44.4 The Little Minister

a wilderness, and the water-springs into dry
ground. Let His Word be a lamp unto your
feet and a light unto your path; may He be
your refuge and your strength. Amen.”

This amen he said quickly, thinking death was
now come. He was seen to raise his hands, but
whether to Heaven or involuntarily to protect
his face as he fell none was sure, for the mist
again filled the chasm. Then came a clap of
stillness. No one breathed.

But the two men were not yet gone, and Gavin
spoke once more.

“ Let us sing in the twenty-third Psalm.”

He himself raised the tune, and so long as
they heard his voice they sang:

«¢ The Lord’s my shepherd, Tl] not want ;
He makes me down to lie
In pastures green ; He leadeth me
The quiet waters by.

«« My soul He doth restore again ;
And me to walk doth make
Within the paths of righteousness
Ev’n for His own name’s sake.

«« Yea, though I walk in Death’s dark vale,
Yet will I fear none ill;
For Thou art with me; and Thy rod
And staff——”

But some had lost the power to sing in the
first verse, and others at “ Death’s dark vale,”
and when one man found himself singing alone
he stopped abruptly. This was because they no
longer heard the minister.