The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-05-22
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS


 Not even Dukes Mixture.
 But about Duke of Texas the mar "no mixes his religion with his business and tithes.
 It's a strange story. met him here It's not tale of frenzied finance, but an adventure in Christian giving.
 
 It's worth the telling. It puts to shame the old saying, You can't mix religion and business" But here is a, man who does it in the twentieth century and gets away with it.
 Did you ever hear about tithing-the old Jewish method of giving one-tenth to the Lord? Well, Duke, though a Christian, is practicing it.
 Want to hear about it and about him ? All right. He is making short trip in Alabama. He opened at syIacauga Sun day and will visit Roanoke, Lineville, Ashville, Talladea and several other points.
 Here is what he told me about him. self. Said he: q have one daughter, one granddaughter, one son-in-law, one wife, one faith, one Lord, one baptism, and I'm a one-horse farmer and a nickel merchant Gle has about 30 10-cent stores.) Here is his experience. Let him tell it:
 q went into a mercantile business known as the 5 and I0-cent business in Bowie, Tex, in 1894, and in January following my pastor, Brother F. M Me Cornell, and I agreed to tithe for one year. Before the year was out [ said: This suits me, and I will tithe not for one year only, but for life' The busi- ness prospered from the start, although begun in small way Having only about $700 capital, doing a strictly cash business, both in buying and selling. of course, our business was limited Yet the first year our tenth was $110; the second year, s154 third, $360; fourth, sssS; fifth, s330; sixth, $662; seventh. $556; eighth, $25o; ninth, s556; tenth, s1040; elev- enth, $650; twelfth, s1223; thirteenth, s1221; i; fourteenth $114S; fifteenth, s2472; six teenth, $337S; seventeenth, s16O4; eight eenth, $2390; nineteenth, s216s; twentieth, $1425; twenty-irst, $1OS0.
 Some do not believe in tithing, though they say, No one should give less than the tenth I agree with them about not giving less, but the best way to get peo- pie to give more than tenth is to get them first to tithe. They will soon want to make some offerings, at least that is my experience, and if a tenth belongs to the Lord our offering is certainly the tenth. To take out of the Bible all that is said about tithing would take away much of it's contents and leave us without any standard whatever on the the Bible for all human conduct, and shall selfishness have no rule in Gods word to check it? There is such a stand ard. Gods word is not ambiguous on the duty of giving. Covetousness has no excuse
 'Tithing has systematized our busi- ness as nothing else ever did It is worth all it has cost us, just for this one thing, if there is no more in it. He says in Luke, vi, 3s: Give and it shall be given unto you good measure, pressed down. and shaken together, and rum hing over, shall men give into your bos- om. For with the same measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again.
 After putting Him to the test for 21 years, I know the Scripture means just what it says. and I am persuaded that every believer who follows the iniunction of our Master in these words, with firm faith believes what our Lord here says. just as he does any other promise in the Scriptures, will find it just as I have, and he will practice 1t with in satisfaction.
 But some say, How shall the 1.-the be calcuated? 1 give the tithe after the expenses of the business are paid. In other words, put one-tenth of the net profits to the Benevolent ac count and nine-tenths to my account to do business with. and live on.
 "A farmer said to me that he could not t1the because he couldn't tell what he was making. I said to thim that if Texas would make law adding 10 Der cent to his yearly income, provided he Kept an account of everything made and reported it at the end of the year. he certainly would keep an account of each pound of butter, dozen eggs. and all vegetables, and make the report big enough, too. He wouldn't need any full rendition law. If we could do this when the interest is coming our way. why not do it when 1t Is going Gods way? We could if We would"
  H. l.. Duke, the great merchant of Texas, is well known convention fipure modest, kindly and helpful. He is ereat- ly beloved. In F years he has given away s27oooo. Has sloO,OO0 in his business. All that he and his family take out is a modest hving. l wish he could visit every town and city in Alabama. He Is curiosity in the business world. eAsnIEItMl1@1uslI F s; Anyone thinking he is an easy