In the Far East Again by Arthur G. Daniells

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Dec 28, 1916

In the Far East Again

By Arthur G. Daniells

TIME never seemed to rush by so fast as in these days. It seems but yesterday since we said farewell to our dear fellow workers in Shanghai, and left for the States; yet it has been a year and a half, and here we are today running down the coast of Japan to Yokohama.

We sailed from Vancouver, British Columbia, the second of November—eleven days ago. Our voyage has not been the kind one naturally wishes. We have scarcely seen sun, moon, or stars since putting to sea. We have had cloudy, misty weather, and a cold wind from the icy regions of the North. The sea has been rather rough most of the time, yet all but one of our company have been reasonably well and happy. We are thankful for the blessings that have been ours, and especially for a safe journey across the great ocean.

There are fourteen in our party,—twelve adults and two children. Elder W. T. Knox, who, being treasurer, must deal with our foreign mission finances, has come to study this great mission field, and to counsel and encourage the workers. As he will be abroad nearly a year, he has brought Sister Knox along to join in the study of the conditions, needs, and providential openings of this vast field. They will first visit our stations in Ceylon, India, and Burma. At the close of the conference in Calcutta, they will hold a general meeting at Singapore, and visit as large a portion of the Malaysian field as possible. From Singapore they will go to Canton, where a general meeting will be held for south China. Then will be held, at Shanghai, the first session of the Asiatic Division Conference. Following this conference, they will visit central China, Manchuria, Korea, and Japan.

Our appropriations to the Asiatic Division for 1917 reach the splendid sum of $358,000. This is a large amount to be invested in a single year in this one section of our world field. It is as much as we expended in all our missions throughout the world in 1910. In the expenditure of this money, important questions are continually arising, many of which are pressed upon the attention of the treasurer. This personal inspection of our stations, and the study of the problems with the brethren on the ground, will be of great value to Brother Knox in the future. He will undoubtedly be able to save far more than the cost of the visit.

Brother Knox will be accompanied in his travels by Elder R. C. Porter, president of the Asiatic Division Conference. It has been arranged for Prof. Frederick Griggs, secretary of the Educational Department of the General Conference, and Brother C. E. Weaks, secretary of the Publishing Department of the Asiatic Division Conference, also to be in attendance at these general meetings.

Brother and Sister W. E. Gillis and their son are with us, on their way to China, after a year’s furlough in the homeland. After spending years in the Shanghai printing house, they found it necessary to leave for a time, in order to recuperate. They are glad to get back to China, and express the fervent hope that they may now remain here until the Lord comes. It makes one’s heart rejoice to hear missionaries talk that way. They have lived in the field, associated with the people, and have experienced sacrifice, privation, and failing health. Yet with this personal knowledge of what is before them, they rejoice in the privilege of returning. It would almost break their hearts if they were prevented from doing so. Surely our people in the homeland should prize such missionaries, and pray earnestly for the preservation of their health and for the success of their work.

Elder J. P. Anderson has also come back to take up his work in south China. He came out ten years ago, at the age of nineteen. The Lord has blessed him in getting command of a number of Chinese dialects, and in winning souls to the Master. He and Sister Anderson attended the last General Conference. They remained only a short time, however. They hurried back to look after their mission stations. With a growing constituency, and many lines of work to carry forward, they toiled early and late. Finally Sister Anderson’s health gave way, and a few months ago her husband was compelled to take her home to receive medical attention. She had wasted away until she weighed only seventy pounds. But she has responded so well to the treatments given that Brother Anderson could leave her in a much improved

condition, and return to his field. If all continues well, she will soon be able to return to China and resume her work. Sister Anderson has been in China eleven years, and cannot be happy anywhere else. She longs to get back to minister to this needy, responsive people.

Brother and Sister Jesse Barrows, with their little daughter Margaret, have come to this field to join the administrative staff. Brother Barrows, as an accountant, has served in his home conference for some years as secretary and treasurer. He has come to do this line of work in these new and rapidly growing fields. He will work to develop thoroughness in the keeping of accounts and in reporting, and to build up the system of tithes and offerings in the churches, and to promote the distribution of literature throughout the conference in which he will be located. His brother, Henry W. Barrows, is treasurer and auditor of the Asiatic Division Conference. These young men received their education at South Lancaster Academy, and have had a good experience in practical work since leaving school.

After selecting two of her children for the Far East, I asked Sister Barrows, the mother of these brethren, if she felt to forbid our Mission Board drawing so heavily on her family. She replied that she had three others that she would be glad to see us take. What devotion to the cause and loyalty to the Master! This is the spirit that makes the church of Christ triumphant in the world.

Brother and Sister Nathan Brewer are young people who also have come out to devote their lives to the work in China. Brother Brewer is a graduate of South Lancaster. Sister Brewer, a daughter of Sister M. A. Wheeler, a Bible worker in the Atlantic Union Conference, was graduated from Washington Missionary College this past year. Since leaving South Lancaster Academy, Brother Brewer has been connected with the colporteur work. Proving successful in the sale of our subscription books, he was called to take charge of the work in the Maine Conference. When the call came for a young man of experience to take charge of the publishing work in the East China Union, Brother Brewer responded. He will take up language study during this first year, with the view of devoting his life to the circulation of our literature among China’s four hundred millions. Surely our cause must succeed, when our young men and women are so ready to go out to spend their lives in non-Christian lands, working for the salvation of people who sit in darkness and in the valley of the shadow of death.

Only a few weeks before we were to sail, the Mission Board asked Brother Clarence C. Crisler if he would come to the Asiatic Division to give his life to literary work. He and Sister Crisler accepted the call without any hesitation or reservation. He began at once shaping his affairs to leave, and was able to sail with us. Brother Crisler’s association with Sister White, as secretary and editor, for a period of fifteen years, gave him a large and valuable experience. Now he has come to the Asiatic Division to give, as best he can, these multiplied millions the benefits of this experience.

The large mission boards of various denominations are coming to value very highly the literary work of experienced men. They see that the press is one of the most effective, economical ways of reaching the many millions still in ignorance of the gospel, and this is leading them to make special efforts to place literary workers in these fields. We rejoice that the providence of God has placed Brother Crisler in the Far East.

Sister Minnie Crisler, who has also had a large and valuable experience in literary work, having for years acted as one of Sister White’s secretaries, will be able to render the cause valuable service by assisting in this work of preparing literature. She and their little girl will follow in a few months, probably in time to attend the Division Conference in the month of April.

We now have five printing plants in the Asiatic Division. We have demonstrated to our satisfaction and great encouragement that our literature work can be carried on just as successfully in the Far East as it has been in North America, Europe, Australasia, and South America. We have an excellent system of distribution; we have a splendid body of young people to be trained as colporteurs, and we have experienced leaders to train them. What we need now is a suitable supply of publications for the field. It is to assist in the furtherance of this particular and important line of work that Brother Crisler will devote his life.

Thus we are steadily and rapidly adding experienced and efficient workers to our staff in the Far East. What remarkable strides our cause has made in this part of the world! Only a few years ago we had entered but two widely separated sections,—India and Japan. For years, we made scarcely any headway; but during the past twelve or fifteen years the work has gone by leaps and bounds. There is surely a great harvest to be reaped in these dark lands. May I request our people everywhere to pray for great things in these lands that have dwelt so long in darkness and superstition? The Lord is demonstrating what he can do by his mighty power with those who have long seemed beyond the reach of saving grace. For this we praise his name. A. G. DANIELLS.