Omaha daily bee., 1885-10-08

THE FISHER.
"You behold " victim of unrighteous-
ness, :" said MIR Wood. Tho post Office
people have the unkindness to call me n
fraud and II crank when, rs II simple
matter of fact, for more than two years L
have beon engaged in Il noble work. They
object to my methods. We'll, my system
is an effective one, or it would not have
attracted their attention. Do you know,
l believe that my real opponents are the
professional philanthroptsts who grow lay
off the doing of good TO sinners, l dld
great good-incalculable good; but my
ways were not theirs, and they pcrsecute
me. My occupations gone'-'
what work have you been engaged
in2" asked the writer.
I'm disseminating the Truth-don't for,
get to spell it with " large .'F"-rejoincd
the religious enthusiast. II was not as
good and pure u man at one time as | am
now. | followed the devil and know his
ways vol. Experience taught me, that
there was Il large class of the wicked who
occupied n middle ground between the
totally dcpraved and the morally upright.
| SAW that this class was not reached by
any scheme of regeneration yet devised
by man, and ! set for myself tho noble
task OF appealing to that particular social
class, ono OF which | had been myself in
the days that were past"
II BAIT.
"How do you go about this work."
"After much deep consideration L
framed the following advertisement,
which | inserted in several of tho flash
weekly papers that find their patronage
among the very class wished to rcach;-
ATTENTION SrNNEEs:-A Book THAT
every sporting man should read; better than
anything of the kind ever printed; 300 pages
and no trash. Price % cents. Sent postage
free, by WOOD u Co., 1885 Girard av.
"This | felt certain would attract no.
tice," continued Mr.. Wood. at fully
cquallcd my expectations. Before tho
end of the week / began to receive letters
Der increased to eighty, then ~ hundred;
l was delighted. All letters contained
the stipulated sum. Some OF them also
had the stamps for return postage. Cor
Respondents in Texas and tho South for.
wardCd larger sums and wanted five, ten
and u dozen copies. 1t was Il bonanza in
the cause of good works. | sent an nv-
erage of - hundred books d day for sew
eral months never felt happier IN my
life"
II BOOK
"But you have not explained what the
book was. Nothing Objectionable, 1T is
to be hopcd?"
mo, indeed. l sent to all the CORES
pondcnts who enclosed money a neat
copy of the new testament. bought
those by the hundred of the Bible So
cicty, corner of Seventh and Walnut
streets, and paid $l.T5 per hundred
what, less than five cents for q book
| that you sold TO your patrons for II half
dollar? Wasn't that outragcously
dcar?"
mo, / think not" was tho calm re-,
,joinder. The books and postage On a
l,,rI,.,l tA1fn NnntJ nNGt N S0 Vn-
ccived $50. That was only Il net profit of
$l2 on every hundred books sent out.
You have always heard that it costs $40
to get 81 to the beneficiary? Yes. Well,
you see it can be done cheaper. My adj
vertising cost about $l2 Il week-or. say
So IA day-so that tho contributors to this
fund for distributing the new testament
only dispensed four times rs much as the
b~encfaction was worth to them. Don't
you think it was a novel idea, this OF in
ducing the very class that needs the Cos
pei most to pay for its disSCmination?"
THE Keeling IN.
at looks very much like il swindle,"
reioined the writer. though your motive
may have been II noble one"
appreciation appeared to be wholly
lacking among the recipients of the
precious books" continued the misguid.
| ed worker in the field of reform. "You
would be shocked, as was, were | to
read you some of the replies that came
from my flock of noyitiatcs, : Some of
them received the Word in silence, and /
hopc they protited much by it. Others
grew abusive. They charged me with
deception and threatened mo with tho
law. | smiled ut their threats. Martyr
dom was what | thirstcd after. Others
took another method. They brought my
| earnest work to tho attention of the
~postoliice officials at Washington, and /
have had my letters stopped and am n
der heavy bonds TO appear for trial ut
the coming term of the United States
courts. Isn't that shamefulY Why, in
the two years that | laborcd in the vine.
yard | planted over seventeen thousand
messengers of peace. They were rs
brands to tho burning, did no evil that
good might come. Why my young
christian friend, | averaged three thous'
and testaments Il month for some time"
THE LANDING.
"What did the mail carriers think of
your extensive correspondcnee?"
They marvelled much at il" wa the
reply. '"Ihe carrier on my route used to
come in several times every forenoon.
He always had Il large bundle for me,
and he'd stand before my desk as he
shuillcd them off one at II time, murmur-
ing Wood Wood Wood, and so on
for. thirty or forty times. The envelopes
Ollell cOlItlllPu SllNcT, DHJ inc postal
notes and postage stamps were most fire.
quently employed. 1t is due to the dc.
partment to say that all letters came
safely, for | only received two com
plants from people who declared that
they had sent me money. The non
arrival OF those letters may have been
due to misdircction, But / made them
equal sharors in the good work"
"You sent them copies of the Tesla.
ment?"
"Yos, indeed. / could afford TO ex-
pend eight cents without hope of reward
occasionally. | was modest and abste.
mious in my daily life, and | may say,
without disqualification, that | put
5000 in the bank during the two years |
dispensed the knowledge that ondureth. "
care you the person | have heard
spoken of by tho delivery clerks ut the
p0stoilice MS the testament MANI asked
your correspondent.
at is more than possible that the un.
gOdly servants of II nation that respects
no the humble strivings after righteous
ness of an earnest soul may have given
me such n title, the old man answered
with considerable chagrin and mortiiica.
ton. III am proud to bear such n cross -
he went ON, though his looks belied his
words.