Girls -- United States -- Biography -- Juvenile literature
The General would often stop in the midst of his work for little chats
with his children. He would take Eva, for whom he always had a specially
deep love and tenderness, upon his knee and ask her about her puppies or
kittens. Once when Eva felt very sad over the death of her pet dog, her
father took her to the city and spent the whole day telling her stories
and comforting her.
At an early age Eva learned that she should pick up her books and toys
for, above everything else except sin, her father hated disorder.
Orderliness was a useful habit to be acquired by one who was later to
have charge of the affairs of a great organization.
Though Eva’s mother was often too busy to spend much time with her, she
heard her daughter’s prayers and urged her to study so that she could
help the weak, the poor, the ignorant, and the wicked. Mrs. Booth often
reminded Eva to carry out in her life the meaning of her beautiful name,
Evangeline, “bringing glad tidings.”
Evangeline Booth began her work of “bringing glad tidings” when she was
very young. She had inherited her father’s gift of eloquence as well as
his fearlessness and love of work. At fifteen years of age she spoke
very beautifully at a meeting near London. When she was seventeen years
old she was made an officer in the Army and began the work in the slums
which won her the title of “White Angel.”
After ably filling various positions in the Salvation Army in Great
Britain, Evangeline Booth was made Commander of the Army in Canada. At
the time of the Gold Rush in 1898, she sent Salvation Army workers to
the Klondike. In 1904 she was made Commander-in-chief of the Salvation
Army in the United States. Besides her duties as Commander she has
composed words and music for the Army’s songs and has written articles
for the Army publications and other magazines.
In addition to its religious work the Salvation Army maintains homes,
hospitals, clinics, and day nurseries; it finds employment for men and
women out of work; and it sends mothers and children on summer outings.
Every Christmas and Thanksgiving pennies dropped into the big red
Salvation Army kettles provide dinners for thousands of the poor. In a
single year the Army in the United States made 175,698 children happy
with Christmas toys.
During the World War the pies and doughnuts served by the Salvation Army
lassies cheered thousands of lonely soldiers, and many a mother has the
Salvation Army to thank for her boy’s last message.
Evangeline Booth was for almost twenty years Commander-in-chief of this
great organization in the United States. She believes, as her father did
before her, that the first step in influencing a man to lead a better
life is to make him feel that you really care whether he sinks or swims.
Her courageous, selfless life shows that she _does_ care.
[Illustration]
Frances Hodgson Burnett—
The Girl Who Loved Stories And Wrote Them
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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