Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-04-01
nd ! reeLon yoa'II aover can hIn crazy

On arriving at the grove selected by
j. for his meeting, found large
but heterogeneous crowd In attendance.
They seemed to be composed of the
toughest and most hardened portion OF
S., with now and then a respectable
looking man, drawn there, like myself,
BY curiosity. $3.50. .....-.
j. soon arrived, and at once opened
his services by singing. with voice !
have never heard surpassed, even among
professional singers, a selection from q
hymn book then in use. After singing,
he offered prayer II was wonderful
prayer, not marked with any attempt at
rhetorical display, but full Of fervor, and
breathing a spirit Of unfaltering trust.
At the conclusion Of his prayer he an
nounced his text to be the thirty-hith
verse Of the eleventh chapter Of John:
{" Jesus wept" The Introduction con-
sisted Of description Of the village Of
Bethany and its adjacent country. He
described, with the rare power Of descrip-
ton, the vineyards and the vine clad
cottages surrounding the town; the GUS
toms of the people; and painted the
scene where Lazarus, falling sick, is at
tended by his devoted sisters. The vail
ings Of the bereayed Jewish maidens,
when their brother lay before them an
inanimate corpse, was portrayed in the
most vivid and affecting manner, draw
ing tears from many an eye. From this
he passed to the custom of coincidence
after the death of jew, and pointed to
the life Of tae long. bearded aud grave old
Israelites. who came TO visit and suffer
coincidence TO the grief-stricken sisters.
Hepaused cad stood silent and pointed
for a moment, as if to call attention to
some object in the distance. All eyes
were turned in the direction of his finger.
There |" he cried, do you not see
them 2 1t is the blessed Jesus surrounded
By the Twelve, who are approaching
over yon hill" And here commenced a
description Of each that seemed very
dream of poetry, it was so full of beauty
and poetic imagery. One by enc the
Twelve were described until you could
have recognized them at glance from
his wonderful description. He, at last
of all, described our Savior, and here his
description was brilliant beyond words,
SURPRISING in eloquence anything to
which have ever listened. he de-
scribed minutely the meeting between
Martha and Jesus, aud the whole scene
at the house, with yividness that can
never be forgotten. The visit to the
leaning on the arm Of the
Savior, followed by her sister = the
Twelve. and the rear brought up by
long line of bearded Jews, Priests, and
the head men of Bethany and Jerusalemi
came next ... b.. .t..,,,
The scene where Mary falls at the
Savior's feet and exclaims, in her wild
agony, Lord, if thou hadst been here
my brother had not died, was portrayed
in a peculiarly vivid manner. But the
climax, the shblimity Of his wonderful
descriptive elequence, was reserved for
his text .o rs s8q
"But see, he cried, shat countenance
whose light could illumine heaven, and
at whose smile all the holy angels would
rejoice, is overcast with the deep agon-
izing lines of human sorrow Oh, man
hard, obdurate mani Jesus, the Master,
the God of Heaven, the Prince Of Peace,
wept at the sight Of human woe. Thou
hast no tear to shed, even while contem-
plating thy eternal fate, thy ordained
death and consignment to eternal
despair"
The tone, the manner Of the preacher
was more eloquent than his simple words.
Strong men cried like children, and as
the preacher bowed his head and wept
for several moments, no sound was heard
but sobbing Effa BfE.E i
Recovering from his emotions, the
preacher continued his description of
the scene at the tomb, when, answering |
the divine summons, Lazarus came forth,
clad in the ghostly habiliments of the |
grave. He elevated his voice, and with |
a tone, the very ideal of shout of vic
tory, he exclaimed
"Oh Death, thou art subdued thy
sting is lost. The Prince of Life has
triumphed over the grave"
| have listened to many eloquent
preachers, but to none who approached,
him in that magnetic power that sways
IS one man the hearts Of all auditors.
During the whole services he never
alluded to the occurrences of the morn
ing, and at the close, he stalked away,
speaking to no ore, and seemed to care
for no one
Of his late career / have heard much,
but little Of which, however, with GER
lainiy.
He has since had charge of church
in Missouri, and, / believe, has presided
over an institution of learning. At all
lines, however, he has exhibited such
evidences Of insanity as
o leave no. doubt in my mird that |
nave not done amiss in calling him
,razy nreacher.