American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1867-05-04

drawn there, like myself, by curiosity.
j soon arrived, and at once
opened his services by singing, with
IL voice / have never heard surpass-
ed, even among professional singers,
a selection from hymn book then
i'll use. After singing, he offered a
prayer. 1t was wonderful prayer,
not marked With any attempt at
rhetorical display, but full of fervor,
and breathing spirit of unfaltering
trust. At the conclusion of his
prayer he announced his text to be
the thirty fifth verse of the eleventh
chapter of John: Jesus wept."
The introduction consisted of de-
scription of the village of Bethany
and its adjacent country. lie
described, with ire power of descrip-
tion, the vineyards and the vine
clad cottages surrounding the town f;
t,it customs Of the nnOp'e aud paint
nh the scene ), re Lazarus, iaiilIfe
s.ck, Is attended by his devoted sis
tcrs. The wailings Of the bereaved
Jewish maidenS, when their brother
lay before them an inanimate corpse ,
was portrayed in the most vivid and
affecting manner, drawing tears from
many an eye. From this he passed
to the custom Of coincidence after the
death Of a jew, and pointed to the
life Of the long-bearded and grave
old Israalites. who came to visit and
offer coincidence to the grief stricken
sisters.
He paused and stood silent and
pointed for moment, as if to call
attention to some object in the dis
tance. All eyes were turned III the
direction Of his finger. "Thcre," he
cried, "do You see them? it is the
blessed Jesus, surrounded by the
Twelve, who are approaching over
you lIill.' And here commenced a
description Of each that seemed a
very dream Of poetry, it was so full
Of beauty and poetic imagery. One
by one the Twelve were described
until you could have recognized them
at a gance from his wonderful de
scription. lie, last of all, described
our Savior, and here his description
was brilliant beyond words, surpass-
ing in ClOqucncc anything to which
| have ever listened. He described
infinitely the meeting between Martha
and Jesus, and the whole scene at
the house, with a yiyidness that can
never be forgotten. The visit to the
tomb Mary leaning on the arm OF
the Savior followed by her sister
the Twelve, and the rear brought on
by IA long line, of bearded Jews, priests
and the head men of Bethany and
Jerusalem, came next.
The scene where Mary falls 1T Tho
SaYinr's feet, and eXclaimS, in hel
wild agony, "Lord, if thou had>
been here my brother had not died,
was portrayed in Il peculiarly vivid
manner. But the climax, the
sublimity of his wonderful descrip-
tive eloqucncc, was reserved for lis
text.
" But see, lie cried, -" that corn-
tenance whose light could i!lumine
heaven, and at whose smile all the
holy angels would rejoice, is over,
cast with the deep, agonizing lines
of human sorrow. Oh, man! hard,
obdurate man! 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 contemplating thy eternal
fate, thy ordained death and con
sionment to eternal despair"
The tone, the manner of the preach
cr was more eloquent than his simple
words. Strong men cried like child
ren, and as the preacher bowed his
head and wcpt for several moments,
no sound was heard but sobbiUg.
Recovering from his emotions, the
preacher continued his description
of the scene at the tomb, when an
swcIing the divine summons, Lazarus
came forth, clad in the ghostly habili-
mentS of the grave, he elevated his
voice, and with Il tone, the very
ideal of shout of victory, lie cN-
claimed:
"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 approach
ed him in that magnetic power that
sways as one man the hearts of al
auditors.
During the whole service he never
alluded to the occurrences of the
morning, and at he close, he stalked
away, speaking to no one, and seemed
to care fur Eo one.
Of his career have heard much,
but little of which, however, with
certainty.
lie has since had charge Of a
church in Missouri, and | believe, has
presided over an institution of learn
ing. At all times, however, exhibit.
ing such unmiStakable evidences OF
insanity as to leave no doubt in my
mind that | have not done amisS in
calling him a crazy preacher.
Il Western paper says: When
you see a girl so lazy she can't sweep
her own seven-by-nine chamber, and
then go a shindy and dance all night