Through Siberia by J. T. BOETTCHER

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 7, 1915

Through Siberia

By J. T. BOETTCHER

J. T. BOETTCHER

A WEEK ago I returned from my trip which I took to the Far East. The Siberian missions had never been visited by a general man from the European Division, so it was planned for me to visit them this summer. I left Riga July 8 and reached Vladivostok, on the Sea of Japan, July 24, stopping over one Sabbath with the brethren in Irkutsk. The distance from Riga to Vladivostok is 5,967 English miles, and can be made in a twelve-day journey. Very few have a proper conception of the immense size of the Russian Empire. Siberia proper has an area twenty-five times as large as that of Germany. We have 623 church members in this field, who love the message as much as any believers in the world, and who are ready to help support it to the extent of their power.

Our first meeting was held in Vladivostok. The worker who is stationed at this post has no permission to conduct public meetings. There must be twenty-five members before a hall can be procured. The government does not allow people to come together for worship unless there are twenty-five regular members who apply for the privilege of meeting to worship God. This brother knows the language well, and is doing missionary work right along. A friend of our work, not a member as yet, is building a meetinghouse for us. We are working hard to get members enough to open up the hall. Vladivostok is a very fine modern city. There are also many Chinese and Koreans living there.

We next took the train and went to Nicolsk-Ussuri, where the superintendent of the Amur Mission lives. I held a meeting with interested persons in the home of Brother Goebel. There is only a little company of Sabbath keepers at this place, but the prospect for additions is good. We next went north about five hundred miles, to the city Chabarowsk, the terminal of the Amur railroad. The city has about fifty thousand inhabitants, and its location on the Amur River has made it a large trading center. Here we found a Russian who is interested in the message. This man opened his house to us, and called in others so that they might hear the truth of God. He insisted that a worker be sent at once, promising to do all that he could to help him. The Amur railroad is not yet finished, but soon will be. Russia will then have its own road to Vladivostok.

Our next stop was in the city of Iman, on the Ussuri railroad. A few years ago a young man from Petrograd was sent there to serve his time as a soldier. He had accepted the truth, and was anxious to see others rejoice in the blessed hope. As soon as he arrived at his post, he looked about for a mission field, and soon found it. An interest was awakened, enough to call for a minister, and at present there is a church here with fifteen members, all active and having their own meetinghouse. We called in the brethren from the churches in that district, and thus had a good opportunity to see nearly all of them.

It was very interesting to hear their many questions. They seemed to think I could not get tired. I had to hold meeting all day and answer questions until midnight. Our beds were made on the floor, and on the seats in the meeting room. The Russian people do not care very much for a bed. They will lie down almost anywhere and sleep. It almost seems as if they have no bones to ache on a board.

We had a splendid meeting. On the Sabbath day, August 1, five believers were baptized. One brother said that he was impressed to make a donation of $50, which he did. This was the day Germany declared war on Russia. We knew nothing about it, only floating rumors, but the next day we saw trains laden with soldiers pass the stations. Even though we were one thousand miles from the front, the word to mobilize had reached the uttermost of the Russian Empire with the speed of lightning. Telegrams were read at the station, and each asked his neighbor what it all meant. There was a sober look on the faces of the men, but they were ready to shoulder the gun and go to save the country from the invasion of the enemy. I have never seen such readiness in any people to respond to the call of the war signal. Sunday evening, August 2, I was back at Nicolsk-Ussuri. There at the railroad station, thousands of patriotic people had gathered to make a great manifestation. Military bands played, the czar's picture was carried by the young men, the national hymn was sung, and shouts filled the air. There came over me a queer sensation, which told me that it was a time to be very calm.

I pursued my journey to Harbin. While I was passing through Manchuria, every train was packed full of soldiers and officers. Heavy rains had washed parts of the track away, but it had been repaired by the time we arrived, our train being only a few hours late. Manchuria is a fine country, with a semi-tropical climate. The Chinese have more knowledge of agricultural methods than I had supposed. The wheat, barley, oats, beans, and all the vegetables are planted in drills wide enough apart to be cultivated, and to my surprise there were no weeds to be seen. I concluded that the Chinese people were very thrifty. They are also great burden bearers, and never seem to get tired.

Harbin has about one hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants, with a great mixture of people: Russians, Germans, Finns, Lettonians, Esthonians, Tartars, Armenians, Grusiniens, Greeks, Persians, Turks, and thousands of Chinese. It is one of the most wicked cities in the world; all manner of vice is carried on. We have a church of thirty-four members in the city, with a good meeting hall. It was my privilege to conduct meetings in their hall. The persons were first interested through an aged brother who moved there from Russia. Afterward, through reading matter, they accepted the truth. They are good tithe payers. The most of them work for the government in the railroad shops, but have the Sabbath free. There had just been a big flood, and hundreds of families were housed in freight cars until their houses could be repaired. I visited them in their car homes. Each family had a car. I thought it was a fine way to help them, better than tents would have been.

By this time everybody was talking about the war. The German consul had left Harbin, and the Austrian consul was to leave that same day. Our people were thinking that they would be drafted at any moment. I went to our American consul, who told me that I had better get a new Russian vise on my passport before I left, otherwise I might have trouble. I was glad for my passport, for the Germans and Austrians were all sent to prison or out of the country.

After midnight I took the train at Harbin, but it was almost impossible to find a seat, there were so many officers going; but I finally got a seat in a compartment with a number of others. Our next change of cars was in the city of Manchuria. Here one has to pass the customhouse and present passports to the Russian officers. After these formalities were through (and it takes two or three hours), we were permitted to go to the platform. To our surprise, we learned that all the fast trains had been off, so we took what was to be had. However, we were very comfortable.

The trip from Manchuria to Irkutsk, around Lake Baikal, is one of the finest in the world. The Russian government has spared neither money nor engineering skill to make it a splendid road. It goes over rivers, through more than fifty tunnels, across swamps, and along precipices, making all kinds of twists and turns. The lake is said to be 499 miles long and over 3,000 feet deep. During the winter the whole lake freezes to such a thickness that a railroad train crossed upon the ice before the road was built around it. In our company was an English fur dealer, a French officer of the army, an Italian doctor of chemistry, and a Russian merchant. The

French officer went all those thousands of miles that he might reach his country to serve in the army. The Italian doctor was also an army officer and ready to serve his country. The only question with them was how they could get home the quickest. It was impossible for them to pass through Germany, so they chose the water route, via Odessa and Constantinople. We had very interesting times together. If the Christian young men all loved the cause of God as much as these men love their country, there would never be a dearth of men and means. There is a lesson in it for us.

(To be concluded)