The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-06
PARALLELS DRAMAT1zED.
The Prodigal Son and the Five Foolish
Virgins Presented by Negroes.
From the Chicago Herald.

From the Chicago Herald
Camp Point, H., Aug. 20.-With songs
and shouts, and the chanting so peculiar
to the colored race, weird spectacle was
enacted to-day and tonight on the camp
grounds of the Christian Evangelist AS
sOciation near this place Saturday and
to-day closed the exercises, and in the
usual great throngs were enacted, with
with presence of solemnity and no little
grotesqueness, scenes from the Bible days
and well-known parallels.
The first of a series of three scenes
from Bible times began yesterday after
noon with the killing of the fatted calf
in anticipation of the return of the prodi-
gal SON An aged member of the camp
meeting represented the certain rich
man" and two young men impersonated
| the sons. One remained at home like a
good boy, while the other skipped out
Ostensibly with a circus After a lapse of
| years, la drama, report gained cur
| rency that the prOdigal son, badly DIS
| figured through the prevailing financial
strigency, was on the home stretch. In
fact, it was rumored that he was some
| where near Clayton. The anticipated re-
turn was duly celebrated from Saturday
night until about O'Clock this afternoon,
when suddenly the assembled throng be-
held the tattered prOdigal fastening
campward through a wheat field. The
| aged father made haste to fall on the
| young mans neck crying: "Whar hab 70
| been, yo pore boy2 70 is hungry; but
dar am chicken and watermillion a
| plentyP' A feast followed the greeting,
while willing hands placed crimson
robe on the young mans shoulders.
! Luscious watermelOns from the sand
! hills of MerdOsia on the Illinois,
river, suffered during the repast.
This spectacle was followed by the
march of the ten virgins. The young
women were Enthusiastically arrayed, and
| went through the performance of attend
ing the marriage ceremony. The march
was stately, and was accompanied by a
weird chant. The grief and dismay of the
! five foolish virgins who had failed to pro
| vide themselves with sufficient oil for
their lamps were dramatic The crown
ing event of the meeting, the closing act,
was the ceremony of the Children of Is
| rael crossing the Jordan and laying the
| twelve memorial stones. The grotesuue-
ness of the scene was intensified by the
torches utilized in the procession. These
cast an unearthly glamour over the sur
roundings, and intensified the impress
SiveneSS of the scene. Night had thrown
mantle over the camp grounds,
and, with the assembled thrones,
part of the time hushed by the i'm
prcssive ceremonies, and anon murmur-
ing surprise at the solemnity and weird
ness of the scene, lent certain impress
siveness to the ceremonies that was ire
sistible. OF course no river of Jordan
with its walls of water could be had, but
one was improvised for the occasion, and
through it marched the triumphant hosts,
singing and chanting as they marched. 1t
was the last hour of the meeting and the
wOrshipers became more fervid in their
eXhortatiOns as the night grew on. To
many the scene was a beautiful one, and
to all it was impressive. But by midnight
the last song, the last shout and the fare
well prayer had been said, and solitude
reigned around the tented grounds.
Rose-That girl is awfully vain.
Lily How so?
Why, she asked Mr. Moocher the
other day whether he didn't think he was like
me.-Ally Sloper.