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 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
A MODERN PAUL IN JAPAN 
 
 %x Account 
 
 OF THE LIFE AND WORK OF THE 
 REV. PAUL SAWAYAMA 
 
 ■ l\ I l;£ IVY 
 
 JINZO J^ARUSE I | | J j, y 
 
 WITH AN INTRODUCTION 
 
 REV. ALEXANDER McKENZIE, D.D. 
 
 " No thought, no word, no act of man ever dies. They are as 
 immortal as his own soul. Somewhere in this world he will meet 
 their fruits in part; somewhere in future life he will meet their 
 gathered harvest." 
 
 BOSTON AND CHICAGO 
 
 fcgwgHtional gtmbag-gtfMrol an& gttblisftittg Stooetg 
 
A. 5-377^ 
 
 •i it »,:•■*. 11 
 
 Y- f: A I. i I 
 
 Copyright, 1893 
 By Congregational Sundav-dchool and Publishing Society 
 
 1 
 
5De»itateU to 
 
 BY AMERICAN FRIENDS 
 
 WHO OUT OP LOVE FOR JAPAN 
 
 HAVE ENCOURAGED ME IN 
 
 MT LIFE WORK. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 DEV. DR. NEESIMA and the Rev. Paul 
 
 Sawayama were the two great captains of 
 Christ, in Japan. Both died on the battlefield, 
 fighting the good fight. Dr. Neesima having 
 laid the foundation of Christian education, 
 the Japanese people respect and love him 
 as the Father of Education. Rev. Paul 
 Sawayama having laid the corner stone of the 
 Independent Christian Church, the people 
 respect and love him as the Father of their 
 Faith. 
 
 It has seemed possible, having come into 
 close relationship with the choice spirit of 
 our loved brother, Paul Sawayama, in both 
 companionship and Christian work, in our 
 native land, that it may be my own special 
 province and privilege to try so to bring 
 before all students of our native character- 
 istics his admirable traits of character and 
 sweet spirit. By so doing, perhaps, a new 
 
A Modern Paul. 
 
 view may come to light of the possibilities 
 wrapped up in the hearts of the many Jap- 
 anese Christians who are earnestly desirous of 
 living up to the pattern of the meek and lowly 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 It is also hoped to open up the deeper side 
 of the Japanese character, to show the en- 
 thusiasm of the young Christians there, their 
 power of self-reliance, and the eagerness and 
 stragglings of the young women for improve- 
 ment. 
 
 I wish here to express my hearty gratitude 
 to my friend, Rev. C. S. Patton, Pastor of 
 the Congregational Church of Auburn, Maine, 
 companionship with whom at Andover Theo- 
 logical Seminary facilitated my study of the 
 Euglish language, and to whom I am much 
 indebted for the kind assistance and encour- 
 agement which enabled me to accomplish this 
 work. 
 
 J.N. 
 August, 1893. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Social Conditions at the Time of Mr. Sawa- 
 yama's Youth. — His Birth. — The Edu- 
 cation and Discipline of Children. — Moral 
 Discipline. — Religion 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Studies. — Service in the Army. — Journey to 
 
 America. — Conversion 32 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Trials. — Vocation. — His Church. — Influence. 
 — Suffering. — Preaching. — Self-support- 
 ing Methods. — Revival 44 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Home Mission Work. — Speech at the Great 
 
 Conference 121 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 School Work. — Woman's Education in Japan 157 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 The Work in Migata. — Christian Education. 
 — Prejudice against Higher Education 
 for Women. — Mr. Sawayama's Death.. 169 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 The Christian world has become specially 
 interested in the educational work in Japan, 
 through the valuable services of Dr. Neesima. 
 This interest will be enlarged by the memoir of 
 Paul Sawayama, which is now presented by Mr. 
 Naruse. Probably a clearer idea of the nature 
 of this work and of the circumstances under 
 which it must be carried on can be obtained 
 from memoirs of this character than in any 
 other way, while the personal narrative is vivid 
 and instructive. Facts are more convincing and 
 abiding than theories, and those which belong 
 to the effort of a man whose life is given in 
 them axe of singular force. I am confident 
 that the readers of Mr. Naruse's interesting 
 pages will be profited by his story of a useful 
 career. The high endeavor of which he writes 
 must commend itself to all who care for Japan 
 and who see in the education of women a large 
 and assured hope of the advance of the country 
 in the Christian knowledge which must elevate 
 the people of that land, as of any land. It is 
 greatly to be desired that the author of this 
 
Introduction. 
 
 narrative may be enabled to fulfill the high 
 purposes with which he has labored here and 
 with which he returns to his own people. So 
 far as this book shall further this desire it will 
 be a noble extension of Mr. Sawayama's influ- 
 ence and of the work which controlled his life. 
 ALEXANDER MCKENZIE. 
 
 The First Church in Cambridge, 
 September 15, 1893. 
 
A MODERN PAUL IN JAPAN 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 sawayama's youth. 
 
 1R. SAWAYAMA and the writer 
 were born contemporaneously in 
 the same town and were brought 
 up in similar families, belonging in the 
 same class, samurai, 1 under the same prince. 
 We thus received the same influences from 
 
 'Up to twenty -five years ago there existed four social 
 distinctions among the people. The first of all these classes 
 waB samurai, which may be translated knights. Next to 
 this came the class of farmers. The reason why they were 
 placed next in importance to the samurai was that they 
 provided all necessary things for living. Next to the farm- 
 ers came the class of artiBans or carpenters, and the last of 
 all came the merchants or tradesmen, who were regarded as 
 the lowest and most useless class of people, because their 
 aim was that of making money. The sentiment of the 
 people in regard to money may be seen in the following : — 
 
 "The wise man loves wisdom, but the foolish man loves 
 riches. 
 
 "The foolish man, although possessing riches, is like 
 a flower under frost — decaying ; while the wise man, 
 although in poverty, is like a lotus springing up from the 
 mud." 
 
10 A Modern Paul. 
 
 the same surroundings, the same instruc- 
 tion and discipline from the same masters 
 at school, Mr. Sawayama being a pupil 
 in my father's private school. 
 
 I would like to give the reader a cor- 
 rect impression of Mr. Sawayama's child- 
 hood. As the particular events which 
 belong to it are naturally somewhat indis- 
 tinct in my memory, the picture which I 
 wish to present may perhaps be best 
 drawn if I state some recollections of my 
 own childhood. In the mirror of this the 
 reader may discern how Mr. Sawayama's 
 life began, and may appreciate how it 
 developed into that beautiful and noble 
 Christian character which made it a 
 power in Japanese life. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama was born in the Prov- 
 ince of Choshu, under the shadow of the 
 magnificent mountain Idsumi, in the sev- 
 enteenth year before the Japanese Revo- 
 lutionary War. The writer was born ten 
 years later in the same village. 
 
 My earliest recollection is that of the 
 
SawayamcCs Youth. 11 
 
 flower gardens and groves which sur- 
 rounded my home and the hedge of ever- 
 greens which enclosed the yard. My 
 mother has often told me how, when I 
 began to creep, I was entrusted to serv- 
 ants who allowed me to creep about in 
 the garden. The servants at noon on one 
 warm day left their small charge to amuse 
 himself and all went in to their dinner. 
 The most inviting amusement seemed to 
 be to creep toward a pond which was a 
 few yards from the gate. Once at the 
 edge of this pond, the natural thing was 
 to creep still farther. A man coming 
 along a moment later, found a baby float- 
 ing upon the water. He hastened to save 
 it, but it was already breathless. 
 
 The servants ran out in great fright, 
 and having built a fire and warmed the 
 body and having swung their neglected 
 charge rapidly in the air to revive him, 
 they waited in great anxiety the appear- 
 ance of my father. They dreaded his 
 anger, for he might well be angry over 
 
12 A Modern Paul. 
 
 the danger into which their neglect had 
 brought his only son and heir. 
 
 But when my father returned from the 
 office of the prince, he was very calm and 
 self-possessed. He did not speak a single 
 word of anger or even of reproach. For 
 at such a time the mind of the samurai 
 must not be shaken up by any emotion. 
 He was trained to stand bravely before 
 any and all troubles which might come. 
 He must not allow himself to change 
 complexion, though sorrow, poverty, or 
 even death should fall to his lot. 
 
 "While there are no strivings of pleas- 
 ure, anger, sorrow, or joy, the mind may 
 be said to be in the state of equilibrium. 
 When these feelings are aroused, if they 
 act in their due degree, there ensues what 
 may be called the state of harmony. 
 This equilibrium is the great root from 
 which all that is good in life springs ; and 
 this is the path which all should pursue." 
 This philosophy the samurai obeyed vig- 
 orously. I remember, when my mother 
 
Sawayamd 's Youth. 13 
 
 and my aunt and my younger brother 
 died, how I, as a child, could not control 
 myself but wept bitterly ; but my father 
 preserved his tranquility of mind per- 
 fectly and I never saw a tear so much as 
 start to his eye. In one instance, indeed, 
 he came near losing his envied harmony 
 for a moment ; but he only came near 
 losing it and only for a moment. A few 
 days before his own death, while he was 
 enfeebled by a very severe illness, the sad 
 report came to him that my younger 
 brother had died suddenly at a remote 
 place. I was at his side when the news 
 came and I saw him cover his face for 
 an instant with the comforter ; but when 
 he looked up again I saw no trace of 
 tears. 
 
 As to the education of our childhood, 
 it consisted chiefly in learning to read and 
 write, in hearing lectures, making poems, 
 calculating numbers, drawing, and fenc- 
 ing. In the early morning, before break- 
 fast, we were taught reading ; in the day- 
 
14 A Modem Paul. 
 
 time we listened to lectures, and in the 
 evening we were taught calculation. 
 
 It was a very great task to commit to 
 memory the several thousand characters 
 which, imported from China, were used 
 in writing Japanese, though we had the 
 Japanese original alphabet which con- 
 sists of forty-six letters. 1 And it was a 
 very hard task for such small children 
 (I began to go to school when I was five) 
 to wake so early at all seasons of the 
 year and in the most severe winter 
 weather to enter the schoolroom with no 
 fire in it. And in the summer it was a 
 very sleepy task, for we were not allowed 
 to sleep early in the evening, but at that 
 time were compelled to receive our in- 
 struction in mathematics. 
 
 Sometimes we were made to go to 
 school barefoot in the snow or over the 
 hoar frost. These things which may seem 
 like hard treatment — and there were 
 
 In Japanese one letter stands for one syllable, while in 
 Chinese, one character stands for a word. 
 
Sawayamd 'a Youth. 15 
 
 many such things in a boy's education — 
 were regarded as no less important a part 
 in education than were the studies which 
 we pursued. For by such treatment the 
 parents of the samurai class sought to 
 develop in their children what they call 
 " Yamato-damashi" the Japanese spirit, 
 that is, the spirit of self-denial, of self- 
 sacrifice for prince and country. They 
 sought to develop also what they call 
 harakiri, or, the spirit of suicide. This 
 word harakiri means literally the cutting 
 of the abdomen. The motive of parents 
 in teaching the spirit of harakiri was to 
 produce that bravery which would make 
 one willing to die for others or for the 
 sake of any good cause. It was a shame- 
 ful thing if a samurai was not brave 
 enough to commit harakiri; for by his 
 cowardice he would show that he was not 
 able to die for the sake of righteousness 
 or for his prince or country. Thus it 
 came to be regarded as a great disgrace 
 to die by the sword of another or to be 
 
16 A Modern Paul. 
 
 captured in battle. Harakiri was the 
 sign of that heroism which was the spe- 
 cial characteristic of the samurai. 
 
 Among many instances which I might 
 give of this spirit of harakiri which pre- 
 vailed among the samurai, I will give 
 only one, which came under my personal 
 knowledge : — 
 
 My teacher's brother, when under the 
 influence of wine, almost unconsciously 
 uttered some words which were thought 
 to imply rebellion. Trouble ensued, and 
 at last he was ordered to commit hara- 
 kiri. He prepared a place for the execu- 
 tion at his own home. Several officers, 
 his brother and near relatives were pres- 
 ent. He took a short knife and cut his 
 stomach from side to side, then thrust 
 his knife into his throat and fell dead. 
 
 If any man of the samurai class had 
 committed any crime, it was a great dis- 
 grace for him to receive his execution 
 at the hands of another. Or if he were 
 overcome in battle, the only honorable 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 17 
 
 course was for him to prevent his cap- 
 ture by taking his own life. The culti- 
 vation of this spirit was an essential part 
 of the samurai's education. 1 
 
 This ideal of strictness which the samu- 
 rai taught his children he strove to incul- 
 cate, not only by instilling the principles 
 upon which it rested, but by his own 
 example. We had many forms of pro- 
 priety which were enforced by very strin- 
 gent rules, — an elaborate and finished 
 system of politeness. For instance, there 
 was the rule for sitting down on the mat 
 in the true Japanese fashion. It was not 
 usual to practice this every day and on 
 all occasions, for it was very tiresome, 
 if not absolutely painful, to sit in such 
 a cramped position a long time, while 
 reading, or writing, or speaking, or doing 
 business at the office. So the lower class 
 
 !For this reason the Japanese called the two swords, 
 carried by the samurai from childhood to old age, Yamato- 
 Damashii — Japanese spirit. One of them was long, and 
 this served for fighting and protection; while the other 
 one was short, which served for harakiri. The wearing 
 of the two swords stopped in 1868, after the revolution which 
 destroyed the feudal system. 
 
18 A Modern Paul. 
 
 of the samurai often allowed this rule 
 to go unnoticed in their private rooms. 
 But my father never lost the extreme 
 strictness of his manners, in this or in 
 any particular, even in his most private 
 rooms. My mother has told me how he 
 would never put his feet out against the 
 hearth in the coldest winter weather, lest 
 he should set the example of carelessness 
 before his children. Thus he never ate 
 candy or fruits at the improper time ; he 
 never went to the theatre, because he 
 thought that these things contained strong 
 temptations for children, and he would 
 set no example except of the strictest pro- 
 priety. But he drank wine and smoked 
 tobacco, for the Japanese never consid- 
 ered these as bad habits for mature peo- 
 ple. " Wine is the king of all medicine," 
 they said. 
 
 It was the custom of parents also to 
 encourage their children in their studies 
 by telling them stories of enthusiastic 
 students and what happened to them. 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 19 
 
 A very common story was that of an 
 earnest student who one day became so 
 interested in his study that he did not 
 notice that a shower had begun to fall 
 until the corn which he was drying in 
 the sunshine was washed away by the 
 flood. Another story was that of the 
 poor boy who, being unable to buy oil 
 by which to study, studied in the sum- 
 mer evenings by the light of the fireflies 
 which he caught, and in the winter by 
 the reflection of the snow. There was 
 also the account of the self-denying stu- 
 dent who put his head through the noose 
 in a rope which he suspended from the 
 ceiling; and when his head dropped for- 
 ward as he fell into a doze, he was sud- 
 denly* awakened, and went on with his 
 study. 
 
 The morality of the time was a some- 
 what peculiar one, which came from an 
 alloy of the Japanese Shintoism and the 
 Confucianism and Buddhism which were 
 imported from China. 
 
20 A Modern Paul. 
 
 The first duty was the religious one — 
 to obey the decrees of heaven, and to 
 serve the spirits of ancestors. 1 The most 
 familiar obligation was that of obeying 
 the decrees of heaven : " What heaven has 
 conferred is called the nature ; an accord- 
 ance with this nature is called the path 
 of duty ; the regulation of this path is 
 called instruction." 
 
 The next duty was that of the "go- 
 rin," or the duty of the five relations. 
 These five relations were, first, the rela- 
 tion between master or prince and ser- 
 vant; second, that between father and 
 son ; third, that between man and wife ; 
 fourth, that between brethren ; fifth, that 
 between friends. 
 
 Thus, fidelity, loyalty, and patriotism 
 were the highest virtues ; and the Japan- 
 ese people have many great examples of 
 
 'The way of serving ancestors was to offer water or 
 incense or flowers or other things at the altar of the spirits 
 of the ancestors in the home, and tablets in the Buddhist's 
 temple and at the graves in the cemetery. They believed 
 that they could communicate with the spirits of ancestors 
 by worshiping and offering such things as the above. 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 21 
 
 these virtues. I myself never had the 
 experience of military service in behalf 
 of the prince, for I was too small at the 
 time when such service was needed by 
 him. But I remember clearly the desire 
 which I had to become a soldier during 
 the closing scenes of the war. I was 
 then about twelve years old. I asked 
 my father's permission. He was silent. 
 After I had waited several days for him 
 to speak to me, I understood by his con- 
 tinued silence that he would not allow 
 me to go the battle field. 
 
 If my father's silence, in this instance 
 just mentioned, should seem strange to 
 Americans, as my observation would lead 
 me to suppose it might, let me explain 
 that in Japan the scholar or prudent man 
 does not speak much. He controls his 
 family by a silent authority. Even yet 
 a peculiar tendency toward soberness, or 
 almost toward severity of expression and 
 feeling, is noticeable among the Japanese. 
 " Fine words and an insinuating appear- 
 
22 A Modem Paul. 
 
 ance are seldom associated with true vir- 
 tue," they often say. 
 
 Filial piety was a virtue next in im- 
 portance to loyalty. " Filial piety is the 
 root of all virtues." The child or youth 
 must be studious, must practice the truth, 
 must take care of his health, must avoid 
 dangers, not so much for his own sake 
 as because he owes it to his parents. 
 When I was a boy my great delight was 
 to see the happiness of my parents over 
 such progress as I made in my studies; 
 or to bring to them for their approval 
 the results of a hunting or fishing expe- 
 dition. But according to my own feeling, 
 and my own case is merely a typical one, 
 my father was too stern, and my mother 
 was, perhaps, too affectionate. I never 
 had what Americans call " fun " with my 
 father, — never joked with him ; but I 
 often conversed, or even played with my 
 mother; and while of course I did love 
 my father and did respect my mother, 
 yet it seems a much more natural state- 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 23 
 
 ment of the case to say that I respected 
 my father, but loved my mother. I even 
 had a voice against my mother's com- 
 mands sometimes, and occasionally I would 
 disobey her; but in all my life I never 
 disobeyed my father, nor can I remember 
 a single instance in which I remonstrated 
 by even so much as a word or sign against 
 any command of his. 
 
 One sentiment which from childhood 
 we were taught to repeat often, was this : 
 " What you do not want done to yourself 
 do not do it to others." My father was 
 very strict in requiring my obedience to 
 this rule. One day (I must have been 
 about nine years old), a boy friend and I 
 began to quarrel. At length we came to 
 an open fight which continued for almost 
 two hours, sometimes one and sometimes 
 the other appearing to have the better 
 of it. I was almost tired out when my 
 friend offered to submit. He was so 
 sorry over the trouble that he went to 
 my father to make his confession to him. 
 
24 A Modem Paul. 
 
 My father came to me immediately, and, 
 after scolding me for my fault in the 
 quarrel, punished me severely. He tied 
 me to a stake with a cord holding my 
 hands behind my back, and wrapped my 
 body around with a coarse mat of straw. 
 I remained two hours in this condition. 
 I must confess that I had a little feeling 
 against my father for this; and after I 
 was set at liberty, instead of going into 
 my own home I went to that of my uncle 
 which was near by. But I soon repented 
 and went home and took dinner with my 
 father. He treated me with especial kind- 
 ness that night and my dissatisfaction 
 soon vanished. 
 
 It was very common when I was a boy 
 for boys to fight by standing at some little 
 distance from each other and throwing 
 stones. In one of these battles I was hit 
 upon the upper lip. When I went home 
 to my dinner my lip was badly swollen 
 and was very painful. I told nobody 
 about the matter, and though my father 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 25 
 
 must have noticed the condition of my 
 face he seemed willing to let me take my 
 swollen lip as my punishment and said 
 nothing. 
 
 I was punished only twice by my father. 
 One occasion was that which I have 
 already described ; on the other, my father 
 beat me about the head with a short stick 
 because I was stupid in my study. 
 
 Our chief negative commandments 
 were : do not lie ; do not steal ; do not 
 covet. And the training which we re- 
 ceived in the keeping of these was con- 
 stant and emphatic. I remember my 
 father sending me on an errand to a 
 store at a distance of a mile or more. 
 I made my purchase, paid the money, 
 received the change and returned home. 
 When I gave the change to my father he 
 noticed that the storekeeper had given 
 me back one rin (one tenth of a cent) 
 too much. I was ordered to take the one 
 rin back immediately. The impression 
 was thus forced through my legs into my 
 
26 A Modern Paul 
 
 mind that my father was exceedingly 
 careful over what seemed like a very 
 little thing. 
 
 The following case will also show the 
 reader to what a degree the hatred of 
 dishonesty was carried. A schoolmate of 
 Mr. Sawayama's had stolen a stick of 
 Japanese ink from his friend's box. He 
 was found out. All the students gathered 
 at once around a pond ; they threw the 
 thief into the water; many threw stones 
 at him ; and if he climbed up to the shore 
 they pushed him into the water again and 
 again until the poor fellow was almost 
 dead; then he was dismissed from the 
 school. 
 
 We were taught that if we spoke a lie 
 we would receive punishment from God 
 in this world, and in the next world our 
 tongues would be cut out of our mouths. 
 When I was ten years old I went one day 
 up a sacred mountain to worship a god. 
 I was told that if anyone had told a lie in 
 the past time he would be caught by the 
 
Sawayam<£» Youth. 27 
 
 bellrope of the temple and would not be 
 able to loose himself from it. I was 
 frightened and examined my heart pretty- 
 carefully. 
 
 I will say in a word how we were 
 taught to examine our hearts and to 
 keep our consciences active. When I was 
 tempted to sin in the darkness, I repeated 
 these words : " Heaven knows, and I 
 know, and earth knows ; I cannot escape 
 from the net of heaven ; there is nothing 
 more visible than what is secret, and 
 nothing more manifest than what is 
 minute; therefore the superior man is 
 watchful over himself when he is alone." 
 
 Such precepts as the following were 
 helpful in our efforts to examine our- 
 selves, and repent of our faults : " I daily 
 examine myself on three points ; whether 
 in transacting business for others I may 
 have been unfaithful; whether in inter- 
 course with friends I may have been in- 
 sincere; whether I have mastered and 
 practiced the instruction of my teachers." 
 
28 A Modem Paul. 
 
 " When you have faults, do not fear to 
 abandon them." " I have faults — to re- 
 fuse to reform them, this should be pro- 
 nounced the greatest fault." 
 
 The first duty of the day was to wor- 
 ship the gods. In the morning I used to 
 worship the god of heaven and earth, the 
 god of water, the god of the mountain, 
 the god of the clan. This I did standing 
 outside the house. Then coming in I 
 worshiped the spirits of my ancestors and 
 the god of the household. We had not 
 only gods of agriculture, medicine, etc., 
 but a god to care for each particular mem- 
 ber of a man's body; such as a god of 
 eyes, a god of teeth, etc. In all, we 
 believed in several thousand gods. 
 
 But we regarded the God of heaven as 
 the king of all the gods and the ruler of 
 all things. But of course the idea of 
 God was very dim ; we conceived of the 
 invisible world of gods or spirits as an 
 organized society, like human society. 
 As a king has many officers, so there are 
 
Sawayamds Youth. 29 
 
 many gods of every kind and degree, all 
 doing the bidding and performing the 
 work of the God of heaven. We thought 
 of the spirits of these Gods as scattered 
 throughout nature, and as having their 
 individual dwelling-places in various ob- 
 jects, such as the sun, the moon, the 
 temple, the idol. 
 
 The chief influence of my early re- 
 ligious life came from the death of my 
 mother, which occurred when I was six 
 years old. After I lost my mother my 
 first serious question was: Is there a 
 heaven in the future, or will the human 
 life be blotted out as the light of a candle 
 disappears? One day, having pondered 
 this question a great deal, I proposed it 
 to a woman who answered me : " No ; 
 there are no such things in the future ; 
 heaven and hell are all in this world. If 
 you are in misery, you are in hell, and if 
 you are happy, that is heaven." 
 
 I was not satisfied with this reply. I 
 could not be content to think that I 
 
30 A Modem Paid. 
 
 should not see my mother again ; nor did 
 it seem to me that on such a hypothesis 
 my own life was other than a vain thing, 
 though I should learn ever so much and 
 store up for myself all the writers of the 
 Japanese ideal of life. My anxiety over 
 this problem led me often to inquire of 
 scholars, or of the priests of Shintoism or 
 Buddhism ; and though almost all of them 
 believed in heaven and hell, I was never 
 entirely satisfied with their answer. 
 
 When I had reached the age of about 
 thirteen, the western sciences, history, 
 philosophy, and mathematics were im- 
 ported into my native town. The new 
 truths which came to me through these 
 channels made a deep impression upon 
 me. I saw the foolishness of worshiping 
 idols and abandoned it immediately. 
 Having as yet nothing in its stead I was 
 entirely nonreligious for a long time. 
 But having read the story of creation in 
 the Western History, I tried one even- 
 ing to worship the heavenly God ; but my 
 
Sawayama's Youth. 31 
 
 heart and my mind were full of doubts 
 and fears. I had this hope, however; 
 that probably the Western nations had 
 discovered the true religion, since they 
 had found out so many truths concerning 
 philosophy and science. Soon I came 
 upon my great opportunity to hear about 
 Christianity; for Mr. Sawayama had 
 returned from America with the Chris- 
 tian faith. As soon as I heard of his 
 return I called upon him and asked him 
 the many questions which had so long 
 been troubling me. He answered me 
 very earnestly, clearly, and wisely. My 
 eyes were opened at once to a new world, 
 and I became a Christian. 
 
 From this time to the time of his death 
 I was working almost constantly with Mr. 
 Sawayama. I seem to myself to know his 
 life almost as well as I know my own. 
 
m 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 sawayama's conversion. 
 
 R. SAWAYAMA had from his 
 childhood been fond of study, 
 and had at different times at- 
 tended the best schools in his native 
 province. In 1868, when he had reached 
 the age of seventeen, a great crisis oc- 
 curred in Japanese affairs. In the rev- 
 olution against Bakufu 1 Mr. Sawayama's 
 province was attacked by the Bakufu 
 troops. Mr. Sawayama did brave service 
 in defending the frontier of his province 
 from the hostile incursion of the enemy. 
 At the close of the civil war he again 
 gave himself to study, and attended the 
 
 1 Bakufu was the technical name of the government of 
 the Shogun or Dictator. The family of the Shogun had 
 usurped the temporal power of the Mikado or Emperor, and 
 had ruled with its capital at Tedo for oyer two hundred and 
 fifty years. In 1868 a revolutionary war opened. The effect 
 of this was to strip the Shogun of his power and restore to 
 the Mikado his authority. The capital was fixed at Tedo, 
 the name of which was changed to Tokyo. 
 
 33 
 
Sawayamats Conversion. 33 
 
 most famous schools of Japan. He not 
 only studied theories, but his whole ten- 
 dency was to make his knowledge prac- 
 tical. 
 
 When he was a boy he listened to a 
 lecture on the sennin. And he was so 
 impressed that he aspired to become a 
 sennin. 1 When Mr. Sawayama returned 
 home from the school he told his parents 
 that he wanted to visit a friend and went 
 away. Instead, however, he ascended a 
 mountain and stayed there several days 
 hoping to become a sennin. When he 
 got hungry he subsisted upon wild fruits 
 or roots of plants, and sometimes he went 
 down to the country and begged food from 
 farmers, and then returned to the moun- 
 tain again. But he was unsuccessful in 
 these attempts, of course; so he lost all 
 hope of becoming a sennin and returned 
 home. This incident shows his intense 
 
 1 Sennin was the name given to an imaginary being, sup- 
 posed to be more than a mere man. It denoted a being 
 something iike an angel who had been transformed from a 
 man by extraordinary physical and mental exercises. 
 
84 A Modem Paul. 
 
 nature and his determination to realize 
 his ideals. 
 
 At one time he heard about a certain 
 Master Shuyo Foshimura, of Shikoku, 
 who was famous not only for his knowl- 
 edge of the teachings of Confucius, but 
 also for the consistency of his life as a 
 Confucianist. Mr. Sawayama went to 
 him to become his disciple, and in time 
 mastered the ethics and philosophy of the 
 great sage of China. 
 
 Civil commotions again threatened to 
 arise, and Mr. Sawayama was put at 
 the head of a band of soldiers and en- 
 trusted with the responsibility of sup- 
 pressing riots. When peace was again 
 restored, his old enthusiasm for study 
 as quickly returned, and he formed a 
 plan for studying Western civilization. 
 With this in view he went to Kobe", 
 where he studied English with Rev. D. 
 C. Greene, d.d., the first Japanese mis- 
 sionary of the American Board. In 1872 
 he came to America. 
 
Sawayama! & Conversion. 35 
 
 Concerning his student life in America, 
 Mrs. M. C. Wise, who was his instructor at 
 Evanston, says in The Pacific Advocate : 
 
 There is a tradition among Sawayama's coun- 
 trymen that anyone in the interior desiring 
 more light or knowledge must go for it to the 
 coast. Of course the sea coast inhabitants do 
 possess greater advantages for obtaining infor- 
 mation. This was especially the case at that 
 time, when missionaries were not admitted to 
 the interior. 
 
 Sawayama found his way to the coast, a 
 pilgrim in search of knowledge ; and though he 
 knew it not — in search of God. Beaching the 
 coast he told his errand, and was pointed to a 
 little house on the hill. Here he found a mis- 
 sionary (Dr. D. C. Greene). The good man 
 took Sawayama into his family and told him the 
 story of the cross. Then it was that he was 
 converted. Though he did not make a profession 
 till sometime later, yet after he came to America 
 and his mind became more and more enlight- 
 ened and he learned more of spiritual things 
 he seemed conscious that the work was wrought 
 for him in Japan. 
 
 Sawayama had not resided long in his new 
 home ere the missionary discovered him to be a 
 
36 A Modern Paul. 
 
 young man of extraordinary qualities of mind 
 and heart. The good man wrote to friends in 
 America and secured, in the family of his own 
 brother, a home for the youth. All was di- 
 rected by a divine hand, and his home was in 
 Evanston, 111., the seat of the Northwestern 
 University and Garrett Biblical Institute. 
 Where could there be a more fitting home for 
 such a mind and heart? 
 
 He came to America in 1872. It was that 
 fall that I first met him. It was a pleasure 
 to meet the manly, bright-faced, fine-looking 
 youth as he passed to and fro from the school- 
 room, and respond to his low bow and courteous 
 salutations. 
 
 Sawayama's teachers were full of enthusi- 
 asm. No scholar in the school was so quiet and 
 orderly; there was none who learned more 
 rapidly. Two years later I had the honor to 
 be for a time his instructor. I can see him now 
 as he used to stand at the board during mathe- 
 matics. There were earnest pupils, but no face 
 wore so earnest a look as his. I remember the 
 look of perplexity that used to cross his face if 
 someone was found inattentive or unprepared. 
 I think he never understood how an eternity- 
 bound soul could so waste the precious moments 
 of its probation here. 
 
Sawayama! s Conversion. 37 
 
 Sawayama was nearly always the first to turn 
 from the board with beaming face and upraised 
 hand to announce the completion of his work. 
 His tongue, so lately accustomed to our speech, 
 was all too slow for his rapid thoughts. 
 
 Meanwhile his Christian character had 
 been developing rapidly; but he had as 
 yet no conviction that it was his duty 
 to become a preacher. Nor did this con- 
 viction come to him for some consider- 
 able time. His enthusiasm for Japan 
 took as yet the more general form of 
 patriotism. 
 
 Mr. L. H. Boutell wrote about Mr. 
 Sawayama to this writer as follows : — 
 
 Chicago, June 1, 1892. 
 Mb. J. Nabuse : — 
 
 Bear Sir, — The last three years of his resi- 
 dence here he spent in my family. During his 
 first three years hi this country, he devoted him- 
 self to general studies, with the expectation I 
 think, of entering governmental service on his 
 return to Japan. About a year before he left 
 us, one of the Japanese missionaries, Mr. H. H. 
 Leavitt, visited us and urged him to prepare 
 
38 A Modem Paul. 
 
 himself for missionary work in Japan. He 
 especially impressed upon him the need for 
 Christian labors in Japan at that time. 
 
 The result of this conversation was that Mr. 
 Sawayama decided to devote himself to Bible 
 study for a year and then to become a preacher 
 of Christianity to his countrymen. His Bible 
 studies were pursued under the direction of 
 Rev. E. N. Packard, d.d. 1 It was at this time 
 that he took the name Paul, and in his thorough 
 consecration to his work he proved himself not 
 unworthy of the name. 
 
 "When he decided to devote his life to preach- 
 ing the gospel among his countrymen, his spirit 
 seemed elevated and quickened by the nobility 
 of his work. He had a consuming zeal for his 
 Master's service. In his consecration to that 
 service, his heroic self-sacrifice, his sensitive 
 conscientiousness, and the childlike simplicity 
 of his faith, he seemed to have caught the spirit 
 of the apostolic age. 
 
 Wbat most impressed me, on my first ac- 
 quaintance with him, was the exquisite refine- 
 ment of his manners. It was not a mere sur- 
 face politeness, but sprang from a desire to be 
 of service to others. I do not wonder that he 
 had such an influence among his countrymen, 
 
 iNow of Syracuse, N. T. 
 
SawayamcCs Conversion. 39 
 
 for here, among ourselves, he won the love of 
 all. I am, yours truly, 
 
 L. H. BOUTELL. 
 
 The writer heard from Mr. Sawayama 
 the following account of this experience : 
 
 One day, I suppose a little after the 
 interview with Mr. Leavitt, he had been 
 reading the biography of some Christian 
 missionary, and the thought seemed to 
 come to him almost as a revelation, that 
 the need of Japan was the preaching of 
 the Gospel. He thought much, and more 
 and more the conviction grew and strength- 
 ened within him that the darkness which 
 covered Japanese society with so many 
 sorrows and sins in its shadow, could 
 never be effectually dissipated except by 
 the power of Christianity ; and who could 
 be called of God to preach to Japan, if 
 not himself? He said to his awakened 
 heart : " The people of foreign countries 
 have sacrificed their lives to be mission- 
 aries to Japan, how can I see the condi- 
 tion of my own people so indifferently ? " 
 
40 A Modem Paul. 
 
 He decided to proclaim upon the house- 
 tops what he had heard in the ear. 
 
 The following letter from Rev. E. N. 
 Packard, d.d., to the writer, tells more 
 about Mr. Sawayama's study and other 
 Christian characteristics : — 
 
 Syracuse, N. Y., July 9, 1892. 
 Mb. J. Nartjse: — 
 
 Dear Brother, — Sawayama first appeared in 
 the family of Mr. L. H. Boutell, in Evanston, 
 where I was pastor of the First Congregational 
 Church, and came to church with them and 
 entered the Sunday-school more to learn our 
 language than to become a disciple. But soon 
 he became interested for himself, and in due 
 time declared his faith in Christ. It was with 
 great joy that I received him into the church 
 and administered baptism to him, my first ex- 
 perience in baptizing a foreign-born man. 1 
 
 After this he began to take part in our prayer 
 meetings, now and then. He spoke, of course, 
 
 1 Mrs. M. C. Wise says : " When Sawayama left Japan, 
 Ms father was required to give bonds to the effect that Sawa- 
 yama should not change his religion. When he came to 
 make a public profession here he was asked if he did not 
 fear his father would suffer on account of the bonds he had 
 given. Sawayama replied: 'The Lord will take care of 
 that.' And his faith was honored." 
 
Sawayamd 's Conversion. 41 
 
 very imperfect English, but his words had a 
 peculiar power about them, as if sent by the 
 Spirit. I remember how one of our young 
 men said that that foreign-born and poorly 
 educated young man put to shame those who 
 had been having every advantage. 
 
 After a while he began to think of the minis- 
 try to his own countrymen, and talked with me 
 about it. He was then in the preparatory de- 
 partment of the Northwestern University, and 
 had several years of work laid out. But some- 
 thing seemed to impress him with the idea that 
 the time was short. Against the judgment of 
 Mr. Boutell and others of us he decided to press 
 for a preparation for the ministry at once, and 
 I arranged with him to come to my study from 
 time to time and to talk over the Christian 
 scheme. "We used as a textbook Hodge's Way 
 of Life, and it proved to be an excellent book 
 for the purpose. He became attracted to Paul 
 and his theology, and took the name of Paul for 
 this reason. After weeks of study and confer- 
 ence he suddenly seemed to come out into light 
 and to receive what I can only think of as a 
 " baptism of the Holy Spirit." 
 
 His idea as to truth clarified suddenly, and he 
 told me that he felt confident that he could go 
 and meet the objections which his friends in 
 
42 A Modem Paul. 
 
 Japan might bring up. Soon after this, to our 
 surprise, he began to plan to get back to his 
 native land, and his persistence and faith were 
 remarkable. I used to say that, if no other 
 way would offer, Sawayama would take an 
 open boat and row across the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 After obtaining help from the Japanese Con- 
 sul, at New York, and passes from Colonel 
 Hammond, for a part at least of the railroad 
 journey to San Francisco, he bade us farewell 
 and we never saw him again. Mr. Sawayama 
 returned to Japan in 1876. No man ever went 
 to a great task with greater enthusiasm. 
 
 I always felt a strong attraction to him, for 
 his many fine qualities and for something inde- 
 scribable which was the indwelling of the Spirit 
 in him. He had clear views of truth which 
 seemed to have come direct from the source of 
 all truth, direct to him, and not through books. 
 His good nature, his plain and simple scheme of 
 living for Christ were a life-long lesson and 
 blessing to me. Truly yours, 
 
 EDWARD N. PACKARD. 
 
 Mrs. Wise says of this period : — 
 
 After he yielded to the conviction that it was 
 his duty to go back and labor for the conversion 
 of his people, he seemed to be in a hurry. His 
 
Sawayama's Conversion. 43 
 
 pastor asked him if it would not be better to 
 remain in Evanston a while longer, where he 
 would have such fine opportunities for the 
 study of theology, as well as other branches of 
 learning, and be more thoroughly prepared for 
 his work. His reply was: "I have as much 
 learning as the apostles had." He felt that he 
 must go quickly, for infidelity was gaining 
 ground in his country ; and he went back to lift 
 up the standard of the cross. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 sawayama's ministry. 
 
 gegjlT the time of Sawayama's return 
 fftxB the majority of the Japanese 
 people hated Christianity "with 
 perfect hatred." They called it " the way 
 of the devils." Native Christians were 
 subjected to various modes and degrees of 
 persecution. Some lost their positions; 
 some were disinherited ; many practically 
 were deprived of those social privileges 
 which make freedom valuable. It was a 
 disgrace for a family to have a Christian 
 in its circle. The educated believed in no 
 religion ; they despised the native priests 
 and hated the Christian ministers. 
 
 Of the few Japanese who then came to 
 America, too many young men who had 
 been converted while students in this 
 country, lost their Christianity in the 
 ocean as they returned to Japan. This 
 
 44 
 
Sawayama'a Ministry. 45 
 
 is a lamentable fact, but one which will 
 not be too severely condemned by one 
 who knows what a Japanese Christian 
 was called upon to endure in those days. 
 But Mr. Sawayama came back to his 
 home with his resolute, devotional, zealous 
 Christian spirit undaunted. But in an- 
 other respect he found that Christianity 
 had made great progress in Japan. He 
 says in his letter as follows : — 
 
 Osaka, Japan, October 17, 1876. 
 Rev. Edward Packard: — 
 
 Bear Friend, — When I reached Yokohama 
 I found all the features of the city and people 
 so much changed from what I used to see five 
 years ago. Many streets and buildings are con- 
 structed in the European style, and the govern- 
 ment buildings are, of course, constructed in 
 fine European styles in all plans. Systems of 
 post office and others are well adapted to that of 
 Americans, and I think that we are almost as con- 
 venient in most cases in Japan as in America. 
 I am much surprised to see that the education of 
 Japan is very much progressed. I think that 
 the degree of studies in our colleges and high 
 
46 A Modern Paul. 
 
 schools is as high as common American colleges 
 and high schools. Once I visited with Mr. 
 Nakahara, while I was staying in Tokyo, a 
 girls' high school, and it was the examination 
 day. I heard a few classes. They were in 
 natural philosophy, arithmetic, geometry, etc., 
 and I noticed that they all recited quite well. 
 On the way to my home from Yokohama, I was 
 very much pleased to see the flags on the poles, 
 which are signs of public schools. They were 
 seen here and there in every town and village. 
 The schools in Japan are indeed in flourishing 
 condition. I was much ashamed to have found, 
 when I reached my home, that my brother 
 knows geography and arithmetic better than I 
 do. 
 
 Above all things, I was very much rejoiced to 
 have found the advancement of Christian reli- 
 gion in Japan. Though I had heard a good 
 deal about the success of the missions when I 
 was in America, as you know, I was hardly 
 prepared to find their work so fully arranged. 
 I met most of the brethren in Yokohama, and 
 I was requested to preach at Otamachi Chapel, 
 and so I did. This chapel is situated in the midst 
 of one of the busiest streets in this city; the 
 people crowd to hear the gospel quietly. I 
 attended several Christian meetings in this city, 
 
Sawayama 's Ministry. 47 
 
 and I believe that all the brethren are earnest 
 and enthusiastic workers for Christ, and I en- 
 joyed the meeting every time. I found, when 
 I went to Tokyo, one of my old friends had 
 become a faithful Christian. 
 
 I stayed but one week with Mr. Greene, in 
 Yokohama. During the time, I had a very joy- 
 ful time indeed, and then I sailed to Kob6 from 
 Yokohama. In Kobe I did not stay many days, 
 though I preached once in the chapel, one Sun- 
 day, and in the evening I was invited to take 
 tea with Miss Talcot, in the girl's seminary, 
 and had great pleasure in meeting with the 
 many enthusiastic girls as I thought. It hap- 
 pened that I was in at the time of their evening 
 prayer-meeting. There were but about a dozen 
 girls, as most of the students were gone home 
 for the vacation, as I was told. They prayed 
 for nearly all interests of the world, and half 
 dozen or more girls continued to pray in one 
 kneeling. 
 
 In Osaka, I stayed with my old friend Mr. 
 Utsumi, the vice-governor of the city, and I 
 could not see any of our missionary friends 
 here, as they were then all gone away from 
 the city, for the summer vacation. 
 
 From Osaka, straightway I went to my home 
 and I found my mother, sister, and brother 
 
48 A Modem Paul. 
 
 were quite well. My sister and brother were 
 grown up so very big that I thought I should 
 not know them if I had met them anywhere 
 else than at home; but my father looked 
 very bad as he has been very sick. They were 
 greatly rejoiced at my return home, after a very 
 long absence. My father said: " My son, now 
 you come home, so my sickness will be better 
 by and by I think." "When I told them the 
 great kindness which I received in America my 
 parents expressed uttermost gratefulness, and 
 wished me to thank for them, my American 
 friends, through my pen. My father said he 
 would go to thank you, the Evanston friends, 
 for the kindness, if America were not such a 
 distant land. My friends at home heard me to 
 speak of Christ, with much interest. Although 
 I did not see an actual success in the work at 
 home, yet I hope that some good will be done 
 for their unbelieving hearts by the talk and by 
 the religious books which I left them. 
 
 After about ten days' stay at home, I came 
 back to this city ; although my parents wished 
 me to stay at home all the time and not go away 
 from them any more, yet I felt that I better 
 come here to work. As my father is quite sick, 
 I am anxious about him very much, while I stay 
 here, and I hope that I may visit home as often 
 
SawayamcCs Ministry. 49 
 
 as I can, but it is difficult to go home often, for 
 many reasons. 
 
 Please give my Christian love to your f amily 
 and to all my friends in Evanstou, both young 
 and old. Tell that I am thinking about them all 
 the time, and hope to be friends with them con- 
 tinually in this life and the next too. Hoping 
 you will always be successful in your works, 
 and may God bless you, 
 
 Yours affectionately, 
 
 P. U. SAWAYAMA. 
 
 His parents were quite disappointed 
 that Mr. Sawayama was converted to 
 Christianity, though they were very glad 
 of his safe return home. But Mr. Sa- 
 wayama merely waited, and with great 
 patience, for the conversion of his parents. 
 He had a profound filial love for them, 
 and wherever it did not involve a com- 
 promise of his Christian principles he ac- 
 commodated his life to their wishes. 
 
 As an instance of this disposition to- 
 wards his parents I will mention a little 
 incident which occurred during a sickness 
 of his father : — 
 
50 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama had become accustomed 
 while in America to the cold sponge baths 
 which are so invigorating to begin the day 
 with, and he disliked exceedingly to dip his 
 weak body, for he was by no means strong, 
 into the hot water of the Japanese baths. 
 This contempt, for so he deemed it, of 
 Japanese customs, displeased his father 
 greatly, and he in return refused to take 
 some medicine which Mr. Sawayama was 
 sure would be very beneficial to him. 
 
 " You refuse to take a hot bath and I 
 will not take your medicine," said he. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama answered immediately, 
 " Father, take the medicine, please ; I will 
 take the hot bath." 
 
 In many such ways he sought to serve 
 his parents, though it might be at the ex- 
 pense of his own comfort. 
 
 But he could not stay longer at home. 
 He removed to Osaka city to begin his 
 work there. No matter how busy he 
 might be — and he was very busy — and 
 no matter how completely his attention 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 51 
 
 and sympathies were engrossed in the 
 work of his ministry, he never neglected 
 to write to his parents, to send them good 
 books and to pray for them. It was not 
 long before his whole family was con- 
 verted to Christianity. 
 
 As Mr. Sawayama's clan had ardently 
 championed the cause of the Mikado it 
 had come out of the revolution with great 
 Sclat. Many of his friends had important 
 and honorable positions in the new govern- 
 ment which had lately been established. 
 A new civilization was dawning in Japan. 
 The government, quick to appreciate the 
 needs and the opportunities of the hour, 
 sought to secure the ablest men for their 
 service. Those who had studied in civil- 
 ized countries and might thus be supposed 
 to have the spirit of Western civilization 
 were in especial requisition. Every in- 
 ducement was offered in the way of 
 salaries. 
 
 Those friends of Mr. Sawayama who 
 held government positions brought their 
 
52 A Modern Paul. 
 
 influence to bear upon him to induce him 
 to accept one. They knew his ability, but 
 they did not know his Christian constancy. 
 " Counting the reproach of Christ greater 
 riches than the treasures " of this world, 
 he chose " rather to be evil-entreated with 
 the people of God." Finding a little 
 band of eleven despised Christians he 
 promised to be their pastor. 
 
 The self-sacrifice of this act becomes 
 more apparent when it is remembered that 
 such a governmental position as was of- 
 fered to Mr. Sawayama would have paid 
 him from the beginning one hundred and 
 fifty dollars * a month, while his little con- 
 gregation could pay him but seven dollars. 
 It became still more apparent when it 
 is added that Mr. Sawayama was in debt 
 to his father and his friends for a con- 
 siderable part of his education, and was 
 in such physical condition as to require 
 for his comfort many things which he 
 
 1 Equivalent In purchasing power to $8,000 or $9,000 per 
 year In the United States. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 53 
 
 could not at such a meager salary ever 
 hope to have. But he said to himself 
 " If any man will seek first the kingdom 
 of God and his righteousness," all these 
 things will be added unto him, and he 
 received with simplicity and sincerest 
 gratitude the seven dollars of his salary. 
 The abundance which the government 
 might have given him he cared not for. 
 His fellow-Christians out of their poverty 
 had freely given unto him, and he was 
 very happy. 
 
 From the beginning Mr. Sawayama 
 held very firmly to the principle that 
 Japanese Christianity should be self-sup- 
 porting. His aim was to found a living 
 Japanese church ; to put within it such a 
 spirit of growth and independence as 
 should set it free from its slavish, feeble 
 condition ; to make it a permanent power 
 by the force of its own religious life. 
 This he thought should be the aim of 
 every Japanese Christian. 
 
 I suppose this principle of self-support 
 
54 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama received from Rev. H. H. 
 Leavitt at Evanston when they conversed 
 with each other ; and it had grown up to be 
 his ideal scheme of mission work in Japan. 
 What did Mr. Sawayama mean by self- 
 support for Japanese churches? This 
 question will be answered in his own 
 words later, in the speech he delivered at 
 the great conference ; but here I may say 
 that he meant that the Japanese churches 
 should pay their own expenses, meeting 
 all the expenditures required for home 
 missionary work, for Christian education, 
 and for church benevolences, without re- 
 ceiving pecuniary aid for these purposes 
 from foreign missionary societies. Those 
 societies of course should continue to 
 support their own missionaries. This pro- 
 gram proved a very difficult task for such 
 poor bodies as the Japanese churches : 
 so almost all of the native Christians, 
 except his church, and many foreign 
 missionaries, could not approve of his new 
 scheme at that time. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 55 
 
 But Mr. Sawayama had a rare insight 
 into the condition of the time and future 
 of Japan. There were a few Japanese 
 Christian churches and Christian schools 
 at that early day, but they had been 
 started by means of foreign funds and 
 were managed by the missionaries. The 
 vast majority of the Japanese people were 
 intensely prejudiced against them because 
 they seemed to be in reality foreign 
 churches and foreign schools. They also 
 thought that the foreigners propagated 
 their religion by the lavish use of money. 
 Quite often the native Christians were 
 asked if they received money from for- 
 eigners in order to become Christians. 
 Sometimes these haters of Christianity 
 called the Christians beggars because they 
 depended upon foreign funds, and accused 
 them of disloyalty to their own country. 
 It must be confessed that the native 
 Christians showed a strong tendency to 
 rely upon the financial aid of foreigners 
 in every department of Christian work. 
 
56 A Modem Paul. 
 
 They seemed to entertain the feeling that 
 they were the guests of the universal 
 Christian Church, and as such were en- 
 titled to free entertainment, as Mr. Sawa- 
 yama said in his famous speech. In such 
 circumstances there was great need of in- 
 sistence upon the principle of self-support. 
 And there is no question that Mr. Sawa- 
 yama's persistence in advocating that 
 principle gave to the Japanese church its 
 strength and aggressiveness. 
 
 In 1877 Mr. Sawayama was ordained by 
 Mr. Neesima and a company of mission- 
 aries, over the Naniwa Church in Osaka, 
 which had eleven members. Mr. Sawa- 
 yama was thus the first man to be estab- 
 lished as pastor over a Japanese church. 
 
 Just before his ordination he wrote 
 Mrs. Boutell, about his work in Osaka, as 
 follows : — 
 
 Osaka, Japan, January 8, 1877. 
 
 Dear Mrs. Boutell, — The climate in this city 
 
 is milder than most of the places in Japan 
 
 in the same latitude. We have had oniy very 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 57 
 
 little enow for several days, this winter. My 
 health is improving all the time, though I have 
 more or less cough day and night. 
 
 As I wrote you last time, I have still my Sun- 
 day-school, and preaching service at Dr. Adams' 
 dispensary, which is situated on the corner of 
 two flourishing streets in the city. Both audi- 
 ences and power are increasing in our services 
 in this place with wonderful success. I have no 
 .doubt that God helps us with great power to 
 convert the people of this great city. 
 
 Some gentlemen from Sanda (the place of 
 which you heard so much), who live in the 
 drug store just in front of the dispensary build- 
 ing, told me the other day that they have heard 
 much about "this way" in Kobe and Sanda; 
 but they did not study deeply about this way 
 although they did not think badly of it. Since 
 they came to live in the drug store, they could 
 come regularly to hear our preaching and study 
 the Bible in our Sunday-school, and so the truths 
 of Christianity impressed deeply their hearts. 
 One of them said to me with repented expres- 
 sion in his face, that he believes now there is 
 one Almighty God in the universe and he is a 
 great sinner toward him, which he did not be- 
 lieve before, and he is going to receive baptism 
 and join the Kobe church as soon as he shall go 
 
58 A Modem Paul. 
 
 back to Kobe. Now they are diligently study- 
 ing the Bible with me in the Sunday-school, and 
 in my room. 
 
 One of the higher officers of the Osaka gov- 
 ernment, who is my very old friend, is diligently 
 studying the Bible with me on Sunday and on 
 evenings, and I think that he will become a Chris- 
 tian by and by, though he told me the other day 
 that he would not be baptized at present, because 
 he is an officer, but he would study the Bible all 
 the time, and help Christianity as much as he 
 could in his power. But I hope that he won't 
 say very soon " I will not be baptized because I 
 am an officer." 
 
 The vice-governor of the city, who is also my 
 most intimate friend, is an intelligent and kind- 
 nearted man. Though he does not care to know 
 about Christianity, he does not make any trouble 
 for us, I think. "When I asked him if he would 
 not study the Bible with me, he answered me 
 that he has so much to do all the time and has 
 no time for such a study. As I go to his house 
 most every day, I talked about this way to his 
 wife and she gladly hears the truth. She has 
 bought "Peep of the Day," and is interested 
 in it very much. I made the Christmas present 
 to the vice-governor arid his wife with " Evi- 
 dences of Christianity" and "Gospel" and 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 59 
 
 other religious books, and they thanked me 
 very much. Their son and servants come to 
 hear me to preach sometimes. 
 
 It seems to me that God's own good time has 
 come to impress powerfully the gospel truth 
 into men's hearts here in this city. Christian 
 light is in the state of the rising sun, and shining 
 brighter and brighter in the dark land. 
 
 Last month I asked the vice-governor, who 
 had just returned from Tokyo, what is the most 
 flourishing thing in Tokyo. He answered me 
 that the most flourishing thing is Christianity 
 and most declining thing is drinking. I thought 
 this answer was not untruth, and we must 
 rejoice for it and work for Christ more 
 earnestly. 
 
 Yesterday was the communion Sunday and 
 Osaka church received thirteen members by 
 confession of faith and one by letter and bap- 
 tized two children of believing parents. About 
 five more persons are waiting to be baptized to 
 join the new church which will be formed within 
 a few weeks I think, and of which I will be 
 the pastor if God will. 
 
 There are now a great many other preaching 
 places in this city. Dr. Yamamoto, who is one 
 of our most distinguished physicians, has in- 
 vited us to preach in his private hospital. One 
 
60 A Modern Paul. 
 
 preaching place is in Shinmachi Street which 
 was a most noted prostitution den; another in 
 Houden and many other places. . . . 
 
 Give my love to all your household and all 
 my friends both in Evanston and in Chicago. 
 (They are so many that I cannot mention their 
 names separately.) 
 
 Most affectionately yours, 
 
 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama wrote again after his 
 ordination to Mrs. Boutell : — 
 
 Osaka, Japan, February 23, 1877. 
 
 We joyfully formed a new church of Christ 
 which is called " Naniwa Church of Christ," 
 and I was ordained as pastor of the church. 
 It was the twentieth of last month. The serv- 
 ices of the day were very grand and successful. 
 I wish that you could have been with us on that 
 day. 
 
 I have in my church only eleven members, of 
 which eight are men and three are women, but 
 they are all active preachers, and we have at 
 present five regular preaching places for the 
 church beside our own chapel, and so we are 
 quite busy, but it is a very joyful thing to be 
 busy in the Master's work. I never have ex- 
 perienced so much joy in my heart as these 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 61 
 
 days. 1 tell you, Mrs. Boutell and my Christian 
 friends in Evanston, that it is a joyful thing to 
 work hard for Christ, as you clearly know. I 
 write you the following about our church serv- 
 ice during the week : — 
 
 Sunday. 10 a.m. to 11, Preaching. 
 11 to 12, Bible Study. 
 3 p.m. to 4.30 Sunday-school. 
 7 p.m., Preaching. 
 Monday. 7 p.m., Bible Study. 
 Wednesday. 7 p.m., Prayer-meeting. 
 Thursday. 7 p.m., Bible Study. 
 Friday. 7 p.m. , General Prayer-meeting. 
 Pray for me, my dear friends, that I may 
 have great faith and wisdom in Christ, that I 
 may be fit to work for Christ as pastor of the 
 flock; and pray for the little church. I pray 
 for you all. Affectionately yours, 
 
 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
 This Naniwa Church was like a grain 
 of mustard seed in its beginning. But it 
 grew very rapidly; at the end of five 
 years it had increased its yearly contribu- 
 tion from seventy dollars to seven hun- 
 dred dollars. It had started an inde 
 pendent church in Osaka city, and made 
 
62 A Modem Paul. 
 
 a beginning of Christian work in nine 
 other places. It had established a Chris- 
 tian girls' school in the city. That the 
 church had had such rapid growth, start- 
 ing as it did in the midst of so many pre- 
 judices and difficulties, so great poverty 
 and suspicion, must be attributed largely 
 to Mr. Sawayama's great faith and Chris- 
 tian character. 
 
 The following letter shows us his work 
 during those days : — 
 
 I suppose that my church was organized in 
 January, 1877, with eleven members. Since 
 that time by the missionary efforts two churches 
 have been formed, both of whose pastors are 
 members of my church. Last year we received 
 fifty persons by profession and three by letter. 
 Total contributions for the last year were seven 
 hundred and twenty-six yen, the yen being now 
 of the value of about a dollar. 
 
 My church raised this money from the poorest 
 people, who own neither house nor anything, 
 hardly. 
 
 We must recognize that the Japanese 
 wages and prices are both very low. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 63 
 
 Therefore the seven hundred and twenty- 
 six dollars was a quite good sum for such 
 a church in Japan. 1 
 
 Mr. Sawayama was careful to establish 
 a good foundation for the church ; so he 
 helped the young converts to root out 
 their sins and start a vigorous new Chris- 
 tian life. 
 
 To the friends at Evanston he wrote : — 
 
 Osaka, Japan, May 18, 1877. 
 
 I thank you for sending me the certificate of 
 my church membership, and I was very glad to 
 hear from Rev. Edward Packard so kind and 
 sympathetic a message. May we always be con- 
 nected by the strong chain of love of Jesus 
 Christ our Lord and our Saviour ! I was very 
 glad to hear from Mrs. Boutell such thorough 
 and minute news of our Evanston friends. 
 "When I was reading her letter I felt almost as 
 if I were to see them by face to face. 
 
 My church work is going on quite nicely. Our 
 church members are united together in the same 
 
 'The purchasing value of one yen or Japanese dollar 
 would be expressed in the United States by about $5, though 
 the actual exchange value of the yen is simply that of the 
 trade dollar. Seven hundred and twenty-six yen would 
 thus purchase as much in Japan as $3,500 would in America. 
 
64 A Modern Paul. 
 
 mind and in the same judgment in love and 
 faithfulness to our Redeemer. God blessed our 
 work and we received several applications to 
 join our church ; but we do not hasten to receive 
 them, as we must examine them thoroughly, so 
 that we may (as far as our human mind can 
 judge, although we cannot say that we proved 
 the depth of the heart) prove that they are true 
 Christians and are willing to sacrifice all things 
 for Christ's sake, even their own lives if it is 
 necessary. 
 
 Some of the applicants were most bigoted 
 Buddhists. They are working now among their 
 former religious friends ; I hope they will lead 
 many of those who are in the darkness into the 
 light of the Christian religion. One of the ap- 
 plicants is a doctor ; he is faithful and fervent 
 in spirit : he preaches to every sick man as he 
 goes round for his practice. One of the regular 
 attendants to the church is a barber ; he shuts 
 his shop on Sunday and comes to church regu- 
 larly ; he keeps religious tracts and newspapers 
 in his shop and preaches to people while he is 
 cutting their hair or shaving them. One of the 
 merchants is interested in the way and attends 
 the church every Sabbath and also he opens his 
 house for religious services. His four servants 
 are very much interested in this way, and one 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 65 
 
 of them is ready to unite with the church, but 
 he is waiting to join with the other three. 
 Their neighbors noticed that their conduct had 
 changed, and that they had become so very 
 honest and kind since they had become Chris- 
 tians (though they do not yet receive baptism), 
 and these neighbors also have begun to come to 
 church. Don't you think Christians are truly 
 the light of the world? Eighty-two of Kobe 
 prisoners are converted, as I heard from Mayeda 
 San, who is chief officer in the prison ; he is a 
 Christian, of course. I went to see them the 
 other day; they are quite hopeful ones. 
 
 Our church members are all active preachers, 
 men as well as women, and have their own 
 places to preach regularly. I have preaching 
 or instructing services every day, except Satur- 
 day, on which I prepare for Sunday services. 
 I am quite busy in my works, but they are not 
 heavy to carry on. Christ's burden is light and 
 his yoke is easy. 
 
 My parents wrote me the other day that the 
 neighbors speak evil of them because they are 
 interested in Christianity ; so they asked me to 
 pray to the true God to protect them and bless 
 them, and I wrote them in answer that perse- 
 cution for Christ's sake is sign of favor of God, 
 and comforted them, and told them to read the 
 
66 A Modem Paul. 
 
 eleventh and twelfth verses of the fifth chapter 
 of Matthew. 
 
 All my church members send you much 
 Christian love. I have told them many times 
 about you and the Evanston Church. They 
 think a great deal of you. 
 
 Dr. Gordon, whom we love greatly, is obliged 
 to go to his home in America on account of his 
 eyes. "We are very sorry to part with him. 
 May God bless him and restore him in good 
 health again before very long and let him come 
 back again to work among us I 
 
 I send you articles for presents to you. These 
 are small tokens of my great love. You will 
 please find the list of presents in this paper and 
 distribute them according to the list. 
 
 Your sincerest friend and brother in Christ, 
 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell : — 
 
 Your two letters and one of Mr. Boutell's have 
 been received. I did not get them as soon as 1 
 ought, on account of my occasional absence from 
 Osaka, during the summer, for my sister's death 
 and others. I am exceedingly glad to know that 
 you are all well and prosperous by the merciful 
 providence of our heavenly Father. 
 
 I spent a little while with Mr. and Mrs. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 67 
 
 Greene this summer in Arima and I enjoyed it 
 more than anything else this summer. I have 
 a great affection toward their children, and the 
 children also like me very much, I think. When- 
 ever we meet together they want me to play 
 with them, which makes me quite tired. When 
 they went to bed they all came to kiss me. 
 The day I was leaving them in Arima, Jerome 
 said to his mother: " Mamma, I want to eat up 
 Sawayama San before he leaves us." Then 
 Mrs. Greene said: " O Jerome, some one in the 
 Kobe School will feel very badly if you should 
 eat Sawayama San up." 
 
 " Some one in Kobe School " meant my in- 
 tended wife, who is teaching Chinesed Japanese 
 in Kobe School, of whom you may have heard 
 already either from Mr. Greene or from Mrs. 
 Greene. 
 
 Our annual meetings in Kobe were very in- 
 teresting. At the meeting I was kindly asked 
 by Mr. and Mrs. Greene to baptize their dear 
 baby, Mary Avery Greene, and I thankfully 
 performed the service. 
 
 One who received baptism lately in my 
 church was a doctor who is about sixty years 
 old. He was a most bigoted Buddhist. "When 
 we examined him it was satisfactory in every 
 matter, and then we asked him if he would give 
 
68 A Modern Paul. 
 
 up anything which does not honor Christ and 
 does not make him a useful man, even if the 
 thing may not be bad or wicked, and he said he 
 would. Then we asked him to give up his 
 smoking, which is not for any honor for Christ, 
 though we do not say that those who smoke are 
 not true Christians. He said that he was will- 
 ing to give up. Few days after he sent word 
 that we should wait his baptism till next time 
 on account of that he cannot yet give up his 
 smoking. Then I went to see him and I no- 
 ticed that he was reading Bible and praying 
 and fasting. He told me that he has been 
 smoking day and night during these forty years, 
 therefore it is very hard for him to give it up. 
 But he said that he is willing to give up even 
 his life for Christ's sake, if it need be. Why 
 cannot smoking be given up ? Because he thinks 
 his faith is not yet strong, so he will pray God 
 to give strong faith to overcome these habits; 
 and that time we kneeled and prayed together, 
 and few days after that he succeeded to give 
 it up entirely. 
 
 This doctor led an old couple who were also 
 strong Buddhists. Since they gave up asso- 
 ciating with their former friends the former 
 friends with priests came to their house many 
 times to try to lead them back to the former 
 
Sawayamots Ministry. 69 
 
 faith, but they told them that this is the true 
 way, so they had better come to hear about the 
 way. They brought the priest to our church 
 and they are now trying to lead Buddhists to 
 hear the gospel of Christ. Our elder, Maye- 
 gami San, goes to his house to preach every 
 Friday. This old couple's story is very long 
 and interesting, but I have not time to write all 
 this morning. 
 
 "When I went home this summer I found 
 one young man who had become very much 
 interested in Christianity. He came to study 
 Bible every day while I was there and when I 
 came back to Osaka he also came with me as 
 far as to Kobe. In that place he has a oousin 
 who is a higher officer. This young man de- 
 cided to be a minister, but his cousin tried to 
 persuade him to become an officer. But if he 
 should become an officer, he cannot sometimes 
 keep the Sabbath. So he told his cousin that he 
 preferred rather to be a slave to keep God's 
 holy law than to become an officer to break it ; 
 so he was obliged to depart from him immedi- 
 ately. He came here last Saturday and is wait- 
 ing for baptism. His faith is increasing greatly. 
 
 I received a letter with "Christian Voice" 
 from Bobert McLean. I thank him for them 
 very much and I meant to write him by this 
 
70 A Modem Paul. 
 
 mail, but I am afraid that I could not do so by 
 this; but I will answer him anyway before 
 long. If you should see him, please tell him 
 about it. 
 
 I have not at all written to any friends both 
 in Evanston and Chicago, besides your own 
 family, for I have not such sufficient knowledge 
 in English as to write English letter rapidly; 
 therefore writing English makes me quite awk- 
 ward. Perhaps that makes some friends to feel 
 that I do not remember them ; but yes, yes ! I 
 do remember them all the time and think about 
 them and pray for them in public and in closet. 
 In my pocketbook many addresses of my Amer- 
 ican friends are written, for I meant to write 
 them ; but since I came back to my country I 
 never could yet accomplish what I want in this. 
 "Will you tell them our friends there and else- 
 where the above condition wherever you should 
 meet together? 
 
 Most affectionately yours, 
 
 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell: — 
 
 Though I am not yet attending the evening 
 meeting of the church, Deacon Mayegami is 
 taking charge of them, and the works of my 
 church are going on very nicely now. It seems 
 
Sawayamd 's Ministry. 71 
 
 it has pleased God to prosper the work of our 
 churches here. The last month, Temma Church 
 (which is a daughter of my church) received 
 several students of the Osaka College. I bap- 
 tized one on the first Sunday. 
 
 I commenced my work last month and have 
 now several persons who wish to come into my 
 church, so we are now examining them in order 
 to receive them by the next communion service. 
 The First Church is also going to receive about 
 five persons at the same time. 
 
 Many students of the college above are at- 
 tending regularly the meetings of our churches 
 through the influence chiefly of their teachers, 
 Tamura and Koidsumi, who are members of 
 the church. Over half a dozen of them were 
 already received into the churches. The presi- 
 dent of the college, Mr. Hattori, formerly the 
 vice-president of the Imperial University, is my 
 childhood friend and schoolmate, and is very 
 kind to me, though he is in religion a disciple of 
 Darwin. He is the graduate of the same col- 
 lege in which Dr. D. C. Greene graduated. He 
 invited me a few weeks ago to the college and 
 showed me the medical, chemical, and other 
 college departments. They are all taught by 
 
 the Japanese professors. 
 
 P. SAWAYAMA. 
 
72 A Modem Paul. 
 
 To Rev. Edward Packard : — 
 
 Osaka, Japan, March 26, 1880. 
 
 I hope, if it be the will of the Lord, that 
 I should be spared longer to serve him in 
 the work in which he has blessed me very 
 much these several years since I came back 
 from America. 1 I have been exceedingly happy 
 in the work which the Lord directed my 
 heart to decide as my life service to him. 
 Indeed this joy which I received from him, 
 the world in any circumstances could not take 
 away from me. 
 
 My dear pastor, I never even one day could 
 forget you, and my American friends, as you 
 were the means of my conversion. I began to 
 take charge of the daily religious exercises of 
 our girls' school a few weeks ago as I used to 
 do before. You know we started this school 
 two years ago by our own hand with the good 
 advices of the missionaries, and we built the 
 schoolhouse last year. Now we have over fifty 
 scholars who are all very nice girls and most of 
 them are from the families of high class. I am 
 very glad that I could have the opportunity to 
 tell much about the Saviour to them and help 
 
 1 Mr. Sawayama already had consumption at thia time. 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 73 
 
 them to come to him. Several of them are 
 already members of my church. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 PAUL SAWAYAMA. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama had a peculiar magnetic 
 power. No one made him a visit or talked 
 with him without receiving a good im- 
 pression from him. Every Christian who 
 came to him for help or advice was certain 
 to receive all that he expected. I will 
 refer to the two following instances out 
 of many : — 
 
 Mr. Tomoyoshi Murai, who is now a 
 student in Andover Seminary, told me 
 the other day his impression of Mr. Sawa- 
 yama : — 
 
 " Ever since I had heard of Mr. Sawa- 
 yama as a man of faith and character, I 
 had expected for a long time to see him ; 
 finally I had a short interview with him 
 while he was in the hospital. I have 
 never forgotten the pure and celestial in- 
 fluences that I received from him. I was 
 greatly helped and inspired by his talks. 
 
74 A Modern Paul. 
 
 I recall that I was then anxious to con- 
 vert my father, who had heard of Chris- 
 tianity for six years, who sought to be- 
 come a Christian himself but could not 
 do so on account of his doubts and per- 
 plexities, and yet was highly interested in 
 Christianity and induced his wife and 
 daughters to join the church, and gave all 
 possible help to the extension of Chris- 
 tianity in his town. 
 
 " I presented the case before Mr. Sawa- 
 yama and asked him how to lead such a 
 one to Christ. He advised me not to be 
 overanxious about it, but to wait trust- 
 fully for God's time. God may convert 
 him in some unexpected way. He told 
 me then the story of Whitefield's con- 
 version and of others who were brought 
 to Christ not through any efforts of their 
 fellow men, but through a combination 
 of certain circumstances. Whitefield, he 
 said, was stopping in the hotel when he 
 recalled that Christ was born in a hotel, 
 and then his conversion took place. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 75 
 
 " Wonderful it was that after a few 
 years my father made his decision to 
 become a Christian in a similar manner 
 as Mr. Sawayama suggested. One Sunday 
 he was left at home alone while all the 
 rest went to church. He heard the 
 church bell ringing, which sounded to his 
 ears like God's call to his soul, which 
 proved to be a turning point in his life and 
 made him enter the kingdom of God." 
 
 The other case is told of by Mr. Sawa- 
 yama himself in one of his letters as fol- 
 lows : — 
 
 One night a woman came to me burdened 
 with her sins, and I tried to show her what 
 seemed to be her duty. After praying with her 
 she went home, and before retiring she tried to 
 give up all to Christ and accept his salvation. 
 In the morning her heart was full of joy, and 
 as she had no desire for the bad habit to which 
 she been tempted as usual, she took that as one 
 of the signs that her heart was changed. As 
 her health was very poor her family urged her 
 to go to her native country for a change ; but 
 soon after reaching there she received a letter 
 
76 A Modern Paul. 
 
 of divorce from her husband. She was thus 
 thrown upon her family for support, and she 
 must be dependent upon her brother, as her 
 parents were not living. 
 
 On returning to her brother's house she did 
 not, as formerly, worship the household gods, 
 and her brother was very angry. He said to 
 her: "If you will not worship and offer food 
 and flowers to the gods, you cannot stay in my 
 house: you are a disgrace to the family, even 
 neglecting the ancestral tablets." Her sister-in- 
 law, although not so angry, urged her to give up 
 her God, and worship as they did, while she 
 lived in their house. 
 
 She replied: "I cannot give up my God. 
 Even though my brother should whip me to 
 death I cannot give him up." 
 
 Finally her brother opened the bureau drawers 
 and taking out her clothing and everything that 
 belonged to her, threw them out in the yard, 
 telling her to leave his house. 
 
 The woman was in sore trouble, as she in her 
 poor health was being driven away from the 
 only house she had. But she had been praying 
 for guidance and soon her way was made plain. 
 A man came telling her that he was in search of 
 a woman to teach needlework to a class of girls 
 in an adjoining town and had heard of her. 
 
Sawayama' s Ministry. 77 
 
 "Would she be willing to go? She was of 
 course glad to go. She stayed there a few 
 months, when her husband, having become a 
 Christian, went and brought her back to her 
 Osaka home. 
 
 They seem very happy and are together 
 trying to work in bringing others to the 
 services and in teaching them at home. 
 
 Even those who hated Christianity ad- 
 mired his Christian virtues. Mr. Sawayama 
 had no enemy. I remember a great Con- 
 fucian scholar who said : " Mr. Sawayama 
 is a sage indeed." To the Confucianist the 
 ideal man is the sage, the possessor of true 
 wisdom. 
 
 His church was characterized by a spirit 
 of broad sympathy and love. There were 
 no divisions in it. Not only was his 
 church devoted to him, but his personal 
 influence reached out until all the Chris- 
 tians of Japan loved him. And this in- 
 fluence did not depend on his eloquence, 
 but upon the power of his Christian per- 
 sonality. Dr. De Forest, one of the most 
 
78 A Modern Paul. 
 
 prominent missionaries in Japan, says of 
 Mr. Sawayama, in his letter to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Boutell : — 
 
 We only hope he may be spared to encourage 
 his church, hoping against hope. There is no 
 church like his in all Japan ; none so noted for 
 generosity ; none that has set so high an example 
 for active and pure Christian living. Churches 
 two hundred miles away have learned to speak 
 of Mr. Sawayama's church as the one to pattern 
 after. So that we have every reason to pray for 
 his health and strength to be continued to us. 
 He has already two plans on foot : one to build 
 a church, the other, to establish a boys' school. 
 If he is spared to us, it may be that we should 
 be very glad to avail ourselves of your kind 
 offer of help. 
 
 Another missionary in writing of him 
 says : — 
 
 He is a burning and shining light in this great 
 city. It is wonderful how near he keeps to his 
 Saviour though surrounded by heathen influ- 
 ences and customs. His life is as simple as that 
 of a little child, and I believe as pure. He 
 seems to trust God perfectly, and when the way 
 is darkest his faith is strongest. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 79 
 
 Soon after his return from America he 
 was attacked by a disease which rapidly 
 developed into consumption. From this 
 time until his death he had scarcely one 
 comfortable day, during a period of ten 
 years. His work was done rather upon 
 his sick bed than in the pulpit, and during 
 five years five coffins were carried out 
 from his home. His younger sister died 
 soon after his return to Japan. After a 
 long illness his father died. Mr. Sawa- 
 yama received a telegram from his father 
 to come immediately, when he was him- 
 self enfeebled and his wife was on a sick 
 bed. He says in a letter : — 
 
 Our baby daughter was born on the twelfth 
 of the last October. Her name is Isa. . . . My 
 father died at his home on the twenty-first of 
 last October. He became a believer in Christ, 
 and about ten days before his death telegraphed 
 to me to come to see him, and accordingly I left 
 this city on the third day after my baby's birth, 
 and I was with him and baptized him. His last 
 days were very pleasant and thankful, and he 
 died happy in believing Christ. My thanks 
 
80 A Modern Paul. 
 
 cannot be expressed for it. My mother and 
 brother are also Christians now, I think. 
 
 Some Americans said of this : " In the 
 interior of Japan a son performing the 
 holy ordinance of baptism for a believing 
 father." 
 
 Then his child and his mother died. 
 He writes : — 
 
 "We had two daughters, but one died last year. 
 Within a few years since I left you, I think I 
 have experienced several conditions of human 
 life : I became pastor, husband, and father ; and 
 lost father, sister, child, and mother. I thank 
 God, all these joys and sorrows of my life bring 
 me closer to Christ who is " the same yesterday, 
 and to-day and forever." 
 
 And last of all his beloved wife died, 
 leaving him with his little daughter. 
 Though Mr. Sawayama was himself en- 
 feebled and rendered miserable by dis- 
 eases, he never ceased in his devotion to 
 these sufferers, comforting them in every 
 way and guiding them by his words and 
 his love to their eternal peace. In a letter 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 81 
 
 he says : " My wife died on the thirtieth 
 of May, 1884. A year before her death 
 she experienced a great change in her 
 spiritual life. In her sickness and death 
 she was very, very happy." 
 
 How came this new experience to Mrs. 
 Sawayama? A year before her death she 
 began to doubt of her salvation and feared 
 to die. She called her husband and cling- 
 ing to his sleeves cried bitterly on account 
 of the uncertainty of her salvation. Mr. 
 Sawayama, while usually full of affec- 
 tion and tender love to her, at that occa- 
 sion bravely forsook her in the view of 
 her soul's welfare, saying, " I am your 
 husband, but I am not your Saviour. 
 You have been relying on me more than 
 on Christ. You made a tremendous mis- 
 take. I love you, but cannot save your 
 soul. Christ is your Saviour and he 
 alone. Call upon him and seek your sal- 
 vation." Then he left her alone and 
 came downstairs. She struggled severely 
 but was finally driven to Christ, forsaking 
 
82 A Modern Paul. 
 
 all her temporal reliances and surrendering 
 herself entirely to Jesus. 
 
 In a letter to the writer which he wrote 
 after his wife died, he says : " Unosuke 
 [his younger brother, who went to Do- 
 shisha College] and Mrs. Naruse and Isa 
 [his four-year-old daughter who came to 
 my home, where I and my wife took care 
 of her for a long while as Mr. Sawayama 
 was sick], departed from me this morning, 
 so I felt very lonesome." 
 
 Again he says to Mrs. Boutell : " I 
 naturally feel a great loss of my wife and 
 am very lonely, but thank God she died 
 very peacefully with firm faith in Christ, 
 and both her sickness and death blessed 
 many. My grateful feeling toward God 
 for her is, ' Thou hast made her most 
 blessed for ever. Thou has made her ex- 
 ceedingly glad with thy countenance.' 
 
 " I am now sick in the hospital, so I can- 
 not work much, but I am praying constant- 
 ly and the work of my church is blessed. 
 Please pray for my work, which is God's." 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 83 
 
 There is a Japanese poem which Mr. 
 Sawayama wrote in a few minutes to com- 
 fort his wife when she was subjected to 
 severe pain through her disease, which is 
 translated as follows : — 
 
 Spare thou our lives or take them, Lord, 
 Our deepest hearts at peace shall be, 
 
 Our earthly frames with glad accord 
 To all thy will, we trust to thee. 
 
 If, by thy grace, our lives are spared, 
 We '11 serve thee through our earthly days, 
 
 "We '11 linger here, with souls prepared 
 To render thee eternal praise. 
 
 If thou shouldst call us in our youth, 
 "We '11 hasten through the open gate 
 
 "Without regret, for there, in truth, 
 Thy many mansions for us wait. 
 
 The bitter pains and struggles sore 
 Through which our lives are passing now, 
 
 Thou knewest them, Saviour, all before : 
 Thou leadest us; to thee we bow. 
 
 For all who strive to enter in 
 Thy heavenly kingdom, Master, God, 
 
 Must walk with anguish over sin, 
 The thorny pa|Ji thyself hast trod. 
 
84 A Modem Paul. 
 
 His burdens did not stop here; for he 
 had, like Paul, " the care of the churches." 
 He must continue his own preaching, 
 guide his own work, oversee the manage- 
 ment of his school and missions. But 
 he was never disappointed, never uttered 
 one word of displeasure or complaint. 
 He was always courageous, thankful, 
 cheerful, and hopeful. 
 
 Once he wrote to the writer as follows : 
 " Your sympathetic letters comforted me 
 very much. My wife is on her sick bed 
 still. I had a hemorrhage of the lungs yes- 
 terday, but I feel a little better to-day. . . . 
 My family is in the calamity of disease all 
 the time, but I am rejoicing and thanking 
 day and night, because I have learned the 
 way of rejoicing in every trouble." 
 
 And he said again at another time : 
 " My wife and myself are in severe sick- 
 ness, but the grace of God is increasing 
 according to the proportion of the afflic- 
 tions." 
 
 Many times my own heart was stirred 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 85 
 
 to deep sorrow on his behalf, but he said, 
 not with the spirit of resignation but 
 rather of a deep thankfulness : " Naked 
 came I out of my mother's womb, and 
 naked shall I return thither; the Lord 
 gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; 
 blessed be the name of the Lord." And 
 if I saw the tears gathered in his eyes 
 while we sang the funeral hymns, it was 
 not so much the expression of sorrow as 
 of a profound emotion of thankfulness 
 for the great salvation which had come to 
 him and to his household. 
 
 His doctors often wondered greatly at 
 his physical endurance. They appointed 
 many times beyond which he could not 
 live. But his weak body was sustained 
 by the spirit of faith and courage in 
 which he lived. He did not care much 
 about his body, but he aspired all the 
 time to the development of his spirit only. 
 His soul was all ; his body was but little. 
 The following letters show us this stage of 
 his disease and his courage. 
 
86 A Modern Paul 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell, October 30, 1877: — 
 
 My health is not very good. I mean by that 
 I have had trouble in my head these five months 
 more or less, and now I feel much worse and I 
 cannot do much work, as I have nervous head- 
 ache day and night. Dr. Adams tried me with 
 medicines ; but I do not feel any better ; but I 
 believe that if I should rest for a little while 
 from my daily work, I should be more well I 
 hope. As I feel that everything comes from 
 the Almighty hand of our Merciful Father in 
 heaven, I feel that I learned a good lesson by 
 the sickness. He teaches me to depend more 
 upon his strength which is infinite, instead of 
 depending on my feeble strength and wisdom. 
 So I rejoice even in my weakness. 
 
 Every one of my church members is trying to 
 work for our dear Saviour with the utmost 
 strength. They are willing to sacrifice all, and 
 I think they all almost try to say boldly with 
 St. Paul: "For to me to live is Christ and to 
 die is gain." 
 
 In his letter to the same on February 
 4, 1878, he says : — 
 
 I have still headache nearly all the time, and 
 so I went to Himeji to rest a little while last 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 87 
 
 November, but I could not get well. I think 
 I have brain disease, because I have such a long 
 time since the commencement of my headache. 
 Also Dr. Adams told me decidedly that I will 
 not livelong because I have consumption. I am 
 very careful for my health and walk round the 
 city for exercise most all day, and preach ser- 
 mons out doors. But I do not feel weak at all. 
 I could say almost to any one who salute me : 
 "How do you do?" "I am very well, thank you." 
 This constant headache, as Dr. Adams thinks, 
 comes from hectic fever ; but thank God I am 
 very successful in the work which my heavenly 
 Father gave me to do, and am very happy. 
 
 This morning one missionary said to me, 
 " Good morning, Mr. Sawayama. You are al- 
 ways bright and happy these days." I think it 
 is better to be happy than well; is it not? I 
 think that is very true. 
 
 He says again in a letter of November, 
 18, 1878 : — 
 
 "I have been feeling quite unwell, as the 
 doctor thought I could not live long. But I am 
 thankful to God, that in these days of my ill 
 health, I have never even been discouraged, as 
 I really know from my heart that I am entirely 
 in the hand of our heavenly Father who loved 
 
88 A Modern Paul. 
 
 me, and sent his Son to die for me. I thank 
 God that I am able to say from my heart, "The 
 Lord's will be done," either in my life or death. 
 
 By the blessing of God, I am much improv- 
 ing in my health these days, so I am very glad 
 that I could work daily for Christ more than 
 before, and I hope that my health will continu- 
 ally improve, if it is God's will. Indeed I have, 
 by God's grace, a great ambition to serve the 
 work which God gave me to do in this world, 
 forgetting what an unworthy man I am. Yet 
 I believe by faith that great apostle's words, 
 " I can do all things through Christ who 
 strengtheneth me," and I am willing to sacrifice 
 joyfully for Christ's sake all my comforts, ease, 
 and honor in the world, if it is necessary, and 
 try to follow him more closely, who had not 
 where to lay his head on earth. But beyond my 
 hope, God blessed me with many comforts and 
 kind friends, honor and other innumerable 
 blessings. 
 
 To-morrow my wife and I will go to Kishi- 
 nowadda, a city which is twenty miles south of 
 this city. I have already been there to preach 
 twice before. This is the country of ex> 
 daimio (the prince) who "is now in Springfield, 
 Mass., and was converted there. He wrote the 
 people to hear the gospel, and so they invited 
 
Sawayamds Ministry. 89 
 
 via to come to preach for them. I have an audi- 
 ence of one hundred and fifty people every 
 time. I promised to go there to preach every 
 other week. I preach at three o'clock in the 
 afternoon and seven in the evening. Now they 
 want me to teach them with book in the hour 
 between the two meetings. Hereafter I will 
 take my wife with me and let her teach the 
 women and also teach singing. 
 
 To-night we are going to have our sociable, 
 which we have on every other Monday evening. 
 In these meetings we all get a great deal of 
 benefit in uniting together Christians as 
 brethren and sisters as we talk together every- 
 thing very familiarly. 
 
 I will not write you any more now, as I must 
 attend to some business of the Home Mission- 
 ary Society, which we established last spring, 
 because we are going to have our annual meet- 
 ing in Kobe next Friday. 
 
 On October 7, 1878, he says : — 
 
 I am also not well all the time. I have more 
 or less fever, headache, cough, and so general 
 feebleness in my entire body. Yet I am very 
 thankful that I believe that " all things work 
 together for good to them that love God, to 
 them who are the called, according to his 
 
90 A Modem Paul. 
 
 purpose," and am able to say, in whatever con- 
 dition I may be, " All well, Lord I " 
 
 At one time before the death of his 
 wife, he suffered from the fiercest attack 
 of his disease. At the same time his 
 wife was sick with a severe hemorrhage 
 of the lungs and a very high fever. Mr. 
 Sawayama could not sleep, or even lie 
 down for seven days and nights, so 
 severe was his pain ; during all this time 
 he remained almost motionless upon the 
 floor, in a position which I can scarcely 
 describe so as to make the reader see it. 
 But as nearly as I can describe it it was 
 this : he kneeled, bringing his hips close 
 down to his ankles, then threw his body 
 forward upon the floor, resting it upon 
 his elbows, which were drawn back under 
 his chest, and supporting his head with 
 his hands. I was taking care of him and 
 his sick wife as best I could. I often 
 offered to rub his muscles so as to relieve 
 him somewhat, but he would not allow 
 me to remit my care of his wife for so 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 91 
 
 long a time. Remaining in this position 
 he did not speak for seven days, but 
 waited calmly and patiently. As soon 
 as his distress began to lessen a little he 
 smiled and said to me: "I never prayed 
 that the Father would take my soul, for 
 it would be a selfish prayer. I am glad to 
 stay in this world and to endure my pain 
 as long as the Father wishes." Then he 
 added : " If at any time death comes, it 
 shall make no difference to me. I will 
 do just the same work just before my 
 death as at any other time." He said 
 often: "I will die on the battlefield; I 
 will fight the good fight." And not even 
 his great namesake said more bravely than 
 he, "O death, where is thy sting? O 
 grave, where is thy victory? The sting 
 of death is sin; and the strength of sin 
 is the law. But thanks be to God, which 
 giveth us the victory through our Lord 
 Jesus Christ." 
 
 As soon as the force of his disease 
 mitigated enough to allow him to leave 
 
92 A Modern Paul. 
 
 his bed, he began to visit and to take his 
 place again in his pulpit and his prayer- 
 meeting. When in his pulpit those who 
 heard his sermons would scarcely know 
 that he was an invalid ; for his face was 
 bright and his voice was strong and clear. 
 One day he appeared in his pulpit after 
 his sickness before an audience which 
 filled his church to its utmost capacity. 
 He preached with unusual fervor. His 
 audience was greatly impressed. It seems 
 to me no exaggeration to say that this one 
 sermon converted more than a score of 
 souls. But when he reached his home he 
 was exhausted, and was obliged to take to 
 his bed at once. He remained in an un- 
 conscious condition until the following 
 noon. Sometimes he preached in Osaka, 
 Tokyo and Niigata, in the theaters, to 
 audiences of several thousand people. 
 The weakness of his lungs did not seem 
 to impair the strength or clearness of his 
 voice. 
 
 His sermons seemed almost equally 
 
Sawayamd 's Ministry. 93 
 
 impressive for all classes of people, chil- 
 dren as well as adults, unlearned as 
 well as educated. For his knowledge 
 and wisdom had come into his heart 
 through his experience. I can refer to 
 some results and ways of his sermons 
 from his letters. 
 
 After preaching at the general confer- 
 ence of Osaka, he says in his letter to Mrs. 
 Boutell, concerning his sermon from the 
 text, " Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, 
 . . . but rather rejoice, because your names 
 are written in heaven " (Luke 10 : 20) : 
 "God helped me in the preaching and 
 many of the church members shed tears 
 while I was preaching." 
 
 Of other services he says : " I preached 
 a week ago last Sunday evening from text 
 ' God is love.' After the service many of 
 the audience expressed of their impression 
 and effects. I preached last Sunday from 
 Romans 15 : 3 : ' For even Christ pleased 
 not himself.' " 
 
 " Mr. Leavitt has his Bible class after 
 
94 A Modern Paul. 
 
 our Sunday-school and has a good audi- 
 ence, and I interpret for him." 
 
 St. Barnabas Hospital, 
 Osaka, Japan, February 9, 1885. 
 
 Dear Mrs. Boutell, — I have been much 
 better. The night sweat has stopped and I have 
 gained in flesh. I preached the twenty-eighth of 
 December the last to my people from the text, 
 " Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest " 
 (Heb. 4: 11), as I thought it would be an appro- 
 priate subject to preach on that day, being the 
 last rest day of the year. And again the first 
 Sabbath of this year from the often used text, 
 " Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eter- 
 nal life." When I preached the latter sermon 
 the Rev. Mr. Morimoto, the editor of Fukuin 
 Shimpo, being present at my church, took note 
 of the sermon and published it in his paper, 
 and when that paper came to one of my church 
 members, who has been living at a distance, he 
 was greatly pleased to hear my sermon again 
 after so long a time. 
 
 But I caught cold that Sunday and was obliged 
 to shut myself in the hospital nearly five weeks. 
 I went out yesterday to preach the communion 
 sermon from the text, " A new commandment 
 I give unto you, that ye love one another." 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 95 
 
 Before I went out yesterday one of the nurses 
 remarked to me that I must be shut in many 
 weeks again if I did go out to preach, but this 
 time I did not catch cold and feel no worse for 
 my work of yesterday. 
 
 He speaks about the conversion of some 
 children from his sermon : — 
 
 Among the children of our deacons there 
 was one girl of nine years of age. One even- 
 ing after she had heard a sermon she retired to 
 her bed in the next room to that in which her 
 parents slept. At about midnight her father 
 heard some noise in her room that showed that 
 she was not asleep. Therefore he almost scolded 
 her for spending the night in some pleasure 
 without sleeping, for it was now about mid- 
 night. She said: " Papa, I cannot sleep, for if 
 I should, I might die before morning, and I am 
 condemned as a sinner." Her father then saw 
 that she was under conviction of sin. At first 
 he was much perplexed as to what to do, for 
 though he was an experienced deacon he had 
 not often seen such deep conviction of sin in 
 children. So he asked her what had been her 
 sins, and she confessed. He then pointed her 
 to the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins 
 
96 A Modern Paul. 
 
 of the world— as well as he could. They 
 prayed together, and she consecrated herself to 
 God that night. 
 
 As she received the truth at once, her fears 
 left her, and she became calm and slept peace- 
 fully the rest of the night. 
 
 The father told his wife and together they 
 were much impressed, feeling that God was in 
 their house. The next day the father came to 
 me to ask what it was best to do, for this was 
 the first instance of the awaking of so young a 
 child in our midst. I advised him to bring his 
 daughter to be examined for admission to the 
 Church. 
 
 Before being received into the Church she 
 was invited to the house of a schoolmate to take 
 dinner with them. The father of this family 
 was the principal editor of a leading newspaper 
 of the city, and had been educated in England. 
 He was a well-educated man and an infidel. 
 He allowed no kind of worship in his family. 
 Our little girl knew this, and thought that if 
 this unbelieving family should see her ask a 
 blessing upon the food that was set on her little 
 table, they would scoff at her ; so she decided 
 to ask her blessing in silence and none would 
 know about it. Then her conscience troubled 
 her with the thought that she had been ashamed 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 97 
 
 to confess the Saviour who had done so much 
 for her before men. So, though the dinner was 
 very fine, she ate it in bitterness and sorrow. 
 As soon as dinner was over she left, without 
 staying to play with the children, but went 
 right home with a heavy heart. She did not as 
 usual tell her parents of the fine feast that she 
 had attended. 
 
 Soon her father suspected that something was 
 wrong, and he asked his little daughter what 
 she had done, and she confessed all and how 
 she was ashamed to acknowledge Christ before 
 those worldly people. Then they kneeled to- 
 gether and she confessed her sin before God. 
 Soon after she was received into the Church, 
 and she is now a good and happy girl. 
 
 In connection with this same deacon, who 
 was a druggist, I will give you an account of 
 another remarkable conversion : — 
 
 One night one of his clerks, a young man of 
 eighteen or nineteen years of age, came in 
 great distress and earnestness to him to know 
 what he should do to escape the wrath to come. 
 The deacon, seeing the great earnestness of the 
 young man, was perplexed, and said to him: 
 " You are in great earnest, and if I should not 
 direct you right, it would be a great pity. We 
 have a pastor, and you.would better wait till 
 
98 A Modem Paul. 
 
 to-morrow and see him." The young man 
 said: "You cannot assure me that I will live 
 until to-morrow." 
 
 The deacon knew that the pastor, who was in 
 feeble health, had held an evening service and 
 was sorry to have to arouse him in the dead 
 of the night; but as he could not guarantee 
 another day's probation, he hired a jinrikisha 
 and sent the young man to the pastor's home. 
 He came to me and the first words he said were 
 the very words of the jailer of Philippi: "What 
 mast I do to be saved?" I directed him with a 
 few words and in the simplest way possible to 
 Christ, and that he should cast himself upon 
 him. "We prayed together, and he went home 
 with a different heart, and ever since he has 
 proved the reality of the change by a life of 
 earnest work for Christ. 
 
 I will next give you an account of the conver- 
 sion of several girls. On a Sunday afternoon 
 a sermon was preached from Heb. 3:7, 8: 
 "Therefore the Holy Ghost says, To-day if you 
 will hear his voice, harden not your heart." 
 That evening there was evidence of an awaken- 
 ing among the girls of our boarding school. 
 Next morning I received a letter from one of 
 the lady teachers, Miss Gardiner or Miss Colby, 
 saying that several of the girls were under con- 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 99 
 
 viction of sin, and were unable to pursue their 
 duties and wanted to see me. She hoped that 
 I would come and assist in directing them 
 toward the light. I went, and calling one by 
 one those who were thus awakened, did what I 
 could to show them the way of salvation in 
 their several conditions, and prayed with each 
 one. All these girls, of ages from ten to fifteen 
 years, have since united with different churches 
 in Osaka. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama wrote to the writer at 
 one time about his work at Sanda, a coun- 
 try church, which shows us another fea- 
 ture of his preaching : — 
 
 While I was at Arima two deacons of Sanda 
 church came to me and asked me to preach 
 there. I asked about the condition of the 
 church, and they said that the work of God was 
 declining and all Christians were sleeping. I 
 went there last Friday and I preached that 
 night. Next morning the acting pastor called 
 on me and he asked me to preach to un- 
 christians from that day. The reason why 
 he expressed such a desire was that the sermon 
 which I preached reflected very severely upon 
 them. Therefore they wanted me to preach to 
 
100 A Modem Paul. 
 
 unchristians, as they had some feeling against 
 the truth. I answered that I preach the truths 
 of the Bible; and I think the sermons must 
 be impressive to Christians as well as to un- 
 christians. Therefore I cannot preach such a 
 sermon as to make an impression only on unchris- 
 tians. If unchristians read the Bible, they will 
 fear and repent, and if Christians study it, they 
 will advance in their virtues. And I explained 
 to him about the true preaching. Then he was 
 impressed and confessed the convictions which 
 he had had since he heard my first sermon. 
 And he confessed his selfishness and sins, and 
 he said he is unworthy, not only to be acting 
 pastor but to be a church member. Therefore 
 he wished to resign his pastorship and member- 
 ship, and he would join the church again 
 after his true conversion; and he shed many 
 tears. Then the deacons repented with tears, 
 and ladies also confessed their sins and sur- 
 rendered all things to God. I preached and 
 held prayer-meetings during a week, and many 
 were converted. I thought I would stay there 
 longer, but I was obliged to leave there to 
 look after some publishing. 
 
 And yet his deeds were more powerful 
 than his words. Many came to his bedside 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 101 
 
 to comfort him ; all received from him 
 such courage and inspiration that he was 
 even more than ever a power in his church. 
 I myself visited him at the hospital often, 
 making the trips from a distant mission 
 field for the purpose of bringing him com- 
 fort in his illness. But he needed no 
 comfort; indeed he gave to me, I thought, 
 infinitely more than I gave to him. Just 
 before I left him he raised his heavy body 
 and took from the bureau his one cloak 
 and handed it to me, asking me to give it 
 to a poor Christian brother in the place 
 where I was preaching. Lately Mr. Na- 
 kaye, my intimate friend, wrote me about 
 a similar act. He says : — 
 
 " I called on Mr. Sawayama in the hos- 
 pital with my friend some time in the year 
 1886. When we left him he handed us 
 an awase (a Japanese long dress which 
 can easily be remade into a lady's cloak), 
 
 and said to us : 'I heard that Mrs. , 
 
 (who is a widow and has several chil- 
 dren) has been absent from church quite 
 
102 A Modem Paul. 
 
 often. I suppose she wants a new dress, 
 but she cannot buy one, as she is poor; 
 therefore she does not attend church 
 often, from the sense of shame. Will you 
 please, dear brethren, bring this to that 
 lady and tell her to make a new dress 
 of this and attend church?" 
 
 " I think," Mr. Nakaye continues, " those 
 who received more love and attentions 
 from him were the poor and lowest class. 
 Who does not know this duty? But 
 how many ministers practiced this truth 
 as Mr. Sawayama did ? " 
 
 I remember many such cases in which 
 he seemed absolutely to forget his own 
 illness in thinking how he could help 
 some one else. At one time he wrote to 
 a sick lady from his sick bed thus : " I 
 have deep sympathy with you ; but as it 
 says in the Bible, ' Everything works 
 for good,' everything is for the glory 
 of God, profit of our soul, and happiness 
 of the future life. Therefore we are 
 very happy to trust in the hand of God, 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 103 
 
 saying, 'Not as I will, but as thou 
 wilt.'" 
 
 He was a man of prayer and devotion. 
 He believed that everything, in God's 
 providence, was working to perform the 
 will of God. He prayed with a simple 
 faith. Almost childlike in his trust, he 
 seemed never to doubt that his prayer 
 would be fulfilled. One day he expected 
 to go to the mission field of his Naniwa 
 Church, but he had no money. He told 
 nobody his need, but, having prayed that 
 he might have money enough to enable 
 him to make the visit, he went on at his 
 work, seemingly with an entire confidence 
 that the need would be met. Very late 
 that night a poor Christian woman came 
 to him and handed him some money, say- 
 ing that she had earned it unexpectedly 
 that day and wanted to offer it for the mis- 
 sion work. A little later another came 
 in with another contribution. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama was thankful, as he 
 always was, but he was not surprised ; it 
 
104 A Modem Paul. 
 
 was just what he had expected ; how other- 
 wise ? He went to the mission field, paid 
 all his expenses, and returned, finding that 
 the gift had just equaled his expenditure. 
 Rev. Mr. Miyagawa, who is one of the 
 first graduates of Dr. Neesima's institu- 
 tion, pastor of one of the churches of 
 Osaka, and one of the leaders of the 
 religious movement in Japan, writes in 
 The Christian, of Tokyo, referring to Mr. 
 Sawayama's prayers, as follows (transla- 
 tion) : — 
 
 I have noticed that while Mr. Sawayama was 
 pastor of the Naniwa Church there existed a 
 strong union in the church, and they undertook 
 mission and educational work with enthusiasm ; 
 also that they went ahead of all other churches 
 with the banner of independence and self- 
 support, and that when their representatives 
 appeared at the annual conference of Kumi-ai 
 churches they insisted upon the duty of self- 
 support with a burning spirit which seemed to 
 move the whole meeting so that nobody could 
 withstand it. I thought secretly that Mr. Sawa- 
 yama must have been at work in all the affairs 
 
Sawayama 's Ministry. 105 
 
 of the church very busily from early morning 
 to late at night every day, feeling the shortness 
 of the time ; but when I came to the church of 
 Osaka, which was situated near by his church, 
 I learned that he had had consumption for a 
 long time and had been obliged to lie on his 
 sick bed about two thirds of the year, and that 
 he could not attend to the large part of the 
 affairs of the church. 
 
 Then the following questions arose in my 
 mind and I could not answer them for a long 
 while; namely, "With what kind of magnetic 
 power can he manage his church so successfully 
 all the time ? Can he move his church members 
 as he can control his fingers by his will, by the 
 skillfulness of conversation and social excellency, 
 as he is a Yamaguchian 1 ; or does he attract all 
 people by his amiable manners? But when he 
 departed from us we found a list of the names 
 of his church members, by which he used to pray 
 to our Father for individual members every 
 morning and evening, sometimes shedding 
 bloody tears. This list must have been kept 
 for many years, because it was stained with his 
 much handling. In some parts the letters were 
 indiscernible, it was so black. I thought, This 
 
 » The Japanese people regarded the people of Yamaguchi 
 province as a gracious, social people. 
 
106 A Modern Paul. 
 
 much-used list is a monument telling of his 
 appeal to the Father for every member of his 
 church by name. From this also I received the 
 answer to all my questions concerning him, that 
 the secret of his success was in prayer. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama says in his letters : — "I 
 am now sick in the hospital, so I cannot 
 work much ; but I am praying constantly 
 and the work of my church is blessed. 
 Please pray for my work, which is God's." 
 
 " My great joy of yesterday was that I 
 found in the church a lately backsliding 
 man for whom I have been praying much. 
 When the service was over I went 
 straightway to speak a few loving words 
 to him with much joy in my heart, though 
 I could not exchange words with others, 
 as the time was late and I ought to be 
 back to the hospital very quickly ; and I 
 said to myself in heart, ' He was lost and 
 is found.' " 
 
 A young man for whom Mr. Sawayama 
 was praying was converted as follows, as 
 reported in one of his letters : — 
 
SawayamcCs Ministry. 107 
 
 A young man in the employ of another of our 
 deacons decided to leave his place. He had no 
 good reason for doing so, and was trying to get 
 away from Christian influence, as his conscience 
 seemed to be troubling him. His Christian 
 friends urged him not to go, but in spite of 
 all he left, and went away seeking employment 
 elsewhere. He soon fell in with an old friend 
 whom he had not met for years, and before 
 long told him that he wanted work. " Come 
 with me," said his friend; "I know a good 
 place for you." 
 
 He went to his friend's lodging, but in the 
 night several policeman entered, making sev- 
 eral arrests and" closing the house. The poor 
 young man found himself in jail under arrest 
 for gambling, and his friend proved to be a 
 gambler and the house where he had stopped 
 a gambling house. 
 
 In the morning some food was brought to 
 him, and as had been the custom at the house at 
 Osaka he bowed his head in thanksgiving to God. 
 He also prayed most earnestly that God would 
 deliver him from the prison. He acknowledged 
 that he knew these sufferings were sent him for 
 having tried to run away from his duty; that 
 he now humbled himself before God and was 
 ready to follow wherever he might lead him. 
 
108 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Soon after he was taken before a policeman, 
 who questioned him. The young man said he 
 knew nothing of the business of his friend, as 
 he had come from Osaka but the day before, 
 and that while he was in Osaka he was in the 
 employ of a Christian and that he surely was 
 not a gambler. When he said he had been in 
 a Christian family, the policeman said, " I can 
 soon tell whether you are telling the truth or 
 not, as I know something of the Christian work 
 
 in Osaka. Where is the church? " To this 
 
 the young man replied correctly. " Who is its 
 
 pastor? Where is church and who is its 
 
 pastor?" etc. The young man showed by his 
 replies that he knew all about them. He was 
 therefore released and came back to Osaka a 
 penitent man, full of thanksgiving to God for 
 so plainly showing him his duty. He is still a 
 very earnest Christian. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama was very fond of pray- 
 ing with two or three brethren, and the 
 prayer-meetiDg was a great delight to him. 
 His mind and his body were equally active. 
 If he could pray with some one, he would 
 come down from his sick bed and kneel by 
 a chair. Sometimes prayer-meetings were 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 109 
 
 held early in the morning. He attended 
 like an entirely well man. The prayer- 
 meetings in his church were therefore 
 always well attended and always enthu- 
 siastic. During the revival they were as 
 large as the Sunday congregations. When 
 Mr. Sawayama was very seriously sick, 
 prayer-meetings were held for him ; and I 
 recall how all were so moved that no one 
 could trust his voice to speak. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama's principle in regard to 
 contributions — not merely his maxim but 
 his principle — was, " It is more blessed to 
 give than to receive." He held that the 
 accompaniment of the thankful spirit was 
 an essential part of giving ; and that his 
 church might never give from a sense of 
 obligation or of shame, but from a thank- 
 ful heart, he never persuaded or even 
 asked anyone to give. He was himself a 
 very methodical man, and gave two tenths 
 of his income to the church every month ; 
 he also gave one tenth of all the gifts 
 which he had received from his friends 
 
110 A Modern Paul. 
 
 during his illness. This spirit could not 
 but influence his church, and they offered 
 more than one tenth with thankful hearts. 
 No member ever complained of the burden 
 of self-support; all were courageous and 
 confident. The giving capacity of the 
 church increased wonderfully. Many in- 
 creased greatly the proportion of their 
 contributions with the increase in their 
 incomes. I remember one man who in 
 the beginning could offer but sixty cents 
 a month, which was one tenth of his in- 
 come; but at the end of five years he 
 gave twenty dollars a month. Another 
 could offer at first only fifty cents a 
 month ; at the end of five years he gave 
 fifteen dollars every month. But Mr. 
 Sawayama's ideas and methods will ap- 
 pear more fully in his speech. 
 
 And not only did he know the way of 
 giving, but he knew also how to receive 
 and how to thank, as the following letters 
 will show. 
 
Sawayama 's Ministry. Ill 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell : — 
 
 Osaka, October 7, 1878. 
 
 I have received twice your Mud letters since I 
 have been married, which inform me that you 
 are going to send some presents to us for our 
 home comforts. By receiving this news, how 
 much I felt grateful to you all and to God who 
 gave me such kind friends as you are, I cannot 
 express. I have forsaken all and followed the 
 Lord in putting myself in this position. . . . 
 Great self-denial is necessary and I determined 
 to follow the steps of the Lord, who on earth 
 " had not where to lay his head," and so I could 
 not have much comfort in this life, I thought ; 
 therefore what a grateful thing to me these 
 presents of my friends are you can imagine. I 
 have not yet received the box, but when I shall 
 receive it I will write to the friends to thank 
 you all and tell them more thoroughly about the 
 condition of my life and household, etc. I am 
 now waiting anxiously for the box. 
 
 Mrs. Boutell, I would like to thank you in this 
 connection for the things of which you made 
 me presents while I was at your home. Shirts, 
 coats, drawers, and other things have been ex- 
 ceedingly useful to me. Since I came back I 
 have not bought anything and of course I had 
 no means to buy. All these things your presents 
 
112 A Modern Paul. 
 
 supplied, and many of them will last all my 
 life, I think, if the Lord will take me before 
 very many years. To these add the presents of 
 this time, we shall be very comfortable. 
 
 To Mrs. Packard : — 
 
 Osaka, November 18, 1878. 
 A few weeks ago we received the box of 
 many presents from ladies. I thank you for 
 the beautiful book which you sent us with them. 
 When we received the book I read it, together 
 with my wife, and we talked to each other about 
 the vanity of this world and the blessedness of 
 Christ's abiding with us, and thanked God in 
 our hearts that by the grace of God we are now 
 what we are. The book is now on our parlor 
 table and it is admired by all who come to see 
 it as well as by us daily. I ask you to thank for 
 us the church for the money which they gave 
 us. It will help us in a great many ways to get 
 our comforts for the Lord's work. 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell: — 
 
 Osaka, February 10, 1880. 
 Mr. De Forest received fifty dollars from 
 you as the gift from your church to me. I 
 always feel very grateful for the thousand kind- 
 nesses of you and the friends there. I enclose 
 
Sawayamd's Ministry. 113 
 
 the letter to the church to thank them for the 
 money. This much money came to me so unex- 
 pectedly in the time of necessity, as I feel, and 
 I told the church members the other evening, as 
 though it was manna from heaven. 
 
 To Mrs. Boutell : — 
 
 Osaka, November 2, 1884. 
 Thank you very much for forwarding five- 
 dollar note, which Mrs. E. L. Brown kindly 
 sent for me enclosed in your letter. I thank 
 Mrs. Brown very much that she should re- 
 member me in that way. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Packard : — 
 
 Osaka, April 12, 1881. 
 
 I take opportunity to send you a tetsubin or 
 iron teakettle by Mr. Leavitt, who is going back 
 to America with his family. Tetsubin is one of 
 the most popular things in Japanese homes of 
 the middle class upward. They think that it is 
 almost necessary thing for their own enjoyment 
 and also entertainment of others. If you should 
 enter a Japanese house, you will tetsubin find 
 always over charcoal fire and water boiling in it. 
 They make tea all the time with the water for 
 themselves and others who may call on them. 
 
 I present this to you, as you might use this on 
 
114 A Modern Paul. 
 
 your table, when you take tea or coffee. The 
 form of the kettle itself is meant as a piece of 
 rock and crabs are on the face of both sides, 
 climbing- up of the rock; rough bottom of the 
 inside of the kettle is purposely made for 
 musical sound when the water is boiling in it. 
 For keeping it nice, please throw water occa- 
 sionally all over the face of kettle when it is very 
 hot, so that the water might instantly dry away. 
 By this way you could keep the color of the iron 
 looking nice. Never rub it hard with anything. 
 At first, the water boiled in it may have iron 
 taste, but it will be good by-and-by. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama was, withal, a man of 
 childlike simplicity and great humility. He 
 never disputed with anyone. He met with 
 much decided opposition in his methods of 
 self-support ; but if at any time he could 
 not avoid expressing his convictions, he 
 expressed them in such a gentle manner 
 that no one cared to enter into controversy 
 with him. He was so truly humble that 
 he never criticized others. In the follow- 
 ing letter the reader will see how humble 
 he was before God and men. 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 115 
 
 To Mrs. Naruse (translation) : — 
 
 Osaka, January 11, 1885. 
 
 I thank you for your kind letter and I am very 
 glad to know that your faith, love, and patience 
 are increasing. I have read your letter several 
 times and given thanks and prayed. I ought 
 to have answered at once, but as the weather 
 grows colder my breathing becomes more diffi- 
 cult ; so I have delayed to take my pen. But I 
 preached on the last Sunday of last year and I 
 was able to preach again on the first Sunday of 
 this year, so I am not very badly off. 
 
 You wrote me about the deepness of your 
 sins and your unworthiness to serve God. I 
 think this is one sign of the increase of the 
 grace of God. I will tell you of one or two 
 of my experiences through which I have passed 
 since the attack of last year. Last October, 
 while I was sick in bed, I felt the coldness of 
 my love to God and to my brethren, and I was 
 very sorry. And I prayed that my love might 
 be increased. 
 
 Though I expected that God would make my 
 love to him and to the brethren burn in my 
 heart contrary to my hope, I only felt the deep- 
 ness of my sin and my inferiority to my breth- 
 ren. So after I had had this feeling for a time 
 I realized that "I am the chief of sinners." 
 
116 A Modern Paul. 
 
 And at the same time I understood that it was 
 not only in the experience of humility that St. 
 Paul said, " I am the chief of sinners," but he 
 felt it was really so. From this time I was im- 
 pressed especially with the greatness of the 
 grace of God toward such a sinner as I am, 
 the chief sinner, and I esteemed and valued 
 very highly my brethren as I saw their worthi- 
 ness, goodness, and righteousness. Thus my 
 adoration and love toward God and my brethren 
 increased and my heart was filled with good and 
 pleasant thoughts. 
 
 So you see my mistake. At first I could not 
 understand the answer of God to my prayers. 
 If the feeling of love to God and to my breth- 
 ren had burned in my heart, it would have dis- 
 appeared very soon, as it was only feeling. But 
 my experience was not a vain feeling, but based 
 on firm reason, because my love to God increased 
 from the knowledge of the deepness of my sins 
 and the greatness of the grace and love of God. 
 And as to the love of the brethren, this burned 
 more deeply because of my honor and respect 
 for their virtues. Then I was impressed with 
 those words which Christ spoke: "Wherefore 
 I say unto you, her sins, which are many, are 
 forgiven ; for she loved much ; but to whom little 
 is forgiven, the same loveth little " (Luke 7 : 47). 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 117 
 
 And the other day, having been reading the 
 Revelation, I found at many places the word 
 repent in the second and third chapters. I 
 thought that these words were spoken to those 
 who sinned or became cold after their conver- 
 sion and some of them had committed great sins ; 
 but God promised to give his grace to them if 
 they would repent, even such sinners. So I can 
 believe surely that we can receive his remission 
 of sins which are committed after conversion, 
 if we truly repent, though they are terrible 
 things and we doubt the remission even after 
 repentance. In the early morning of the first 
 of last December, as soon as I awaked, I met a 
 temptation of the devil. He said to my heart: 
 "Paul, do you not remember that you were 
 lying in this hospital last December too ? You 
 have spent almost all of your time this year in the 
 hospital on this sick bed and you have not been 
 at work for God but have only been lying down 
 here. What do you think of this day? Is it 
 not the first day of December? You say you 
 have sacrificed yourself to God, but you have 
 not attended to your church and have not 
 preached. Don't you feel sorry? See the other 
 pastors I They are working successfully for the 
 propagation of the kingdom of God." 
 
 Thus I began to feel very sad ; but very soon 
 
118 A Modern Paul. 
 
 good tidings came to my mind through the 
 Holy Ghost because of these words of Christ 
 (Luke 10 : 17-20), when the seventy returned 
 with joy because of their success in preaching : 
 Jesus said: "Rejoice not in this," which is 
 changeable according to the conditions of life, 
 but " rather rejoice because your names are 
 written in heaven." This idea drove away 
 immediately the temptation of the devil and I 
 thought with glad feelings that I am an 
 unworthy servant; but by the great mercy 
 of the Father I was born into the kingdom of 
 heaven and I am now a citizen of that kingdom 
 and no one can take from me this joy. 
 
 The happiness in this world. 
 
 " Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me 
 all the days of my life." 
 
 The happiness in the future world. 
 
 " I will dwell in the house of the Lord for 
 ever" (Ps. 23:6). 
 
 At one time Mr. Sawayama had been 
 praying for a revival. It did not come. 
 He imagined that the fault was in himself, 
 so he consecrated himself anew to his 
 work. After this experience he addressed 
 a woman's meeting, in which the interest 
 
Sawayama's Ministry. 119 
 
 at once became so great that it was turned 
 into an inquiry meeting. Many went 
 away and related their experience to 
 others. This was the beginning of a 
 revival. All the students in the girls' 
 school were converted and began new 
 lives. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama held a prayer-meeting 
 and a preaching service every day. The 
 church was always filled. After the ser- 
 mon there would be an inquiry meeting. 
 This was the first religious revival in 
 Japan. At this time I tried to write to 
 the Christian paper an account of this 
 movement, but Mr. Sawayama would not 
 allow me to do so. He shrank from any- 
 thing which resembled praise. 
 
 Notwithstanding his strong revivalistic 
 spirit, his methods in revivals were above 
 reproach. He never urged people, he 
 never scolded about people's sins, he never 
 made people feel uncomfortable by em- 
 ploying artifices to induce them to con- 
 fess their sins. His conduct at such times, 
 
120 A Modern Paul. 
 
 and indeed always, was natural and quiet, 
 with an element of dignity. He could 
 accommodate himself, apparently without 
 effort, to all kinds of people. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 HOME MISSION WORK ; HIS SPEECH AT 
 THE GREAT CONFERENCE. 
 
 R. SAWAYAMA'S persistent ex- 
 ample gradually influenced many- 
 Japanese churches. The most of 
 the Congregational (or Kumi-ai) churches 
 are self-supporting, and many of other 
 denominations. Mr. Sawayama also in- 
 sisted that this same principle should 
 extend to the Home Mission work, but 
 in this he was not seconded by the major- 
 ity ; so the Home Mission work is sup- 
 ported in part by the native churches and 
 in part by the American Board. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama says in his letter about 
 the beginning of the Japanese Home 
 Missionary Society : — 
 
 " On the second and third of February, 
 1878, we had a general church conference 
 in the girls' school of Osaka. In this 
 121 
 
122 A Modern Paul. 
 
 conference we formed the Home Mission- 
 ary Society, and Mr. Neesima and Mr. 
 Imamura, of Kobe - , and myself were ap- 
 pointed as committee to manage the entire 
 affairs of the society." 
 
 The mission work was divided into two 
 departments : that which was carried on 
 in fields remote from the churches, and 
 the local mission of each church. The 
 rule was followed that the more remote 
 fields should draw eight tenths of their 
 support from the American Board and 
 two tenths from the native churches ; the 
 expenses of the local missions were paid 
 in a different proportion, six tenths by the 
 Board and four tenths by the native 
 churches. 1 But Mr. Sawayama's church 
 did not receive any pecuniary aid what- 
 ever from the Board from the beginning. 
 
 The local mission field of the Naniwa 
 Church was the province of Yamato. 
 One of his church members, who decided 
 
 1 But now about half is paid by the native churches, and 
 the other hall by the American Board. The proportion 
 varies from year to year. 
 
Ho\ne Mission Work. 123 
 
 in the revival to become a preacher, began 
 his preaching there. He preached several 
 times in the theater of Koriyama city. 
 Many were interested. One man in par- 
 ticular was much impressed, but he shared 
 the doubts and suspicions which almost 
 all the people felt toward the work. He 
 thought that perhaps the preacher was 
 preaching for the sake of money; so he 
 tested him in various ways. He invited 
 him to dinner at his home to test whether 
 he was selfish or not. He called on him at 
 his lodgings to find out his private conduct. 
 He found that the preacher received no 
 money except for his expenses, and that he 
 was supported entirely by native Christians. 
 His prejudices were removed. He was sur- 
 prised at the self-sacrificing spirit of the 
 preacher and the native Christians, who 
 had sent him there. Soon afterwards he 
 became a Christian and began to offer 
 something for the work. 
 
 At the same time one old lady became 
 a very good Christian, and gave much 
 
124 A Modem Paul 
 
 money for the church and its benevolent 
 work. She helped very many of the 
 poorer people. After about one year a 
 church of thirty members was organized. 
 A house was bought and was rebuilt to 
 meet the purposes of a church. All the 
 members contributed money and work. 
 
 As soon as the work was completed, 
 some hater of Christianity wrote some 
 insulting words on the white wall of the 
 church. They were written in large let- 
 ters and were spread over every blank 
 space between the windows, as if they 
 had been the motto of the church. The 
 Christians did not erase them. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama makes mention in a letter 
 of an incident that occurred in this town : — 
 
 Among the converts in that place was a car- 
 penter and his wife, both very earnest, but un- 
 learned people. One evening while the wife 
 was preparing supper she tried to read her 
 New Testament, but finding great difficulty she 
 said to herself: " There is a precious treasure in 
 this book, and the Almighty God could give me 
 
Home Mission Work. 125 
 
 power in some way to understand this book." 
 So she kneeled down in her kitchen and 
 prayed aloud. The house was very small, and 
 a traveler passing by heard her earnest prayer 
 and was much impressed and came in and 
 asked to whom she was speaking. She told 
 him that she was a Christian and was praying 
 to the Christian God. "While she was telling 
 him about her faith her husband came home 
 from work and they both told him of the 
 "Way. 
 
 He then confessed to them that he had hated 
 Christianity and that he was the head of a band 
 who were planning to break up the meetings of 
 Christianity in his city, Nara, two and one-half 
 miles distant. He appeared to be much im- 
 pressed by what he heard from these humble 
 people regarding their faith in Christianity. 
 "While we have not heard anything further from 
 him, yet we know that the meetings in Nara 
 have been held undisturbed from that time to 
 this, and we have lately had increased interest 
 in the work there. 
 
 Nara was the capital of Japan in ancient 
 times, and many places and buildings there are 
 connected with historical incidents, and its 
 Daibutsu, or great bronze image, is also a very 
 famous thing. 
 
126 A Modern Paul. 
 
 This lady, wife of the carpenter, mas- 
 tered enough of the written language to 
 read the Bible and to write letters in the 
 Japanese character through her enthusias- 
 tic study in her kitchen for a long while. 
 And her husband worked for many days 
 without any wages to build our church. 
 
 Koriyama was the center of the mission 
 work in the province of Yamato. At this 
 time the Buddhist and Shinto priests 
 were greatly enraged against Christianity, 
 as were the people also. The priests 
 sought in every town and village to de- 
 stroy Christianity. I will refer to a few 
 instances, that the reader may see the con- 
 dition of the mission work. 
 
 One day a preacher and two Christian 
 brethren went from the city into a town 
 to preach. They had secured a crowded 
 audience, when ten Buddhist priests and 
 many young men came in. After the 
 preaching the priests began to dispute 
 with the Christians. Their purpose was 
 to excite the people and if possible make an 
 
Borne Mission Work. 127 
 
 attack upon the Christians. But the latter 
 were so calm, and answered them so dis- 
 creetly that they found it hard to make an 
 opportunity for the attack. When their 
 anger was almost breaking forth, policemen 
 came in and offered their protection to the 
 preacher and his companions. 
 
 Several of this audience became Chris- 
 tians, partly because they were impressed 
 with the truth which the preacher spoke, 
 but more because of their admiration for 
 the spirit and character of the Christians. 
 One of those who were converted was a 
 Shinto priest 1 . He was an earnest man, 
 and displayed to the people the truth of 
 Christianity and the errors of Shintoism. 
 He resigned his priesthood and returned 
 his degree to the government. But the 
 people were very angry with him and 
 drove him from his house. 
 
 Another of the converts was a young 
 man whose conversion was extremely 
 
 1 He came to the meeting to protest against Christianity, 
 but he found truth. 
 
128 A Modern Paul. 
 
 odious to his family. During a call which 
 the preacher made upon him his grand- 
 mother came into the room and stood 
 watching them. The preacher bowed 
 according to the Japanese custom, but the 
 old lady did not respond by a word or 
 even a sign. The preacher attempted to 
 speak to her, but she covered her ears 
 with her hands. After <the preacher had 
 gone the old lady threw the teakettle at 
 her grandson, and threw his Bible and all 
 his other religious books into the fire. 
 
 The persecution of another young man 
 was more disagreeable, not to say severe. 
 The anger of his parents was almost with- 
 out restraint. He would sometimes be 
 struck with a hoe or some similar imple- 
 ment. At other times he was pushed out 
 of his house in entire nakedness in the 
 winter night. When he was intending to 
 go to the church to receive baptism, and 
 had gone into the store to get his cloak, 
 his mother locked the door from the out- 
 side. When matters had come to such a 
 
Home Mission Work. 129 
 
 pass that it was really dangerous for him 
 to stay longer at home he ran away, and 
 did not return for a year. I knew a girl 
 whose relations with her parents and 
 family were entirely cut off for many 
 years, so that she could not even return to 
 her home. But in these and many other 
 cases none of those who had been con- 
 verted lost their Christian faith. 
 
 This was the condition in which the 
 mission work in the province of Yamato 
 was begun. 
 
 I will here give the speech, which I have 
 already mentioned several times, which 
 Mr. Sawayama delivered before the Inter- 
 Denominational Missionary Conference in 
 Osaka in May, 1881, on " The Self-support 
 of the Japanese Native Church " : — 
 
 I am one of those who believe that the church 
 to which I belong has received special blessing, 
 owing to the fact that from the time of the 
 founding of our church stress has been laid 
 upon the idea of self-support. And although 
 personally I have had little more than six years' 
 
130 A Modem Paul. 
 
 experience in the working of the system, yet I 
 am desirous of offering for the consideration of 
 the conference now assembled for the purpose 
 of discussing this subject the results of my 
 experience. 
 
 To express my own conviction on this subject, 
 I would say that self-support (1) is in accord- 
 ance with the teaching of Scripture; (2) is 
 beneficial to the church ; (3) that if the church 
 will in faith endeavor to carry out the princi- 
 ple, it will be found by no means unattainable. 
 
 We will take these three branches of my sub- 
 ject in order : — 
 
 1. The support given to the theory of self- 
 support by the teaching of Scripture. 
 
 Men of the world, in accomplishing anything 
 they set themselves to do, resort to certain 
 means. If we look at the matter now before 
 us from the standpoint of ordinary human rea- 
 son, it is very apparent that the duties of 
 believers in Christianity are for the most part 
 such as spring from faith ; and the performance 
 of these duties that proceed from faith consti- 
 tutes what we call the doing of the will of God, 
 and affords the proof that we believe his prom- 
 ises. It is only when this condition is fulfilled 
 that the blessing upon which so much depends 
 will be vouchsafed. If we look at things in 
 
Home Mission Work. 131 
 
 the light of human reason, however great the 
 present difficulties may be, those who are versed 
 in the teaching of Scripture should act in 
 accordance with this teaching without the slight- 
 est misgiving. This it is that is spoken of as 
 " walking by faith and not by sight," and only 
 when a believer has this kind of faith does he 
 begin to be capable of doing work that is pleas- 
 ing to God, and only then is he in a position to 
 receive God's help ; for " without faith it is 
 impossible to please God." Faith then, and 
 faith alone, is the source from which the Church 
 derives a true spirit of self-support. 
 
 If we refer to the New Testament, we do not 
 find that Christ on the occasion of sending evan- 
 gelists out to preach the gospel assisted them 
 by means of money. And in reference to those 
 churches which were founded by the apostles, 
 although we find instances of the theory of self- 
 support being acted upon by them, we never 
 find cases in which the opposite theory is re- 
 sorted to. In point of fact, although we find 
 that Paul collected money from churches that 
 had been recently organized for the purpose of 
 assisting his own countrymen, we never read that 
 the opposite of this was done ; namely, that the 
 new churches were assisted financially by the 
 older ones. In fact, so established a custom 
 
132 A Modern Paul. 
 
 was it for the churches to advance money for 
 the purpose of assisting the apostles in their 
 work, that we find Paul asking for forgiveness 
 for not being burdensome to the Corinthian 
 church (2 Cor. 12 : 13) ; that is, for not asking 
 for pecuniary help from them. 
 
 It is clear enough, then, without further dis- 
 cussion, that the principle of self-support was 
 the one acted on in the early Church. 
 
 In the Old Testament also we find that the 
 rich and poor alike paid tithes to God, and sub- 
 scribed toward the maintenance of the priests 
 and for the keeping up of the service of the 
 temple. 
 
 Seeing then that the principle of self-support 
 is one of the great agencies of the church, we 
 believe that the subscription of rich and poor 
 alike for the maintenance of the church is 
 specially pleasing to God. 
 
 2. The benefits to the church ensured by the 
 adoption of this plan. 
 
 As believers are bought with a price, from 
 the day of their repentance and belief nothing 
 they possess is their own, but is all sacred to 
 God, to whom it is presented. On knowing, 
 then, what the will of the Lord is, there should 
 not be a thing that they possess that they are 
 not ready to offer for the Lord's use ; and they 
 
Some Mission Work. 133 
 
 should be led and taught to believe that it is 
 but proper that their possessions should be 
 handed over to the God of all riches. It is 
 for the most part by the use that people make 
 of money that the nature of their hearts is 
 known; by the use of their money they in- 
 fluence their hearts for either good or evil. In 
 the Bible it is said: " The love of money is the 
 root of all evil " (1 Tim. 6 : 10) ; again, " Make to 
 yourselves friends of the mammon of unright- 
 eousness " (Luke 16 : 9) . If there is anything 
 that is very much bound up with the purposes 
 of God in my heart, I shall pay special attention 
 to the work of impressing upon believers the 
 claims of this thing. The principle of self- 
 support, being among believers the outcome of 
 faith, affects seriously the whole work of the 
 church. We cannot therefore agree with those 
 who treat the whole subject of financial depend- 
 ence or independence as though it were merely 
 a pecuniary matter of small moment to the 
 church. As such persons, however, are to be 
 found, I shall now proceed to state what advan- 
 tages to the church are to be derived from the 
 principle of self-support. 
 
 Paul said: " If we have sown unto you spirit- 
 ual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap 
 your carnal things?" (1 Cor. 9 : 11). According 
 
134 A Modern Paul. 
 
 to the principle laid down here, the believer, 
 having received a gift of more value than all 
 the treasure of the world, should gladly give 
 his carnal things for the Lord's service. If in 
 the very commencement of missionary work 
 this is not emphasized, it is to be feared that 
 gradually the great grace manifested in man's 
 salvation will be forgotten, and that believers 
 will not value as they should that state of bliss 
 to which they are called. The principle of self- 
 support, then, is the one thing that is instrumen- 
 tal in making each believer mindful of the Lord's 
 grace and the blessedness of his salvation. The 
 faith that men have is manifested by means of 
 money, and therefore if from the commence- 
 ment people be urged to give money toward the 
 support of the work of God, a spirit of self- 
 denial will be produced ; but if the contrary be 
 the case, they will gradually lose heart in the 
 work and grow to be mean and ignoble. This 
 being so, those who object to giving money are 
 sure to be persons of weak faith on to the end, 
 and at last will make shipwreck of the faith 
 they have. Among those who have gone astray 
 there are numbers like this. If from the very 
 first the principle of self-support be insisted on, 
 the different bodies of Christians will look upon 
 their churches as their own, and will show great 
 
Home Mission Work. 135 
 
 diligence in spreading the gospel; if they re- 
 ceive support from others, they will look on the 
 Church as belonging to some one else and will 
 grow remiss in Christian work. 
 
 I will take an extreme case : there is a church 
 that is altogether supported by a foreign mis- 
 sionary. It happened that the church in which 
 they worshiped was in want of a stove; see- 
 ing that the church itself had been put up by a 
 foreign missionary, the members looked to him 
 to provide the fittings required for the church ; 
 and as they regarded the whole matter as some- 
 thing for which they were in no way respon- 
 sible, they let things go as they would till the 
 foreign missionary advanced money to procure 
 a stove, which was then handed over to the 
 church members for them to put up. The next 
 day some of them came to the missionary's 
 house and said that they had spent time the 
 day before in putting up the stove, and would 
 not the missionary give them some remunera- 
 tion? and of course all the fuel that was re- 
 quired for the stove was paid for by the foreign 
 missionary. As a culmination of this state of 
 things, the believers in this church looked upon 
 the conversion of unbelievers as a work done 
 for the benefit of the missionary. 
 
 Unless great care is taken, such believers as 
 
136 A Modern Paul. 
 
 these will entirely forget that their church work 
 is a responsibility that God has laid upon them. 
 If a church in time of distress and out of its 
 poverty subscribes towards the support of its 
 pastor, and by means of self-denial, the pastor 
 too will deny himself and be ready to endure 
 affliction for the sake of the church. The self- 
 denial exercised by both parties will lead to their 
 love for each other. When the opposite is the 
 case, when the church does nothing towards 
 supporting the pastor, it is to be feared that he 
 will be looked upon by the people as a mere 
 hireling ; and he himself will be deficient in the 
 spirit of self-denial. Thus that union of heart 
 and combination of effort, that spirit of love 
 which is so necessary to success, will be wanting. 
 Again, if by self-denial a church is able to give 
 to God, and has the spirit that enables it with 
 joy to endure affliction, then the pastors, evan- 
 gelists, and missionaries who are supported by it 
 will all feel that they are intimately connected 
 with the carrying out of this principle, and that 
 they follow in the footsteps of Him who denied 
 himself and who had not where to lay his head. 
 They will realize that they have a Father, who 
 knows that they require the necessaries of life, 
 and they will trust him and work with diligence 
 and without distraction. 
 
Home Mission Work. 137 
 
 The principle of self-support, then, involves 
 one's working in the way of faith in the prom- 
 ises, and means that one's poverty is supplied 
 by the riches of Christ's grace; and although 
 naturally this course will involve a number of 
 difficulties, if in the midst of trouble we pray to 
 the Lord for help, and renouncing self depend 
 on him, we shall gradually get nearer to him, 
 and our faith as a church will continually in- 
 crease. The principle of self-support has a ten- 
 dency to diminish the number of those lovers of 
 the world who act the hypocrite when they enter 
 the Church of Christ. "What the real believer 
 seeks for is not the pleasures of the world and 
 the flesh, but the endless bliss of the life to 
 come and only spiritual profit. He seeks to 
 conquer himself and glorify God, and upon 
 this alone he sets his mind. There are some 
 rich believers in certain churches who object 
 to subscribing money, and who say: "When 
 we entered the Christian Church we did not sup- 
 pose that, like those who belong to the Buddh- 
 ist and Shintoist sects, we should constantly 
 be called upon to give money for this and 
 that ; we entered the Church to economize in this 
 respect, but we find that it is not so, and that 
 as Christians we are still expected to subscribe 
 money for various objects ; we must say we are 
 
138 A Modern Paul. 
 
 disappointed in finding things as they are I " If 
 the idea of self-support had been acted on from 
 the first, such mistaken notions would never 
 have been entertained. 
 
 When, instead of teaching them to depend on 
 the principle of self-support, money is given to 
 believers, we are on the way to make them think 
 lightly of the Scripture which says, " Seek first 
 the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and 
 all other things shall be added unto you." We 
 are teaching them to doubt God's promises to 
 them, and to think that their work depends for 
 its success on money more than on the strength 
 of the promises. Thus the minds of believers 
 are gradually weakened (Matt. 6 : 19-34). 
 
 The principle of self-support, then, is but an 
 acting up to that which Christ taught the rich 
 young man ; namely, the giving up of all the 
 treasure and glory of this world and the accu- 
 mulating of treasure in heaven. If help is re- 
 ceived from the foreign missionary and there is 
 no dependence on our own efforts, who will ex- 
 ercise self-denial and feel responsible for the 
 work of the church? We shall of course think 
 that there is no use in our -troubling ourselves 
 over a thing for which other people are respon- 
 sible. The benefits arising from evangelistic 
 work are such as affect the church, the evan- 
 
Home Mission Work. 139 
 
 gelists, and those who are members of the mis- 
 sionary committees, as well as the places in 
 which the work it? carried on. If self-denial 
 be practiced, and money be subscribed by the 
 believers, the members will always be thinking 
 of mission work, and prayer will be offered on 
 its behalf ; and although all will not be directly 
 engaged in the work, yet there will be a feel- 
 ing of responsibility connected with it. Any 
 account of the circumstances under which it is 
 conducted, as well as the .results that it yields, 
 will be listened to with pleasure and thankful- 
 ness. If evangelistic work be carried on more 
 diligently, there will be a correspondence be- 
 tween the outlay of money and the increase of 
 a spirit of self-denial in the church; and not 
 only this, but being a thing that concerns 
 themselves, the members of the church will 
 use discretion in the outlay of money. 
 
 On the one hand, then, there will be an exhort- 
 ing of the evangelists to be more zealous in the 
 work ; on the other hand, there will be a readi- 
 ness to make known the circumstances of the 
 work. Thus the whole church will be stirred 
 up, and. will seek to help the evangelists by 
 prayer, and to increase their zeal; and whilst 
 doing this they themselves will be brought 
 nearer to God. This spirit existing among the 
 
140 A Modern Paul. 
 
 evangelists themselves, and the members of the 
 church, they will one and all be ready to deny 
 themselves and do the will of God, and depend 
 on the promises alone. 
 
 If those who are engaged in direct evangel- 
 istic work, and all the members of the church, 
 have this spirit of self-denial and carry on the 
 work in this spirit, those who receive the gospel 
 will gradually lose their selfishness and will 
 learn how to glorify God and push forward the 
 evangelistic work in the places where it is being 
 carried on. This will be a means of producing 
 in them genuine faith, and they will thus learn 
 to deny themselves. For in the practice of self- 
 denial they will be very much guided by the 
 conduct of other believers. Thus when believ- 
 ers stimulate each other and assist each other, 
 God's name will be glorified and spiritual bless- 
 ings sought and received. 
 
 On the contrary, when money is received 
 from foreigners there is great danger of all 
 Christian zeal being lost. I could give numer- 
 ous instances of this that have come under my 
 own notice, and I think they would not be 
 without interest; but this would lengthen my 
 address too much. 
 
 To state in a word the benefits to be derived 
 from the carrying out of the principle on which 
 
Home Mission Work. 141 
 
 I have been insisting, they are as follows: — 
 Believers are by this means led to self-denial, and 
 spirit of independence and faith is promoted. 
 That each believer should have this spirit is> 
 most essential to enable him to perform effi- 
 ciently those duties which devolve on each as a 
 Christian, as well as to conduce to the glory of 
 God. If the spirit of self-support yields so 
 much benefit to the individual Christian, it is 
 manifest how large an aggregate of good to the 
 whole Church will be produced by its general 
 adoption. 
 
 3. A state of self-support is not unattainable. 
 
 By self-support I mean the providing of 
 money by the Church for the carrying on of its 
 work; namely, the maintenance of the Japan- 
 ese churches by the Japanese themselves; the 
 paying of the pastors and evangelists, and the 
 providing of such money as is required for the 
 due discharge of the duties of Christians. As 
 it is not the support of American churches or 
 of American teachers, there is nothing unrea- 
 sonable or impracticable in this. 
 
 The principle of self-support is a principle 
 that concerns all the members of the church, 
 and for which all alike are responsible ; it is the 
 principle of all giving according to their means. 
 This is vastly important. There are many who, 
 
142 A Modern Paul. 
 
 for want of setting aside a regular time for 
 giving and fixing the amount they intend to 
 give, neglect giving altogether. The rich, for 
 . instance, may be able to give any amount ; but 
 because they do not fix on the exact amount 
 they will give, it often ends in their giving 
 absolutely nothing. "With the poor, although 
 the circumstances are very different, the result 
 is the same. They live from hand to mouth, 
 and it is not likely that they will find any sur- 
 plus money to give to the church if they are 
 not in the habit of fixing the exact amount they 
 intend to subscribe; and so it often happens 
 that they subscribe neither cents nor mills. 
 
 It will be asked, How is the principle of self- 
 support to be carried out? I reply that if all 
 believers, whether rich or poor, were never 
 to neglect giving a tenth of their earnings, 
 there would be no difficulty about the matter. 
 As regards other expenses of the church, 
 each believer might every day, or week by 
 week, lay by money for this purpose, and at 
 the end of the month the expenses be divided 
 up and each man take his share in defraying 
 them according to his ability. In this case the 
 poor would not have to advance much at one 
 time, no one would feel the matter a burden, 
 and yet the sum accumulated by degrees would 
 
Home Mission Work. 143 
 
 be considerable; and by means of it a great 
 deal of good could be accomplished. [For the 
 support of a girls' school the share of each sub- 
 scriber was two mills a day.] In our church 
 we are in the habit of giving one yen each 
 towards the repairs of the church every ten 
 months. 
 
 If the same plan be adopted in collecting 
 money to defray incidental expenses, there will 
 be little difficulty in meeting them. I have 
 been in the habit of exhorting my people from 
 the pulpit to give a tenth of their earnings. 
 There are members who not only do this but 
 who give for other objects also, as occasion calls 
 for it. Doubtless there will be some who will 
 not act up to this principle, but among members 
 of churches I doubt whether there is one who 
 would not give a certain amount every month. 
 I believe most of the members of churches feel 
 their responsibility in this matter. 
 
 There are those who say that although after a 
 church has become wealthy it is very proper to 
 enforce the law of self-support, at the present, 
 when there are many poor people in churches, 
 and when there are so many who find it difficult 
 to get a living, it is very wrong to insist on 
 their being self-supporting; for by doing this 
 you make the subscribing of money a source 
 
144 A Modem Paul. 
 
 of trouble to the members of the church, and 
 prevent them from serving God with joy ; and 
 furthermore, by adopting such a course you 
 weaken the faith of some persons. My experi- 
 ence is, as I have repeatedly said already, that 
 the giving of money is the means of increasing 
 the spiritual blessing received by believers, and 
 therefore we may say that the giving of money 
 tends to increase rather than decrease the joy 
 which believers have in the service of God. 
 
 In the case of the Jews, when they had been 
 commanded to give tithes of all they possessed 
 and did not do it they were accounted robbers 
 of God's property (Mai. 3:8). Jesus, when 
 he saw that the poor widow in giving her mites 
 was giving all that she had, praised her because 
 out of her poverty she had given to God (Luke 
 21:1-4). Paul said of the Macedonians that 
 out of their poverty they had sent to him, and 
 that he rejoiced over the happy state of faith in 
 which they were found, and commended them 
 to God, who would supply all their need. 
 
 Thus it is plain that the giving of money in 
 time of poverty is pleasing to God, as well as 
 the means of bringing spiritual blessing to the 
 donors themselves. God expects us to give 
 only according to our ability and not of neces- 
 sity either, but cheerfully ; but this may be said 
 
Home Mission Work. 145 
 
 not only in reference to the giving of money 
 but in reference to everything connected with 
 Christian duty. 
 
 If the church does not voluntarily entertain 
 a regard for the plan of self-support, it is not 
 to be supposed that it will carry it out well. 
 The true believer will follow after righteous- 
 ness as one that hungers and thirsts, and then 
 he will deny himself and progress more and 
 more in faith and zeal. He that stumbles in 
 this matter stumbles because his heart is not 
 right before God. 
 
 Again, there are those who say it is not good 
 to insist on self-support just now, when the 
 Church is still poor; wait until she becomes 
 rich, say they, and then refuse all foreign help. 
 It seems to me that when the Church advances 
 and becomes far more wealthy than she is now, 
 then her duties will have proportionately in- 
 creased; This being so, the ease or difficulty of 
 establishing a principle of self-support is im- 
 mensely affected by the time at which it is 
 attempted, whether now or later on. If it is 
 difficult now, I fear that later on, when the 
 churches shall have settled down into the condi- 
 tion of dependence, the difficulty will be still 
 greater. At the present time, though the finan- 
 cial resources of the Church are very limited, 
 
146 A Modem Paul. 
 
 the duties of the Church and the demands made 
 on these resources are correspondingly limited. 
 When I speak of the duties of the Church being 
 limited, I refer to the fact that at present the 
 number of believers is small, and that therefore 
 even if there was a large sum of money at the 
 disposal of the Church, there is not the means 
 of using it just now that there will be when 
 the number of believers is largely increased. 
 At the present time, how many men are there 
 who may be looked on as real evangelists? To 
 my mind just now the want of men should 
 cause us more anxiety than the want of money. 
 I was impressed with a remark made to this 
 effect two or three years ago when some one 
 said : " At the present time it is not the want of 
 men that troubles us, but the poverty of the 
 Church; if the Church possessed the means 
 wherewith to pay good salaries, numbers would 
 be ready to give up their present occupations 
 and become evangelists." There may be times, 
 for all I know, when such a principle as this is 
 acted on, but I believe that in the case of those 
 who believe in undertaking Christian work be- 
 cause they are called of God to do it, those are 
 very few with whom money is such a supreme 
 object as to lead them to doubt the promise that 
 all necessary things shall be given them by God, 
 
Home Mission Work. 147 
 
 and who wait to see whether they will receive 
 good wages before they engage in Christian 
 work. In the case of those evangelists about 
 whose genuineness there is no doubt, who have 
 been called by God and the Church to undertake 
 the work, they will never allow their service to 
 God to depend on the presence or absence of 
 money; they will devote themselves and all 
 they possess to the work of spreading the gos- 
 pel. God has promised that necessary things 
 shall be supplied; therefore the true minister 
 should wait for some church to provide the 
 money necessary for his support, and to employ 
 him. This is giving up all and following 
 Christ. This is following in the path of Peter, 
 John, and the other apostles who became minis- 
 ters of God. 
 
 It is not simply an increase of men, without 
 regard to their qualification, that we need. If 
 we employ a number of men that are not real 
 evangelists, we shall find that they are not able 
 to do the work of Him who alone can save the 
 soul. Doubtless there will be a great saving of 
 time by having an increase in the number of 
 workers, and there will be other beneficial 
 results as well; yet it behooves us to take care 
 how we build the Church of God. If we build 
 with wood, hay, and stubble, such workman- 
 
148 A Modem Paul 
 
 ship will be destroyed by fire at the last day, 
 and we shall suffer loss; our works shall be 
 tried in God's fire. Therefore that our work 
 should be real and that we should make use of 
 gold, silver, costly stones, material that will 
 stand the trial of that day, is most important 
 (ICor. 3:12-15). 
 
 It is said by some that in our church in the 
 matter of self-support we overdo the thing 
 altogether; that we insist on the church being 
 wholly self-supporting, and that in attempting 
 to become so the believers have each to give too 
 much money; that it is a source of great dis- 
 tress to them, and that they get no peace. But 
 this is all a mistake. If there is any one in our 
 church who finds the giving of money a source 
 of trouble to him, it is because he has been 
 remiss in doing his duty in this respect. Those 
 who have learned how to give, those who 
 believe our Lord's words and think it '■' more 
 blessed to give than to receive" — these give 
 with pleasure and without stint. 
 
 To give an instance of this : take the money 
 that has been advanced for evangelistic purposes 
 during the past two years. The monthly aver- 
 age has been ten yen, and the yearly average 
 from 110 to 139 yen ; yet on no occasion have I 
 pressed a single person. Each one has pre- 
 
Some Mission Work. 149 
 
 sented to me what amount of money he thought 
 proper, and when the sum has been insufficient I 
 have prayed to God and he has given me more. 
 There has been no requiring that each person 
 shall pay so much, no forcing of any kind; 
 nevertheless up to the present time there has 
 been no want of money for the various branches 
 of work. This is sufficient proof that the giv- 
 ing of money is not looked upon as a trial. 
 
 There are those who say that the carrying out 
 of the principle of self-support is the means 
 of bringing trouble on the Church, while God 
 never designed it should suffer. I reply that we 
 know of no trouble that has been brought on us 
 by our own mistakes in this matter ; but we do 
 know that in denying ourselves we are follow- 
 ing in the footsteps of Christ and endeavoring 
 to act up to the spirit of Saint Paul, who buffeted 
 his flesh, hoping thereby to be a partaker of 
 more spiritual blessing. 
 
 There are those who think that unless in the 
 church accounts a balance to the credit of the 
 church is in hand, nothing whatever should be 
 undertaken. My experience leads me to believe 
 that where there is real work going on the 
 means for carrying it on will be forthcoming. 
 I do not mean to say that no difficulties what- 
 ever will occur; but if in trying to carry out 
 
150 A Modem Paul. 
 
 the principle of self-support we are doing the 
 will of God, then the Church will be benefited 
 by it, the believers will gain strength, their hope 
 will be made more fervent, and the way of 
 faith be advanced. As an illustration of what 
 I said just now, that where there is real work 
 the money will be forthcoming, let me relate 
 what occurred last year : — 
 
 Owing to the work of evangelization having 
 made such progress, we thought it advisable to 
 employ a man who should do nothing else but 
 preach to the heathen. Having found a man 
 of faith who seemed very suitable for the work, 
 we were desirous of employing him, but were 
 at a loss to know how to provide his salary. This 
 difficulty was got over by the salary being pro- 
 vided by the believers belonging to the church. 
 Here is a case in which the worker and his 
 work are alike pleasing to God, and in which it 
 was felt that the evangelist was qualified for 
 his work ; therefore the money for his support 
 was gladly advanced. 
 
 Again there are those who wish to do things 
 so precisely that, like merchants, they think that 
 unless money sufficient to meet all the expenses 
 is in hand at the commencement, although they 
 know the will of God, they cannot make any 
 attempt to carry it out. Such as these, without 
 
Home Mission Work. 151 
 
 advancing far enough to ascertain what the 
 principle of self-support really is, meet half 
 way, and prophesy certain failure to the scheme ; 
 and those who do this to show that the course 
 they recommend is in accordance with the will 
 of God are in the habit of referring to Luke 
 14 : 28, in which we are exhorted to count the 
 cost before commencing anything. But this 
 illustration, rather than supporting their argu- 
 ment, supports ours, for Christ here exhorts 
 those who serve him to continue to the end 
 denying themselves, bearing affliction, for this 
 is what they are to expect beforehand ; and they 
 are exhorted to take care that they do not lose 
 heart and stumble. If such arguments as are 
 advanced by those of whom I am now speaking 
 were to be strictly maintained and acted upon, 
 it would soon end in the chief object of Christian 
 work, considered as a work that is to be origi- 
 nated by believers themselves, being lost sight 
 of altogether. 
 
 There are those who say, " Our church has 
 tried to support itself and failed; and having 
 proved it to be impracticable, we consider the 
 discussion of the question utterly useless." It 
 seems to me that it is the commencement of self- 
 support that shows what believers are made of. 
 If at that time Christians are ready to deny 
 
152 A Modem Paul. 
 
 themselves, and each takes Ms share in the 
 responsibility of supporting the church, and if 
 at the same time there is a spirit of unity among 
 them, the plan will work. 
 
 When the opposite is the case, it must neces- 
 sarily fail. The presence of this spirit in the 
 church is intimately connected with the state of 
 faith of those who belong to the church. 
 Whilst listening to the remarks of various Chris- 
 tian brethren, I hear it continually said that as 
 at present the financial resources of the Church 
 are very limited, unless some rich people are 
 brought into it, an attempt is made to accumu- 
 late church property, and means are devised for 
 getting money, nothing can be done. 
 
 To hear these people talk it would seem as 
 though they wished to attain financial independ- 
 ence without touching their own pockets. It 
 is to be feared that such persons as these will 
 lose the spirit of self-denial and the readiness to 
 serve God as real believers ought to do. Christ 
 said that whosoever could not give up everything 
 for his sake was not worthy to be called his dis- 
 ciple. The great want of the church to-day is 
 strong faith. If this faith be present, the money 
 will be forthcoming. 
 
 Take an illustration of this: Here is a man 
 walking by the sea, and he sees a man who has 
 
Home Mission Work. 153 
 
 fallen into the water. Either he will jump into 
 the water to save him or he will throw a rope 
 to him with the hope of saving him by this 
 means. If he has no rope, he will attempt to 
 save him by throwing his girdle l into the water. 
 This girdle may have cost some thirty or forty 
 yen ; but does he grudge the money when his 
 brother's life is in danger? No; rather than 
 regret the loss of a costly girdle a man will re- 
 joice that he has an opportunity of so using it. 
 If this is done with the object of saving a life 
 that must be taken away some day, how much 
 more should believers be ready to go to any ex- 
 pense that may be required if they really believe 
 that they will thus be able to save the life of an 
 immortal soul ! As a matter of fact, does the 
 Church's lack of the money required for the 
 work of saving souls arise from . there being 
 nothing in the possession of believers to give? 
 Is it not rather owing to the weak faith which 
 keeps them from giving? 
 
 There are those who say that if a church, with 
 a view of becoming self-supporting in every- 
 thing, has to subscribe money for a large number 
 of objects, some most important things will have 
 to be neglected, and thus great injury be done 
 to the church. As for instance they say of the 
 
 1 The Japanese girdle is very long. 
 
154 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Eoka Church: " They are called a self-support- 
 ing church, but seeing that they do not possess a 
 church building, in a most essential particular 
 they are deficient: we look upon the possession 
 of a place of worship as most indispensable to 
 the carrying on of the work of the church, for 
 in case of persecution arising and it proving 
 impossible to hire a house, if there were no 
 church, there would be no basis whatever for 
 the carrying on of the work." 
 
 I think that if, like other bodies of Christians, 
 we could erect a good-sized church, with- an in- 
 creased amount of light and purer air when we 
 meet, it would be most helpful to our work as 
 well as pleasant in itself ; but at the same time 
 we do not think this has anything to do with a 
 church's being deemed entirely self-supporting. 
 A self-supporting church is a church that pays 
 its teachers, pastors, and evangelists, and pro- 
 vides funds for the propagation of the gospel. 
 These things are of primary importance. But 
 in reference to the matter of erecting a building 
 to be set apart for worship, if there be a de- 
 sire on the part of the church to put up such 
 a building, the means of erecting it will be 
 forthcoming. And as regards a time of perse- 
 cution coming, in which any house hired for 
 preaching would have to be given up, at such a 
 
Home Mission Work. 155 
 
 time the church would be in as much danger of 
 being set on fire as the house is of being taken 
 away. At such times we must leave our cause 
 in the hand of the Almighty, and there will be 
 no occasion for anxiety. At the time of the 
 apostles it seems that church buildings were not 
 numerous. As we read of " the church which 
 is in his house," it appears that houses were 
 used as churches. Therefore it cannot be said 
 now that because a house is hired and used as a 
 church a church is not self-supporting. 
 
 I have heard it said that when a church like 
 mine carries out the law of self-support to the 
 extent of conducting the various branches of 
 the work without receiving any pecuniary help 
 from foreign missionary societies, such a church 
 is bigoted or that it is desirous of making for 
 itself a name. It is nothing of the kind. Our 
 only desire is that the principle of self-support 
 be strictly observed, for if even on only one 
 occasion or in some small matter help be re- 
 ceived from some one else, the believers' sted- 
 fastness of purpose becomes relaxed and they 
 lose the spirit of zeal; and we fear lest its 
 effects should be felt throughout the whole 
 Church; and as our natures are weak we take 
 precautions against our going astray in this 
 matter. 
 
156 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Seeing that there is a good number of brethren 
 in our church who do not at all like to have the 
 principle of self-support observed, and wishing 
 to follow the will of God in the matter, I have 
 prayed earnestly about it and have carefully 
 examined myself in reference to it; but it is 
 plainly my duty to follow what I consider to be 
 the truth. 
 
 I have set forth, then, before you all the argu- 
 ments that have led me to believe in the prin- 
 ciple of self-support. I hope that you will thor- 
 oughly discuss the subject. I and my church, see- 
 ing that we belong to Christ, whatever can be in 
 accordance with his will, that we will follow. 
 If we can be brought to believe that any 
 other way than that we have walked in is in 
 accordance with his will, we will reform and 
 walk in that way. 
 
 I hope you will all state your convictions on 
 the subject without any reserve whatever. 1 
 
 I I should attribute the merit of stirring up the Bpirit of 
 self-reliance, self-help, and self-support in Japanese society 
 and in Japanese churches in the main to Samuel Smiles, 
 Eev. H. H. Leavitt, and Rev. Paul Sawayama. They were 
 the champions of the principle of self-support there. " Self- 
 help," by Samuel Smiles, has encouraged many young people 
 in Japan. Mr. Leavitt's teaching and work as a mission- 
 ary stirred up the spirit of self-support in the Church, and 
 stamped this principle unconsciously upon many minds. 
 Mr. Sawayama met the great need of the time by erecting 
 this principle into a permanent power in Japan. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 woman's education. 
 
 R. SAWAYAMA was much inter- 
 ested in woman's education in 
 Japan, and he contributed im- 
 portant ideas to the educational world. I 
 wish to give my readers some idea of the 
 educafion of Japanese women in order to 
 show Mr. Sawayama's position. 
 
 The chief element of woman's educa- 
 tion in old Japan was to cultivate what 
 they called jo-tokii — woman's virtues. 
 The first principles of jo-tokii were chas- 
 tity and obedience. Thus the following 
 sentiment has been familiar to Japanese 
 women : " One woman should not know 
 two men in her life." Therefore compar- 
 atively few women, especially in the upper 
 class, ever married after losing their hus- 
 bands. There were also a few instances 
 where women lost their lives in defending 
 
158 A Modem Paul. 
 
 their chastity. As a rule, the morality of 
 Japanese women was superior to that of 
 the men. 1 
 
 The most familiar sentiment in regard to 
 the virtue of obedience was what they called 
 san-jiu — the three obediences. These 
 three obediences were: first, to obey the 
 parents in girlhood; second, to obey the 
 husband in wifehood; third, to obey her 
 oldest son after her husband's death. So 
 the woman's virtues were : to be obedient, 
 meek, modest, humble, patient, temperate ; 
 to give the best to men ; to give the 
 upper seats to men; and to help her 
 husband. 
 
 There existed the evil tendency of 
 looking down upon women. No doubt 
 this custom was the result of the feudal 
 system and the teachings of Confucianism 
 and Buddhism. As a rule, the Oriental 
 idea was that " woman is as low as earth, 
 while man is as high as heaven." 
 
 1 There were many degraded gir]9 in the lowest class, but 
 in these instances men were more responsible tban the giria 
 themselves. 
 
Woman's Education. 159 
 
 The next matter of importance in 
 woman's training was etiquette, of which 
 there were more than three thousand 
 forms. It was regarded as an art of 
 high order, hence the study of it by girls 
 was insisted upon. The essential spirit 
 of etiquette was the condition of mind; 
 namely, tranquillity, peace in the heart, 
 lovingkindness towards others, the spirit 
 of self-sacrifice and self-denial, willing- 
 ness to obey nature, and readiness to 
 govern herself according to circumstances. 
 
 There were many forms and methods 
 for doing things. For instance, there 
 was a style of woman's writing which 
 differed from man's way of expression. 
 
 The third important thing in a girl's 
 education was sewing. The Japanese re- 
 garded the home as woman's sphere ; so 
 they thought sewing and housekeeping 
 necessary things for girls to learn. This 
 was the instruction for women : " Rise up 
 early, sit up late, and do not take a nap 
 in the daytime ; give your attention to 
 
160 A Modern Paul. 
 
 housekeeping, and be not lazy in sewing 
 and weaving." 
 
 In addition to the training already men- 
 tioned, the parents of the samurai taught 
 their daughters the art of fencing peculiar 
 to women. The object was to produce the 
 national spirit in the girls, so that when 
 they became mothers they might inspire 
 their children with an heroic spirit. It was 
 also designed to make woman gracious and 
 peaceful in her difficulties, and even be- 
 fore her enemies, as she trained herself to 
 stand before them in defense. Thus the na- 
 tional spirit was developed to quite an ex- 
 tent among the women of the upper class. 
 
 There were several heroines who be- 
 came famous by fighting in battle. In 
 the history of Japan there were thirteen 
 queens who really administered civil 
 affairs, one of whom went to Korea 
 to fight as a general. I could refer to 
 many instances of heroines and those 
 who had the strong national spirit among 
 daughters of the samurai. 
 
Woman's Education. 161 
 
 But even among another class of 
 women we find the development of this 
 same spirit. For instance, the daughter 
 of a merchant committed suicide at the 
 gate of the government building in 
 Kyoto in 1891, when Japan had some 
 trouble. Her motive was self-sacrifice 
 for her country's sake. As she was 
 trained in the old Japanese way, her 
 judgment was wrong, but her motive 
 noble. She decided to die for her coun- 
 try, prepared for it, made a journey of 
 two hundred miles to the gate, and com- 
 mitted harakiri calmly. 
 
 At the present time, a time of reforma- 
 tion in the country, especially in woman's 
 sphere, the national spirit in young girls is 
 very strong. 
 
 The greatest lack in woman's education 
 was intellectual training. Higher educa- 
 tion was thought to be unnecessary and 
 impossible for women ; so , they only 
 taught girls to read easy books, to write 
 letters, and to know about those matters 
 
162 A Modem Paul. 
 
 that pertained to woman's life and work 
 in the household. Their education also 
 included a knowledge of music and draw- 
 ing, together with some poems. There 
 were, however, exceptional cases. A few 
 women acquired distinction as scholars 
 and authors. When Japan opened her 
 gates to Western civilization, she saw and 
 admired the higher culture of women in 
 other countries. As a result, the govern- 
 ment adopted a school system, patterned 
 after the best of other nations, and urged 
 even girls from six years old to thirteen 
 to attend the public schools. 
 
 Several scholars insisted upon woman's 
 higher education. The missionaries of 
 America were the first to start girls' 
 schools for a higher education ; and we are 
 very much indebted to American lady 
 missionaries for the progress of our 
 women. But at that time there existed 
 some feebleness and deficiencies in the 
 schools, caused by the reliance of the 
 native Christians upon foreign charity, 
 
Woman's Education. 163 
 
 and also by the fact that the schools were 
 managed by missionaries who could not 
 appreciate fully Japanese needs. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama's school for girls was 
 the first self-supporting school, and set an 
 example which was followed by others 
 in due time. There are now quite a 
 number of self-supporting Christian girls' 
 schools. Even the mission schools are 
 changing ; for instance, one girls' school 
 in Tokyo belonged to an American Mis- 
 sionary Society, and it was supported and 
 managed entirely by American ladies. 
 Japanese teachers were only their assist- 
 ants. But when Bishop William Hare 
 came to Japan in 1891 he saw the con- 
 dition of things and judged it better to 
 let the Japanese support and manage their 
 own schools. So he executed a plan to re- 
 organize the school and to transfer the 
 power of management to the hands of 
 the Japanese. 
 
 The oldest and largest girls' school in 
 Osaka city is called the " Plum-blossom 
 
164 A Modern Paul. 
 
 Girls' School." If I explain the origin of 
 the name, the reader may understand the 
 origin of the school. 
 
 In 1878 there were only two small 
 churches in Osaka city. One of them 
 was called the Umemoto Church (meaning 
 Plum-root Church), and the other, Naniwa 
 Church (meaning Wave-blossom Church). 
 The two churches contained about sixty 
 members. They united to start a girls' 
 school on a self-supporting basis. They 
 raised about thirty dollars from the two 
 churches. With this they rented a house 
 and fitted up dormitories and class-rooms. 
 Two of the founders were experienced 
 teachers, and "promised to manage the 
 school and to teach in it almost without 
 salary. They took the word " plum " 
 from the name of one of the churches, 
 and the word " blossom " from the name 
 of the other, and called their school the 
 Plum-blossom school. 
 
 The school was opened on the eleventh 
 of January, 1878. It began with two 
 
Woman's Education. 165 
 
 Japanese and two American teachers, and 
 fifteen pupils. It grew rapidly every 
 month ; but after three months the house 
 which it was occupying was sold into other 
 hands. The school was obliged to move 
 into other quarters, and lost the thirty 
 dollars which it had invested. 
 
 The school labored under three special 
 difficulties : the people hated the Chris- 
 tian principles which were taught ; public 
 opinion was opposed to the higher educa- 
 tion of women ; self-support was a great 
 task. Still it continued for two years, 
 when it became necessary to remove a 
 second time into new quarters. It seemed 
 almost impossible to support the school 
 any longer. But at this crisis all the 
 Christians encouraged the school authori- 
 ties, everybody contributed something, and 
 about five hundred dollars were collected. 
 With this the managers built a new 
 building, which was the property of the 
 school. The school has now two large 
 buildings which can accommodate more 
 
166 A Modern Paul. 
 
 than four hundred students. About six 
 years ago the number of students in- 
 creased to about four hundred. Just now 
 there is a reaction in Japan against higher 
 education for women, in consequence of 
 which the number of pupils has decreased. 1 
 But I am sure that this will be but a tem- 
 porary movement, and that the school will 
 soon recover from it. 
 
 Fifteen years ago there was no high 
 school for girls in Osaka city, which then 
 contained a population of five hundred 
 thousand. In the fourth year of the 
 Plum-blossom School, Mr. Tateno, the , 
 governor of the province, who is now 
 Japanese minister at Washington, paid 
 the school a visit. He watched with 
 especial admiration the experiments of 
 the students in chemistry. He congratu- 
 lated the girls upon their progress, and in 
 
 1 At the most flourishing time of the school, the managers 
 borrowed a large sum of money with which they built the 
 large buildings. It was probably a great mistake, because 
 when the reaction came they could not pay the debt and 
 suffered a great deal. At last they secured temporary help 
 from the American Board through the mission. 
 
Woman's Education. 167 
 
 addressing the school he said that since 
 his whole province (containing a popula- 
 tion of over 1,600,000) had but this one 
 high school for girls, he hoped the school 
 would prosper greatly. But now we have 
 many girls' high schools in Osaka city. 
 
 The Plum-blossom School teaches sci- 
 ences, history, Japanese, Chinese, and 
 English literature, arithmetic, algebra, 
 geometry, music, sewing, domestic science, 
 etc. The school was modeled in some 
 respects after Mt. Holyoke Seminary. It 
 was animated by the same spirit of inde- 
 pendence, economy, perseverance, and 
 service for others. So the pupils cooked, 
 swept, washed, and took care of the school- 
 rooms and the gardens. For many years 
 no servant was employed. Both teachers 
 and pupils worked very hard. The school 
 did not grow without many sacrifices and 
 struggles. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama, of course, was one of 
 the founders, and was for some time the 
 president of the Plum-blossom School. 
 
168 A Modem Paul. 
 
 He says in March, 1880 : " I began to 
 conduct the daily religious exercises of 
 our girls' school as I used to do before. 
 We have over fifty girls and it is very 
 interesting to help them to come to the 
 Redeemer." 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE WORK IN NTEGATA. 
 
 jlHE province of Niigata is the 
 northernmost and largest prov- 
 ince of the main island of 
 Japan. It contains a population of about 
 1,700,000. Migata city is the capital of 
 the province and a treaty port. 
 
 Eight years ago Dr. Palm, an English 
 missionary, who had been working there 
 earnestly for ten years, returned to his 
 native land. The visible results of his 
 work were small ; for the people held fast 
 to their faith in Buddhism. After Dr. 
 Palm returned to England, Mr. O. H. 
 Gulick, Mr. Davis, Dr. Doremus Scudder 
 and his sister, took the field as mission- 
 aries of the American Board. Work 
 was begun upon the self-supporting basis. 
 Mr. Sawayama had preached in this field 
 during the summer of 1884. He gave 
 
170 A Modern Paul. 
 
 new life to the church. Two years later 
 there came a crisis in the life of this 
 Niigata church. The church had invited 
 a preacher from Mr. Sawayama's church. 
 From various circumstances he was hesi- 
 tating, apparently unable to decide to go. 
 Mr. Sawayama was very ill. He could 
 hope to live only a very little while longer. 
 The oft-repeated prophecy of his physi- 
 cians could not remain much longer unful- 
 filled ; but in his cheerful, courageous 
 manner he persuaded his friend to leave 
 him and go to the Niigata church. 
 
 In the early morning, when he was 
 starting from Osaka, Mr. Sawayama, who 
 at that time was not even allowed to see 
 his friends in his own room, appeared at 
 the station ; and the last words which he 
 spoke to his departing friend were not 
 those of a weak or fainting spirit, but 
 came from a heart alive as ever with 
 Christian courage and good cheer. 
 
 When the minister arrived at Niigata 
 in 1886 there were only about twenty 
 
The Work in Niigata. 171 
 
 Christians there ; but the church increased 
 rapidly, and at the end of two years it con- 
 tained about one hundred and fifty mem- 
 bers. Two schools were also founded. 
 
 In this large province there had been 
 no girls' school, except a female depart- 
 ment in the normal school. So a school 
 was founded upon the same basis as that 
 of the Plum-blossom School. The gov- 
 ernor, the chief justice, the mayor, and 
 other leading citizens became trustees of 
 the school and helped it a great deal. In 
 two years this new school had two build- 
 ings worth $2,500, grounds worth $500, 
 and ninety scholars. The funds were 
 raised entirely from native contributions. 
 
 The prejudice of the people of Niigata 
 (especially of the older people) against 
 Christianity and the higher education of 
 women was much the same as that in 
 Osaka. One or two instances may illus- 
 trate the condition of affairs : — 
 
 A company of four girls, none of whom 
 were as yet Christians, lived in Nagaoka, 
 
172 A Modern Paul. 
 
 about thirty miles from Niigata. They 
 became greatly dissatisfied with their lives 
 and were carried away with the desire 
 to receive a higher education. But they 
 could not secure the permission of their 
 parents. They often met and talked 
 together, and in one of their secret confer- 
 ences they agreed that it would be better 
 to die than to live without making any 
 progress. 
 
 One of them applied to an academy in 
 the city for admission, but the reply fell 
 into the hands of her father. Her father 
 scolded her severely ; her mother blamed 
 her, and explained to her that there was 
 no need of higher education for women. 
 The girl made no remonstrance ; but after 
 the reproofs of her parents were finished 
 she went to her room and committed 
 suicide. 
 
 The next one of these four girls had a 
 brother in Tokyo University. When he 
 returned to his home after graduation his 
 sister begged him to take her with him to 
 
The Work in Niigata. 173 
 
 Tokyo to enter a girls' school; but he 
 had no sympathy with her, and answered 
 her that it would be better for her to stay 
 at home and learn to cook and to sew. The 
 poor girl was entirely discouraged; and 
 when her brother left home for Tokyo, she 
 put an end to her life. 
 
 The parents of the third girl discovered 
 the decision into which she had entered 
 with her companions, and allowed her to 
 enter the Normal School at Niigata. 
 
 The fourth girl became a Christian. 
 But she was subjected to severe persecution 
 by her parents, who at last sent her to a 
 remote place where she could have no 
 means of correspondence with any other 
 Christians. Since that time nothing has 
 been heard of her by her fellow Chris- 
 tians. 
 
 We heard of many cases in which girls 
 wished to come to our schools, but their 
 parents would not allow them to attend 
 a school in which Christian principles 
 were taught ; but many girls overcame 
 
174 A Modern Paul. 
 
 such obstacles and became students in 
 them. 
 
 A gentleman wanted very much to 
 send his daughter to our school in Niigata, 
 but his old parents and his wife did not 
 consent. He did not give up his hope, 
 however. He attempted to overcome 
 their prejudice. He began to read The 
 Woman's Magazine and some books to 
 his whole family every evening after sup- 
 per. Thus be continued for six months 
 to enlighten their darkened hearts. After 
 six months of such work he was able to 
 persuade his old parents and his wife to 
 allow him to send his daughter to our 
 school. I heard this story from his lips 
 when he brought his daughter to Niigata. 
 
 It took another girl about two years to 
 get her father's permission to enter our 
 school. Having no hope of success, she 
 formed another plan for improving herself. 
 She organized a woman's club with her 
 two older married sisters and some other 
 girls in that town for mutual improve- 
 
The Work in Niigata. 175 
 
 ment. Her father then became so im- 
 pressed with her strong aspiration for 
 education that at length he permitted her 
 to come to our school. 
 
 I will say only a word about the boys' 
 school. The master of a private school 
 was converted, and at once offered to turn 
 his school into one in which Christian 
 principles should be taught. A Christian 
 gentleman contributed $2,000 and another 
 gave $200. This was the beginning of 
 the boys' school. 
 
 The self-sacrificing spirit of Dr. Henry 
 Scudder and wife, and Miss Kendall, who 
 came to Niigata to help the schools, 
 they serving without salary, and in addi- 
 tion paying their own expenses, stimulated 
 many Japanese to work for others without 
 compensation, and also to contribute to 
 these schools. 
 
 Mr. Sawayama's physical strength was 
 almost exhausted. He lay in the hospital 
 waiting for the last day. I called upon 
 
176 A Modern Paul. 
 
 him, and in the course of conversation 
 ventured to ask him if he did not feel 
 lonesome. He answered very quickly but 
 very quietly that he never did. 
 
 When he could no longer stand in his 
 pulpit he began the compilation of a book 
 of Christian biography. His saying that 
 the day before his death he should do the 
 same work as at any other time was no 
 mere boast. Nor was there any element 
 of bravado in the spirit with which he 
 met death. He worked because just so 
 long as he should remain in this world his 
 life consisted in his work. When death 
 came it found him not idly waiting. He 
 had not finished his last task. His un- 
 completed manuscripts were gathered by 
 his friends and published. 
 
 As death approached, Mr. Sawayama's 
 mind was as clear as ever. He prepared 
 to distribute the few possessions which he 
 had among his friends. He wrote down 
 the names, with the specification of the 
 gift which he desired to give to each. His 
 
The Work in Niigata. Ill 
 
 inkstand he had planned to give to a 
 friend who lived at a considerable distance. 
 He found that the cover had been lost. 
 He ordered one to be made of silver. At 
 the last he called his little eight-year-old 
 daughter to his side. He gave her a gold 
 ring and spoke some words of encourage- 
 ment to her. There was no longer occa- 
 sion in his own life for that Christian 
 courage which had distinguished it from 
 the first ; but as he left the world he 
 would communicate it to his child as his 
 best gift. He spoke to her about her 
 studies and her Christian life, and told her 
 to be patient till her uncle should return 
 from America to take care of her. He 
 died very peacefully and hopefully, March 
 27, 1887. 
 
 I have told his story with no attempt to 
 eulogize him, simply and plainly as it lies 
 in my own recollection. He was to me 
 and he is to my people a hero. So 
 bravely did he live and so bravely did he 
 die, that he might say with confidence 
 
178 A Modern Paul. 
 
 those great words of his great namesake : 
 " I have fought a good fight, I have fin- 
 ished my course, I have kept the faith ; 
 henceforth there is laid up for me a crown 
 of righteousness." 
 
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