The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1913-08-08
DISTRIBUTE 100000 BIBLES
CHRISTIAN DRUMMERS SOW THE
GOOD BOOKS IL HOTELS.
Caught at Psychological Moments
Travellers Saved From Suicide
and Many Other Evils.

Caught at SSycnOlogIcdA nOlhOANS
Travellers Saved From Suicide
and Many Other Evils.
OF distinctive present-day forms OF
religious work none is more romantic
or less known to the average church
member than the Gideons, whose in
ternational convention has adjourned
within the week at Toronto, says The
Religious Rambler.
The Gideons are travelling men.
They number $1,000 out of more
than 100000 couriers of commerce
who cover this continent. They are
known by the blue button, bearing
a white jar with a fame from its
mouth. They are the modern type of
Gideon's host, and their motto is,
"And they stood every man in his
place round about the camp" Be-
cause of the responsiveness of their
calling they are an unusually potent
body of christian workers.
All sorts of good works go with
the Gideon membership, but at base
is the living of a clean christian life,
amid the surroundings that do not
always conduce to this. They have
had a distinct part in raising the tone
of their calling; for the moral move
ment among commercial travellers is
one of the portents on the days hori-
zon.
Bible For Hotel Guests.
While they hold religious meetings
in hotel Hobbies and speak in church
es and have large service laid out
for them in promoting temperance
and clean speech among fellow drum
mers, yet the one distinctive and ex-
traordinary mission of the Gideons is
their "Bible work" They have taken
as their task-and it is no small or
der-the placing of a copy of the BIZ
BILE in every guest room in every hotel
in the country.
Stay-at-home folks do not realize
that there are probably a million per-
sons in this country who every night
sleep away from home in hotels; or
else have no other homes. At the
best a hotel is lonely place. Only
the men who travel know the dreari-
ness of the evenings spent in hotels.
The marvel is not that so many men
away from home succumb to tempta-
ton, but that so many remain
straight. Not all hotels, by any
means, are the great caravansaries
of the cities. Life in the hotels of
small towns and villages, which hun
dreds of thousands of commercial
travellers must regularly make,
must be experienced to be appreci
ated.
The Prevention of Suicides.
Into hotels of all grades the Gid
cons have thus far put over 100000
Bibles; and are increasing that total
at the rate of 5000 a month. These
books are legibly printed and may be
read comfortably. They are the
American Standard Version. All are
stamped with the Gideon name, and
have a tract concerning Bible reading
posted on the inside cover.
The scheme is sound psychological
ly. The Bibles are before the mems
eyes in thir hours of seclusion, when
they are alone and often homesick
and otherwise in a receptive mood.
innumerable romantic stories have
come to the headquarters concerning
men and women caught on the brink
of some wrong action. Here is one
of the stories told at the Gideon no.
tel office:
"A man went into a hotel in San
Francisco and secured room with
the intention of committing suicide
by poison, a vial of which he carried
with him to his room. He set the
vial containing the poison on the cen
ter table and went about making his
preparations for the final act. When
he was ready he stepped over to the
table and discovered that accidentally
he set the vial upon book, which
inspection showed to be Gideon BIZ
Bile. AS he opened it his eyes fell
upon the sentence, If discouraged or
in trouble read Psalm 126 and John
IA He read these two selections,
then went to the window and threw
the bottle of poison as far as he
could send it, returned to the table,
knelt and then and there gave his
heart to God. He is today an active
church member and a good citizen. y
Steadying Straying Steps.
A novelist could find plenty of ma
terial of human interest in the story
of the Gideon Bibles Here is an IN
commonly dramatic one on file at the
Gideon headquarters in Chicago:
"A wife and children were on the
point of being sacrificed by me to-
night when I picked up this book in
half cynical, half curious moment
of a passing fancy. Alone here in
H. -ooro hooauoo Interested hafOre