Anecdotes of Henry Ward Beecher.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 204, 21 May 1887, Page 8 (Supplement)

Anecdotes of Henry Ward Beecher.

In 1809 Mr Beecber preached at Lenox, Mass. " Oh, dear," exclaimed Miss Heron, the actres3, who was present, " I did hope, when I left New York, I should leave the stage behind me." When Park Benjamin was invited to attend Plymouth Church, and complained of nob knowing the way, Mr Beecher told the poet to take the ferry and follow the crowd. " I would come," replied Benjamin, "only that I make it an invariable rule never to go to any place of amusement on Sunday. " In 1860 Mr Beecher was invited by the Mercantile Library Association of St. Louis to lecture, but with the understanding that he should " eschew all matter* pertaining to politic* and religion." The characteristic reply was : "I am too much of a patriot to eschew the one and too good a Christian to neglect the other," and in closing, "hoped that before long the young men of St. Louis would be able to listen, without shrinking, to the free speech of an honest man." His lecture was on " Young America," and up to November of that year ho had received 500 invitations for the winter lecturing tour. One pleasant Sabbatli morning, so the story runs, on the way to church, Beecher went up to a number of boys playing mai'bles and exclaimed, " What, boys, playing marbles on the Sabbath day! Why, you frighten me !" Upon which one of the little sinners answered, "Frightened, ha ! Why in the d 1 don't you run then ?" When Mr Beecher tried to stop running' horse-cars in Brooklyn on Sundays, for the sake of the conductors and drivers, he unbeknown questioned a conductor, who replied : "If that sanctimonious hypocrite Beecher would shut up his establishment the thing could be done/" Mr Beecher inquired of some boys crying papers, " What's the news to-night ? " Oh," said one of the urchins, " give me 3 cents and I'll show you !" Dr. Todd is credited with the famous division, " Saints, sinners* and the Beech^ family," and also with tjhB assertion thajj ho man had done more t& build up the Evangelical faith than By. Lyraan Beeoher, and that no men had done more to pviU ft down than his sons,