THE MELANESIAN MISSION.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 9099, 18 March 1901, Page 4

THE MELANESIAN MISSION.

The claims of the Melanesian 'Mission ft ere forcibly brought before the congregation »f Holy Trinity Church yesterdair by the Right Rev. Cecil Wilson, M.A.' B'-siH.p-oi Melanesia, the brilUant scholar of Cambridge, who recently gave up an lai^lixh h\ing to take up the noble work of iijshop Patteson jrod Dr Selwyn m the fc'oulb Seas, and who is now touring tl»i* crioies with the object of securing f'i-'»N i . r a vessel by which the work of the Ai:.<*iui can be more ezpeditibusly carried on. Three services were held, all being well attended. In the evening His Lordship took the parable of the Good Samaritan as the basis of an earnest appeal to his hearers for sympathy and help on behalf of the heathen people of Melanesia. He said tlyit.on returning from a heathen land to v. Christian country, one was struck with the many evidences of kindness and charity, m thfe hospitals, charitable institutions, and private acts of benevolence and goodwill; that were wanting m lands where the light of the Grospel had not penetrated: At the same time, their charity was notperfect. It mostly .began and ended at home, and was confined to their owa people, whereas Christ taught that H should v be world-wide. He showed how greatly the people of Australasia were i debtors to the natives of the islands near their coasts, and how the church waspar* ticularly bound to send the Gospel to Melanesia. His Lordship gave a thrilling account of the life of barbarism lived by the natives of the Solomons. Northern New Hebrides, and other groups within the sphere of influence of the Mission, j describing the terrible work of the headhunters, many of whom were armed with the latest patterns of Winchesters, supplied by traders. He likened the people" to the man of the parable who fell among thieves. These poor people had fallen among thieves of their own color, who terrorised over them and sometimes depopulated whole districts and islands; thieves, also of our color, of whom he mentioned the kidnappers of the labor traffic before that traffic was brought under control, and the worst class of traders, who would not be tolerated m civilised communities, and whom, alas, the British worships had to sometimes protect; and they were .victims also to the greatest thief of all, the enemy of mankind, as witness their ghost and ancestor worship and various other evil practices. His Lordship described the visit of the "Peace" ship to the Islands and the glad manner m which the missionaries wfere received; the eager desire of the natives for education, and their receptivenws to Gospel teaching. He gave a most, touching account of the murder of Bishop Patteson, and also of the conversion of the head-hunter Soga, who had. spt. hinua-lf as a splendid example of civilising Christianity. ll<*then appealed to his congregation to emulate the deed of the Good Samaritan,- whose work they might copy by turning out of the way to lißten to a cfy of distress, by personal bervke. and by sending others to- help. He reminded them of the words, "When I Come again I will repay you. During the evening the choir, under the leader- '

ship of Mr Marr, and with Mr Foster presiding at the organ, sang the anthem "How lovely are the messengers that preach us the Gospel of Peace." Bishop Wilson is to deliver a lecture on the Melanesian Mission on Tuesday evening, m the Theatre Royal, and all who had the privilege of listening to him yesterday will be certain to advise their friends to be present.