The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1890-08-14
New Versions Of the Bible in Chinese.

| t'S" VI LHt DlDle Ill CnlDPSc.
Shortly before the last mail Jeff
Shanghai the proceedings of a great
missionary conference there had ter
minated, having lasted for fort
night. 1t was attended by about $50
men and women engaged in mission
airy work all over the eighteen prov
inces Of China, from Manchuria and
Mongolia, Japan, and even FROM India.
A summary of the general results of
the conference or congress from the
missionary point of view, has been
published locally. These include
diffusion OF information of topics of
interest and value to the missionary
by means of essays and papers, of
which there were about fifty, and the
general discussion on them, and the
adoption by general assent OF a plan
for obtaining new translations of the
bible. This is subject around which
fierce wars have ragged in the past in
China; the conference dealt with it
in sensible and adroit way,
which excluded all personal diff
ferences, predictions and prejudices.
Small committees were formed of
leading men to consider each branch
of the subject. Acting on their guild
ance, the conference agreed to select
by ballot three executive committees
to superientend respectively revised
version in the high classical style,
version in the easy classical style, aud
one in Mandarin. These committees
shall select the translators and super
intend the publication of the work.
The committee are to consist, in two
cases, of five British, five American
and two German scholars, and in the
third instance of ten, chosen without
regard to nationality. The arrange
ment is described as a reasonable plan
by which bible translation in China
may be simplifed, unified and per-
fected. A committee was also chosen
to superintend the rendering of the
bible into the various vernacular
dialects, as well as to consider the
best methods of producing it for the
blind and dumb. Further, it was de-
cided to try and meet the want of a
Chinese bible with summaries, chap
ter headings and brief explanation
and similarly bible with annotations
is to be prepared by a committee.
The superintendence of missionary
schools has been placed in the hands
of an association of practical teachers;
the production, distribution and sale
of translations of standard works have
been placed under single control; a
Joint address to the Chinese govern.
ment explaining the aims of the mis-
sionaries and the object of Christiani-
ty IL to be prepared with view to OBJ
tanning the suppression OF current IL
bells on the missions; an appeal to the
Protestant world for 1000 more or
dained missionaries in the next five
years, for more lay and female workers
was adopted, and measures to secure
harmony and co operation between
individual missionaries and different
societies were agreed upon, especially
in regard to the division of the fields Of
labor. AS an example of the expert
ence represented at this remarkable
conference, it is mentioned that four.
teen of the members present had la
bored for more than thirty years in
China, the senior missionary present
had been in China for forty-eight
years, and the fourteen represented
more than 500 years of missionary
service and experience in China.