The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1893, Page 19

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

19

secretary of the Presbyterian Board of Foreign| where he lay, some of their charms, that he
Missions, South, who recently visited Korea, might look at them; but Bardo turned his
will supply it. back to the wall, though he had to place him-
The letter contains statements equally amaz-| self in a painful position, that his eyes might
ing and humiliating, but enough has been said} not behold the sinful folly of his friends.
to prove that the reports of the missionaries} On the morning of the day on which he died,
of the sects in foreign mission fields are not| he was asked, ‘*Should you die now, whither
always reliable. May our missionaries con-| would your soul go?” ‘‘'To heaven.’
tinue to report the state of affairs in our mis-| ‘* Who will receive it there?’’? ‘*God.”’
sion field as it actually is. Thatis what the} ‘On what Saviour do you put your trust
church wants to know. And may our mis-| for salvation?’ With great feeling he said,
sionaries not entirely forget our little Pronrrn. | ‘‘On Jesus Christ.’’
He so seldom gets news from our laborers in} ‘If God had not, in His providence, brought
the mission field that the little fellow ‘‘feels you here, to learn about that Saviour, what
himself quite superfluous.’’ would have become of you?”? ‘‘I should have
lived in sin, and gone to hell when I died.”’
He said he was not afraid to die; yet he
would rather live, if it were God’s will, that
he might honor and take care of his parents.
His breathing became softer; and like one
falling into a gentle slumber, he fell asleep in
Jesus. Thus died the first convert among the
Mongolian Tartars—one who may be said to
have fallen a martyr; for there is little doubt
that the blows on the head which he received
from the lama were the chief cause of his
death. His school-fellows carried his body
to the grave, and there it rests until Christ
shall call it to eternal life in the resurrection
morning.

—_——> _-0<me- >

The Mongolian Boy.

Missionaries have often labored for years
in a heathen land before they have seen any
idolater turn unto the Lord. Oh, how their
hearts have rejoiced over their first convert —
it has been as though the wilderness had begun
to put forth the bud and the tender blossom!

Years passed away among the Mongolian
Tartars, and no one came to the missionaries
to inquire what he should do to be saved.

At length a youth named Bardo came and
sat down in the mission school. He was igno-
rant of the letters of the alphabet; but he soon
got on, and in a short time he could read and
write very nicely, and also had committed to
memory a catechism, and many passages of
Scripture.

. He then gave up the worship of his gods,
and told the children of the family with whom
he lived that he now believed there was only
one God and one Saviour, Jesus Christ.

From this time he felt more of his state as
a sinner, and was often seen to retire that he
might pray in secret. He began also to hope
that he had found mercy through the Lord
Jesus Christ, who died to save sinners. When
mixing with his own people, he told them what
he felt, and invited them to come and hear
the Gospel for themselves, for that if they
died trusting in gods that could not save them
they would perish forever.

The Tartars place their idols on a table
opposite the door of their tent, and every per-
son as he enters is expected to bow before
them. When they saw that Bardo did not bow
as he passed, they illused him, and tried to

force him to worship the gods; but finding
they could not prevail, they turned him out
of their tents.

One day a lama, or priest, beat him severely
on the head, which brought on violent pains
and afever. The fever continued for several
weeks, and he gradually wasted away. Pain

in the chest and a cough followed, so that poor
Brado was brought very low. His friends fear-
ing he would die, began to talk of using some
of their heathenish rites to save his life, but
he would not consent to this, and begged his
friends to carry him to the missionaries. The
Tartars also placed on the wall, opposite to

——2-+ o-oo

Remarkable Escapes of Missionaries.

The history of missions is full of startling ad-
ventures and remarkable escapes from danger
and death. We glean several and give them
to our readers. These incidents all go to prove
that God is with His servants, and can wonder-
fully bless and protect now as well as in the
days of the apostles.

The Moravian missionaries who went to
Greenland many years ago to labor among
the Esquimaux, endured untold hardships.
A ship laden with provisions was sent to them
once a year from their brethren at home.
But in the long year between the visits of the
ship, they were often sorely tried. But God
did not forsake them. Once they had nothing
but old tallow candles to eat, and these were
becoming quite scarce. Starvation seemed to
be their lot. Just then a Greenlander, an en-
tire stranger to them, arrived, having traveled
over one hundred miles to sell them some seals,
oatmeal, and train oil. At another time when
nearly exhausted for want of food an eagle
was captured, and the lives of the missionaries
preserved.

Zeisberger, the Moravian missionary ameng
the Indians, had an eventful career. One of
his many escapes from death was as follows:
He stopped one night with some friendly
Indians. The Indians had received three kegs
of gun powder, but were very careless in hand-
ling it. They spilled quite a lot on the straw
which covered the floor. The missionary told
them they should be very careful not to have
a candle lit, lest the straw might be ignited,

and a fearful explosion and instant death be
the result. Zeisberger, being quite weary, lay
down to sleep. During the night some uncom-
fortable feeling came over him and awakened
him. He opened his eyes just in time to catch
a falling candle which had been carelessly
lighted and allowed to burn. Had he awakened
one moment later, he and his hosts would all
have been killed.

Mr. Gobat, a missionary to Abyssinia, was,

at one time, very much discouraged in his
work!

He retired to a cave, and kneeling

there, poured forth his heart to God in prayer.
When he arose from his knees, his eyes had
become more accustomed to the dark, and he
saw he was in the presence of a hyena and her
cubs. He had thought God had forgotten him
and his work, but the wonderful way in which
God preserved him, keeping this fierce animal
from springing upon him, was a new proof of
God’s loving care.

Mr. Moffat, missionary to Africa, once drank

of some water that had been poisoned to kill
wild animals. He took quite sick, and hastened
to a village to secure a remedy.
could be found.
expected that death would be sure and swift.
But presently the sick feeling vanished, and
he was none the worse for the poisonous drink.

No remedy
He and his attendants all

Little Missionary.

How a Great Philosopher was Silenced.

Frederick the Great was at his palace in

Cleves with Voltaire, the great French phi-
losopher, as his guest.
the philosopher began to mock at God and
godly things and finally said: ‘‘I will sell
my seat in heaven for a Prussian Thaler.’’
He, however, was not the only guest; there
was also present a councilor, who was not a
philosopher, but a Christian. This man shud-
dered when he heard the words of Voltaire.
At once he arose and spoke out his mind very
plainly. ‘‘My dear sir,’’ said he, ‘‘you are in
Prussia, where we have a law, according to
which anyone who wishes to sell anything must
prove his ownership. Be kind enough, there-
fore, to prove that you have a seat in heaven

At the dinner table

and I shall give you any sum you may ask.’”

These words at once put to silence the boast-
ful Frenchman.

——~-o Po oe

5 In God’s Care.

One evening when he saw a little bird

perched on a tree, to roost there for the

night, Luther said, ‘‘This little bird has had
its supper, and now it is getting ready to go
to sleep here, quite secure, and content, never
troubling itself what its food will be, or where.
its lodging on the morrow. Like David, it
‘abides under the shadow of the Almighty.’

It sits on its little twig content, and lets God

take care.’’ x

—— oo ee

Wuen Peter finished his sermon on the day ~

of Pentecost the people didn’t say, ‘* Wasn’t
that a fine sermon??? but ‘*What shall we do?””