There seems to be growing up about us a generation of new-fashioned girls,—girls who are transformed from wee lassies into women almost “while you wait.”
From their earliest days they are urged onward toward womanhood. Their mental education is pushed to the neglect of their physical training. It is no uncommon thing to see girls ranging from eleven to fourteen years of age poring over French grammar or Latin translations. They are burdened with “home studies” night after night. Then besides their regular education there are the accomplishments—the piano, or perhaps the violin, with several hours’ practice daily; yes, and social obligations. Little girls scarcely old enough to go to school attend parties, matinees, and other social gatherings, being dressed so elaborately on these occasions that they remind one more of fashion-plate figures than of real flesh-and-blood girls.
If the girl has any leisure time after meeting all the foregoing obligations, she usually spends it in reading. And what class of books does she (not her mother) select?—Not simple, childish tales nor standard works of real worth, but most often cheap novels and romances which tend to give her false notions of life.
The girl is so absorbed in all these things that she has little or no time for that domestic training once considered of more value to girls than book learning. The work in her home is done either by servants or by her long-suffering mother, who excuses her daughter’s lack of interest in home affairs on the ground that her education demands all her time and thought.
What is the result of this system of training?—Girls who are educated; but educated for what? For home making with its domestic duties, for motherhood with its thousand cares?—No, certainly not. The result is girls (if they survive the process of training) who can play on the piano, sing, paint, speak French, but who could not, if their lives depended on it, bake a loaf of good bread, make a frock, or even neatly darn a sock.
There are many who openly admire these new-fashioned girls, but who, down deep in their hearts, cherish a longing for the return of the old-fashioned girls,—the girls who, though perhaps not so brilliant as their sisters, always shed brightness in the home; the girls who, though not so well versed in Latin or French, are well versed in the simple arts of home making. It is all a matter of education and training. Girls cannot be expected to make good wives and mothers unless from earliest childhood they are taught by precept and example the science and art of home making. Sensible mothers will encourage their little daughters to share the responsibilities of the home. They will patiently and lovingly teach them all that is to be known about the proper care of the house, the preparation of wholesome and palatable food, and the making of their own garments.
This instruction will all be given in such a way as to be a pleasure, not a burden, to the little housekeepers. They will be shown exactly how a thing should be done, then encouraged when they fail, or commended when they succeed. Proper recreation will be alternated with work, as “all work and no play” seems to result as unsatisfactorily for his sister as for Jack.
The writer is acquainted with a family of girls who are now in homes of their own, and real, old-fashioned housewives they are. Besides attending to the ordinary household duties, these young women do all their own sewing, from the simplest undergarment to their smartest frocks. “How did you learn to cut and fit and finish so nicely?” was asked. “Oh, we learned it all through dressing our dolls, when little girls at home!” they replied. Their mother was one of those wise teachers who knew how to make her teaching attractive. Each little daughter was given a work-basket, completely furnished, also dainty materials which she was free to use as she wished. With their mother’s help and suggestion, these girls learned to make all sorts of pretty things for their dolls. Then gradually, little by little, they were encouraged to make simple garments for themselves, and then the more complicated ones, until finally they were able to fashion all their own clothing, and they gloried in it.
Every woman who is the mother of daughters should feel it a sacred responsibility to give them, in addition to what is commonly called a “good education,” such a training in domestic sciences as will fit them for the duties of wifehood and motherhood. Daughters thus trained will one day rise up and call their mothers blessed.
Proper Clothing for the Winter
By D. H. KRESS, M. D.
D. H. KRESS, M. D.
THE temperature of the blood when it reaches the skin is found to be about 98.4° F., in a person who is in good health. The temperature of the liver, stomach, and other internal organs where oxidation is most active, is several degrees higher. The healthy action of digestion and nutrition depends largely upon the maintenance of normal temperature of the internal organs. When the temperature becomes high, as in simple fevers, the mouth becomes dry; the secretions on which the digestion of food depends are diminished. Indigestion results if food is taken.
The internal temperature is largely controlled by external impressions of heat and cold. The skin has innumerable small blood vessels running through it, so fine that they can scarcely be seen by the naked eye, and so close together that it is impossible to prick the skin at any point without striking one of these minute structures and drawing blood. Each one of these small capillaries or blood vessels has a small nerve accompanying it, which is connected with the great sympathetic nervous system through which the blood supply is regulated.
The blood coming from the internal organs to the skin naturally gives off some of its heat, then it returns and cools the viscera. Impressions of heat cause the peripheral vessels to dilate, thus permitting a greater volume of blood to come to the surface for cooling. Impressions of cold upon the skin cause a contraction of the surface vessels in order to maintain the normal internal temperature. Whether a person lives in the cold arctic region or in the intense heat of the tropics, the temperature of the body internally is practically about the same.
Sudden and violent changes of external impressions, while they are less likely to harm the one who keeps his blood pure, should be avoided, as a rule. This is15done through the agency of clothing. To protect the first pair from the sudden changes in temperature which they were compelled to encounter after they were driven from Eden, the record tells us that the Lord made them coats of skins, and clothed them.
Animal wool is the most natural covering for the skin in cold weather. Being a nonconductor, it prevents the heat of the body from passing off too quickly, thus preventing chilliness. While all woolen garments absorb moisture from the skin, they do not absorb it into their fiber. If loosely woven, they allow the moisture from the skin to pass off without producing external chilliness or internal congestion.
Linen and cotton take up the moisture from the body in a similar way that blotting paper absorbs ink. The moisture is absorbed into the actual fiber. Being good conductors, evaporation takes place quickly. When exposed to a draft or sudden change in temperature while perspiring, the surface of the body is likely to become chilled. Congestion of the internal organs may be produced. This frequently results in disturbance of the function of every cell of the body.
An unbalanced circulation is associated with all human ills, and to equalize the circulation is one of the purposes of all treatments. But while treatments may accomplish this, the causes of the disturbed and unbalanced circulation must be removed also. Proper clothing of the body, and especially of those parts most remote from the heart, must therefore receive attention. During the cold weather the feet and legs should especially be kept warm. Much of the pain suffered by young women, and many of the pelvic disorders that are becoming so common, are due to the congestion of these organs, resulting from wearing low, thin-soled shoes and thin stockings. Colds in children can usually be prevented by giving a little extra care to the proper clothing of their legs and feet.
I’d Like to Go
By Eugene Field
It seems to me I’d like to go
Where bells don’t ring nor whistles blow,
Nor clocks don’t strike, nor gongs don’t sound,
And I’d have stillness all around —
Not real stillness, but just the trees’
Low whispering, or the hum of bees,
Or brooks’ faint babbling over stones
In strangely, softly tangled tones;
Or maybe the cricket or katydid,
Or the songs of birds in the hedges hid,
Or just some such sweet sounds as these
To fill a tired heart with ease.
If ’tweren’t for sight and sound and smell,
I’d like the city pretty well;
But when it comes to getting rest,
I like the country lots the best.
Sometimes it seems to me I must
Just quit the city’s din and dust
And get out where the sky is blue —
And, say, how does it seem to you?
— Eugene Field.
The Home Department
By Mrs. C. C. Lewis
Conducted by Mrs. C. C. Lewis, Takoma Park, Washington, D. C.
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.
How to Economize
By N. Z. TOWN
Housekeeping for War Time
One-Course Meals
N. Z. TOWN
WHEN the European war started, one of the London daily papers published an article, under the above heading, on the importance of economizing in view of the conditions which the war would bring. Among other things, it says:—
“The first step to be taken in meeting the household hardships about to be laid upon every man, woman, and child in the country by this war, is to scrap most of our housekeeping commonplaces, from bacon and eggs for breakfast upward. If we all started with a clean slate, and without reference to past habits tried how simply we could live, most of us could go through a long period of warfare with little loss of money and none of health.
“It has become a patriotic duty as well as a wise precaution to reduce expenditure all around, to jettison luxury in money, food, fuel, and the rest. It immediately becomes a scientific problem, and it will be one of increasing difficulty.
“Importance of Scraps”
“The vegetable salts thrown away in the water from the saucepan, the good nutriment that escapes from potatoes if not cooked in their skins, the outer part of the wheat disregarded in making white flour, the wastage of bread scraps and vegetable scraps now disregarded, all acquire new importance. So out of doors it now becomes a crime for the gardener to practice his usual habit of throwing away tiny carrots and potatoes, or of pulling up peas and beans while they still have pods, even though the pods be old. It is to be remembered that peas and beans, even when dried, are as close and satisfying a food as meat.
“As to meals in general, the advice given by a famous doctor in the Franco-German War is worth remembering. He recommended one-course meals, especially for children and those over forty; and his advice may especially touch those who have now a houseful of children.
“The one-course meal, conservative cookery which throws nothing away and keeps a full stock pot, and an eagle eye for all waste, will in many households reduce expenses beyond all expectation. And housekeepers will find, perhaps to their surprise, that economy and simple meals become a game into which the whole household enters with zest, and from which it is likely to emerge with improved health.
“Bread should not be served when fresh, but be kept until stale, when it will be more digestible and less wasteful, and every scrap can be utilized for nursery puddings. Jam instead of butter should be served on the children’s tea table; not the two together. Soup made of lentils and dried peas will be a resource, and in every case great care should be taken over the flavoring of it and of other dishes. Vegetables dressed in different ways are an excellent resource and very good for the health. Every effort should be made to save fuel.
“The forgotten art of walking is a fruitful way of economy for a very large part of the community. The absence of ready money in the pocket is already teaching this lesson.”
In another paper we read “that since the war began, the authorities in Paris have forbidden the making of all cakes, pastries, and candies in Paris, allowing only the making of the plainest white and brown bread.”
From correspondence received from some of our workers we learn how they also are having to face this problem. Elder J. T. Boettcher sends the following word from Russia:—
“Formerly we received appropriations from the division conference for Siberia, Turkestan, and Transcaucasia; but since the war began, we are cut off from our head office, and have to look after our own affairs. We cannot get as much as a letter from headquarters. Owing to these conditions, we have been obliged to cut down the wages of all the ministers and licentiates one third. If our income keeps up to what it has been in time of peace, we can carry ourselves in this way; but you know how hard it is to come down one third with the winter before the door; but we did not know what else to do. We did not like to discharge some of our workers at the expense of others, so we shall suffer together like good Christian soldiers. A number of our workers have been taken into the army, and not a few of the brethren are in the war. We have to help their families as much as possible, as they all look to us for help. You may know, my brother, that we have to count the pennies as never before. I do not know how the tithe will come in this quarter. If it should be very much short, our brethren in the States would have to help us out; but I am in hopes we can pull through.”
Although not directly involved in the war, our brethren in the South American fields are feeling very keenly its effects. Those who had deposits of money in the banks have been allowed to draw only from five to ten per cent of their deposits monthly. Elder E. L. Maxwell writes as follows from Peru:—
“Financial matters here are in a terrible way. Peru has been placed on an unguaranteed paper money basis as a result of the war. As a direct result, goods have advanced 150 per cent, so that reasonable living is now out of the question for us missionaries. We are compelled to buy third-class food, and are patching our clothes to make them last as long as possible. I do not know what we shall do when those we have are gone.
“The government has closed all the primary schools, and reduced the salaries of all the inferior public employees.
“We have had no sickness thus far, and we are hoping to be spared the experience, for there will be nothing with which to pay the doctor. The fact is, having broken my glasses, I am getting along without them; and wife, whose teeth are sadly wrecked, is doing the best she can, as we cannot get the money to pay for new teeth. However, we mean to ‘fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer.’”
Should not these extracts from the daily press showing how people of the world plan to economize to meet the war situation, and the experiences of our own workers showing how keenly some of them are feeling the financial restrictions which the war has brought, lead us who are more favorably situated to curtail all unnecessary expense and to save in every way possible in order to help liberally in the finishing of God’s work in the earth? If we would learn to live as simply in this country as our brethren do in Europe even in times of peace, we might save thousands of dollars, and be better off healthwise than we now are. By giving a little careful thought to the matter, we shall find we are able to dispense with many things16which are not necessary to our comfort or happiness. If we learn to economize now, it will not come so hard a little later when troublesome times reach this country.
The Week of Prayer at College View, Nebr.
By R. A. UNDERWOOD.
WE have just passed through a most precious season of refreshing and blessing during the week of prayer here, in connection with the College View church and the several institutions in this place. We had hoped to receive some assistance from the North American Division at this time, in view of the fact that the largest college of the denomination, a sanitarium, the International Publishing Association, and the work for the blind, besides a large church, are centered here. In this we were disappointed; however, those of us on the ground, at the very beginning, organized the work so that many shared the responsibilities in carrying forward the work of seeking the Lord during the entire week.
Elder W. F. Kennedy, the pastor of the church, and the writer largely took the responsibility of conducting the services to be held in the church building. Prof. H. A. Morrison and Elder J. W. Christian, assisted by other members of the faculty, took the larger responsibility of conducting the services at the college. Brother F. F. Byington, the business manager of the International Publishing Association, with such assistants as he secured, took charge of the services at the publishing house. The sanitarium was also organized, and Brother Castle, the business manager, and such helpers as he could secure, looked after the meetings in that institution. Services were conducted daily. In the college two periods were set apart for meetings, Elder Christian occupying one of those each day, except two days when he was called away. Each day one meeting was held in connection with the International Publishing Association and one in connection with the sanitarium. The church held three meetings each day. The general meeting was conducted at 3 P. M., at 6:45 a parents' meeting was held in the auditorium, and at 7:45 a preaching service. Prof. W. W. Ruble had charge of the junior class, with whom he conducted a service each day; he also held a meeting at 4:30 P. M. in the church.
From the beginning of the week of prayer, some began in earnest to seek the Lord. Difficulties between brethren were adjusted, confessions were made, and heart searching was the result of earnest prayer to God. Dr. P. T. Magan visited College View on his return from attending the funeral of Brother Peterson, in Iowa, and gave a most timely discourse to a very large audience on Wednesday evening, on the meaning of the present European war.
At different periods there were revival meetings conducted, when a goodly number sought the Lord. On at least two occasions, in the college fifty or sixty of the students came forward, and made a complete and full surrender to the Lord. Among these were those who had never given their hearts to God. The closing Sabbath was a good day for those in the large congregation. During the forenoon service, an invitation for consecration to the Lord was responded to by nearly all in the congregation. In the afternoon the revival effort was continued. From the work during the week, a number had signified their desire for baptism. After the reading and an earnest appeal by Elder Christian, seventy-five or eighty persons retired to one of the vestries to seek the Lord by themselves. While this meeting was in progress, with a few of us present to assist those seeking the Lord, Elder Kennedy baptized sixteen persons who had previously found freedom and liberty in the Lord. Others will soon follow their Lord in baptism as a result of the meetings during the week of prayer.
The entire contribution for the Annual Offering by the church was $731.30 in cash. Many will date from this time an advance experience, as a result of this week of prayer and consecration. We trust that the good work already begun in the college and in the church will continue until all hearts have fully surrendered to the Lord.
R. A. UNDERWOOD.
Week of Prayer at Mount Vernon Academy
By E. G. SALISBURY
THE week of prayer in this school was a means of great spiritual uplift to us. Our student body might be considered unusual in this respect, that nearly all the students were converted before coming to school. One year ago there were thirty-five baptisms following the week of prayer, and many of the students who were baptized then are with us this year, so we found there were perhaps not more than six or eight students in the school who had not already been baptized. The spiritual tone of the school needed to be uplifted, and we were looking forward with hope to this week.
We were especially favored by having Elder Evans with us for the first four days of the week of prayer. His work among the students was of incalculable value. The last two days of the week Professor Wilkinson was with us. We are not prepared to state at the present time just how many baptisms may be gleaned from this week's work, but the closing day we took five young persons through the gateway of baptism into the church, and we hope that all others who are not members of the church may follow.
On Friday morning at our revival service, every student gave his heart to the Lord, either for the first time or as an evidence of reconsecration.
The Harvest Ingathering
The day before Thanksgiving was given by the school to the work of the Harvest Ingathering, in which the students and teachers went out into Mount Vernon and secured donations to the17amount of thirty-eight dollars. In the afternoon of the same day the students distributed fifty baskets for Thanksgiving dinners, among the poor families in the city. The day was made a day of giving as well as receiving. In all their work our students had especially in mind the finding of those with whom the Bible workers' and ministerial bands might labor during the year. We believe that the day was very profitably spent. The annual offering amounted to $55.92.
E. G. SALISBURY, Principal.
Giving Our Best to Prayer
THERE is no other activity in life so important as that of prayer. Every other activity depends upon prayer for its best efficiency. And not our activities only, but the very condition and attitude of our whole being, are determined by our prayer life. How important it is, then, that prayer should get our first attention and our best attention! The safest way to insure this would seem to be by keeping the morning watch; giving regular and ample time to prayer at the very beginning of the day, before breakfast, and before taking up the day's duties. The practice has been wonderfully blessed in many lives. It can revolutionize lives at the points of their greatest weakness,—not the morning watch, but Christ through the morning watch.
To give from half an hour to an hour at the start of the day to a quiet time alone with God, feeding on his Word under the guidance of his Holy Spirit, and talking freely with him about his work and the needs of the day,—our needs and others’ needs,—sends one forth into the day from the very courts of heaven. All day long we may, in Christ’s strength, live in the blessing that was thus won at the start. And we shall pray the more through the day, and at nighttime, because of the morning time alone with God. The pressure of other duties only increases the need of prayer at the start. In the midst of one of his most crowded seasons of activity, Jesus “in the morning, rising up a great while before day, . . . departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” If life has been barren or defeated, let us give this remedy a fair trial.—The Sunday School Times.
Mother's Boy
SOMETIMES in the hush of the evening
hour
When the shadows creep from the
west,
I think of the twilight songs you sang,
And the boy you lulled to rest.—
The wee little boy with the tousled head
That so long ago was thine,
I wonder if sometimes you long for that
boy,
O little mother of mine!
And now he has come to man's estate,
Grown stalwart in body, and strong,
And you'd hardly know that he was the
lad
Whom you lulled with your slumber
song.
The years have altered the form and the
life,
But his heart is unchanged by time,
And still he is only thy boy as of old,
O little mother of mine!
— Wesleyan Literary Monthly.
The Way of the Transgressor
“NEVER forget that the way of the transgressor ends in sorrow.”
Giving the Message to the Jewish People
By F. C. Gilbert
ALTHOUGH for some time no report has been given through the REVIEW of the work among the Jewish people, I am glad to tell our brethren and sisters that the work is making some progress. This Jewish problem is a very hard and perplexing one, yet we know that the power of the Holy Spirit is more than equal to the perplexities involved in overcoming this difficult task. It should be borne in mind that this people of old times was regarded as a stiff-necked people, and yet the Lord has never cast them away. In many respects they are a marvelous people; and it is evident from the Word of the Lord and from the Testimonies of the spirit of prophecy that before this work is finished, hundreds, if not thousands, of them will accept this blessed message.
To those of us who are in direct touch with this work, it seems miraculous that such a thing should be possible; but with God nothing is impossible. We can clearly see omens today which can be easily interpreted as signs of great possibilities for a quick work to be done among these lost sheep of the house of Israel.
During the past year or two those who have accepted the truth have been mostly young people, especially young men. One Jewish young man took his stand this summer in connection with a tent effort in Cambridge, Mass.; another in connection with a tent effort in New York City; and still another in connection with the tent effort in Washington, D. C. Two of these young men are in our schools getting an education that they may fit themselves for a part in the work of God.
From the correspondence we have in the department work it is clear that a number of our workers who are interesting themselves in the Jewish people are finding a good many young people who are inclined to listen to the message, especially when they learn what the principles of our message are. One young woman is about to take her stand for the truth, which would mean a total separation from her people. Another young woman who has recently learned some of the message, principally by reading, is weighing the truths she has heard; and she is wondering what she will have to do if she takes her stand for the truth. A young man has offered himself for baptism, but has not yet taken this step. These are some of the cases we know about, and we are learning from time to time that our workers in different places find that quite an interest is springing up in the hearts of the Jews as they learn who we are and what we believe.
The fact that the Jewish young people are becoming interested in the message is very hopeful. Still there is a reason for this. Hardly a week goes by but that one or more of the Jewish periodicals or magazines lament the condition of the rising generation of Jewish people. The synagogues are practically empty of the young people, and the rabbi scarcely comes in touch with the lives of these young persons.
It is true that the leaders in Jewry are trying to make up for this loss by organizing young people's societies and so-called social clubs; but these organizations and institutions will not and cannot take the place of the religious and moral teaching the young people would secure if they went to the synagogue. So it is becoming evident to the Jewish leaders that the moral teaching among the young people is lacking, and they are at a loss to know what to do in order to make up for it. The young people are realizing more and more that the Jew in America does not have the religion of his forefathers; and naturally they think that if he does not have the same faith that his predecessors had, he does not have any religion.
The camp of Israel is so distinctly divided today between orthodoxy and reform that there is certainly a great gulf between the two, so that religiously the one cannot pass over to the other. Hence the young people realize that since the camp of the fathers is divided, there can be nothing concrete for them to accept.
The reform Jew says there is no place in modern enlightenment for the orthodox rabbi. It is repeatedly stated in some of the leading Jewish journals of this country that the orthodox rabbinism is not a thing wanted in the United States or in England. In other words, the reform Jew says that in modern enlightened times the old orthodox pious rabbi, with his rabbinical and Talmudical traditions, is decidedly out of date. There is no place for him. If this is true, the young people say, there can be no ground for rabbinical Judaism. But if there is no rabbinical Judaism, then what is there to Judaism? As a result, the young man and the young woman say there can be nothing in religion after all.
But when the Jew learns about a Gentile people who really accept the Bible as the word of God, the Bible as handed down from the days of Ezra and believed by the Jewish people for thousands of years, his interest is aroused. He does not know what it means. He cannot understand it. It seems hard for him to comprehend. To argue much with him with reference to the divinity of Christ and the incarnation is to arouse his antagonism at once. He is coming to believe that even the Saviour was not a real character. But when the Jew, especially the young man or the young woman, learns that the Sabbath, the law, the prophets, and other kindred truths of Old Testament teachings are believed and lived out by Gentiles, it sets him thinking, and to his great surprise he ascertains that these people really believe all that the Jew claims to believe, except that they do not receive the teachings of the rabbis.
To many of them it is good news; for after all, there is in many of their hearts a sincere feeling that the God of their fathers must still have his word preserved; and so the Lord Jesus has really given us as a people an open door to enter in among the Jewish people, and if we only enter this open door, the Holy Spirit will encourage their souls to believe that this denomination is God's people, and the message they bear is God's own message for today.
F. C. GILBERT.
Wide Publicity in Boston Newspapers
By W. L. Burgan
A MOST convincing demonstration of the power of the secular press or newspaper in bringing the principal beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination to the attention of the world was recently given in the large city of Boston, where one of our brethren was dismissed from the police force because he refused to perform his duties on the Sabbath.
This brother, who had been connected with the police force of that city for twelve years, was considered a model officer by his superiors; but they felt that he was violating the regulations of the department in not working on the Sabbath, when he had sworn, upon receiving his appointment, that he would devote his entire time to the service. For a considerable length of time he observed the Sabbath while still on the force, but the day arrived when the chief officials concluded to put a stop to his absence on10that day or cause him to lose his position. He was true to his convictions, and was dismissed from the department, with only the refusal to work on the seventh day against his good record.
The daily newspapers of Boston became interested in his case because of the unusual feature connected with it, and gave considerable space to reports concerning him. Some of the papers published their reports on the front page, with large, attractive headlines, and in each article the name “Seventh-day Adventist” was given prominence. The papers continued to write about him for several days, until his case was widely discussed not only in Boston, but throughout all New England.
The reporters called upon Elder Archer V. Cotton, who is stationed there, for statements concerning our belief; and when our brother was baptized, a large crowd assembled, as well as several reporters, who gave interesting accounts in their papers of the occasion. One paper also published a photograph of the baptismal scene. The influence these newspaper reports had for the good of our cause has already been felt to the extent that our brethren in Massachusetts have, either directly or indirectly, heard from persons in different parts of New England where these Boston papers circulate. It is the belief of many that the Lord used this brother to attract attention to the great truths we hold. It is quite probable that there will be similar instances when men in public office will lose their positions for the truth’s sake, and our cause will be given very wide publicity. The newspapers in many parts of the world are paying more attention to our cause each day, and no one should let an opportunity slip by to give various phases of the truth while the editors are so liberal-minded toward our work.
W. L. BURGAN.
“Bearing Precious Seed”
By F. D. Starr
“He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” Ps. 126:6. The tender feeling and emotion with which the early workers in the tract and missionary work, more than forty years ago, would cite this scripture, as with moistened eyes they talked about advancing the cause of the third angel’s message by means of the printed page, is vividly impressed on my memory. And their efforts were not in vain; for if, in the spirit of the Master, the precious seed is scattered, he will see that it bears the fruit. While there has been great remissness in carrying out the suggestions of this-precious verse, and in improving the numerous opportunities afforded us for this kind of work, yet it is gratifying to know that work of this character is still being done. There are those who have a mind to work.
It has recently been my privilege to baptize quite a number in various places who have been convicted of sin and who have come to the obedience of the faith largely through the influence of friends and the reading of our literature. Though only one or two are baptized at a time, yet such cases, like that of the lone eunuch, recorded in Acts 8:26-40, are encouraging. On the last occasion, a hole was cut through three or four inches of December ice, and two in the prime of life chose not to postpone the important step till a more convenient season, though the temperature of the water might be but a suggestion of what might be expected from the attitude of former associates. I think that in more than thirty years’ experience this is the first time I have gone down into the ice, as well as the water, to baptize.
Why should there not be more personal, individual work? The indispensable work of the minister is not to be ignored, but the earnest missionary endeavor of every member is also necessary.
F. D. STARR.
Field Notes
NINE adults were baptized and added to the Italian church of Chicago, Ill., last month.
A NEW Sabbath school has been organized at Drain, in the Southern Oregon Conference.
A COLORED Sabbath school has been organized in Jefferson, in the North Texas Conference.
ELDER J. W. BOYNTON writes of the baptism of four persons in the Western Washington Conference.
FROM Soonan, Chosen, Dr. Riley Russell writes, “Recently I baptized seven in a little brook near the Yellow Sea.”
TEN adults, who have recently accepted present truth, have been baptized by Elder E. T. Wilson, at Wauneta, Kans.
ELDER F. D. STARR reports the baptism of five adults on a recent trip among the churches of the Upper Columbia Conference.
ON a recent Sabbath Elder N. S. Ashton baptized twenty-three persons at the academy in Mount Vernon, Ohio. The Cincinnati church reports five new members.
SIX baptisms are reported from Newark, N. J.
TWELVE persons have been baptized in Lowell, Mass. Also twelve in Worcester, Mass.
IN Portland, Maine, seven have recently begun the observance of the Sabbath of the Lord.
ELDER A. C. ANDERSON reports the organization of a company of fourteen Sabbath keepers at Archie, Mo.
ELDERS O. A. Hall and H. J. Doolittle report the organization of a Seventh-day Adventist Church of thirteen charter members at Nanking, China.
GOOD news comes from Simla, India. Dr. H. C. Menkel writes that four were baptized on a recent Sabbath, and that another class for baptism has been formed.
ON a recent Sabbath twelve persons were baptized in Denver, Colo., and others will be ready to take this step soon. Five have united with the church at Colorado Springs by baptism during the last few weeks.
As a result of a series of meetings held in Keokuk, Iowa, fifty persons have begun to observe the Sabbath of the Lord. During the past summer and fall twenty persons have been baptized in Sioux City.
ELDER J. J. IRWIN reports twenty new Sabbath keepers at Frankfort, Mich., as the result of a series of meetings recently held. A new church has been organized at Cooks, with a membership of ten. Elder J. M. Hoyt baptized six persons at Greenville not long ago.
A COMPANY of seven Sabbath keepers in Halifax County, Virginia, is a result of a copy of “The Great Controversy” sold one of their number while he was living in North Carolina. Seven new believers have been baptized at Guinea Mills.
ELDER W. H. SHERRIG reports that within the last two months twenty-two new members have been baptized and added to the Omaha (Nebr.) English and Scandinavian churches. A Sabbath school of thirty-five members has been organized at Havana.
SEVEN new believers have joined the German church in Buffalo, in the Western New York Conference. Eight baptisms are reported from Corning. Twenty-two have been recently received into the church at Syracuse, in the eastern part of the State, nineteen of whom are new believers.
FIFTEEN persons were baptized, and a number are keeping the Sabbath and will take this step later, as a result of a series of meetings held by Elders A. S. Booth and J. A. Stevens in Reno, Nev. The newspapers were especially liberal, and printed eighty-five articles on the message during the time of the meetings.