Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1916-03-08
OUR MISSIONARIES.
Rev. and Mrs. John Lake Are
Again in Active Service in
China. Write of Con.
ditions.
Dear Advertiser:

Dear Advertiser:
Thank you so much for resuming
your always welcome visits to US in
our home in Canton, as well as for
following MS so faithfully while we
went, ,at duty's call, from State to
State in the homeland.
Did we get back to China last
fall just in time 20 see the Republic
go down, and to see the monarchy
again set up? Well, it looks so;
and vet, who can tell? And if the
monarchy is set up again, who can
tell how long before things will
change again? Politics in the home
land, who can fathom? Then how
about politics in China? And yet,
Republic or monarchy, changes have
come, and they have come to stay,
and many of them are changes for
the better. Of this there can be no
doubt. China will never again be
the China of even ten years ago.
She is in many ways moving to the
front; and-and that makes me will
ing to live and die in China-she is
opening her heart to the Gospel as
she had not done ten years ago, to
say nothing of a hundred years ago.
Temporary back sets? Yes. But
we have them after every revival in
a church in the homeland. And
who would stop for them?
But for the boards earnest desire
that these two wayfarers should re-
main as long as we did last year
and help in the great Judson Cen
tennial movement for foreign mis-
sions, we should have been here a
year sooner; and yet it was no doubt
all for the best. for when we got
here the China Christians were re-
joicing over the new church and
school buildings that the Jadson
fund.- provide, has already pro.
vsdgS Srne instances, and othey
notanders,and that We were work
ing for them while in the homeland
Just as much as if we had been here,
especially as we had the opportu-
nifty of speaking to Chinese in their
own tongue, singly or in groups, or
in large congregations. in half the
States Of the union. A man who
speaks the Cantonese dialects, espe-
cially if he knows the sub-dialects
spoken in all the big cities where
there are Chinese, aud especially if
his field in China includes Canton
city and the Szyap country from
which nearly all of the 10000 Chi
nese in America have gone, is never
without work to do.
And now we are back where we
are the foreigners and not they, and
where every hour of the day there
are opportunities for service.
Of the five Baptist churches in
this great city, city with popu-
lation probably greater than the
whole State of South Carolina, / am
now trying to look after two of
them, besides the work in the Szyap
field southwest of Canton, and at
Tsung Fa, northeast of Canton.
Wife has two girls schools in this
city to look after now, and a num-
Der of other schools in other parts
of our field. For more than a
month, except for few days spent
in our annual mission meeting in
Canton, we have been going from
one of our churches or outstations
to another, visiting and comforting
with the Chinese pastors, unor-
dained preachers, Bible women, col
porters and teachers in the boys
and in the girls schools, as we'll as
with the rank and lile of the mem
bers, and as we'll as holding meet
ings for the heather. Busy, siren
uous, happy months since we got
back.
The thought that so many in the
old home Town and county and
State are remembering us helps to
make the burden even lighter-the
thought that there IS One, in whose
name we came, and who is with us
always, even unto the end, makes
US forget the burden.
You have heard us tell about the
man who threw away the counterfeit,
coin, because he was now Chris
tian. / saw his face beam while
as preaching at Tsung Fa city the
other day--and, oh! how it beamed
the next day, when his son, now
student-leacher ir our boys acad
envy, preached! The woman who