Madison times. (Tallulah, Madison Parish, La.) 1884-1???, 1885-11-28
A BUNKER LOvE.PRAST.
4 Strange Ceremony That Took Fiace
Not Far from Ephrata.


Not Far from Ephrata.
About one mile northeas. ofthe little
town of Ephrata, where the lane from
Fahnestock's mill crosses the old Read
ing Road, stands the new Bunker Meet
ing House. The old bunker settlement,
around which today cluster so many
memories of the revolutionary epoch OF
our nations history, is some distance
away. The people of the town like to
tell you about the latter place-they call
it the cloister here speak of it with the
greatest yeneration and will take you a
few steps out Of the way TO show you a
picture of the Saal, the brothers house
or the monastery. Way, way back, when
the infant United States was laying un.
easily in the cradle, imbibing the rour-
ishing milk of patriotic enthusiasm, the
Drinkers bad erected their buildings for
religious worship here.
To the every day religionist they seem
like peculiar people, with their broad
brimmed black hats, odd cut of coats and
with hair long and parted in the middle.
bunker or TINKER comes from German
tunker, which means to dip. 1t is that
part of their ritual which has given them
the name of the German Baptists.
There was time when the Bunker
Church was small and had but one bish-
op in this section, but the church at
Ephrata was set off from the main con-
gregation, or the Conestoga Church, as
it was called, in 1864. 1t had then only
200 members, and Israel Myers, who was
the resident minister at that time, but
has gone to his long rest. Rev. Samuel
Harley, soon after the establishment of
the church, was chosen Bishop and
still presides. The church has a mem.
bership today of over $50, perhaps over
400.
At noon last Thursday bankers from
every near section put on their newest
beavers and their wives ami daughters
their caps of snowy whiteness and rolled
over the dusty high ways to the mother
| meeting house--the new Bunker meet
ing house oae mile from Ephrata. The
/, annual love feast was to take place. All
, afternoon the preacher exhorted and the
s people prayed and sang and when even
ing came and those who lived far away
l had partaken of the picus evening meal
! in the basement of the church, people
s began to flock to the roomy edifice ant
Z crowded ii to overlooking.
The meeting house Is the largest ont
/. in the county and is one story high. bu
under its entire length there is room!
| basement, divided into several rooms
r Enter at the main door and at the othe
Il end is the platform. Along either sid'
I. are at least ten long benches, each on,
IS being foot higher tLan the other on,
4 in front and running from two feet aDov
If the lower floor up tn twelve feet, The,
e remind one of parquet circles and tn
e lower floor the pit" Or the incline,
e seats the immense crowd of world.
Of people sat and watched the exercises.
is In the center are two rows of benche
&c of at least twenty feet in length. The,
q have high backs and on the usual meet
e ing da, are used assuch. To day ever
e fourth enc was turned around and OF
lie the backs of these a wide board va
al placed and that made a first rate table
E. and so it was all over the church.
" At $50 o'clock Ministers Ensmingel
d of LAnnville, Zook, George and Chris
n Bucher. of Lebanon; Keller. Myers, New
ar conner, of White Oak, ana others aros
d in the audiences and soon the servic
a tegan with exhortations aud singing.
ID The four hundred Dunkers took a
Il. active interest in the services. On tn
liz one SIDE were seated the men and o
= the opposite side the women, and il
ID comparison they were as five is to thre
ID in the latter's favor. Then there was
az luil in the services ano the little tut
were brought out and the feet washin
IN began. This occupied az most an hou
and after ii had been finished the table
were surrounded and soup was handle
around. 1t was served in little bow
aud one feature was seeing four eat oil
ne of the same bowl. 1t reminded one
the story of the boy who had only
n dime and wanted to treat his girl to iC
Vi cream and ordered zone cream with tw
spoons" but this had four spoons.
~ ~ The soup is made OF lamb flesh-typ
cal of the passover Then the sacramel
in of the LORDS supper, administered sim
IN lar to that OF other churches, and aft
it the kiss of charity was given. A mil
of lister came to bench where sat TWEEN
ir- men and he kissed the one nearest hir
IN. He in turn kissed the next and so it W
les given one to the other until all had 81
ny en- each other that benediction. On Il
ce other side of the house the wives of Il
ministers -deaconesses, as they a
'er called were doing the same for Il
nd women.
lie IL was midnight and the interestiI
services had not ended. and it was
ell least two o'clock when it was final
he finished and the people dispersed. La
%. caster Intelligencer.
PAST AND PRESENT.