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Show 178 TALES OF THE COLORADO PIONEERS. " boys," and Father Dyer's exchequer would be greatly enlarged with the "gold dust from the diggings," as that was the " circulating medium" of those days. Though he would terrifically portray the awful calamity that would surely come upon his hearers, if they did not repent of their sins; his genial manner, his quaint humor and his ready wit insured for him a cordial welcome to the hospitalities of the miner's cabin. The stories told of his humorous witicisms would fill a volume. A man, who had become dissatisfied with the church because of some difficulty, and had withdrawn from it, met Father Dyer one day and said to him," Father Dyer, I have been out of the church three years, and have been watching church members all that time, and have corrie to the conclusion that they do not live up to their professions." Father Dyer looked upon him with a calm and piteous expression, as though he was very sad about it, and deliberately replied, " My dear brother, I think you have been out on picket duty long enough; you had better ' come into headquarters and be relieved." Upon another occasion, at a ministerial gathering, there was to be a children's meeting. A chairman was chosen, who was proverbial in giving a joke, and with equal pleasure would receive one. He was bald-headed and had false teeth. Hearing that Father Dyer, who was to speak, was sensitive in being called Old Father Dyer, he took great pleasure in introducing him as Old Father Dyer, and repeated it during his remarks a number of times, to the merriment of all in the house, and finally said, " Now, Old Father Dyer, please come forward and address the children." |