Democratic messenger., 1892-04-09

pour of religious awakening. Hosannah,
Ten million years in heaven will have no
power to dim my memory of the glorious
times we had in that first Tabernacle,
which. because of its invasion of the us
ual style of church architecture. was
called by some "Talmage's Hippo
drome," by others, Church of the Holy
Circus" and Dy other mirthful nomen-
clature. But il was building perfect
for acoustics. and stood long enough To
have its imitation i'll all the large cities
of America and to completely rcvolu-
tionize church architecture. People
saw that it was the common sense way
of seating an audience.
Instead of putting them in an angular
church, where each one chiefly saw the
back part of somebody else's head. the
audience were arranged in semicircle.
so that they could see one another's faces.
and the auditorium was n great family
circle seated around a fireplace. which
was the pulpit. Ii was an iron struc-
ture. and we supposed fireproof, but the
insurance companies looked at it. and
after we had gone too far 10 stop in its
construction. they declined to insure il.
except for a mere nothing. declaring
that. being of iron, if the infiammable
material between the sheets of iron took
fire no engine hose could play upon it.
And they were right. During those
days we educated and sent ont from n
lay college under our charge some
twelve hundred young men and women,
many Of them becoming evangelists and
many of them becoming regularly or
dained preachers. and | meet them in
all parts of the land toiling nightly for
God.
One Sunday morning in December.
1872. the thermometer nearly down to
zero. was on my way to church. There
WAS an excitement in the street and
much smoke in the air. Fire engines
dashed past. But my mind was ON the
sermon was about to preach. until
some one rushed up and told me
that our church was going up in the
same kind of chariot that Elijah took
from the banks of the Jordan. That
Sunday morning tragedy. with its
wringing of hands and frozen tears on
the cheek of many thousands standing
in the street. and the crash that shook
the earth. is rs vivid as though it were
yesterday. But II was not perfect loss
All We're anxious to do something.
and as on such occasions sensible people
are apt to do unusual things. one Of the
members. at the risk of his life. rushed
in among the fallen walls. mounted the
pulpit and took "A glass of water from
the table and brought it in safety to the
street 80 YOU see it was not total
loss Within an hour from many
churches came kind invitations TO oc-
cupy their buildings. and hanging against
a lamppost. near the destroyed building,
before l2 o'clock that morning. was
board with the inscription. The CON
gregation of Brooklyn Tabernacle will
worship tonight in Plymouth church"
Mr.. Beecher made the opening prayer.
which was full Of commiseration for me
and my homeless flock. and | preached
that night the sermon that intended to
preach that morning i'll my own church.
the text concerning the precious ala
baster box broken at the feet of Christ,
and sure enough we had one very pre-
cious broken that day. We were. as a
church. obliterated. ''Bnt arise and
build" said many voices. Another
architect took the lphitheatrical plan
of church. which. i'll the first instance,
was necessarily somewhat rude, and de-
veloped it into an elaborate plan that
was Immediately adopted. But how to
raise the money for such an expensive
undertaking was the question-expeasiv
not because of a.,y senscless adornment
hut expensive because If the
immense size of the building needed to
hold our cons rcgation.
Ii was at tnat time when for years our
entire country WAS suffering. not from
financial panic, but from that long con-
tinued financial depression which all
business men remember. rs the cloud
hung heavy year after year and com
mercial establishments without number
went down. Through what struggles
we passed the Eternal God and some
brave souls today remember. Many "a
time would have gladly accepted calls
to some other field. but | could not
leave the flock in the wilderness. At
last, after in the interregnum having
in our beautiful Academy of
Music, on the morning of Feb. 90. 1874,
the anniversary Of the Washington who
conquered impossibilities and on the
Sabbath that always celebrates the res
direction. DIR. Byron Sunderland, chap
lain Of the United States senate, thrilled
US through and through with dedica-
tory sermon from Haggai ii, 8, The
glory of this house shall be greater than
that of the former. saith the Lord of
Hosts."
The corner stone of that building had
been laid by the illustrious and now en-
throned DIR. lrenaus Prime. On the
platform on dedication day sat. among
others. Dr. Bowling. of the Baptist
church: DIR. Crook. Of the Methodist
church; Mr.. Beecher, of the Congrega-
tional church, and DIR. French. of the
Presbyterian church. Hosannah. An
other $35.OO was raised on that day
The following Sunday 33S souls were
received into our communion. mostly on
confession of faith. At two other com
munions over 500 souls Joined at each
one. At another ingathering CPS souls
entered this communion. and so many of
those gathered throngs have already en-
tered heaven that we expect TO feel at
home when we get there. My! my,
Won't we be glad to see them-the men
and women who stood by us in days
that We're dark and days that were jubi-
liant! Hosannah!
The work done in that church on
Schermerhorn street can never be un-
done. What sacrifices on the part of
many, who gave almost till the blood
came! What hallelujahs! What victo-
ries! What wedding marches played
with full organ! What baptisms. What
sacraments. What obsequies. One Of
them on snowy Sabbath afternoon,
when all Brooklyn seemed to sympa-
thizc, and my eldest son. bearing my
own name, lay beneath the pulpit in the
last Slean and Elnrauea Rip. II unxs son,,