P.C.N.Z.

Evening Star, Issue 17327, 15 April 1920, Page 3

P.C.N.Z.

FOREIGN MISSIONS COMMITTEE. The’ monthly meeting of the Foreign Missions Committee of the Presbyterian 'Church of New Zealand was held on Tuesday afternoon. ' The convener (Professor Hewitson) presided, and 18 members were present, also six associated members. GENERAL.

>.• In connection with two volunteers for foreign mission service the convener stated that Dr Bowie had reported adversely upon one and favorably upon the other. I.t was resolved to express regret that the former had been pronounced nftd’ically unfit, and to ask the latter to fill in the usual application forms. The convener stated that several volunteers who will be ready to go to the mission field this year will require to, know as soon as possible whether they can bo sent out without delay. The secretary presented a report upon the progress of the propaganda and finance campaign in connection with the raising of an extra sum of £14,000 for the year’s requirements, lai’gely owing to’ the extremely unfavorable rate of ex- , change in China and India.. In addition .to 11 Presbyteries which reported last month, four more had reported arrangements to meet the emergency. Reports were received from 54 congregations, of which St. Andrew’s, Wellington, " had already contributed £440, Hawera £235, Waitahuna £53, Inglewood homo mission station £SO. Twelve reports were received from P.W.M.U. organisations, St. Paul’s, Oamaru, having contributed £7l, besides special contributions from Bible ■classes and Sunday schools. Orders had been filled for 7,520 copies of a circular giving a statement of the crisis and for 6,500 contribution envelopes. The amount of contributions paid directly and reported to tile committee for the month was £1,130, making, a total special contribu- * tion of £2,530. A number of letters making proposals and suggestions in order to obviate the loss by exchange were received from various parts of the Dominion. These embraced the export of produce to China and India, borrowing money on the mission fields by mortgaging mission property, borrowing from an American Missions Board, which could pay the missionaries from America, and exporting gold and > old silver to China. A letter was received from the general treasurer, Rev. W. J. Comrie, to whom several <j£ the proposals had been submitted. Mr Comrie had discussed matters with the Rev. J. A. Rybum and with several of the Church property trustees. He gave as their opinion that the borrowing of money by mortgage is not desirable, and that it is not feasible to export gold, but that donations of old silver might be received to bo sold in New Zealand.—lt was resolved to thank all who had submitted the proposals and to refer all the correspondence to a sub-committee of business men to consider in conference with Mr A. G. Wilson and Dr John Kirk soon after their arrival.

In connection with ( missionary deputational visits, several applications were received for visits from Rev. J. A. Ryburn and Rev. O. Miehelsen. A letter was received from Miss Budd, principal of Queen Margaret College, Wellington, inviting anv or all missionaries on furlough to visit the college and address the girls. An itinerary w-as submitted by Waikato Presbytery for Rev. J. A. Rytmm’s tour from April 11 to May 16. —It was resolved to file the applications to be dealt with in regular order, to thank Miss Budd for her invitation arid to make arrangements accordingly, arid to approve of the Waikato itinerary. A copy of tho eighteenth annual report of the Young Men’s Bible Class Union, to be presented at the Easter conference at Motutapn, Auckland, was received. The union executive recommended that, in view of the exchange position, the proposal to establish a peace memorial by undertaking to maintain another foreign missionary he held in abeyance, and in the meantime the union aim at making up the loss by exchange on the salary of the present missionary. Rev. H. Davies. A letter was received from Rev. J. A. Rybum, who was present at the conference, stating that it had been decided to aim at raising £I,OOO for mission purposes this year, any surplus to be funded for the support o! a second missionary, and that over £l3O was raised on the spot toward the loss by exchange last year.

A letter was received from Mr W. Cron, Apia, Samoa, suggesting the publication of a mission study text-book on the work of the London Missionary Society, written specially for New Zealand people, since Samoa is_ now attached to the Dominion.— It was resolved that the suggestion bs sent on to the representatives of the L.M.S. in New Zealand. Letters from Mr Cron to the editor of the ‘Outlook’ and to the Home Mission Committee were received (having been passed on to the Foreign Missions Committee). in which Mr Cron states that there is room for more missionaries in connection with the L.M.S. in Samoa, and asks tint, as the F.M. Committee here are unable to send out their volunteers owing to lack of funds these volunteers should be advised that there are other' churches in need of missionaries, and recommended to consider their needs and place their services at the disposal of those churches.—The Convener stated that, as there is no surplus of volunteers, and no likelihood of lack of funds, the proposal is tantamount to opening a new mission in Samoa, which is utterly impossible at the present time.—lt was resolved to thank Mr Cron, and advise him accordingly.

CHINA. A cablegram was received from Canton advising that Dr John Kirk had left for New Zealand on March 29. The secret, r irv stated that he is due at Sydney on the 19th inst. and at Wellington about tha 26th. -

A letter was received from bliss V. M. Naish giving her first impressions of a Mission Council meeting, when, owing to the rate of exchange and the shortage of funds it was proposed to close the Kong Ch aen Hospital. She says: “Fortunately the proposal was not carried ; but the threat still hangs over us, and, we are just waiting to know what the near future will bring. I have never been in a meeting where there was such tension for so long a time, and I w*as reallv very pleased when someone made usbugli, and we were all able to breathe a little more freelv.”

Rev. H. Davies forwarded minutes of Mission Conference ami Council, held February 5 to 9, the principal items of which were :—A discussion on the Chinese Church and social service, and the felt need for some kind of industrial work to be established in the future ; the invitation of the London Missionary Society to take over their work in the adjoining district of TVung Fa, and the decision to do so subject to the approval of the F.M. Committee, and ori the understanding that the L.M.S. bear the financial responsibility for a year; the proposal to open workin some part of Canton city; the official opening of the Kong Chuen Hospital by the British Consul-General on February 7: the best way in which Mr A. G. Wilson can use his furlough ; and the need of evangelistic missionaries as “men of large heart, -wide vision, with gifts of initiative and leadership and good qualifications for acquiring the language.” The committee resolved to congratulate the council upon the auspicious opening of the hospital; to approve of negotiations - regarding the taking over of the L.M.S. work on the lines laid down • to confer with Mr Wilson upon arrival as to the best way in which to spend bis furlough; and to bear in mind the type of evangelistic missionary required. Letters were received fdom Mrs M. J. M ‘Gregor, Masterton, on behalf of the Gladstone branch -of P.W.M.U., forwarding £2O as the first of three years’ contributions for the training of a teacher in the Canton Union Normal School; from Sister Miriam, for the St. Andrew’s Christchurch “Busy Bees,’’ stating that £8 had been sent to Mr Comrie for the upkeep of a blind Chinese girl at Canton; from Miss Wilson, principal Of Christchurch Girls’ High School, forwarding £5 as the first contribution from the girls towards the building of. the girls’ board-, iug school at Kong Chuen; from Mre J. Blackie, Invercargill, with £2 for the Chinese boys’ bursary fund.—lt was re-

solved to thank the donors, advise the ■ Canton Council, and authorise the general treasurer to remit as special gifts. j Letters were received from Mr Joseph Chan, Auckland, reporting upon his work among the Chinese there, and a, telegram from Rev. J, L. Walker that Mr Chan would leave by the’Monowai last week for Dunedin. NEW' HEBRIDES A framed enlarged photograph of Mrs Jana L. Miehelsen was shown to the committee to be hung in the office. Mrs Miehelsen died in 1692, After 11 years work in the islands. By request of the convener, Rev. O. Miehelsen addressed the committee. He stated that there aro now vacancies in the Now Hebrides for seven or eight missionaries, of which New Zealand is responsible for three, and especially plead that men should be placed on Epi and Ambrim ;* owing to such sickness on his island, Tongoa, during the last three years the Church membership fell from 6CO to 650, but before he left on furlough it had risen, again to over GOO; during the last 12 years he had been busy translating the Old Testament part of ‘ The Child’s Bible, which is now ready for publication, also that a daily text hook much used by the natives is now out of print and lie would like to get another published. Mr Miehelsen was thanked for his address, and a small committee was set up to confer regarding the requests for publication and report. It was reported that Cambridge S.S. had paid the £l-5 balance for the salary of Rev. W. V. Milne’s launch assistant ut Nguna-, and had decided to support him tor a third year; also that the Isla Lank branch of P.W.M.U. had forwarded -4 as half year’s salary of a native teacher on Ambrim. INDIA A letter was received from Dr W. S. Rooc-rtson (February 1) with copy of a notice sent to him by the Panjab Government that ho had been posted to Dalffouaie for the summer and requesting him to arrive there the first week in April Dt Robertson stated several considerations favorable to compliance with the request anc asked for a cabled reply. Professor Hudson stated tnat after consideration a cablegram of approval was sent to Dr Robertson on March 19.-It was resolved to approve of the cablegram sent.