The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-01-22
CHRISTMAS OFFERING OF
SOUTHERN BAPTIST WOMEN
For Twenty Years Special Gifts Have Been Made Dur
ing First Week in January For Work In China-n 1915
s27e614s Was Contributed In This Wayword Wide News
From the Mission Fields

The Golden Castle GIFTS SCnoOl, the
welI-known institution OF Southern
Presbyterianism In Nagoya, Japan. re-
Gently celebrated it's twenty fifth an
niversary, and Miss Charlotte Thomp-
son gives a most interesting account
of the event. She writes:
For months we have been getting
ready for our celebration. We thought
the best way to make our guests re-
member our school pleasantly was to
give them a luncheon, so we planned
a nice menu for one hundred guests at
thirty cents a plate. We had soup, fish
and fried potatoes. beef loaf with
baked mushrooms, spinich balls with
nuts, corn and chestnuts, fruit salad
in bright-red apples on lettuce leaves.
a pretty grape gelatin with custard
sauce and good foreign cake and the
usual final cup of coffee.
I'VE had the Mayor and his wife,
two from the educational department.
principals of the high school. middle
schools, girls high schools and of all
the primary schools in our eastern
postal district. Besides these we had
a representative from each of our city
newspapers. all the evangelists In the
city, the two ladies from our sister
mission school here in Nagoya, ladies
of my foreign cooking class, the teach
ers of our school, and q number from
our mission.
Friends Help.
"One OF our friends loaned us nice
big tent. the principal of the Methodist
boys school loaned about twenty-five
writing tablets that we used with the
ones we had: the principal OF another
boys middle school twho Ia openly
opposed to Christianity loaned chairs
and a small tent to cover the serving
tables We still lacked chairs. so we
got the Mayor to lend sixty of the city
hall chairs. You will be amused when
/ tell you that almost every foreign
family in Nagoya helped to supply us
with table cloths. Our upper class
girls did all the serving.
Mrs. McAipin and Miss Buchanan
fixed dozens of vases of beautiful cut
flowers on this long hollow-square
table and in all the rooms where the
guests were to wait. Committees of
teachers and girls decorated the chapel
with vine. something like our smilax.
and red and white flowers. There was
"a special Japanese decoration of a pine
tree reaching almost to the ceiling. and
la bunch of lovely yellow chrysanthe-
NUNS at its base. Other teachers and
girls made a beautiful arch and placed
in the center frame bearing the Chi
nese characters for Congratulations
These letters were made OF red yarn,
which was cut In tiny fractional parts.
and each pasted to stand upright.
Around these two characters was a
field Of white cotton.
After luncheon we had 'cere-
u ony.' The national anthem was sung.
tthc Imperial Rescript on Education
was read. a short sketch of the school,
awarding of silver watches to two of
the teachers, one having been with us
Jas a student for eight years and later
as a teacher for thirteen years, the
other being our old matron, who 10
sixty seven, and who has been with us
for ten years. We then had speeches
| by the Mayor, the Governors repre-
sentative, the principal OF the boys'
| high school. the representatives of the
! Pastors Association, and by Mr.. Nc
Alpin for our mission,
! Just as the people were leaving we
gave each n small package containing
the School Magazine, n set of post
cards of the school. a box OF cake,
ma de In the shape Of the schools coat
of-arms. and a gospel This Is what n
lieutenant wrote: Taking them home.
| / told your kindness to my family and
showed the Scripture-gift as the golden
! light of the "Kinjo'' WITH respect and
gratitude We are praying that many
will read and come to he saved.
] After the guests left, the school
assem- bled to plant a -year~bors
laurel tree. We had regular exercises
land buried at the base of the tree
In a tin-lined jar the schools history,
icolors. motto and autographs OF all
! here at school. We marked this little
tree with a stone bearing the dates,
i1S8a-1915. -
"At $50 people began to assemble
! for our entertainment. The girls did
well. the newspapers said. in their
music. reading. recttations and plays.
One play, which was pretty and took
we'll, was the Parable of the Ten Viz
gins AT $50 all was over and we were
delighted crowd. All the news
papers had only nice things to say
about both meetings.
| MANY friends at this time gave
gifts to supply tho lacking chairs,
rugs. tables. hatrack. etc.
THE next day we had quiet time
celebrating with the alumnae and the
school girls. We all had lunch to-
gether. and then fieldeday sports.
| These two days exercises were
closed with grateful hearts, for we felt
/ that all our work and efforts had not
been In vain"