p. 14 | Review and Herald, Vol. 87, No. 27. (7/7/1910)

Editorial

By Editor

An Interesting Testimony. — Only a few months before his death, Dr. A. H. Lewis, for many years the leading man among Seventh-day Baptists, wrote an article in which he described the work of Seventh-day Adventists as on the decline. His words surprised many of his own people, and surprisingly pointed protests were forthcoming from some of them, while editorially it was explained that his words had been misunderstood. Over against that last comment on our work, which we never laid up against him, it is interesting to place his first comment, in a letter written to the REVIEW from Wisconsin in 1859. He wrote:—

I commenced reading the REVIEW some three or four years since, for two reasons: I wished to learn something of those who supported it, and advocated its doctrines, and felt willing to receive any new light upon the all-important subject of our lives. Upon the question of the Sabbath I had no inclination to disagree with you, as I had always observed it; other points I did not embrace at once. I thought them quite consistent, yet I never saw them in their true light until, with the Bible for my guide, I sought God in prayer for light to see his truth, and I now bless his holy name that I ever heard the three messages, the counsel of the faithful and true Witness, the immortality of man as brought to light in the Bible, etc., etc. But for meeting with Brother Steward, of Mauston, and the REVIEW when I did, in my boyish incredulity I doubt not but I should long since have renounced the Bible, and now have been attempting to “climb up” by some theory of speculative philosophy; and whatever may be the end of the REVIEW or of Adventism, this far I feel that it stopped me, and brought me back to the sure guide of the world, the Bible.

Extent of the Message. — A question at the close of Dr. Lewis’s letter, and the editor’s answer, are of interest as showing how dimly, as yet, appeared the field of our work to the believers in 1859. Dr. Lewis asked: “Is the third angel’s message being given or to be given except in the United States?” And the editor answered:—

We have no information that the third message is at present being proclaimed in any country besides our own. Analogy would lead us to expect that the proclamation of this message would be co-extensive with the first; though this might not perhaps be necessary to fulfil Rev. 10:11, since our own land is composed of people from almost every nation.

As the cause moved forward, the field of the work enlarged in the vision of the believers. It was seen that the message was to go not only to the few of foreign nationality who were coming to this country, but to the millions of Europe, Asia, Africa, and all the lands and islands of the earth. Only so can the work be finished. It is not for us merely to wait for the peoples of many tribes and tongues to come to us, but, “Go ye into all the world,” is the command of our Captain.

The Word Fulfilling in Earth’s Remotest Bounds

By William Ambrose Spicer

THE last recorded words of Jesus, according to the account in the first of Acts, were, “The uttermost part of the earth.”

The Lord Jesus loved to the uttermost. His heart was ever reaching out with longing for the “other sheep” to be called into the one fold. That is the spirit of the Master, and that spirit in the hearts of his disciples leads them ever out into the earth’s uttermost parts, where also the message must be heard.

In what is clearly a prophecy of the last days, Isaiah cries: “From the uttermost parts of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous.”

Just now I am writing from Finland, which is one of the lands on the uttermost northern border of the earth. And from this uttermost part we hear the songs of praise for the third angel’s message.

It seems like meeting an old friend in a far country to pick up our Finnish hymn-book, and find good old Father Cottrell’s Sabbath hymn,— The God that made the earth, And all the worlds on high,

being sung in the Finnish tongue,— Jumala, joka maan Ja kaikki aineet loi.

And I hear the good old advent hymns that we have loved so long, as, for instance,— Watchman, tell me, does the morning of fair Zion’s glory dawn?—

ringing out in the same familiar tune, but in this Finnish tongue, sung by brethren and sisters on whose faces is written the bright advent hope. The “blessed hope” is the dearest hope on earth to these brethren and sisters. I hear it in their testimonies, as they are translated to me, and I feel it in my heart as the Spirit of God in their words that touches the chord that vibrates in hearts the world over wherever the advent people are found.

It is blessed to find all this spiritual atmosphere of the message and of heaven in this town of Bjorneborg, on the Gulf of Bothnia. About eighty believers have been gathered this Sabbath day of the conference meeting, and the Lord has richly blessed them. The work began in Finland among the Swedish, but about half the believers at the meeting are Finnish. Of fourteen baptized this morning, eleven were Finns. The Swedish believers rejoice to see these Finnish brethren and sisters coming in, for while the providence of the Lord has brought in the truth through the large Swedish population, a strong and a leading element in Finland, the masses of the people speak the Finnish tongue only.

A gray-haired Swedish brother, from Wasa, away north on the Bothnia, said in the meeting this afternoon:—

I prayed for light for years, and now it has come. God answered my prayer. The light came to us from Sweden, and I thanked God for it. But I loved the Finns also, and prayed for them. And now I am so happy as I see the numbers of the Finnish people coming in. There is that Finnish brother standing over there. I am so glad to see him, though I can not talk with him.

The Finnish brother referred to, an elderly man, came down to the meeting from the north country, never having met Seventh-day Adventists before, but having read the truth in our books and papers.

This Finnish tongue is one of the oldest in Europe. That is, it has not been mixed with other languages, as have most of the languages of Europe. Students of the ancient Sanskrit of India, if I remember correctly, claim the Finnish tongue as more nearly related to Sanskrit and the mother tongue of our Aryan race than any of the other tongues of Europe. It seems good to hear the praises to God for the last message in this language, which has been preserved less changed than many from the ancient times when the Aryan race dwelt together on the Asiatic table-lands.

Finland is a rugged, beautiful country, with much stir and business, notwithstanding its northern latitude. Helsingfors, the capital, is as fine a city as one meets with anywhere. It has a church of about sixty believers. We were entertained, in passing through, at the home of the chief of the medical and health department of the city, whose entire family are consecrated, earnest believers in the present truth. From all walks of life, and from amid all circumstances, the believers here are being gathered out.

Here is an earnest sister from an inland

region, the wife of a Lutheran pastor, who comes to the meeting bringing $80 tithe. Years ago, before marriage, she heard of the message in Helsingfors. It made no marked impression. But after some years she lost a child, and in her sorrow turned to seek the Lord for a personal experience. Then, wife of a Lutheran pastor though she was, she remembered the little she had heard of the third angel’s message years before, and wrote to Helsingfors and came in touch with our people, and is now an earnest witness for the truth.

So by many varied paths the Lord has called out these believers in Finland, as in other lands. In these days of the finishing of the work, he is fulfilling his promise:—

'I have long time holden my peace; . . . now will I cry. . . . I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.' Isa. 42:14-16.

Truly now, just now, is the time to work these long-neglected uttermost parts of the earth. The Lord has gone before us. Here is an earnest worker who, five or six years ago, was a militant Socialist in the uprising in Finland against Russia. He had to flee for his life to Scandinavia, and encountered many hardships, but he found the Lord and the third angel’s message in Sweden, and now he is back in Finland, giving his life to the cause of the coming kingdom of Christ Jesus. And here is Brother H. Mikkonen, who went to far San Francisco, found the truth, and returned to labor among the Finnish people. So the Lord is calling the believers and workers in.

The canvassers have been blessed in selling both Swedish and Finnish books. A Finnish brother is with us whose home is exactly on the arctic circle, directly north of the Gulf of Bothnia. In the summer, when there are no roads over which to travel, he engages in salmon fishing; then, in the long winters, when snow and ice make roads for travel, he is out with horse and sledge, placing our books and papers in the homes that line the polar regions.

This is a wonderful work. With our own eyes we are seeing the last message accomplishing the very work of the prophecy. The Lord is coming. The warning cry is ringing out in the uttermost parts of the earth. I thank God for the new courage that comes with what I see and hear and feel among these hearty believers of Finland.

Elder F. Anderson, formerly president of this conference, has been called to take charge of the North Swedish Mission, and Elder L. Mudderspach, of Denmark, who is with us, has been elected to the presidency here. Elder J. C. Raft, the union president, is here; and Dr. A. B. Olsen, of England, also, who has joined in the spiritual work of the meeting, given public health talks, and met with those needing medical advice. Best of all, the Lord has been with the brethren and sisters, and in no field have I enjoyed in any greater measure the fellowship with the Lord and his children of the 'blessed hope.'

W. A. S. Bjorneborg, Finland.

The Triumph of God’s Law

By C. M. S.

OURS has come to be a lawless generation. The lawless element is on the increase. It has been increasing more rapidly since a great portion of the church has been proclaiming the abolition of the law of God.

With the law of God dethroned in the hearts of men, it is not to be supposed that human law would be given a place of great reverence. In fact, we have heard, within recent months, of lawmakers themselves framing laws designed to relieve influential lawbreakers from the penalties of just laws. It is a notorious fact, also, that the execution of human laws is repeatedly interfered with by those who appoint the lawmaking body. There was a time when it was sufficient for a majority of the people to know that such and such things were “against the law.” Now the man with influence or power or wealth who desires to do that which is against law, either sets himself deliberately at work to change the law, or defies the law, and depends upon his power or influence or wealth to enable him to avoid its penalties. And from the example thus set, the common people, consciously or unconsciously, are taking their cue, and learning the lesson of disregarding the law—all law, human and divine.

All this is out of harmony with the teaching and the purpose of the Messiah, who thus declares his design:—

“Then said I, Lo, I am come; In the roll of the Book it is written of me: I delight to do thy will, O my God; Yea, thy law is within my heart.”

His very sacrifice on Calvary showed the immutability of the law of God. Man’s transgression of God’s law made necessary the sacrifice of the Son of God, in order that man might not be required to bear in his own life the penalty of his transgression of that law, which would have been eternal death. Had not Christ stepped in between that broken law and the lawbreaking man, the penalty of eternal death would have fallen upon the transgressor. He did step in with his own life, laid it down as man’s substitute, vindicated the law, and gave man hope.

Then what a perversion of God’s truth and purpose to assert that in this work (performed for the purpose of vindicating the law and also saving man from its penalty) Christ abolished the law of God, and took it away from its place in the government and throne of God! It is a veritable libel on the mission of Christ to this world. Christ declares of himself that he came to do the will of God (expressed in the law), and that that law is within his heart. Men would make him oppose himself and deny himself by declaring that he came for the purpose of abolishing that same law. Truly, the enemy has found quarters within the household.

But this work in opposition to the purpose of God and the law of God was long ago predicted. The prophet Daniel tells us (Dan. 7:25) of a power that would rise up against the work and people of God, and would “think to change the times and the law.” This could not refer to the times and law of men; for they are always changing. It refers to the law of God, against which that power had arrayed its forces.

Paul is referring to the work of that same power when he speaks of the “lawless one” (2 Thess. 2:8, A. R. V.), whose work was made manifest in the early church, and is denominated “the mystery of iniquity.” That spirit of lawlessness was but another name for the “falling away” from the first principles of the gospel. With that falling away there began to be more fully and directly revealed “the man of sin,” “the son of perdition, he that opposeth and exalteth himself against all that is called God or that is worshiped; so that he sitteth in the temple of God, setting himself forth as God.” 2 Thess. 2:3, 4.

This is the same work that the prophet Daniel reveals in the text quoted. It is a God-dishonoring power doing a law-nullifying work. That power was and is the Papacy, and the law which it has sought to nullify is the law of God. That power was established during the “falling away.” It was the “falling away” that made its establishment possible, that opened the door for it to come in and do its work. The church—the very early church—was faithfully warned of the work which that power would do. See 2 Thess. 2:5.

That power arose and did the work predicted. It made alterations in the written law of God, and put the first day in the place of the seventh day, in which work it exalted itself above God. It opposed his work by causing to be put to death the most faithful and conscientious Christians that were then in the world, so that the inspired writer could say of it that it should “wear out the saints of the Most High.”

It is a disappointing fact that a large

part of the professed Protestant world is to-day assisting in that very “lawless” work by proclaiming the abolition of the law of God, and by yielding obedience to that which it has set up in opposition to that commanded in the law of God. It will be disappointing also to those who have taken part in it; for one of the things to be accomplished by the second coming of Christ is the destruction of that law-opposing power. “And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to naught by the manifestation of his coming.” 2 Thess. 2:8. Of those who are redeemed at that time it is said, “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Rev. 14:12.

There are the two classes, the lawless and the law-keeping. The one has been working against God and his law, even while professing his name; the other has professed his name, honored his law, and kept his word. The one is destroyed; the other immortalized. It is of the utmost importance that we know what our true position is in this matter so weighty with eternal possibilities.

The law of God, vindicated in the sacrifice of Christ, will triumph in the persons of his victorious, redeemed people. The law and the people who have honored it have been trampled and will be trampled under the feet of that “lawless” power and its supporters; but in the destruction of the “lawless one” and all he stands for, there will be seen the triumph of the law of God and all it stands for.

C. M. S.

The Educational Convention

By A. G. Daniells

It was my privilege to spend several days with our educational workers who were assembled in convention at Berrien Springs, June 10-20; and it is a pleasure to report to our people my impressions and observations while there.

The place chosen was ideal for such a gathering. The Berrien Springs school is on a fruit farm of two hundred seventy acres, on the bank of the St. Joseph River, far from the bustle and busy life of the world, and yet in close touch with the world, by means of the electric trolleys which run through the school farm each way every hour.

One hundred sixty-five delegates were present, and were entertained by the school. It was certainly a great task for the burden-bearers of the school to receive and entertain such a large company of guests immediately at the close of the school year, when they were weary with their labors, and needed rest. And yet the whole-hearted welcome accorded to all, the promptness and tact with which the guests were located, and the real home comforts and good cheer provided, reflected much credit upon the management of the school.

It was evident from the first that the

delegates did not regard this gathering as a holiday or a picnic recreation. The convention opened promptly at the hour appointed, and the work of the convention proceeded in a harmonious, thorough, hard-working fashion. It was gratifying to see the perfect unity with which the strong educational leaders from all our principal schools united in laying out plans of work, courses of study, and text-books to be used. It was most encouraging also to see that our educational workers had distinctly in mind the work of the third angel’s message, and the equipment necessary to qualify our young people for practical work. In harmony with this conception, special emphasis was given to the development of practical industries, and proper provision for the special lines of study needed to qualify our young people for the specific work of carrying forward the message.

It was interesting to compare the work of this convention with the previous conventions held in College View, Neb., in 1903 and 1906. In 1903 our educational workers came together from their several schools, where they had been working without any general, well-defined system of education. During the entire convention, it was necessary for a few of the most experienced leaders to work untiringly for an educational system based upon sound principles, harmonious and progressive, that could be applied generally throughout the denomination.

That proved to be a valuable meeting to our educational workers, and from that time the educational department has been able to do very effective work. Each convention that has been held has borne good fruit; and now, in 1910, the leaders of the important departments in our principal schools throughout the United States came together with a definite and united purpose, and, without friction and loss of time, did a work which we confidently believe will mark an important era in our educational history. All who were present at the convention seemed cheerful and hopeful, and I judge returned to their fields with renewed courage to press forward.

May the Lord greatly bless these faithful men and women, who are giving their lives to the great work of training our youth for service. Let us uphold them with our sympathy, our co-operation, and our prayers.

A. G. DANIELLS.

The Abdication of the Parent

By F. M. W.

Is the parent abdicating in favor of the child in the matter of family government? This is not an untimely question. The last decade has witnessed a great lessening of parental responsibility, and a marked increase of precociousness on the part of children and youth. W. C. Gannett, a clergyman of Rochester, N. Y., discusses, in Unity, this family relationship. He charges that during the last fifty years “a change has been taking place in this country in the relation between parent and child, which amounts to nothing less than a gradual abdication of the parent.” This change vitally affects the mental and religious training, and the choice of companions. The mental training has been surrendered to the teachers of the day-school. The child’s religious training, Mr. Gannett believes, has been surrendered to the Sunday-school teachers, who often, instead of being persons of mature years, are earnest but inexperienced girls. He says:—

Time was when these things were not so. Time was, indeed, and not so very far back, when there was no Sunday-school in existence, endeavoring to better the home. Time was when prayer, hymn, Bible-reading, grace at the table, churchgoing as the elders’ Sunday habit, were parts of the household life, the practise and the expression of the religious sense pervading it,—each and all having influence, half unconscious, half conscious, on the children’s heart and life; and when the parents felt responsibility for the religiousness—call it the “reverence”—as well as for the honesty and kindness and courtesy and the reading and writing and arithmetic of those children. For good or for ill, or for both, these old-time customs have all but died out, and nothing yet in the modern home has risen to take their place. The parents have abdicated.

Of the abdication of the parent in allowing the child to choose his own companions, Mr. Gannett says:—

Are the little school-friendships watched, guided, taken in charge, by the two trustees at home,—to be discouraged and checked perhaps, to be welcomed and fostered perhaps, as they deem it best for the half-grown babies? Entrance into the high school,—is it synonymous with entrance into ‘club’ life for the little men and women? and is it school or the club, study or the play, that seems to be the side-show as one catches the talk of the boys and girls? The party-going, the theater-going,—does parental common sense, with firm yea and nay, or does the child’s wish for ‘doing what all the others are doing,’ regulate the frequency of it, and the hours of coming and going, and the degree of grown-upishness? The real ‘social center’ for children of 1910,—is it still the home? The prime confidants, the closest comrades through the adolescent years,—are they still mother and father? Vital questions, the child’s career a few years later depending much on the answers. And here again the all-too-true word for many and many a parent is—abdication.

The New York Independent, in commenting on what it calls this “thoughtful” article, cites the fact that as parental responsibility has declined, there has been a growing interest in such fads as “Child Study,” “Child Science,” “Child Protection,” “Child Legislation,” and “child welfare” in general, and adds:—

We can’t help thinking that “the start in life” that a child got in an old-time group of brothers and sisters quickened its perceptive faculties and its motor centers quite as well as a kindergarten awakens them; and we venture to doubt whether any real substitute has yet been found for the moral training which a child gets from even an “ordinary” father or mother.

Similarly, the New York Tribune speaks of this spirit of parental irresponsibility:—

It is disheartening, too, that to an alarming extent parental control of children has been relaxed, if not altogether abandoned, and responsibility not only for technical instruction, but also for moral culture and general discipline, has been shifted from the home to the school, . . .

The laws of nature are not to be disregarded with impunity, and there is probably none of them more imperative or more inexorable in its exaction of penalties for its violation than that which prescribes parental care for, and control of, children, and dutiful subjection of children to their parents. No satisfactory substitute for that relationship has yet been found.

In the catalogue of sins especially prominent in the church of God in the last days, as given by the apostle Paul, is that of disobedience to parents. Sad it is that this condition exists, that we see so many boys and girls coming up with but little if any restraining influence. Were time to continue, it would be sad to contemplate the moral status of the next generation. To those engaged in this last great movement, these conditions should appeal with special emphasis. Every Seventh-day-Adventist parent should seek to know his duty in relation to the children God has entrusted to his care and training. What account will these parents render in the day of final judgment? How shall we answer for the souls of our children, if, through our indifference or neglect, they are left without a hope in Jesus Christ? The closing message has as a part of its work the turning of the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers. May this be its result in the home of every believer in this message.

F. M. W.

What Catholicism Is

EARTH'S history has never presented a system so complex in its character, so far-reaching in its influence, and so marvelous in its workings, as that represented by the Papacy. This is forcibly expressed by Lecky in the second chapter of his “England in the Eighteenth Century,” as quoted by the Christian Advocate of June 16. He says:—

Catholicism never can be looked upon merely as a religion. It is a great and highly organized kingdom, recognizing no geographical frontiers, governed by a foreign sovereign, pervading temporal politics with its manifold influence, and attracting to itself much of the enthusiasm which would otherwise flow in national channels. The intimate correspondence between its priests in many lands, the disciplined unity of their political action, the almost absolute authority they exercise over large classes, and their usually almost complete detachment from national and patriotic interests, have often in critical times proved a most serious political danger; and they have sometimes pursued a temporal policy eminently aggressive, sanguinary, unscrupulous, and ambitious.

There is a marked tendency in these days of religious sentimentalism to forget the history of the past, and to accept the flattery and cajolery of the great Catholic system of error, believing that it has really experienced a change of heart, and holds different principles today than it has held in centuries gone by. The Word of God, however, presents it as the same mystery of iniquity and man of sin down to the very end of time.

On the quotation given above the Advocate adds this pertinent comment:—

These are not the words of a Protestant fanatic, but of one of the most unprejudiced of historians. They were not written in the reign of William and Mary, but in the liberal days of Victoria. They are the sober judgment of one of the sanest students of civilization. They are commended to the thoughtful attention of those Americans who are in danger of being lulled or cajoled into forgetfulness of the plain warnings of the past.

Note and Comment

Perpetuity of the Law

UNDER the heading, “A Question of Authority,” Rev. R. L. Hay, in the United Presbyterian of June 16, says this of the character and perpetuity of the law of ten commandments:—

The Christian world has always believed, and still believes, that these ten fundamental principles of moral conduct have eternal, divine sanction. Whoever by word or deed does aught to weaken their authority over the human conscience, strikes a blow both at religion and at the very foundation of society.

In speaking of the law given at Sinai, he says:—

Was the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” without divine authority or eternal sanction previous to that date? Did men steal, and lie, and dishonor their parents, and blaspheme God’s name before that time, without any consciousness of wrong-doing, or any suspicion that moral laws of divine authority were being violated? It will scarcely be claimed that these principles of conduct were not recognized, with some degree of clearness at least, both by the Hebrews and by other people, as having divine authority, before Moses led his people to the sacred mount.

Edward, the Peacemaker

The title of peacemaker has been quite generally accredited to the late King Edward of England. But according to the Nation, June 16, the London Economist takes exception to this title, and shows by some interesting statistics the extent to which, during the last decade, England has expended money for naval armament:—

While Great Britain's naval expenditure has risen from £15,600,000 in 1890 to £40,600,000 in 1910, that of Germany has advanced from £3,600,000 in 1890 to £17,400,000 in 1908, and that of the United States from £4,100,000 in 1890 to £23,600,000 in 1908. Thus British naval expenditure was two and one-half times as great in 1910 as it had been twenty years before; while in Germany the outlay had been nearly quintupled in eighteen years beginning with the same date, and in the United States, in the same time, nearly sextupled.

Peace—Yet Arm to the Teeth

By J. N. Q.

WHEN the hosts of evil are at work inspiring nations with the war spirit, they at the same time seek to cover their purposes by a peace-and-safety cry. Bishop Joseph G. Hartzell, of Africa, in a recent address in Washington, dwelling upon the present extensive armament of the nations, said:—

In spite of this increase in armaments that is bothering the world, there was never a time in history when the nations were so completely friendly, when there was such perfect amity, as now. The world is in a great bond of friendship, and the United States crosses hands with Great Britain to lead the earth in friendship.

Bishop Honda, representing the Orient at the World's Sunday-school Convention, confessed that Japan must stand hostile in Asia, but added that “she is merely complying with the demands of fashion in increasing her armaments.”

A big army and navy, we must admit, are necessary evils. There is something in the doctrine of armed peace, and there is no nation on the face of the globe that wants peace more than my land of Nippon.

Surely the cry of peace and safety is to be heard everywhere; “sudden destruction” is what God says is to be experienced. This will be the sad ending of it all.

J. N. Q.

The Value of Wisdom

“Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies.”

California-Nevada Conference

By Stephen Nelson Haskell

The first camp-meeting of the season in the California-Nevada Conference was held in Sacramento from May 26 to June 5. It was only a local camp-meeting, but we were favored by having Brethren A. G. Daniells, H. R. Salisbury, and F. C. Gilbert with us, and their labors were greatly appreciated.

As far as possible we try to carry out the following instruction in our camp-meetings: “Properly conducted, the camp-meeting is a school where pastors, elders, and deacons can learn to do more perfect work for the Master. It should be a school where members of the church, old and young, are given opportunity to learn the way of the Lord more perfectly, a place where believers can receive an education that will help them to help others. . . . The best help that ministers can give the members of our churches is not sermonizing, but planning work for them. Give each one something to do for others. Help all to see that, as receivers of the grace of Christ, they are under obligation to work for him. Let all be taught how to work.”

The early morning hour from six to seven o’clock was given to Bible study. Subjects were studied that were “calculated to explain the past advent movement, and show what our present position is; establish the faith of the doubting, and give certainty to the glorious future.” These early morning Bible studies always draw a larger audience of the campers than any other meeting.

The hour from nine to ten each day was devoted to missionary work. A portion of the hour was occupied in reports from the librarians of the churches represented, and during the remainder of the time, instruction was given in missionary work. A number of the churches had been doing systematic work with tracts and papers, and had reports worth hearing. Usually these missionary meetings closed with the people coming forward and purchasing literature to carry to their homes. Some special phase of missionary work was taken up at each meeting. One day the work among the Chinese and Japanese was considered, and a large quantity of Japanese and Chinese literature was purchased. Another day the work that could be done with our periodicals was the theme; and after reports of work done, and instruction in regard to the importance and possibilities of this work, several hundred copies of the Signs of the Times Monthly and the Watchman were purchased.

Often while listening to such instruction, many resolve to go to work. If the material with which to work is offered to them in the meeting, they will buy and use it; but if they have to go to the book-stand to purchase, they wait, and often go home without a supply, and so never carry out their resolution.

Special rates were given on our books, according to the instruction given in “Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. IX, pages 71, 72; and, just as stated there, “because books were being sold at low prices, some being especially reduced for the occasion, many were purchased, and some by persons not of our faith. They said: ‘It must be that these books contain a message for us. These people are willing to make sacrifices in order that we may have them, and we will secure them for ourselves and our friends.’”

At the close of our missionary meeting held the last day of the camp, we offered “Practical Guide to Health,” “Thoughts on Daniel and the Revelation,” “Bible Readings for the Home Circle” (all in cloth binding), with “Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing” (gilt edges), for $5. In a few minutes thirty-five sets were taken, and several other sets were taken from the book-stand later in the day. A number of sets were purchased for public libraries in surrounding cities and towns.

The sale of literature during the camp-meeting and workers’ institute was as follows: Bibles, $121.05; subscription books, $719.60; trade books, $78.85; tracts, $125.77; magazines, $520.80; subscriptions taken, $47.25,—making a total of $1,613.32.

Two hours each day was devoted to practical instruction on questions of health. From 4:30 to 5:30 P. M. instruction on health topics was given in the large tent; and from 5:30 to 6:30 a class in home nursing was held.

The blessing of the Lord was present during this meeting. The Lord came especially near during the Sabbath services, and both Sabbaths were seasons of special refreshing. The camp-meeting was followed by a workers’ institute of ten days, during which instruction was given in different lines of missionary work. Especial attention was given to the book work, and from the institute a number of workers entered the field to canvass for books. A good force also entered the field with our different periodicals.

We have appointments out for two other local camp-meetings this year besides our general camp-meeting. We hope for a rich blessing from the Lord of the harvest. S. N. HASKELL.

Canal Zone

By N. C. Thornton

Early in January, a Missionary Volunteer Society was organized at Mount Hope, Canal Zone. Mount Hope is a small town about two miles from Cristobal, the Atlantic entrance to the canal. This society was organized for the express purpose of service, and the Lord has richly blessed the efforts of all who have taken an active part in it.

Thinking that more effective work could be done by the circulation of our magazines than in any other way, the society decided to take two hundred copies of the Caribbean Watchman for February. In less than a week these papers had been disposed of, and more were ordered. Before the end of the month the society had sold over five hundred copies, and all were greatly encouraged and eager to push on.

During the month of March the society sold 857 copies of the Caribbean Watchman, 135 copies of El Centinela de la Verdad (our Spanish paper, which is published at Cristobal), twenty-five copies of the Signs of the Times Monthly, twenty-five copies of the Southern Watchman, and fifty-one copies of the New-year's special number of our Chinese periodical, Signs of the Times. Also during this month the society paid the fare of five of our members to Panama City, where they went to engage in the canvassing work with our magazines and books. From these brethren we have had some excellent reports since they took up their work in Panama.

For April the society has taken 770

copies of the Caribbean Watchman, which we are now selling. The decrease in this order from that of last month was caused largely by the absence of the five members who are in Panama City.

We are planning to give a temperance program some time about the last of April. One can not conceive of a place needing temperance work more than this, and we hope that a live temperance program will awaken an interest.

Many excellent experiences with the papers are reported. One brother and his wife started out one Sunday morning about half-past ten o'clock, walked four miles to the town of Gatun, sold 104 papers, and returned home before night. Another member sold in the streets of Colon, forty-three copies of the Caribbean Watchman and fifteen of El Centinela in about one and one-half hours one Saturday night. Still another sold twenty-five copies of the Caribbean Watchman one Saturday night.

While as yet we have seen no direct fruit from the labors of the society, we remember and claim the promise that if we cast our bread upon the waters, we shall find it after many days. The people are eager to buy the papers, and we feel sure that they are read not only by the buyers but by other members of their families.

With the exception of myself, all the members of the society are West Indians, and most of our papers are sold to West Indians. There are many true souls here, and we are endeavoring to search them out, and do what we can for them, trusting the rest to God.

N. C. THORNTON.

Be Swift

Be swift, dear heart, in loving! The time is brief, And thou mayest all too soon, along life's highway, Keep step with grief.

Be swift, dear heart, in saying The kindly word: When ears are sealed, thy wild, impassioned pleading Will not be heard.

Be swift, dear heart, in doing The gracious deed, Lest soon they whom in life thou holdest dearest Be past the need.

Be swift, dear heart, in giving The rare, sweet flower, Nor wait to heap with blossoms fair the casket In some sad hour.

Dear heart, be swift in loving! Time speedeth on, And all thy chance of blessed, blessing service Will soon be gone.

— Selected.

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