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PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF METHODISM IN NORTH CAROLINA.
ESTABLISHED 1855.
RALEIGH, N. C, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 1894.
VOL. XXXIX., NO. 3.
V tit Si II li II
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The Christian Advocate.
203i Fayettkviixe St., Raleigh, N. C.
Tlie Offlcial Orprau of tlio Nortli Caro
lina Annual Conference of the Method
1st Episcopal Cliurcli, South.
SURSCltlPTIOX RATES
One year, in advance,
Six months, in advance,
Ttiree months, in advance,
To Ministers at halt price.
12.00
1.00
.50
Entered at the Post-OlFice in Raleigh
aa second-class matter, in accordance
with Postal Laws and Regulations.
POETRY.
The March of the Years.
One by one, one by one,
The years march past, till the march is
done;
The Old Year dies to the solemn knell,
And a merry peal lromthe changing bell
Ushers the other, one by one,
Till the march of the years shall at last
be done.
Bright and glad, dark and sad,
Are the years that come in mystery clad;
Their faces are hidden and none can see
If merry or sorrowful each will bo,
Bright and sad, dark and glad,
Have been the years that wo all have had.
Fair and subtle under the sun,
Something trom us each year has won,
Ha it given us treasures? Day by day
It has stolen something we prized away;
We meet with fears, and count with tears
The buried hopes ot the long-past years.
Is it so? And yet let us not forget
How fairly the sun has risen and set;
Eaeh year has brought us some sunny
hours,
With a wealth of song and a crown of
flowers.
Power to lovfc, and time to pray,
Its gifts have been e'er it passed away.
We hail the New that has come in view;
Work comes with it and pleasure too;
And even though it may bring some pain
Eaeh passing year is a thing of gain;
We greet with song the days that throng;
Do they bring us trouble ? 'Twill make
s strong.
With smiles of hope, and not with tears,
We meet our friends in the glad new
years;
God is Avith them, and as they come,
They bear us nearer our restful home.
And one by one, with some treasure won,
They come to our hearts till they all are
gone.
Marianne Farmngham,
COMMUNICATIONS.
For the Advocate.
The History of Methodism in
North CarolinaPrior to the Or
ganization of the North Caro
lina Conference in 1837.
RY REV. ROBERT HENRY WILLIS, A. B.
AND REV. JESSE ARMOR BALDWIN,
A. B.
WITH A CRITICAL ESSAY OX THE
SOURCES OF INFORMATION.
BY STEPHEN B. WEEKS, PH. D.
II.
History of Methodism in North
Carolina in the Eighteenth
Century.
BY REV
ROBERT HENRY
A. B.
WILLIS,
( Continued.)
CHAPTER IV.
GROWTH OF METHODISM IN NORTH
CAROLINA FROM 1783 to 1800.
In 1792 and 1796 preachers were
ent to a Scoperlong circuit Scupper
long which, if we judge from the
name, must have been north of the
Mattamuskeet circuit in Washington
and Tyrrell counties. After 1793 the
two counties above mentioned were
included in Pamlico circuit. It is
probable that both Mattamuskeet and
Scoperlong were covered by Pamlico
at first.
The Pamlico circuit was the first
one formed in the section between
Pamlico River and Albemarle
Sound. It was formed in 1789 and
James Parks was the first preacher.
The first account we have of its limits
is in 1791, when Jeremiah Norman
traveled it. Norman's Diary, 51-95.
Jeremiah Norman was the author of
this diary and it extends over the
years, 1793-1801. In 1792 and 1793
Norman traveled Russell and Bote
tourt circuit in the Holston country.
He was then sent to Pamlico circuit
where he had been reared and where
he then had several brothers and sis
ters. For the next three years he
took no regular work and spent his
time in teaching singing-schools in
eastern North Carolina. He again
took work in 1788 and spent the next
four years in the South Carolina Con
ference. His Diary has not been pub
lished. It then extended from Al
ligator River on the east through
Tyrrell, Washington, and a part of
Martin county to Williamston. The
most of the preaching was still done
in private houses, but they had a few
chapels, such as Sogg Chapel near
Williamston and Swain's Meeting
house somewhere near the dividing
line between Tyrrell andWashington.
Thus we see that there were five
circuits formed in North Carolina
north of Pamlico River before the
nineteenth century. The Methodist
preachers had found their way into
every county in this part of the State,
and there was perhaps no very large
district where they did not have
regular appointments.
The first circuit to be formed in the
southeastern part of the State was
Wilmington, in 1781. The member
ship reported is 80; Beverly Allen
and James Hinton were the first
preachers. In 1785 another circuit is
formed to the north of this and is
called New River circuit. The next
year Wilmington, New River and
Newbern appear together as one cir
cuit. This is the last time that Wil
mington appears upon the minutes
until 1800. It was probably, during
this period, a part of Bladen, as that
circuit is formed the same year that
Wilmington disappears from the
minutes.
New River circuit lay between
Wilmington and Newbern, and took
its name from the stream in Onslow
county. The name is changed to
East New River in 1789 to
distinguish it from a circuit by the
same name that had been formed in
the mountains. After 1791 there is
no longer a circuit by this name. It
was probably then divided into Gosh
en and Trent, which were formed
this year.
Very little is known as to the situa
tion of these two circuits. Goshen
certainly extended as far west as
Sampson county. Asb. Journal, II.,
239. It probably also included Wil
mington for a while. Doub, Chap.
Vlll., 1 and 4. Trent circuit was
in Jones and Lenoir counties and
may have extended down through
Craven into Cartaret. Societies had
been organized down the Neuse River
and at Beaufort and Straits. Asb.
Jour., I., 392; Norman's Diary, 304
531. This was the nearest circuit
until 1797 when Newbern circuit was
formed.
Contentney circuit seems to have
been the best circuit in all eastern
North Carolina. Jeremiah Norman
spent a year or more on this circuit
giving singing lessons, and from his
diary a pretty good idea of the circuit
and people may be obtained. Nor
man's Diary, 267-531. This circuit
was formed in 1790 and included por
tions of Green, Pitt, Craven, Lenoir
and Wayne counties. Among the
places of worship were Span's meeting-house
in Wayne, Speight's meeting-house
near Greenville, Rainbow
meeting-house near John Grangers.
Other names which appear often upon
the pages of this old manuscript are
Forbes, Wooten, Frizzell in Craven,
Dr. Randolph in Greenville, all of
which are well known names in that
part of the state to-day.
Bladen circuit was formed in 1787
and Daniel Combs was the first
preacher. Thirty negroes are report
ed as the membership for the first
year. The next year thirty-five
whites are reported, and no negroes.
This seems very strange, but there is
no explanation for it if the minutes
are accepted as correct. At that time
alterations were made at almost every
Conference and this might account
for the change in membership. We
have no further account of the circuit
until 1800 when Norman traveled it.
Norman's Diary, 866-1009. At
that time very little, if any, of it lay
within the present county of Bladen.
That county then extended much
farther south than now, Columbus
having since been formed from Bladen
and Brunswick. The circuit included
the greater part of what are now
Brunswick and Columbus counties in
this state, and Horry county, South
Carolina. Some of the regular ap
pointments were at Town Creek,
Lock wood's Folly, Shallotte, Nixon
ville, Kingston (now Conway,) Bel
lum's meeting-house and Union meeting-house.
Wilmington was not now
a part of this circuit, even if it had
been before. A separate circuit was
formed by that name in 1800, but it
must have extended mostly to the
north of Wilmington as Bladen near- j
ly reached that place on the south.
From these brief sketches of the
eastern circuits it can be seen that
this part of the State had been pretty
well occupied by the Methodist
preachers before the nineteenth
century. We will now turn to the
central part of the State and see what
progress was made in the work there.
As has been seen, it was in these
parts that the Methodist preachers
first appeared in North Carolina. We
have seen how that the original Caro
lina circuit was soon divided into
three circuits, Roanoke, Tar River and
New Hope. It was not long until it
was found necessary to form still oth
er circuits in this part of the State.
Yet there were not so many formed
here as in the east, notwithstanding
the fact that the movement here was
several years older. In 1783 two new
circuits appear upon the Minutes for
this part of the State, Caswell and
Guilford.
As was shown on a preceding page,
the old Pittsylvania circuit of Vir
ginia extended into Caswell county.
A few appointments were now taken
from this circuit and from New Hope
to form Caswell circuit. Jesse Lee
and Peter Moriarty were the first
preachers. It was soon found, how
ever, that the circuit was too small to
support two preachers, and Lee was
removed and sent to Amelia circuit.
Life of Lee, 115.1 The number of
members from this circuit was not re
ported this year, but at the next con
ference 165 is given as tho naomb jr-
virv rinidiv
ship. It did not increase
for two or three years, but in 17S7 the
work began.to revive. At the Con
ference of that year 213 members were
reported, and trom that time on the
number grew larger and larger. By
the end of the century over 500 were
found in the various churches.
Guilford was probably composed of
appointments taken from Yadkin and
New Hope circuits. Dr. Hudson says
that it was taken altogether from
Yadkin circuit. Hudson, Raleigh
Christian Advocate, May 17th,
1876. Samuel Dudley and James
Gibbon were the first preachers on
this circuit and it wa3 begun with a
membership of 314. From this as a
beginning the number increased slow
ly, but steadily, until there were
in 1800, 685 white and 39 black mem
bers. No other circuits were formed
in this part of the State during the
eighteenth century, and it is suppos
ed that no great changes were made
either in Caswell or Guilford circuits.
Several circuits were formed on
the border line between North and
South Carolina and lay partly in each
state. The Pee Dee circuit was
formed in 1786 and extended from
Georgetown in South Carolina along
the Pee Dee river to within ten miles
of Salisbury, N. C. The Santee River
circuit, formed the same year, ex
tended fromnearCharleston along the
Catawba River to within ten
miles of Charlotte. S h i p p ,
Methodism in South Carolina, 158.
Very little.of these circuits lay with
in North Carolina. Union was mostly.
in this State and was placed with the
North Carolina circuits on the minutes
a few years later. This circuit was
formed in 1791, but does not appear
upon the minutes after that year un
til 1795. Anson circuit was eojasider
ed as a South Carolina circuit,
though it took its name from a county
in North Carolina. It was formed in
1788 with David Haggard as the first
preacher. At the next conference 584
members were reported.
There was probaoiy little change m
Roanoke, Tar River, and New Hope
circuits. New Hope does not appear
upon the minutes after 1796, but it
seems that there was a change merely
in name ana not in territory; Haw
River appears in the place of New
Hope in 1797. Haw River and New
Hope are both found with preachers
assigned to them in 1793, but not
again.
(To be continued.)
, For the Advocate.
Our Mississippi Letter.
s; BY GILDEROY.
Itlias been many a day since I had
a word with your thousands of read
ers in the "Tar Heel" State. The
fact is, I took a great liking to North
Carolina the only time I was ever in
the old State. That was an unfavorable
time for seeing the country. It was
during the war the last campaign of
Gen. Joseph E. Johnson. As for
the people I saw little of them, did
Jet acquainted with a dozen citi
zens while there. We went some
thirty or forty miles beyond Raleigh,
down on the Neuse river, on the cars
mainly on box cars and flats; and
we 'hoofed it" back in rather quick
time. We stopped long enough in
Raleigh for me to take in the State
HoucC, some of the Asylums, and the
city generally. I liked the place
mightily. Would like to go back
again and see it under more favora
ble conditions. Down on the Neuse
we camped after dark, in a turpentine
farm where the pine straw was deep
and soft. I lay down and fell to sleep
Congratulating myself on having such
a soft bed. About midnight I found
myself standing up, snorting like an
Indian pony, and doing my best to
get on the outside of my shirt. A
light was procured and revealed a lit
tle animal that looked something
like a Mississippi crawfish, only that
it had a sting in its tail. "Stinging
scorpion," said one of the boys. I
had heard my mother describe them,
but I, never saw one before, and I
saw that one mostly behind, for he
had poked his sting under my left
shoulder blade. I was not the only
Confederate that had a feeling remem
brance of that night, in that turpen
tine frm. Some of the boys said bad
won when stung; they were taken
unav
indv
res. I slept ho more that night,
1 did not lv? down again. The
! Uiv hunf off the pme straw
to ge;yrid of these pesky little bugs.
They were uncomfortable bed-lellows. I
When the operating end of one of
them got next to a fellow, sleep de
parted.fromhis eyes and slumber from
his eye-lids. I never saw a stinging
scorpion in Mississippi.
While down on the Neuse we had
shad every meal. They were good
eating then said to be good in their
season all the time. Anything out of
the regular line was good to a hungry
soldier. We often sat and talked of
good eating till the water would run
out of our mouths.
Rev. Archibald C. Allen, D. D.,
once a preacher in your State, the
most intimate preacher friend I ever
had, used to talk to me by the hour
about North Carolina. He spent many
long and useful years inMississippi as
teacher, preacher, circuit rider and
presiding elder. A true and mighty
man of God he was. He moved to
Texas and died there. His son, Rev.
Jno. R. Allen, D. D., now in Texas,
is worthy of his father's mantle. An
other son, Wm. R. Allen is a worthy
and influential 'lawyer in Terrell,
Texas. Dr. A. C. Allen was a great
friend and admirer ofDr. N. F. Reid,
of your State. Gen. W. F. Tucker, a
brother-in-law of the elder Dr. Allen,
also a North Carolinian, was one of
the truest, bravest and noblest Chris
tian gentlemen I have ever known.
I was chaplain of his Brigade during
the war his pastor before and after
the war, and I knew him as I have
known few men. He was a prince
among men. He was wounded in
the right arm at the battle of Periy
ville, Ky., and had to learn how to
write with his left hand. Then at
the battle of Resaca, Ga., he was
wounded in the left arm, and some
three or four inches of the bone in the
upper armhadtoberesected,and after
that he wrote with pain and difficul
ty with his right hand again. For
courage, physical and moral intre-
pidity, enterprise, energy, true no-
l biHtv of character and generosity.
I n u d , b the emptiness of his
, ,
pulbfc; uc waa rt
'was a fine lawyer, and as true to God
and truth, before the court and jury,
as in the prayer meeting. He scorned
a mean or little thing and never
stooped to quirks and turns in the
practice of his profession. If he found
that a client had deceived him, or
lied to him, he threw up the case at
once. I have seen him do this before
the court and jury while the case was
being tried. General Wm. F. Tuck
er was foully assassinated in his own
home some ten or twelve years ago.
He was known, loved, and honored in
every nook and corner of this great
commonwealth. Mississippi is rich
in North Carolinians both living and
dead.
Pickens, Mtes., Dec. SSrd, 1893.
For the Advocate.
Shintoism.
BY REV. W. A. WILSON.
Although Shintoism may have
many points in common with other
religious cults, yet it is sufficiently
distinct to warrant one who has
studied it in saying it is an indigen
ous product of the Japanese mind.
When it arose and how, we do not
know. It is most probable that Ja
pan was peopled from China, and
that they brought with them the an
cient traditions of that country. In
Confucius' time his countrymen had
strayed from the faith of their ances
tors, and it was his supreme endeavor
to try to rehabilitate the first prin
ciples of that religion.
Letters found their way to Japan
from China, about the close of the
third century of our era, and from
that period the religious and histori
cal traditions and legends began to
take form. As god's were principal ac
tors in the early history of the coun
try, history, or rather fiction and re
ligion are one. Long ages of isola
tion and ignorance have led th Jap
anese to cherish these fictitious tales,
and one by studying their customs
sees how thoroughly they are
wrought into the life and thought of
the people.
Shintoism has a genesis, the chief
points of which are: That in the be
ginning all was water, nothing hay
ing for.ii. But Aa no Mi Naka
Nushi no Kami whom they seem
to attribute some creative powers
created Isanagi, a male, and Isanami,
a female; both of these had divine at
tributes. Isanagi, from heaven, ex
tended his spear into the sea, and the
drop that fell from its point when
drawn up formed the island of Uwaji,
which can be seen from Kobe. Isan
agi, while walking around the island
he had formed, met Isanami, the
goddess, who greeted him in words
praising his beauty, at which he was
enraged. Not deigning civilities, he
resumes his march and when he meets
the goddess again she had learned to
be modest which fascinates him, and
henceforth they are companions. This
pair were the ancestors of a race of
gods dwelling in the heavens for five
centuries, then followed another race
of gods who dwelt on the earth for
seven centuries, these in turn were
succeeded by the present Japanese
race, the imperial representative of
whom was Jimmu Tenno. This al
leged hero his place in history is
doubted by many scholars lived
twenty-five centuries ago, and his
authority was acknowledged, before
his rule came to an end, by most of
the aborigines of the whole of the
present country of Japan. In this
most polytheistic of all religions, the
gods who existed in the pre-Jimma
Tenno age hold the more exalted
place except in emergencies when the
gods who have been men become pro
tectors of the people. The concep
tion of God, to a Japanese in general,
is the hero, or superior man who has
been deified, yet there are some mys
terious agencies which they call
God; of the former class, all the
emperors from Jimmu Tenno to the
present one, one hundred and twenty
two in all. The common title of the
emperor is "Son of Heaven" (Ten Shi.)
No doubt, like his ancestors and the
ancient heroes, the present ruling em
peror will be deified on his decease. All
who have played a conspicuous part
to the benefit of the country in her
trials and triumphs enjoy the same
honors. The one who enjoys the
widest. distinction of all the deified is
Ojin Tenno, emperor and hero. This
exalted personage, it is said, was born
many months after his expected time,
in answer to a prayer of his mother,
who was on a hostile expedition to
Korea. When - she returned to her
own land, as conqueror, she gave
birth to him, miraculous signs por
tending his futurei greatness. Ojin
Tenno was a civilizer as well as a con
queror, and the people honor him as
the greatest of their gods. In almost
every town and village, the country
over, a temple has been erected to
this god, some of them being the
finest specimens of architecture to be
seen in Japan. In the court of these
temples there are numerous pictures
representing historical facts, and
much that is fiction, as well as many
interesting relics of war.
Hideyoshi, the hero who conquered
Korea, suppressed rebellion in Japan,
and ruled the country so magnifi.
cently in the emperor's stead is count
ed among the divine. Kato, his
most powerful vassal, persecutor
of the Catholics three hundred years
ago, comes in for a greater share of
honors than his master, and temples
to him are frequent in most parts of
the country.
As an illustration of their strong
propensities to apotheosize I will re
late the following recent observation:
About the middle of the 17th century,
Hideyoshi, being assured of his per
fect authority over the vassal princes
undertook the scheme of conquering
China, but thinking it would prove
beneficial to his plans to first subdue
Korea, selected five of his most valiant
and powerful princes and put them at
the head of a large force and dispatch
ed them on the expedition. Two of
these princes, at least, were Chris
tians, and one other was a sympathiz
er with the new sect, then, for the
first, time being proclaimed in the
country. One of these, Nakagawa,
died soon after returning from this
famous expedition, and as might be
expected, was duly apotheosized. I
recently visited the temple erected to .
him, and with peculiar emotions saw
people worshipping at the shrine of
one who beyond all doubt was a
Christian. In this temple is a large
foreign-cast bell with inscriptions on
it in a Romantic language, and on
two sides is an inscription of the cross.
This was no doubt a gift of some Ro
man Catholic, perhaps some earnest
Jesuit, who lead him to Christ. On
the walls are some very vivid scenes
representing battles with the Kore
ans, and on Nakagawa's banners and
pennons are the insignia of the Cross.
The Roman Church has canonized
many of the Japanese Christians, and
it would be interesting to know
whether one who has been deified by
the Japanese populace has been saint
ed by the "Holy Roman Church."
Often benefactors have been accord
ed divine honors, and men zealously
repair to their temples to worship.
Among these it is sufficient to men
tion the man who discovered the use
of indigo.
The mysterious influences that arc
called gods are more generally and
enthusiastically worshipped than those
raised from among mortals. Ama
Mi Naka Nushi no Kami (the great
god ruling in the midst of heaTen) bo
far as I have been able to learn, is not
worshipped. Amaterasu O Mi Kami
(the goddess who rales the snn)receiye,5
devotion from all the faithful; for ex
ample, when they turn to the risJDg
sun in prayer, through which they
look to her. To this goddess the temples
of Ise, the most ancient and famous
in the country, are erected. The
government bestows special care up
on them, restoring them in all their
parts every twenty-one years. Every
devout Shintoist tries to make a pil
grimage to these temples once in a
lifetime.
(To be continued.)
The religion of Christ does every,
thing for man that he cannot do for
himself.
The only way by which love can be
measured is by what it is willing to
suffer.
Lack of fear does not always mean
courage. It may mean a lack f
knowledge.
The devil will nevei be iiauch dis
couraged as long as he can find a
moderate drinker. Barn's Horn.
i.
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