The summer of 1903 had been hot and dry, with no rain for nearly six months. This was not unusual for northern California.
The farm, under Iram James's management for the second year, was doing well. W. C. White reported, "We do not bother our heads about it." It produced eight and one-half tons of prunes in 1903. When dried, this yielded three and one-half tons of dried fruit. Several one hundred pound bags were sent as a gift to the Oakwood school for blacks in Alabama (23 WCW, pp. 167, 168, 258).
The grapes also yielded well. With the use of machinery purchased for the purpose, they were turned into grape juice; in 1903, 850 gallons were bottled and sold. Eventually a fruit-storage shed was constructed north of the barn to accommodate the business of the Home Fruit Company.
Ellen White, at Elmshaven, had followed the rapid developments in Battle Creek and Washington. From day to day, as the Lord impressed her mind, she wrote letters of counsel. She was perplexed because Elder A. T. Jones, in response to Dr. Kellogg's invitation, and in spite of her warnings, had given up executive work in the California Conference and had gone to Battle Creek. She heard reports of the plans of Kellogg and Jones to reopen Battle Creek College, a plan she strongly opposed. This was in addition to the accelerating inroads of the pantheistic philosophies that Kellogg espoused, which have been noted at length.
Elder Daniells kept before her many questions concerning the work in Washington. Eager for prompt replies, Daniells asked W. C. White to set aside one afternoon a week to consider the matters he presented. To this, White replied:
For more than a week Mother has been writing rapidly on the various issues mentioned in your letter, and all her helpers have been busy in copying these documents and getting packages ready to send to you, to A. T. Jones, and to Elder G. C. Tenney.... The facts are, my brother, that all of our book work has been laid aside by all of our helpers except Sister Davis, and that the whole force of our department has been devoted to the preparation of those testimonies which we thought would be of value to you and to our brethren in council at Washington.--22 WCW, p. 342.
Meeting the pantheistic crisis drained Ellen White's strength and left her courage at a low ebb. The experience in Washington at the Autumn Council lifted the burden considerably, except for Dr. Kellogg. She now turned to work on The Ministry of Healing and Testimonies, volume 8.
Describing the workers and the work in the office, W. C. White reported:
Sister Davis is making excellent progress with The Ministry of Healing. Sister Hare is preparing copying general matter for Testimonies, volume 8. Brother Crisler is preparing [compiling from EGW materials] a series of articles for the Southern Watchman. Brother Robinson is largely occupied with writing out [copying] Mother's original matter, and Helen Graham writes and copies, and helps all around.-- Ibid., 919, 920.
On December 21, Elder Daniells wrote a letter and sent a diagram showing the proposed location of the buildings for the Sanitarium and the school on the fifty acres secured in Takoma Park. Ellen White read the letter twice and studied the plans. The plan showed three hundred feet between the buildings of the two institutions. W. C. White describes her reaction on that late December day:
She went out with me while I paced off three hundred feet from her house. We find that that is just the distance from the southeast corner of her house to the little bridge on the road to my house. It seems to us to be a short distance to separate the main buildings of what will grow to be two large and important institutions.--23 WCW, p. 90.
He added:
Aside from this, your plans as proposed strike us very favorably.-- Ibid.
November 26 was Ellen White's seventy-sixth birthday. A dozen of her old friends came down from the Sanitarium to spend a pleasant hour celebrating, but such experiences reminded her that her years were running out and she must hasten on with her literary work.
Christmas at Elmshaven was a usual workday. W. C. White reported in a long letter to A. G. Daniells:
It is a bright, crisp, frosty, sunny morning: an ideal day for midwinter in California. If we had any time to be merry, we could make it a merry Christmas.-- Ibid., 58.
Book work was being pushed by other members of the staff.
Developments in Takoma Park
At the Autumn Council the purchase of the Thornton property in Takoma Park just inside the District of Columbia line was approved. This would furnish building sites in the city of Washington for the Review and Herald and the General Conference. Elder Daniells reached out for Ellen White's counsel on the moves that should be made, and it now seemed that his prophecy of July 23 would be fulfilled. He had written:
I am expecting that before spring you will feel it your duty to come to Washington to see our situation, and counsel with us regarding the work.--AGD to EGW, July 23, 1903.
As winter approached, there was a discussion at Elmshaven of a proposed trip to the East in March or April, a trip that might extend to six months or more as Ellen White and W. C. White, and possibly his family, temporarily made their homes in Washington. They carefully watched developments at the headquarters of the church.
One factor--aside from the need to get book work done, and winter weather--that had a bearing on the timing of the proposed trip was the forthcoming biennial meeting of the Pacific Union Conference, scheduled for March 18-28. As the fledgling union conferences organized at the General Conference in April, 1901, held their first important meetings, Ellen White wanted to attend as many as possible. Of her burden, W. C. White wrote to Elder Daniells on December 27, 1903:
Mother suggests that it is essential to the health of all our union conferences that we shall encourage them to be self-governing. Let the officers of the General Conference be present at the Annual Conferences and at union conferences, teaching diligently the counsels and principles that have been presented again and again, and then leave the brethren in the union or local conference to choose their officers and shape their policy.... Mother says that in all our union conferences it might be well for the work now devolving upon the president to be shared by his assistants on the committee and by the vice-president, who could do some of the traveling and share some of the responsibilities of the president.--23 WCW, p. 84.
In addition to the meeting of the Pacific Union Conference, she hoped to attend the Lake Union session to be held in Berrien Springs in the early summer. She could not attend the session of the Southern Union. She prepared a series of six addresses to be read at sessions where she could not be present. W. C. White wrote Butler that he was free to publish as many as he chose to in the Southern Watchman (The Southern Watchman, 125).
The staff at Elmshaven followed with interest the plans to move the Pacific Press to Mountain View, a country town thirty-five miles south of Oakland. Five acres of land right beside the railway line had been given by the townsfolk as a site for this new industry.
Ellen White was also concerned that families from strong conferences "with their means, with their experience, with their ability," should go "into the Southern States and into foreign countries, carrying the message" (Ibid., 84). There were correspondence and interviews concerning the possibility of securing for $4,000 the Potts Sanitarium property just south of San Diego.
In an effort to conserve her strength for urgent book work, Ellen White, after conferring with W. C. White, frequently requested him to answer letters of inquiry that came to her.
Some of W. C.'s letters opened thus:
Mother has handed to me your letter to her of November 26, with the request that I write to you in her behalf.... Mother wishes me to say to you...--Ibid., 133.
Mother handed to me your letter of December 13, telling me that she was weary and heavily burdened with matters she was writing out for the Southern Union Conference, and she wished me to write to you answering as many of your questions as I could, and doing what I could to help you out of your perplexities.
We then read the letter together, and Mother made suggestions as to what I should write to you.--Ibid., 525.
Dear Sister,
Mother has permitted me to read your letter of December 16, in which you tell her of the sad experience in connection with your new book, Thought: Its Origin and Power. Mother has requested me to write to you in her behalf. She is sorry, so sorry, for this sad experience, and yet she would say to you, as she often does to our ministers and missionaries whose plans have been overthrown and their work apparently undone, "Be not discouraged. Trust in God. He has power to make that which appears to be only evil, work out for good in some way."--Ibid., 119.
Testimonies, Volume Eight
There was the work on Testimonies for the Church, volume 8, which followed quickly on the heels of volume 7. The crisis over the pantheistic teachings at Battle Creek and the turn the medical work was taking under Dr. J. H. Kellogg's leadership called for the early release of counsels Ellen White had written to meet the many different solutions, oftentimes in letters to individuals.
As work proceeded in assembling material to deal with the pantheistic issue, Ellen White instructed her staff "to leave out much of the personal matter," "giving the cautions without naming individuals." (Testimonies for the Church 8:85). An effort, she wrote, was made "to put into this book those things that will be of the greatest help to our people" (Letter 7, 1904). In her articles on "A Personal God" and "A False and True Knowledge of God," she drew in scores of Bible texts that showed the fallacy of the pantheistic philosophy.
W. C. White expressed the hope "that this book will do much to open up to our people an understanding of the peculiar situation that we are in, and to quiet the minds of those who are perplexed and confused because of conflicting views regarding the work at Battle Creek and Washington."--23 WCW, p. 121.
Not all of that first selected could go into the book, the content of which was projected as 350 pages, and there was early talk of volume 9. The book in preparation, volume 8, carried five sections: one general in nature, one consisting of warnings to the Battle Creek church, one comprised of letters to physicians, one on centralizing and Battle Creek issues, and the last, of 81 pages, dealing with pantheism. The book came from the press in March, 1904.
Counsel on a Church School Problem
As already noted, in response to Ellen White's pleadings, a church school had been started to serve the Sanitarium church, of which she was a member. Sarah Peck, a much-valued helper, had been released to assist in teaching. Three teachers taught the thirty-five children (Testimonies for the Church 3:79). In the initial school plans, however, no provision was made for the younger children, for it was argued Ellen White had counseled in the Testimonies that "parents should be the only teachers of their children until they have reached eight or ten years of age.... The only schoolroom for children from eight to ten years of age should be in the open air amid the opening flowers and nature's beautiful scenery. And their only textbook should be the treasures of nature."--Ibid., 3:137.
The Sanitarium church school proved to be a great blessing to the community, even though the nearby public school was taught by a Mr. Anthony, a faithful Adventist of experience.
Not infrequently, important council meetings were held in the living room of Ellen G. White's Elmshaven home. General Conference administrators, union and local conference men, and men from the colleges, sanitariums, and publishing houses occasionally sought the privilege of discussing important matters relating to the cause with her and her staff. Usually a record was made of the discussion, for C. C. Crisler or D. E. Robinson took shorthand notes and transcribed the interviews.
Early on Thursday morning, January 14, 1904, in harmony with previous arrangements, a meeting of the Sanitarium church school board was held at Elmshaven. As the fire crackled on the hearth, the seven-member board, seated in comfortable chairs about the living room, discussed with Ellen White whether the Sanitarium church school should provide schooling for children under the age of 10. The question was far-reaching.
On a church-wide basis, Seventh-day Adventists were just then beginning to establish schools to accommodate children below the ninth grade. The lower grades had been taught for years at Battle Creek and Healdsburg colleges, but, as noted earlier, up until 1898, little effort had been made elsewhere. As the concept began to sweep across the land, there were soon about a hundred church schools.
The problem of the age children should begin attending these schools was not confined to the Sanitarium school, and its study involved what was thought to be specific Spirit of Prophecy enunciated directives and how church members should relate to them.
Several in the group that morning at Elmshaven sensed that the discussion to take place would be far-reaching in its influence in establishing policies.
Iram James was in the chair. The other members were L. M. Bowen, business manager of the St. Helena Sanitarium; Elder C. L. Taylor, Sanitarium chaplain and pastor of the church; H. M. McDowell, Sanitarium steward and purchasing agent; Mrs. J. Gotzian, a lay sister of some means residing in the community; Miss Sarah Peck, now one of the church school teachers; and Brother Dennison, a layman employed in the community.
In advance of the meeting, Ellen White had been apprised that children under the age of 10 were being deprived of school privileges. There was a strong feeling on the part of some in the Sanitarium community that, on the basis of statements in the early Testimonies, no provision should be made in the newly established church school for children under 10 years of age.
According to the twenty-five page stenographic report, [published in full in The Review and Herald, April 24, 1975, and in part in Selected Messages 3:214-226.] filed in the White Estate as Manuscript 7, 1904, Ellen White took the initiative in opening the discussion, saying:
For years, much instruction has been given me in regard to the importance of maintaining firm discipline in the home. I have tried to write out this instruction, and to give it to others.
She discussed the responsibilities of parenthood and the importance of right home influences. She dwelt on the responsibility of mothers teaching the children the lessons they should learn in early life. She stated that, according to the light given to her,
many who enter the marriage relation fail of realizing all the sacred responsibilities that motherhood brings. Many are sadly lacking in disciplinary power. In many homes there is but little discipline, and the children are allowed to do as they please. Such children drift hither and thither; there is nobody in the home capable of guiding them aright, nobody who with wise tact can teach them how to help father and mother, nobody who can properly lay the foundation that should underlie their future education.
Children who are surrounded by these unfortunate conditions are indeed to be pitied. If not afforded an opportunity for proper training outside the home, they are debarred from many privileges that, by right, every child should enjoy.
She was particularly concerned about the influences on the Sanitarium guests of children running loose, "sharp-eyed, lynx-eyed, wandering about with nothing to do," and "getting into mischief."
Under the circumstances of parental neglect she declared that according to the light given to her, "the very best thing that can be done is to have a school," a "school for those who can be instructed and have the restraining influence upon them which a school-teacher should exert."
She called for a lower department in the Sanitarium school where children as old as 7 or 8 could be instructed. "They will learn in school that which they frequently do not learn out of school, except by association." She said:
I want to know ... who it is that feels perfectly satisfied with their children, as they are, without sending them to the school--to a school that has Bible lessons, has order, has discipline, and is trying to find something for them to do to occupy their time.
She then went into the background of the statement about 10-year-old children:
When I heard what the objections were, that the children could not go to school till they were 10 years old, I wanted to tell you that there was not a Sabbathkeeping school when the light was given to me that the children should not attend school until they were old enough to be instructed. They should be taught at home to know what proper manners were when they went to school, and not be led astray. The wickedness carried on in the common schools is almost beyond conception. That is how it is.
She expressed her concern over what seemed to her an unreasonable application of the Testimonies:
My mind has been greatly stirred in regard to the idea,"Why, Sister White has said so and so, and Sister White has said so and so; and therefore we are going right up to it."
God wants us all to have common sense, and He wants us to reason from common sense. Circumstances alter conditions. Circumstances change the relation of things.
Turning to the board after these opening remarks, she declared: "I shall not say so much now, because I want to understand just what I should speak on. I want the objections brought forth, why children should not have an education."
Sarah Peck pointed out that "if we have any more children, we ought to have some extra help."
To this Ellen White answered, indicating factors that should be taken into consideration:
I want you to take care of what I have said. First, understand that. This is the light that has been given me in regard to these things.
Here are children that are quick. There are children 5 years old that can be educated as well as many children 10 years old, as far as capabilities are concerned, to take in the mother's matters and subjects.
She thought that perhaps another room would have to be added to the school building, and declared, "Every one of us ought to feel a responsibility to provide that room."
She held that
those mothers that want to keep their children at home, and are fully competent and would prefer to discipline them themselves, why, no one has any objection to that. They can do that. But provision is to be made so that the children of all that have any connection with this food factory and sanitarium and these things that are being carried on here, should be educated. We must have it stand to reach the highest standards....
I say, these little children that are small ought to have education, just what they would get in school. They ought to have the school discipline under a person who understands how to deal with children in accordance with their different temperaments. They should try to have these children understand their responsibilities to one another, and their responsibility to God. They should have fastened in their minds the very principles that are going to fit them for the higher grade and the higher school....
He wants this education to commence with the little ones. If the mother has not the tact, the ingenuity, if she does not know how to treat human minds, she must put them under somebody that will discipline them and mold and fashion their minds. Now, have I presented it so that it can be understood?
W. C. White explained that his interest was a broad one. With the rapid development of church schools he was concerned that a balanced work be done across the land and throughout the world as guidelines were being established. He stated:
My interest in this school lies in the fact that it is our privilege to set a pattern. The successes and failures and the rulings of this school will affect our church school work throughout California and much farther, because of Sister Peck's long experience as a teacher, and her work with you, Mother, in helping to prepare the book on education. All these things have put this school where it is a city set on a hill....
The world is doing a great work for the children through kindergartens.... And the ruling in this school here, and the reasons that have always been given me for this ruling, have been based on your statement that a child's mother is to be its only teacher until it is 8 or 10 years old. I have believed that for the best interests of our schoolwork throughout the world, that it is our privilege to have such an interview as we have had this morning, and also to study into the principle which underlies such things.
The following paragraph sums up Ellen White's comments on that occasion:
We must educate our children so that we can come up to the gates of the city and say, "Here am I, Lord, and the children that Thou hast given me." We must not come up without our children to hear the words, "Where is My flock, My little flock, that I gave you--that beautiful flock that I gave you, where are they?" And we reply they have been left to drift right into the world, and so they are unfitted for heaven. What we want is to fit them for heaven so we can present the little flock to God, and say, "I have done my best."--Manuscript 7, 1904.
No statement was published at the time, but the discussion in this meeting helped to establish a pattern that guided parents who were not so situated that they could teach their children at home till they were 8 or 10. Their children's needs for a Christian elementary education could consistently be met.