FOREIGN MISSIONS

Evening Star, Issue 17720, 22 July 1921, Page 3

FOREIGN MISSIONS

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH’S ACTIVITIES.

The Foreign Missions Committee of tho Presbyterian Church of New Zealand held its monthly meeting on Tuesday afternoon, when twenty-one members and four associate members ’ were present. Mr P. L. Clai'k presided. GENERAL. The Acting Convener declared the result of tho voting on the question .of holding the meetings in the afternoon or in the evening to be as follows: —Excluding associate members: Afternoon sixteen, evening twelve. Including associate members: Afternoon nineteen, evening thirteen.—lt was agreed that tho committee continue to meet in the afternoon. The Secretary reported that the votes recorded for the various evenings, in the event of the evening being : chosen, wore as follow Monday 11, Tuesday 22, Wednesday 2, Thursday 15, Friday 17, Saturday 12. The Secretary reported concerning missionaries now on furlough that a very successful social had been held in Kaikorai Church to bid farewell to Mr and Mrs Michelseiv who return to the New Hebrides next month: that Mr A. G. Wilson (Melbourne) had been authorised to purchase a water supply plant, to cost when in position about. £250, to supply tho Kong Cbuen Hospital and four residences, ■and that he expected to leave for Canton in Julv, taking part of the plant with him; that Miss E. M. Prentice has been passed as medically fit to return to Canton at the end of September; that Dr'J. S. Elliott, of Wellington, advises njedical examination three months hence to ascertain Miss'A. M. M'Ewan’s fitness to return to Canton: that the medical report, upon the Rev. G. H. M'Neur declares that although lie will not be fit to return to Canton in September, there is a good prospect of his full recovery by December; that Miss A. I. James is expected from Canton in a few days.—lt was resolved to congratulate the Rev. 0. Michcken upon the publication of his translation of ‘The Child's Bible,’ and to 'wish Mrs Miehelsen and himself God’s blessing as they return for another term of service; to authorise the general treasurer to remit money to Mr Wilson for the purchase of a water supply plant, also the sum of £24 6s bd for special medical advice and attendance for his family; to express pleasure at Miss Prentice’s recovery of health, and instruct her to leave for Canton about the end of September; to thank Dr Elliott for bis services in reporting upon Miss M’Ewan, and to instruct her not to do any more deputation work, and to report to Drs Bowie and Riley before the end of September; to welcome Mies James, now coming on furlough, grant the request of St. Andrew’s congregation to tender her a welcome social on xVugust 10, thank the congregation for the invitation given to the committee, and appoint a speaker to represent the committee on the occasion. In connection with the report upon candidates voluntering for mission service it was resolved to approve of Rev. J. L. Gray leaving for India in October; to defer decision regarding Miss Grace Seymour far a month, pending a final report by D;s Bowie and Riley; to congratulate Miss Esther H. Elliott upon having passed the State examination in general nursing at the head of tho list for the Dominion; to accept Miss Dorothy M. Mathew os a candidate in training for India; and to communicate with Mr John Kirkwood, of the Moody Bible. Institute, Chicago, regarding his missionary purpose. The report upon deputation work stated that Miss A. E. Henderson returned to Christchurch on July 9 after eleven weeks’ tour in the North Island, and had settled down ,to compile the Panjab Mission Study Text Book ; that Mrs M'Neur had visited Central Otago, and would address the Southland, (Jlufha, and Oamaru P.A.s at their annual meetings; that Miss Prentice was holding a few meetings up to July 31. On behalf of Mrs Hewitson, Mrsßlackio reported that the P.W.M.U. South Island Oriental Depot had completed a “record'’ year, and had mad© a profit of £3OO, which is being divided as follows:--Foreign mission fund, £100; Training Institute, £2O; women's beneficiary fund (missionary), £lßo.—lt was resolved to thank Mrs Hewitson for her valuable help, and to congratulate her most heartily upon the success of the Oriental Depot. INDIA. M fss M. Salmond, Jagadhri. forwarded a copy of the minutes of the Mission Council meeting held on April 29. Tho council recommended that Mr D, M'Coll bo engaged as locum tenens at Sabathu for a further period of two years, and that his salary be raised to 275 rupees petmonth ‘(at- par, £220 per annum), from April 1, 1921 The council reported that the Jagadhri India Women’s Anjuman had raised 150 rupees for the support of their “own” preacher at Radaur.—lt was resolved to adopt the recommendation concerning Mr M'Coll, and to congratulate the Anjuman upon their liberality.

Letters were received from Miss Salmond, in which she emphasises the surpassing interest of the question as to what education is to bo given to the children of the village communities in India. She states that the Summer School for Indian mission workers, usually hold at Saharanpur, outside the New Zealand mission district, will he held' in September this year at Jagadhri, and by urgent request she had consented to give a series of lectures in Urdu on normal training to all the students attending. She desires very keenly that her coming furlough should include some adequate post-gradu-ate study, so that she may be better equipped to face on her return the complex educational problems. The Rev. T. E. Riddle forwarded a number of notes on country itineration, and Mrs Riddle on hospital work for the study text-book. Mr Riddle also sent an article on the claims of the Indian Church, urging the union of' the New Zealand mission with the “Presbyterian Church in India.”

Mr Riddle (May 1) wrote : “ Sadhu Bandar Singh tells me that he_ intends going to Tibet next month, returning in October. Next year he visits Switzerland, Sweden,

and Keswick (England); then ho,goes to Trinidad, and from there via Panama to New Zealand, which ho expects to reach in September, 1922, and where he expects to stay for a month.” CHINA. Tho Rev. H. Davies sent a copy of a paper on the “Canton for Christ” evangelistic campaign, read at, the January meeting of the Canton Missionary Conference. The campaign lasted from December 21 to 51. 1920, and was the. greatest thing ot its kind eycr held in South China. It was organised bv the Christian Chinese, and the meetings .were held in a tabernacle built of bamboo without nail, brick, or mortar, 225 ft by 124 ft, seating 3,600, , besides standing room for 500 more, at a cost of 1.600 dollars (about £200). Tho speakers were all Chinese; the entire cost of the campaign was under 6.000 dollars, of which Chinese Christians at one meeting gave 1,500 dollars; the tabulated results were: Decisions for Christ, 2,298; signed cards for Bible study, 1,020: number of meetings, 60; total attendance, over 100.000.

Dr E. W. Kirk reported that good Chinese assistance had been obtained at the Kong Chuen Hospital, and that the work in the district is in a very encouraging state: the work of the hospital had been reorganised, and the responsibilities transferred from foreigners tr Chinese, with foreign supervision; three Chinese nursing sisters had been appointed in charge of the wards, with Miss James in charge of the maternity department; fol-low-up work into the villages to which patients return had been better overtaken by the appointment of a Chinese evangelist, who had been trained as a practical nurse, and the foreign staff is now able to give some time to visiting the villages. Dr Kirk predicts that “a new era is dawning for these villages.” ■ The Rev. A. L. Miller wrote stating that lie and Mrs Miller had booked passages for Sydney by the Kanowna, leaving Hongkong about July 25. The Rev. D. C. Herron reported resolutions of the Auckland Presbytery’s Committee as follow :—(1) That it is impossible for work to be carried on adequately among tho Chinese in and around Auckland without some agent with a knowledge of the language who can devote his whole time to the work. '(2) That, if your committee thinks that it is useless to attempt to get another Chinese catechist from Canton, we beg to suggest that an attempt he made to find someone, British, in New Zealand, who would be willing to devote his life to work among the Chinese in Auckland. Such a person should be sent, say, for two years, to Canton to learn the language and study the psychology of tho people, and then return to this work.—lt was resolved to send the resolutions to tho Rev. G. H. M'Neur for consideration and report. NEW HEBRIDES, The Secretary reported haw g cabled to Mr Massey in London on J- ' < .: “Church and Missions Committee l . • hilly and gratefully appreciate you a,, .an New Hebrides”; to which Mr Massey on July 4 cabled the reply: “ Telegram received. Question difficult. Hope rear, -citations achieve improvement," The Victorian F.M. ComnrTcc forwarded to Dunedin a parcel of leaflets on the New Hebrides situation, and copies of these had been posted to the Dominion.

Letters were received from lire Rev. P. Milne and the Rev. W. V. Milne, Isguna. The latter-bad made a tour of the outlying islands in the mission launch, and also visited Mr Miehelsc-n’s district; good meetings were held generally everywhere. The Nguna people are making arrowroot this year ns a contribution to the foreign mission fund, and a considerable quantity is expected, because owing to the wet season the arrowroot tubers are very large. The Victorian Committee reported that Mr J. W. Mansfield, formerly an assistant on Am brim, had been appointed for two rears in charge of the work of the Rev. M. Prater (retiring in September),' with oversight of the New Zealand district on Ambrim.

The Rev. T. Macmillan, clerk of the New Hebrides Synod, wrote stating that, as the Rev. F.’G. Bowie had been ill and Mrs Bowie far from well, he did not feel justified in ca’liuv the Synod to meet at their station. Tangca. and, as far as he could see, there would be no Synod this year.