The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-28
Foreign and Home Missions.

Some facts recently presented by canon
I Taylor IN an article entitled The Great
Missionary Failure in the FortHightiy Re
rteto, suggest the inquiry whether it would
not be advisable to sperd the money that IS
appropriated to the support of foreign mis-
sions IN making converts and Strengthening
the CHURCHES in christian countries. Canon
| Taylor Is a distinguished clergyman of the
Church Of England, and it cannot be said
that in presenting facts showing the failure
Of foreign missions, he was influenced by
desire to acquire notoriety
! 1t is estimated that the non-christian
| population of those parts Of Asia and
Africa, Of the people of which something
| definite is known, is more than 900, 600, 900.
The natural increase Of this population by
! excess of births over deaths is about
| l1,Oo0, 900 annually. DIR. Maclear, who is
the chief Of training school for mission
| aries, estimates the yearly increase OF native
christians, due to the efforts Of mission aries,
/ at 10000. According to these figures, it
would take 1873 years to convert 10 chris
tianity single years increase of the nom
| christian population. Canon Taylor says:
I'm spite Of our advance, instead Of over
taking the work the work as overtaking us.
1t is like the tortoise racing with the rail
way train, the longer the race continues
the farther the tortoise is left behind"
But how much money is spent annually
In maintaining foreign missions! Accord
ing to Canon Taylor the Protestants alone
spend $l0,OOO, 900. The number of American
and European missionaries is about 5000,
| and Of native missionaries about 10000. II
the non-christlan population were to remain
stationary, and converts We're to be made
at the present rate, it would take hundreds
| Of thousands of years to convert the world,
even if there were no relapses, but the non
christian population does not remain sta
| tioDary, and, as above shown, it would
take nearly 200 years to convert the in
! crease for single year.
Canon Taylor gives some figures which
apply TO India alone. In that country the
Roman Catholics convert to christianity
each year about 81 ,212, and the Protestants
about 1881. At this rate it would require
| sixty-four years to make as many converts
to christianity as would be equal in number
to one year increase in the none ri itian
population.
In China the missionaries make very lit
tie progress. The church missionary soci-
ETY. baptized last year 1G7. How small is
this number out Of a population Of 3S2,-
| 100000, having an annual increase of ovsr
4,5S0,000 At this rate, even if the populn-
ion remained stationary, the society would
not be able to convert China to lristiauity
in less than l,6S0,000 years.
1t is costly business making converts in
China. The cost of making the 1G7 converts
last year was $4,000. In Northern India
$4,000 was spont in making l73 converts,
and us agent were employed. In Egypt,
Russia. Pa estine, and Arabia the church
missionary society bad 10 agents in its en-
ployment during the last two years. and
spent $4,000 without making a single con
vert. The fact must be kept in mind that
| where converts are made there are many
relapses-so many, in fact, that it is difficult
in many places to estimate with any degree
of accuracy the progress that the missions
are making.
Canon Taylor deals not only with the
number of the converts, but also the quality
of them, and the quality Of a very large
percentage of them is bad. The native
| African pastors and teachers are reported
to be "more or less bad men,"
These are only few Of the facts furnished
by Canon Taylor, but they are sufficient to
give an idea of the work of foreign mis-
sions OF course there are plenty of good
men and women who think that the foreign
mission work should not be abandoned as
long as there is probability Of converting
a single heather. But that is not the main
question to be considered. The question Is
this; Cannot the money expended in for
eign missions, and the men and women en-
ployed in foreign missionary work, be used
to far better advantage in home missions (!
There are splendid fields for missionary
work within the shadows of our churches,
and it is as important that efforts be made
to convert the tens of thousands in our
great cities who never hear the gospel
preached as it is to make converts among
the countless millions of Asia and Africa.