The Baptistery.
THE FONT
A few weeks after the interview mentioned in the last chapter, the Vicar preached three sermons from the same text, St. John iii. 5: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." The first sermon was on the necessity of Baptism; the second, on its benefits; and the third, on its mode of administration, specially in the case of infants. Mr. Ambrose could not help noticing that Mr. Dole was on each occasion deeply affected, for he saw tears on his face, which evidently manifested deep emotion within. He was, therefore, hardly surprised, when, after his third sermon, a knock at the vestry-door announced a visit from his parishioner.
"I have listened very attentively to your last three sermons, Mr. Ambrose," said he, "and the subjects of them have also, as you know, for a long time past been seriously and prayerfully considered by me; I am now come to ask you to receive me into the Church by Baptism."
"Have you never yet been baptized, my friend?" inquired the Vicar, taking his hand in a kind and friendly way.
"No, I have not; when I was an infant, my parents objected to my being baptized, and since I became a man, I must confess with shame, that I have never had the courage to go through the service at our meeting. That service, you know, sir, is such as to deter far more courageous men—and specially women—than I am, and I have always, too, had my doubts about its propriety."
"I am not surprised at that. I once, when a boy, attended a baptism at one of your meetings, and I shall never forget it; for a more unseemly spectacle I never witnessed. There were several young men and women immersed by the preacher, in a large tank of water, in the middle of the meeting-house. Each was clothed in a flannel garment fitting almost closely to the body, and the appearance of the first of them was the signal for a general rush to the best places for seeing; men and boys climbed noisily over the pews, and some took their places on the backs of the seats, so as to get a good view; and the whole scene was most disorderly and irreverent.