Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1897-06-25
SAM JONES DEFENDED.
GREGORY, n. C.,
June ed, 81.

VI the IeddlilS papers OF your
town Of June nth, 1897, the
following Sam Jones and the
negro problem, whic Il its
righteous editor says care two
mysterious problems in human
life that have puzzled us, and
have done SO for a considerable
time, and then adds, "what sort
of a RAN is Sam Jones A
man of brains, not of the finer
kind. A master Of slang of the
coarscr kind. A sensationalist
OF the gourmand kind. A man
OF language of the slums charac-
ter. A man of pluck both physi-
cally and intellectually. These
are his gifts. How has he used
them? He has not folded them
III a napkin. He has not hid
them under a bushel. He has
blazoned them to the world willis
out Disguise He has Chastised
Wickedness and the wicked with
nasty epithets that belonged to
the brOthel and the slums. He
has made sin odious to sinners.
But by the singularity of his cas-
LEGATIONS he has made the scoffer
at sacred things rejoice with cx>
Ceedin9 JOY. He has converted
the sacred pulpit into a circus
OF the exhibition ofthe feats of
lnointebank and the stale Jokes
of a circus clown. He has for
gotten a class of stage preachers
Of righteousness t h a t have
brought the sacred desk into
disrepute. He has begotten a
class of imitators, some of whom
have cast Sam into the shade
and made the pulpit a dispen-
satory Of coarse and obscene ep-
ithets and jests.'
To this unkind, unjust and
sladderous attack upon one
among the greatest preachers of
modern times, we reply in all
love AMI cailuor, that the above
remarks are untrue, and should |
meet the appreciation of all hon
est and fair thinking people. We
have the highest regard and res
spect for Bro. Creccy, and his
noble paper, from the fact that
he is an old man and we are
young one Our mother always
taught us from our infancy up to
manhood to always respect old |
age, and if Bio. Creecy were a
young man We would "spur him
with both feet But we must
torbcar. In the statement above |
mentioned, Bro. Creecy does not
only SANDER Sam Jones, but the
great church which he repre-
sents, the M, +. Church South;
if not directly, he does indirectly.
Sam Jones IS a local preacher,
licensed by tie NJ. +. church,
and to that church he is respon<
5ible for his conduct, his preach
ing, and the doctrine he breaches.
His character has to be passed
every year, and up until a few
years ago he was a member of
the North Georgia Conference,
and was located by Bishop Hay,
wood because he would not take
regular work. Who then
should be the judge Of our preach
ers and the style of preaching?
Is not the NJ. +. Church South
competent to judge the cllarac-
ters and lives of our preachers, or
must they consult Bro Creecy in
regard to the matter? To say
that Sam Jones has converted the
sacred pulpit into a circus for
the exhibition Of the feats of
nountebank and the stale Jokes
of a circus clown, is to say that
the M. +. Church South, is
guilty Of the same thing, and
that she endorses the making Of
the pulpit a dispensatory of
course and obscene epithets and
Jests. We look upon this un>
righteous and slanderous charge
with righteous Indignation, and
emphatically declare that it is
without even the shadow cc
truth. We speak that we know
and testify to that we have seen.
We are personally acquainted
with Sam Jones' We have been
III his meetings. We keep a
copy of his sermons in our Ii
brary, and there is not the least
lntlmatlon of this libelous charge
which the editor Of the Econo-
mist brings against him. We
exhort the good editor to first
get the mote out of his own eye.
His nasty parable of "the two
grains of wheat and the Town
Commissioners" must to have
come from the brothel and the
slums. "Let him first get with>
out SIM then he may cast the
first stone a. the "mountcbanks
and the circus clowns of the pull
pit. While We are frank to ad-
init that Sam Jones is not infall,
ible, and does things and SAYS
things that is not in accordance
with our views, yet, with all his