The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1928, Page 185

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THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

~ 185

The Influence of Womanhood.

Returning from a four months’ missionary
journey through India and to Jerusalem, the Rev.
Dr. Frederick H. Knubel, of New York, president of
the United Lutheran Church in America, declared
that the most significant thing which he had ob-
served was the influence of woman leaders upon the
civilization of those lands where woman has never
received adequate recognition. He was further im-
pressed with the efficiency of government in British
domains. Dr. Knubel, who sailed from New York
early in January, was accompanied by Mrs. Knubel
and the Hon. and Mrs. E. Clarence Miller, LL. D.,
of Philadelphia. Dr. Miller is treasurer of the
United Lutheran Church.

“Wor the greater part of four months,”
Dr. Knubel said, “we were in lands where women
have not been recognized as we recognize them in
the Western World. And yet, strange to say, the
influence of women in some of these lands has been
marked.

“Tn India, where the status of women has never
been high, one woman, Katherine Mayo, author of
a book called Afother India, has stirred the land
to the very depths. While the book has not told the
whole truth, yet it has told a part of the truth very
strikingly. It has aroused discussion in that land
as nothing else has in a generation and has stim-
ulated India to a greater effort.

“In Iraq the influence of Gertrude Bell, an
English girl, stands out as the most important in
many years. This girl, who traveled through every
part of the deserts, gaining a knowledge of the
Arabian lands which was invaluable to the British
in their war campaigns, has been called ‘the Un-
crowned Queen of Arabia.’ She was called back to
Iraq to give aid to the British armies, and again, to
assist in the setting up of a new government. Her
advice was sought and followed, and the impress of
her ideas and her thorough knowledge of the aspira-
tions and desires of the people is seen to-day in the
government of that land.

“A memorial tablet to her was dedicated in Bag-

+ dad by the king of Iraq while we were in the city.
The plaque is placed on the museum which she
founded and which contains all the new discoveries
from Ur, the city of Abraham. The American consul
at Bagdad, Randolph, told us that Gertrude Bell’s
influence was unquestionably the strongest one in
the development of the Iraq government.

_ “In mission-fields of the Orient, woman physi-
cians have, during recent years, made remarkable

progress among the people. Notable among them
all is Dr. Anna Kugler, who during her long period
of service in the Lutheran mission in India has been
recognized as a powerful force in leading the women
of India to higher levels of achievement. Too much
praise cannot be given women like Dr. Kugler, who
spent a lifetime of service in lands where the in-
fluence of good Christian women is most needed.
“One thing that has struck us forcibly is the
efficiency of government in British domains. We
have spent considerable time under the Union Jack,
visiting India, Iraq, Palestine, and Egypt. In all
of these it is interesting to study the influence of

A Young Hindu Widow.

British control. In spite of local difficulties on
occasion, in spite of local opposition in many places,
in spite of the unsettled condition of affairs in some
of her possessions or protectorates, it is unquestion-
able that the government throughout the empire is
helpful in a constructive way. The development of
the peoples whom she controls has been very rapid,
and uncivilized lands are putting on the garb of
civilization. This progress is due in large measure
to Britain’s policy of government in these lands. In
the long run her oversight is always constructive.”
N. L. GC. News Bulletin.

A RELIGION: that you refuse to share with others
will soon cease to be your own.