The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-04-28
oARSCN LEAKS REVIVAL
ONE HUNDRED AND NINETEEN
soul S SAVED UPIO DATE.
Good Work Gong on in a Great re
vivaI at St. Paut's Methodist
Church For Co.ored

1
Church For Co!ored.
Parson Leak is having a big revival ut
| his church on West Edenton street.
There have been during the four weeks
| Of its continuance, that is up to Sunday
| night, 119 conversions among the color
ed sisters and brethren, and the outlook
| is full of promise.
Parson Leak is doing good work both
| for his own people and for the white peo-
| pie, and is laying up more treasures than
Jim Young can make away with in twelve
| months time.
Secularly speaking, Parson Leak is,
perhaps, not able to cope with Jim Young
who deals in the things of moth and rust
but Jim's bullets will be flattened against
| the wall Of Zion that Parson Leak is now
| building about his followers.
In his sermon Sunday night. PEARSON
| Leak said there was no place in the meet
| ing for those who walked in the councils
| Of the ungodly and sat in the seat of the
| scornful; he said there could be NO place
! in the church for the leaders in the bar
rooms, dancing halls or gambling dens.
The parson said ne was not 'vocally
able to preach a long Sermon" but the
| remarks he did make were wholesome
and helpful.
Stand fast in the liberty wherein
Christ has made you free, and be not
entangled again in the yoke Of bondage"
That was his text from Paups letter to
| the Gala tians, and passages Of his ten
minutes talk were strong and not without
| eloquence.
| He gave notice just before closing that
there was no room for Satan in the meet
ing, and took up a collection for his new
church, the people rising from their seats
and depositing their offerings at the altar.
The total collection was 5000, forty
cents more than was asked for.
| The meeting is one to impress any
rghtminded and right-nearted person.
| Old-time shouting goes on; the CONVEX
sions are what he called clean and rough
/ dry, no attempt at the smooth and polish
| ed convert that is turned out by the lat
| est fashionable methods.
After the sermon the parson began in a
very low tone the hymn, Rock of Ages
| Cleft for Me-" His voice was so low that
| the hymn could scarcely be detected, but
| the seed of the song had fallen and it be-
| gan 10 grow and spread like a big flower
| in the warm sun after an April shower.
| It started with q low, deep-bosomed
| swell, and the swing went longer and
fuller until the old hymn fairly rocked
| with rhythm That cid hymn has lift
| ed many a sinner upon ifs crest. and the
| congregation got out Of it all the power
| there was in it.
Then the parsCn stepped back and gave
| over the meeting to the elders, some call
them Shareholders, and to the sisters
| who crowded about the altar, bent over
1 Fhn - nd worried W +'pn111
Three got happy during the meeting,
| and shook hands with all the glad lockers
on, one young man falling into the strong
| embrace Of young woman who was
| probably his sister.
You longtime mo-ner don't you git
| weary,
lyon soon viii look in de Promised
This was an effective hymn and did
| good work. The hymns were often
| punctuated with short prayers and good
| prayers they were. Before they were up
| from their knees another hymn would be
| struck while they were on their way up.
Just as like as not it would be,
| I'm bOun' for de kingdom.
| Dere's glory in my soul
| Then another hymn:
| "We'll look over de waits Of Zion
| To greet an meet 'em in de Promised
land"
| There was nothing sow about these
| hymns. The meeting was now under
| good steam. The light preliminaries had
| been thrown aside like ornaments from
| the soldier after the battle is begun.
| Everybody was down to business.
| Groups would stay over mourner until
they would pull him through singing per-
haps,
"Now. Doubtin' Thomas, don't you get
| weary"
| and if that didn't bring him through
| half-sh0ut, a swinging back and forth
| with a clapning of hands, would begin
| It was old-time 'Iigion with none of the
conventional restraints that nowadays
| separate the modern ''awakenirgs'' from
| the Old-time shouting Methodist revivas,
| the kind that the miners used to come
IN out Of the ground to hear when Whit
field was talking.
parson Leak says tho revival may last
| four weeks m0re-the longer the better
| so the mourners don't oyerslepp them
selves and turn up too late to ''git break
fast in time next morning.
Every man, woman and child that Par
son Leak HEIRS to live better life is ao
added element toward order. and If t'te
| brethren keep up to the mark even i'm
Young will not prevail against them.
But might there not be n strrarate re-
viYal set apart for converting Jim from
his ra'itical Wsys Wherein his only duties
gre to fertilize the seeds Of parth-whc-c-
rs, If he would listen to the narsaa he
might he as tree planted by the riyc~s
of water.