Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/257

 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 197 Louisiana and lield services. John Clark, a minister of the Methodist church, was one of these who as early as 1796 came to Louisiana and visited a number of the settlements. Clark is described as a man simple, unaffected, and wholly disinterested. He violated the Spanish law in holding these services, but the lieutenant governor, then at St. Louis, Zenon Trudeau, was very much in favor of the com- ing of American settlers and, in order not to discourage tliem, he was disposed to allow these visits. He seemed to have warned Clark on a number of occasions, but he never really molested him, though he threatened him with imprisonment. Clark at the time resided in Illinois; he died in 1813; he became a Baptist at some time subsequent to his visits to Louis- iana. Doubtless the earliest of these ministers was Josiah Dodge. Dodge lived in Kentucky and was a Baptist. He was a brother of Israel Dodge, who lived near Ste. Genevieve. Dur- ing his visits to his brother. Rev. Josiah Dodge was accustomed to preach to the American settlers in the vicinity. It is possible that these sermons were the first non-Catholic ser- mons delivered west of the Mississippi river. This was in 1794. In the same year, it is recorded that he crossed the river to Illinois and baptized four persons in Fountain creek. Perhaps these were residents of Upper Louis- iana who were thus baptized in the Illinois to avoid violating the law regarding baptisms in Upper Louisiana. In 1799 Rev. Thomas John- son, another Baptist minister, came to Cape Girardeau district ; he was a native of Georgia. In that year he baptized Mrs. Agnes Ballou in Randol creek. This was, doubtless, the first baptism, not performed by a Catholic priest, west of the river. One of the men who came with Morgan to New Madrid was Andrew Wilson. He was a Scotchman and had been a Presbyterian min- ister. He never preached in New Madrid and it is probable that he had previously given up the ministry. The testimony of almost all observers as to some of the American settlers prior to the transfer to the United States is that their con- dition, religiously considei'ed,was deplorable. We cannot believe it to have been otherwise. In the first place, the fact that though they were Protestants they were willing to con- form to the nominal requirements of the Spanish law with regard to the rearing of their children as Catholics, and the further fact that they were compelled to forego any public religious services, are sufficient to show that they were not distinctly or deeply re- ligious. Cut off, as they were, from all re- ligious teaching by their situation and the reciuirements of tlie laws under which they lived, they must have fallen into a deplorable condition. It was reported by some observers that in some cases they had even forgotten the days of the week and that they made no attempt whatever to observe the Sabbath in any way, and where it was observed, too often it was a day given iip to amusements such aa the country offered. Andrew Ramsay's place in Cape Girardeau was used as an assembly place for all the people of the neighborhood. They came together, not for worship, but for the purpose of whatever amusement could be found. The condition of the early settlers, as here set out, unfavorable as it was with regard to religion, must not be taken to represent the feelings and convictions of all the people of Upper Louisiana. While those who were Pi'ot- estants in belief had to give up, as we have seen, the open practice of their religion, it should not be forgotten that the motives that impelled men to settle in the Louisiana terri-