Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1897-05-08
NUMBER Al

mittce Of the Kings Daughters had dec
grated the ship with streamers and bunt-.
ing, American and Russian flags inter-
twining. Thousands of people on the
wharves ard OIL the decks joined US in
invoking Gods blessing on the cargo,
and the long meter Doxology in "Old
Hundred sounded grandly up amid the
masts and ratlines Having had the JOY
of seeing that ship thus consecrated, we
had the additional JOY of standing on
the docks of St. Petersburg when the
planks Of the relief ship were thrown
out and the representatives of the mu-
inequalities and Of royalty went aboard
her, the long freight train at the same
time rolling down to take the food to
the starving, and Oh alternate cars OF
that train American and Russian flags
floating. But HOW the hunger in India
is migh$er than any that Ireland or
Russia ever suffered. Quicker ought to
be the response, and OH SO vast scale
that the one ship would become whole
fiotilla-New York sending one, Boston
another, Philadelphia another, Charles
ton another, New Orleans another Then
let them all meet IN some harbor OF In
dia. What peroration of mercy for the
nineteenth century, I would like to
stand on the wharf at Calcutta or Bonn
bay and see such feet come i'll. With
what Joy it would be welcomed! The
emaciated would lift their heads on
shriveled hands and elbows, and with
thin lips ask, us tcoming-something
to eat?''
And whole villages and towns, too
weak to walk, would crawl out on
hands and knees to get the first grain of
corn they could reach and put it to
their furnished lips. May I cry out for
you and for others to those sufferers:
"Wait o little longer, bear up little
more, oh, dying Zen of India; oh. starv-
ing women; oh, emaciated babes! Relief
is on the way, and more relief will soon
be coming. We send it in the name OF
the Asiatic Christ, who said: L was
hungry, and ye fed me. Inasmuch as ye
have done it unto one of the least OF
these my brethren ye have done it unto
me. 30
Christian people of America, call
your attention to the fact that we may
now, as never before, by one magnificent
stroke open the widest door for the
evangelization of Asia A stupendous
obstacle in the way of Outstanding
Asia has been the difference of Ian
guage, but all those people understand
the gospel of bread. Another obstacle
has been the law of caste, but in what
better way can we teach them the
brotherhood of man? Another huge diff
ficulty in the way of Outstanding
Asia has been that those people thought
the religion we would have them take
was no better than their Hindooism or
Northumberland, but they will now
see by this crusade for the relief of peo-
pie $4,000 miles away that the Chris
tian religion is of higher, better and
grander type than any other religion,
for when did the followers of Brahma
or Vishnu or Buddha or Confucius or
Mohammed ever demonstrate like inter-
est in people on. opposite sides of the
world? Having taken the bread of this
life from our hands, they will be more
apt to take from US the bread Of eternal
life. The missionaries of different de-
nominations in India at 46 stations are
already distributing relief sent through
The Christian Herald. Is it not plain
that those missionaries, after feeding
the hunger of the body, will be at bet
ter advantage to feed the hunger of the
soul? When Christ, before preaching to
the 5, 900 in the wilderness, broke for
them the miraculous loaves, he indl-
Gated that the best way to prepare the
world for spiritual and eternal consider
ations is first to look after their tenn
poral interests. Oh, church of God in
America and Europe!
This is your opportunity. We have
on occasions Of Christian patriotism
cried, America for God!' Now let US
add the battle shout, Asia for GodP'
In this movement to give food to starv-
ing India I hear the rustling of the
wing of the Apocalyptic angel, ready
to fly through the midst of heaven pro-
claiming to all the kingdoms and peo-
pie and tongues the unsearchable riches
of Jesus Christ.
The Gospel Circle.
And now bethink myself of some
thing / never thought of before. had
noticed that the circle is Gods favorite
figure, and upon that subject address
ed you some time ago, but it did not
occur to me until now that the gospel
seems to be moving in circle. 1t start
ed in Asia, Bethlehem, an Asiatic vii
lage; Jordan, an Asiatic river; Calva-
~, an Asiatic mountain. Then this gos-
pel moved on to Europe. Witness the
chapels and churches and cathedrals
and Christian universities of that con-
tinent Then it crossed to America. 1t
has prayed and preached and sung its
way across our continent. 1t has cross
ed to Asia, taking the Sandwich Islands
in its way, and now III all the great
cities on the coast Of China people are
singing Rock Of Ages" and ''There Is
a Fountain Filled With Blood" for
you must know that not only have the
Scriptures been translated into those
Asiatic tongues, but also the evangelical
hymns My missionary brother, John,
translated some of them into Chinese,
and Mr.. Gladstone gave me q copy Of
the hymn, "Jesus, Lover of My Soul, -
which he had himself translated into
Greek. The Christ who it seems spent
l6 or IS years of his life in India is
there now in spirit, converting and saw
ing the people by the hundeds of thou
sands, and the gospel will move right
On through Asia until the story Of the
Saviours birth will anew be made