The Oakes times. [volume] (Oakes, N.D.) 1906-current, 1907-02-21
Letter from West Africa.

Letter from West Africa.
Rev. John Wright writes his brother
letter from the mission field in West
Africa. Believing that the work there
would be interesting to some of our
readers, we print the following ex-
tracts:
"We received our appointment from
the West African Mission and were as
signed on last Friday to Angom, in the
Congo Francois. Our address will be
Libreville, Gaboon, West Africa, care
of American Presbyterian Missions.
was elected assistant secretary of the
mission, which means the secretaryship
next year. We will be with DR..
Silas F. johnson, one of the strongest
missionaries of this field. He is from
Southern California -Pasadena-and he
says that he sees very little difference
between this climate and that of
California. My wife has gained ten
pounds since coming here and I have
gained about seven pounds myself. OF
course people cannot afford to be reck-
less and profligate with their strength
here, but see no reason why l should
not have better health here than in the
United States. My wife and l are in
the best of health.
1.-THE people here are both keen and
stupid-keen of sight and hearing and
quick at imitation, but rather stupid in
business or aggressive enterprise.
They are not at all like the American
negro, or like those we saw on the
coast of Liberia, but far nobler type
of black man: tribe which gains your
respect, your sympathy and love the
more you see their quickness and
eagerness to learn. With two genera
tions Of Christian training some OF
these people have remarkable executive
ability and getting we'll on their feet
where they have the advantages.
Today I examined class of seven
as to their fitness for the ministry.
asked hard questions and received ap-
propriate answers. The test was as
hard as I could make it, but they came
up to it with tremendous earnestness,
and I am told they usually keep faith.
They were taught in native Bulu and !
talked to them through an interpreter.
Both mission conference and meeting
of presbytery will be over this week
so we will start on our journey to the
coast again next week, taking about
two weeks for the land trip. hunting
and visiting another station enroute.
THE country itself is the most
beautiful I ever set eyes on. We have
all the fruit we can. use and a great
many varieties l never saw before, such
as mangoes, papaws, and we under
stand that in our garden at Angom we
have pineapples, oranges, bananas.
plantains, bread fruit, cocoanuts. and
all kinds of tropical fruits in
abundance.
81 could tell you much of our trip
from Liverpool to Batanga on the
English steamer, but it is mostly a
repetition Of running up the river to
the cities, unloading and taking on
cargo and coming back when the tide
is high. I could tell you much of the
mouth of the River Niger, and ou,
visit to the Scotch Presbyterian mission
at Old Calabar. We saw, too, the
effect of the greed and lust of the
white traders along many parts of the
coast, and ruin is doing its awful work
of degradation and shame. With the
native fetischism we can deal quite
readily, and we love to get the black
man fresh from the forests. ..
Yesterday preached, in English Of
course, to all those who understood ane
then conducted the communion service.
It was a fine day for all of us,
especially for me, for it was the first
communion ever conducted, only
did not tell them so. We feel more
than ever that Gods providence has
brought us to this work and that it will
need our highest powers to meet the
situation. Here one can use all hi
knows and wish he had thousand &C
complishments. There have been ant
at present there are some of the ables
men of our church on this field, ant
the work calls for strong men. I have
heard all the work thoroughly discussed
and have taken the minutes of the mis-
sion conference, SO. that l have a fail
knowledge Of the whole field, and whel
we shall arrive at Angom we shall hav'
visited all the stations and witnessed
all the work Of the mission which il
extended over a territory about tn,
size of Ireland and fully as densel.
populated, ~