Their first output was “The Signs of the Times,” taken from The Bible Students Monthly. Hollister assigned Joseph to supply a quantity of these tracts to a Brother Devasahayam at Neyyattinkara, a rice-producing town about ten miles (16 kilometers) southeast of Trivandrum. Devasahayam was also representing the Society in Travancore.

Traveling by bullock cart, Joseph circulated the tracts on his journey. The slow-moving oxen transported him along the winding lanes, skirting shimmering green paddy fields. They penetrated areca palm groves, while Joseph patiently endured the buzzing insects and sweaty conditions, constantly spreading liberating truths to Christendom’s members. Fording Travancore’s many rivers and circling the palm-fringed lagoons, Joseph moved ever southerly through this picturesque region, spreading the “word of life” until he eventually met up with Devasahayam at Neyyattinkara.​—Phil. 2:14-16.

At Tiruvella in north Travancore, however, faithful Brother Joseph and his companion Brother Hart set up a temporary headquarters from which to cover the northern part of the state. In those days, the work consisted mainly of distributing tracts and giving public talks on “The Divine Plan of the Ages.” The work progressed well, particularly in this northern area.