The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-09-10
THE DHNkARDS

In our issue of last Saturday we published
under the head of Religious Intelligence"
paragraph about the Missouri Dunkards to
which exception has been taken by member
of that sect, who sends us the following COM
munication, which will be found to contain
some int, resting information about a religious
body that is but little known to the general
public We would remind our readers and the
writer of the following communication that the
paragraph in question referred particularly to
the Dunkards of Missouri, and that it was in no
respect intended to reflect in any way upon the
sect or its peculiar observances either in that
State or elsewhere.-ED.
TO the Eattor Of The EUening Telegraph:-
Your attention is respectfully called to the
''reigious column" OF your issue of Saturday
the 81 lust Under the heading "Dunkards"
are several errors, of which, it is hoped, you
will publish a correction. How any writer
could ignOrdntly make SO many msstatements
in so short an article is hard TO conceive.
He says:-"1he Missouri Dunkards have Just
been holding their annual meeting" The Dunk
ards German Baptists, or, they designate
themselves, The Brethren are an undivided de-
nomip alton; that is, they have but one annual
meeting, which is a general conference, and is
always held on the first two or three days i'm
mediatelN following Whit Sunday.
He neHt asserts, They have no church build
Jugs OF their own, but preach in other churches
or in sheds or barns-in short, wherever they
can yet u chance" 1t is true their plain but
often commu dious meeting houses may not de-
serve to be called churches, yet such as they are
there are hundreds of them scattered over our
country rom New Jersey to California. If the
writer in question would take the trouble he
could find ''Dunkard" Westinghouse in this
CITY, on Crown street, below Cailowhill, and an
other AT Germantown. They Uery seldom
''preacn in other churches" but quite often in
the dwelling houses or barns of isolated mem
bers, and frequently under the shady foliage of
the grove or forest.
He says, They have no ordained preachers" ;"
All their ministers are ordained according to
what il supp osed to be the scriptural mode. 1t
is true they have no diplomat authority from
theological seminary, bat are chosen from
among the laity of the congregation needing
preacher by general and secret ballot without
nominations, "Electioneerng' is strictly pro-
hibited So that, If Divine guidance is sought
which is always recommended by the elders, its
exercise may not be prevented by human influ-
ence. Their preachers are farmers, mechanics
doctors, teachers, etc, and as they receive no
tOmpen atl@u they follow their secular occnpa-
tions for living.
Ibis wuler is correct in saying, 'The Dunk
ards baptiZe by immersion" but this does not
fully describe their mode. Ine candidate takes
the bneelng posture, and is thrice immersed,
face foremost.
He saNs urther-and but for this, very likely
no mott, e would have been taken of his article
''They halDtain as religious ceremonial feet
Washing the men washing the feet of the
women and the women of the men," have
without he 81 alton used the masculine pronoun
in reference to this writer, for no lady would
pen such a scandalous slander upon her sex as
is the above assertion.
If tn S writer would go into a Dunkard meet
ing-hOuse az the time of love-feast, where the
ordiL ance of feet-washing is practised, or upon
any other occasion, he would find the seats
free; but see scrupulous separation of the
sexes, the males occupying one side of the
house aud the females the other. When the
sisters wash one anothers feet they generally
occupy the seats at the extremity of their side
of the building. The spectators of their own
sex being seated between them and the men
exclude, in great measure, from the observa,
ton of the lat er; the performance of the ordi
nance hl tue former DUNKARD.