The Authoritative Life of General William Booth Part 14

Little did most of his own Soldiers guess the extreme strain of inward weight and struggle under which The General was often labouring just when in some great a.s.sembly he appeared to every one to be overflowing with youthful gaiety and self-confidence.

The following letter to his youngest daughter, and some entries in his diary, will give some idea of the inner victory he really gained on many such occasions.

Commissioner Lawley, mentioned in this letter, was The General's almost constant companion and helper in many years' travel in many lands, leading the singing, soloing, managing the Prayer Meetings, and generally aiding in every arrangement, a true armour-bearer and comrade at every turn:--

"Fair night; might have been better. Plenty of weakness; still, better than it often is.

"Lawley just been in; he is not over well; says we have got the biggest theatre (The Empire). He is not quite sure whether its suitability for talking is beyond the Coliseum at Glasgow, but he thinks the Meetings are rather heavy for a sick man, whom four doctors have been conjuring during the week to 'settle down' and take things quietly, under pain and penalties of the sufferings described.

"However, I am going on with faith that G.o.d won't forsake me. It is very probable that Mr. MacDougal said something of the same kind when he retired to rest on his last sleep, and failing to appear in the morning was found by his son with life extinct, gone to live by sight; anyway, to have some further a.s.sistance to sight through his faith in the Better Land.

"This has been one of the most remarkable of the many remarkable days of my history.

"I pa.s.sed a weary night, and felt altogether unfit for the task before me. The natural force seemed to have pa.s.sed out of me, both mentally and physically. In fact, my heart failed me, and there seemed nothing before me but the prospect of slackening down. I was only kept going by the memory of so many deliverances brought out for me in the past.

"We had one of the largest audiences, and the biggest crowd I ever addressed in a single day. In the morning it appeared that Satan sat at my door, suggesting all sorts of discouraging things. He tried to make me believe that my public work was done, and especially suggesting that I should renounce the subject on which I was talking, and wait for better days before I attempted to talk again. The Prayer Meeting that followed was certainly encouraging.

We had twenty-seven out. Still, I came away with very much the same feeling that had been aroused while I was talking. I took a little refreshment, and tried to get a little sleep, but my mind was too much agitated to allow of it. I woke up and called for the notes of my lecture. My mind could not put two and two together hardly, and so I gave up in despair and left myself to my fate. On my way to the Meeting, however, a strange feeling came over me. It was like the sun through a rift in the black clouds, and all at once a spirit of tenderness, hope, and faith came over me. A voice in my soul seemed to say, 'Go and do the Lord's work, and the people will gather; go for their souls, and all will be well.' I accepted the command, my fears vanished, a spirit of confidence took possession of me, I rose, I addressed the crowd for an hour and twenty minutes with all the physical vigour and mental liberty I could desire.

"Night. A terrific crowd. I talked for an hour and ten minutes with the same force and fervour as in my most successful efforts; 147 came on to the stage in the After Meeting."

It was thus in the smaller matters of personal strength and health, as in the greatest affairs, that The General struggled, believed, and triumphed all through his career.

Australasia has gone farther than most countries towards State socialism. But it was well remarked by some statesman many years ago, "We are all socialists now."

No man within his times was more intensely devoted to the cause of the poor than William Booth. He was indifferent to no practical scheme or effort for the improvement of the people's condition in any land. But for that very reason he loathed, with uncommon vigour, such socialism as would spurn and crush out of the world the man who is no longer in first-cla.s.s physical condition or desirous of earning an honest living by hard work, instead of going about to create hatred between man and man, and would prevent those who will not submit to any man's dictation from leaving their families to starve when work is to be obtained.

The General's indignation was specially aroused when "socialist"

spouters tried to block all his plans of beneficence with their foul misrepresentations. He fought every such attempt with the utmost determination, and by the help of G.o.d and the more intelligent of his fellow-countrymen, crushed every such attack more completely than the public sometimes knew, for he resolutely kept out of any political or social agitation and went calmly on his way, even when his quietude led the enemy to imagine that he was yielding. In later years, when all the pressmen of a city came together to meet him, the Social Democratic paper representative would, of course, come with the rest. On the occasion of such an interview once in Denmark, he writes:--

"The Social Democrat usually contents himself by compa.s.sionating the inadequacy of my efforts for dealing with the miseries which they contemplate, with the remark that I don't go deep enough, that mine is a superficial operation, whereas they destroy poverty by dragging it up by the roots!

"My notion is that the principles upon which my efforts are founded carry me to the lowest roots of all, namely, the selfishness of human nature. Their notion is that capital is the root of the misery. Destroy the capital, or rather I expect they mean divide it up, or let everybody have the benefits that flow out of its possession. My notion is that the roots of the selfishness are to be found in human nature itself."

Chapter XIII

Women And Scandinavia

For a number of years it was The General's custom to conduct the annual review of our Swedish troops at Sodertelge, a beautiful seaside spot, near enough to Stockholm to make it easily accessible, and yet far enough down the Fjord to make the journey thither a very delightful excursion.

The sight of from fifteen to twenty steamers crowded with Salvationists making their way, with streaming banners, music and song, to the camp ground, was almost like a glimpse of the coming glory when the whole earth should rejoice before the Lord. But, of course, there came always to that great gathering a sufficient number of the unconverted to furnish abundant opportunity for conquests to be made, and the great Meetings, lasting throughout the day, never broke up without the ingathering of many souls.

The Councils for Officers which followed during the next few days in Stockholm and elsewhere, gave The General great opportunities to confirm and extend the influence of his teachings throughout the whole of these Northern countries.

Some of The General's earlier visits to Sweden were, however, still more interesting, and perhaps even more permanently effective, because, as we shall see, they helped the newly-rising force, enlisted under their first leader--a devoted woman--to gain some liberty for demonstrations and other work outside their own buildings such as they had not had before, and strengthened them in their resolution to fight, whilst almost all their fellow-countrymen still looked down upon them with disdain if not with hatred. It is difficult to realise now what a dreadful thing The Army in those days must have appeared. Huge crowds gathered from the very first to the Meetings, convened in theatres and other public buildings by Major, now Commissioner Ouchterlony, a Swedish lady who had been appointed by The General to inaugurate the Work in her own land; but the bulk of the population seemed to regard her as though she was a suffragette, advocating window-breaking or something worse.

This will explain some of the facts The General records in his diary of his visit seven years later. The journey began with a great Meeting at Hull, after which the traveller went on board his steamer for a miserable two days' voyage to Gothenburg. After Meetings there he proceeded to Sundsvall, a city from which point his Journal reads:--

"At the conclusion of the evening Meeting the dear Soldiers flocked to the station, crowding the platform and expressing, as far as opportunity served them, their love for me, and their desire that G.o.d should bless me. I spoke to them for a few minutes; then came the signal and the start, and then as we slowly moved off handkerchiefs were waved, volleys of 'Amens' were fired, the Band played, and away we were borne out into the darkness. All this was like a dream to my comrades, as neither the railway officials nor the police had hitherto allowed a word to be spoken or a note of music to be played outside our Halls.

"All that night and all the following day we travelled to Stockholm, which we reached at 6 p.m. Crowds awaited our arrival.

The Soldiers had come down in force, wearing sashes on which the words, 'G.o.d bless The General,' 'Welcome,' and other devices had been worked. The police had come too. There were 200 of them--some mounted and some on foot. Our people had been formed into an avenue down which I pa.s.sed to an open s.p.a.ce. Every face wore a smile, but there was comparative silence. The Police Master had insisted that there should be no volley firing or shouting. But hands and handkerchiefs were waved, and every one appeared delighted. We were soon in a carriage, galloping off to the Headquarters where we were to stay."

If all that The General has done for the attainment of a larger liberty by the peoples of every land were recorded, one might easily make him appear as a great political reformer. But whilst consistently aiming at the one great purpose of all his journeys and Meetings, the Salvation of souls, he has, incidentally, done more to stir the humblest and least capable to great nation-rousing efforts than any mere political reformer can hope to do.

During this first visit of twelve days to Sweden, he travelled by rail over 3,000 kilometres (say 2,000 miles), held twenty-eight public Meetings, besides a number of private ones with press interviews, and wayside gatherings at railway stations. Five nights were spent in the trains, mostly in crowded compartments, for the days of comfortable "sleepers" on all lines had not yet come. He had, besides his interpreter, a young English companion, who paid his own expenses, and he could seldom be persuaded to take any refreshment whilst travelling that could not be got in the carriage. It must not be forgotten that in winning and retaining the enthusiastic affection of such mult.i.tudes of persons, The General has had to face the difficulty of only being able to speak through an interpreter, and that he has had to endure campaigns of opposition and slander, of which we can say very little, but which, founded so largely as they have been upon his being "a foreigner," have had so good a chance to build up walls of difficulty before him.

After this tremendous journey and reception, The General continues:--

"In the night Meeting I felt a little nervous. The Riding School was nearly full, another 100 persons would have filled every seat, although a charge had been made for admission, in order to help with the heavy expenses.

"Many had stayed away for fear of the crush. The audience, which was most respectable, included the Police Master. I was very tired, and no particular topic had been announced. However, I spoke an hour and a half, and all seemed intensely interested.

"Sunday.--The Riding School was full for the morning Holiness Meeting. Much power. About 100 stood up to make a full surrender of themselves to G.o.d.

"In the afternoon the Hall was again full. The police, of whom there were twenty present, would only allow persons to stand in the end aisles. Spoke an hour or more.

"Night. Full an hour before the time. Many convicted. About twelve pressed forward.

"Monday.--Inspected new Hall and Training Home--building to cost 5,000. Also visited present Training Home and attended to correspondence.

"At night the Riding School was full long before we arrived. Spoke two hours. Immense impression seemed to be produced.

"Tuesday.--Morning, addressed Officers and Cadets. One o'clock, Meeting of Clergy and Evangelistic workers, at which 300 were present. Spoke an hour, and answered questions for an hour. Was enabled, I think, to answer all objections, putting every one to silence.

"Dined with Lieutenant Lagercrantz of the King's army. He is a dear fellow, and he has a dear wife. They are in deep sympathy with us.

She put on a bonnet and riband that night.

"I was determined to have a free Meeting for the poorest, a charge for admission having been made for all the Meetings yet held in Stockholm. So called one at 6 p.m. in our own Hall in the south of the city. At six we were quite full. I spoke an hour or more, and some twenty or more came out for a clean heart. Closed at 8.15 p.m.

"At 8.30 p.m. Soldiers' Meeting. Some 500 were present. Spoke for nearly two hours. At the close cleared the front as a Mercy Seat, and nearly all in the place--Officers, Cadets, and Soldiers--went down in company after company. The wonderful Meeting closed about midnight.

"Wednesday.--Rose at 6 a.m., not having had much sleep. Away in Norrkoping at 7.30 a.m. Arrived at 2.30 p.m. Meeting at 3.30 p.m.

in a great church, where 800 were present. Good time. Very tired.

"Night. I,500 present. Talked two hours. Afterwards, at 10.30 p.m., had a Meeting for Soldiers. Got home about 11.45 p.m.

"Thursday.--Meeting at 10 a.m. to say 'Farewell.' Spoke about an hour, and left at one o'clock for Lynkoping, arriving at 2.30 p.m.

Meeting in our beautiful Theatre at 2.30 p.m. Fine audience."

Mere lack of s.p.a.ce forbids further quotation. But surely enough has been said to show with what marvellous exertion The General managed in one brief journey to do so much for all cla.s.ses, and so much not merely in the way of Meetings but of organisation and administration in every way.

And the diary tells us nothing of his talks with Officers between Meetings, which have formed so important a part of all his travels. By means of such conversations, especially in the case of Officers who are not English, The General has gained a close knowledge of them and their difficulties as they have of his thoughts and wishes.

Between his arrival at Gothenburg and his Sundsvall Meetings came a rough journey to Norway, where we had as yet no Officers, yet where, nevertheless, a great Meeting had been arranged for by friends, who later helped in the establishment of our work in their country! The General pa.s.sed on to Denmark, where our work was in its first year.