St. Patrick, the preacher and Dan Baker's ire

St. Patrick as depicted on the principal altar at Sacred Heart Church.

Tis St. Patrick's Day --- and the 140th anniversary of that holiday's first community-wide celebration in Chariton on March 17, 1880. It was a rip-roaring success by all accounts --- for everyone other than the Rev. William D. Bennett, pastor of First Methodist Church, who emerged from the aftermath rather badly battered.

The event was an ecumenical effort designed to be a fund-raiser for relief to Ireland, hard-hit by a return of the potato blight that had been the proximate cause of the "great hunger" of 1847-49 that had caused more than a million deaths and sent more that a million refugees to U.S. shores. Conditions were better this time, but hundreds of thousands still had very little to eat and were suffering.

The celebration was held in Mallory's Opera Hall, a three-story building at the northwest corner of the Chariton square where the U.S. and Irish flags were hoisted early in the day on the giant flag pole that crowned its cornice.

The women of St. Mary's and other churches prepared and served an evening meal to hundreds, then everyone gathered for a program largely organized by the most prominent Protestant gentlemen of the city and the Rev. Edmond Hayes, pastor of St. Mary's and an eloquent orator who delivered the principal address. The big prize of the fund-raising lottery (tickets 25 cents each) was a gold watch and chain. Dancing ended the evening and continued until 4 a.m.

It was not his relationship with St. Patrick or the fund-raising idea, which he supported, that landed the Rev. Mr. Bennett in hot water, but rather his reaction to the lottery and to the dancing. He aggravated the situation by denouncing both the event and Dan Baker, the editor of The Chariton Democrat, during an evening sermon on the Sunday following, March 21.

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The Rev. Mr. Bennett, 38 in 1880, had arrived in Chariton during 1878 with his wife and sons from Afton, where he had been described as "one of the ablest and most scholarly pastors" in the Des Moines Conference. He was burdened with health issues, tuberculosis, which had developed during his service during the Civil War but seemed controllable. Trained both as a lawyer and a preacher, he also was burdened with the strict official Methodist aversion to the evils of strong drink, gambling and dancing --- aversions apparently not shared wholeheartedly by many in his new congregation.

Asked initially to speak encouragingly during the St. Patrick's Day fund-raiser, he agreed. Then, when his name appeared on widely distributed posters advertising the event, he had second thoughts.

One of the results was an open letter to the public, published in The Chariton Patriot of March 10, which read in part as follows:

"About two weeks since, two gentlemen called on me, and asked me if I would be willing to be present and address a meeting in behalf of the suffering and starving in Ireland.

"I expressed most positively my sympathy with the object, and my willingness to be present and speak provided the exercises were not connected with certain disreputable exercises that I had heard mooted on the streets.

"I told them plainly that I could have nothing to do with it, if it was to put me in the position of even seeming to tolerate gambling by lottery or the dissipation of the public ball room, and if my name was so connected I should publicly denounce them."

So denounce them he did.

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Despite this, the celebration on March 17 was a great success marked by the presence both as organizers and participants of a good many of the Rev. Mr. Bennett's flock. It was reported upon as follows in Dan Baker's Democrat of Saturday, March 21:

Wednesday was a pleasant day for the celebration of this noted anniversary, and was appreciated by the large number of people who participated.

At the hour appointed, the Opera Hall was crowded to excess, every chair being occupied and a large number of persons being compelled to stand up for want of seats. The Chariton band was on hand and opened the exercises with some excellent music. Hon. S.H. Mallory then introduced the mayor, Mr. C.F. Temple, as the presiding officer of the meeting, who delivered a short introductory address.

Mr. Charlie Thorpe next recited a beautiful poem upon the subject of Ireland's sufferings, which was well received. This was followed by Miss Jessie Mallory singing the Irish national piece known as 'Wearing of the Green,' Mrs. Eli Manning playing an accompaniment on the piano. The piece was finely executed and created much enthusiasm.

Father Hayes' oration followed, occupying about an hour. Of this oration we can only say that it was a splendid literary performance in every respect and shows that Father Hayes, as a writer, historian and logician ranks among the best. The delivery was clear, distinct and impressive and was received with rounds of hearty applause.

The oration was followed by short and appropriate addresses from Messrs. J.A. Penick, T.M. Stuart, Prof. J.P. Simpson and J.C. Mitchell, all of whom acquitted themselves admirably.

Songs were sung by Miss Nora Mooney and the Misses Shockling, all in fine taste, and then came the drawing of the gold watch and chain, the drawing begin conducted by Messrs Mallory, J.A.  Penick, E.A. Temple and T.M. Stuart. To a great many, this was fully as interesting as any other part of the performance as the prize which had been donated by Father Hayes was a magnificent one. Nearly 2,500 tickets had been sold, yet each one owning a ticket felt that he or she had at least a chance. After repeated drawings from the numbers in the box, the lucky ticket was announced, the number being 2,266, it belonging to Miss Gracie Palmer, a little daughter of T.E. Palmer of this city. Everyone seemed pleased with the result and doubtless Miss Gracie awoke the next morning feeling that for her first charitable investment in a gift enterprise she had received a rich dividend.

The dance succeeded the drawing and as was expected, it was the grandest social affair of the season. A large number of ladies and gentlemen participated in its innocent pleasures, the management being under the skillful supervision of G.A. Lockwood and J.H. McFarland, of this city. It lasted till about four o'clock in the morning when all retired well pleased with the evening's amusements.

In conclusion we can truly say that never within our knowledge has there been a more pleasantly conducted evening's entertainment in Chariton than this proved to be from beginning to end. The audience was unusually large, the music superb, the speeches neat and appropriate, the people happy and in good humor, while the very best of good order prevailed throughout. The affair will net over $800, which sum will be forwarded as speedily as possible to the proper persons for the relief of starving Ireland.

The good people of the city are to be congratulated upon the success of the entertainment, both in a social and financial point of view, and especially are the ladies of the city, of all churches and creeds, entitled to the highest praise for their benevolent efforts to make it successful.

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Perhaps spurred on by this glowing account, the Rev. Mr. Bennett ascended to the pulpit on Sunday evening, March 21, to rebuke those of his parishioners who had participated in the St. Patrick's Day event --- and Dan Baker, too, for reporting upon it in such positive terms. The Patriot also had reported upon the celebration --- reprinting a report from The Burlington Hawk Eye and thus distancing itself --- but in less glowing terms.

There's little doubt that Dan, a Unitarian by persuasion and unaffiliated with any Chariton church, overreacted. His response, published on the front page of The Democrat of March 27, was scathing:

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We learn that the Rev. W. D. Bennett poured out the vials of his wrath in a scandalous sermon at the  M.E. Church on Sunday night concerning the celebration of St.  Patrick's day. While it is to be regretted that his peculiar class of bigots are sometimes to be found disgracing respectable pulpits by their contemptible and insulting demeanor, yet it is but justice to the respectable portion of our city and the intelligent portion of his church, to say that he represents neither in the slightest degree, either in his abusive and insulting sermons or in his assumed, icy austerity.

He is of that class of men who sometimes mistake their calling and get into pulpits, but fortunately for the good of the church and the happiness of the human family, never stay long in a place, for even christian charity has a limit in endurance.

Mr. Bennett is a typical representation of the bigotry, intolerance and fanaticism of the dark ages; an age when the world's leading arts, sciences and social life were crushed under the withering influence of a tyrannic clergy. He represents an age when innocent wives and children were consigned to the stake for the heresy of their father, an age when the few bright intellects of the world were languishing in dungeons because they dared hope that man was a progressive creature. He represents the age that witnessed the sad spectacle of theologians burning each other at the stake because they honestly differed in a passage of scripture or the construction of a sentence regarding the rule of faith.

He belongs to a class of theological despots and unreasoning dogmatists that would rule or ruin, and in the name of God annihilate the better and larger portion of humanity because, forsooth, it claimed the humble right to think, as well as others. "Subscribe to my creed and worship my Nemesis or perish with the damned" appears to be his motto and a radiant smile of joy and pleasure upon the face of a man, woman or child, is proof positive to his iron heart and petrified conscience that the human race is totally depraved.

He claims to be a minister of Jesus Christ, yet the sermon on the mount has never yet supplied him with a moment's food for reflection, nor furnished an idea in the composition of this anathemas. He apparently forgets that he lives in a progressive age, among a liberal minded, generous hearted people, yet with that lack of common sense and sagacity that even a Methodist preacher should have, he directs his time to the work of disorganizing his church, as well as creating dissension in society by his foul pulpit slanders upon its societal pleasures and harmless amusements.

We have no ill will for Mr. Bennett, and what we say to him and concerning him, we say in all sincerity and truth, and only hope that he may profit by the sad enumeration of his faults as presented above, and see himself in the hideous light in which other see him. Until he does, he will remain as ever a cloud without a ray of sunshine, an iceberg without a ray of warmth, a human being without feeling, a bigot without a guide, a fanatic without a  parallel and a  pastor of a church without public sympathy.

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Yikes.

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The Rev. Mr. Bennett, to his credit, does not seem to have responded in kind. But later on that year he was transferred to the Methodist church in Bedford, then to Winterset two years later.

His departure seems not to have been mourned by his parishioners. Nineteen years later, during 1899, Harriet Hill Parmenter wrote a brief history of Chariton's Methodist congregation, including a list of its pastors.

Of the Rev. Mr. Bennett, she wrote only: "Sometimes pastor and people don't see things in the same light."

During 1886, his health failing, the Bennetts transferred from Iowa to the San Diego Conference in California in the hope a change in climate might help. He became ill during the trip west and died in San Diego at the age of 44 on Sept. 26, 1886. He was buried in Angelus Rosedale Cemetery, Los Angeles. His wife, Lizzie, continued to live in California until her death on Dec. 12, 1897, and is  buried by his side.