Canvassing in Mexico by A. G. Bodwell

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 22, 1902

Canvassing in Mexico

By A. G. Bodwell

AFTER an absence of four months and eleven days, I am at home once more. As many of the brethren in the States were inquiring about a good location to settle in, it was decided that I should take a trip through the southern part of the republic to spy out the land. Accordingly, leaving Mexico City, the trip to Oaxaca was made by train. Here it became necessary to buy a horse, as the railroad went no farther. The journey southward was continued until Tapachula was reached, which is within a few miles of Guatemala, passing through Tehuantepec, Juchitan, Tonala, and many smaller towns. All these towns were canvassed for our Spanish paper, Bibles, and Testaments, and many thousand pages of tracts were given away on the following subjects: Sabbath question, second coming of Christ, importance of studying the Bible, and living by faith; also many leaflets setting forth the benefits to be derived at our sanitarium in Guadalajara were distributed.

In the towns of Tehuantepec and Tonala I sold fifty copies of “Steps to Christ,” forty-nine of “Christ Our Saviour,” and six of “Patriarchs and Prophets.” These were sold for cash in less than two weeks’ time, besides selling many Bibles, Testaments, and papers, and taking eighty-seven paid subscriptions for our Spanish paper, the most of which were for one year. Many more of our books could have been sold, but I did not have them, and could not wait for them to be sent to me. In Tonala after I had sold all my books, others came wanting more. One man sent me a note and the money, asking me to send him a copy of “Patriarchs and Prophets;” others stopped me on the street, and asked for “Patriarchs and Prophets.”

Leaving Tapachula, I started for the Atlantic coast, crossing the Sierra Madre Mountains. The first large town that I reached was Comitan; from there I went to San Bartolomé, and next to Tuxtla Gutiérrez, the capital of the state of Chiapas. My first day’s work here was on Sunday, and I obtained thirty-seven paid yearly subscriptions for our paper; and in five and one-half days one hundred and thirty-seven paid subscriptions were secured. All of these were for one year, except six, which were for six months. I succeeded in gaining an entrance to the government building, and obtained subscriptions from nearly all employed there.

From Tuxtla Gutiérrez I went to Chiapa, and from there to San Cristobal. This place is said to contain eighteen or twenty churches, and thirty priests, about one for every five hundred people, as its population is fifteen thousand. The rains began, and I left before finishing the town; for I was told that I had a hard road ahead of me, and after the rains began, it would be much worse. After six days of hard riding, I arrived in Pichucalco, which is quite a commercial center. One day while on the road to that place, I made my regular day’s ride, and obtained thirty-eight paid yearly subscriptions; and the first day in Pichucalco thirty-six yearly subscriptions were secured.

After leaving Pichucalco I visited Teapa, and from there I went to San Juan Bautista, where I sold my horse, and took a river steamer for Frontera. After transferring my baggage to an ocean steamer, and while waiting for it to start, I canvassed the captains and officers of some of the river boats, and some of the houses near the river front, and obtained quite a number of subscriptions. While on the steamer going to Vera Cruz, I obtained a subscription from the owner of a large ranch who seemed to be quite interested. I arrived in Vera Cruz after a pleasant ride of about twenty-three hours on the Gulf; and after passing through the custom-house took the train that night for Mexico City, where I arrived early the next morning.

The state of Chiapas has an excellent climate, is well watered, and the land is well adapted to farming and stock raising. The people are very friendly. The priests have not as much control over the people as in other parts of the republic. In my judgment, it would be an excellent field for families wishing to do self-supporting missionary work. Land can be bought for fifty cents an acre, or more. There are only two missionaries in the entire state, and they have recently gone there; one is a Presbyterian, and the other belongs to the Plymouth Brethren. I would like to give some of the experiences that I had, and also a description of some of the places, but time and space will not permit.

Much of the time I have worked twenty hours out of the twenty-four. Sometimes I would get up at twelve, one, or two o’clock in the morning, saddle my horse, and ride until seven, eight, nine, or ten in the morning, when I would stop at a town and canvass it, finishing perhaps about five or six o’clock in the evening, when I would saddle my horse and ride until twelve, one, or two at night. I would then spread my blankets on the ground, and sleep until daylight, after which I would canvass that town. Sometimes I would make my breakfast on two or three cold tortillas (tortillas resemble pancakes somewhat, except they are made from corn instead of flour, and when cold are not very palatable). The Lord has kept me in health and strength, for which I praise his great and holy name.

I traveled six hundred and thirty-four miles by rail, about fifteen hundred on horseback, and about six hundred by water. And from February 1 to May 31 (four months) I received from sales of books, papers, and subscriptions $540.71, Mexican. Of this amount $489.60 was received from sales and subscriptions for the paper. In all, I obtained eight hundred and sixteen paid subscriptions for the paper. I obtained some subscriptions from the peons, but the most of my subscriptions are from the leading men of the nation, from judges, secretaries of courts, lawyers, doctors, customhouse officials, chiefs of police, army officials, captains and officers of boats, merchants,

mechanics, and ranch owners. My expenses were very high, but I sold enough Bibles and Testaments with what I made in exchange in money above the regular subscription price of the paper, to pay all my traveling expenses, except $12.30, gold; so the $540.71 was all clear except $12.30, gold, for my expenses. It costs us one hundred dollars a month to print our paper. But in four months I turned in more than enough above my expenses to print it for five months.

I also had the privilege of giving treatment to some who were sick, and of giving quite a number of Bible readings and talks to those who were interested. After I had sold all my Bibles and other books, and while working with the paper, many of the people asked me for books and Bibles. The field everywhere seems to be ripe for the printed page. The Lord has gone before us, and prepared the hearts of the people. Some of our faithful canvassers in the States have written me in regard to coming to Mexico to scatter the printed page; but we cannot encourage them to come yet, because of the high price for which we would have to sell our books brought from the United States in order to make any profit on them. What we need is a small printing plant to publish books and papers, so that we can offer our literature to the people at a reasonable price. I am glad to hear of the step the Pacific Press has taken to establish a plant in Mexico. I believe it is a move in the right direction. A. G. BODWELL.