The Portland daily press., 1896-03-11
HOME MISSIONS.
An Interesting Meeting at the Con-
gresS Street Church.
MRR.KIMBALL'S OPENING ADDRESS
ON THE WORK OF THE SOCIETY.

An Interesting Report Made by Mrs. Luce
of the National Convention of the Society
There was q meeting of the Woman's
Home Missionary Society connected
with the Congress Street Methodist Epis-
copal church last evening.
Rev. George D. Lindsay, the pastor of
the church read selections from the
scripture and offered prayer.
MRS. S. NJ. KIMBALL, OF WOOD
FORDS,
district secretary, was the first speaker.
She said that on her return from the con-
ference at Saco, she found herself called
to an office with the duties of which she
was not familiar" and hardly knew
what to do with it, she said. Up to
that time she had been more familiar
with the foreign mission work.
She took up the work of the Office and
made careful study of the home mission
field and found almost to her surprise
that the society has schools from Alaska
to Louisiana.
She spoke of the work in the South.
The colored people at the close of the war
were eager for schools for even the field
hands had In the old slavery days come
in contact with white people of refine
ment and culture.
Then the society had Ii great work to
do with the Door whites of the South, the
white trash' as the colored people call
them.
The society is also doing great work
among the Indians, and
ALONG THE FRONTIER.
TO preach the gospel.
Then there is work of the society in the
great cities. Young girls strangers in
this country, and many times wholly I'M
protected are met and helped.
The poor and the fallen are helped and
spoke of the Importance of the literature
of the society.
REV. GEORGE D. LINDSAY
followed Mrs. Kimball, speaking espeo-
tally of the Importance of keeping posted
regarding the work of the society. A
Congregationalist would make great
mistake If he looked at his church
through Methodist glasses, and Demo-
GRAFT who tried to keep posted regarding
his party by reading Republican paper
would blunder just as badly. He thought
that while the foreign missions should
l. 4 h.
especially worthy of attention.
Mrs. Luce, wife of Rev. ]. Luce, then
read her report as a
DELEGATE TO THE NATIONAL
CONVENTION
of the Woman's Home Missionary Socie-
ty at Columbus, Ohio, representing ~
states and A conferences. Mrs. General
Clinton b. Fiske, presided. Governor
Mckinley could not be present, but Mrs.
Mckinley was in attendance. The first
home missionary society was organized
in the Methodist Episcopal church in
Columbia. The general conference of
1894 entrusted to the society the work
of home missions. Mrs. Luce spoke of
the organization of $500 subor dinate So
cleties, the collection of more thai 81, 600,
OOO and the dlstri button of $500, 600 among
the ministers and churches on the from
tier. The society distributed 81 $1,000 of
supplies last year. and holds property val
ued at $3.50, 900.
Mrs. Luce gave the details of tile work
of the society. She spoke of the pledg
ing by the delegates of 20, 900 subscribers
to the organ of the society, and told in
an interesting way the story of the con
vention. The reports showed that the
work is rapidly gaining. The seer etary
closed her report with the words:
"PRAY, ORGANIZE AND ADVANCE"
and Mrs Teller wife of the Sen ator
from Colorado spoke of the work on the
frontier. The work OF the homs in New
York showed that nearly 1000 girls were
last year received and helped
Mrs. Luce said that delegate from
California said that China is sending
more people every year to the Pacific
coast than all the missionaries in China
can reach. Mrs. Luce told what she
called "a charming little Methodist love
story of a young girl who had grace,
courage and love enough to marry a
young Methodist minister who started
in on salary of 5000 year, with fair
prospect of collecting half of that sum"
She told how the ladies of the socicety
helped to fit up the poor little parsonage
of two rooms.
Mrs Luce gave incident after incident
of missionary work and sacrifice all over
this country; work that is attended to
in the cities and in the South; of work
among the savages Of Alaska, the Ital-
ians Of New York, and the Chinese of
| the Pacific coast.
| A resolution was adopted that "Old
Glory" be placed in all the homes sus-
tanned by the society.
1--WE CLAIM OUR LAND FOR
JESUS"
| was sung, and it was the spirit in which
the convention was held and in which
the work will be carried forward. An
invitation was given by Mrs. Bashford,
wife of Rev. DR.. Bashford, formerly of
Portland, to visit the institution OF
which DR.. Bashford is the head. but it
could not be accepted Mrs. Luce spoke