Middletown transcript., 1921-07-16
THE PUGILISTIC PREACHER
BY REV. E. w. CASWELL

| By REV. r. w. CASWELL
The early pioneer preachers wers
| veritable heroes of endurance anl
suffering. They shaped the settlement
of this country in the west and soutl
as the Puritans and Pilgrims did in
New England. The Methodist circuit
rider blazed the way for the onward
march of liberty and Christianity in this
great Republic. They were courageous
men and fearless women who threaded
the wilderness for Jesus sake.
Peter Cartwright was one of tho mos
notable of these pioneers. He was
born in 1785 and died in 1872, making
him eighty-seven years of age. He be-
gan preaching when he was sixteen.
In the General Conference of 1868. he
was the centre of attraction. Wherever
he stopped on the street, crowd would
gather about him to listen to some of
the incidents Of his remarkable life
One day, two policemen, seeing the
crowd, were determined to make Cart
wright move on, but the quick witted
preacher Strengthened up his mighty
form and, taking one of the policemen
by the shoulder, said. 'Sirs, if you do
not open this crowd and let me pass, |
will report you to your superiors. l." At
once, the policemen cried. 'Move on, I"
to the crowd. and said to Cartwright,
Follow US and we will get you
through"
At this General Conference, Cart
wright, in an address said, II have beer
a-member q of twelve General Confer
ences. have the oldest Methodist
wife in the country; have been married
sixty-fve years; have thirteen children
and sixty-nine grandchildren, and the
Lord only knows what is coming next"
Among groups Of friends, he related
some incidents not in his Biography. He
said that, when he entered the minis
try, one of his comrades, named Pete,
remarked that Cartwright had joined
the Methodists for the purpose of en-
joying the chickens and feather beds.
Cartwright. on hearing the criticism,
invited Pete to accompany him on his
next circuit tour. The walk to his first
appointment was nearly twenty miles.
They were entertained by one of the
members, who resided in a log shanty.
The lady Of the house Immediately took
down bony leg of beef, dried and
smoky and thrust it into the big black
kettle over the Fireplace, after which
she went out to gather greens. A long,
lean, lank dog was awakened by the
fumes Of the beef, and, trembling a
before the kettle, made a
plunge, dragging the beef bone to the
floor. Just then, the sister, returning
with her apron full of greens, taking in
the situation, dropped the greens on the
floor. Grabbing the beef, she struck
the dog on the back with the bone and
it into the kettle again. Then
she scraped up the greens and deposited
them in the same kettle. When dinner
was ready. Cartwright served and
carved the particular piece of meat
having the marks of the dogs teeth,
for Pete, but his young friend did not
appear to be very hungry. At night,
the two men slept on bear skin thrown
over the sides of cot. Of course. the |
Dear skin was full of fleas and, after |
Pete had rolled around for an hour in |
sreat discomfort, he leaped upon the |
ioor and left Cartwright with the fleas.
When they completed the round of the |
circuit, Pete said to his friends. "Cart-
vright's conversion is genuine. He is |
! hero all right and am going to join |
he same church with him." |
Cartwright said that only once were
:harges brought against him in the
Quarterly Conference. One of the
brethren, in solemn manner, said that
Brother Cartwright was guilty of fol-
owing the fashions of the world. He
understood that he was wearing "gal-
uses." Bishop McKendree who was
remarked that he would ad- |
nonish young Brother Cartwright after
he Quarterly Conference adjourned, as
le was stopping with him. Cartwright
laid that Bishop McKendree, on retiring
or the night, revealed the fact that he
wore "galluses. ;, and that, owing to his
,reat rotundity of form, he was COM
,eIled to do 80, so that the admonish-.l
nent was not very severe.
Cartwright was of powerful frame, q
'ery giant in strength, and sometimes
,sed his muscular Christianity in a way
hat would hardly add to q minister's
at the present time. At a
certain campmeeting, mob of rowdies
we're about to break up the service.
Cartwright, marchipg down from the
'tand, approached the leader of the
mob. who said to him, "Step one side
" l will knock you down." "Crack
away" said the fearless preacher.
After one or two parried blows, Cart
wright saw his chance and, hitting him
! blow on the burr of the ear, knocked
1im senseless, when the rest Of the
,,>h AoJ A. onothor finno tmO ofol