The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-05-01
BIBLE VERSES
TAKE WITH PRESS.
Expect Quotations Will
Reach no. 100000 Daily
Readers
"A VOLUNTARY SERVICE
Fund Now Being Raised to
Extend Benefits of Bible
Readings

CINCINNATI. April S0.-At an
expense of 81 for every 100000
readers. the "Back-to-the. Bible bu-
reau" OF Cincinnati. is getting one
verse of scripture daily printed in
about one thousand American news
papers and magazines. Its total
daily scripture readers are esti-
mated at 100000 now, two years
after the bureaus inauguration.
A goal of 110.000,000 bible verse
readers daily is announced, with a
flve-year program to make 1t effec-
tive.
The bureaus idea is that daily
reading Of one Bible verse makes for
good citizenship, and that the best
pulpit through which to reach all
persons is the daily press. The or
ranlzation is nonsectarian. its daily
verses going to publications of all
faiths, free Of charge. and not only
TO newspapers but to trade journals,
and to society and labor publlca-
tions.
How the idea started and It's rapid
crow Is described by George w.
Hartzel, a Dayton, Ohio. manufac-
turer, an advisory member of the
bureau. The chairman is James N.
Gamble of the Proctor & Gamble
company.
The bureau was inaugurated two
years ago by Addison Y. Reid OF
Cincinnati, who IS now its secretary.
lie had been conducting propa-
ganda for prohibition. sending daily
contributions to n number of news
papers, and paying for their publi-
cation. with the adoption of the
prohibition amendment. Mr.. Reid
stopped that work. but decided to
try a campaign of biblical verse.
At first he paid for the publica-
tion of daily Bible verses just the
same as he had paid for the prop
aganda. The verses went to only
Few newspapers. After about six
months, paid publications, other
newspapers, becoming interested.
and discovering that Mr.. Reid was
furnishing the scriptural quotations,
asked him to supply them also, Of
tering to make publication without
charged Thereupon Mr.. Reid
stopped paying for insertion of the
verses. and the present bureau was
lnaugurated.
Mr. Hartzell said that in these
two years the bureau has expended
$4,000. all of 1t for printing and
postage, as there are no other eX-
pensee, all the work being volun-
tarly done by a group of Cincinnati
-esidents. The response to the bu-
reau's letters offering the scriptures
has been uniform from all sections
Of the country. Mr.. Harzell stated.
The daily papers now publishing in
clude 46 in Canada and publications
In Hawaii, the Philippines and
Korea.
Many papers have been putting
'he daily verse at the head of the
editorial column. but not all.
"A large Ohio daily" said Mr..
Hartzell. lis running the verse COM
rletely across its daily comic page.
When | asked the editor why he
chose that position. he replied:
Why, don't you want it in the
most conspicuous place?'
This editor added. laughing, Per-
haps the readers of the comics need
balancing more than anyone else
The editor of a Bellingham,
WASH, paper made a personal in
vestigation to discover whether sub
'cribers really read these daily
verses. He reported that he found
that thousands actually read them.
The verses are selected by Mr..
Reid, who before having them
mailed, submits them to a commit
tee of ministers and church offici-
cials for approval"
Mr.. Hartzell said that the bureau
is now engaged in raising n fund
or 100000, the amount it Is es-
tlmated the work of extending the
publication to a 110,000.000 daily
circulation Will cost in the next five
tears.