Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-05-29

0kVACa ECDA0aA A0Ncg oA0
tinued until March II, after which
the evangelist left for Charleston,
Illinois. The number Of conversions
5000 and the free will Offering
$11.379.56. The assistants were Cliff
ford Pledger, evangelist; Fred Seibert,
custodian OF the tabernacle and per
sonal worker; Fred G. Fischer, choris-
ter; Charles Butler. ~soloist, and B. D.
Ackiey, pianist
Making his first entrance into what
is usually known as the East Mr.. Sun
day opened a campaign at Sharon,
Pennsylvania, IN May. 1908, continuing
for FIVE weeks, after which he returned
to Winona Lake for a vacation. Ac-
cording to Ralph w. Roberts, secre-
tary of the Y. NJ. G. A, the number OF
conversions in Sharon was 4,7OO and
the free will offering $4,000. The as
sistants were Messrs. Fischer, Ackiey,
Gill, Pledger and Seibert, and Miss
Miller.
Following his vacation Mr. Sunday
once more returned to Illinois, opening
his fall work with a campaign at
Jacksonville. The first meeting was
held on September rs and the series
continued through to November 5, 1908.
This campaign Immediately preceded
the one at Ottumwa, Iowa. The Jack
sonville Journal gives the conversions
at 5000 and the free will Offering
$7,S37.20. The usual assistants par
ticipated. They were: B. d. Ackley,
Fred G. Fischer, Fred Seibert, c. r.
Pledger and Charles Butler.
Ottumwa, Iowa, enjoyed one Of the
big meetings Of the fall of 1908. 3. p.
Canny of the Ottumwa Courier. Is
authority for the statement that Com
ing from Jacksonville, Illinois, Mr.
Sunday began a series of meetings in
Ottumwa, November 6, 1908, and con-
tinued through to December Is. The
number of conversions Is given as
1882 and the free will offering Is given
as $7,355.77. The assistants were G.
P. Pledger, Charles Butler, s~oloist;
Fred G. Fischer, choir leader; Fred
Seibert, In charge of tabernacle; B. D.
Ackley, pianist. and Mrs. Muirhead,
woman assistant.
Many new phases Of the work are
developed in the campaign which fol-
lowed Ottumwa, when MI. Sunday
made his first excursion into the ex-
IRENE West, conducting a series OF
meetings at Spokane, Washington.
Spokane was the largest city the
evangelist had undertaken up to that
time. and he had doubts in his own
mind as to his ability to handle SO
large a place. Spokane at that time
had a population of 100000. Spokane
established a new record in the taber-
nacle line, building a structure calcu-
lated to seat 10000. Rev. Conrad
Bluhm, of the Centenary Presbyterian
Church at Spokane, reports the mum,
Der of conversions as 1866, and the
free will offering as $10,871. The as
sistants were, Rev. @. P. Pledger, B. D.
Ackley, Fred G. Fischer, Charles But
Ter, Fred Seibert, Mrs. Muirhead and
Miss Miller. Rev. Mr.. Bluhm was in
timately connected with the campaign
and in speaking of 1t says: His meet
ings began on Christmas Night. !
had feared the opening night. it hap
pening on Xmas. Probably the most
extensive publicity he had to that
time received was given to announce
his advent to Spokane. We used the
big advertising cars of our two trolley
companies; we sent to all the SUBJ
urban railway stations huge posters;
we reused The Inland Empire of
which Spokane Is the ~nerve-center, q
district the size of New England, New
York and New Jersey combined; we
got the unanimous support of our
three big dailies; also of most of the
suburban press; we had large prints
of the evangelist In the windows of
the majority of our homes; and from
the pulpit, the hastings, and every
place where two or three were gath
cred together there we met them and
they were Billy's. The impossible had
been accomplished-the man who was
unknown, and who by most of our
people was looked upon simply as a
good evangelist instead of the evangel-
istic genius OF America had suddenly
become the first man among us; Xmas
night the citizens gave him a recep-
ton that fairly swept the evangelist
OF his feet-the place was packed to
the doors.
"Mr. Sunday has been In few places
where his work has been NOR funda-
mental than in Spokane. To this CEN
ter men happened from the British
Columbias, from the Wenatchees, the
Yakimas, from points In Oregon, from
the coast, and from far on California.
Later, from all these points, word
came back expressing gratitude for
the Providence that had led them into
the meetings that became their start
ing place for heaven. Similar letters
came from hundreds who were con-
verted by reading the excerpts from
the papers of his wonderful sermons"
The fall of 1909 found Mr.. Sunday
auofn IN Colorado fhia TINA ar RouI-