The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1926, Page 91

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THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

91

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Items of Missionary Interest.
(By the Editor.) f

Reservation Indians.—'There are nearly 350,000
American Indians living on reservations in the
United States. Eventually they will be absorbed
in the body of the nation. How desirable it is that
these thousands become Christians before they leave
the reservations to mingle with other Americans as
their equals in every way! ‘The Christianization
of the Redman before absorption is what the Chris-
tian Church should strive for.

The Marriage Knot in Korea.—In Korea the
married man is marked by a topknot. And it ap-
pears on such young boys that one can almost pic-
ture them playing hooky from school to go and play
house with their wives! Since Christianity has
become an influential power in Korea, or Chosen,
not so many topknots are to be seen on boys who
ought to be in school.

Can This Be True? — Dr. J. W. Gillan, of the
Southern Baptist Convention, makes the statement
that thirteen million people in the Southern States
are untouched by religious influence!

Changing Names.— The acceptance of Chris-
tianity in India generally results in a transfor-
mation of name, as these examples will amply
show: Mrs. She-Devil becomes Mrs. Happiness;
Mrs. White-Woman, Mrs. Jewel-of-Religion; Mrs.
Nose-Pricked, Mrs. Servant-of-Jesus; Mr. Worm,
Mr. Fulness; Mr. Beggar, Mr. Child-of-God; Mr.
Blackman, Mr. Eye-of-Wisdom.

China’s Troubles. — Millions of China’s chil-
dren die annually of starvation. The normal
death-rate in China is about four times as great
as that of the United States. This is greatly in-
creased with the appearance of periodic famines.
Just at present China stands in danger of again
being forced to fight the opium scourge because of
the cupidity of Japanese officials, who are letting
it enter.

Where Wives Are Wealth. — In Central Africa
the number of a man’s wives are a sure indication
of his financial standing. ‘That is why Mwata
Yamyo, Lord of Death to two million Africans,
sent word to all his subchiefs that they must bring
him a hundred girls. The ones he wants he will
keep in his own harem; the others he will rent out
by the year to those who pay him liberally enough.
This shameful traffic is the chief source of the royal
income. — World Outlook.

A Missionary’s Dilemma. — A foreign mission-
ary was resting in an African village during a long
transcontinental journey. Early in the morning he
was awakened by six or seven hundred young
women, who marched up and formed a circle
around him. ‘The chief came with them to explain
that the whole tribe wished him to stay with them
and teach them; so they had brought young women
that he might choose a wife and settle in their
midst. The poor missionary was cornered, but
finally declined, giving as his reason that he’ did
not wish to stir up jealousy by selecting any one.
“That is all right,” said the headman, “take them
all”? The next morning the missionary left, but
the people of that tribe are still waiting for some
one to teach them. — World Outlook.

Mission-Building, Congo, Africa.

A Contrast. — In one community of West Vir-
ginia there are 25,000 people with only one church,
while in a community in California with only 1,600
people there are fourteen churches.

A Comparison. — New York has 3,616 clergy-
men, which is more than all the American churches
have sent into foreign mission fields. New York
has 8,421 doctors; the mission-fields have only 515
doctors from the United States and Canada. New
York has 8,021 graduate nurses; all the foreign
mission-stations have only 130 graduate nurses from
the United States and Canada.

The Other Nine. — Many of us here in America”
have forgotten that not all the world has as yet
been Christianized. For every member of an evan-
gelical church the world over there are approxi-
mately nine adherents of some other religion: two
Confucianists, one Hindu, one Mohammedan, one
Buddhist, and four who are either indifferent or
adherents of some other faith. Our task — our
duty — is to reach the other nine.