The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-09-26
FEARLESS CIRCUIT RIDERS.

| FEARLESS CIRCUIT RIDERS.
 Early Preachers Punished Rowdies
 and Bullies Without Aid of Law, The pioneer Methodist preachers took
 their lives in their hands to preach | the Gospel through the wilderness and along the frontiers when Indians and wild animals abounded and when
 the foundations of civilized society
 We're just beginning to be laid. Those were rough times and the travelling preachers had to resort to rough methods.
 It was sometimes necessary for the early preachers to fight, and many of them had obstinate conbats with ruff fans who tried to break up their meet ings.
 A fighting preacher of early times was the Rev. James Ravens, who is still remembered by some old people in this State. What Peter Cartwright was to the Methodist Church in Illinois James Ravens was in Indiana. He was for many years Presiding Elder of the Indianapolis district and was known as a preacher all over central Indiana.
 Once at g camp meeting held in Au- gust, 1886, he had an encounter with a local bully named David Buckhart. Shortly before the time for the meet ing Mir. Havens received notice from Buckhart, who lived near the camp ground, warning him not to hold a meeting there. MT. Havens paid no att tention to the warning. On Sunday night after the horn had been blown at the retiring hour, word was brought to MT. Ravens that Buckhart was making a disturbance.
 Reckoning to two or three friends to accompany him, Mr. Havens proceeded at once to the spot. Buckhart positive ly refused to leave the grounds. After a few words he made a lunge at the preacher, which the latter avoided, and then, with the aid of his friends, he overcame Buckhart and took him to Squire Genison's office at the cor ner of Washington and Delaware streets. The squire soon appeared and
 began to prepare the papers for Buck hart's commitment.
 One of the party who accompanied MT. Ravens tells what follows: While this was doing Buckhart, with quick
 and nervous steps, continued to pace around the room, and coming in front of the chair in which Elder Havens
 sat he suddenly stopped and pulled
 from his pocket a large knife with
 spring back and with sudden jerk l tcI Havens mistook for a pistol and in a
 moment he sprang to his feet and
 catching the hand that held the knife
 he planted a terrible blow with his fist
 square in Buckhart's face.
 '"The scene that followed beggars de-
 scription. They fought desperately several times around the room, planting terrible blows on each other, till
 they were parted and order restored heavily fined for breach of the peace and for carrying concealed weapons, and failing to give bond he was com mitted that night to the county jan. | Just as he entered the jail door his
 courage gave way and he exclaimed:
 Has it come to this that David Buck
 hart has been whipped by Methodist preacher? From that night he was
 no longer the leader of his gang" This was only one of several fights that Brother Havens had with rowdies He never fought except to suppress dis order He always preached extemporan- cously and without notes. Once when asked why he did not write his ser mons in advance he said: Don't you think the devil can read writing? I don't intend that he shall either fore stall me or flank me-"
 Peter Cartwright on one occasion in riding his circuit had to cross the Sangamon River. When he reached the ferry, where he was not known, there were number of people there talking politics. The ferryman, a big fellow, l was holding forth at the top of his voice about "that old renegade, Peter Cartwright" whom he abused roundly. When his turn came to be ferried across Cartwright led his horse on the boat. When midway of the river he threw the bridle over stake and said to the ferryman: You have been abusing me and saying that if I ever came this way you would 1 drown me in the river, Now is your chance"
 The ferryman asked if he was Peter Cartwright, and he said he was. The 1 ferryman pulled in his pole and they grappled, each determined to throw the other in the river. The preacher proved to be the better man and as he threw the ferryman overheard he i held on to his coat collar Then he | pushed him under water several times | until, nearly drowned, he was made to 1 repeat the Lords prayer at Cart wright's 6ictation and promised to re- peat it every morning and night, to put every Methodist preacher across the ferry free of expense and to go to hear every one that preached within | five miles of the ferry. Then Cart wright pulled him into the boat more dead than alive, and thoroughly cow ed.
 In early times the camp meetings were almost infested by rowdies, who often organized under captain and did all in their power to break up the meeting by noise, personal insults, li- quor drinking, riotous conduct, mutilat- ing horses and other outrages. Once Brother Cartwright went for their captain with a club, knocking him off his horse and when the rest of the gang fled he secured his prisoner and had him fined $50.
 Once he captured the whiskey which