The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1889-02-02
REMINISCENT AND RELIGIOUS.

REMINISCENT AND RELIGIOUS.
The Conservation Of Bishop Polk.
Touching Incident of His Death.
lCincinnati Commercial Gazeite, 20th.l
The consecra,iou OF the Rev. DIR.
Boyd Vincent TO the bishopric Of
Southern OHIO, which took place Jan.
uary 25, the day kept by the church iu
memory Of the conversion of s.. Paul,
was an occasion Of unusual interest.
But once before in the history of this
diocese has this solemn function been
celebrated here, and that was full
half century ago, when Rev. Leonidas
Polk was cOnsecrated by the venerable
Bishop Meade, of Pennsylvania, Bishop
Smith and Bishop Otey at Christ
church, December 9, 1888.
Bishop McIlvaine, Of Ohio--the gol-
den mou.hed McIlavaine, as he was
called-preached the sermon. He was
one Of the great churchmen Of his day,
and was himself consecrated by the
venerable Bishop White. One looks in
vain Of the newspapers of that day for
auy mention of this interesting event.
December 8, 1888, was a Sunday. The
Gazette Of December 10 is as innocent
of local news az if il were published in
the planet Mars. And the only hint
of the religious life OF the community
is contained IN an advertisement of II
book shop, ON Pearl street, announcing
ga new supply OF family Bibles (very
large type) plain aud extra, is this day
received
A page Of tue Gazette of that date is
devoted to the publication of President
Van Buren's message. It gives little
editorial flourish about getting this
moment0us document ''off the press'
in three hours and half, in an extra
sheet, and calmly explains that the
"reprinr' in that day is for convent
ence, and delicious disregard of the
coun,ing-room) "the advertisements
left out in consequence will appear the
next day" Notwithstanding this ire.
mendous pressure upon the columns of
the paper, u column aud a half is de-
voted to a gruesome story, ssThe Mad
Marcer A True Tale" and space is
given to u Columbus correspondent who
talks of pig sticking as the s'slsug hter
Of the swiDish multitude"
The historian of the future will owe
u debt of gratitude 10 the daily journal
ist that he can not easily repay, for he
will fnd GET down there the trifies light
ss air that are recorded nowhere else.
He will find the very tint OF the gown
some great apcestress wore, the very
rose in her bodice, her smiles and dim
piles, a list Of her swains and the day
she was welded, all preserved like
flies in amber. But Today, Of the past
generation, not whimpir.
1t seems almost incredible that the
space of three lives can carry US back
to these days - early days of the
Church. Yet so it is. Mr.. S. p. Bish.
op, secretary OF the Safe Deposit Com
pany, whose half century will be cele-
brated next May, was present at the
consecrstion OF Bishop Polk by Bishop
NfcIlvaine. He might have heard
from the lips of this "golden-mouthed"
prelate the history Of tho Episcopal
Church in America as he had heard it
from the lips OF the first Bishop of tho
Eoglish liue, the venerable Bishop
White of Pennsylvania, by whom he
was consecrated, who had crossed
the ocean to be ordained at the
hands OF Euglish prelates, maxi
ing, according to the canon 60
provided, a declaration OF alIeg lance
10 tho King. This youthful candidate
was ordained deacon December %,
ITO, by the Bishop of N orwich, in the
Chapel Royal at ST. James Parish,
Westminster. Six months later he
was ordained to the priesthood by the
Bishop of Lincoln. He left Englaud
for home on packst ship in June,
and reached Philadelphia the following
September.
Bishop Stevens, In his monograph of
Bishop White says:
"uow.little did the actors in that or.
dination scene foresee the great events
that hinged upon that service. The
Lord Bishop OF Norwich then kneelipg
before him 10 receive by the imposi
tion Of his hands the cfiice of a
deacon, little imagined that sixteen
years later, he would kneel in the chapel
of the Archiepiscopai palace al Lam
beth, TO be cousecrated az The fiyst
Bishop OF the English line for the
Church in the United Slates; aud little
did the youthful! candidate dream as
he rose from his knees and stood trem-
bling upon the threshold of a ministry
which stretched itself onward five and
sixty years, through him would be
transmitted the succession Of the Au-
glican Episcopate To sister national
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