The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-02-15
Pastor Of Church Of Which Rookie
feller lis Leading Member
Feels He Is Wasting Time.
LESS MONEY, MORE LABOR
Famous English Preacher May
Resign to Seek Heavier Duties,
Possibly in California.

NEW YORK, Feb. 14.-That the Rev.
Charles F. AScd feels that ho is wasting
time as pastor of the Fifth Avenue
Baptist church in this city-of which
John D. Rockefeller is leading mem
ber-and that the famous English
preacher contemplates leaving his pres.
ent pastOrate for some more promising G
field of labor, possibly in California, is
set forth in statements of unusual
character made by Dr. Aked to Brit
ish news agency for publication this
week in England.
DR.. Aked is now on a month g vaca.
ton In San Francisco, where ho has
met n very cordial reception. The
statement regarding his work in New
York city was prepared before he left
for the west, but with the condition
that it should not be made public,
either in England or America, until to-
day He says:
easy berth and a situation among the
most charming people in the world, my
future is settled, but | cannot be con
tent with work that seems to me to
be small
cit is question for me whether I
can bring myself to accept the limita-
tions Of my present position for the
sake of friendships, and for the sake
Of the little good ] can do in New
people in the world arc to be found
among Americans; that the incest
Americans are in New York. and that
the incest people in New York nre in
our church, and as that represents the
feeling of both of us, you can under
stand that it would be an absolute hor-
ror to feel that ones work called one
elsewhere.
Less Salary, More Work.
''The question of salary does not
weigh with me, It's perfectly tlne that
the church has pst raised my salary to
$4,000 from $4,000, but I would
rather have third or quarter Of that
salary, as 7 used to have, and feel I
was doing some good in the world, than
have q big salary and feel that ! am,
compared with my English life, wasting
my. time.
az know that it is not the view my
people take The church Is crowded at
all its various services. The people
think it magnificent, and their kindness
TO me knows no bounds. But all seems
very small to me after my English
life. 7 feel as though, after four years
we ought to be in q different position
and with different prospects.
"The trustees have understood from
the first that could not contemplate
permanent ministry under present con
ditions. Now I do not see how present
conditions are to he rem edied, and !
have to sit down and consider whether
I can accept present conditions for the
remainder of my natural life or wheth-
er ] shall listen to proposals from some
other city. or some other country
Wants to Build Church.
DR.. Aked speaks at length of his ef
forts in connection with the project for
the construction of q big new edi6ce
for the church. It is the failure of this
scheme on account OF the difficulty Of
securing q site which the trustees could
agree upon as entirely suitable, which
appears to have discouraged him most
Of all
"The great project" he says, "has
completely broken down. We had in
mind something that would have given
us one of the biggest churches in Amer
Professionalism of the world. Now we
realize the impossibilitY of this. We
are Just where we were, and that is
nowhere. aud so far as ] can see there
is no outlet and very little hope.
"At the last trustees meeting / said
there was no ste yet suggested about
which I could feel really satisfied, and
John u Hockefeiler, lr., sald solemnly:
Doctor, if my life depended upon
it, I could not tell what is the wisest
thing TO do.
"That is the position It is easy to
riddle with criticisms eny scheme pre-
scented to us, but it seems impossible
to find out what we ought to do
OF reports that he might accept
call to California, DR.. Aked has only
this to say:
f'I am to preach three times at the
First, Congregational church IN San
Francisco, but I do not know what the
position is. Until get there I cannot
say
But a telegram received yesterday
from DR. Aked indicates that San Fran
cisco looks promising to him. His tele
gram says:
TFThe crowds, the enthusiasm and the
spirit of the people are very exciting,
and 7 find the prospects sing1llarly at
tractive.'