The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-10-13
A MINISTER Who
DIDN'T APPEAR
Strange Case Of Mistaken
Identity Years Ago
THE CONGREGATION WAITED IN
VAIN FOR MINISTER WHO
DIDN'T MATERIALIZE.

A certain local celebrity, who died
: not long ago, was wont to relate
with great gusto his first experiences
as stranger in the strange city of
. Hawley.
Coming to America as a young ar
chitect, fresh from Heidelberg Uni
1 versity, in search of the fame and
i fortune which he had been told were
so easily won in the country across
the deep blue sea, his steps by some
strange chance were directed to
Hawley.
Hawley, at that time, was the
| terminus of the Erie Railroad.
Thirty-five years ago when this in
cident occurred, stages made daily
trips between Hawley and the Coun-
f ty Seat for the convenience of those
= who cared to leave that fourishing
town for the quite scenes of the town
of Hone. And it may be said in
passing that there were few cared to
go.
Now it happened that at the same
time Mein Herr Johann Bugenhagen,
for although that was not his real
name, it will do for the purposes of
this tale, CHANGED to decide to make
Hawley the scene of his early tri-
umphs, the council of one of the Ger
man churches of that place had COM
pleted arrangements with a pastor
from the Fatherland, and were ex-
pecting his arrival on certain
train.
AS luck would have it, the minis
ter from the Fatherland at the last
moment decided not to CO. I'm
aware of the fact, for the telegraph
was at that time in it's infancy, the
cost of cablegrams was prohibitive
and the telephone was as yet a thing
unknown, and the letter cancelling
his engagement not having been re-
ceived committee composed of the
leading citizens of the town went to
the Erie station on a certain Tues
day morning to meet the expected
pastor of whom great things were
expected.
Almost the last man to alight
from the Erie train was a tall we'll
built distinguished-loo foreign
er, wearing a high silk hat and
looking for all the world like a
clergyman
The committeeman rushed up to
the aristocratic stranger bid him
welcome in their best Berlin Ger
man, and not waiting to give him an
opportunity W explain, nuStled nlm
off to one of the best hotels in the
place where they wined him and din
ed him for three or four days, not
giving him chance to say who he
was or why he had come there.
Sunday at last arrived. The deep
toned bell of the church summoned
hundreds of devout worshipers to the
sanctuary eager to hear again the
sound of the gospel in the tongue
they loved so well.
The Rev." Bugenhagen was at
his hotel finishing a late breakfast,
when the chairman of the committee
rushed in on him and asked him
whether "he wasn't going to preach
that sermon for them and what the
text would be?"
Explanations followed, and the
pseudo-clergyman was permitted to
depart for the County Seat unWept,
unhonored and unsung. AS for the
committee they never heard the last
of their ludicrous mistake. And if
any one wanted to start a fight with
one of the committeeman he would
simply say "Bugenhagen," and the
melee was on.
This story was related to a Citi-
zen reporter by man whose repu-
tation for truth and veracity as at
tested by the general speech of the
community is good. 1t is given to
the reader for what it is worth and
as a gentle reminder that appear
ances are sometimes deceitful.