The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1855-09-22
For the Free Trader.
Wibic DcstitutiOn.


AlR. EDif AS the opinion is so pre-
valent that hcarly every family in our cour.
try is supp ed with the Scriptures, we pro-
pose to pre- knt some facts gathered from re-
cent repcrq showing the erroneousncss Of
this opiniot These facts have been ascer
taincd by actual enquiry and may be relied
on a correct. We select them from differ
ent states thus showing that the dcstituton
is not conliued to particular locality.
1SDANA. = The Pike Co B. S. in this state
reports that in Jefferson Township of III
| families visited SO were destitute Of a Bible.
In Uptown Co. Of 5lS families visited lSj
were ascertained to be destitute.
MIcmGAI I-Oi l2O00 families visited 1900
had no bible- in II.
/ WlscoSsik On 1900 German families Wis
tied by thaGerman Bible Colporteur 4j0 or
/ were deSitute
! In a neighborhood in the western part Of
the state containing | o families were found
| destitute
/ TowA-In Jackson Co. in this state Of
/ 1917 families visited 43i or more than one
/ fourth were without Bible.
Missouri. The COlp6rteur Of the Mssou-
ri Bible Society in visiting $3.50 families in
/ the City and County of st. Louis found
/ something over 1900 families without a Bi-
/ bic.
/ KESrrcKY.-In the city Of Louisville l0,-
203 families were visited, Of whom 1881 or
more than one third were found destitute
In Garrard Co. Of g9j families called upon
2ij were without the Bible.
/ ILLINOIS Not far from 10000 families
Lave been found without an entire copy Of
the Scriptures in this state, during a single
year besides 10000 children without copies
Of the New Testament Of their own. In one
county Of 900 families visited ia or more
than onc-tith had not an entire Bible. d.
another, out Of gGs amllcs 2Gi or more than
ouc.fouuh wer. destitute. in one Of the
cities Of the state, Of 1000 families visited
/ 300 were Bibleless.
The iorcgoiu. facts may be extreme ones
but they are by no means the only extreme
ones Upon the average dcstitution in c0un
ties recently explored, We base the estimate
that there at least 300, 900 families in the
United States who have 40 Bible. Does the
, oIi,rl'~ sag that most OF these are foreign
.. h.r..y that large share Of them
--y,. .lg half at least are Native Am.
erican, and protestants. And what if they
are foreigners; DO they not need the scrip
tures both 10 prepare them to live and to die.
l. it said that all Of them can without diff
fculty supply themselves? We reply that
this is also untrue. But what il they can :
Many Of them will no sooner do this than
thy will supply themselves and lamiI es
with other means Of intellectual and moral
improvement Of which they remain desti-
tutc.
l. il said that the destitute will not read
the Scriptures if placed in their hands,
THIS again is untrue in many instances. 49,
But what if the husband and father will not
read the Bible Must ,.is family remain with.
out III consequence
Our Bible societies judge otherwise. With
the help Of the good they will aim to supply
these hundreds af thousands of destitute
families In our own country as well as the
Bihlelssx Millions abroad.
4 -ssa'sff'& 6,A1 1sxter-.-.A.L A. l.