Part 4

Our buildings are far from supplying our necessities. We have comfortable accommodations for sixty-four boarders, and some of the time we have had one hundred and eight. We have unfinished and merely temporary rooms for thirty others, but instead of one hundred boarders we ought to have two hundred, and might readily have if we but had rooms.

During the year we had a most precious revival, embracing nearly all in our normal and preparatory departments. Our work seems limited only by the lack of means to furnish room for those desirous of coming.

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THE INDIANS.

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S’KOKOMISH AGENCY—FIELD AND WORK.

REV. MYRON EELLS.

I propose to give some idea of the extent and character of my “parish,” and of the kind of work we are attempting to do.

1st. In the S’kokomish Reservation. Here are seven English-speaking families, and a school of from twenty-five to thirty scholars at the Agency, and about two hundred Indians in the vicinity. Besides pastoral work, I hold a service every Sabbath morning in Indian. Once a month, in the absence of the pastor, one of the lay members of the church takes his place. This congregation averages seventy. In the afternoon, the Agent and employees carry on the Sabbath-school with an average attendance of fifty-eight. Twice a month I preach in the evening in English to a congregation of employees and scholars, which averages about thirty-five. On Thursday evening the regular church prayer meeting is held, at which the male members take their turns in leading. Occasionally I meet the school-children and apprentices, generally once in a week or so, for some kind of an informal meeting.

2d. Three miles from the Agency is a small place, Union City, consisting of a store, hotel, saloon and five families, and a number of transient loggers. I can give them one evening a month without neglecting regular duties. The average attendance is about twenty-five on public worship and eighteen on Sabbath-school, the latter of which the ladies of the place keep up most of the time when I am not present.

3d. Thirty miles North is Seabeck, a saw-mill town of two or three hundred people, where I have charge of a small church organized last May. I generally visit them about once a month. There is a Sabbath-school which the church sustains for the Indians, about thirty of whom live there, gaining their support mainly by work in the mill—two of them being members of our church.

4th. Twenty miles further on is Port Gamble, a large milling town, which has a minister of its own, but near it are about a hundred Indians who belong to our Agency, most of whom are Catholics, but who receive me cordially when I go there, two or three times a year.

5th. Forty miles still further is Dunginess, a flourishing Indian colony, named Jamestown, which is the centre of an Indian population of about one hundred and forty. I generally visit them twice a year. Six of our church members live here; they have a small church built by themselves, a day school, and I also preach to them sometimes. They sustain a weekly prayer meeting most of the time, the only one in the county which has a white population of over six hundred, and they likewise have the only church building in this county, organized twenty-six years ago.

6th. Six miles from Jamestown is Sequim, a village of about forty Indians, most of whom are aged and infirm. These are tributary to Jamestown, sending their children to that school, some of whom travel the whole distance twice each school day, and also on the Sabbath.

7th. Between Port Gamble and Jamestown is Port Discovery, another saw-mill town, where nearly forty Indians make their home, whom I generally call to see on my journeys; but so much whisky is sold near them that it has been almost impossible to stop their drinking; they also live in a somewhat scattered condition, which makes it difficult to make any permanent religious impression on them.

8th. Once a year I calculate to go still farther; and twenty miles beyond Jamestown is Port Angelos, with about thirty nominal Indian residents. But few of them are settlers, and like those of Port Discovery they are diminishing.

9th. Seven miles further is Elkwa, with about seventy Indians. It has been the home of one of the most influential bands in years past, but owing to the fact that there have been but few white settlers from whom the Indians could obtain work, they have hitherto done very little about cultivating the soil for themselves; and as they could easily go across the straits to Victoria in British Columbia, where there is but little restraint in regard to their procuring whisky, because they are American Indians, they have been steadily losing in influence and numbers. Four families of them have “homesteaded” land, however, and others, moved by their example and success, are taking the preparatory steps to secure homes; but being scattered, and most of them back from the water, as it is now impossible to homestead good land on the beach, they will lose the benefits of school and church in a great measure; but still the old way of herding together will be broken up, and they will obtain more of their living from civilized pursuits.

10th. Thirty miles still further is Clallam Bay, the limit of the Indians belonging to our reservation, the home of some seventy more. Within a year they have bought about a hundred and sixty acres of land, and propose to follow somewhat the plan of the Jamestown Indians. This place promises to be an important point, as it is near a salmon cannery, and in the catching of salmon they are at home; it is also the nearest station of the tribe to the sea fisheries of the northwest coast of the Territory, by far the most lucrative business, in its season, which the Indians can follow.

Then there is call for work among the whites. In Clallam county, with its more than six hundred inhabitants, there is no resident minister, and I am repeatedly asked to preach to them, but can only give them a sermon during some hours of the Sabbath when I am not talking to Indians. In Mason county, here I live, with six hundred more people, I am the only resident minister, and call after call comes which I cannot in justice to the work of the A. M. A., answer; but I shall try shortly to give them a fifth Sabbath in the month.

Fourteen miles from Seabeck is another settlement where there has never been a sermon preached in the fifteen years of its existence, and four times, one young man, not a Christian, has asked me to go there, even offering to carry me over fifty miles in his boat. These are small places, with scattered people, and probably small congregations, yet it is hard to resist their appeals. If there were two Sabbaths every week I sometimes think I could manage the field better.

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Sisseton Agency, D. T.

CHARLES CRISSEY, U. S. IND. AGT.

This Agency has been established about ten years; the people are Wahpeton and Sisseton Sioux Indians; some were in the outbreak of 1862–3 as hostiles, but a large per cent, as friendly Indians. Most of them wore the Indian dress of cloth and skins, and lived in tepees.

They now dress entirely in citizen’s clothing, and live in log-houses, some with shingled roofs and board floors; most of them with dirt roofs and floors. The number of houses built of logs is 220, and 15 frame. There are five organized churches with a membership of 416 Indians and ten whites. Two of the churches are building new frame buildings, 28 × 50 ft. and 20 × 30 ft., respectively.

There are about 4,025 acres under cultivation; there was broken of new ground during the spring, 1,055 acres. There was raised last year about 17,000 bushels of wheat and oats, with a little barley. The estimated crop this year will be 25,000 bushels. The Indians have bought without Government aid, during the last three seasons, 16 reapers, 8 fanning-mills, and 4 sulky horse-rakes; one has purchased a self-binder.

Many of them are able to do such work as an ordinary carpenter or blacksmith does. We have built three frame houses and have two more nearly completed. I depend on Indians as help in running our threshing machines, engines at our at steam-mills, caring for our horses, and have employed no extra white help, other than one white man to oversee each department, since April 1st, 1879.

The largest crop raised by any one Indian last year, was 573 bushels of wheat and oats, two others raising nearly as much. We have threshed for one only this season, and he had 1,500 bushels of oats. We have distributed to those who have never been supplied with teams previous to June last, to work with, 95 yoke of work cattle, with plows, yokes, chains, harrows, etc. The only way they had to supply themselves previous to June last, was by yoking the beef cattle and using them, thus depriving themselves of fresh beef; and when an Indian does that, it is a good sign that he is well on the road to civilization.

There are three schools, two Government and one mission; 7 teachers, five Government and two mission.

The number of scholars attending one month or more during the year is 104; number attending boarding schools, 78; number attending day school, 26; number of months which school has been maintained during the year, 10; average attendance during that time, 81. Largest average attendance during any one month, 100; about 25 of the 78 boarding scholars attended the mission school, the Government furnishing the same with most of the clothing and rations; both Government and Mission Boarding schools have been well maintained and successfully managed, the scholars showing marked improvement during the past year, and the parents much more interest than ever before.

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THE CHINESE.

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“CALIFORNIA CHINESE MISSION.”

Auxiliary to the American Missionary Association.

PRESIDENT: Rev. J. K. McLean, D.D. VICE-PRESIDENTS: Rev. A. L. Stone, D.D., Thomas C. Wedderspoon, Esq., Rev. T. K. Noble, Hon. F. F. Low, Rev. I. E. Dwinell, D.D., Hon. Samuel Cross, Rev. S. H. Willey, D.D., Edward P. Flint, Esq., Rev J. W. Hough, D.D., Jacob. S. Taber, Esq.

DIRECTORS: Rev. George Mooar, D.D., Hon. E. D. Sawyer, Rev. E. P. Baker, James M. Haven, Esq., Rev. Joseph Rowell, Rev. John Kimball, E. P. Sanford, Esq.

SECRETARY: Rev. W. C. Pond. TREASURER: E. Palache, Esq.

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SERMON BY JEE GAM.

[The MISSIONARY of last month contained sermons by two of our Chinese helpers of the California mission, with a promise of one this month from Jee Gam.

These come to us, unrevised, in the handwriting of their authors, which, for beauty and legibility, excites the wish that all our correspondents were converted Chinamen. These sermons give, as perhaps in no other way open to our readers, an idea of what can be done in this work of imparting spiritual truth to this class of heathen minds, and the adaptation of these men to be its heralds to their own people. Lack of room compels the omission of the first part of the sermon, in which is answered the question, “What is this faith?” Our extract begins with the account of Moses’ faith, under the second head, “What has faith done?”—ED. MISS.]

Heb. 10:38. “Now the just shall live by faith.” 2d. What has this faith done?

By faith Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. In a worldly sense, one may say he was the most foolish man in the world; for if he had remained and accepted the offer he would have been King of Egypt, as Pharaoh had no son. He would have had great power; he would have lived in the finest palace of Egypt; he would have had all the riches, comfort, pleasure, honor and glory he chose to have; but by faith he saw and knew all these were things which would vanish away like vapor. Besides these, I venture to say that Moses must have been utterly disgusted with the idolatry of that people. He knew in his own conscience that it was wrong and against God to worship any idol, bull, cow, or cat, all of which were gods in Egypt. On the other hand he knew that the Lord was his God, and that he has millions of times more riches and honor than Pharaoh had. So he regarded not the low station of being a Hebrew; neither cared he for being poor, despised, oppressed and persecuted, for he counted all these trials as nothing compared with the blessings of God which were to come. At any rate, he preferred and did choose to be on the side of God, rather than on the side of the Egyptians. By faith he wrought many wonders in Egypt; by faith he led his people across the Red Sea; by faith the many battles were fought and won on the way to Canaan. By faith Daniel prayed continually three times a day when he knew that there had been a decree against him; yet he cared not for the consequence of violating that law. He knew that it was far better and more important to obey the commands of his God than the corrupt decree of the King, even if he should be cast into the den and torn to pieces by the terrible beasts.

And now let us come down to a later period, and see how by faith the disciples of Christ worked many miracles. Still later we find that Luther by faith broke away from the monastery and preached Christ as he then thought He ought to be preached, not fearing any dangers that were to come. When he was summoned by the Council at Worms to answer its charges, he said to his friends, “I will go to Worms, if there are as many devils as there are tiles.” And by faith he was protected and saved. And now look at the present century, and see what the faith of Christian people has done for Japan and China. Fifty years ago, I believe, there was not a single Protestant Chinese Christian in that vast empire; but just see how many there are now—over thirteen thousand, besides the many thousands who have been Christianized abroad. And by faith I venture to say right here that, China will, before long, become a Christian country, and rank high when compared with all her sister nations.

3d. Can every man have this faith, be he white, black, red or yellow? Yes. The beggar can have it as well as the king. The poor can have it as well as the rich; and the negro, the Indian and the Chinaman.

4th. Of what benefit is it? It makes us see our own sinfulness and weakness. It tells us to look to God for forgiveness and for strength. It assures us that our sins have been pardoned, and the promises of God make us sure of our reward in Heaven. It makes us have more confidence in God and in His Son Jesus. It gives us hope that we shall see not only God, but all who have had this faith and are now in heaven. It gives us patience, peace, hope, comfort, joy and anxiety of heart to do God’s will, and to lead people to Christ. Without faith we cannot please God, nor can we go to him in prayer. It is the foundation of Christian life. It justifies us, and, being justified, we live and shall live forever.

5th. What are we called if we have this faith? The just. The born again of the Holy Spirit; the forgiven; the justified ones; those who have faith in God; the Christians. So then we are called just, not by works, but by faith. Nevertheless, faith can never be without works; faith is the companion of works; they can never be parted. For instance, Luther, although he exalted faith, yet acted it right out with works.

Think of Paul, how he by faith suffered many persecutions; how he labored in prison as well as out of prison, and bore much fruit. “Faith without works is dead.”

6th. Have we this faith? Have all men it? Alas! Let us consider how many in this sinful world have not this faith; how many have never heard of it; how many have willfully refused to take it when it was so kindly and so lovingly presented to them. Oh, how sad! for without this faith they are the enemies of God, and they shall be condemned. Though in this world they may have all riches, comforts, respect, and much honor in the sight of men, in the eye of God they are “Weighed in the balance and found wanting.”

But those who have this faith will have Heaven, and they shall live by the blessings derived therefrom, both in this world and in the world to come.

7th. Brethren and friends, let us get faith; for it is the greatest blessing to us. If we have it, let us live by it; for it is the most vital and most wholesome food our souls can have. Let us hold fast to it. Let us exercise it so as to promote the happiness of men to the saving of their souls. Let us exercise it so as to magnify the love of God, and His Son Jesus Christ.

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CHILDREN’S PAGE.

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CHINESE AND CHINESE CUSTOMS.

The longer you live in China and the better you know the people, the greater do your wonder and amazement increase. Their superstitions are as numerous almost as your thoughts. Their religious customs are so many and intricate, that they make burdens for the people more grievous to bear than those the Pharisees laid upon the Jews. They spend as much money on those, to us, useless and silly customs—ten times as much, I fully believe—as we Christians spend on the Gospel. A rich man, I am told, recently spent on the building of a paper house, which was burnt, for the use of the spirit of the head of the family who had died, and on the ceremonies connected with it, $10,000 in hard cash.

This is a large sum of money to spend on paper to be burnt simply in what, to us, seem perfectly ridiculous rites. But that is only a tithe of the money spent by such a family, on this religion, which God hates. These people believe that every man has three spirits. When he dies, one spirit goes to hell, the second dwells in the grave, and the third by due ceremonies is invited to take up its residence in a wooden tablet, on which his name is inscribed. This tablet is kept in the house, and the worship of it is the ancestral worship, which is the last thing a Chinaman will give up.

No later than yesterday we had a good example of the ceremony for the dead of which I have spoken. This is the case of a Chinaman born in Penang, whose wife died in the latter part of last year, but the ceremonies for providing for her comfort in Hades were not performed till yesterday. He should have performed these services several months ago, according to the proper custom, and was very much blamed by the Chinese for having delayed. He told me the secret of the business, however. He did not believe in the thing, as he said, but his wife’s mother was near at hand and all her relations, and because he was going to neglect the matter apparently, they began to give him trouble. For peace, therefore, he made the preparations. In the meantime, the body of his wife was still in the house in the coffin. A Chinese coffin is thick and air-tight—at least, no smell escapes from the decaying body, which sometimes is kept for years in the house or in a temple. This man was not a rich man, but was in good circumstances.

He prepared a house about twelve feet square, built of bamboo and paper, most beautifully and carefully finished, the painting on it representing brick, stone, marble, and woods of different kinds. Silver and gold leaf were used profusely; fruits and trees in relief, and figures of all shapes. Inside the house, which was, by the way, beautifully furnished with miniature furniture, reclined the lady of the house, to represent his wife, on a handsome couch. In the house were all the household utensils and everything indicative of wealth. At the door was a handsome sedan chair, and four coolies standing by, ready at her call. Around her were men and women servants in figures about eight inches high, some engaged in one work, some in another. Some were preparing rice, some baking, some washing clothes, some cleaning rice with a fanning mill. All was most tastefully and elegantly made up.

Before this house on a table were spread out all kinds of provisions—a little pig roasted, whole chickens, ducks, &c., &c. The heads of these all pointed toward the place where the woman sat. It is, by the way, a Chinese custom, to point the head of an animal, cooked, at the guest to whom you wish to show honor.

Outside and over the door of the house, and extending across the whole front, was an elaborate framework of bamboo, covered with gilt paper. This was supposed to represent the grounds before the house, and there were dozens of little figures, all representing the lady’s retainers—some as soldiers, runners, tradesmen, &c. And why all these things? For the comfort and use of the spirit in hell, to mitigate her torments by providing her with comforts. All these things cost about $40 or $50.

In another room, the ceremonies in connection with this were performed. Here was a table covered with priestly symbols, food, liquor, candles, and peculiar priestly appliances. About the table stood three Buddhist priests, and sitting on benches were four men with drum, cymbals and horns. For two days nearly they kept up incessantly the most fearful din, reading and howling at the top of the voice. Every now and then, the priests would perform a sort of dance. On the walls were hung large pictures of the torments practised in hell—most hideous pictures of pulling out men’s tongues and eyes, and tortures you would hardly think men capable of imagining. The little children of the dead woman were there, clothed in coarse sack-cloth, and kept busy taking part in the ceremonies, directed by the priests. In the place where the house was they would come in and bow down to the ground several times to their mother. The father stood by, looking on like one troubled and ashamed of the horrid nuisance, as he evidently thought it to be. In the morning, the whole thing was taken out and set on fire, and thus spirited away to the spiritual regions for the use of the poor woman.—_From Presbyterian Record, Canada._

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RECEIPTS

FOR AUGUST, 1880.

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MAINE, $351.70.

Andover. Cong. Ch. and Soc., $5; Rev. S. W. Pearson, $5 $10.00 Bangor. First Cong. Ch. 27.50 Bath. Central Cong. Ch., $56.10; Winter St. Cong. Ch. and Soc., $35.50; Eliza Bowker, $2 93.60 Brewer. M. Hardy, $50 to const. MRS. EUGENIE L. BECKWITH, L. M.; First Cong. Ch., $8, and Sab. Sch. $8 66.00 Brunswick. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 25.00 Castine. Rev. A. E. Ives 2.00 Falmouth. First Cong. Ch. 20.00 Farmington. First Cong. Ch. and Soc. 12.00 Garland. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 6.00 Gorham. Cong. Ch., ($2 of which bal. to const. MISS REBECCA WATERS, L. M) 25.40 Hampden. Mrs. R. S. Curtis 5.00 Portland. “Mrs. A. L. M.” 25.00 Skowhegan. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 5.20 Standish. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 3.50 Warren. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 12.00 Waterford. Mrs. S. C. Hersey 1.50 West Bath. Isaiah Percy, $3; Beulah B. Percy, $2 5.00 Windham. Cong. Ch. 7.00

NEW HAMPSHIRE, $338.02.