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(?l?m? Newspaper Un ^ovth Callina VOL. 77. EDGEFIELD, S. C., WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5, 1912 NO. 17 CENTENNIAL SERVICE. Red Oak Grove Church Cele , brated Its One Hundredth Birthday in Most Befit ting Manner. A Foreword Though practically unlearned in statecraft, our forbears who Avere driven from England by the des pot's heel, bnilded well after setting foot upon the virgin soil of the new world. The government which they founded was at the time the marvel, and afterwards the envy, of many nations, vouchsafing to every in dividual, whether of high or low birth, equal rights, together with liberty of conscience, of thought, and of action. This signal achievement was made possible by their reliance upon Him, the first liberator of hu manity. His word was not only a lamp unto their feet but held high place in their councils. Knowing then "what Master laid her keel, what workman wrought her ribs of steel," one does not wonder that the Old Ship of Stale has weather ed every storm for upwards of a hundred years. "Ay, call it holy ground, The soil where first they trod. They have left unstained what there they fouud, Freedom to worship God" The purpose of the coming of the early settlers to this cpnntry was unique. History records but few, if any, parallels. Casting their lot in the wilds of America was not for the purpose of conquest, or for pro moting their selfish ends by win ning fame and fortune, but for the purpose of worshipping God after the dictates of their own conscience. Unselfish worship and service then being the regnant passion of their souls, it was but natural that co-existent with tbe founding of a colony, and with the building of the log hut, was the crude house of worship. These settlements appear ed first along the coast, and later, as the ranks of the early colonists were reinforced by others from the mother country, the hitherto unex plored fastnesses of the interior were gradually reclaimed from the Red Man and opened up to civili zation. The first church founded in this immediate section of the interior, at least the first Baptist church, so far as the records show, was Horn's Creek, which was for a number of years connected with the old Char leston association. This was after the colonies had thrown off the English yoke and gained their in dependence, but several years before the Union was actually formed. In the decade that followed other Bap tist churches were organized in this section. Red Oak Grove Church It was not until February 15th, IS 12, that Red Oak Grove church was instituted, Antioch being the mother church from which it sprang. "VVe do not know whether it was due to a coincidence or to the alleged penchant of the Baptists for an abundance gof water, yet it is nevertheless a fact that several of the earliest Baptist churches were given the name of some near-by stream. For example, we have Horn's Creek, Mountain Creek and Stevens Creek churches. However, in naming the subject of this story the usual custom, was departed from. Judging from the present environ ment of the church, one would think that the name was suggested by the preponderance of stately red oaks that added dignity to the primeval forest, through which the blows of an axe had probably never echoed until the trees were felled to provide a site for the crude house of worship. The word "crude" is not used in a disparaging sense. Our foreparents, the pioneers, of what ever name or wherever found, led a simple life and of necessity then lived in a log cabin. And doubtless their houses of worship com parted with the other buildings of that day. Though the "long drawn aisle and fretted vault" were absent, ono can easily believe that the simple worship of those Red Oak Grove folk, whose initial services were S doubtless held out under the red oaks themselves, was far more ac ceptable to Him than that of mauj of the fashionable city churches of to-day. When Red Oak Grove church was first organized the merabersh was only twenty-eight, but as the were at that time no churches at ll Hill, Modoc or Clark's Hill, t need for a church in the Grove coi inanity was great. There were i Sunday schools at the places nam to keep the people away from ti regular preaching services al tl newly established church. A Complete History Unlike many of the count churches, and town churches too f that matter, Red Oak Grove has carefully recorded history that Q tends back to thc date of its fou:., ing. Mrs. John C. Morgun, who W Miss Margaret Bussey before h< marriage, now of hallowed menor gathered up the early records of tl church and compiled therefrom complete history up to 1SU5. Sim that date Mrs. John Griffis and M E. G. Morgan have completed tl history to the present time. The Centennial Celebration The 15th of last February marl ed the one-hundredth anniversary c the founding of the church, but ii stead of holding the centennial eel bration at that time, when the weall er was unfavorable, it was decide to hold it the first Sunday io Jnn< which was last Sunday. The ar nouncement that this special servie would be held attracted a large nun ber of people, the attendance exceed ing the seating capacity of the buile ing. Rev. George W. Bussey, th pastor of the'church, arranged th program for the occasion and direel ed the exercises of the day. The opening feature of the fore noon was a hurried review of th history of the church by Mr. E. G Morgan, whose long term of devou and consecrated services as a mere ber caused him to be one of^, th makers of the church's latte* da: history. Owing to the limited tim allotted him, Mr.. Morgan was com pelled to omit much that ~.*ould havi been of intense interest to man; present. This reference, to the pas caused him to become somewha reminiscent, and the facts gleanec from the recorded history were in terlarded with personal experience and recollections, some humorou and others serious, which were great ly enjoyed by those present. It was Mr. Morgan's purpose tc place the church history in th< hands of the editor so the most im portant facts could be published ir The Advertiser this week, but ai the last moment we were unable tc obtain the manuscript, hence our in ability to publish any extracts fnoir it in connection with this report ol the centennial occasion. Hymn Lined-Out by Pastor Rev. Mr. Bu.s?ey stated that hf believes in progress and advance ment but that it is a good thing to occasionally return to the old way of doing things, and then told ol the old custom of lining-out the hymns when books were scarce and before organs were used in the churches. In observance of this cus tom which obtained in most coun try churches . prior to about i860, he announced' a familiar hymn and requested tho congregation to sing as he lined i.t two lines at a time. Being unaccustomed to this slow method of praise, some inattentive members of the congregation would at times continue the third line be fore it was . read bj' the minister. Through the liuing-out process Mr. Bussey had the entire congregation siii<iin<r ana when the climax of each vocal ?crescendo was reached the roof wak almost raised. We arc not so sure about its "soothing the savage breast" or "softening the rocks" but certainly such volumes of vocal music could "bend the knot ted oak." We saw some men sing ing, including several candidates, who had not raised a tune in up wards of forty years, lt required several "lining-outs"for them to get the twists alnd knots out of their vocal cords!, but finally they be came as resonant as the strings of a Cremona. : "A Century of Missions" The leading address or sermon of the day was. delivered in the fore noon by Dri M. D. Jeffries, pastor of the Baptist church at Edgefield. The subject assigned him was, A century of missions." Ile began by saying mission work gives life to a church. T|he church that does not giye the g?ad tidings to others has. no claim ipr existence and will not exist longJ. There can be no real life without gifting. The great spiritual Whitefield and Wesley led tv) great activity in missions, and William Garey in 1702 started the movement of spreading the gospel around the world. Tlie sailing of Adoniram Judson, who became the first mis sionary of Southern Baptists, was co-existent with the founding of the Ked Oak Grove church in February 1812. Dr. Jeffries spoke of the effect of transportation upon missions, con trasting the handicaps experienced by the pioneers with the modern travelling facilities. He also dwelt upon the rapid means of communi cation which this generation enjoys. Dr. Jeffries referred to the or ganization of the Southern Baptist convention in Augusta in 1845. After calling attention to the fact that the first president of the con vention was a South Carolinian, he Rev. G. W. Bussey. spoke of the prominent part that this state has had in the work of the convention all down through the years. "There was never a time," said the speaker, "when the great com mand was heeded as it is to-day. One hundred years ago the doors of all of the heathen nations were closed, while to-day the cry for help comes from practically all of them. Thc field is white unto the harvest. The great need is more laborers. In 1888 the Southern Baptists con-, tributed ?45,000 for foreign mis sions. The total amount last year was $580,000. Thirty years ago the number of conversions on the for eign fields was 250 in a year, while last year there were 4,300. The average contribution per capita of Southern Baptists to foreign mis sions is 22 cents, while the average in this state is 38 cents. The aver age contribution of each member of the Baptist church at Edgefield for foreign missions is ?1.50." Dr. Jeffries made reference to the important part that Ked Oak Grove church had filled in the mission work of the Edgefield association, the ladies ol' the church enjoying the distinction of having the oldest missionary society in the entire as sociation. While Dr. Jeffries' ad dress consumed nearly an hour, yet he spoke so earnestly and interest ingly that it seemed to be less than half an hour in length. The very excellent discourse was well receiv ed and we are constrained to be lieve that good results will follow the impressions made. Feast for the Body. The program for the forenoon be ing completed, a recess for one hour was announced, lt is but stating a plain, honest truth, without intend ing any disparagement of any part of the program, to say that one of the most attractive features on pub lic occasions in Edgefield county is that which is presented out under thc oaks, served from thc festive board instead of from the rostrum. This is rendered undeniably true because of the skill of the good wemen in thc culinary art, together with the generous hospitality that is characteristic ol' the Edgefield men. The faithful founders of the Grove church were doubtless as loyal in their devotion and as un selfish in their service as the present membership, but we venture the statement that they could not then have fed the throng of Sunday in as princely a manner as it was feasted. With only ovens and skillets, instead of stoves and ranges, such a feast would have been as impossible as for one who was handicapped by human limita tions to have fed the multitude with the five loaves and two fishes. Suffice it to say that the dinner \ all that the most fastidious pal could desire or the most voraci< appetite demand. Rev J T Littlejohn After filling his regular appoi mein at Republican church Kev. T. Littlejohn made a forced mai to Ked Oak Grove in time to fill assignment on thc afternoon p: gram. During the absence of R George W. Bussey, while serving chaplain in the Spanish-Ame can war, Mr. Littlejohn served t church as pastor, and the ten m ules alloted him were eonsutn chiefly with relating his experiem as pastor. Mr. Littlejohn review tho marvelous growth of the Bi tist denomination, in power, weah and intellectually. He spoke int? estingly of how Thomas Jeffersc upon visiting a small Baptist char in Virginia, conceived the idea founding this government up Democratic principles and draft the constitution accordingly. IV Littlejohn said it is generally co ceded that no body is more thc qughlv Democratic than a Bapti church, not being accountable any body or organization. Ea< local Baptist church is within itse a court of last resort. A Product of The Church The last to speak on this ve pleasant and profitable occasion w Rev. P. H. Bussey, who has ju completed the full course at tl Seminary. Being guided and guan cd by the prayers of a consecrate mother, and following i the footsteps of a Godly father ar saintly forefathers, this young ma was placed in an attitude to hear an heed the divine call into the mini try. As his seniors had cpeken chieJ ly of the past, it was befitting th occasion that one standing on th threshold of a useful career sh oui iH'.v speak of thc outlook. Ile spok lu Setail of the" reasons for enconi agement that every mission fieh presents and urged his hearers ti go forth and possess the land. Three Church Buildings The building that was erected ai the time the church was organized was small and was constructed o logs. Some years afterwards, wi are not informed as to the exac date, this was torn away and a larg er and better building was erectec on the same site. About four year; ago the members of the church came together and decided that a largei and more modern building should be provided. By practically every member doing a generous part the new building was erected and paid for without receiving any very con siderable financial assistance out side of tho community. The pastor stated Sunday morn ing, in referring'to the three houses of worship, that Mr. G. D. Mims, although not a member of the church, was entitled to special mention for the generous manner in which he assisted with the new building. Besides planning the church and personally supervising its erection, he contributed liberal ly of his means. The large stained glass windows in the church were not only donated by him but were made by his own hands. The Busseys Some time after the close of the Crimean war, it is said that several generals and other officers who par ticipated in that bloody struggle met at sonic place ?by chance and began to discuss the war. Some one present asked what name connected with the Crimean war would sur vive all others, suggesting that a <ecrqt ballot be taken in order to determine on whom this distinguish ed honor should fall. Instead of con taining the names of those who were adorned with epaulettes and other badges of honor, every ballot contained tho name of Florence Nightingale, whose modest, sym pathetic and unselfish service to the wounded and dying won for hera name that will be more enduring than the marble and brass that has been inscribed to her memory. So it is with the Busseys ol' Red Oak Grove. Had a l>allot been tak en Sunday as to which name has been most inseparably linked with the life of the church, every ballot would have contained the name of Bussey. One of the first deacons and founders of thc church was Mr. Dempsey Bussey, and throughout the entire 1UU years some one bear ing the name has been on the board of deacons. Rev.G. W. Bussey, who has served the church as pastor for 43 years was the grandson of Mr. Dempsey Bussey. Rev. Mr. Bussey's father, Joseph Bnssey, was a deacon, and his ? brother, P. TL Bussey, Sr., is now a deacon. This church lias given to the world two other Bussey s who are ministers, Rev. A. W. Bassay, I a son of Rev. George Bussey, and Rev. P. II. Bussey, a aon of Mr. P. II. Bussey. Many good women who have borne this honored name could also be mentioned did space permit. Of course there are scores of other individuals who have shared a liberal part of the burden, but in selecting a single name borne by those who have rendered most con spicuous service throughout the years that of Bussey is entitled to head the honor roll. The Veteran Church Clerk Upon the reassembling of the congregation after dinner, Mr. Bus sey called upon Col. W. J. Talbert to address the the meeting, stating that Col. Talbert was not only clerk of the church for a long time, more than 25 years, but that he made an ideal officer. Col. Talbert said it was his custom to embody in the re cord a resume of the sermon, be sides giving in stereotyped form the actual work of the church con ference. Col. Talbert's remarks were interspersed with humorous incidents and anecdotes that caused frequent and hearty laughter. He possesses to a rare degree the art of entertaining an audience in the lighter vein without detracting from the edilication afforded by his origi nal thought and rich store of infor mation. Col. Talbert's timely ad monitions and wise counsel were well received. Col. Talbert was succeeded as clerk by Mr. E. G. Morgan, Avhose place was filled by Mr. Luther Tim merman after he moved to Parks-1 ville last fall. History of Missionary Society Having written a history of the , missionary work among the women , of the Edgetield association, Mrs. ! J. L. Miras sent to Red Oak Grove , that portion which related to the -, achievements of the faithful wo- j men of that church. Having been , informed that the reading of tue paper was to be a feature of the ^ centennial celebration, Mr. Bussey , announced it as the next item on the afternoon's program. The pa per wa3 read by Mrs. Mamie Till- r man at the request of Mrs. Minis who could not be present. The pa per is a valuable contribution to i the religious history of thc county j and is published in full in this is sue of The Advertiser. An Inviolate Rule. \ A former citizen of Edgetield county one of the best raen that j the old county ever reared, but now a resident of a state in the ra i d d 1 e-w est, wrote the j editor of The Advertiser a personal letter last week in which he pointed out the sterling qualities of a certain candidate for office in | this county, requesting that the facts be given to the public. We know, in part at least, that every . word contained in the letter is ab" j solutely true, but The Advertiser j endeavors to be fair to all of the j. candidates, hence we must refrain from making public that which, personally, we would like to see in ^ print. Absoluto justice and fair ness to all alike, is a rule that this ^ newspaper holds inviolate. . Do Not Make Good Our Claims. ; It is pretty hard to convince the average Northern fanner that wc 1 can grow over 200 bushels of corn on an acre, when the average yield is less than twenty bushels. Thc South will never be in the Corn Belt until we make a better average j yield than twenty bushels per acre. | Some of our people are fond of j boasting of the fertility of our soils r but those who know our crop yields a per acre do not believe our soils A fertile. Likewise, we talk much of { the forage we can grow, but our T claims are discounted by thc fact { that we buy feeds for livestock. We ( boast of our ability to grow two s and three forage crops per year, but i discredit ourselves by failing to ] grow even one. It is true that we t can grow two or three crops a ye ar . on thc same laud, but this truth is ? no value as long as we buy hay and j pay thc heavy transpoitation charges < from the 'Northern States.-Pro gressive Fanner. TWO SCHOOL PICNICS. Gardnerville and Sweetwater School Closings. A Very in teresting Account j of These. Dear Advertiser: Please allow me space in your valuable paper for a few dots from down "in the sticks." The Gardnerville school which was successfully taught by Miss Mary Mealing of Curryton closed last Friday the 24th, and on the following Saturday Miss Mary delighted her pupils, together with the patrons and neighbors with a delightful basket picnic and lisli fry down at the beautiful mill pond of her venerable father, Mr. li. J Mealing. The day was ideal in it self, and early that morning several of the older men assisted by the young men went down and seined the pond. They brought forih the nicest kimi of fish in abundance and the cooks were put to work to prepare fried fish and stew for din ner. While the old folks were having good times to themselves the young were amusing themselves by trying their luck and fishing some in water and some on land and if we were left to judge which was the most successful we would say those who tried their luck on land were the luckiest but some of them didn't even get a bite and some looked happy from the result of trying their luck while some bore the look of disap pointment on their faces. But the dinner was best of all and good enough for president Taft too! We ate under some large shade trees and had plenty of good spring water in a few yards from us. We had plenty of fish, chicken, ham, sandwiches, pickles, pies, custards, salads, ice tea, cake and every good thing imaginable to eat. There was i very large crowd and every one lgreed that they had spent a most enjoyable day. Too much praise and ippreciation can not be given Miss Mary and her host of efiicient and lospitable co-workers for giving us ;uch a pleasant day. Some of our farmers are well up villi their work while others are rreatly behind. The friendsjof Mr. Charlie Glover viii be grieved to learn of his ill less but we trust that Mr." Charlie" viii soon be himself again. Sweet and vivacious little Miss rennie Carpenter of North Augusta, s visiting her friends, Misses Koi nie and Lila Lanham of Ropers. Miss Mattie Shaw will leave soon o visit friends at Modoc and she viii also attend the centennial cele >ration of Red Oak Grove church. Miss Katherine Love, of Tampa, ?1H., who is spending the summer vith her brother Mr. Frank Love >f Augusta, is visiting her friend, Hrs. Talbert M. Glover. Mrs. J. B. Shaw and little (laugh er have returned home from a deasant visit to friends and rela ives in Atlanta, and Langdale, Ala. The Sweetwater school which vas ably taught by Miss Kate Rob nson. of North Augusta, closed ast Thursday and on Friday Miss lobins?n treated her school and rienda with a picnic and we know ill those who were fortunate enough o attend enjoyed the day to the ul lost. We are ex pectin": to seo onie awful long faces since Miss vate left us but don't Worry boys, ts not much farther to North Au gusta and we are sure you will en oy the ride and sunshine too. Old Maid. L"renton, S. C. Flower Mission Meeting'. The annual Flower Mission meeti ng of the W. C. T. V. was held donday afternoon at the home of tirs. W. B. Cogburn. A large lumber of members were present, md the occasion was enjoyable as veil as profitable. Two very in ercsting personal reminiscences vere related by Dr. and Mrs. Jef ries of the life of Jennie Casseday, he originator of the Flower Mis iion. Little Ouida Pattison recited leaulifully a very appropriate se ection entitled "The use of ?OW jrs," and Mrs. Mamie Tillman read i poem "Angels in Disguise." Some music was interspersed, re port of year's work made by Mrs. uOgburn, and business attended to. /Vt thc close refreshments _ot: ices md cake were served.