Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1852-04-03


i A somewhat characteristic retnlnis
cence OF John Newlnnd Mafit has bee
lying fur long time IN orr mind: al,s
! we calinot do better il,nn pccorl to Il I'll,
,onors Of paper aud ink. Il happeuet
years noo, when The eccentric preached
was IN The height, Of his reputation -
when lie was. or at least thought he wns
in earnest before the balan Of hi:
mind had been destroyed hy adua,ion,--
coifeit. vanity, md something worse.
/ During these dnya. IN one OF his jonr.
neyings, he catne 10 a plnce OH The Mis-.
s-lppi--- perllaps its nanIe wasnot TTuR.
rt/ke, Int That shall be irs designation for
/ the occaSioil Now. Wood lille was the
most notorionsIy corrupt place OH the
whole river; ii wns the sink into whicl,
all i|,e filth Of the surrounding country
VIVA poured 1t wns shulniled ike pest.
| honse. and abandoned to tlieives gam.
| b'ers, desperadoes mud rol,hers.
Mafit determined to lalp,r In this I'M.
inviting field. lie commenced prenclinr,
and soon gathered IN audience. f,,r preach.
| lisu was toneWhnt new there and be-.
sides. Alatlitts siee,y tones mud slranue
lla~hes OF e'oqncnce would at tint time
attract an audience any where. Those
who knew The man only III bis later years
know nothing Of him.
Dny after day lie preached. hut MI TO
no purpose. lie portrayed the bliss Of
heaven--its purity and peeee--in his
most vivid aud glowing n,nnner. 1t was
lie last place wl,ni could have any
charms for his Wosdvile nndtence.
lie portrayed the stff. and turmoil Of
the world Of woe. Apnri from its phy-i.
cal ,orrnelts--and they felt Il sort Of wild
pride IN defying iliese---iIley raiber Iikh
the p'ctare. AT all events il was muci,
more 10 their taste 'lian his description OF
beaven.
So it went on, day after day. Not n
styli ut peGlienee; not n vet eye; net
single ncrnpnnt Of tlie anxious seat. Ills
labors were lriiitess.
Fnally. he determined upon change
of iaciics He spoke Of the decay Of
WoodvIle how il was fallpg behind
every Other Town on the river" Oh -
sad he might !,lt The ahgcl of Mercy
bp sent forth from mfure the Great White
Throne, commissioned 10 proelaim to all
the region around iiat there was q rdyisa
ia Woodvllle. aud what n change there
would I've The people would Cock here
from every qrnt'er; tbe hum of business
would ee heard ia yonr. streets; the
-teninefs, whose bfi2ht wheels now 20
flashing by your wlMsS would stay ~
tfielf fleet career these dense forests
which now lour around, would lie hewn
down and piled up for food for these vast
lesia'bans;; ;.gbd tl,usa golden tide would
ponr ia npd YOU; and Woodville woud
become il,g sealiiiest, the most henuffu, |
and the ln h,iest plare on fI,e banks Of
the rrea. Miner Of Waters. I"
A chord atd been touched in the hith |
erto iusensiik hearts Of the Moodvillet<.
Thought. er S,,ion, feeling were aroused
aHi @o,1a th Afrnfge electric sympathy Of
mind with nd wa. excited The emo
ton spread and increased, the anxious
seats were tlronged; and powerful. aud
TO NIL aprealences genuine revival of re-
lgion en-ucd. Tie cl,arater Of Wood
vile was entirely changed and from fhat
time II has continued to be one nf the
most moral, qttiet, thriving, aud prosmr-
DIS Of all the minor towns upon The Mis-
'issirpi