ZION CITY FIASCO.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13214, 27 June 1906, Page 5

ZION CITY FIASCO.

ALLEGATIONS AGAINST DOWIE.

By Telegraph —Press Association.—Copyright.

• • Mxmiockxk, 'June 26. , Thk Zionist leader here, M..' McCuL lagli, has received a letter -.from Dowie's buccesso., Voliva, in which he .-avs: —" T* following are ■*some of $ the things I discovered during the : .it two . or three weeks of my administration: That Zion's total liabilities were six million dollars, that the interest on the bill : mount to 1271 dollars a day, that, there is c.00,000 , dollars in interest and uivideuds unpaid. that' there are ■..•■outstanding notes against ' Dowie to the extent of 300.000 collars, that ho had overdrawn his personal account to the amount of 540,000 dollars, that,the institutional bank, account had been - over--1 drawn, by 114,000 dollar.;, and that notwithstanding ■ that the-. income of the church was one thousand-dollars a day he had overdraw]) the church account with the' bank to the extent of 200,000 cellars. Mrs. Dowie paid 9000 dollars for one bracelet, and their annua! household expenses amounted to 50,000 dollars. Thoy have been squandering people's noney during (ho past three 3oars. Dowie has been indiscreet in his .associations with women, " ! and apparently was ('paring the way for polygamy." STRUGGLE OF THE FACTIONS. - DOWIE ON THE DEFENSIVE. Tho Chicago newspapers are full of Ziorji \* City and Dowie reports. The factions of Dowie and Voliva are fighting out their dis- 4 putes on the platform and in the law courts. *,V The following is a typical report (from the Chicago Tribune) of a Zion City meeting — Crying that she had been insulted, ill's. ... Jane Dowie became hysterical last night on the platform of Shiloh Tabernacle. She and he.* husband, John Alexander Dowie, and a t woman evangelist, furnished an exciting spectacle in the sacred edifice. At its Aw|i| climax Dowie seized his wife firmly—some say rudely—by the arm and ordered her to 1 be quiet. The fuss was started by the evangelist, who asked Mrs. Dowie in a. nagging ' manner it she ever had said her husband was i ■ insane. fjj he war of words on the platform found an echo in the audience of 250 people, •which included many of the Voliva followers. .These hooted'and yelled despite efforts of 'the Zion guards to maintain order. * Dowie was so weak that two men had to : carry him into the tabcruaclo, where he conducted the meeting from a chair. He became stronger as he proceeded, and toward ;% the close, under the incitement, appeared to have something of his old vigour. Dowie had induced his wife to attend the meeting for the effect-it.;would have on the people in Zion City. After lie had haran- " : gued the audience for half an hour, during ' which, among other things, he said that David was an old man when his eon Abcsoloin betrayed him, but David had won back > his kingdom in a —"and so 61ia.1l I!" thundered Dowie. . * }£ "Mrs. Dowie has been quoted as making ', statements against mo. I wish to give her an opportunity.of saying they are untrue." , , Mrs. Dowie hesitated, and Dowie repeated tho question sternly. Mis. Dowie start-* \ ed to weep. Dowie then turned to the' au- *:w§f dience and shouted : "They've devoted ten pages in their bill of charges to an effort to prove I'm insane." • % Mrs. Mary McGe© Hall, evangelist from \ r \V;j San Antonio, then started in to make trouble. , >, " I want to ask Mi's.; Dowie a question,"'' she said, leaping to her feet on the platform. "Ask me! Ask me!" exclaimed Dowie, excitedly. "Does Mrs. Dowie believe you -are in- , t' Sane?" continued the evangelist. ' / "I refuse to answer!" shouted Mrs. Dowie ' 7 in a loud voice. " It's an insult for persons on this platform to question my character as' > "j they have and thrust these- lies upon Dir. I , say it.i s an insult, and they are not fit to \ sit in my pretence -— » J p She walked the length of the platform and } shook her clenched fist in tho face of Deaoottl John F. Petersthe one the Voliva follow- ■■ *.J, § ing arc talking about riding out of Zion City , *" on a rail ' "And you, Deacon Peters, are among, them Dowio implored his wife to be quiet, and , the Voliva followers shouted > and laughed and stamped their feet and shouted " Halle- . lujah." It was a noisy exhibition. \ £■ " I only ask that the truth be told," said Mrs. Dowie, becoming calmer, "but I will not stand their stopping people's - mouths." Dowie leaned over and grabbed her by the arm. • V " I want," said he, " to ask Mistress Dowie a question. Has she ever said I was insane?" . ' ■ Mrs. Dowie wept violently. Dowie re- V peated : " Has Mistress Dowio ever said J, was in- • sane? She can answer in three ways « yesno—or—l refuse to answer." ■- Mrs. Dowie turned on him with flashing ' eyes. _ . "I will answer in the way I please!" she &M. exclaimed. "1 have said* that you have .\1 hallucinations. I know that you hate done . " ' wrong, although I believe you are an honourable man. Ido believe that you were indiscreet in your relations with Miss Ruth " : i Hofer." Then she turned to the audience and con- ' tinued: "I repeat it, 1 believe he is a good man," and she put her arms around his -v neck, but Dowie repulsed her impatiently. M'rs. Dowie stood on the platform in an embarrassed way, and begun again: "I have tried to do my duty and to be - faithful to my husband— , "Are you going to talk aIL night?" asked 4 Dowie, " or is someone else going to have a chance?" Gladstone Dowie, who had sat in tire > audience, came or the platform, took his n other by the arm, and affectionately led her to a chair, and then made 'a little sp ech, in which lie called Voliva a liar, and spoke kindly of his father. "I have broken with Voliva and all his Hislff deacons," said Gladstone. " That's a man!v speech," said Dowie. The Chicago Herald of May 12 says:' •'John 1\ lexande.i Dowie is 'at death's door." His demise is ho longer a question of '- months, or even weeks, but of days, according to the admissions of those who are i closest to the 'first apostle.' The denials as to the seriousness of his condition, made ever since his return from Mexico, have ceased, and his staunchest adherents, as ' "fx well as the members of his family, admit P that all hope is past. Bowie's death afefSlSl any moment would not surprise, those who K -' are .with him in Shiloh House, and Dowie " J 'P< himself now realises that the end is near. He is extremely weak and nervous, and - I much of his time is spen A in weeping and ii] lamenting his fate. At the meeting in ilw " tabernacle a week ago last Sunday Dow. i« .'■ A declared emphatically tliat he was rapid'r \£S improving, and laughed at the ' malicious*' ; 5*5 •reports' that he w t ts ing. ' - A;i-j