<TITLE>20. Par 180-195</TITLE>L-180   So I grabbed these things, and home I went. Wife met me, she said, "Why do you sound so happy about, Billy?"

L-181 I said, "Oh, I met the cream of the crop. My, it's the best you ever seen. Them people ain't ashamed of their religion." And, oh, I told her all about it. And I said, "And looky here, honey, a whole string of invitations. Them people!"
She said, "They're not holy rollers, are they?"

L-182 I said, "I don't know what kind of a rollers they are, but they got something that I needed." See? I said, "That--that's one thing I'm sure." I said, "I seen an old man, ninety years old, come young again." I said, "I never heard such preaching in my life. Why, I never seen a Baptist preach like that." I said, "They preach till they get out of breath, and bend their knees plumb to the floor, come back up, catch their breath. You can hear them two blocks away, still preaching." And I said, "I--I never heard such in my life." And I said, "They speak in an unknown tongue, and the other one tells what they're talking about. Never heard such in my life!" I said, "Will you go with me?"

L-183 She said, "Honey, when I married you, I will stick with you until death shall separate us." She said, "I'll go." She said, "Now, we'll tell the folks."

L-184 And I said, "Well, you tell your mama and I'll tell my mama." So we... I went and told Mama.

L-185 Mama said, "Well, sure, Billy. Whatever the Lord's called you to do, go do it."

L-186   And so Mrs. Brumbach asked for me to come up. Went up. She said, "What's this you're talking about?"

L-187 And I said, "Oh, Mrs. Brumbach," I said, "you all never seen such people."
She said, "Quieten down! Quieten down!"
I said, "Yes, ma'am." I said, "I'm sorry."
And she said, "Do you know that's a bunch of holy rollers?"

L-188 I said, "No, ma'am, I didn't know that." I said, "They--they sure are fine people."

L-189 She said, "The very idea! Do you think you'd drag my daughter out amongst stuff like that!" Said, "Ridiculous! That's nothing but trash that the other churches has throwed out." She said, "Indeed! You'll not bring my daughter out like that."

L-190 And I said, "But, you know, Mrs. Brumbach, down in my heart I feel that the Lord wants me to go with them people."

L-191 She said, "You go back up to your church until they are able to afford a parsonage for you, and act like a man that's got some sense." Said, "You're not taking my daughter out through there."
I said, "Yes, ma'am." I turned around and walked out.

L-192   And Hope started crying. She come out, she said, "Billy, regardless of what Mama says, I'll stay with you." Bless her heart!
And I said, "Oh, that's all right, honey."

L-193 And I just let it go. She wouldn't let her daughter go with such people as that 'cause "It wasn't nothing but trash." And so I just kind of let it go. It was the worse mistake I ever made in my life, one of the worse.

L-194   A little later, few years after, the children come. And one day we was... There come up a flood, in 1937. There came a flood. And our... I was on patrol at that time and I was trying my best to bring the people out of the flood, houses tearing down. And my own wife took sick, and she was real, real sick with pneumonia. And they took her out... The regular hospital was so full we couldn't put her in there, so we taken her out to the--the government where they had a room out there. And so then they called me back out. And I always lived on the river, and quite a boatman, so I was trying to get the people, rescue them from the flood. And then I'd... one...

L-195   They called me, said, "There's a house over on Chestnut Street, it's about ready to go in. There's a mother and a bunch of children in there," said, "if you think your boat, your motor can get in to them." I said, "Well, I'll do all I can."


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