The San Francisco call., 1906-10-07
How the Preachers of San
Jose Came to Use Print
er'S Ink to Fill Their PeWs.
and the Story of the "Ad'
That Was Echoed Round
the World

told me that he didn't see what he
could do about it, and I suggested that
we pay him for a notice to go in on
saturday. The price of reading notices
proved too high. Then he suggested
that border around the notice would
make it a display advertisement, and
that could have it at display adver-
using rates. I accepted this and entered
into contract with him for the upper
right hand corner of page of his
paper, where our advertisement was to
appear every day in the week except
Sunday"
What the Manager Said.
The churches of San JOSE said Mr..
Bontz in giving his version of the in
cicent, like the churches of most
cities, are quite eager for free notices
in newspapers, given as news, which,
OF course, is not news of such general
interest as TO justify its publication
After / had been tackled two or three
times by Mr.. Mills for notices of this
kind sprung on him the idea of max
ing regular contract for a year for
display advertising. in which they were
at liberty to use whatever copy they
chose to print. The idea struck Mr.
Mills favorably, and after another
ference or two with the trustees of
the church he came in and signed up a
years contract for advertising"
The contract signed, the advertise
ment duly appeared in the upper right
hand corner of the seventh page Of Mr.
BontZ's paper. The bulk Of Mr. Bontz's
time for the week following was de-
voted to placating the ministers Of San
Jose. They descended upon him in
righteous indignation, and the tale of
woe which each had to tell was prac-
tically the same.
Community Scandalized.
Their churches were certainly as
worthy Of consideration, said they, as
the Second Presbyterian. But they
found difficulty in getting so much as
short notice in the columns of Mr.
Bontz's paper, and that only on Sun
day IN an obscure corner. where peo-
pie had to hunt to find it, But here
was the Second Presbyterian Church
with displayed notice occupying
many inches of space on the most
prominent page of the paper, in the
most conspicuous place, on a, week
day. and not one weekday only but
every weekday.
Bontz in self-defense told .he In
dignant gentlemen that the Presby-
terian church notice was paid adver-
tising, and that any or all of them
were welcome to an equal amount of
space at the same rates. The majority
or the ministers took no more kindly
favoritism. They had entered Mr..
Bontz's Office indignant; they left 1t
scandaliZed. For a church to adver-
tse-and pay for the advertising-was
a thing unheard of; therefore it was
wrong Yet there were some who
rather favored Mr.. Mills idea. The
town took sides. The press of Santa
Clara County and even of San Fran
cisco took the matter up editorially.
Two or three ministers came out
bravely to Mr.. Mills defense
Said DIR. c. w. Evans, then pastor of
the First Methodist Church in San
Jose: IF ] had a fund at my disposal
Tor that purpose l would keep a stand
ing display advertisement in the local
papers"
I am heartily in sympathy with the
broadest kind of ADVERTISING" said
Rev 7. S. Young Of the San Jose First
Baptist Church. The special method.
however. must be matter of 1ndivid-
ual choice"
Would Advertise on Satan.
But II was Rev. H. NJ Tenney of the
First Congregational Church Of San
Jose who came most emphatfcaIIy TO
Mr.. Mills standard "If 1 knew that
Satan were going around town." said
Mr.. Tenney. and could get at him.
would paste a placard on his back ad-
vertising my services"
AS the controversy ragged the adyer-
tising OF the Second Presbyterian
Church appeared daily-except on Snu-
day-and the Sunday evening attend
ance at the Second Presbyterian Church
increased until the church was packed
to the doors San Jose had seen moth
ing like it before. The scandalized
clergy began to forget the scandal in
view of the results. One day the ex-
perimenting congregation of the Sec
ond Presbyterian oiened the morning
paper at page seven to find to their
astonishment second church adver-
tisement tucked safely away under
that OF their own church in
that right hand column After that IL
was easy-for the papers business
manager. From that time forward the
seventh column of the seventh page
Of the San Jose morning paper has been
given over TO church advertising. All
the Protestant churches of the town
at one time or another have resorted to
1t, and not few of them contract for
space by the year. The opinion gen.
orally expressed is that it pays-that