Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1889-07-18
To the LutIerans of the Pilot Knob
Church


for and word comes back he would not come
Do they think man is beast: lie wouio
have to be buried without sermon because
their preacher would not come, when there
are lots of preachers in Ironton just as good
or better than the one they have. because
he was told by mother several weeks ago
that my father was sick and for him to come
to..see him, and not only that: be passed the
house and did not come to see him. Now he
comes 10 the house like man who is almost
sunstruck. Says if he knew the facts
which he heard about my father being a
respectable and honest man, which people
told him in Iron Mountain, he would have
been here Immediately, and it hurts his feel
ings awfuly bad that we had to get another
preacher to give the sermon. But he thought
! he heard that my father did not keep the
word of God and never had the sacraments,
which my father had taken at that church
several times in my days, and some OF those
members knew it. lie attended the Lords
supper with them, and believed in religlon
| as well i'll Gods word rs most of the peo-
| pie who clam to be church members. L
| vii! excuse the preacher and not blame him.
| But we do not excuse those four church
members who were against tolling the bell
and never will forget them, especially when
| they come around begging. And the three
who trying leading the preacher-l do
not call them Christians. One ofthose hypo-
critics asked my mother the other day why she
did not come and tell him my father, or her
husband, was so sick, and ask him to come
and see him? That shows what he knows,
going 10 church every Sunday, about Christ
ianity: he passed the house every night. He
did not come in. lie knows just about as
much about church or Christianity or trying
to ring that Lutheran church bell as 4 dog
knows about Sunday, and it shows what
they know about trying to bury the dead
and dress them. On the night, an hour after
my dear father died, there were several
good old friends of my father who were odd
Fellows ana some VINO were good Luther
ans or Christians. They came to dress him
and see him TO his last resting place, but as
soon one Of those church members came
there and saw the Odd Fellows go to work
to help and dress my father he left the room
right away, went to one Of his church mem
bers neighbours house and told him that he
UtiltI HOI 20 pNci lllelG beCdtlSt lhtouuH tI-
lows had my father already and for him not
to go over there because it would .lot Do for
them to lay their hands on that body, HAT
shows what they know about the honor
due to the dead. We did not think it would
hurt any church members feelings because
the Odd Fellows were there and tryingto do
the best they could, or we would have had
all Odd Fellows. | notice this much. Years
ago when the cholera was epidemic here the
church ,ncnbors We're very glad to see the
odd Fellows come ana bury the Jead-even
some of their own church members. There
was, for instance, Jake Lesser buried more of
the dead at Pilot Knob than any person in
Pilot ltnGb. He was a good, respectable
Odd Fellow. Some Of these men that made
these expressions about these odd Fellows
were not seen at the graveyard those days
with the Christian friends, because they
were afraid Of the cholera, that they might
90 next. Then they always say, "our timeis
set for Us and God will take Us at that hour,
We heheYe III ti4ess WORDS II tuey believe
it there IS no use 10 oe afraid OF the cholera
then II their time is set. | have been with
Jake Lesser where Mrs. Pfoertner and her
own son We're Lutheran church members.
did not see but two or three of US to carry
the coffin into the hack, while every one said
they did not come to the funeral because
they were AFRAID they would set tie tEoleTa.
So there were eight or ten Of Us, and ths bal-
ance were Odd Fellows who buried the
dead. have been at several funerals and
have seen aaI worked with them on the sec
ton anG know three OF tlait4 10 pe hypo4rlteS
who have heeI talking about the 0dd Eel |
lows and about burying the dead. / would |
not ask that kind of men to come or try to
dig grave for poor and honest old man
as my father was, because they would not
know how. l have seen them bury cattle |
aloats tha seati0c which some Of them We're |!
told L tig It 4eee enout,L, alQ the, Mo.IQ !
cover il up, and say, :.let Is go.it is covered
good enoEeh,P ahd tie horns OF the anilAal |
were sticking out OF the ground yet. and |
next day the byzzards eating 1t up. Then |
next day the road master came a!ohS ana .
sent me and two other men to cover it up. |
Then they talk about burying "a man. 1t
would do good for these four church mem.
bers to so along to the DAD Feliow' cemetery |
several times whenever they bury an Odd !
Fellow to take an example from them. Then |
they would surely be convinced that every |
body would be buried deceDtly, which,if they |
follow up lately, is more than some of them
can say.
If il was left to those four, and every Luth- |
eran was that way, the dead would not be |
buried; they would be buried the way the |
cattle get buried on the participated !
by kyotes aud buZ@ards, Then they want |
to be church members, like one of them who |
some time ago claimed to be 4 Christian. |
de went to Lutheran church members to |
see his child christened, or baptised. Had |
drank little too much beer at the christen-
per was ready. She told him it was on the |
table i'll the kitchen. So he went in and |
gave blessing over all he had on the table. |
lis wife came in al. asked where he got all |
anything: he took his two feet and up,et |
the table, and then gathered it up and gave |
1t to the hogs. If they call that Christianity.
after Il blessin" of two minutes, don't want |
10 belong TO such Religion.
II. T. AHRENS.
Great Chance.
Any one desiring to makea good specula-
ton in Real Estate, can see Geo. A. Res, at |
the REGISTER Office Saturday evening, 2Gth |
inst, and Monday forenoon, I'D inst.