ng to the picture he had seen in his holiness paper, his
emotions refused to yield to control. He jumped high in the air, and
shouted at the top of his voice, "Hallelujah!"

The train being a few hours late, the afternoon was far spent. On the
road from the station, Jake told Evangelist Blank as best he could of
the happenings of the year just preceding--how he had been converted in
the woods and subsequently sanctified, of his persecution and
excommunication by the church, and of his recent beating at the hands of
Deacon Gramps. Evangelist Blank had had many long years of experience in
the field of evangelistic endeavor, yet when Jake Benton poured all
these startling things into his ears, there came a feeling over him that
he was entering into an entirely new experience. This feeling was
verified before he left the neighborhood a few weeks later.

When the old-fashioned wagon rattled up to the front gate of the humble
home, Evangelist Blank expressed to Jake the belief that in coming to
this place he was in the center of the will of God. This made poor
Jake's heart leap for joy. He sprang from the wagon to the ground and,
bidding his good wife see to the comfort of the Evangelist and the
corps of singers who accompanied him, set himself diligently to doing
the evening chores in order that everything might be in readiness for
the evening meeting.

CHAPTER VIII

When the afternoon shadows began to lengthen there began to gather
around the new-made brush arbor on Post Oak Ridge a number of men and
boys. These were mostly idlers of the community, who had nothing in
particular to do, so had come early to the arbor. But when the last
faint streaks of the dying day were fading, the more substantial
citizens of the community began to gather at this spot of interest. They
came from every direction. Every path seemed to lead to the arbor ridge.
Some came in wagons, some in buggies, some on horseback, others walked.

Everybody, almost, was there. Grandma Gray was there. She sat serenely
in her big willow rocker, which Nolan had placed just in front and to
the left of the speaker's stand. Her age-wrinkled face was all aglow
with the joy of full salvation. Aunt Sally Perkins was there. Poor old
Aunt Sally. She was notorious as a shouter and a hypocrite. Nobody had
any confidence in her as a Christian, but she was much given to sitting
in the "amen" corner, and on this particular night she came into the big
arbor and d