The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-08-27
EXPOSITION ENrEl

rious churches by the more prominent of
the guests.
The delegates will come from every state
and territory of the Union, from the Ca
nadian provinces and from almost every civ
ilized and uncivilixed country in the world.
1t Is stated by Mr.. b. +. Jacobs, chairman
of the executive committee of the interna-
tional Sunday school convention, that 2,O3G
delegates are accredited from the United
States and Canadas, while the local commit
tees place the additional attendance of dele
gates to the worlds convention at 400 at
least. 1t is expected despite the hard times
that there Will bea very large attendance of
unaccredlted pcrsons-so large, according to
present estimates, as to swell the total mum
Der of strangers likely to be here during the
week to 5000 or 10000. The Field Workers
conference will be held in Exposition En-.
tertainment hall The International Sun
day school convention and the worlds
convention will occupy Music hall The
programme of each has been prepared with
great care, and it is expected that Sunday
school workers who are fortunate enough
to he present will derive great pleasure and
profit from the proceedings.
Saturday, Sept >. will be given over
largely to the celebration of St. Louis an.
nual Sunday school festival, which was
postponed this year from May, the usual
time of holding it, until September in or
der that the delegates to the convention
should see what St. Louis can do i'm the
way of IL big turnout of Sunday school
scholars. The festival will be held as usual
OH the fair grounds, and the new Sports.
man PARK has been engaged as overflow
grounds. The most interesting features of
TINS years festival will be the parade and
the song service. The children will begin
n a ...f co.
march from Grand avenue near Pine and
Olive streets to the fair grounds, where they
will be reviewed by delegates from the con-
ventions. The song service will consist of
chorus of 10000 fresh young voices. 1t
will be rendered in Sportsman's park and
will he in charge of l.. +. Lindsay, who will
also have charge of all the musical services
of the conventions.
This annual festival is feature of Sunday
school work peculiar to St. Louis as the
May walk is peculiar to Brooklyn Sunday
schools Besides the procession, which is SIM
liar TO the main feature of the May walk,
and the out of door feast that is so popular Mt
rural Sunday school picnics there are athlet-
&c sports for the older boys of the Sunday
schools and the young men of the Bible
classes. These sports include baseball, rum
nlng races, bicycle races, potato races, sack
races, competitive club swinging, etc. The
attendance is sometimes as large as $1,000,
and the interest in the various events of the
day is Intense There is no doubt that its
annual recurrence and the preparations for
its competitions, which necessarily bcuin
some weeks ahead each year, add materially
TO the interest felt in Sunday schools by
the children of St. Louis. \ local rhyme
stcr has described the number and variety
OF youngsters annually participating in the
parade in the following lines:
Fair children, dark children,
Children past reason;
Tail children. small children,
Children i'll season:
Eici children, poor children,
Children in chaises:
Girl children. boy children.
y whole city's babies:
Black children, white children
Children galore;
Good children, rudo children,
Score upon score.
Some idea of the significance Of the con-
vention may he obtained from brief refer
cncc to previous gatherings of the same
nature. The Field Workers convention is
the first of its kind The international con-
vention is the evolution of the national
convention and is the twelfth gathering of
that body, as well as the seventh of the in
tcrnational. Its sessions are held once in
three years, and it was organized at the
sixth national convention in MAY 1879 at
Baltimore. The sixth international con-
vcntion was held at Pittsburg in 1890, and
Hon John u. Harris Of Alabama. who was
then chosen president, will preside over the
coming convention The board of vice prcsi
dents includes one from each state in the
Union and each OF the Canadian provinces
Among the more prominent workers be.
longing to the international convention ore
Bishop j. ii. Vincent, best known because
of his connection with the Chautauaua
summer school, and b. +. Jacobs. who is
entitled to the thanks of all Sunday school
WORKERS for the International Lesson Leaf.
and DIR. Meredith of Brook Ign, long identi-
fled i'll Sunday school work. The plan for
uniform study by the worlds Sunday
schools was devised by him. and he had the
active assistance of DR.. Edward Eggleston
and DR.. Vincent in perfecting it, 1t was
adopted by the convention of 1872. which
was held in indianapolis.
The first worlds Sunday school conven-
ton was held in London in 1889 and was
the outSrowth of the international conven-
ton, a. the latter was of the national IL
WAS projected during the fifth internation-
al convention held in Chicago in 1857 The
"details OF the organization We're given into
the hands OF IN able committee, of which Mr.
Jacobs was one. The Sunday school work
ers of the other lands entered cordially into
the work, and the delegates were welcomed
to the worlds metropolis on July . of thf
year named by the lord mayor, and the
Earl and Countess of Aberdeen and other
titled and untitled English men aud won.
en- united to make it pleasant for them.
The American delegates numbered over
2OO, and they went tn ENGLAND IN honr,I