Guest post by Leroy
From
1887 to 1891 the Society produced millions of copies of a tract known as the
Arp Slip, Arp’s Joy or the Arp tract. This little tract was very effective to
convince people to read CTR´s books, in particular the first volume of the Studies in the Scriptures series, known
at the time as Millennial Dawn or The Plan of the Ages1. The
tract was designed to be handed out to people outside of churches on Sundays,
and also to be included in letters and in any other post sent by readers of Zion´s Watch Tower to friends, family,
etc.2
By
December 1887, two months after their first appearance, more than 100 thousand
copies had been printed, and the goal was to print a million of them.3
Two months later, in February 1888, the TOWER
mentioned the following:
“Seeing the
good results from the slips already distributed, it is proposed to deluge the
country with them. Order all you can use. Labor while it is called day, for the
night cometh werein no man can work.”4
There
are many experiences that demonstrate the effect that these tracts had, such as
that of S. O. Blunden, who went out one Sunday to distribute the tracts outside
a church in Harrisburgh, Pennsylvania. Church leaders were furious, with two of
them threatening Blunden with arrest. Blunden ignored their threats and
continued with his activity. One of the leaders grabbed him by the throat to
try to drag him out, but Brother Blunden continued to distribute the tracts and
warned the man that if he did not let him go, he might be the one to have him
arrested. The man then stood between Blunden and the people and asked the
people not to receive the tracts, to no avail. Failing to stop Blunden, he sent
someone to the police office to bring in an officer and arrest the brother,
arguing that there was a man "stopping people from going to church."
The policeman came and arrested Brother Blunden, and then took him to the
police station. There, without a trial or hearing, they set a $100 bond to let
him go free. Brother Blunden expressed his happiness at having experienced
something similar to what happened to Peter and John in Acts 4:1-21.5
Another
brother reported: “The Arp slips have been
scattered broadcast throughout this locality, and […] have caused a grand
confusion. The nominal churches are denouncing us, and specially warning their
congregations to not even allow a scrap of paper of any kind we may send out to
come into their homes, and warning their children not to read anything of the
kind.But […] it is only stimulating us to greater efforts, and we can already
see some fruits of our labor.”6
A
young Methodist, after reading the tract began to cry with emotion, bought the
book The Plan of the Ages, and said
that he could not believe the doctrines taught by the nominal church, such as
universal damnation and eternal torment. Many others had similar experiences.7
Some
had their own methods for distributing them: “I
find it is a good plan to leave them in the seats in the R. R. depots. I notice
the passengers read them carefully, and fold them up and put them in their
pockets, which shows, I think, that they are interested.”8
Some
even distributed them door to door, and came back a few days later to offer the
Plan of the Ages.9
But,
what, exactly were Arp Slips? What was their content?
Arp
Slips were small single-sheet tracts measuring 7 cm wide by 34 cm long (2 ¾ ×
13 ½ inches). On the front they contained Bill Arp's comments on the book The Divine Plan of the Ages, (hence the
name) and on the back the poem "The Minister's Daughter" by John
Greenleaf Whittier. There were several versions with slight modifications to
the text accompanying Arp's comments. Below, you can see a photo of one of
these tracts:
It
reads:
“Let every man read, ponder and take comfort,
for we are all prisoners of hope.”
“BILL ARP’S” JOY
UPON READING
MILLENNIAL DAWN,
THE
“PLAN
OF THE AGES.”
FOOD AND COMFORT FOR ALL THINKERS.
READ HIS COMMENTS.
[From Atlanta Constitution.]
A kind lady has sent me a book of 350 pages called
“Millennial Dawn,” published by the Tower Publishing Co., in Pittsburg, Pa.,
which will, I believe, awaken the thinking world. I see that its sale is
already over twenty-five thousand. It is impossible to read this book without
loving the writer and pondering his wonderful solution of the great mysteries
that have troubled us all our lives. There is hardly a family to be found that
has not lost some loved one who died outside the church—outside the plan of
salvation and if Calvinism be true outside of all hope and inside of eternal
torment and despair. We smother our feelings and turn away from the horrible
picture. We dare not deny the faith of our fathers, and yet can it be possible
that the good mother and her wandering child are forever separated—forever and
forever?
I believe it is the rigidity of these teachings that makes atheists and
infidels and skeptics— makes Christians unhappy and brings their gray hairs
down in sorrow to the grave—a lost child, a lost soul!
Let us see how
many lost souls. The geographers give the world a present population of
fourteen hundred million, of whom only one hundred and sixteen million are
Christians,— that is, who live in Christian countries. Of these, only sixteen
million are adult members of the church; and of these, about one million walk
not after the flesh but after the spirit. That is a beautiful picture.—Only one
million of truly good, pious Christian people in all the world, and thirteen
hundred and ninety-nine millions who are elected to be eternally damned. Add to
these figures one hundred and forty-two billions, who have already lived and
died in the ages past, and if all these are damned, it does look like God’s
plan of salvation was a miserable failure. He gets one soul for glory while
Satan captures thousands.
This wonderful
book teaches that trial is yet to come—that all are to rise from the dead when
Christ comes, that He will offer His salvation to all people ; not only to the
living, but to those who rise from the dead. His kingdom will be supported by
the saints and by good people everywhere, and the mother will have another
chance to reclaim her wandering child and bring him unto the kingdom. This
wonderful book makes no assertions that are not well sustained by the
Scriptures. It is built up stone by stone, and upon every stone is the text,
and it becomes a pyramid of God’s love, and mercy, and wisdom. There is nothing
in the Bible that the author denies or doubts, but there are many texts that he
throws a flood of light upon that seems to uncover its dark and gloomy meaning.
I see that editors of leading journals, and many orthodox ministers of
different denominations, have indorsed it and have confessed to this new and
comforting light that has dawned upon the interpretation of God’s book. Then
let every man read and ponder and take comfort, for we are all prisoners of
hope. This is an age of advanced thought and more thinking is done than ever
before,—men dare to think now. Light—more light, is the watchword. BILL ARP.
Another
version of the tract has Arp´s comments abbreviated, and then comment by other
people praising the book. They all have advertising information at the end on
how to get the volume. Here you can see two other versions, front and back:
So,
as we see, the tract basically contained Bill Arp's comments recommending the
Plan of the Ages. The goal was to whet the appetite to read the publication.
This was the type of tract that Russell preferred to use, and not a tract that
explained a biblical subject in very few lines. The reason is that he thought
that a biblical topic explained in a few words did not have the power to
convince someone to change their belief, instead, a little treatise like the
Arp Slip, could encourage that person to read a more profound publication like The Plan of the Ages, and then this
could really help them accept the truth.10
Who
was Bill Arp?
Major
Charles Henry Smith, better known by his nickname "Bill Arp," was
born in Gwinnett County, Georgia in 1826 and was a highly influential figure in
the American South. He held various government posts but his best-known facet
was as a writer, humorist and lecturer. He was a highly respected opinion
leader and deputy editor of The Atlanta
Constitution newspaper.
“A
woman” (you'll see why I put this in quotes later) from Allegheny sent him a
copy of Volume 1 of Studies in the
Scriptures, and he was so fascinated by what he read that he decided to publish
a column about it in The Atlanta
Constitution. This was printed in the issue of July 24, 1887, which I show
you below:
The
column reads:
“THE MILLENIUM.
Arp Pleased with a Book He Has Been Reading,
THAT TELLS ON THE COMING OF CHRIST.
When Peace Will Reign on the Earth for a Thousand
Years - Some Strange and Startling Figures.
So many have written to me to know where Baxter’s
pamphlet on the millenium can be had that I must answer publicly and say, I do
not know—nor do I know who sent it to me, nor where it was mailed. An old
friend wrote me to send it to him and I sent it. I do know that it is no
ordinary interpretation of the prophecies and that it contains many wonderful
and startling facts. But a kind lady from Allegheny has sent me a book of 360
pages called the Millennial Dawn, Charles T. Russell, and published by the
Tower Publishing compay (SIC) in Pittsburg, Pa., which is far more
comprehensive, and will, I believe, awaken the thinking world. I is in paper
cover, and worth I suppose, not more than fifty cents. I see that its sale is
already over twenty-five thousand. It is impossible to read this book without
loving the writer and pondering his wonderful solution of the great mysteries
that have troubled us all our lives. There is hardly a family to be found that
has not lost some loved one who died outside the church—outside the plan of
salvation and if Calvinism be true outside of all hope and inside of eternal
torment and despair. We smother our feelings and turn away from the horrible
picture. We dare not deny the faith of our fathers, and yet can it be possible
that the good mother and her wandering child are forever separated—forever and
forever.
I believe it is the rigidity of these teachings that
makes atheists and infidels and skeptics—makes Christains (SIC) unhappy and
brings their gray hairs down in sorrow to the grave—a lost child, a lost soul.
Let us see how many lost souls. The geographers give
the world a present population of fourteen hundred million, of whom only one
hundred and sixteen million are Christians, that is, who live in Christian
countries. Of these, only sixteen million are adult members of the church; and
of these, about one million walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit.
That it is a beautiful picture. Only one million of truly good, pious Christian
people in all the world, and thirteen hundred and ninety-nine millions who are
elected to be eternally damned. Add to these figures one hundred and forty-two
billions who have already lived and died in the ages past, and if all these are
damned, it does look like God's plan of salvation was a miserable failure. He
gets one soul for glory while Satan captures thousands.
This wonderful book teaches that man’s trial is yet to
come—that all are to rise from the dead when Christ comes, and that He is
coming soon—very soon—within a few years and will reign on earth a thousand
years, and will offer His salvation to all people; not only to the living but
to those who rise from the dead. His kingdom will be supported by the saints
and by good people everywhere, and the mother will have another chance to
reclaim her wandering child and bring him unto the kingdom. This wonderful book
makes no assertions that are not well sustained by the Scriptures. It is built
up stone by stone, and upon every stone is the text, and it becomes a pyramid
of God's love, and mercy, and wisdom. There is nothing in the Bible that the
author denies or doubts, but there are many texts that he throws a flood of
light upon that seems to uncover its dark and gloomy meaning. I see that
editors of leading journals, and many orthodox ministers of different
denominations, have indorsed it and have confessed to this new and comforting
light that has dawned upon the interpretation of God's book. Then let every
than read and ponder and take comfort
for we are all prisoners of hope, This is an age of advanced thought and more thinking is done than
ever before, men dare to think now.
Light – more light is the watchword.
Still we have plenty to do besides thinking about the
millennium. That may be a century off or it may be only a few years. Baxter
says that a mistake of a hundred years was made in the number of years that the
judges of Israel ruled and that all modern chronologists admit it, and that
this is really 1987 instead of 1887, and that the 6,000 years since the
creation of Adam have nearly passed. Mr. Russell says that 6,000 years must
pass before Christ comes, and that they have nearly passed. But we have a good
deal to do and need not be selling out or making white garments for we are not
going to ascend up to heaven even if the millenium does come, Jesus Christ is
going to descend down here and set up his kingdom, and we will have to live on
and work on under a government where not a stain will mar the harmony of
society, not a bitter thought nor an unkind word, not an ache nor a pain nor any decay, nor the fear
of it. The human form and feature will be perfect in its beauty, and-although
human as it is—now will be of surpassing loveliness. Won't it be glorious to
live at such a time and never die-no toothache nor backache nor lingering
rheumatism, no empty sleeves nor crutches nor glass eyes nor bald heads; no
quarreling about the State road and the convicts and prohibition and the pay of
the jurymen. Why, if Mr. Baxter’s count is right, the general assembly needent
lease the State road for more than ten years, for it will be run under a new regime,
and one man will have no more privileges than another. Every man will have to
do his share of work It will go mighty hard with some, I know, but maybe they
will get used to it. Money won’t relieve a man, neither will his pedigree, but
all will have to work for the common good. Mr. Russell says that the earth will
have abundant room for the 260 billions who have died, and the one and a half
billions who now live, and that they all can stand erect within the limits of
Ireland, allowing two square feet of space for each. The earth will then yield
her increase, and the desert will blossom as the rose, and waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in
the desert. With the help and power of such a king I reckon we can all get
along if we deserve to. But if the time is near at hand our people had better
begin to get used to some things. The rich and greedy had better begin to
divide out a little along by degrees, The malicious and quarrelsome had better
begin to cultivate the virtues of love and charity. The lazy had better rouse
up and work a little. White folks had better quit cheating and darkies quit
stealing, for it will be awful hard to stop all of a sudden. It will be safest
anyhow for us all to live just like we knew the millenium was coming very soon,
whether it comes or not. Let us have our lamps trimmed and burning.
BILL ARP.”
From
this column were taken the comments that came to form the Arp Slip, which
helped many people to get closer to the truth, and in many cases, become Bible
Students.
Apparently,
Bill Arp did not adopt the faith that he admired so much, since his funeral was
held in the Presbyterian Church, and was officiated by the Reverend T. J.
Christian, of the Methodist Church.11
Their
use and promotion
(bottom part of the first edition)
The
Arp Slip was first mailed to subscribers of Zion's
Watch Tower free of charge as a supplement to the October 1887 issue.
Explanation and recommendations on how to use the tract were given in the
following issue:
“THE “ARP SLIPS,” of which samples were sent you with
last TOWER, seem to meet with general approval. A sister greatly interested
expresses the desire that these slips might be circulated generally among
Christian people, believing that they would awaken new thoughts in many minds,
and lead them to study God’s plan anew, and thus prove an entering wedge to let
in the true light. She thinks an excellent plan would be, to distribute these
slips Sundays, to church-goers, either as they go in or are dismissed after
service. She donates fifty dollars to pay for printing and mailing these, to be
used thus, the sum to be applied to some one state, leaving it for the
publishers to decide which.
We think this an excellent plan. Should it become very
general it will make quite a stir, by throwing cold water [truth] upon the
“hell-fire teachings.” The ministers and officious members of churches, will
doubtless try both arts and threats to stop those who engage in this crusade,
but as the slips are free, and the sidewalks public, and the tract a religious
one—calling attention to the genuine gospel, good tidings, there is no cause
for either shame or fear. Since it is left to us to decide, and since “charity
begins at home,”—the sister is a Pennsylvanian—we apply the above donation to
the state of Pennsylvania, and accordingly invite all the friends of the cause
in Penn’a., to send in their orders for as many as they will use according to
the plan mentioned. Many can serve the cause we love, in this way, who cannot
preach in any other manner. Take a boy or girl to help, where the congregations
are large. The fifty dollars will print and stamp a great many as we now have
electroplates to print from.
The above offer must not hinder all other readers from
using these slips in a less extravagant manner among their friends, enclosing
them with their letters, etc., etc. Order freely; we have them in packs of
pounds, half-pounds, quarter pounds and two ounces. Order all you can
judiciously use FREE.”12
This
of course generated a lot of interest and orders started pouring in from all
over the state of Pennsylvania. But of course, readers from other states didn't
want to be left behind. The following month the TOWER announced that a brother named Weber had donated 40 dollars
to distribute these tracts in Maryland and West Virginia,13 and the
following month another donation would arrive for the state of Ohio.14
The success was so great that just a month later, in February 1888, Russell
decided to use the money from the TOWER TRACT FUND to print enough tracts to
flood the entire country, and it did.15
In
addition to producing the tract as a loose leaf, it was printed in newspapers
across the country, including, in addition to Arp's comments, the “response” of
“Mrs. Lemuels”, as can be seen in this newspaper clipping from the Miami Republican:16
Comments
from Mrs. C. B. Lemuels say:
“The truths set forth in the above described work so
benefited me, so opened my eyes to God’s great, just, loving, wise plan, and so
opened the Bible before me, that with others who have read and been caused to
see, I have concluded to spend such means and strength as I possess in passing
this cup of refreshing truth to other thirsty souls. To this end I am loaning this book, postage prepaid, to
all who will promise a careful reading of it and to pay return postage. The
above came voluntarily and unexpectedly from Mr. “Arp’s” pen after reading the
book, sent him by me, and is well matched by hundreds of letters from people in
every station of life. I want every intelligent,
thinking man and woman to read the book, for as “Arp” truly says, “It is
impossible to read this book without loving the author [Doubtless God through
the writer was the real Author of the
plan unfolded,] and pondering his wonderful solution of the great mysteries
that have troubled us all our lives.”
Address Mrs.
C. B. Lemuels, Allegheny, Pa.”
During
1888, these advertisements signed by C. B. Lemuels appeared in many newspapers
in the United States offering to lend the books to anyone who was interested,
and many people approached the Bible Students because of this, but…
Who
was C.B. Lemuels?
In
those years there were many very devout women who were willing to give
everything in order to make known the message of the Bible Students, and many
of them in later times did so, as in the notable case of Gertrude Seibert or of
the sisters persecuted in 1918, but the reality is that Mrs. C. B. Lemuels was
not one of them, in fact, C. B. Lemuels never existed. She was a character
created by C. T. Russell, who would represent his wife Maria, to attract more
people to his message. Russell himself explained it in 1894:
“No wrong was done to any one by the use of the name;
but, on the contrary, much good was accomplished. Many readers will remember
seeing Mrs. C. B. Lemuels’ advertisements in different newspapers,
all over the United States, offering to loan free of charge a book that would
be very helpful to honest skeptics and infidels. Many of you first learned of
the truth by this means. The book was The Plan of the Ages—DAWN, VOL. I, and the
name Mrs. Lemuels represented Mrs. Russell. I esteemed that the
matter would be better received from a lady than from a gentleman. I could have
arranged for the use of Mrs. Russell’s name, or the name of some other
sister, but reflected that a confusion of letters might result and prove
inconvenient. Besides, I bring my own name as little into prominence as
possible. This will be noticed in connection with everything I have
published—the O. T. Tracts, the DAWNS, etc.
The name Lemuel is from the Hebrew and signifies Son
of God. The initial letter C, stands for Christ, and B. for before; hence the
whole name signifies, a son of God, after Christ. I consider the using of the
name for a good purpose entirely proper and not a deception, in the proper meaning of that term; for it could make no difference to the
party blessed whether the instrument of his blessing had the name of Smith,
Brown, Lemuels or Russell. Indeed, our Lord was known by a variety of names,
other than the name of Jesus, given by the angel. He is called also Immanuel,
the Son of Man, the Redeemer, the Good Shepherd, Lord of Glory, Prince of
Peace, Prince of Life, the Word of God, Lamb of God, the Just One, the King of
Israel, Living Stone, the True Vine, Wonderful, Counsellor, Savior, Mediator,
the Amen, the Alpha and Omega, the Second Adam, the Messiah. Our Lord and the
Apostles and the Prophets, did not think it a deception to apply these various
names and titles, nor do I. Had I used the name for a wrong purpose, the entire
transaction would have been sinful; but as it is conceded that it was used for
a good purpose the entire transaction is faultless. Many eminent writers for
the press cover their identity under a nom de plume, and justly without
reproach.” 17
Bill
Arp's comments were used as publicity in various publications, for example in
some issues of the Old Theology tracts and in the back pages of the volumes of Studies in the Scriptures, among others.
The Arp tract in its entirety was translated into German in its tract format, but
it was also translated into other languages in the form of advertising included
in books.
What
happened to the Arp Slip?
In
November 1891, the TOWER announced that a new small tract was in the works to
replace the Arp Slip18, and apparently it was, as that is the last
mention in its pages of this small, but very powerful preaching tool.
Notes
1. 1. Over
time as the other volumes in the series came out, the title changed to The Divine Plan of the Ages, and the
entire series became known as Millennial
Dawn, and later the series name was changed to Studies in the Scriptures.
- ZWT 11/1887 p. 1
- ZWT 12/1887 p. 8
- ZWT 2/1888 p. 1
- ZWT 3/1888 p. 2 Extracts From Interesting Letters
- ZWT 5/1888 p. 2 Extracts From Interesting Letters
- ZWT 9/1888 p. 8 Extracts From Interesting Letters
- Ibid
- ZWT 12/1888 p. 8 A Suggestion to the Reapers
- ZWT 6/1888 p. 1 About Tracts
- The Atlanta Constitution, Aug 27, 1903, p3
- ZWTw 11/1887 p. 1
- ZWT 12/1887 p. 8 ARP Slips for W. VA. And MD.
- ZWT 1/1888 p. 8 Extracts From Interesting Letters
- ZWT 2/1888 p. 1 More Arp Slips
- The Miami Republican, Jul 6, 1888, p. 3
- ZWT 1894 4/25 pp. 35-54 Brother Bryan’s Grievances
- ZWT 11/1891 p. 150 View From the Tower
