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One
Hundred Years Hence
by Captain W.W.
Winchell
We reckon that very
few if any readers have heard of, let alone read One Hundred
Years Hence, a fascinating prophectic study by Winchell in
1884 in which he imagines the world a century later (1994).
Tyler Boenecke, USA National Archives of The Salvation Army,
along with Jessica Bryant, graduate of the Vancouver War
College transcribed the original (low quality) pdf file.
It is provocative, disturbing, challenging, and thrilling, in
turn. Read it, share it, study it, apply it. We'll
likely be blogging on its contents for awhile...
To the Morning Edition of the “War Cry”
- Chicago, Dec 23, 1994 A.D.
Dear Editor: Last evening I took from my
library an old musty book. It treated upon the history of
reformation. I looked at the title page, and found the date of
it’s publication to be in 1885 A.D. From some thoughts
suggested in the perusal of this book, I hardly think I could
select a more appropriate subject for a New Year’s article to
our great daily (with it’s morning circulation of 12,500,000
in Chicago alone) than this:
“A Retrospect of the past century”
I find it was just 100 years ago our dear
old Army Father, General William Booth, celebrated his year of
Jubilee in the service of his Master. As my mind reflected
back to those days of yore, how I longed that I might have
been there to receive inspiration from his tongue of fire and
had the privilege to shaking heads with that grandeur of old
men! I sometimes wish I could have lived in those days to
fight under his leadership and helped to win those victories
that give us those happy days of God’s universal grace.
His trip to America and those six months
made up of days and nights of toil and travel, would have
broken down many strong men in the prime of life, especially
(in that) he was compelled to travel in those cumbersome old
steamships across the Atlantic, and then to travel between
meetings by the old Pullman’s sleeper, with all its
inconveniences. Then too, there were attached to that trip on
the old fashioned steam railroads all the dangers caused by an
awkward system and perilous times. But he braved this journey
for his Master’s sake, even at the age of sixty-six.
It meant a great stroke for the salvation
of the race and the ushering in of this golden age in which we
now live when that aged veteran, whose bent and worn frame,
toward about by … many hard-ships, did this. That little
Salvation Army, with it’s field officers, numbering then only
11,000, assisted by only 2,000,000 soldiers scattered about
the earth, would seem to us as only a mere dot on the face of
the earth, but in spite of them, the so-called men of that day
were just opening their eyes to the fact that that little,
dispersed Army had in it the nucleus of a great social and
spiritual reformation. Little did they dream that the
reformation meant revolution, that it was destined to turn the
world upside down and right side up; let it figuratively
speaking stand on its feet, instead of its head, where the
devil had put it. As one write describes: “Society was a
pyramid poised on its apex. All the gravitations of human
nature were constantly tending to topple it over, and it could
hardly be maintained upright – or rather, upwrong- by an
elaborate system of constantly renewing props, buttresses and
guys in the form of laws. Thank God society now rests upon its
base and is in as little need of artificial support as the
everlasting hills!
It was these principles derived from the
word of God, guarded by the Holy Spirit and taught and
exercised and fought out, by our early revolutionary Salvation
sires that put the world properly on the Rock of Ages in its
right attitude to God. At the time the General made his trip
to America, The Salvation Army was menaced by the subtle
powers that have overthrown or weakened great spiritual
movements, as those of the first century, of Luther, of Fox,
of Wesley, General Booth saw those dangers. As Christ fought
the devil to the wilderness, no the mountain and pinnacle, so,
unchangingly, fought them.
Moreover, he fashioned his religious
military organization after such a form that it would ever be
progressive and aggressive. That wise and executive
administration which was at that time the marvel of the age,
has been preserved, amended and improved, until it is
considered a second declaration of independence, and a new
constitution, by Salvation America. Truly Father Booth is the
Abraham of modern times! The seed of his faith in Mile End
Waste, in 1865, has made his posterity as the sands of the
seashore for multitude, for today “the earth is filled with
the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover
the seas.” Had these provisions not been made, the
organization would have drifted into the formalism, pride and
rationalism that stripped the churches in that day of their
strength. The poor world would have gone to ruin.
We cannot, in these happy days, conceive
how depraved were the majority of those nineteenth century
people. There were diverse powers then existing in society
that would of themselves formed the whirlwind of their own
destruction. Can I describe that age of midnight horrors? How
could they boast of civilization and prosperity, when there
was such brutalism, poverty and misery existing, brought about
by the sin of the time? Greed and selfishness were among the
rich; hatred and revenge among the poor.
When we consider our times, and appreciate
the fact that we are in the very beginning of the glorious
millennium, we have cause to rejoice.
It has not been material progress that has brought about these
results. True, all men are now equal- no extremely rich or
poor – and that every family in the world now has a home
superior to the aristocrats for comfort and convenience. The
great majority of the population was quartered in tenements,
graduating to the filthy diseased slums. There again, it has
not been the reconstruction of society and government
- the paternal – modelled after the bible times, and
practiced by General Booth, in his early Army – I say it has
not been these improvements, although they have helped. The
great power, as we are all aware, is the fact that the people
are saved and cleansed from all sin by the blood of Jesus.
This is the power that has brought this reign of unselfishness
and love among all the people of the earth. This is the reason
why the entire world speaks the same language, and the word
“foreigner” is about obsolete.
Right here, I might remark, that one of the great drawbacks to
that age was the large number of false preachers and
reformers, some might have been sincere, but were ignorant and
unsaved. These reformers tried to cure society by outward
application of their salve to the inward disease of sin in the
heart. They were too wise in their own conceits.
They were to themselves more intelligent than God, or
the teachings of the Bible. Anyway, this is the way they
acted. They said: “God was too slow, and that by the enacting
of new laws or regulations they would put the world where it
belonged.” But God says of these: “They healed the hurt of the
daughter of my people slightly, saying peace, peace, when
there was no peace.” Some of them vehemently denounced General
Booth for introducing the “religious”, while other opposed him
for pushing the Social operations, but he was conscious that
God led him.
The year previous to our Army Father’s
Jubilee, history, I believe, mentions an Exposition held in
this city in honour of the 400th birthday of the discoverer of
the New World. Truly, the buildings erected on the occasion
were to them grand and stupendous! There was once significant
fact about the White City of the World’s Fair of 1893. It was
prophetic of the age – went up in a day – passed away in a
day. So with their fictitious civilization and so-called
science. It was erected without prayer, or faith in God. Like
the tower of Babel, it could not endure. Less than a year
after the winding up of that Exposition, the White City was
nothing but twisted iron and charred ruins. So with their
moral fabric, built on pride and conceit, not erected on the
Book, it fell, and great was its fall. This proves that
nothing can prosper without God.
Within a few months after this universal
display of the nineteenth century genius, followed a reign of
universal poverty and distress. A spirit of distress prevailed
everywhere. Armies of paupers marched through the land begging
for work at the seat of government. A great strike paralyzed
that business world. Starvation began at the very shadow of
the Columbian Exposition grounds at palatial Pullman, and
stalked through the world, bring want and destitution
everywhere. The hearts of the rich hardened and waxed fat.
Crime held high carnival. Representatives in Congress and high
society filled the air with scandal. Theologians were given
over to the discussion of profitless questions. Cruel
competition aroused selfishness and hatred and dishonesty
among all the business world. “Let me live if all others die”
seemed to be the spirit of those times. How different now when
every man lives to help and bless everybody else: Then every
morning the newspapers were filled with harrowing details of
dark, diabolical crimes, or of Godless sporting and amusement
notes. The mark of Cain was branded upon most of America’s
thousands, and “verily all were dwelling in the land of
Ishmael, where every man’s hand was lifted against his
neighbours.”
If we could go back to that day, and visit
their wretched neighbourhoods we could find tenements reeking
with filth; haggard mothers and starving children; while
bloated-face fathers blasted the air with their drunken oaths;
girls, once innocent, selling their souls and bodies in shame
for bread. Truly this was a world under a curse! Humanity was
bleeding on a real cross. Did they say: “No man cared for my
soul!” Nay, brave women left homes of luxury, and went among
them doing good, and lifting up in their very midst the
spotless Lamb, who bled for their redemption. Yes, we adore
this bleeding Lamb, who has brought redemption to the whole
race in the latter part of the twentieth century in which we
live.
It was upon the debris of that social ruin
that The Salvation Army built up a grander civilization- one
which honoured and served God. It had been just twenty-nine
years since the Rev. Will. Booth stood alone on Mile End
Waste. Those were years of abuse and slander and
misunderstanding. In the throes of those early days there was
developed a people that could face any opposition the devil
could bring against them.
A new foe was facing the Army, more subtle
and artful than ever before. The good work of The Army was
being recognized by the great and rich of the world.
Popularity has destroyed more than one good work. The General
recognized this, and as he marshalled his troops in council he
warned them, and laid down the provisions to forever thwart
this evil. He urged them to see popularity for construction
rather than destruction to the organization. He more than ever
promised the principles of self-denial and hard, aggressive,
systematic work in saving souls. It was from the impetus given
The Army during the year of Jubilee that it went forward as
never before to conquer the entire world for God.
We might mention a few dangers that
threatened them then, but which they overcame, viz:
1. Compromise – Being applauded by
the world to listen to its advice; to please men at the
sacrifice of Jesus.
2.
Relaxation– To be satisfied with past victories, and
become less aggressive. The General taught them that the
future could not be improved without disturbing the present.
3. The pecuniary – Depending upon
money guaranteed, and forgetting to exercise the faith and
trust in God that helped in days of hardship.
4. The numerical – Anxiety for
quantity and ignoring quality; counting more on numbers of
soldiers than the value of the blessing of clean hearts.
5. Settling down – Although with
all the advantage that their young organization offered to
avoid this, some of those officers (thank God the number was
few) rested contented in just living to fill up reports and
satisfied with little or no success, consoling themselves they
were suffering hardship for Jesus, when all the time it was
God’s will for then to get up and do something that would show
real results.
6. Nationalism or localism – Some
of the officers of that day did not get a look at the whole
world; their interests were too much centered on the nation or
locality in which they lived and were somewhat unwilling to go
to distant pr heathen lands. This, of course, was
diametrically opposed to the Salvation principles.
These were a few evils that the General
overthrew in those days. Had he not, it would have been a
defeated Army, and the world would have been lost. General
Booth set the example himself by making that phenomenal trip
of hardship and toil beside carrying the burden of the Army of
the entire world. History tells that he spoke on an average of
four or five hours a day, often holding three or four meetings
per day.
The field officers that lived in the days
of General Booth were very slow in taking advantage of many
opportunities offered them of saving the world. Many of them
if they could not see immediate profit on a new departure were
unwilling to spend their time or strength in undertaking it.
But one great burden was upon the heart of the General, and
one which he was determined, in spite of all discouragements,
to thoroughly organize and make a success in his life – it was
the juniors’ salvation. If the children of the nineteenth
century were saved, then the salvation of the entire world
could be easily accompanied in the twentieth century. The
greatest fight of The Army leaders of that day was against the
indifference and lack of faith and love for the work on the
part of many officers. Why it should have so we cannot
understand. At that time in the world’s history it is true
that millions of children were brought up in the Sabbath
schools of the churches, and although taught a thorough
understanding of the Bible and of Christian principles, yet
the work was not deep enough – too many were allowed to pass
with morality, and not obtain the great salvation through the
Blood of Jesus.
Then again, history tell us that in many of the large cities
regardless had gained such ascendency that more children were
sent to saloons for beer and other intoxicating drinks on the
Sabbath morning than the number that attended any place of
worship: hence there was a mighty need for the same desperate
action for salvation and organization of the juniors as had
been put forth to save their Godless fathers and mothers. When
the Junior War was thoroughly started (about 1896) it went
like wildfire. Young men and women from every direction were
fired with a great love for this branch of the Army
operations. Local officers were organized and junior schools
started in every neighbourhood. Some places the work was
trying to the extreme, but the results were grand. Thirty
thousand field officers of the right quality were raised up to
help in the conquest of the world by the year 1910.
This resulted mainly through the Junior War. What was
required to be taught cadets in Training Garrisons in 1894 had
already (and much more) been taught in the junior schools.
Cadets in 1910 understood as much of Army spirit, method and
teaching as the staff officers did in 1894. The great
principles of self-sacrifice and love for souls were the
spirits that increased as the years rolled on. Had General
Booth not undertaken the Junior War that world might have been
lost forever!
From this wonderful year began the greatest
struggle which lasted for fifty years in the conquest of the
world. Thy dying love of Jesus was the great power that won,
but great care was taken in the selection and training of
officers. Greater desperation was made for the salvation of
souls. Advances were made into countries hitherto unreached
buy Christian effort. Spain, China, Russia, Austria, Turkey –
the land of Mohammed – and Northern Africa were taken by the
Spirit’s irresistible force. Many of these consecrated
officers endured untold suffering and even death. They had
unquenchable faith. Defeat was impossible. There were a few
unfaithful, but it is overcome by the loyalty of the majority.
Of course saved, consecrated men and women of all churches
helped to bring these victories.
Great tracts of land were taken for the
Social Work. The denizens of the great cities (and from many
smaller cities) of Darkest Europe and America emigrated and
settled under The Army’s jurisdiction. They sought salvation
and were happy. Slums were entirely vacated. Salvation ships
were crowded in their voyages to “over the sea” colonies.
Prisons and slumhouses were becoming
desolate and falling into ruins as the years rolled on.
Saloons and dives closed as there was no patronage. The rich
of the world were joining the Auxiliary League. Many were
sworn in as soldiers and wore the uniform. Kings and rulers of
different nations made investigations and forced their
governments after the “paternal idea” of The Army. Some kings
got converted and wore red-banded caps instead of a crown,
while queens and duchesses wore poke bonnets. Many of the
aristocrats saw the blessing of self-denial forsook all and
have their wealth for the social and spiritual benefit of The
Army. Governments granted large tracts of land for
colonization. War became a thing of the past. The
thorn-platted, reed-sceptred King of the Jews was gradually
becoming the monarch of the whole earth. In 1940 a Jubilee was
held by The Army celebrating the fact that the lost brethren
temple in China was captured and turned into a barracks, and
above which floated the blood-and-fire flag. Spiritual
wickedness in high places, religious pride, formalism and
bigotry were the last foes to give way. The blessing of
holiness of heart and life was the great object of the human
race. Theatre-going and horse-racing were amusements practiced
by the ungodly with great tenacity until the great tide of
humanity was turned to that salvation that afforded a greater
joy and pleasure. We now look at their opera as they at that
time looked back upon the cruel exhibitions in the Coliseum in
ancient Rome, where Christians were torn by wild beasts in the
arena. Theatres became more and more unpopular during the
decade of 1930 and 1940, and passed entirely out of practice,
for they had no patronage – the people were enjoying the glory
of God – but the great buildings erected for theatres were
used afternoons for holiness meetings and evenings for great
salvation meetings which were thronged with immense crowds
seeking Christ.
The Lord was with His Army; as He promised
(Joel 2:11). In the year 1900 A.D. The Salvation Army numbered
20,000 field officers, in 1925 A.D., 2000,000, when every
city, village, and hamlet had corps in the entire world. Whole
cities had been converted. By this time every other subject
discussed by newspapers had sunk into insignificance. In 1950
the world was about conquered, and the devil so discouraged
that he gave up the fight. When the great multitudes were
flocking to the mercy seat, the question of the old prophet
seemed to be answered: “Who are these that fly as a cloud, and
as doves to their windows?”
Everybody now lives to make everybody else
happy. The grandest exposition the world ever knew will begin
in 1996 A.D., to continue until 2000A.D. in Jerusalem and the
Holy Land. The advantages of our rapid electro serial transit,
that has just been improved, will greatly facilitate the
transportation of two billion Salvationists. Would it not be
grand for those officers and soldiers who suffered such untold
hardships, and self-denial, and death, to be present on this
occasion and see as, their children and children’s children,
gathered in sects as immeasurable company for worshiping their
Saviour just two thousand years after His advent to the earth
and the Babe of Bethlehem! Hundreds of thousands of Chinese,
Russians, Turks, Syrians, Africans, Eskimos, Irishmen,
Germans, Italians all speaking the same language, will join
one great family of God, giving Him praise and honour.
I think we are living in those days that
the prophets speak of. Their language of description is grand,
but it fails to describe our joy and prosperity, for verily
the Spirit of God is upon all people. Micah, speaking of the
past century, says; “and he shall judge among man’s people,
and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their
swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks:
nation shall not live up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war anymore… for we will walk in the name of the
Lord our God forever”
Isaiah speaks of our times in many places
in the 11th chapter he says: “They shall not hurt nor destroy
in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the Lord”
I am yours in faith, hope and
love,
Captain Thankfulness
In command of Corps No. 21,700, of
the city of Chicago
NOTE – In writing this letter from an
imaginary future date, I wish to state that I have simply
tried to show:
1. The importance to future
generations of our holding to the principles taught by the
General on his trip this year to America.
2. What may be possible to see,
even in our own times, if we claim the Holy Ghost, do our duty
and rise up to the opportunity. The revival of Apostolic time
is truly upon us, and by faith the salvation of the world can
be accomplished in fifty or seventy five years.
3. It will be more credit to God’s
people to see the salvation of the world than its destruction,
which some people are always talking about. Even though God
has threatened to bring it to and end by fire, will He not
shoe His mercy and save it if it repents! Will He not listen
to us or reason with us as He did with Abraham concerning
Sodom, or turn away His anger as He did with the repenting
Ninevehites!
The devil must be downed! And all
the people say “Amen!”
Very faithfully yours,
Staff Captain W.W. Winchell
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