The Life of Dwight L. Moody Chapter 37 Chapter 37 The Use of the Press It has been said of Mr. Moody that his most prominent characteristic was his consecrated common sense. One of the best illustrations of this was his keen appreciation of the great evangelistic possibilities of the press. For some years the Chicago Papers were not disposed to treat his missionary efforts with any seriousness, and Crazy Moody, or Brother Moody, was, he was as familiarly known, but the butt of many good-natured jests. It may be that his aversion to the title of brother in later years may be attributed to this early experience, for we never heard him use the term. As the growth and results of Mr. Moody's work made apparent, the sound judgment that in every case accompanied his zeal, the secular press became more friendly. His success in raising money and securing teachers for his school, the confidence shown by wealthy people in his efforts to erect Christian association buildings, his indefatigable activity in reaching and holding those who were not desired elsewhere, or for whom no special efforts had been made, his practical work for the soldiers, his growing popularity in senate school conventions, all these gradually won for him the respect of those who had been at first inclined to be amused by his zeal. Mr. Moody's seldom replied to misstatements in the newspapers, but when on his early evangelistic career it was stated in the press that he was making a good thing financially out of his religious work, he referred to the criticism There were tears in his eyes and his voice quivered as he said, As I know my heart before God, I have never let the desire for money determine my conduct in any way. I know I am weak and come short in many ways, but the devil has not that hold upon me. I have never profited personally by a single dollar which has been raised through my work, and it hurts me to be charged with it. Above all things, may God forgive those who say this of me. More than 1,125,000 was received for royalties on the hymn books, which was used for beloved objects. Mr. Moody was a good financier. He appreciated the value of money, but he never used it to build a fortune. He desired it simply that he might use it in doing good. On two other occasions, Mr. Moody made a public denial of newspaper reports, not for the sake of personal gratification, but solely because of the injury to the work in which he was engaged. In 1877, the Boston paper accused him of having purchased a racing horse for which it was claimed that he had paid $4,000. Finding that the statement had been credited by some, and that these were prejudiced by it, Mr. Moody made a plain statement of the facts of the case. He had bought a roaster, whose special virtue was its gentleness as a family horse, not its speed as a racer. The price, he also stated, had been grossly exaggerated, and there should be deducted from the amount claimed, $3,750, as he had only given $250. The second statement that brought forth a public denial from this committee was a newspaper report circulated in Richmond, Virginia, while he was conducting a mission in that city. One of the local papers printed a letter in which the writer stated that on a certain occasion he had heard Mr. Moody make most disparaging references to General Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. The rumor was at first ignored. Later it was found that the meetings were being seriously affected and that a bitter opposition was rapidly growing. Mr. Moody's high regard for the men referred to in his public tribune to their memory was not sufficiently known to prove the falsity of the story to the public. Fortunately, his addresses had all been printed at the time when it was claimed he had made the offensive remarks. Absolutely denying the charge at one of his meetings, he brought out this fact and challenged anyone to find any references to the disparagement of either of the two brave generals for whom he had the highest personal regard. What was apparently a serious obstacle to the work was then turned to the good of the meetings, and a most successful mission followed. Although an appreciative friend of the public press, Mr. Moody never compromised in his denunciation of its evil. He had no patience whatsoever with the Sunday newspaper, but did not spend his time in condemning the editors and reporters of the paper that published the Sunday edition. On the contrary, he felt that both editors and reporters were among his best allies. While he reached an audience limited by the walls of the building where he spoke, they were able to carry his message into places that no minister or city missionary could visit. With their assistance, he could reach an audience a hundred times larger than could be accommodated in any church or hall. Thus, while he never flouted representatives of the press, he was extremely cordial to them and was able to trace many a conversion to their agency. In Great Britain, the press, at first suspicious of the Americans, finally took up the matter in earnest and column after column was devoted to reports of Mr. Moody's sermons and accounts of the services. Later on, his return to America, one or two daily papers in each city where he held his great campaigns would report his sermons, either wholly or in part. Frequently, the same paper would publish a stenographic report of everything said, sermon, prayers, and hymns, even though the series of meetings lasted for three or six months. It kept me busy, he once said, in a city where, for six months, Every word that I spoke was printed daily in one of the papers. But one of the most important conversions resulting from that series of meetings occurred, not in the crowded hall, but in a narrow cell in the city prison, where Valentin Burk, a criminal, was led to Christ through a reading of a sermon. And this one was by a representative of thousands who were benefited without ever hearing the sound of the evangelistic voice. The advertising columns in the daily papers were also used in accordance with the same principles that are recognized to be helpful in the business world. Some ministers think it undignified to advertise their services. He said on one occasion, it is a good deal more undignified to preach to empty pews, I think. He believed that the Christian ministers should have an audience, and that services especially intended to reach those who were not under church influence should be brought to the attention of the public in order that they might be, without excuse if they did not avail themselves to the privilege. The reports of the Northfield conferences soon became a prominent feature of the New York Tribune and of the Springfield Republican and Union. In every way, Mr. Moody encouraged the Secular Press in giving accounts of the summer gatherings, assuring every faculty and convenience to the representatives that the conference addresses might be preserved in permanent form and be retained by those who had heard them, as well as sent to those who were unable to attend. The Northfield Echoes was founded in 1894. Every year, four numbers were issued in the months of June, July, August, and September. The first is of a general character, consisting largely of articles descriptive of Northfield, its schools, programs of the conference, etc. The second reports the addresses given at the World Student Conference, as the meetings of young men are called. The third tells of the Young Women's Conference, and the fourth of the Bible Conference. With such devotion to the scriptures, it is not surprising that plans for increasing its studies should continually occupy his mind. In 1881, he urged Major D. W. Whittle to prepare a scheme of daily Bible readings with notes and published them regularly. This was done as a supplement to a periodical just then about to make its appearance. The record of Christian work itself, the outgrowth of Mr. Moody's suggestion, having for its purpose the report of evangelistic mission, missionary work, and plans of Bible study. For 18 years this monthly had appeared regularly, its daily Bible notes being read by thousands who have followed with great profit the consecutive course through the Bible under Major Whittle's direction. During the last months of Mr. Moody's life, he took a still deeper interest in this effort and arranged to make this magazine a special organ of the various institutions he had founded. Mr. Moody was always fearful, at least his connection with some publication, either the hymn book or public sermons should be considered as a money-making scheme on his part. For this reason, while it was imperative that he should have a hymn book, he was loathe to consent to any authorized edition of his sermons. These were published, sometimes quite fully and more frequently in part. in the daily press, and numerous publishers were very ready to adapt these to book forms so that Moody's sermons appeared in every conceivable shape for a number of years before any authorized works were issued. A volume of sermons resulted from each of his first series of meetings in this country. The meetings in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago, and other leading cities were reported verbatim by one or more papers, and at the close of the meetings, the reports were collected in a larger volume. Mr. Moody, however, had no part in their compilation, and no profits accrued to him or his work for their sale, which was exceedingly large. His reluctance to sanction any volume at first overcome in the connection with the unpretentious work entitled Twelve Select Sermons. This was issued both in England and in America, but for several years after its appearance, he would not consent to give his approval to the publication of any additional compilation. Convinced at last of the large numbers who might be reached by these means, and annoyed by the fragmentary character of many of the sermons printed, he supplied other small volumes which appeared at irregular intervals. Altogether there have been issued 25 volumes in addition to single sermons. One of his early publications was entitled Heaven. One day on the railroad train he heard the newsboy with a bundle of books under his arm shouting, Here you are, Ingersoll on health. He caught the boy and placed a copy of his own book in his hand saying, Here my lad, here is another book, give them that at the same time. The boy went on through the car shouting, Ingersoll on hell, Moody on heaven, Ingersoll on hell, Moody on heaven. It may not be inappropriate here to refer to Mr. Moody's attitude and thought regarding the late, well-known, and gifted agnostic, while Colonel Ingersoll died in the summer of 1899, and his family was overwhelmed with grief. The Young Women's Christian Conference was a session at Northfield. On this occasion, Mr. Moody made his first public allusion to Mr. Ingersoll when he said, Mr. Ingersoll and I started out in life about the same time and in the same state. Of course, I have been interested in watching his career, but I have never mentioned his name in public until tonight, and I don't believe in talking about a man after his death. I am sorry for his wife and children. for it is said that he was a kind husband and father, and I don't want to tear open that wound. My feeling towards him has always been of the deepest pity, for a life like his seems so barren of everything that has made my life joyous and blessed. How dark must be the life of a man for whom, by his own confession, it was like a narrow veil between the peaks of two eternities, we cry aloud and the only answer is the echo of our calling. and for whom death seemed like a leap into the dark. How different from that of a believer in Christ! For him, not only is the present life filled with the peace of God, but the future is bright with hope. He knows that, for him, death is only the exchanging of a shifting tent for an alluring mansion. How much Colonel Ingersoll's sovereign wife and daughters need our prayers, as they stand by the still body of their loved one, if they really believe in this hopeless doctrine he taught. Do you believe Mr. Ingersoll's influence was overrated, asks a friend? I do not wish to talk about it, answers Mr. Moody. I believe that Ingersoll was driven away from Christianity by the abuse of Christians. He was railed at by them and he saw the dark side of Christianity. He got twisted when he was young. Do you believe he died without any hope of the future? I don't know. I don't see how a man can live without such a hope. It must be terrible. We are not his judges. It is for God alone to judge him. Like all the institutions and organizations that owe their birth to Mr. Moody, the Bible Institute Corporate Age Association grew out of a need that he observed as he traveled to and fro in his evangelistic work. He was holding meetings in a western town in the fall of 1894 and wanted some books to give away. He called it a local bookstore, but although the shelves were loaded with fiction of all kinds, not a single religious book could be had. This caused him to make an investigation. He discovered that, in one of the great states of the Midwest, there was not one bookstore that pretended to carry even a limited assortment of religious books. Determined to do something to fill the gap which he had discovered, he returned to Chicago and consulted prominent Christian workers who said, People won't buy religious books. They are too expensive. Then the price must come down, said Mr. Moody. The only way to reduce the price without working on a charity basis would be by printing large editions, and Mr. Moody organized a corporate department in connection with the Bible Institute, a Chicago school for the training of Christian workers. At first, ordinary methods were adopted to bring about the sale of the good books, the main thing being to lower the prices. In the spring of 1895, however, the distinctive work of the of the work was formulated and put into execution. It was difficult to get just the books that were wanted, and Mr. Moody was not yet satisfied as to the price. It was felt that before the work could become in any way extensive, a class of books must be secured, that it was impossible at that time to obtain. The Cole Portage Library was therefore planned to combine these salient features. 1. Popular readable style. 2. Well-known authors or books of existing reputation. 3. Strictly on denomination. 4. First-class workmanship. 5. Low price. in order for 100,000 copies of one book, The Way to God was given at once. Equally large editions of other books have been ordered since. So rapid was the growth of this work that in four years Mr. Moody saw it spread over not only the whole continent, but to foreign lands. In addition to the English editions, there are in the library books in German, Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish, and there are requests on file for translations in Spanish, Polish, Bohemian, Dutch, French, and other languages. In 1895, Mr. Moody heard, to his amazement, that no less than three-quarters of a million men and women in this country belonged to the distinctively criminal class, that is, the number passing continuously in and out of jails and prisons. He could scarcely believe it until he had made an investigation. With him to realize the need was to devise methods to meet it. He began to inspect the jails and prisons in every state that he visited, and found that the county jails in many places were entirely neglected. Only here and there were Christian people found who took any interest in the jails. Libraries and reading materials were found in the penitentiary, but a great many jails he visited, among others, one containing 300 prisoners who were destitute of all good reading. When he asked the prisoners if there was anything he could do for them, they said that if they had something to read, it would help to kill the time. In answer to his inquiry, if they would read sermons or religious books, they replied that they would, and he sent some into the prison. There were among them those who could not read, and they insisted that those who could should read aloud to them. They read Spurgeon's and other sermons that he sent, and before long Mr. Moody began to hear of conversions. Then he sent testaments and became so interested that he began to write to the sheriffs of all the different counties. There is a jail in nearly every one of the 2,700 counties in this country. Of all the letters written, only one brought a disrespectful reply. During the last four years of his ministry, he scarcely ever left the town without making a special plea for the prisoners with very gratifying results. It must not be supposed, he said, that all prisoners are hardened criminals. Many a young man have committed a crime in a moment of anger or under the influence of liquor. The records show that nearly half the prisoners are under 25 years of age. At this time of life, a young man is not supposed to have become a subtle character. If he can be reached by the gospel message before he begins to sink lower and lower, there is every hope of his salvation for this life and the life to come. Mr. Moody's sympathies went out especially to the prisoners who are kept waiting months for trials with nothing to do, in some states after they reach the penitentiary. The men are denied by law all work that competes with outside labor. The prisoners feel utterness more than anything else, and facts prove that they often prefer suicide to life under such conditions. With his knowledge of human nature, he believed that this was just the time to reach a man and to make him think, one cut off from all associations and away from whiskey and gambling. That is what you want to get a man to do, he said. What? Brought home, the prodigal. He began thinking. These prisoners begin to realize what wretched lives they have been living and this is the opportune moment to strike them. They are glad of a book or a paper to occupy their minds and Christian influences may be brought to bear on them by this channel and their whole destiny changed for good. What we purpose is that Christians should be more active in carrying the gospel to them while they are behind the bars. and if it were not for atheism and infidelity, there would be no need for prisons. It is sin that is at the root of the matter, and the only sure cure is regeneration, a new heart, and a new life in Christ Jesus. Mr. Moody's plan was to get people sufficiently interested to send one book if they could not send more, and then follow with their prayers. Hardly a day passed after he began this work without his hearing of definite cases of conversion and blessing through such agencies.