Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1916-03-29
JOHN LAKE WRITES
Edgefield's Missionary in China a
Writes Interesting Letter
to DR.. E. Pendleton
Jones.

My Dear PASTOR. Your letter,
sent to Seattle, and forwarded to
me in Canton was finally received
and appreciated, though + was sorry
not to have received it while in
Seattle, where I greatly enjoyed a
renewal of fellowship with that dear
brother of yours. He and his great
church showed infinite kindness and
thoughtfulness to my wife and me,
letting US hide out and rest before
calling on us for mission talks.
After that strenuous years work
for the Judson Centennial, my
throat and nerves were about worn
out, but when we sailed for our field
of labor again we felt well and
strong and SO we are to-day. after
nusy, busy fall or winter, thus far,
during which time we have spent
much time itinerating. This being
Chinese new year time, We have a
brief respite from that, and wife
aud are catching up with long
neglected correspondence, and DUR
ing the past week, l have written
several long promised letters to the
home papers. / have also begun
translating into Chinese your broth
er's sermon before the convention at
Los Angeles.
As dear old Edgefeld has so re-
Gently passed through the ordeal of
a church fire.. you. and the good
people will be. glad to know how
one of our churches and one of
their churches, peculiarly Edgefeld's
own, has been preserved from that
awful calahfty.'"I ] know that you
and the mem bers of the dear old
home church will rejoice with US,
as we wept with them a little while
ago, Shall we give you a little de-
scription of ~
u, HoNANssCHURGH2st 80
Honan means soatb df shs Sys VI
el snd IS 8 large island ID tie
Canton or Pearl river; on. the upper
end of which a part of this great
city is built. I do not know the
population of the whole island, it
is immense: though, but it is esti-
mated that the part that, in Ameri-
ca, would. be considered part of
Canton city has at least a.'hundred
thousand people. On little Island
called Shaalseu, a'little above Ho-
nan, about ahalf a mile; long, but
not .nearlyso,Wide, live most Of the
Europea nsii9 Canton: On that little
patch OF Europe are some thirteen
or fourteen, ,,consalates OR consular
agencies, including our.own Ameri-
can consulate general, besides banks,
business houses, a hotel, &c. Then
the great city, with probably as
many people in 1t as there are in the
whole state of South Carolina,
stretches away to the, .nor!h, north
e .st and northwest We sometimes
speak of. the, city part of Honan
island as the Brooklyn Of Canton"
Until last year though we had
four Baptist churches in this great
metropolis besides. several chapels
preaching halls and besides one
Theological Seminary, boys acade-
my, boarding school, wo-
mems Trailing school, Home for
blind girls, .orphapage, publication
society and, numerous day schools
for boys and: day schools for girls
,(all Baptist instilutions),.. we had.
strange to say, on Honan no
church or preaching hall, no school
for boys and only one school for
girls. For years Miss Whilden look
ed after this school, but as there
was no organized work TO which to
relate it, we can trace comparative
ly little from it in the way of deti-
mite results IN the work Of church
planting or church development.
Strange to say, also, our friends of
other denominations had to large
extent seemed to overlook Honan.
True, at the extreme south eastern
end of the city, and there on Ho-
nan island, just across the river
from our Baptist compound, which
occupies a strategic position in the
eastern suburbs of Canton, stands
the Canton Christian college, inter.
denominatiopal: and miles away, at
the upper end :of the island, and OPP
posite Shameens' is the mission COM
pound of thes"united; brethren, but
between ''thesg two institutions
swarmed ''a"h Hundred, thousand or
more of human beings with very
little mission work being done for
them. and ONLY this one. lone, uil-