The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1880-09-18

too busy. Dennis Kearney's wife told
him before he left California that if
he dared to meddle with such deli
cate subject she'd break his head
with skellet." And now comes the
Rev. Anne Oliver into court "a wit
ness against st. Paul. Miss Oliver,
the honored pastor of the Willoughby
Avenue Church, on a salary Of $12 a
week, disrenses the Bread of Life to
a limited congregation Of the Metho-
dist Episcopal faith. On Willoughby
Avenue was a neat little church,
which had been worsiipped. in by
several different congregations, but
somehow or other, they all seemed to
lack that spiritual grace which must
be the corner stone to all such insti-
tutions. One pastor filled the pulpit
most accepatbly, but lie got a call
from another congregation with an
advance of salary of $275. The next
was not sufficiently orthodox, and his
frequent allusions to Darwin, Her
be1t, Spencer and Huxley, made it
evident to the edeacons and the board
of trustees that the devil was more
potent with him than Wesley, and
that the recalcitrant clergyman was
not the proper person to " hold the
fort" When the church had run
down SO that at no very distant per-
epective it promised to become the
abode of the bat aud the owl, there
appeared u pretty evangelist from
Boston, with regular orthodox GER
tificate in her pocket, allowing her to
preach. One old trustee who had
buried three wives, and was hunting
up the fourth, didn't like to hear wo-
mon talk in meeting, and he hurled
at the unfortunate woman a whole
chapter Of St. Paul. Another had &C.
rious doubts about the propriety Of
female preaching, and thought thai
the proper place for woman was al
home, mending her husbands stock
ings and taking care of the babies
But Miss Oliver didn't have any bus.
band and she didn't have any babies
While the dispute waxed warm, tl't
lambs were perishing for Gospel food
and dying Of drouth in eight Of the
living spring that never dries up
The case looked hopeless, nobody
wanted her, and the church was going
to ruin. An ordinary evangelist would
have journeyed on towards Jericho
Corinth or any other place, but Mis-
Oliver was no ordinary evangelist
She learned that there was mortgag,
on the church of several Thousand
dollars, held by one of the local saw
ings banks, which nobody seemed il
clined to pay, so she boldly deter
mined to have the mortgage forecloset
and buy the church herself. He
capital amounted to So 25, but she hat
faith that" would remove mountains,
and that more than counterbalancet
her bank account. The church wa
bought, and Miss Oliver installed, bu
it was suddenly discovered that thu
trustee who was SO friendly to St
Paul, had lien on the organ and TIN
seats, so invoking the law to his aid
one Saturday afternoon he gutted tn
church as completely as though it ba'
been raided by the hordes of Zsnghe
Khan or Dennis Kearney. Dry good
boxes and an accordeon were impro
vised for the next days worship, AM
the services went on as usual. Con
ference was applied to, but they de
MED her right to preach still, tha
didu't make bit of difference to Mis-
Oliver. AS an apostle she had tn
highest regard for St. Paul, bu, as ,
man she had thorough contempt fo
any one who thought men should d.
all the talking. She respected Con
ference as Conference but for til,
ma rrow minded bigots WHO made nj
that body, who had never read tbei
bibles in the light Of the new dispen
sation, and who denied q free Ameri
can woman her natural and inalienabl
right. she had nothing but the mos
unmitigated scorn; so she planted
her feet upon the Rock Of Ages, an.
defied the devil, the Conference an.
every other fellow. She has now beel
laboring over a year, and has he
church in first-cl condition, a mod
ell of it's kind. with no presiding eide
to worry her, no bishop to threate,
her with removal. no trustees to bull
doze her, and better than all, no go
ing out of office at the end of thre
years, to seek new home and new
charge. Last week her organist sne'
her for his salary, but she put in encl
valid defence, that the complainan n
was instantly kicked ont Of court
Firstly, abe had never engaged him
Secondly. ehe did not owe him an,
thing; Thirdly, ehe wouldn't pay it
and Fourthly, she could not if sh
would. The conrt considered this
thoroughly valid defence, and as
said before. the plaintiff was non
suited, and Miss Oliver now enjoys