The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-24
He CONVERTED Mr.. MOODY.
HOW THE GREAT EVANGELIST
FIRST SAW THE WAY.

Edward KImball. the champion church
debt raiser of the United States, whose
home seems to Be anywhere from Port
land, Ne. 20 San Diego. Cal, the man who
forty-fve years ago converted Dwight L.
Moody, yesterday told for the first time
for publication the story Of the conve5 sion
Of the famous evangelist 1t is a plain,
simple little story far removed from the
many wild yarns that have been printed
on the subject. and it comes with especial
interest just now since Mr.. Moody has
been lying SO near deaths door.
Mr.. KimbaH, like Mr.. Moody, has spent
most of his life in church work. 1t has
been roughly estimated that within the
last twenty years he has raised debts ag-
gregadng over $4,000 900 from COO churches.
Although Mr.. Kimball is near the three
score and ten mark and not long since met
with an accident that has slightly crippled
him for life, he nevertheless persists in
his old work with almost the same energy
he manifested a score of years ago. To
all appearances he is in his prime and his
keen brown eyes twinkle like boys as he
talks. At present Mr.. Kimban is visit
ais ASsdNAfSo at tJ9 &NbAAA AdAONS CtiNNSi
Oak Park. where he was seen by a repre-
sentative Of the Sunday Chronicle.
True story of MOOdy's Conversion.
Scores of stories about the conversion of
MIR. Mo)oy have been published, rang ng
from the one in which he IS pulled out OF
the gutter a drdnkaTd TO his rather severe
treatment at the hands of church commit
tees. All such tales are pure fabrications
without even a shadow of truth. Almost
as haseless as these are the accounts of
coming from supposedly better sourc es
which have only faint tinge of the true
facts in the case. Two persons and two
only have personal knowledge of Mr.
Moodys conversion--Mr, KIM all and Mr.
Moody himself-and only these two men
can properly tell the story.
TO tell the story correctly" said Mr.
KimbaE, Il must go back of the impor-
tant event a few weeks 10 Thanksgiving
day forty-ttVe years ago. A Thanksgiving
family dinner party was as stmb ed at the
Mood home, which was on a farm a mile
and half from Mortified, Mass AT the
table among others were Samuel and en-
uel Hofton of Boston, TWO uncles Of the
Moody children. Without any preliminary
arning young Dwight, a boy of about H.
spoke up and said TO his Uncle Samuel:
Uncle, l want 90 come to Boston and
have pace in your shoe store. win you
AeAAG INC lJGSp.lC lIC Qlt6ClhHS5 VI tue
question, the uncle returned 10 Boston
without giving his nephew an answer
When MIR. Holton asked advice in the
matter from an older brother of Dwight
the brother told his uncle that perhaps he
had better not lake Inc boy, for in a short
time Dwight would want to run his store.
Young Moody Was HeadstrOng.
Dwight was headstrong young fellow
who would not study at school and who
was much fonder of practical joke than
he was of his books. His expressed desire
to go to Boston and get work was not a
jest that the boy forgot the day after
Thanksgiving. The two uncles were sur
prised when one day in the following
spring Dwight turned up in Boston look
ing for job. His Uncle Samuel did not
offer him a place. Dwight, when asked
how he thought he could get a start, said
he wanted work and he guessed he could
find a position. After days of efforts and
meeting nothing but failures the boy grew
discouraged with Boston and told his I'M
Gle Lemuel he was going to New York.
The uncle strongly advised Dwight not to
go, but TO speak to his Uncle Samuel again
about the matter. The boy demurred
saying his Uncle Samuel knew perfectly
well what he wanted But the uncle in
sisted so that second time the boy asked
his Uncle Samuel for place in his store.
Becomes a Shoe Salesman.
Dwight I am afraid, If you come in
here, you will want to run the store your
SELF said Mr. Helton. Now, my men
here want to do their work as l want 1t
| done. If you want to come in here and do
the best you can and do it right, and If
you'll ask me when you don't know how to
do anything, or If I'm not here ask the
bookkeeper, and IL he's not here ask one
/ of the statesmen or one of the boys, and
! If you are willing to go to church and
/ Sunday School when you are able to go
/ anywhere ON Sundays, and IL you are
willing not to go anywhere at night or any
/ other time which you wouldn't want me
| or your mother to know about, why then,
If you'll promise all these things you may
/ come and take hold, and We'll see how we
| can get along. You can have till Monday
to think it over.
I don't want till Monday said Dwight:
IN promise now. And young Moody be-
gan work in his uncles shoe store.
Couldn't Read the Bible.
"a remark the boys uncle made to me-
| afterward will give an idea of the young
mans lack of education at this time. The
uncle said that when Dwight read his b.
BILE out loud he couldn't make anything
more out of IL than he could out OF the
chattering of a lot of blackbirds Many Of
/ the words were so far beyond the boy that
he left them out entirely when he read and
! tne majority OF the OtnefS ne maneled
fearfully. The young man came on Sun
day TO the old Mount Vernon Church T.
Sunday School. He told Superintendent
/ Palmer who he was and asked to be placed
in a class. The superintendent brought
| Dwight TO the class l was teaching and
| he took his seat among the other boys.
! handed him closed Bible and toll him
the lesson was in John. The boy took the
book and began running over the leaves
/ away at the first of the volume look ng
for john out of the corners Of their eyes
the boys saw what he was doing and de-
tecting his ignorance glanced slyly ard
knowingly at one another. not rudely of
course, you understand. ! gave the BOYS
! just one hasty glance of reproof. That was
enough, their equanimity was restored
Immediately. l quietly handed Needed
my own book open at the right place ana
took his l didn't suppose the boy could
possibly have noticed the glances exchang-
ed between the other boys over his ignor-
ance, but il seems from remarks made in
later years that he did and he said in ref
NV 4 Ia tt.