Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-03-20
Rev. Sam Jones Writes of His Travels

CARTERsvILLE, Ga, March Il
To The Atlanta formal:
THAvE JUST returned home from a
tour of Iowa, Missouri. Indian
- Territory and Texas. While we
have had severer winters. this seems
to me to have been the worst winter
on poor white folks and niggers and
old cows 1 have ever seen in America -
Texas and the territories have scarce
ly had a grOund-soaking rain in two
years, they tell me. and their groHnd
is too dry to pillow, and all east of the
Mississippi the country flooded with
rain so that the plows cannot run on
this side of the river. 1 think the
farmers generally in the west and
south enter into the fields this year
under the most disadvantageods cir
cumstances that they have FOR many
years. Many of the farmers are dis
couraged and many of the mules start
in poor. Corn at a dollar bushel and
labor scarce and high, causes the far
mer to feel like If cotton should be
less than 10 cents a pound next fall
he will come out loser. Wheat looks
worse than / have ever seen il at this
llAIlc VI the year. Inc Idll Odl crop mas
been killed or badly damaged through
out the country. But still there is a
good deal of buoyancy and hopefulness
in the land.
For the first time in five years
hear the drummers talking with each
other about the dullest trade they
have had IN years, and all in all.
things do not look roseate in the south
west and south, but keep on saying
it. that we will live till we die and
that's as long as Methuselah lived
regretted very much not being able
to attend the Bible conference in At
lanta. The reports from that meeting
are all favorable. Morgan and Dixon
are both grand expounders of the Scrip
ture and they are men full of faith ana
power, and /. have no doubt all who
attended the Bible conference meeting
were uplifted and inspired towards a
better life. The crowds in attendance
demonstrated that the people are hun
CRY, they are hungry for something.
A horse can't live on wind, much less
a man. Pat said, bigora as soon as
he got his horse so he could live on
nothing he died.
incidentally fell in on a preachers
conference the other morning. The
subject for discussion was. +" What
Amusements the Church Should Of
fer to the Young PeopIey' II was
very interesting discussion, and the
verdict rendered after the discussion
was that the church could not go into
the amusement business, that any sort
of a 10-cent show could beat them
at that.
was called upon to make talk at
the meeting. told them that it was
well enough for the ministry to begin
to survey the field and that If any OF
them had any trick up their sleeve 1t
was about time they were shaking 1t
out: that the pulpit still had a grip
upon the old folks and children. but
that the young bucks and bookcases
had about taken to the woods. main
tanned there as 1 would maintain any
where, that the old-fashioned gospel
preaching in its practical application
to the hearts and consciences of men
was the most attractive influence ever
brought to bear upon the human race.
The only way to preach, l said, is to
find out what holes the people are in
and shoot in there on them. / said the
gang will come out Of the holes a
humping, full of shot, and swear they
were not in there, but they could not
explain how their hides got punctured
with the shot. said the ministry Of
these days don't preach at the con-
sciences of men, that they were either
ignorant as to the holes the gangs
were in or else they were afraid to
shoot in there; that IL they didn't
know where the people were they were
too ignorant to preach; IL they did
know, and were afraid to shoot into
the holes, then they were too cow
ardly to preach. One OF the preachers
present spoke up and said that he
didn't think the ministers Of God were
cowardly: that they were men who
had forsaken all and laid sacrifices for
the cause that angels knew not Of, and
not only that. they had brought their
families with them into the hardships
of the ministry. said. yes. but there's
different kinds Of courage. Many a SOL
der has kissed wife or mother goodby
and babe home and comforts goodby
and donned the warriors clothes.