ield on the Canton Pike about one mile southeast of Hopkinsville.
There is quite a settlement of negroes call themselves or their church
the Holiness Church. They claim to be sanctified and cannot sin. A few
nights ago I was invited to attend one of these meetings, the negroes
reserve some benches under the tent for white people.
The night that I attended there were two preachers and it seems as
though it is the duty of these preachers to bring their discourse to
such a point as to play on the emotions of their congregation. The order
of service begun with a hymn by the choir. The music for this consisted
of a piano, banjo guitar and numerous tambourines. The negroes being
naturally born with a great sense of rhythm the songs were not in the
same tempo as the songs of the whites but were of a jazz tempo and with
the banjo and tambourines it makes one think of the stories of the
African jungles. The services start around 7:30 P.M. and usually break
up around midnight.
The negroes in about one hour after the services start being[TR: begin?]
to testify and then after each testimony someone offers a prayer then by
this time someone in the congregation will be worked up to the pitch of
shouting "Glory Hallelulah". "When this shout starts the tambourine
players will begin shaking the tambourines and shortly the majority of
the congregation would be shouting, moaning or praying. The tambourines
players bounce around in time to the music. There were some excellent
untrained voices, in the choir and the congregation. The mourners bench
was always full of mourners and when one of the Mourners would begin to
shout the "Workers" would then let the congregation know that this
brother or sister had repented by saying "Lets pray for Bro. or Sister
----, for he or she had "Come Through". The congregation would begin
clapping their hands while this prayer was in progress and general
moanings with one or both of the preachers praying at the same time why
this brother or sister is taken in to the flock to sin no more.
While the above is in progress there are other workers talking and
singing to the rest of the mourners and when two or three "Come Through"
at once there is great shouting rejoicing, clapping of hands and the
tambourines continue to clang and the choir members dance and this
process continues for hours or until the preachers become so exausted
with their exhortations and contortions that the meeting is adjourned.
Su
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