The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1880-07-23
An Account OF Some OF Peunsylvania's
Queer Sects.

An Account OF Some OF PeunSylvan1a's
Queer Sects.
The River Brethren of Pennsylvania
closely resemble the old Dunkards, the
Amish and the Seventh Day Baptists.
These plain and simple folks are scat
tered all over Eastern Pennsylvania.
They recently held their annual love
feast in Lebanon County, near Hum
melstown. They had an OK roast, pub
Lie feet washing, praise meeting. and
a general reunion. About six hundred
persons were present.
To the stranger these various Penn
sylvania German sects all look alike,
but upon close inquiry their beliefs,
forms of worship, habits and customs
are found to be different. One sect
baptizes by plunging the convert three
times into the water forward; another
sect plunges its converts into the water
backward. One uses no buttons on
garments; another uses buttons. The
no-button people use hooks and eyes
only. The dress of one of these farm
ers is usually very broad-brimmed
black wool hat, stiff and strong; dark
brown cutaway coat, with q small collar
and no lapels; hooks and eyes in a row
down in front; dark pantaloons. cut
straight up and down (no spring bot
toms). His hair is always worn very
long, and cut off straight, like a brush.
Generally they are dark-haired and
dark-eyed. Their style of dress has
not changed in a hundred years, and
their tailOrs have used nothing but the
regulation patterns since their ances-
tors first crossed the sea. The young
men follow closely in the paths of their
fathers, and the makeup of sixteen
year-old boy is generally the same as his
fifty-year-old sire.
The women wear the plainest of gar
ments; coarse brown or dark gray
frocks with very narrow skirts; dark
silk handkerchiefs over their shoulders;
black silk and pasteboard bonnets,
stiffiy made on the scoop-shovel pat
tern; a pair of rough calfskin shoes.
Thus attired they are ready for meet
ing, the market, or marriage, as the
case may be. The seventeen-year-o
girl dresses like her mother and grand
mother, only the child sometimes wears
q silk kerchief of color brighter than
that worn by her mother. To see their
pretty black eyes it is necessary to get
3 look at them from the front.
The assemblageat the love feast was
made up of just this class of people.
Some of them came twenty miles, and
their conveyances covered several acres.
These farmers generally own first-class
horses, and they take pride in driving
to the feast in their very best turnouts. |
An ample stock of feed is brought with
them, and the horses are tied along the
fences. Four ministers or speakers
were present. The feet-washing was at
night. These services take place once
a year before harvest, and are held to
give praise to the Lord for His good
ness in sending them abundant crops.
The ceremony of washing feet is usual
ly private. The men grid themselves
with towels and, with a basin in hand,
wash the feet of their brothers, as a
lesson in humility. The women wash
each others feet in the same manner.
The baptisms are public. Then follows
a general rejoicing, and a roasted OK is
eaten.
"You are welcome" said broad
brim to his city visitors. You are
welcome to partake of what we have.
All strangers are welcome"
In the conversation that followed, the
old gentleman said: ave very rarely
engage in law suits; never among our
selves. We settle our own grievances
between us, stick together, intermar-
~, keep honest. and that's about the
way we get along. If you want to find
the Omish people you must 90 down
into the Conestoga Valley in Lancaster
County. The Dunkards live over in
Berks and Lancaster Counties, the
Seventh Day Baptists about Ephrata,
which is sometimes called Dunkard-
town; the Moravians are over in Beth
lehem, and also in Litiz, Lancaster
County. We are all pretty much cut
over the same cloth, but there are many |
writer's who get us mixed up in their |
descriptions. Yesterday attended the
funeral of very old Moravian over in
Bethlehem. His name was Bickel, aud |
he was nearly eighty years of age. For
fifty years he was member of the |
trombone quartet of the church. Their |
trombone players, every Easter morn
ing before daylight, go about the vii !
lage playing suitable anthems. In their
are no monuments, fancy |
ratings or fences. They are all buried
in rows, rich and poor alike, men with
men. and women with women. A small
Hat piece Of marble is placed on each
grave. The graves are numbered. and