The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-05-14
WOMAN SBOARD OF MISSIONS
HELD LARGELY ATTENDED AN-
 NUAL CONFERENCE.

HELD LARGELY ATTENDED AN.
 NUAL CONFERENCE.
 Address-Miss Child of Boston Spoke
 Mrs, FairchiId of This City Read
 Interesting Account of the Education
 Officers for the Year.
 Dwight Place church was the scene yesterday of the thirty first annual gathering of the New Haven branch of the Woman's Board of Missions. Ses- sions were held at 10 a. m. and at l:3o and 2:3O in the afternoon. Much inter- est was manifested in the meetings and this was very encouraging to the socl- ety at large, and especially to those who had charge of the arrangements for the day.
 The programme of exercises was opened by devotional service led by Mrs. Adam, vice president, of Canaan, The minutes of the last annual sesslon were read and approved. The after noon meetings were the largest attend ed of the day. From 1:30 to 2:15 o'clock conferences were held in the chapel of the church. General discussions of an informal nature of the work at large were held. At 2:30 the regular after noon session opened in the church.
 Rev. Robert A. Hume, whfo has been in the missionary work in India for sev- eral years past, spoke in part as fol- lows, on the topic "A Year of Grace in India"
 '"The year 1901 was an annus mira bills for Christian work in. India.
 q. For missionaries. It enlarged their numbers. It gave them new op- portunities, new resources, new lnt1u- ence, new courage and hope The mon- ey for famine relief which was entrust- ed to them gave them the means Of giving relief, and the joy of such ser vice gave them strength to endure the hard tasks which came to them.
 "2. It was year of grace for non Christians What Christian America did for suffering India, the fact that, without regard to caste or creed, Chris tian missionaries administered famine relief, gave the non- n-Christians greatly increased respect for missionaries and for the Lord Jesus Christ. Non-Chris- tians did so little that the most thoughtful of them even sent money to the Christian missionary whom every one could trust And millions of men and women who do not acknowledge the Christian name have come to new
 rofn fn6 this philanthropy.
 ''3. It was a year of grace for the Christians and churches. It gave them new opportunities, which, on the whole, they nobly used. There was great care in refraining from baptizing inqurers until the famine was over. But the churches have been enlarged. The first church in Ahmednagar has 1,0S9 members on it's rolls. It's Sunday school has 1,139 on it's rolls. It's Christian En- deavor society has seven branches, with 529 members. Tn the Ahmednagar dis trict, according to the government cen sus, the total population decreasad 52,- GOO from 1891 to 1901 But the Christian popula ton increased 300 per cent, from 6.333 to 20, s64. Tn the city of Ahmedna- gar. withf population of 35,000 3,572 were enumera ted in the government census as Christians, i. e., 10 per cent; and of these 2,t00, or per cent, were Indian Christians connection with the American mission.
 A. It was a year of grace for the famine children rescued from starva- ton and suffering. About 25,000 such were taken by all the missions, of whom 15000 were sheltered by Ameri- can missions: and of these over 5000 were cared for by our own Marathi mission. Such transformation this I Christian care has made and is making in those children who are largely being trained in some useful industry. The woman's board that maintains the mis- sionaries, and the teachers and the Bi- | ble women who care for these children | do the most important thing for even ! those waifs. But how much more is needed to meet the most urgent de- | mands for schools, for industrial equip | ment for the support of children
 At the conclusion of Dr, Humes ad- dress Miss Abbie B. Child, secretary, of | Boston, delivered the message from the Woman's Board stating that she was glad to receive a motto for the year ! from the address of Dr. Hume just given: Opportunity the call of God" Sir Robert Hart said a year ago there seemed nothing for China except parti- ton or marvellous extension of Chris tianity. There is a call to arms--a call from God to go forward. A lesson of loyalty in giving may be learned from woman's missionary society in Tung- cho. China which has lately sent to the Board the sum of $12 for the support of a Bible woman in Ceylon. It never oc-