Earlier text: Another Sacrifice—Another SaviorHawaiian Mission
By F. H. CONWAY
The Lord is blessing his cause in the Hawaiian Islands. Some progress has been made during the year. I have been in this field a year this month [October]. Since my last report, in May, seven have been baptized, and several others have begun to keep the Sabbath, making eleven baptized and seven unbaptized Sabbath keepers for the year. Our tract society, organized about a year ago, has sold over eight hundred dollars' worth of our truth-filled literature. One of our little Chinese boys has sold many of our magazines in the various languages, also some home workers' books. He is now having a good experience with the Harvest Ingathering REVIEW, and is happy in this work. He just brought in his first card filled with the names of those who are glad to help the cause of God. We have begun work among the babel of languages found here, systematically canvassing each month these various nationalities with our different magazines, in the Korean, Japanese, and Chinese; also with the Hawaiian booklet, Portuguese tracts, and other literature. Sister Ada Robinson has faithfully worked up a good interest among these people, and many of them look forward to receiving magazines each month. We believe this work will give us some souls to go with us into the soon-coming kingdom. Brother and Sister Robert McKeague have recently entered the island of Hawaii, the largest island of the group. They have opened treatment rooms in Hilo, a city of ten thousand inhabitants. They are also doing evangelistic work; and although they have been in their new field only a little over a month, they report a good interest, and find that the Lord has gone before them in opening up the work there. The treatment rooms conducted by I. N. Bartholomew in Honolulu have received such a heavy patronage that it was necessary to add another trained nurse to his staff of helpers. Brother Yen Chin, one of our sanitarium-trained nurses, has done a good work in managing the treatment rooms at the Y. M. C. A. building in this city. They grant him the privilege of closing the rooms on Sabbath. Our church school of twenty-three pupils was opened September 14, with Sister Matilda Tamka as teacher. Already we find the school a source of much encouragement to our brethren here, and we expect it to be a great blessing in the future work of our mission. The membership of our Sabbath schools has increased twenty-five per cent. There has been a large increase in12tithes and offerings over the previous year. During the year three of our young people have been sent to Pacific Union College, and two others have left us, one going to St. Helena Sanitarium and one to Loma Linda Sanitarium to take the nurses' training course. There is a growing interest among our people here to engage in individual missionary work, and some, aside from the regular mission workers, are experiencing the joy of seeing persons take their stand for the truth as fruits of their efforts. We are not satisfied with the results already obtained, and we are praying for a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit to fit us to do more effective work for the Master. The Year in Mexico
By G. W. CAVINESS
The work in Mexico had its beginning in the following manner: A few faithful colporteurs carried our papers to different places. These and other literature created an interest, and in most cases some began to keep the Sabbath before the minister reached the place. As a result, we now have five sections of the country where the work has been faithfully established, and has extended to surrounding districts. These are, in the north, Torreon and Monterey; in the center, San Luis Potosi and Mexico City; and in the south, the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. During the first three months of the present year the work grew rapidly. The increase of tithes and offerings was especially encouraging. We received during this time the sum of $1,000 tithes and $250 offerings, more than ever before in the same length of time. Just then our work was broken up on account of political complications, the workers being ordered out of the field by the American government. Nevertheless the work has gone forward in spite of the great perils through which the workers have passed. Six were recently added to the company of believers by baptism, and twenty-nine participated in the Lord's Supper. More than thirty Catholics are receiving instruction in the Bible. There is a good prospect of an increase of membership there soon. In Monterey about a dozen are awaiting baptism. The work is onward there in spite of the fact that they have been left without help for some time. In both Torreon and Monterey there are calls for help from near-by places. We are planning to station workers in both these places, and expect to see good results in the near future. From San Luis Potosi the work has extended into the country, so that we have small companies in Moctezuma, Matehuala, La Visnaga, Mesquitic, Barbecho, and Tapona. At the last general meeting in the city of San Luis Potosi there were present about one hundred Sabbath keepers. Two laborers are now in that region assisting the brethren. The believers in that part of the country have also suffered because of the revolution , but are of good courage. There are some in most of these places who desire baptism. We have not had definite word from all these places for a number of months, but our workers are going to visit them, and in a short time we shall know what has happened to them during the summer. In Mexico City we find the little place of meeting well filled, and a few have already asked for baptism. After giving them the proper instruction, we expect to baptize them. Down on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec the work is also onward. We have one worker there, and he reports a company of twenty adults, besides youth, raised up in the village of Tonala. We now have more help in our literary and publishing work. It is my intention to spend more of my time in the field, and we believe that we shall soon see a large increase in membership. We need one good evangelistic worker to locate in the southern part of the country. This is a splendid field. The fact that the Lord has kept all our brethren during these years of war causes us to believe that he will still be with his work and will not permit it to be hindered; however, we may expect to do some of our work in times of peril and under very difficult conditions. With about three hundred members and the number continually increasing, and a few good workers, we hope to see the work organized and put into better condition. First Service in the Japanese Field
IN a letter from Brother A. N. Anderson, formerly of California, we are told of first efforts to work among the people while learning the Japanese language. “While I could use but little of the language,” he writes, “I endeavored to encourage the brethren, and thus was able to improve my Japanese somewhat by practice.” He adds:— “A portion of some of the mornings, before the heat of the day, was spent in canvassing for our paper, the Owari No Fukuin (Gospel for the Last Days), and also for “Steps to Christ” in Japanese. I found many persons in the poorer districts living in the most abject squalor and misery. In tiny, damp hovels women were toiling wearily at looms, or eking out a bare subsistence on rice by making fans, envelopes, toys, trinkets, embroidery, and various other cheap articles of merchandise. I urged them to attend the meetings, assuring them that no kane (money) was needed to hear the gospel preached. “Upon entering one of the many hundreds of shrines in the city, I saw a silken-robed, shaven priest ringing a large, deep-toned bell. Trying to put on my best Japanese manners, I approached him with a copy of Owari No Fukuin. He said something which I did not understand, and retired to another room, leaving me standing there at the entrance. After a moment’s puzzling on my part, he returned with the price of the paper in his hand, and said he should be pleased to receive an honorable copy. After that I sold quite a number of papers in temples and shrines. It gave me much pleasure to place copies in the hands of several young novitiates. I suppose the Buddhists and Shintoists branded me as a ‘sheep stealer’ after they found out what manner of doctrine I was representing. But only the Lord of the harvest knows what seeds may fall upon good ground. “The language school starts again soon. I want to make it a good year. The amount to be learned yet before I can speak with freedom seems staggering. But I shall endeavor to put in practice all I learn as soon as possible, and trust the Lord to help me.” LORA CLEMENT
By LORA CLEMENT
Missionary Biography—No. 4
As never before, the eyes of the Christian world are turning to South America, the Neglected Continent of yesterday, the land of abundant promise for today, the continent of opportunity. But the open doors of the present are hinged upon the blood-bought victories of the past, and the servants of the King who enter to gather the fruitage follow in the footsteps of courageous men who, counting all things as loss that the cross of Christ might be uplifted, have cast themselves into the furrow of South America’s great need. Foremost among these stands Allen Gardiner. He was born in England in 1794, and manifested even in childhood the spirit which controlled his later life. When questioned as to why he slept on the floor in place of his bed, he answered that when he grew to be a man he intended to travel around the world, and therefore he wished to accustom himself to hardship. Joining the British navy, he distinguished himself in service and became a lieutenant. The reading of a touching record of his mother’s death, written by his father, led him to give his heart to God, and at the first opportunity he purchased a Bible and began its study. Meanwhile he traveled, and seeing the results of missionary work, especially in Tahiti, became a missionary enthusiast. Later his ship visited South America, and he was inspired with an undying desire to work among the neglected Indians of that continent. Beside the coffin of his wife he solemnly dedicated himself to God’s service. With Allen Gardiner, to resolve was to do. Anxious to serve his Master anywhere, he was glad to improve an opportunity to go to Africa. There, amid a thousand perils, he aided in the establishment of the town of Durban, and gained such an influence over the ferocious Zulu chief, Dingaan, that he was chosen governor of the region now known as Natal. Difficulties between the whites and the Zulus broke up his missionary13labors at last, and he was forced to flee from the country. Undaunted by this experience, Gardiner determined to devote the remainder of his life to pioneer mission work in South America. He landed at Rio de Janeiro in July, 1838, and immediately began a series of indefatigable journeyings and investigations. In all missionary annals no one can more justly claim as his own the apostolic motto, “In journeyings often.” Until his death, in 1851, Captain Gardiner spent his time in extensive missionary travel, visiting repeatedly all parts of the Continent and England, pleading for means with which to establish the mission to which he had given his all. His journeys through the wilds of South America, his encounters with bigoted Catholics and crafty, ungrateful Indians, his labors in the distribution of Bibles, his narrow escapes, his ceaseless energy, leave no doubt regarding his devotion to the work of his choice. “Faint, yet pursuing,” he wrote, “my prayer is that the Lord, my God, may be glorified in me, whether it be by life or death; and that he will, should I fall, raise up and send forth other laborers into this harvest, that his name may be magnified and his kingdom enlarged.” Finally, in company with a surgeon, a catechist, three Cornish fishermen, and a ship carpenter who declared, when volunteering for service, that to be under Captain Gardiner “was like a heaven upon earth, he was such a man of prayer,” the dauntless missionary undertook his last journey in an effort to gain a foothold for Christ among the savages on the bleak coast of Tierra del Fuego. The expedition was inadequately equipped. Gardiner had found it impossible to arouse the interest of the Christian world to the liberality that was required. No one knew better than he did what was absolutely needed for such an enterprise; but rather than abandon the effort, he reluctantly resolved to eliminate necessities, in the self-denying hope that the additional danger and hardship endured would compensate for their absence. Gardiner and his companions secured passage on a ship bound for San Francisco, taking with them two small launches and provisions for six months. On Dec. 18, 1850, the vessel left them at Banner Cove, sailing away with many cheerful messages from the little party to friends at home. Their journals tell the painful story of the next nine months. Misfortunes and disasters followed in quick succession. During a heavy storm an anchor and both small boats for landing were lost. In repairing a leak in one of the launches the terrible discovery was made that their powder and shot had been left on the ship; hence they were without means of obtaining game, upon which they had counted to help out their supplies, and also without defense from attacks of the natives—a constant peril. When they tried to fish, the ice tore their nets to pieces. One of their launches was wrecked, and finally the plundering, hostile natives compelled them to seek shelter in a retired bay known as Spaniard Harbor. They were waiting anxiously for supplies which were to have followed them, but one relief boat was wrecked, and the captain of another disobeyed orders and did not call at Banner Cove. The frightful Fuegian winter began in April, and from the terrific storms of wind and snow the deep caverns in the rocks surrounding their retreat were their only refuge. At length their stores were completely exhausted, but they managed to subsist on limpets, mussels, and wild celery. Scurvy broke out among them, and added its horrors to that of hunger. One by one every member of the brave little party starved to death, Allen Gardiner probably being the last survivor of the band. Some days later help came, “but there were none to help.” Gardiner’s body lay beside a rock upon which was painted a hand pointing to the words found in Ps. 62: 5-7: “My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” Who but a hero could, under the circumstances, write such a confession of faith in his dying hour? Gardiner’s journal, preserved as by a miracle, and his triumphant death accomplished what his life could not bring about. The Christian world roused to her duty, and mission stations were established not only in Tierra del Fuego, but in other parts of the hitherto neglected continent. And the end is not yet. Our southern neighbor is still a mission field. Her people cry from the darkness and superstition of Romanism for a knowledge of the true and living God. The task is great, the laborers comparatively few. It is easy for us to sing as soldiers of the cross, “Like a mighty army moves the church of God;” but does it move? So often we prefer to hug the trenches. Workers no less faithful than Allen Gardiner are calling for recruits at the battle front today. How often they call in vain, and in disappointment pray:— “More than half beaten, but fearless,
Facing the storm and the night;
Breathless and reeling, but tearless,
Here in the lull of the fight,
I bow not but before thee,
God of the fighting clan,
Lifting my fists I implore thee,
Give me the heart of a man!
“What though I live with the winners,
Or perish with those who fall;
Only the cowards are sinners,
Fighting the fight is all.
Strong is my foe—he advances!
Snapped is my blade, O Lord!
See the proud banners and lances!
O, spare me this stub of a sword!” Some time ago Robert E. Speer, while touring in South America, made a trip up the Magdalena River in an old-fashioned stern-wheel boat. It had to stop frequently to take on fresh fuel during the night, and at one point the passengers were awakened as the boat tied up to the shore, and the men ran out the gangway and began to bring on wood. Suddenly there was a sound of a plunging body in the water, a rush of footsteps on the lower deck, and excited voices whispering; then a half-strangled, pitiful cry, “O hombre, hombre!”—literally, O man, man! but truly, also, O brother! O friend!—and then a gurgling sound and a swirl of the brown waters rushing by, and all was still as the boat went sobbing on its way. In the morning it was found that a Colombian soldier who had been sleeping on the unfenced lower deck had rolled off into the water. No one had seen him go; they had heard his cry, but were too late to help him, and the man was gone. “O friend! O brother!” is the cry that is coming from the priest-ridden millions of South America today—an earnest appeal for the things that in Christ we have to give. “O friend!” that voice calls to you. Will it find in you the heart of a friend to reply? A CERTAIN missionary was one day talking with a heathen man. This man said to the missionary: “I go to the place where you worship, but I see nothing of your God. If you come to my temple, I will show you there the god that I worship; but I never see your God. Why don't you show him to me?” “Come here,” said the missionary, stepping out of the house into the open air. It was noonday, and the sun was shining with great power. The missionary pointed up to it and said to the heathen, “Look at yonder sun.” He tried to look at it for a moment; but he instantly turned away his face, and covered his eyes with his hands. “I can't look at that,” he said; “it blinds me.” “Well,” said the missionary, “that sun is only one of the servants of my God. If you can't bear to look at one of his servants, how can you expect to see the Master of that servant, the great God who made him? No sinful man can see God in this world and live.”—Selected. Helping God
By J. R. Miller
A LITTLE girl had been out quite a long while. When she came in at length, her mother asked her where she had been. “In the garden, mother.” “What were you doing in the garden, my dear?” “I was helping God,” the child replied. She explained that she had found a rose almost blossomed, and had blossomed it. She had only ruined the rose. There are many people who try in the same way to help God, and try by schemes of their own to hasten the results.—J. R. Miller. “Over and over the cry is heard,
Come and bring us the saving Word.
Over and over the message rings,
From the loving lips of the King of
kings,
Go and tell them, ’tis my command;
Go and tell them in every land.
And while one soul of the sons of men
Waits for the words from lips or pen,
We who have heard it must tell it again.” MRS. C. C. L
By MRS. C. C. L.
Practical Problems of Home Makers—No. 3
What to Do With Private Troubles
I RECEIVED your kind letter some time ago, and it made me more sorry than ever that I did not see more of you while you were in the place. I am so sorry that you should have spent so many weeks here among us without getting more help and encouragement than you did. I wish now that I had made a greater effort to see you again and encourage and help you. I think it is so hard for those alone in the truth who have opposition to meet, and I deeply sympathize with you in your struggles. I do not want to lose track of you, even if I can do no more than write you a friendly letter occasionally. I shall be very glad to do that, so I hope you will keep me informed of your whereabouts. I trust that you have received the lessons by this time, and that you will be able to go on with your study without further interruption. I have no doubt that there are many things in your life that are hard to bear, and perhaps even if you had told me about them I should have been helpless to make them any easier. However, I can pray for you. There is One who can help, and he is really our Comforter under such circumstances. These private affairs of our lives are beyond the reach of the help of friends. I know that the dear Heavenly Father pities you and sympathizes with you; and if you will be loyal and true to him, he will guide you safely through the trials, and give you grace to bear them. I am glad to hear you say that you are not always unhappy. I am sure you do have some things for which to be thankful, so I hope that by keeping your eye on the promises of God and on the bright spots in your experience, you will be able to keep a cheerful heart. Juvenile Self-Reliance
By Mrs. Allen Moon
SELF-CONTROL is the very foundation of self-reliance, and we have to teach children self-control from their earliest babyhood. Recently I called on my neighbor to see her baby, a child about two weeks old. The mother remarked: “The baby is getting spoiled already; how quickly babies do learn!” It had been ill, and when it cried some one had picked it up and carried it. Babies do learn quickly. If they are taken up every time they cry, they will learn in a very few days that if they want to be taken up, crying is all that is necessary. Many mothers think that when a baby cries, it must be fed immediately. How many times on going into a home one can scarcely find a chair he dares sit on, because of the “pieces” lying about. Sugar and molasses and jelly are much in evidence, and the door knobs are sticky. Now whether the children must have a piece depends upon how they are taught from babyhood. Some children are taught never to eat between meals, and if you offer them something they hardly know what to do with it because it is not time to eat. It is a matter of self-control on the part of both mother and child. How often you find all the sewing machine drawers locked! This must be done because the baby will pull them out and tangle the thread and misplace things. If the little one is taught, even before it begins to walk, to let things alone, this will not be necessary. When the baby starts to walk, there comes to the mother a good chance to teach self-reliance. The baby stands up, tries to take a step, and falls. The mother immediately runs and picks up the child. Why not let it pick itself up? Teach it to do things for itself, and not depend upon others too much; do not teach the child that everything that must be done for it must be done by some one else. If a child gets hurt, instead of running and picking it up the first thing, and comforting it and holding it, let it rely on itself. I do not mean by this that the child should be made to feel turned off or crowded out of the mother’s heart, or that it should not have sympathy, but let it learn that every little hurt does not need to upset the household. When the little one begins to go to school, it is necessary that it should learn self-reliance in the matter of lessons. A child, of course, should have a reasonable amount of help with its lessons; but if the mother helps too much, working problems, writing out exercises, and that sort of thing, during the first grades, there will surely come a time when even the mother’s help cannot carry the child through, and he will be sorely lacking in that essential prerequisite of success, self-reliance. Encourage the child to depend upon himself; to study by himself and work things out alone when possible. Never let him feel that you are not in sympathy with him; make his interests yours, but teach him to lean upon himself as much as possible; in other words, to be self-reliant. Then there is the matter of choosing associates. The parents should be always on the alert, ready to counsel, suggest, and advise; but it will never do to say, “You shall not associate with so-and-so.” Let the children have a chance to choose for themselves, but hold high ideals ever before them; for the harness will surely break some time. In training children we must keep in mind that they must stand alone in the world later in life, and it is our work to prepare them to choose wisely between the good and the evil which they will surely meet in the world, where they must choose for themselves. We must help them to choose the right; to do right because it is right, not from compulsion. I think we ought to teach our children how to handle money. Instead of buying everything for them, we should allow them to handle money, that while still in the home they may get an idea of its value. I do not mean that they should be allowed to spend all they wish. There is a happy medium, and that is what we should find. They can be taught to buy their own shoes, hats, etc. It might be well to start on their pencils, shoe strings, and such things. They need to be taught how to get the most for their money,—something of qualities, prices, etc.,—but should be allowed to buy for themselves. They will soon learn. We should teach our children to love and serve God, and then let them move forward as God leads them. We should counsel and encourage them, rather than force them. I remember attending a certain camp meeting and seeing a crowd gathered around a little fellow in a revival15meeting. He was frightened, really terrified, and was crying bitterly. Some one had talked to his mother, and she was urging him to go forward. Others were also urging him to go, and he was very nervous, and really bewildered as to what it was all about. I believe that was a mistake; and yet we should not go to the other extreme of never saying anything to the children about taking their stand for the Lord. We can teach our children the principles of religion,—they will learn them in a Christian home,—and while we, with the Lord’s help, seek to show them the way of life, we must let the Holy Spirit do the urging. Then when they finally take their stand, they will have a real experience. As the child grows older, the matter of courtship and marriage must receive attention. There is endless sin and misery in this old world of ours as the result of mistakes in these matters. I believe that parents should talk to their children about the real meaning and sacredness of such things, and while striving to guide them aright, let them choose for themselves. A tree that grows in the forest, sheltered by its neighbors from wind and storm, shut in and protected, does not grow so strong and firm of fiber as the tree that grows in an unprotected spot and stands exposed to every blast. That is typical of children. The child that is taught self-reliance and self-control will be able to stand alone when temptation comes. It is a great problem to bring up children,—the greatest in the world,—but it is a blessed privilege, and also a blessed responsibility which God has given to parents; for they can take these little ones before other hands have had a chance to mold them, and can fashion them in such a way that they will be the Lord’s children. If we make this a life study, and seek help from God constantly, we may have the joy of seeing our sons as plants grown up in their youth; and our daughters corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace. See Ps. 144: 12. I FOUND her on the corner,
A maid of three short years;
Her head a mass of tangled curls,
Her blue eyes filled with tears.
“Where do you live, my little maid?”
I fear you’ve wandered far—”
She looked at me and, sobbing, said,
“I live with my mamma.” I took her in my arms and tried
To soothe her childish woe.
“But where does mamma live?” I asked.
“Perhaps the street you know?”
She gazed at me, no sorrow now
The childish face did mar,—
“Why, don’t you know?” she wondering
said;
“She lives with my papa.” “Oh, little maid! Oh, little maid!”
I cried in my despair,
“Your mamma lives with your papa,
And they both live—pray, where?” She tossed the mass of tangled curls
And laughed aloud with glee:
“My mamma lives with my papa,
And they both live with me.” — M. N. S., in Little Folks’ Magazine. Conducted by Mrs. C. C. Lewis, Takoma Park, Washington, D. C
By Mrs. C. C. Lewis
Through the columns of this department, hints will be given on all matters pertaining to the home life. Short articles and letters are solicited from home makers, telling of their everyday experiences,—their joys and sorrows, their failures and successes. New Jersey
By A. R. Sanderson
Our workers’ meeting was held in Newark, November 24-26, with every worker present. We also had with us Elders B. G. Wilkinson and I. D. Richardson. We appreciated very much the instruction given us by Elder Wilkinson, and believe that every laborer in the conference will find it a help in his work. From the very first meeting, the Spirit of the Lord was present in a marked manner. Various topics were considered, prominent among these being the standing of the ministers and other workers before the people. There seemed to be but one desire, and that was to comply with the instruction in the Bible and the Testimonies in order that the ministry might be elevated to a higher plane. Reports were given from nearly every part of the conference, and many calls for help were presented, especially for Paterson, Rockaway, and some places in the southern part of the conference. It was voted to employ a minister and a Bible worker for the city of Paterson and its vicinity, and Brother Mediary was asked to confine his labors exclusively to the missionary work among the churches. An invitation was extended to Brother Barrett, of the Chesapeake Conference, to take the book work in this field. The addition of these laborers brings our force up to twenty-six, which is really more than our conference ought to support, looking at it from a human standpoint. But the calls for help are so definite that we dare not wait any longer, and we are confident that our people in this field will not permit us to go in debt as the result of the added work we are doing. Faithfulness on the part of all will surely bring success for the cause of present truth in this conference. Our churches are becoming thoroughly organized for missionary work. The larger cities are divided into sections, and each section is placed under a competent leader, who has associated with him several members of the church. These are to take charge of distributing War Extras, the Harvest Ingathering REVIEW, and other literature, in their respective territories. It does one’s heart good to see the way the churches are taking hold of this work, and we are sure that it means much to the progress of our message. Thus far this conference has ordered 65,700 of the REVIEW Extra No. 2, and 900 of the Watchman Extra. We have also placed an order for 50,000 of the Slavish-Bohemian War Extra, making a total of 116,600 leaflets telling the people of the times in which we are living. Orders are still coming in. We have placed missionary barrels in the hands of all our people. The contents of these barrels are to go into the Thirteenth Sabbath Offering. We felt that this was a wise thing to do, inasmuch as this thirteenth Sabbath comes right after the Annual Offering, which would make the offering light. But by using the self-denial barrels during the month of December, we shall expect a larger Thirteenth Sabbath Offering than we have ever had. We are expecting much of the blessing of the Lord during the week of prayer, and have planned for our laborers so that each church will receive some ministerial help. The outlook now is that the coming year will be the best that we have ever experienced. Central California Conference
By B. E. BEDDOE
DURING the second and third quarters of this year we have witnessed a new zeal-taking hold of the believers in this conference. A settled conviction that we must hasten the work now possesses members in all our churches. There is a general feeling on the part of our people that we must make a thorough preparation for the end. Six series of meetings have been held in the conference during the season just closing. Sixty-eight persons have been baptized. Two churches have been organized, and another company is now awaiting organization. Three church buildings are in process of erection. At the present time Elders A. S. Booth and E. H. Adams, with a company of laborers, are holding a series of meetings in Bakersfield, one of the largest towns in the San Joaquin Valley. The attendance has been very good, from two to four hundred the first three weeks. Several are accepting the truth. It is too16soon, however, to give a definite report of this meeting. Total book sales for the seven months beginning April 1, amount to $4,493. There have been twelve regular canvassers in the field. Prospects for the future are good, as a number of new agents are expecting to begin work soon. Three new church schools were arranged for this fall, making a total of twelve, with fourteen teachers employed. The total number of pupils enrolled is 240. Two new buildings have been erected, and one new schoolroom has been fitted up for school work. The present number of Young People's Missionary Volunteer Societies is fourteen, with a total membership of 419. There are twelve Junior societies, with a total membership of 227. Offerings to foreign missions by the societies amount to $643.45. Seven Standard of Attainment certificates and forty-four Reading Course certificates have been issued. During the season four new Sabbath schools were organized, making thirty-two schools in this conference, with a membership of 1,156. Offerings to foreign missions for the second and third quarters were $2,158.58. The two Thirteenth Sabbath Offerings amounted to $590.23. Conditions have made impossible a very large increase in tithes. Offerings to foreign missions are steadily increasing. In an unusual way the people are taking hold of the Harvest Ingathering work with the special REVIEW. The blessing of the Lord is surely resting upon his people. They Wait for Us
By WORTHIE HARRIS HOLDEN
They wait for us, with eyes bedimmed with tears,
With anxious brow full-furrowed by the years;
The zealous youth who yearn to do and dare;
And children sighing for true parent care. They wait for us, unconscious of their need,
Not knowing of the Balm for hearts that bleed;
Unmindful ’tis the soul’s great cry for God,
While blindly searching for the path he trod. They wait for us, nor shall they wait in vain,
The reapers hasten ’mongst the ripened grain;
’Tis late,—the day its course has nearly run,—
But we will garner ere the set of sun. PORTLAND.—The membership of the church in Portland, Maine, is seventy-nine. October 5 we all entered into the Harvest Ingathering campaign with a great deal of zeal and enthusiasm, and at the present time we have reached the standard of five dollars a member, and undoubtedly by the time this is read we shall have passed the four-hundred-dollar mark. Sunday night, November 22, the church held a Harvest Ingathering service for missions, the children and young people taking part in the program which was arranged. The church was crowded, and every one seemed to enjoy greatly the special program, “The Story of Twenty Centuries.” The Harvest Ingathering offering taken that night was $105.01. We are all of good courage, and intend to continue the Ingathering work until Jan. 1, 1915. We shall try to reach the five hundred-dollar mark, and hope to pass it. By writing letters and by visiting friends, neighbors, and business men, and telling them about the work and its need at the present time, and soliciting donations, it is wonderful how much can be gathered for the Lord. Pray for us, dear brethren, and let us all work while the day lasts. Week of Prayer in the Philippines
By L. V. FINSTER
WE have just closed our week of prayer in the Philippines. Our seasons are the opposite to those of the States, so we find it more convenient to hold our week of prayer at this time. It being a new service to most of the people, I appointed it at different weeks for the different churches, that I might be present. During the meetings it was very rainy, and I was wet most of the time while traveling from place to place, but the Lord came very near to his people. Many found new experiences with the Lord. Many wrongs were righted, and hearts broken as they sought the complete deliverance. Thus far we have baptized eighty-three from our past summer’s work. The Spirit of the Lord is working on the hearts of men wherever the laborer goes, and the calls are many more than we can fill. The work is progressing well in the new stations that we opened this year. Our brethren are working hard on the language, and already have many believers studying the message from Sabbath to Sabbath. Our church in Manila is taking a very active part in missionary work. The members are selling from 200 to 250 copies of our native paper every month, besides many tracts, and are doing other work for the Lord. Our little printing press is very busy these days, as we are printing a five-thousand edition of a three-hundred-page book, besides the regular work of our thirty-two-page monthly paper. We have also printed many tracts in Tagalog, Cebuan, Panayan, and Ilocano. Our brethren are of good courage, and are working hard for the finishing of the work of the Lord in the earth. Union College Prayer Bands
By Helen Orr
AT Union College the prayer bands play a large part in the daily routine of exercises. It is because Union realizes that her success lies in the degree of actual power which she receives from God that she has been so concerned in organizing and establishing the prayer bands among her students. Prayer truly is the power that moves the arm of God, and the prayer bands are an efficient instrument with which to lay hold of this power. Through sincere prayer one is brought into connection with the mind of the One whose will and word are all-powerful; the finite heart is attuned to the great throbbing heart of the Infinite, and a dull life is lighted up with the sunlight of his presence. Not only is a new vision, a fresh hope, through this means given to the individual day by day, but at the same time he can know that his ways are in the hands of him who can best guide them. The school is, after all, only the individuals in a group, and what applies to one applies to many. George Muller, the founder of the New Orphan Houses, Ashleydown, Bristol,—institutions that have been for many years among the greatest monuments to a prayer-answering God,—established those institutions and maintained them alone through the power and means received in answer to prayer, and God's purpose in them was certainly fulfilled. It is said that he never had a need during the time of his work there but that, having prayed for its supply, he received it. The world abounds in such examples of God's answer to prayer.