Raleigh Christian Advocate from Raleigh, North Carolina • Page 2

RALEIGH CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE, SEPT. 15, 1SS6. 2 souls were convertedthey movod the church to a more eligible place, enlarged, painted and carpeted it, and ment ought to issue its Bulletin in a way not to injure, or compete with the agricultural papers. At least so it seems to us. Dr.

Morton, its successful Secretary, we find some very important items. 1. The enterprise has cultivated and developed the charming grace of ality which is not only one of the most die aldermen" Senators The en eats from below up. If it read the head of the government tlm of the brave and the land of the will become a nest of thieve and S'K of anarchy. nH we have yet visited.

And the worst feature of this liquor traffic is that it is carried on by some of the most substantial and respectable business men of the place. There are men having bar-rooms run in Snow Hill to-dav who will not let SEPT. 15. 1886. Kov.

F. li. IlEIO. Editor. Editorial Contributor: REV.

W. S. BLACK, D. B. Mibscriptioii Rates oscycni, in advance, Six mouths, in advance, 1-00 tliree months, in advance, 50 7 minister? and widows of minister? at half Advertising r.nca furnished on application Ail the travoi Insi and local minister? in me Con frence are our authorized agents.

Send money by Check, P. O. Order, or by Registered Letter, or hand to your pa-or. The date opposite vonr name on tne yellow la- hl which we waste on your paper eacn week, is the time when your subscription to the Advocate expires. Address all letters to REV.

F. L. KEID, Rak-ich, N. C. Ottr.

sttusorireks. whose renewals are clue, will help us greatly, in an hour when we need money, if the- will send us their renewals at once. Please attend to it promptly after reading this. Dr. T.

Hudson. The many friends of the llev. II. T. Hudson, D.

will be glad to see a communication from him on the editorial page of this issue in reference to a very important matter, and if our readers will not tell Doctor Hudson that we showed it to them, they may look over our shoulder and read the following interesting extract from his private letter to us "I send you a communication, the object of which you will see when you read it. My health is improving some, and if the improvement continues. I shall have the delightful privilege of meeting the brethren once more in Conference. We had the earthquake panic here about as it was realized at other places. It was a tremendously awaking sermon to our mountain population, lieiiiiious meetings are being held all over the country, and mourners abound.

"Well, as the jailer repented and believed under an earthquake conviction, I suppose others may do so. The sympathetic expressions and money, going so rapidly from other cities to help the unfortunate Charlestonians, is a beautiful development of our Christianity. Dr. "Wood is doing well on the District, and is quite popular." A Sabbath at Snow Hill. (Editorial correspondence .) For a long time I had wanted to visit Greene X.

C. I had been told frequently that ifc had within its boundaries some of the cleverest people in the country, and I always like to go where there are clever people. So that when I received a letter from llev. P. L.

Iler-mon asking me to visit Snow Hill, the county seat of Greene county, I responded promptly that I would go. and on Saturday the 5th I met Bro. Her-nioii at Golds boro, and behind what he confidently believes is finest nag in Xorth we started for Snow Hill 22 miles distant. Four miles from Goldsboro we ran up on a Quarterly Conference. Rev.

J.T. Harris, the P. E. of Xewbern District, was holding the 4th Q. M.

for the Wayne of which Rev. It. C. Bea-mon is the preacher in charge, at Thompson's Chapel. When we entered the door the brethren looked very solemn and serious, which we accounted for as we heard the P.

E. ask the 8th question: amount has been raised the past quarter for the support of the ministry, and how has it been applied?" The answer to that question, from a good circuit, at the 4th Q. M. was $11. It was enough to make them all look serious and feel badly.

Elder Harris introduced me to the Conference and asked me to make a talk for the Advocate. I found only two of the seven official members present taking their Conference organ. I left six of them taking it. We hope their financial reports will improve. Xo doubt, if more of the members read their conference paper, the salaries and collections would be easier to raise.

After a delightful dinner at Bro. W. D. Thompson's splendid home, in company with several of the brethren, we journeyed along and reached the parsonage at Snow Hill to supper. We had preaching that night, twice next day and Monday night and left thirteen penitents at the altar, with the nrosDect RAL.EIGH, N.

made it a real neat and excellent church, with fine lamps and comfortable pews Xot long ago Bro. Poe had painted a fine crayon portrait of Dr. X. II. D.

Wilson, the P. who has been a warm friend of the mission, and one of Rev. F. Butt, the pastor, and put both in the church. The members of tbe church then had a fine crayon of Brother Poe painted and put in the church This was a fitting testimonial to the man who has done so much for them, for to Bro.

Poe more than to any other one man is due the success of the work, and God. will richly reward him some day. They have recently bought- them a good parsonage, being greatly favored in its purchase by that most estimable gentleman, Dr. Eugehe Grissom. There is a balance of $300 due on it, and they have tliree years in which to par that.

The Sunday-school numbers 110. This is Rev. J. F. Butt's third year, and he has done a fine work on the charge.

In connection with the mission are two churches in the country Macedonia and Cool Springs. At Macedonia a new church has been erected at a cost of $800, and they have had about 100 conversions there. At Cool Springs there have been between 60 and 70 conversions. Thus the charge has grown in the past three years, from a membership at Brooklyn of 16, to 08, and this church has a Sabbath-school numbering 110. Beginning with none at Cool Spring it has now a membership of about 60, and beginning with seven at Macedonia it now has a membership of about 95.

We give the above facts to show first that Rev. J. F. Butt has done a success ful work on the mission; second, that the Missionary Board may know the results of their appropriation; and lastly, but not least, that we may record the faithful and persistent labor of an excellent layman, Bro. G.

W. Poe. He has gone in heat and cold, in dry and wet weather, when things were hopeful and when they were discouraging, with great faith in God and confidently expecting success in the end, spending his money and giving his personal efforts, and now as success begins to smile on him we would rejoice with him, and bid him God-speed to still larger success. An Hour With Other Editors. The Twin-City Daily, of Winston, X.

has been enlarged and improved. r. The Oak Leaj is the name of a neat little monthly published by some of the students of Oak Ridge Institute, X. C. Rev.

W. A. Candler has entered upon his woi'K as assistant ivaitor oi the Nashville Advocate, and he and Dr. Fitzgerald are giving us an excellent paper. The Iieidsvdle Times is for sale.

Bro. Lewis announces that he wTill sell the name, good will, subscription books, material, to some one with the cash. Here is a chance for those who are itching for the editorial chair. Miss Adelaide S. Hill, daughter of Dr.

Levi G. Hill, was married Aug. 23d to the Rev. Dr. James M.

Buckley, editor of the Christian Advocate, of Xew York. The Rev. George E. Hall, pastor of the First Congregational Church, officiated. Our new Secretary of the Board of Missions, Rev.

I. G. John, D. has changed the Advocate of Missions to eight pages, in an enlarged form, increasing the amount of reading matter. The editor of the Florida Methodist has recently lost his office by fire, but fortunately saved everything except one cuff and some manuscript.

We are sorry that our genial brother, Dr. DePass, had this misfortune, and rejoice with him that it was no -worse than it was. Mr. Julian S. Carr has purchased the Durham Tobacco Plant from Mr.

C. B. Green, and will publish it hereafter. Mr. Will.

G. Burkhead, a son of Rev. Dr. L. S.

Burkhead, will be the editor of the Plant under the new management. long enough. The government of South Carolina has been carried a champagne basket long enough. Southern Advocate. AN OPEN FIELD.

Christianity an open field in which to manoeuver its guns. When it goes into a fort it dies. We'sleyan Advocate. Our agricultural exchanges, the N. C.

Farmer and the Progressive Farmer, complain that the Agricultural Department is not treating them properly in issuing The Bulletin at a mere nominal price and thus using the taxes to compete with individual enterprises i This does not look fair, and the Depart- beautiful ornaments oi humanity, hut the essential power to turn the wheels of our church machinery. The bh firmament spread over our heads, the niintiiinr lir l-pnHn rr rninllOW. the. lip II J7 IllU IIIIq Wiw 7 air perfuming flowers decking the gar- tleu, are not hail so oeautuui as me grace of habitual "That man may last, but never lives Who much receives, but nothing gives, Whom none can love, whom none can thank, Creation's blot, creation's blank." THE AMOUNT OF MONEY GAINED. The amount of money given for this enterprise by Southern Methodism is I $145,242.28.

This large amount gone out on the useful'-mission of assisting to build churches in waste places, would have remained hid away the pockets of the people but for the Church Lxten sion enterprise. Of this amount we are glad to note that the X. C. Conference, in round numbers, has given eomething over $4,000. Virginia, Georgia, Xorth Carolina and Tennessee, have made the largest contributions to the fund.

CHURCHES ASSISTED. This fund has aided in building 552 houses of worship in 38 conferences, 36 of which are located in the bounds of our Conference. Xow think of the vast amount of good these 552 churches, dotting the continent from Baltimore to the golden gates of California, are now doing, and will continue to do in the long future. AN ILLUSTRATION. The Sahara desert is a vast tract of barren land, because no rain ever falls on it.

For want of water, no flower blooms there no tree waves its boughs in the wind no green grass spreads its verdant carpet over the naked land. It is one wide waste of uninhabitable land. But some enterprising men sink an Artesian well there. The hidden and far down water shoots up in a liquid column and falls all around in fine rain. The earth becomes productive, and green grass, redolent flowers, shade-spreading trees, trailing vines, and vegetable gardens, make the beautiful cast's the sweet home where the weary and sun-scorched traveler can repose and refresh himself.

All done by bringing the water in contact with the hitherto barren soil. So much of our country is a Sahara in a spiritual sense. There are many spots where the people are as barren of gospel fruits as the said dosert is of vegetation. The water of life does not flow in these waste places to make them productive of gospel fruit. But the hand of Church Extension builds houses of worship, and then the preacher conies the gospel is gladly heard a sweeping revival breaks out, hundreds are converted, and organized into a church: a Sundav-school is form ed and the children put into a cour.se of instruction, and soon a fruitful and flourishing church stauds upon what was once a barren, waste place.

Then the beautiful prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled. "The wilderness and solitary place shall be glad for them (the Board of Church Extension), and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as a rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the ex-cellenc- of Carniel and Sharon: they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God." Xow think of it. There are over 500 churches already built to produce such results. The next quadrennium will add probably 800 more and the next 1,000 more, and so on ad infinitum.

For the Advocate. Our IVcw York. Lietter. BY NOSCO. The citizens of Xew York have good cause for hanging their heads; and the rest of mankind have as good a right to avert their noses when they come within reach of the stench arising from the municipal corruption of Gotham.

Here we are with our aldermen under indictment, our Commissioner of Public Works removed and under indictment for misdemeanor in office, Maurice B. Flynn, the most potential of local politicians, under indictment for making a corrupt bargain with an important officer of the city7; in short, every department that has been shaken up within the last twelvemonth has proved to be a rotten egg. All this is water on the pessimist's mill. Rascality becomes more and more convinced of its favorite proposition, that every man has his price. Evil doers appear to occupy all the places of honor and emolument.

Good men are ashamed of their city and their country. We scarcely know what excuse to offer for the condition of things as it exists to-day. We can only affirm that to the best of our knowledge and belief some men remain honest we hope a large number perhaps the majority; but we have no facts in our political history to sustain our hopes and our belief. We know wre are a misgoverned city all the world knows it. Joseph Cook says that the greatest danger for our civil institutions that is discernible now is municipal misrule.

That this is a real danger we cannot doubt. Let Xew York become a London and Chicago a Xew York. Let all the large cities double and triple their populations as they will within a few decades; then see what effect the political corruption of these centres must have upon the politics of the Xation. Why should it be impossible then for the Mayor Harrisons to become President andthe "boo- theatrical preachers. Sensational preaching is nothing but the church touching its cap to the theatre.

The pulpit that has the smallest suggestiveness of the theatric methods and purpose of mere entertainment is the pulpit of the simplest and most earnest Christianity. Oregonian. A Little Humor. Drs. Whitehead, McFerrin and Bounds have been discussing the question as to whether a Bishop has a right to participate in the debates of a General Conference, and incidentally the question arose as to where a bishop's membership is.

This has provoked the following humor from a correspondet of the Pacific Methodist It is a sad thing to see an "elder in the Church of God" elected to the office of bishop. In the first place, he is not right certain where he holds his mem bership afterwards. Dr. Whitehead is certain it is not in the General Conference, as that august body adjourned, the other day, sine die, adjourning the bish op's membership sine die, too, we suppose. And then, another sadder feature still, he passes at once over to the silent minoritij.

We are never to have any more "back talk" from him Ah, that suits us We know many men we should like to see bishops during a General Conference Dr. McFerrin contends that a bishop is at home in the General Conference holds a life membership in it; and, there fore, has a right to make speeches. We have always known that he was quite handv in the Annual Conference; and from the way he lifted the preachers a-round, concluded years ago that, per haps, he held his membership there! This discussion fails to throw any light on the main question, viz How are we poor itinerants to so change Bishop Keener's mmd that all will have, this session, good appointments a.s to where he holds his membership, and as to his riaht to speak in or out ot the General Conference, we will cheerfully concede these points, if we can be assured that there is a comfortable parsonage attached to the next circuit. Selah Several of our Southern Method ist Churches in Charleston, S. suf fered very materially by the recent earthquake in that city.

They need help and need it greatly. We receive this information just as we go to press with this issue. We will publish the facts in detail in our next issue. In the meantime let any of our readers, who may feel disposed to aid in an hour of great need, get ready to make a contri bution to help these unfortunate breth re n. For the Advocate.

Our Church Extension Work. BY REV. II. T. HUDSON, D.

D. We have heard some preachers speak of the reluctance on the part of the peo ple to give their money in support of this noble enterprise. We are persuaded that this reluctance is largely due to the lack of knowledge as to the good it is doing now, and its capability of achieving great bonefits in the future. And to throw light on this subject this article is written. its history.

"The Board of Church Extension of the M. E. Church, South, wras created by the General Conference at its session in the city of Xashville, in May 1882. It was formally organized in the city of Louisville, June 24th, 1882, and was chartered by the Legislature of Kentucky at its next ensuing session. Under its organic act forty Auxiliary Boards one each for each conference have since been organized." DUTY OF THE PASTORS.

"Every preacher in charge, in the wrhole connection, is required to take up a collection once a year in each congregation he serves, the proceeds of which collections are paid to the several Conference Boards, and by them are divided into two equal parts one of which is sent to the General Board at Louisville, and the other is retained by the Conference Board for use within its own bounds. The General Board is also authorized to increase its revenues from special collections by the corresponding secretary and the Bishops, and from gifts, devises and bequests." "The General Board is charged with the duty of raising and administering a loan fund, held separate from funds raised for general distribution, and used only in loans to churches on adequate security to be returned and afterwards reloaned to other churches, thus perpetuating indefinitely its work." THE OBJECT of Church Extension is for the purpose of assisting the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, to extend and establish the institutions of Christianity throughout the United States and Territories, and elsewhere, as the Board may determine, by aiding wherever necessary to secure suitable houses of religious worship, and such other property as may promote the general design. 4" WHAT HAS BEEN DONE. The Church Extension enterprise has succeeded beyond the most sanguine expectations of its ardent friends. Looking over some documents sent out by BEARING THE CHOSS.

'Believing that very many tertain crude or erroneous views the import of this phrase, we venture offer a few suggestions on tlu. HlJt(J which may lead others with the w'r to a close and prayerful study of CI tian cross-bearing according to the0U'1S" maud of Holy Scripture.0 There three elements which we believe ess tial to the Christian cross. en" 1. It nmst be disagreeable. Sometimes wc become discourage 1 reason of the suffering, the hanls'hVt lllQltlVllUllVf 1 ILj11 tlLV IJIiilI IU 1 Jl' ten appear to flourish mon of.

linn "their Christian neighbors, have a better time of If it: more r.jov ment, less pain. It a conrn t0' nect inut uruss-uearing is r.i .1 J. 1 act, and cross-bearing is necessarilv agreeauie. uv esscnintl idea of a CTOs. is that of an instrument torture mm physical death.

Whenever vim Christian whose life is a roun'-l of pleasure unalloyed, you have found a Christian who is not bearing his cross. But on the other hand, it follow that whatsoever is disaurceable is therefore a Christian AH tortures, the flagellations. lasting of medkeval times weir the result n' mistaken notions of piety and cn.jss' bearing. The monks of "tlu tjmc" walked about for weeks with pel.bles in their shoes, and hair cloth on their persons. This is penance, this is disagreeable; but it is not penitence, it isT not bearing the cross in the Christian sense because it lacks the second clement which we wish to point out; namely: 2.

It must be borne for Jesus says, "Take up thy cross an(j follow me." If he had simply sail. "Take up thy cross," sell-in dieted tor. ture would have answered the purpose; but he adds, "and follow me." The cross he bore was borne not for himself, but for others. "He tasted death for every man," with a sublime patienee: "and as a sheep before her shearers i dumb, so he openeth not his mouth." Xow, if we are to follow him our crosses must be, like his, vicarious crosses. Penances are disagreeable, but they do not involve the vienrious principle.

They do not constitute the Christian cross. 3. It must be voluntary. It is not enough that we should sutler. We are commanded to taU the cross.

It must be voluntary suffering. Sometimes men are afflicted by sickness. 1 ill-fortune, by calumny, by bereavement. All this is very painful and people of piety sometimes exclaim under such circumstances, "I try to bear the cross with patience." Xo. brother: you are mistaken.

You are not ben rim: a cross at all; you are simply undergoing discipline. This is God's work: he is training you for tbe armies tVie skies. But cross-bearing is work, you must take up the cross voluntarily. Xor is it enough that we should suiler for others. Vicarious sntering is a principle, as it has been shown.

that obtains everywhere in the universe, kittle fish are devoured by the big lish ami the big lish turn are devoured i man. Even in the vegetabl" woiM. lower forms of life must parish before the higher forms appear. In society It is quite common to substitute, the, iin cent for the guilty when punMinu'iit inflicted. But all this, thou.b involving the vicarious principle, is not cnv bearing, because it is involuntary.

Finally, it resolves itself into this: A cross-bearing Christian lives a lite self-denial; he lives for others; he stnvei day by day to please, not himself. Uri others and Christ. He lays plans: he blocks out schemes of finance: he accumulates wealth; he craves power; le values intellect; he lays hold of every legitimate advantage this life can and having acquired all, he sacrilia-them on the altar of love. Xowr let us not wait for the crosses come to us; but let us take up somecro-; and bear it in the Christian way. la family of real cross-bearers there can be no discord, for each endures thoirt ties of the others for the good ot the whole and the sake of Christ.

Iu a community of cross-bearers there cat be no slander, no bitter rivalries. ii jealousies, no quarrel, inasmuch as all men are brothers in Christ, "in honor preferring one overlooking frailties, vicarious enduring voluntary pain, believiug it is "more blessed to give than to receive," having faith in each other, in God. To love the unlovable Christ's sake is bearing a cross, -b' show mercy to those who deserve it not-to be patient with the unreasonable.1; wicked, the ungrateful; to repay cu-with good, rudeness with pride with meekness all these and like constitute the essence of the Chi" tian cross. "Take up thy crs aa" follow me." PROHIBITION. One by one the Northern States seleu standard bearers for the cause of pro-' bition in the coming campaign 01 fall.

Xew Jersey has taken a very ular man, Gen. Clinton 15. 1 man who is almost good tempt the Kepublican party to n. him in spite of his temperance, sylvania has taken the voung and liant Chas. S.

Wolfe, once a the State Legislature, then iii(lepCIU 4jti.i canuHUiitJ lor mu liiiu polling 50,000 votes. Certainly no m. living could induce so many men to the prohibition ticket as he. P1'1 -vll. cause he is so well and favorably kn and partly because he is a new The temperance party wants new It has not made converts fastcno or the neophites were without or wealth.

Charles S. Wolfe and is pledged to use them untiM'u -shall have been achieved. their own sons go into them selling liquor to other men's sons and trying to i shield their own. God's curse rests up-! on the liquor traffic and sooner or later those men will feel it, if they continue in it. I wish they would quit it.

They are too clever and respectable to give their countenance and encouragement to such a disreputable business. Rev. P. L. Ilermon is the preacher in charge of Snow Hill circuit.

He lives in a splendid new parsonage, which ha has' had erected since he has been on the charge, the old one having been de-si troved bv lire vear before last. It is a six-room house, well arranged and nicely painted. Bro. Ilermon is succeeding finely in his work. Everybody seems to love him.

I do not see how the- could help loving him he is so jovial, so clev er and so pleasant. And then he has such a nice family. A splendid wife; five blooming, beautiful daughters, and one fine boy make up as refined and pleasant a family group as one seldom sees. The memory of my stay with them and their kind attentions will long linger in joy with me. We canvassed the place on Monday for the Advocate and had fine success.

I will not tell how many new subscri bers I got for fear somebodv will think I am "blowing." Suffice it to say that I more than quadrupled an already good list of subscribers in that pleasant place. and Bro. Ilermon says he is going to try to get every Methodist in his circuit to take the paper. I hope he will suc ceed and, if he does, I shall sigh: "Oh, for a thousand Hermons." The Rev. J.

T. Harris is doing a good work as P. E. of the Xewbern District. The preachers and people all speak well of him.

Just at this time he is making a special effort to pay off the large debt on the district parsonage. He is grad ually reducing it and hopes to see it all laid by the close of the present year. In returning I spent an hour or two in LaGrange, X. where I heard many good words spoken of Rev. W.

W. Rose, our pastor there, though I did not see him. I also looked through the grounds and buildings of the justly successful "Davis School." It is well equipped every way and has. what it no doubt richly merits, a very large and continually increasing patronage. The Brooklyn Mission, For Ihe past few years our church, in the cities and larger towns of this State, has been paying special attention to building up mission work in the suburbs.

Winston is working at two points in its suburbs. Durham has its East and AVest End. A splendid new brick church is going up at West End, and a building is soon to go up in East End. In Wilmington a work of this character is in its insipiency, and the same is the case at Goldsboro. Raleigh, Charlotte and Wilmington already have, good Methodist Churches, self-sustaining.

These grew out of just such mission fields as the ones above alluded to, hence such work is exceedingly important. But we started out especially to speak of the Brooklyn Mission of this city, of which Rev. J. F. Butt is now the pastor, being a supply appointed by the P.

E. This work really began in 1873 with a Sunday-school of which R. W. Best was elected superintendent. But in 1875 it assumed a better shape when Bro.

E. B. Thomas, as superintendent, and ten or twelve young men opened a Sunday-school on the extreme north west side of the village known as Brook lyn a suburb of Raleigh. The school soon grew too large for the little house in which it wTas held, when Mr. J.

C. R. Little furnished them his store room free of rent. They soon had a revival and between 30 and 40 were converted. It was then determined to build a church.

Mr. Little headed the subscription with $20.00. They went to work and in eight days after the lumber was thrown off of the cars, they had Sunday school in the new church, though incomplete. It was not finished, however, until about a year afterwards. Then one by one the workers became discouraged and began to drop off until Bro.

Geo. W.Poe was the only one left. With undaunted courage and strong faith he labored on. Finally Father Wheeler was sent to the mission and labored in it for three years. At the end of his term we were all discouraged and ready to give up.

except Bro. Poe. He ed his membership to Brooklyn, and held up the hands of his pastor. They began with 16 members. Soon they had a gracious revival.

Between 70 and 80 of a good revival meeting. We learn r. got oa tne train and went to the Con-since that there were 19 accessions to ference at Statesville and begged the the church and the meeting still in Missionary Board to make one more progress. appropriation and give him a preacher, Snow Hill is a town of about 500 in- promising to refund the appropriation if habitants. Its people are as kind and it should prove a failure.

The appro-hospitable as any we ever saw. The priation was made and Rev. J. F. Butt only thing unfavorable to it is the num.

was sent to the charge. Bro. Poo mov her of grog-shops in it it has more than any place of the size we ever saw, and we saw more drunken men there on Monday than we have seen in any place.