Accrington - Salvation Army

This is an excerpt from the first monthly report from the Salvation Army station here.

.THE Town Hall, one of the finest buildings we have ever used, seating at least 1,500 persons, having been secured for Sundays, and the Ragged School for weeknights, we commenced on Sunday 8th,
one of the grandest successes ever achieved in so short a time. The SIsters appointed wrote as follows:- . 

"I am very happy to tell you that the work of the Lord is going on in this town. We had the Town Hall nearly full on Sunday, both afternoon and evening',  Eight souls.

"We get plenty of people to talk to in the open air. On Monday, when we got to the open-air meeting, there were about two hundred people wait­ing for us, and we no sooner began to sing than they came crowding around us, so that we had no room and we had to ask them to stand back.

"After the open-air meeting we went to the Ragged School, and the place was crammed. "We had twenty-seven souls. 

"Last night when we took our stand in the market for the open air, we got hundreds of people, for it was market day, and when we began to sing they all left the stalls and came to hear us, so that, in about ten minutes, we had such a crowd of people that we could not move. 

"After the open air we sang to the Primitive Schoolroom. The place was full. We had four souls. Pray for us, for we mean going on. Filled with God we'll shake the kingdom. 

"I am glad to tell you we had good meetings all through Sunday. It was very wet, but there were 1,400 in the hall in the afternoon and 1,500 in the evening, and twelve souls and last night there was not standing room in the schoolroom. I wish we had a larger place for weeknights.

From, 'The Christian Mission Magazine', October 1878, page 258.

...Our Good Friday was a Good Friday indeed. In the morning we sang through the streets, God blessed us with his power and presence. In the afternoon Captain Lamplough brought his corps of Dare Devil's over and combined with our own warriors a mighty procession was formed which stirred the town. The evening meeting was one of liberty and power, one could not help but shout Hallelujah and leap for joy as they rose, not one after the other, but three or four at a time, and told how God had saved them, some of the worst on the face of the earth, through our glorious army. Hallelujah. It stirs my soul while I am writing this. Glory, Glory.

From, 'The Salvationist', May 1879, page 133.

(Capt, Parkinson). We are marching along here. God is leading us on to victory, Soldiers going in for purity, and sinners crying for mercy. The other day we went to visit one of our Soldiers who was sick, her husband was in the house unsaved, and of course we fired off at him. Glory to God he was very soon on his kaces asking God to save him, and. Hallelujah! he did it. When his wife heard him thanking God for his Salvation; she shouted "Glory to God that's done me more good than a bottle of medicine." Sunday good meetings all day: at night. after some straight dealing, one woman ventured herself on Christ: We mean victory.

From, "The War Cry," page 3, 23rd February 1882.