Evening star., 1936-05-03
Fears Felt Here for Aduentist
Mission Party in Adds Ababa
Women and Children in
Group Unprotected
From. PiIIagers.
Several Recently Came
Back to Base Hoping
Safety Assured.

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Grave fears ere entertained here fol
the safety OF Seventh-Day Adventist
missionaries In Ethiopia now that
Adds Ababa lies at the mercy oi
savage, pillaging mobs in advance oi
the conquering Italians.
A party Of IA. including women and
children. has not been heard from
since withdrawal Of the native de-
tenders threw the Ethiopian capital
into chaos.
About half Of the IA In Adds Ababa
are Americans and the others Euro
peans.
None Of those now believed In the
capital Is from Washington. Miss
Estelle Bergman, formerly of WASH
ington, died last December. Included
among the missionaries in Adds Ababa
are Pastor and Mrs. M. ]. Sorenson
and their daughters. Margaret, 7, and
Shirley. s.
Recently Returned to Base.
Headquarters of the foreign mission
at Takoma Park was advised that only
recently the women and children re-
turned to Ethiopia from Egypt under
the impression that conditions had
become more settled.
Several months ago, the women and
children were sent TO safety after the
State Department warned Of danger.
DR.. M. E. Kern, secretary Of the for
eign mission board, said last night
he felt sure some word would have
reached headquarters here had any
OF the missionaries been harmed. DR.
Kern said that under the circum-
stances no news was good news" but
that word was awaited anxiously.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church
maintains about 20 missionaries in
Ethiopia. Makonnen Hospital. kept
by the church at 'Dessye, was sub
jected to severe bombing by Italian
airplanes in December while crowded
with war-torn native patients. A
score Of bombs were dropped, but
the only casualty among the hospital
attendants was a broken leg suffered
by nurse when she jumped into a
pit prepared for such an emergency.
To Stand Their Ground.
Dr. Kern said the missionaries are
determined to stand their ground in
the face of wars uncertainties in
view OF the fact that Ethiopia has
dire need of medical assistance. The
work of the missions consists in a
large measure in caring for the sick
and wounded. Most of the medical
activities in the country are in the
hands Of missionary physicians.
The 50-bed Zauditu Memorial Hos
pital in Adds Ababa was given to the
church by Emperor Halle Selassie
The institution is well equipped with
modern apparatus, including an X
ray outfit and training facilities for
native nurses. DR.. G. E. Bergman is
in charge.
Physicians fought a patient battle
to overcome the ignorance and super
stftion of the populace. Regarding
the hospital at Dessye, Rev. Mr..
Sorenson reported:
After the hospital was built the
peoples confidence had to be won and
their prejudices overcome.
This was a process Of education,
and the beginning was slow. In the
early days OF the hospital a native
had seen a dark brown rubber glove
living on a table. To him it looked
like a mans hand and the story got
started that people had their hands
cut of in the hospital"
Other Beneficial Experiences.
There were, however. experiences OF
a different nature. When one doctor
was on the way to Dessey, an urgent
message came from the Emperor.
One of his generals was sick in the
lowlands and needed immediate help.
The request was accompanied with
extra riding animals and an escort OF
soldiers.
"The doctor" the report continued.
rushed OF to the chief by forced
marches and when he reached the
military camp, the chief and most OF
his soldiers were Frustrated with ma
laria. The chief had been unconscious
for some days, and his men expected
him to die any minute. In fact, they
had already prepared his funeral
clothes and coffin.
"a few injections Of quinine had
magic effect on the general. Likewise
the sick soldiers were revived and their
recovery was nothing short OF a resur-
rection to them.
Experiences like this helped to break
down nreilldices and gradually people