Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-15
for Mission Nelos
Young People Consider Opportunities
at Pittsburg Convention.

10 shoulder. nearly 3.Un young people
faced the great missionary problem here
this week adding their moral strength 10
the force that late in January had gath
cred here TO consider the same vast ques-
ton. Earlier in the year It was the
men and women OF long experience who
assembled under the name of the Inter
denominational Missionary Conference.
This week 1t has been the Young Peoples
Missionary Movement that has attracted
workers from all parts OF this country
and even from Canada
1t is too early to calculate the results
of the three days Of discussion. Those
in attendance must have time to report to
the religious clements that they represent
ed The leaven must have days and
weeks in which to work. There must
come the kneading process and long
after that the baking before II Will
be possible to say how much good shall
come from this gathering of earnest
CEristions, all of them in the season OF
life when the greatest benefits may rea-
Sonably be expected.
In some ways the movement is almost
a counterpart Of that in England, known
as the student volunteer missionary move
ment, which has been working for six
teen years toward the evangeiZation OF
foreign lands and with the most won
been 2.123 volunteers enrolled. of whom
| 2S7 went to foreign fields, while as many
more are only waiting the word that will
take them to the front. 1t is only every
four years that this movement looks for
the harvest which promises now to be
more abundant in the far east than any
where else. The missionary organizations
under which these students have gone out
are the CHURCH Missionary Society. the
Wesleyan Missionary Society, the Lon
don Missionary Society, the United Free
Church of Scotland. the Baptist Mission
airy Society, the Baptist Zenana Mission,
the Irish Presbyterian Church. the Church
of Scotland and the Church of England
Zenana Missionary Society.
-
Nearly all the speakers before the con-
ference this week dwelt upon the oppor-
tunity that the east offers for effective
labor. 1t Is the one great zone where
the harvest of souls is richest. where
dollar can be made to do more work than
in any other section. and where there IL
always something tangible to show for
the outlay of money and time. 1t is the
land in which once a soul is won, the en-
thusasm runs to the point of man walk
ing forty miles to attend a missionary
meeting. not once, but often
IF churches at home are simply to look
at home conditions they will die" said
DR.. III. G. Underwood of the presbyterian
board of missions. They must look to
spirit that wins men to Christ has swept
the land in spite of drawbacks. not by
the work of the missionary, but by the
laity themselves in great conferences and
in the prayer meetings and gospel gather
ings So, and only so, 10000 persons
have been led to see the right path or
| life"
1t was we'll agreed at the conference
/ int ~, he n he
semination of religion in the east. Ja-
pan influences China. Korea and the sur
rounding territory, while India stands TOR
| the south Of Asia. In this territory Is one
half the population of the world and more
| than threeifourths of the non-Christian
world. The. United States, England and
Japan control the destiny Of the entire
| area. 1t would naturally be supposed that
England would take care of India, but
the fact is that the United States Is better
known there than the United Kingdom.
Abraham Lincoln is to many of the
inhabitants of the most oarkened portions
Of India, man of flesh and blood. But
there is always that mortal torpor that
pervades the east; the great lethargy and
deadly Indifference to conquer before the
missionary makes an impression on the
spiritual side of the person.
The work goes on as huge mill grinds.
cere workers who have given their best
to the service. This young peoples move
ment is to be the source. New methods
must be found. The young peoples move
ment suggests them. The master minds
of many denominations have been turned
into channels that will run with new
force 1t has all become something vital,
something teeming with life, something
that will hurl itself as a bomb into the
conflict.
The field is so vast that figures make
but little impression. The most recent
statistics show that there are over 1900
missionaries working with the support of
the United States, the United Kingdom
and Continental Europe, that over $1,000
natives are assisting In the work and
that about $500 stations are maintained.
They are but sand speck in the great
desert of heathendom. These men and
women have labored. They have added
about 13S, 900 converts in the past year,
making a total enrolment now of approx
imately 100000 and annually over $4,000
900 is spent for the maintenance of the
work. In one way the figures are large.
in another they are pitifully small. 1t is
the young peoples movement linked with
the laymen's organization that will be
looked to for the wonderful increase that
it is hoped will follow in another year as
the forces become better prepared for the
battle.
1t was only thirty years ago that there
were but twenty-nine missionary socie-
ties, while now there are eighty-two There
are fifteen times as many pupils in the
missionary schools as there were thirty
years ago. There are vastly more medical
stations and hospitals. and 1t is through
the work of the teacher and the doctor
quite much the preacher that the
native must be reached. In China alone
there are 407 hospitals maintained by mis-.
sion funds In which 1000, 900 patients ara
treated annually. In them the seed is
sown as 1t Is in the child who goes daily
to a school that the mind starts in the
right direction. The natives themselves
are contributing to their own working
fund. They alone add about $500 600 year
ly to the support of the workers who
have come among them to spread the COS.
pei.
The work and the workers are ready.
1t is the income that is needed. Every
speaker this week dwelt upon that fea-
ture. 1t costs money TO organize the
forces and nearly as much to maintain
them. There are thirty seven organiZa-
tions in this country that are doing what
they can. They have supplied over 5000
workers, of whom about three-fifths are
women They are distributed among H.
4S5 stations through the aid of some %.
600 natives and minister to over 6O0.m0
communicates. The work costs slightly in
excess of $10,OOO,00O annually, Of which
the natives supply a 1.-THE.
Missionary Society ~ Eng