The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-07-31
MISSIONS TO BURMAH.
A Veteran in the Service Tells
What Has Been Done.
Ms. 49, Mss Recess Wsrk n EneasnA's
Lass Aeaaisssise-1he Burmese slsv
- Give Up D.AAAssa.

Rev. A. T. Rose presched yesterday II
the North Seattle Baptist church in the
morning and u the Market street Baptist
church in the evening. Mr.. Rose il p;o-
neer missionary TO Burmah, having spent
forty years Of his lie in the work OF
spreading the Gospel among the benighsed
tribes of that country. He and
var 70 Providence. R. l.. where
their four married children nov hive
Mrs. Rose Is born missionary in the fill
sense Of the word. Her father. Rev. ID. L.
Brayton, II the oldest missionary nov in
Burmah. having been engaged in that
field over fifty-six years and being now
over IS years Of age. She herself. was
born and reared in Burmah and has been
engaged in missionary work there from
her earliest years.
Mr.. Rose vas born in the state of New
York nearly seventy years ago. and en-
lated ct the call in the service Of the
American Baptist Missionary Union when
only 30 years of age. He choose Burmah
- his field, and has lived TO see . COM
plete revolution take place in the manners
and religion Of over 1000 natives. Mr..
Rose is q fine-Iooking, whits-haired and
white bearded man. who bears his weight
Of years lightly. He is still strong and
hearty. and so great is his faith in his
own powers Of endurance that he will re-
turn to his field Of labor in q few years.
His lectures, or rather talks, for they
we're neither lectures nor sermon. were in
tensely interesting. Last night he began
BY stating that his text would Be the gen
eral command Of Christ to 60 out and
preach the Gospel to all the world. and
that the Lord would lend His protection
and aid that the labor wonid not be in
vain. He would illustrate this by his
first glance il would seem hopeless to At
tempt to turn the inhabitants from their
own old and well-founded religion to =
newer one. They had priests and paeodas
and their own religious books written in
their own language. They had no
cause to desire better form
Of worship. yet in the short
space Of time between 1925. when Dr.. judi
son, tho first white missionary to set fo0e
in Burmah. began the work. aud the pres
emit year Of 1898, what . change had been
wrought! The great work of DR.. Judson's
life had been the TRANSLATION of the Bible
into Burmese, but now since his death the
Bible has been given to all Of the native
tribes. whose dialects are totally different.
Then the speaker went on to name the
different tribes among which the work Of
civilization and Christianity was being
carried on. Tho Burmese and the Shan
tribes were rigid Buddhists. while
the 'Sgawkarins and Pwokarins were not,
but were worshippsrs Of spirits, Chin wor-
shippers rs they were commonly called.
The Burmese and the Shans. the latter
tribe being very closely related to the
Siamsse. from whose language their own
differs but slightly, are stili very much at
tachcd to their own sucred writings. and
the greater part Of the work had not been
done among them, but among the several
Karin tribes.
Those Karin tribes. when the mission
aries went among them, were wild and
ignorant: they had no written language
merely spirit worship. Now they were
many other books in their own language,
nearly all were Christians and from timid
and ignorant people they had become .
brave and intelligent race. They were
loyal to the British government. whic b
controls Burmah. and many OF them were
now holding Official positions under the
government Out of the one or two
millions of ignorant savages there had
now been made at least 1900 converts to
Christianity. There were now among
them 400 Christian churches. all self
supporting and self-reliant. depending
upon the white missionaries merely for
advice and not for assistance. They paid
their pastors and sent out well-paid mis-
sionaries to convert the tribes in the in.
terror. They had schooihouses and
hundreds Of primary schools. In addi-
ton TO these there were several
high schools and theological
seminary. where over 100 young men of
the Karin tribes were studying for the
ministry. In all OF these schools the ma
tive language was used and the text books
printed in it. The pupils in these schools
were fine singers. and IN fact all of the
natives were. They readily picked up the
tunes Of all of the hymns sung by the
white mission aries, and sang them with
words in their own language. In fact,
the grea. Karin tribes were fast becoming
as civilized a. . people could be-
With the Burmese the progress had been
slower on account Of their steadfasr ad-
herence to the religion Of Buddha, We.
progress Was being made. and in course of
time they also would throw away their old
religion and adopt Christianity. for . great
many Of their more heathenish practices
bad already been given up. Ali OF this
went to prove the wisdom of the injunc-
ton Of the Master to 60 forth among all
the nations Of the earth and preach the
Gospel, and that the labor would not % in
vain.