The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-06-09
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

Friday morning I was sitting in my cor ner at The Age Herald, and some one called out, "Mr. Barnett wanted" and l got up and went forward to find that my visitor was none other than pr. John Me Neill. the recently installed pastor of the South Highland Presbyterian Church.
 I invited him to a seat and soon we were in the midst of a pleasant conver- sation with rather a wide range check ing up on some of the worlds great preachers we had been privileged to meet and to hear. named over number ranging from Beecher in this country to Sturgeon in England, and Pere Hya- cinthe in Paris, but never let on that l considered him to be amongst the great est pulpiteers now living.
 His own knowledge of eminent dlylnes far excelled mine for being a notable and having knocked around the world for more than dozen years as one of the worlds leading evangelists, his memory was rich in pleasant "reminiscences of the pastors of the various denominations who, during the last 25 years or more, have played leading parts in the great cities of the world, many of whom have made of their names household words.
 I happened to mention that in my Lon don days I used to frequently hear spur geon and Dr. Parker, to be told that he was living there while they were in their glory. and to the distinguished pair he added the name of Canon Liddon, setting them down as a trio of preachers of su- preme gifts I had failed to hear the great Church of England clergyman, for my tastes in those days ran to the non conformist ministers.
 I spoke of Dr. A. c. Dixon, who for years stood in the famous Metropolitan Tabernacle, a worthy successor of the lemented Sturgeon, and was glad to find that he held my friend in high esteem. It. is a singular fact that during a part of the time Dr. Dixon was occupying SC distinguished world pulpit, that Dr. Len G. Broughton was filling one almost of equal note in the same world metrop- oils.
 It was quite remarkable that two of the great nonconformist churches in Lon , don should both have as pastors Amer ican divines, but the coincidence of Drs Dixon and Broughton both being South ern men is more striking, and wha' makes it still more singular is that botf of them were born and reared in North Carolina It certainly was tribute tt the power of the Baptists of the Ta' Heel State to turn out a pair of sucf 1 pulpit renown.
 1 It developed in the talk that Dr. Me Neill had never met Dr. Broughton, ou 1 that the latter had received the call t' the London church after he had declined it. as he did rot care to put aside hi evangelstic work at the time to ente pastorate It seems bit queer that II the whirl-agg of time the both Of then are here in Ameica and living in siste 1 southern ClLleS, lOT lpl. ioi O"6heCAi Ao AS cated at Knoxville.
 |
 The most vivid first hand experience that I got of the cruelty and hellishnes of the German outrages in Belgium cam l to me from the lips of pr. Broughto' 1 shortly after his return to America, bu not before a year of the awful war hat raeed in and around the brave littl kingdom which, unable to hold back tn conqueroring hordes of Huns, had a least thrown a monkey wrench into tn German war machine long enough to de range it until the English got across.
 D And( now Dr. Dixon is back in thi
 country but who can blame him or Di
 Broughton for wanting to be back
 America after their narrowing experl fences abroad. To us after two years serv ice with the Army Y. M. c. A. come
 Dr. John McNeill, and he settles in ou
 midst with a great enthusiasm, nc
 merely to build up great congregatio M amongst his own people, but to do n
 part in community building. I beliey
  ligious, but also a civic asse.
 The intimate condolences of his dec , sion to cast in his ministerial life hel are too sacred to be coldly set down print for they came to me out of great heart wkich had reached that tim :, 1 in life where he wanted to have floc Iof his own. I hardly expect any layme
 t to catch the inner meaning of this wis : on his part, but every pastor who hs arrived at the meridian of life will >o,e to interpret it sympathetically. I picked up a book and in 1t read ths :, pr. John McNeill, among the slivir l Scotch preachers, was perhaps the la
 one to be noted Tor the rare humor whiS : characterized some of the famous o 5 Scotch divines. Any one who has heai 7, him at any of the breakfasts. lunches ! dinners and particularly at the barbec given hy the Rotarians to the Kiwanial