The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1899-01-10
REV. JOHN RAY
HOW HE WON HIS WIFE.
The Question That Astonished
a Pioneer
MethodistPreacher in His Woo
ing.
Methodist reacher in His Woo.


cradle gray-headed man, tells the fol.
lowing story OF the courtship and
marriage of his grandfather, the Rev.
John Ray, who figured largely in the
Methodist church in the latter part OF
the last and the early part of this CEN
fury:
"My grandfather joined the travel
ing connection in '1790, when there
were less than $50 ordained mem
bers in the United States, and but one
conference, exteding from Massschu.
sets to Florida along the coast. His
early work was in Virginia and North
Carolina. where he travelled ten
years, OF course q single man, for in
those days to marry was to locate
He travelled in 1900 the Tar river cir
cult, which extended from the coast
into the interior hundred miles or
more. He was 80 years old and had
made up his mind to marry, and 10
cate and go west, which meant into
Kentucky, his former home. Among
the stopping places on his circuit was
the plantation of rich widow by the
name of Lewis, well stocked with
slaves and luxuries that a wealthy
STAKEHOLDER of that person was ex-
pected to possess.
"The widow had also a grown
daughter, who had made such an i'm
preston on the bachelor preacher,
that he had concluded to ask her to
go with him, nothing doubling that
she would 60, and go on his own
terms, but he had said nothing to her
on the subject until one evening to-
wards the close of the year, he took a
scrap of paper and wrote: Are you
under obligations to any man2 Are
you in the spirit of slavery? Will you
60 west? Will you go with me?'
"He expected an immediate answer,
and, of course, a favorable one; for
how could a girl refuse such a man ?
But she carefully folded the paper,
put it in her pocket, and soon after
left the room, to be seen no more I'M
til the next morning. To the surprise
and perplexity OF the lover, che ap-
peared the next morning in the fami-
ly circle as merry as usual, and went
about the ordinary duties of this
morning as though nothing unusual
had happened. The suspense became
painful and embarrassing, until he
finally got an opportunity to ask if
she could not answer the questions
which he had propounded. She ask
ed for further time.
mo- said he. Il must know now.
l am going away to-day, and l want
to know before starting,
"Well,' said she, Il have some
questions to ask before deciding. Will
you give up your pipe?'
"rhe lover was dumfounded. 1t
had never entered his head that a girl
had any right to PROFOUND such a
question on such an occasion, but that
the extent of her prerogative was
to say, Yes, with all my heart Pre-
Stunning upon his own Importance and
assuming that she would be only too
glad to say yes after this little cpl
sode, he said: mo. not for the best
woman on earth Ii was now her
turn to speak, and she said in tone
that indicated earnestness Then
you have my answer, once for all;
will never marry man who thinks
more of his pipe than of me-" No man
ever did more thinking in few min
utes than he did then and there. She
had put the pipe question in a new
light.
"'Think more of my pipe than her ?
he soliloquized. why, certainly not !;
yet it looks like it If l can't give it up
for her. But there is another ques-
ton: Shall a girl force me to do what
four conferences have failed to do /?
Can be happy without this girl
happier without her and with my
pipe than with her and without my