The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-11-30
LANA AND ILLINOIS NEWS
The DAILY Chronicle of Happenings of
Ian Kinds in the Two States.
Mrs. Woodworth's Revival Meetings at Muncie
-Qoben Found Ineligible-Echo of the
Ilnstin Failure Notes aud Gleanings.
INDIANA.
Good and Bad Features of Mrs. woodworth's
Revival Meetings.


Good Iand Bad Features of Mrs. Woodworth's
Revival Meetings.
EPeeiaA TO tie Indianapolis journal
MuacIE, Nov. 29.-The meetings conducted
by Mr& Woodwork at the Royal Rink, in this
city. afe daily increasing in interest The meet
nes have assumed such proportions that the
bnildrIg, which has seating capacity of LOCO,
will mo- longer hold the crowds that assemble
each etening Services begin at an early hour
each mp rning. and continue uninterruptediy uu-
Ill late lat night Cold or stormy weather has no
effect tb diminish the crowd or to lessen the In
terest Mrs w oodworth is in command and
endures the work remarkably well. Half the
amount of work she docs wodid exhaust the or
binary speaker or evangelist. Within the past
few days she has been repeatedly in the trance
state, she seeming to have the power to go
INTO this condition at will. Her frances have a
wonderful effect upon her hearers, especially
those IN sympathy with her methods, and there
Is scarcely an hour, from 8 o'clock A. NJ. until
midnight. that there are not from three to ten
persons lying in frances in some part of the
room, while round, and about, and over them
the people, excited the preaching OF the
evangelist, shout and halloo. and sing, and
pray-a perfect bedam of excitement. No such
performance was ever witnessed in Muncie.
More than hundred persons claim to have
been converted AS rule, they are of the i'm
pulsive and excitsble class, who will stand by
their professions while the tide is on and
drifting them in the right direction. 1t
Is doubtful whether the meeting
is doing more good than harm. Men in position
49, L. ;nfn
frances works injuriously to both mind and
body. It is noticeable that many who most
active in the meeting are those quite opposite to
reputable people in society. If this meeting
succeeds in permanently reforming these, it will
do a great good: but this it viii not do: Mrs.
: Woody orth.is aided and supported by some good
people, of course; but her uncalled-for attacks
upon the churches and the ministers OF the city
have made her justly the subject of much criti-
cism, az severe as it is deserved. People come
In from all parts Of the county to witness the
strange proceedings. Many there who de-
nounce them as willful trifing with sacred
things, such as the steady going Christian
people of the land cannot indorse They consid-
Br it a perversion of releion-a subordination of
II to an abnormal greed of gain. True or false,
genuine or counterfeit, it has aroused the people
of Muncie to a tension of excitement not often
seen anywhere. Little children, as we'll as old
men and women. have fallen in with the ''craze,'
and join the promiscuous crowd in demonstra-
lions of excitement. If an evil, 1t is assuming
dangerous proportions. The sober, thoughtful
people look upon it with misgiving, and wonder
what the result will be. To see children laid
out in frances, for hours unconscious. is to them
a matter of no little concern to say nothing Of
the boisterous, disorderly conduct that charac-
terizes the meetings presumed to be held in the
sntnraat IF raiicinp