A Surprise Move

Then E. W. Farnsworth stood and said that he did not know whether or not what he was about to propose was in order, but it seemed to him that they could not do better than to make a practical beginning of the matter right there. To start the fund, he would pledge £50. This pledge was quickly followed by others, and a list of the pledges (which was reproduced in the July 31 Union Conference Record) was made. The opening lines read:4BIO 432.1

The list grew to seventy-one entries and £905, or the equivalent of something more than $4,500.4BIO 432.2

There was no hint in any of the addresses or comments calling for money from America. Australia was reaching maturity and self-sufficiency, even though it demanded economy and sacrifice.4BIO 432.3

A few months later Ellen White wrote of the fruitage of sanitarium work in Sydney:4BIO 432.4

Several wealthy people who have come to our Sanitarium in Sydney have embraced the truth, among them a man who has donated £500 to our Sanitarium. He is an invalid. He and his wife have taken their stand fully.—Letter 11, 1900.4BIO 432.5

The sanitarium work in Australia was coming of age! The new sanitarium building planned for Sydney opened January 1, 1903, with Dr. D. H. Kress as medical director.4BIO 432.6