Judge, 1901-07-13 · page 3 of 16
Judge — July 13, 1901 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page presents a humorous anecdote by Mrs. Margaret Hammon about a week-long Baptist revival meeting in the South. The satire targets rural religious practices and camp-meeting culture. The joke centers on Uncle Toby, an elderly Black man, who disrupts the proceedings by shouting during sermons. When told to be quiet, he explains his hat will fall off if he shouts—so he's been "hanging it dar" outside. Aunt Nancy arrives in an old buggy laden with attendees, creating a chaotic scene. The humor mocks the emotional exuberance of revival meetings and stereotypes rural Southern religious practice as loud and unrefined. The narrative voice treats the participants' earnest faith as absurd, a common satirical approach in early-20th-century Judge magazine content targeting religious enthusiasm among working-class and rural communities.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Judge’s Funny Stories by Serious People, and Vice Versa. BIG MEETIN’. By Mrs. Margaret Hammond, wife of U.S. Justice Hammond, Memphis, Term, down South, and many miles out in the coun- try—the old- fashioned kind of meeting, when the preaching began in the morning and lasted until noon, and the good people brought big baskets of nice things and spread the din- ner picnic style, and then had preaching until supper-time,and then again the evening sermon. The meeting had been going on for a week, and the interest was great. Many con- versions had been made, many brands snatched from the burning. Sunday was to be a big day, with the morning sermon, and baptizing in the afternoon, and the other sermon in the evening. Saturday night MRS, MARGARET HAMMOND, “ Uncle Toby had stirred their hearts.” myself to shout, When I shouts, I shouts, and I don’t want nothin’ to happen to dat hat, so I jes" hung it dar ‘til dis meetin’ is ‘cluded.” And down she sat, waiting until, the good brother began to preach. ‘The old man preached a mighty fine sermon, and Aunt Nancy did **Aunt Nancy rode in her old buggy.” found all the brethren pretty well tired out, and they were appointing the preachers for the next day's work. Brother Watkins was to preach the morning sermon, Brother Jones was to baptize the candidates, and Brother Hawkins was to preach in the evening. One brother spoke up and said : Brethren, there is a colored church just half a mile from here, and they are also having a good meeting, and I think it is our Christian duty to send one of our good brothers over to preach to them to-morrow Yes, they all agreed it was the thing to do, but who was to go? All the brethren were pretty well worn from the hard week just past. One old brother who had been a worker in the fold for more than fifty years, and was now eighty years old, and known to everybody, white and black, as Old Uncle Toby, rose and said : “Brethren, negroes.” So it was agreed that Uncle Toby was to go. Early Sunday morning the darkies began to arrive. far and near. A venerable negress they all knew as “Aunt Nanc in great state. She rode in her old buggy her old master had given her, and on her head, instead of her bandana, she had a hat with a bunch of roses, which her young mistress had given her to wear to the big meeting to hear Uncle Toby preach. She walked like a queen into the church and up to the Amen corner, took off her hat, hung it on a wooden peg. and then tied her bandana on her head and remarked : * Don't none er you niggers lay a finger on dat hat. will go over there to-morrow and preach to those poor They came from I'm just ‘parin’ not fail to do her part. When he finished he was somewhat exhausted and called on Brother Rube Gayden to lead in prayer. “ Brer’ Rube ain't here, Bree’ Abe Wisinger is here. “ Well, Brother Abe will please lead in prayer.” The excitement was great. Uncle Toby had stirred the hearts of his audience, and the shouts of “Amen! God bless Uncle Toby !" were heard from all sides as Brother Abe prayed and prayed. And then he wound up by saying : “And now, O Marster, beg you will hab mercy on dis good ole brother who has jus’ ligh'ened us so much wid you blessed gospel. He hab give us, Marster, a mighty flow of sperets; he hab warmed up our hearts an’ giben us heabenly food. Oh! bless him, Marster, for he is ole an’ feeble; he hab been a faithful leader so many years. Now he is blind, he cannot see! He deaf, he cannot hear! He lame, he cannot walk! He got one foot in de grave an’ other no business out! Amen!” said a voice from the congregation, * but comicbooks.com