The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-09-05

A FIENDISH COMPOSITOR.-When we
were younger We used to contribute
sentimental poetry to d paper in the in
terror OF this State, and any n who
read it must have entertained a conYic-
ton that the soul OF the poet was har-
rOWed by the most awful storm of con-
ficting passions; that he was q misera-
BILE, unhappy victim of remorse, despair,
blighted affection, and agOnised regret.
to whom death would have been a hap
by relief. And yet, Immediately after
writing a poem of the most heart rend-
ing description, full of melancholy and
tears, we have been known to eat half
a pound Of ~sirlOin, six fried onions and
half a mince pie. The last poem we
ever wrote for that paper was entitled
" Musing at Sunset and tie first verse
began in this manner: ,
AS I sat beside the window, and gazed into
the west,
The daylight fell and vanished, md all nature
sank to rest.
This was at d time that the soul of
the poet was suffiused by a tenderness
for Miss Magruder. We knew Miss
Magruder would see the poem, and we
had WOrded it in sucha manner that we
were certain it would excste emotion in
the heart Of the fair Magruder. But it
failed to do so, probably for the reason
that when the paper came out, the two
lines had been transpOsed by some un-
scrupul0us fend Of a cOmpositor SO that
they read thus:
AS I sat beside the window and grabbed her by
the waist, -
The delight felt was vanished as the creature
drank my vest.
Then we went sOlmenly around and
killed that C~OmpOsitOr, and discontinued
our contributions to the paper. As for
Miss Magruder, she merely laughed
and all the other Magruders laughed,
and we then permanently turned our
attention to prose. Poetry is not safe
as long as type setting is performed by
human beings instead of machinery.
ECCLESIASTICAL BUMMERs.-Rev. DR.,
Curry recently applied the term "eccle-
slastical bummers" to a class Of men
which is thus described: They hang
around conferences, camp meetings,
Sunday schools and mission work, EN-
bracing every opportunity to talk and
to give their testimony, to the annoy
ance of the church generally: and, like
Jack in the box, popping out as sO0n as
the cover is lifted. At a late Sunday
school convention this class Of men
were referred to as Sunday school
killers men who 60 from school tC
school, and consume the time and pa
thence Of the teachers, simply to heal
themselves talk. This class of men are
the bane of religious work everywhere
Their faces are as familiar as mendi-
cants about the streets. Nothing car
prove o clearly that God is in the
Fulton street prayer meeting than thai
it has oUtlived this class. They attenC
every service, and are known as the
the ring. They are always on their fee
when they can get a chance. They
prevent strangers from taking a part by
springing to their feet at the first va,
cancy. These men utter the same pray,
81, say the same thing week out anG
week in, and make the audience posi-
lively shiyeF when they come to theil
feet. They have been counseled anC
warned, but bray them in a mortar
with a pestle7 and they will still talk
A daily prayer meeting is held every
afternoon at the rooms of the Young
Mems Christian Association. These
professional takers are on hand. Blu
the energetic young men who contro
that institution give them to under
stand that they cannot thu
time nor wear out the patience of th,
saints. They settle on q new churcI
with o peculiar gusto. The pastors
both through the press and in private
conference, are asking if there isanyd de
~liyeranee from this annoyance. "Wht
shall deliver u.s. they say, = from thi
calamity?"
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