There is plenty of evidence the past presidents or GB leaders of the WTS/JWS had bad intent, not so much with C T Russell, he just adopted some crazy evangelical theologies from other people and thought they would be worthy to help sell literature that he was going to publish.
He wasn't on a high rolling people controlling power trip like the men who followed after in control over the WTS publishing house. ( J Rutherford )
The WTS eventually expanded and grew so did the individual power and control over people's lives by the top leaders who slowly developed a greater sense of involving self empowerment, telling people not to get married and have children, telling them to forego any vaccination, organ transplant or blood transfusion and many people died because of that.
That righteous perceived power came from god's holy spirit that was being poured out to those men because they claimed that god had selectively chosen them.
The bad intent of those men can now be identified in their own endeavor of self empowerment via god's power.