Regeneration | Page 2

wants and regenerating their spirits upon
the plain and simple lines laid down in the New Testament. He would
find, also, that this humble effort, at first quite unaided, has been so
successful that the results seem to partake of the nature of the
miraculous.
Thus he would learn that the religious Organization founded by this
man and his wife is now established and, in most instances, firmly
rooted in 56 Countries and Colonies, where it preaches the Gospel in
33 separate languages: that it has over 16,000 Officers wholly
employed in its service, and publishes 74 periodicals in 20 tongues,
with a total circulation of nearly 1,000,000 copies per issue: that it
accommodates over 28,000 poor people nightly in its Institutions,
maintaining 229 Food Dépôts and Shelters for men, women, and
children, and 157 Labour Factories where destitute or characterless
people are employed: that it has 17 Homes for ex-criminals, 37 Homes
for children, 116 Industrial Homes for the rescue of women, 16 Land
Colonies, 149 Slum Stations for the visitation and assistance of the
poor, 60 Labour Bureaux for helping the unemployed, and 521 Day
Schools for children: that, in addition to all these, it has Criminal and

General Investigation Departments, Inebriate Homes for men and
women, Inquiry Offices for tracing lost and missing people, Maternity
Hospitals, 37 Homes for training Officers, Prison-visitation Staffs, and
so on almost ad infinitum.
He would find, also, that it collects and dispenses an enormous revenue,
mostly from among the poorer classes, and that its system is run with
remarkable business ability: that General Booth, often supposed to be
so opulent, lives upon a pittance which most country clergymen would
refuse, taking nothing, and never having taken anything, from the funds
of the Army. And lastly, not to weary the reader, that whatever may be
thought of its methods and of the noise made by the 23,000 or so of
voluntary bandsmen who belong to it, it is undoubtedly for good or evil
one of the world forces of our age.
Before going further, it may, perhaps, be well that I should explain how
it is that I come to write these pages. First, I ought to state that my
personal acquaintance with the Salvation Army dates back a good
many years, from the time, indeed, when I was writing 'Rural England,'
in connexion with which work I had a long and interesting interview
with General Booth that is already published. Subsequently I was
appointed by the British Government as a Commissioner to investigate
and report upon the Land Colonies of the Salvation Army in the United
States, in the course of which inquiry I came into contact with many of
its Officers, and learned much of its system and methods, especially
with reference to emigration. Also I have had other opportunities of
keeping in touch with the Army and its developments.
In the spring of 1910 I was asked, on behalf of General Booth, whether
I would undertake to write for publication an account of the Social
Work of the Army in this country. After some hesitation, for the lack of
time was a formidable obstacle to a very busy man, I assented to this
request, the plan agreed upon being that I should visit the various
Institutions, or a number of them, etc., and record what I actually saw,
neither more nor less, together with my resulting impressions. This I
have done, and it only remains for me to assure the reader that the
record is true, and, to the best of his belief and ability, set down without
fear, favour, or prejudice, by one not unaccustomed to such tasks.
Almost at the commencement of my labours I sought an interview with
General Booth, thinking, as I told him and his Officers (the Salvation

Army is not mealy-mouthed about such matters) that at his age it would
he well to set down his views in black and white. On the whole, I found
him well and vigorous. He complained, however, of the difficulty he
was experiencing, owing to the complete loss of sight in one eye,
occasioned by an accident during a motor journey, and the possible
deprivation of the sight of the other through cataract.
Of the attacks that have been and are continually made upon the
Salvation Army, some of them extremely bitter, General Booth would
say little. He pointed out that he had not been in the habit of defending
himself and his Organization in public, and was quite content that the
work should speak for itself. Their affairs and finances had been
investigated by eminent men, who 'could not find a sixpence out of
place'; and for the rest, a balance-sheet was published annually. This
balance-sheet for the year ending September 30, 1909, I reprint in an
appendix.[1]