“P.S.—Written by the sub-editor of “The Courier.” By the time this printed sheet is being read, the world will have learned that a section of the community has been suddenly taken from our midst. The Editor of The Courier, the giant mind and kindly heart of Tom Hammond, have been taken from us.
“The writer of this postscript, who was in the room, when the “Prophet” of The Courier was taken, was in the act of scorning his message as to the nearing of the great translation. “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” he was gone.
“The writer has not left the room since, and has no means of knowing who else among those known to him are missing,—not many personal acquaintances, he fears, since one’s personal clique has never shown any very marked signs of what one has hitherto considered an ultra type of Christianity, a condition of “righteous overmuch.”
“When we pass out of this room, presently, and touch the great outside world once more, what shall we find? How soon will it be generally known that a section of the community—a larger section, maybe, than we conceive possible—has been silently, suddenly, secretly taken from our midst? What will follow? Where are the prophets who shall teach us where we are, and what we may expect? Does the end of the world follow next? Is there any order of events, specified in the Bible, that follows this mysterious translation, if so, what is it? Who will show us these things?
“Again, since I, the writer of this postscript, am left, while my friend, Hammond, is taken, why am I left, and why shall I find—as of course I shall when I begin to go abroad among mine acquaintance—hundreds of others left? I have been christened, confirmed, have occasionally ‘communicated,’—this is the clerical term, though as I write, it occurs to me that there must have been some flaw, somewhere, in the ‘communicating.’
“I have always supposed myself a Christian by virtue of these things, to which a clean, decent life has been added. Thousands upon thousands, I feel sure, will be puzzled by this same contemplation, when this wonderful Translation becomes generally known.
“If we are not made Christians by christening, confirmation, communicating, why have we always been taught so, by our clergy? How many of these same clergy shall we find left behind.
“And I suppose there will have been some kind of kindred process at work among the Nonconformists bodies—in pulpit and pew, alike. For ourselves, we have come little in contact with Nonconformity, but, if what is accepted generally, to-day, as to the religious situation, be true—that the curse of the Ritualism of the ‘Establishment,’ finds its parallel in the Rationalism, Unitarianism, Socialism, etc., of Nonconformity—then I shall expect to find as many Nonconformists, lay and ministerial, left behind from this mysterious, spiritual translation, as churchmen.”
There came a tap at the door. The messenger boy Charley, appeared. He glanced towards the empty Editor’s chair, then stammered.
“I beg pardon, sir, I thought Mr. Hammond was here, sir. They have jest blown up the tube to know if the ‘Prophet’s’ column was ready.”