Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1891-05-29
From Paris to RuStChuck.

The following letter from the Ne
| brdSkG Christian AdDOcdte will be read
with much interest by the people of
this vicinity. 1t was written by Rev.
Geo. 5. Davis who left here about two
months ago To take up mission work
in Rustchuck, Bulgaria.
There are sensations not strictly de-
| lightful in conducting family of
small children across Europe without
hearing an English word and not un-
derstanding anything else.
We entered Switzerland in the early
morning of April Sth, enjoying days
ride along the beautiful lake Iurice,
and crossing over, under and through
the Alps for 200 miles. Our train
reached high attitudes, and passed
| through tunnels twenty minutes long.
At Media we found it impossible to
be understood, and boarded train
going east, not knowing whittier it
went. The numerous and unreason-
able transfers through Hungary and
Roumania banished both comfort and
enjoyment. At dreary station in
| the Slavonian mountains, we were
ordered out of the train at three
o'clock in the morning, and after an
hour of chilling pprehension, were
huddled on hand cars, and pushed
by Slavs, proceeded through pelting
rain to the next station. Passing
over dangerous washout gave us
more than clue to the situation.
Remaining in cold apartment in
drenched clothing for six hours, gave
us more than clue to something else.
On reaching Rustchuck last Sunday
morning the whole family was taken
into custody pending the arrival of
our passport, with the luggage. That
it was with the luggage was partly due
to the fact that we had been instructed
in New York that it would not be
called for. We had already crossed
1 the Roumanian frontier without it, by
the unspoken consent of frowning
officials.
We received welcome letters from
| home when we had been here but one
hour. On Sunday afternoon we spoke
to the congregation here, Bro. Delchetf
acting as interpreter. On Tuesday
we went with Bro. Lounsbury by
steamer to Sistof. A generous sur
prise awaited me there. At the land
ing we met Superintendent Challis,
each member of the faculty of our the
illogical school, and thirty-fOur young
|
uncertain manner. We should have
said that the congregation at Rust
chuck gave us like assurance of SYM
pathy.
SOME ITEMS.
Stock is inferior.
The fruit trees are now in blossom.
A Catholic priest goes unshaven.
The soil of Bulgaria is exceedingly
rich.
Water filtered from the Danube is
good.
A telegram of ten words costs ten
cents.
Public bake ovens are all on the
streets.
The "Blue Danube" is muddy
stream.
A turk can carry more on has back
than Il horse.
The women here paint themselves
eXtravagantly.
The murder of Minister Belchefr i.
laid TO Russia.
Bed bugs are not more numerous
} than in America.
Modern farm implements are badly
needed in this country.
The wheat fields Of Austria resemble
very much our older prairie farms.
The Turkish women peep out at me
with an interest that is reciprocated.
! A city street here points in more
directions than points of a compass.
The annual meeting has been post
poned to April 30th. Our new church
here will be dedicated then.
Before we landed on the shores OF
Bulgaria, they had landed liquors
from Omaha and rum from Boston.
A boy attended our church recently
and was converted. lie was then eX.
} PEELED from school for "religousmoral
J depravity" which debars him from
entering any school in Bulgaria.
Bulgaria, having 3,000,000 people,
has standing army of not less than
} 80, 600 men. Taxes are high. Ferdi.
, nand is still unrecognized as legal
,, prince by every other European power
, The railroad bridges of Europe are
much more substantial, and the sta.
tions much more commodious and
, attactive than in America. The train.
that have sleeping cars have nothing
else.
Crossing Switzerland, we observed
the women were in the fields spading
and spreading manure. Their hus.
bands were hauling, with the new
milch COW as the team. We suspect
that the Switzerland brethren will vote
against the admission of women. In
Hungary the women were not only in
the fields, but were not more than hall
covered.
Rustchuck, April 10, 1891.