Putnam patriot., 1909-04-02
Letter of Grateful Acknowledges ats.

A
 of the cornet and the boom of the drum
 have died away, the last effective, fer
 vent word has been said, and now We
 have the time to extend our heartfelt
 thanks to The people of Putnam for the
 courteous and sympathetic manner in
 which they received Colonel and Mrs.
 Clifford, their staff and the band, and
 for the aid extended in their entertain
 ment while here, and for the money
 given 10 meet the expenses of what was
 10 us a gigantic undertaking.
 An we crave of you little space in
 your valuable paper 10 the end that we
 may express our sentiments concerning
 the whole affair.
 We have been lahoring here for lit
 tie more than four months, and in that
 time have wasted no moment nor des-
 pissed any opportunity 10 press the claims Of God and so urge the interests of the Salvation Army. Nor have our humble efforts been without some fruit But we have felt that il was due the people of this community, into whose midst we have come, that they should
 have an opportunity of seeing and hearing for themselves some one who represents the Army in broader sense than does my wife and myself. And to that end We gained the consent of Colonel and Mrs. Clifford to favor us
 with visit. This meant, on their part,
 an effort, especially so just at this time. But denial of self is the leading charac- teristie of the real Ghristian-be he Churchman or Salvationist, Captain or Colonel: and thus it was not hard matter, in spite of a multitude of de- mands on his time, for the Colonel to I consent. Not only did we desire the 1 friends of the Army in Putnam to hear | and see the Colonel, but we were anx- ious to have any-if there were such, l who were disposed to eriticise our work get an opportunity to rid themselves ] of doubt And we believe that this
 can hardly have failed of accomplish ment.
 Furthermore, we desir( Il that the l people here should have an opportuni-
 ts of hearing a high type of what is, l perhaps, our most effective instrumen- l tality, namely, our bands. And so We
 requested Colonel Clifford to bnng with him the Boston Provincial Staff Band. 1 We believe this to have been wise i movement. How keenly the music of 1 the band was appreciated was attested 1 by the storm Of applause given by the 1 great crowd in Odd Fellows hali, on Saturday evening, at the rendering of i every number.
 This band is a good representation of | our bands all over the world, and the members fairly represented great ar- my of musicians, numbering twenty l thousand, all of whom are regularly enrolled soldiers and officers of the Sal l vation Army, and who play with the 1 joy of service as their only recompense. We wish to add, that in our best be- l lief, the visit of Colonel Clifford will | mean much to our work in this city, | and has already resulted in clearing
 away doubts and in enlightening those
 who were either somewhat misinform' ed or misunderstood us.
 | We want to thank the PATRIOT, l through whose columns we were en- | abIed to so effectively advertise the | campaign, and to whom we feel that
 we owe, in large measure, the prevail 1 ing sentiment of courtesy and fellow
 ship.
 1 We desire to thank the pastors and | officials of the churches who so kindly opened their doors and welcomed Us to l their puIpits, and encouraged Us by
 their prayers and kindly recommends l tions.
 | We express our gratitude to the kind l friends who so generously entertained 1 our comrades; and also to the proprie- | tors of the hotels and restaurants and
 their helpers, who provided such ex-
 cellent entertainment for Colonel Gif- fora and his assistants.
 | Our earnest thanks are given to the members of Israel Putnam Lodge, |. 0. 0. F., for the use of their beautiful
 hall, and to the proprietors and assist ants of the Bradley Theater for their 1 kindness and courtesy.
 And to all these, and many others ] who helped to make our campaign q
 success, and to all Putnam, we pledge
 the untiring effort and earnest prayers
 of the Salvation Army for the building up of the Kingdom of God in your ] midst.
 CAPTAIN AND MRS. D. H. WITHEE, Officers in charge. Putnam, March 20, 1909.