Opening hymn, “From Greenland’s Icy Mountains.” Prayer by Elder J. N. Loughborough. Duet, “On the Cross,” by E. J. Waggoner and Harry Champness. Elder A. G. Daniells in the chair.GCB April 15, 1901, page 246.8

The Chair: Jesus says; “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest.” “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”GCB April 15, 1901, page 246.9

I would that God would burn the great truth expressed in these commands deeply into our hearts! During the past two weeks we have been talking about our work in distant lands, in what the Bible calls the “regions beyond,” the neglected fields, and it occurred to us that many of our dear friends in Battle Creek, who have been unable to attend the services, would be glad to get a few crumbs, at least, of that which has fallen from the lips of our laborers in different parts of the field; so we have arranged to have five or six short addresses this afternoon upon missionary topics. We have asked men who have been out in the field, and who have met the issues on the ground, to talk to us. We have selected those who represent different parts of the great harvest field, and who come to us from different parts of the world. We feel sure that what they will have to say regarding the openings, and the needs of the fields where they have worked will be of deep interest and instruction to us all.GCB April 15, 1901, page 246.10

Elder Conradi, who comes to us from Germany, and has traveled over vast tracts of country, will talk for a short time regarding what he has seen in his part of the field.GCB April 15, 1901, page 246.11

L. R. Conradi: In 1 Corinthians 16:9 we read: “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.” What was true in the time when Paul wrote is surely true today. There is a great door open in the field where I have been during the last sixteen years. I well remember when I went to Europe, and found Sister White there, how little had been done in that great country, with over 400,000.000 people. Whole empires, like the German, the Russian, the Austrian, with two or three times the population of this country, had hardly been touched. The laborers were few, and we had scarcely any books, and no canvassers, no medical missionaries. But at that time Sister White said to us that she had seen persons in different parts of Europe praying to the Lord for the light of this very truth. I have never forgotten her words, and in my experience in that field have many times seen her words confirmed. I have found persons in Russia, in Holland, in Poland, and in other parts, who told us the story of how they had prayed for years to the Lord for light. They knew there must be further light; for they had been studying the word of God, and could see that they did not have all the truth. When the light of this glorious truth beamed upon their minds, they said, “This is the very thing for which we prayed;” and with their eyes streaming with tears, they would thank the Lord that the light of the truth had been brought to them.GCB April 15, 1901, page 246.12

I am thankful to the Lord to see how his providence has opened a way for us in the great “regions beyond.” In some of these large countries sixteen years ago, there was not a Sabbath-keeper that I know of, not a church established, and to-day there are hundreds, scattered over a large territory, holding out their hand, and asking for laborers and help, that the truth may still be carried on farther. Russia is a field full of open doors. True, there are difficulties to be met; but there are difficulties and perplexities to be met in every other country, too.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.1

From Russia I glance over to Turkey. We have many faithful souls there. Brother Baharian can not work outside of the city in which he is at present located. I visited that field a few months ago, travelling five days continuously from where we held our general meeting in Russia, reaching Constantinople Sabbath morning, in time to have a morning meeting. We asked the Lord for help and strength, and had blessed experiences together in studying the Word of God, and encouraging one another to be faithful.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.2

Some in Asia Minor had been waiting for sixteen months for a minister to come to baptize them. Brother Baharian could not go, as he has been forbidden by the government to leave his present place of work. Through the special interposition of Providence, I was able to reach these dear brethren and sisters in Asia Minor, to hold meetings with, and baptize them. Our brethren live some ten miles above on the hills, from the part of the coast where we landed. They came down and met us with rejoicing, and we went up together to their homes in the mountains, and commenced our meetings. I could stop there only four days, but from early morning till late at night we were together. I can not tell how many meetings we held. I know we had but short intervals for eating. More than that, I did not see one soul sleeping in the meetings during the four days. They had waited sixteen months for a minister to come, and wanted to make the most of the privileges they were enjoying during this short meeting. They had been faithful during this long time of waiting, as evidenced by the fact that the treasurer of the company had been placed in prison for four long months because he collected the tithe. I asked him, “What about your office of treasurer? Will you continue to act in that? He said, “I thought once that the office of treasurer did not amount to very much; but since I have been punished with four months’ imprisonment, I see that it does amount to something. I can see that the devil does not want our money to go to the support of the cause, and,” he added, “I shall be more faithful than ever in asking people to pay their tithes.”GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.3

But we did not know the providences of the Lord until I had returned to Constantinople. A few days after I left the country, I received a letter from Brother Baharian, in which he wrote me that it was in the providence of God that I left the place, because after I left, he was called up by the police again, and learned that the government had instructed the officers not to let me go; but the officers has overlooked the matter until I had gone. Said he, “How we thank the Lord that you have been permitted to be here;” and I praise the Lord for the privilege I had of feeding the flock with the word of God.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.4

I look back on our experience a little further up in Macedonia and Rumania; how brethren came from Macedonia, demanding that some one go out there to preach the truth. A brother who is now on the way there told me his experience. He had been selling Bibles there for ten years. He said that one night he awoke, and it seemed as if somebody called his name. He was to leave in the morning at four o’clock with some merchants, to go out and sell Bibles. He listened again, and his name was called. As he thought about it, some fear came over him, as some one seemed to say, “Don’t go.” He said to his wife, “I can not go. There is something wrong.” He had partly paid for his passage; but he did not go. At eight o’clock in the morning the team which took away the merchants, came back with driver wounded, and when he was asked where the two merchants were, he said. “They have been killed by robbers.” He told me at the time how thankful to the Lord he was for his providence over him. I know an angel of God warned him not to go.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.5

As we came to this brother’s house before he began to keep the Sabbath, how quickly he received the truth! Today he is on his way to Macedonia to proclaim the truth there. These are the men that the Lord has in different countries, prepared to present the truth to the people. What we need is persons of experience to go there and help them.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.6

Again: Some time ago we had a meeting in southern France, and the brethren there took me, during the Sabbath, up to a high mountain, and there showed me the caves where, two hundred years ago, the Protestants had their meetings. They were forbidden to come together to hold meetings under penalty of death. But what did they do?—At midnight little groups would go out into the woods, and into the rocks, and there they held their meetings. Oftentimes the soldiers would come upon them, and many were killed; but still the truth made progress and advancement. These very people in France are calling for ministers to-day; and what have we done there? There are four millions of people in France, and only one minister a part of the time. Four millions of people, and one minister there only a part of the time! There are now two ministers in that country.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.7

Before closing I wish to read a few lines from one of our workers in Jerusalem. We all like to hear from that place. This is a letter that I received a few days ago. Brother Krumm writes of his experience in opening bath-rooms there. He says:—GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.8

“We have had the pasha of Jerusalem and many other high officials as patients here, besides missionaries belonging to many denominations. We can also say that two lame persons now walk, one deaf girl now hears, sick of all descriptions are being healed; besides, I have more openings for Bible work than formerly. Many are beginning to inquire about our faith.”GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.9

So from Siberia to Jerusalem, from Jerusalem to France, and all over Germany and Hungaria, the call is coming, Send laborers. The doors are open. There are adversaries, but the God of Israel is with his people, and souls are converted.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.10

J. E. White: The psalmist said, “Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.” We have seen that manifested many times in our work in the South. Wherever we go, in whatever place we enter, we find there earnest souls who have been praying for light. They know they are in darkness, they know there are things in God’s Word that are not taught to them, and they are stretching out their hands unto God for light and instruction.GCB April 15, 1901, page 247.11

Seven years ago last January, Brother Palmer and I went to a meeting that was being held at Atlanta, Ga. We went because we had made up our minds that we were going to have missionaries among the colored people in the South. We had been able to find that first Testimony that had been sent in regard to the work in the South. We had read it, and we had talked with Dr. Caldwell, who had been working down there; and we made up our minds that the Lord could use us in that kind of work.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.1

We went to a meeting at Atlanta, and began to inquire about how the work was to be done. I was anxious to hear what instruction was to be given in regard to the work. Elder Kilgore spoke to the brethren, and said, “Here is Brother White, who has something to say you in regard to the work among the colored people in the South.” You can imagine how I felt, when I myself had come there for instruction. I found that the brethren there had not been in the work. The people had not been working for the colored people, and they had no instruction to give. Well, we talked it over with them, and learned all we could. We walked up and down the streets of Atlanta, and saw the colored people as they lived, and gained all the ideas we could. And yet when we went to the South, we knew practically nothing in regard to the situation of the South, or the work that we should have down there.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.2

In the South there is a great work to be done for both white and colored. In regard to the colored people, it was told me that they were very ignorant, that many of them could not read: but when we come to the poorer white people, I was astonished to see the situation.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.3

In regard to the condition of the colored people of the South, I can only touch on just a few points. We find the South not only a world of its own, but the colored population is a world within a world. It is rather more so than before the Civil War, because in those times the colored people were grouped around the “great house,” as it was called. In the country, there was the great house of the owner of the plantation; and around this great house were settled the colored people who worked the plantation. The people who owned or superintended them, were more or less associated with them. Before the war, the colored people in many instances, so far as I can learn, went to the same churches that the white people attended, having seats set apart for them in the gallery, or at the rear. Here they were privileged to listen to the same teaching that the white people listened to. But since the war, they have had churches and pastors of their own. Then what kind of preaching did they get? There are scores and scores, and hundreds of colored preachers in the South who can not read a word from the Bible.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.4

The colored people are intensely religious and must have some kind of service and some kind of a preacher. So they picked out certain men who had a peculiar gift in prayer, or in exhortation, and engaged them as preachers. Around Vicksburg, Miss., a great many sermons are preached from the “Gospel Primer.” They take those simple stories into the desk and those who can, read enough to get the point of the stories before their audiences.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.5

In the South there are between seven and eight millions of these colored people who have no refining influence over them, because they have no associations with those who have had the opportunity of education, culture, and refinement. For that reason they are an entirely separate people from the white population. They are a superstitious people. You could not expect anything else. When we began holding meetings on the boat, the people who came once would always come again, and a story was started that the people who came onto the boat were hoodooed; so it was said to them, You must not go into that boat; for if you do, they will hoodoo you, and you will have to go again, because you can not stay away from it. But the truth they heard there won them. It was the gospel of Jesus Christ in its purity that had a controlling power to bring them back again.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.6

We need schools in the South, not only to teach these people to read, but to teach them how to work, to teach them trades, the uses of implements, and how to farm. We need a literature for them. Their Sunday-school lessons are printed in fine type, and written away above their heads, so that they can not understand them. They read from the lesson that this or that thing should be done, and they follow it to the letter. They have no intelligent idea about it. We also need a paper, and I hope the Gospel Herald will fill the field, as it was voted at our convention at Nashville to make it our weekly pioneer paper for the South. I believe the Lord will bless us in making it just exactly what it should be; and I hope we shall have a literature for that people,—books, papers, leaflets, and such things as they need.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.7

A. G. Daniells: We can all thank God that a voice has been raised in this Conference in behalf of the work in the South, and that steps have been taken to advance the cause there with far greater rapidly than has ever been done before. We thank God for that. Now we will ask Brother Spicer, who has been in India for some time, to talk to us regarding his field.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.8

W. A. Spicer: The Lord, in his goodness, sends the Sabbath day first of all to the needy East. Before this Sabbath day dawned upon us in Battle Creek, it has passed over India, leaving its blessing and benediction upon three companies of scattered Sabbath-keepers, who represent the light of this message in that darkland: and if you could see them,—mostly Europeans and Eurasians, with some natives,—you would find that they all speak the language of the third angel’s message. If you have gone into Calcutta, upon this Sabbath day as it passed through that region, you would have found in our meeting-hall there, a company of between fifty and sixty, gathered for Sabbath-school and meeting. You would have found in the meeting-hall, in front, four adult classes,—Europeans, Eurasians, and natives. In the rear of the hall you would have seen a large class of youth on one side, and on the other quite a large class of Bengali youth, who wish to study in their own language. Back of the main hall, in our tract society office, you would have found a large class of little children, studying the Sabbath-school lessons: and they enjoy the truth. They are thankful and glad to God for the light upon his holy Sabbath day; for in the East, where sin and the curse rests so heavily, we need, above all places, that blessed relic from Eden upon which the curse has never rested, to bring light, and blessing, and the refreshing rest of God to the hearts of the people.GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.9

Since coming here, I have heard of four European adults of good position who have come into the company and accepted the Sabbath. In the cities throughout India, millions of the Euro-GCB April 15, 1901, page 248.10

THE ARGENTINE MISSION FIELD

April 16, 1901 - EXTRA NO. 12