Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1908-08-13
CHINA and JAPAN
BUY MANY BIBLES
The Good Book Now Has
Been Translated Complete
Into 105 Tongues.

London Specials: In a single year
more than 100000 Bibles have been
distributed throughout China and 140,-
900 in Japan. according to the advance
summary Of the British and Foreign
Bible society's 10th annual report.
while in England and Wales. where
the years demand has fallen off, only
1.105.O 900 have been sold.
Three additions have been added to
the society's long list. In South Amer
lea, where Lengua Is spoken by the
Indians of the Paraguayan Chaco,
version of ST. Marks gospel has been
printed in this tongue; in the heart Of
Africa, St. Matthew'S gospel has been
printed for Uganda tribe speaking
language called Lu-Nyankole; in India
two gospels are being published in Hin
du-Sindhi. In six other languages YER
sions are almost ready. The publica-
ton Of the canonical books of the Bible
has been completed in two additional
.languages-in Giryama. for British
East Africa, and in Nguna-Etate, a
combination of the dialects of two ISL
ands in the New Hebrides. With these
the number of complete Bibles is now
105.
The New Testament has been com
pleted In Baffin's Land Eskimo, and In
the Mombasa form of Swahili; these
raise the number of New Testaments
to SO. While ooS other languages, in
which only some part of the Testament
has been issued. make up the total to
412 different languages lin which the
British and Foreign Bible society has
promoted the translation. printing or
distribution of at least some part of
Gods book.
Where improvement ls Going On.
Important progress has also been
made in revising versions whose quail
ity requires improvement. Here we
can mention only the two dominant lam
guages of the far east. In Japan. a
representative body of Japanese schol-
airs and foreign missionaries has re-
Gently agreed upon a joint plan for re-
vising the Japanese Bible. In China
| the missionary conference at Shanghai
| in 1890 arranged for union" versions of
| the Chinese Bible in High Wenli and
| in Mandarin. The task has been sue
cessfully fulfilled in all three cases, SO
far as concerns the New Testament
The rapid influx into North America
of immigrants from Europe has in
creased the demand for diglot Tesla
ments, in which English is printed side
by side with one or other ola dozen con-
| tinental versions. A new edition of the
English Bible in Braille (raised) type
for the blind is In preparation. Thus
in divers portions and in divers man
ners, in the hands of the English and
among the far away folk of foreign
speech under alien stars Gods book
carries it's own eternal message to the
human heart
Still Not Up to the Record.
The years issues amount altogether
to 5,6SS,3Sl volumes, total of 272. O0
copies above the output in the previou.
year, though still 2S9,0O0 below the rec
ord total announced two years ago.
The issues from the Bible house il
London for the past year were l,S3S,
2S1 copies, an increase of $4,000 over TIN
previous year. The growth here, how
ever, has been in foreign versions sen
out from London. The issues In Eng
lish and Welsh amounted to 1,105.00
copies. Il falling off of 10000 from III
previous year, which again was 114,0O
below the year before. OF the society
issues a smaller proportion are Englis
and Welsh scriptures than was tn
, case 10 years ago; then it was over
per cent, now it is under 20 per cen
of the total. For this, however, ther
may be two-fold explanation. On on
hand people today who can affor
them prefer more expensive editions
often with notes or helps. which the
procure elsewhere than from the Bib
house. On the other hand, some es
tremely cheap English editions hay
4 been put on the market by other put
6 fishers