ONE OF THE SERMONS BEFORE THE BREAKING OUT OF THE WAR IN AMERICA.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 70, 9 November 1864, Page 5 (Supplement)

ONE OF THE SERMONS BEFORE THE BREAKING OUT OF THE WAR IN AMERICA.

The Register published at Braddon, Miss., gives a partial report, of a sermon preached a few weeks since at Waterproofs, not far from Bran Jon. It is to be regretted that the whole sermon was not preserved. The following paragraphs show the spirit of the preacher :— '"I may say- to you my breethering, that lam not an edeeated man, an ? lam not one of them aa bleeves that cdecatiou is necessary fur a gospal minister,, .fur 7 1 bleeve tlie Lord edeeates his preacherajest as lie wants 'in to be edecated, an 1 , alLhough I say it that oughtn't to say it, yet in the State of Indianny, whar I live, thar's no man as gits a bigger congregation nor what I gits. "Thar m>iy be some here to- flay, my breethren, as don't know what persuasion lam uv. Well, I may say to you, .ny breethring, that I am a Hardshell Baptist. Thar's some folks as don't like the HarJshell Baptists, but I'd rather hey a hard shell as no shell at all. You see me here to-day, my breethring, drest up in fine close ; you mout think I was prou 1, but I am not proud, my breethring, and although I've been a preacher uv the Gospel for twenty years, an' although I'm capting of that Hat boat that lies at yure landing, I'm not prou;l, my breethriug. " I am" not gwinetotell you edziicMy whar my tex may be found ; suffice it to say, it's in the lcds of the Bible, and you'll find it, samewhar 'tween the first chapter of the book of G-eneration and the last chapter of the book of Revolutions, and ef you'll go and sarch tlie Scriptures, as I have sarched the Scriptures, you'll not only find my tex thar, but a great many other texts as will do you good to read, an' my tex, wkn you sliill find it to read thus : — ' and he played on a harp of a thousand strings — sperits of just men ma.le perfeck.' " My text breethring, leads me speak uv sperits. Now, thar's a great many kinds of sperits in the world — in the first place, thar's the sperits as sum folks calls ghosts, then thar's the sperits uv turpen time, and then thar's the sperits as some folks calls liquor, and I've got as good an artikel of them kind uv sperifcs on my flat-boat as ever was fotched down the Missisippi River, but thar's a great maiiy other kinds of spsrits, for the tes says . — '.Hb played on a harp of a thousand strings— sperit3 of jvwt men made perfeck.' " But I'll tell you the kinl of sperits aa is ment in the tex— it's fire. That is tlie kind of sperits as is ixent in the tex, ray brdethring. Now, thar's a great many kinds of lire in the world. In the fust placs, "the common sort ur fire you lite a segar or pipe with, and then thar's cam-fire, fire before you're reddy and fall back, and many other kinils uv fire.for the tes sex:— -'He played on a harp of a thousand strings — sperits of just men made perfeck.' " But I'll tell you the. kind uv fire as is ment in the tex, my breefchring— it's hell fire, and that's the kind ny lira as a great many uv you'll come to ef your don't do. better nor what you've been doin,' for— ' He played on the harp uv a thousand strings — sperits of just men made* perfeck.'' .'. " Now, the. different sorts of fire in the world may be Jikeiied unto tlie diiferent persuasions of (Jhristians in the world. In tho fust place wo have the PisoapaUana ; a:.d they : are a highsailin' and a : high .'"fhlntin sot, and they be likened, unto a turkey bu«zard thit flies up into air, and he goes up and up till he looks no biggor than your linger nail, and the fust thing you knpvv, lio oums do\y» a\j(i» Wil^ 4 OW » 4».t| M9W> an< \ >3 piug

uv the roa 1, and — ' He playfecl- on a harp of a thousand strings— sperits of just men made perfeck.' " An I then thar's the Methe.lis, and. they may be likened unto the squirrel running up into -a tree, for i the Methedis blcoves in gwiue on from one ilt*gree'of graoe to another, and finally on to pei'kck9uuu, and tho squirrel goes up and up, and lie jumps, from. Inn' to lim', and branch to branch, and the first tiling you know ho falls and down ho cums, kerflumux, and that's like the Methedis, for tho is allers fallin' from grace, ah ! And— -He played on a harp uv a thousand strings — sperits of just men made perfeck.' " And then, my breethring, thar's the Baptist, ah! and they have him likened unto a possum on a 'simion tree, and the thunders may rail, and then the earth may quake, but that possum clings these still, ah I And you may shake one foot loose and the other's thai* ; and you may shake all feet loose, and. he laps his tail round the limb and he clings for ever, for—' He played on a harp uv a thousand strings — sperits of just men made perfeek.' " Here the reporter could no longer contain himself, and his notes became perfectly unintelligible. .