The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-12-24

water foot, his land foot would be
planted in a situation TO do prompt and
vigorous business with me.
My inseparable companion in my
early days was a big, black, ring
necked dog named Brave. We had been
reared up as pups together, so TO speak
Braves name. like that of many a
more pretehtious being, was evidently
misf1t, for he was afraid of every
thing he came across, from grandaddy
longlegs to a wood mouse. But what
inspired him with the most abject terror
was a thunderstorm.
AT the first keen clap with teeth
chattering and tail cinched between his
legs, he would strike a bee line for a
trundle bed, where l would soon follow,
in exactly the same condition as Brave,
so far as physical configuration would
allow. l don't know just what Brave
was thinking about, but / knew l was
thinking about the great judgment day,
and If somebody had happened to have
fetched toot on Uncle John Csborns
old dinner horn, as sure as you are
born, there would have been one small
boy in this vale of tears who would
have jumped out of his skin. and been
in too much of hurry to get some
where to go back after it"
The negro slaves who tried to follow
the white folks in everything they did
were even more fervent in their re-
vivals, and more picturesque. They
were always looking for miracles, and
their faith was wonderfully rewarded,
according to their testimony.
Once there was a tremendous spirit
ual upheaval among the negro race over
in Linn county. The meeting was held
IN LinneuS, and it became such an event
that half of the seats were reserved
nightly for the white folks. One even
ing some young white people who were
occupying the two front benches, gig
gled during the vociferous praying of a
compound black nanny.
Instantly alive to the situation. she
ceased praying for forgiveness for her
own shortcomings and FASTENED TO
apologize to the Lord for the po' white
folks. She moved over to where they
were, and, kneeling close beside them,
offered up something like this in their
defense:
LEARN EN- Some Sense"
''Oh, Lawdi Abs heah tonight plead
in wild yo' to forgive desc miserabul
white sinners watts come heah to laugh
at thy servants. Learn 'em some sense
oh, Lawd, so dat wen da goes to thy
house dali know how to act
'Ah knows 'em ALL an All could tell
yo' thar names. but All wants to glib
EN- chanel. Don't let de debbil cotch
'em, oh, Lawd, case da amt ready ter
die.
Hit gwine to take heap O. prayin'
ter keep 'em out o. der bad place, but
ives willin' ter do tn best we can. Da
doan' mount ter much, but da's got
good parunts what's tried ter raise 'em
right Pity their Ignorance, Lawd, an
don't let EN- burn. Amenr'
With scarlet faces tho nicoIv draSSa,7
girls and boys had to sit still and take
their medicine, while the devout all
over the house, whites as we'll as blacks
kept putting loud ''amens' as the black
supplicator made her points. There was
never ghost of a smile among the
young folks attending the meeting from
that time on.
But the religious debates were the
drawing cards among the devout scat
tered through the forests and back
country. Immersion, infant baptism and
Denomination were the main subjects.
Moderators were chosen and time linn
its placed upon the arguments.
Sometimes these debates grew so fierce
they would break up in a row. Communl-
| ties would be divided for months and in
| tense feeling manifested. The disputants
would prepare like q lawyer presenting an
issue for the government. Tables loaded
with musty tones would be placed within
easy reach OF the speakers. The crowds
attending such events were enormous.
One of the most noted debates of the
last century occurred between the Rev
DR.. Bartlett Anderson a missionary Bap-
| fist, and James Dysart, who had been re-
| ferred to above Brother Dysart was a
Cumberland Presbyterian. The question
was baptism. Bartlett arguing for II and
| Dysart against it,
The debate occurred in 1856. four or five
years before any railroad had crept into
northern Missouri Anderson was a man
| of scholarly attachments. He was versed
| in many languages and quoted copiousIy
from Greek. Hebrew and Sanskrit
The people who knew that Uncle Jimns
Dysart had never plowed through any
ancient literature. and was only a plain
country preacher, wondered how he was
going to answer the erudite missionary
Baptist When his time came to sneak
Uncle jumps enlightened them He said:
Brethren, my opponent. Mr. Anderson
has read 70 you out of whole lot of fine
books that we don't know anything about
They may have settled the question of
baptism over yonder among the pagan ma
tons. but what's the use? You and me
want il settled in America
Now. / am going to use as my only
authority a good old book printed in
English the Bible II Mr. Anderson wants
ii settled in Hebrew or Hindu or Choc-
taw. he can move over into them ccun-
tries and settle IL for 'em there but we1l
| settle it in good old English
! Dysart was man of common sense