# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1880_S28 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 28 The Lutheran Pioneer. i eee The Outlook from the Editor’s Window. As we open our window to chat with our readers, we find that we have not much news to tell them. So we shall take a look into dis- tant lands, and we will tell our readers what we lately read about some of those countries. Let us first look at Arrica. Africa, you know, is often called ‘‘The Dark Continent.’’ And a dark country it is; for though missionaries are laboring for the spread of Gospel-light in some parts of the country, still the darkness of superstition and idolatry reigns in the largest part of Africa. How awful is the scene de- scribed by Cameron, one of the African travel- lers, as taking place at the funeral of a chief! Cameron says: ‘The first proceeding is to di- vert the course of a stream, and in its bed to dig an enormous pit, the bottom of which is then covered with living women! At one end a women is placed on her hands and knees, and upon her back the dead chief, covered with his beads and other treasures, is seated, being sup- ported on either side by one of his wifes, while his second wife sits at his feet. The earth is then shovelled in on them, and all the women are buried alive, with the exception of the second wife. She is killed before the huge grave is filled in. This being completed, a number of male slaves, sometimes forty or fifty, are slaughtered, und their blood poured over the grave, after which the river is allowed to resume its course.’’? May the light of the Gos- pel soon spread in that country “Where Afric’s sunny fountains Roll down their golden sand.’’” Cura is another dark country. Moung Edwin, who has been educated in this country as a missionary for China, lectured lately in Baltimore. Speaking of the deplorable con- dition of women in China, he said: ‘Girls in China are believed to have no souls, and to kill them is not murder, and, therefore, not to be punished. Where parents are too poor to sup- port the girl children, they are disposed of in the following way: At regular intervals an appointed officer goes through a village and collects from poor parents all the girl children they cannot care for, when theyare about eight days old. He has two Jarge baskets attached to the end of 2 bamboo pole, and slung over his shoulder. Six infants are placed in each basket, and he carries them to some neighboring village and exposes them for sale. Mothers who desire to raise wives for their sons buy such as they mayselect. The others are taken to the govern- ment asylums, of which there are many all through the country. If there is room enough, they are taken in; if not, they are drowned.” pax is another dark country. It is not exactly a pagan country, but the darkness of Romish superstition and idolatry reigns there. The Protestant ministers, who labor there for _ the spread of the Gospel, are persecuted by the _ pope's people; for the priests hate the light of the Gospel, loving the darkness of superstition, eB jes Es because their works are dark. The Rev. Flied- ner lately said to a member of the Romish church that he thought many of the priests would become Protestants if the Protestant church could give them as high a salary as they have in the Romish church. But the Romish member told him that those priests love the Romish church because they could there best carry on their scandalous doings and lead im- moral lives. WE could now close our window, but here are some friends who wish us to ‘‘ throw light on some dark subjects.’’ Here is a young friend who writes that he likes the ProNEER very well and would be glad if the Pronger would bring an article on dances and worldly parties.’’ We thank our friend for his compliments and shall comply with his wish as soon as we find time. Perhaps one of our friends in the ministry will write an article for our paper on that subject. We would be very thankful for it. Awp here is a very young reader who wishes the Pioneer to tell him ‘‘something about our Presidents.’? Our young reader must ask his father or teacher ‘‘about Presidents.’’ Our little PronErR is so young yet, you know, he does not bother himself about Presidents. He perhaps knows very little about them, and would not know what to do if he should become President. He might be like the bright little colored boy we once saw down in Old Virginia sitting on a fence and singing as merrily as a bird in the forest: ‘‘Tf I’d be de President ob dese United States, I’d eat molasses candy and ride upon de gates.”’ It is getting dark, and we close our window. The Solitary Witness. Some years ago a missionary went to a heathen village in India, but no one there would attend to his words. When he went away, he left one New Testament behind him in the shop of a native. It was but a single seed cast into a bad soil, and he feared that it would perish there; that the precious volume would be thrown aside, or else that its sacred leaves might be used to wrap up tobacco, rice or salt. But no! The eye of God was upon that book. Like Lot in Sodom, like the Cap- tive Maid in the house of Naaman, that New Testament was a solitary witness for Johovah in the midst of idols and idolaters; and it be- came a light to them that sat in darkness. Some of them it led into the way of peace. Soon after it was left, three or four heathen came to that shop. They saw the strange book. They asked that they might read it. They took it home. As they heard what it told them about God and man, sin and salvation, hell and heaven, they wondered, they trembled, they believed. A church was formed in that village, and two of those who borrowed that Testament became Jesus Christ. preachers of the Gospel of The Story of the Pigs. Two friends once entered Surrey Chapel pre- vious to going to India. One was a Christian, the other not. The Rey. Rowland Hill preached from the text, ‘“‘We are not ignorant of his de- vices;”? and immediately told the following story:—‘‘ Many years since I met a drove of pigs in one of the narrow streets of a large town, and, to my surprise, they were not driven, but quietly followed their leader. This singular fact excited my curiosity, and I pursued the swine, until they all quietly entered the butch- ery. I then asked the man how he succeeded in getting the poor, stupid, stubborn pigs so willingly to follow him, when he told me the secret. He had a basket of beans under his arm, and kept dropping them as he proceeded, and so secured his object. Ah! my dear hear- ers, the devil has got his basket of beans, and he knows how to suit his temptations to every sinner. He drops them by the way, the poor sinner is thus led captive by the devil at his will; and if grace prevent not, he will get him at last into his butchery, and there he wil] keep him for ever. Oh, it is because ‘we are not ignorant of his devices’ that we are anxious this evening to guard you against them.’’ As the Christian friend listened to this tale about the pigs, he feared it would excite a smile, but not produce conviction in the mind of his unbelieving companion. After the service they left the chapel, and all was silence for a time. - ‘What a singular statement we had to-night about the pigs, and yet how striking and con- vincing it was,’ remarked the young infidel. His mind was impressed—he could not forget the basket of beans, the butchery, and the final loss of the sinner’s soul. He left his coun- try, but soon after corresponded with his friend, and referred to this sermon as having produced a deep impression upon his mind, and as hav- ing driven him to Christ for salvation. 2+ oa o> Very often we hear parents say: Let the children have their own way in matters of re- ligion, let them choose for themselves, when they are old enough.