Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1903-11-11
D0WIE'S ZIG FIZZLE.
HIS INVASION OF NEW YORK
CITY A FAILURE.
"Prophet's" Attempt 20 Convert Goth
am Now Regarded as the Mistake OF
Kis Life-Enormous Expense of the
Trip-Eiijah's Waterloo.
New York correspondence:

New York correspondence:
The raid upon New York, the modern
Babylon, on the part of John Alexander
Dowie and his host OF Zionit es has been
a failure. The prophet, Elijah H.. the
general overseer, or by whatever term
he sees fit to call himself, utterly failed
to win either sonls or money in the me-
tropolis. When he and his host first
came and started their propaganda of
the modern Zion the meetings were at
tended by thousands who came to see
the man who had captured the allegiance
and the money of SO many of Chicago's
phantom ehasers, but the general abuse
and personal yituperation which the old
man of venerable aspect and coarse
speech poured forth disgusted the re-
spectacle element and delighted those
who were looking for the cheaply sensa-
sional. New York could not but wonder
how this man with the ways of the
mour tebank and the manners of the boor
had succeeded in securing u following
anywhere.
New York has proved Dowie's W alter
loo. For two years he planned for the
invasion of that city. Just two days
in the metropolis Condemned him to fail
ure. The result Of : mission has IA
tally wounded DowIe pride More inn
portant, it has hurt his pocketbook and
shaker the faith Of his followers. Hard
as defeat falls on the army of the pro-
phet, the blow dealt the enterprises of
Elijah" gives Dowie vastly more wor-
ry. Heavy as will be the direct financial
u ~ Al. Il
fiasco, the indirect loss will be far great
er. There is sure to be a falling off in
the tithes of Zion and there is the
chance of d big desertion of the thou
sands who worked for Dowie and who
willingly returned to him a large por-
ton Of their earnings.
Everything in Zion belongs to Dowie.
He is the real and only head OF the Zion
City Bank, the Zion Land and Invest
ment Association, the Zion Lace Indus
tries, the Zion General Stores, the Zion
Fresh Food Supply Association, the
Zion Sugar and CORRECTION Association,
and the Zion Building and Manufaetur-
ing Association. He controls and directs
building, brickmaking. breadmaking,
heating, lighting, telephone service, lum-
Der yards and the plumbing and tin
shops of Zion City. He is the moving
spirit in the city's enterpris es, and most
OF his time is taken up with material
rather than spiritual things.
Expensive TO His Followers.
Every anticipated item of expense was
figured by Dowie before the army left
Zion City. As is usual with him, the
figuring placed most of the expense on
his followers. His guards bought uni
forms at a cost of $4,000, photographs
for Identification purposes were sold to
the host at a total cost of $525; card
cases cost the same sum; leather bags,
for the host to carry Bibles in, cost $5,-
$50; white gloves, $;3,625; guides to New
York, $S25; Bibles, S1,750; railroad fare,
So, 500; new silk hats for deacons. over
seers, elders and evangelists. $4,94S, and
frock coats for the same body cost SI2,-
600. For two meals a day for fifteen
days the host paid $4,000. Hundreds Of
the Dowieites have gone without meals.
apA so little food has been served that
other hundreds have been forced to pat
ronize hotels and restaurants.
DoWie's loss is all that his host has
spent, for what belongs to his people
belongs to him, and the rule does not
work the other way. In round figures,
the Zionites have spent close to $780,
600. Added to this is $4,000 for the
rent of the Garden for fifteen days, and
81, $50 for the hiring of Carnegie Hall
for four meetings. About $1,000 has
been spent in building a platform for the
white robed choir and in fitting the Gar
den for His use. No less than $500 went
for the building of the pool in front of
the platform in which Dowie had expect
ed to immerse thousands of converts.
Dowie's personal expenses on the trip
amounted to more than $1,000. lie
took to New York two carriages and two
spirited bays. His expenses in the Plaza
Hotel were $75 n day, and in the Fifth
Avenue Hotel, whore he moved to be
nearer his work, his expenses were the
same, if not more.
The collections IL the Garden were
trihing, Afany checks have been receiv-
ed by Elijah and they have been
fakes sent by jokers. No rush took
place for investment in Dowie securities,
and it is this that has caused the prophet
much sorrow.
His trip was the most audacious pro-
motion scheme ever launched. 1t asked
for S5000,O00 to plant in Dowie's town,
1t asked for 100000 to be placed in
the absolute control of one man-John
Alexander Dowie. But Dowie didn' [
take in enough money II New York to
pay his hotel bill.