The Hunan General Meeting
By James E. Shultz
THE meeting for the province of Hunan was appointed for February 3-13, and at the request of the committee I left Shanghai January 25 by a river boat, arriving in Hankow, the Chicago of China, five days later, where I joined Elder R. F. Cottrell and Brother H. M. Blunden, who preceded me to Changsha, the headquarters of our work in the province. Generally the trip can be made in six days, but at the time of our meeting the water in the river was very low, and it was with difficulty that the large boats proceeded as far as Hankow. Once we ran aground, where we remained fast for twenty-eight hours, while the passengers shivered with the cold. Changsha, the place of Hudson Taylor’s death, is one of the literary centers of China. The province of which it is the capital has produced some of China’s brightest men, among them being ten prime ministers. But the city is distinctly Oriental, with streets not usually more than ten feet wide, while some are narrower, which makes carriage traffic impossible. The only conveyances to be seen are sedan chairs and wheelbarrows having two wheels, one behind the other, to enable the operator to climb stairs with his load. Yet one is impressed with the fact that Western custom is exerting an influence, for the white man’s tobacco is considered a luxury, even though it is enjoyed in very small quantities, being procured from the street hawker, who gives the user a “refreshing smoke” from his long-stemmed but small-bowled public pipe, which he rents for a few minutes, everything furnished, for a few cash. With all its boasted culture, I am persuaded that were the apostle Paul to visit Changsha (Long Sand) today, he would say, “I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.” When we made our first trip through the city, while passing through one gate we noticed that all traffic and pedestrians crossed to the opposite side of the street. Inquiring the reason for this troublesome practice, we were told that a man had been killed in the place, when or how no one could tell, but they assured us that to fail to cross to the opposite side of the street, it mattered not how inconvenient nor against how many people one jostled, would assuredly anger the gods, who would visit the offender with their wrath. So the custom prevails. Our two foreign houses are situated on an island in the river, away from the filth and noise of the city. Not until we had visited the former home of Elder Cottrell, in the heart of the city, could we really appreciate the advantage our brethren now have over those who opened the work in the province. The former location is one of the worst I have seen anywhere in the East, too unsightly to be called a home, but in the early days of our work it was the best that could be had. Now that our loyal people have provided our workers with comfortable homes, they can prosecute their work without incurring unwarranted dangers. Arriving the day before the time for opening the meeting, we were glad to join the brethren who had arrived early, in earnest prayer that the Lord would bless all the deliberations of our council. A spirit of earnestness characterized our Chinese workers, and from the first it was evident that their purpose in coming to the meeting was to seek a better spiritual preparation for their work. Much time was given to spiritual instruction, each of our foreign brethren contributing his share. Brother Cottrell dwelt upon the importance of the call to the gospel ministry. Brother Blunden presented the qualifications of the consecrated colporteur, and my efforts were along the line of practical Christian living. Each day time was given for prayer and personal examination, in addition to the consideration of practical problems of missionary propaganda. Each evening a service was conducted by our Chinese evangelists for interested ones from the city. It was pleasant to meet with our Chinese brethren in committee work, and to study with them the problems they are meeting from day to day. The Christian integrity they showed convinced me that these men are being given wisdom proportionate to their needs. In a field that has as many churches as many of our large conferences at home, and where the work has gone with leaps and bounds, careful planning is required if serious mistakes are to be avoided; but there is no disposition to temporize with questions, no inclination to lower our denominational standard, but rather an earnest endeavor so to plan as to accomplish the greatest results with the least delay. During the last two days of the meeting, calls were considered from various parts of the field to open up new outstations. While the work in the stations already established showed a substantial growth, there were calls from thirty other places for the efforts of the living preacher. All this is the result of the efforts of our colporteurs. From one place came an earnest call for a worker which was signed by one hundred inquirers who are already keeping the Sabbath. Another city sent an earnest appeal signed by several of the leading merchants of the place, who sent a promissory note for the sum of $150 to help defray the expense of sending a worker to them, and promising an additional $850 as soon as the worker arrived. Other places sent equally urgent calls,—places where men had been keeping the Sabbath for two or three years as the result of reading our magazine. Nor was this all. From outside the province, calls were received. For several years our canvassers have been going into the province of Kiang-si, and for four years calls have been coming for a regular worker to be stationed in that large province. At this meeting the believers in that province were represented by an earnest young man, who pleaded that their call should not go longer unheeded. But what could be done? Certainly there was no foreigner available for such work. The Chinese brethren, seeing this, finally voted that Brother Hwang, one of their most experienced and successful workers, should be sent to answer this call. They said that when the call first came they thought they could not spare him, but as he stood ready to go, the Lord put it into the hearts of all to release him for the work. The thirty calls for immediate help in their own province caused them to consider their own needs, but they could not deny the right of another province to have at least one messenger of truth in its midst, so, like the church of Antioch, they sent forth one of their own number as a witness to Kiang-si, while we united with them in praying that his mission might be blessed of God. Before the meeting closed, those in attendance, together with the members of the Changsha church, united in the celebration of the ordinances of the Lord’s house. Confessions were made and sins of a definite nature put away. Owing to ill health, upon the doctor’s urgent suggestion, Elder Lillie, the director of the field, was advised to seek a more healthful climate. This leaves Brother S. G. White as the only foreign worker in a field having a population of 23,000,000. Let us not forget to pray that God may give him wisdom in planning for the future of the work.