Smyrna times., 1896-04-08
A BEAUTIFUL EASTER.
A Day Filled With Flowers, Songs and Glad
ness.-IiOw 1t was Celebrated by Our
Different Denominations.

Last Sunday was beautiful Easter
day. The sun shOne in magnificent
splendOr and hardlya cloud was to be
seen in the sky. The wind had rather
Arctic temperature, but, nevertheless.
the day was an ideal one, and was
heartily enjoyed by our people from
early dawn until the sun faded to the
west behind rose and purple pail of
twilight tints.
When the church bells proclaimed
the story of the Resurrection i'll glad,
joyful refrain on Easter morn, our
streets were well-crowded with church
goers, and while there was not an elab-
crate array of bOnnets and dresses to
celebrate the advent of spring. vet the
fair and beautiful character of Easter
day was no better typifed than i'll the
display of flowers. The services of our
different denominations were much
added to by the fragrance and beauty
OF these flowers which were banked in
simple prOfusiOn in the church chancels.
Outside of this, our Kings Daughters
and Christians EndeavOrers We're pass
ing their compliments of floral blooms
to the homes of the sick who were
want to join with them in rejecting
the glad spirit of Eastertide.
Besides being a day of flowers it was
day OF song and rejoicing The or
gans inside our sacred edifces all
pealed forth the some Joyous story and
reinforced by many voices, awakened
a responsive chord in the hearts of all
who were attending church. The
anthems, chants and carols all indica-
ted that the standard of excellence is
being raised. The choirs showed Il
higher cultivation and the music sung
ranged over the whole field of melody
and composition.
AT ST. PETERS CHURCH.
The Episcopal Church made a more
elaborate celebration of Easter than
any of the other churches. 1t was the
close of the season when they gave up
their sack-clOth and ashes, and, as
customary with them, was Il complete
transition from Lenten gloom to Easter
gladness. Flowers were spread III rich
prOfusiOn behind the chancel and the
display was even more beautiful than
Ill previous years. The music, too,
was of high-class order, and the chants
were beautiful i'll joyful Easter melody.
Solos were made by Miss Bessie Com
selman and Miss Marshall.
! Rev. G.. W. Dame preached very
able sermon from Ezekiel xvii: iii
''And he said unto me, Son of man.
can these homes live? And | answered,
/ Oh, Lord God, thou knOwest" " After
/ explaining EZekiel's vision III the val
/ ley, he went on to show that what the
! old prophets couldn't tell, was shown
! in the resurrection of Christ. The
resurrection was his central thought
and he made this plain to his hearers
by pointing out the beautiful examples
that nature has set before us.
The evening service was devoted to
/ the Sunday-schOOl anniversary. The
programme was an ambitious one. and
the work accomplished during the year
made a good showing. The services
We're conducted in about the same
order as they have been in previous
years. Addresses were made by Rev.
G. w. Dame, and VIM. E. Waters, the
the school superintendent. The music
was feature Of the occasion.
THE METHODIST CHURCH.
Sunday was an especially full day at
Asbury II. E. Church Presiding
Elder Smith was present on his first
quarterly visit Of the new year, Rev. \.
Stengle preaching the morning sermon
for him at Friendship Church, Thor
oughfare Neck Mr.. Smith presided
at the lOvefeast services in the lecture
room from 81 to 1890 When this
company ascended to the upper room
it was only to find the seats already
well-Occupied-the auditorium includ-
ing the 'amen corners" being filed
when the services began.
] Tho 1npOvotiOnC mainly /
around the pulpit, were suggestive Of a
commemorative event. They were
Easter lilies, red lilies, begonias, spirea
palms and at the base of the collection
a shallow vase of crOcus of various
hues-the first evidence of the spring
resurrection of flowers from the garden.
The Organist, Mrs. Coverdale, led
off in a fine organ voluntary followed
by well-rendered Easter anthem by
the choir. AS an OffertOry exercise.
they also sang another appropriate and
beautiful anthem. The re-Organized
choir, it will be remembered, is mostly
composed of young people who have
been singing only few weeks, but il
these pieces of long and high-class
choral music, they did specially we'll
bringing compliments from all sides
| L
trained and led them.
By a singular coincidence the text
which Mr.. Smith used was the same as
that given above, selected by Rev Mr.
Dame-the vision of Ezekiel in the
valley and the resurrection of dry
bones. The subject was the resurrec-
ton of the human body in recognized
form and identity, as against what is
| ho 81 I, l.,
seph Cook and others, of the spirit Ol
essence of the individual
At night the room was again filed
the music and surroundings the same,
the pastor, Mr.. Stengle, preaching an
Revelation of ST. John i: 17-1S: "And
dead. And he laid his right hand upor
me, saying unto me, Fear not: [ am
the first and the last:
II am he that liveth and was dead
and, behold l am alive fOrevermore
Amen; and have the keys of hell, and
of death. "
The appearance of Christ to JOIN
when he was nearly hundred years
old banished to the Isle of PatmOs, was
siXty-twO years after the crucifXion
illOl u6 utu S6IN6l as All Apostle, uuO
yet he recognized him perfectly. The
subject growing out of the text was tn,
resurrection of Christ from the dead
This was presented as the greates'
event of the worlds history, fortified
by the strongest possible facts from
sacred and prOfane history, the speaker
maintaining that if this fact was no
sustained by irrefrangible evidence
then no other event in history was.
THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
This denomination did not celebrat,
the day as much as the above churches
No attempt was made at decoration
but a special preparation was made il
the anthems. These were well-rend
cred during which solos were given by
Mrs. J. r. McCausland, Miss Ethe
Cooper and Mr.. Frank Evans.
Rev ! t. EStliO paStor 1,raocbad ,