He passed unheeded by, And still retains His feeling For us above the sky.
"We love to sing of Jesus, Who died our souls to save; We love to sing of Jesus, Triumphant o'er the grave; And in our hour of danger We'll trust His love alone Who once slept in a manger, And now sits on the throne.
"Then let us sing of Jesus While yet on earth we stay, And hope to sing of Jesus Throughout eternal day; For those who here confess Him He will in heaven confess, And faithful hearts that bless Him He will forever bless."
That hymn finished, Grandma Elsie started another beautiful one, inwhich all joined:
"I love to tell the story Of unseen things above, Of Jesus and His glory, Of Jesus and His love. I love to tell the story, Because I knew it's true; It satisfies my longings As nothing else can do.
CHORUS:
"I love to tell the story, 'Twill be my theme in glory, To tell the old, old story, Of Jesus and His love.
"I love to tell the story; More wonderful it seems Than all the golden fancies Of all our golden dreams. I love to tell the story, It did so much for me; And that is just the reason I tell it now to thee.
"I love to tell the story; 'Tis pleasant to repeat What seems, each time I tell it, More wonderfully sweet. I love to tell the story, For some have never heard The message of salvation From God's own holy word.
"I love to tell the story; For those who know it best Seem hungering and thirsting To hear it like the rest. And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song, Twill be the old, old story That I have loved so long."
Several prayers followed the singing of the hymns, and then the meetingclosed with the singing of the Doxology, in which all, old and young,took part.
CHAPTER XXII
That week, the first after the return of the _Dolphin_, bringing thelast instalment of visitors to Viamede, was filled with family parties,given in the daytime for the sake of the little ones, who in each casewere quite as welcome guests as the older folk. But the weather wasgrowing warm, and the doctors advised a speedy flitting northward.
"To go speedily will be best for you all, especially my Grace, Ned andthe little ones, M
ary and Ray," said Dr. Harold, addressing the usualfamily party gathered for the evening upon the veranda at Woodburn.
"So I think," said the captain; "and as on like occasions in the past,the _Dolphin_ is at the service of you all; can be made fully ready ina day."
"And Crag Cottage will be ready and glad to accommodate you all assoon as the _Dolphin_ can carry you there," added Evelyn in pleasant,playful tones.
"Oh, thank you, Eva," cried several voices, Lucilla adding: "There isno place I should prefer to that." Then turning to her husband, "Youcan go too, can't you, Chester?"
"Perhaps for a brief sojourn; then leave my wife and son there fora longer time, going for them when fall weather shall have made itsafe for them to come home again," he replied in cheerful tones. Thenturning to Dr. Harold: "I hope," he added, "that you are intendingto spend the summer there, keeping guard over our family treasurescommitted to your care?"
"I have planned doing so, provided Cousin Arthur and my brother Herbertwill undertake the care of all our patients in this neighborhood, ofwhich I have no doubt," was the ready reply. "Then I must take chargein the fall, giving them a vacation in their turn."
"Yes, I am very sure you will do right and generously by them,"remarked Grace, giving him a look of love and confidence.
"Oh, I am glad to think of being on our good _Dolphin_ again and thenat dear, sweet Crag Cottage," cried Ned, clapping his hands in delight."Oh, papa, can't we have a voyage out in the ocean, too?"
"Perhaps so," said his father. "I see nothing to prevent, if all mypassengers desire it. However, we can decide that question after goingaboard the yacht."
"Yes, and I feel pretty sure we will all be in favor of a little tripfar enough toward the east side of the ocean to be at least for a fewhours out of sight of land on this side," laughed Lucilla.
"And how soon shall we start?" asked Chester.
"The yacht can be ready by the day after to-morrow," said the captain;"and if all the passengers are ready, we will start in the evening ofthat day."
Violet, Evelyn and Lucilla all replied at once that they could be readyalmost at a moment's notice, having for weeks past been looking forwardto this flitting and preparing for it.
"And, father," added Evelyn, "I should like to have Cousins Ronald andAnnis Lilburn as my guests for the summer. Can you not invite them nowthrough the 'phone, and ask how soon they can be ready, if willing togo?"
"I can," he replied in a pleased tone, and went at once to theinstrument.
Their answer was that they would be delighted to go, and would be readyby the time mentioned for the starting of the vessel.
Captain Raymond then 'phoned to Ion, told of the proposed starting ofthe _Dolphin_ for a northern trip, to end finally at Crag Cottage onthe Hudson, and gave a warm invitation from Evelyn to Grandma Elsieand Walter to join the party and be her guests for the summer, if theyshould care to stay so long.
A gratified acceptance, with an assurance that they would be readyin season, came in reply, and all the Woodburn company were jubilantover the prospect of the pleasant trip and the enjoyable summer at CragCottage likely to follow.
Captain Raymond kept his promise to have the _Dolphin_ ready in goodseason, and all the passengers were aboard when the anchor was liftedearly in the evening of the appointed day. The weather was fine, andthey found the deck a delightful place for promenading or sittingat ease on the comfortable seats provided. There was much cheerfulchat, sometimes mirthful, sometimes serious; there were jests andbadinage, fun and frolic, especially among the children, with CousinRonald to help it on, and there was music--first songs, afterwardhymns of praise, repetitions of passages of Scripture and prayers ofthankfulness and petitions for God's protecting care. Then the littleones were sent to their nests for the night, and somewhat later theolder ones retired to theirs.
Lucilla's idea of an eastward trip till out of sight of land wascarried out to her satisfaction and amusement, then the _Dolphin_turned, passed through Long Island Sound and up the Hudson River toCrag Cottage, which they reached in safety and all in good health.
There, as always before, they had a pleasant, restful time, oftenenlivened by the fun Cousin Ronald's talent could make, and after awhile varied by trips here and there in the yacht. Chester spent a fewdays there, then returned home with the understanding that he wouldprobably be with them again before the season was over. He was missed,but with Mr. Lilburn, Captain Raymond, Dr. Harold and Walter Travillastill left, the ladies and children were not without protectors andhelpers of the stronger sex.
And in a few days a glad surprise was given them all, Evelyn inespecial, by the unexpected arrival of Max. He had obtained a furloughand could be with them for some weeks.
"Now I think with two ventriloquists here we shall have some fun,"exclaimed Ned shortly after his brother's arrival.
"Ah, Ned, Ned, is that all you care about in seeing your only brother?"queried Max in tones of heartfelt disappointment and an expression ofdeep despondency.
"Oh, no, no, indeed!" cried Ned. "I'm ever so glad to have you here,Maxie, if you never do any ventriloquism at all. Please believe me."
"Well, I suppose I must, since I know you have been trained up to speakthe truth," returned Max, brightening a little, "and I hope the companyof your only brother may afford you some slight enjoyment, even shouldthere be no practice of ventriloquism."
"Yes, brother, you may be sure of it," replied Ned, striving tosuppress a slight sigh.
"And your brother must be allowed a good, enjoyable time with his wife,little daughter and new little nephew before we trouble him to attendto anything else," remarked Violet in an amused tone.
"And in the meantime the rest of us can, perhaps, be depended upon toentertain your young laddie, Cousin Violet," said Mr. Lilburn, with akindly, amused look at Ned.
"I see that, as usual, you have the _Dolphin_ lying here at your dock,father," said Max, "and I suppose that you all take occasional trips inher."
"Yes, son, and I think you will not object to accompanying us in that,will you?"
"Oh, no, sir; no, indeed; I shall be very glad to do so, as babies andall can be made as comfortable there as anywhere on land."
"By the way," said Dr. Harold, "a lady patient was telling me the otherday of a visit she had paid to the village of Catskill, interested init because of having seen Joseph Jefferson playing 'Rip Van Winkle,'and that has given me a desire to see the place."
"So you shall," said the captain; "the _Dolphin_ can readily bepersuaded to make that trip, and I presume none of our party wouldobject to going there in her."
He sent a smiling glance around as he spoke, and it was responded to bysmiles and exclamations of pleasure in the prospect.
"I don't know anything about Rip Van Winkle," said Elsie, turningtoward her father. "Is it a story, papa, and will you tell me about it?"
"Yes, daughter," he replied; "it is a story and only a story; notfact at all, but seeming so real as played by Jefferson that verymany people were and are greatly interested in it. Rip Van Winkle isrepresented as an ignorant, good-natured man, made and kept poor bylove of liquor, which so soured his wife against him that she drove himout of the house. Once it was at night and in a terrible thunder storm.He goes into a steep and rocky clove in the Kaatskill Mountains, andmeets with some queer, silent people, who give him drinks of liquorthat put him to sleep, and he does not wake again for twenty years,and in that time he had changed from a comparatively young man to afeeble, old one with white hair and a long white beard. In the meantimehis wife, thinking him dead, had married the man--Derrick by name--whohad stolen his house and land. She had done it in order to keep herselfand little daughter from starvation, and he was now trying to forcelittle Meenie, Rip's daughter, to marry his nephew, Cookles, though shedid not want him, as she loved another, young Hendrick, who was herplaymate when they were children, but is now a sailor and away on hisvessel--has been gone five years--but now he comes back just in time toput a stop to the mischief
Derrick and his nephew, Cookles, are tryingto do to Meenie and Gretchen in order to get full possession of thehouse and land. He and Rip are able to prove that those, the house andland, are not his and never were.
"So the story ends well; the scamps are defeated, and the rightfulowners are happy in regaining the property and being restored to eachother," concluded the captain.
"Thank you, papa," said Elsie; "it was a nice story, because it endedwell."
"And wouldn't you like to see the place where all that is said to havehappened?" asked Dr. Harold.
"Yes, indeed," she answered; and after a little more chat on thesubject, it was decided that they would visit the village of Catskillthe next day and see the very spot where all these strange events weresupposed to have taken place.
"The scenery about there is said to be very fine, is it not?" asked Mr.Lilburn.
"It is," replied Captain Raymond; "and I think we who are strong enoughto climb steep ascents will be well repaid for the effort. Our bestplan will be to leave the yacht for a hotel, as in order to see allthat is worth seeing we must spend some days in the vicinity."
"Yes," said Dr. Harold; "and the ladies and babies and our not verystrong little Ned will need to stay in the village while we strongerones climb about the cliffs."
"I think you are right in that," assented his mother. "By the way," shecontinued, "do you think, gentlemen, that it was quite correct for theauthor of the play to bring in Hudson and some of his men as takingpart in causing Rip's long nap? From the accounts given of his life anddeath, it would seem that he was set adrift by his sailors considerablymore to the north, and perished in the sea."
"That is so, mother," returned the captain; "but it is about as true asthe story of Rip's long nap."
"And that couldn't be true," remarked Elsie wisely, "for nobody couldlive half as long as that without eating anything, could they, UncleHarold?"
"No, certainly not," replied her uncle, smiling at the very idea. "Noone but a very ignorant person could be made to believe the storytrue."
"Still, we can enjoy looking at the scenes of the supposedoccurrences," remarked Captain Raymond. "Shall we go to-morrow?"
Every one seemed in favor of that proposition, and the next morning,the weather being favorable and the yacht in excellent condition, theystarted upon their trip shortly after breakfast.
Comfortable accommodations were found in the hotel at Catskill, andthe ladies seemed well satisfied with what they could see and enjoy ingoing about the valley while the stronger members of the party shouldclimb the steep cliffs and explore all the places where Rip was said tohave wandered, and especially the spot where his very long sleep wassupposed to have been taken.
The beautiful scenery of that region was greatly enjoyed by all, maleand female, old and young, so all agreed in prolonging their visit tothe stay of several days. Then they boarded the yacht and started fortheir Crag Cottage home again.
Max was very fond of his baby daughter, and when they were allcomfortably established aboard the yacht he took her in his arms to petand fondle her; but as he did so he was startled for an instant by ajoyous exclamation that seemed to come from her lips, "Oh, papa, I loveyou, and am so glad you are here with mamma and me again." But glancingat Cousin Ronald, Max laughed and replied: "Are you, daughter? Well, Ihope the time will never come when you will be other than very glad tosee your father."
"Ah, that's the first talking she has done in quite a while," laughedher mother.
"Oh, was it you who made her do it, Brother Max?" asked Ned excitedly.
"No," replied Max; "I was as much surprised at the moment as anybodyelse. But isn't it natural that the joy of seeing her long absentfather should loosen her tongue?"
"I guess it is more natural that Cousin Ronald should do it," laughedNed. "He could, I know, and I suspect that he did."
"Do you plead guilty, Cousin Ronald?" queried Evelyn, giving him a lookof amusement.
"Well, now, you should not be too curious, Cousin Eva," was thenon-committal reply.
"Is she too curious?" asked Ned. "Don't you think, Cousin Ronald, thatit's all right for her to want to know what has made little Mary talkso well to-night?"
"Of course it is," little Mary seemed to say. "And I hope to talk agood deal while my papa is with us."
"Yes, I hope you will," said Ned. "I think he'll help you about it.Don't you wish you'd been climbing those mountains along with him?"
"No, Uncle Ned; it was nicer to be with mamma in the village."
Ned laughed at that, and turning to the other baby, asked: "How was itwith you, Ray? Didn't you want to go along with the big folks?"
"No; you ain't one of the big folks, are you?" Ray seemed to reply; andNed colored, as there was a general laugh from those present.
"A good deal bigger and older than you are," was his rather ungraciousrejoinder.
"Don't be vexed with my baby boy, little brother," said Lucilla; "youknow he didn't say that of himself. Somebody put the words into hismouth, or, to speak more literally, caused them to seem to come fromhis tongue, though he does not know how to talk at all."
"Oh, yes, I know, and I'm not vexed with him now," said Ned. "Ioughtn't be, as I'm his uncle and want him to be fond of me, as I hopehe will be when he's old enough to know about such things."
"Yes, Ned, you may be sure he will," said Max. "You and I are going totry to be such nice, good uncles that he will be proud to own us assuch."
"And I shall try to be such a grandfather that he and Baby Mary will beproud to own me as theirs," said the captain.
"It will be strange, indeed, if they are not, father," said Lucilla.
"Yes, indeed! I am very proud of being your daughter, papa, as I thinkthe others are," said Grace; "and I am sure Max and Ned are proud ofbeing your sons."
"Indeed we are," said Max.
"I know I am," laughed Ned. "So now I guess we are all pleased witheach other and are going home to Crag Cottage quite happy."
Everybody laughed at that, and all reached their temporary home inexcellent spirits. It was a lovely and enjoyable one, situated ona charming part of the Hudson River's western bank, the house mostcomfortable and convenient, the grounds tastefully laid out and kept inexcellent order. Max and Eva had reason to be proud and fond of theircountry seat. They and most of their guests remained there for someweeks until Max's furlough expired and fall weather rendered the returnto their warmer Southern homes desirable. And the homeward journey inthe _Dolphin_ was a most agreeable winding up of their summer trip tothe North.
THE END
* * * * *
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES
Obvious punctuation errors repaired.
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_
p134 "which she ceded back to spain." replaced with "which she ceded back to Spain."
p278 "yet shall be occupy a bright page in our border" replaced with "yet shall he occupy a bright page in our border"
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