Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-10-31
DOMESTIC MISSIONS.
Sermon BY Bishop Brooke. Of Okla
homa and Indian Territory.

HULA duu luuldu ltIIltUIys
BREACHES AT ST. MATTHEW'S AND
ST. LUKES CHURCHES YESTER-
DAY-FOINTS OF HIS ADDRESS AT
ST. LUKES LAST EvENING-IN-
TERESTING INFORMATION AND
STATISTICS CONCERNING THE
GROWTH OF MISSION WORK IN
OKLAHOMA AND INDIAN TERRI
TORY-OTHER RELIGIOUS NOTES.
Rt. Rev. Bishop Brooke, of the
mission diocese of the Protestant
Episcopal church in Oklahoma and In
liam Territory, preached two sermons
in this city yesterday. In the morning
he occupied the pulpit at ST. Matthew S
church and in the evening addressed
another large congregation at ST.
Luke's, on the Island. Bishop Brooke
is one of the ablest missionary work
ers in his church. For the past six
years he has had charge of the mission
work in Oklahoma and indian Territory
and under his administration the
church has progressed and largely in
creased its influence in the West
Bishop Brooke last night spoke On the
subject of domestic missions, and par
ticularly Of the work in his field.
His address was brief but to the
point, and made an excellent impress
sion. Bishop Brooke is very pleas
ing and interesting talker. He gave
his hearers considerable information
about the difficulties encountered in or
ganizing and establishing churches in
the western country, and his remarks
conveyed an idea of the sacrifices that
the western people endured with which
the more prosperous population Of the
East are not acquainted. He said the
same class of people as those whom
he was addressing, the same in culture,
character and words inhabited the
West, and lived without most of the
comforts and luxuries that the people
of the East enjoyed. They were the
equal in all respects of the people of
the East; many of them had come to
that country and had been born and
reared in more pleasant and prosper
Gus surroundings in the East In a
shanty a few rooms and frequently but
one room, could be seen hung On the
walls, the picture of handsome and
inviting house which in former days
had been the home of the occupant Of
the small cabin or lonely dug-out
These people nearly all had enjoyed
pleasanter and more refined surround
ings, but for various reasons had gone
West and found houses on the broad
prairies. Many of them were young
men who came there to make their
start in life, some were people who had
small means and invested it where they
could buy land cheap, some had made
failures in other States and came there
to start anew. None came there, how
ever, who had money, and a man there
with $4,000 was considered rich. The
people there would be considered poor
in the East Under these conditions,
missionary work was retarded and met
with many difficulties for the lack CT
resources to build churches and to
send missionaries into this field. The
people gave willingly and literally but
thsir means were small and the success
of the work depended upon the support
received from the larger and more
prosperous churches of the East, as the
Board CT Missions of the church con-
tributed nothing for this purpose.
Bishop Brooke gave some interesting
statistics in regard to the growth of
the mission work in his field In the
strip in the western and northern part
of Indian Territory, known as Okla
homa, there was not a white man
where there is now a white popula-.
ton of 100000 and 10000 Indians. In
the Indian Territory there is a white
population Of $50. 000-more than the
entire inhabitants in Utah, Idaho and
Wyoming.
By the opening of the Cherokee Strip
five years ago there was added 100000
more. Indian Territory was added to
Bishop Brookes diocese three years
ago, and he has been compelled to
raise money to establish and support
the different missions in this large
field without help from the Church
Board of Missions. Where there were
but two missionaries six years ago,
there are now thirteen clergymen.
Then there were but two churches, but
there are now twenty church build
ings in Oklahoma, and there are TWEEN
ty-fve places in the two territories
where missions have been organized
and fifteen other preaching places. The
church was the only hospital in the
population of 100000 people of the two
territories. 1t is necessary to practice
the greatest economy in building
structures.
The church property of twenty