niiiiiirrtriig 

 
 The Circuit Rider on Foot, 
 
 OR, 
 
 My First Year in the Ministry. 
 
 BV 
 
 Rev.. GEORGE H. HOPKINS, 
 
 ROCKFORD, ILL : 
 
 A. F. JUDl) & CO , PRINTERS ANI> KNUKAVKK? 
 
 18'JO.
 
 DEDICATION. 
 
 To my Christian mother, whose prayers are ever for my success in 
 my chosen fleld of labor, is this volume lovingly dedicated 
 
 BY THE AUTHOR.
 
 PRKKACK. 
 
 Dear reader, this is my first effort at book-making. I 
 do not know as one's experience become as interesting to 
 others as to self. What one knows for himself may be of 
 more worth to self than to any one else. Be that as it 
 may,there maybe great lessons drawn from other's experi- 
 ence. It certainly can do no harm to tell what one 
 has known for himself in the line of duty. A minister's 
 life is sometimes looked upon as an easy life. Some even 
 think that is a pleasureable life, with little care and plenty 
 to eat and wear. If there is any pleasure in the ministry 
 it is not in the fact one is a minister, but rather in the fact 
 that the duties of the office are performed to the best of 
 one's ability. If there is a state of ease to one in 
 the work it is the ease of conscience and not mortal lazi- 
 ness. A preacher's life is not a life of no cost and all pay. 
 I have long since learned that there is more imaginary
 
 pleasure than real pleasure in all human things. If one 
 thinks it is better to be a minister than a farmer, or a 
 mechanic, he will surely find that one place is no easier 
 than another in this world, if one is filling the station 
 assigned to him. Even a man sitting on a dry goods box 
 in front of a store "of a long summer day," is a man 
 whose life is the most burdensome and whose task if done 
 well wearies him more than the hard labor of the farm 
 would. He always seems to be tired, too. There is but a 
 certain amount of earthly comfort for a man in this life. 
 If one seeks pleasure in idleness he finds himself sadly dis- 
 appointed in his pursuit. If he seeks it in labor, he is hap- 
 pier while toiling, although he thinks that ease would be 
 a greater pleasure. But the truth is that God's richest 
 and brightest blessings are wrapped up in hearty service. 
 So the ministry is not the exception to the rule. Its great- 
 est blessings come from the hardest toil and the severest 
 strain. 
 
 The chosen vessel must be broken that the streams 
 may flow. The smitten rock sent forth the pure and 
 sparkling water, and the crucified Redeemer brought life 
 and immortality to light. Had there been no death and 
 burial there could have been no Resurrection dawn. So 
 in all the great work of the ministry the submission to 
 suffering and hardship and trial is the power that opens 
 the gates and floods the world with the glory of saving 
 grace and matchless love. 
 
 If a man thinks the minister of the gospel has an easy 
 time of it he does not consider the nature of things or the 
 nature of that service the minister is called to perform.
 
 iii. 
 
 He does not read well the gospel story, nor does he dis- 
 cover the many paralellisms that must exist between a 
 suffering Christ and a sacrificing ministry. The work of 
 a preacher is not a self-imposed task, but with all of his 
 misgivings he cries with Paul " Woe is me, if I preach not 
 the gospel." He enters the work as a servant of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ, who dare not disobey except he forfeit his 
 peace of mind and rest of soul. 
 
 His service must not depend upon what others say or 
 do, for while he is ministering to a faulty people, and a 
 fault-finding people, and even a rebellious people, he must 
 do the bidding of the Lord whether others like it or not. 
 He has but one to please and that is God. 
 
 In writing this book I have tried to the best of my 
 ability to recall all of the incidents of interest to others 
 Some things are not as fully described as they might have 
 been. It would take too long to tell all, and then the 
 intention of the author in writing this book is not to 
 enlarge upon or follow up everything to the last limit, but 
 simply to give a good and fair synopsis of a minister's 
 trials and triumphs during one brief year. 
 
 However it may appear to others, it is to the author 
 a year of such important lessons that it cannot fail to 
 linger in memory as one of the most sacred of treasures. 
 What does a man value more than childhood's happy 
 hours that hang upon the walls of memory encased in 
 gold never to be taken down? Why does he prize those 
 memories ? Because they are the days of the beginnings 
 of things. The morning dawn of every-day life and 
 experience. The days wherein petty trials and brimming
 
 joys flitted like birds on wings. We cannot forget the 
 beginnings. So to the minister of the gospel in his first 
 year, it is the infancy of a new life, and it must write itself 
 upon the heart in letters of light, there to stay. It is a 
 reality beyond any and every question, and becomes at 
 once the rock-bed of all future efforts and the alphabet of 
 a science that grows in magnitude as years goby. It is the 
 nucleus around which all subsequent history must cluster, 
 and a book of reference to which one oft refers in times of 
 doubt or fear. Such to the author, at least, has been the 
 experience of that first year in the ministry. 
 
 If it can be a help to others on the sea of life, the 
 effort will well pay the author. Let no one think for one 
 moment that the author considers this narrative of facts 
 anything unparalelled in human experience. Thousands 
 of ministers, living to-day, of my age, no doubt have ma- 
 terial at hand that would be more marvelous than any- 
 thing written in this book. Read it, please, simply as the 
 story of a Methodist minister's experience in early life and 
 during a first year in that noble work ; not as what a 
 man did simply, or endured, but as the result of a Divine 
 support given to mortal man. 
 
 What I was able to do was through the assistance of 
 the Divine Master. I was nothing but a man, not a 
 superhuman, but a human being, Some expect of human 
 beings in the ministry superhuman work and superhuman 
 perfection, but a minister is not an angel yet, but he hopes 
 to be some day. You will not be able to find any wings 
 under the preacher's coat. Do not expect too much of 
 your preacher. Credit him with humanity and treat him
 
 V. 
 
 as such in love for the sake of the Master. 
 
 So with these few words I must leave you to wade 
 through the rest of the book as best you can, and that 
 you will not find in wading any place too deep for 
 you to keep your chin above water, or at least your eyes, 
 is the wish of the author. 
 
 GEO. H. HOPKINS.
 
 MY EARLY LIFE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 I was born in the state of ; so to begin with I 
 
 am a "Yankee," and the son of a "Yankee," and the 
 grand son of a "Yankee," an ol^-iashioned "down- 
 Easter; " for my great grand father lived in the state of 
 Rhode Island and there my grandfather was born. He 
 grew up in that state and in Connecticut, and lived there 
 in the days of the " old blue laws." 
 
 My mother was also an American, but how far back 
 in her ancestry the American blood dated I can not say. 
 She was brought upas a Baptist of the "hard-shell "kind, 
 and, not liking that order of ecclesiastics, she united with 
 the Methodist Episcopal church, when she was converted. 
 She was always an ardent advocate of the Methodist 
 doctrines and a firm believer in God and the Bible. Her 
 all was laid upon the altar, even her family. She always 
 kept her little ones in the Sabbath school. She began 
 with them very early in life to teach them, and educate 
 them in the Christian faith. Her children were not left to
 
 6 
 
 grow up and then choose for themselves whether they 
 would go to Sabbath school or not, nor to be invited to 
 attend by some Sunday-school missionary; but she had 
 her children in the Sunday school before they were big 
 enough to even dress their feet. I cannot remember when 
 I first went to Sabbath school and to church. It would 
 be impossible ior me to swear positively that I had not 
 always been there. If a person should come up and swear 
 that I was born in a church, I should be about ready to 
 concede to it, for my earliest recollections are, that I was 
 there. So, for all practical purposes, I have always been 
 to Sunday-school, and always belonged to the church, 
 and my first breath must have been a prayer my mother 
 taught me. 
 
 I would not hav$ any one think that I am an angel or 
 a remarkable saint, for I fear I am not even good enough 
 to be worthy to stand among the angels and saints in the 
 next world. I am only a weak, sinning mortal, and unless 
 God can overlook my great mistakes and follies I would 
 stand a very poor chance of a crown and a robe and a 
 home. My mother did her duty with her children, but 
 that did not remove my sinful tendencies, nor make me a 
 clean boy. I was a little sinner, wicked and rebellious, 
 and quarreling with my brothers and sisters and play- 
 mates, and always into mischief; and, as my people often 
 told me, I never could hold still for one minute of time. I 
 never caught but one contagious disease, and that one 
 "the measles." The only reason they could give for my 
 escaping, while all the rest of the family were sick with 
 everything that came along, was simply that / "could
 
 7 
 
 never hold still long enough to catch any disease. 11 So, if 
 that is the true cause of my escapes, I think I am more to 
 be praised than to be blamed for 'keeping on the move." 
 But I was a thoughtless, pleasure-loving and pleasure- 
 seeking boy, and at the age of twelve years I attended a 
 revival meeting in my native town, atid there I gave my 
 heart to God. They invited sinners to come to the altar, 
 and, on the evening in question, I thought that invitation 
 was for me, and while they were singing that sweet hymn 
 of invitation : " Come Ye Sinners Poor and Needy," and 
 the chorus, " Turn to the Lord and Seek Salvation, Sound 
 the Praise of His Dear Name," etc., I arose with others 
 and went to the altar, and there I found peace and pardon, 
 and I was very happy in the new experience. I went home 
 that evening a new boy. The next day I lived a new life, 
 and my mother and my brothers and sisters could note 
 the change, as well as I could experience it in my own 
 heart. 
 
 A few years after this change, either three or four, I 
 attended a camp-meeting, and there God called me to the 
 work of the ministry. I gave myself up to God there and 
 then to be anything that the Lord willed, and then it was 
 that God sent down his Holy Spirit and filled the cup to 
 over-flowing. I was the happiest being on the old camp 
 ground. And years after, as I passed the old camp ground, 
 I thought of that wonderful blessing, and turned aside to 
 find the spot where I erected my Ebenezer. I found the 
 old tree, and the very spot where heaven and earth seemed 
 to meet, and where angels mingled with saints. 
 
 I left the camp ground at the close of that meeting
 
 8 
 
 with a heart full of love for God and all mankind. The 
 Lord had given me the victory over the flesh and the 
 Devil, and over Hell as well. I went back to my work on 
 the farm with everything about me praising God, and I, 
 myself, doing my "level best" to keep up with creation 
 in thanksgiving to God. It was the "Joy of the Lord," 
 and it was my "strength." I had to drive a large herd of 
 cattle over a high hill every morning to the back of the 
 farm and then go after them again every night, and this 
 afforded me the opportunity to commune with God. One 
 old hickory tree was one of my secret places of prayer, 
 and oft I held the sweetest communion with my God of 
 all my life under the old hickory tree. All of this time I 
 was saying to God, "I will go and preach." I used to 
 look with a great amount of satisfaction upon the calling 
 of God to this high place of service. 
 
 The Lord blessed me, and led me, and I was not 
 tempted for along time. All this time I said: "I will." 
 By and by the Devil tempted me, and I began to consider. 
 That is the point of danger with everyone. When we be- 
 gin to consider the Devil's proposition, it does not take 
 long for the Devil to get us. I used to fish a great deal 
 when a boy, and some times, when the water was clear, 
 I could see the fish. I noticed sometimes that nice large 
 fish would go swimming by, and I would drop my hook 
 in front of them, and they would dodge off and shoot out 
 into deeper \vater. If a fish would not stop and examine 
 the bait, or give any attention to it, I knew I could not 
 catch that fish. But, when one would hang around 
 the bait, and run up to it, I was quite certain to catch
 
 9 
 
 that fish. So the Devil is quite certain of his fish when the 
 fish stops to look at the bait. 
 
 The Devil finally made me think that anything else 
 was better than the ministry. I said : "I will not," and, 
 when I said that, I was going away from God. And then 
 the pendulum swung from "/ will" to "/ will not" and 
 back again, and so on. And for two or three years, I was 
 religious and then irreligious, pious and impious, hot, and 
 then cold. Sometimes a Methodist preacher would be an 
 honorable title, and then the last thing to ever think of 
 being. It was good, bad and indifferent. I would be a 
 school-teacher, a lawyer, a politician anything except a 
 Methodist preacher. And thus the struggle went on, 
 while I was trying to chose a calling for life. A moment- 
 ous question that. Many a man has turned the switch 
 and gone the wrong road at that point. It is a great 
 thing for a young man to find his place, the one that he 
 is best adapted to fill, and then to make the most of him- 
 self in his place. I realize now the danger and perils at- 
 tendant upon the wrong choice of a profession. Not that 
 I made any mistake in my choice, but from what I am, 
 and what I might have been, I am able to see how many 
 snares were set for my feet. But thank God for one thing : 
 there are no snares for the feet of those who walk the 
 road to duty. 
 
 While this struggle was going on, I had even made a 
 choice against my convictions of duty, but in keeping with 
 my every desire, as I then felt. I made up my mind that 
 I would be a lawyer. I thought that I would be ashamed 
 to be called a Methodist preacher, but not to be called a
 
 10 
 
 lawyer. So into a law office I went, and began the study 
 of the law. I began with Blackstone's Commentary. I 
 read and re-read, and I got more knowledge of duty be- 
 tween the lines, than I did of common law on the lines. 
 
 Every day, that I entered the law office, I was remind- 
 of my duty to God, as I crossed the threshold. In order 
 to keep down these convictions, I would not attend the 
 prayer-meetings, nor the class-meetings. An " I- will-not" 
 never gets any good going to prayer-meetings anyway. 
 The ' I-will-nots" never* have any prayer-meetings nor 
 anything else very religious. I was simply a poor kind of 
 a Sunday Christian. I went to church on Sunday, when 
 it was easier to go than stay away. 
 
 Not because I did not fear God, did I get so icy about 
 religious things; but, because it was hard to force a 
 rebellion against conviction, when on God's territory. 
 That is why the saint meets with saints, and the sinner 
 meets with sinners. That is just why the dutiful child can 
 look up into God's face and smile at the eternal judge, 
 while the guilty sinner cries for the " Rocks and mountains 
 to hide" him from the face of the mighty God of heaven 
 and earth. Duty looks up into God's face, while unfaith- 
 fulness hangs its head in shame and expects to get 
 condemnation from the start. An unfaithful man in 
 religion is not half a man anywhere you may put him. 
 He is a dwarf and a pigmy beside other men. He can 
 be ever so great otherwise, but if untrue to conviction, he 
 must ever have the consciousness with him that being un- 
 true to himself he is even so to all who estimate him 
 as true. Self-respect, then, must be at the very founda-
 
 11 
 
 tion of every sincere person, for no person can respect 
 himself for being a hypocrite. 
 
 After a number of months of study of Common Law, 
 mixed with Divine Law and deep conviction, I was nearer 
 a Methodist preacher than when I began the law, and I 
 knew more about my feelings and my duty at the close of 
 my law study, than I did about Blackstone. 
 
 Sometime in the summer of that year I thought over 
 my course, and of my neglect of prayer meetings, and I 
 made up my mind that I would go for once to the meeting. 
 I went and tried to do my duty, but, of course, it was 
 formal, as long as I said " / will not." After the meeting, 
 however, the preacher came to me and said: ;< You will 
 never be a lawyer, God has a work for you to do." 
 "Well," I said, "I do not think that I shall leave the law 
 office until I have finished my course." It did not do me 
 any good to try to cover up my own convictions, when 
 God would tell some one else about them. I did not know 
 how to account for this preacher coming to me and say- 
 ing what he did, except that God was on my track, and 
 was bound to have me. I went to my room that night 
 deeply moved. I went to the prayer-meeting, and my 
 conscience was condemning me more than ever. I went 
 to the office the next morning, but it was harder than 
 ever before to get my thoughts upon the contents of the 
 book. At last, I threw down the book and started out 
 to call upon the preacher, and tell him my convictions, 
 and turn on the Lord's side. I was almost at the parson- 
 age, when the Devil came and pictured out to me all of the 
 great things in store for me in the world, and reminded
 
 12 
 
 me of the prospect of making money; and how I was 
 already beginning to earn money in the office ; and that 
 a Methodist preacher was always poor, and was made 
 fun of by the world. Then I turned around and went 
 back to the office, and went to work again. Not many 
 days after, however, I gave up; and when I said, "/ will" 
 the light shown in again, and I was happy in God. The 
 world was a new world. The birds sang sweeter, the 
 flowers looked more beautiful, and the sun shone brighter 
 and more golden than ever before. And yet the change 
 was not in nature, but in my heart. I was in harmony 
 with everything, when in accord with my God. People, 
 who can not find anything beautiful in this world, have 
 nothing beautiful in themselves. To a saint this world is 
 good enough for present living, and, to a sinner the same 
 world is a dull and meaningless thing; and, because un- 
 appreciated, it is too good for him. 
 
 After the struggle was over, the thought of going out 
 to preach the gospel demanded some attention. The 
 Discipline and the Bible were my constant study. Every 
 day, and, in fact, every time I took up the Bible, I had to 
 turn to the twenty-third Psalm, and read it. I had never 
 read anything so sweet and comforting as that. It 
 was the very language of my heart. The Discipline is only 
 the condensed milk of the word. And, next to the Bible, 
 the preacher wants the Discipline.
 
 18 
 
 MY FIRST APPOINTMENT. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 In the fall I attended conference for the first time, be- 
 ing recommended to the conference for admission on trial. 
 It was a different kind of association from what I was 
 used to. Instead of lawyers, criminals and hangers-on 
 of the law, I was in the company of a large body of 
 clean-hearted, pure-minded and pure-mouthed men. I had 
 been in the habit of smoking cigars, and mingling with 
 smokers. Here in this company there was no tobacco 
 smoke, and nothing unbecoming. I do not mean to be 
 understood to say that lawyers are bad men; for there 
 are plenty of good men in that body of professionals, and 
 pure. minded men too ; but a person in law business comes 
 in contact with a great many more bad men, than the 
 majority of the people outside of the profession are aware 
 of. Neither do I mean to infer about preachers, that they 
 do not smoke. For, (I am sorry to say it,) there are 
 many who use tobacco, and very freely too, that go out to 
 preach; and, yet, as a class of men, I can truthfully say, 
 there are more clean men than in any other body of 
 professionals that ever assemble. I do not mean to cast 
 any reflection upon those who use tobacco, neither would 
 I condemn them; but I can say for myself that when 
 I went into the ministry I felt that I must give up 
 my tobacco, and I did so with the help of the Lord. 
 
 The session of conference lasted a week; and, at the 
 close of that session, when the appointments were read, I 
 was appointed to the W circuit, in the A Dis-
 
 14 
 
 trict, W conference. I was in some doubt about get- 
 ting work that fall, thinking that perhaps others could be 
 found better fitted for the work than I was. So, when 
 my name was read out by the Bishop, the Spirit of the 
 Lord came upon me, and I knew that God would go with 
 me to my first field of labor. After learning where my 
 circuit was located and how to get there, I started for 
 that place. I felt from the moment the Spirit came upon 
 me that I was going to have a revival on my charge ; and 
 so I told the brethren, to their astonishment, before I left 
 the conference. I was as certain of the fact of a revival as 
 though I had been through the struggle. It was no won- 
 der that the preachers looked a little surprised at the pre- 
 diction. I was prophesying about a work on a field that 
 I was unacquainted with, and did not know there was 
 such a place until I heard it read out by the Bishop in 
 association with my name; and, as a consequence, did not 
 know where it was. But that others doubted my state- 
 ment did not change my mind about the revival which I 
 was going to have on my circuit. 
 
 Well, I reached my circuit in due time, and went to the 
 house of a local preacher to stay my first night. The local 
 preacher, of course, soon learned of my line of work. I 
 told him I was going to have a revival, but he thought I 
 was sort of an enthusiast. His old father lived with him, 
 and he began to laugh at me for saying I was going to 
 have a revival. I had never been on a charge before, and 
 I knew nothing about church work or revival meetings. 
 All that I did know about the work was from studying 
 the Bible and Discipline. So the old man had some little
 
 15 
 
 show of argument against me. Finally he said: "You 
 are only a little boy preacher, and what do you know 
 about work? Old gray -haired men have tried to have 
 revivals here and failed, and now you, a boy preacher, 
 come on here without knowing anything about the place 
 or the work, and talk about holding a revival meeting." 
 Well, I said, God is greater than the gray hairs, and I am 
 going to have a revival. I knew I was. 
 
 The local preacher and his father and the whole family, 
 in fact, were somewhat incensed against me, because I 
 would persist in talking revival. 
 
 The next day was Saturday, and I was expected to 
 go out to the farthest limit of my circuit to preach my first 
 sermon on a circuit, and the third one of all. It may be 
 well to give a description of the circuit right here. It con- 
 sisted of seven appointments. The place wliere the local 
 preacher lived was headquarters for the whole charge. As 
 I am anxious to furnish no clue to the field of labor, for 
 many reasons, I shall use ficticious names for the different 
 appointments. The first place to be described is head- 
 quarters, and we will call it Yale. This place was com- 
 posed of a hotel, that had a lively trade over the bar; a 
 store and postoffice, combined, a blacksmith shop, a saw- 
 mill, a school-house, a church, (M. E. church) and a few 
 dwellings, perhaps a dozen. It was on the main road to 
 a thriving town where a number of large tanneries were 
 doing a vast business, and the most of the hemlock bark 
 for these large tanneries went through Yale. The most of 
 the bark-haulers were Catholic Irish, and although there 
 are plenty of good, industrious, sober people in that
 
 16 
 
 church, yet, the whole raft of these haulers were hard 
 drinkers. Yale was just far enough from the tanneries to 
 permit the men to get very dry again by the time they 
 could reach there from town. So fighting, swearing, 
 drinking and running horses were everyday occurrences 
 there. And the hotel-keeper was getting rich; as many a 
 poor man left the price of his load of bark with the bar- 
 keeper, as he loaded him on to his wagon and started him 
 home dead-drunk. The next place was Jones, a place 
 about five miles east of Yale. It was a school-house ap- 
 pointment where about fifteen or twenty would turn out 
 to meeeting on a fair day. Another point was Tallman 
 about two miles south of Yale, a school-house appoint- 
 ment. At this place I always had a full house. Then four 
 miles east of this place I had another appointment, The 
 Maple school^iouse. And then seven miles south of Yale 
 I had another little village appointment which we will 
 call Graves. Here, also, they had a hotel, two stores, a 
 grist mill and sawmill, a blacksmith shop, a school-house 
 and about a dozen dwelling houses. The people were 
 good-hearted people, but took no interest in religion. 
 Three miles farther south from Graves was the Baker ap- 
 pointment. Here we had a little class of half a dozen 
 members. It was situated in a little ravine where three or 
 four streams came together and formed the S river, 
 one of the principal rivers of the state of B . The 
 next and last one of the appointments was Arnold. Here 
 were half a dozen houses, a school-house a hotel, con- 
 verted into a shoeshop, and a dwelling, and one store, 
 all shut in by the hills. This place was fourteeen miles
 
 THE BAKER SCHOOL-HOUSE.
 
 17 
 
 from headquarters. So the circuit was some five miles 
 wide and fourteen miles long. As I have already stated, 
 I was to preach my first sermon at the Arnold appoint- 
 ment, fourteen miles out. Saturday came and with it the 
 rain in abundance. I had no horse, and as the local 
 preacher did not offer a horse nor to accompany me him- 
 self, and take me there, I had to go afoot and alone. I 
 suppose the local preacher did not like something said by 
 me, but I do not know to this day, (unless it was my talk- 
 ing revival,) what it was. 
 
 Anyway, with three or four horses in the barn, he al- 
 lowed me to start off on foot with a thin overcoat and 
 leaky boots without any rubbers, a heavy rain pouring 
 down ana very muddy roads. I walked seven miles to 
 Graves, ana, when I got there, 1 was well-soaked. I went 
 into the store at this place and the merchant, finding out 
 who I was, invited me to stay to dinner and "dry off a 
 little," and he would try and get a ride for me. The teams 
 all went the other way that day ; so after dinner I started 
 out again on my journey. The roads were flooded in some 
 places, and I had to walk on logs and rails sometimes. 
 When I reached the next place, which was Baker, I felt as 
 though I ought to "hang up to dry." But the next day 
 was my first Sabbath in the work, and so I steamed ahead 
 for the next place. When I came within two miles of 
 Arnold, I stopped at the house of a good Methodist to 
 stay over night, if possible, but the old folks were away 
 and the girls were at home alone. They invited me in and 
 built up a big fire in the old elevated-oven stove and tried 
 to dry the young preacher. But the hotter it got the more
 
 18 
 
 I steamed; and after eating a lunch I started for the 
 "burg." The rain instead of ''letting up" was "letting 
 down ; " and, when I reached the old hotel stand, I was 
 taken in by the good lady of the house, who was a whole- 
 souled Methodist, and I rested after a day of queer and 
 wet experiences. I was more of a Baptist than a Method- 
 ist that day ; or, if a Methodist, I had endured an over- 
 dose of sprinkling. The good sister finding the young 
 preacher wet and cold, fired up the kitchen stove "seven 
 times hotter than it was wont to be heated "and brought 
 the old man's best suit out, shirt and all, for me to put on. 
 After I had changed my clothes, she collected the wet 
 clothes and hung them around the hot stove, until it 
 looked as though the young preacher had been cut up to 
 dry. The boots had no shine and no shape, and it took 
 the united efforts of two to get the preacher out of his 
 boots. This was my introduction as a circuit rider, and, 
 moreover, I was a circuit rider on foot. I fulfilled part of 
 the scripture anyway, for I came by water. That was a 
 peculiar introduction to the ministry. There was com- 
 bined in it Methodist zeal, Baptist soaking, Presbyterian 
 go-through-to-the-end, Episcopalian go-it-alone and Uni- 
 versalistic come-out-all-right-in-the-end. Getting into some 
 stained, streaked, crimped and shrunken clothes and more 
 shrunken boots the next morning, I was ready to preach 
 my first sermon on a circuit.
 
 19 
 
 MY FIRST SABBATH ON A CHARGE. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 It had ceased to rain when the morning dawned, and, 
 although the roads were very muddy, there was a goodly 
 number out to the morning service at the school-house at 
 Arnold. We had a good time at that first meeting, and 
 the Lord blessed us all. That meeting alone paid me for 
 my trouble the day before. The Lord paid me double 
 wages for walking in the mud and rain fourteen miles. 
 Then I started back, after eating a hasty dinner, on the 
 road I traveled the day before. The afternoon appoint- 
 ment was at Baker. I waded mud and water, and leaped 
 mudholes and little streams, and walked logs and rails, 
 and all the time praising God and singing old Methodist 
 hymns. The Baker appointment was a school-house ap- 
 pointment. But it was not more than half a. school-house. 
 The little, old school-house had one row of seats on each 
 side extending from the aisle to the wall. The seats had
 
 20 
 
 been whittled and carved and bored through with jack- 
 knives until they hardly held together. There were, I 
 think, a dozen of such seats, all told, in the room. Then 
 the teacher's desk and platform must have been built in 
 the days when it was safe for the pedagogue to have some- 
 thing to hide behind at certain times. I used to call it "the 
 box stall." There were two steps to get up to the plat- 
 form, which was very narrow, so that, between the side 
 of the building and the rough board desk, (built of boards 
 set on end with a board flat on top for a table) there was 
 hardly room to be seated comfortably without turning 
 sidewise; and, even then the seat was a narrow board 
 fastened to the side of the house. Once seated behind this, 
 one could just see over the top of it and take good aim at 
 the heads of those in the back seats. It was a sort of 
 "rifle pit" in times of rebellion. Then again, the school- 
 house had been built way down in the lot, at least a 
 quarter of a mile from the road, so that travelers could 
 go by without having to run much risk, probably. When 
 I arrived at this little, old house, I found eight or ten in 
 the room waiting to hear the new preacher, and " size him 
 up." I climbed up into the teacher's place and took a 
 seat, to shield me from the sharp eyes of my congregation, 
 and I found the desk not only serviceable in that respect, but, 
 also it served to hide my feet, so that they could not see 
 how big my feet were, nor how muddy my boots were, 
 nor how many wrinkles I had in my pants, nor how I had 
 them plastered over with mud. So, with such good pro- 
 tection, I was in shape to preach my second sermon. I 
 did the best I could with wet feet. After the meeting was
 
 21 
 
 over I went to the house of a good Methodist brother and 
 had some supper and dried my feet, so that I could get 
 them wet again going to the next place. 
 
 The evening appointment was at Graves. When I 
 reached there, I found a good number out. The largest 
 audience of the day. It was a school-house, and, when I 
 came within a number of rods of the house, I could hear 
 the roar within. It sounded some like the mighty waves 
 of the ocean dashing against the rocks, and, sometimes, 
 like the rumbling of a great mill. I was almost afraid to 
 open the door, for fear the Lion wotild jump out at me. I 
 stood outside for a few minutes scraping and rubbing to 
 get the mud off and get all of the kinks out of my pants 
 and coat, which seemed to bear marks of the washing I 
 gave them the day before. That was quite a suspense to 
 me as I stood outside. I got hold of the door and slowly 
 pushed it open and glided up onto the platform, which 
 was between the two doors. I had before me a rough and 
 noisy crowd of good hearted people. They looked me 
 over from head to foot and from left to right, and tried to 
 see my back ; but nature has one good law that prevents 
 a man turning a corner with his vision. He can not see 
 behind the pulpit nor see the many wrinkles in the back of 
 the preacher's coat, when the preacher is facing the audi- 
 ence. I do not know what I said that night in particular, 
 but the general run of my talk was what I considered the 
 duty of a Methodist preacher. I feared that they came to 
 the conclusion that night that the performance of my 
 duty in Graves would not be conducive to the highest 
 pleasure of the pleasure-loving people of that place, fer
 
 22 
 
 that was the only time I saw that audience in that school- 
 house for six months, or more. But I learned in time that 
 they always went to hear the first and last sermon a 
 preacher delivered there, and were thus able to tell how 
 much a man could or did improve in a year. That night 
 I went and staid with a merchant, a good, liberal and 
 friendly man. His home was always open to a Method- 
 ist preacher. All of the people were very friendly and 
 made the preacher welcome, but they had no time to go 
 to church. That night I slept with the consciousness of 
 having done all I could for the Master. But it was a poor 
 service. I believe the Lord blessed me more for my four- 
 teen miles walk in the rain and mud the day before, than 
 for the sermons I tried to preach on Sunday ; for I was 
 used to walking and knew how to do it, but I was not 
 used to preaching God's word, and knew not how to 
 preach it. I know I was accepted of God, however, for I 
 had done all I was able to do, and that is acceptable 
 to God at anytime.
 
 23 
 
 MY FIRST REVIVAL. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The headquarters of the circuit were at Yale appoint- 
 ment, where was built the only church on the circuit. At 
 this place the local preacher lived. I began my work as 
 the Discipline requires, visiting from house to house and 
 praying with the people. I was very timid when I began 
 my work, and sometimes I have stood on the doorstep of 
 a house and could hardly muster up courage enough to 
 knock on the door or ring a bell ; and after knocking, I 
 have felt my heart come up in my throat and my knees 
 shake like wicked Belshazzar's when he saw the hand- 
 writing on the wall. Once in a house and seated, I hardly 
 knew what to do with myself. It was very hard, also, to 
 ask the privilege of having prayer with a family before 
 going away. I have staid many times, during my first 
 year, an hour longer than I wanted to just trying to get 
 brave enough to ask the privilege of prayer.
 
 24 
 
 Late in the fall I announced at the church revival 
 meetings. The rain came down in torrents on the first 
 night of the meetings, and the brethren present, including 
 the local preacher and his father, thought it better not to 
 hold meetings at present. They thought I ought to wait 
 until the roads were better and the rain over. To tell the 
 truth about the matter, the local preacher and his father 
 and a few others were not in favor of my holding meet- 
 ings anyway. I finally consented to postpone the meet- 
 ings for one week, but this did not please them altogether. 
 I was certain of victory and so I would obey God rather 
 than man. So the next week I appointed meetings again, 
 and the rain came also ; in fact it had been coming all of 
 the time for two or three weeks. The local preacher and 
 his father were on hand, but growled, and perhaps they 
 came that night to get in their growl. Rain or no rain, 
 roads or no roads, I had started a through train that 
 time, and I did not need any brakeman on that train. 
 The meetings increased day after day, and^the mud too. 
 I secured a good brother to help me in the meetings, and 
 when the work was over we counted seventy conversions. 
 The people came for miles around. They came with horse 
 teams and ox teams, on horseback and on foot, some in 
 lumber wagons, some on "buckboards" and some in ox 
 carts. And probably some did not come anyway. 
 
 Well, after such a work as that sometimes there comes 
 in a devil to "help string the fish," as they say. There 
 were more people outside of the Methodist church 
 professing to enjoy religion, that were continually making 
 preparations to "string the fish" than were actually en-
 
 THE YALE CHURCH.
 
 gaged in trying to catch the fish. The Free Methodist 
 church had a fish string and were anxious to string some 
 of the fish. The Protestant Methodist church was ex- 
 tremely anxious in regard to the stringing of the fish. Then 
 the First and Second Day Adventists and the Seventh Day 
 Baptists, although they did not "go a- fishing 1 ' with us, 
 rather laid claim to some of the spoils, and so they came 
 in to do their best to "string the most fish." It did look 
 at one time as though they had came to a mutual agree- 
 ment among themselves that he should be branded the 
 " best /e//ow"who could get the most proselytes, and 
 that the Seventh Day Baptist preachers, (for they had 
 sometimes three of their preachers on hand,) and the 
 Free Methodist preacher and the Protestant preacher 
 were in the ring for the prize. I sometimes thought they 
 would overthrow the whole work. I trusted in God to 
 help me through and care for my interest. I never did any 
 proselyting, and when the others had gone far enough 
 with it I "opened fire" on their old fortifications and 
 made them mad. When the smoke of battle cleared away 
 I had the privilege of taking into the Methodist church 
 the best part of the converts ; and they came of their own 
 free will too. 
 
 One of the young men converted in the meetings 
 leaned toward our church and would have joined, but the 
 Seventh Day Baptists persuaded him that the true Sabbath 
 was Saturday, and so he finally "turned his coat" and 
 went to keeping Saturday for Sunday. I am afraid they 
 read their Bibles backwards and bottom-side up too. 
 The spirit of that ecclesiastical body is quite truthfully por-
 
 28 
 
 trayed in the story of Don Quixote, who knew nothing 
 outside of certain books. So the Saturday worshipers 
 lay more stress upon the day than the Gospel of Christ; 
 and it is because they read the Old Testament with the 
 "vail upon their hearts." Some people like to be out of 
 joint with the rest of the world, and they are always an 
 insignificant minority. It is like the man questioning the 
 drowning boy about his falling in the water, and chiding 
 him for getting into deep water, rather than trying to 
 help him out and save his life. All a drowning man wants 
 is rescue. These false teachers that strain at a gnat and 
 swallow a camel will wake up some day. While souls are 
 dying all around us a man has no business with anything 
 that will not help a soul out of danger and to Christ. 
 
 In order to train this young man in their faith, and, 
 also, to keep him in the right way, one of the members of 
 that church employed him to work for him. But I fear 
 the Devil got him at last. He had been regarded as a 
 steady, honest young man. A strange thing, however, 
 happened in connection with this young proselyte. The 
 man he worked for, who was the main man in the Seventh 
 Day Baptist class, had a number of things stolen one 
 night, including a large ham. No one seemed to know any- 
 thing about them, and there was no clue to the stolen 
 property. Not long after this a fire was discovered in a 
 pile of lumber, in the center of a lot belonging to this 
 young man, and parties going to put out the fire discov- 
 ered the stolen property in the lumber pile, ham and all. 
 This young man had stolen them without any earthly 
 use for them, not even for the ham, unless to make a meat-
 
 20 
 
 offering of it to the gods of the Seventh Day, which he 
 was trying to do, using his lumber pile as an altar and 
 fuel. Ashamed of what he had done, and failing to burn 
 out the evidence of his guilt, either in the community or 
 the church or his conscience, he left the country, while an 
 old father. and mother were left behind filled with shame 
 and sorrow. That was the end of a Seventh Day Baptist 
 proselyte. 
 
 The Free Methodists succeeded in getting two mem- 
 bers of the M. E. church to go off with them. The church 
 they left was no worse off without them nor weaker, 
 either financially or spiritually, and if the other church 
 gained anything by the accessions, I hardly think any- 
 body envied them their gain. So amid all the struggle 
 and through it all the M. E church lost no strength with 
 God's help. The work over here, I was now ready for 
 meetings at another point, and thither I went full of faith 
 and the Holy Ghost.
 
 REVIVAL AT THE TALLMAN SCHOOL HOUSE. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The people of Tallman neighborhood were good- 
 hearted people but rather rude, some of them, and very 
 much in need of a revival. When I contemplated going to 
 Tallman to start meetings, the local preacher was as 
 much opposed to my going there as he was to my 
 starting meetings at Yale. He thought the people were 
 too wicked for me to do anything with or for them, but 
 such shallow counsel on such shallow reasons was alto- 
 gether to thin for me to waste five minutes to even hear 
 him talk. So I treated his advice just as people do slops 
 on a wash day, I threw it away. The meetings com- 
 menced, continued and ended in a rain storm. We had 
 rain in place of snow about all winter. The work started 
 with a good interest and we were having good work 
 done; souls were being converted, and among the rest a 
 poor drunkard for whom a faithful wife had long prayed. 
 She came three miles afoot in rain and mud to get to the
 
 31 
 
 meetings and God saved her husband and some of her 
 children. When the meetings were at this high pitch of 
 interest the Devil undertook to overthrow it. The local 
 preacher had a hand in it, I am sorry to say, for through 
 a friend of his he sought to close the school-house against 
 us. If I had an enemy the same was always a friend of the 
 local P. They agitated the matter thoroughly throughout 
 the neighborhood, and then came to the meeting, and the 
 friend of the local preacher was "spokesman." He arose 
 about the close of the meeting and said that it w as the 
 sentiment of the district that the meetings should not 
 continue longer in the house. 
 
 "Well," I said, "the majority of the people who are 
 interested are here, and I guess I will put it to a vote." 
 
 So I called for a vote of the people on the question, 
 and only four or five voted against the meetings continu- 
 ing. That ended the matter as to the use of the house, 
 so the enemy had to sharpen his tools and attack us at 
 another point. 
 
 The meetings were thrown open for all to take part 
 who desired, so the enemy thought he would try us at 
 that point. The next thing was to find a man for a tool. 
 There was living about three miles from the schoolhouse 
 a very rough old man who hated preachers, Methodist 
 preachers especially, and a lover of the Devil and a practi- 
 tioner of his Satanic arts. He had some learning and a 
 boasted ability to outwit any preacher in the country. 
 He was one of those preacher- tormenters, and a hard case. 
 It was like Goliah of Gath going out to meet little David. 
 He was a big, surly fellow, with a fist big enough for a
 
 32 
 
 mawl, almost, and a foot to match. They invited him to 
 come down to the meeting and talk, as I allowed the priv" 
 ilege for all to speak that so desired. So the "old tar 1 ' 
 came down bent on mischief. I held my meeting as usual, 
 and preached a sermon that pricked the old man a little 
 without knowing that I had done it. When the meeting 
 was thrown open to all, the old man took his place on 
 the floor and began contradicting my sermon. After he 
 finished I arose and put the answer in the form of an 
 appeal to the audience as to which side of the case they 
 would be willing to run the risk of an eternity. The 
 result was better gained thus than by any contra- 
 diction. The old man could not stand that kind of 
 repulse in silence, so he arose to speak again, and his voice 
 seemed to change until it sounded like the roar of a mad 
 bull or a caged lion. He was frightened and so were his 
 friends, for they knew not what to make of the change. I 
 
 arose and called him to order, and said to him : "Mr. > 
 
 if what you are going to say, you are certain will help any 
 one to live a better life or reform, you can speak on, other- 
 wise, I want you to take your seat and keep still." It is 
 evident that he did not think his talk would do anyone 
 any good, for he took his seat, but in a rage. He came 
 two or three nights to the meeting, and every time he 
 came he was a worse man than before. Finally he raved 
 so much that he frightened many of the women. His 
 friends were backing him up still, for they hated to suffer 
 a defeat. So they arranged for a meeting and had the 
 old man announce it in my meeting, appointing it the 
 next night, on my own night, too. So I took up my
 
 33 
 
 appointment for that night, for I could do no other way 
 without sore trouble. The old man was to preach. Some 
 of the Christian people wanted to know what I was going 
 to do, and I told them I was going to the meeting. So 
 we went, a goodly number of the Christian people. The 
 " old tar" came in and threw down his hat with a good 
 deal of force upon the desk and said something that 
 made some of them laugh. He then pulled off his big 
 overcoat and threw it on the floor, and took a chair and 
 looked over the crowd. The Devil had begun his revival. 
 I took a seat in the audience to see the end, if there should 
 be any end that night. The old fellow arose and began 
 by saying something about the young preacher. Then 
 he began one of the most abusive harangues that one 
 would care to listen to. He abused me as much as he 
 could, and even threatened my life. Then he tried to show 
 that I did not preach the Bible, as I claimed to do. So he 
 selected a chapter and tried to read it, but he could not 
 read the first line of the first verse; so, one of his backers, 
 a little Englishman, who thought himself smarter than 
 most of the people, went up to read the chapter for the 
 old man, but it seemed as though God choked him down, 
 for he could not read the first verse, and had to take his 
 seat looking very red in the face. I arose and went up 
 and said to him, "I will read it for you, if you wish." 
 The fellow took his chair saying, " Yes ! Yes ! " 
 
 Taking the Bible. I said, "Now, my friends, this is 
 God's word, let us have quiet. I do not ask you to be 
 quiet simply on my account, but this is God's word, and 
 I want you to hear what God has to say." They quieted
 
 84 
 
 down aud were very still all through the reading of the 
 chapter. After I had taken my seat the old man began 
 to talk again about me, and attempted to prove from 
 the chapter read, that I was all wrong and leading the 
 people astray. I certainly was leading them astray, if he 
 was to be the judge; for we were going another road from 
 what he was. He talked for perhaps a half hour or more, 
 and then took the Bible again to read out of it. He tried 
 to quiet the house, as I had done when I read, but the 
 people only laughed at him. He tried to read, and could 
 not read the selection ; so I went up again and read the 
 second chapter for him, which seemed to rather madden 
 than please him, that I could read it and he could not. So 
 about all that he had to say that night was abuse for me 
 and wicked threats of what he would do to me, if I did 
 not stop my preaching there. There ended the Devil's 
 work for that night. 
 
 The next night I held my meeting as usual, and after 
 the sermon a very wicked man, a "State's prison bird," 
 as they call an ex-convict, and his wife came forward and 
 were both soundly converted. He said he came the night 
 before to help on the other meeting, and he became con- 
 vinced that our side was right, and he could see a big 
 difference in the spirit manifested on our side, from that 
 on the other. So the Devil lost some ground in that cam- 
 paign. We had better work after the battle waxed hot. 
 
 A few nights after this I came to the meeting, and 
 found most of the people standing outside of the school- 
 house. On inquiry I learned that the old man was inside, 
 and was seated on the platform, and gave them to know
 
 THE TALLMAN SCHOOL-HOUSE.
 
 that I was not going to have a meeting that night, but 
 that he was going to have one himself. I walked around 
 the schoolhouse and found some of his disciples, and 
 backers, amusing themselves over the prospect. I said to 
 them, "If you do not take that old man out of that 
 house, and keep him out, I will have him arrested to-mor- 
 row." So they went in and led the fellow out and off. We 
 had no more trouble with him at the school-house. I had 
 not escaped individually, however, the troublesome old 
 man of sin, for he would follow me up when visiting, and 
 abuse me the worst kind. Sometimes he would come 
 where I stayed over night, before we had finished break- 
 fast, and would yell so that the neighbors could hear him, 
 and since the first night that he talked at the school-house 
 his voice was like a lion's roar. The Devil had him, and 
 the Devil had an abiding place in his heart, too. He finally 
 became so bad that his friends had to nail him up in his 
 room to keep him home. His backers were whipped-out, 
 for they were ashamed of their leader, and ashamed of 
 their course and of themselves, for causing such trouble 
 in this old man's family, and in the neighborhood. Our 
 meetings continued until we were ready to stop them, 
 and we had many converted. God made the wrath of 
 man to praise him. 
 
 During these meetings we enjoyed much of God's 
 presence and power. Some of the meetings were wonder- 
 ful in power. We held the cottage prayer-meetings every 
 day. Some days it was a spiritual feast all day, and all 
 night. They had a good custom of reading around at 
 family altar and all uniting in prayer. So a family altar
 
 38 
 
 was sometimes a real prayer- meeting. One morning I 
 engaged with the family, where I stayed over night, in 
 the family devotions, and then crossing the road I found 
 the neighbor about to have family prayer. They furnished 
 me with a Bible and I joined with them in reading the 
 morning lesson, each one reading a verse from oldest to 
 youngest. Then we all went to praying one after an- 
 other until all had prayed. A little ways up the road 
 were living a young couple lately converted, and I said to 
 some of them after prayer, "let us go up and help our 
 young couple in their family altar." So off we started. 
 They were just finishing breakfast when we arrived. So 
 we had a glorious time with them as we approached the 
 "mercy seat." That was a morning meal. Then after 
 dinner we had meeting at a house out in a lot, away from 
 any road. Some were sick and unable to go to meeting, 
 so we went over to pray with them, and God 
 sent down the Holy Ghost upon us. There were 
 many shining faces that afternoon. That evening we met 
 at the school-house for our regular revival meeting. We 
 were in good shape for such a work after our day of com- 
 munion. That night we had a shower of blessings. It 
 seemed that day as if it had been showers upon showers, 
 and blessings as thick as rain drops in a shower, and they 
 fell upon everybody who loved the Lord. Just at the 
 close of the evening meeting, some one proposed another 
 meeting that night two miles away, and some four miles 
 out of the way for some of the earnest ones. Accordingly 
 it was given out, and we started after ten o'clock at 
 night for a cottage prayer-meeting. One poor sister and
 
 39 
 
 husband and children came "afoot" to the meetings, and 
 anxious to enjoy the late meeting, decided to walk two 
 miles farther away from home, for the sake of attending 
 this night meeting. The meeting was well-attended, and 
 while we prayed the Lord sent down the Holy Ghost 
 upon us. Everybody in the house was filled with the 
 laughing spirit that night, and they laughed heart- 
 ily. That meeting was always alluded to as the "laugh- 
 ing meeting." We had the best of the wine at the last of 
 the feast. 
 
 Then we had another kind of meeting which I termed 
 "double meetings." I claimed that agreement would 
 bring the Holy Ghost according to the promise ; so some- 
 times we failed to agree. Then, if we had a dull meeting, 
 I would at the close of the meeting begin over as if we 
 had just met for meeting. At one of these meetings, of 
 which I speak, we had prayed, and we had sung, and we 
 had talked, and there was no life in the whole service. 
 An old man and his son were there in the house, both of 
 them ungodly men. I arose as if to close the meeting, 
 and I said to the Christian people, " we came hereto get a 
 blessing and to be filled with the Holy Ghost, without 
 which we can do nothing ; now, why did not God fulfill 
 his promise? Just because we \vere not all agreed 
 ' touching one thing.' Now, we will begin all over again, 
 and let as all pray for the descent of the Holy Ghost." 
 We began in earnest to seek for God's blessing and it 
 speedily came, thanks be to God ; and some shouted for 
 joy, some laughed, some cried and some were gliding over 
 a sea of glorious calm, and some were praying and
 
 40 
 
 praising God. All at once there was a new interest 
 awakened, for the old father and his son were both on 
 their knees pleading for mercy with all their might, with- 
 out any invitation from us. They gathered around and 
 soon there were two more happy ones that joined our 
 band. That was a happy company indeed. 
 
 The lady of the house, although a Christian, had 
 never believed in shouting. The old man that was con- 
 verted was her father and the young man her brother, 
 so she was extremely happy this night. She stood up and 
 said, " Dear Christian friends, I never did believe in shout- 
 ing, for I thought it was all put on, as they say but I do 
 believe in shouting now, for I feel like it myself; Glory to 
 God ! " And she clapped her hands and shouted at the top 
 of her voice. In fact, we all felt like shouting, and done 
 so, too. 
 
 At another cottage meeting five young ladies attended 
 the meeting for the first time. We had another double 
 meeting. When I began the second meeting I felt I must 
 speak to those young people. So I arose and went to 
 them, and soon as I would speak to one the tears would 
 come, and when I had spoken to the last one we all 
 knelt down with the rest of the company, for they had 
 not knelt during prayer. But, when they bowed before 
 the Lord, it seemed as though the very windows of 
 heaven were opened and showers fell upon us. The good 
 brother that was praying, when these five ladies knelt 
 down, came across the room on his knees while praying. 
 The place was shaken with the power of God. We had 
 many such meetings.
 
 41 
 
 During some of these meetings some very; timid Chris- 
 tians got so that they could pray and speak and shout as 
 the boldest of them, and all became so intensely interested 
 that a meeting five miles away would be attended by 
 those Christian people, even if they had to walk. Among 
 them one sister, (whose husband had been lately con- 
 verted,) and her family, have been known to go five miles, 
 and walk every step of the way to get to an evening 
 meeting with God's people.
 
 42 
 
 MY EFFORTS TO EVANGELIZE GRAVES. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Graves appointment was one of the poorest on 
 the circuit. As stated previously, the people did not go to 
 church. I went to Graves once in two weeks, enduring 
 all sort of fatigue to get there. Sometimes the roads were 
 so bad I was completely tired out by the time I reached 
 Graves. I used to go across lots and over the hills and 
 through the woods about seven miles, and to find no one 
 out to church. I used to open the school-house, and find- 
 the key, which sometimes necessitated my chasing over 
 the town to even get track of it, build the fire and ring 
 the bell, and then stand at the window and watch for 
 someone to come. More times I used to watch in vain 
 than with any degree of satisfaction, during the first six 
 months of the year. After the revival fire had spread 
 pretty much all over the circuit, and I had finished up at 
 other points, I thought I would try and hold a meeting in
 
 43 
 
 Graves. I planned for a big effort, but I had no one else 
 that had faith enough to even attend the meetings. I 
 could not get any of the members of the church to consent 
 to go to Graves to help me. They had no faith and 
 no desire. Everybody, for miles around, seemed to think 
 that Graves was a modern Sodom, and I do not know 
 but some even expected to hear that fire and brimstone 
 had destroyed the place. Some complained because I 
 went there. I concluded to go in the name of the Lord, 
 and do what I could for that people. 
 
 I announced meetings in Graves and started in the 
 very next night. Very few came, and I had to sing and 
 pray and speak for the entertainment of the few present. 
 I could not get them out for evening meetings, so I tried a 
 day meeting, in the morning, and then an afternoon meet- 
 ing, and all to no purpose. One afternoon three ladies 
 came out to see and to hear. So I held a regular service 
 and preached to them the best I could. That was 
 the only day service that I had with anyone else than 
 myself present. All the meetings were "close communion," 
 as I had it all to myself. I would go and open the house, 
 and ring the bell, and when it was time for the meeting, 
 I would sing and pray and go my way until the 
 next appointment. I went from house-to-house to 
 invite them out to meeting, and they all had some 
 excuse. I tried to talk to them, and they would 
 only laugh at me. It was impossible to draw them out 
 in conversation on the question of religion. I tried to 
 pray with them, but I could not feel much spirit in the 
 effort, and the heavens seemed as brass over my head. I
 
 44 
 
 was discouraged and disheartened, and finally came to 
 the conclusion that it was no use to build a fire, and open 
 the house, just for myself. So during the last few days of 
 the meetings, I went to the school-house at the appointed 
 time, and knelt down behind the building and prayed for 
 that people. 
 
 During the meetings, (if you could call them meetings,) 
 I used to go into the store quite frequently, as I stayed 
 most of the time with the merchant ; and there they used 
 to swear "by rule," as they say. I know some of them 
 would swear purposely to annoy me. I used to feel like 
 crying, and then again I would think that it was because 
 I was such a poor Methodist preacher, that I was not 
 worthy of anything better. If I was a better and more 
 worthy preacher they would respect me. After coming to 
 such a conclusion, I would take it as my just dues and try 
 to feel contented with it. But some would say, " why did 
 you go in there ? What made you stay there?" It seemed 
 as though the more they ill-treated me the more I wanted 
 to be there. The merchant dare not say anything to 
 them, and it would not have done any good for me to 
 open my mouth there. One day when the merchant and 
 I were alone, I asked him if I could tack up one of the 
 commandments on the side of the store back of the stove. 
 He gave me the permission to do so and furnished a sheet 
 of light-colored paper, and I printed on it, as best I could, 
 with ink and pencil, the commandment against swearing, 
 and tacked it upon the wall. After that, especially if I 
 was in there, if anyone would swear, someone would 
 point to the notice on the wall, and then they would do
 
 THE GRAVES SCHOOL-HOUSE.
 
 47 
 
 more swearing than ever in their surprise. It sometimes 
 made me almost ashamed that I had tacked it up, for 
 they seemed to turn and rend me. All this time I was try- 
 ing to hold meeting in Graves with my hands and feet 
 tied. After two weeks of my own revival I stopped what 
 I had even started, if there was anything to stop. I had 
 prayed for them and had tried to talk with them and, 
 having done all I could, I was confident that my object 
 was pure, and that I was not to be blamed so much for my 
 seeming failure. 
 
 And, yet, I did take all of the blame myself. Having 
 failed I thought that the whole fault was with me, and 
 that God had forsaken me, and that I was not worthy 
 to be a minister. It seemed to me that if God cared for 
 me, and I was his servant, that he would not let me be de- 
 feated so utterly. I hung my "harp upon the willows" 
 and sat down and wept. I thought that when God 
 would not help me there was no use in my trying to be a 
 preacher, so I was ready to give up the work. I went to 
 Graves with my head up, and my heart full of confidence 
 in a certain and easy victory over old Jericho, and I came 
 back from there with my head under my arm and my 
 heart down in my boots, and no sign of a victory. I 
 had got to take thirteen trips around the city, and the 
 seven days of marching with the ridicule of Jericho and 
 then shout and see the walls fall down, instead of being 
 made strong enough to pull down the walls with my own 
 hands. All of these things I had to learn. 
 
 I always called that meeting my own revival, for it 
 seemed that I was going alone ; and, then too, I accom-
 
 48 
 
 plished not a thing of myself. My prayers, however, God 
 heard, and in time were answered to the glory of God and 
 the joy of my own heart.
 
 49 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL ORGANIZED AT THE 
 GRAVES' APPOINTMENT. 
 
 CHAPTER VH. 
 
 Graves had no Sunday-school nor anything else very 
 religious, not even a collection. So one day in the spring, 
 when the roads had settled a little, some of the young 
 people came to church, so I thought I would organize a 
 Sunday-school. We put a young man in for superintend- 
 ent, who of course was "not a Christian," as some one 
 said to me afterwards, in surprise at what I had done. 
 Well! The next time that I came to preach, which was 
 two weeks after, I learned that the Sunday-school died 
 the preceeding Sabbath without even a dose of patent 
 medicine to help it, nor even a prayer at the death and 
 funeral of the same. So things were just the same as 
 they had been before. The school did not live long enough 
 to interest anybody, and consequently was not missed 
 when it died, poor thing. A few weeks after another one
 
 50 
 
 was organized, and it was sickly when born, and soon 
 died of heart disease. It only lived about ten days or so, 
 and died for want of breath, poor thing. So when I came 
 around afterwards to preach I heard strains of music 
 down in the grove, where the cornet band had met to dis- 
 course music to please the dancers, as well as other peo- 
 ple, and the remains of the poor Sunday-school was down 
 there too. Of course there was no preaching that day, 
 but, with a heavy heart I went on my way to the next 
 appointment with the music of the band and the shouts 
 and laughter of the people echoing in my ears for half a 
 mile or more on my way. 
 
 Later in the season a man came to me and said, " Elder, 
 why don't you start a Sunday-school here ? " Well, I said, 
 I have started the school twice, and it went down and 
 out each time; but, if you will agree to help me, I will try 
 again. You go and tell the children and the people that 
 we will organize a Sunday-school next time I preach here. 
 He agreed to do it, and I went my way. At my next ap- 
 pointment there were twelve, all told, present, including 
 one old maid, one old woman and the man who wanted 
 the Sunday-school. So I organized a Sunday-school and 
 we put the man in for superintendent. He did not know 
 anything about conducting a school, so I wrote out a pro- 
 gramme and it was tacked up in the school-house where 
 all could read it. That was the beginning of better days 
 in Graves. Of course we only had prayer once in two 
 weeks in the Sunday-school, and that was when I was 
 there, so it could live by drawing a breath once in two 
 weeks, if not oftener. It soon became known at the other
 
 51 
 
 appointments that I had started a Sunday-school in 
 Graves, and put in a wicked sinner and a man that went 
 to dances as superintendent. Of course my cold friend, the 
 local preacher, and some others had a great deal to say 
 about it. Some even came to me and talked about it. 
 My only reply to them was, that if they could find any 
 passage of scripture that forbid a poor sinner the privi- 
 lege of studying the Bible or helping others to study it, I 
 would stand condemned. 
 
 The very ones that stood ready to find fault with me 
 about an ungodly superintendent would not go and take 
 charge of the work there. They had no earthly business 
 in the church or out of it, but to stand around and growl 
 at other folks for doing the best they could. Some one 
 ought to invent a safety-valve for such mouths. They 
 only had prayer of course, once in two weeks, and that 
 was when I was there for my regular appointment. On 
 the printed programme I had tacked up for the use of the 
 superintendent was first, singing; second prayer. The 
 children used to read it and then call the attention of the 
 superintendent to the omission of prayer, which kept the 
 man in a state of uneasiness most of the time, because he 
 could not pray. They would run up after Sunday-school 
 was closed and say: "You skipped one of those," and 
 " You forgot to pray." That Sunday-school lived, thank 
 the Lord. It was a healthy child. The work was grow- 
 ing fast and the numbers increased rapidly. 
 
 A matter happened about this time that gave a won- 
 derful uplift to the school and the community, too. It 
 was this : A picnic was proposed by myself for the whole
 
 52 
 
 charge. A union picnic. There were five schools on the 
 charge. One called a union school. I proposed the mat- 
 ter in the school at Yale, as that was headquarters. The 
 school agreed to it, except the local preacher, and a com- 
 mittee was appointed to invite the other schools and the 
 time was fixed and the place chosen. I was selected as 
 one of the committee. I then went to graves to spur up 
 my new Sunday-school to go to a picnic. They were ready 
 to accept and join in the festivities. We had decided in 
 the arrangements to have the band from Graves attend 
 the picnic, too. So the Graves' school concluded to accom- 
 pany the band to the grove. They had no banners for the 
 school, so I secured some muslin and a carpenter made 
 two poles, and I painted two nice mottoes, one for the 
 little children, and one for the whole school. Each school 
 was to furnish a part of the programme. So the Graves 
 people were taking the matter in hand to furnish some 
 speaking and singing, etc. It was the first time that any 
 of the children had taken part in anything connected with 
 a Sabbath-school, so they went to work with a will for 
 fear they would not appear as well as the other schools. 
 
 In the meantime, the local preacher had gone to one 
 of the other schools we were to invite the union school 
 and persuaded one of his friends to propose that they get 
 up a union picnic and invite the other schools to it, and 
 they carried the measure and fixed the time on the day 
 we had selected and the place, and sent invitations to the 
 school at Yale and at Graves and took the whole matter 
 out of the hands of the committee and of the Yale Sunday- 
 school. The people at Graves were indignant over the
 
 58 
 
 turn of affairs and said they would not go, and the band 
 said they would not go either. The Yale school did not 
 care much about it. I did not care, only it was a case of 
 well-settled meanness. So I said to the people of Graves 
 we must all go. Everybody turn out and make a show. 
 Let people know that there is something left yet in Graves 
 worth looking after. So they went to work harder than 
 ever. I was entirely set aside and left out altogether and 
 that troubled the people of Graves more than anything 
 else. But I told them that I did not care. 
 
 When the day came for the picnic we had a great 
 crowd of people in Graves ; everybody turned out far and 
 near, and we had a long procession. The band took the 
 lead with the flag flying over their heads and two banners 
 in the procession. We started so as to be there on time, 
 but when we came to the grove they had commenced the 
 exercises without us, thinking we would not amount to 
 much. The band boys were angry, so they struck up a 
 lively tune and we went into the grove and marched into 
 the crowd, which of course stopped the programme, and 
 stopped one of the speakers in the middle of a piece. It 
 took some time to get things quiet again after such 
 a break. The local preacher looked quite uneasy. The 
 largest crowd of the day came from Graves. Their part 
 of the programme was as good and as well rendered as 
 any of those that tried to look down on the people from 
 Graves. 
 
 The people felt bad. It was not treating them as 
 Christian people ought to have treated sinners even, of 
 the worst sort ; they tried to be cheerful and enjoy them-
 
 54 
 
 selves, but they could not forget the way they had used 
 me. They went home thinking that the preacher thought 
 more of them than the rest of the church did, (although 
 not many of the members, if any. save one family approved 
 of the course taken by the Union Sunday-school,) and that 
 the Sunday-school in Graves should be the best school on 
 the charge. The next Sabbath the House was full for Sun- 
 day-school. Parents went to school, children went, and 
 even Catholics came to the school. They were going to 
 stand by the preacher now, he had stood by them for half 
 a year, and now they are going to have a different state 
 of things in graves. In a short time the school was by a 
 considerable the largest school on the charge. 
 
 The superintendent was a sinner too, and running the 
 most interesting school anywhere in that region. 
 
 Sometime late in the summer I held a grove meeting, 
 and the superintendent was there. He generally went to 
 church after he took charge of the Sunday-school. (We 
 will call him Johnson, although that was not his real 
 name, for I would not disclose the name.) 
 
 I could not let Johnson alone after the Sunday-school 
 was organized. I was ever preaching to him, without in- 
 tending to do anything of the kind. I could never be with 
 him five minutes that I was not talking to him about his 
 sinful life. Sometimes he would go with me to my even- 
 ing appointment, and he would declare that I was preach- 
 ing at him all the while during the meeting, which, of a 
 truth, I had not thought of doing. I could not let him 
 alone, for it seemed to me that he must be converted. 
 
 So, when he came to the grove meeting, he was hit so
 
 55 
 
 hard that he thought it about time to get out of the way 
 of the sword of the spirit, so, when I was through preach- 
 ing on the Saturday afternoon of the meeting, he got up 
 and burst into tears and begged of us to pray for him. 
 We had a glorious meeting, and I was happy, and so was 
 Johnson, too. Now, I said to him, we will have prayer in 
 Sunday-school every Sunday ; but he felt so weak that he 
 tried to beg off, but I said to him, you just open school 
 with prayer tomorrow and have it over with right oif. 
 He went home that night to get ready for Sunday-school. 
 The next day was the Sabbath. We had a good meeting 
 but my thoughts were constantly turning to the Sabbath- 
 school and to Johnson. 
 
 During the afternoon prayer-meeting Johnson came 
 and was so eager to let me know that he had prayer in 
 Sunday-school that day, that he came right through the 
 crowd and straight up to me and whispered it in my ear, 
 and then we praised the Lord.
 
 56 
 
 HOW I GAVE UP THE WORK. 
 
 CHAPTER YIII. 
 
 I had a habit of blaming myself for every little failure 
 on the charge. And when I felt condemned for anything, 
 then I was sure to declare myself unfit for the ministry. 
 The local preacher did not seem to help me any, but rather 
 hinder me in my work. He would not attend his own 
 church but would get up a big ox load of people and go 
 some where else to church, either to the Protestant church 
 or the Seventh Day Baptist church or even the Free- 
 Methodist church. I began to think that perhaps it was 
 all my fault and that I must be wrong. So I thought my 
 work must be done. I had some great struggles to settle 
 the question beyond any new doubt that might arise 
 from some new circumstances that I was truly called to 
 the ministry. Some times I would pray for God to let 
 me know, if I was called to that work, by letting me have 
 a good time on the next Sabbath day when I went to
 
 57 
 
 preach. And God always gave me a great blessing at 
 such times. So after a while I was not tempted by the 
 Devil upon my call to the ministry. Then my temptations 
 took a new form. I was called to the work, but had I not 
 finished my work and was not the state of the work 
 such that I might well think my work done, and hence, I 
 could go at some other business? And, yet, while I was 
 made to see things in such a state, in fact, the work was 
 in a blaze at most of the appointments. The Graves' 
 Sunday-school was in a flourishing condition and congre- 
 gations were good at every place. But the Devil made 
 me think that because that local preacher would not 
 come to church and stand by me that my work was all 
 done up in shape, and I could go. One Sunday just before 
 I had concluded that my work was done the local preacher 
 and another man contradicted me after my sermon on a 
 trivial point in regard to Zacheus climbing a sycamore 
 tree to see the Lord pass by. They did not care so much 
 about the point in question as they did the truth that I 
 hooked on to that point. If they could break that point 
 down the truth that came after it they thought would be 
 weakened. What I had said was the eternal truth and I 
 had not intended any personality, and did not know that 
 I had hit them until they began to walk lame and flop one 
 wing. Everybody else knew how bad they were too and 
 applied the truth to them and stood up for me. Well, I 
 made up my mind that the Lord had got through with 
 me and my work was done, and so one morning I told 
 the lady I boarded with that I was going to stop preach- 
 ing. She cried and begged of me not to give up. But I
 
 58 
 
 had made up my mind, and I was going to know nothing 
 but that determination henceforth. So I left my things 
 there until I could find some employment. I went to the 
 city and obtained a job with a friend of mine, securing 
 articles for plating. I felt miserable and condemned. 
 Something kept me thinking I was a Methodist preacher, 
 and I was trying to forget it. People I knew would call 
 me elder and that bothered me, for I was not going to be 
 a preacher any longer. I finally bought a cigar and began 
 to smoke, as I started out in the country, so as to divest 
 myself of any appearance of a minister. I tried to feel 
 mean and think mean but it was hard work. 
 
 When I would see some one coming, I would, before I 
 thought, take my cigar out of my mouth lest they would 
 see a preacher smoking, and then I would say I am not a 
 preacher, and put it back in my mouth. 
 
 I went to a house and knocked at the door, and I tried 
 to think I was an agent on the road, but something would 
 tell me I stood on those steps a Methodist preacher. 
 When I got into the house it was hard work to keep from 
 saying something religious. I tried to obtain spoons and 
 knives and forks for plating, but with such a struggle I 
 was not fit to solicit anything from anyone. I tramped 
 all day and obtained nothing for my toil. I was sick, 
 miserable and defeated. I thought it strange that, if my 
 work was done in the gospel, the Lord would defeat me 
 in everything else. I finally came back to my boarding 
 place after three days, and yet I had not came to the con- 
 clusion that I had better go to preaching again. I sat in 
 my room fighting against conviction for some time, and
 
 69 
 
 I kept saying I will not preach any more. While I was 
 thus resolving in my mind some wondrous power took 
 hold of me, and I began to weep. It came like a thunder- 
 bolt, and yet after weeping, I said I will not preach again. 
 At evening the class-leader and his wife and his son 
 and wife came down. They had heard that I was dis- 
 couraged and was going to give up the ministry. The 
 more they talked to me the more I resolved to preach to 
 them no more. Finally they wanted me to go home with 
 them, and I said no. For I was not a Methodist preacher 
 now, and it would be no use to go. They got my hat and 
 put it on my head and lifted me into the wagon and took 
 me home with them in spite of my refusals. After they 
 had talked a while they concluded that I had better go to 
 bed and rest over it. So the class-leader sang a hymn and 
 called on me to pray, but I refused to pray ; so they knelt 
 down and prayed for me, and I began to realize how 
 awful my sin, if I should drive the spirit from my heart, 
 who had come to me so tenderly and lovingly and staid 
 with me when I was trying to run away from my duty. 
 And then the thought that I had refused to pray made me 
 feel bad, and I said on my knees : Lord, I will obey ! I 
 then offered prayer before I arose. The struggle was over, 
 and I got hold of God by a strong grip and held on while 
 God put his arms of love about me and blessed me. I, like 
 Jonah, had three miserable days. I was not in the whale's 
 belly, but if Jonah felt any worse than I did, he certainly 
 had a hard time of it. And I do not wonder that he 
 started from the belly of the whale straight for Nineveh. 
 He got all he wanted. I had all I wanted of disobedience.
 
 60 
 
 I left Tuesday, and when Sunday came I was in my place 
 to preach the gospel as usual, and the Lord blessed me, 
 too. How far I went from God in my rebellion ! and yet 
 I was back again before Sunday. The Lord had mercy on 
 me. The rest of my year was full of sunshine, and bless- 
 ings came like rain drops.
 
 61 
 
 GOING TO A "GREENBACK" MEETING. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 While I was engaged in work for the Sabbath-school 
 at Graves and doing pastoral visiting, I was invited to 
 attend a Greenback meeting which was to be held in a 
 neighboring town of considerable size. The gentleman 
 who invited me said that I could ride down and back with 
 him, so I accepted the invitation. Many loads went from 
 Graves to the meeting, together with the band. The 
 band was a new band about a year old, and could play 
 well. 
 
 The meeting was the first one that the Greenbackers 
 had in that vicinity and many bands and many people 
 were present. After the meeting was over the band from 
 Graves was led about town to play for the benefit of the 
 whisky men and saloon-keepers. I went to the hotel 
 where the gentleman who brought me put up his team 
 and waited for him. He came late and had friends with
 
 62 
 
 him who came that night on the train and who expected 
 to go out with him. He informed me that he would be 
 unable to take me and thought that I could get a ride 
 with some one else. But there seemed to be no chance left 
 for me but the big band-wagon. The driver said that I 
 could ride as well as not. Sol waited for the band-wagon. 
 The band boys seemed about ready to go too. Then some 
 one proposed that the band should go over the town and 
 play for the hotels and saloons before going home. Some 
 of them were drinking quite freely, too, and all of them 
 were smoking. Away they went to play on the streets 
 and in the hotels and saloons. At everyplace they stopped 
 the proprietor treated them to whiskey, beer and cigars. 
 It took until after midnight to go around. All of this 
 time I was waiting at the hotel for the wagon to start. 
 When the boys came back to the starting place some were 
 very noisy and others very stupid, and the sober ones had 
 to work for an hour or more to get the boys to load up 
 for home. I was so ashamed of my company, and, if I 
 had been in the possession of money enough to pay my 
 expenses I would have staid there all night than be in such 
 a noisy, swearing crowd. I would have walked home, but 
 it was seven miles, or more, and the roads were quite 
 muddy, and it was a very dark night. So when the 
 wagon was ready to start a young Methodist preacher 
 was one of the crew . I pulled my hat down over my face 
 as far as possible and humped my back and took a seat 
 in the back end of the wagon and behind the one next in 
 front of me, so as to not be where the light from the torch 
 in the front of the wagon would show my face to anyone.
 
 63 
 
 I hated myself and all about me. And I thought, as 
 I was riding there, now everybody will hear of this, and 
 that will be the end of my work as a Methodist preacher. 
 Such language would hardly become a devil, as I heard 
 that night. They swore and talked filthy and sang songs 
 and cracked jokes, and anything else that suited their 
 fancy was also added. We had to go through the place I 
 called headquarters in order to reach Graves, where I was 
 laboring then. When we went through Yale they made 
 all the noise that it was possible to make. Those full of 
 whiskey and beer yelled like loons. 
 
 I thought to myself what will the people say and the 
 members of the church when they hear that the pastor of 
 the M. E. Church was one of the number that went 
 through town making such a noise in the small hours of 
 the night. I prayed God to forgive me for my foolishness. 
 Why did not I borrow some money and stay at the hotel 
 all night; or why did not I sleep under the fence some 
 where? I did think some of getting off, and then, if I did, 
 I was sure that they would tell about me being one of 
 their number, and, as I was spoiled for a Methodist now, 
 I might as well ride with them as go "afoot." 
 
 Some of those in the front of the wagon did not know 
 for a long time that the elder was in the load, but some 
 sudden jerk of the wagon threw me into the light, and 
 when they saw me one of them exclaimed with a terrible 
 oath that the elder was in the wagon. Others replied 
 with great oaths in astonishment at the new discovery 
 made, and looked to see whether it was so or not. 
 
 I hung my head and hid behind my nearest neighbor,
 
 64 
 
 who, by the way, was a sober man and a true friend to 
 me. I was ready to give up all, for I thought there was 
 no use of my trying to even be a Christian any longer. 
 
 The swearing and songs and talk went on just as be- 
 fore, and I thought it made no difference now for I was 
 not a Methodist preacher any longer, so let them swear. 
 It seemed as though all the angels in heaven were ashamed 
 of me, and that Christ, my Savior, was blushing in shame 
 for me, who had brought a reproach upon the ministry 
 and the whole church. 
 
 I thought of the converts and what they would say 
 about my kind of company. When we finally reached our 
 destination, I jumped out and was crawling off in the 
 darkness to get out of sight as soon as possible, when the 
 merchant, who rode next to me and behind whom I kept 
 hid most of the journey, overtook me, and wanted to 
 know where I was going. I told him I did not know. 
 He took me by the arm and said "you go and stay with 
 me tonight." So I went to his house and went to bed, 
 but not much sleep for me that night, that is, what 
 was left of it. 
 
 The next band-meeting was a few nights after my 
 sorry time; and when they met, they discussed the affair 
 and came to the conclusion that it was time to have a 
 change of the programme. So they made some new laws 
 that night. One of the rules was that they would not 
 play for a hotel or a saloon again ; and another one was 
 that whenever they played away from home again they 
 were to come right home as soon as their engagement 
 should be filled ; andthe other one was that the members
 
 65 
 
 of the band should use no profane or obscene language or 
 get drunk under a fine of five dollars for every offense. 
 
 Then they came to me and told me what they had 
 done. 
 
 I found out afterwards that I was safe enough as to 
 my reputation, for they were all too much ashamed of 
 themselves to ever mention the matter to anyone, and I 
 certainly had no intention of telling anyone; and as far as 
 I know no person outside of the band and myself ever 
 knew of my experiences that night, even while I was on 
 the charge. 
 
 But my ride reformed the band, and they kept the 
 rules they had made as long as I had any knowledge of 
 the band. The good Lord made it a blessing where I was 
 only looking for evil to come. I had also the good will 
 and friendship of the whole band and they came to church, 
 and took an interest in helping to raise my salary. Even 
 all things worked for good.
 
 66 
 
 "BRINDLE HILL" PRAYER MEETING. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 During my pastorate on this first charge, we were 
 well-supplied with opportunities to attend prayer-meet- 
 ings. We had meetings some where nearly every night of 
 the week. They were not all located meetings but some 
 were shifted about within a radius often miles or less and 
 others were fixed as permanent meetings. One of these 
 regular appointments was at the church, and the other 
 one was on the summit of "Brindle Hill," as one of the 
 brethren named it. 
 
 This hill had been burned over and it looked rather 
 streaked, as the fire did not burn the grass all off but left 
 it in streaks. Where the fire burned the grass the hill 
 looked brown; so one of the brethren named it "Brindle 
 Hill." On the top of this hill lived an old couple. In some 
 way we got a meeting appointed at their house and it 
 stayed there every week. They were poor and old. The
 
 67 
 
 house consisted of one room about sixteen by eighteen 
 feet. It was not lathed and plastered either on the sides 
 or over head. They had both set by the stove day after 
 day and night after night for many years and smoked 
 their pipes, until the smoke of their pipes and of the old 
 broken stove had blackened the timbers and boards over- 
 head as black as coal tar. There were two or three old 
 chairs and two or three stools, and an old square table 
 and two bedsteads in the room. When we used to hold a 
 meeting there, they brought in boards and old benches 
 and made seats of them. In this little, old blackened room 
 we had some powerful meetings. During these meetings 
 the old folks were soundly converted to God. The old 
 man used to pray : "O, Lord ; give us more uv yeer love." 
 For he had been tasting in his old age the love of God. 
 
 I used to like the meetings very much. But I did not 
 like the company. For we had more bedbugs than human 
 beings at the meeting. In spite of bedbugs we had some 
 meetings when the people would shout to the top of their 
 voices sometimes. We used to stay there sometimes until 
 about midnight. Always after attending those meetings 
 I had to pick my clothes over, and I have often found 
 underneath my necktie a colony of bedbugs. One night I 
 was caught in a terrific storm while attending the prayer- 
 meeting. I could not possibly get home that night, as the 
 road was a bad road, even in daylight. So I was pressed 
 to stay that night in that house, and preferred bedbugs 
 and a shelter to exposure that night. I stayed. There 
 were two beds in the room. So when I got ready to go 
 to bed the old lady went out of doors and the old man set
 
 68 
 
 down facing the fire with his pipe while I went to bed. 
 Then the old lady came in and they blew out the tallow 
 candle and they went to to bed. In the morning I stayed 
 in bed, like children do, until breakfast was ready. Then 
 the old lady took the outside of the house while I dressed. 
 After a scanty meal I started on my way home not much 
 the worse for my night's adventure with strange bed- 
 fellows. 
 
 People somehow got the idea that the meetings must 
 be held at that place all of the while, and some even 
 thought the meetings were better there than elsewhere. I 
 think they were about as good as any we had anywhere 
 on the charge. I used to sometimes say that we were 
 nearer heaven when up on the old hill. It was a delight 
 to us to meet in that old shanty for prayer. I have been 
 to meetings there when everyone would laugh and some- 
 times shout. I have even known them to lose conscious- 
 ness for a short time. One night a couple of the brethren 
 were so happy that on the way home from the meeting 
 in company with me they began to hug each other, and 
 finally lay down on the ground and rolled under an old 
 rail fence in their efforts to embrace each other a little 
 more closely. We used to have all sorts of people at the 
 " Brindle Hill " meeting. The Free Methodist, the Advents, 
 Methodist Protestant and Methodist Episcopal, and 
 some that were not anything. A Free Methodist man 
 who had left the Methodist church to join that Free insti- 
 tution used to come to the meetings and try to run a Free 
 Methodist meeting. He used to get down and pray with 
 his hands spread out and arms at full length, and would
 
 9 
 
 keep them going like a bird flopping its wings. It always 
 took him a long time to wing out his prayer. One night 
 he was so extremely long and tedious that we were all 
 tired of his prayer, and no doubt but the Lord was weary 
 of such illimitable prayers, so we sung him down and out. 
 He was such a sweet-spirited man, to take his word for it, 
 and such a perfect man and so perfected in love; but I 
 noticed that after I started a hymn in the midst of his ex- 
 tended talk, he was capable of being ruffled in spirit as 
 well as the rest of God's weak creatures. 
 
 One would have thought to hear him talk that he was 
 so perfect that nothing could offend him. But it was 
 easier to offend him than anyone else. He could change 
 his spiritual thermometer from hot to cold with the great- 
 est of ease, as though he were used to that trade. No 
 doubt he was. When a man thinks he has found a state 
 of grace, if it has the tendency to knock all of the good 
 sense out of him, he had better investigate his so-called 
 state of grace. 
 
 If Christianity does anythingjfor man, it not only 
 changes his operations in life, but it also gives him a better 
 and clearer conception of things, and especially of things 
 relating to the Christian life. It proves itself, when 
 present in the heart, by that consideration it gives one, of 
 the feelings and rights of others, and that Christian 
 charity that "thinketh no evil" of others, who claim an 
 interest and a hope in the merits of the Redeemer of 
 mankind. 
 
 So when this man thought only of himself, and, like a 
 pig getting lengthwise in the trough, preventing anyone
 
 70 
 
 else getting a mouthful, he wanted to use all of the time 
 and snatch all of the cake from the table, I began to think 
 that some of the lambs needed something as well as the 
 pig, and so I started a lively hymn and all of the singers 
 joined in, and his wings dropped to his side and his lower 
 jaw dropped, and the noise of the "sounding brass and 
 tinkling cymbal" ceased. He did not attend meetings 
 with us for a long time after that, if he ever did. Some 
 folks want all or they want nothing. 
 
 I have had occasion once or twice since then to sing 
 down a windy saint. On one charge, I was holding a 
 series of meetings and the people were getting very much 
 aroused and awakened. There had been in the vicinity 
 of the church some years before a Free Methodist class. 
 Some old remnants of that class still remained. The most 
 of those left came to my meetings and were getting into 
 the work in good earnest. One old man with a little 
 show of learning, and a poor show at that, had been 
 termed " leader " by the Free Methodist. He looked after 
 the Free Methodist flock, what there was of it. He did 
 not come to the meetings for a long time. Finally a 
 prayer-meeting one afternoon came within easy reach of 
 this old "leader" and so he came. Not having attended 
 the meetings any he was not in the drift of the work, but 
 rather he was like an iceberg in a summer sea; the iceberg 
 produced an effect upon the immediate sea, and in turn 
 the sea effected the iceberg, and as it is slow work melting 
 an icebers, so we found it in this case, too. 
 
 When he prayed he consumed about half an hour. He 
 was not asking the Lord for anything, but he was in-
 
 71 
 
 structing the Lord and reciting history to him. He told 
 all he knew about Bible history. Among other things he 
 told the Lord how one leaf of the Bible had been sold for 
 a load of hay, as though the Lord did not know about it. 
 He used up all of the time that we generally allowed for 
 prayers. So I changed the order of the meeting. Then he 
 got up and began to reel off another thousand mile thread, 
 and when he had used up about half of the time I began 
 to sing with all my might, and the thread broke and that 
 stopped the reel. 
 
 You get about half a dozen such "long-winded" fel- 
 lows together and you would need to begin the meeting 
 after breakfast and have a lunch in your pocket for din- 
 ner and expect a late supper, if you staid all through the 
 meetidg, and, too, a man would want a prod stuck into 
 him every five minutes to keep awake, for they would put 
 a maniac to sleep in ten minutes. Such men afford us 
 good opportunities to cultivate the grace of patience and 
 charity, but patience ceases to be a virtue before the sun 
 goes down, if you begin in the morning with such fellows. 
 Such are some of the things that come along in the cur- 
 rent of human events to knock off the rough corners of 
 mortal men in the ministry, and by friction put on a little 
 of the shine. So that "all things work together for good," 
 even if a man does not relish the thing, for the bitter 
 medicine may give strength ; but then I would rather take 
 the medicine from choice than have it forced down my 
 throat.
 
 72 
 
 HOW I MADE THE CIRCUIT. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 I made my circuit on foot. When I went onto the 
 circuit I had a pair of leaky boots, and while they 
 answered well enough for the sidewalks in a village, they 
 were of no very great use on the roads and in the mud 
 and water, if you desired to keep your feet dry and clean. 
 It was one of the worst winters for mud and water I have 
 known since I have been in the work, too, and when I 
 started off for an exploration on my charge I used to get 
 my pants up on my boot tops and take my coat on my 
 arm and my little, old Bible in my hand and a hymn-book 
 and pick my way along the fences and over logs and 
 across the fields and through the woods to reach my point. 
 
 The Bible, by the way, was the first Bible I ever had. 
 It was given to me by a Sunday-school teacher as a 
 Christmas present on a tree, when I was a little boy. It
 
 73 
 
 cost about forty cents, as that is the price of the book as 
 marked on the cover ; for the mark is there yet. 
 
 In my journeys sometimes it was necessary to cross 
 the road in order to proceed, and it was not always a 
 very pleasant duty. I remember having on a pair of rub- 
 bers once, that were none too tight, and being obliged to 
 cross the road I started to cross in a place that looked 
 to be sandy. I got into the middle of the road and the 
 first I knew I began to sink in the quick sand. I lifted up 
 one foot and the rubber came off. I took my books under 
 my arm and tried to put my rubber on, but when I had it 
 on, the other foot had gone out of sight. I then tried to 
 get that foot out and the rubber came off and so I had to 
 work again standing on one foot. I lost my balance and 
 had to put my foot down without the rubber on in order 
 to save myself. The other rubber came off and I was get- 
 ting deeper in the mire, so securing my rubbers in my 
 hands I pulled for the fence as best I could. I came very 
 near getting in over my boot tops. What a plight I was 
 in ; the mud plastered all over my boots and some on my 
 best pants, and those were not very good either. 
 
 By the time I had gone seven or eight miles in such 
 weather and with such roads as I had then, I was in a 
 sorry plight. About the first thing was asking the privi- 
 lege of taking off boots and stockings and cleaning up 
 when I stopped for good, if indeed I did not have to bor- 
 row a suit of clothes for a day. Many a time I have 
 crawled into some oneelse's boots and pants while I dried 
 and cleaned my own. 
 
 Sometimes I have been out in the night with no place
 
 74 
 
 to go for the night but my boarding place, perhaps five 
 miles away. I have been to prayer-meeting and staid un- 
 til late in the evening, and no one invite me home for the 
 night, as they each thought 1 was going with the other, 
 I suppose, and so I have walked five miles in the dark, 
 sometimes so dark I had to feel my way along the road. 
 Of course during such journeys I was not able to pick out 
 my way, but plough through. Mv big feet have many 
 times come down in the middle of some deep mud hole in 
 the middle of the road making the water fly all over me. 
 I used to be very thankful that no one could see me when 
 I steamed into port in the evening. 
 
 Sometimes I have been out in the night when a heavy 
 shower would come up and I would get soaked clean to 
 the hide, if even the hide did not get soaked. That was a 
 year in which I could not dress very well for two reasons. 
 First, I had not the money to buy anything, better with, 
 and secondly, if I had, it would have been folly to put any- 
 thing on worth much to be caught out in, as I was so 
 many times that year. 
 
 My salary was very limited that year, so that I was 
 not able to buy a horse, not even a saw horse. I used to 
 fill my appointmsnts regularly, however, and generally 
 on time. What little money I did get had to go for boots 
 and rubbers and for books and papers and for letter 
 paper etc. I believe I was poorer when the year was up 
 than when I began my work, not only in pocketbook but 
 in flesh. I walked-off all the flesh, and was thin, and 
 gaunt, and my clothes were as rib-bare as I was. 
 But I was happy and I believe I could say truthfully
 
 75 
 
 "blessed be nothing." I had nothing to worry over, only 
 lest my pants should give out on the knees or elsewhere 
 to my discomfort. 
 
 I was poor when I went on to the circuit, and poor 
 when I went away from it. I had very little money that 
 first year. The people were poor and the families were 
 large and the preacher had to take what he could get. I 
 find on one page of my book for that year, that one 
 farmer is credited for himself and family with the folio wing: 
 
 3 Ibs. butter $ .84 
 
 Y2 bushel potatoes 20 
 
 6 Ibs. meat : 50 
 
 Y2 bushel apples 25 
 
 Total $1.79 
 
 Another one (a sister) 1 pair of socks $ .40 
 
 The local preacher, 1 cord of wood (slabs) 1.00 
 
 One old lady 7 tbs. meat 85 
 
 That is about the way it run through the year. I was 
 single and boarding, and could turn most of the truck 
 over to my landlady. My salary for the year did not 
 exceed $250 including everything. I was not able there- 
 fore to secure even a horse to ride. So I was the circuit 
 rider on foot. I used to preach at Yale in the morning, 
 and then walk five miles to the Jones school-house for the 
 afternoon and to Graves seven miles for evening. Then 
 the next Sabbath, I would preach at Maple school-house 
 in the morning and then take up one of the other appoint- 
 ments in the afternoon and another one in the evening,
 
 76 
 
 giving me plenty of exercise during the day. I was not 
 troubled any with the dyspepsia nor the gout. I wore 
 out plenty of sole-leather though, and sweat out many 
 paper collars. 
 
 During a part of the winter I was permitted to ride a 
 colt. A very wicked man took pity on the "circuit walker" 
 and said if I would come down to his house he would let 
 me have a colt to ride. So I went down and rode the colt 
 home to my boarding place. I borrowed a bridle of the 
 old man who owned the colt and a saddle of a neighbor, 
 and I felt as big as a King on a throne, when I left town 
 on the back of a colt. I made good use of the colt while I 
 kept it. For about three months anyway I was a 
 real "circuit rider." I did more walking that first year 
 of my ministry than I have the thirteen following years. 
 I did not mind the walking any, for I was walking for the 
 Lord, and I was well paid for all of my labor. I waded 
 mud, walked on logs and fence rails and built pontoon 
 bridges across turbulent, swelling torrents (or some other 
 kind of a bridge) that I might carry the gospel into the 
 "regions beyond me." I was a veritable gospel-peddler 
 and carried the gospel into every house. I boarded around 
 among the people; I had to. The people thought I must. 
 The extent of my circuit compelled me to live with the 
 people much, and my salary was so meager that I could 
 not have staid there unless I did. 
 
 I was thoroughly acquainted with my people. I knew 
 their home life. Quite a number of times i helped my 
 people establish the family altar in their homes. Afoot, 
 or on horseback, I meant to do my duty with the help of
 
 77 
 
 the Lord. I believe I did do my duty, too. God lifted up 
 my head above mine enemies round about me, and I was 
 full of joy, and was enabled to preach with power. 
 
 Many times I have preached with wet feet and soiled 
 clothing and wrinkled collar, with my clothing wet with 
 sweat from my journey. I always forgot my ills (if such 
 they could be called) when I began to preach, and the 
 Lord used to bless my words. Sometimes' every one in the 
 house would be in tears saint and sinner. Even now I 
 look back upon that year as a green spot in my ministeri- 
 al life that will never fade away. 
 
 If tramping would give me the same power and the 
 same pay and the same sweet experience, together with 
 its clouds and sunshine, I would be willing to pull off my 
 shoes and pull on my kipp boots and take the road. 
 Every year has been a good year, however. But I was a 
 babe in the ministry then, and to a man no time is so 
 sweet as his childhood days, with its clouds and sunshine 
 and songs and tears. 
 
 I have been singing doxologies ever since that first 
 year at the remembrance of God's goodness to me, and 
 the blessings and victories of my initiation into this the 
 noblest work in which man can engage.
 
 SUMMARY. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 At the end of the }^ear my charge was in a warm and 
 flourishing condition. At Yale the work had become 
 quite satisfactory. I had taken on probation during the 
 year 39 persons. Many of them had come into the church 
 in full connection before the year was up ; and the most of 
 the remainder were still on the way. The Seventh Day 
 Baptists were not doing as well at the end of the year as 
 they expected. Things did not turn out as they expected 
 they would when they set up business against the Method- 
 ist Episcopal church. They did not start right. If they 
 had any noisy work to do they always seemed to do it on 
 the Sabbath day, and get as near the church to do it, or 
 some conspicuous place, where it would annoy the first- 
 day people. For instance, one fine Sabbath day when the 
 people were coming to church the leading man in the 
 Baptist church got out in the road to clean his stovepipe
 
 79 
 
 so that people could see and hear the noise as they were 
 going to church. 
 
 Like the old woman and the preacher whom she 
 thought needed snuffing. The preacher arose in a sleepy 
 way and read in a drawling manner his text, which was 
 this: "I am the light of the world." Then he repeated 
 the text, after looking about upon the audience. When he 
 had finished the text for the second time, " I am the light 
 of the world," an old lady piped out in a squeaky voice, 
 "If you are, you need snuffing." So if that man with his 
 stovepipe was oneof God's lights heneeded snuff ing badly. 
 
 The Free Methodists did a good deal of shouting and 
 exercising, but that only kept them from being dyspeptic, 
 while it did not result in any marked degree in the growth 
 of that church or the overthrow of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal church, which ever has been, and probably always 
 will be, an eye-sore to the bulk of that society. They 
 verily thought we were all hypocrits. Perhaps we were, 
 but we were having a glorious time of it, and if that kind 
 of feeling comes from hypocracy, like the dutchman, who, 
 addmitted that money was the root of all evil, (which of 
 course it is not) said, "but give me some more of the 
 root," so I say give us some more of that kind of 
 hypocracy. 
 
 The Advents, both the First Day and the Seventh Day, 
 were going about saying, that they were looking for 
 Christ to come any day. One old man with long hair and 
 a longer beard used to go around the neighborhood strok- 
 ing his beard and declaring in funeral tones that he 
 thought Christ would come any day now, for the end was
 
 80 
 
 near. Some of them even went so far as to pick out the 
 farm they were going to live on after Christ had killed all 
 of the wicked and purified the earth by fire. One farm 
 they had an eye on was the property of a good old saint, 
 but it was no matter to them, they were going to people 
 the earth. I had a talk with one Advent, and he claimed 
 that the spirit went into the grave with the body and 
 staid there until the resurrection morn. I quoted scripture 
 to him and he would claim that it was all wrong, and, 
 when I see that he was not capable of furnishing any 
 scripture in proof of his position and yet denied all that 
 I offered, I asked him if he really believed that the spirit 
 went into the grave? He said he did. Then I said, I hope 
 the Lord will let you lay in the grave with the dust and 
 old dry bones, if you really believe it, I am not going there 
 anyway. The old fellow got mad at me, and would not 
 speak to me nor go to my meetings after that. He did 
 not seem to like his own medicine very well. The whole 
 time of those would-be saints is taken up with some point 
 that will not make one hair whiter nor blacker. To me, 
 to help someone get ready to meet the Lord when he 
 comes is far above trying to convince someone that he is 
 coming tomorrow or next day. It is none of our business 
 when he comes, if it was, the Lord would have told us all 
 about it, but our business is to be always ready, for we 
 know not when he will come. Somethings are import- 
 ant. The preaching of faith, repentance, regeneration, 
 the work of the spirit, the love of God and our duties to 
 God and one anothej are worth more to the ounce than 
 all the disputed and distinguishing points of all the
 
 81 
 
 churches put together are worth by the shipload dumped 
 on the docks. How much corn will a man husk in a day 
 if he stops to discuss the formation of a husk ? The husks 
 are necessary, but only because of the corn on the ear. 
 Some people are always stripping husks and getting no 
 corn. Let us have the corn ! 
 
 Away with those old bones old fossils of dead faith 
 and rotten reason. What this hungry, crying world 
 wants is bones with meat on them. You never saw a 
 man that was gnawing an old weather-worn bone that 
 was very fat. When you meet one of these old bone-eaters, 
 you only find a shadow of a man. He may try to per- 
 suade you to eat, and tell you how delicious it is, but if 
 you do accept his bone you will be nothing more spiritual- 
 ly than skin and bones. 
 
 Some animals can seem to thrive in a grave-yard. Go 
 into the grave-yard of the past and you can find the 
 fossils of old dead isms, that have been left there after the 
 birds have picked off what little meat there was on them. 
 
 Christianity comes to the soul full of juice, fresh and 
 palatable. The soul that feeds upon the gospel will be fat. 
 Health, freshness, beauty and strength become those who 
 are well-fed. God's people are well-fed. "They shall be 
 fat and flourishing." 
 
 I thank God that I never tried to feed my people on 
 dry bones bleached in the sun of centuries. We went in 
 for the marrow of the gospel. If we were cut short some- 
 times in this world's goods we never were in want for the 
 delicacies of that other world. 
 
 In my experiences boarding around, I often came to
 
 82 
 
 hard fare. Sometimes I have dined on salt and potatoes, 
 sometimes on poor bread with no butter ; once I dined on 
 stewed wookchuck, often on chickens and sometimes I 
 did not get a chance to dine on anything. It was about 
 the same with beds. Sometimes I would find good beds, 
 other times I have slept on a straw tick that was so thin 
 that the slats that held up the tick amounted to a great 
 deal more by way of close fitting, than the straw in the 
 tick. Sometimes I have examined the beds in the morn- 
 ing to see if they had put any stuffing in the ticks or not. 
 I have gotten up in cold weather and put my clothes on 
 and gone back to bed to keep warm, and, like Paul and 
 his company when on the stormy sea, wished for the day- 
 break. 
 
 But those things did not hinder my work in the least, 
 I could preach as well on stewed woodchuck as on cake 
 and pie, and feel as strong for the battle after being 
 stretched upon slats or bedcords for the rest and sleep of 
 the night, as if on goose feathers. 
 
 With all of the unpleasant things connected with the 
 work, I must say that my first year was a happy, tri- 
 umphant year in my ministry and one never to be forgot- 
 ten. I would not hesitate for one moment to go over the 
 same road again with the same blessed scenes, associa- 
 tions and experiences, with few exceptions, and one of 
 those the bedbugs. What I mean is that the exceptions 
 are not taken in regard to any of the blessed things, but 
 in respect simply to some of the associations, mentioned 
 above. 
 
 In conclusion, let me say, that the life of a preacher is
 
 83 
 
 not a life all sunshine nor all shadows, but it is such a 
 Divine combination of the two that one at once loses 
 sight of the one in the brightness of the other. And, be- 
 lieving that all things will work together for good to 
 them that love God, the preacher clings to the ship and 
 lets God take the helm, and thus out-rides the storm. In 
 that sense all should be preachers and cling to the ropes. 
 We may not be able to save a cause, but this mighty, 
 glorious cause will save all who cling to it. 
 
 THE END.
 
 A few Original Poems,
 
 87 
 
 THE OLD FLINT-LOCK MUSKET. 
 
 (Parody on " The Old Oaken Bucket") 
 
 How painful the memories linked with my childhood, 
 
 While fond recollections there seems but a few; 
 The tree with green apples, that tasted so bitter 
 
 And gave me the cramps and the stomachache, too ; 
 The wide-spreading pond where I spoiled my new breeches, 
 
 And stuck myself fast in the deep, quaking mire ; 
 The hand of my father that used to fit tightly, 
 
 And warmed my thin trousers as if in the fire, 
 And then that old musket, the rusty old musket, 
 
 My grandfather's musket that stood in the barn. 
 
 That old rusty musket 1 hail with no pleasure ; 
 
 For one time at noon, when returned from the store, 
 I found it the source of a thousand bad speeches 
 
 And groauiugs and bruises a thousand times more ; 
 How ardent I seized it, my grandfather's musket, 
 
 And quick to my shoulder I brought the old stock, 
 And soon as I pulled at the rusty old trigger 
 
 The thunder and lightning burst forth all at once; 
 My heels took the air and I cut a queer figure, 
 
 While stars danced about me a million or more. 
 
 How bitter my thoughts, and how wild the commotion, 
 
 When I think of the musket that stands in the barn ; 
 Not a mine of rich treasures could tempt me to touch it, 
 
 Though foes should assail me or threaten me harm ; 
 My revenge would be sweeter if my foes took the musket, 
 
 For the danger is greater behind than before. 
 When ever I think of my father's plantation 
 
 That rusty old musket comes up in my mind, 
 The war with old England they called "Revolution;" 
 
 And since I revolved so I know what it means.
 
 88 
 HIS MERCY ENDURETH FOREVER. 
 
 I will sing to the Lord a iiew song, 
 
 Giviiig thanks for his goodness to me; 
 Tnto Him, who is mighty and strong, 
 Unto Him all the glory shall be. 
 For His mercy enduretb, 
 Yes, endureth forever. 
 
 He unlocked the embrace of the wave, 
 
 That his people iu safety might pass ; 
 While their enemies found but a grave, 
 
 As the waves sought each other's embrace. 
 For His mercy endureth, 
 Yes, endureth forever. 
 
 In the desert His people He led, 
 
 And made waters gush forth from the rock 
 And with manna His people were fed : 
 For He leadeth and feedeth His flock. 
 For His mercy eudureth, 
 Yes, endureth forever. 
 
 ALL ALONE. 
 
 In the darkness all alone, 
 While the night winds sadly moan; 
 With no cheering gleam of light, 
 Wand'ring, wand'riug in the night. 
 
 Weary, weary, all alone, 
 Threat'utug clouds are sweeping on ; 
 But no shelter from the storm; 
 With no friend, alone to roam. 
 
 Sinner, list ! There is a call, 
 From the distance, O, so small, 
 Lo ! A star, O, turn and see, 
 Shining now for thee, for thee. 
 
 Jesus calls, 0, sinner come, 
 He's prepared for thee a home; 
 Flee from danger, flee from harm, 
 Come to Christ's dear, loving arms.
 
 89 
 THE KICKER OF HONEYMOON CIRCUIT. 
 
 There was a hard place called Honeymoon Circuit, 
 And they wanted a new man to work it; 
 And so the wise Bishop sent on a new preacher, 
 To be their next pastor and teacher. 
 
 But the new one was too old to accept him, 
 And the preacher was single that left them ; 
 And thus the P. E. did arrange it, 
 So he could quite easily change it. 
 
 The change it was made; the preacher sent on, 
 The one they had seemed to be bent on ; 
 They claimed to be very contented, 
 And a parsonage quickly was rented. 
 
 The bounds of the charge were far-reaching, 
 And five were the place for preaching; 
 The work was quite vast in proportions, 
 And sometimes beset with strange notions. 
 
 And one of these points was named Orlo, 
 Where things must be always thus or so. 
 Their piety run in an unknown direction, 
 Or else they were lacking the very best section. 
 
 The people of Orlo were thinking of yielding, 
 For the want of a proper church building; 
 And the work and the cause had been lagging, 
 And the faith of the saints seemed flagging. 
 
 The Classleader, "spokesman," "chieftain" and so-forth, 
 Was David Cantdoit, whose "bossly '' go forth. 
 Was the word of command and the end of all lawing, 
 And it had to go forth without " hemming and hawing." 
 
 This David Cantdoit had "fixed up" the members, 
 Until they thought he was the "greatest of timbers." 
 They worshiped the man, they worshiped his money, 
 'Til the worship of God wasn't worth quite a penny. 
 
 They told the new preacher : " Perhaps you don't know it, 
 But we never could live without brother Cantioit." 
 One would think from the talk of this silly, blind people, 
 That "brother Cantdoit" was the god on the steeple.
 
 90 
 
 The preacher, he worshiped the Lord God, Almighty, 
 The people, "David Cantdoit," the conceity : 
 And so it's no wonder the people were lagging, 
 And the faith of the saints was flagging. 
 
 But "brother Cantdoit" said the trouble with Orlo, 
 Was the want of a church either thus or so ; 
 " We want a new church ; it is now or never," 
 The others said ; " Yes, it is now, if ever. 
 
 The preacher never bowed down to "brother Cantdoit," 
 And this worldly-wise saint seemed to know it; 
 And being more mulish than saintly by nature, 
 He always objected to every new measure. 
 
 The preacher, in love for the cause and the people, 
 Proposed a new church, with belfry and steeple ; 
 When up jumps the "Leader" and says: "We can't do it," 
 Like all other skeptics he adds: " And I know it." 
 
 This man, who for reasons just told, talkedt)f yielding, 
 Was the first to oppose the much-needed building. 
 He "hemmed" and he "hawed" and without any reason, 
 He said : ' 'You Can't do it," and " This aint the season." 
 
 The work went "ahead" by "lifting" and "tugging;" 
 But this awful good man made it very hard lugging; 
 He laid down and rode on top of the burden, 
 And growled that so long was the time to the Jordan, 
 
 If the work should succeed, he wanted the credit, 
 And if it should fail, the preacher would get it; 
 But, in truth, if it failed he deserved all the blaming, 
 And with its success he wasn't worth naming. 
 
 This "unsainlly" saint kicked as a source of his giving, 
 For kicking was part of his every-day living; 
 He aimed at the preacher with hatefulness ever, 
 As though he was certain it was ' note or never." 
 
 When the preacher had finished his work, they dinmissed him, 
 And not even a blessing for his work they wished him. 
 While many the hands that helped to receive him, 
 He must '' go it alone," when the time comes to leave them.
 
 91 
 
 AH of yore, there was a cry from Honeymoon Circuit ; 
 For they wanted a new man to work it. 
 And God pity the man that meets with such foes, 
 They are glad when ho comes, and pleased when he goe s. 
 
 But David Cantdoit will find he can't do it, 
 And the angels in heaven all know it; 
 For kicking doth make him a dangerous rival, 
 And, if he keeps kicking, he'll go to the Devil. 
 
 TRUSTING IN THE LORD. 
 
 I have found a safe retreat ; 
 I can all my foes defeat, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 Joshua, the victory man, 
 David's mighty deeds were done, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 
 Jesus spake the Holy word, 
 Wond'rous news the peple heard, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 Blind men had their sight restored, 
 Health and strength the sick implored, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 
 Cripples took their beds and walked 
 'Mid the throngs where Jesus talked, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 Vile men had their sins forgiven, 
 And they started out for heaven, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 
 Weeping Mary Jesus sought : 
 
 From the tomb good news she brought, 
 
 Trusting in the Lord. 
 Christ's apostles preached with power, 
 Had a "pentecostal shower." 
 
 Trusting in the Lord.
 
 92 
 JUST CALL AND SEE FOR YOURSELVES. 
 
 Written in 1876. 
 
 (This poem was suggested by an advertisement in a newspaper, 
 offering great bargains, etc , and closed by saying " Just Call and see 
 For Yourselves.]" 
 
 The storehouse of God is full and free, 
 Just call and see for yourselves; 
 
 The door stands ajar for you and me, 
 Just call and see for yourselves. 
 
 The Bible describes its stock of gold, 
 
 Its value to you can never be told, 
 Just call and see for yourselves. 
 
 The bargains are great, and it will pay, 
 Just call and see for yourselves; 
 
 You never should doubt what thousands say, 
 Just call and see for yourselves. 
 
 No money is needed when you go, 
 
 The firm is so rich, they give, you know, 
 Just call and see for yourselves 
 
 There is a full line of gospel fare, 
 Just call and see for yourselves ; 
 
 And there is a stock of blessings rare, 
 Just call and see for yourselves. 
 
 There is but one price on everything, 
 
 And that has been paid by Christ, the King, 
 Just call and see for yourselves. 
 
 A SING'LAR CUSTOM. 
 
 (A parody on the " New Church Doctrine. ") 
 There is a sing'lar custom, Sue, 
 
 Among our folks to-day ; 
 'Tis not in whole a thing so new, 
 
 So all the preachers say ; 
 That literal, everlastin' howl, 
 
 As if about to die, 
 Some people always have to growl 
 
 At everything we try. 
 I doubt somewhat about that clime, 
 
 They always talk about, 
 A bein' quite "so mild" sometime, 
 
 As they may yet find out.
 
 93 
 
 I've watched my duty, straight an' true, 
 
 An' tried to do it well ; 
 I always gave with Christ in view, 
 
 An' always made it tell. 
 But some will sing an' give just naught 
 
 " A foll'wer of the Lamb;" 
 An' all the battle they have fought, 
 
 Is only just a whim. 
 Great are the dangers 1 have braved, 
 
 The sacrifice it cost ; 
 An' now if these ere folks are saved, 
 
 My sacrifice is lost. 
 
 Just think ! To say they ' mean to do, 
 
 An' help the cause along, 
 ' His track I see, an' I'll pursue,' " 
 
 Is brother Tubbs's eong. 
 An' talks about the narrow way, 
 
 As if he walked beside the King ; 
 Au' looks at me as if to say, 
 
 "Don't you wish you could sing?" 
 But wheu the plate is passed around, 
 
 He lays it on so still, 
 As if a cent would give a sound 
 
 His very soul to ctill 
 
 An' there is Deacon James and wife, 
 
 They have no children left, 
 An' they should carry in this life 
 
 Of burdens quite a heft. 
 But when you ask them "to divide," 
 
 An' help the preacher on, 
 With thousands saved, right by their side, 
 
 The preacher gets a "one." 
 They always say, "how much it costs 
 
 To keep the meetin' up ;" 
 But the church would be in ruin lost, 
 
 Were they the only prop. 
 
 Old Captain Bates has never done. 
 
 An' has his pockets crammed ; 
 I sometimes think he'll be the one, 
 
 If any one is damned.
 
 94 
 
 Au' Peter Flag did muriner so 
 
 An' said, "The times were hard," 
 But he could go to Barnum's show, 
 
 An' buy a "family card." 
 There comes a thought I can't control, 
 
 That Satan may get some ; 
 He takes the purse to lead the soul 
 
 To his infernal home. 
 
 An' there was Smith lay sick and weak, 
 
 For many an* many a day, 
 And all because he sought to seek 
 
 An' lay more dimes away. 
 He had enough to last him through, 
 
 Nor do another thing ; 
 An' now because from follow too 
 
 He had to "clip his wing." 
 The cause of Christ must suffer loss; 
 
 The preacher suffer lack, 
 The man was sick, and so his cross 
 
 Will be to "brace his back." 
 
 But tears can never do my part, 
 
 Nor feed a hungry soul ; 
 When love is in my inner heart, 
 
 My purse is in control . 
 I hold mine right side up with care, 
 
 To shield mine eyes from sin, 
 An' coax the Lord with daily pray'r, 
 
 To use the dimes withia. 
 Bat if these grumblers won't draw nigh, 
 
 An' take salvation's plan, 
 I'll have to stand an, see 'em try 
 
 To dodge hell, if they can.
 
 95 
 
 " BLESS ME ! THIS IS PLEASANT." 
 
 A pyem composed at the age of 17 years. 
 
 [The subject called "Wat" was a hotel keeper of a very bad 
 sort, whose given nam? was Washington, and was always called 
 " Wat '' and "Watty." He kept a very bal house and was strongly 
 opposed by temperance people. He was greedy for gain.] 
 
 As "Wat" sat by his bar-room fire, 
 
 And none but he was there, 
 
 He counted o'er the dimes he'd made 
 
 By his nefarious trade. 
 
 And as he laid them on the shelf, 
 
 Thus said he to himself: 
 
 How fast I'm making money, 
 
 In this land of beer and honey. 
 
 Bless me ! This is pleasant. 
 
 I know some people don't like me, 
 With temperance folks I don't agree; 
 They have their friends / have, I think, 
 For there is Doctor Link 
 And Jessie Bench and Billy Dock, 
 Come each as steady as a clock. 
 O ! how I'll scoop the money 
 And make the boys feel funny ! 
 
 Bless me ! I am happy. 
 
 Now, there's my Farmers' Jubilee 
 
 Some called it " Watty's spree, 
 
 Just think ! because we had some fun 
 
 They go howlin' round the town. 
 
 Well ! humph ! I made some money. Whew ! 
 
 I guess I did a bushel, too. 
 
 They all had lots of money, 
 
 And seemed to feel quite fanny. 
 
 Bless me ! It was pleasant. 
 
 Because we had a pole to climb 
 Close by, to pass away the time, 
 Then some of those cold-water clams, 
 They scoffed at me like fighting rams, 
 And said I meant to sell out dry. 
 The truth of that I don't deny 
 For those who came had money, 
 And got to feeling funny ; 
 
 Bless mel It was pleasant.
 
 96 
 
 Plague take those stiff cold-water men, 
 '] hey call nay place "The Devil's Den ;" 
 They fight against my honest trade. 
 As though I had no license paid. 
 I'll get their sons here on the sly, 
 As the spider did the silly fly, 
 And when I get their money 
 It won't seem quite so funny. 
 
 Blees mel If I don't. 
 
 I went to a donation once 
 
 A big consummate dunce, 
 
 To give the Rev., a Methodist, 
 
 A crisp new "V," just to assist ; 
 
 And now he's fighting hard 'gainst me, 
 
 And voted temperance, too, I see; 
 
 He 'predated my money 
 
 In a way that isn't funny. 
 
 Blees me ! It isn't pleasant. 
 
 Now there's that painter Buckman, too, 
 He's stiffer by far than my old shce, 
 I wouldn't have had him paint for me, 
 But 1 thought of course the man could see, 
 That he could drink here on the sly 
 The best of whisky made of rye. 
 Good Templars ain't so funny, 
 For I don't get much of their money. 
 Curse me ! What a crowd ! 
 
 Now some have said that I am, (hie,) 
 In town "sole agent for Old Nick." 
 Has Satan got on me a claim? 
 There is no justice, truth nor shame 
 In hurting thus my honest trade. 
 Away, then, to the midnight shade 
 With things that ain't so funny, 
 I am after the drinker's mon y. 
 
 Curse me! If I don't get it. 
 
 And so old "Wat" went off to bed, 
 To wake at morn to ply his trade. 
 Old Elam came for his morning drink 
 And Dock and Bench and Doctor Link.
 
 97 
 
 And so the days, the months went by, 
 And soon old " Wat" laid down to die, 
 If 'twas pleasant making money, 
 To die was not so funny, 
 
 Not quite so pleasant. 
 
 EVIL IMAGINATION. 
 
 A friend drops in so light, 
 
 And says that neighbor B 
 
 Intends to rob your house to-night, 
 He often looks that way. 
 
 Now, on the strength of that 
 
 Be cat, and watch the rat, 
 
 Or he may gnaw a fearful hole, 
 
 And steal away your soul.