The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1929, Page 123

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THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

123

four Hsiao Chiehs, two Oelschlaegers, Simon, and
Gruen were the honored guests, eating alone at the
first table. The bride and groom do not eat on their
wedding-day, at least not when any one sees them.
In a small house such as that was one table, of eight
guests, is served at a time. We enjoyed a most deli-
cious meal of about twelve courses (twelve courses is
a very modest feast) and then, with proper congrat-
ulations and thanks to the groom’s parents, left the
wedding-feast to those who would be served in turn.

One other interesting fact is that the wedding-
feast was eaten in the room that was the dining-
room at the girls’ boarding-school at the time when
it was first opened. The groom’s family has lived
at 96 San Yuen Li for the past year.

A Few Political Notes.

As is always the case in summer, there is more or
less fighting going on in different parts of the
country. The political turnover in Hankow a month
ago was a victory in the sense that at least there
was no bloodshed. We hear at present that further
up in the interior the bandits are active again, as
the troops have been retreating. In the South, at
Canton, there are also disturbances, but whether
serious or not we do not know at present.

It is now two and a half years since the seminary
and boys’ and girls’ high schools have been closed.
The evangelistic work and that in the lower schools
have been carried on, and we ask you to pray with us
that this year the higher schools for our native
workers may again be opened. May the Lord supply
many willing workers and the very much needed
funds, so that soon Chinese workers may carry the
blessed message of salvation to their own people.
Trusting to Him that is able to do abundantly
above all that we ask or think, we close with greet-
ings to all who have been faithful coworkers.

Sincerely yours in His service,

i

The Call of the Suburb.

The drift from the rural areas to the cities has
been going on for many years and probably will not
reach the full height of its movement for another
ten years. This great movement from country to
city, especially during the last two decades, has given
our Home Mission boards much anxiety, particularly
since the waves of immigration from foreign lands
brought millions into the same urban areas and
well-nigh swamped the older part of the population.

The situations thus created by the influx from

the country and from abroad brought difficulties
which probably never have existed before in the
history of the Christian Church. But many of these
have been overcome by our mission boards, so that
the work is sanely and efficiently carried on.

A Suburban Church, Long Island, N. Y.

But now that city, district, and national mission-
ary agencies have been trying to reach with the
Gospel the multitudes of newcomers ‘in the cities,
they are brought face to face with new and trying
conditions, as the tides of population have turned
from the cities to the suburbs.

A Suburban School at St. Louis.

The latest drift in population has been stim-
ulated by automobiles, by bus and rapid train
service in recent years, and also by the building
and loan associations, which make possible the erec-
tion of homes on low-priced land on long-time pay-
ments. Great numbers of young married people by