The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1897-10-12
HE is A BORN PREACHER.
An Atlanta Prodigy Who is Creating
n Sensation-He is an Anderson
County Boy.

An Atlanta Prodigy Who is Creatin
Sensation-He is an Anderso
County Boy.
The Atlanta Journal gives the fol
lowing account of u boy preacher
whose parents went from Anderson
>. =. His father Is printer, an,
worked on the Anderson Intelligence
for several years:
! Atlanta has produced prodigy II
the person Of John Wesley Shields, al
eight year old pupil at Fair stree
school, who has developed wonderful
oratorical powers. They call him tht
Young Sam Jones" around ST. Paul..
Methodist church, on Hunter street
where he preach ed Saturday after
noon and yesterday to large and atten
tive congregations.
Johnnie is an intelligent looking lit.
tile black-eyed boy, and has all the ali
and dignity of bearing OF a grown ur
man. He is still in the second grade
at school, but is very fond of Bible
study and has learned his favorite
chapter, John 14th, almost by heart
He has slight impediment in his
speech, natural in one 80 young, but
when he gets under way his delivery
Is spendid and he is q very interesting
talker.
IF there ever was a born preacher
N the world he is one, said his mother,
who lives near the corner of Moore,
street on Hunter, his father being a
barber in the Kimball house block.
He has been preaching for year and
half and anybody listening at him
might think that he had been taught
what he know. but this is not so.
He says that whatever he utters
God tells him to say, and he never re-
peats the same sermon, but talks in q
different way eve:y time and his de-
livery 10 as free as that OF trained
m mister.
I'VE came from Virginia about a
year and a half ago. My husband is
Rev. j. W. Shields, local preacher
connected with ST. Pauls church, and
eight months ago John Wesley became
member OF the church. This sum-
mer we went up to Anderson, S. c., on
visit, and while there he preached
twice in the Wesleyan church.
Saturday afternoon he preached at
the children's meeting at ST. Paul's,
and again Sunday afternoon. He
preached In nearly every grade of the
school and seems to be born orator
and preacher"
Rev. Mr.. Dimond, pastor OF ST.
Paurs, has been conducting a children's
meeting on Saturday and Sunday after
moons, and on Saturday afternoon he
called on John Wesley Shields The
little fellow responded and preached a
very strong sermon of fifteen minutes
length, from the text "Be Sme Your
Sin Will Find You Out"
He told the children" said Mr.. Di-
mond, In speaking OF the sermon,
that they might SOW their wild oats
and do evil deeds while they were
young, but that they might rest as
sured that their sins would find them
out.
He cited the cases Of Tom Delk, Ar
thur Haney and young Spinks. See, )
said he, what d drink of free whisky
cost Arthur Haney. 1T cost him his
lie. BE sure your sin will find you out
1t found those boys out and they were
made to suffer. 1t will find YOU out
likewise If you continue in your sinful
course
HIS sermon was surprise to all
who heard him. Sunday afternoon
called on him again, and at first he
told mo that he had promised to preach
ior the holiness people up town, but he
changed his mind, and at the child
ren's meeting he appeared with his
Bible in his hand.
VI called him inside the chancel and
he opened his Bible and read lesson.
amour cling his text, Behold / stand
at the door and knock. If any man
will open unto mo will enter in and
sup with him and he shall sup with
me-
THE sermon that followed was q
mastery effort for one so young, and
would have done credit to q grOwn-up
preacher. He Is a wonderful little fell
low and Is natural orator and as fer
vent In his delivery es II he had been
trained for the ministry.
About year and q half ago he was
in our infant class and he seemed to de
velop the idea OF preaching from talks
that he had with my wife. lie first
began preaching to the children in his
mothers yard, and from that he began
preaching at school, and now he Is de-
veloping into regular Methodist
preacher
The parents of the child are both
deeply religious people, his father be-
ing local Methodist preacher, and
John Wesley has been brought up in 8
ministerial atmosphere.
| he seems to absorb scriptural knowl
edge, and every night before his father
comes home John Wesley summonses
the rest of the family to family prayer
just as III he were q man grown.
His mother says there Is not the
slightest levity in his makeup and tha
he Is in earnest In everything that he
does. He Is very bright in every way
and talks with much seriousness an(
gravity about his calling, and appears
to have made up his mind as to his fu
ture vocation as minister of the
gospel.
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THE GAME LAws.-The following