CARL GOCK.

SKETCH OF A CHARACTER.

BY THE EDITOR.

The tide of modern emigration from Germany into Pennsylvania, did not fully set in till after 1830. Prior to that date there were, however, occasional arrivals. Among these were frequently adventurers-half-educated, rationalistic spirits, who saw, in the quiet German districts of the State, fine openings for the display of boldness, and that cheap talent of pretension with which some of them were largely endowed. These found no difficulty in setting up as musicians, school teachers, botanic doctors, and sometimes even as preachers. Among our trusty and unsuspicious forefathers, this class of pretenders often played a very conspicuous part. They, however, gradually found their own level; and worn out fragments of them are still to be found floating about as traveling paupers.

A very notorious member of this fraternity, in his time, was Carl Gock, whose career we propose briefly to sketch. His life will show how dangerous the influence of this class of men often proved to be in communities; and how much injury and evil their smartness enabled them to originate and accomplish.

This Gock came to this country in the first quarter of the pres ent century, and settled, so far as his restless life enabled him to settle at all, in Albany Township, Berks County, Pa. Here he taught school for some time. He professed to be greatly delighted at having escaped from the "tyranny of European Governments," and became exceedingly fond of "a free country." He soon got his hand into politics, though he never rose higher than the position of a Township Delegate to the Nominating Convention of his adopted county. In this capacity he wore the "blushing honors' of public confidence, for the space of twenty years. There was, during all this period of time, not a single Convention held in Reading, when the indomitable Carl Gock did not respond to his name as delegate, plenipotentiary, from old Albany. In his hands, so far as his constituents were concerned, the country was regarded as perfectly safe.

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Our Gock was also gifted with great power of tongue. He could speak as long as any living man, without saying anything! him it could be truly said, as it was of the hero in Hudibras,

"He never oped his mouth,

But out there came-a word!"

He was possessed of strong lungs, a loud voice, knew plenty of words, and never hesitated whilst he spoke. He always regarded his audience as composed of "true Americans," "honored fellow

citizens," "guardians of liberty," and "independent voters," and, hence, addressed them accordingly. Possessing these talents for public oratory, he was enabled to make himself prominent in every political canvass, besides earning his liquor, which flowed down his throat as easily as his words flowed out. Wonderfully was his pride gratified, when allowed to harangue a crowd, and equally wonderful was his satisfaction in imbibing the whisky, always richly furnished on such occasions by the candidates, whose merits he wafted over the gaping crowd by the wind of his mouth!

For the space of twenty years was Carl Gock in the tide of his political glory. But at length came an evil hour for our patriot. True, it had been noticed years before, that Carl Gock, the illustrious delegate from Albany, never had any money when on his way to the Convention, whilst he was always flush on his return! Still no one thought of connecting the effect with its probable cause. Up to the time when our Gock last represented Albany, it was customary, in Convention, for the delegates to cast their votes for the nominees silently; but now a resolution was introduced, requiring all to vote openly, by Ayes and Noes. By this simple test, it was discovered, that the illustrious delegate from Albany had always promised his vote to all the candidates, pocketed the fees from each, and then voted silently for whom he pleased! Before the rule requiring a public vote had been adopted he had already given his promise to three, and received pay "for value received," which contracts he was afterwards not only unable to fulfill, but the circumstance became the occasion of his full exposure. Sad day for Carl! "Othello's occupation was gone." He, at once, lost the confidence of his constituents, and from that day he was no longer delegate from Albany Township.

Our Gock now became disgusted with politics! Having been all his life unmarried, he had no particular ties in Albany, and, hence, began "to circulate." He now found his early education in play again; and having "studied the science of botanic medicine. at the University of Tübingen," he became a kind of circulating "herb doctor." The garrets of farmers in various parts of Berks county, became the depositories of the medicinal herbs he gathered, whilst the kitchens answered as his labratories. The medicines he thus made had, of course, great virtues, as all the medicines of "quack doctors" have. These, to save agencies, he peddled himself. In this way, if he did not keep the farmers in health, he, at least, kept himself in liquor. Not altogether forgetful of his earlier taste and vocation, he still sometimes "kept school," especially in dull seasons and in dull communities.

During that period of his life in which lie twenty years of his political career, he also devoted some attention to authorship. When, in 1821, some congregations, with their ministers, declared themselves independent of the Synod of the Reformed Church, and formed an independent Synod-or so-called "Free Synod,"-Gock saw a good opportunity for making his demagogic talent useful in futhering the disorder. Accordingly, he wrote and published, in

1822, "Die Vertheidigung der Freyen Kirche von Nord Amerika"a defence of the Free Church of North America-a book of 120 pages. This book shows the character of his mind and heart. It is a complete jumble of rant and rhapsody-ad captandum vulgusan appeal to the low and ignorant prejudices of irresponsible menfull of rationalistic and downright infidel flings at the Church and its ministers. Notwithstanding the shallowness of the performance, this book exerted a'powerful influence upon the ignorant of that day, the effects of which have been felt down to the present time. His object is to show that Synods are tyrannical in their government; and that, especially in the establishment of the Theological Seminary, in which the Church was, at that time, earnestly moving, the ministers design to oppress the people, and ultimately to take away all their civil and religious liberties!

Copies of this mischievous book are still extant; and wherever any disposition toward ecclesiastical insubordination manifests itself in any congregations in that region of country, the book of prin Carl Gock is still sought and re-read. The book was ably answered, Should if we can speak properly of an, answer to such a bundle of incoherences-by J. C. Kepler, in 1823. This reply covers 160 pages, and evidences a much greater thinking and writing ability, than the book of Gock. Though the book of Gock has intrinsically no merit, yet it has done more than anything else he ever did, to make him notorious. The spirit of ecclessiastical independence, which has lately broken out anew in that region, has, to a great extent, its roots in the miserable influence of this irresponsible vagrant. "What became of Carl Gock?" we lately asked an old citizen of Berks county. We had heard of him often and much, especially in some researches we were called to make into the past history of the Church, in that portion of Pensylvania. We were pretty well acquainted with his character and mischievous doings, and were, therefore, anxious to know what had been the end of the man. our surprise, we were informed that he is still living. "Where does, he reside ?" we inquired.

"In the Berks county poor-house," was the reply.

To

Is this, indeed, the end of this man, we said within ourselves? Our old friend assured us that it was even so.

From that time we determined to pay him a vist, a resolution which we had the opportunity of carrying into effect, some weeks ago. With a friend in Reading, we took a morning ride to that home of the poor and wretched. On inquiring of the keeper in regard to Gock, he assured us that the veritable gentleman was under his care, and that he would present us to him.

Passing through a brick-paved entry, in the cellar part of the building, we saw a little, old man, with a piece of a broom-stick, as a cane, in one hand, and an old tin cup in the other, coming toward us, walking as erect as a Napoleon.

"There is old Gock," said the keeper. He stopped him, and informed him, in a loud voice, (for the old man is hard of hearing,) that some gentlemen wished to see him. Whereupon he turned

around toward us with one of those peculiarly polite bows, which only a "learned German philosopher" can make. We found him very talkative.

But the appearance of the man.

As we have said, he is small of stature has a good forehead, a small eye, (which is not without some fire,) a large nose and chin, which two features of his face nearly meet each other, over a broad, sunken mouth. His hair is grey, but not white; his manner is firm and determined; and he still shows himself possessed of his old pride and will.

He does not only retain his old facility in speaking, but has the same ability manifested in his book, of talking on a great variety of subjects, which have no connection, other than he gives them by a certain, strange kind of incoherent fluency. As he was a politician before he entered the theological sphere, the subject of politics still showed itself uppermost in his mind. He told us that he was "a Washington, Federal, Independent Democrat;" that he always discarded the motto, "principles and not men;" and that his motto was "principles and men." He said he had worked hard, in his time, for the political interests of his adopted country, and seemed to feel hurt, that his labors had not been permanently appreciated. Lifting himself up, and turning towards the keeper, he said, with great emphasis:

"All this have I done for my country, and why am I here? I have broken down my health for the good of others, and why came I here? Here I cannot recover my health, and why am I here? My friends have forsaken me. They have brought me here-and for what? They have brought me under as to my body, but not as to my spirit!" It was his opinion that some secret association had conspired against him; and, to get him out of the way, had brought him to this place.

At this point the friend who accompanied us, asked him whether be had not once written a book against Synods. Straightening himself, and assuming a very consequential attitude, he said, with a pleasant emphasis, putting his first finger up along side of his nose, as the learned do, when they are about to make a nice point: "Yes, against the ministers, I wrote. If it had not been for me, they would have become the masters. I curbed their tendency to tyranny. Yes, against the ministers, I wrote a book. In the night, I wrote it, whilst I was teaching school in Albany. I worked hard, and now I am here; and why am I here?"

When we asked him in regard to his religion and faith, he said: "I am a Lutheran-an old Lutheran." At this point he seemed to be seized with a sudden, sad and serious spell. He said he was now seventy-two years old; that he was useless and forsaken; but he trusted that God had not forsaken him; and then repeated, with much feeling, several verses of Luther's celebrated Battle Hymn:

"Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott."

We addressed to him a few words, such as we thought appropriate to his present feelings and condition, and then bade adieu to Carl Gock!

The reader will make his own reflections on the history of this man's singular career, as we certainly did for ourselves. There hangs a moral by the tale, which it is not difficult to discover, and turn into a lesson. He will, no doubt, die in the poor-house; but the influences he has exerted for evil, will live long after him. His "little knowledge," coupled together with pride and boldness, proved to him, and many others, a very "dangerous thing!"

OUR HENRY.

ON THE DEATH OF A NAME-SAKE, AGED SIX YEARS.

BY THE EDITOR.

Past is thy life's brief day,

Thy carthly course is run;

Since thou hast found the homeward way,

Our bleeding hearts would meekly say,

Thy will, O Lord, be done!

Thy ways, dear Lord, are right,

In all vicissitudes;

Good when our days are calm and bright,

Good in our spirit's deepest night

In joy and sorrow, good.

To Thee, our covenant Lord,

We gave our precious boy;

And can we mourn when Thou dost take
Him to Thyself, and kindly make

Him heir of heavenly joy?

Gone from the loved on earth,
He's joined the loved on high;
Scarce had he left this world of sin,
When heavenly gates received him in,
Where he no more shall die!

Hail! hail, my sainted boy!

White robes and palms are thine!

I could not call the back to me,
But I, by grace, shall go to thee,
And thou shalt still be mine!

BOOK NOTICE.

EVANGELISCHE ZEUGNISSE.-The June | miscellaneous articles, and an interestnumber of this German homiletical ing synopsis of news from the Church Monthly, edited by Rev. Dr. Schaff, and in Europe. The Magazine is well adaptpublished by I. Kohler, No. 202, North ed for ministers, and an intelligent readFourth St., Philadelphia, is received. ing laity. It contains two sermons, a number of