TO THE IOWA AND NEB. T. & M. DIRECTORS AND WORKERS.
By George I. Butler
The general quarterly meeting is now past, and also the camp-meeting, at which were several of our western directors, and at which, T. and M. matters were made prominent. I am beginning to get acquainted with the condition of the T. and M. Society in this Conference. It is plain to be seen, that its present condition is not as flattering as we could desire. The Society is in debt to the Office several hundred dollars, and has not the funds to pay it. The fall and winter campaign is before us, in which the Society will need more tracts and reading matter to distribute, which must be purchased, and which will still further increase our debt. There is but little being done in circulating reading matter, comparatively, that should be done. The times are very hard; and, worst of all, the liberalities of some seem to be drying up within the last year or two. Notwithstanding these unpleasant features, we hope to see a spirit of zeal kindled up in our Society, which will carry us above all these discouragements. We have too much confidence in our people to believe they will consent to see the noble Tract and Missionary work dragged down, or its usefulness crippled, by any of these difficulties. But if we do rise above them, we shall have to arouse to more energetic action, pay off our debts, and take hold of the work with a different spirit. We find on an examination of the secretary’s books that several of the districts are greatly in debt to the Society, while others are out of debt and have credits. This has arisen from several causes. Some districts have paid in money, and scattered less reading matter; while others have taken great interest in scattering the publications, but have collected little money to pay their cost. Some of these districts (our western ones especially) have an excellent field in which to distribute tracts. The people are poor, and have little to read, and eagerly receive publications placed within their reach. This enables the T. and M. workers to circulate them largely with little effort. Our people there have more of a mind to work than in the richer parts of the Conference. But the collection of means to pay is a matter of great difficulty. Most of the settlers were poor when they moved there, have had hard work to get started, and have been eaten up by grasshoppers. Prices of grain have been very low, and crops poor, and distance to market great. Hence, some of these western districts are badly in debt to the Society. Again, in some of our eastern districts, when strong calls were made through the paper, years ago for subscribers to the Voice of Truth, they tried to carry into effect these calls; and they got a good many subscribers; and this has left them in debt quite largely, as each district is charged with the publications it receives and the subscribers it obtains, and credited with the money it raises. It is also undeniable, that some of our districts feel more anxious to have their pecuniary standing creditable than others, and some directors make more effort to raise the means to pay their indebtedness than others. While some are more anxious to circulate reading matter largely, and think less about their financial standing, others are determined to have their financial standing good, and they make that a special point. Hence from these and other causes there comes to be quite an embarrassing state of things in the internal working of the Society, some of the districts being quite largely in debt, and others having means standing to their credit. The following is the indebtedness and credit of each district, Sept. 1:— Districts in debt: Dist. No. 2, $15.21; No. 3, $199.65; No. 4, $47.47; No. 6, $19.89; No. 8, $111.91; No. 11, $135.39; No. 12, $21.33; No. 13, $84.59; No. 14, $12.67. Districts which have credits: Dist. No. 1, $3.50; No. 5, $57.79; No. 7, $58.84; No. 9, $7.91; No. 10, $4.32. I should remark that Districts No. 12 and 14 are new ones recently formed, and hence do not stand charged with many books, while Nos. 8, 11, and 13 are western districts organized years ago. Hence, for the causes I have assigned above, they are quite largely in debt. At the recent general quarterly meeting at Victor, Iowa, there was considerable discussion concerning these matters by the board of directors. It was evident, that the western districts could not pay all their indebtedness without great difficulty. It was also evident, that there would be a hardship in forcing those eastern districts, which had entered with spirit into the work of making out their quota of subscribers in past time, and worked hard to accomplish that object, while others did comparatively little, now to pay the whole bill. This would be putting a premium upon doing nothing. It was finally concluded to pass the following resolution, and do our best to carry it into effect:— Resolved, That this board of directors hereby appeal to the T. and M. workers throughout the Society to generously contribute to the liquidation of this debt, and each director is hereby requested to present this matter in his district, and labor to bring about this important result. I regard the substance of this resolution as being an important matter, for the prosperity of this Society. While it would be unjust to take the credits of those districts from them, which have paid their own debts, yet it will greatly hinder the work in the western part of the Conference where the members are poor, if our wealthier brethren east refuse to assist them in the liquidation of this debt, and oblige them to pay for all the reading they distribute. There are many openings there for the introduction of our reading matter, which do not exist in the eastern part of the State. If we love the cause as we should we shall all be anxious to step into these openings, and help others to do so. The proper course, I think, is for those directors whose districts are in debt to make special efforts to raise means in their own districts to pay all they can on their indebtedness. And in those districts which are not in debt, we hope the directors will appeal to our brethren to generously contribute also to this good end. There ought to be at least eight hundred dollars raised by our Society in this Conference this fall and winter for the liquidation of our debts and to set our Society on a proper basis. We cannot do the work we should with any less. It will take some effort on the part of all our brethren, our directors especially, to do this. We do not wish to get up any spasmodic excitement, or do some wonderful thing in a few weeks or months with which to quiet our consciences for a long period after; but we do want to see a goodly number of workers trained to labor for God, who shall be ready for every good work, to give a lift in every good cause. You have placed me at the head of this noble Society, for the present year, in this Conference. Now, brethren and sisters, let us take hold the present season with a mind to work. You don’t want our noble Society to be in debt. You don’t want its strength crippled, its noble mission brought to an ignominious defeat. Let us arouse, then, to the work. Many of us are almost asleep. Let us now labor for some good object. And what more noble object can be aimed at than the salvation of our fellow-men by the distribution of reading matter, and by missionary work? Why is it that lectures all through the eastern and wealthier parts of our Conference seem to accomplish so little? Is it not that God is not blessing our people, because their hearts are waxing gross, and they are not cultivating a spirit of sacrifice, but really making the world first and the cause second? Why is it that some of our churches are almost dying out? I truly believe this is the very reason. Many of you have dropped off in your liberalities, of late. “Let us not be weary in well doing. We shall reap in due season, if we faint not.” Let us all take hold anew, in the good work of God. Omaha, Iowa, Oct. 12, 1876.