Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1859-03-14
THE GAZETTE.
MORNING. MARCH II, 1852.


HENRY EVANS. THE NEGRO PREACHER
In the course Of his autobiography. Bishop
Capcrs refers 10 some If those remarkable
characters who NAV be- found in many parts
Of the South. ~ shame our abolitionlsts
and who are denominated ''black preachers
The account Of Henry Evans, of North Caro-
lima. exhibits one of these
Henry Evans was confessedly the father
of the Methodist Church. white and black, III
Fayetteville. and the best preacher Of his
time in that quarter, and was so remarkable
n, to have become the greatest curiosity otthe
town. insomuch that distinguished visitors
hardly felt that they might pass sunday in
Fayetteville without hearing him preach
Evans was from Virginia: a shoemaker 10y
trade and. | think. was born free. He be-
came christian and Methodist quite young.
and was licensed to preach in Virginia.
While Vet young man, he determined TO
remove TO Charleston, ). c.. thinking he
might succeed best there AT his trade.
This determined him to stop III
Fayetteville; and he began TO preach 10 the
negroes with great effect. The town council
interiered. and nothing in his power could
prevail with them to permit him 10 preach
lie then withdrew to the sandhills, out Of
town. and held meetings in the woods, chang
ing his appointments from place To place No
law was Violated, while the council was eff
fectually eluded, and so the opposition passed
into the hands Of the mob. These he worri-
ei out by changing his appointments, So that
when they Went to work their Will upon him.
lie was preaching somewhere else.
Happily for him and the cause OF re-
ligion. his honest countenance and earnest
pleadinss were soon powerfully seconded by
the fruits of his labors. One after another
began TO suspect their servants of attending
his preaching. not because they were made
worse. but wonderfully better. The effect
on The public morals Of the negroes. too,
began TO be seen, particularly a regarded
their habits on Sunday, and drunkenness
And i; was not long before tue mob was
called of, by change in opinion, and
Evans was allowed TO preach i'll town. AT
that time, there was not single church edi-
fee in town. and but one congregation
Preshvteran-who worshipped in what was
called the State-house, under which was the
market; and il was plainly Evans, OF nobody.
to preach e. the negroes. Now, too. all OF the
mistresses, there were not a few, and some
masters. were brought to think that the
preaching which had proved so beneficial 10
their servants, might be good for then, Also
and the famous negro preacher had some
whites as well as blacks to hear him. Seats,
distinctly separated, were 1T first appropra-
ted IL the whites, near the pulpit. But
Evans had already become famous, and these
seats were insufficient Indeed, the negroes
seemed likolv to lose their preacher. negro
though he was, while the whites, crowded
out oftheir appropriate seats, took possession
Of those in the rear.
Meanwhile. Evans had represented to the
preacher Of Bladen Circuit, how things were
going. and induced him to take his meeting
house into the circuit aud constitute church.
As there was no longer room for the negroes
in the house when Evans preached, and for
the accommodation of both classes, the wea-
Their boards were knocked of, and sheds were
added to the house on either side; the whites
occupying the whole of the original building
and the negroes those sheds as part Of the
same house Evans dwelling was shed at
the pulpit end of the church.
1t was my practice to hold meeting with
the blacks in the church, directly after morn
ing preaching. every Sunday. And on the
Sunday before his death, during this meeting
the little door between his humble shed and
the chancel where stood. was opened, and
the dying man entered for last farewell to
his people. He was almost too feeble TO
stand at all, but supporting himself by the
railing of the chancel, he said 81 have come
to say my last word TO you. 1t is this: None
out Christ Three times have had my life
in jeopardy for preaching the gospel to You
Three times have broken the ice on the
edge of the water, and swan across the Cape
Fear river, to preach the gospel to YOU
And now, if in my last hour, could trust TO
ANYTHING else but Christ crucified, for my
salvation, all would be lost. and my soul per-
ished forever" --" g..
peonla are. 10 some extent estimated accor-