Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-04
MANY READ SERMONS
View of a Publisher of ReIig-
ious Books.
THE POPULARITY OF MOODY
Demand for the Discourses of Other
Preachers.
DAMAGE SUITS IN NEW YORK
Tenth of Earnings Of Surface Lines
Paid Out for Claims-Utilities
Commission Now Takes Charge.
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.

By WILLIAM E. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence of The Star and the
Chicago Record-Herah.
NEW YORK. December .. 1907.
Last summer I published an interview
with DR.. A. R. Spofford, the venerable
and beloved oracle Of the Congressional
Library. in which he said that printed
sermons had gone out of fashion.
Mr.. Fleming H. Revell. the largest pub
Usher OF religious books in this country,
at least, and perhaps in the world. whose
company publishes more volumes Of ser
mons than all the other book houses in
the United States combined, does not
agree with that opinion. especially con-
corning Moody's sermons, for which Mr..
Spofford said there was no longer any
demand. Mr.. Revell was Moodys brother
in-law and his publisher, and he told me
the other day that the aggregate sale Of
Moody's sermons has exceeded 2.5OOOOO
copies. which places them next to the
Bible as a seller
ut is true that the present demand
is largely for the cheaper editions, said
Mr.. Reveil, land it comes from the coun-
try districts. but the fact that nearly
100000 copies of Mr.. Moody's sermons
were sold during the past year Is an in
dlCat1On that the influence Oh tIc oiio
his message has not ceased. / know OF no
other book, except the Bible, Of which so
many copies are sold annually, year after
year. as Mr.. Moody's sermons
Regarding sermons generally. Mr.; Revell
says that Mr. Spofford is altogether too
sweeping in his statements. 1T is quite
true that there is no large demand for
ordinary sermons he said, but there
are preachers living today whose utter
ances have as wide a circulation as those
fo
alludes. At present the greatest de-
mand is for the sermons OF Henry Van
Dyke of Princeton University: Hugh
Black. who recently came from Edln-
burgh to take a chair in the faculty OF
Union Theological Seminary at New
York; Newell Dwight Hills, the success
sor of Henry Ward Beecher in Brooklyn:
Frank w. Gunsaulus of Chicago. and two
or three others. There is also a large
demand for the published sermons of
and Gypsy Smith. the evangelist. British
preachers, who have recently visited
America"
From the standpoint Of publisher,
are sermons good sellers?' I asked.
THE reply to that question must be
qualified in part said Mr.. Revell. Many
a volume of essays or addresses Is SIM
ply a series of sermons slightly recast,
and several such volumes now on the
market have large sale. AS is natural,
of preachers who have reached a large
number of hearers and have gained popu-
larity by itinerant work and by speaking
from the pulpit and the lecture platform
in different parts. of the country. Where
the memory of the voice, tho manner and
the form OF the speaker Is retained. the
printed page appeals more wildly to the
reader. Who, having had the opportu-
nifty of even once listening to that prince
of preachers, Phillips Brooks, could ever
open a volume Of his printed sermons
without being stirred by the memory OF
his voice and manner or by recalling his
spoken words?
ut does not follow. however" contin-
ued Mr.. Revell. that the greatest preach
ers of today ar ethose whose sermonts are
most frequently found in print. Many Of
our best preachers do not write their ser
mons and many more have never placed
their pulpit work within the covers OF
book, and If they should do so 1t Is doubt
full whether the circulation would repay
either the publisher or the author for the
labor and expense. These conditions pre-
vail in England and other countries prac-
tically the same as in America.
How do the editions Of religious works
compare in size with those of secular
books?" 1 asked.
.'From a commercial point of view the
number Of editions and the profits of the
publication of religious works will com.
pare very favorably with the average OF
secular books, excepting an occasional
popular novel that takes large hold of
the reading public. In fact. 1t may be a
question whether the most popular novels
might not be included in the comparison
showing very favorably for religious
works. / am confident that the number
of titles in the department Of fiction that
failed to pay the cost Of publication Is
very much larger than among works OF
a religious character. While all this is
true, it still remains fact that the ma
jority of publishers shrink from under
taking religious books, and among book
sellers generally religious department IS
considered the most unremunerative IN
their stores. Therefore 1t is given the
least attention. The consequence Is that
religious books are circulated through dis
tinct channels and limited number OF
booksellers, but 1t would surprise the pup
lie to know what circulation some WORKS
of that class attain. Naturally am most
familiar with our own publications. and l
may say that it is not uncommon for a
religious book to have a sale of twenty
or thirty thousand copies Wltnln the HIst
or second season. and know OF one dls-
tinctively devotional work IN three voi-
rmes of which not less than 2OO,OOO copies
have been sold within three years.
At Wanamaker's New York store re-
ligious books are made a speciality and
the manager of that department con-
me that the Bible continues to be, as 1t
always had been, the best seller that was
ever printed. With the exception Of
one or two novels of temporary populari-
ty, Wanamaker sells moro copies of the
Bible than of any dozen secular books
combined There Is a continued demand
for a number of devotionai books, also.
which would run from five to fifteen thou
sand copies a year regularly. 1t Is not
uncommon for them to sell over the
counter a thousand or fifteen hundred
copies Of q religious book in season,
which could not be said Of any other
class of publication. except half dozen
of the most successful novels of the year.
He believes that more copies Of Moody's
sermons have been sold than of any
other book, except the Bible. and. al
though not SO many volumes of sermons
or religious books are published these
days OF a secular character, Mr.. Wanna
makers people say that the average sale
Is about as large.
Big Payments for Indemnity.
Mr.. Theodore Perry Shonts. president
of the marlborough Railway Company
Of New York. told me the other day
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