Canvassing from California Eastward
By Walter Harper
I LEFT home about the middle of February on a long canvassing tour. The first night out I ran into the smallpox, in a hotel in the mountains of California; but leaning on God’s promises for protection from disease, I was saved from any contagion. I am led to see more than ever that in all things our success rests entirely in the Lord. The more we humble our hearts before him, seek his face, and lean on the everlasting arms, the more we shall realize his saving grace and guiding providences. He will do things great and marvelous, beyond all we can imagine in our finite wisdom. I wish every one would realize that we must work, watch, and pray as never before. Then we should not be side-tracked out of the work. God will go before us, and make the way clear; and our path, though thorny at times, will be bright and cheering. The first week out, the Master granted success to the extent of one hundred and one orders, or about two hundred and fifty dollars’ worth; last week at Park City, Utah, about eighty-two orders, or two hundred dollars in value; the first three days this week, over sixty orders, or about one hundred and fifty dollars in value. The honor is the Lord’s, for he only can crown our efforts with success. I combine Good Health, one year, with the principal work I handle, “Travels by Land and Sea,” by Elder G. C. Tenney. It works well. I also take single subscriptions for Good Health alone for one year or less, when desired. This book, “Travels by Land and Sea,” will soon be gone; then I expect to canvass for “Patriarchs and Prophets.” I praise God for his marvelous tokens of love to me. Soon we shall see him in his glory. KEMMERER, WYO., March 27, 1902. This is a coal-mining country. To-day the Lord gave me twenty-eight orders, valued at about seventy dollars. I lost nearly one day this week (Wednesday) traveling, but have nearly one hundred orders. I have faith in God that I shall have over one hundred and ten orders by to-morrow, Friday, making over two29hundred and seventy-five dollars’ worth this week. I can only exalt, extol, and praise God for all. FRIDAY, 5 P. M., March 28, 1902. To-day the dear Lord gave me eighteen more orders, making one hundred and fifteen for this week, representing a value of about two hundred and eighty-five dollars. All honor is the Master’s. RAWLINS, WYO., April 22, 1902. I am still busy at work. The blessed Lord and Master grants marked success. To-day he gave me nineteen orders for “Patriarchs and Prophets,” mostly in the Swedish language, and one yearly order for the Signs of the Times, also three orders for “Travels by Land and Sea” with Good Health one year. These orders represent a value of about fifty dollars. In about nine weeks’ work God has given me eighteen hundred dollars’ worth of orders. The honor is our Father’s, who rules on high. I have a little over three weeks in which to canvass, then comes my delivery, after which I expect to return home to California. My wife and I will then take a trip with our wagon and team in the northern coast mountains and counties of California. We shall canvass as we go, and we hope to dispose of many copies of “Christ’s Object Lessons” on this trip. I see many and marvelous tokens of God’s love in answer to our prayers. It is good to trust in the God of heaven, and lean heavily on his arm.