Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1897-01-21
MONKEYS IN CHURCH.
Open AIR CONGREGATION w
They VOLUNTARILY JOIN

crne o. Thsra Brought II
The. ard Boxed Tn
- - 81 Ears when Thsg
1exisy-Rxperienes OF
A xaala.
~ singular audience that ]
~ gathered to lssten ;opze@ching
III audience Of monkeys. says an
india correspondent 81 the Boston Geld
~n Rule.
When ! commenced work in the re-
gion which / have now occupied for
mo-e than 80 years, = asked two fellow
missionaries 90 Join ne iR . preaching
tour in the adjacent taluk or county.
We first went with three native assist
ants q the talak town, on county seat
OR tents were pitched IN a grove adj
joining the town. We usually On OH
tours went two and two 20 preach in the
villages; bat, this being the taluk town,
and the first Of our preaching the gospel
In that region, we went in a BODY into
the native city.
Walking through the cloth, spice,
grain and iron merchants bazaar streets,
and then through the goldsmiths and
temple street, and then through the
Atrees Of Brahman residences, TO adver.
siss our presence and incite curiosity TO
know what we were about. we finally
took our stand in the Brahman street,
and all joined in singing q of the
beautiful Telugu Christian lyrics and
gathered an audience OF interested lis
tenerA-
We stood upon q little raised platform
on one side Of the street against the
house walls The houses were all CT one
story, joined together like a city block,
with fat roofs and a low parapet along
the front Of the roof. One Of our native
assistants read a portion from the Cos
pels, and another preached briefly then
one Of my fellow missionaries followed,
preaching more az length, while !
watched the audience, 10 study the coun-
teuances of the people among whom !
expected to work.
i had noticed that behind the houses
On the opposite side Of the street there
was . long row CO trees growing in their
back yards the branches Of which
stretched out over the fat roofs.
CHANGING TO raise my eyes, I noticed
many branches Of these trees beginning
20 bend downward toward the roofs and
Jaw the faces Of some old jack monkeys
peering ont through the foliage. Soon
some Of them jumped down and came
forward 10 see what their "hig broth
exs" in the street were ABOUT, az they
stood gazing so intently at these white
nen standing on the platform. Spring
ing upoa the parapet. they seated them
selves, with their hind feet hanging
over in front. and gazing with fxedness
af the preacher, - they saw the people
In the street doing.
Other monkeys followed. until there
wa q long row Of them thus seated ON
the parapet. The late corners / could see
walking along behind the parapet, look
ing for o place wide enough to get a
seat Failing 20 find a wide enough
place between two already seated mon
keys, they would put up their hands,
and, pushing each one sidewise, would
seem to be saying. ''Sit along a little,
please. and give a fellow a seat, until
the bench" was crowded.
The audience in the street, standing
with their backs toward that row Of
houses, did not notice the monkeys, and
SO their attention was not distracted ~
them.
lad noticed that many mother mon
Ho-u ROD ErOrnk~ @hor- h~ks~- >, ~L-w.L
with them. These little baby monkeys
sat upon the thigh of the mother, while
her hand was placed around them in q
very human fashion, bet the sermon
was evidently too high for these little
folks 20 comprehend CHANGING up, /
saw one Of the little monkeys cautiously
reach his hand around, and, catching
bold Of another baby monkeys tail,
give it . pull. The other little monkey
struck back, bat each mother monkey
evidently ~disapproved of this levity in
church. and each gave its own baby .
box on the ears, as though saying: 'Sit
downs Don't you know how to behave
in church, The little monkeys, thus
reprimanded. turned the most solemn
N@~o 0HoAa AZ EArHtbrA oL0 ec-llcu
70 listen intently 10 what he was saying.
With the exception Of a monkey now
and then trying to catch q Gea that was
biting him in some tender spot, they
thus sat demurely until the preacher
finished his sermon and until we had
distributed gospels and tracts among the
audience and had started for our tents.
Our celestial audience" seeing our
terrestrial audience" dispensing, then,
and not until then, left their seats and
demrreiy walked back and sprang upon
the branches again. There were no
monkey capers" az they went. They
srere AZ serious as a congregation leav-
ing a church and sat upon the branches
in q meditatiye mood as though think
ing over what they had heard the preach
or say. And thus we left our unique
monkey audience.
First Tkermom~t~r