The Mississippi Creole. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1841-1851, 1849-12-01
From ne Spir1 Of DE Tne,.
VIC A CROWD.

a NJ w H.
Standing at a Post Office in one OF our
Southern States, 4 was inarOducsd 10 a very
respectable and intelligent Methodist Clergy.
man, with whom l entered into conversation
He proved a cheerful man, and the discourse
fell upon the eccentricities Of preachers. l
owe the groundwork oFthe following anecdote
Of the celebrated Lorenzo Dow to this rem
contre;
Dow was very exact in the appointments he
made, and sometimes arranged them a long
way ahead. He once preached near one of the
small towns Of Upper Georgia, and told his
congregation ON that day one year he would
preach to them againl 81 +.
The next season, on a Saturday afternoon
preceding the Sabbath Of the appointed time,
the old man was jogging along the main road
in the direction Of his congregation.
He noticed before him a stout little negro
boy, Of peculiarly active step and manner, who
carried in his hand a small tin horn, such as
are used to call the people to their meals.
Dow, according to his usual manner, entered
into conversation with the boy, and found he
was about to visit the congregation he had
appointed to meet.
If the truth must be told, Lorenzo had an
idea that the character of his flock was that Of
a reckless, frOlicksoms, kind, careless people,
upon whom it was necessary to make a very
decided impression, or his time would be
thrown away among them.
What is your name, my ladH' asked Dow,
Gabriel, SIR replied the boy, lifting a new
straw hat, and showing his ivory, while he
actively stepped along to keep pace with the
preachers horse.
'Can you blow upon that hOrn!'
sob, yes, master, | can loot a litIe.'
sWeIl, let me hear yOu3
So the negro inflated his velvet cheeks, and
made the woods resound.
DO you know a tall pine tree near the stand
at SharOn?' said Dow.
~ es, that l does, very well, masteT.'
LoreAzo then put bis hand nhis pocket, and
pulling out a silver dollar, showed il to the
boy, and told him If he would climb up into
the pine tree before the people met at the
meeting, and keep quiet there until the preach
er called out his name, and then blow loudly
on his horn, as he had just done, he would
give him the silver dollar, it he did not tell any
body about it.
The negro expressed himself highly delight
ed At such an offer, and promised punctuality
with secresy.
On the Sabbath, a large meeting assembled
at Sharon to hear the famous Lorenzo Dow
Serious old men and their wives, wild boys ant
their sweethearts, almost all on horseback
sometimes by twos and threes, besides negroes
from a great distance, on foot, being readily
C%sptiyated by the naturally eccentric Dow, 70
they love any thing that has a laugh attached
TO il, and they knew that Lorenzo was good 70
a Joke, even il it did hit hard.
Dow selected rather a birthstone text, an,
made the application as strong as possible, bu
he only forced his way slowly among the msr
%curial, heaIthfulh, honest, light-heatIed PEG
pie, who were hard to Tighten. He enamera
ted the enOrmity Of the vices he thought :
prevail, but they were so used to them tina
the words slid over them like water over
ducks back.
AT length he boldly described, in the plain
oct kind Of language, the appearances aqq