The Travels of Increase Joseph: A Historical Novel about a Pioneer Preacher

29. World's Fair

a Chapter 29 World's Fair May 1893 The remainder of the 1880s sped by. Increase Joseph, now 67, had slowed down considerably from his earlier work schedule. Elwina was taking more time to visit with friends and sit in her rocking chair, knitting. The Links had essentially given up their meager farm operation several years ago, when the Standalone Fellowship elders voted to pay Increase Joseph a modest salary for his pastoral efforts. He promptly sold their half dozen cows, gave the hogs to Little Joe, and allowed the farm to return to its natural state, which he preferred anyway. The traveling tent ministry continued, but on a reduced scale. Little Joe did most of the tent preaching, inviting his famous father to say a few words at the end of each program. When Little Joe's son, Little Joe Too, reached ten, he began traveling with his father and grandfather and was introduced to selling Link's Restorative Tonic off the back of the tonic wagon. Now, at 16, Little Joe Too had become a veteran of tent ministry. Tonic sales continued growing each year, not 254 Apps only because of the continued success of the tent program, but because Frederick Henke and his sons devised a mail order catalog featuring Standalone Cheese-Brick, Cheddar, and Limburger - plus an opportunity to buy the famous Restorative Tonic. Orders for the tonic poured in from all over the country - the profits of course flowed into the Tonic Helping Fund. Henrietta Bakken Link took over the management of the Link Lake Gazette from her father. She expanded the business to include a commercial print shop where she printed the Standalone catalog each spring and fall. Thousands of copies were mailed to every state. The recipe for the tonic remained a secret, known only to Increase Joseph who visited the cheese factory several times a year supervising the brewing of a new batch, but never revealing the details for the concoction. Sunday afternoon services continued at the Standalone Church, but membership had begun to dwindle the last several years. Attendance was especially light on the Sundays when Increase Joseph was the only speaker. As he aged, his prestige in the community had diminished somewhat. Several of the younger members left the Fellowship , complaining that Increase Joseph's ideas were outdated and didn't fit a modern world. When Increase Joseph learned the reason for their leaving, he was deeply disappointed. He believed firmly that his words were the words of the ages. On those Sundays when Little Joe spoke, the attendance was nearly that of earlier years. Little Joe's message was essentially the same as his The Travels of Increase Joseph 255 father's but he spoke in softer tones and in a less strident manner. Every couple of months Henrietta Link stood in the preaching pit. Her approach, which had become popular, was to start with a witticism, and then let that be the basis for a discussion . A week ago, she spoke on the phrase, "Don't allow others to tell you what to think." The sense of those words had long been the essence of the Standalone Fellowship's philosophy, where everyone was entitled to his own opinion and had the right to express it. Henrietta's message was well accepted by everyone. The year 1893 was not a good one. Banks were closing all across the country. Every week the Link Lake Gazette carried another story about how difficult times had become. Sometimes the news happened close to home. Headlines in the August 2nd edition read, "The City Bank of Portage closed last week." The brief story concluded that "The suspension is due to the condition of the money market." Another story reported that railroad companies from one end of the country to the other were going bankrupt, and unemployment among factory workers had reached more than twenty percent . People in Link Lake began seeing haggard, defeated men stopping at their doors, begging for food, and then walking on, as if in a daze. They were called tramps, and by spring 1893 these men were everywhere. Many offered to work for a meal - splitting wood was a popular task. Increase Joseph suggested using the Tonic Helping Fund to provide food for these poor desperate men. The Standalone Ladies Circle served 256 Apps free soup at the Standalone Church every noon, and men lined up as...