The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1907-11-01
1 found his church full of attentive

hearers, many soldiers being among
the number. DR.. Lowrie's mother,
who came to China more than SO
years ago, is still working at Pao-
Ting-fu. Here is a fine girls school,
conducted by Miss Grace Newton, and
two hospitals. 1t was spectacle to
watch DR.. Charles Lewis put through
crowd of dispensary patients at the
rate of more than one a minute, in
Guiding minor operations.
From PaoTing-fu and Tung Chow
itinerating is done out into the sur
rounding country, as also from PEEK.
ing. Reverting to the capital itself, a
word should be spoken concerning the
weekly union service for English
speaking persons in the Congregation
al church, which are quite well at.
tended. These are conducted by vari-
GUS missionaries, and managed, l be-
lieve, by Rev. DR.. w. 8. Ament, the
dominant personality of the American
Board Mission here. There is a
weekly church of England service in
the British legation chapel. There are
also German and French churches
The army and navy department of
the international Young Mems Chris
tian association maintains an associa-
ton for the legation guards, but the
general impression seems to be that
it rather misses the mark visited
it three times when the American
marines were off duty, but I never
saw soldier about the building.
A Much Criticised compound.
All the mission compounds in Pek.
ing are imposing, but most impressive
is that of the Northern Methodist
Episcopal Mission, concededly the
finest in China. In addition to the
large buildings of the boys school
or Picking University" as 1t is
called-and of the girls school, there
are the residences of the missionaries
and the large church. The entire
grounds are said to be larger than
any of the extensive legation grounds,
on which are housed not only minis
ters and attaches, but a detachment of
legation guards as WELL Their i'm.
pressiveness is heightened by the
park-like arrangement of the attrac
tive gray-stone homes of the mission
aries.
This is the most criticised mission
compound in China. l have heard
legationers business men, travelling
and other missionaries speak Of 1t in
terms other than praise. Most of
these critics, it is fair to add, do not
know that all except two of the mis-,
sionary families living in these attrac-
tive homes have incomes independent
of their salaries.
The compound was enlarged immS.
diately after the Boxer outbreak,
when the Chinese were in a state of
terror and poverty. The ground was
bought at what one of the Methodist
missionaries characterized as good
Chinese prices" the charge fire.
quently made that the property was
looted" is unfounded. Nevertheless,
the opinion seems to prevail among
many Chinese and foreigners that an
unwise advantage was taken of pc
culiar conditions and that the Method
list church will one day rue it's great
bargain" for the Chinese never for,
get. The buildings were erected with
indemnity money.
A Methodist Scandal.
In connection with the securing OF
the land for this compound occurs the
name of the man whose personal
initiative put through the transaction,
the senior member of the Methodist
Mission. Concerning him I have heard
repeatedly the charge that he has
served as the representative OF
corporations seeking mining and rail.
road concessions at Peking, using his
influence as an eminent and honored
missionary to secure privilege from
the government for the companies EN-.
ploying him.
Sizing Up the Denominations.
Reverting to the splendid equipment
of the Methodist mission at Picking,
it has been noteworthy that every
where l have gone I have found the
Methodist stations possessing the best
plants. Their work and their workers
are better cared for than those of any
other mission, so far as I have OBJ
served Other missionaries have re-
peatedly spoken in admiration and
praise of this; personally, think that
one great personality stationed in a
city or village is better than a fine
institution, but most missionaries
seem to think otherwise. 1t has also
been pointed out to me that, while the
Methodists have by no means fur
nished the proportion of great men
to China that have come from the
ranks of the Congregationalists, the
Presbyterians and the British socie-
ties, they have yet maintained high
average of general fitness and eff
cheney. AS one Presbyterian mission
airy said to me: Have you noticed
that you almost never see a Method
list missionary of whom you would
say, because of incompetence: He
should go homer I do not recall one
such in all China" Nor do l.