Please Help Us.

Otago Witness, Issue 2320, 18 August 1898, Page 21

Please Help Us.

TO THE EDITOR.

Sm, — To readers who care for suoh thu-gs— and the number in tbe aggregnte is large— it muet be hvarfc stirriug to read of the vssfc M*y •nestings held in Extttr Hall, London. Ah the ninety-fourth annual meeting of the F. and B. Bible Society (Lord Harrowby in the chaii) the Rev. John Sharp, decretary, reported that the total circulation of Scripture* last year was 4,587,000, aud th»fc from ibe foundation in 1804 (he soc:ety hsd issued over 155,000,000 copies it moi'e thnu 340 different language*. Afc (h«j annual o^efcing of th« Religious Trucb Society the Key. S. G. Groea, D.D., reported that the total circulation from the Home depot, including books, tracts, periodical?, cards, &c, had reached nearly 40,000,000; and from foreign depots 20,000,000. Tfee codtributions for 1897-98 reachtd over £15,000.

The bead muster of Harrow, who spoke to the tepovfc, made the fcllowicg statement : — " Examining the popular literature of the day, be had come to the concJutiion that ita most characteristic and dangerous feature is the undue straining after excitement. Now the work of tliie society is to provide an antidote by Christianising literature. If that evil literature deservss condemnation anywhere it is among the youcg, «>nd to publish such literature is'to poison the wells of scciaty." Without reliable data I cannot a&y positively whfcther impure and poisonous litewlute is largely circulated in our own cifcy or colony, although I have my doubts on the poinfc. Often and often 1 have regretted that the Ota go Book, Bible, and Tract Society had to withdraw its agents and the travelling van. Hundreds of persons will agree with me that in past years no soniety or agents ever did better service on the goldfields and remote gullies and out-of-the-way, corntra. Through private agencies much of this good work ia still carried on ; but are not; many, many places overlooked or forgotten ? Coming nearer home, however, could not even more be done in tbfi way of circulating robust, cleaD, wholesome literature in Dunedin ? I am, for one, anxious to do more in this line of things. Friends have been most generous in putting me in a position to circulate large numbers of Bibles, New Testamtnte, periodicals, tracts, cards, &c. If this letter comes under the notice of others, in town or country, -who fetl disposed to assiet in this branch of our work. I will be very pleased to bear from them. Gifts of money for literature, &c, are kepb apart from the other funds of our mission.— l D. Wright

am, &c., August 13

Dunedin City Mission.

The front end of the great glacier of Alaska presents a wall 500 ft thick, and its bread tli varies from tlu-ce to ten miles, while its length is 150 miles.

4mong the arrests made in Christchurch on Friday night was one of a man charged with attempting to obtain money by false pretences from the chief detective.

The Mataura branch of the National Association have selected Mr I. W. Raymond as the association's candidate at the next election. Subject to his consent, Mr W. F. Ward, who contested the seat against Mr M'Nab, was chosen president of the association. The fishermen at Westport seek permission, from U\e Government to destroy the fur seals which frequent the fishing grounds on the coast. It is alleged that the seals are destroying the fish. Amongst the effects of the late Captain Fairchild were found a collection of. the oggs of the tuatara lizard, which inhabits Stephen Island (Cook Strait) and other parts of ou~, coast. number of tho eggs have sinca hatched out, and others are about to. do sq^