1 - Malcom's history

Malcom Cameron Rutherford was born in Boonville, Missouri, on November 10, 1892, the only child of Joseph F Rutherford and Mary Fetzer. Rutherford Snr. will be referred to as JFR throughout this article.

Although he purchased some books from a colporteur in the 1890s, JFR only fully embraced the Bible Student faith in 1906. JFR gives that as the year of his and Mary’s consecration and we can assume that Malcom felt similarly at the time.

In approximate date order we are going to review in this article what we know of Malcom’s life story. This includes evidence of his active support of the Bible Student faith for a number of years.

First, there is his signature in a copy of the Daily Heavenly Manna for the Household of Faith. (See the following article ‘Malcom and the Manna’ for pictures and more details). 

The Manna was produced in 1907 to serve (amongst other things) as a birthday record. (The rare first edition of 1905 did not have this feature). But from 1907 onward you would sign your name on your birth date, and in some cases might leave the shortest of messages. The volume Malcom signed belonged to a well-known Bible Student, E.W. Brenneisen. It has Malcom’s signature and his home as Boonville and the date for the entry is November 10. The same is true for Mary Rutherford on August 17. JFR’s signature is missing, but according to a 1918 letter, he started in Pilgrim work on June 2, 1907, so was likely away from home or at a different event when they signed. By 1910 the whole family were in Brooklyn Bethel. So it may be that the Manna signing happened between 1907-1909, unless of course they just signed their home town as Boonville while living elsewhere later on in time.

JFR had a lot to do with the move to Brooklyn in early 1909 and in the first census return to cover the Brooklyn Bethel the whole family are there. They are actually quite easy to miss.

The main census of Bethel in Kings, Brooklyn, was taken on April 29-30, 1910, and lists CTR and a collection of familiar names, but the Rutherford family is missing. However, there is a census page dated May 14, 1910 by a different enumerator, with the word “supplemental” at the top, which gives a few extra names for 122 and 124 Columbia Heights and People’s Pulpit Association.  And there we find Jos(eph) F Rutherford, Mary Rutherford and Malcom C Rutherford all living together with a few other well-known Bible Student names, including Charles W Hek, nominal editor of the Bible Students Monthly.

For the Rutherford entries, Joseph is an Attorney and Malcom a Mail Clerk; and under “Industry” is “Bible and Tract Society”. Joseph and Mary are down as assistants, and Malcom (aged 17) is down as a boarder.

Joseph and Mary c. 1918

In 1911 Malcom gets a higher profile. His photograph at age 18 is found in the 1911 convention report as “Pastor Russell’s stenographer” on the Transcontinental Tour. It is reproduced at the start of this article. The date for the photograph if actually taken on the tour would be between June 9 and July 12, 1911.

Later that same year, in November, a passenger list for the Mauritania, traveling from Liverpool, UK, back to America, has Malcom down as Pastor Russell’s manservant. Malcom’s parents are not on the trip, so it was not a matter of giving him some sort of job while they all traveled together, rather Malcom was there specifically in that role.

Ships’ passenger lists show that Malcom, now aged 22, accompanied his parents for at least part of a trip to Europe in 1914. According to JFR’s booklet Militarism they were in Hamburg when war was declared. According to Jehovah’s Witnesses in the Divine Purpose (1959) JFR traveled by boat from Hamburg to Britain and then remained in Britain until September. Then the whole family (including Malcom) arrived back in New York from Liverpool, England, on the Mauretania in late September 1914.

Back in America, Malcom is mentioned in a letter JFR wrote in December 1914. It was written from Brooklyn but was looking for accommodation for his wife, Mary, in Florida for health reasons. He wrote that Mary had been in poor health for some years and the winters of New York were severe.   JFR mentions that they would be glad to have Malcom join her “provided he can get something to do to occupy his time and earn something to help pay expenses. He is a good stenographer and would do office work, but prefers something out of doors.” Working in southern fruit orchards was a possibility.

The following April (April 1915) we can assume the whole family had now relocated to California because Rutherford Snr. was involved in a well publicized debate with Baptist John H Troy in Los Angeles. Malcom was with him. The report of the debate in the May 1, 1915 Watch Tower, has JFR describing his son rendering assistance by his side.

                                                                                                                                            

In the wake of publicity given to the Rutherford-Troy debate, a Mrs Robertson of Boonville, was moved to write to the St Paul Enterprise newspaper. Her letter, dated August 1, 1915 spoke highly of Malcom.

On October 31, 1916 Pastor Russell died, and JFR was elected as president of the Watch Tower Society in January 1917. The news story from the St Paul Enterprise for January 16, 1917 (quoting in part from the Cincinnati Weekly Enquirer) gave a biography of JFR, with a paragraph that mentioned Malcom. Malcom’s previous occupations as “manservant” and “stenographer” are here given an enhanced title:

Malcom next appears in the record in 1917. America entered what became known as World War 1 on April 6, 1917, and the Selective Service Act of May 18, 1917 enforced conscription, as America’s armed forces were much too small for the purpose. Malcom’s draft registration card is available on genealogy sites, and provides several important details about him. First we have what the Ancestry website calls his “soldier photograph” taken on (or shortly after) 5 June 1917 when the draft commenced.

We do not have a birth certificate for Malcom, but the registration card confirms his birth date as November 10, 1892 (often mistranscribed as November 16 due to careless writing).  It states that he was 24 at the time, was currently single, and living in Los Angeles. He gave his occupation as book-keeper and clerk for H G Pangborn and Co. in Los Angeles. A notable fact is that Malcom claimed exemption from the draft on the grounds that he was a member of the International Bible Students Association.

 

Many readers will know that Malcom ultimately joined the army, but the circumstances that faced many Bible Students of the day need to be explained.

As noted above, the Selective Service Act of May 18, 1917 enforced conscription. There were ultimately three main registrations for the services in America. The first started on 5 June 1917, and was for all men between the ages of 21 and 31. This is when Malcom registered, had his photograph taken, and requested exemption.

The second registration was a catch-up in early 1918 for those who had subsequently reached age 21.  And then as the war dragged on, there was a third and far more inclusive call up in early September 1918 which extended the age range from between 18 through 45. Those previously registered but not as yet called up, like Malcom with his request for exemption, faced a worrying prospect. Malcom would now face a moment of truth and be asked to report.  He would already have needed to tell the authorities about his changed circumstances, since he was now a married man. But this time Malcom had to face the draft board.

General Pershing had pushed for more American troops to be sent to France. By August 1918 there were nearly 1,500,000 American troops there. Then came the September draft and by the time of the armistice of November 11, the number of American troops had passed the two million mark.

So it was on 10 September 1918 that Malcom faced the draft board, accepted conscription and was assigned to the Army.

We do not necessarily have to read too much into this. As the Proclaimers book states on page 191:

“During the war years, the circumstances in which individual Bible Students were thrust varied. The way they dealt with these situations also varied. Feeling obligated to obey “the powers that be,” as they referred to the secular rulers, some went into the trenches at the front with guns and bayonets. But having in mind the scripture, “Thou shalt not kill,” they would fire their weapons into the air or try simply to knock the weapon from the hands of an opponent.”

As a Bible Student Malcom would not have volunteered; however, in company with many others he would have obeyed the order to report to the draft board.

By this stage of the war and with the complication of the Finished Mystery being banned and JFR being in jail, Bible Students who were called up were being exhorted to obediently report for the draft but then request (or insist) on non-combatant service. (See: Watch Tower, May 15, 1918, page 158, and the American based article ‘Non-Combatant Service Defined.’) In some parts of the world like Germany, which made no provision for alternative service, this was a real problem as covered by the Proclaimers book quotation above. However, in America how you fared was a bit of a lottery. But we can assume that when Malcom responded he requested non-combatant service, and as a trained stenographer had a skill that could be readily used by the authorities.

It appears he was assigned to work at the Kern Draft Board in Bakersfield, California. Three months later and after the armistice he was transferred back to San Francisco prior to discharge. This information comes from a news item in the Bakersfield Morning Echo for December 5, 1918.

“Corporal Percy V. Lea and Corporal M.C. Rutherford, of the U.S. army, who have been assisting Kern Draft Boards Nos. 1 and 2 for the past three months, have been ordered to return to San Francisco and report to Board No. 13 in that county. They will probably be mustered out soon. The boys will leave for the north Saturday. The young soldiers have made many friends in the county, especially among the men called for the draft.”

1918 was an eventful year for Malcom. As well as serving in the army for three and a half months, as noted above, he also became a married man.

Pauline Short was born on August 12, 1896 in Missouri, the third daughter to Walter Short and Addie Reed. She and Malcom were married on March 28, 1918. Her pet name was Bobby. Within a few weeks of the wedding Malcom’s father had been arrested (on May 8) on the grounds of violating the Espionage Act and on June 20, 1918 sentenced to four counts of twenty years, to run concurrently.

One month later, on July 21, 1918, Malcom wrote his father a letter of support. It was long, over four thousand words, and showed Malcom’s continued commitment to the Bible Student faith with references to the Divine Plan and quotations from scripture, as well as indicating he was in association with other Bible Students. Understandably the letter is rather guarded in its comments and the bulk of it is about non-religious matters. Because of its historical interest, the whole letter is transcribed in one of the following articles.

The letter was published in full in the St Paul Enterprise on December 10, 1918.

This publication was nearly five months after the letter had been written. In the intervening time, Malcom had been called up, joined the services, and was awaiting demob which came on December 24, 1918.

In March 1919 JFR and his companions were released from prison, all charges were ultimately dropped, and a highly successful drive started with the September 1919 Cedar Point, Ohio, convention to revitalise the IBSA.

Malcom now disappears from the IBSA story, apart from the reference in the Proclaimers book, page 89, footnote:

“Brother Rutherford was survived by his wife, Mary, and their son, Malcolm. Because Sister Rutherford had poor health and found the winters in New York (where the Watch Tower Society’s headquarters were located) difficult to endure, she and Malcolm had been residing in southern California, where the climate was better for her health. “

Mary’s health problems and the advisability for a warm climate had already been stressed way back in JFR’s letter 1914 as reproduced above.

In the 1920 census Malcom and Pauline are living at 124 Eastlake Avenue, Assembly District 66, Los Angeles. His mother, Mary Rutherford, is living at 128 North Eastlake Avenue, which appears to be the same street and was actually Malcom’s given address when he completed his draft registration card as a single person in June 1917. The census return on this one occasion describes Malcom’s occupation as an attorney. However, all other directories and census returns describe his occupation as a court clerk. This was still quite prestigious in the Los Angeles Court system, and in 1954 he received an award for thirty year’s service. From the Daily Post and Monrovia News-Post for 7 May 1954, page 12:

A service pin. Wow!

When JFR died in 1942 the obituaries mentioned his surviving relatives as Mary and Malcom.  For example, from the Philadelphia Inquirer for January 11, 1942:

Malcom seems to have left the religion of his parents by the 1920s. The Californian Voters Registration index from 1924 onwards consistently registers him as a Republican. But it also appears that he remained in touch with all his family.

In 1938 Malcom and Pauline were on the same ship as JFR and Bethel associates Matthew Howlett and Berta Peale. Malcom and Pauline had gone to Hawaii at the end of April 1938, perhaps for a vacation, but then on the return trip joined JFR on the S.S. Mariposa at Hawaii, arriving back in San Franscisco on May 16, 1938. The graphic shows the younger Rutherfords and Berta Peale among the first class passengers. The “DO” stands for ditto and refers to the parties as being from and domiciled in the USA. JFR was returning from a visit to Australia.

Then in 1944, after JFR’s death, Malcom, Pauline and Mary, were all together. According to the 1944 Monrovia City Directory Malcom C Rutherford (clerk) and Pauline S Rutherford were living at 159 Stedman Place, Monrovia. At the same address is Mary Rutherford widow of J F Rutherford. This was Mary’s home so Malcom and Pauline have moved in with her. This is an address we will come back to later. Mary was to live on until 1962 and her obituary mentions her continued association with Jehovah’s Witnesses. From the Proclaimers book, page 89 footnote:

“Sister Rutherford died December 17, 1962, at the age of 93. Notice of her death, appearing in the Monrovia, California, Daily News-Post, stated: “Until poor health confined her to her home, she took an active part in the ministerial work of Jehovah’s Witnesses.”

The news item was picked up by the Boonville Advertiser on February 15, 1963:

"Word has been received here of the recent death of Mrs. Mary Rutherford, 93, former resident of Boonville, who had made her home in Monrovia, Calif., for the past 40 years…Surviving are a son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm C. Rutherford, of Arcadia, Calif. Paul L. Sergeants, minister of the Arcadia, Calif., Jehovah's Witnesses, officiated at the funeral service.”

However, by 1963 it was a different Mrs. Malcolm C. Rutherford, but we will come to that later.

Malcom and Pauline’s decades in Los Angeles and Monrovia occasionally made the news. In 1924 there was a legal case, when a financial judgment on a foreclosure of a mortgage was granted against them.

Then in 1929 Pauline was chosen for jury service in a high profile case. A Rev. R P Shuler was charged with criminally libelling the Knights of Columbus. The newspapers took a group photograph of the whole jury. From the Los Angeles Times for February 28, 1929:

From that we can extract the one known published photograph of Pauline Rutherford, Malcom’s wife, when she was 32. The quality from a microfilmed newspaper is poor, but grateful thanks is due to Bernhard who worked on it to produce a color version.

For the record, the Shuler jury became deadlocked on 10-2 for acquittal, so under the legal rules that applied, a mistrial was declared.

Pauline was later heavily involved in the Monrovian Women’s Club over 1944 and 1945, and her name is frequently listed with many others in the local newspaper as attending their various activities. Unless being chairman of the tea committee has special significence it has little relevance here, except to show that the Rutherfords were local and Pauline filled her time with community activities.

Pauline was to die quite young at the age of 52 on August 29, 1948. Notice of her death (which also confirms her pet name Bobby) appeared in the Los Angeles Times for August 31, 1948.

(Pauline) Bobby’s grave marker (next to Malcom’s) reads…

Malcom was to remarry. His second wife was Eleanor.

Some genealogical sources say he married his second wife in 1950, but none give any primary source references for this. However, this date is about right. It can easily be established that when the 1950 votor’s list was prepared early in that year, Malcom was still on his own. But by the time of the 1952 Monrovia Street directory, he was married to Eleanor.

There is some confusion about Eleanor and her background. Her grave marker (like Bobby she is also buried with Malcom) is misleading. But the key to finding the right family is a funeral notice from 1968.

We mentioned above that Mary, Malcom’s mother, lived until 1962. Her address was 159 Stedman Place. It would appear that Malcom as her only offspring inherited the property when she died and moved in, because this is given as his address in the 1966 Monrovia City Directory.

The address also features in the funeral notice below. From the Monrovia News-Post for May 16, 1968:

So we have Esther Brown, her daughter Eleanor Rutherford of Monrovia, her grandson, Jack W Nedell of Mexico City, and then two unnamed great-grandchildren. And the address ensures we have the right Eleanor Rutherford.

Esther Brown (1878-1968) had been married to Frank C Brown (1873-1941) and they had a daughter Eleanor Frances Brown, born in Oregen in 1904. Eleanor married Jacques (Jack) Stanley Nedell in 1927. They had one child, Jacques (Jack) William Franklin Nedell, who was born in September 1928. The marriage did not last. By the 1940 census the Nedells were divorced. Their only child, Jack W Nedell, was himself married in 1951, by which time his mother was very likely the second Mrs Rutherford.

Esther Brown, as an old lady of around 90 years, seems to have been living with Malcom and Eleanor in the former home of Malcom’s mother at the time of her death. Malcom and Eleanor continued at the same address until at least 1970. From the 1970 Monrovia City Directory:

Eleanor reportedly died in June 1979. Her grave marker reads:

As noted above there is an issue with this marker. It says she was born in 1914. However, all the other evidence from the records and family history sources says that should be 1904. The problem with grave markers is that the one person who can verify the information is not there to do so, but even so, ten years out (although just one digit for a stone mason or engraver) is a significent error.

Malcom lived to be 96, and died in 1989.

His grave marker reads:

The three of them are buried together in the Glendale cemetery. In Vesperland Lot 1293, Bobby is in space one, and Eleanor and Malcom are in space two. The grave markers from left to right are:

BOBBY RUTHERFORD   

BELOVED WIFE

1896 – 1948  

ELEANOR F. RUTHERFORD   

IN LOVNG MEMORY

1914 – 1979  

MALCOM CAMERON RUTHERFORD   

IN LOVING MEMORY

1892 – 1989  

One final mystery is who supplied the stones? The ones for Malcom and Eleanor certainly look as if they match and were placed there at the same time. That would be some years after Eleanor’s death. Malcom had no surviving Rutherford relatives, so it may well be that someone from Eleanor’s family was responsible. If Malcom had been too poor to afford a stone, then the army would have provided one for him as a veteran, but his marker is one that was bought and paid for.

Footnote on Malcom’s military service

Malcom’s army service started on September 10, 1918, and he was discharged on December 24, 1918. As a result, he stayed on the military records, as all this information about his war enlistment comes from the US Department of Veteran Affairs BIRLS deaths file, 1850-2010.  This file records that he was assigned to the ARMY and gives both his date of birth (10 November 1892) and date of death (22 June 1989). It also confirms his enlistment and discharge dates. Unfortunately, 80% of US army records for World War 1 were destroyed in a fire in 1973, and the 20% surviving are not readily accessible. However, as noted in the article, he appears to have worked at a draft office in California during this time.

Note from an official site: The BIRLS (Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem) Death File is a Veterans Benefits Administration database that lists the names of deceased individuals who had received benefits from the Veterans Administration while they were alive. These include veterans who received educational benefits and veterans’ survivors who applied for benefits.

I do not know what benefits Malcom may have received during his lifetime.

2 - Malcom in the Manna

Daily Heavenly Manna for the Household of Faith and Birthday Record was published in 1907 and contained the equivilent of a day’s text and comments, alongside blank pages allowing for the addition of Bible Student autographs and addressses on their relevant birthdays. Old copies are highly collectable, not generally for the books themselves but for the autographs found inside them. You need no further proof that Malcom Rutherford considered himself a Bible Student than to find he had voluntarily signed one of these books.

Collector Mike C, who has nearly 40 copies of this book at last counting, kindly searched and found me Malcom’s name in a Manna belonging to Edward Brenneisen, a Bible Student with a high profile at the time.

His copy of the Manna has the inscription: “To Bro E.W. Brenneison with Christian love of the class at Vancouver, B.C. Sept – 11^th 1907.” It is one of the 40^th thousand edition, which means an early printing for a Manna.

Edward William Brenneisen (1874-1956), pictured above with CTR, was a Bible Student who stayed with the Watch Tower Society. He worked for the W B Conkey Co. printing company, which among other projects printed Angels and Women in 1924. The spelling of his name later evolved into Brenisen.

Malcom’s signature is found on his birth date, November 10.  Here is the entry:

A closer look at the four signatures in this copy has Malcom as the fourth.

We can try and enhance the signature to make it more readable as the ink has faded.

We can now see that he signed as M C Rutherford, Boonville, ’92.

Malcom’s mother Mary’s signature is in the same book on her birthdate (August 17). JFR is not there, but as he was away on Pilgrim work from June 1907 it was more than likely that Mary and Malcom attended some function, a meeting, a convention, on their own, and there signed Brenneisen’s Manna.

If by signing ‘Boonville’ Malcom was indicating where they were based, then this autograph dates from between 1907 when the book was published and 1909, at which point they all moved to Brooklyn. By the 1910 census they were all living in the Brooklyn Bethel. As it happened, Edward Brenneisen was there in that census too.

3 - A son's letter

The Bible Student’s unofficial newspaper the St Paul Enterprise published a letter from Malcom Rutherford to his father in December 1918.

The letter shows a family closeness and a fondness for scripture and “the Divine Plan.” Malcom was obviously in association with the Bible Students because he had just recently been at a meeting where he heard “Brother Howlett” speak about the situation. The whole letter is somewhat guarded in tone, since his father, Joseph F Rutherford was now in prison and the war hysteria that put him there was still rampant in American society. (Spelling and punctuation are as the original.)

A greater part of the letter details how a trip through the Mojave Desert (Death Valley) nearly ended in disaster. It is extremely detailed, showing Malcom to have a good command of the English language, but with a tendency common for the era of using two words where even one was superfluous. It is so detailed, blow by blow, that he either took detailed notes on the journey, or had an exceptional memory, or just used “creative license” for some of it.

It is interesting to note that the letter was dated July 21, 1918, only a month after JFR was sentenced to twenty years in jail. However, it was not published until nearly five months later, in the December 10, 1918, issue of the St Paul Enterprise (on page 4). Whether Malcom’s father, JFR held it back, or whether that was down to the editor of the St Paul Enterprise, is not known. What IS known is that Malcolm married Pauline Short on March 28, 1918 in Los Angeles, and after writing this letter, and having previously requested exemption from the draft on the grounds of IBSA membership, he accepted conscription and joined the army on September 10, 1918.

(transcript)

Voices of the People, or What our Readers Say

These are Our Readers’ Columns for the Fair, Free and Frank Expression of all Matters of Spiritual Interest.

TOUCHING EXRESSIONS OF LOVE.

Thrilling Experiences Depicted by a Son, and written to Cheer and Lighten Burdens of a Father.

Los Angeles, Cal., July 21, 1918.

My dear Father:

How strange it seems to be addressing you at present, and still in other ways it does not seem so much so, because we knew from statements in the Divine Plan and Word that “all these things must come to pass.” So we sorrow not as others, surely believing that all these experiences are working out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, and are among the “all things” that work together for good to those who love God, and who are called according to his purpose.

We have received all of your letters, from the beginning of the present situation to your departure from Washington, and wonderful letters they were, so full of the spirit of the Master and of submission to His will. Their spirit and your attitude toward the severe trials you were enduring and expected to endure were a real inspiration to us, and I can see how, even in the midst of present afflictions, you and the dear brethren are really happy. Because “greater is He that is on our part than all that can be against us,” and regardless of what our loyalty to the Divine Plan leads us into, we surely know that God’s laws are higher than man’s laws, even as the heavens are higher that the earth. And with a proper submission to both, we need not fear what man is able to do unto us, for our Lord has said, “Fear not him who is able to kill the body, but rather Him that is able to destroy both body and soul; yea, I say, fear (reverence) ye Him.”

During the trial various newspaper reports were received and opinions and conjectures were numerous, but we took no stock in anything that we did not get direct from you, and then, at last, we learned that there has been a short termination of the case and that the present situation would result. It must have been a remarkable witness to all – the spirit manifested by those on trial. Brother Howlett spoke here last Sunday night and told some of the experiences in the court room, the departure of the brethren after the sentence to the marshal’s office, of the meeting there of the families of those convicted, and the subsequent removal to prison. His remarks made a profound impression on all, and I know we were not the only ones, because we have seen articles in Eastern papers commenting in like manner. He told about the journey to Washington and the kindly attitude manifested by the officers, and that it was the first time in history that prisoners had been removed to Atlanta without being handcuffed, or the officers required to use their guns to force submission. It does seem peculiar that seven brethren were convicted, at noon on the longest day of the year, when the sun for a moment reached its zenith and waned. Then the dungeon experience, and the removal to Atlanta on a day when a national celebration was in progress. From the human standpoint all these incidents may seem ridiculous and absurd, but to us they mean a great deal, and surely indicate to our minds that prophecy is being fulfilled, and that when these experiences come about, then the time of our deliverance is nigh, and we can lift up our heads and rejoice. In reading some of the prophecies of Jeremiah, many of us are inclined to think that present conditions parallel his experiences, nad (sic) no doubt that book contains far more of the Plan that is apparent to the casual reader and observer.

Our experiences during the past weeks have been varied and numerous. In the swirl of events - new situations and old ones pending, the weeks have seemed more like months, but in the midst of it all we have tried to be calm, fully submissive to the Divine Will and endeavoring at all times to seek His guidance, and so, we with others are going down the stream of time, realizing what a wonderful time it is in which to live and that subsequent to present stress, “A better day IS coming.” Present bitter experiences have surely straightened our faith, caused us to stand by one another all the more and to sympathize with one another more fully. Surely it is a time when everything that can be shaken will be shaken, and there is no longer any intermediate ground. The Scriptures tell us that brethren will hate one another and betray one another, and we have evidences of this too.

But in the midst of it all we have been happy, and have not neglected opportunities to take a little proper pleasure and recreation. On the 4^th of July, Pauline and I, her mother and father, Marguerite and the little fellow, spent the day in Tujunga Canyon. We left about 9 o’clock in the morning, had a nice drive up the Arroyo, and after leaving the new concrete highway had only a few miles to get down into a nice part of the canyon, where we parked the car and walked a short distance ahead and prepared to spend the day under the shade of the trees, by the mountain stream, and under the lee of the cliffs. Pauline and I went in wading, and later tried to walk up the road a piece. It was an amusing incident. Not being accustomed to going barefoot, the rocks hurt our feet something fierce, and the ground was so hot that we would run a short distance and then hurriedly sit down and hold them off the ground, or carry a bunch of small branches and stand on them. When the sun was beginning to dent the rock-rimmed skyline, we departed and arrived in Los Angeles in time to go to Eastlake Park, take a look around, listen to the band, and then return to our place here and have a few firecrackers and inexpensive fireworks – reminders of actual childhood days that seem far back in the distance past.

Not knowing what had been removed from Soda, and being rather handicapped in sending others up to look at what I did not know for sure was there, we thought best for me to take a turn up at the first opportunity and make a new inventory. Last Monday night Pauline and I met Sam in town, got to talking about the matter, and he stated that he would take us up in his Ford for a very reasonable sum. There was a lull for a few days on account of waiting to hear about the stage line decision, so we decided to go in the morning, and at once hurried preparations to get together a few simple articles of food for the trip. Tuesday morning at 5:30 saw us starting. At San Bernardino we had breakfast, went up over the pass, stopped at Victorville for a drink, and went on to Barstow. Here we loaded up on gas and water, and with Sam at the wheel, started on our second half of the journey across that 125 miles of desolation. We found new road signs placed by the U.S. Geological Department, and these were a welcome contrast to the weather-beaten boards we found over a year ago. For hours we crawled along over the typical desert road, and sunset found us climbing the long slope from “Bean Soup” Lake (so named previously) to the fourth summit on the trip, and about twilight, we reached the junction point where one road goes north to Cave Springs, and the other goes directly to Silver Lake. The Silver Lake Road Sam referred to as being like a chute the chutes, or a roller coaster, on account of its rolling surface, and as the machine bounced over it intermittently up and down almost without a pause, we thought the sensation quite similar only it was pretty rough, and we had to hang on. At 8:30 we stopped for supper. Sam and I stretched out on the sand and used the running board of the car for a table. It was a wonderful night, a soaring half moon lighting the vast expanse of sand and sage brush, tinging the tips of the volcanic spurs, and a warm breeze was the only sound that broke the silence. We figured that we would reach the camp in about four hours from this point. When we started a half hour later, we all took a drink and Sam poured the remains of the water into the radiator. We had insisted on taking a 5-gallon can of water, but Sam thought otherwise, and we did not feel like bossing the job, since it was not our car. The machine rolled and plunged over the rough road for an hour or more, and then just beyond a sign, it took a sudden turn and a rapid descent began, into what appeared in the darkness to be a canyon. The hot blasts of air that soon struck us indicated that we were headed for a lower level, and worst of all, we could neither identify nor remember this road. Some distance down we stopped, turned around in the sand with considerable difficulty and managed to get back to the summit. Thinking we had taken the wrong road, that the right one should lead along the summit of the ridge. But back at the starting point we did find two faint tracks in the sand, and these only ran about 50 feet and turned back into the course we had already taken, so we knew we would have to retrace our steps. We did so, and a little farther on, all trace of a road disappeared and we found ourselves going over sage brush and rocks in a widening wash that led continually downward. When further progress seemed impossible, we stopped for the night. Pauline stayed in the machine, Sam slept on the ground a short distance away, and I laid down alongside the machine. It was a hot night and no cover was needed. Then dark clouds arose to blot out the radiant track of the moon, shadows deepened in the canyon, and soon only the stars appeared in the vast vault above, and through the sage brush a strong wind howled mournfully. Having slept little or none, Pauline and I were stirring before sunrise, and looking down the wash which seems to stretch away into the interminable distance, we were surprised to see a man approaching. It was Sam. Being concerned as to where we were, and in an endeavor to find a road, he had wandered down the wash during the night, and unable to find his way back to the machine, had laid down and slept where he was and retraced his course at daybreak. We were terribly thirsty, but there was no water, and very little in the radiator. In a further endeavor to get our bearings, we went down the wash, climbed one of the ragged cliffs and anxiously searched that vast, silent void of desert and mountain for landmarks. Conjectures as to the location of Silver Lake and Soda were numerous, and at last we practically admitted that we were lost. Then the sun rose and the temperature changed from a sultry heat to a fierce blast that increased every moment. Sam suggested to drain the water out of the radiator into the canteen and start over the range and try to find our destination. This idea was abandoned and we determined to make an effort to get back to the summit. So we packed up, took a mouthful of the dirty water out of the radiator, and then the machine began its climb up the wash to the summit, and over the rolling course back to the signs and the junction point previously mentioned. I am sure three people never watched as carefully as we did for any road that might lead off from the one we were retracing, but none appeared. At the junction point we held another parley. There was no water to drink, the machine had only enough to go a few miles farther, we had been on the only road pointing to Silver Lake and could not find it. The last resort was to go in search of Cave Springs, five miles north. Then the machine made another desperate effort to get through the sandy road, and two miles up on the Cave Springs road we came across the remains of an abandoned mine. Sam thought sure the direction was right for Silver Lake and had identified landmarks up to that point, but the mine threw us off, and there was no water in sight.

Two miles farther we came to the head of another canyon, and the road leading down to this, or rather what had been a road before it was washed out, was so rocky and steep that to descend it seemed almost impossible, and Sam stated that with the water in the radiator nearly gone, if we ever got down, we could never get out again. He suggested that we fill the canteen with what was left and try that direction for Silver Lake. But weakened from loss of sleep, no water, and in the terrible glare and heat, Pauline and I did not feel equal to it, and we knew that Silver Lake lay some miles distant, in some direction, provided we could ever find it. To retrace our steps to any known spring was over 30 miles. If we went down the canyon wth the machine and found no water, we could not get out, so I think at heart we felt we were up against it in every way, and in the midst of the awful desolation and silence, I am inclined to think some dark pictures arose in our minds. Something had to be done, and at last, resigned to our fate, whatever it might be, we started in the machine down that winding, dangerous road into a narrow, rock-ribbed canyon. A mile and a half, or more, down the canyon, at a turn in the road, some willow trees came into view, and as we approached some doves flew out. “That means there’s water near,” said Sam, and we hardly whether to grasp it as a hope or not, because we knew what it meant if we did not find the springs. A short distance ahead I jumped out and started on the run for what appeared to be a spring walled in. It was simply a shelter, but arund another turn a sign appeared, and before I reached it I noticed the direction it pointed, and very plainly the sign, “Cave Springs.” The silence of that barren, rocky cavern was rent with a volley of whoops and a concentrated rush in the direction of the sign; and there in a niche in the rocks was a nice cool spring. The surface was covered with bird feathers and bits of sage brush, but by brushing this aside we could get clean water, and it seemed comparatively pure. The surroundings were quite unusal. It was a little rock cavern, not over a hundred feet long, very irregular, and in an easterly direction we could look down a long slope into the southern end of Death Valley – a weird, glistening, blinding patch of sand and alkali, a thousand feet or more below, bordered on the eastern side by the hazy, purple tinged mountains of the Panamint Range. On the south side of the cavern we found numerous holes in the conglomerate rock, remains of stone houses, or rather small rooms that had doubtless sheltered prospectors in the long ago, and one little dug-out, resembling a prospect hole, afforded shade and rest even in the hottest part of the day. It was just about noon when we arrived, and the sun blazed and scorched like an oven, but in the shade of the rocks we rested, ate a good lunch, had plenty of water to drink, and without much comment realized that perhaps the finding of the water prevented a desert tragedy, because Silver Lake is far south of Death Valley, and had we not found the spring and gone in that direction, I would not care to imagine the consequences. We poured the contents of our 5-gallon can into the fuel tank and filled this with water. Our vacuum bottle which had contained buttermilk on the way out, was also filled to say nothing of ourselves, and when it came to stocking up there was no limitation. Feeling now that we were prepared for a siege, we bade farewell to our oasis and the terrible valley below and began that fierce climb out. With the motor racing on lowfgear the machine grabbed and plunged and fought its way to the top of the canyon over the rocks and shade that just about tore the tires to pieces. Then we went back to the junction point, and seeing nothing else to do, again went back over the road that we had retraced – the only one indicated by the signs as being the Silver Lake route. Every foot of it was watched carefully for a road leading south, which we were sure was the right direction. Then we gave up entirely and quit conjecturing, and with an outburst of laughter Sam and I admitted that we were sure “horned.” Here another situation presented itself. We had been over this road, down the canyon the night before – twice – had been to the place where the road disappeared entirely. What was the use of going back there again. And if we did go and could not find Silver Lake, we would not have enough gasoline to get back to Barstow. We went as far as we dared – to the summit of the canyon, and here Sam and I climbed out to one of the nearby rocky points in a final attempt to get our bearings. And there, far ahead and below, beyond where we had stopped, stretching away across the sand waste like a tiny yellow thread, a road appeared, topped the distant sand dune, turned south, and beyond that and between two mountains, we made out what we determined to be Silver Lake. Still another range remained to be crossed.

Back at the machine a further discussion was held. Out in that land of mirages and treacherous canyons, we might be off. If we went down there and did not find our town, we would not get back on account of gasoline, and there was a grave danger of the tires giving out at any time, and if they did, it was simply impossible to go over the rough passages on the rim. But we finally agreed to it, and for the fifth time went over that stretch leading down into the wash, and there, not over 20 feet from where we had stopped during the night, we found a faint trace of a road. Quite a bit of it had been wiped out entirely, and this had thrown us off. This new course led down to the wash and finally into the long stretch across the valley, and holding on with both hands and our breath for fear the tires would let go any minute, we went after it. An hour and a half later we circled the rim of the sand dune and dropped down into Silver Lake, got a drink of soda, some food, and just at dark pulled into camp. It was a hot night. Sam and I went in the pool in an endeavor to cool off. We slept on cots out on the screen porch, where the hot wind nearly blew us to pieces. In the morning we made the rounds, looked over the place, posted signs, inspected the wagon, took a last look and at 2 o’clock started on the homeward trip.

At Silver Lake we again stocked on eats, gasolone and water, and the next big proposition was to get across that valley and up the wash without the tires failing. Out of the Silver Lake the sand was so deep that not even the bloomin’ Ford would pull it, and Pauline and I had to push the outfit. But we got back – to the summit, the roller coaster country too, and at dark reached our calculated destination – Garlick Springs, where we camped for the night. Here, on the road, is a nice spring, a little corral, a watering trough, and a little shack that is visited occasionally by its owner. We had a little campfire, fried some bacon and had a simple meal. And then we lay with our faces to the sky, with its myriads of bright stars and the soaring moon; there in the heart of the desert where the grim mountains watched like silent specters and the cool night breeze swept down to lull us to sleep. There in the midst of the elements that God made and glorified, far from the haunts of human institutions, selfishness and strife, what a contrast it seemed, and I know that little experience led us all to a greater appreciation of one another and particularly the One whose power hath for so long blessed us and who surely led us on, over the desolate places where death lurked, and where dangers lured. Somehow it reminded me of the journey of life – the desert experiences as well as the bright spots along the way, and of the power ever near, supreme yet silent as the elements, watching, guiding, keeping guard over us. It brought to mind the beautiful words of the Psalmist: “O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thoughts afar off. Thou compasseth my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, surely the darkness shall cover me, even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike unto thee.”

The following morning we arose, rather glad to stir ourselves because the last hours were rather cold, and packed our stuff again for the last lap of the journey. Without a mishap we reached Barstow, then on to Victorville, down the pass, and at 7:30 arrived at Los Angeles. Thus ended the most interesting, rough and dangerous trip we have ever taken. The few photographs I am enclosing may be of interest to you.

Mother states she hopes to be in Atlanta soon, and that she will be permitted to see you occasionally. I wish this might be my privilege also, but for the present this seems impossible. Perhaps in the course of events and the outworking of Divine Providence we may see each other face to face, but even if this is not possible, then we are resigned to whatever the situation may be, knowing that a greater purpose is being accomplished.

“Lord, tho hast been our dwelling place in all generation. Before the mountains were brought forth, or even thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting thou art God. So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom, and let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us; and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it. There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. Peace I leave with you, my peace give I unto you, let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty and dominion and power, both now and forever.”

With a special prayer for your comfort, blessing and guidance, and a like expression of love and sympathy for all of the dear brethren with you in bonds, I am, as ever,

Your most devoted son,

MALCOLM RUTHERFORD

4 - Malcom's Bible

(with grateful thanks to Brian, current owner of the book, who provided the graphics from it along with other useful input acknowledged below)

Several decades ago a Bible Student came across a Holman’s Linear Bible (c. 1902 with ZWT references) in a book resale shop in Van Nuys, California. It was in very poor condition, but she noted a picture of Pastor Russell that a previous owner had pasted inside the cover. This prompted the purchase and the volume was subsequently rebound.

It now appears that this Bible had once belonged to Malcom Rutherford, the only son of Joseph Franklin and Mary Rutherford. After the death of his second wife, Eleanor, Malcom spent his last years in that area. (He and both his wives are buried side by side in the Forest Park Memorial Cemetery, Glendale, Los Angeles County, California.)

The link with this Bible to the Rutherford family starts with the picture of CTR pasted inside the book. The picture has been cut from a magazine or paper and has been much folded and taped together before being attached. It is a portrait that was regularly used in convention reports c. 1905-1907.  Just above the picture are two small scripture paste-ins, the kind of thing regularly found in Manna books of the era. One was for a Sister Boerger and the other for a Sister Rutherford.

The sticker on the right is addressed “Dear brother Rutherford” and signed “sister Boerger.” The sticker on the left is addressed to “sister Boerger” and signed “sister Rutherford.”

We do not know who “Sister Boerger” was. There was an Annie Boerger who wrote a filler for the August 2, 1922, Golden Age magazine. But whether she had any connection with the Sister Boerger in the Holman Bible is not known.

However, the key names are Brother and Sister Rutherford.

A close check on the flyleaf where one would expect to find the owner’s name yields three names. They are actually very faint and were written in pencil. Either someone has tried to erase them or they have just faded with age. However, modern photographic technique has been able to restore the names, and I am very grateful to the present owner of the volume, Brian K, who has achieved this.

The three names are:  J. F. Rutherford, Mary M. Rutherford, and M. C. Rutherford.

It would have been nice if all the three names were original signatures, but this is not the case. We have J. F. Rutherford’s signature from a personal letter written in 1914, and this is a different hand.

We do not have Mary Rutherford’s signature (unless it is on the paste-in). However, we do have examples of Malcom’s signature. From his WW1 draft registration document in 1917 this is how he signed his name.

Moving forward in time this is how he signed his registration document for WW2 in 1942.

All the names in the Holman Bible are in the same hand. Brian sent me a comprehensive analysis of the handwriting, and is confident that this is in Malcom’s own hand. I have no reason to doubt this.

So, the area where the Bible surfaced, the stickers naming Brother and Sister Rutherford, the names of the three members of the Rutherford family on the flyleaf and a handwriting comparison indicates that this was most likely Malcom’s own Bible.

But why would Malcom keep this Bible, since he did not stay with his parents’ religion? We must remember that Malcom was a Bible Student for a number of years. As noted in previous articles he signed a Manna and was working in Brooklyn Bethel with both parents at the age of 17 in 1910. He travelled from Liverpool, UK, to the United States on the Lusitania in 1911 as “Pastor Russell’s manservant.” The same year he appeared in the convention report as one of CTR’s stenographers. He was stenographer for his father in the Rutherford-Troy debates in Los Angeles in 1915. When first submitting his draft papers in 1917 he claimed exemption on the grounds that he was a member of the International Bible Students Association. When his father was jailed he wrote a long letter of support published in the St Paul Enterprise newspaper at end of 1918. And although he eventually ceased to be an active Bible student he remained in contact with both his parents.

The Holman Linear Bible with ZWT references was published in 1902. Malcom would have been only 10 then, and his parents only fully embraced the faith later. So the Bible could have been a gift from CTR back in the day. It could have first belonged to Malcom’s parents or just his mother. Since he lived with his mother for a while he could have inherited it from her, even as late as her death in 1962. There are all sorts of possibilities, some more credible than others, but on present evidence we just don’t know. If we could find the mysterious “Sister Boerger” it might help, but that would only give us a rough date for the stickers that bear her name, not when they were added to the volume as it now is. And there may have been more subtle evidences of provenance removed when the volume was rebound.

If only for nostalgic family reasons one can imagine Malcom keeping the Bible. But then in extreme old age or after he died, the Bible ended up in a resale shop. But for those who love books and who loved history, it is good to know that it has been rediscovered and still survives.