West Virginia freeman. (Parkersburg, W. Va.) 1881-1886, 1883-08-29
COMPLAINTS LONG AND LOUD

were heard from those most deep
ly interested in the work in hand,
because Of this old time idea of d.
viding an association into squads
and scattering it over several
farms, to replenish the Golfers of
hucksters here and there, or listen
to sermons in the woods, when
the body should be all together, at
tending to its proper business and
hearing the discussions on the va
rious topics considered.
PREACHING IN BUSINESS HOURS
at associations will soon be known
only as among things of the past.
Let all be with one accord in one
place attending to one thing at a
time, if a peace can be found big
enough, seems to be the growing
desire and judgment.
But all this is leading our read
ers away FROM" and not cup to"
the surprise we have for our good
temperance friends.
We found Rev. E. J. Willis, of
Broaddus College, in the Chair as
Moderator, and we had scarcely en-
tered the church door before we felt
premonitions of the
IMPENDING WAR CLOUD.
Professor Willis is a good par
lame ntarian and an excellent pre-
siding officer, and a happy choice
it was when he was chosen to guide
the body through the
ANTI-TEMPERANCEC CYCLONE
that was to sweep down upon the
sleeping friends of. the cause, who
little dreamed that the Baptist
homes of West Virginia were ex-
posed to dangers from storm of
temperance opposition, even then
gathering among the delegates to
Baptist association.
But here comes the
STARTLING SURPRISES:
and this is the order of their COM
ing:
/. An anti Temperance Church
Letter.
2. Temperance Report, blackballed.
3. Temperance Resolutions tabled.
The first great surprise of the
meeting was the reading of the fol-
lowing portion of the
MT. oLIvET CHURCH LETTER.
awe do not think it is best
for the denomination at large, that
the Association permit discus
sion on the prohibition or temper
ance question, as said question is
generally considered now to be po-
litical"
Ofcourse this was but a cloud as
large as "man's hand" but it in
dicated which way the storm was
coming, and served to draw eyes
toward that part of the horizon for
the
SECOND STARTLING SURPRISE.
This came in the Report of the
Committee on Order Of Business.
When the Report was read, at
tention was called to an Oversight"
by some innocent friend of the
cause of Temperance. No time or
place was given for the Reports of
the Standing Committees on Tenn
perance and Sunday Schools
1t was suggested that the Report
be amended or re-committed, and
upon the Chair ruling that the
Committee should provide for the
hearing of these reports, the
FIRST BIG STORM CLOUD
burst upon the Association.
The ruling of the Chair was
promptly and vigorously appealed
from, and the appeal as promptly
and vigorously sustained, thus
making the body discourteously
and unjustly say it would uncere-
moniously shut it's doors in the
face of committees of its own Gre
ating-committees which it had
sent out, commissioned to do spec
ial work that though these COM
mittees had faithfully performed
the work assigned them, and were
now knocking at the doors of the
Association, asking that they might
report and render an account of
their stewardship-yet the doors
should be Indignantly shut in their