Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1921-05-04


but, says she, 81 have book up stairs
that makes me cry every time read
it, and if ,ou will wait 1 will go up
and get Co. you" And when she
came dow handed across the bar
to thos'' that immortal book,
Bunya, ms Progress. The
Gypsies ia, We cannot read,
man," A young man who was drink
ing at the bar said 81 will read it for
you," and they went out of the sa-
loon and sat down on the hill side
and the young man began to read on
and on until long after he was tired.
They were fascinated; they had nev-
er' heard such a story in their lives,
and he read up to the day when most
of you who are familiar with the
story will remember, when Christian,
with bundle strapped to-his should
ers mounts the hill and when he gets
to the top of the hill and lSneels down
at the cross the fetters that bind his
bundle are broken and the bundle
falls to the ground and rolls down the
kill. My grandfather, jumping up
said, "Men, that is what / want; l
want to lose my burden in that way"
But the young man who was reading
couldn't help him, and the saloon
Keepers wife couldn't help him, so
my grandfather went to London
more disappointed than ever. Arriv-
ing in London he camped in the east
end of London, where there were a
number of Gypsies who had come
there for the winter, and he went
about his daily tasks, and one day
soon after camping there he met an
old man who was breaking up stone
on the side of the road. The old man
was Methodist and he had religion,
and he had the face on him of about
a. quarter acre of sunshine. My grand
father, after while, began to tell
him of his wife, then of the burden
of his heart, and the old man said;
"I know what you need, you need to
be converted" My grandfather said
.sI don't know what you mean." Then
the old man said "Well, what you
need is Jesus" My grandfather said
off Jesus will help me, if you will tell
me how and where to find him l will
do anything on earth" The old road
mender said, eff you will go back to
your wagon l will come for you TO-
night and / will take you and any
other of the Gypsies that want to go
down to our little mission home
where we are holding some services"
and that night my grandfather and
one of his brothers whom he had pur-
suaded to go with him were standing
waiting for the road mender to come,
and when they saw him approaching
my grandfather turned around to his
chfidren and said, Goodnight, my
dears, am not coming home until l
get converted" Ny father, who was
Just going to bed, said, Daddy, who
is he?" He had never heard that
word Converted" in his life and had
no idea what the word meant. And
after the two Gypsy men had gone,
my father said, eve have no mother
and we shall soon have no father, for
he is going out of his mind; will fol-
low him."
At the Mission Home.
So, my father followed those men
until they came to the Mission Home,
where they were taken to the front
seats and my father, boy of sixteen,
crept into church for the first time
in his life, and for the first time to
hear the story of Jesus Christ. He
stayed behind the pillar in the rear,
for he did not want his father to
know that he was watching him. That
night somebody told the story of
Christ so simply and sweetly that the
Gvpsies could understand it, and af-
ter he had spoken he asked the Gyp-
sizes to arise and then they sang this
little chorus:
81 do believe, now believe, that DE-
sus died for ME,
And on the cross He shed His blood,
Of sin to set ME free"
There were words in there that the
Gypsies did moi understand for
months afterwards, but the speaker
ON that occasion asked all those who
would like to know what it was to
have their sins forgiven to come for
ward and kneel at the altar rail. My