TOWER PUBLISHING COMPANY,
"BIBLE HOUSE"
ARCH STREET, ALLEGHENY, PA., U.S.A.
C. T. RUSSELL, EDITOR; MRS. C. T. RUSSELL, ASSOCIATE.
SUBSCRIPTION PRICE, $1.00 A YEAR, IN ADVANCE,
INCLUDES ALSO A SUBSCRIPTION, FOR ONE YEAR,
TO "THE OLD THEOLOGY" (TRACTS), QUARTERLY,
By Express Order, Postal Money Order, Bank Draft, or Registered Letter. Foreign only by Foreign Money Order.
N.B.—Those of the interested, who by reason of old age or accidents, or other adversity, are unable to pay, will be supplied FREE, if they will send a Postal Card each December, stating their case and requesting the paper.
TO TOWER READERS AND COLPORTEURS.
DEAR FRIENDS OF OUR REDEEMER, SAVIOR
AND PRESENT LORD:—
I have passed days (even since tracts were made free) without giving out a single one of our strong list of tracts; but those days are about gone by, I hope and pray. I pray the Lord will not count me heartless, but careless I surely have been; and I am now trying to stir myself and others of my class to more energetic service. I might excuse myself to some extent, because of various labors—viz., meetings, visits, the canvass of DAWNS, correspondence, etc.,—but others might justly say, those meetings, etc., were but added opportunities or tract work. But excuses are idle, and like trying to find excuses for staying at home, or returning early to it from the canvass. As no colporteur sells DAWN to every one he meets, and could sell more by trying more places, we should each try to sell one more DAWN, if not several more each day, and thus, by each, preach sixteen more sermons each day: But tract distribution is not hard work, like DAWN selling, and what good excuse can any of us offer for neglecting to circulate our good tracts.
A word to the wise is sufficient; but while the spirit is willing the flesh is weak, and so I add some incentives to engage or to engage more fully in these services for Christ. Before starting to canvass for DAWN, read a stirring chapter in the Bible or in MILLENNIAL DAWN, or a few of the Hymns of Dawn descriptive of our glorious hopes for both the Church and the world. If timid about giving tracts, read as above or read the tracts themselves over again, and if you are unselfish and loving as the gospel is, you will take pleasure in giving some to the truth-starving.
Another incentive to present service is the short time for it—"the night cometh when no man can work." It is evident that a portion of the forty years of the Gospel "harvest" will be a "night" without opportunity for labor. And this harvest time is now nearly half consumed: since there probably will be ten years of "night," but little more than a decade remains for active service. But in another passage (John 11:10) our Lord Jesus, referring to the present opportunity, says: "Are there not twelve hours in a day?" [May not this imply that the forty-year day will be practically divided in the middle? and, hence, that from 1895 onward the darkness may be expected to gather, more and more?—EDITOR.] Since there are the same number of hours to each individual, can a man excuse himself for misappropriating his consecrated time?
Every man has his day of twelve hours for "walking" and no more; and if he attempt to make up at night, by an extra effort, for the loss of his precious twelve hours of day he finds people unready—either asleep or getting ready for it. For a Scriptural use of the term "walk" see John 7:1 and 6:66, also Psa. 14:2 and 119:3. Jesus evidently designed to teach the need of unwavering, continuous, effective use of our present opportunities for service. He that walks by day has light and he that walks by night (either night of either text) has no light, and stumbleth.
In love, fellowship and service,
[Tract No. 14 is specially good to leave at houses where you have failed to get an order for DAWN. Some leave them saying, Read this little tract and you may want one of my books next__________day, when you will see me delivering copies to your neighbors. And often they watch for them and purchase.—EDITOR.]