The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-11-28

ar>-~those who wake the STU
rers up right. They are coming-the
brethren are coming 400 strong-from
al the hooks and corners OF the State
10 hold the Methodist Conference mere
this week. | heard man say some
time ago that when he died he wanted
this put on his tomb-stone-and
nothing more-"He was Methodist
and a Democrat"
1bere seems from one view
point to be lots in this. As / was saying
some months ago to Brother Yates.
what Democracy is to civil govern
ment. Methodism is to the spiritual gov
eminent of the world. 1t don't neces-
aarily mean Democracy as applied only
70 what we call Democracy. l mean
Democracy in the sense of men-"men'
as Henry George used the word. Ihat
last night of his on earth this heroic
and sincere lover of his kind said:
Don't introduce me as being TN the
demagogic sense) the friend Of the poor
man alone-I am not for the poor man
land here he lifted himself with fervor)
| am for men," he shouted. This was
as great a thing as Henry George ever
said. it was a secular summing up or
what Methodism is. Who was it told
me the other day something about
smile used some years ago by blshop
Keener at Conference? lie compared
the central force of itineracy TO the nu-
man heart, and the gong out OF the
brethren "into all the world ana thelr
coming in to Conference to the how ana
ebb of the arterial and yenous Diood'
There was no stop-a1 motion ana re-
freshment, renewing or strehstn anu
purity and nutriment to the great body to
IinnfRnf there WIS
probably a slight flaw in the figure. |
mean no disrespect in calling attention
70 il. When the blood comes back to the
heart. il comes back full Of carbon TO
be cleansed in the oxygen chambers or
the lungs. Not so with the Methodist
brother-he comes back purer than ne
went-prrer because, perhaps, ne IS
noorer in purse and spirit and you know
what the Good Book says BLESSED
are the poor in spirit for they snail
ha comfortpd.' | believe that is cor
roct--chastened into hero of the first
cIass-and. az Sam Jones says, you We
cot To have hero before You can nave
genuinely great man. But no matter
about this, lets take another glimpse
apropos of Bishop Keeners figure.
Brother Afford, of the laity, was teAlng
me the other day about a scrap ne
heard several years ago. 1S90,I thInk,ao
MacRae. Georgia, between Brofner
Abernethy. (AIethodis1 and Brother
Scarboro. Baptist. Brother ScaTboro GOT
the laugh on Brother Abernethy. Al
far a few passes. he tainted the Meth
r,sssfs with letting everybody in-ani
laid ii on BIZ saying that Meth0dism re-
minded him Of one Of these fat, round
r1q7,sasraps-:t caught EN- from what
erer direction they might happen to poke
their heads In worthy or what not-Al
right Brother Scarboro. Ii Brother
Ahernethy had had time 10 think, he
could hare downPa y0u. / Ike the
rraousetrap q 8 a symbol of fethodism.
think Il beats Bishop KeenPr's heart"
figure. The mouse-trap catches EN-
comm and a 'gwiHe. But even In
this there Is a aaw-the nouse-tTap
holds 'ern so 4har cant get out-and
Mp+ho7tsrn don't always hol7-There are,
Of course. backsliders. hut they are great
fellows for @coning up again. While
the lamp holds ont to burn, the vilest
sinner may return" That is a good
and comforting saying with us. So
that barring this-I accept the oppro-
bious animus IF the mouse-trap figure
and exalt it into symbol Of praise.
liz S8DAGE4- aAE AS4A1&Ars
Just a few evenings ago | was walk
ing along the street with a beloved Meth
odist preacher We passed a doorway.
They were sitting side by side on the
steps. They had been married TO years
their faces had been switched by the
wears into countless wrinkles-Ah. but
those wrinkles. / recalled at the moment
a line / read long ago
"The sea is a face
With its countless wrinkles and crows
feet and passions and dreams,
But this face mirrors heaven"
The line came to me as the good
brother greeted them gracefully, "A
happy-looking young couple" WHO is
that?" the old man faltered, lifting his
hand tremblingly to his dim eyes. Some
body prompted. rs that you Mr.. -?Oh,
yes. yes--the reason We stuck together SO
long-we were married by Methodist
preacherw That was pretty-it was
more-that fine old soul was Metho-
dist right. / venture he'll be at the con-
ference. II he is, he ought to have a
front seat.
l hope it is not cyncism, but somehow
the brethren-the younger crowd don't
seem as whole to be what they used to
be-they are just as good. / don't mean
that, but they don't stir up the sinner
like Brother Motley, Brother Rosser,
Brother Edwards, don't leave out Bishop
Marvin, used to do. Am | right? II
l am not, somebody call me down. Those
old fellows used to build fires under the
pews Of the sinners until it got SO hot,
they had to get up. Then they went
down the aisle, when the altar got full,
and made things lively. They gathered
nm the sinners by the armfull and
brought up another load, singing all the
time, "Plenty of room sinners! Altar is
full but the brethren will make room
on the front bench" shouting going on
all the time between the altar and the
front bench, as some new sinner would
spring up converted. Great nights
Don't sheer! This may not satisfy the
aesthetic nature of some," as / heard
man say once, but it was all right
There ought to be more of it.