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cal and theological seminaries, high schools and village schools are planted by them in all lands where they have entered. They are fountains of pure, helpful and instructive Christian literature in every prominent language of the East. What a mental What a mental training, an intellectual stimulus, and a lifting up of moral standards is brought about by the periodical and permanent literature so widely published and distributed by our missionary agencies! It has come to be recognized as one of the functions of missionary organizations in cases where the moral interests of their native constituencies are involved, to call the attention of civilized communities to great questions of public justice and national ethics, such as the opium trade, the slave trade, the kidnapping of natives for forced labor, and the rum traffic, now so notorious in Africa. Some of the most cruel and degrading customs have disappeared, largely through the agency of missions. In India we have conspicuous illustrations of this; and if the iron rule of caste is ever to be broken, to missions will belong to a notable extent the immortal honor of striking the fatal blow. They have been instrumental in introducing moral and material improvements into civil, social, and industrial life, and in elevating standards of personal conduct and manners. They have stimulated productive industry, and quickened trade. with other lands. They have indirectly introduced modern inventions and have encouraged the adoption of the facilities of Western civilization. They have rendered notable contributions to the scientific progress of the world, in the departments of archæology, ethnology, philology, geography, mineralogy, geology, zoology, botany, folk-lore, and comparative religion. They have developed and reduced. to writing many important languages and dialects, and made them the medium of an instructive literature and especially

[July,

of the circulation of the Bible. They are accomplishing much in the development and growth of the English language as a world-wide medium of thought. They have been useful in the propagation of enlightened ideas upon liberty, justice, equality, human rights, fraternity, and mutual helpfulness. They are hastening the overthrow of effete and tyrannical governments, in the interest especially of liberty of conscience and religious freedom. They are busy instilling lessons of Christian philanthropy, and putting into motion the impulses of beneficence and charity. They are constantly giving to the world examples of heroism and lessons of sacrifice in the lives and biographies of such men as Carey, Judson, Martyn, Patteson, Zinzendorf, Livingston, Hannington, Keith-Falconer, Moffat, Mackay, and Paton. They are breaking the power of priestcraft and the tyranny of superstition, and giving impulse and scope to aspirations after better things, while opening the door of hope to despairing hearts. They are releasing woman from her immemorial degradation in heathen. lands, by sending devoted women to visit. her in the seclusion of the zenana and the harem, to teach and brighten her life amid her hitherto cheerless and depressing surroundings. They are building an altar of social worship in many a humble home, purifying and sweetening domestic life, and enforcing the blessed moralities of the Christian family. They are rebuking vice and making its shamelessness less ostentatious and its practice less easy. They are giving a spiritual tone to religion, and freeing it from hollow forms and degrading idolatries. They are establishing a simple worship, and giving a helpful, instructive, and human touch to the ministrations of the Church, placing the Word of God in the hands of men in their own language, the language of the heart and home. They are bringing souls

1892.]

continually into the light, and liberty, and hope, and spiritual obedience of the Gospel of Christ.

This work is conducted at the present hour under the auspices of over 200 Missionary Societies, with the Word of God ready for use in 300 languages. There are 7,000 missionaries (including ladies) on the foreign fields, with 30,000 native helpers. The converts already number nearly a million, and there are at least 4,000,000 adherents under the influence of mission instruction. There are 40,000 pupils in higher educational institutions, and 400,000 children in village schools.

The great East India Company in the zenith of its power, after concentrating all its wisdom and business acumen on the subject of missions, pronounced the

17

sending of missionaries to the heathen to be "the maddest, the most extravagant, the most expensive, the most unwarrantable project that was ever proposed by a lunatic enthusiast. " The answer of the last year of mission progress to the condensed and opaque folly of this astounding deliverance was 60,000 native conversions, and the out-gushing of thousands of springs of moral power and blessing, pouring out their healing, refreshing, and life-giving waters to a thirsty world.

The moral pulse of the world is beating quicker and stronger under the reviving and tonic power of missions. It is a cause which is identified with one of God's great thoughts, and it will be heard of more and more as the world moves on toward its final goal.

The present plan for sustaining the weak churches in the State of New York was established by this Synod in October, 1886, and took effect May 1st, 1887.

The

The Synod resolved to undertake the support of its own weak churches within the bounds of the State. The plan is simple. The Synod estimated the amount necessary and divided that among the Presbyteries according to the church membership, and asked each Presbytery to raise its quota in its own way, considering the financial ability of each church. Synod asked the Board of Home Missions to administer the fund, and the Treasurer of the Board to be the Treasurer of the fund. The State was divided into two districts, and two superintendents were appointed to promote the work by personal effort among the churches, under the direction of the Presbyterial committees, by

preaching, advising, introducing candidates to vacant pulpits, eliciting an interest in the work through the stronger churches, and by such other means as might be in their power. A committee of Synod was appointed to aid the work and correspond with the committees in the various Presbyteries.

ITS ORIGIN AND DESIGN.

That the Eastern Synods should become self-sustaining was first suggested by the venerable Secretary of the Board, and the General Assembly recommended it to the Eastern Synods, and directed that it should take the place of Sustentation in the Synods where adopted.

Its design was, first, to relieve the Board by an increase of funds and so strengthen the Board for its aggressive work in the more recently settled states and territories.

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Secondly, It was to benefit the condition of the weak churches in the older states by an increased and immediate effort for them on the part of the Presbytery in which they are situated; and so, by their development, secure a better response to the Macedonian call from the frontier.

The success has been encouraging to a good degree, but not complete. The work has not been antagonistic to the Board. The Superintendents have been very busy; 275 sermons in a portion of the last year, 369 in the year before have been preached, and nearly all in the destitute and vacant fields. Many churches that had been. closed have been opened, others very weak have been strengthened, so that the condition of the weak churches is better now

than for many years. Some new churches have been organized, and houses of worship erected, debts have been cleared off, ministers have been introduced, evangelistic meetings have been held, and the work pushed in every direction.

The Presbyteries have been aroused to caring for their weak churches, and committees have become active, efficient and successful. More has been done than would have been possible without some such special effort.

Synodical aid has been the chief topic in the meetings of Synod, and the Presbyteries have discussed it in their late spring meetings with interest not seen before.

SUCCESS NOT COMPLETE.

Complete success has not been attained. The Synod asks this year $32,000. From October 1st, 1891, to May 1st, 1892, $938,924 have been raised for synodical aid. To reach complete success and receive $32,000, $22,610.76 must be raised by October 1st, 1892. Shall it be done? The Presbyteries, committees and sessions can answer. Not all the depressed churches have been restored. There are closed churches yet for want of funds. There

[July,

are discouraged hearts in our own communion and members of our own body in

sorrow.

APPEAL.

1. What will the Presbyteries do about it? There has been much interesting and undoubtedly profitable discussion in the late meetings. Let the discussion go on. It is not that any particular plan is so important, but the subject itself and the object to be attained by whatever plan may be best.

2. What will the committees of the Presbyteries do about it? Shall the Presbytery be districted between the members of the committee both to advise with, and care for the weak churches, and to encourage all to give that the need may be supplied? Will not the full amount be reported as raised when Synod meets next October? It can be.

3. Ministers, what will you do about it? Shall the people be informed and encouraged to the support of this cause? It is the cause that lies at the door in immediate contact with our every-day life, the cause of brothers and sisters and fathers and mothers in the old home town, and the cause of the stranger within our very gates.

4. Church members and almoners of the Lord's money, what will you do about it?

Will you give heed to this cry of spiritual want that may be heard without leaving home, so near it is. Many of you are prosperous in business, some in affluent circumstances. Will you listen? They are the voices of your neighbors and kinsfolk that you hear. And with these pathetic cries there comes also the threatening jargon of voices of infidelity, socialism and anarchy, mingled with the curses that come from the haunts of vice and crime. The gospel is the remedy, and the power of the Holy Ghost is pledged to the faithful workers. What are homes and estates with the foundations of society

The Fire-Worshippers or Parsees probably number 7,000 or 8,000 in Persia. Though oppressed since the sixth century, when Omar subdued Persia to Islam at the point of the sword, the sect still retains a distinct individuality.

Recently I had the unusual opportunity of attending a Fire-Worshipper's funeral. When death had taken place each knee was bent at a right angle and each foot was placed under the other knee, thus crossing the shins like a letter x. The body was bathed with the

urine of a cow and wound round and round from head to foot in new white cloth. The sacred book was read over it and then it was placed on an iron litter, made fast with ropes, covered with a sheet, and carried out. The cemetery is about five miles south of the city on a mountain side. After going but a short distance, the litter was placed on a donkey and jolted along as fast as possible.

Arriving at the cemetery, I found that two men had gone on ahead carrying a ladder,

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utensils and ingredients for preparing incense, and a luncheon for the five men, including the son of the dead man, who had brought the body.

The cemetery consists of a circular inclosure built of stones and lime about eighteen feet high and fifty feet in diameter. One man built a fire and prepared the incense which, as soon as its unpleasant odor had filled the air, he unceremoniously threw out on the ground. Another bound the two short ladders together to make them long enough to reach the top and erected them against the wall. Others removed the litter from the donkey, then removed the body from the litter and laid it on a strong thin blanket with two stones under the head. One then took a stone and passed it three times half way around the body on the ground, each time retracing the line to the standing point, all the time muttering something. These preparations completed, the diagonally opposite corners of the quilt were tied firmly together thus enclosing the body in a sort of sack. To these knots a rope was tied and one of the men tucked the other end of the rope into his belt and mounted the ladder. One by one we climbed the ladder and stepped over the wall on to a small landing down into the enclosure. Then two men took hold of the rope and roughly drew up the body often bumping it carelessly against the wall. They dragged it over on to the landing and down the steps where it was removed from the quilt. The floor of the cemetery is entirely covered with stone masonry and contains about sixty-three graves, the long way of them being nearly north and south. Each grave is about five

[July,

feet long, two feet wide, and a little more than a foot deep built of stone masonry. Into one of these the body was put, the head to the north and no other covering than the cloth which had been wound around it. The face was then uncovered and the cloth somewhat loosened round the body and the last earthly rites had been performed for one who eighteen hours before had been alive.

This account would not be complete without some description of the scene that appeared before me as I climbed from the top of the ladder over the wall on to the landing. There were human bodies and bones in all stages of decay. There were skulls with eyeless sockets, jaws full of ghastly teeth, hair, whiskers, and fleshless hands and feet, ribs, thigh bones, and pieces of cloth mixed up in horrid confusion. Three bodies had quite recently been deposited. The crows had stripped their bones and the skeletons had been turned enough so that they had the appearance of having tried to escape.

Near the center of the enclosure and again near the side were holes leading down into a large deep under-ground room. Into this are dumped from time to time the surplus of bones.

Scarcely had we started away from the place when the crows began to collect. The Fire-Worshippers say that if the birds first pick out the right eye the person has gone to heaven, but if the left, he has gone to hell.

The young son thus left an orphan is a Christian and more than once through this affliction he was borne up and sustained by his faith in Christ. The father had often heard the gospel but God alone knows whether it is well with his soul.