salvation. You
make use of churches, pulpits, parsons, Bibles, and anti-Popery lectures
to secure the election for the brethren; but the Methodists secure the
same gift by means of some 'straw.' At the camp meeting held last year
at M----ville, of which the Irish laborer who spent a night there said,
'that there were more _souls made there_ than convarted,'--at that
meeting, where there were twenty thousand persons present, I heard a
preacher cry out, 'More straw! more straw! Fifty souls lost for the want
of straw!' Now," continued Murty, "this is what I call progress, to make
as much out of a good bed of straw as you do out of all your church
machinery for saving souls."

"Ha! ha! ha!" said the parson, turning to Mrs. Prying. "He is right; I
saw and heard them myself at such absurdities."

"Then," said Murty, "you or any other Americans who are aware of such
gross impositions on the credulity of your people, and of their gross
ignorance, should be the last persons on earth to reproach the Irish or
any other people with ignorance, superstition, credulity, or fanaticism.
Good night, parson, and every time you are tempted to reproach an
Irishman with ignorance, think of 'More straw! more straw! Fifty souls
lost for the want of straw!' and that this sermon was preached in
enlightened America of Bibles!"

After the departure of Murty from the room, Gulmore, to make amends for
his senseless conduct in his attempts to convert Mary Prying, became
very complaisant, and, for the want of a better subject, resumed the
subject of the extravagances of the Methodists where Murty left off. He
knew, also, that old Mrs. Prying had an antipathy to that sect.

"The Irishman is an amusing fellow, I perceive," commenced he; "he is
not far wrong in his description of the Methodists, I can tell you."

"I never could bear that denomination," said Mrs. Prying, "especially
since the time that Morefat carried on over in Vermont; and I am still
more displeased since that Minister Barker seduced Amanda to his
meeting, together with others of our regular members."

"They are a horrid set!" said the dominie. "Did you not hear of the
donation party at brother Funny's, last new year's?"

"No. Do you mean the talk about Miss Talebearer?"

"Worse than that, although nothing secret. Nothing that the whole town
has not heard. You know Mr. Funny was rather poor, having been but a few
months on the 'circuit;' and so Mrs. Plumpcheek, wife to Aaron
P