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    Chapter V

    Ellen White received a salary from the General Conference commensurate with that paid an ordained minister, and in her later years it equaled that paid an officer of the General Conference. At the time of her death this was $22 per week.EGWP 7.1

    As an author she received a royalty on her books. This fluctuated. Had it been income without expense, she could have become quite well off. But she personally met most of the expense of the operation of her office and the preparation of her books. This called for the employment of several secretaries, and the outgo eventually came to exceed the income. At one time this led her to contemplate dismissing her helpers and ceasing book preparation; but she could not lay aside the responsibility of getting her message before the church and the world. Her alternative was to accept loans from Seventh-day Adventists who were willing to invest in her books.EGWP 7.2

    At the time of her death she was quite heavily in debt. This has been the cause for some criticism, but perhaps no more than if she had died in possession of a great estate. In 1904 she wrote:EGWP 7.3

    Sometimes it has been reported that I am trying to get rich. Some have written to us, inquiring, “Is not Mrs. White worth millions of dollars?” I am glad that I can say, “No.” I do not own in this world any place that is free from debt. Why?—Because I see so much missionary work to be done. Under such circumstances, could I hoard money?—No, indeed. I receive royalties from the sale of my books; but nearly all is spent in missionary work.

    The head of one of our publishing houses in a distant foreign land, upon hearing recently from others that I was in need of means, sent me a bill of exchange for five hundred dollars; and in the letter accompanying the money, he said that in return for the thousands upon thousands of dollars royalty that I turned over to their mission field for the translation and distribution of new books and for the support of new missionary enterprises, they regarded the enclosed five hundred dollars as a very small token of their appreciation. They sent this because of their desire to help me in time of special need; but heretofore I have given, for the support of the Lord’s cause in foreign lands, all the royalties that come from the sale of my foreign books in Europe; and I intend to return this five hundred dollars as soon as I can free myself from debt. 1Manuscript 8, 1904, published in Remnant, p. 124.

    After mentioning a gift for a thousand dollars to help young men train for the ministry she wrote, “This is how Sister White is becoming rich. I have been laying up my treasure in heaven.” 2Letter 106, 1908, published in Remnant, p. 124.EGWP 7.4

    The debt on her estate, as she anticipated, was cleared by the sale of assets she left and by royalty income. This amount was not incurred by reckless spending and accruing debts with no provision for their retirement. She was the proprietor of a going business enterprise—one for the Lord, it is true—which called for investment. According to her expectations, it paid itself out. Managing matters in this way left her free to press hard with her literary work while she could care for it.EGWP 7.5

    Royalty income on the White books today goes entirely to the General Conference, which in turn provides an annual budget for support of the office of the Ellen G. White Estate. With all foreign language books excused from royalty obligations, such income meets about one-half the total White Estate budget.EGWP 7.6

    There were times when Ellen White, in attempting to please her brethren or to accommodate their urging, was overpersuaded and yielded her best judgment. Such instances in no way involved the messages she bore; they merely revealed human traits. On one occasion she set out to secure a comfortable chair for her husband during his convalescence from severe stroke. Looking around, she found the chair which she felt exactly met the need, but the price of $17 seemed a little too high to some of her brethren, and they persuaded her to shift her choice to one for $14 which they assured her would be adequate. But it came woefully short of being the article of furniture that would fill the important place she saw for it in contributing to the recovery of her husband. “Had I the same to do over again,” she wrote, “I would rely upon my own judgment, and purchase a chair costing a few dollars more, and worth double the one I got.” 3Testimonies for the Church 1:594.EGWP 7.7

    Another instance of overpersuasion that she was to regret occurred when, under pressure from those who were leading in the newly established sanitarium in Battle Creek, she released only a portion of the instruction God had given to her as to that work. At the time she was unable to write out fully what God had revealed to her in vision, for the care of her partially paralyzed husband made very heavy demands on her time and strength. But the brethren insisted that her written message was needed to lead the church members to see the importance of giving financial support to the new enterprise, and she allowed an incomplete presentation to go into print. She explained this in the Testimonies: “Under these circumstances I yielded my judgment to that of others and wrote what appeared in No. 11 in regard to the Health Institute, being unable then to give all I had seen. In this I did wrong. I must be allowed to know my own duty better than others can know it for me.” 4Testimonies for the Church 1:563.EGWP 8.1

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