En Route to Argentina, South America
By Max Trummer
In harmony with the advice of the Mission Board, our company, consisting of Dr. R. H. Habenicht and family, Brother and Sister Foster, and the writer, sailed from New York, July 22, for our new field of labor in South America. Our voyage was very pleasant, and we enjoyed singing songs of praise to our God, upon the billowy ocean. After seeing nothing but sea and sky for nearly two weeks, one has a new appreciation of seeing land again, and we were glad to greet the shores of Brazil. How cheery the green trees and the foliage looked upon the mountains, and it seemed that South America welcomed us already to our new home. As our ship cast anchor in Rio de Janeiro, we improved our time in going ashore and spending a few hours in sightseeing. In general this city reminds one of our northern centers of commerce. Its beautiful parks, the automobiles running along its stately avenues, and the grandeur of the city as a whole can not fail to testify to the fact that this is a land of rich resources and increasing enterprise and activity. Arriving at Santos, our ship unloaded four railway locomotives, and took a large cargo of coffee for Buenos Aires, thus giving us time to go to Sao Bernardo, our headquarters for Brazil. This trip convinced us anew of the wonderful advance of South America in the way of railroad facilities. The track from Santos to Sao Bernardo is one of the greatest marvels of railway engineering in existence, rising to an elevation of two thousand feet in about an hour's ride. Here we saw most beautiful mountain scenery, while the valleys were dotted with banana fields. We found the brethren of good courage. They were holding an institute for workers, which, it is hoped, will be the beginning of a training-school for this needy field. It is needless to say that they were very thankful that the Lord was sending more help to them. In a few more days we arrived at the capital of Uruguay, where it was our privilege to see our two nurses who, with three others, came down here a year ago. The others are located in Buenos Aires and Diamante. All are having excellent success, and they are making friends to the sanitarium work among the best families. From Montevideo we crossed La Plata River, a distance of one hundred twenty-five miles, and finally arrived in Buenos Aires. This is the largest city of South America, having a population of one million two hundred thousand, and is also the greatest Spanish-speaking city in the world. Its harbor is lined with steamers for miles, thirty thousand of them arriving annually. The commerce has mostly been carried on by Europeans, but North American capitalists are waking up to the possibilities before them in the republics to the south. On our ship alone was five million dollars in gold and seven million dollars in paper for the banks in Argentina. Next year Buenos Aires will have a "Transcontinental Railway" exposition, which, undoubtedly, will call the attention of the world to South America as never before. After being two days with our workers at this place we started on our journey up La Plata and Parana rivers. In a day and a half we arrived at Diamante, our training center for Spanish South America. The work here is going on nicely, the new sanitarium is nearing completion, and the school is filled to its limits. Here, too, the students manifest a missionary spirit, and it is evident that Professor Walton John and his faculty of six teachers have done very good work. We shall have a special course for workers in Bible doctrine, medical, and canvassing work during the last six weeks of school, and I believe that we shall have a goodly number of earnest and consecrated young people in the field during vacation. Brethren, pray with us for God's blessing on our work in Catholic South America. Who will come and help us, that the harvest of our Master suffer no loss? Field Missionary Agent for Argentina.