# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1909_S40 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 40 sionary societies, formed in Africa the free negro republic of Liberia. Some men expected a wonder- ful future for the new nation, as the colored people of America would return to Africa and spread the Christian religion throughout the Dark Continent. But it was only a beautiful dream. Ninety years have passed and the dream is shattered. The colored people of America have remained in America; Li- beria has made hardly any progress. “To-day, in all the vast territory, larger than that of Ohio, there are but 50,000 civilized negroes.” Surrounded by a million and a half barbarians, unlearned in political and financial methods, these people re- cently asked America for help. This is the reason why former President Roosevelt recommended that Congress appropriate $20,000 for a commission to Liberia “to examine into the situation and report as to the best manner for the United States to help that republic under the present critical circum- stances.” The restoring of order in the republic would also benefit the missionary work carried on in various parts of Liberia. A New Frevp.—In British East Africa, says Infe and Work, ninety miles from Kikuyu, dwells a section of the Kikuyu people, 50,000 strong. Un- til within the last few months their land had been closed to the Christian missionary. Now a door has been opened, and the call has come for mis- sionaries to go in and possess the land for Christ. The call has been answered, and missionaries are already at work in this new African field. HEATHEN CruELty. — The sick and helpless in heathen lands are often treated with horrible cruelty. This is also seen in the treatment of lepers. Those afflicted with this dread disease find no mercy among the heathen. They are treated most cruelly, espe- cially in China. It is said that a mandarin, a Chi- nese public officer, invited all the lepers of his district to a meal. Whilst they were eating, the house was set on fire. Those who tried to escape were simply slain; the rest were burned to death. It is known that in this cruel manner one mandarin put out of the way 300 poor lepers in two years. ‘Another missionary tells us that among the Afri- cans in Kamerun the cruel custom still prevails of _ burying children, whose mother has died, alive with the corpse of the mother, whilst in China children ' who are in any way a burden to their parents are exposed to starve to death or to be eaten by animals. Thus Satan, like a “strong man armed, keeps The Lutheran Pioneer. his palace in the darkness and cruelty of heathen- dom. But in the Gospel preached by the misiona- ries, Christ, the stronger, still comes upon him, and overcomes him, and takes from him all his armor. ——— wee —— - The Alarm of Fire. “IT suppose the bells are sounding an alarm of fire,” snecringly said a man as the church bells were calling the people to service one Sunday morn- ing.