for the rest of his days. But he had a passion for
work--a passion of pity for poor tempted humanity. He wanted to reach
down and try to lift up the strugglin' 'submerged tenth.' He wuz a
student and disciple of Ruskin, and felt that he must carry a message
of helpfulness and beauty into starved lives. And, best of all, he wuz
a follower of Jesus, who went about doin' good. When his rich family
found that he would be a clergyman they wanted to git him a big city
church, and he might have had twenty, for he wuz smart as a whip,
handsome, rich, and jest run after in society. But no; he said there
wuz plenty to take those rich fat places; he would work amongst the
poor, them who needed him."
East Loontown is a factory village, and the little chapel was standin'
empty for want of funds, but twenty saloons wuz booming, full of the
operatives, who spent all of their spare time and most of their money
there. So Ernest White stayed right there and preached, at first to
empty seats and a few old wimmen, but as they got to know him, the
best young men and young wimmen went, and he filled their hearts with
aspiration and hope and beauty and determination to help the world.
Not being contented with what he wuz doing he spent half his time with
the factory hands, who wuz driven to work by Want, and harried by the
mighty foe, Intemperance. A saloon on every corner and block, our twin
American idols, Intemperance and Greed, taking every cent of money
from the poor worshippers, to pour into the greedy pockets of the
saloon-keepers, brewers, whiskey men and the Government, and all who
fatten on the corpse of manhood.
Well, he jest threw himself into the work of helping those poor souls,
and helping them as he did in sickness and health they got to liking
him, so that they wuz willing to go and hear him preach, which was one
hard blow to the Demon. The next thing he got all the ministers he
could to unite in a Church Union to fight the Liquor Power, and
undertaking it in the right way, at the ballot-box, they got it pretty
well subdued, and as sane minds begun to reign in healthier bodies,
better times come.
Elder White not only preached every Sunday, but kep' his church open
every evening of the week, and his boys and girls met there for
healthful and innocent amusements. He got a good library, all sorts of
good games, music; and had short, interesting lectures and
entertainments and his Church of Love rivalled the Idol Temples an
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