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George Scott Railton was born on 6th July 1849 at Arbroath in Scotland,
the son of Wesleyan Missionaries. He was 'saved' at the age of ten in
Wigan, Cumbria. The young Railton's education at Woodhouse Grove School.
Leeds, then only open to sons of Wesleyan ministers, did much to prepare
him for a life of Christian Service. His father and mother both died on
8th November 1864 at Peel, on the Isle of Man, probably of cholera.
At the age of just fifteen, George Railton found himself penniless,
homeless, jobless and orphaned. His older brother, Launcelot, found him
employment with a London shipping company, but he found life in the
great metropolis lonely and his job soul destroying. Dismissed from his
job for refusing to sign a letter of dubious truth, the nineteen year
old Railton decided to journey to Morocco to win the Moors for Christ.
His mission failed and again he found himself penniless and had to work
his passage back to the U.K. as a steward. At the age of twenty one he
secured employment in Stockton-on-Tees with an uncle who owned a
shipping business.
Moved by news of the work of The Salvation Army, in October 1872 Railton
journeyed to London to begin his long association with William Booth and
for many years lived as a guest in the Booth household. He soon became
the acting editor of The Christian Mission Magazine and in September
1873 he was appointed General Secretary to The Christian Mission.
In 1880 Railton persuaded William Booth to send him to America to open
fire for The Salvation Army, and on March 10th he arrived at Castle
Garden, New York with just seven 'Hallelujah Lassies.' New York was
fertile territory for The Army, and the work spread rapidly. By May the
U.S. forces totalled sixteen officers, forty cadets, and four hundred
and twelve soldiers. The first year alone saw one thousand five hundred
converted. In January 1881, Railton received orders from William Booth
to return to England. Despite Railton's protests, Booth was insistent
that he was needed back home.
In 1884 George Scott Railton was married to Marianne Parkyn, a Salvation
Army Sergeant in Torquay. her father was a Free Church Minister, and
disapproved strongly of The Salvation Army, let alone the wedding.
Finally however, he gave his consent and the couple were married by
William Booth at Exeter Hall on January 17th.
On New Years Day in 1885, despite Railton's declining health, Commissioner
and Mrs. Railton set sail for Natal. After sixty seven days at sea, they
reached their destination on march 8th, with Railton's health a great
cause for concern. On May 6th they arrived a t he capital,
Pietermaritzburg. Here it was that the idea of Salvation Army red Shield
Work for men in the forces came into being.
Commissioner Railton's health was now improving, thanks to the treatment
of a Dr. Allen in the Natal capital. On 19th August the couple boarded
the Roslen Castle and set sail for England. The journey was rough and
took its toll on them both, but Commissioner Railton in particular,
suffered greatly.
Having been inspired to learn the language while serving in Switzerland,
Railton was posted to Germany in 1886. Progress here was slow and there
was not a little hostility. However in 1890, with Germany under a new
emperor and Chancellor Bismark now retired, Commissioner Railton was
officially appointed Territorial Commander. Later that year he returned
to England to conduct the funeral service of Catherine Booth, The Army
Mother. In 1893, as part of a tightening of restrictions by the German
government, Railton was expelled from the country and forced to leave.
In 1894 Railton set sail to serve in Spain, Spanish being another
foreign language he had mastered, where he remained until being recalled
to England in the summer of 1895. His health was again giving cause for
concern, but gradually he recovered much of his physical strength. He
was called on to advise and assist Bramwell Booth, and traveled the
world inspecting forces on Bramwells behalf.
In 1899 Railton left for South Africa to negotiate with political and
military leaders prior to the opening of Red Shield work amongst the
troops. Progress was difficult, but after months of patient
negotiations he was successful. He returned to England at the end of the
Boer War in December 1900, where he served until being sent to take
charge of the work in France toward the end of 1901.
At the end of 1902 he returned to work at Headquarters, until the
following year when he left for West Africa to investigate the
commencement of Salvation Army work in the region. Upon his return in
December 1903 his health had deteriorated greatly, and it was not until
the International Congress in June 1904 that Railton was seen in public
again.
Commissioner Railton continued to travel extensively, visiting many
countries including China, Japan and Russia. It was while on one of his
many journeys that his life came to a sudden end. Journeying to Le Locle
in Switzerland, he had to change trains at Cologne. Facing a long wait,
he sought out the local quarters of The Salvation Army officers. Delayed
by their hospitality and their prayers, he had little time to catch his
train. Fetching his bag from the cloakroom he dashed up the stairs to
the train. In his condition, an extremely dangerous thing to do. He
jumped in, sat down, and drew his last breath. Commissioner George Scott
Railton was promoted to glory on July 19th 1913.
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