Evening star., 1909-06-16
GEN.M|LLER'SSUCCESS
Says That He Mixes Religion
With His Business.
CARRIES OUT BIBLE RULES
Asserts That He Has Taken God Into
Partnership.
CONDUCTS LARGE BIBLE CLASS
Has Established Night School for
Benefit of Those Engaged in
the Daytime.
CARRIES OUT BIBLE RULES
CONDUCTS LARGE BIBLE CLASS
BY WILLIAM z. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.


Special Correspondence Of The Star and thu
Chicago Record Herald.
NEW YORK. June Is. 1909.
You often hear men say that they never
mix up their religion with their business
but l have found one man here-'an un-
known millionaire" as he was described
to me-who asserts that his millions are
the direct result OF taking God into part
nership with him.
This unknown millionaire is Gen.
Charles Miller of Franklin, Pa. president
of the Galena Signal Oil Company. a
brother-in-law of former Representative
Joseph c. Sibley of that district. and the
man who is building the new shortcut
railroad between New York and Chicago
He's very interesting personality.
Those who believe. as he does, that
while prosperity may come to others. it
is certain TO follow those who practice
the precepts of the Bible in precisely the
j proportion to which they carry their re-
ligion into their daily life and make it a
vital thing. will find in his romantic life
many facts to strengthen their faith. He
! attributes none of his success to his own
ability or industry. but all of it to the
fact that he has been guided by prayer,
ana has given largely Of his increasing
income to religion and education Fur
names. dates and amounts, to prove his
contention that in and of himself he is in
no way responsible for his unusual and
continued prosperity. His faith and con-
hdence are the result of practice he says.
and not of theory: he speaks from actual
experience, and 1t dates back to the six
Ties. when he was a mere boy, and with
his partners, John Coon and Philander
Haynes. started to sink their first oil
well at Scrub Grass. near Franklin Pa
His Promise to the Lord.
Il believe we ought to follow the teach
inss of the Bible in all things" said
Miller to his partners "and | serve no.
tice that if We strike oil 1 am going to
give one-tenth of my daily profits to the
Lord"
His religious enthusiasm, at which his
Irlenos marveled and. to some extent
scored, grew as the drill went down. and
when it was about to strike oil'' the
promised tithe had become a quarter OF
ms profits. The oil came with a rush
wnen the "go-deviI" exploded the dyna-
mite ana the indications were that the
well would produce $50 barrels a day. Oil
vas then worth $3.50 a barrel. Miller
0ld some quick figuring and found that
ne must set aside $25 day for the Lord.
accordlng to his pledge. With a fortune
IN slgnf, In the profound judgment of the
experts. that seemed too much money
for man OF his means to give away. so
ne went back to his first proposition of
one-tenth. or SO day. The Bible called
LOT lllhe, anyway, and that ought to
be sufficient, he argued to himself. or n
would have stipulated that one should
give more.
Within twelve hours after he had an
nouIiceu TINS revised division, the we'll
went dry. as suddenly as it had burst
Iortn, and his disappointed partners nail
cd over II board on which was nrinted
IN large letters. This we'll stopped rum
ming by order of the Lord They con-
sldered this statement abundantly proved
when. soon afterward. another party
struck a wo-hundred-barrel-a-da we'll
Within seventy yards of their dry hole
and became independently wealthy.
such was the education of Gen. Charles
Miller. THAT experience" he saws. "con-
WINGED me that it was bad business to try
70 CHEAT the Lord, and never attempt ed
IL again.
Promise to Aid Church.
In 1874. he says. when the First Bap-
tist Church of Franklin, which he had
heiped to organize seven years before,
dedlcated its new building, it was $3.50
IN oeot. OIL was then selling for so cents
barrel. the whole district was pros
trated and every one was blue Without
knowing where the money was to come
from, but with unfaltering faith that it
would come. Gen. Miller assumed half
OF the Indebtedness Almost Instantly
that particular branch of the oil Industry
IN which he was interested began To
boom. and during "A. rs and '76 his share
+. he me me Ptohts Pro & IN the company I of which
IN any three of the preceding years
some years ago this same church was
considering the erection of a new building
IN more central location. One of the
most desirable lots in the city, at the
corner of Liberty and Park streets was
Tor sale, and at Gen. Millers suggestion
ne and his partner bought it. for 81 800
ana announced that they would present
new building. A few hours after the
purchase Gen. Miller went to Chicago
Immediately after his arrival he was
impelled, as he puts it, to visit a man
whom he had not previously thought of
calling on. He found this gentleman n
considerably disturbed because one of his
stockholders, who was dspleased with
the management. had offered to sell a
thousand shares of stock, the par value
OF which was $40 a share. for fifty cents
on the dollar. Gen. Miller asked TO he
shown the companys balance sheet. and.
looking II over. decided that the stock
was really worth $3.50 a share He
thereupon bought the shares OF the dis
satisfied stockholder. Soon afterward. in
thinking the transaction over, ii struck
him that the difference between the pur-
chase price and the actual value of the
stock. which was $500, was precisely
the amount that had been paid for the
lot which was to be given to the church.
so he assigned half OF il to his partner.
The flnal outcome of this investment
was that Gen. Miller and his partner
sold his stock not long ago for more
than $4,000. after having received hand
some dividends on it for several wears.
The lot in question was not accented by
the church, for the reason that another
location was selected II was subse-
quently sold to the company of which
Gen. Miller is president. for 5000 and
the purchase price was promptly turned
over TO the church
These are two of the many instances
10 which Gen. Miller refers skeptics as
proof positive of the correctness of the
lesson saught him by his first experience
in drilling for oil. In addition to the lot
transaction just described, he gave S25.-
pb toward the erection of the new
church. which was finished in 1893 and
endowed II with $4,000 more. After its
completion he built, as an addition a
Sunday school room that seats 500 peo-
pie. and maintains an orchestra of fif-
teen pieces and choir.
Interest in Education.
Gen. Miller is superintendent of the
Sunday school and leader OF the mems
Bible class. which. he believes. is the
largest in the world. It has $50 active
and fifty honorary members, including
many men of note. He has been superin-
tendent of the school ever since ii was
organized. thirty-hve years ago, and In
that time its enrolment has increased
from IS to 1,5OO, although the popula.
tion of Franklin Is only 10000 and there