The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-10-18
Annual Meeting of Worcester
County Branch Held at Pilgrim
Church and Attended by Many
Delegates
PRAYERS OFFERED FOR
MISS STONES SAFETY
Interesting Reports From the
Mission Fields Presented by
Observation-Disclosures Report
Shows the Finances Of the Or
ganization Strong


The annual meeting of the Worcester
County Branch of the Woman's Board
of Missions was held at Pilgrim
Church yesterday. The morning ses-
sion began at 10 o'clock there was an
intermission from 11.50 to 1.9O o'clock
and the afternoon session closed at A
p. m. Mrs. Orlando Mason of Win
chendon presided. About 200 delegates
were present, representing Sc towns.
The largest number from one section
was IA. There were IA delegates from
Leominster and also from Clinton.
About 800 persons including the dele
gates, were present at the meeting dur
ing the day.
After singing Jesus Shall Rise" the
president opened the meeting, referring
in her remarks to Miss Ellen Stone,
now held in captivity by Bulgarian
brigands. Mrs. James H. Bancroft
led in prayer asking a blessing upon
Miss Stone. At 1915 a. m. Mrs. Simeon
Newton of Worcester read the minutes
of the last meeting which had been held
in Baldwinville in June. The minutes
were approved.
| Mrs. Alexander Lewis, wife Of the
pastor of Pilgrim Church, then de-
| livered the address of welcome as fol-
lows:
Our country has passed through sew
eral crises, no two of which have been
exactly alike. We have just passed
through one such crisis The past two
years have witnessed such prosperity
as has never before been known in the
United States.
"Coincident with this increase of
power to give has gone marvellous
expansion of missionary opportunity.
Open doors in the home fields of Cuba
and Porto Rico and the Philippines and
other foreign ports invite us to enter
and take possession in the name of our
Lord. Meantime numbers of our best
young men and women stand pledged
to go wherever they are wanted in the
volunteer movement. But notwith-
standing this rare conjunction of abil-
lily and opportunity, our benevolences
show a decided falling off.
Doubtless there are several causes
for this condition. One of them is the
augmented expenditure on the part of
the American people for the luxuries of
! life. Another may be found in the hap
hazard manner in which both home
support and benevolent contributions
are cared for in many of our churches.
A more fundamental cause however,
lies in the steadily growing power of
materialism in the daily life of our peo-
pie.
Now what is needed is a revival OF
missionary interest and revival OF
iself-sacrificing giving. We are aware
that any systematic attempt to revive
the spirit of giving proposes hard work
but we believe that the emergency de.
mands unremitting toll on the part Of
those who love our missionary enter
prises, and that the results of faithful
ness in such endeaVor will rebound tC
the extension of the kingdom of Christ.
1.-THE part of the Womans Board al
ways has been and is twofold-that of
collecting funds, but most important is
the dissemination of missionary intel
Iligence among church members. Pill
grim Church welcomes the Worcester
County Branch today for the inspira-
! ton which we believe it will give to us
| in our work, and second because we
hope that here today may be set in mo-
| ton some definite plans to the end of
more aggressive work"
| The report of the treasurer, Mrs
| Ephraim Tucker showed the receipts
| of the auxiliaries, including silver Of
| fering, S5161.57; from estate of Mrs. DR.
| Ward of Upton, $500; total receipts OF
the branch, $5S65.S9; RENTED to w. B.
NJ, $5520.56; duplicates, 11210;paid from
stamp mission, 5000; paid from con-
tingent fund, $121.S5; total, $5S34.90;
balance in bank Oct. 15 1901, 5000;
silver anniversary offering, $510.45;
Lenten offering, S14S.50; thank offering,
$131.43 The receipts for the contingent
fund were $152.S4; expenditures, $121.S IS;
balance, 5000; receipts from the stamp
mission, 5000; expenditures, 5000.
Some of the largest contributors
among Worcester churches, to the re-
ceipts of the Worcester County Branch
were: Piedmont Church, $511. So; Union
Church $685.. At; Central Church, $154. 81;
! Old South Church, $150.39; Plymouth,
$14915
At 1915 a. m. the report of the Wor-
ester County Branch of the Woman's
Board of Missions for 1901 was given
by Mrs. S. A. Harlow of Grafton, I'M
der the title "Our Interests Abroad"
Mrs. Harlow's report follows
"a short time ago an item appeared
in one of the papers which we may
do well to consider for few moments.
TT said: Ordinarily good health
plenty of exercise, plenty of work and
an interest in the affairs of the world
are the great preventives and cures of
melancholia."
while I hope none of us are af-
ficted with this dire disease, / am
sure we shall all agree that there is
great opportunity for worry in this
world, unless we are living very near
to God. Surely, one of the ways of
living very near to Him is by dill
gently obeying His commands, and in
His commands to preach the gospel
to all nations He has told US to take
an interest in the affairs of the whole
world.
Now, can we be patriotic Americans
in these days, when we are hearing
so much of expansion and reciprocity,
unless We are taking an interest in
the great world. We have been born
in a land which has great possibilities
and vast opportunities for helping to
Christianize and enlighten the great
world
"Our President Mckinley said: mo
nation can any longer be Indifferent to
any other. God and man have linked
the nations together"
when we look across to Africa we
are amazed by the great opportunities
which are very rapidly opening up to
civilization and Christianity. We read
that already there are in Africa in
operation or under actual construction
10000 miles Of railroads.
1.-THE most ambitious project is a
railway from Cape Town to Cairo. On
one end l5OO miles are already COM
pleted, on the other about 1900 miles,
leaving 5000 miles between to be com
pleted. Think for one moment of a
railroad 500 miles long running from
the north to the south of Africa and
a telegraph running along beside it.
What a means it will be Of carry
ing civilization and Christianity into
the dark continent.
I'm Cecil Rhodes God seems to have
raised up the man for the hour, even
aa n, O1iy. own land He has "a fsad r,r,