The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1877-10-05
A nOMELY NE8RO PULPIT. IN THE
.'.s -, PINES OENEW JERSEY. a. 81
New York SUM-

CNew York SUM- ..ts.I. Ca
il News Of the success Of the negro
camp meeting at Red Bank, where as
many as fifty dollars were collected In
the deacons' baskets in one night,
spread far and wide, and although cold
weather had already been felt, the ne
groes of Macedonia experienced t'a calp'
to hold n meeting, too. Macedonia is
not shown on any map, nor do the fin
ger boards that mark every road Cross
ing in Monmouth. county include it in
the many little hamiets they point to.
Yet Macedonia is sixty years old, is
composed Of fifty buildings, and Is lar
ger than its neighbors, Coburg, Norris
vile, Edinburgh, and Sandy Moo.
Like those villages, it is away from
railroads and turnpfkes, and being in
that great, dense forest, called ssThe
Pines,'' that extends for fifty miles,
with breadth OF twenty miles in pla-
ces, is extremely difficult to find.. 1t
has only one white man in It, u store
keeper named Bennett. The Macedo-
mans are colored people, and many Of
them were at one time slaves in the
South. BY energy and industry they
have cleared the pine trees Oft large
tracts of productive land, and have
made, as they delight in saying, "de-
wilderness to blothom like dc rothe."
Peter Rock, the most extensive land
owner, cultivates 100 acres, and his
father tills forty acres. Macedonia has
schOolhouse and teacher, and two
Methodist churches. -' .ai
"Wby two churches ?" a pions negro
was asked.
"Vell, sir" said he, ave has two
churches, RELY, but we only thpeak
of one. That one it'll the Zion. Both
churches hath the thame dithsypline,
but de Bethel don't git dc people dat
de Zion do. 1t haint got der krect
gubbermcnt. Zion Is managed by de
truthtees, but Bethel it'll in charge OF
de elder and de deacons, and truthtees
is merely servants to his call" -" ."'.
In copse the people of Zion church
have erected a pulpit which looks like
II large Punch and Judy box, and a
hundred pine board benches, and in
the singers pew-separated from the
other seats by a rail Of logs big and
strong enough for the cago of an Gle
phant-are many planned and painted
forms. Tin kerosene amps hang from
the pine trees others are arranged like
fOotiights on the pulpit, and like rude
candelabra around the singers pew.
Dominic Thomas Hinton, the young
resident pastor over Zion, leads in mat
Ntlu ItES ~
white-h haired deacon named Wilson to
assist him. To look after the finances
Dominic Evans has been employed, or
probably has preferred his services, for
he is, beyond all doubt, the champion
beggar. He has the most seductive,
artistic methods for max ing the white
folks pay well for their entertainment.
Dominie Wilson, the singing preacher,
attends ON Sunday only. In the day
time at Macedonia the camp ground is
somewhat dark, for only n few bars of
yellow sunshine sift through the forest
leaves. No meetings are held, and
only wagons bringing pies, cigars, pea
nuts and soda water visit the grounds
The negroes sprawl on the pulpit, and
sleep on the pews, or, if inclined to
talk, discuss the new points the domi-
ME made in his last sermon, rarely
managing to end the debate except in
anger and with oaths. ..'..- -.
But at night tho grounds present a
gay appearance. The waving flames
of the oil lamps call up constant shad-
ows among the trees, or at the taber-
nacle shed light enough to bring the
pulpit, the crowded singers box, aud
the great compact gathering of W0r-
shippers into bold prominence, while
along the two sides of the camp the
gayly lighted tents, each one the center
Of throng Of ,nen and women, stand
in line like the bazaars Of busy ORR
entail street at night. To the left the
moonlight falls in a rich Hood upon a.
clearing in which are scores of restless
horses and glossy wagons, whose
shining tops CLINT back the cold, clear
light. = 5.5
"Oh, Lord, an aged brother is pray
ing, ayou has mighty big ears fer to
hear, mighty big eyes fer to see, mighty
DIX hans fer to do, and thou are lnbly
and sweet, and we'll disposed to them
what tnos you. Dat is why we ask
You fer to back us agin the hosts of sin
You kin take de command like You
dld over de Canyites, de Jebusites and
de Maliekites---and wild you.a leadio'
and orderfn' we kin dribe de debhil
to his den." "l}i''''S'-' 9
Cries OF sDas So" ESQ you kim