The ledger. [volume] (Gaffney City, S.C.) 1896-1907, December 02, 1899, Image 1

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F G.Stacy. President. J. G. Wahdlaw. Vice I on THE NATIONAL BANK OF GAFFNET. h Capital $50,000.00. Wu.t, liny county claims, receive deposit, and make lllxu sil louus on approved paper I). G. Uokk. Cashier. jxixcl 1 The Gaffney Daily Ledger. •'a 1 H 15. Tin: MOW LIMiOSTGMO. 1H9SI. The Llrue.stoiiu of oilier days, the famous College of the Curtises and of Captain II. I*, (•riititli. lias a la rue place in the history of Soutlicrin ducation. Even Greater U tha l.iineHtone of today. The highest of stand ards, the hest of work, the ablest of Kacultie 1, t lie tinest of material (Hiulpmeuts-all thesu explain the success of the institution. Lime stone's door is open wide to all our truest 1. Let them enter in. For information about t he < 'olleiie apply to t he President. LEK D.tVlS I.ODGK, A. M., Ph. D. A Newspaper in ail that the Word Implies and Devoted to the Best Interests of the People of Cherokee County. ESTABLISHED FEB. 1G, 1894 GAFFNEY CITY, S. C., SATUKDA1, DEtEMBEK 2, 1899. $1.00 A YEAR. \Vlint Ig Being Done for the Heathen. THE METHODS ADOPTED. The Selection of Missionaries for the Kor- el-jn Melds T!ic Fields No.v lielilB Gccu- plesl Ausivers to Ohjections t«* Foreign jAlissioii Work. Hie Soulhcrn I’uptistConvention was organized in iNi > in Augusta, (ia. This body is comprised of represon- tuiives of the Ilaptist ehurehes of the Southern States, and is tii ■ medium througli wiiicii these eiiurchcs carry on their foreign and a portion of their home, mission work. The for eign work is conducted by a commit tee of gentlemen in Iviehmond, Yu. This committee is chosen annually by the convention and is known as “Tiic Foreign Mission itoard of t he Southern ihiplist Convention. ’ dis> This board has -L members. The missionaries at each station once a year submit a statement of their needs. The board considers these statements carefully, cutting down the same if they deem any item un- I necessary. When the whole has I been carefully considered a letter of credit is sent t o'the treasurer of the mission for the amounts which have been approved. These letters of credit are as good us gold in any country, and all that the mission | treasurer has to do is to draw a draft j on Treasurer J. (h Williams, in Rich mond, Va., and this draft the mis sionary can easily exchange for the cash. Thus the cost of sending funds i is reduced to the minimum, and there j is practically no danger of loss. • The question is often asked, “How much of each dollar collected for for- ! eign missions actually goes to the : missionaries?” The reply in this in- 1 stance is eighty-live cents of every dollar. The other lifteen cents cov ers all home expenses, including costs | for collecting in the slates, salaries, office expenses, and the printing and distribution of thousands of tracts 1 and letter- anvmg the home churches. Sfliicl inj; Mix-iuimrler*. Secretary Willingham says: ‘•Pos sibly our most ditTieult questions . arise in connection with the appoint ment of ml-MOiLvies. There are nil. II. \A 1 N'STi >N i:sjpknt of thi: koufios mission iaoaim). tributed in the walks of life us fol lows: Three college professors, two lawyers, one physician, one banker, one merchant, one editor, one college treasurer, eight pastors and two sec retaries. These two secretaries re ceive salaries and give their entire time to this work, the treasurer is paid for a portion of his time, the other members of the board receive no renurneration. Rev. I>r. R. J. Willingham, formerly of Feorgiu, a great-bodied and great-hearted man, is the secretary and Rev. I>r. A. J. ftarton, from Arkansas, another earn est worker, is the assistant secretary. M ctlioBn. “For convenience and facility in working the board is divided into eleven committees. These consider the various questions which are to be presented, and bring reports with many applicants; anyone can readily decide that some of these ought not to go. Rat who ought to go? Piety, mental ability and health, must all be taken into consideration. When an application is made the board wants to know how the applicant stands at home; so a number of lead ing men in tin* church and commun ity are conferred with, among them the pastor and the doctor. Rut, alas ! people cannot always be depended on to give correct information, even for such an important matter as this, and from the same church will some times come conflicting statements, and sometimes the brother who knows the applicant to he unworthy or un suited will keen silence. Brethren 1 should consider what is involved, and for the good of the cause give the necessary information. “Some seem to think that almost U. WILUXGilAM . recommendations, which are then acted on by the board. “The board meets regularly once a month. Sometimes there are call meetings to consider special ques- j lions. The order of business is as follows: Prayer, reading minutes, report of treasurer, communications from corresponding secretary, reports from standing committees on China, Africa, Japan, Italy, Mexico, Brazil, finance, appointments, publications, agencies, woman's work, reports of i special committees, new business, i prayer and adjournment.” Ai) sums collected in the churches ■ of thei Convention for foreign mission work are sent to this hoard, and these trustees apportion the funds among the various iields according to their experience and judgement. The method of sending the money io the workers abroad is us follovs: anybody will do for a missionary. Far from it. We need to send the very hist. God sent Paul, the best preacher of all, as a foreign mission ary. We need missionaries of deep piety, good hard sense, and sound bodies. We need them with lively hope, strong taith. great patience and perseverance, unbounded energy, mixed with prudence and discretion. But with all these, it is necessary to to have a consuming love of God and love of souls. No mortal more needs the holy triad, faith, hope and love than the gospel missionary. ‘ In making appointments it is necessary to consider climate and the health and the predispositions of the applicant. Much money can he wasted by sending good men and wo men to the wrong field*.” I It-lils Ort-iipicd Six countries have been entered by the Southern Baptists in their prose cution of mission work—three being pagan and three papal. They were entered in the following order: China, 1845; Africa, 1S50; Italy, 1870; Mex ico, 18S0; Brazil, 1881 ;J.lapan, 1889. In China, Canton on the Southern coast, Shanghai on the central, and Tung Chow on the northern are the centers of labor. The statistics of this China work are In missionaries, 15 native helpeis, 17 organized churches and 1,802 members. In Africa the work is locoted in the Y’omba country, on the middle- western coast Six missionaries and ten native helpers are the for e. There are six churches and 8II members. In Italy, one American and twenty ; Italian ministers carry on the work. They have 22 churches and 518 mem- ! hers. work. A large number of new men and women had been appoii ted and sent out. There were a large num ber (845) of baptisms reported on the fields. The Board went up to the Convention entirely out of debt. When the report came up for consid eration there was a feelingo* thanks giving ami the body enthus nstically passed a resolution ordering the Board to increase the v/oi c 25 per cent, this year. Already -en new missionaries have been appe ntedand all have left for the forol 'n fields. Others will likely he appointed soon. It is a cause of gratifiea ion, and also deep gratitude to God.’ that we have had such a noble st v of young men inid'womon to pcimI or ' Vv'e note with pleasure ti'*it our re ceipts have been muchUrp r up to the present, this year, toau they were for the same time sst year. and call of Christ for service among the heathen. Then the advocates of missions were few and the oppo nents many. Now the latter have almost vanished within the church. But is the change so very great after all? What the former lacks in num bers they make up in zeal. They were resolute and untiring in their etTorts; and, though a small body, they were a power to move the mass. While the church has gained in unity of thought she seems to have lost in this concentrated zeal for missions, so that the change is more in the form of the support given than in the real value. Contributions have greatly increased; but we have to ask wheth er they have kept pace with the grow ing wealth of the church. If we take out a few large contributors, are the members of our churches giving pro portionally as much as their fathers The work in M< X'C't i- di-i nbn*''• at sta'ions i. aching fr mi Ri ) , Grande to the city of Max'ico. It is conducted by ten mis-iommes and ' nineteen as> i-uanU. Tn-.re are 2'i j church* s mml 1 L.'i mv >ibt*rs. Io Ur. zil, Ri » Si.,i Rank,. Bahia, j Campnp find 1\ rnifinbu'N) are the points of work, and ei z'iteen missi >*»- aries and see* nti en native helpf r- are ! the force. Tin % have 2R church' a , and 1,521 members. The w.^rK i'i Japan is located f t Fukuoka. N tgtis iki a:; i Kokura. Seven missioMirh-s, three chnrehes and 71 members are the staii-tics of this, the youngest mission of the | i board. nummary: S2 mis ionaries. ill native helpers, 97 churches and 5 1U7 members. During I8!is. there were 845 additions by profession and bap tism. In 1877 there were 17 missionaries and native helpers; in 1NS7, there were 110; in 1>97, there were 19J. In 1877 the contributions for this] work amounted to .f:52,27(); in 1SS7, to .tXOSRO; in 1898, to .$121219 Total gifts from 1845 to 1898 $2,172,- S82. Adjunct*. The “Woman’s Missionary Union, Auxiliary to the Southern Baptist Convention” is the organization through which the local mission so cieties of the Southern Baptist wo men give their cooperation in mission work. A large portion of their gifts go to this foreign work, and they show great zeal in propagating the mission spirit among the churches. “The Foreign Mission Journal,” This sh >.vthat while some are giv ing th°ir lives for the work oth* rs .ire giving of their substance. The ri- ceipts hove not bien ti’o gh to imet ~ -1$ f -1 » X- t* *• -. f . tr •< •■■■ . wv. •' 'A .. V/r*; ‘ : ; :rT L-.-fT. :t 8 the expenditures, still there is a de cided improvement over last year. Answers to .Some Objections to Foreign Mission Worli. Do we now have in the church any who are opposed to foreign mission gtivf ? 'ibis passive indifference is pr.Ifiiblv ih** greatest hindrance in our time to the extension of Christ’s kingdom among the heathen. But the discussion of this question lies l etond the scope of the present pa pers. We can only conceive of objections io funRu missions as coming from up pun i iRs to Christianity; from men who feel t he presence of a missionarj to be a restriction on their evil ways. If nuy followers ofJ'Jhrisfccherish feel ings of opposition, it is to behopid tiiul Lhe.i heresy will (lie with them. In the land of light where they win see the grand model on which the church teow is formed they will then—we fear not till then—he con- vinced of their error. Among objec tions the following may be noted and answered. It is not yet time for the church to devote her energies to the foreign lic-ld. When will the proper time come? When she has overtaken her work at homo. Perhaps the best reply is that of the Prophet llaggai to the men of Jerusalem who were giving all their attention to their own homes while the temple of God lay waste. “This people say the time is not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built. Is it time for ye to dwell in ceiled houses and this house be wasted? We are told that it is not right to starve the child fer the benefit of the stranger. Good! But why should either child or stran ger starve when there is enough for j both? This is either the moan of a J miser or the excuse of an idler. It is GROUP OF MISSIONAKIKS IN MOUTH CIGNA. MISS LULA WIIILDKN, OF SOUTH CAROLINA, STANDING AT TIIH RIGHT. published monthly by the secretaries of the board, is another most valu- hle adjunct in this work. It is a vig orous magazine, full of mission news and mission spirit, and the exceed ingly low price at which it is sold (J5 cents per year) carries it into thous ands of homes among the Southern Baptists. Advance Movement Of the rorelKii Min* I on ItoimlM S. It. Convention. The report of the Boards for the past year showed very gratifying re sults Missionaries who had been de tained at home were back at ‘heir workV Such a class of Christians ought to be extinct by this time. If any of its members still survive the overwhelming testimony furnished by the closing century to the need and value of this work, their condition must bo such as to excite pity rather than court attack. May they not be put aside as a factor too infinitesi mally small to effect the solution of the problem which faces the church in the heathen world? The situation was different last century when the protestants of the English speaking race were waking up to the claim : far better to be the children of the j man whos'e hand, obeying the impulse ' of a generous heart, gladdens the stranger at his gate, than of the man who slams the door in the stranger’s face saying that he can’t afford to I help because of his children. The expressions “home and foreign” are human terms; they have no place with God. The only stranger to Him is the perverse sinner, and that stranger is not confined to the heath en. But all alike arc welcome at His door. To God the field is one whole, and He urges the claims of all its parts on the immediate attention of His church. Nature teaches a lesson to those who urge the concentration of Chris tian energy on the Home field. • A part of an organic body is best devel oped and strengthened by attending to the whole organism. Can we bet ter develop tbe branches the more we neglect the root? Does the hand not become strong with the growing strength of the whole body? The same is true of Christian effort. Tlie outgoing of the enthusiastic Christian soul to gladden the nations of the earth, makes it a power all the great er for work at home. God’s work is meant to go on as a whole. To starve one part to strengthen another is altogether opposed to the economy both of nature and of grace. What do tho facts of history say? They say again and again with united voice that the church which is enthu siastic io supporting work abroad, at the same time maintains its own in stitutions in a flourishing condition, while tho church that gives grudg ingly to spread tho gospel through the world has a hard fight to keep its own work going. This is a question of spiritual rath er than of material means. The Spirit of God is one and its work is a unit. When we begin to come up to permit their men to land on csr- tain islands, as the inhabitants wera cannibals. Years afterwards it in formed captains that sailors might land with perfect safety, What was the reason for this change? Metho dist missionaries had been at work. Is tho trader to become the pioneer traderof the church? Then her work will bo all the harder. No, she should be first and last in making the kingdoms of the world the king doms of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The result is too small for tho cost. What! are we to value souls by dollars? Shall we apply the test; of material force to spiritual force? This is attempting what the greatest men have found impossible; we can not reach the Spirit through matter. Still less can we estimate spiritual results by feet, inches, gallons or dollars. We further degrade the gain of the Spirit of G >1 when we ap ply to it the test of the market. But, even by our own standard, it is unfair to measure the results of an enterprise, not yet completed, by the amount of money spent upon it. Many fine commercial concerns were at first carried on at a loss; but their promoters so believed in their ulti mate prosperity that they never hes- tated to spend all the money that was [ the Spirit’s sphere of labor and say, “That must go to the wall to enable this to live,” we quench its inspira tion ; the fires of our own zeal cool down, and we find that in trying to save our home field we lose it. In our blindness we cut oif the very root, hoping thereby to make the branches more vigorous. The hand on the dial face of divine purpose is now pointing to the hour when the church ought to present to the great Lord a redeemed world; and yet we say the time has not come to prosecute the great cruaaue of winning the whole world for Christ. You ought to civilize the heath en before you attempt to christianize them. This was the objection urged necessary to keep the concerns run ning. In the mission field there ha-i already been enormous success. In is true that converts have not been so many as we ought to expect. They, however, only mark one stage of tho work; they do not, by any means, . represent all the results that havo been achieved. Who can measuro the extent to which the world ha« been prepared for the preaching of , the gospel? Shut gates have been ] opened, waste fields have been broken up, the seed of the kingdom has been sown far and wide. The light of chris- i tian truth has already produced mar velous effects upon heathen systems of religion in purifying them from some of their corruptions, or in so JAPANUSK SCHOOL ROY. on the writer when he was starting out for service in the foreign ii*-!d. He felt as he feels now, that this is putting the cart before the horse. The applied force of the Bible ought to be superior to the applied force of the sword in making a good citizen. Speaking from experience, the mis sionaries of Christ lay a much better foundation for good citizenship than the missionaries of Midas. The in spiration that springs from greed for gold makes the trader an enemy to the well-being of tho heathen. But there is no need for commerce and religion being opposed to each other. The church should pray, that both led by the same spirit, may work to gether for the uplifting of degraded men. So far the Christian mission ary has been the great civilizing force of the world. Once the British Ad miralty advised captains of ships not pointing oiD their badness as to teach their followers to look round for some better guide to another world. India and Japen have not become Christians, but who will deny that the millions of both countries are being enormously henefitted by influences that spring directly from Christianity. The same process is going on in China. At one time the church looked upon these countries as sealed to Christian effort, and it prayed earnestly for an open door. That prayer has been abundantly an swered, and now the church has a vast opportunity for proving its loy alty to Christ. Is there little to show for the cost? If it be a ques tion of money the church can accept the challenge with joy. Never in the whole history of the heathen world [continued on cage three, j