The Golden age. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1906-1915, October 18, 1906, Page 2, Image 2

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2 closed, with the exception of four weeks when the smallpox got into the house and it was quaran tined.” A Marvelous Attendance. “Was the mission well attended from the begin ning?” was a natural question to follow the fore going. “Since the opening,” asserted Mr. Crittenton, “the attendance has probably reached nearly 200,000, and it is calculated that about 40,000 have confessed Christ as their Savior—all glory to Jesus. Children of the Mother Mission. “The Mother Mission now has between sixty and seventy children. In other homes for girls, scat tered from Maine to California,” said the speaker with pardonable pride, “about five thousand girls and one thousand babies and children are now un der the care of the National Florence Crittenton Mission. Our God has raised up to do the work some of the most godly, consecrated men and wom en in the country, and it has become international, for there are now Florence Crittenton homes in Marseilles, France, Tokio, Japan, Shanghai, China, and the City of Mexico. Financial Condition of the N. F. 0. M. “The Florence Crittenton Mission has over SIOO,OOO endowment fund and over $400,000 in vested in real estate (houses and lands for the F. C. Homes), and deeded in such a manner that it cannot be used, ever, for anything else but to help our erring daughters. The National Florence Crittenton Mission has received several legacies, the largest, thus far, being from Mr. Hayes, a noble Christian man who died in New York about eight years ago, leaving $150,000, which is and has been invested at six per cent on mortgage, thus making the amount $220,000. ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord,’ ” added Mr. Crittenton, when making this statement, “that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them.” “How long have you been in your present work, Mr. Crittenton?” The Extent of the Work. “For sixteen years,” was the reply. “I have been almost continuously in evangelistic work dur ing that time; going from city to city all over the United States and even around the world. Tens of thousands have accepted Jesus as their Savior. The Florence Crittenton homes have been opened for girls; hundreds of circles have been formed which are doing the same work without the expense of buildings, matrons, etc.; yet these ‘circles’ work with the nearest homes sending girls to them, so liciting subscriptions, clothing, etc., for these homes and also making monthly reports to headquarters.” Mr. Crittenton and His Work. Bare facts and figures, be they ever so convinc ing, are powerless to convey to the average mind the value of such work as that which Mr. Critten ton has outlined for The Golden Age. Then, too nis own statement says but little of the individual part he has played in this wonderful work. Being a business man of experience who had accumulated a fortune he gave not only fully and freely of it, but also of himself—his best efforts being thrown into the work. The Name of the Missions. Recognizing these facts, the promoters of the first home suggested the name of “Florence” in honor of the dear, dead baby whose loss brought spiritual awakening to the devoted father. For some years this name was used, but it was open to many misinterpretations, being a surname, and so it was decided to incorporate the word “Critten ton,” and to use the child’s full name to designate this marvelous memorial to her memory. Both Houses of Congress have endorsed the work and have recognized the effectiveness of this movement and charters have been twice granted to the insti tutions bearing the Florence Crittenton name. The great men of the country, regardless of creed or po litical affiliation, have united in giving helpful The Golden Age for October 18, 1906. words of praise as well as donations of value to these different missions. The Ever-Open Door. Mr. Crittenton has been personally active in supervising the business management of the mis sions which bear his name, but “the helping hand is not uselessly hampered with red tape, but can be extended at any hour of the day or night.” It is but necessary for the hopeless, helpless woman to touch the bell of a Florence Crittenton home, be she within reach of its friendly portals, when the door will at once open to her touch and a new way and a new life lie before her if she will. Methods of the Missions. But more than a temporary home is offered. The young women who are induced to enter these homes, or who enter them of their own accord, are taught many useful methods of earning an honest living. Not only are they shown the error of sin but they are given an opportunity to lead honest lives in the future. Technical instruction in many arts is giv en, permanent homes are found for them whenever possible and many are happily married to men who know their histories, but who forgive sin, which is so often the result of circumstance rather than of intentional evil. Regeneration Through Motherhood. Necessarily, many of the young women who come under the influence of the N. F. C. M. are mothers, often having their babies clasped to their breasts. There are never separated one from the other. It is believed that the influence of a little child can and does do much toward the regeneration of the mother. Many hardened souls have been brought to the light through the touch of a baby’s cling ing fingers. ♦ « THE CAR “GOOD NEWS" In these homes each mother is given adequate clothes for her child; she is expected to care for these and is taught to do so intelligently. The children, too, are well guarded and to quote from one of Mr. Crittenton’s able assistants’ Kate Wal ter Barrett, M.D., “If we cannot have that trinity which God intended—husband, wife, child—we can have that other trinity—mother, child, home—that has in it a mighty potency for good.” Car “Good News.” As may be judged by Mr. Crittenton’s devotion to his little daughter Florence, he is a man who loves his home, and naturally, he felt deeply lonely during his constant journeyings. Some few years ago he decided to have a car for his use and that of his party, for he is always accompanied by ca pable and consecrated assistants. This car he calls “The Car of Good News,” and he has equip ped it as a home for himself from which he carries the “good news of the Gospel” to the “uttermost ends of the earth.” Wherever this car goes it is cheerfully carried by the railroad companies who thus aid in the great work, and wherever this car stops it finds a welcome from all classes. A friend to the lowliest, a comrade to his own kind, a devout Christian gentleman who learned the Truth through the “narrow aisles of pain,” and who would give the Great Message to all the world, Mr. Charles N. Crittenton has made for himself a place in the generation in which he lives—a place which must live on after the mortal man has passed to his re ward—taking with him, as he must, the prayers and the blessings of the myriads he has “brought into the fold.” Items of General Interest. Mr. Upton Sinclair, author of “The Jungle,” is a candidate for the United States Congress on the Socialist ticket. A monument has been erected at Larison’s Cor ners, N. J., to the great-great-great grandfather of John D. Rockefeller. Rev. Sam P. Jones, the leading evangelist of his kind in America, died suddenly on October 15th, on a train near Little Rock, Arkansas. It is stated that Mr. William Jennings Bryan cleared, by his articles written during his trip abroad, $25,000 above all expenses of himself and family. When a traveler in China desires a passport, the palm of his hand is covered with fine oil paint, and an impression is taken on thin paper. This paper, officially signed, constitutes his passport. It is now officially announced that only 50 per sons lost their lives as a result of the San Francis co earthquake. This number includes those killed by the fire, falling walls, impure food distributed and the seven persons shot by the police. Chicago teachers have a relief society. The mem bers pay in $2 a year, and in case of illness draw $lO a week for four weeks. This is a safe prop osition for the society and is a great insurance for the teachers. A cent a day for the school year, or 4 cents a week the year through, provides S4O in ease of an illness that lasts for a month. A recent invention is an automatic swimming de vice which has just been shown by M. Constantini, of Paris. This machine is run by a gasoline motor cleverly adapted to use under water and is to be used by life-saving stations as well as b ypersons learning to swim. The same inventor is responsi ble for the automombile skates, also run by a gaso line motor. The recent appointment by the German Emperor of a Jewish banker to the position of a director in the colonial office, was the cause of considerable surprise and comment by the German people. So high an office is not usually given to a business man in Germany, but in America or England a similar appointment would have caused but little, if any, comment. It is both refreshing and inspiring to learn that in a New England town there recently died an old woman who had lived in the one house during her lifetime which covered the better part of a century. It is almost needless to say that this woman had become a part of the village life to which she had lent an active, kindly, Christian hand during all the years of her life. It is always pleasing to our national pride to note the award of honors to our distinguished country men. Such an aw’ard may be mentioned in the recent unveiling at Budapest, Hungary, of a hand some statue of George Washington. The occasion was a notable one, there being services in all the churches, and a delegation of 500 Hungarian-Amer icans were present at the ceremonies. America is soon to have as a guest the distin guished English scientist, Sir William Perkin. To this gentleman is due the honor of discovering coal tar, that valuable medical agency, and the aniline dyes now in such general use. The fiftieth anniversary of this discovery was celebrated recently in Eng land, yet Sir William is now only 68 years old. His discovery was made accidentally while, as a boy, merely 18 years old, he was at work in a chem ical laboratory trying to produce quinine syntheti cally. This feat has never yet been accomplished, but the effort led to a discovery which revolution ized the dyeing industry all over the world.