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THE VISITOR
We’z
standin’ ‘round a-talkin’ at the church t’other day, A-gettin’
in a last drag ‘fore it’z time to sing and pray. The wimmin
folks had done gone in to set and fan and wait, When we seen
this automobile wuz a-comm’ thru the gate; And then this
feller drove up thar just like he owned the place. He stopped
right on that ant bed, when they’z other parkin’ space, So
we knowed right off that we had us — A vizter.
Well
sir, this feller, he got out and walked up whar we stood. They
want nobody knowed him, tho we looked him over good. He stuck
his hand out, proper like, and sed, “Good morning, friend!”
We jest stood there a little, and then Lew, he had to grin. He
stepped out smart and “howdy”d! Oh, they ain’t no flies on
Lew! So we kicked dirt and shifted weight, to let him know “us
too.” Then we started in to figger out — The vizter.
Now
bruther Matt wuz tactful-like, “Have you gat faith?” he
said; A-know-in’ he could cote him James, “bout “faith
alone is dead.” And this here feller took the bait. He said he
“loved the Lord.” “That’s ‘nough to know yore
Methodist, without another word,” Said Matt;
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and I declare he looked some
disappointed too. He had some real good Baptist points he’d
hoped to carry through. I reckon we’d done put in place —
The vizter.
He
set hizzelf “bout half-way down, along the center aisle; And
all the wimmin turned around and looked a little while. He sang
a right good bass, I thought; and then “amen”ed the prayer.
“Course Effie says he missed a beat — her hearin’s only
fair. The preacher took good aim at him and let the sermunt fly,
“Bout infant sin, and mourner’s bench, and sellin’ Meth‘dist
pie. We thought this surely would convert — The vizter.
Somehow
he never seen the light, fer all our preach and prayin’. Some
folk jest got a stubborn heart, my Lizzie keeps a-sayin’. But
that man done us lots o-good. We learnt thet we wuz able To
handle anything whut comes to meet aroun’ our table. And when
we have a shaller day, with most folks gone a-fishin’, We skip
the class, and set and talk, with everyone awishin’ Fer one
more day like that’n with — The vizter.
(To
protect the Innocent —
Robert F. Turner)
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