The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1908-07-10
MORMONISM
IN LONDON
FINE NEW TEMPLE OF LATTER
BAY SAINTS TO BE DEDICATED
TODAY.

LONDON. June 27-Mormonism ia
gaining ground rapidly in England .
and nothing will bring home the fact
of that growth so sharply to the Eng
fish people as the dedication tomorrow
of the elaborate new headquarters
which have been acquired by the Nor
mon missionaries for the London dis
trict The Mormon mission to London
has outgrown the old headquarters in
a cOmmodious house known as "Des-
eret" in Farlegh road, Stoke New
ington, and the mission has now ac-
quired a building which is eminently
adapted to their work. 1t was built
twenty years ago at cost of 100000
and was designed for a hotel, saloon
and music hall, but the magistrates
refused to grant it a license and it has
been lying vacant ever since, a white
elephant on the owners hands The
thrifty Mormons have acquired it for
about half what it cost to build and
are hard at work renoyating it and fit
ting it up for their purposes.
The chief feature, of course, is the
amusement hall, which will seat 1000
people comfortably. platform has
been erected at one end and an organ
will soon be installed At present the
music is furnished by two harmonious.
There are a number Of smaller rooms
on the ground floor which can be used
for small meetings and committees,
and up stairs there are about twenty
rooms, in which the Mormon mission
aries and workers will live.
The new headquarters is known as
the old Markfield Hotel and is situated
on the High Road, Tottenham, an ideal
center for the prosecuting work of the
Mormons, for it is in the center of a
district occupied almost exclusively by
humble folk, who in England are apt
to run after a new religion and the
chief excitement in whose dull lives Is
afforded by the various activities con-
nected with the churches.
Great preparations are being made
for the dedication. Apostle Charles w.
Penrose, the chief of the European
Mission is coming from Liverpool to
conduct it, and there will be a great
gathering of elders and deacons from
all over Europe.
The work IN London is in charge Of
Elder Soren Peterson, president of the
London district, and he is assisted by
forty-two workers all of whom are
Americans but one. All are elders OIL
deacons and most of them are young
Americans who throw their whole en-
ergy into the work, which is dom
chiefly by house to house canvassing
I, Every morning the missionaries go on
, to a selected district, calling faithful!
at every house and distributing 250
r. tracts every day. If they find mem
Der of one of the old churches within,
to listen they at once invite the pros
> pective convert to call in the ministe
: of the church to which he belongs an,
= have it out at once. Usually the min
. lister refuses Indignantly to meet tn
. Mormon missionary and there the Nor
. mon scores a point
Most of the converts are gained froI
. the church of England and most c
. them from the small shOpkeeping an
: superior working class. The uppe
classes are seldom reached, althoug
o the Mormon missionaries here are yer
, proud of their star" convert, ColoDt
R. M. Bryce Thomas, late of the Eng
a fish army, whose pamphlet MY Rea
D sons for Leaving the Church of Enc
land and Joining the Church of Jesu
y Christ of the Latter-Day Saints" is on
= of their fayorite and most effectiv
z tracts.
9 1t is hard to estimate the real il
b iiuence which the Mormons have oil
70 tanned here. There are at least doi
z en- regular meetings being conducte
in London and there are 1000 regularl
g enrolled members of the church, bu
3 the attendance at the meetings
nearly five times that number. Their
2 are about 10000 regularly enrolle
9 members of the church in England
but that number by no means repr,
A sents the number Of conversions, ia
Z the missionaries estimate that In IN
last ten years at least 10000 convert
4 hav0 mona From, IFnolund ia Tftah