Poverty: According to the World Bank, the number of those suffering extreme poverty in Africa alone has grown from 280 million in 1990 to 330 million in 2012.
In 1911, after classes, or congregations, had been set up in a number of countries, each class was encouraged to send out suitable speakers to surrounding areas to give a series of six lectures on topics such as judgment and the ransom.
Brother Harteva wrote in the December 1, 1914, issue of The Watch Tower: “Because of the difficult economic situation, . . . we cannot promise that The Watch Tower will have the same number of pages or will be published as often this year.”