The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1910-11-30
PARSONAGE ONCE
Gnu. GALLERY
Old New York Editlce Solves
Economy Problem
BIBLE SILENCEO DIRECTORS.

"ln My Fathers House Are Many
Apartments" Quoted Pastor, and
Congregation Abandoned Criticism.
Eight Room Flat Only Inconvenience
to Butchers Boy, Who Has to Climb. |
In Greenwich village, the quaintest
section Of New York city, there is a
little red brick church. Upon the
broad stone steps Of the church is
generally a group Of children with
their playthings. Not infrequently,
just inside the doors Of the church. is
another pile Of toys, roller skates and
perhaps cushions for use upon the
stone steps.
Occasionally a grocer's boy or a
butchers boy approaches the steps Of
the church, but he does not pass by.
Instead he enters the front doors and
ascends by a stairway to the east that
usually in churches leads to the gal
lery.
And then the secret is out. The
home Of the children and Of their
parents as we'll is in the church. To
the Rev. Ezra T. Sanford, pastor Of
the North Baptist church, belongs the
credit for this solution Of n Of the
problems OF the downtown churches
whose finances are necessarily re-
stricted by the movement of popula-
ton from the old residence districts.
Converted Gallery Into Home.
Pastor Sanford surveyed the large
| gallery of the church auditorium prop
| err and decided it was too much to x
pect in a downtown church that 1t
would ever be filled by the congrega-
ton. So he cut the gallery in two and
moved the real wall forward eighteen
feet. This gave him a space running
for seventy-five feet across the front of
| the church and eighteen feet deep. In
| this he built an eight room apartment,
where he now lives with his wife,
three children and two young relatives
Of Mrs. Sanford.
II think I have a china closet that
is unique among the china closets of
women" said Mrs. Sanford. when I
cannot go to church and I am lonely
I go into the dining room and hear my
husband preaching through the china
closet, and that is company for me-"
On the level Of the gallery in the
Sanford apartment are kitchen, bath,
dining ROOM, two large bedrooms and
two living rooms. A stairway leads to
the former attic of the church and the
bell tower. In the attic Pastor San
ford has built two large bedrooms, one
for his son, now a sophomore in Cor
nell, and n for his daughter Ruth.
One drawback which Mrs. Sanford.
who is a practical housekeeper, finds
with her church apartment is that,
unlike her neighbors on the opposite
side of the street, she has no dumb
waiter. Grocers and butchers must
tramp through the main door Of the
church and up the two flights of gal
lery stairs with her supplies.
when l wanted to have this apart
ment built" said Mr.. Sanford, ''there
was considerable opposition in the
church. They seemed to think it was
beneath the dignity Of a church to
have living rooms for its pastor in it.
|, Quoted Words Of Jesus.
"But l quoted to them the words of
Jesus when he fed the multitude on
the lQaves and fishes, Gather up the
fragments; let nothing be lost And
I pointed out to them that here in the
midst Of downtown New York was a
church that needed conservation if it
were to endure.
But some of them were still OBJ
durate. Then l showed them a new
reading for an old text.
"In my Fathers house are many
apartments l said to them. They
thought l was scofing and said that
Jesus hadn't meant to build fats in a
church. l answered them that in the
temple at Jerusalem there were many
little apartments for the priests and
rabbis and that Christ had been re.
ferring to the temple, and Of course
by analogy to heaven, when he said
that there were many mansions Tor, as
it may be translated, apartments) in
his Fathers house. After that there
was no more trouble"
A year ago little Anna had measles,
Then came a problem for the health
authorities. At n time 1t was
thought that the whole church would
be quarantined and services ended fol
u time, but when 1t was realized that
the church apartment could be com
pletely isolated from the church proper
only the apartment was guaranteed.