Dr. John Henry Bass - Submitted for the USGenWeb by Charlie Bass 4/20/10

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Dr. John Henry Bass - Madison Parish, Louisiana 

From Texas Christian Advocate, January 19, 1911

DR. JOHN HENRY BASS.
"Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!' In very truth these words may be used in referring 
to Dr. John Henry Bass. When he was laid to rest in the Masonic Cemetery in Abilene the Abilene Daily 
Reporter spoke of him as follows: "The going or this good man is a distinct personal loss to hundreds 
and hundreds of the best people in our little city. During the twenty-five years' residence of Dr. Bass 
in Abilene there was never an hour when everyone who knew him did not know where to place him on all moral 
issues. The inspiration and sweet fragrance of such a life will linger forever in the memory and lives of 
those who knew him best and loved him most." I place these words here in order to testify to their truth. 
For having been Dr. Bass' pastor for two years, I knew him intimately and loved him.

John Henry Bass was born July 27, 1839, in Adams County, Miss., where he lived until he was 12 years of age. 
His father then sent him to Stamford, Conn., where he remained in school until he was 16. He then attended 
Centenary College, Louisiana, for a time. Later he studied medicine and graduated from the medical school at 
Louisville, Ky., in 1860. That same year he entered upon the practice of his profession in Madison Parish, La. 
Upon the breaking out of the war he was among the very first to volunteer in the Confederate Army as a private, 
but he was soon Commissioned as the surgeon of his regiment and served as such throughout the war. In 1863 he 
secured a furlough and came to Wood County, Texas, and was married to Miss Amelia Scott, who, with her mother, 
had relocated from Madison Parish. After remaining with his young bride only one day he returned to his post 
in the Tennessee Army. This reveals the kind of man he was: duty he placed above all else.

Dr. Bass was a Southern gentleman of the old school. The name and memory of Robert E. Lee he loved and revered. 
The "Lost Cause" was always dear to him; he believed thoroughly in the principles for which he had suffered, but 
there was nothing narrow or sectional about him - his heart was as big as the whole great Nation, and he loved 
the entire country with the same ardent patriotism that led him to give four years' service to the Confederacy.

At the close of the Civil War he took up the practice of his profession in Adams County, Miss. In 1872 he moved to 
Sulphur Springs, where he lived for six years. In 1878 he moved to Terrell and in 1884 to Abilene, where he remained 
until his death on the morning of November 14, 1910.

Dr. Bass was converted and joined the Church in Sulphur Springs under the ministry of Rev. M. H. Neely. D. D. He was 
a Methodist. Good Methodist books were in his home; he read them and loved them. He knew the history of his Church 
and believed that God was in that history. He knew the doctrines of his Church, and they commended themselves both 
to his understanding and to his heart. He knew the discipline of his Church, and was subject to it because he loved 
it. He respected the authority of his Church and loved her leaders. As steward and as Sunday-school teacher he was 
faithful and efficient. Dr. Bass was a Christian; whosoever knew him knew that he was a Christian. He did not publish 
his religion abroad; he was too sincere and modest for that, but h is religion manifested itself in what he was, in 
what he said and in what he did. His heart was full of love and kindness. I repeat now what I often said while he was 
yet with us: I never heard him speak unkindly of any man. I have heard him condemn sin, but he had only love and pity 
for the sinner. His home was a Christian home. When I was sent as pastor to Abilene, he took me and my little family 
for a few days to his home. There is an atmosphere about a home which it does not take long to feel and understand. His 
love for his wife, his kind attentions given to her aged mother, Mrs. Scott, his devotion to his sons and daughters, 
all marked him out as the father of a Christian family. His Bible he loved, and his family daily heard his voice in 
prayer. Dr. Bass was a public spirited citizen. He was interested in the welfare of the community in which he lived and 
in the whole country. The Abilene Reporter spoke the simple truth when it said: "Abilene would be a better town, Taylor 
County a better county, and Texas a better State if all men were such men as our beloved friend, Christian Brother and 
real nobleman, Dr. J. H. Bass."

In recent years he endured many severe trials, but they only ripened him for heaven. His beloved daughter, Mrs. Mary Hardwicke, 
died in 1905; and in 1907 his dear wife was taken. His happy home was broken up. His health, which had not been the best for 
years, grew worse. But none of these things moved him. He fought a good fight; he kept the faith; he has finished his course; 
he has gained the crown.

Dr. Bass is survived by two sons, Charles S. and Henry J. Bass, and one daughter, Mrs. Anna Cocke. His only brother, Dr. Sidney 
Bass, of Terrell, was at the bedside when death came. He writes me: I was with him in his last hours. There were no terrors of 
death, no agonies of death, for him; only a peaceful, quiet going to his Father's house. After giving his children some final 
instructions, and knowing his last hour had come, he quietly went to sleep and passed to his heavenly home."

In the going away of Dr. Bass I have lost, for a time, one of my best friends. Possibly no two years of my ministry meant as 
much to me as the two years spent at Abilene. "Like people, like priest," writes the prophet. Companionship with men who knew 
Methodist history and doctrine and polity; men who loved God and their country - I count myself fortunate to have had such 
companionship for those two memorable Years. Among those men my honored friend, Dr. John Henry Bass, holds first place. 
I expect to meet him in heaven. E. D. MOUZON.