Bridgeton pioneer., 1915-03-25
MONEY GAME
NOT FOR BILLY
Declares He Will Not Sell
His Talents.
10TH To The LORD
The Evangelist Asserts That He
Scorns the Offers of Many
Thousands Yearly.

What will Billy" Sunday do with |
the fifty odd thousand dollars given
to him as personal thank offering by |
the supporters and followers of his |
l1-week revival in this city?
This question, so often asked in the
last day or two by thousands of Phila-
delphians, is answered by Billy him
self in an extraordinary interview
given to an intimate friend, which is
published in the April issue of the
Ladies' Home Journal.
In the interview, in which the evan
gelist answers a number of personal
questions in his characteristic frank
fashion, the question of money came
up. The friend said:
Nov, Billy, that brings US to
personal question about yourself.
There's a good deal of talk, you know,
about where you come in financially,
what you do with that huge collection
that is taken up at your last meeting
in city. Would you care to talk on
that?"
Sure, why not?" The evangelist's
eyes opened wide. why, my dear
chap, 1 have nothing to hide. The way
the money part of my campaigns is
worked is this: l am guaranteed moth
ing-not copper-when l come to a
city, / get no pay. Then just before
the last meeting is held the committee
goes around to private individuals
and corporations and asks if they feel
that l have done the city any good,
and, if so, whether they will subscribe
for fund to go to me. That has to
be done, for if I relied entirely upon
the free offering at the last meeting
wouldn't get enough to keep my fam
lily of four from starving. That mon
ey SO subscribed goes to me, and also
the collections on the last day of the
meetings.
''Now, what do I do with it? Well,
no one has the right to ask me that,
for it is nobody's business. But I'll
tell you just the same l do this
When I get that offering figure out
from that offering what it cost me to
get it, in salaries and ALL Then I take
one-tenth of that right out and put it
in the bank as the Lords one-tenth.
From that I check out for people that
need money.
81 have three different bank ac-
counts. One for my personal account
and one for Mrs. Sundays personal
account, and we have a combination
for the Lord. Whenever she signs a
check on the Lords account she
signs her name and mine. Whenever
sign a check on the Lords account
sign her name and mine both. I get
pile of begging letters from every
nook and corner in the United States
-$2,000,000 a year in amounts they
ask for, to say nothing of as many let
ters leaving the amount to me. They
come from every nook and corner for
every conceivable thing you can imag-
inc. OF course, I can't respond to
giving.
"The committee pays two-thirds of
the salaries of my helpers; l pay one
third. They don't want me to pay
any, but do because think it is right.
1 pay at least $1,000 year as my part
of the salaries of my helpers, That's
the way it works."
81 never sell myself; I won't go
anywhere or do anything on a salary
or guarantee. I have refused thou
sand dollars a day on the Chautauqua
platform for next summer. Another
offer is $4,000 for 20 talks during my
vacation Thirty thousand dollars
for July is another offer. Vaudeville
managers say to me: Name your own
price I say: No, sir, that isn't my
game
"If I wanted to make money, coulu
make enough in one week to keep my
family for whole year. wouldn't
have to go around and leave my home
| in Indiana as I do now and wear my
self out all the year around. That