Omaha daily bee., 1905-11-27
LAYNAN ON MISSION WORE
Chairman Chase Of the Forward Movement
Addresses Trinity Congregation
ILLUSTRATION OF THE GREAT EFFORT
what Has been Done Among the
sioux and Alaskan indians and
in Japan and china by
Missionaries.

Special missionary services were held at
Trinity cathedral yesterday morning with
excellent music arranged for the occasion.
In place OF the sermon Dean Beecher had
requested Clement Chase to deliver an adj
dress on the work Of the Laymen's For
ward Movement. OF which Mr.. Chase
is chairman for the Sixth department Of
the Episcopal church
Mr.. Chase defined the object Of this
movement as an endeavor to interest lay
men in missions as real and living
issue and to arouse I'm them an adequate
conception Of the privilege OF cooperating
with the missionary representatives Of the
church I'm sending a knowledge Of the
Christian faith 10 others at home ana
abroad After outlining the work already
undertaken I'm this and other departments,
referring especially to the great meeting
OF business men held last month in Chi
cago, the speaker showed that this deep
ening interest in the missionary life OF
the church is finding expression in n
steady and gratifying increase in the re-
ceipts of the Board Of Missions The total
for the last fiscal year was Sl657,43S. an
amount much larger than ever before.
The greatest gain IS found in the offerings
OF CONGREGATIONS, which have actually
doubled. II is therefore evident that the
gain in offerings represents a healthy
growth. to be mainly credited to the lately
adopted apportionment plan
what MisSionaries Accomplish.
Mr.. Chase then went into the subject
Of the missions themselves. He said:
This apnortionment plan. which has been
found to work out so smoothly does not
do not wish to give to missions under any
preteXt and who set up gu sorts OF excuses S,5
Mr. aY T5ttlohenrt, 'I Who exoaims Il do not
believe IN missions" All / want to do with
such men as he Is TO educate them with I
little travel In their own or other iardS.
Come with me. Mr.. Littlchart, up to the
Sioux reservation in South Dakota at the
time the Indians OF the Episcopal chlrch
arc holding their annual convOCation. There
Is nowhere IN the United States, at any
time OF the year, a religious gathering mat
surpasses or oven equals this in interest.
, The Indians have been gathering for days
coming on horses and In slow lumber
wagons from sixty-five to 500 miles to At
tend this uplifting. encouraging, inspiring,
noble gathering. Climb this hill with nc
and look down into a natural ampitheater.
circlcd for thycc miles with tents. over 200
tents sh"ltcring $500 Sioux Indians. Twen-
ty-hvc wears ago, II you had come across
gathering like this, you would have dis
rernod ina the center Of the camp a booth
surrounding the tall pole erected for the
horrid rites of the sun dance. Now you see
booth containing altar and a chancel,
r booth never large enough to hold the
CONGREGATIONS that make their communion
there. Where a generation since you would
have seen the squaws dancing and heard
them "hi-yl-ing" TO a discordant accom-
panimcnt OF tom-toms, now you see them
coming forward 10 present their offerings.
Offering for what? For missions, forsooth;
they themselves pot yet out of the mission
field giving Of their small earnings nearly
800 for missionary work in other fields
that many thousands of dollars from one OF
our modcra tCly wealthy congregations. 1t
is wonderful, pathetic, Illuminating .,.
And how these people do love thelr
bishop tho sanity Hare! See that tall In
dian over there? lie has brought barrel
of Missouri river water hfty miles, that
his bishop should not have to drink the
surface water of this barren district Is
that not devotion itself? Is that not an
scene an inspiration and most abundant
proof of what less than thirty-hve years of
missionary work has done to bring the
fierce. warlike. heather Sioux to this ear
nest Christian character? Shall not BISHOP
Hare and his sclf-sacrihcing clergy nave
our support and encouTaGementE
Mission work in Alaska.
Il this does not appeal to you, MIR. Little
heart, turn your eyes northward, to far,
away Alaska, over whose winter iran
Bishop Rowe is tramping tonight to carry
the consolation of religion to the inhab-
itahts of that inhospitabe region. Can you
listen to the stories OF the fortitude and
seif-sacrificc of this Christian bishop,
whose loVablc nature, combined with bull
dog grit, make him one of the most re-
markable characters i'm the ChurCh--and
fail TO acknowledge the deep sincerity of
the mission worker? There have been some
=
20 have trampcd 2,OlO miles ON one journey
afoot across Alaska; but the statement Is
literally true. when he sets out on the
Arctic traii there Is no such word as I'M.
possibility" And what are the results
Wherever his missions are established We
discover personal cleanliness, where before
there had been filth; greater regard for
personal comfort and AN improved home
life. Doors take the place of holes for
entrance to the igloos. English is picked up
by the younger people, and even in the
most isolated settlements the Eskimus
nF tn NHfstTa stf NaN Zach
day the father makes a pencil mark on a
sheet of paper; Sunday rs indicated by u
longer mark, with "A cross at the top, and
on that day some form of prayer Is OBJ
served in the rude dwelling, Formerly no
one was allowed to die indoors-for fear
of placing the house under a hOodOo, 50,
no matter what the weather or the tenn
perature, the dying one was turned out
Ihat lnhumhn superstition mas now been
last Vestiges of polygamy. Did any of
your money help in this instance, Mr.. Lit
tleheart?
Work I'm other Countries.
Mr.. Chase illustrated conditions in Japan
and China with equal definition, telling OF
what is being done by the medical mission
aries in the latter country. One hundred
thousand blind Chinese are cropping their
way through life, he said, each susceptible
Of being cured by proper treatment, on
the authority Of capable surgeons. 1t costs
$3.50 TO restore blind Chinese to sight
and usefulness The work of Christianity
in Japan, and the praise given the work
ers by the leaders of the mikado's realm
was set forth at some length Mr.. Chase
concluded
This is tho work that we, as laymen OF
the living church. are called upon to- sue
cor and support, not alone with aims, as
ia the past, but with active contributions
TO It's propaganda and literature along the
lines laid down by those enthusiastic mer
who have organized the great reyiva