As the "messengers" and friends of the cause committed to heralding the third angel's message assembled in the commodious home of Jesse Thompson, midmorning, Friday, March 12, the topic of prime interest was publishing the truth through the press. The Thompson home was in the country, nine miles from Saratoga Springs, where the fourteen numbers of volume 2 of the Review and Herald had been published. Attending that conference Friday morning were Joseph Bates, S. W. Rhodes, G. W. Holt, Frederick Wheeler, J. C. Day, Joseph Baker, William S. Ingraham, Ira Wyman, Heman Churchill, G. W. Morse, Hiram Edson, and James and Ellen White. They were joined by the Review staff and believers from nearby. Had not the meeting been called on such short notice, others would have been present. The report of the work done that Friday was faith-challenging:
The subject of publishing the paper was introduced. Several brethren spoke of the disadvantages of having it published as it has been, and of the propriety of having an office at the control of Sabbathkeepers. And after investigating the matter it was decided by a unanimous vote (1) that a press, type, et cetera, should be purchased immediately, (2) that the paper should be published at Rochester, New York, (3) that Brethren E. A. Pool, Lebbeus Drew, and Hiram Edson compose a committee to receive donations from the friends of the cause to purchase the press, type, et cetera, and to conduct the financial concerns of the paper, (4) that the brethren abroad be requested through the next number of the Review and Herald to choose agents in their churches to receive donations for the purpose of establishing the press, and carrying forward the publishing of the paper, and (5) that those donations that are immediately sent in should be sent to Hiram Edson, Port Byron, New York.
It was thought that $600 would be sufficient to establish the press at Rochester.--Ibid., March 23, 1852
The conference continued through Monday, March 15. "The brethren came together," wrote James White, "with a desire to be benefited and benefit each other. Not to establish any peculiar [new] views of their own, but to be united in the truth."--Ibid.
One matter of rather far-reaching significance came up on Monday. White reported:
The subject of holding conferences in different parts of the field, especially where the brethren have but recently embraced the truth, was introduced, and investigated with much feeling. There seemed to be but one view of the subject, that small conferences and many of them would prove a great blessing to the cause. And that those brethren who have recently embraced the Sabbath should not be neglected, but that they should have the labors of suitable brethren who shall hold such meetings with them.
It was thought that there should be two to travel in company in the State of New York and Canada West, and two to travel in New England and Canada East, whose work should be to hold conferences.--Ibid.
In harmony with this, one committee was appointed to look after the east and another committee to care for the interests in the west.
The call for the conference at the Thompson home had declared its object to be that those who teach the message of the third angel might "examine more fully their present position" in preparation to go forth in "union and strength" (Ibid., March 2, 1852). James White's report of the meeting would indicate that this objective was met:
The Spirit of the Lord was with His servants during the entire meeting, and love and union prevailed. The business meetings were pleasant and free. All seemed willing to act, and ready to act in union, and to act now. The word was preached with freedom, and the examination of some points of doctrine touching the present message was conducted in harmony.--Ibid., March 23, 1852
Status of Publishing the Review
In vision Ellen White had been shown that "James must lay his hand to the work and strive to open the way," and if the way opened he must stay by and publish (Letter 4, 1851). In Saratoga Springs the way had opened to publish, and James White, in the last issue of volume 2 of the Review, made a statement regarding finances:
We would say that $150 was raised at the Camden Conference, June, 1851, to commence the present volume. This sum, with the receipts since that time, will only pay for this volume.--Ibid.
He pleaded for financial support, not large gifts but "each having the pleasure of doing something, and sharing the blessing, instead of a few freehearted souls doing the whole." He continued:
In fact, we cannot see how the paper can benefit such as are not ready to make an effort to sustain it. We cheerfully send the paper free of charge, and shall continue to do so, and hope these remarks will lead all who profess to believe and love the present truth to act their part in sustaining the publication of the paper and books.--Ibid.
He thought the next issue would appear in May; he solicited "matter for the paper, either original or selected," and called on all to be free to write.
Establishing a Publishing Office in Rochester, New York
Steps were taken immediately to carry out the actions of the conference at Ballston Spa. A printing press was purchased in New York City and the stocks of papers and pamphlets, along with their meager household equipment and personal belongings, were packed and shipped from Saratoga Springs. As money was scarce, they had to borrow to pay the freight westward across the State. In Rochester they found, at 124 Mount Hope Avenue, a home thought sufficiently large to accommodate the publishing house family and the printing equipment. The rent of $14.50 a month seemed to be within their ability to pay. As the house stood on about an acre of land, there was space for a garden. On April 16 Ellen White described their circumstances in a letter to the Howland family:
We are just getting settled here in Rochester. We have rented an old house for $175 a year. We have the press in the house. Were it not for this, we should have to pay $50 a year for office room.
You would smile could you look in upon us and see our furniture. We have bought two old bedsteads for 25 cents each. My husband brought me home six old chairs, no two of them alike, for which he paid $1, and soon he presented me with four more old chairs without any seating, for which he paid 62 cents for the lot. The frames were strong, and I have been seating them with drilling.
Butter is so high we do not purchase it, neither can we afford potatoes. Our first meals were taken on a fireboard placed upon two empty flour barrels. We are willing to endure privations if the work of God can be advanced. We believe the Lord's hand was in our coming to this place.--Life Sketches of James White and Ellen G. White (1880), 287.
William C. White, born in Rochester two years later, in his Review and Herald series "Sketches and Memories of James and Ellen G. White," gives us a picture of the publishing house family:
At first there were James and Ellen White; little Edson, and his nurse Clarissa Bonfoey; Stephen and Sarah Belden, and Annie Smith. Soon Jennie Fraser was employed as cook. For a short time Thomas and Mary Mead were members of the family and office force. Then came Oswald Stowell, who acted as pressman.
In the autumn, Warren Bacheller, a boy of 13, joined the force, and served as roller boy while learning typesetting. In the spring of 1853, Uriah Smith joined the family, and in the autumn, George Amadon, a young man of 17, also became a member of the little company. These three were to grow gray in the service of the Review and Herald. Later on they were joined by Fletcher Byington, a son of John Byington, of northern New York....
It was necessary to employ a skilled printer to superintend the work and teach the beginners. For this position a very competent man was found in Lumen V. Masten, with whom Elder White had become acquainted in Saratoga Springs.--The Review and Herald, June 13, 1935.
The Washington hand press, other needed equipment, and the type purchased in New York cost more than $600. Hiram Edson advanced the money on a short-term loan; James White called for donations with which to pay this debt, if possible by mid-June, and work began. The first issue of volume 3 of the Review, bearing the publication date of May 6, was ready in type before the press arrived, so was "struck off" on another press in the town. The masthead lists as a publishing committee, Joseph Bates, J. N. Andrews, and Joseph Baker; James White was named editor. The paper would appear semi-monthly. The "terms" were stated: "Gratis. It is expected that all the friends of the cause will aid in its publication, as the Lord has prospered them."--Ibid., May 6, 1852. A poem from the pen of Annie Smith titled "The Blessed Hope" filled column one and half of column two of the first page. The articles related to the third angel's message, and White's editorial reviewed the past and dealt with present work.
The Tour East
Soon after the Whites had settled in Rochester, a letter from Ellen's mother informed them that her brother Robert was dying of tuberculosis at the family home in Gorham, Maine. James had trained the staff quite well while at Saratoga Springs, and Lumen Masten was on hand to manage the office. So with faithful Charlie at hand to convey them by carriage, he and Ellen planned a trip east that would take two months. The Review of June 24 set his plans before the companies of believers:
We now design making a tour east, and spending several weeks, holding conferences where they are most needed. On our way east, we could hold meetings at Coughdenoy, Lorain, at some central place in St. Lawrence County, Panton, Vermont; Washington, New Hampshire; Portland, Maine; and Bangor. Returning, hold meetings at Boston, Leverett, and Ashfield.
Will those who wish us to hold conferences with them write in season, to give notice of such conferences in the Review and Herald. We shall not be confined to the places named. Have mentioned them to give some idea of the intended tour. We shall probably be able to leave Rochester by the first of August.--Ibid., June 24, 1852
In mid-June, while visiting a nearby company of believers over the weekend, they were pleasantly surprised. James White wrote about this:
Brother Drew being informed of our intended Eastern tour, and seeing that our carriage was about falling to pieces, purchased and gave us a suitable carriage for which he paid $85. For this we thank God, also our brother, His steward.--Ibid., July 8, 1852
The couple planned to take 3-year-old Edson with them. As the summer wore on, cholera struck Rochester with heavy mortality. Ellen White described the scourge:
All night long the carriages bearing the dead were heard rumbling through the streets to Mount Hope Cemetery. This disease did not cut down merely the low, but it took from every class of society.... As we passed through the streets of Rochester, at almost every corner we would meet wagons with plain pine coffins in which to put the dead.--Life Sketches of Ellen G. White, 143.
Just as they were to start on their carriage tour east the dread disease invaded the White home. Little Edson was stricken. Of course, their first resort was to pray for his healing. "I took him in my arms," wrote Ellen White, "and in the name of Jesus rebuked the disease." He felt relief at once; as a sister commenced praying for the Lord to heal him, Edson looked up and said, "They need not pray any more, for the Lord has healed me."--Ibid., 144. But James did not dare start on their journey until Edson had improved sufficiently to call for food. He did that afternoon, Wednesday, July 21, and they started, for they had nearly one hundred miles to cover in the next two days to fill their first appointment at Oswego.
James had charted the itinerary, allowing time to drive from one appointment to the next and giving word in advance through the Review. The issue of August 19 carried a concentration of such appointments:
Providence permitting, we will hold meetings at the following places: Potsdam, St. Lawrence County, New York, at the house of Brother John Byington, Thursday, August 26, at 2:00 P.M.
Norfolk, at the house of Brother Haskell, to commence Friday, August 27 at 6:00 P.M., and hold over Sabbath and First-day. Chateaugay, Tuesday, August 21, at 4:00 P.M., where the brethren may appoint.
Wolcott, Vermont, to commence Friday, September 3, at 6:00 P.M., and hold Sabbath and First-day.
Washington, New Hampshire, to commence Friday, September 10, at 6:00 P.M., and hold Sabbath and First-day.
Boston, Massachusetts, Tuesday, September 14, at 2:00 P.M.
Portland, Maine, Friday, September 17, at 6:00 P.M., and hold over Sabbath and First-day.
Bangor, Maine, Friday, September 24, at 6:00 P.M., and hold over Sabbath and First-day.--The Review and Herald, August 19, 1852.
The journey by carriage rested both James and Ellen White.
Charlie was very fond of apples. As they drove where apple orchards lined the roads and big red apples lay in the path of the travelers, James would loosen the checkrein. Charlie would gently slow down from a seven-mile pace, select a good apple within easy reach, pick it up, and then throw his head high and dash on at full speed, chewing the apple as he journeyed (WCW, "Sketches and Memories," Ibid., April 25, 1935).
Ellen White described their travel experience:
The Lord greatly blessed us on our journey to Vermont. My husband had much care and labor. At the different conferences he did most of the preaching, sold books, and took pay for the papers. And when one conference was over, we would hasten to the next.
At noon we would feed the horse by the roadside and eat our lunch. Then my husband, with paper and pencil upon the cover of our dinner box, or the top of his hat, would write articles for the Review and Instructor.--Life Sketches of James White and Ellen G. White (1880), 292.
The Youth's Instructor was a monthly journal James White had recently started to reach the youth of the emerging church. Each copy contained Sabbath school lessons, the first prepared for children and young people. James, as he later recalled, thought out the lessons while the "carriage was in motion": while the horse was eating he wrote them out.
A Visit to the Gorham Home
The fast-ebbing life of Robert Harmon, Ellen's older brother, provided one of the incentives for the trip east. Upon receiving word of Robert's failing health, Sarah Belden, Ellen's older sister, had gone on to Gorham and watched over him till he passed to his rest. When Ellen and James arrived, they found Robert emaciated, but she observed that his wasted features lit up with joy as they talked of the bright hope of the future. In the seasons of prayer they had in his room Jesus seemed very near. But James and Ellen could not tarry long. She observed:
We were obliged to separate from our dear brother, expecting never to meet him again this side of the resurrection of the just. The bitterness of the parting scene was much taken away by the hope he expressed of meeting us where parting would be no more.--Ibid., 289.
Shortly after Ellen's visit with Robert, Annie Smith, at the Rochester office, composed the poem "He Sleeps in Jesus," later set to music (Church Hymnal, No. 494).
While the Whites were in the vicinity of Gorham a conference was held in nearby Portland. Here is where James had first met Ellen; here is where they had been married; here is where Ellen received her first vision and was called to go into the field. It was here that she later said the Lord ordained her. It was here that fanaticism had raged in 1845. Now, seven or eight years later, James White reported of the conference held there:
Our meeting at Portland, Maine, held September 18 and 19, was excellent. The friends in the city obtained a very convenient place for the meeting. A number of brethren and sisters came in from the country who bore good testimonies to the truth, which added to the interest of the meeting. Several of our Advent brethren who do not observe the Sabbath came out to hear. We had freedom in presenting the reasons of our faith. The Spirit of the Lord was felt in every meeting, reviving and cheering the people of God.
Perhaps there is no place where more prejudice has existed than in Portland. This is giving way. There we were again united in Christian fellowship with some that we once took sweet counsel with, but during the time of scattering, that union was entirely broken, and we feared that they would not again be united with the true church. There we could weep tears of joy with those that wept, and freely confessed past errors. Several have, since the meeting, confessed the Sabbath.--The Review and Herald, October 14, 1852.
On to James White's Boyhood Home
James and Ellen pressed on another hundred miles into eastern Maine, to the home of James's parents in Palmyra. "They have been much interested in the 'blessed hope' of Christ's immediate coming," wrote James, "but with thousands of others they seem to have lost much of the spirit and sweetness of this hope." He hoped for better days. It warmed James's heart to go over the roads he had traveled ten years before on horseback as he preached the soon coming of Jesus, and to meet many old friends. Referring to the days of their association then, he declared that "these were the happiest hours of our life."--Ibid.
On October 6, 1852, the long journey east was over, and they were home in Rochester. During the two months of the tour many had been encouraged. At some of the conferences attendance ran into the hundreds. From time to time visions were given to Ellen White. On occasion James and Ellen were called to pray for the healing of the sick, and their prayers were answered. James White reported in the Review:
We can now look back upon our eastern tour with a good degree of satisfaction. Our expectations have been more than realized. We have in almost every place been happily disappointed in witnessing the glorious display of God's power, and the triumph of His truth.--Ibid.
He added:
And praise the Lord, for what He has done for the little church in Rochester in our absence. Our dear Brother Masten, who has been brought so low by the cholera, and raised up by the prayer of faith, is at work in the office, enjoying the precious hope of the gospel, keeping the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And the brethren generally are greatly revived.--Ibid.
Subjects Discussed at the Conferences
From James White's reports in the Review we gain a view of the topics dwelt upon as they met with company after company of believers. Of the Boylston, New York, meeting, held on Sabbath in a grove, White reported:
In the forenoon the subject presented was the Advent movement in the past, as symbolized by the angels of Revelation 14:6-8. And we were enabled to see that the word of the Lord had been fulfilled in our disappointments, as well as in our joyful expectations; and that we are still on the track of prophecy.
[In the afternoon] it was stated that merely believing and observing the Sabbath would not save one, and that there was no salvation in the Sabbath alone; but that in the hand of God it was a cleaver to cleave us out from the world, and bring us into the Lord's workshop, where the whole gospel can be brought to bear upon us and we be hewed and squared by the faith of Jesus.--The Review and Herald, September 2, 1852.
Later at Norfolk, New York, many were present who had embraced the Sabbath but had little or no experience in the past Advent movement. James White wrote:
We presented our views relative to the seventh-day Sabbath, Babylon, the open and shut door, et cetera, and the Spirit of God fastened the truth upon the minds of those who heard. We were much cheered by the decided testimonies of some who have formerly been wavering.--Ibid., September 16, 1852
At Wolcott, Vermont, they had found a tent prepared to seat four hundred persons. Again James reported:
There were many present who have very recently embraced the Sabbath, or are just becoming interested....
Our expectations were more than realized at this meeting. The cause in Vermont is moving onward. The meetings were harmonious, refreshing, and some of them very powerful. There were, at least, 150 Sabbathkeepers present, besides others deeply interested.--Ibid.
How different now in the "gathering time" than in the "scattering time," only two or three years before! Also, the large numbers of those newly come to the faith were being told about the "shut door" and its true significance.
John N. Loughborough Enters the Picture
Three days after James and Ellen White returned to Rochester, 21-year-old John Loughborough was at the Sabbath meeting at the home on 124 Mount Hope Avenue. Oswald Stowell, who operated the hand press, was severely ill with pleurisy and had been given up by his physician to die. On that Sabbath morning he was in an adjoining room in bed. At the close of the service he requested that special prayer be offered for his healing. Loughborough with some others was invited to gather about his bed for the solemn service. Loughborough wrote of the experience:
We bowed by his bedside, and while prayers were being offered, Elder White anointed him with oil "in the name of the Lord." There was a sensible presence of the Spirit of God, and he was instantly healed. When we arose from prayer he was sitting up in bed, striking his sides, which before had been so painful, and saying, "I am fully healed. I shall be able to work the hand press tomorrow." Two days after this, he did work it.--GSAM, p. 318.
As so often was the case, at a time when God's special blessing was felt Ellen White was taken in vision. It was so this Sabbath. Loughborough reported:
As Elder White turned to look at her, he said, "Ellen is in vision; she does not breathe while in this condition. If any of you desire to satisfy yourselves of this fact, you are at liberty to examine her." She remained thus in vision about one hour and twenty minutes. While in that condition she spoke words, and sometimes distinct sentences: yet by the closest scrutiny no breath could be discerned in her body.-- Ibid., 318, 319.
While the physical phenomena he observed provided Loughborough with interesting and convincing evidence, it was the verification of the conduct of a man not known to all present, someone Ellen White had never met nor known of, that very soon provided indisputable proof to the questioning Loughborough. He later explained:
Before the return of Elder White and his wife from their eastern journey, one of our number had left the city, and was traveling on business in the State of Michigan. He was not, therefore, present at this meeting, and had never seen Elder White or his wife. In relating her vision, Mrs. White told us, among other things, what she saw concerning a man who, while he was traveling and away from home, had much to say about the law of God and the Sabbath, but was at the same time breaking one of the commandments. She said he was a person whom she had never met, yet she believed she would see him sometime, as his case had been unfolded to her. Not one of our number, however, supposed him to be anyone with whom we were acquainted.
About six weeks from the time of the above vision, the brother previously mentioned returned from Michigan. As soon as Mrs. White looked upon his countenance, she said to one of the sisters, "That is the man I saw in the vision, of whom I told you." The vision being related to this brother, in the presence of his wife and several other persons, Mrs. White said to him, as Nathan did to David, "Thou art the man."
He then did just what Paul said some persons would do when reproved for their sins by the gift of prophecy [see 1 Corinthians 14:24, 25].... After listening to the rehearsal of his wrongdoings by Mrs. White, this brother dropped upon his knees before his wife, and with tears said to her, and to the few present, "God is with you of a truth," and then made a full confession of his course while in Michigan, in violating the seventh commandment, as revealed at the time of its occurrence, over five hundred miles away.-- Ibid., 319, 320 (see also The Review and Herald, March 4, 1884).
Commented Loughborough, "Thus a few weeks' time gave us a strong confirmation of the testimonies."