p. 18 | CHAS. T. EVERSON by Chas. T. Everson

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Washington, D.C. · Oct 22, 1903

CHAS. T. EVERSON

By Chas. T. Everson

Italy

In order more perfectly to pave the way for successful work in this field, it was decided at our union meetings at Lausanne to give special attention to the distribution of our literature. And with this thought in mind, it was voted to translate “His Glorious Appearing,” and issue an edition of five thousand, which we hope soon to publish. Also we are soon to issue in the Italian language a five-thousand edition of Dr. DeForest’s excellent tract on the subject of health.

After the camp-meeting I visited our brethren in northern Italy, in order to lay before them our plans for the spread of the message by the printed page. For a while we hope to have some regular canvassers in the field. We are endeavoring to enlist all our people in Italy for the canvassing work, and shall try to treat them as canvassers by allowing them a commission on what they sell. Some can go out for a few hours a day, or it may be for only that length of time in a week, but each little time thus spent will help in making a successful work.

While there, holding meetings with the church in Torre Pellice, the headquarters of the Waldenses, concerning whose history we read in “Great Controversy,” I baptized a young man who formerly belonged to the Waldensian Church. He seems to be an intelligent young man who may some day become a worker in Italy.

At Turin, the ancient capital of Italy, I stopped for a few days to meet some of our people who are located there, and to baptize a candidate in the historic waters of the Po River. The brother that was baptized was one of the first converts that the Waldenses made from Catholicism when they came down into the plains from their home among the hills and valleys. It has not been very long since the Waldenses were forbidden to worship outside of their mountain territory, and not until the present liberal Italian government was established, about 1870, were they allowed to work in Italy outside of their own valleys. Of course they did some work, but it was done secretly. But when they were permitted to work in Turin, this man was one of their first converts, and he remained a Waldensian until the truth of the third angel’s message came to him. He has kept the Sabbath for nearly four years, but until recently did not have the opportunity of being baptized and learning present truth. He seemed to appreciate the truth fully as much as the new converts do in America; for the truth has the same power in every land and upon every people.