185G.] A PuhUc Rehulce—Anecdote of Judge White. 437 



concerning religious men. The company now expressed the most 

 urgent desire that the Judge would give the particulars, and expec- 

 tation stood on tiptoe. 



"I went up," said the Judge, -one evening to the Methodist 

 church. A sermon was preached by a clergyman with whom I was 

 not acquainted: but Father Axley was in the pulpit. At the close 

 of the sermon, he arose and said to the congregation, - 1 am not go- 

 ing to detain you by delivering an exhortation. I have risen sim- 

 ply to administer a rebuke for improper conduct, which I have observ- 

 ed here to-night." This, of course, waked up the entire assembly 

 and the stillness was most profound, while Axley stood and looked 

 for two or three seconds over the congregation. Then, stretchin- 

 out his large, long arm and pointing with his finger steadily in one 

 direction, " Xow," said he, "I calculate that those two youn- men 

 who were talking and laughing in that corner of the house" while 

 the brother was preaching, think that I'm going to talk about them. 

 W^ell, it IS true that it looks very bad, when well-dressed young men 

 who you would suppose, from their appearance, belonged to some 

 genteel, respectable family, come to the house of God, and instead 

 of reverencing the majesty of Him that dwelleth therein, of attend- 

 ing to the message of everlasting love, get together in one corner of 

 the house, (his finger all this time pointing straight and steady as the 

 aim of a rifleman,) and there, through the whole solemn service keep 

 talking, tittering, laughing, giggling— thus annoying the minister, 

 disturbing the congregation, and sinning against God. I'm sorry 

 for the young men. I'm sorry for their parents. I'm sorry they 

 have done so to night. I hope they will never do so again. But 

 however, that's not the thing that I was going to talk about. It is' 

 another matter, and so important, that I thought it would be wrong 

 to suffer the congregation to depart without administering a suitable 

 rebuke. Now, said he, stretching out his huge arm, and pointing in 

 another direction, " perhaps that man, who was asleep on the bench 

 out there while the brother was preaching, thinks that I am o-oin- 

 to talk about him. Well, I must confess, it looks very bad for Tman 

 to come into a worshiping assembly, and, instead of taking his seat 

 like others, and listening to the blessed gospel, carelessly stretch 

 himself out on a bench, and* go to sleep ! It is not only a proof of 

 great insensibility with regard to the obligations which we owe to our 

 Creator and Redeemer, but it shows a want of genteel breeding. It 

 shows that the poor man has been so unfortunates in his bringing up, 



