The farmer and mechanic., 1909-03-16
Some Distinguis ned
Ministers of the Past
B, DIR. T.. B. KINGsBrRf
By DIR. L. 3. kfNGoBIh l.


70 some distinguished ministers OF the
past ! had the opportunity OF near ar
ing among the learned Bishops OF the
Southern Methodist Church the 1oi-
lowing. Andrew. Paine, Early. Park
e. Pierce. ketner, GranbeIE ana Dun
% can The first two were Sollu Souilu,
vigorous preachers. Early was the
most inferior OF all q really ordinary,
common place eNpounder Of the Word
II Life Pierce was justly famous.
and with Parker, and heener was
most rigorous and eloquent preachef
All q them had power and eloquence.
Pearle was q very famous orator hut
when [ heard him st Greensboro ne
was tame. smooth and yet interestlnG.
Or. Deans told ms later that | dld
not hear Pierce he had changed
his entire manner because he had
concluded that the Apostles were
plain. uninla aginatiVe and without ora
Iorical displays. Something made him
q great disappointment, l have heard
among the rising Bishops. Wilson and
Galloway. Wilson is the greatest
preacher beyond fair questioning that
[ have heard in q long life. [ do not
go now into an attempt at analysis.
heard him preach certainly the
greatest Of all sermons | ever listened
10. and heard a second one that fell
but little below what I place first in
the list. I never heard Pierce when
he seemed to me to be great. But he
had q vast reputation. and / am per-
Suaded by the testimony Of many
very competent ministers that he was
indeed a most remarkably gifted
preacher 7 never heard Bishop Cad
loWay but once. It was a fine. ad-
mirablE prepared discourse. and was
tried, vigorous and very impressive.
This was some ten or twelve years
ago. He has grown steadily in fame
and power and now ranks second TO
40 Southern preacher OF any body of
Christians. He is decidedly one Of the
foremost ministers in his own denom-
Inaticn whether American or Bishop
OF European. The prayer [ heard
him offer in Grace Methodist church
IN this town, now probably more than
C"elEe years ago, was, I believe. Il
have been par eNcellNce the very best
/ have ever heard offered i'm any ouI.
Dit, North OF South.
Ia that superior volume of 1Iatho-
qlSt sermons bearing the title OF .Th,
Methodist Pulpit South already no
Elced by ne at some length sevcra
months ago. I mentioned five OF the
perachers who have sermons in it aut
al OF whom / had heard once or more
me. are PeIrce, Means Granbery
Doggatt and n. T. Reid. Three .
them were bishops and all very distin
SuIShed GranberT wrote SOM o
the best sermons I have ye. read, bu
his manner in the pulpit was to N,
Doggett used fine, scholarly En4!ish
mad dignifed. attractive appearance
anu was very entertaining. The Ia.
mead him in Baltimore. n failet
10 impress me as remarkable for cIo
quence. or logic, or general inpre1
SIVeness. He was more interest.nr
than Gfanbery, but never wrote ser
mons equal to the best Of that Grfa
sermonizer. I have told what M
eminently gifted lifetime friend ,n
late DR. DR. Charles +. Deems. aald I
me az to the greatest preacher 1e ha,
ever heard-that he had never hear
pr LoEick Peirce Gather If eIsi.o
George T. Peirce. when III his fe1r go
surprised. That reminds ne Of sim
read within year IN some sGutbcr
Methodist publication thar Dr. Petrc
was never surpassed IL Georgia II
was born in North Carolina ~ "a
B!shop Paine. am reminded &
what another preacher. also o naiy
of Halifax county, X. G.. said t. ne Z
another preacher when I asked hie
who preached the greatest sermon,
which lie had listened replied Irofapl
ty Bishop Peirce. at Goldsboro. IT ~
preached under the large railroad ahc
in that town" Thm T. realfy n:
another Nefhodist Dreaehed 1aid
me on another occ&ssua. Thr late cat
mable and useful lth9 Jnnina
Moore, y presiding elder tnld me III
he heard Bishop Eaganaugti'p serInc
at New Bern, ann EisT4Gp peirce's
Goldsbofo and th#s 3.oWe'a sermon
Rock Spring camp meeting two mil
from Henderson III Granville count
IN 1853, was superior To either.
asked Bishop Wilson who was II
greatest preacher to whom he III
ever listened? He replied that
could not answer that, but he cou
tell the greatest sermon he had ey
heard. He said: 1T was preached
my father at II o'clock on Sunday
a great camp meeting held in Mar
tand.' I forget the year, but t
Blshop said it was when he was hr
self twenty years old He continue
The intellectually OF his sermon "
nigh and ample, but the spritu
power excelled anything he had ey
known before or had known since
took three Of the best physicians
Maryland to save my fathers life a
1t required several daAS to do IL