The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1913-12-11
THE MISSIONARY
CONFERENCE
BIG MEETING OPENS WITH EN-.
a.. JoYA6LE BANQUET.
ABLE SPEAKERS ARE PRESENT
Great Work Being Undertaken by
Laymen of the Various Churches
Former independence Horse
man Enthusiastic Worker.

Tuesday evening at the Central M.
E. church, the United Missionary
conference began their sessions with
a fine banquet at $50 o'clock in the
social rooms of the church. Irving
c. Johnson presided during the ev-
ening, and DR.. l. o. Kemble was re-
quested to ask the blessing of God
upon the work that was in hand. At
the close of the feast of good things,
the old song "Blest be the Tie that
Binds Our Hearts in Christian Love"
was sung with a will by the company
present. Arrangements were made
for one hundred and the places were
nearly all taken. g..
The banquet was served by the
Ladies' Aid Society of the Central M.
e. church and their friends and the
whole event was most pleasing. The
local executive committee comprises
DR.. |. o. Kemble, chairman, Harry
V. Henness, of the Y. NJ. G. A., secre-
taryttreasurer, S. r. Cnssy, H. o.
Hedge and Mrs. S. j. Dutton. After
the banquet the company adjourned
to the audience room, where the pro-
gram of the evenig was given.
The service opened with the sing
ing in charge of Rev. Wilbur l..
Clapp, and prayer was then offered
by Rev. Thomas Horton, the new rec
tor of the Episcopal church. Irving
C. Johnson introduced the speakers
in his usual pleasing manner and the
program moved without break. The
pastors of the various city churches
occupied seats on the platform dur
ing the opening exercises and above
them hung a series of special charts
that outlined the various phases of
Missionary work.
Mr.. clapp's Address.
The first speaker was Mr.. Wilbur
L. Clapp, of Waterloo, Iowa, one OF
the Secretaries of the Laymen's Mis-
sionary Movement in this District.
Mr.. Clapp's subject was the "Chal-
lenge of the United Missionary Cam
paign and the Church" He said, in
part, that the greatest thing in the
world Is the world itself, and that the
greatest business in the world, from
the standpoint of investment in it of
talent and everything else, from the
standpoint of numbers engaged in 1t,
and from the standpoint of results
produced by it, is the proclamation
of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Mr.. Clapp said that great things
are always challenging things, and
that always, sooner or later, men
have responded to the challenge Of
great things. Space, which chal-
lenged the universe for ages, has
been con Iuered by the locomotive,
the automobile and the aeroplane;
force which tumbled over precipices
and wrought havoc, p the lightning,
has been harnessed for the turning
of machinery and the accomplishment
of many of the ordinary tasks of
men; great mountains of snow, con-
fined and distributed in the laterals
of the newly irrigated districts of our
land, have transformed arid wastes
into gardens that have blossomed like
the rose and paid more than thous-
and per cent upon the investment.
Mr.. Clapp stated that the United Mis-
sionary Campaign challenged the
church:
Q) To the presentation of a larger
vision of the worlds great need and
unparalleled opportunity;
(2) To the realization of the tri-
|umphs of Christianity and the diVi-
Idend paying values of the church'S
real program of work.
He quoted from the United States
statistics to show that the exporta-
lions from the United States to the
Hawaiin Islands last year exceeded
in their value the sum total of the
cost of missionary work in those
Islands from the beginning until
now, and said further, that promin-
ent exporter declares that, but for
the missionary work done there,
there would be little or no demand
for exported articles from the United
States.
Mr.. Clapp further said that he be
Ilieved the United Missionary Cam
paign challenged the church to the
appreciation of the fact that in the
great missionary organizations of the
world, the church has the most eff
Ificent and most economically man
aged, as we'll as the largest compare
tive statistics to prove his points from
missionary organizations, insurance
companies, great business concerns
and state and municipal governments.
He said further that this campaign
challenged the church to the adoption
! of more systematic methods for the
making possible Of the carrying out
of the Great Campaign in a manner
rbefitting the church for which Jesus
gave Himself, and stated that, while
{ ii was easily conceded that the
church should be the best managed
institution in the world, 1t was often
times the poorest in the communities
in which it is located.
Rev. w. r. johnson Speaks.
Rev. W. r. johnson is a returned
missionary from China and he spoke
on The Call of China" Among 9th
err things he stated that more thar
one-fourth of the human race wa!
Iembraced in the old empire of China