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Review and Herald, Vol. 86, No. 12.

In Its New Dress!
Earlier text: Temperance in the Home

Jamaica

By W. G. Kneeland

WE held a very successful workers’ institute in connection with the Riversdale school, February 12-16. Leading features of the message were carefully studied, as well as plans for the future. This being the first meeting of the kind ever held, the need of continuing such methods of instruction was evident to all.
Our seventh annual conference was held in Kingston in the partially completed church building. The reports indicate a healthy growth in all departments. Six of the companies were organized into churches, making thirty-threechurches and twenty-six companies, with a membership of 1,746, with 146 Sabbath-keepers not yet enrolled. There were added during the year twenty-six by letter, two hundred thirty-three by baptism, and forty-four on profession of faith, making a net gain of one hundred fifty-seven.
In spite of hard times, about thirty companies are progressing with their church buildings. Two churches were dedicated during the year, and several are nearly ready for dedication. We are grateful for help rendered for church buildings, but sorry to say it is far less than we expected it would be for the relief of the Kingston church.
The tithes received for 1908 were £887 12s. 5d. We paid to missions, £282 13s. 11d., which does not include anything given for local churches, which amount I could not accurately ascertain.
The following officers were elected for the next year: President, Elder D. E. Wellman; secretary and treasurer, Wm. Hayward; secretary of the Sabbath-schools and Missionary Volunteer societies, Mrs. D. E. Wellman. Executive committee: D. E. Wellman, W. G. Kneeland, E. E. Cushman, W. H. Randle, L. Rashford, and W. F. Burkley.
In response to the urgent need of help in Trinidad, Elder A. N. Durrant was released for that field. He expects to reach there sometime in March. This makes two laborers transferred for the year. The spiritual conditions are improving in all places where faithful labor can be given. Nearly the entire congregation requested special prayers at the Sabbath services. A strong educational campaign is being planned for the year.
W. G. KNEELAND.

Atlantic Union Conference

By I. H. EVANS

Received on the $150,000 Fund up to March 1, 1909

Atlantic Union Conference

Central New England ........................ $2,803.02 Greater New York ......................... 1,716.48 Maine ...................................... 883.64 New York ................................ 2,351.50 Southern New England .................... 1,212.50 Vermont ................................. 1,423.74 Western New York ........................ 2,251.26 Total ..................................... 12,642.14

Canadian Union Conference

Maritime ................................ 601.49 Quebec ..................................... 181.64 Ontario .................................... 824.28 Newfoundland ............................... 20.80 Total ...................................... 1,628.21

Central Union Conference

Colorado .................................. 5,040.61 Kansas ..................................... 4,109.79 Missouri ................................... 2,035.02 Nebraska ................................ 6,142.03 Wyoming ................................. 893.41 Total ..................................... 18,220.86

Columbia Union Conference

Chesapeake ................................ 920.64 Eastern Pennsylvania ................... 2,587.11 New Jersey .............................. 1,247.98 Ohio .................................... 6,409.03 Virginia ................................ 1,037.27 West Pennsylvania ........................ 1,997.21 West Virginia ............................ 558.86 Total ..................................... 14,758.10

District of Columbia

Washington churches .................... 1,406.54

Lake Union Conference

East Michigan ............................. 3,217.38 Indiana ................................ 5,250.52 North Michigan .......................... 2,074.00 Northern Illinois ........................ 3,013.86 Southern Illinois ........................ 1,652.50 West Michigan ........................... 8,782.70 Wisconsin .................................. 6,587.13 Total ..................................... 30,578.09

North Pacific Union Conference

Montana ................................ 1,085.37 Upper Columbia .......................... 3,036.43 Western Washington ....................... 3,571.03 Idaho ...................................... 1,049.95 Western Oregon ............................. 3,083.91 Hawaii ....................................... 21.05 Alaska ....................................... 20.00 Total ..................................... 11,667.74

Southern Union Conference

South Carolina ........................... 315.84 Alabama .................................. 625.04 Tennessee River ........................ 1,408.84 Florida .................................. 997.98 North Carolina ........................... 967.35 Cumberland ............................. 1,360.99 Louisiana ................................ 572.54 Mississippi ................................ 413.33 Georgia .................................. 491.55 Conference not specified ..................... 97.41 Total ...................................... 7,250.87

Northern Union Conference

Iowa ................................... 9,761.86 Minnesota ............................... 5,841.69 South Dakota ............................ 2,701.17 North Dakota ............................ 2,247.03 Conference not specified ..................... 73.82 Total ..................................... 20,625.57

Pacific Union Conference

Southern California ..................... 5,010.92 Arizona .................................. 474.39 California-Nevada ...................... 10,373.03 Utah ..................................... 449.08 Total ..................................... 16,307.42

Southwestern Union Conference

Arkansas ................................ 949.90 Oklahoma .................................. 4,278.39 Texas ..................................... 3,085.20 New Mexico ................................... 5.50 Conference not specified ..................... 22.82 Total ...................................... 8,341.79

Western Canadian Union Conference

Alberta ................................. 1,217.35 British Columbia ........................ 405.37 Manitoba ................................... 350.76 Saskatchewan Mission Field .............. 199.90 Total ...................................... 2,173.38

Unknown

Unknown .................................... 161.70

Foreign

Algeria .................................. 13.33 Australia .................................. 217.70 Bermuda ..................................... 36.00 China ...................................... 227.11 South Africa ............................... 439.02 Jamaica ..................................... 73.86 Yukon Territory ............................. 20.00 England .................................... 285.21 West Africa .............................. 50.00 Mexico ...................................... 65.97 India ...................................... 418.25 South America ............................... 82.81 Switzerland .................................. 9.69 Central American Mission .................... 26.00
Trinidad .................................... 28.60 Norway ...................................... 25.00 Japan ....................................... 17.50 Haiti ........................................ 5.00 Egypt .................................... 51.55 Palestine .................................... 2.00 Tobago, W. I. ................................. 1.22 Cuba .......................................... 9.00 Hungary ....................................... 3.00 Tahiti ....................................... 17.83 France ........................................ 6.80 Philippine Islands ............................ 1.00 Samoa .......................................... 8.00 Barbados ....................................... 5.00 Portugal ....................................... 6.00 Straits Settlements .......................... 10.08 Pitcairn Island ............................... 20.00 New Zealand .................................... 3.47 Fiji ........................................... 4.87 St. Kitts ...................................... 7.51 Ireland ....................................... 25.56 Russia ......................................... 5.00 Denmark ....................................... 14.59 Santo Domingo ................................. 2.50 West Caribbean ............................... 96.35 Total ...................................... 2,342.47 Grand total .............................. $148,104.88
I. H. EVANS, Treasurer.

From Dominica to Guadaloupe

By PHILIP GIDDINGS; L. P. GIDDINGS

OUR first session of the East Caribbean Conference, which has just closed, has relieved us from Dominica, to take up work in the French island of Guadaloupe.
We enjoyed our work in Dominica, and the friends we made, both in the church and outside of it, showed their kind appreciation; and the latter, among whom were merchants, clerks, the postmaster, the Catholic editor, and the judge of the supreme court, presented a small purse to us.
The judge, on bidding us good-by, asked that we keep him informed of our work; “for,” he said, “I shall always have an interest in it.”
We are at present in Barbados, spending three months’ furlough, while Mrs. Giddings improves the opportunity of taking some much-needed treatment at the Hastings Hydropathic, under the management of Dr. and Mrs. Charles Cave.
We shall continue to need the prayers of our brethren and sisters, that, as we take up our work in an untried French Catholic field, as our day, so may our strength be.
PHILIP GIDDINGS, L. P. GIDDINGS.

A General Meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil

By F. W. Spies

THIS meeting was held at Itapetininga, January 8-13. The attendance was not very large, from the fact that we have not many members in this part of the state. Nevertheless a good interest was manifested on the part of all, and the testimonies borne gave expression of confidence, hope, and joy in the Lord. The evening meetings were also attended by the people of the city.
Several recommendations were presented at the business sessions, by the committee on plans. The first was an expression of thanks to God for the blessings which he had bestowed upon the work in this mission during the past year, and of a renewed consecration to his service.
Another recommended that all our brethren take an active part in the circulation of the special number of the Arauto da Verdade, endeavoring to extend its circulation.
In a further recommendation, the meeting declared itself in harmony with the resolution recently adopted by the Brazilian division of the South American Union Conference Committee, that a four months' course of instruction be planned for at Sao Bernardo, for such persons as wish to prepare themselves for the work.
The latter recommendation and the discussion raised by it, created such an interest in the proposed institute that six persons at once expressed their desire to have a part in it, some of whom are men of mature years. And we believe that at Itarare, through which we must pass on our way to the southern conferences, we shall find several more. This would make a goodly number for Sao Paulo. This is certainly encouraging.
We also hope that about six from the other fields will take part in this course. But as most, if not all, of those who take part in the above-mentioned course of training will begin their future work in the cause in the canvassing field, we shall be in great need of a good, experienced leader for the canvassing work. We sincerely hope the Lord will send the needed helper.
F. W. SPIES.

West Pennsylvania

By W. H. GREEN

PITTSBURG.—We believe all will be interested in the work being done by the Second Church of Pittsburg (colored) for the many thousands of colored people in this city and its vicinity. They number about fifty thousand in the city alone.
We have bought a piece of property here worth about eight thousand dollars. It consists of a ten-room house, with basement. The house is brick, and is well located for chapel and treatment-rooms. We moved to the place February 1, and are now holding services here. The address is 2816 Wylie Ave.
Our church was organized about three years ago. It is small, having only thirty-four members.
We are trying to live and labor in harmony with the organized work. Those wishing to help us may send their offerings to the conference treasurer, A. V. Williams, Corydon, Pa., or to the writer at 2816 Wylie Ave., Pittsburg, Pa.
While giving your thoughts and means and sympathies to the great work in the South, do not forget us; our people in some of these Northern cities are just as needy. W. H. GREEN.

The West Pennsylvania Conference

By G. B. THOMPSON

The annual session of the West Pennsylvania Conference was held in the Seventh-day Adventist church at Clearfield, March 1-6. The various churches in the conference were well represented by delegates, and careful consideration was given to the plans presented for aggressive work in the field.
The utmost unity prevailed in all the deliberations. Not a discordant note was struck during the session. The reports rendered by the various departments showed an encouraging increase. Quite a number have been baptized during the year, and the churches have been strengthened. The tithe showed some increase over that of the past year, and excellent work has been done in the sale of our subscription books since the last conference meeting. The conference was followed by a good canvassers' institute, conducted by Brethren I. D. Richardson and I. G. Bigelow, and the outlook is good for this work for the coming year.
During the year two of the conference workers have died,—Sister Fannie Fondersmith, Sabbath-school secretary; and Brother J. Q. Herrington, who for about sixteen years has sold the printed page. Resolutions of sympathy in behalf of these faithful workers were passed at the conference.
But few changes were made in the officers for the coming year. Elder F. D. Wagner was re-elected president. The blessing of the Lord was realized throughout the meeting. Some for the first time decided to keep the Sabbath. Brother Bigelow was ordained to the sacred work of the gospel ministry, Elder J. W. Watt offering prayer, and the writer giving the charge. If the good resolutions formed at this meeting are carried out, we shall expect to see progress in all departments of the work the coming year. G. B. THOMPSON.

The Controversy Over the Sabbath Question in Egypt

By W. A. C.

THAT the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt consisted not merely in physical bondage, but involved the right to worship the true God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and to keep his commandments, particularly in the matter of observing the Sabbath, there is ample evidence. This question became a direct issue, and came to a crisis, during the latter part of their stay in Egypt, the power of the oppressor being broken, and the people being delivered, only through the terrible plagues which followed, and the direct intervention and miraculous power of God.
The conflict here referred to is briefly narrated in Exodus, chapters five to twelve inclusive. When Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh and said, “Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness,” Pharaoh replied, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.” Pharaoh at once began to accuse Moses and Aaron, saying, “Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let [hinder] the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.” Ex. 5: 1-4. In what way were Moses and Aaron hindering the Israelites from their works? It can not be supposed that they were teaching them not to work at all. No; they were teaching them to keep the Sabbath. This is confirmed by the very next verse in the narrative: “And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest [“Shabbath,” Hebrew] from their burdens.” Verse 5.
How Pharaoh regarded this instruction, on the part of Moses and Aaron, to keep the Sabbath, is shown by his instruction to the taskmasters of the people and their officers: “Let there more work be laid upon the men, . . . and let them not regard vain words.” Verse 9. Thus did this heathen and idolatrous king show his contempt for God and his law. And so blind was his heart and so stubborn his resistance, that he utterly refused to let Israel go until his land was laid waste, and the angel of death had visited every family, and “there was not a house where there was not one dead.” Ex. 10: 7; 12: 30.
That the question of keeping the Sabbath in Egypt became not only a prominent one, but a national issue, is confirmed by the book of Jasher, which, though not a part of the Bible, is twice mentioned in the Bible. See Joshua 10: 12, 13 and 2 Sam. 1: 18. Relating an incident which occurred under the reign of the Pharaoh called Melol, prior to Moses’ flight to the land of Midian, this book says:—
“And the day arrived when Moses went to Goshen to see his brethren, that he saw the children of Israel in their burdens and hard labor, and Moses was grieved on their account. And Moses returned to Egypt and came to the house of Pharaoh, and came before the king, and Moses bowed down before the king. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, I pray thee, my lord, I have come to seek a small request from thee, turn not away my face empty; and Pharaoh said unto him, Speak. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Let there be given unto thy servants the children of Israel who are in Goshen, one day to rest therein from their labor. And the king answered Moses and said, Behold I have lifted up thy face in this thing to grant thy request. And Pharaoh ordered a proclamation to be issued throughout Egypt and Goshen, saying, To you, all the children of Israel, thus says the king, For six days you shall do your work and labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest, and shall not perform any work, thus shall you do in all the days, as the king, and Moses, the son of Bathia, have commanded. And Moses rejoiced at this thing which the king had granted to him, and all the children of Israel did as Moses ordered them. For this thing was from the Lord to the children of Israel, for the Lord had begun to remember the children of Israel to save them for the sake of their fathers. And the Lord was with Moses, and his fame went throughout Egypt. And Moses became great in the eyes of all the Egyptians, and in the eyes of all the children of Israel, seeking good for his people Israel, and speaking words of peace regarding them to the king.”—Book of Jasher, 70: 41-51.
Upon the death of Melol, his son Adikam came to the throne. He revoked the permission to keep the Sabbath granted by his father to the children of Israel, and made their burdens still harder, as further narrated in the same book:—
“And Pharaoh sat upon his father’s throne to reign over Egypt, and he conducted the government of Egypt in his wisdom. And whilst he reigned, he exceeded his father and all the preceding kings in wickedness, and he increased his yoke over the children of Israel. And he went with his servants to Goshen to the children of Israel, and he strengthened the labor over them, and he said unto them, Complete your work, each day’s task, and let not your hands slacken from our work from this day forward as you did in the days of my father. And he placed officers over them from amongst the children of Israel, and over these officers he placed taskmasters from amongst his servants. And he placed over them a measure of bricks for them to do according to that number, day by day, and he turned back and went into Egypt. At that time the taskmasters of Pharaoh ordered the officers of the children of Israel according to the command of Pharaoh, saying, Thus says Pharaoh, Do your work each day, and finish your task and observe the daily measure of bricks; diminish not anything. . . . And the labor imposed upon the children of Israel in the days of Adikam exceeded in hardship that which they performed in the days of his father.”—Book of Jasher, 77: 7-13, 21. Published by M. M. Noah and A. S. Gould, New York, 1840.
Here is given testimony to the fact that the Sabbath existed and was known before the giving of the law at Sinai, before the wilderness experience, and even before the exodus itself. The conflict over the observance of the Sabbath here so plainly brought to view, also gives additional force to the reason given in Deut. 5: 15 why the Israelites should keep the Sabbath,—‘Remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt; . . . therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day.’
‘Patriarchs and Prophets,’ page 260, states the matter thus: ‘In their bondage the Israelites had to some extent lost the knowledge of God’s law, and they had departed from its precepts. The Sabbath had been generally disregarded, and the exactions of their taskmasters made its observance apparently impossible. But Moses had shown his people that obedience to God was the first condition of deliverance; and the efforts made to restore the observance of the Sabbath had come to the notice of their oppressors.’
Through all the ages the Sabbath has been the sign of loyalty to God and his truth. As its restoration to the church preceded the deliverance from Egyptian bondage, so its restoration in the last days to its place in the great message of truth will usher in the deliverance of Israel from the bondage of sin. We are seeking to maintain to-day the same principles for which God’s people in the past labored. May we be true conservators of the work of reform entrusted to us.
W. A. C.

Field Notes

SABBATH, February 27, two persons were baptized and joined the church at Thayer, Kan.
SISTER EVA WHEELER, of Manhattan, Kan., reports that two persons are awaiting baptism at that place.
ON a recent Sabbath six persons were baptized at Vallejo, Cal., and several more expect to take the step in the near future.
FOUR persons have accepted the truth at Farmington, Ill., as a result of a series of meetings held recently. Others are deeply interested.
A REPORT from Brother J. W. Bressie, says: “I expect to baptize eight or ten here at Chico [Cal.] as soon as the water in the creek is favorable. Five of these are students from our school.”
SISTER JENNIE DEYOUNG, who has been working among the Holland people in Muskegon, Mich., reports that two sisters have taken their stand for the truth. These are the first fruit from the Holland people in that city.
THE last Sabbath of January, Elder C. J. Buhalts organized a church of fifteen members at Fort Wayne, Ind. On account of the inclemency of the weather on the date of organization, some prospective members were absent, and it is expected that there will be several additions to this church in the near future.
THE following is taken from a letter from Brother F. H. Hoxie, of Michigan: “Brother Claude White and I began another series of meetings in Greendale Township, near Shepherd, on January 10, and after having continued for seven weeks, twenty-one precious souls were rejoicing in the truth. We have had to meet much opposition, but the Lord gave us the victory. Pray for the work and workers here.”

Christian Liberty

By K. C. Russell; W. A. Colcord

Reports, Notes, and Comments Pertaining to the Current History of the Rights of Conscience
Conducted by the Religious Liberty Bureau
K. C. RUSSELL, Chairman
W. A. COLCORD, Secretary

Indications of Christian Service

By M. E.

HERE are a few indications of Christian service. A Missionary Volunteer Society in Ontario is sending a young lady to Lornedale academy. A society in New Jersey has sent two boxes of clothing to the Jamaica school. A young lady in Atlanta, Ga., in about two months sold nearly two thousand copies of Life and Health. Last year the children's Mission Bands in Louisiana raised sixty dollars for India. Nine hundred young people in Southern California are reading the Bible through. The Missionary Volunteers in Victoria, Australia, have recently presented the Java Mission with an organ and a typewriter. A worker in that mission is being supported by the young people in New South Wales, Australia. Truly “God has made the youth his helping hand.”
FOURTEEN thousand Morning Watch Calendars have been sold this year. That is nearly two hundred fifty per cent of last year's sales. This fact, we trust, means that at least fourteen thousandyoung people are daily delving in the mine of heavenly treasures. That mine never disappoints. Its inexhaustible ore increases in value as the pickax goes deeper. Young friend, Satan heard your good resolution to learn each day the text assigned in the Morning Watch Calendar. He made a note of it, and has tried to thwart your purpose. What is the record for the first quarter? Has it sometimes been defeat? Take courage. You can learn those verses. Serve notice upon every hindering habit, to vacate premises. Then, by heavenly grace, determine day by day that Satan shall not rob you of that, which to lose means eternal poverty, and to gain means eternal wealth.
QUITE a number of our Missionary Volunteers have become Members of Attainment. Many others both at home and abroad are striving to reach that standard. The first in the foreign field to pass the examination were eleven young people in the West Indies. The Standard of Attainment is a race in which all may win. The reasons for urging all to participate in this race are obvious; for to reach the goal necessitates a knowledge both of our denominational history and of the cardinal points of our faith. A Methodist worker once said if the young people of that church knew its history, they would be proud to be Methodists. Surely, if our young people could look back through the decades, and see how God has made from the small beginning of this work the great missionary enterprise which today is operating in nearly every country, on the globe, they would esteem it a privilege to be Seventh-day Adventists. The other requirement of the Standard of Attainment is in accordance with the Saviour's words, “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” That knowledge must become a personal possession; and then as the great principles of truth are assimilated by the individual, his life will demonstrate to the world the wonderful keeping power of God's work. Such is the knowledge needed. Such is the anchor that will be both “steadfast and sure” while storms of modern theology rage. M. E.

King Edward and His Jewish Soldiers

THE NEW YORK Tribune of March 1 contains an article telling of the kindly interest of King Edward, of England, in his Jewish soldiers. The article says, in part:—
“The war department at Whitehall, in London, has just issued orders that all soldiers of the Jewish persuasion are to be allowed passes, that is to say, leave of absence, for the feasts of the passover, pentecost, new year, and tabernacles, in addition to the day of atonement. As the remission from labor is to begin at sunset on the day previous to each of these five occasions, and as they themselves run into thirteen days, it is obvious that eighteen days in all will be involved in observing these religious holidays. King Edward has also in view an arrangement whereby Hebrew soldiers should have their meals separately cooked, so that they should not be called upon counter to the prescriptions of their religion in the matter of food.”

The Latest Word From California

By W. A. C.

RECENT word from California states that there is nothing new in the California Legislature just now, with the exception that “Bishop Moreland has been before the committee on public morals in the Senate, urging them to put the Sunday law into the Senate, even though they sacrifice everything except the saloon-closing section.” This, of course, is only to gain a recognition of Sunday, which would be a foundation for amendments including other things in the necessary legislation. It is a shrewd move on the part of the Sunday-law workers; but it is hoped that the committee will refuse to report the Sunday bill in any form during the closing hours of the present legislature. W. A. C.

Young People's Work

Conducted by the Young People's Missionary Volunteer Department of the General Conference
M. E. KERN                                     Chairman
MATILDA ERICKSON                             Secretary

The Student Missionary Volunteer

By Earl N. Bergerstock

EARL N. BERGERSTOCK
HARK! I hear their voices calling, Coming far upon the wind, Bidding me to leave the home land, Other scenes and faces find; Strong the spell is cast upon me, Sways my spirit to and fro, For the voice of the unknown calls me; It calls, and I must go.
Dearest hopes and fondest mem’ries, Each would hold me to my home, And life’s cares would be the sweetest, Did I never need to roam; But the home land does not need me, And the message seems to grow, As the voice of the unknown calls me; It calls, and I must go.
To the land beyond the ocean, E’en to Afric’s farthest shore, Where the millions sit in darkness— Shall I take them light—and more? Sit I idle? List the message: Go to all the world; and lo! The voice of the dying calls me; It calls, and I must go.
Dying for the love of Jesus, Blessed name so dear to me! More like thee, O Father, make me; Lift me upward unto thee. Give me grace, and give me power; Ah, thou wilt not say me no! ’Tis the voice of God that calls me; It calls, and I must go.
“Here am I; send me,” O Saviour! I will go where thou dost lead, To the millions, weeping, praying, Where there is the greatest need; To thy voice my spirit answers: “I have chosen, Lord.” I know ’Tis thy voice, O God, that calls me, And I answer: “I must go.”
Williamsport, Pa.

Current Mention

— Two Japanese war-ships left Yokohama on March 15 for Honolulu and San Francisco.
— Night riders have resumed their unlawful acts in Christian and Caldwell counties, Kentucky. Beds of tobacco plants belonging to independent farmers are being scraped by the night riders.
— President Taft's first message to Congress, dated March 16, is one of the shortest on record, containing just 324 words. Its brevity and terseness won for it a cordial reception from the congressmen.
— Twenty persons lost their lives by the collision of two steamers, the “Mascot” and the “Margaretha,” in the North Sea, near the Holland coast, on March 14. The latter vessel sank immediately with the larger portion of her crew.
— The municipality of Boston, Mass., is beginning an investigation into the charge that the city has been defrauded of about one million dollars in connection with the laying out and construction of certain streets in the Back Bay district of the city.
— A despatch from St. Petersburg, Russia, states that Persian soldiers are destroying villages on the frontier between Persia and Russia, and shooting down the people. Ten villages, four of them containing Russian subjects, are said to have been pillaged and burned, and many of the fleeing inhabitants killed.
— The latest reports from Europe indicate that there is less prospect of war between Austria and Servia than last week. Servia's reply to Austria is looked upon as removing any provocation of war between the two powers, and the nations of Europe have been bringing strong influence to bear upon both nations in the interests of peace.
— Mr. George T. Angell, “the friend of dumb animals,” and the leader of the humane educational movement in the United States, died at Boston, Mass., on March 16, at the age of eighty-six. He was president of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also president of the American Humane Educational Association, and editor of Our Dumb Animals.
— The French nation is now in the throes of one of the most dangerous strikes ever experienced in that country. It began with the telegraphers, and has extended to the postal service and other branches of industry, so that at the present time the French nation is practically isolated from the rest of the world. As these public utilities are under the control of the government, the army has been called upon to furnish relief. Soldiers are being used in both the postal service and the telegraph service; but being unused to the work, telegrams and mail matter are piling up by the hundreds of thousands, and the general tie-up continues to spread. The government asked the Chamber of Deputies for a vote of confidence as to its handling of the matter and received it, but not by an overwhelming majority. This vote only served to increase the feeling of hostility on the part of the strikers toward the government. The generalization of thestrike throughout the whole of France is looked for. It is now general in Paris, Lyons, Marseilles, St. Etienne, Bourges, Grenoble, Lille, Nancy, Rouen, Havre, Limoges, and other large cities. The lack of food in Paris as a result of the impossibility of forwarding payments is beginning to make itself felt, and it is expected that famine conditions will soon prevail.
— The new Secretary of the Navy has ordered the commandant of the marine corps to prepare detachments of the marines for the battle-ships and armored cruisers. This order, following the action of Congress regarding the matter, completely reverses the action of President Roosevelt in ordering the marines to shore duty.
— The famous trial of the slayers of Senator Carmack, of Tennessee, has come to an end. D. B. Cooper and his son have been found guilty of murder in the second degree, and have been condemned to twenty years' imprisonment. An attempt will be made to have the trial declared a mistrial, and arguments upon this phase of the matter will begin this week.
— As a result of the combined influence of England, Germany, and the United States, the Russian government has yielded its position in the matter of the control of municipal affairs in the city of Harbin, Manchuria. It is understood that the new arrangement provides an open door for the commerce of the other countries, as well as recognizes the right of the Chinese government to the control of the territory for several years dominated by Russia.
— On March 16 an incipient rebellion broke out in Cuba. An officer of the rural guard, and a company of men, armed themselves, deserted from their post, and took the first steps toward a guerilla warfare. There were indications of a somewhat wide-spread conspiracy, and the government took active measures to quell the outbreak, throwing a cordon of troops around the infected territory, and bringing the insurgents to terms with very little difficulty.
— The ways and means committee of the House has reported a bill for the revision of the tariff, and general discussion upon the measure opened on Tuesday, March 23. The proposed measure reduces the tariff on barley fifty per cent, on timber fifty per cent, and puts on the free list wood-pulp, iron ore, hides, and coal. Coffee is to be admitted free from countries which do not charge an export duty, and a limited amount of sugar and tobacco is to be admitted free from the Philippines. The minority members have decided not to bring in a substitute bill, but to seek their object by means of amendments to the general bill.
— In the British Parliament, on March 16, during a debate on the navy, much uneasiness was expressed over the growing strength of the German navy, and the prospect that with the present program of the two nations, Germany would have one more “Dreadnaught” in 1912 than Great Britain will possess at that time. It was the fact that Germany was developing the capacity to build big battle-ships rapidly that so disconcerted the British statesmen. The effect of the debate was declared to be electrical, and those who had been in favor of decreasing England's proposed program for the building of battle-ships were won over, and are now in favor of making the proposed program the actual building program. Carrying out this program means an increase of nearly fifteen million dollars in the navy estimates. It means also that all the other powers will follow England's example, and increase rather than decrease their naval programs.
— Because of the unsettled condition of affairs in Central America, it has been decided to keep three United States war-vessels on the Pacific coast of the Central American States. The threat of intervention by the United States and Mexico in case of a breach of the peace there is said to have stirred the indignation of the inhabitants in those states. The presidents of four of the Central American States have been invited to meet in Mexico City to hold a conference over their grievances, out of which it is hoped such an arrangement will be perfected as will remove the danger of intervention by either Mexico or the United States.
— The number of those using the Esperanto language is now a million or more. Of organized societies and groups there are about 1,000, an increase of 30 per cent since the close of 1907. The countries leading in the movement are France, with 193 groups; the United Kingdom, 145; Spain, 84; Germany, 72; the United States, 66; Switzerland, 49; Austria, 46; Sweden, 39. There are now 90 special and professional Esperanto societies, including six women's clubs, artisans' unions, policemen's societies, temperance organizations, etc. Periodicals published in Esperanto numbered, July 1, 1908, 55. This is an increase of 11 during the preceding six months. Most of these journals are monthlies. The majority are for the purposes of propaganda. Some are for the international use of specialists, physicians, chemists, police, religious and secret organizations, etc. Public recognition of the language is steadily advancing. The postmaster-general of the United Kingdom has admitted Esperanto on the same footing as modern European languages for use in telegraphing; the committee of the Jubilee Exhibition at Prague issues its circulars in Esperanto, as in other languages; Count Hayashi, the Japanese minister of foreign affairs, has accepted the presidency of the Japanese Esperanto Association, and in a public letter has advised his countrymen to master the language. In Germany general attention is awakened to its value in connection with international trade. Various firms issue price-lists and catalogues in Esperanto. Much attention is being devoted to the standard translation of the Bible, intended particularly for missionary work. The section in charge of this feature reports that the Psalms are now in print, and that most of the New Testament is ready for the press. Short portions of the Old Testament have been published, but the greater portion of the translation is still to be accomplished, and is in the hands of scholars. In 1909 two international Esperanto congresses will be held, one at Barcelona, the other at Chautauqua, N. Y. A congress will be held in connection with the projected international expositions at Brussels in 1910, and at Tokyo in 1917.
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