The Project Gutenberg eBook, The First Soprano, by Mary Hitchcock

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Title: The First Soprano

Author: Mary Hitchcock

Release Date: March 26, 2005 [eBook #15467]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIRST SOPRANO***

E-text prepared by Al Haines

THE FIRST SOPRANO

by

MARY HITCHCOCK

Author of _One Christmas_

Union Gospel Press
Cleveland, Ohio

1912

CONTENTS

CHAPTER

I IN THE CHURCH
II THE HOUSE OF GRAY
III THE CONFESSION
IV ADELE
V IS GOD DEMONSTRABLE?
VI MR. FROTHINGHAM AND THE CHOIR REHEARSAL
VII A NEW SUNDAY
VIII "NOT OF THE WORLD"
IX "TWO OF ME"
X THE CHURCH SOCIAL
XI MR. BOND'S LECTURE
XII THE SOUL HEARS A CAUSE
XIII EXPERIENCE
XIV A "WITLESS, WORTHLESS LAMB"
XV "SELL THAT YE HAVE"
XVI THE MISSIONARY MEETING
XVII LET THE DEAD BURY THEIR DEAD
XVIII GOD, MY EXCEEDING JOY

CHAPTER I

IN THE CHURCH

It was Sunday morning in a church at New Laodicea. The bell had ceased
pealing and the great organ began its prelude with deep bass notes that
vibrated through the stately building. The members of the choir were
all in their places in the rear gallery, and prepared in order their
music in the racks before them. Below the worshipers poured in steady,
quiet streams down the carpeted aisles to their places, and there was a
gentle murmur of silk as ladies settled in their pews and bowed their
heads for the conventional moment of prayer. Exquisitely stained
windows challenged the too garish daylight, but permitted to enter
subdued rays in azure, violet and crimson tints which fell athwart the
eastern pews and garnished the marble font and the finely carved
pulpit. They fell upon the silvering hair of the Reverend Doctor
Schoolman as he pronounced the invocation and read the opening hymn,
but they failed to reach the young stranger, seated behind, who
accompanied him this morning.

Faultlessly in their usual current ran the services until the time for
the anthem by the choir, and then the people settled themselves
comfortably in their pews wi