The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-11-22

been prolific with their abnormal births.
Joseph Smith, Andrew Jackson Davis,
William Miller, Frederic OIcott, Mrs.
Miner, Jemima Wilkinson, are a few Of
the names of men and women who have
assumed the prophets role, uttered their
predictions while gathering in followers
and money-the latter always seeming to
be necessary in these cleansing operations
and made themselves notable figures in
the history of fanaticism.
The methods of these people and others
who have not attained an equal celebrity
less by their own fault than by the stolidi-
ty of the unbelieverS--are not very dissim-
liar. In fact the Office of prophet seems to
be one which destroys all originality in its
inception Yet each one of the American
prophets has hao trademark to be recog-
nized as his own peculiar method of de-
struction. For instance, the last to go
about the country and get his name into
the newspapers is farmer of German an
cestry, born in Ohio, but owning lit
tie farm near Elkhart, Ind. The name of
this broad faced, rotund prophet is
John d. Kaufman. He is said to re-
semble somewhat in person, and exceed
ingIy in fluency and rapidity of speech,
lllC ldbC ACSlNl6hb NdL4ACiNA AOOub JCA
years have elapsed since Brother Kauff-
man saw wealth and renown in the denun-
citation of the earth far surprising what
could be gained by accepting it for what it
is and tilling his forty acres of it.
The scene of this assumption is, in a
rude way, not without its dramatic side.
He was sitting on his own porch when
sUddenly-or at most with Il few premoni-
tory twitchings-his consciousness fled,
and he began to deliver himself of strange
gibberish which alarmed the good, whole
some wife by his side. Next he fell on his
knees, and began preaching and praying in
an inspired fashion. Ii this was sort of
trial performance It must have been salts
factory to him, fer his wife was alarmed
almost to Mysteries, and try as she might
she could neither calm him nor herself.
Now the public performances were IN or
der, and accompanied by Mrs. Kaufman
and his cousin, Mr.. StulZman, he started
on a little tour of the neighborhoOd preach
ing and predicting the end of the world
near the year 2000
In his methods Kaufman preserves a
certain order When the faithful assemble
they find him stretched out on a lounge in
the room of the meeting, and while they
are singing and praying he maintains
rigid attitude. Then his arm moves up
ward and halts-immovable as a statues.
This is the signal, and two of the elders
assist him to the floor, and he begins his
rambling discourse. He talks in two lam
guages, German and English, speaking
longest in the tongue which is understood
by the majority of his hearers.
Recently he journeyed as far east as
Pennsylvania. and he had a successful tour
through the rolling Lancaster county, fifty
miles west of Philadelphia, among the
Amish Mennonites. Many wonderful
things are related by eye witnesses among
these simple people; how t"e prophet with
closed eyes, still in the deep trance, recog-
nizes the people in the room, seems to read
their thought, etc, and how on one occa-
sion when a blind man whom he had never
seen before sat among his hearers kauff-
man went directly to MS side and talked
for half an hour about blindness, physical
and spiritual, quoting all the Scriptures
have to say on the subject.
His fRyorite theme Is Noah the prophet,
whose place he has assumed in the present
degenerate day and generation. But the