The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-31

self drifted into speechmakng that cam
palgn. one day he went into a newspaper
once IN Buffalo. The editor was out Young
Reed picked up copy Of Sartor Resartus'
ana was so deeply engrOssed when the editor
returned that he did not see him. He was
startled when the editor asked: What can
l do for you| Reed replied that he wanted
something TO do. He admitted that he had
had no experience, but the editor thought
there must be something in a boy who could
be interested in 'Sartor Resartus. Just then
there was an alarm Of fire and young Reed
was directed to follow the engines and write
an account or II. He came in and sat down
to write. Three or four times he sharpened
his pencil and three or four times crossed
out the first sentence. There was fire, he
seemed to him very crude in after years.
Meanwhile. after he had been away from
home three years his father, a preacher.
moved 10 Wisconsin, and through brother
"A reconciliation was effected and the young
fellow was invited to come home. He did so.
How do you do, Myron? was the greeting
he received from his father, just though
he had been across the street for a half
hour instead Of thousands of miles away for
three years Reed had only a common school
education. lie worked on farm, taught
school and finally drifted into his fathers
profession. He left Congregational Church
to come to the First Presbyterian here. The
session found that he was sound on doc
trines of the Presbyterian faith, although
they discovered concerning him, as ne did
concerning some of them, that he did not
stick to the old Calvinistic doctrine Of infant
damnation and some of the most radical
ideas that are in the Westminster Confess
sion of Faith. On the main question, as TO
whether there were any reason why he
should not work for the best welfare of the
church, he was able to reply in the negative
and so he was accepted
WAS A LIBERAL MAN.
Reed was most liberal man and there
was always path through the grass in his
yard leading to his door Nobody was ever
turned away without assistance. If he had
ba out friends
found something. He was interested with
Oscar McCulloch in the charity organization
work. One time McCulloch had to go away
and turned things over to Reed. When he
came back he found the society was bank
rupt Reed used to be most peculiar man
in some ways. When he was i'll he did not
want any one to come near him. He would
curl himself up and turn his face to the
wall. throwing away any medicine the ply
sicians left for him He always contended
nature had her own remedies and would per-
form all that was required, II given sway.
He had a rugged constitution that, perhaps,
helped him to practice what he believed IN
this way
"One of his friends was Emma Abbott, an
opera singer of most pleasing voice ana
gracious manner, and, withal, a good Wom-
an. Reed met her in a little town in the
Northwest where he was preaching. She
was stra nded there, and with two or three
other ladies proposed 10 give concert. 1t
was a dreadful night, the rain pouring down
in torrents Reed hurried about and got a
Little audience of a dozen or fifteen together,
but although the singer brought her own
guitar and played and sang most enjoyable
music not enough was raised to get her
party out of town. She offered to pawn ner
guitar to Reed. He refused to accept this,
but got enough money together either of
his own or mis- friends, to enable them to
reach a place where they could give con-
cert. Years after, when Reed moved to
Denver Miss Abbott drove down in hand
some carriage to see her old friend while
filling an engagement there.
Reed was in Chicago about the time OF
the breaking out of the war. One night he
entered a meeting where great Abolition
speaker was talking. He became aroused
and hurried away to form a company. L
think it was of a Michigan company that
he was captain; Reeds sermons were IN
tensely practical, made up, as they were,
out of the abundance Of his own personal eX-
periences in life
CAME HERE ON TRIAL.
Elijah B. Martindale was one of Myron
w Reeds intimate friends. and he was
concerned in calling Mr.. Reed to the pas
torate of the First Presbyterian Church.
The Coe family, who had known him in l
Wisconsin, had told of his remarkable power
as a preacher, and as the pulpit of the First
Presbyterian Church was at that time UNI
occupied it was decided to send Mr.. Martin
dale and Thomas II. Sharpe to hear Mr..
Reed preach. Mr. Martindale did not make
the trip TO Milwaukee, but Mr.. Sharpe re-
turned enthusiastic over the preachers
methods. and it was concluded to ask him to
preach at the First Presbyterian Church on
trial. Mr.. Reed was then preaching from
the stage OF theater He came here and
preached TO the congregation of the First
Presbyterian Church three or four months.
A meeting was then held and 1t was decided
to offer the pulpit to him. Among the fast
friends the magnetic preacher had made
r Holloway H.
Der of the church, but he was a member of
the congregation. and he cast a vote for
MIR. Reed The appointment was made by
unanimous vote, and Mr.. Reed accepted.
During the time he was here on trial he
lived for six or eight weeks at Mr.. Martin
dales home. This was in 1877.
While he was living at Mr. Martindales
home his host who was at that time pub
Usher Of the Journal called his attention
ten by James Whitcomb Riley Mr.. Reed
read it twice and was captivated by its style.
The title of the story was "A Remarkable
Man., and it is one of the sketches in the
volume Of prose published by Riley. Some
time after Mr.. Reed read Rileys story he
met the writer, and they became close
loch had been together in a Chicago college.
They were mutual admirers and Mr.. Reed
was the means of Mr.. McCulloch's being
called to this city. Mr.. Reed rented from
j. p. E. Kumler. his predecessor in the
pulpit of the First Presbyterian Church,
his house on North Delaware street, now
there nearly all of the seven years of his
residence in this city.
He spent much of his time I'M the Journal
editorial rooms, not only because he and
Mr.. MartindaIe were friends. but also be-
cause a newspaper office had a fascination
for him. He and Robert Ingersoll were
friends and one night when Pope Bob,
gave his address on The Mistakes of
Moses in this city Mr.. Reed went to hear
him. Mr. Martindale asked him to write
review of the lecture, but he demurred say
ing he did not want to become involved in a
controversy with Ingersoll. Mr.. Martindale
then suggested that he write it as an edi-
torial, and he consented. The editorial at
tracted wide attention because it was a
bitter attack on IngersOlFs beliefs and was
couched in the atheists own cynical Ian
Journal that Mr. Reed became acquainted
with one OF the best-known gamblers of the
city. He was in the editorial room talking
with some Of his friends. when the gambler
entered. Elijah Halford introduced Mr..
Reed and the gambler to each other, but
omitted to name the occupation of each.
MI Reed told the gambler he would like to
have him call on him The gambler
asked where he could find him "At the
corner of Pennsylvania and New York
streets replied Reed
why. l don't know of any buildings
there but churches said the gambler.
laughing.
Well returned Reed, II am the preacher
at the First Presbyterian Church"
The gambler was thereafter one Of the
preachers most interested auditors and it
front of the church at the time of the serv-
ices. He was captivated by the same charm
that had enthraled those who had been all
their lives within the fold of the church.