PREACHING IN SONG.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 157, 5 July 1877, Page 4

PREACHING IN SONG.

The Border Watch, a South Australian paper, sayss — Tha Rev. W. R. Hiddlestone, the recently appointed pastor of the Baptist Church at Brunswick, Melbourne, on Saturday evening commeabeii a short series of special ssrvices here with the object of raising funds to assist in defray iug the cost of a new church which is nbw being erected for him at- Brunswick. Mr Hiddlestone, n r b was formerly a resident of' Mount Gambler, and, is well known to most persona herej-was cordially received by bis friepds. His aer vices opmmQnced with ! a service of song, which was< given on Saturday evening io the Baptist Chapel, Helen-street. The attendance was small. The procee.dio.^e | havifig, opened with praise and prayer, Mr Hiddlestoae delivered a stirring -discourse ;au: the Christian's esperietfee, in the course of which he sang 4 num-ber-of-Bliss's and DoaoV Apiarican evangelistic bymns, accompany iag himsa|f .on the harmonium. The tunes to which the hymns were set were rather livelier than auy sacred tune tver sung here before; and Mr Hiddleatone Baid that it was now becoming very general io Melbourne and elsewhere to sing hymns to tbe popular secular times o\ the day. It was, he said, a very succesalul means of securing the attention, ond saviug some of tbe lowest ol humanity} where every otlier means failed, tbis had in some cases proveJ successful. He then gave three hymna as illustrations of the new style, Ho sang the first to the air of " Molly DirliugiC' tbe second to that of "Father, eoiue home;" and the third to that of , " Wiilie, we have missed you. 5 ' At the close of the service a collection wa< made on behalf of the Brunswick Church. Mr Hiddlestone remarked that when be took charge of the church tbe congregation numbered only 25, and the members 6; but the congregation had now increased to about 600^ and the membership to 125. A large church was found to be absolutely necessary, and one was now ia course of construction. The building, when oompleted, would seat about 800 people. The service closed with the doxology aad hededictiou. On Sunday Mr Hiddlestoae held three services — the first in the morning, at the Primitive Methodish Church; the second (specially for children) iv tha afternoon at

tha lasfti&ota Hali; and -the third in the, evening at the Primitive Methodist} 'Ohuroh. At ail the services .there w_r6 large congregatiioas. On .o&§h occasion -several special were sting, -Mr Hiddlestone accomp&nying himself on bu organ, 'which was kindly lentby'Mr^Lienau. In the afternoon he was assisted in th© choruses of Ihe' bymns'-by a large number of childre_. ! .' .L.11.i fl ifi ' ••'' ' ■-• '