The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1909-01-07
farewell TO PASTOR
DIR. and Mrs. Wilkinson Honorcd b,
Their Pensioners in a. Fare
well Reception.

AAiSA dtt~lSl1OuCES III IL FAr0s
well Reception.
Wednesday evening between 500
and 400 members of the Methodist
church gathered in the basement to
say farewell to their beloved pastor
and Wife, DIR. and Mrs. II. S. Wilkin-
son. The early part of the evening
vas devoted to the regular prayer
meeting service, when song and fer
vent prayer was INDUCED in. An hour
or social conversation among the
people with the honored guests fol
lowed. when S. e. Morris called the
assembly to order.
MIR. Norris referred to the nature
OF the occasion which called the peo-
pie together IL spoke briefly of the
regret that existed DER the depart
ure of these good people. He intro
duced DR.. e. r. Reamer to say some
thing about DR.. Wilkinson LAS a
Citizen IL Our MIDST He said he had
known DR.. Wilkinson just five years
and three months-the time he had
been in Mitchell. He said that in
every municipality every politician
has his dependable men in every
ward, and he knew just where they
stood, and they stand for certain
things. Then there is another class
OF citizens who stand for the higher
ideals OF education and morals, and
who are always engaged in the up
lift of humanity. To this higher class
he said DR.. Wilkinson belonged. DR..
Reamer said the pastor was a man
who having seen a wrong is free
to say so publicly and was not afraid
to stand by his convictions, and a
man who does this is a very valuable
individual to a community. HE is
fearless, he is right in his heart, and
he stands for the right, and pre-
dict that he will be on the right side
when he is heard from in his Cali
fornia home. He has high ideals
in education, and he must have to
stands before his congregation fifty
two Sundays in the year and preach
the sermons that he has since COM
ing to Mitchell; that 1t was necessary
to delve deep in study to supply his
hearers He felt that DR.. Wilkinson
had left a deep impression upon the
hearts and minds OF his congrega-
ton and upon the citizens of the city
with whom he has come in CON
tact.
Prof l.. A. Stout spoke of DR..
Wilkinson LAS a Preacher and Pas
tor. The speaker said he remember
ed five years ago when DR.. Wilkin-
son came to Mitchell and saw him
standing in the pulpit for the first
time, and how he sized him up
and then sized him down,
and he formed his judgment of the
a Prof. Stout reviewed in a way
what DR.. Wilkinson had to confront
in Mitchell, and what he had to
supply in the way of meeting various
classes of people in the members of
the University faculty, the different
student bodies; then the hard head
ed bushes man down town, who
wanted things straight from the
shoulder, and then all the others
who were to be supplied with intel
lectual religious food; he saw the
spiritual need that existed; saw
that some wanted it %adulterated and
some unauthorized and others in
different ways; he took stock fnan-
cially of the situation as he looked
on that old church and saw the need
OF a new one; he sized us up fnan-
cially. DR.. Wilkinson has kept us
awake thinking, he has moved us
spiritually, and financially he has
more than shook us up. Prof. Stout
paid a n tribute to DR.. Wilkinson
with reference to the construction of
the e church building, and prac-
tically laid the credit of the success
OF the affairs entirely on his should
ers. He admitted that the official
board was many times sick at heart
over the building of the church, but
after a discussion with the pastor,
who's optimism was so strong that
it permeated the officers and they
they took their burden with lighter
hearts. Prof. Stout said that the
membership has even surprised itself
in he way they have moved down
their obligations which were taken
at the dedication of the new church
last January, since which time they
have paid $4,000, and leaving a
little less than $4,000 yet to be
paid and he thought that in a year
they had done a wonderful thing. In
closing his remarks Prof. Stout paid
a personal tribute to DR.. Wilkinson,
saying that words could not express
MS cola OF the pastor In
what he has done for the town, for
the church and himself and his fam
lily, and offered the pastor words of
encouragement for his entrance into
his new field.
Miss Nina Hager, of Huron, sang
a selection that was appreciated and
she responded to a merited encore
Miss Hager has a rich c~ontralto
voice and sho cinpc with ovooI1on<
taste. +
DR.. j. L. Seaton spoke with a deep
feeling of the work of the pastor,
whom he regarded as having COM
bined qualities Of apostle, teacher
and hlilder-al of urhioh ho haa