The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-10-06

more about IT,
Miss Burr OF owego, New York, appointed
to the Japan mission, was introduced to the
audience, and in a few words asked that she
might be led by Christ in her work.
Mrs. Park Of Indiana, then spoke of the in
tersst among women in that country She re-
lated series of visits showing the desirs for
Christian teaching. She first went to a home
where the mother was opposed to Christianity,
but by the means of worsted work, of which the
women are very fond, and by the teaching of
Christian hymns foothold was gained and
the missionary besought to read and teach
more than she had the time and ability. From
this house she went TO some tailor women in a
tenement house, where among those who were
quarreling, tearing their hair and beating each
other, she found those who were glad to listen
to the story OF the cross. Farher away
among mud huts, on the outskirts of the city,
she also found twenty or thirty eager listeners.
From each one of these places earnest requests
were made for more teaching-more reading
more requests than could possibly be needed
80 few were the laborers among them. MIS-.
Parks closed with an appeal for reinforce
ments.
Mrs. Allen of Harpoot, Eastern Turkey. was
next introduced who said, "What can tell
you of twenty-five years Of missionary labor in
ten minutes?" She then spoke of an Arme-
MAN school in small room where just few
gathered, and then of the girls school, of the
Normal school and OF the Armenian college,
whore young men and women are educated
aud sent forth to do more work for their pee
pie. Mothers who have received the truth are
earnest for the Christian education of their
children. The truth is sure to prevail. and
Turk, Koord, Egyptian and Arabian are sure
to be delivered from the bondage of eupersti-
ton and error.
Mrs. Allen closed by asking the prayers Of
Christian women of America in behalf of East
ern Turkey, and especially for Harpoot schools.
paper prepared by Miss Mary S. Rice, of
the HISTORIAN mission, entitled "Then and
Now" or 1.-THE Thirties and the Eighties, .
was then read by Mrs. James Rice of Boston,
| of which tie following is an abstract:
The kingdom OF heaven is like unto leaven
hid in meal till the whole was leayened just
as surely as it is hid it will leaven and it will
| keep on leavening until the whole is ieavened.
Soon the Secret thing will be proclaimed up
on the housetops "Oh no." the skeptic says,
don't hide that leaven; there is not enough to
amount to anything. The meal is too coarse.
there is not single chance of success. Don't
| risk it. Take a likelier subject" Why did
! Fidelia Fisk leave her New England home for
the same dark land, rejoicing to spend and
be spent hiding leaven in the unresponsiye
meal? Her work for those HISTORIAN girls and
women was performed royalty and Loyalty.
There was never one single thing attractive or
| lovely in these coarse women. Nothing for
those dark days of the thirties, but the prom
Use of God concerning the leaven He to make
| it work; they to hide it. And so the time
| sped on, until the eighties, and now behold the
leaven. Meetings are held quarterly, in the
districts on the plain by societies of HISTORIAN
women, educated in the Oroomiah Female
Seminary, who assemble from neighboring vii
lagos and spend the day in religions exercises
and discussion of practical evangelzation Be
hold the leaven, and notice how it leavens,
and pray God that the whole may soon be
leavened
This was followed by an address by Mrs,
Atkinson of Japan, who said that the first
point of contact with Japanese women was
their Righteousness. which consisted mostly of
desire to be saved from punishment Their
belief that their souls will go into an animal
after death if their sins are great, is a con-
slant terror, and their desire Cor saviour
from their sins il great She gave very inter
esting instances of the way in which they
sought to appease their gods-going about al
times from dawn till dark, from temple to
temple, and performing difficult labors in 9th
er directions. Some woman was mentioned
who, as special merit, was told to buy bur
ial garment and to have it written on by a
priest. She thought that il the writing Of
one priest was beneficial, the writing of MANY
would be more so, and she went from one te
another until the garment was covered Still
she found no rest. At last shs heard the
preaching of the Gospel, and this was what
she needed. She became true and humble
follower of Christ. The question then arose
as to what she should do with the garment
which was finally sold for the benefit of the
Native Home Missionary Society bringing S1(
into its treasury
Miss Stone of Ssmokov, Bulgaria, was ther
introduced and alluded in touching words t.
her baptism by G. A. c. Thompson in Elio
church, Boston, and the missionary influence
of that church upon her She then said thai
her heart turned to Bulgaria. and she thought
of the loss to those missionaries who cannot
come to a meeting like this She spoke
earnestly of the missionary work of those a
home in training the children and oiling The
wheels of the general machinery. She ther
spoke OF Bulgaria geographically of the free
dom which it gained in '78, and of the doc
which was thus opened to American mission
aries especially. Girls are now thronging tc
the schools, and there is great need for prayel
that the word of God may have free coursi
and be glorified.
The last address was given by Miss Morris
of the Zulu mission who spoke of the associa
ton of Africa in the minds of many will
cannibals, savage animals and poisonous
reptiles but she wished to assure the audience
that commerce had driven them away and tina
he missionaries were in no danger in these
directions. Shethen dwelt on the great chang,
that had taken place in the missionary work in
that country. Forty years ago when the first
missionaries went to Africa it was difficult to
poIsuau0 Inc people 10 near Tue gOSpei. IL
was only by hiring them as servants in their
households that they could obtain an influence
over them. Now in all the region about Nata
they are not only eager to hear the gospel but
are appealing for schools for their children
They desire very much the advantages o.
Christian education; nowhere were the people
so degraded as in Africa; nowhere did the
women suffer SO much from the lack of any
elevating influence but the gospel had the
power to raise them out of it. If a woman
AIKEN from heathenism and one who had beer
for several years Christian and placed side
by side before the audience it would at
once be seen that wonderful change could be
wrought in them. One who has seen this
marvellous change comes to an immoyable
faith in the Christian religion one that no at
tack from infdelity can imperil. The adj
dress closed with an appeal for the women Of
Africa that the women of America should
rise to enter the door that was opened wide
before them.
Prayer was offered by Mrs. j. A. Copp Of
Boston and the meeting closed with the dox.
ology.
The audience, which was composed entirely
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