The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1895-07-31
A Religious Pr0Ligy.
Columbia State.

The mos: wonderful religious prodigy
to he found in South Carolina ia now tC
be found in Cheraw. Ter name is Clar-
eta Norah Avory, and she will be ten
years old on September 18th, but f0l
something less than three years she has
been doing what she calls working fol
Cod amongst the mem bors of her own,
the negro, race.
During the past few weeks she has de-
veloped into wonderful preacher, and
all who come within the sound OF her
voice are amazed at her uttorances.
In the very conservative section in
which she has been working for the past
two weeks there was much opposition to
her at first, because children were sup
posed to have "place," and especially
girl children to 'be seen and not heard"
And there existed decided conviction that
"women should notspeak outi in meeting.
But before she bad ended her first sermon,
in the words of one of her auditors, the
whole congregation had come to the con-
clusion ito let Gods business be as Hs
would have it."
Claretta Avery has been preaching in
Marlboro county for two weeks, and she
now numbers her converts among both
the white people and the negroes by the
score. At first she preached only to
negroes, but, after few nights, her au-
diences were composed of both races, and
her simple, straightforward, practical SER
mons appealed equally to theologian and
layman.
She was born in Washington, D. G. f,
18th September, l>35. Her father was q
minister in that city, but he died soon
after her birth, and she was taken to North
Carolina, where her mother had relatives.
When eighteen months old she claims to
have been converted to the Christian re-
ligion and since that time she has felt that
she was com missioned to preach the
Word of God to her people. Her mother
had struggle to make living for her,
self and her children and, up to this time,
Claretta has been able to 60 to school very
little. She barely can write but she seems
to have committed the whole of the New
Testament to heart. This she has sue
ceeded in doing by most continually
poring over it.
Since she was three years of age she has
never let Sunday pass without attending
church, going two and three times day
whenever she could She seemed to pre-
ter listening to the ministers of the white
people, and many time she has been
found in the galleries of the white
churches alone ard listening intently to
what was said by the preacher. Her
memory was wonderful and she is now
able to repeat a sermon, word for word,
after hearing 1t preached once.
Many believe that her sermons are de-
pendent entirely upon the facility with
which she remem bers the productions OF
others, and that she merely reproduces
them. If this be true, no one yet has
ever heard or read the originals of the
sermons she breaches.
Rev. A. J. Streator, of Society Hill, is
authority for the following:
"She preached her first sermon at Ra-
N. c., where she began series of meet
ings in private house, but the atten-
dance soon became 80 great that the
largest church In the town had to be en-
gagged. Here $50 persons professed reli-
zion as the result of her preaching.
Sandford, N. c., was her next point and
here she made "a converts. Then to
Vass, for one day, with ten converts as
the result. Then to Wadesboro and SO
converts, and from there to Monroe, and
thers were So converts. From there to
Society Hill, where she made % con-
verts." She Is now at work at Cheraw,
sc.
The Rev. S!reator says: "She lays hold
Of her text with Herculean grasp, and
sways her audience with gift peculiarly
divine. All who hear her are forced to
believe that God has called her to preach
the gospel. I was opposed to women
preaching until beard this child, then
decided to let Gods business be as He
would have it."
She dresses nodestly and neatly and
shows decided distaste for all tinery and
Jewels of all descriptions.
The negroes throughout the whole Sec
ton in which she has been regarded her
with great awe, and are lavish in their
gifts to her. When she believes the donor
unable to make the sacrifice she refuses
to accept the profered gift. The super
stitious attribute wonderful healing pow.
or to her and remarkable stories are told
of cures effected merely by her presence.
These stories, however, lack confirmation
and are believed only by the most credu.
lous. She claims to have no unnatural
power, but merely to be "working for
God" as she is directed. The most re-
markable thing about her are her eyes,
which are very brilliant, and have pe-
culiar cast; otherwise her features are
normal, aud she would pass for an ordi-
nary negro girl of ten years Of ago.