The Washington herald., 1908-04-24

recognize him as a potent factor IN the
development of the Orient The late
= Charles DENLY. long the American min
lister at Pekin. declared that every dol
lar spent by American church people in
support Of Oriental missions was worth
SO in actual returns to the commerce of
the United States. While the missionary
is not a drummer" and while extension
Of trade is the last thing he thinks of.
the history OF the Orient shows that trade
always follows the cross.
The direct relation between the ad-
vance work of the missionaries and the
concrete commercial profit which follows
is not always easy to trace. In some in
stances, however, the benefit is direct
The government Of Japan. in furtherance
of its South ManehurIan Railway scheme.
went into the English money market and
borrowed $5O,000,O00. When the British
found out that this money, borrowed in
London, had been spent in the United
States for railroad supplies. they kicked
Up pretty row in the House of Com
mons But there was nothing to be done
about it. SO the question was dropped.
The reason why the japanese govern
ment spent English money IN the United
States was due solely to the fact that the
japanese engineers in charge Of the work
had been educated in the United States
at the expense of the American mission
aries, and had there imbibed Yankee no
tiOns which made it impossible for them
70 build a cailroad along any other than
American lines. Therefore, al one fell
sWoOp American commerce reaped a d.
rect return of S50,o0O,000 from missionary
effort
The missionary OutpOsts are the skir-
mish lines OF the advancing army Of ciVin-
cation. That their mere presence means
opening new territory to foreign influ-
ence, and hence q new market for for
eign goods no one can deny 1t is in
teresting TO study the methods by which
these results are accomplished. For in
stance, one missionary came to Japan
twenty-five years ago and went TO live
in remote town in the interior. This
man and hts family could not buy the
simplest articles for household use. as no
European had ever lived in that section
The people came in 10 see the foreign
house and its furniture Just as they
might crowd into a museum. They eX-
amined the queer foreign clothes with
their curious buttons. They were filled
with admiration when they gazed upon
the metal wash basin IN which the for
eign barbarians washed their faces and
hands. The first knowledge that came
10 the missionary that he was a drum
mer in disguise was when a delegation
os prominent citizens waited upon MIN
and requested him to send to one Of the
open ports and buy them some metal
wash basins
Then followed the demand for under
clothing with buttons-which is one fea-
ture of Occidental dress quite generally
adopted now, even in rural Japan. The
handiness of a pocket knife finally struck
the japanese, 50 that the missionary i'm
ported a supply Of them. Within two
years there was such a demand for for
eign goods that he persuaded a japanese
merchant foreign store. 4
stock vas At one OF the ports
anG che s., ned. From that lit
tle beginitus -r. p one Of the great
trading comp ptse Of inland Japan. han
ding many thousand dollars worth
goods annually. Not all Of this trade
now goes abroad, for the company has
two factories, one Of which makes metal
wash basins and such utensils and the
other spins and knits cotton underwear.
The conservatism of the Chinese is
proverbial. but even they sometimes take
kindly to an innovation. missionary
family in the interior managed 10 keep
provided with a stock of condensed milk,
brought in large quantities once or twice
a year from the distant open port. AL
though the use OF milk was unknown 10
10
tales OF its wonderful qualities. From
time 10 time the missionary gave away
some OF the cans 10 his Chinese neigh
boTs. The result was that a local mer-
chant put in a stock Of condensed milk,
the first time in the history Of the place
that any foreign goods had been offered
for sale. The business was good from
the start and in the course of time a
big trading concern sent a man up 10
investigate the strange orders for con-
densed milk which came from a town
hitherto unknown on commercial maps. /
The result was the establishment of a
regular business in many lines Of for
eign wares, Notwithstanding the almost |
insuperable difficulties of distance and |
transportation.
In Japan the missionary has been a |
successful furniture drummer without I
IT,
a chair appeals to the japanese mind, al /
though the sitting posture tires him 4
dreadfuIly But il is a fact that into /
whatever towns the missionaries went. /
the demand for chairs and tables was !
created. Il has now reached the stage /
chat wherever there Is q Christian com /
munity-that Is, where the missionaries /
have been at wOrk-almost every family /
not actually poverty stricken, has at /
least one foreign room in the house.
This room always has a CARPET. a few
chairs. table, and sometimes even a
bed. The presence Of these things. means
that the missionary created a demand bv
bringing the existence OF common West
ern conveniences To the minds Of the
Japanese. At first these articles were all
imported, but now most OF them are
made IN this country, but with imported
machinery.
The missionary in Japan has not only
carried the Tight" TO the japanese in a
spiritual sense but in the actual physical
form OF a kerosene lamp. The ancient
lamp of Japan. a vessel filed with vege-
table oil in which f1oated a rude wick,
was fit only to show how dark it was.
TO read by It was 10 invite blindness.
Inc missionaries, the first foreigners to
set 10 the interior carried kerosene and
lamps with them. The practical advan-
tase oI this strong, clear light was in
stahtiy recognized by the people, and
they asked how they could have Ian9ns
too. AS a result, the Kerosene lamn Is
almost as universal in rural Japan as II
IS IN rural America. while in the cities
Il is everywhere. The Standard OH COM
pany has tremendous business in .JsDan