The Daily Worker Newspaper, August 28, 1926, Page 11

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Lie ee eS aes ee Te oe eee Se. OP Ee. ae Ce ee. er oe CE ee ee Christ on the Corner | de ser ord EPHRAIM BROWN, chief soap-boxer infcrowd asked: the Church of the Living God, was pinch-hitting for Jesus on the Madison Street slave market, In adition to a bible, his equipment consisted of @ banjo, one small drum, one large drum, a tambourine’ and two women, one very black, the other not so‘black. The Reverend Ephraim Brown was’as black as the'very black woman. On the big drum was written: “This is the property ef the.Church of the Living God: Rev. Ephraim Brown.” Besides’ makitig loud noises it also served the rather ungodly purpose of a collection box. Madison Street; between Racine and-Canal, holds the flop-house championship of the world. Unskilled Jabor fs recruited here for the lumber camps, construction camps and the harvest fields in season, Workers, shipping out after leaving their money to the bootleggers, the bawdy houses and some of the sky- pilots who offer: the lonely the consolation of a thought trom a mythical god at'so much per brain wave. Workers returning from a job, out: ‘for excitement. They get it too.’ When they are broke employment of- fice sharks ship them off for another roll. Salvation Army lassies, Volunteers of America, in- dividual preachers—all take a turn at saving the ex- ploited workers. Rather their souls! Reverend Eph- raim Brown was no organization man. He wag working on his own. A little wiry man was Brown, dressed neatly in a black suit topped by a skull cap somewhat larger than the headgear affected by the famous Bryan brothers at the last democratic national convention, A pair of glasses. and a crucifix completed-the Reverend Brown’s sartorial equipment, at least the part exposed to the naked eye. The blacker of the two women thumped the little drum, whenever a sinner showed sings of repentance and explored his pockets for metallic proof of a change of heart. Only dues paying penitents were recognized by the Church of the Living God. The sound made by the drum induced abandon and recklessness. Without a drum what could a street corner preacher do? This |' woman tickled the banjo when the preacher lapsed into verse. She was also banker for the firm. The other lady on the Rev. Brown’s staff was seated on a collapsible chair. Her job was to read the bible while the preacher explained it in a sing-song voice. A rather attractive mulatto. Self-confidence oozed from the Reverend Brown. He defied his audience to prove that he was not giving the correct interpretation of the “word of god.” It was not sufficient to read the good book, he said. It must be understood. He was offering genuine salvation, His customers would not be disappointed. With so many different religions angling for souls how could a poor fellow avoid gétting stung? Well, the Reverend Ephraim Brown could not be everywhere, and woe upto the sinner who did not run across him, “Yo pore sinners can no more pick out a religion what is good for you,” he said, “than a person with a sluggish liver could go into a drug store and pick out the right medicine without knowing what medicine was.” This sounded plausible. Weary men sat on the curb, Some were weary and old. Tattered, hungry-looking wreck of humanity. Faces covered with scars and showing the ravages of disease. Others looked healthy enough. The atmos- phere was charged with alcohol fumes. To light a match was risky. The Reverend Brown was in the middle of a haran-: gue against the demo rum when a voice from the ING SONG s the single oak, It over, Ss at the feeble stroke ly rover, Shorus. her, k ok, forever, s at the strain d can measure, ands such strength attain at pleasure, Shorus, n struggling free lon, ' bends no knee sation. Shorus, ‘compact strength, » behind us ~ doom has dawned. at lengthy chains that ibind us, ea) shorus, ) —/J. &. Wallace. 2 RET rn te tetas “Isn’t it a. fact that Jesus made wine and drank it?” The preacher turned quickly to the quarter where the question came from. “It’s a lie,” he shouted. “I will not let anyone get away with an attack on Jesus,” *Aw, how the hell do you know what Jesus drank? It’s a long time ago, ain’t it?” ‘This from a curbstone listener, A tall husky Swede in overalls who had just dropped a dime.on the big drum and felt that he had an equity in the Church of the Living God, offered to knock the inquisitive. one into the middle of the street but the preacher held up his hand. A little excitement. was the life of his trade. The Swede growled. “He’s full of moonshine,” he snarled. By this time the skeptical one managed to get on his feet and after two attempts succeeded in mounting the curb. Using the shoulders of bystanders to steady him, he got to the Swede and acted as if about to commence hostilities, Contrary to expectations the Swede was not yet ready for war. Suddenly both extended their hands and shook, The preacher smiled and asked the girl with the bible to open to page so and so and quote Timothy or somebody who said something that apparently had nothing whatever to do with the aversion of a threat- ened quarrel. But the Reverend Brown smiled con- fidently and by the time he got thru explaining, the two near-belligerents were the happiest persons in the audience, ae “A man who would drink moonshine jis not fit for the kingdom of heaven,” shouted the preacher who was growing madder and madder over the thought of any- body thinking Jesus took a nip. “Jesus did not turn water into wine,” he hollered, “but he put one over on the drunken bum of a gover- nor at the feast. Why, Jesus was too smart for them. Those fellows were drinking all day and when they ran short, Jesus brought them water and they were so drunk they thought it was wine.” “You kept the best wine until last,” eaid the gov- ernor, and Jesus laughed at him. “Jesus laughed at him,” crooned the very dusky lady, The mulatto picked her teeth and waited for the Rev- erend Brown’s spasm to pass. It did in due time with the preacher looking none the worse for the excite- ment. “Now I will answer questions,” announced the Rever- end Brown, “but first I want to tell you folks that I get nothing from god directly and very little the other way. Whatever I get is because god puts kind thoughts in your heart and you give because you know I cannot live on hot air, or do god’s work on an empty stomach. I don’t want much. Out of the little I get folks, I give away to god’s poor. I gave about one thousand dollars away last year. 1 can prove it:to you. Now I want magia dollars, that fan’e much folks, Now who is going to start?” Horny hands began to fish into cavernous pockets, A dime, two dimes, four quarters, then several nickels hopped on to the drum, The preacher signalled to the lady with the banjo to strike up a tune. The three be- gan to sing; the Reverend Brown always keeping his eye on the drum, The shower of silver stopped. Whe trio stopped sing- ing. The mulatto eyed the husky Swede who had al- ready contributed three dimes to the drum. She smiled at him. The preacher counted: “Four quarters, one dollar, Bight dimes and four nickels, makes two dol- lars, six nickels, thirty cents. Folk, you gave me two dollars and thirty cents. I need seventy cents to make what I want, Are you going to give it to me?” “Give the man what he wants,” came a voice fom the crowd, The preacher turned quickly, )). 9) | “Yes, do as the good man said,” ‘he encouraged, : The good man lurched out of the crowd and swag- gered bravely into Madison Street, “No, come along with the questions. Ask anything you want?” * with°somebody else. By TT. J. O'Flaherty “I want to ask a question,” said a miserably-dressed person of middle age. “Ask your question, brother,” admonished the preacher. “Give me a dime to sleep in the Dawes Hotel.” The preacher ‘cocked his ears and pondered. He had to think quickly. The mendicant might be establishing a dangerous precedent, ine The Reverend Brown turned to the very dark lady with the banjo and asked her if she had such a thing as a dime on her person, She had. On second thought he advised her to keep the coin. The audience would pay, perhaps. The Reverend Brown got 15 cents immediately from the crowd. More was coming but the preacher halted the collection. The man was getting more than he asked for—fifty per cent more, “Now,” said Rev. Brown, “before I turn over this money to this man, I want to find out if anybody in this audience knows this man. If not, the man {is per- fectly alright and he gets the money. But if anybody knows him and knows that he is not saying what is god’s truth, then he don’t deserve the money and he don’t get it. I would not be doing the right thing by god if I gave his children’s money to spend te an un- worthy person.” Nobody volunteered to spill the beans on the needy; ..person and he went his way joyfully with his fifteen cents tucked away in his pocket, Some murmured that the Reverend Brown was a good and charitable person. Others*growled that what he gave away was not his own. The preacher was still after the missing seventy cents. However, he knew that the question period would bring aditional attendance and he asked the audience to speak up. “I was coming down the street,” began one, “and I saw a man laid out for dead on the street. The cop told me it was moonshine did it. Now do you think that a law that does a thing like that to a man is a good law? What do you think of prohibition?” “I think it would be better if that man could go into a place and get a good drink of liquor than drink moon- shine. Prohibition has done more harm than good. Did you ever know of a man who drank his own moon- shine?” There was no answer, but the very word made teeth water. “Any more questions?” f “Are the Jews god’s chosen people?” Before the preacher had time to answer, the tall Swede staggered across the street and threatened to beat the questioner into pulp. “What hell do he know about bible, anyhow?” he said. “He know more about whore house.” This amused the preacher and his women considerably. “They were,” replied the Reverend Brown. “Yes, the Jews were once god’s chosen people, but no more. When the Jews dropped circumcision, then they were no longer god’s children. Now it’s no more than matter of form just like asnigh rubbing his palms gently and grinning. “ The audience got a great kick out this question and three or four dimes hopped on to the drum. I have a question to ask, bashfully whispered a healthy looking, clean.and well kept man by my side, “What is it?” “I got stung by a woman.” “This is not a divorce court,” replied the preacher to the delight of the crowd. A few more nickelg fell on the drum, The man who got stung confided to me that his wife ran away from him after sharing his bed and board for ; only fifteen days. “I don’t give a damn,” he said philosophically, “it's cheaper without her. I get along alright. 1 work for the city and get good money. Well, let him have her. What's the ‘sé when she don’t want'to live with me?" * By this time the Reverend Brown has his three dol- lars and he pulled up his stakes and called it a day— at least as far as that corner was concerned. I think she tan dway seat

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