He paused a moment with downcast eyes. I saw little Mrs. Minister glance at him--once--wistfully. He rose from his place, drew himself up to his full height--I shall not soon forget the look on his face--and uttered these amazing words:
"Martha, bring the ginger-jar."
Mrs. Minister, without a word, went to a little cupboard on the farther side of the room and took down a brown earthenware jar, which she brought over and placed on the table, Mr. Nash following her movements with astonished eyes. No one spoke.
The minister took the jar in his hands as he might the communion-cup just before saying the prayer of the sacrament.
"Mr. Nash," said he in a loud voice, "I've decided to hold that farmers' meeting."
Before Mr. Nash could reply the minister seated himself and was pouring out the contents of the jar upon the table--a clatter of dimes, nickels, pennies, a few quarters and half dollars, and a very few bills.
"Martha, just how much money is there?"
"Twenty-four dollars and sixteen cents."
The minister put his hand into his pocket and, after counting out certain coins, said:
"Here's one dollar and eighty-four cents more. That makes twenty-six dollars. Now, Mr. Nash, you're the largest contributor to my salary in this neighbourhood. You gave twenty-six dollars last year--fifty cents a week. It is a generous contribution, but I cannot take it any longer. It is fortunate that my wife has saved up this money to buy a sewing-machine, so that we can pay back your contribution in full."
He paused; no one of us spoke a word.
"Mr. Nash," he continued, and his face was good to see, "I am the minister here. I am convinced that what the community needs is more of a religious and social spirit, and I am going about getting it in the way the Lord leads me."
At this I saw Mrs. Minister look up at her husband with such a light in her eyes as any man might well barter his life for--I could not keep my own eyes from pure beauty of it.
I knew too what this defiance meant. It meant that this little family was placing its all upon the altar--even the pitiful coins for which they had skimped and saved for months for a particular purpose. Talk of the heroism of the men who charged with Pickett at Gettysburg! Here was a courage higher and whiter than that; here was a courage that dared to fight alone.
As for Mr. Nash, the face of that Chief Pharisee was a study.
Nothing is so paralyzing to a rich man as to find suddenly that his money will no longer command him any advantage. Like all hard-shelled, practical people, Mr. Nash could only dominate in a world which recognized the same material supremacy that he recognized. Any one who insisted upon flying was lost to Mr. Nash.
The minister pushed the little pile of coins toward him.
"Take it, Mr. Nash," said he.
At that Mr. Nash rose hastily.
"I will not," he said gruffly.
He paused, and looked at the minister with a strange expression in his small round eyes--was it anger, or was it fear, or could it have been admiration?
"If you want to waste your time on fiddlin' farmers' meetings--a man that knows as little of farmin' as you do--why go ahead for all o' me. But don't count me in."
He turned, reached for his hat, and then went out of the door into the darkness.
For a moment we all sat perfectly silent, then the minister rose, and said solemnly:
"Martha, let's sing something."
Martha crossed the room to the cottage organ and seated herself on the stool.
"What shall we sing?" said she.
"Something with fight in it, Martha," he responded; "something with plenty of fight in it."
So we sang "Onward, Christian Soldier, Marching as to War," and followed up with:
Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve And press with rigour on;
A heavenly race demands thy zeal And an immortal crown.
When we had finished, and as Martha rose from her seat, the minister impulsively put his hands on her shoulders, and said:
"Martha, this is the greatest night of my life."
He took a turn up and down the room, and then with an exultant boyish laugh said:
"We'll go to town to-morrow and pick out that sewing-machine!"
I remained with them that night and part of the following day, taking a hand with them in the garden, but of the events of that day I shall speak in another chapter.
