The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-05-28
MISSIONS IN CHINA
INTERESTING DISCOURSE AT FIRST
 PREsBYTERIAN CHURCH.
Rev. J. l.. Stewart Missionary To That Country Tells of Work for Christianity in
 Orient.


 "China" and the Christian mission work that he has beenable to accomplish. in it's vast missionary field was the subject of a sermon delivered by Rev. J. l.. Stewart. missionary to Hang Chow, China, at the First Presbyterian church yesterday morning at Il o'clock.
 Draped in the somber hues of deep est mourning. pulpit and altar. galler- ies. columns and door ways, symboliz- ing the pail of gloom recently settled upon the hearts of the devoted mem- bers. the church home of the First Presbyterian congregation received its worshipers yesterday morning.
 Many of those who were wont to gather within it's sacred precincts SDn- day after Sunday found 1t hard to en- ter the portals yesterday. Many whose pews were filled punctuafy at every service, found 1t hard to face that pull pit, realizing that the face of the be- loved pastor would greet thbm there no more; that the beautiful. earnest words of hope, courage and inspiration that had been spoken day after day by the eloquent lips of the late Dr. G. w. Patterson would fall as a benediction upon their listening ears no more.
 The venerable man of God, standing before that bowed congregation of men and women, no doubt realized the bur- den on their hearts and he spoke gent ly, sweetly, not once raising his voice above a quiet conversational tone, yet withal so distinctly as to be heard in the remotest part of the auditorium.
 MT. Stewart read as the Scripture lesson a part of Acts 17th chapter be- ginning with the sixteenth verse and tok as his texts Avts xiv-27:
 "The duties of a missionary while on 8 visit in his home land" he said. should be to do as Paul and Barnabas did when they returned to their home after their first missionary journey. to tell not what they had done. but what God had done. using them as instru- ments in His hands,"
 He said he believed that when a mis- sionary returns to his home land he should gather the churches together and tell them of the work for as much is due to the congregation sending them as to the man himself; the mis- sionary could no more go without their aid than they could send the Gospel there without some one to take 1t.
 He said that he felt 1t privilege to come and tell of the things that has been done in China.
 After visit to his homeland in 1897. Mir. and Mrs. Stewart returned to take up their work at Hang Chow, but they found that the plan of the work had been changed and their work took them out into the country district about thir- ty miles from Hang Chow and among the farmers and a prosperous class of people. He said that there are few roads in Southern China, navigation be- ing almost entirely by canals. of which there is a perfect net work through out the country. When he went to his new charge they found that of the eighty church members only fifteen were women. The men hear the Cos pei, have opportunity to learn to read and go about from place to place, while they have duties that keep them from coming in contact with churches or anything pertaining to knowledge of things.
 They found the women very curious about Mrs. Stewart and she at once set about to win them and with methods of her own, with patience and perse- verance she succeeded. Now there are as many women as men in their churches.
 When they first went there were but three churches and now there are five. He told some beautiful incidents of how they came into possession of some of their church homes, and he told of the faithfulness of some of the native Christians
 He talked of the schools of that coun- try and of the difficulties of travel through the land on account of the many and varied dialects of the people of different sections of the country. Mir. Stewart spoke of the fearful up- rising in 1900 and of the edict that went forth on June IT of that year from the Empress Dowager commanding that all foreigners be killed and all places of business and homes of foreigners be burned. He told of how. the ministers from the south of China decided to spare the foreigners of the south, and how in the decree they made the word ''kiil" to read protect" and the word burn" to read preserve.
 This they did not do from loyalty to religion, but through patriotism for their country. They reasoned that IT these dreadful things were done that the foreign powers would send ar- mics and battleships and destroy the country. So, for the good of their country, they did that thing for which they were afterwards most cruelty put to death. They died, he said not mar tyrs but patriots. He said that love of country is strong in the men of China.
 During that dreadful time, he said, there were 1855 missionaries, including children, destroyed. The people of Southern China brought the body of the two dead ministers from Peiin and buried them at Hong Chow, the cere- dor.
 He alluded to the growth of the five churches that he, as pastor, served and of the really excellent work of the na- tive eIders-and of the fidelity and faithfulness of the native churchmen.
 When he left China he said that he left his work with his son, who woould have as his helpsrI. on native preach CT, and eight native elders in the five churches.
 Hs sad Nat what he had told of hts own work was but to give an idea of what is going on all over China to- day; that when he first went to that great country there were only 4.5O0 Christians there are now 131.000, and the people are casting about in de- sire to better their conditions, com mercialIy and educationally.
 But" he ad'lsd in 'lost'tg, what Is most interesting to us Is the reli- gious life of thoss 4J),G00,000 people a world in themselves"
 Burial of SOmmerkamp.
 Vrz