28 The Rev. George Washington Snowball. By Head, Franklin H.

The Rev. George Washington Snowball is a many-sided man. One side presented for his Sunday congregation, the other to the white brethren. To his Sunday audience he portrays especially the terrors of the lawd. “Bredrin,“ he says, “and sistern, it is time we had a ‘freshin season. You must prepare to shake worldliness or when Gabriel toot his horn he’ll call up all goats and no sheep out ob dis congregation. Some ob the members of dis church must ‘scribe more liberally for de ‘sport of de gospel or dey will be unjined. Git ‘lijjen and hole onto it or the debbil with his horns and hoofs and tail will chuck you into de eberlastin bonfire. I heard one ob de bredren saying last week dat he done jined de church two years and it cost him so fur only four cents. Salvation like dis is too free. He be one ob de niggers such as is ‘scribed in de pome writ by General George Washington –

Dat pore sinner’ll be cotched out late
And find no latch to de golden gate.

I tell you, bredren and sistern, de debbil be going round like a roaring lion seeking he may devour somebody, and if you don’t backslide and repent and pay up de pew rent he hab his grip on you in de judgmatical day.“

To the white brethren the colored pastor is all smiles and amiability. He approaches the man of business and says: “I is de pastor ob de Fust Methodist Church, and as de congregation be poor, we is obliged to call on some ob de rich white folks to ‘scribe for buildin de church. I done called on de President of de Fust National Bank and he telled me that he know you would ‘scribe to help me and Jesus build a church for de lambs of de flock and sabe dere souls from demnation. He tell me it no use to go to de common people in de street, but to see jest de most distinguished citizens and I corned to you de fust of all,“ and by this gracious speech he seeks to transfer the shekels of the ungodly to the upbuilding of the kingdom.