The Leavenworth echo. [volume] (Leavenworth, Wash.) 1904-current, 1920-04-16
ROADRUCK DELIVERED
ADDRESS AT CONFERENCE.

graphic statstics,in an address which
Rev. r. X. Roadruck, of Spokane, de-
livered at the county conference in
this county on April 8.
The basis for the address was a
mass of data showing social, econom-
ic and religious conditions over most
of the world. This data was gather
cd from far and wide in the scientific
surveys made for the Interchurch
World Movement.
"One-half of the human race is
without knowledge of medicine, by
giene or sanitation" said the speak
cr. an China there are only 900
trained doctors and 4OO,O00O0O peo-
pie; in New York City there are T.
92l doctors and 100000 people;
Africa is not much better Off.
"One-half of the population of the
globe can neither read nor write. The
largest percentage of illteracy is in
nonChristian lands. Ninetv-four
per cent of the people of India are H.
literate. In Latin America the illit-
eracy ranges from 10 to 80 per cent.
In parts of Africa people do not
know that writing has been invented.
The money spent on schools in New
York City alone is as great as that
spent in the twenty Latin American
republics, with population of 49,
100000. The $4,000 missionary
schools and colleges of India and
Ceylcn are slowly making inroads on
this ignorance.
NEARLY one billion people have
never heard of Christ. This is al
most two-thirds of the population of
the globe, While so many people arc
without knowledge of the gospel, it is
also true that no people has been
found who do not respond to it when
it is brought to them.
an Japan, with a population of 81
10000 there are 110,O69 members Of
Christian churches. We are not
keeping up with the normal increase
in the population. Most of China is
unoccupied by Christian missionar-
les. To give the whole gospel to the
whole world is task for the whole
church. No one denomination can
meet the task.
"1n the war France lost IS 1-3 per
cent of all the men between 1S and
15; Germany, II 1-2 per cent; Great
Britain, 1-2 per cent and the Unit
ed States only 1-3 of per cent. Only
America has her man power almost
unimpaired. In our schools and col
leges are the reserves needed for a
great program.
"The war impoverished the Europ-
pean nations. Germany used up 50
per cent of her national wealth.
Great Britain, 33 1-3 per cent and
France 81 per cent. We used up only
II 1-2 per cent of our resources. Only
America has its national wealth rel
ativcly unimpaired and America must
bear the main responsibility for evan
gelizing the world
Turning to home missions we find
also gigantic taskS-the Immigrants
of our growing cities-the abandoned
falms-the lumber camps-the Mexi-
can border-the illiteracy in Porto
Rico. Membership in Protestant
churches in the United States is
about 25.OO,OOO. Membership in the
churches cooperating in the Inter-
church World Movement is over 49,
100000 In most of the southern
states church membership embraces
more than so per cent of the popula-.
ton; in the middle west it is between
20 and 25 per cent; IN the Pacific
Coast states it is from 10 to IS per
cent of the population; and in the
mountain states, including Idaho, less
than 10 per cent"
The speaker told of the dficulticd
facing the church in rural and SPARSE
~ populated areas and how some pasl
tors travel more than 100 miles bel
tween their homes and their churches
because they serve from one to half d
dozen different parishes. He told of
the lumber camps. IN which he said
men were hcrded together in unsanl-
tary quarters, and the church had
made little effort to serve them. Hf
told Of missions which seek to CON
vert the 100000 Japanese in the
United States. Aho live mostly on the
Pacific slope, and the 10000 Chinese
in the country.
The rural church problem, he point
ed out, is shown in the fact that
many churches share a pastor with
other churches and that those church
cs which have the exclusive services
of pastor are growing, while most
of those served by nonresident pas
tors are stationery or declining.
"The business of the church is not
TO build itself up out Of the com
munty, but to build up the ccmmur
ity out of its very life. The coz
munty church has been the answer
to many of thes problems One Of