The Portland daily press., 1878-09-27
Gospel Temperance nIissieu.

MR.. EDlToR:-Probably most of your read
ers are unaware, owing to its unostentatious-
Eess, of the extent of the work and good that
has been and is being done in this city under
the above name, and so we herewith give them
come of the facts connected with it, which will
be found to be quite interesting. Mr.. Samuel
f. Pearson of this city, young reformed and
converted man, who had for some time been
laboring as gospel temperance worker in con-
nection with the Temperance Reform Club
and Young Mems Christian Association, he
having previously been reformed and converted
in connection with them,-having from good
reasons become convinced of the need of a
permanent mission for gospel and temperance
work in this city, did on the morning of the
9TH day of last May, in connection with several
other Christian workers, hire double room in
the Mechanics Hall building, on the corner of
Congress ard Casco streets, and inaugurate
what is now known all over the city as the
Gospel Temperance Mission; and after much
fervent prayer, on the evening of May 9th the
first meeting, which was well attended and
very interesting was held; and from that time
to this, AL consecutive evenings, meetings have
been held without the least abatement of iu-
terest. In addition to these evening meetings,
several have been held upon the Sabbath, and
some are now held upon week days.
As some of the encouraging results of these
meetings, many Christians have been quicken
ed, backsliders reclaimed, sinners converted,
and inebriates reformed. About 166 persons
have asked and received the prayers of the
mission that they may become Christians, q
large majority of whom, it is believed, have
been hopefully converted or reclaimed; and
some 263 have signed the total abstinence
pledge. On the 21st of July. all necessary
preparations having been made, Sabbath
school exclusively for children connected with
no other school, was organized and is in
thorough working order, with membership of
| from so to go scholars AT present, in addition
| to the daily evening meetings, daily morning
| prayer meeting, and on Thursday afternoons a
! conservation meeting, is held On the Sabbath
| five services are held, as follows At 8 and lob
| a. m. and at 3, 6 and q p. m.
| On Aug. 18th, the meetings having got to be
| so large that upon some evenings many were
| deprived Of attending for want of room,
coupled with the fact that many who attended
| came from the eastern section of the city, the
mission workers felt encouraged to start a
branch meeting in that section, which they
| did upon that evening at the Abysslnlan
| Gong church, at near the corner OF Newbury
| and MountforS streets, and which has been con-
| tinued upon each evening since with exceeding
| ly good results, among which might be men,
toned that 15O or more have asked for prayers,
| and that more than 160 names have been added
to the temperance pledge. The congregations
at this place are large and composed mostly Of
| non-church-goers, who are induced to attend
| partially by visiting their homes and inviting
| them, and also through the distribution of cir
| culars, some 5000 having been already circu-
| lated, in addition to some 1000 tracts At thi;
place, too, several meetings are held upon the
| Sabbath, and also chdren's meeting or
Saturday afternoons.
| In addition to the meetings held n the city,
much good in the same direction is done il
some OF the surrounding towns
In addition to meeting work, much is dons
in the way of visiting and providing for thu
sick and needy.
The expense attending the work of the mis-
sion is provided for by some collections, bu