The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1900-01-17

this earthly hell when for every sorl
rescued by their sacrifice the saloon
made two more that needed rescue?
He could not escape the question. It
was the same that Virginia had put to
Rachel in her statement that, in her
opinion, nothing really would ever be
done until the saloon was taken ont of
the Rectangle. Henry Maxwell went
back to his parish work that afternoon
with added convictions on the license
business.
But. If the saloon were q factor in
the problem of the life of Raymond. no
less were the First church and it's little
company of disciples who had pledged
themselves to do as Jesus would do.
Henry Maxwell, standing at the very
center of the movement, was not in q
position to judge of its power as some
one from the outside might have done,
but Raymond itself felt the touch of
this new discipleship and was changed
in very many ways, not knowing all
the reasons for the change. ~
The winter had gone, and the wear
was ended, the year which Henry Max
well had fixed as the time during
which the pledge should be kept to do
as Jesus would do. Sunday, the ami
versary of that one a year ago, was in
many ways the most remarkable day
the First church ever knew. 1t was
more important than the disciples in
the First church realized. The year had
made history SO fast and so serious that
the people were not yet eble to grasp
its significance, and the day itself,
which marked the completion of a
whole year Of such discipleship, was
characterized by such revelations and
confessions that the immediate actors
in the events themselves could not uu-
derstand the value of what had been
done or the relation of their trial to the
rest Of the churches and cities in the
country.
1t happened that the week before
that anniversary Sunday the Rev. Cal
vim Bruce, D. D., Of the Nazareth Av-
enue church, Chicago, was in Ray
mond, where he had come on visit to
some old friends and incidentally to see
his old seminary classmate, Henry Max
well. He was present at the First
Church and was an exceedingly atten-
tive and interested spectator. His ac-
count Of events in Raymond, and espe-
cially of that Sunday. may throw more
light on the entire situation than any
description or record from other sources.
DR.. Bruce's statement is therefore here
given.
Letter from Rev Calvin Bruce, d.
d., Of the Nazareth Avenue church,
Chicago. to Rev. Philip s. Caxton, d.
D.. New York city]:
"MY DEAR CAxToN-It is late Sun
day night but am so intensely awake
and 50 overhowing with what have
seen and heard that l feel driven to
write you now some account of the
situation in Raymond as l have been
ltudying it and as it has apparently
some to climax today. So this is my
only excuse for writing so extended q
letter at this time.
"Ydu remember Henry Maxwell in
the seminary. think you said the last
time visited you in New York that
you had not seen him since we gradu.
ated. He was refined. scholarly fellow,
yOu remember. and when he was called
to the First church of Raymond within
. year after leaving the seminary l said
to my wife. Raymond has made
good choice. Maxwell will satisfy them
as sermonizer. He has been here II
years. nd understand that up to a
year a. he had gone on in the regular
course OF the ministry, giving good sat
isfactiOn and drawing good congrega.
tion to his morning preaching service
His church was counted the largest,
most wealthy church in Raymond All
the best people attended it. and most
Of them belonged The quartet choir
was famous for its music, especially for
its soprano, Miss Winslow. of whom /
shall have more to say. and. on the
whole. as l understand the fact. Max
we'll was in a comfortable berth. with
very good salary. pleasant surround
ings. not very exacting parish of re-
fined. rich, respectable people. such
church and parish as nearly all the
young men in the seminary in our time
looked forward to as very desira de-
"But year ago today Maxwell came
into his church on Sunday morning and
at the close of his service made the
astounding proposition that the mem
bers OF his church volunteer for year
not to do anything without first asking
the question. What would Jesus do?'
and. after answering it. to do what in
their honest judgment he would do. re-
gardless of what the result might be to
them
the effect Of this proposition as it
has been met and obeyed by numoer
Of the members Of the First church of
Raymond has been so remarkable that.
as you know. the attention of the whole
country has been directed to the move
ment. call it a movement because
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