The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-04-23

book. So the minister asked the congre-
CATION to sing some familiar hymn.
V5gus was in the back part Of the au-
dience, and began in his usual happy
mood singing old John Brown Others
Joined in, and the entire song was sung.
The minister then prayed, and after
singing again he announced the follow
ing text Is there no balm in -Gileads
is there no physician there" Vigus i'm
Tnediately. says, That is lie; DR.. I'm
stetter is here and Balm Of Gilead is in
digeous to this country
Soon after this there was Union
Sunday school organized They met in
small log house which stood between
where F1nlay Ross now lives and the
WoodGnan residence A part Of the
roof was off, and the floor was loose
boards laid across the joists- / remem-
Der we'll that on one Sunday morning
when we gathered there for Sabbath
school We found that one Of these little
black animals with q white stripe down
the back, which were 50 numerous here
in those days, had gotten under the
floor. OF course we did not see him 1--WE
didn't have to-; bur we knew he was
there
The breath Of blue violets In howery
June
That's waited Ike incense oa soft
signing breeze,
Resembles as closely that mighty per-
fume
As altar OF roses does Lnlberger
cheese
However We had Sunday school that
day, thereby demonstrating that at
least on that particular occasion one
could not chase a thousand.
Not a great while after this one
morning was going over to the Mum
ger hotel after a pail OF water, Several
gentlemen were standing in the front
yard, and as I went around the corner
of the house to the pump / heard one
man say, There goes one now AS 1
came back Mr.. Rice stopped me and
said he was hunting a Methodist. in
Yited him over 10 my palatial residence,
which consisted OF a room 10x14 back OF
my store, and introduced him to the
Mother OF Methodism in Wichita. 1t
was not many hours until the First
Methodist church IN Wichita was or
gained Elder Rice secured the serv-
ices OF Mr.. Morse, local preacher who
had just moved in and settled on
farm up north about five miles, to look
after the flock until he could get back
and bring AIR. Zellers 10 supply the
place, which he did for something over
year. Then Mr.. Haun was appointed
TO this Circuit. After the expiration of
another year Wichita was made a sta
ton, and Mr.. Messy was assigned to
the charge There are many here who
know the history from that time
Many pleasant things transpired in
those early days Among them was
strawberry festival given in the school
house which stood at that time where
the High school now does. l sent to
LeaveDworth for two cases of straw
berries, which came by railroad and
stage just before night of the evening
we were to have it. There came up a
terrible storm, but it cleared off, and
we had our festival. 1 remember Cen
eral Corbett and a young lady presided
over the lemonade, and took in sIS.35,
and Corbett says he cannot tell to this
day whether there was any lemons in
that lemonade or not. He also favored
US by reciting a parody on Casabianca.
Mr.. CoTbett was a Presbyterian in
those days, and he is still. So far 1
have been unable TO reform him. Well,
1 believe about ali the difference there
Is anyhow is that when the Presbyter-
ians say the Lords Prayer they SAVIOUR
Father who art in heaven and the
Methodist say Our Father which art in
heaven
when we look back to the time when,
as Seli1irk says:
The sound Of the church going bell
These valleys and rocks never heard;
Never sighed at sound of kneIl,
Or smiled when a Sabbath appeared
And trace the line of progress this
church has made until we find our
selves tonight gathered in this magnifi-
cent temple built upon this historic
ground, which, like the mountain upon
which Abraham offered up his son
Isaac, and David met and appeased the
destroying angel, and upon which Solo
mon erected the temple, has been thrice
dedicated to God; first when the little
church was built under the pastorate of
AIr. Nessly; next when the more COM
modiOus one was built by Mr. Kirby,
and lastly, when the present magnffi-
cent edffice was reared. / say, when
viewing all these things, we'll might we
eNclaim: Behold, what God has
wrought
Then came the address of Presiding
Elder c. r. Rice, who was the first man
to introduce Methodism in the Arkan-
sas valley. He was appointed presid-
ing elder OF the district by the bishop in
1867. The north boundary line of the
district was al Topeka, the east at Fort
Scott, the south at the Indian Territory
and the west as far as civilization adj
vanced. He gave many accounts OF his
first visit to the country, how he travel
ed on horseback, with the old fashioned
saddlebags for his library. When he
left home he took nothing but the grace
OF God with him and with faith in Him
who says Il Will guide you.' he pushed
on and established classes here and
there, and he praised God that he had
lived to see his old district now made
the territory Of two great conferences.
To hear him tell his story one could
hardly realize that within thirty years
srToh great changes had been wrought.
If any person had told Rev. Rice when
first visited the grounds where Wichita
now stands that inside Of thirty years
he would behold such a magnificent
church as the one IN which he
stood talking now; that the
streets would be paved and
as smooth as glass; that he
would behold running up and down the
streets cars propelled by electricity:
that the electric fluid would be caused
TO give forth the briliiancy of the sun;
that men would step up 10 the side OF
the building and talk with a friend two
days travel away and be able 10 tell the
voice of his friend. the person making (
such predictions would have been |
judged insane. His life in Kansas and |
in the ministry would make interesting |
reading. He first came 10 Park City in |
1853. and when he came 10 Wichita |