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A Chautauqua Idyll
This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature.
55 pages, Hardcover
First published December 1, 1981
25 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
About the author
Grace Livingston Hill
591 books569 followersalso wrote under the pseudonym Marcia MacDonald
also published under the name Grace Livingston Hill Lutz
A popular author of her day, she wrote over 100 novels and numerous short stories of religious and Christian fiction. Her characters were most often young female ingénues, frequently strong Christian women or those who become so within the confines of the story.
niece to Isabella MacDonald Alden
also published under the name Grace Livingston Hill Lutz
A popular author of her day, she wrote over 100 novels and numerous short stories of religious and Christian fiction. Her characters were most often young female ingénues, frequently strong Christian women or those who become so within the confines of the story.
niece to Isabella MacDonald Alden
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 23, 2016
I had never heard of the Chautauqua Institution. Apparently, it was quite the thing in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The first one was formed in Chautauqua, New York (hence the name) and groups began forming their own all over the country. They offered educational entertainment within a Christian context.
This was a fanciful telling of "nature" forming its own Chautauqua told in true Grace Livingston Hill descriptive form. This is one of the things I adore about her writing. What a fun way to learn about this historic movement!
This was a fanciful telling of "nature" forming its own Chautauqua told in true Grace Livingston Hill descriptive form. This is one of the things I adore about her writing. What a fun way to learn about this historic movement!
June 1, 2019
Remember when Anne Shirley was stuck in a roof and dreams up a lovely flower conversation? Turn that into an advertisement for a retreat/revival/summer camp, and you have this story! Includes a use of "evolution" in nature that means "an unfolding or unrolling", which is so strange to hear.
June 17, 2018
Nature gets together and decides they want to hold their own Chautauqua meeting. The flowers, birds, fish, stones and even the wind are all keen, and soon committees are set up and plans are in motion.
Perhaps if I was an American I might have heard of the Chautauqua meetings before. I’m sure they were both entertaining and educational. And I can see why Grace Livingston Hill would have written this story about it. Her concept is cute and creative, but I couldn’t help feeling like I was listening to a long and creative, but unfortunately dull, advertisement. A committee meeting is still a committee meeting, even if the members are flowers and birds. I was glad to finish this one.
Perhaps if I was an American I might have heard of the Chautauqua meetings before. I’m sure they were both entertaining and educational. And I can see why Grace Livingston Hill would have written this story about it. Her concept is cute and creative, but I couldn’t help feeling like I was listening to a long and creative, but unfortunately dull, advertisement. A committee meeting is still a committee meeting, even if the members are flowers and birds. I was glad to finish this one.
March 30, 2025
Grace Livingston Hill's "A Chautauqua Idyll" is a short story talking about Chautauqua day that the humans are having and all God's creations including the wind and the seas looking for their own celebration with discussions on all the subjects. It is so sad that programs like Chautauqua are not so prevalent in this modern culture. I loved how the creatures talked about what they heard, and the answer to the non believing man.
➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖
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“What is a Temperance Day?” asked a young squirrel, who was not yet very well acquainted with the
questions of the day.
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“My dear,” said his mother, “there are some bad people in the world who make vile stuff and give it to
people to drink, and it makes them sick and cross; then they do not please God, and there are some good
people who are trying to keep the bad people from making it, and the others from drinking it; they are
called Temperance.” “Oh!” said the squirrel, “but why do the folks drink it? I should think they’d know
better.”
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“So should I, but they don’t. Why, my dear, I must tell you of something that happened to me once. I
lived in a tree at a summer resort, that year, and just under my bough was a window; a young man
roomed there for a few days, and every morning he would come to the window with a black bottle in his
hand, and pour out some dark stuff and mix sugar and water with it, and drink it as if he thought it was
very good. I watched him for several mornings, and one morning the bell rang while he was drinking,
1
Page 6171
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and he left the glass on the window-sill, and went to breakfast. I hopped down to see what it was, and it
smelled good, so I tasted it. I liked the taste pretty well, so I drank all there was left. Then I started home,
but, will you believe it? I could not walk straight, and very soon I could hardly stand up. I tried to climb
up a tree, but fell off the first bough, and there I lay for a long, long time. When I awoke I had such a
terrible pain in my head! All that day I suffered, and didn’t get over my bad feelings for several days. I
tell this
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
as a warning to you, that you may never be tempted to touch anything to drink but water, my dear.”
“You must tell that story, Mrs. Squirrel,” said Bachelor. “And we will call it a story of intemperance, by
one of its victims.” “I will, with all my heart, if it will do any one any good,” she responded. “Yes, we
must have a Temperance Day and all make a speech on drinking cold water,” said the fish.
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
“And dew,” said the violet. “I have always drank water, and never anything else, and I think one could
scarcely find an older or a healthier tree than I am,” said the elm. “That is true,” said the fish. “Cold
water, cold water, cold water,” babbled the brook. “Yes, we can all speak on Temperance Day; we will
have a great platform meeting. That is what they call
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
it at Chautauqua when a great many speak about one thing. I heard a man telling his little girl about it
on the boat,” said the fish. And the woodpecker wrote it down. “What was that other you said?” asked a
sharp little chipmunk. “Missionary Day,” said the fish. “And what is that?” “Why, there are home
missions and foreign missions,” said the fish.
Page 6172
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“Why, that is plain to me,” said Bachelor. “Home missions is when some one does something kind to
you, and foreign missions is when you do something kind to some one else.” “Of course; why didn’t I
think of that before?” said the fish.
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6172
“One day last year I was very hungry,” said a robin, “very hungry and cold. I had come on too early in the
season. There came a cold snap, and the ground was frozen. I could find nothing at all to eat. I was
almost frozen myself, and had begun to fear that my friends would come on to find me starved to death
instead of getting ready for them as they expected. But a little girl saw me and threw some crumbs out
of the window. I went and ate them, and every day as long as the cold weather lasted she threw me
crumbs—such
2
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good ones too—some of them cake; and she gave me silk ravelings to make my nest of. I think that was a
home mission, don’t you?” “Yes, my dear, it was,” said Bachelor.
Page 6175
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Nearer and nearer he came, and stopped before the old fish with a low bow, inquiring whether this was
the Chautauqua Committee. On being told that it was, he laid a bit of delicate sea-weed, a pearly shell,
and a beautiful stem of coral upon the bank, and said: “I have a message from Old Ocean for you. He
sends you greetings and many good wishes for the success of your plan, and regrets deeply that he
cannot
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6175
be with you next summer; but he is old, very old, and he has so much to do that he cannot leave even for
a day or two. If he should, the world would be upside down. There would be no rain in the brooks, the
lakes would dry up, and the crops and the people all would die.” “O dear! and we should die too,” said the
flowers. “Yes, you would die, too,” said the salt-water fish.
➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6170
“What is a Temperance Day?” asked a young squirrel, who was not yet very well acquainted with the
questions of the day.
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6170
“My dear,” said his mother, “there are some bad people in the world who make vile stuff and give it to
people to drink, and it makes them sick and cross; then they do not please God, and there are some good
people who are trying to keep the bad people from making it, and the others from drinking it; they are
called Temperance.” “Oh!” said the squirrel, “but why do the folks drink it? I should think they’d know
better.”
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6170
“So should I, but they don’t. Why, my dear, I must tell you of something that happened to me once. I
lived in a tree at a summer resort, that year, and just under my bough was a window; a young man
roomed there for a few days, and every morning he would come to the window with a black bottle in his
hand, and pour out some dark stuff and mix sugar and water with it, and drink it as if he thought it was
very good. I watched him for several mornings, and one morning the bell rang while he was drinking,
1
Page 6171
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
and he left the glass on the window-sill, and went to breakfast. I hopped down to see what it was, and it
smelled good, so I tasted it. I liked the taste pretty well, so I drank all there was left. Then I started home,
but, will you believe it? I could not walk straight, and very soon I could hardly stand up. I tried to climb
up a tree, but fell off the first bough, and there I lay for a long, long time. When I awoke I had such a
terrible pain in my head! All that day I suffered, and didn’t get over my bad feelings for several days. I
tell this
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
as a warning to you, that you may never be tempted to touch anything to drink but water, my dear.”
“You must tell that story, Mrs. Squirrel,” said Bachelor. “And we will call it a story of intemperance, by
one of its victims.” “I will, with all my heart, if it will do any one any good,” she responded. “Yes, we
must have a Temperance Day and all make a speech on drinking cold water,” said the fish.
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
“And dew,” said the violet. “I have always drank water, and never anything else, and I think one could
scarcely find an older or a healthier tree than I am,” said the elm. “That is true,” said the fish. “Cold
water, cold water, cold water,” babbled the brook. “Yes, we can all speak on Temperance Day; we will
have a great platform meeting. That is what they call
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6171
it at Chautauqua when a great many speak about one thing. I heard a man telling his little girl about it
on the boat,” said the fish. And the woodpecker wrote it down. “What was that other you said?” asked a
sharp little chipmunk. “Missionary Day,” said the fish. “And what is that?” “Why, there are home
missions and foreign missions,” said the fish.
Page 6172
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6172
“Why, that is plain to me,” said Bachelor. “Home missions is when some one does something kind to
you, and foreign missions is when you do something kind to some one else.” “Of course; why didn’t I
think of that before?” said the fish.
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6172
“One day last year I was very hungry,” said a robin, “very hungry and cold. I had come on too early in the
season. There came a cold snap, and the ground was frozen. I could find nothing at all to eat. I was
almost frozen myself, and had begun to fear that my friends would come on to find me starved to death
instead of getting ready for them as they expected. But a little girl saw me and threw some crumbs out
of the window. I went and ate them, and every day as long as the cold weather lasted she threw me
crumbs—such
2
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6172
good ones too—some of them cake; and she gave me silk ravelings to make my nest of. I think that was a
home mission, don’t you?” “Yes, my dear, it was,” said Bachelor.
Page 6175
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6175
Nearer and nearer he came, and stopped before the old fish with a low bow, inquiring whether this was
the Chautauqua Committee. On being told that it was, he laid a bit of delicate sea-weed, a pearly shell,
and a beautiful stem of coral upon the bank, and said: “I have a message from Old Ocean for you. He
sends you greetings and many good wishes for the success of your plan, and regrets deeply that he
cannot
Highlight (Yellow) | Page 6175
be with you next summer; but he is old, very old, and he has so much to do that he cannot leave even for
a day or two. If he should, the world would be upside down. There would be no rain in the brooks, the
lakes would dry up, and the crops and the people all would die.” “O dear! and we should die too,” said the
flowers. “Yes, you would die, too,” said the salt-water fish.
February 12, 2025
This is a charming read. I believe it's Grace Livingston Hill's second book and that she wrote it to try to earn money for a family trip. Knowing that ahead of time gave me appreciation for the story. It's a light hearted story filled with anthropomorphism and personification. It's a short imagination of how Creation glorifies God. It's not Grace Livingston Hill's best, but I'm glad to have read it and appreciate it.
April 25, 2020
Just a short story book for kids, not entirely impressive.
August 12, 2023
Where it all began!
I loved Grace Livingston Hill's works for a long time. I was hoping to her first book. I''m glad to find on Amazon!
I loved Grace Livingston Hill's works for a long time. I was hoping to her first book. I''m glad to find on Amazon!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews