Daily Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1882-1893, 1883-12-19
A vANpEReiIrs CHURCH.


meath . Mig RailrsaA station.
New York Letter in Inter Ocear.l
/ Moody and Sankey hymn rousingly
and melodiously sung stopped me
alongside of the Grand Central depot.
There was noisy banging of baggage
on the sidewalk, where wagon was
being unloaded of trunks with reckless
CELEBRITY; street cars were rafting past !;
travellers were making train-time
hulbnb: but the devotional vocaliSm
made itself heard over all opposition.
A brief investigation enabled me TO
locate it underground. Descend.
ing by stone stairway. be-
tween one that led down to q barber
shop and another 10 0 restami ant,
l was as.onished to find myself in o
church, right underneath the big rail.
road station. It WAS OF q size to acorn
modate two or three hundred persons.
A platform held . lecturn and cabi-
net organ. The walls were neatly fres-
coed in an ecclesiastical style, and an
inscription said: Live in deeds not
years" The floor was carpeted and
the pews were quite ornamental in wal
nut. Altogether il was handsome
place OF worship, and the congregation
was correspondingly good looking,
though evidently containing . wide
range Of financial conditions.
1t WAS about evenly divided a. to
sexes. Young fellows and girls in
clothes that fell little short Of prime
fashionableness, or if cnt Just right were
made of cheap material, were in de-
cidediy slightly predominsnce. In front
seat was row Of contrastingly dressed
persons, though their richness Of appar-
el was all in quite good taste. In their
midst was bearded ordinary man Of
nearly 40. to Judge by appearances. I
recognized him "A Cornelius Wander
Tilt, the Oldest son of William II. Van.
derbilt. His presence was nothing un.
usual. The cellar church il his own.
Cornelius is q Presbyterian, with
strong indications of devoutness. Re-
ligion is not plentiful in the Vanderbilt
family, and he has nearly all there il Of
it. He believes that it is wicked 10 run
trains ON Sunday, but has made no pro.
gress in bringing his father 10 that way
OF thinking. Failing in his effort to
Christianize travel on the Vanderbilt
lines. lie concluded That the next lest
thing to closing the Grand Central
depot on the Sabbath was to open Q
church in it. William II. readily gave
him space in the cellar, and this he
fitted up in the manner described.
II WAS prayer meeting that vent
into. A girl Of IA kept the singing we'll
together by her clever use Of the organ.
and have seldom heard revival hymns
more inspiringly rendered. Much less
confident and telling were the efforts
of a young minister, who made the only
considerable address. He told us that
he was from Kentucky. and all that Was
pertinent to the Vanderbilts in what be
said was that Christ did not come to
the rich and powerful, but to the poor
and loaly.
He thanked God for that. Whether
it was the boldneSs of such an utter
ance in a Nauderbilt's church, or
whether merely ordinary fervor dis
tracted his mind from temporal sur
roundings, il is certain that he lost
sight OF tho platforms limits, and mad.
rertcntly stepped off the edge, nearly
jerking his head from his shoulders by
the sudden change of six inches in his
level. The rest Of the exercises were
made up of brief and ordinary prayers
aud experiences. Young Vanderbilt
took no part, except TO join with his
immediate party in hearty singing. But
was told that he frequently speaks,
and once a week instructs q bible class.
he has recruited the congregation
chiefly from railroad employees and
their families, aud there is a transient
element drawn from travellers who hap
pen to he in tile building waiting for
trains.