The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-10-01
A Negro Revival Meeting.


A shiny black preacher, glossy as vanished
baaver, gave US characteristic exhibition.
Beginning his prayer in low and reversntial
voice he addressed the Deity as Thou and
"You," indlscriminately. Soon his words were
uttered as kind of wailing chant, with q
prolonged sound in higher key on emphatic
words and syllables. The peculiar intonation.
had strange influence, especially when the
congregation would catch the key from the
plaintive sounds, and unite with the preacher
in pteous moan, between words gliding down
from the dominant note to the minor third be-
low, and dying through diminuendoes into
sobs and sighs Imagine the effect of such
sentences as the following, which we copied
down as they fell from his lips, the words and
parts of words hyphened indicating the weird
walling of the prayer:
80, thou blessed Jesus, who has met wild dy
c.hri-l-n so many times befo', come dis way
JUS one time mo-. Just one time mo Pull
away de cartains of dy majesty an so.' back
de depths ob dy gre a-i glory an come down
dis way JUS On time mo-. You know de poor
penitens is trembl;n in dare sins, like de leaves
a-tremblIn' in de sto'm. You know how
dey's a-cryin' an aweepin' in de dark mid
night OF dare gloom. You KIN w.s de moon
turn into blackness an de stahs all b,owin'
put in de breH of de tem'pus' sweepin' roun'
uC ohy w olH VI tuOu R-T-e-d-t llgOb OF Inc
worf, po' in de floods of de mornin' upon dare
trouble souls. You see de baeksidah trippin
and Stumblin on his way to hell. o, Mas
t-a b, come one time mo-; put on dy garments
and come a-trampin' down de clouds of dy
majesty, an stan one time mo- upon de wave,
as you don gon an stan on oil Galilee long
time ago; come an put dat han where the nail
was driv' and bleedin' and a-hurtn' sore-o-h
come an put dat han on de backslider's shoul-
dab now, and stop that man dis light. Did'n
unn,6 oau do abO
promise to wipe away his drippin teahs? You
heabs de moun-ah's cry, you sees his drippn'
teahs. o turn roun' lions wheel Just once
mo- and open little widah de heavens do an
let down de gloTyl When de poor mounah call
to-night--when he comes creepin' an veepin
to the allah, save. save, OH m-m-m-m-3 Ia
wa'ling chant by ally save by the blood of de
Lamb (The people responded, "S-a We by the
bloody Turn de wicked clar roun Tell him
whar to go wild his trouble min; show him
what to do wild his pore broken heart Com
| fort de weepin Rachels; let de weary Johns
lean on dy breas'; hush de stormy seas OBJ
sfn; block a. de de road to hell; save. oh
s-a ave by de blood of De Lamb. When you
heahs de wailin' Marys, tell him dare dead
brudders shall come out'n de grave ans live
tell de pore chi'n dare sins is all forgiven; tell
de angels to tune up de barps an de irum-
pets of glory; fro wide open de mansions of
de New Jerusalem for. de jubilee ever de one
sinner who turns TO de Lord to night"
"A prolonged and chanting intonation OF the
words we have spaced is indescrbable The
effect was at times thrilling. Some parts of an
exhortation to which we listened, however,
while less eloquent, were certainly very prac-
tical The preacher struck nails square on the
head as he hammered away. For instance: :
Now, bredren and sisters, we wants monn-
abs heah tonight No foolin'. Ell you can't
moulin for you sins, don't come foOlin' roun
dis altab. i knows ye. You tryin' mighty
hatd to be conver ted 'thout bein' hurt. The
LORD 'spises mockery. Sometimes you sinnahs
comes fou'rd an holds your head too high
comm. You come foah you's ready. You start
TOO soon. You don't repent; you's no mouDah.
You're foolin' wild de Lord. You come strut
tim up to de altah you hops down down on
your knees, and you peeps fru you fngahs, dis
way, an you cocks up you eahs to see who is
for peniten's. Yoo's no mounahs. Eff you
comes here to fool You bettah stay away Bet
tab go to bell from the pew a-sleepin' or from
the your cabin a-swearin' dan from de mounah's
away from he e'eh; don't bodder u.s. Do yor
want us to make ouhself hoarse an weah out
ouah lungs a-prayin' for you, when you knows
you's only foolin' wild the Lord? 1 tell J on to
be mighty cahful.
Iwant to see you comm so buhdened by
de weight of YOU sins dat you can't hold up
you heads. Iwant to see you so heart-broke'
dat you knees knock togedder when you walk.
You mus be low-mDded. De Bible lays great
stress on the lOu. % " Yop's got to get loy down
in de vollem of de book it is writ Now, min
dat and be low." Then, addressing the mem-
5ers of tue chuich more particularly, be said:
'Berderen in de Lord, you mus be arnest pray
in fob desc pore sinnahs. You mus wake up.
In dis spring time of yeah, when the leaves is
comm, an de flowahs is a twinklin' an a.
bloomin', what does de leaves an de fowahs
say? Dey says, Get up" ("Amenl dars So
from an older brother in the corner) 'It is
mohnin', de day is breakin'. Get up Wake
mr. in ha p,ohnin' (NA pap0 oEo
Brudder Clinton" from the corner.)
TOO many OBJ you 'fessahs of 'ligion has
been sleepin' on de wheels OBJ Time. Get up
an put youah shouldah to de wheels. Den
when you kneel roun' dis altah to comfoht de
mounahs, don't holler." ("Amen, halleuyahp'
yelled sister from the women's sde.) Every
time you holler de debble he puts another
thought in you heart. You'd bettah whispah
at the Lord dan to boiler at de debble. Talk
law. Let de mounahs pray for themselves
You bodder dem wild you hollerin', Git down
lon side dem, an 'struct dem when dey ak,
but don't waste breff over any who's peepin'
listenin' for nice talk. Don't tell the mounah
to watch for visions an wait for miricles JUS
show dem how to res on de wohd and resk de
promises.
The singing, interspersed through the other
exercises was unlike anything we had ever
heard. The Tennesseans and the jubilee sing
ers who travel through the country give but
approximations Of the original, No select
1000 unrestrained singers, when their full souls
sweep along in the current of the song. The
one is for entertainment the other is worship.
The one is necessarily somewhat amusing, the
other Is free as the wind, and full tided as the
sea. Led by single voice for line or two
until the hymn and time are ascertainsd, the
immense congregation Joined in the chorus
A circle of men and women standing touching
close round the prone mourners at the altar,
the words of song become the expression of o
faith stropg enough to remove mountains.
ir pulsing rhythm with the music the whole
body OF singers sways to and fro, as il the
tune coursed along the veins and played upon
every nerve.
Here and there we observed countenance
so lighted up, so radiant and the soul singing
out through every feature so gloriously. that
the exercises seemed an inspiration. A bright
yellow boy about IA was converted near where
we stood, and more beautiful face we never
saw. His teacher, young lady Of his own
complexion, sang like an angel over him, her
tears testifying to her faith and Joy, and her
voice climbing in echoes to the shining high
way TO the throne. She seemed to stand in the
very presence of God while she sang her thanks
giving for the spiritual emancipation OF that
boy. No one, not in communion with the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost could
wear such a happy countenance or express such
exultant praise. The Psalmist OF oid never
offered more acceptable service in the Hebrew
tongue. nor touched sweeter melody from his
royal harp, than did these Mississippi negroes
when they poured forth their JOY in such SIM
pie lines as:-
"Oh, won't we have happy time,
Eatin' of the honey and dinkin' of the wine."
"a in a soft rpfran