The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-01-31


the bugie as the hallelujah lads and las
sizes fall in line No ancient knights ever
fought more valiantly or tellingly in the
cause of God and king than those n1ili-
tant servitors Of Christ who pitch their
tents In the very stroEgholds Of wicked
ness. Among all the sects and creeds ana
denominations that serve God in their
divers ways, who more ftGngly or liter
ally obeys the command to go forth into
the highways and hedges TO seek for lost
souls than the uniformed, accoutered
hosts OF the Salvation Army? Let me tell
you story; a true incident OF the real
campaign that is being constantly waged
by these lowly knights-errant Of mercy.
Ii is night in one of cur big cities The
rain is falling, and all the poverty, and
sqUalor and misery Of the slums is magni-
fed an hundTedfold by the gloom that
infests the quarter where the poor live.
IL is such weather that keeps SNUG folk
indoors, or sends them forth well pro-
tected from the elements. But the army
saliies forth and boldly invades the Waste
places which the devil calls his own.
Their banners wave and their symbals
crash. Their Iusty battle cry, Come to
Jesus rings out like a challenge. As
they work their way along through the
Girty, overcTOwded street. there is q
sudden commotion as a slip of a girl. bare
footed, and clothed only in a night dress.
PUSHES 10 them with arms Outstretched.
crying Save me. for Gods sake, save
mc' She is pursued by a burly negro,
who has been her keeper in a brotheI The
nearest lassie drops her tambourine and
catches the refugee in her arms The
men in uniform quickly close in and fight
the negro and his companions. who strive
TO recover the runaway girl. The police
come soon, and the plucky band goes on
its way with another inmate for the
Rescue Home
It is hard to think that such things can
occur In free and enlightened America,
my reader. but alas it is only too true
This girl came from the country in an
swer TO an advertisement for work. Once
inside the place where she had been
lured, her clothes We're taken from her
and she was confined against her viii in
what she found To her horror was
house of ill-fame. When she heard the
army coming she made a bold dash for
liberty. What other denomination in
America would have had its representa-
tiyes IN such a place at such time OF
night TO help this innocent unfortunate
fight her way to freedom-to actually fight
for her with their fists in the mud and
CRIME Of dirty city street?
On another occasion In a different city
the Army was holding its customary
open-air meeting on a corner, when a
note, written or a scrap Of newspaper,
fell into the circle one Of the poke-bon-
neted lassies picked UP the note. read It,
and quietly worked her way out of the
crowd without attracting attention. She
wen. up three flights of stairs in the
nearest building. where she found the
girl who had begged for release. When
the keeper tried by force 10 prevent The
departure of the girls, the one in uniform
showed she had the courage OF a sol
der. She boldly grappled with their as
sailant and called to the imprisoned girl
To run 10 the street. In the struggle the
lamp was overturned. but the Merry
rescuer held on until the prisoner got
away.
Tn less time than il takes 10 tell it a
crowd Of men from belle themselves the
toughest riG-raff tha drifts the city
streets. raided the place, smashed II right
and left, and beat the owner OF it TO a
pulp. If you have ever poked fun at the
Salvation Army, don't do it again. As
musicians, it's members couldn't make
much competition for Sousa's Band, but
they are what they claim to be-yolun-
teers in a good work And they stay
right on the job The Salvation Army is
seven-day religion; it works every day
in the week.
If YOU viii go TO the busy headquarters
in your city and ask the field secretary Of
the Salvation Army for his annual report
YOU will be ast0nished at the work its
members are doing in this country. You
viii find that nearly 100000 people
attended services in their halls last year,
which. OF course, does not Include the
other millions they reached IN the street
millions that no other denomination can
get at You viii find that last year
they furnished over 100000 meals TO
hungry men and supplied 100000 beds
20 homeless wanderers who had no
place 10 sleep You Will find that they
visited and assisted 10000 families who
were in distress.
You viii find that they distributed 600
tons of coal and 122,000 pounds Of ice.
You VIII find that these poNe-bonneted
slum angels gathered in 130o0 homeless
children-poor little wastrels OF human
ity. wandering aimlessly in the jUngles of
our cit.es-aEd placed them in the snug,
warm rescue homes the Army manages
10 maintain with the nickels and dimes
its workers pick up by passing the tam
bOurincs. IL YOU have not been in the
habit of giving the girls in blue something
when they approach you, I hope You will
never let the tambOurine so by again
The price Of a good cigar, which you in
your fattened prosperity can well afford
TO give, viii surely be put TO good use.
1t VIII buy food or bed for some poor
unfortunate who. in all likelihood. viii be-
much in need OF the mercy Of God and
the charity of men.
And the army does still more things
than I have named. It is doing a grand
settlement work in the slums of the large
cities A body Of women in plain ging-
ham dresses and aprons VIII rent a room
in the worst tenement house they can
find clean it up, put in simple furniture.
and then begin to "neighbor" among the
pitifuI people about them They nurse
the sick, teach the well better ways of
living, conduct sewing and cooking
classes, plan fresh air excursions for
sickly little ones. take care of neglected