The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-04-18

can" The Doctors countenance fell. but only
for moment. He suddenly rallied and said:
''All my boys are smart, and some Of them are
impudent' Then, of course rose laugh. The
voice that piped up from the lower end Of the
table belonged to Henry Ward Beecher.
Whether he can twist his creed onto the confes-
sion of faith it does not become me to decide.
The Doctors case went up to the General AS
sembly, and was yet undecided when the Pres
byterian Church was rent in two in 1888.
Dr. Beecher was one of the magnates of New
School Presbyterianism in whose ranks shone
DR.. Nathaniel w. Taylor of New Haven,
Beinan, of Troy and Charles G.. Finney Mr.
Beman was the debater of his faction. The
leader on the Old School side was Dr. Ashbel
Green, president Of Princeton college. The COM
batants fought just like the worlds people, and
kept the church in a turmoil for years. Dr.
Beman was often sarcastic. 1t will be gemem-
bered that in the fy-leaf of the old catechism
were poetic couplets, arranged under the letters
OF the alphabet and set to horrible rhymes The
one under A read:
I'm Adams fall,
We sinned all"
Dr. Beman used to repeat this, and then add
to it:
SIN Adams fall
We snned all;
In Gains murder
We snned furder;
By Doctor Green
Our sin is seen"
could give many anecdotes illustrating the
peculiar characteristics of Doctor Beecher but
forbear, except to tell one, to show his chronic
observation-disclosures He preached in the First
PRESBYTERIAN Church, the aristocratic rich
church of Cincinnati He was always doing
some odd thing. One Sunday he came in late;
the house was packed; he walked rapidly up the
aisle with piece of blotted manuscript in his
hand, assembled the pulpit, opened the Bible,
spread his manuscript, TOOK his text.
and was about to begin his sermon with
out any preliminary exercises. One of the
elders rose from his pew and stood The elder
looked at the Doctor, the Doctor looked at the
elder. The elder came out of his pew, the
Doctor came down the stairs, and they met
The elder whispered few words in the Doctors
ear, the Doctor reascended, closed his Bible, and
said: 'sLet US pray" This specimen of
many such performances. don't know of any
better way of accounting for it than to tell what
the Doctor once said tC us at the seminary when
giving lecture in oratory. "Young gentle
men," said he, don't stand before looking
glass and make gestures. Never mind your
gestures. Pump yourself brim full of your sub
ject till you can't hold another drop, and then
knock out the bung and let nature caper." In
the instance of the sermon the Doctor lad
pumped himself full on the subject of his Study,
and when he reached the church was too eager
to knock out the bung
In the summer of 1882 was passing through
the hall of the seminary, and saw on the bulletin
board of my club that the question for debate
that evening was this: ''If the slaves of the
South were to rise in insurrection, would it be
the duty of the North to aid in putting it down?"
l glanced at the board and never dreamed there
would be more than one side to the question,
and that the negative When the hot evening
came, to my surprise, everybody arranged them
selves in the affirmative part of the room except
myself. AS it afterward came to pass that this
was the beginning of my life work, and lent
color to my whole future existence l shall be
pardoned for few personal details. This was in
the midst of the Southampton instruction, in
Virginia, when Nat Turner, deluded negro, had
raised an insnrrection which made the cheek
of the ancient dominion turn pale and
its knees smite together in terror. AS the only
person on my side of the pending debate, had
the privilege of waiting till all my opponents
were through before l spoke. I first Invested
myself of my cravat then of my collar, then of
on, and the perspiration started from me in I'M
wonted streams, repaired to my room, took off
my boots, put on my slippers, and returned to
the club When | rose to speak | might be
regarded as standing in what said to be the
regular ball costume in Arkansas viz. shirt
collar and a pair of spurs but never spoke
with more fervor and satisfaction for three
quarters Of an hour than on that occasion This
was my first anti-slavery speech. | fought it
out on that lne' till | saw the thirteenth four
teenth and fifteenth amendments Incorporated
into the Constitution, and Horace Greeley, the
regular Democratic candidate for President, when
l ready to say, with one of old: Now
lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace for
mine eyes have seen Thy salvation"
In 1886 was outrageously treated while at
tempting to speak to meeting in a Methodist
CHI urch at Providence. The mills of the gods
ground slowly, but they did not stop. l adj
at Providence in 1856. In respect to slavery l
dealt with it far more severely than in 1886.
There were plenty of Governors on the platform,
and Bishop Clark of that diocese was at my right
hand. A man on the platform bedecked with
orders, was chief marshal His enthusiasm, in
reneatedly calling for cheers bothered me while
speaking After had finished / asked who
that chief marshal was and my friend, laughing,
said: Don't you remember that, in 1885, when
you were delivering an anti-slavery address in
rushing up the aisles, shaking their fists at you
and yelling and they finally broke up the meet
ingl Well, be was the leader of that mob, and
now he is making amends
Gideon Weles as chief of martial bureau in
one of the greatest wars of modern timesl NV
authority for the following incident was present
at the Cabinet meeting whore it occurred Mr.
Stanton, the Secretary of War, came in with the
details of q foreshadowed plan for a simutane
attack of the rebels at three points, in which
he would want little assistance from the navy.
Stanton described his first place of attack and
said the troops would need the cooperation of
or two gun boats The President address
ing Welles, asked it they could be furnished. He
wricgled around in his chair and said he couldn't
tell, but would inquire and let them know at the
next meeting of the Cabinet, And this in sub
stance, was his response on all the three points
Of Stantons programme. Putting one of his
feet on the table the vexed President said: s'Mr
Secretary, will you please tell all you know
about the navy, and then we shall know all you
don't know about it." And he was at the head
of the department for eight years
The Bible of John Rogers, the Martyr.
s"T'here Is in the nOssassion of tbo pottor for,