Before the day of his leave-taking a farewell banquet was tendered him, at which were appreciative after-dinner speeches, the chair being occupied by Rev. Mr. Devoau, informally. Abraham Thompson, Esq., senior member of the Board, when called upon, said: "I am grieved at the departure of one who has been everything that I could wish--broad-minded, sympathetic, and scholarly--one in whom all could alike trust, ever finding in him a wise counsellor and a safe guide; a man of splendid mental balance, of unusual wisdom. To say that I endorse his teachings is not enough; I heartily endorse all of it, and pray that the Great Head of the Church will bless and keep our mutual friend, together with his much appreciated partner, unto their journey"s end."
The next called upon was Thomas Edwards, the leading merchant in the place. He was shrewd in business and a keen discerner of men. He said: "Though I am not on the same side of politics as Mr. Melvin, yet in the main I think his teachings are sound and the product of a sane mind. Personally, I have learned to respect him. I will, like one who has preceded me, go farther and say I have learned to love him, and wish him and his G.o.dspeed in a ministry which has been a blessing to my whole house."
The next official was Edmund Garvin, general manager of the foundry, and a man of intense perception. Said he: "I have noticed that our worthy senior pastor, whose removal I deeply regret, always stood for unification in the home and independence, and not only there, but in the church and nation, and I may say his sentiment is mine. I, like him, am no hanger-on--only poltroons are that--and no man in his right senses would be anything but a brother to all the races and creeds in our country, and in all his utterances our clerical friend has proven himself not only wise as a serpent, but also a true Christ man. I wish him and his amiable wife great happiness and success in future life."
The chairman now saw that as the time was getting late they must close, and said in a few closing words that his colleague had endeared himself to him, and had done more for him than he could ever repay. "I, like yourselves, regret his departure, but feel that he is going into a field of great usefulness, and he doubted not that he would be happy and prosperous."
Shortly after Rev. Mr. Melvin"s departure old Uncle Reynolds, as he was called, was struck by a pilot engine at the station, and so seriously injured that he was taken home in the ambulance. He was the most saintly man in the tabernacle, and Rev. Mr. Devoau, now in full charge, was sent for. His practiced eye at once told him that the old man"s hour had almost come. Stooping down he said, "Uncle, how is it with your soul?" and opening his weary eyes the aged veteran said, "It is well; it is well." Talking for a moment or two with his pastor he said: "Our dear Bro. Melvin is gone from us, but, oh, how precious are his teachings! As the result of them my feet are on the Rock of Ages--the rock of Christ--and I have long since found out that "all other ground," as the sacred bard says, "is sinking sand.""
Coming back late in the evening Mr. Devoau said, "Uncle, is there light in the valley?" and the dying man raised his feeble hand and blessed his pastor, and whispered to him that he had already been a blessing to many and the people loved him. Then he said: "Oh, yes, the valley is bathed in light; for He has said, "At evening time it shall be light.""
With these words trembling upon his lips the old man swept through the gates of paradise, a ransomed soul.
Finished as was the course of this saintly man, yet the great world, as in all such cases, moved on, and with it the teaching of the new pastor of Mount Zion.
Speaking to the young people some time after this, he said: "Let there be no misunderstanding concerning what I stand for, and what we all should stand for. I am for liberty of conscience, freedom and independence, along all lines, both religious and national, even to the granting of home rule to poor, old, long-suffering Ireland, which, by all means, it should have, and is justly ent.i.tled to in this twentieth century.
"The question arises, How can we best qualify ourselves for the salvation of ourselves and fellows, and the working out of our destiny along general lines? I answer, by consecrating our ransomed powers to the great Arbiter of Destinies, who stands behind all forms and systems, but ever watchful of His own."
At the conclusion of the address Mr. Henry, princ.i.p.al of the Public School, arose and said: "I beg that the Young People"s Club will place upon record, and in letters of gold engrave and place amid the archives of the church, the admirable and fearless utterances of this evening."
Mr. Henry was followed by one who, in the educational world, stood higher than he, namely, the head master of the Collegiate Inst.i.tute in Carsville, who capped everything by saying, ""Pro bono publico," and as well as being for the public good, though I am an independent in politics, I will say that the Rev. Mr. Devoau has the faculty of always saying the right thing, and his teachings are an inestimable boon to all cla.s.ses in this place."
In a few mouths after this the pastor of Mount Zion was honored with a degree from world-renowned Harvard, and his influence increased, and his ministry truly became one of reconciliation and power, until the ever-circling years at last brought near the Age of Gold.