West Virginia freeman. (Parkersburg, W. Va.) 1881-1886, 1881-11-16
Temperance in the West Virginia
Baptist General Association.

cry. lUS MISSION Is W Tree G16lll.
Second-We need the FIREMAN
to free the people from the terrors
of the political lash. 1t comes be-
tween the lash and the victim, and
bids the man go free and be his
own master.
Third-We need the FREEMAN
to support Prohibition. If we would
sustain the present prohibition
movement, we must sustain that
which supports the movement. We
have nearly one hundred newspa-
pers in the State, and but very
few of them can be relied on to sup
port prohibition, in an emergency.
We can't trust paper that is afraid
to define its position. When they
see our cause succeeding beyond
any doubt, then scores of them will
be on our side, and will boldly cry
out with the old lady whose hus-
band killed the bear, "Ain't we
brave?" We won't want their
help then. We want the bravery
now. We want and must have an
organ through which to speak, that
isn't afraid to speak. This we lave
in the FREEMAN. 1t gives no un-
certain sounds not afraid to say
Just what it means. We must sus-
tain it. How shall we do this? BY
resolutions? Yes; and by more
"a tangible tokens Of our interest and
goodwill. Let everyone, as oppor-
tunity offers, promptly subscribe.
The editor is here now to receive
your substantial tokens.
This closed the ten minute
speeches, but the programme of the
evening as handed the President,
continued with fve-minute talks,
and in response to the first name
called, Rev. B. Cade, Of Putnam
county, promptly took the platform
and like the springing of an orator
ical mine charged with climaxes,
exploded into
THE SPEECH OF THE EVENING.
Indeed, the spontaneous outburst
was simply matchless, irresistible,
unsurpassable, unmockable, unap-
proachable, uo-hold-a-candle-to-able.
Bursting like a rocket in the
midst of an audience already warm
ed up into an eager glow of heart
and-soul enjoyment, the quick
master Of the moment, with sue
cessive flourish of fact, fun and fan.
cy, piled up before them a rhetori-
cal pyramid Of such enhancing
beauty, harmony and strength, a
carried every breathless watcher
right along up with the builder;
and when he had thus borne the
audience aloft to nights unsafe for
mortals and reared his matchless
pyramid to the very top-most eli
max of eloquence, with one magic
flourish of exquisite sarcasm, the
master crowned his work with
THE JOKE OF THE AGES,
and left his suspended audience,
contorted and convulsed, to explode
into ethereal space, and convolute
and gyrate back to cold earth as
best they could.
1t were as supremely futile to at
tempt reproduction Of Mr.. Cade's
speech as it would have been for
the hearers to have tried to keep
their ribs in place.
We can only say now that the
triumph of the occasion was as
sured in the Speakers first sentence,
when he abruptly announced that
in the five minutes allotted him, he
would ''relate a "reminiscences, state
a fact, establish a thesis and tell a
joke"
Well try totell our readers what
these were next week, but can't un-
dertake the task now so near the
reality
Mr.. Cade was followed by Prof.
A. L. Purinton, he by Rev, J. w.
. Carter and F. B. Carroll, insparting
shots, after which, "Stand, Firmly
Stand" was sung by the entire
audience, and so closed the most
perfectly arranged, happily carried
out, and i'll every way most success
full temperance meeting ever held
in Parkersburg.
SAD Academia Mr.. Lester, of
Wyoming county, was carelessly
Lo1dl;po his pl1n q few 1avS AGO