Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1881-11-05
THE GEORGIA PREACHER.
His Style, ana Some of the Hindrances
to One Of His Sermons.

10 Ouc OI HIS SeFhuOhs.
A lady correspondent of the mdepen-
dent gives sketch of sermon she
heard in Georgia nearly half a century
ago, from which we give an extract:
The preacher was apparently about
fifty years of age, large, muscular and
well-prOpOrtiOned On entering the
pulpit he took off his coat and hung it
on nail behind him; then opened his
collar and wristbands, and wiped the
perspiratiOn from his neck and hands
He was clad in striped cotton hOmespun
and his shirt was of the same material.
He had travelled several miles that
morning, and seemed almost overcome
by heat. But the brethren sung a
couple of hymns while he was tanning
and cooling off, and when he arose he
looked comfortable and goOd-natured.
He had preached there once or twice
before, but to most of the audience he
was stranger. Hence, he thought it
necessary to announce himself, which
he did as "Old Club Ak Davis, from
Scriven county, Half-hard and Half
soft-shell Baptist" o
II have given myself that name," said
he, because L believe the Lord elected
me from all eternity, to 60 ahead in the
blaze the way for other men to follow.
After the thickest Of it is cut away, a
good warm Methodist brother will come
along and take my trail, and make
things little smoother and good deal
nOiser. And after all the underbrush is
cleared out, and the owls and wolves
are skeered back, and rattlesnakes is
killed Off, Presbyterian brother, in
black brOadcloth and white cravat, will
come along and cry for decency and or.
der. And they'll both do good in their
spere. don't despise larnt man even
when he don't dress and think as / do.
You couldn't pay me enough to wear
brOadcloth, summer nor winter, and you
couldn't pay Presbyterian enough to
go without it in dog days.
God didn't make us all alike, my
brethren, but every man has his own
spere. When God has place to fill He
makes man and puts him in it. When
He wanted Gen. Jackson He made him
and set him to fightin' Injuns and the
English; when He wanted George Whit
field He made him to blow the Gospel
trumpet as no man ever bowed it, and
when He wanted Old Club-ax Davis He
made him and set him TO grubbin' in
the backwoOds.
"But my shell isn't so hard but I can
see good points in everybody; and as for
the Presbyterians they are a long way
ahead of us Baptists and MethOdists in
some things. They raise their children
better than any people on the face of
the earth. Only few days ago Meth
Odist class-leader said to me: Brother
Club Ak. I was born Methodist, / was
raised Methodist, and by the grace of
God hope to die Methodist; but, thank
God, I've got a Presbyterian wife to raise
nv children And believe my breth-
rem, if the Lord should open the way for
me to marry again, I'd try my best to
find Presbyterian woman, and run my
chances of breakin' her into the saving
doctrines of feet-washin' and immersion
afterwards"
Just at this point he was interrupted
by two spotted hounds that had been
continually running up and down the
pulpit stairs. One OF them jumped up
on the seat and began to gnaw his coat
tail, in which was something he had
brought along for lunch. He turned
slowly around and took him by the ears
and tail and threw him out of the win
dow behind him as easily as IL 1t had
been young kitten. The other took
warning and got cut as rapidly as posi-
BILE, though not without bowling and
yelping as If it had been half killed.
He then turned to the audience and said,
smilingly: "St. Paul exhorted the breth-
rem to Beware of dogs wonder what
he would do IL he were in my place this
morning? 1t appears like l am COM
passed about with dogs, as David says
he was.'
He had scarcely commenced preach
ing again before there was terrible
sq1ealing and kicking among the mules
and horses that were tied to the trees
close by. He put his head out of the
window and said: mo harm done my