The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-03-05

Mecca, which is attended by about half a million Mohammedans from all parts of the Orient. At that time Mecca becomes a great camp meeting or bush meeting such as we farmers have in Virginia. The people come together and gossip They discuss the crops and ask one an sther how they are getting along. Hassan Ali of Egypt says to Mohammed of Turkey, How is business? Are you mak- ing money, and how does your govern ment treat you?" Mohammed replies that the Turks are taxed to death, but they hope for much under the new sultan Thereupon Hassan says that the English have cut down the taxes and that the church has plenty Of money in it's treas ury. He tells how he has been able to send his boy to college, and that he hopes he will some day be an official. The Turk thereupon longs for a better government At the same time the college students ten what they have learned, and as & result the twentieth century spirit of modern progress is stirring the Mohammedan world.
 The Work of the Missions
 In addition to the collegiate work great advances in our civilization. are being made by the Protestant missions. There
  in Syria, and from 75,OOO to 100000 native Christians in the empire of Turkey. The American missionaries alone have over 100 schools, with 5000 or 6000 pupils, and the English have many more.
 Right here in Beirut is the largest and most up-to-date publishing plant in the Orient. It belongs to the American mis- sion, and 1t annually turns out tens of thousands of volumes of the Bible, of school text books and of others on re- ligious and scientific subjects. Alto gether 1t has published more than 700 different works in Arabic, and it is esti- mated that 1t has printed approximately 1,00, 900 pages of one kind or other. It issues in the neighborhood of 100000 vol umes a year. containing altogether some thing like 30,000.00O pages It's Bibles pub lshed in Arabic are sold throughout the Mohammedan world.
 Tuberculosis in Syria
 The medical missionaries are doing a great deal in all parts of the Orient l have seen their hospitals everywhere on this trip around the world. They are to be found In all parts of India, far up the Nile valley and fin the leading centers of the Holy Land One of the best have visited is situated at Tiberias. on the Sea of Galiee being headed by Dr. Tor renee. who has been treating the Be- douins and others there for the past 30 years. In talking with him the question of tuberculosis came up. and he described the evils of the great white plague as they are found in hls region on the very edge of the desert. He says tuberculosis is rife among the Bedouins, although they live out of doors and are in tre purest of air all the time He thinks that the disease is largely distributed by the cat tie. About 50 per cent of the cows have tuberculosis, and the people live chiefly on milk.
 Another doctor connecteu with that hospital tells me that Syria. had no con sumption until about twenty-five years ago. when the disease was brought in from the United States by natives who had emigrated to our country. contract ed consumption and brought 1t back home. The Syriann had no idea what il meant, and it rapidly spread. The sani- tary conditions of this part of the world