South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-11-17
CITY MISSION IN
SOUTH BEND NOW
ASSURED FACT
Mel Trotter Sounds Call for Aid
for the DOWn-and- Outs and
is Greeted by Responses for
$1,000.

A city mission for South Bends un-
fortunate down-and- is a surety.
The financial needs of the mission are
city missi n 115 +. jefferson blvd.
has been secured for the new mission
and a capable superintendent will be
here and start work az soon as Mel
Trotter. who is responsible for the new
venture. can send him here.
Mel Trotter did it last night at the
high school auditorium. BY his stir
ring account of his own life story. ne
moved the large audience that heard
him to generosities that were mani
tested by the hundreds of pledges,
amounting TO $4,000, which was nee
essary for the starting of the mission
in this city
With the magnetism Of his person
ality and the thrilling story of how he
was changed from a confirmed drunk
ard TO one of the most fOrceful evan
gelists of the country through the
work of the old Pacific Garden mis-
sion of Chicago, he proved what could
be done here.
Let him tell his own story:
Had Usual Start.
II started out just like all DRINKS
start. / thought that 1 could drink
or leave il alone. The trouble is, that
the man who thinks that he can drink
or leave il alone. always drinks.
soon after L started hitting the
booze. i hit IL So hard and so often,
that even the crooks with which
trailed didn't trust me. 1 finally left
my wife and went TO Chicago, where
woI ked in a barber shop and ran a
Il, ~qG
on free lunches and had better stuff
to eat than did my, family.
zone night, when out on big
drunk. 1 stumbled into the old Garden
mission. / went TO sleep as soon as
1 hit my chair. A man woke me up
by calling for the people to come
down TO the altar. There were two
kinds of people at that meeting, boost
ers and roosters. | didn't want to be
one of the ROSTERS, so 1 staggered
down the aisle.
Before L had left the place. i gave
my life to working for God, and
have never wanted to take a drink
since / sent for my wife, and got a
job in a barber shop, working on a
commission. The first week 1 made
S4.20, which was all that we had to
live on.
Beat the III. c. Of Il.
1--WE solved the high cost Of living
that winter We lived in n furnished
apartment consisting of one room in
which there was a stove that smoked
all of the time, and a folding bed that
never folded when we wanted it to.
and always folded when we didn't
want il too.
After a while, [ went 20 Grand
Rapids and started my mission. The
first year there, at the cost of SLIGO
per man, we changed over 100 men
from booze-fighters into useful citi-
zens. Fifty-fOur of these are now do
ing work in the ministry.
1T won't cost South Bend much to
help it's people who need the help
that a mission can give. 1t cost $12
to convert Billy Sunday. He has since
saved over $4,000 others.
There isn't a drunk in the city, or
in the country, who wants to be a
drunk. and who wouldn't quit if given
the chance And the DRINKS are all
big-hearted men, who love their fam
lilies as much as you love yours. A
tightwad doesn't drink. A few dollars
spert TO save these men to the world
is the best investment that you can
make"
The local committee are planning
to start work towards the opening OF
the mission at once. 1t Will be inter-
dcnominational, and will be the down
town branch of every church in the
city. The mission now running on the
east side is to be affiliated with the
new, and the two viii be run under
the same management.