Brynsiencyn, Sunday.—The venue of Evan Robert’s mission to-day stands close to the shore of the Menai Straits, and hundreds had rowed over for this morning's meeting from Carnarvon and Port Dinorwic. When the revivalist appeared on the scene there was a large crowd engaged in prayer and praise. The weather was almost tropical. The crowd numbered about 1,300.
Mr Roberts did not wait long before speaking this morning. He rose with a smile on his face. “God” he said, “can be here in more ways than one, but He is blessedly near this morning. Some of you are perhaps tired of standing in the heat, but be thankful that you are able to stand.” The revivalist was in particularly good form this morning and be looked and he looked remarkably well and happy. He concluded his address with an appeal for implicit obedience.
The testing of the meeting commenced early. I gathered that the great majority of those present were church members, and converts were slow to come in. Mr Roberts rising again, said that he felt that the meeting was going too much by rule- “only one of you praying at once,” he said, “while thousands prayed at once at Holyhead the other night. Remember, dear friends, that God can listen to thousands at once and that He can devote infinite attention to all of them.” This brought many prayers from the congregation, but the total of converts this morning only came to three; several on the outskirts refused. Before very long Mr Roberts, who evidently sympathised with the broiling audience, asked them to say the Lord's Prayer, and the crowd dispersed.
During the afternoon hundreds of people came in from all parts of the country, and the field began to fill as early as 4 o'clock, though the meeting was not supposed to commence till 6 o'clock. At first, the meeting dragged considerably, and the singing was especially poor until a young man standing on a form took up the leadership and improved matters greatly.
Evan Roberta arrived about 20 past 6 with Miss Roberts and Miss Annie Davies, and such was the curiosity to see him that a dead calm fell upon the audience as if they all expected the revivalist to do something extraordinary. This unnatural silence was broken by the magnificent strains of “Daw Mawr y Rhyfeddodau maith.” He then went on to speak of the need of love and the sin of disobedience. There was frivolity in the congregation, he declared, and it was necessary that it should be done away with before any good could be expected. He then spoke strongly on the subject of implicit obedience.
His words had a remarkable effect, and a great and tempestuous outbreak of prayer followed. The storm of prayer continued for several minutes, and from this point the tone of the meeting seemed to be depressed, and at one time I could hear the revivalist tapping his feet impatiently on the platform, as if he could not bear the woeful lack of enthusiastic feeling. The Rev.Thomas Hughes made a fervent appeal for prayer, but the response was feeble.
Though an hour had gone by since he came in the revivalist was still quiet. At the end of an hour he stood up and asked all church members to put up their hands. He then changed the demand and asked those who loved the Saviour to give the same sign. Looking at the forest of hands, Mr Roberts asked if so many loved Christ why were they so quiet and so cold? The meeting terminated in great rejoicing.
From, 'The South Wales Daily News', 26th June 1905.
I do not know where the meeting was held.