The Topeka state journal., 1911-08-22
VUnIU OlUE WL WO
Lightning Strikes Twice, Nearly
In Same Place,
On w. E. Sc0tten Farm-SmalI
Girl Stunned.
STOTT'S COMES BACK.
Calls Rev. C. w. Meeker "Noto-
riety Seeker"
Park Should Not Be Used for
Amy Meeting.

Lightning has struck nearly in the
same place on the W. E. Section farm,
51s miles west of Topeka on the lower
Silver Lake road. About o'clock last
evening a bolt struck a tall cottonwood
within 20 feet of the house. knocking
the bark eff About ten years ago
! lightning struck the iron ring of
hitching post under the tree, splinter
| ing the post.
The bolt last night also stunned the
members of the r. z. Garrett family
who live OF the place. Annie Garrett,
10 years old, suffered from a burning
sensation about the head and her ears
ached for hours afterwards She was
taking things from the iron cook stove
/ for supper when the flash came. That
she fele the stroke worse then the 9th
/ ers may be due to her nearness to the
4 iron stove Mr.. Garrett this morning
said his face felt like it had been burn
ed by gunpowder. Mrs. Garrett was
slightly stunned as was also her faith
/ eT. f. l. Martin, who was given a Sc
! we're headache. They were seated at
( the table at the time. The tree was
not 20 feet from where they were sit
ting.
Regarding a sermon preached by Rev
c. W. Meeker. pastor of the Second
Presbyterian church. at the open air
meetings at the park al North Harri-
son and Park streets Sunday night, in
which he said that he had sinned by
voting for a park commissioner who
was opposed to church people, Eugene
Stotts. the commissioner referred to
said that the preacher was seeking no
tOriety The North side ministers had
asked some time ago that the little
Central avenue park be given them for
open air meetings nut their request was
refused. In his sermon last Sunday
night, Rev. Mr.. MeeKer said that Stotts
said he would be the first to object to
the use of Genital avenue park for re-
ligious meetings if he lived in the neigh
borhood
This morning Mir. stotts made a
statement as follows:
Il notice that the c. ". Meeker. a
notoriety seeking preacher has again
broken into print referring to my at
titude in reference to a small park To-
Gated in North Topeka. His statements
a. We're previous ones regarding this
particular park are founded entirely on
falsehOoGs as he must have known
when he made them. This park be-
longs to parties in the east and is not
under my control, and never has been
The right to use and destroy this park
was denied Meeker by Mr.. c. g. Blake
ley agent for the property. a typical
Christian gentleman, a striking con-
trast to this Meeker person. =
1.-The use of the park for the purpose
intended by Meeker would have ruined
it and if ] had been in charge of the
property 1 certainly would have re
fused to grant permission for its de-
struction whether the request came
from the church CT otherwise. The lack
Of consideration for the rights of others
by just such men as Meeker and his
gross ana glaring misstatements of
facts makes 1t necessary to attract at
tention to themselves by circus poster
tactics. TIE park in question contains
but a small fraction of an acre of land.
is seeded to grass and bedded to flow
ers and surrounded by a low fence and
is a place totally united for meet
ing of any kind To have granted
Meeker's request would have ruined the
park and Mr. Blakely did a wise thing
when he refused TO grant it. The ques-
ton of church did not enter into the
decision in any way and the attempt
of this man to drag it in indicates his
calibre and the length to which he
would go to accomplish an end