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Chapter V · Twenty Years on Horseback; or, Itinerating in West Virginia

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  Chapter five of twenty Years on Horseback or Itinerating in West Virginia. This LibriVox
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  recording is in the public domain. Chapter five, the third year on the
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  district, brought the usual routine of duties and hardships. By the help of
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  brother John Dodds, who gave me fifty dollars, I was unable to purchase
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  a horse and buggy, paying one hundred and twenty five dollars for the entire
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  outfit. This arrangement relieved me of much walking. The horses and mules occasionally
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  used during the previous years were borrowed or hired. My mule back riding,
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  however, was suddenly broken off by a rather painful incident, which occurred one
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  night. Striking about a good road, I spurred the animal into a gallop,
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  but something happened. Its fore legs seemed to give way, and it
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  turned a complete somersault. With my arms extended, I went on like a
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  flying machine. Several feet before I struck the ground. The fall nearly killed
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  me. I rolled about in agony for a while before I thought of the
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  mule, But when I was able to get up, I observed the treacherous
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  beast leisurely eating grass in the fence corner near by, as if nothing had
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  happened. I never liked a mule after that, and to the best of
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  my knowledge, have not been on one since. I never thought it out
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  of place to have a little innocent fun once in a while, laugh and
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  grow fat, as an old adage which has more in it than some people
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  suppose. A long dry face is a poor sign of piety. To assume
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  a look of seriousness, as though religion were made up of clouds and shadows
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  disappointments is a false representation of the Christian life. If any person on earth
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  has a right to be cheerful and to smile all over his face, it
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  is the one who honestly endeavors to serve God and has his eyes thrownward all
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  the while. Yes, a little nonsense now and then is relished by the
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  wisest men. Certainly, then there's nothing wrong in those not so wise enjoying
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  it. One blustery March day, after a long, irksome ride over the
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  hills, I was passing a farmhouse where two young lads were chopping wood.
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  Here is an opportunity, I thought to have a little sport, So reining
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  in my horse. I called, say, boys, can you tell me
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  how far it is to where I want to go? In an instant one
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  of them replied, yes, sir, three lengths of a fool get off.
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  In measure, it was no time to talk back or to interpose objections
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  to such rudeness. With a presiding elder. I had gotten myself into the
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  difficulty, so had to get out as gracefully as possible, bidding them the
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  time of day. I passed on, discanting in an undertone upon the subject
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  of depravity and wondering what was to become of the rising generation. Since then,
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  I have deemed it wise to approach the average boy somewhat cautiously, as
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  one never knows when or in what direction his gun will go off. About
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  this time, and perhaps in connection with this trip, I had an amusing
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  experience with a brother who appeared before the quarterly Conference for license to preach.
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  When asked to state his views on depravity, he frankly admitted that he did
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  not fully understand the doctrine, but said he believed that man was teetotally deprived.
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  Before the examination was over, the conference was clear in its judgment that
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  it could not afford to credential a man who was deprived of common sense.
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  During the year, it was my privilege and pleasure to convey the greetings of
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  my conference, first to the West Virginia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
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  and then to the Baptist Association of the state. Both were large influential bodies
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  and received with marked cordiality the messengers sent by the United Brethren. While our
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  people of the Conference were loyal and believed in a robust, aggressive denominationalism,
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  they were free from that narrow, bigoted sectarianism which is so unlike the religion
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  we profess. They were cordial and generous in their treatment of others, and
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  always ready to grasp the hand of fellowship, no matter by whom extended.
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  They believed in union and do yet as far back as eighteen seventy the following
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  was spread upon the conference minutes. Whereas the tendency of times is toward a
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  more intimate union among the various religious denominations of the country, and whereas negotiations
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  are now going on between the Evangelical Association and the United Brethren in Christ looking
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  toward their union. Therefore resolved that we as a conference entertained the idea of
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  such a union most favorably, and hope it can be effected on terms alike
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  honorable to both denominations. Bishop Glassbrenner again presided at the next session of conference,
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  which convened in Parkersburg. The aggregate cell are reported by my district for
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  pastoral support was two thousand, thirty six dollars, and for the presiding elder
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  four hundred and eleven dollars and twenty one cents. The thirty four pastors in
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  the entire conference received all told six thousand, five hundred and thirty five dollars,
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  or an average each of one hundred and ninety two dollars. Think of
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  it, ye who scan these lines, men of God working twelve months for
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  a pittance, men of brains and character, of devotion and heroism. Think
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  two of their families, the wife and mother at home continually but with few
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  social or other advantages, the little ones barefoot at the year round and sometimes
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  far removed from school and church, all that the husband and father might preach
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  and win sinners to the cross. Glorious record this the Dear Lord, as
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  it in his book. Does someone ask how are men died like conquerors?
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  A while before conference, William H. Diddle, my predecessor on the district
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  and a comrade in toil, was called to the heavenly home. The end
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  was beautiful, and found his soul in rapture. When far out in the
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  river, he shouted back, do not be excited. If this is death.
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  I am not afraid to die. His life had been as pure as
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  a sunbeam. His unselfishness was a marvel to many, and he literally gave
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  himself for the good of others, and thus became one with the Divine Christ,
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  both in sacrifice and service. As he entered the gates, I think
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  Jesus said, stand back, Gabriel, stand back, Michael, Stand back
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  all ye and gelic hosts, and make room for one who must be next
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  only to myself. What a change from a poor three hundred dollars circuit.
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  For the fourth time, I was sent back to the district, but I
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  returned with the feeling that this must be the last year. In my report
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  to conference, I had asked to be relieved from district work, but the
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  Brethren did not see fit to grant the request. I am and always have
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  been opposed to long terms of office. The duties entailed by positions of trust
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  usually are such as to interfere with systematic study. This is the main reason
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  why many officials narrowed down in their pulpit work to a few sermons. They
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  do not have time to prepare new discourses. Then there is a tendency among
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  those who hold office, whether in the Annual Conference or General Church, to
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  develop a spirit of Bussism which is incompatible with United Brethrenism. Perhaps the men
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  in office are not so much at fault as is the system which keeps them
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  there. They somehow get the notion that they must have a finger in everything,
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  and that nothing can be done exactly right without them. There may be
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  and our notable exceptions, of course, but they are few and widely separated.
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  Having been elected to the General Conference, with Z. Warner and E.
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  Harper as associates, I attended the meeting of that body, which occurred
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  in Lisbon, Iowa, the following May. This was all new to me,
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  but the conference was hardly so interesting as were the vast prairies of Illinois
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  and Iowa, and the marvelous products of great farms to be seen on every
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  hand. In feeding our horses and cattle in West Virginia, we almost invariably
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  allotted to each just so many years of corn. Even the swine we expected
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  to butcher were given a daily allowance. But in Iowa, I was surprised
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  to see chickens, hogs, cattle, and everything else given free access to
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  the compile. But such is their way of doing out west. The rich
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  soil is transmuted into corn, the corn into pork and beef, and these
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  into gold, which was developed on the material side of a wonderful country.
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  During each of the four years I spent on the district, we held a
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  ministerial institute. This portable school of the prophets was suggested by Reverend E.
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  Harper, now a presiding Elder in North Nebraska as far back as eighteen seventy
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  five. A whole week at a time would be spent in hearing, recitations
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  and lectures, and the work was almost thorough. Our studies embraced Old and
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  New Testament history, systematic theology, Christian ethics, homolytics, church history,
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  mental and moral philosophy, English grammar and the English Bible, etc. Some
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  of the textbooks used were gone through again and again in the course of a
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  few years. We used charts, maps, the blackboard in fact, everything
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  that would aid in the study of the word quicken a desire for knowledge and
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  increase the preacher's efficiency in the pulpit. Doctor Warner was at first our main
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  preceptor, and what a teacher he was, thorough clear, enthusiastic. He
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  knew what he wanted to say and how to say it. He was mighty
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  in the scriptures, and as a pulpiteer and platform speaker, had no equal
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  in his conference and perhaps nowhere else in the church. Later others took part
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  in the work of instruction, which greatly pleased him, relieving him of much
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  of the burden assumed in the outset. A resolution was adopted to the effect
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  that any preacher who willfully absented himself from these gatherings designed especially for his mental
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  and moral improvement, should be left without work until all others had been employed.
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  This policy was drastic, to be sure, but in the end it
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  proved a blessing to our ministry. Much of the clerical material we had on
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  hand was exceedingly raw, but genuine, nevertheless, and susceptible of being wrought
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  into a highly finished and useful product. One young brother affirmed publicly that the
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  crucifixion occurred seventy years before the flood. Another, in preaching on Daniel in
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  the lions Den, said he didn't know how he got to babbyl On unless
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  he had been shipwrecked. Both of these were good men, and one of
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  them proved very successful as an itinerant. Cases of such dense ignorance were rare,
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  of course, but to such brethren the institute was of incalculable value,
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  as history, geography, chronology, and other features of biblical study were made
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  especially. But let no one be deceived into thinking that all or a majority
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  were illiterates. Far from it. Some were giants in the pulpit and were
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  heard with gladness by the multitudes. One after another, other conferences took up
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  the institute idea until it prevails to day, in one form or another in
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  nearly all the conferences, and no doubt will remain a permanent fixture in the
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  methods of the church. The plan is a good one and commends itself especially
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  to young men who were striving for self improvement in the pulpit and along lines
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  of practical work. However, before the institute should come the college in seminary.
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  At a time like the present, when money is abundant, and the
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  beneficiary aid of the Church may be drawn upon. Every one looking toward the
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  ministry should seek and secure the help proffered by these great institutions. The character
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  and mission of any denomination depend upon the type of its preachers. The United
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  Brethren Church is no exception to this rule. Grafton was the seat of the
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  next conference, Bishop J. Dickinson directing its business. The year had been
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  fairly successful in various ways, but the salaries remained exceedingly low. Over the
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  conference. They average two hundred two dollars and eighty eight cents. My own
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  was four hundred and thirty three dollars in eighteen cents, with the addition of
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  seventy four dollars and fifty cents in presents. Of the thirty seven charges reported,
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  only two paid as much as four hundred, five paid from three hundred
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  to three hundred, and fifty eleven from two hundred to three hundred, while
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  all the rest fell below two hundred dollars. But the Brethren were ready and
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  willing to try it again. The secretary says, at the close of the
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  proceedings, the unanimity among the preachers and delicates and the deep solicitude manifested by
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  all, for the prosperity of the conference made the entire session remarkably pleasant.
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  Referring to the Sabbath evening service, he adds, at the close, a
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  number of the ministers made brief remarks relative to their past hardships and bespoke the
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  prayers of the conference for success during the coming year. This part of the
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  service was deeply affected. Yes, I remember the occasion well. Doctor Landis
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  of the Seminary was present and wept with the rest of us as he listened
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  to the story of more than one who is willing to endure hardness as a
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  soldier of Jesus Christ. The following will indicate the courageous attitude of the conference
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  on questions of moral reform. Whereas the use of tobacco is expensive, filthy,
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  unnecessary, and therefore an evil. And whereas it is especially unbecoming for
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  ministers of the Gospel to surrender to an acquired appetite, defile the body the
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  temple of the Holy Ghost, and thus by example encourage the young to do
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  likewise. And whereas this evil cannot be remedied so long as ministers freely and
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  openly indulge in it. Therefore resolved one, that from this time forward,
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  no per be granted license to preach by this annual Conference who persists in the
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  use of tobacco. Resolved two that all licentiates who indulge this habit be required
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  to give it up before taking upon themselves the vows of ordination. The significance
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  of this action will be more fully appreciated when it is understood that West Virginia
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  is a tobacco producing states, and that its use in one form or another
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  is pretty general among the people. A report on Temperance, which mercilessly arraign
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  the liquor traffic and its political abetters, was also adopted. Here is a
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  sentence or two from it. Believing as we do that prohibition is both humane
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  and holy, we can have no sympathy for a policy or a Christianity that
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  ignores it. At the ballot box, men who were willing to work for
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  a pittance, which meant that they and their families were to go scantily fed
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  and half clothed, all for the sake of redeeming their native state, could
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  not be expected to condone the offenses of the liquor dealer, or to have
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  decent respect for those who did. The next two years were spent in Parkersburg.
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  During the first we had a blessed revival which continued several weeks. In
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  all, more than seventy joined the church. But during the second year the
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  work was hindered by circumstances beyond human control. A great sorrow came to our
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  home. By degrees, the shadows deepened until the mother of my three children
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  bade us a final adieu and pushed out into the unseen God. Pity and
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  help the itinerant to whom such an experience comes. But my own mother,
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  now such precious memory, was ready to take the little ones and to bestow
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  upon them that wealth of care and love which never fails to enrich the life.
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  The next year was given to the financial management of the West Virginia Normal
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  and Classical Academy, located at Buchanan. While the school did excellent work for
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  a few years, it eventually went down for want of material support. In
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  view of the losses and disappointments and alienations caused by its failure, I am
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  not sure that the conference did a wise thing in starting it. Little colleges
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  have their advantages, I grant, but try to operate one at every crossroads.
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  On faith and enthusiasm is too much of a good thing. By consent
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  of the conference, I agreed to give a few months to the business management
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  and Associate editorship of the West Virginia Freeman, the State Prohibition organ During this
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  period I made a partial canvass of the state in the interest of Prohibition Amendment
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  then pending. It would require a whole chapter to tell of my experiences with
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  the old political partisans, some of whom fairly went into spasms at every mention
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  of prohibition. Our presidential candidate John P. Saint John had defeated James G.
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  Blaine, so the Republicans affirmed. Hence they were ready to vote against
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  anything or anybody the Angel Gabriel not accepted who believed on any point as Saint
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  John did. Many of these were Christians, so called, and some of
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  them members of my own church. I knew them well, and be it
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  said to their everlasting shame that they went against the amendment, and just as
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  did every Whiskeyite in the state. Under our system of government, the ballot
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  has in it a moral element, and therefore will meet us at the bar
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  of final reckoning. It not only has to do with our political, industrial,
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  and educational affairs, but with the church and family as well. What
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  show will a man have at the last day whose ballot has constantly belied his
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  profession as a Christian. I have never been able to understand how he could
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  enthrone his lord in the affairs of state by voting a ticket perfectly satisfactory to
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  the drunkard maker. It remains for an all wise God to determine what disposition
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  shall be made for these vicious ballots when the judgment day comes. Personally,
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  I have no respect for or confidence in any United Brethren or member of any
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  other church who knowingly votes for a man for any office who was opposed to
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  my christ and the cause for which he stands. Being ever ready to speak
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  my peace against the saloon and its allies, I was constantly stirring up a
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  hornet's nest over the business when I spoke against it, whether in public or
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  private, I never hesitated to pay my respects to the machine politician, since
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  I regarded him and Rum as closely related. As the result, some of
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  the newspapers and office seekers got after me with a vengeance. This, I
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  confess was to my liking. Since I felt sure I was making at least
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  some kind of impression upon them, then it gave me a chance to answer
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  their criticisms and puncture their fallacies. The following extract from one of my replies
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  may be of interest to the reader. The principle laid down will always hold
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  good. All at once the saloonist and politician are becoming greatly concerned over the
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  question of pure and undefiled religion, And well they may, for if religion
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  is effectually taken into politics, they will thus certainly go out. This they
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  fully understand, hence yell themselves hoarse in trying to divert attention when the pulpit
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  begins to let the light in upon their devilish business. While a man is
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  a minister of the Gospel, he is also a citizen in common with other
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  men. The fact that he pays taxes, lives under, and is subject
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  to the laws of our commonwealth makes him such. Then most assuredly he has
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  the same right as other men to be heard upon great political issues that affect
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  the well being of his country. If not, why not touching all moral
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  and political affairs which have to do with the home, the individual and the
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  general good of the community. The pulpit has ever stood at the front,
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  and so it ever will unless it sells out to the saloon. The truth
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  is. Under a government like ours, presumably Christian, all political questions have
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  a moral phase, and to a greater or lesser extent, involve the question
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  of religion. In other words, every question in politics touches at some point
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  the work of the pulpit. Therefore it is right and proper for the minister
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  to discuss before his people prudently, of course, the moral bearings of all
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  these issues. There is nothing that the liquor ring the old line politicians would
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  rather do than to stifle the utterances of the pulpit. For well they know
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  that the molding of sentiment and the training of the moral forces by which the
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  Eternal God proposes to overthrow and dash in pieces their strength, must there begin.
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  In May of this year, eighteen eighty five, I attended my second
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  General Conference, which met at Phostoria, Ohio, in company with Z.
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  Warner, E. Harper, and S. J. Graham. The occasion
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  was a historic one. Radicalism was given a black eye, the forces of
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  the Church were realigned, and the clouds which had so long hung over our
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  zion were pierced by the sunlight of a new day. End of Chapter five,