# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1894_S69
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

of the Ev. Luth. Synodical Conference of North America. 1894. 69

gave up as hopeless, but had to take up again after two years, and which is now a blessed field of labor.

In addition, Missionary Schooff holds services every 14 days, with preaching and catechization, at Pleasant Grove, ten miles from Meherrin. A family of 9 souls already belonging to us lives there, and 2 other persons have declared their decision to join us shortly. Otherwise little can yet be said about the prospects here; there are indeed many Negroes living here, but most of them belong to the Baptists.

At a fourth place, only about four miles from him, in a district where only very poor people live, the missionary already held services for a time last summer, but he had to give up the work under circumstances similar to those now in Keysville. This summer he was asked to come back. He has now repeatedly held services and catechization before 15 to 30 hearers. The people ask for a school, among them a couple who, although themselves belonging to the Baptists, nevertheless had their 8 children, of whom 4 are now of school age, baptized with us. Whether we can build a school here, as the missionary wishes, and give him the necessary help for keeping school, is something that your Commission will probably best have to deliberate on first, since this matter has not yet been laid before it.

IV. Springfield, Illinois.

This mission station, once begun under such hopeful prospects, has already caused your Commission much worry and distress. This station possesses a very beautiful church and school. That this church property, occasioned by the highly developed sense of beauty of the missionary then in charge, cost almost twice as much as we had approved is indeed long known. But something worse was in store for us. Toward the end of the year 1892 rumors came to our ears that Missionary Knabenschuh had engaged in considerable real estate speculations. A member of the Commission traveled to Springfield and found the rumor confirmed. The missionary was strictly forbidden to carry on such business, and warned against imprudence. He assured us that this warning was unnecessary, and promised to free himself from the business as soon as possible. Soon afterward we saw ourselves compelled to investigate the state of affairs exactly, and found that Missionary Knabenschuh had in a frivolous manner engaged in grand speculations and had borrowed money in the name of the mission. Several items we had to pay, in order to avoid unpleasantness. The unfaithful missionary sent in his resignation, which was of course accepted by us, and he was dismissed from the mission's service in February of last year. Professors J. Herzer and L. Wessel had the kindness to take care of the