PROFITING BY FAILURE 88Ione of whom was the prison chaplain, eventually led in 1923 to the
demise of not only the educational rehabilitation programs but also the
magazine and numerous other successful offshoot ventures.
"The bleak irony, " as Michael Riff notes, was that "few enterprises in
the 1920s could have been more idealistic or humanitarian in concept ...
yet in seeking to stir goodness in men's souls these enterprises had stirred
mean-spirited men to a blood lust that destroyed everything."
As devastated as he was, Hill blamed himself and his own poor
judgment of the character of others.Strangely enough, I entered into this work with never a thought
of looking for either the end of the rainbow or the proverbial pot
of gold. For the first time in my life I seemed to realize, without a
doubt, that there was something else to be sought in life that was
worth more than gold. I went at my editorial work with but one main
thought in mind-to render the world the best service of which I
was capable, whether my efforts brought me a penny in return or not.
The publication of RiWs Golden Rule magazine brought me in
contact with thinking people all over the country. It was my big
chance to be heard. My message of optimism and goodwill toward
others became so popular that I was invited to go on a countrywide
speaking tour during the early part of 1920, during which I had the
privilege of meeting and talking with some of the most progressive
thinkers of this generation. Contact with these people went a very
long way toward giving me the courage to keep on doing the good
work that I had started. This tour was a liberal education in itself,
because it brought me in exceedingly close contact with people in
practically all walks of life.
One day during my speaking tour I was sitting in a restaurant
in Dallas, Texas, watching the hardest downpour of rain that I have
ever seen. The water was pouring down over the plate-glass window
in two great streams, and playing backward and forward from one of