Brother Kline's experienced eye took in the whole scene at one view.
He says: "The scenery here is greatly surpassed by that of many places
within the Allegheny ranges. It is not nearly equal to the South
Branch Gap below Petersburg in Hardy County, Virginia; nor does it at
all compare, in sublime grandeur, with the Rocks at the mouth of the
Seneca, in Pendleton County, Virginia. It is tame in comparison with
either of these places. But so goes the world. It is with places as
with people. When one gets a name by being lauded high by some
distinguished personage, as Thomas Jefferson, for example, he soon has
the eyes and the ears of the world; whilst others, more worthy,
perhaps, in all the elements of true greatness, are left unnoticed and
unknown. This thought awakens my recollection of a stanza in Gray's
'Elegy.' It touches tenderly and beautifully upon the neglect and lack
of appreciation often experienced by real beauty, virtue and goodness.
Here is the verse:
"'Full many a gem of purest ray serene,
The dark, unfathomed caves of ocean bear;
Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air.'
"But we must tone our criticisms down to a just standard. The lack of
fame with many justly meriting it is not their own fault, nor is it
the fault of the world; but the trouble lies greatly in the place of
their birth and in the surroundings of their lives. If the South
Branch Gap had had its birth at Harper's Ferry the summit of its fame
would reach the clouds; whilst Harper's Ferry, born among the rugged
recesses of the Alleghenies, would never be thought of. The world is
not so partial and full of favoritism as we think. It readily takes up
what suits its uses and its tastes, without stopping to inquire
whether there might not be something better found."
Crossing the Potomac at the Ferry, they go to Brother Letherman's and
spend the night.
FRIDAY, September 1. Love feast at Brother Herschman's in Middle
Valley. Luke 3 was read. Three persons were baptized. Next day the
brethren go to Beaver Dam, and pass the night at John Garber's.
At this time letter postage was very high, as much as twenty-five
cents on some letters; and the transportation of mails very slow.
Regardless of this, however, by means of letters, Brother Kline knew
just where to go and what to expect before starting on a journey.
Appointments for preaching, councils and love feasts fell in the line
of his route from beginning to end. Have a little bit of patience,
please, and let me quote the entries just as I find them in the Diary
for this journey. If they do not interest you, they may interest
others deeply, especially the children and the grandchildren of the
good people named in them.
SUNDAY, September 3. Love feast at Beaver Dam. Luke 14 was read. Three
persons were baptized.
MONDAY, 4. Visit Brother Deah's and Saylor's, and stay all night at
Joseph Engle's.
TUESDAY, 5. Meeting at Pipe Creek. Luke 16 was read. Stay all night at
Peter Royer's.
WEDNESDAY, 6. Meeting at Rupp's. John 1 was read. Stay all night at
Christian Royer's.
THURSDAY, 7. Stay at Brother Keeney's.
FRIDAY, 8. Love feast at Brother Keeney's. John 18 was read.
SATURDAY, 9. Visit Jacob Myers's. Stay all night at David Brillhardt's.
The families visited in the order of Brother Kline and Brother Flory's
route were as follows: Christian Longenacker's, John Zug's, Abraham
Zug's, Daniel Zug's, Jacob Gipe's, John Gipe's, Abraham Harshey's,
Shoemaker's, Brother Myers's on the other side of the Susquehanna,
Andrew Deardorf's, David Pfoutz, Fogelsanger's, John Stauffer's,
Brother Royer's, Brother Holsinger's, Welty's, Fahrney's, Joseph
Emert's, Eschleman's, David Kinsey's, Brother Martain's, James
Tabler's; Carter's, in Frederick County, Virginia, Jonas Goughnour's,
in Shenandoah County, Virginia; and home Tuesday, October 3.
Brother Flory and I did not separate for one day or night on this
journey. He preached a good deal, and has, I think, left a very good
impression. He related a little incident about a local preacher with
whom he was personally acquainted, and which he stated for a fact,
that has several times amused me. It came in at a suitable place in
one of his discourses. The preacher had been regularly receiving one
hundred dollars a year from his Conference, for stated preachings to
several poor congregations not far from his home. The preacher owned a
farm and a mill, both at the same time; and with the two combined he
became independent. His brethren saw this and concluded that he ought
_no longer be paid_ the hundred dollars a year; so the pay was
withheld. But his preaching stopped as suddenly as his pay. When asked
about the cause of this he pointed to his _mill wheel_ and said: "_Do
you suppose that that wheel will run if you keep the water off?_"
The brethren and sisters generally appeared to be alive to their
spiritual interests. The meetings were usually well attended, and good
attention was paid to the preaching. In some places, however,
worldliness in dress and manners is becoming too apparent.
In Maryland we happened to fall in company with a man traveling our
course, who represented himself as a United Brethren preacher. He was
very plainly dressed himself, and as we were plain I guess he thought
that to give his conversation a turn upon the _fashions_ of the world
would not be unpleasant to us. At any rate he went on to tell how
pride was gradually creeping, inch by inch, into his own denomination;
and, "worst of all," said he, "it looks like it is beginning to take
hold of some of our preachers." He then stated that at their last
yearly Conference, the bishop had scored some of them fearfully about
it. He then repeated what the bishop had said on the occasion about
the