The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1880-07-29
Camp Meetings.

Springfield DEMocRAT:f There are two
seasons of the year, during (which the
religious world" becomes actively alive
to the importance of the souls salvation.
One of these is when the wintry blasts
are bowling wildly over the frozen land
scape, and it sat the riskefofli life and
limb that one ventures into the CONCEAL
ed atmosphere or upon the slippery pave
ments. This is the revival season,
when the meetings are carried on night
ly-when large excited congregations are
present, and all the sermons tend in an
opposite direction from that lately preach
ed by Henry Ward Beecher, which isex-
e~rcising the faith of the Congregational
lists to the uttermost. When the minis
tiers give their listeners warnings which
have no uncertain sound, but, like those
of Eggleston's backwoods preacher de-
clare that they are s"fhair hung and breeze
shaken, over the bottomless pitt" The
converts come in by the dozens, and the
scores, and the church-books are filed
up with long lists of a wonderfully in
creasing membership. But the weather
~moderates, and the extra services cease,
and the church settles back into its nor
NAL condition quite at variance with the
doctrine of st. James-afaith without
works." The converts fall of, like spill
lars" some of them, become a little
shaky, and as the year advances with its
summer heats, the life of the religious
world' reaches a low ebb. Its pulse is
faint and uncertain, IA fan,and a sofa
pillow supply the place of the Sabbath
morning service, to the average church
member and the clergyman breaches to
a wilderness of empty seats.
This is a bad situation for the "relig-
ious werld2 in general, but; just atthis
juncture, when to all human appearanc-
es the church, like an opiumseater is
tranced in sluggish slumber, the camp
meeting a arrives, and like the
prospective sound Of GabrieFs trumpet,
which. it has beenprophesieds viii wake
the dead, itproduces a magical change
in the drowsy inert cendition Of all Chris
tendon. Mountains are but mole-hills,
easily overcome.
Steady-going housekeepers who can
never at any other easonpaftffom their
own Lares and Psnates or go outside the
shadow of their vine and fg-tree, can
leave everything "inthe sudsY, to answer
this imperative call to- acome up to the
help of the Lord against the mighty"
Women, who under other circumstances
can't sleep out OF their own beds, and
are fnical IN the extreme in.regard to all
the comforts and luxuries of life, leave
their homes in the midst of hu%it-canning
and a thousand and n summer caresto
go and sleep under the canvas tents or in
two roomed cottages, three in a bed and
six in the middle. Oh, the frying aad
stewing and the boiling one set of mar
tyrs-must endure, in order that another
set may go through with. the prescribed
routine of attending upon every service,
from FIVE in the morning till ten atnight,
and the ministry be RECALLED on their fay-
orite dish of yellow-legged chickens.
And what a wide field for the young peo-
pleis furnished by two weeks of camp
meeting. The girls can wear all their
different suits-change from bangs to
beau-catchers, and .beau-catchers to
bangs. They a make any quantity Of
feeting conquests, in their promenades
round the square which encloses the
speakers stand, or kneeling demurefy
at prayer in the great tabernacle" al
five O'Clock in the morning" Andthe
young man who hires "swello teams tc
drive out to the forests primeyal, where
these devotional meetings are in pro
gress, finds the wild weird, exciting mu.
sic, incident to these occasions, delight
fully convenient as a cover to the tender
bon mots he is exchanging with the be
witehing sinner close at hand. But the
camp meeting, likewise, runs its course
"sanctifying'' some, 'justifying'' others
and leaving still others 'Fout of the fold
And, by and by, the "added grace anc
renewed. spiritual life" it afforded, is
thing of the past, gone by and forgotten
Nevertheless all things haye5their mis-
sion, and as a place to study human ma
ture and learn much of'the idiosyncrasie
of people, there is nothing equal=toth b
camp meeting.
HEAR YE! "e'