St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-12-04
SOULS TO BE SAVED.
Protestant Clergymen in New
ii York Will Endeavor to Reap
Full Harvests Hereafter.

Special to the Globe.
NEW YORK, Dec. 3.-The first of the
series of meetings under the auspices
of Protestant clergymen to consider the
best means of keeping religious work
abreast of the increasing population
Of this city was held at Chickering
hall tonight, a large audience be ing
present. Hon. John Jay presided. The
exercises were opened by the singing
of the hymn, "Come Quickening Spirit,
Heavenly Dove" Rev. Walpole War
rem offered prayer. Mr.. Jay then out
lined the proposed movement. 1t was
to be neither sectarian nor narrow,
but broadly Christian and thoroughly
American. A crisis had come in the
affairs of the city. The influx of the
foreign tide was perverting our institu-
tons, corrupting our politics, and eS
tranging the people from churches.
Evangelical Christianity must be the
bulwark to check the food of unbelief
and immortality. Mr.. Jay introduced
Rev. j. Nj. King. of the NJ. e. churh. who
spoke on the topic New York Above
Fourteenth Street" He displayed a
map of the locality named, and showed
that while the saloon had kept numeri-
cal pace with the growing population,
the Protestant churches had remained
nearly stationary in number, and in
some cases had fallen Off. If the saloons
were represented by small clouds OH
the map, they would obscure the stars
which denoted churches. The saloons
controlled 10000, and were open day
and night. Their proprietors did not
take vacations in the summer. In 1880
tenementS live 1 100, 900 souls. Out of $780,
OeO Protestant population only 10000 are
members of churches. Dr.. King defined
the evils to be met as follows in the
order of their Importance: ROmaniSm
and its machinery, Indifference, ,Iuda-
ism and its eXclusiveneSS, inactivity of
protesting Christians, foreign-bred re-
sistance to Americanizing influence, sa-
looms, tenements. These evils were still
greater below Fourteenth street. DR..
A. f. Scfauffier, V. p, of the
city mission. spoke of "New
York Below Fourteenth Street."
and his map was far more
cloudy with saloons aud less starry
with churches than that of DR.. King.
The population down town, DR..
Schauffier said, is denser to-day than
ever before, notwithstanding the on
ward march of business. All told, there
were 1877 churches below Fourteenth
street, NHlle inc pUpuldtlOH was OIL, UUU.
Ten wears ago, when the population
was considerably less, there were
I41 churches. What was needed down
town was more home mission work,
more Christian workers who would go
among the tenementS and encourage
their occupants to attend divine wor-
ship; the attendance at the churches
down town is gradually decreas-
ing, in spite of the increased
population; if necessary, paid mis-
sionaries should be employed:
missionary work was needed here more
than in foreign lands. Unless Christian
ity and order are firmly established we
must expect anarchy and revolt. The
Rev. George L. Winner spoke concern
ing the 100000 Germans of the city.
OF these but 10000 are church
members, 10000 of them be-
ing Lutiierans; internal dissen-
sions in German churches. he said.
were the greatest cause of lack of in
terest taken in church matters by Ger
mans, and tenacious opposition to the
use of the English language in German
churches was another great reason. He
urged English churches to appoint Ger
mans as assistant clergymen, whose
duties should be to secure the attend
ance of German youths at the churches.
The meeting will be resumed te-mor-
row morning.