THE METHODIST RECORDER.

I WENT. lor a change, to a bazaar. I do not enjoybazaars as a rule. This one attracted me because

of the story of the Church with which it was con-nected. Quite by accident I heard of the great ef:.ortwhich was being made at Bilston. and when I arrivedthere I congratulated myself, for if I had gone ahundred miles I am sure I could not have seenliving Methodism under happier ciicumstances. Ofthe bazaar I need say little, but of Wesley Churchand its story I could write a great deal, and I amsure no one could be bored by it.

Bilston is nearly three miles from Wolverhamp:.on,and the question of its ecclesiastical and civilrelationship to the latter town has been the subjectof much litigation in the past. It is a place of greatantiquity. The principal trades are in iron andstone, from the extensive mines and pits whichabound for many miles. Bllston has made trays,buckets, hurdles, boilers, chains, screws, and I don'tknow what in that line. The population in 5921was nearly 28.000.

But I cannot stay to describe the town. Thefamous Wesley Church at Swan Bank is only two

minutes' walk from the station, and when I saw it(I fancy I first came here In the Black CountryMission of a few years ago) It looked gayer thanusual, for there was bright bunting in the oldburial-ground, and a long canvas awning had beenerected from the gate to the school entrance, justas awnings are put up at fashionable Churches forweddings. Everybody was proud of this convenient jarrangement, a provision for any weather. In manyways the schoolroom and ante-rooms were more suit-able for a big bazaar than the Town Hall wouldhave been. I think the first great Wesley bazaarwas held in 1891, when at the Town Hall, designedas a mediaeval London street, £1,600 was raised. Thenext was in 1905, when the decorations were Japa-nese in character, rnd the proceeds were £2,050.

One thing I must mention. Directly I arrived inBjlston I noticed that outside the Parish Church the

+ vif- ' i r displayed a big poster advertising the bazaar.At one time St. Leonard's and the Methodist Churchwere the only places of worsh ip in the town. After-wards I rejoiced to hear t h . i t no lower than lourvicars turned up at the bazaar opening. The fact

; t h a t all the clergymen of a town should spontan-eously support Methodists in this way was greatlyappreciated.

# =£ * *"THE story of Methodism in the Black Country has1 oiten been tcld. 1 shall make no apology lor a

line or two aoout the beginnings in Biiston. Thelacts were most admirably compiled by Mr. JohnFreeman for me Wesiuy oenlenary celebrations in19^3. John Wesley's Hist record of the place was :" It was exceedingly dark when we rode throughBilstone. However, we did not stick last till we •came to Weclnesbury town-end. Several comingwith candles, I got out of the quagmire; and leavingthem to disengage my horse, walked to FrancisWard's and preached." Bilston at that time had a ;population of 3.000 and the town was surroundedby cornfields and meadows. To-day from the stationyou may have an impression of desolate and uglytips and bits of waste ground, and unattractive ,dwellings, but wander a bit further and you come Ito about 1.500 modern Council houses and well-planned streets. One should never judge a town bya glance from the railway. Towards Wolverhamptonthere are very agreeable surroundings. Since John-!Wesley saw it Bilston has been knocked about a \d deal, but it is not as black as some would

paint it.Well, soon after Wesley's first visit several houses

were opened for Methodist meetings, including the jhome of Peggy Taylor in Hangman's Row, and thatof Mr. Homer, of Homer's Fold. The Francis Ward 'who has been mentioned came frequently to theservices. I need not write of Wesley's later visits.Everybody knows how he was treated by roughs atWednesbury, Darlaston end Walsall, and he did notescape mob violence at Bilston. For forty years thejlttie homeless Society went ahead, until PeggyTaylor and cither good v.'omen set to work to providea Meeting-house. Peg;jy had a lir.t.le sweet-shop. \n she invited her Methodist friends to tea she

said she was too poor to buy sugar, bat she invitedthem to go to the window and take a lump of sweetstuff at a penny an ounce!

A wealthier lady. Miss Loxdale, gave n piece of landIn Temple Street, and the first Church was builtthere in 1794. It was a tiny building, part of which !was used to stable the preacher's horse. In 1812 theChurch was enlarged, in 1815 there was a greatrevival (a year of industrial panic), and In 1823 theheroic Society, h a v i n g l ived th rough a t ime whenday schools were few, hnnu-s « r iua l id . manners rough,and spor ts demora l i s ing , moved 10 the new andspacious home ;:t Sv.'all Balll:.

IN 1862 fr iends from riwan Bank began the Stone-Held Ragged School in a warehouse. Later a new

school was built which became the home of what isnow known as the Stoiielield Mission. In 1863

.Iston was J3gftattte(LiMMh^M*3K01|ffiEbiUIUttgfi Cir-

I 1892 a Mission-hall w<u> ouiit lie.i original Church in Temple Street.

! J. O. Roberts, a younger and very able colleague. 'They are assisted by Pastor W. Robinson. The cir- Icult stewards are Mr. G. H. Thacker and Mr. J. M. 'Price. The circuit comprises Wesley. Stonefield, andTemple Street at Bilston; Kittiiigshall, Bradley, HurstHill, Lanesfield, Sedgley. and Laciymoor. The mem-bership is about 750

It is Interesting to note that there is a link withWesley in the circuit, for the Gospel End cause wasestablished by Mr. Hackett, and one of the earlyworkers was a direct descendant of Col. Lane, ofBentley Hall, the magistrate before whom JohnWesley was carried by the mob from Wednesbury in1744.

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WITH admiration I looked round Wesley, so digni-fied with its dark stained pews and galleries.

It_ls a beautiful old place, very easy to speak in. Ofcourse it has changed very much in the hundredand seven years Gradually it was enlarged and

• improved. The double-decker pulpit disappeared.On one occasion after extensive renovation theministers helping to celebrate included W. L.Watkinson. W. J. Dawson. Thomas Champness. R. P.Downes, Egerton R. Young, the missionary, and PeterMackenzie. There's a galaxy for you! The pulpithas been occupied by many distinguished preachers,including laymen like Billy Dawson, Isasc Marsden,Squire Brooke, and Dr. Melson. Practically nil themost distinguished ministers of the Connexion havepreached here.

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FOR much oi the information I enjoyed gatheringI had to thank my friend Mr. John Freeman,

whom I last met at the Local Preachers' conferenceat Adcote. Mr. Freeman is a native of Bilstoii. Hewas brought to Wesley seventy-three years ago, andhas been a local preacher for about fifty-three years.His published history of the Church is one of the jbest things of the kind I ever read, and indicatesnot only careful research but what is rather rare—the ability to make such a record free from dullness.Now what do you think of this? When Wesley wasbuilt, the Methodists soon became dissatisfied with I

i the light of flickering candles. The only place lit jby gas was the theatre. They even went to see a ;play so as to judge of the merits of the new illumi-nant. Then they built their own gasworks on the ;site of the present Church kitchen! The novel jlighting attracted crowds. Then these remarkablepioneers converted two large vaults into water Icisterns and sold good water, when water was scarce, jat a shilling a barrel, thus realising .£28 for thefunds! I never heard of more enterprising trustees. IAt their meetings in those " good old days " ale.bread and cheese, and churchwarden pipes were partof the programme. The cost of all the initial efforts Jwas £4,141. They themselves gave £200. and lentthe rest ol the money without interest.

It is tempting to ciuote many stories told of theearly days. Some have been told in rhyme. TheRev. W. R. Rogers, a widower, wanted to get aBaptismal font and Sacramental table: —

To accomplish this, from out his flockYoung Irdies were selected,

And to each pair was given a bookTo enter cash collected.

But the Wesley poet, setting the transaction enrecord, added this naughty verse: —

Ill-nature spread reports abroadWhich tended to disparage.

And said that what the ladies didWas with an eye to marriage.

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A S I looked round the Church one of the moststriking memorial tablets I saw (it badly needs

cleaning| was that to the memory of Dr. Berry, thegreat Wolverhampton minister, " who died near the

Communion-table In this Church while conductingthe burial service of the late Dr. Totherick onJanuary 31, 1899." I think the Rev. W. J. Heatouwas minister at the time. Dr. Berry fell suddenlyand his head struck and slightly moved a woodenpillar, part of the pulpit. This was one of thasaddest events in the history of the Church. Inoticed a memorial to that fine man, AldermanJohn Harper, J.P., a member for seventy-two years,and Anne Harper, for thirty years a class-leader.

The organ in the Church was put in In 1906.There is a great story to be told about the musicof the old days. " Who shall choose the tunes?"is a question that does not cause to-day such acurious scene as that which happened years ago

l!i M.ui.-c on lef t

Here is another tale that will provoke a smile.On one occasion the stewards assumed the rightof choosing the tunes, and sent their choice tothe choir leader. The result was that the wholebody of players and singers went on strike, andshowed their rebellion by striking up the air of" Rule Britannia"! The trustees promptly askedthem all to resign. The ladies protested that theyhad not really been so much to blame, and Mr.Taylor presented each of them with a silver thimble,arid asked them to go back — which they did. Iam afraid a silver thimble would not meet thecase in 1930!

There was a time when it was decided " thatno anthem chorus or piece must be sung in theChapel." An organ did not take the place ofstringed instruments until 1861. To-day the excel-lent choir, which won the challenge shield thricein succession at the Crystal Palace, is preparing forthe choir festival, at which it will render the" Messiah " and the old Church will be crowded.Whether the historian is absolutely accurate whenhe says the choir in the old days lustily sang: —

Chase the fleeChase the fleeChase the fleeting hour,

I leave to your judgment. Mr. Wiseman, I think.if he has never heard it. would appreciate thestory of a member ot the Bilston Wesley choir whowas once seen standing with his head under thedripping water from a spout. Asked what on earthhe was up to. he said, " Eh. it's Charity sermonsto-morrow. I have to sing bass and I want toget a bit more rasp in my voice"!

* * * #'\WESLEY has quite a lot of ground around it." including tennis-courts and a kind of little

park which can hardly be put to any practicalpurpose as it is part of the old burial-ground. Thereare said to be 10.000 people buried around theChurch, and here is a tragic story. In 1832 therewas ft serious cholera epidemic in the town. TheVicar and the independent minister left the town;the Wesleyan minister was away; local preachersand workers from Swan Bank, who knew the poorer

I olftmw wPll. took thftr lives lu their hands andj went ill to the hot -bods iVf contagion. ^TruKTI officers of the army hold bark," cried Mr. Hackctt

" wiuU will tilesoldiers do?" Wesley Church was crowded as neverbefore. In 1849 there was another cholera out-break and again the Swan Bank Methodists, withother Churches, heroically responded to the call ofneed. John Henry (afterwards Cardinal) Newman

I was among the workers. Interesting stories are toldI of the days in which :kc burial-ground had to beI protected because of the body-snatching panic.

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LET us get away from that gruesome subject andreturn to the bazaar. Six years ago, in con-

nection with the Centenary, a considerable sum wasraised but the ceiling threatened to come down,the roof needed attention, and the repairs neededproved more extensive than was expected. TheTrustees decided that in 1930 the debt on thepremises must be wiped out, and by this effortit was hoped to raise £2,000. The bazaar repre-sented " The Lure of the Orient." Rarely have I

| seen one better organised or presenting a finer feastof colour. The good Superintendent told me howgloriously all had worked together, and what agrand atmosphere there was in a preliminary prayer-meeting. The bazaar had several novel features.I noticed that when it was opened each dayindividual stalls were opened by ladies who untiedcoloured ribbon strung across them. For the firsttime I saw midget golf on Methodist premises,find the young men of the Church had most cleverlydesigned this novelty. The whole of the extensivepremises buzzed with happy life. While I was inthe Oriental streets I was introduced to a radiantlady in Oriental dress ofmany colours, and I soonfound that much of thesuccess of the effort wasdue to her cheerful anduntiring labours. Mrs.David Lewis and herhusband, who live at theMount. Bilston. are mag-nificent al l-round helpers" I don't know," said Mr.Main. " what we .shoulddo without them." Lateron, in the train. I hadthe pleasure of a wordwith Mr. Lewis' mother,who had performed one ofthe opening ceremonies.This gracious lady, lovedby all who know her. hasher home at Cheltenham.but she said, speaking ofher son and daughter-in-law, " My heart is in Bilston." The bazaar was ahuge success. Mrs. David Lewis and Mr. F. CMeacham were joint secretaries, and Mr. A. J.Wesson, J.P., was an indefatigable Treasurer. I sawa heap of purses handed in by charming young folk,and heard Mr. Wesson say that already £686 hadbeen received in donations. " and mostly from ourown people." and two days' sales amounted to nearly-£600. With promises, the amount raised was £1,640.With two more days' sales the total crept up, untilanally the splendid sum of £2.009 was realised.

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YOU see, then, how much alive this old Churchis. What is to be its future? It is not for

me to say. I know its problems. I know that thequestion has been ful ly discussed. I believe InCentral Halls. I think the one at Coventry willbe an enormous boon to the town. As for Bilston,I must say my own impression an seeing theinterior of this Church and '!•• Mrrmiiidings. wasthat at present to convert i: into n Mission, withchairs instead of pews, would be a doubtful experi-ment that would give pain to many. There areplaces where such a Hall is obviously advisable,if outsiders are to be, won. In this case, one wouldhesitate to advocate any such Immediate change.I fancy there is a strong feeling that it would bo.

C. Main.