The Washington herald., 1909-06-06

gineer. I was born in Canada, where
Re had employment as a surveyor Of
timber lands He was a useful and sue
cessful man. and his short life with my
mother and his two children was idealis-
tic In IT'S fidelity and devotion 70 all q
rs. After his DEATH was two years Of
agony mother taught school She died
when ! was seven, and I was adopted
by her favorite brother Rev. r ".
Clark. a New Ensia1d Congregational
clergyman. who was without children Of
his own. When he brought me 20 the
United States and legally took me as his
son, he thought IL best 10 change my
name 50 I have been Francis Edward
Clark ever since.
Decides to Join Ministry.
MY uncle had every promise for an
honorable and conspicuous career He
had graduated from Dartmouth. and he
was an overseer at Harvard when he
entered the army as a chaplain during
the civil war. Hoxever. he contracted a
malariaI disease in the South. which be-
came chronic. and ne was an invalid un-
Ill his Cea5h. many years afterward I
grew Up at Clermou. N New Hampshire.
a. the age o. thirteen was converted
AMI Joined the church. During my first
years at Dartmouth expected 10 be n
newspaper man. but the conviction grew
that I should preach. After my gradua-
ton, spent three years at Aadover
Theological Seminary with good results.
Better still, I met AIRS. Clark at Al
dover"
Where did you preach your first ser
mon?"
AT New Boston. y. H. I worked des-
/ perately hard and was nearly exhausted
when I got through Afterward I often
wondered if the members OF tie eOngre-
cation were as nearly PLAYED out as my
self was given $ for the sermon, and
a farmer sent me $40 out of his own
pocket There was a rule at Andover.
on the theory that seUmOn-writing in
terfered with ones work. that theolog-
ical students should not preach more
than fifteen times year Il was a poor
rule, I thought. I preached up TO the
limit Of the regulation and worked 81
summer and was thus enabled TO pay my
own way into the ministry.
His First Charge.
Before being graduated I was called
10 the WiIliston Mission. in Portland
Ne. It was a struggling little congrega-
ton Of about fifty members, but I was
promised $500 a year. And I got every
cent Of my salary from the very first.
Fortunately. We were N a growing resi-
Dental section Of the city. and inside OF
two years we were at work on a Ss0eO0
building"
How, and when. did the thought come
/ 70 you Of organizing the Christian Fn
/ deavor Society" I asked
we had a large number Of young peo-
] pie in the church and I wanted 10 yet
them Interested and TO put them 10 work.
I wss young myself. and was not afraid
to experiment. Youth. you know. can
/ live down a failure; whereas. middle
! age or Ole age often fears that failure
means personal disgrace ] had formed
/ social clubs and literary societies. but
I soon perceived that what we needed
was Christian effort: that we Mere get
/ ting away from the cne fundamental
/ principle OF the church Personally. I
! have never believed in cOddliag young
/ people In my experience they have NJ
ways been ready, willing. and competent
10 do hard and important work. Il came
I 10 ule. back there a: Wiluston. that II
( was my duty TO give them serious and
dlmculf employment. I saw. and Il was
/ the same IN al churches, that a dozen or
fifteen OF the Older members Of the cur
J gregstiOn were doing everything-lsh.r
ing taking up the collections. visiting
the sick, going on the Lords er-ands.
and Sa On determined substantially
10 chsnge the machinery OF the church.
Anyway. / would put my theory 10 a