Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1902-05-22
WHY THEY DID N0TGO
REASONS MEN GAVE FOR STAY
ING AWAY FROM CHURCH.
One Had a Grievance Against Mem
Der and the other Was Surfeited
When He Was ung-Observations
of a Country Minister.

of a Country Minister.
He was n young minister whose
charge is in the country and he was
talking about the decline in church at
Tendance.
1T Is we preachers in the rural dis
tricts," said he, who have a chance to
get at the real reasons why people stay
away. OF course we have mo data
that would help solve the problem as 1t
presents itself in the cities, but, being
privileged in the country to talk to one
and all we get reasons at first hand.
Some of them are interesting and when
analyzed they are more likely than not
TO resolve themselves into personal dis
nike to churchgoing or to some one in
the church. uaWg8 ft A
"a There was an old farmer in one dis
strict where | preached who had the
reputation of never going to church. He
was peculiar old fellow who seldom
had much to sax, but one day | went
to see him and IN the course OF the
conversation asked why he never came
'to hear my sermons.
"Ie was silent for minute, and then
said: Il did go to church once, and 1
wasn't treated right. and amt been
there since. 1t was when they was hav-
in revival up in the white schoolhouse
and things were getting pretty warm
went there one night and sat next
the window After awhile they got
to the shoutin' part, and one old wom-
an got to runnin' UP and down the aisle
rshoutin' and askin' everybody to come
up and pray. 4.0t,as~
Il sat there and looked on till saw
she was maxim for me, and then look
ed for a way out The window was
open, and the first thing | knowed was
goin' out of it, AS struck the ground
j heard old Elder Abbadusky. that sat
right across the aisle from me, shout
'"There goes the devil out of the win
dow" Now | don't consider that a re
spectful way for one man to speak of
another, and | never went back again.
and | don't intend to till old Abba
'dusky goes to glory ieaf
zone day | went to see another man
who was ii very good man. but never
went to church. He was a Scotchman
.end when | asked him why he did not
attend he said: Young man, if you
keep on going to church the way you do
now all your life, and if you live to be
100 you viii not have been to church as
much as have
~ asked what he meant.
"'My father was a Scotch convenan-
-, Ia. 7
shaver we rsed to go to church in the
morning and stay all day. | would sit
ON those hard benches and listen to ser
mons that | didn't understand. My
legs would dangle over the floor till
they ached.
eff | went to sleep there was always
a deacon or some one else to poke me
in the ribs and whiSperingly inquire if
i wanted to go straight to hell. That
was OH Sunday. ~ ., U.
Then there were prayer-meetings
during the week and one or two extras
OF different sorts between. There was
always more church and more sermons
when l would have given my boots to
be out hunting
"'That thing went on from the time
was big enough to remember until
was 81. made up my mind long be
fore l reached the latter age that when
1t came there would be no more church
for me, and there wasn't. | haven't
been since Now, really, dominic, do
you wonder at it?'
And" concluded the dominic. ac-
cording to the, New York Times, Il
can't say that did" ENf"'t