1892.]

Dr. T. L. Sexton, of Nebraska, said that he was in favor of a thorough course of training for all the work of the ministry. But, of course, there were exceptional cases, and of these, Presbytery was the proper judge. He would always encourage such cases. We have sometimes put such men on a course of study. Most of the brethren are opposed to letting down the bars. Elders do some of this work. Some hold services in school-houses, with successful results, and some read sermons in vacant churches.

Dr. T. M. Gunn, of Washington, said he had had small experience in this matter. Some elders had maintained services in their churches while their ministers were absent organizing new work. One at Moscow, Idaho, does work like this throughout the year. Several read sermons to the congregations.

Rev. F. D. Seward, of southern California, said that his experience in this line had been so limited that he had nothing special to add.

Rev. F. M. Wood, of North Dakota, said that he had found little material for such work. He knew of only three instances. One such man has been ordained and proved very useful. Another, the exGovernor of the State, has done good work. The third came to grief.

Dr. R. W. Hill, of Indian Territory, had found that too many men want to press into such work. In a Presbytery of eight men in his field, six had no training except what they had picked up-had fluency of speech but little education. Then these are too apt to bring in others even less fitted than themselves. It was hard to prevent undue haste on the part of Presbytery in this direction. A man makes a good talk, and then they propose to license him. Each Presbytery last

51

spring had a case of this kind. There should be a warning against the hasty ordination of lay preachers. There should be some special control of Presbyteries in Indian Territory and New Mexico in this matter. These men, if in the majority, naturally vote together and control Presbytery. It is almost the same way in Synod. We have tried to establish a course of study for this class, but it is almost a dead letter. Neighboring ministers fail to oversee it and keep it up.

Rev. J. A. Menaul, of New Mexico said that a few men in American churches are doing good work in this line. There

is one such in Las Cruces. The Board was asked to leave off the prefix "Rev." in addressing such men, as some were apt to assume it. They are apt to seek to be ordained before they are qualified.

Dr. T. C. Kirkwood, of Colorado thought that elders ought to be more recognized and used in this way. We have used two elders at regular work in our synod, very satisfactorily. One young man of good parts has held three points. Mr. Rankin has proved himself a fine evangelist, and there have been other such cases, which have entailed no expense upon the Board. The fields to be occupied are often too far from each other to be thus covered, and few young men can give the time necessary for this service without interruption of their secular business.

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Dr. R. N. Adams, of Minnesota, thought that in his field they had possibly done. more of this kind of work than was advisable or profitable. They had found a danger here. The. men thus employed begin at once to think that they ought to be ministers. Presbyteries are not always as careful as they should be. One man was called by a church for this temporary service, and was then installed. He had some knowledge of Scripture, but was otherwise quite ignorant, and so lasted only a little while. Another, an elder, had proved quite effective. Another, who had engaged in Sunday-school work, had been licensed and ordained, and had done very well. Some had been spoiled by promotion. Some elders, on the other hand, are at work who have no idea of being licensed or ordained. W. I.

A LITTLE FARM WELL TILLED.-California is learning that scratching over a great ranch is not so profitable as carefully

cultivating a smaller one; and we all know good horses, well cared for, can do more work than a greater number hungry and neglected. Then let us have fewer Home Mission fields; but work them better, and take better care of the Home Missionaries; and then expect greater results.

F. D. SEWARD.

[July,

MINNESOTA:-The following extract is from the report of Rev. J. J. Ward, of Kasson. This veteran missionary is now in his 82nd year-the 53rd of his ministry and is bringing forth fruit in his old age. He evidently did not find the "dead line at fifty." Why should any one?

"Through the goodness of God I am able to report, every Sabbath in my pulpit, every week at our social meeting. The spiritual tone of our church very good and pleasant, and our work moving on smoothly in every department. An addition of one by letter and one by profession at our last communion. We are hopeful for the future. Our village is not such a centre of business as to hold our young men and women of enterprise, and hence we have been and are still a feeder for churches further west, and for St. Paul and Minneapolis. This does not discourage us, tho' it bears hard against the increase of our local strength. I think the promise for the future is somewhat brighter."

Like any enthusiastic Western youth he insists that his work has a bright promise of future growth. But whether his church grows or not it is a little fountain that is nourishing other churches in the cities and in the further west. Such a church demonstrates its right to be and to receive help.

NEW MEXICO:-The following touching incident is given by Miss Alice J. Thomas, one of our most faithful teachers. It illustrates the way the leaven works and the kingdom comes to one and another without observation. There is no more potent agency than the mission school. It is like a wedge, it can rive asunder what nothing else can disturb:

"Not long ago death entered the home of a poor Mexican family, members of our church, and took away the youngest child. The parents are

1892.]

very poor, the father being paralyzed and unable to work. Under these circumstances we did all we could to comfort them, giving financial aid, as well as sympathy. The evening before the funeral, Miss A. and myself took a few of the older girls and went to the house and offered to sing some of the gospel songs in Spanish. The mother seemed very grateful and we sang for perhaps an hour. While we were thus engaged we noticed a man (Mexican) who was in an adjoining room, leaning forward and watching us with a face so full of interest, and an expression so intense as to be almost startling. He listened attentively to every song. When we went away we left some of the hymn-books. These he read and then said to Mrs. D., that he did not know that Protestants believed as those songs read. He asked her to get a book and learn the songs so that she could teach them to him. He

said he would willingly spend the whole night learning them:

"This man's home is in a part of the territory where there are no Protestant schools, and no one to tell of our Saviour. We further learn that the people are dissatisfied with their priest and have expressed a desire that our Board would send them

a teacher. Thus the little things become mighty when it is the Master's hand that directs the work, For we are laborers together with God.""

If in any mind there linger a doubt as to the need of mission work in New Mexico, that doubt ought to be dispelled by the following account of the burial of a child who died in a "Sisters' School." Such a scene tends to confirm the belief that Roman Catholicism, left to itself, degenerates into heathenism :

"Her remains were sent home, at the request of her people, Friday morning. We went to the house early, they had taken her out of the coffin and laid

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She

her on a mattress on the floor. was neatly dressed in white. We went again Saturday morning, found her lying on the bare earth floor, her head on a sod, dressed Indian style. She was laid in the grave on a blanket, covered with earth, three jars of water poured in and then the coffin and clothing thrown in. I will leave you to imagine our feelings.

"Now, these people consider themselves Christians. They have had foot races every Sunday afternoon for six weeks, ending yesterday, and with a war dance, which lasted all night.

"The harvest is great, but exceedingly hard to gather in."

Rev. S. E. Wishard, D. D., Synod of Utah, writes: All at it. Why not? Why not the whole church lay hands upon the toil which the Master has given us? Do you ask, "how ?" Just as we have been doing, only a little more of it. Here is our mission school work among our exceptional populations. You say "Let us put this money into the preaching of the gospel.' Indeed! Have we not been putting it into the preaching of the gospel in the most. effective way? Look at the spectacle of eighty mission teachers toiling among and teaching 2,000 Mormon children. The gospel is preached every school day in the week, and gathered up and emphasized on the Sabbath. It is the gospel laid on the child heart-the warm virgin soil-that gives best promise of fruit. No. Let us have more mission school work and better.

HOW IT WORKS.

Just as God meant it should, and as it always has. The Christian life and teaching of these devoted women gradually and rapidly takes hold of the children whom they instruct. They are won to a loving confidence, and now the door to their hearts is wide open. The truth is

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handed in and begins to quicken a new life. With this new life comes the desire to use it for God, and hence a thirst for such an educational preparation as will prepare these new converts for the highest usefulness. Now the academy must be opened, and the college, and what? Why, it has been Christian education from beginning to end. Yes, more mission schools. and as much better as we can make them.

A POSSIBLE OUTCOME.

The

We have been thinking it over. drift of secularism in our public schools is deep and strong. Looking down the future we see unsolved problems for the church and for our country. Are the method and fruit of our mission schools yet to bring us a solution of some of the questions that are dimly rising in the future? Christian education-not denominational merely as such-must yet cast the leaven into the lump that is to preserve our nation. That education must come from the home, the Christian pulpit, the school and college. The hint that lies deep down in the mission school may have a germ in it that shall be of utmost value to the nation. It may yet help us in direst necessity. We will see.

SYNOD OF TEXAS.-The following is extracted from a letter written by the Synodical Missionary of the Synod of Texas, to one of the student missionaries who last summer labored in that district. The letter is valuable, not only as bearing testimony to the extent and importance of the work accomplished, but as manifest

[July,

ing the friendly and interesting relation existing between existing between our missionaries and those of the Board of Home Missions:

If Princeton turns out an average of men such as have been doing work in Texas this summer, she is to be congratulated. Each one of you has done excellent work. Nothing could be so much desired as for each of you to come into our field at the close of your course.

Mr. and others, are quite disposed to sound your praises at Montague. I am thoroughly glad you came to Texas. Please tell the other brethren from me, that I hear only good reports of each of them.

ITALIAN CHURCH ANNIVERSARY.-The first anniversary of the First Italian Presbyterian Church in Newark, and of the United States as well, was celebrated in the church on River street, May 16. There was a large attendance. The chief interest was the announcement that two American women had succeeded in collecting $5,000 toward a fund for the building of a new church. The pastor, Rev. Francisco Pesaturo, read in English and Italian a sketch of the history of the church from its inception. Twenty-three persons were admitted to membership, making a total of fifty-four members; five children have been baptized;. work has been secured for ninety-eight Italians, and nineteen children have been placed in Protestant schools. During the year the has congregation contributed $175.50. The Sunday-school has an attendance of from fifteen to twenty children.

RESULTS OF THE YEAR.

It will be remembered that the fiscal year, just closed, began with a debt of $98,346.04. The General Assembly at Detroit, urgently pressed upon the church. the necessity of raising, during the year, $1,000,000 in order to pay the debt and provide for the current work, the work already for two years neglected on account of the debt, and the new work which was certain to appear all over the growing country, and press its claims upon the Board.

This was a modest estimate, and yet the church has not met it. The amount received for these purposes, during the year, was $843,353.44, which is $156,646.56 less than the General Assembly recommended. If the Board had spent as much money as the General Assembly authorized (which was much less. than the Presbyteries have demanded) the debt would now be just $156,646.56. But the Board has been more cautious and conservative than the Assembly or the Presbyteries, and so has cut down the debt to $67,092.62, which is less by $31,253.42 than a year ago. This looks somewhat hopeful, but it must be remembered that in order to accomplish this reduction it was necessary to cut down appropriations too close, in very many cases, for the comfort and welfare of the missionaries and to suspend, almost entirely, for the second year, all aggressive work.

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The following comparative table, showing the results of the two years, will aid us in taking our bearings:

Number of Missionaries,

66

1892

1891

"Missionary Teachers,

Additions on Profession of Faith,

Total Membership,

in Congregations,

Number of Parsonages (value $489,064),

It has been a year of both progress and retrogression a year of growth and a year of internal adjustments. Our Annual Report together with that splendid report of the Assembly's Standing Committee just presented at Portland, have gone to all parts of the church, clearly and forcibly presenting the principal facts and figures of the year's record. But the statistical table appended to the annual report requires study in order that its significance may be rightly understood. If we compare it with the report of the previous year there are but four items which seem to indicate any progress. A greater number of teachers by twenty have been employed, a greater number of churches by thirteen (or thirty-three per cent.) have assumed self-support. More money has been received from the several sources, for current use than during the year before, and in consequence the debt has been reduced thirty-one per cent.

Every remaining item in the table seems to indicate retrogression. But a comparison with the corresponding items in last