Document text
Sept. 13, 1939.
George and Cora Brauscom (white)
Dtunkard Preacher and wife
Adyleen G. Merrick, writer
Dudley W. Crawford, reviser.
Original names:
George Brauscom
Melvin Hill
Polk County
Columbus
Bettie Madden
Reed
Ztta Reed
Washington Dove
Cora Brauscom
Mrs. Stacy
Changed names:
John Bacon
Mint Hill
Pike County
Condon
Bessie Miller
Ruff
Iva Ruff
Franklin Davis
Callie Bacon
Mr'. Starnes
Well back from the dusty country road stood the
home of Preacher Bacon. Dormer windows of the second
story looked out over the front yard where chestnut and
pecan trees of great size gave evidence of having been
planted many years ago. A white picket fence, grown
weathered by the years, enclosed the yard and guarded
the roadway along its south west border. In one corner,
facing the road, stood a one roam log cabin, which had been
the first Post Office of Mint Hill.
Mischevious crows were stealing nuts from the trees
and making a great racket about it, their loud 'caws,
filled the afternoon air with discordant notes.
Leaves fell from the trees and drifted down into the
flower beds below and littered the straight walk which
led to the house.
From the porch, where flowers grew in many pots of
different sizes, an old man could ce seen rocking content-
edly, his snowwhite hair shone in the afternoon light.
He rose at the approach of a stranger and came slowly
down the path. Tall and venerable yet giving the impression
of great fitness and strength.
A smile wreathed his kindly face, as he extended a
hand, toil -worn but shapely. Deep blue eyes, looking out
from beneath his heavy brows, were full of question; yet
welcome was there also. Below his lip, upon which a smile
lingered was a straight white beard, worn as is the Dunkard
custom, and matching in whiteness the crown of hair which
appeared to have been tumbled into disarray by a restless
hand. This was John Bacon, venerable Dunkard preacher,
whose eighty five years sat lightly upon his broad shoulders.
"I give ye welcome, stranger," he said. "The day's
warm, aiht be yeld like to come sit on the porch and rest
while. That did you say? I'm sort of deaf, my hearing
hampers me o heap of late, I don't allers get the all of
what folks sez to me. We'll go set down and if ye talk
right ot me I reckon get the rua of what ye are say-
ing, most times I do if I listen right well.
!lit away eat! Cats everywhere I could abide them
lots bettor if they weren't forever under foot. 'Course
we must put up with them else the rats would overrun the
place. Have this chair and lay aside your hat so the
breeze can cool ye; the summer has been uncommon hard to
bear with so much heat. I reckon ye find that's so from
where ye come from too, same as we do here.
"Toe main, I've lived right here in Pike County
most all my life. I used to teach school, then I tuck to
preaching. I've had to quit now though on account I'm so
deaf. T just make out to farm a little, T. own nigh about
sixty acres it's enough to plant fur all our needs.
"Pa come to this section from Washington County Tenn.
when I was about three years old. ,:ste made our way over the
mountains along the old cattle trail. I can remember how
Pa rode his claybank horse right along side the wagons.
Me and the boys took turns driving. It took us the better
part of three days too, gitting from Washington County
to whore we stopped at Comden, North Carolina; long hard
driving over a road you wouldn't even call a road now -a -days.
There were five of us boys and five girls, a good big family.
We made camp along the way when the shedders fell and Pa
kept watch far fear of hStm.
"Pa was a singing teacher, that's how come he met ma,
she was wishing to learn and joined his singing class.
"T. can't remember Ma any too good, she died when I was
about five years old, seems like she was jest Ma, but
that's all, I reckon it's because I have to think back so
fur, I'm gitting along in years Lady, I was the youngest
of the ten children, they have all of them gone to meet
their God but me.
some daysT feel ee if I'd been here too long. I it
lonesome with Jest me left. 4 Guess
did you may
I didn't get thet. Then eie my wife die? -Illy lot me see,
'bout five eera ego. lam?"
?rom the doorwey emerged an energetic little old
lady, who from the beginning of the visit hoc been restless-
ly movine around the houme; that she had been listening was
reperent for he feirly bristled with suppressed interest,
her feet mode e quick tip -tap as she came forward.
The old in looked up with an expression of relief
when he saw her, vs!!eke you aoquninted with s. eternity,
be stays here and looks after mft.''
A puezled expression crossed the women's fee, fleeting
yet df,finite, then she stle s reeting as she sat don
near by and launched rapidly into conversation, eiving
n hint of wht puzzled her.
"I've been ltstentn, rid I know jest hew hnrd a time
ye were hoeing tryine to ra,Ae 7,reecher understnnd. By
time he eot it into his head whnt ye was asking him night
would fall. Preecherle eettine awful deaf.
"Why yes man, be clad to tell you all 2 cen
about Preacher. vo kaewn him well since I were about
nine years old. He'sa miehty good rod -fearing man, never
seys no tied words nor by words to iv knowing, don't drink
now, ner never did. He's awful kind to me, allere was.
I heard hi7L preach his first sermon in 1876, that
was before I was old enough to join the church. I'm heap
yomiger than he be.
"Preacher came to Mint Hill when he was about twenty-
one, he was gitting up writing schools for a man and would
go ahead of him to see how many pupils he could gather to-
gether before Mr. Taylor come along. Pa subscribed for
four of us.
After Preacher come he settled here and went to work
at the gold mine. No main, that's all, I ever heard it
called, jest gold mine. If it were ever called anything
else it's not been named to me. Right smart gold was
took out of the mine for a couple of years 'till they
struck quick sand and had to quit mining.
"Test about this time he met Bessie Miller, she was
his first wife. Bessie was pretty and she was smart too.
She died soon after they was married, their little son
died too. Pore Preacher, he tuck on turrible. We all felt
sorry for him.
"After that Preacher started teaching school. I
remember well the day he said he would slap me good if I
didn't behave, but he never did, he was allers kind
and gentle.
"About six years after Bessie died a family by the
name of fluff straggled into our county, and came here to
Mint Hill. I can't jest remember haw they got here, see=
like they said they were on their way to some place west.
Mighty nice people they were too. They were the first
Dunkards to come to Pike County. Preacher got awful struck
with Miss -Eva Ruff, we kept oggling around to see what he
would do. Well, he musta made good time with his courting
fur soon after they moved on to Asheville Preacher went
up there and pot her. They were married over fifty years.
Miss Eva made Preacher a mighty fine wife, though she
allers seemed queer to us with her yankee ways which differ-
ed from ours.
"After he married Miss Eva, Preacher got all tuck up
with the Dunkard religion, he talked it all around. The
mother church agreed to send two preachers to hold meetings
if eight families would agree to come. Well, they agreed.
was one of the first to notice, and I tuck in with them.
We had the first meeting in the school house over yonder
on the hill. Franklin Davis preached the first sermon,
after that eight or nine joined. We have about a hundred
and fifty members now in jest one of the five country
churches. Folks in these parts had never heard of our
religion then, though it don't differ much from theirs.
We easfewa three times stid of jest once, at baptism.
One time in the name of the Father, once for his Son and
once for the Holy Ghost.
used to feel sorry for preacher when we had big
baptisms yonder on the river, after revival meetings, with
so raany joining up, and having to dip each Brother er
.ster three times. Preacher allers said the "Grace of
God sustained him" I reckon it did.
"Preacher was ordained after he had preached e year,
and he's gone from one to the other of all the five Brethern
churches in Pike County.
"Why are they called by that name?"
"Why Fister, don't ye know Christ said, I'M are all
Brethern, ye shall all be called by a name which the Lord
shall name.4 That's where Brethern church come from, it's
in the Holy Bible."
Occasionally, as the conversation continued, the old
men would smile and nod approval, having now and then
caught an enlightening word or two. He seemed pleased.
rath a gesture of hospitality he reached deep in his pocket
and produced a handful of lar7e brown chustnuts which he
profferred with a smile. "Have same, Won't ye7 he said.
Don't give the Lady them raw cheatnuts, Preacher,
they'll cause her misery! I'll aive ye some boiled ones
before ye go that are fit to eat, you save those to
plant."
"Well, honey, after Miss Eva died things was awful
bad for preacher. I guess he never done much for himself,
he's allers been right helpless like. There was the big
old rambling house, seven cows to ten, chickens and pigs
to care for and all the dozen and one things to do about
a farm. Preacher just got snowed under in no time.
"Finally, he hired a woman to come work for him.
My! but she was shiftless, I can't say how things would
have turned out if preacher hadn't gotten gored by that
bull, and came nicli to dying. That was a plum pitiful
time, they took him to the hospital and not much hope
was given out. I'd said Ad stay on at the house and
do all I could. I was a widder woman and I had my son
and his wife living with me so I was free to go.
"After preacher come horns he bogged along the best
he could with the help of the neighbors. I'd meet him
once in a while and I'd say, 'allow you, Brother Bacon?A
tDon't feel well,4 he'd allers say.
"Before long, he begun dropping by my house oftener
than common. My son says to me, 4Ma, what you reckon
makes preacher come so often?' I never caught on nor
Lee neilahar.
"One day he come and he says to my grandchild:
'Where's 011ie (that's me.' She says, 'Out by the
fish pond.' I can't just remember what I was doing when
he come along and says to me, *collie, I writ to ask ye
a question? I've decided to get married and you're the
one.' I was so surprised I jest sat right down on the
wet grass and stared at him. I thought he'd /ona daft.
?reacher just stood there smiling down at me and awaiting
my answer. I says to him, "Why, preacher I'm right sur-
prised and flattered too, but you look around a while
longer.
"Well he kept coming to see me, the family got awful
worried, I wouldn't tell it that we were courting, but
one day my grandchild evedropned on us, she heard him
say to me, "Callie, aint, ,ye never going to make up yer
mind to set tlie day and marry me
"I baffled him off a ,.4niie lonr, thcln izive in.
reacner seemed awful tic-tled when I told him I didn't
see nothing to hinder us. He said soon as it quit rLining
he'd saddle ana ride to town hnd take out paperL;. This
w48 Wit of putting it on me pretty fast.
”une day soon after that the sun came out nd Preacher,
good as his word, hit the road for town to 7et the license.
I was ready fur I knew he'd go. Then I told my son, he
10
was powerful put out, but his wife made him hush and
said I was old enough to know my own mind. She souldn't
let him fret me any more.
"We was all blustering around straightening the parlor
when Preacher come and brought the minister along to marry
us. or a woman my as!;e, I ot awful flustered. I hadn't
looked for them so soon. We were married so quick I hardly
knew how it all was, it fairly took my breath away; my
head just swam. I was Mrs. Bacon fore I knew it.
"I had my satchel all pecked with my nif7ht gown and
sich I planned to come beck home next day- and pack up
leisure like.) le coie on over here in Preacher's buggy.
I've been here ever since.
The neighbors had rid up the house real nice and dinner
was set out for all. I was reel plensed. I ain't never
had no cause to be sorry I said yes to Preacher, excepting
when he forgits, like he dose jest now, and introduces me
to stren,:ers es Yrs. Starnes. Law AS, but that worries
me! His memory is failing fast, sometimes I'm afraid for
fear he'll git not to know me no more.
(-,ilence fell.
Preecher acon took notice of this, and looking up
with a smile proffered this information. I shore done
well by nyself when I won Callie, there ain't no better
-11-
'4oman 1ivini. An erpression of '..ellght came into
his wife's eyes, her cheeks turned pink with pleasure.
'.,uickly leaning forward she gently patted the Preacherts
hand, whom she must have loved all along through the
years from childhood to old age.