Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

influence of Methodist seats of learn
ing IN bringing men into church was
emphasized by the speaker relating an
anecdote from his own experience in
which he said that his mother desired
that he attend the Wesleyan school. He
gave her to understand that he would
do no such thing, but would go to
Yale and would not be Methodist
preacher as she desired. 70 get the
means to go thru college he finally
consented to a TWO years course in the
Wesleyan university, with the determ-
ination to finish at Yale. The mother
consented and he went to the college
of her choicel 1t ended with his be-
coming Methodist preacher. For a
cause like this the influence of which
was SO powerful We're the people asked
to donate.
Rcv. DIR. Mcdowell.
Rev. DR.. Mcdowell, corresponding
secretary of the board of education Of
the church, is accounted one of the
brainiest men in the organization, and
in no wise disappointed his hearers last
evening. Speaking of the twentieth
century fund movement, DIR. Mcdowell
said that nothing in the church, nothing
in the history OF the church had ever
succeeded in the same length of time
as the thank offering movement had.
The Methodist church might exist in
an empire, but never could in five
acre lot. Two million five hundred
thousand dollars has been pledged for
the cause of education, 100000 for
benepolences and $2,5O0,0OO for the
payment of church debts, and the next
century will be the greatest in the
history of the organization. 1t will be
a joy just to be alive fifty years from
this time when the Christian upheaval
takes place. Que of the agencies to
bring this about will be the Christian
colleges and it is this kind of thing
that the people are asked to support.
He knew of no way in which money
can be invested to bring such large re-
turns, and cited the case of the farmer
who at the close of the civil war sat in
one of the halls of certain college
and watched the students pass by. He
was just a plain man of the soil and
as he watched he thought. In four
years these students will have COM
pleted the course and others will take
their places. In another four years
these students will have completed the
course and others will take
the same thine will happen and SO on
forever. / have farm. That farm
will endow chair. I'll give the farm
and just stand here and watch
the thing forever He gave
the farm. 1t was instrumental
in educating 1850 men for the church
who preached and saved souls as one
man might have done FOR $500 years.
The speaker knew something of farms,
both big and little, but he never knew
of farm that produced as big a crop
as did the farmer who gave his land
to the school. care you going to help
in this investment in Methodism?" in
quired the speaker. The question came
with startling force after the illustra-
ton of the point he had made.
Thirty Thousand dollars has been rails
ed for the I. w. U. and The workers
are now on the second sum of like
amount. After that is raised they will
again start the working of raising
more money until the sum of $3.50, 1000
has been pledged. Blank promissory
notes were distributed in the audience
and the speaker called for $1,000 dona-
tons, payable one-ffth each year af-
ter the total amount had been pledged.
The amount was lessened until smaller
sums were reached. Further efforts
will be made to increase the amount
to the proportion that Ottumwa should
pay, probably by soliciting indiyid-
| uals.