The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1877-04-12
A New York Letter 10 Delight the
DANES and Damseis OF Au.tip.
What n Woman Sec. ana
The Great Preachers OF S:othSn,
NEw YoRk. April : 49,

James and Damsels Of Austin-
} " nat Woman Sees aud He.r,-
! Ane Great Preachers or Gotham.
4 New York, April ., 1877.
w We're awakened yesterday Morn
Ing by the chimes OF ST. Thomas ring.
ing out the Easter carols. The street
were filled with bright faces on thei
way to the sunrise service. / went I,
st. ThomaS's Church where the beaut,
and fashion of Fifth Avenue ''most d,
congregate. 1t was swaying, surg
ing sea of humanity. Not one-half tn,
visitors being able to secure seats. the
suIged back and forth throughout tn,
entire service, and behaved as if they
had mistaken the place and imagined
themselves in circus tent. The or
gsnist is the famous G. w. Warren. He
plays divlneiy. l have never IN my
hfe heard such SOULFUL music from sn
organ. The choral anthem, "Ring out
Glad Easter Bells" music by Warreu)
AMI the occasional hymn, "Christ
the Lord is risen to-day" were splen-
dldly rendered; and the offertory duo,
] "Fillj the Font with Roses (also by
Narren) made one dream that tie veil
was lifted and songs of gladness from
the other side,n were floating to us
on the soft Easter winds. The crowd
was so great that could not examine
the floral decorations, and could only
catch an occasional CLEAN of bloom
and beauty from the chancel.
AT 4 p. NJ went to vespers at st.
Bartholomew, corner Madison Avenue
aud Forty-fourth street. 1t is also a
magnificent building; too ornate and
too highly colored to suit my taste--I
love cool gray and soft shadow in a
church, with no color, save in the
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS., st. Bartholo-
news is vastly expensive and very
| splendid in the modern style. The
aTRaGlSt cf6cigs4a9he cofHilp osA"pr odr
inest church music. / did not learn
the names of the choir, but for com
pass of voice have never heard such
quartettc. In chorus, when the or
ganist brought out the full power of
that immense organ, those four voices
SCARED above its thunder and swelled
and reverberated in great pillows of
harmony until it seemed impossible
that there, could haye been less than
fifty. have listened to the Gloria in
Excelsis since my infancy, but as the
pleading tones of the supplication
walled through the arches, the mighty
swell Of, the ascription rose heayenward
and the solemn amens gradually soft
ened until they died away upon the
air. l listened ENHANCED, and at last
sat down feeling that had never heard
the Gloria sung before--that surely
thus it must be chanted before the
great white throne. The chanctl
was q marvel of loneliness. Hur-
dTeds of thousands are annual
ly expended in this city upon
Easter flowers. Crosses, six to eight
feet high, made of great, creamy Gala
lilies, white camellias, white carna-
tions, and the rarest roses; at their
base, banks Of the loveliest flowers,
white ana gold, roses and lilies by
thousands, great banks of violets,
az4lias, heliotfopes, bridal wreath-all
lovely flowers that the city conservs-
tories can furnish, arranged in wreaths,
crosses, crowns, anchors, all manner of
beautiful and appropriate symbols,
made the chancel truly "a thing of
beauty and joy foreyer"iin the mem
DRY of beholders. The sermon, am
sorry to add, was string of plati-
tudes; illogical, unrcasoniDg, a series
of deductions without premises, and
assertions without proofs. ..s
At s M. went to the Church OF
the Divine Paternity corner of Fifth
Avenue and Forty-iltth street. Its
pastor is the celebrated DR.. Z. Ii.
Chaplin, one of the moot eloquent men
on the continent. There, too, the al
tar was a bewildering maze Of bloom
and fragrance. The flowers were Fer
haps somewhat less expensive than at
old Trinity ard st. Bartholomew,
but thought their arr angement more
artistic. In front of the altar were
three columns made of flowers, sacred
to the memory of loved ones who had
"fallen asleeph since leHt Easter. They
were about five feet high, and embed
ded in banks of ivy, moses, ferns and
blossoms. The columns were formed
of ivy, smilax, white III es, roses and
camellias, and crossed about midway
10y tablets. made of white carnations,
with the inscriptions formed of purple
violets. At the back of the pulpit
was a bank of ferns, moses and
lovely flowers, from the midst of which
arose a cross eight feet high, of ivy
and Gala lilies. Great shrubs of
pink and white azalias, perfect clouds
of rose and snow, and hun
dreds of tall white lilies, filed
the pulpit and cbancel, and the
ministers were completely embow
cred in bloom. The opening anthem
was glouous; the sweet old hymn,
Christ the Lord is risen today" was
sung by the whole congregation. (num-
beung at least two, thousand), with q
iubilant resonance that brought glad
tears; the Lords Prayer was chanted
as j have never heard it anywhere save
in DIR. Chapin's church, and the ser-
mon was grand, q won1rous contrast
to the one preceding it. H
During the past winter, have taken
my theology variegated; and found, to
my surprise, that if l wanted to see
costly churches and beautiful decora-
tons, to hear glorious music, and an
imposing and symbolic ritual, must
go to a wealthy and fashionable EpIs.
copal church and, having heard the
service, if l did not want to bc
brought down to earth (snd very com.
mon earth, too,) with q thad, must
leave before the sermon. II, on the
other hand, ! chanoed to hunger for q
little brain food; il l wanted to ''be
lifted up and strengthened, !" by the vi
tai force of genius irradiating warmly
svmpathelic human heart. / must seek
, all this under the shadow Of some
broad. shelving. liberal wing. have
never heard such lice preaching as DR.
: Cbapin's; never felt SO strong to beal
= LIES burdens, SO earnest to work ou
its aims never so purely felt, while
listening to any other man-"And he
breathed into his nostrils the breath o.
! life, and man became @ living SOal.
So, also. from the pulpits of DIR. Bel
lows UnitariaD), or Rev. Chauncey
Giles (Swedenborgian), one will al
ways hear original ideas, strong, logica
reasoning, often eloquence, and always
the warmest, most earnest human sym
pathy. My frequent disappointment
in the Episcopal clergy annoyed and
perplexed me. Lately / accidentally
stumbled upon the cause. went one
Sunday to q very wealthy and fashion
able church; / knew its rector was 9
celebrity; and in the Innocence and
simplicity of my heart" supposed hii
brain TO be the motive power that haG
built up bis reputation. The church
Was splendid. the music glorious, the
congregation - Solomon, in all hi