BIBLE SOCIETY

Evening Star, Issue 21708, 1 May 1934, Page 11

BIBLE SOCIETY

ANNUAL CONVERSAZIONE The annual conversazione of the Bible Society of Otago and Southland was held last evening in the Somerset Lounge of the Savoy. The president (Mr J. Farquharson) presided over an attendance of about seventy collectors and friends. Following devotional exercises, which were conducted by the Rev. Alexander Watson _ and Mr J. Inglis Wright, the chairman extended a welcome to those present, and reminded them that the Otago and Southland Society had now been in existence for seventy years, while the British and Foreign Bible Society had been operating for 130 years, during which period it had issued 442,000,000 volumes of the Scriptures, printed in 6G7 different languages. The speaker for the evening was Staff-captain A. Nelson, of the Salvation Army, who thanked the Bible societies for their great work in supplying the Scriptures- in the Chinese tongue to all Christian workers in China. The Salvation Army had received in one consignment 20,000 of these Scriptures. Captain Nelson gave some instances of the remarkable influence of the Scriptures among the Chinese. One was that of a farmer who, when he visited a market town on one occasion, bought a Gospel portion, by the reading of which his life was transformed. He later became a voluntary colporteur, tramping many miles to distant villages and bearing his load of Gospels on the ends' of his carrying poles. Another instance was that of a boy at Tai-An-Fu, who was placed by his parents in a temple to be trained for the priesthood. At the age of fourteen years ho bought a Gospel, and through reading it in secret he sought the Salvation officers and became a.believer. At the age of sixteen years, when he would have entered priesthood, he escaped, and joined the Salvation Army, eventually becoming an officer. Captain Nelson went on to say that the new simplified Chinese script,: consisting of thirty-eight instead of 4,000 characters, enabled the most illiterate coolies to learn to read. Miss Margaret Ramsay, the now organising secretary, also spoke, and

impressed on the collectors present the great value of their work. The Rev. Thomas Miller mentioned that the British and Foreign Bible Society outside Otago was- this year aiming at an income for the dominion of £IO,OOO, and the Otago Society this year wished to raise :£1,200. ■ Supper was served, and the meeting was brought to a close by the pronouncement of the benediction by the Rev. R. Ferguson Fish.