Smyrna times., 1889-03-06
Bishop Goodsell and the New
South.
BY. j. 0. PECK, D. D.

Bishop GoOdsell is holding the four
conferences IN the great Empire State
oI the south, Texas, where his Epis
Gopai residence has been DESIGNATED
ne mas not yet indicated i'm which OF
the many aspiring cities that vie with
each other for the honor he will fix his
Episcopal dOmicile. It is amusing to
see the assiduity with which ministers
ana citizens in Fort Worth. Dallas.
Austin, San Antonio, and other places
seriously aud dOgmaticaIIv assure the
Bishop that their respective cities are
SSeVerally the most healthy. most richly
furnished with good water and pure
ar ana most exempt from malaria.
mosquitoes, and moss-b backs
The new South is herein spots
Al Fort Worth, the seat of the Austin
Conference, the Methodist Episcopal
Ghurch, South, cOurteously rendered its
large aud elegant church for our Sab.
Datn services. Our own church was
not large enough to accommodate the
great congregations that gathered to
near the Bishop, who preached now.
eriully, and in the evening for the
missionary anniversary. The Dastor
OF the church South. the Rev. y T.
Nelms, subscribed for the GosDel an ali
LdHds and for WOrId- Vide Missions
ana another pastor Ofthe church South
TOOK ten copies of the latter Deriodi.
cal. Both these brethren have been
very traternal and courteous. In this
region there IS more cordial relation
oetWeen the churches than in some
ference. '-''0 0O"-
-, AT Paris Bishop Goodsell held the
Texas Conference, which is composed
OF cololed brethren, save one man.
Here he met the old South. Arriving
at the seat Of the Conference. the col.
ored presiding elder met the Bisbon
and wife, and invited them 10 the hos
pitallties of his own home. AS This
was IN harmony with the Bishop's de-
termination IN his Southern visitations
namely, to accept such hospitality
as might be extended by colored or
"hlte members at the Conferences
Went with the presiding eller 20 his
mouse. Arriving there, the elder in.
formed him tat the pastor of the
Methodist Episcopal church. South.
had told the elder that they would en-
tertaln the Bishop. But Bishop Good
sell had received no letter of such
courtesy, and no pastor or member of
the Southern church after his arrival
called or offered hospitality hence he
could not 60 with such roundabout in
vItalion and thrust himself upon them
Inc colOred servant and sexton of
the Southern pastor called and said
that his employer and others wOnld
cali upon the Bishop After two or
three days Bishop Goodsell became
quite III with "a cold and sore throat
which threatened diphtheritic com
pHCations, and he felt compelled to |
seek the less airy accommodations of a |
motel. Here the aforesaid cOlored SER |
want called to inquire Of the Bishop if |
ne was comfortable, but neither pastor |
nor member called in person. The |
Bishop informed the courteous servant.
VINO seemed surprised that the pastor .
ana members had not been to see the !
Bishop, that while he was clad to see !
him as brother, in the North gentle /
men dld not pay their respects to other
gentlemen by sending their servants to
call, but that he was not in the least /,
disconnected by the absence of such .
customary courtesy. From his arrival
TO his departure no social courtesy or
iraternal recognition was extended |
rom any white man, and in going to
the colored presiding elders home he
accepted the only hospitality offered him
"a the citg. AlterWard the pastor of
the Southern church stated to some
one, as an explanation of this lack of
iraternal courtesy, that after Bishop
Goodseil had been the guest of a nig-
ger. they could extend to him no hos
pitality or courtesy.
This is the old South. The godlv
Bishop, who had slept in the respecta
oie home and eaten at the comfortable
table of the only man who called and
invited him to Southern hospitality.
was a social leper to the brethren who
through their fraternal delegates in
our General Conference, express fra
ternal sentiments Of a common Meth
odlsm. Furthermore, two other gen
eral officers of the Methodist EpiSco-
pal Church, visiting the Conference
olhclally-the Rev. j. L. Hurlbut, d.
D., Corresponding Secretary of the
SundaySchOol Union and Tract Soci
ETY., and Corresponding Secretary of
the Missionary Society-arriving later
IN the session, and, learning at the
depot that the Bishop was at certain
hotel, joined the Bishop there. with
out being invited or going to cOlored
hospitality, and they were honOred
with sharing the Bishops social ostra-
clsm. But with dignity and ahability
the Bishop bore himself as the repre-
sentative of a Church that knows no
man according to color or previous
condition.
Another incident at the same time
and place deepened the significance of
the above facts. A minister of our
Church from the West who was in the
city on business connected with the
conference, went to a hotel, took n
room, and had dinner and supper In q
the evening he attended a meeting of
the Conference. He returned to his
hotel at ten o'clock. He could not
get In. He went to another hotel for
the night. In the morning he went
back to the hotel where his baooa0e
was left and the proprietor informed ,
him that he could not stay there. He
added: "IfI had known that Won i
were attending the nigger church, you :
could not nave taken a room in this
motel. 1t IS only little while ago, if {
you had done this in this town. Won
would have been rode out of town on a
rail-" And the brother came to the
hotel where the Bishop was stopping.
and where we were treated with every
civility.
These indignities were evinced be-
cause the Bishop and his companions
were fulfilling their official duties to ]
The cOlOred people. and because we
treated them as Christians. The Bour- I
bon element is not yet dead in all the {
South. 1t is dying, thank God but il /
lies hard. And the better things and
better men are coming to the front in
many places, of which I wish to speak.
But before doing so let me relate a !
most amusing incident of how !
BISHOP GooDsELL SCARED A RUFFIAN.
On the train from Paris to Fort |
Worth two ruiiianly drunken Texan
'oughs got on and took a seat nearly
opposite where the Bishop and his ,
wife had seats. In front of the roughs +,
we're seated the Rev. N. T.. Harmon 7
md wife Of Wichita, Kan A colored
presiding elder, about to leave the /
rain, came back into the car, and bade s
he Rev. Mr. Harmon Good -bve.i' !