Bozeman avant courier. [volume] (Bozeman, Mont.) 1872-1882, 1878-04-04
KNOCKING GRACE INTO A MAN.
A Good Story by Mr.. Beecher.

AT the last Plymouth Church prayer
meeting, Mr.. Beecher was speaking OF
what he termed the ''diyine spirit Of for
giveness," and defined it as the ''disposi,
ton to regard with pity and kihdlihess
those who attempt to wrong u.s." "Do
you mean,'' asked Mr.. Halliday, ''that when
we are abused, we are to quiet our aSsail-
ants by kindiness:" "Well, yes-with lin
itations," answered Mr.. Beecher, smiling
''but it's to be expected that person to
whom you are giving such directions 81
these has got some common sense Laugh
ter You must give general instructions
to one who is setting out on q dangerous
journey, and he must be guided by his
common sense in looking out tor the spec
ial dangers .'One other question: said
/ DR.. Smith. lis there no occasion for such
a thing as selfdelense? are we never to
strike back when struck:'' "Why, GER
tainly," was the prompt reply. ''A good
knocking down is the best means of grace
you could give some men. There are
some newspaper men over in New y Iork
who would be moved by 10 ether argr-
merit, ifyou should spank them well once
or twice 4 week, think it would be the
means of converting them before lQngs'
In Illustration of this point, Mr.. Beccher
told a story of his western experience.
which he appeared to enjoy fully as much
as his listeners. ''Old Ben Haven, one Of
those unseffish men who went out rs min
istere amCny The first settlers of the west.
once told me Of his experience with black
smith, who became very angry at him be-
cause he had induced the blacksmith's wife
to join the church. The burly fellow
Threatened that he would thrash the life
ont Of the minister the first chance he hid
Well, Ben Haven was singing as he was
riding along one morning through the
woods on one of those narrow corduroy
roads. which don't allow one to turn Off
on either side, when he met the blacksmith.
He saw there was no use trying to avoid 4
meeting. The blacksmith took his horse
by the bride and asked: Your name is
Haven. isn't it, Yes And you gotmy
wife into your church, Yes "Well.
stranger, you've got to come off that
horse. There's going to be a fight here,
end one of us is going to be whipped
''Ben tried to argue with him. but lie saw
twas 10 use; and so he said lie was sorry.
but ii he must he must. So he tied his
ho-~- ...~y ,sti.t est ;-.
times he was on top and the blacksmith
was under, and some times twas the other
way. Some times he got terribly pounded
and some times the other man. Good old
Ben said he never had such terrible time
in his life, and he was very sure nothing in
the world sustained him but the grace OF
God: Tlaugfrtei.] He kept thinking it
wouldn't do for q minister Of the gospel to
get whipped, [Laughter] and he thought
the sweetest sound he ever heard was when
the blacksmith cried enough Tut then
he only let him up upon co..diticn that
the next prayer meeting he held in the vii
lage the blacksmith s'.ould be there, and
go forward to the c.nxious seat for prayers.
And the blacks..nit kept his word, aitd he
afterward United with old Ben's church.
Nov" said Mr.. Beechei, cmphatically,
''he pounded the grace of God into that
man. [Laughtsr.] The infliction of pain
is not recessdtlly inconsistent with the
spirit of forgiveness. l don't think there
can he auy mistake about that