Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-09-13
COUNTING IN CHURCH.
Preachers Ingenious Treatment OF
Sunday Night Attendants.

Sunday Night Attendants.
WHY YOUNG MEN TAKE THEIR GIRLS TO CHURCH
AND WHERE THEY sIT-HOw THEY LEAVE
| UsHERs IN THE LURCH-A PREACHERS PLAN
| FOR SECURING THE ATTENTION OF YOUNG
COURTING COUPLEs-ELECTRICAL AND RHETOR-
| ICAL EFFECTS-sUCCEssFUL RESULTS
| The preacher sat fitting back in his CHAIR gaz-
| ing In an abstractad manner at STAR reporter
who was on the opposite side of the desk in the
! pastors study, writing out some religious in
! formation for the columns of The STAR Asthe
reporter finished his work and was gathering
together the papers, he glanced across at the
preacher and noticed the preoccupied express
sion of his face. Anticipating that he might
have something more to say OF interest, the re-
| porter settled back in mis- seat. and without in
terrupting the silence, awaited developments.
The reporter gazed at the preacher. and the
| preacher gazed at the reporter. but the silence
remained unbroken.
| Presently the reverend gentleman remarked.
as if thinking aloud: Il shall have to begin
shortly another series Of Back Seat sermons
"Ah lndeedl" observed the listener entirely
| in the dark as to the meaning of the reverend
gentleman. and then the reporter fastened to
add on venture: ''Doctrinal sermons sup
posei'
'Doctrinal sermons?" echoed the preacher in
almost shout, as he brought his chair down
with a crash that threatened the springs. what
are you talking about"
''Nell. Ithought--that is to saw supposed"
stammered the reporter, considerably abashed
do you pretend that you don't know what
mean {" asked the preacher, with an appearance
of establishment
The reporter confessed without a blush to this
alarming ignorance.
We'll" concluded the preacher, charitably
81 suppose that you have teen married some
time, and have forgotten about your counting
days. Now, let me ask you one question. How
dld you and your sweetheart generally spend
Sunday evenings?"
Let me see," reflected the reporter some
what astonished at this turn in the conversation
Il think that We usually went to church If it
wasn't too cold or too hot. She was rather deli
cate, and had to be careful about going out at
night, you know" he added, half apOIogetically.
THE PREACHER NEARLY wINKs.
ooh! certainly, of course" said the preacher,
and he leaned back and looked at the reporter
with one eye shut, very suggestive Of worldly
wink. 'Now when you went to church YOU
invariably sat as far back as you could get Of
course you did. Now why did you do that ?"
The listener pondered that question. and az
the events of the happy period passed in review
before his mental vision he smiled and laughed
ont loud. You see" at last said the reporter
aiming to make sensible explanation, 'she
wanted to see the bonnets of the other girls, as
is natural with women when they go to church
or any other public place, and | wanted to see
her. and so of course We couldn't 60 way up
front, and the reporter paused.
The preacher nodded his head approyingly
during this explanation as il it was just what
he expected, and then said: Your reasons 1
suppose are just as good as could be given. AT
any rate all young couples on Sunday night
make Tor the back seats, and they won't take
any other. An usher may start on ahead and
they will let him go and then drop into back
seat and when he turns around at the head of
the aisle with pleasant smile to show them
into good front pew, he generally finds to his
disgust that no one is behind him. That sort of
thing has deprived the church of the services of
many an efficient usher. They can't stand the
humiliation of ushering up the aisle Nothing
and then walking back to face smiling con-
gregaton. 1t breaks them all up, so to speak"
HOW IT LOOKS FROM THE PULPIT
"Now what is the result Of this sort of thing?"
continued the preacher, argumentatively.
when rise in my pulpit on Sunday evening
and look over the congregation what do l see?
In the pews near the front are the elders and
dcacons good men with their shining bald heads
and attentive faces. Their wives are with them.
and here and there is a maiden lady. Then in
the center is a broad desert of empty pews and
way back in the rear massed around the doors
as you might say. are young people ALWAYS in
pairs. am glad to see them. / always preach
better to the young. and plunge into my ser
mon with energy and animation After par
| ticularly telling point aimed right at these
young people, look up to enforce with gesture
ana personal glance what have to say, and in
stead OF finding the eyes of my back seat con-
gregation turned upon me in attentive interest
they are not paying the slightest attention to
me. Not even looking at me. But there they
sit locking into each others eyes like young
calves, or perhaps" he added, with bitter sar-
casm. las the poetexpresses it, Soft eyeslo
! love to eyes that spoke again."
! That's Byron, demonstrated the reporter.
Il don't care lift is" said the preacher, reck-
lcssiy; 1T is the major part of any congregation
Sunday night. too
II got tired Of that sort of thing last winter, "
he resumed after brief pause, land made up
my mind that | would have their attention for a
little while at least
How did you manage it," asked the listener
with eager curiosity.
ELECTRICAL EFFECTS.
''In this way" replied the preacher. Il be-
gan series of what call Back Seat sermons
They don't differ materially from my other SER
mons, except at certain intervals, which mark.
shout out with great force, Young Man! |! and
then pause as if for rhetorical effect The effect
is rhetorical merely on the front seat conerera-
ton, but electrical on the back seat congrega-
ton. The young men who have been deyoting
Their entire attention to exploring the Iiuud
depths Of their swecthearts eyes give start.
and their fair companions do the same and
every face on the back seats is turned towards
+ me. In their guilty self-cOnsciOusness of using
the church tC do their counting in, they think
! That they are being personally rebuked from the
/ pulpit. While have their attention improve
the opportunity by pouring out some gospel hot
snCt. However. as soon as the first shock is
oyer and they have glanced around and found
| everything quiet. they fall to counting again
with renewed vigor. Then l come at them
again, and suddenly shout out, Young Woman =
with the same effect as before and the same
/ pouring out of gospel truth. So, YOU see in
this way gain the attention of my audience for
pref lew minutes at any rate"
The reporter gazed with admiration upon q
man who had c0ntrYcd such an ingenious de-
vice, but then thought occurred and he said:
Il should think that the young people. after a
few such shocks as you describe, would prefer
10 go to some other church."
No, they don't, he replied, with satisfied
smile 1" They seem to like it. 1t giyeg a spice
OF danger and adventure to their counting as if
some one was trying to separate them Since |
began these scrmOnS this element in the evening
congregations has actually increased. You see
they are obliged to hear some of the sermon
and. their attention being aroused so suddenly
what they hear is impressed on their minds. and
+ they remember it, From this circumstance
which is entirely novel in their experience they
get the idea that | am very powerful and elo-
q,lent preacher. and my fame has very consider
ably increased"