GLEANINGS FROM JAPAN REPORTS 1913-1914 Missionary Force in Japan Tokyo; the capital of Japan, on the island of Hondo, at head of Bay of Yedo; Station occupied 1869. Missionaries — Rev. David Thompson, D.D., and Mrs. Thomp- son, Rev. William Imbrie, D.D., and Mrs^ Imbrie, Mrs. J. M. McCauley, Rev. H. M. Landis and Airs. Landis, Air. J. C. Ballagh and Airs. Ballagh, Rev. A. K. Reischauer and Airs. Reischauer, Aliss Annie B. West, Aliss Elizabeth T. Alilliken, Miss Lida S. Halsey, Aliss Alatilda H. London, Aliss 1. AI. Ward and Aliss Mary D'. McDonald. Hokk.vido: Sapporo — Sapporo is the capital of the Hokkaido (Yezzo), SSO miles north of Tokyo; Station occupied 1887. Alissionaries — AIis^ S. C. Smith, Miss Alice M. Alonk, Rev. Weston T. Johnson and Airs. Johnson, and Aliss Carrie H. McCrory. Otaru; 18 miles northwest of Sapporo — Aliss C. H. Rose. Asahigawa: about 100 miles northeast of Sapporo — Rev. George P. Pierson and Mrs. Pierson. Kanazawa : on the west coast of the main island, about 300 miles by rail north- west of Tokyo; Station occupied 1879. Missionaries — Rev. J. G. Dunlop and Airs. Dunlop, Aliss K. Anna Gibbons, Aliss Janet M. Johnstone and Miss L. B. Mon- day, Aliss Ida R. Luther and Miss Elizabeth M. Evans. Osaka: a seaport on the main island, about 350 miles west of Tokyo; Station occupied 1881. Alissionaries — Rev. A. D. Hail, D.D., and Airs. Hail, Rev. G. W. Van Horn and Airs. Van Horn, Rev. G. W. Fulton, D.D., and Mrs. Fulton, Miss Agnes E. Alorgan, Aliss Alary H. Ransom, Aliss Sallie Alexander, Miss Evelyn Alaguet, Aliss Ethel N. Todd. HiROSHiiiA : on the main island, on northern coast of the Inland Sea, about 550 miles southwest of Tokyo; Station occupied 1887. Missionaries — Rev. W. F. Here- ford and Airs. Hereford and Aliss B. L. Harris., Kure : (sub-station). Missionaries — Rev. and Airs. Harvey Brokaw. Onomichi: (sub-station). Missionary — Miss A. G. Garvin. 2 {Continued on page 3 of cover) EVANGELISTIC NOTES STATISTICS : — Organized Churches 95 Self-supporting Churclies 33 Membership 10,703 Adherents 4,426 Catechumens 851 Sabbath-schools 174 Sabbath-school Membership 8,150 Students for the Ministry 72 Note. — The Missions of the Board in Japan carry on all their work in coopera- tion with the Church of Christ in Japan and in the interest of that Church. Instead of any separate Mission statistics accordingly, one-half of the statistics of this Church are presented. TOKYO Outside of her school work during the year Mrs. McCauley* has distributed 100 Bibles and portions of Scriptures, 9,000 tracts and Scripture cards, and has visited 179 homes and gone 29 times to the hospitals and poorhouse. She has had a weekly normal class for Sunday-school workers, a weekly Christian Endeavor meeting and two visits weekly for hymn singing. During the year she has held two Christian Endeavor and Sunday-school rallies and two school picnics at her home. She and her helpers have made and placed in hospitals six large scrap books with Bible texts on each page, have pasted Scripture texts on the back of 3,000 cards. Her Biljle woman goes twice a month to the government lepers’ hospital where she conducts a Sunday-school for the children of the officers and helpers in that institution. About 25 children are in the Sunday-school. Mrs. McCauley goes there occasionally and reviews the lessons and teaches the children new hymns. Kakimono pictures made from S. S. roll pictures have been placed in twelve of the lepers’ cottages and permission has been received to place one in each of the other rooms. Three years ago. Miss Milliken of Tokyo, organized in the Joshi Gakuin a little club called the Scisen Kzvai. This meets once a month. There are usually two talks and some music. Afterwards light refreshments are served and the members linger for a social half hour. The subjects discussed are educational, social or religious. The attendance varies from thirty to forty. * Mrs. McCauley has been a missionary in Japan 37 years. 3 Two years ago a step farther was taken and from among the members of the Seisen Kwai were selected a few who wished to make a definite and serious study of Christianity. The new society was called the Tanshin Kwai (Search for Truth Class). In the autumn and again in the spring there has been a series of ten meetings, held once a week. A course of sermons covering the funda- mentals of Christianity is made out. Mr. Uemure, Mr. Tajima, Dr. Ibuka, Mr. Fukuda, Mr. Kawazoe and Mr. Yokota have taken the kindest interest in these meetings and have delivered sermons so excellent that one could have wished for larger audiences to hear them. But part of the charm of the circle is in having it small and informal. In December, 1911, six of the members of the circle were baptized, and in 1912 there were an equal number of baptisms. HOKKAIDO One very gratifying experience of the year was the baptizing of a whole family of six and a sister-in-law of the family at Seien. The head of the family had long been a student of Buddhism but had recently turned toward Ninomiya Sontoku for spiritual help. His wife became ill and he called in the village doc- tor whom I had baptized about six months before. The doctor began to talk about the virtue of Christianity and soon had the man in a receptive frame of mind. When I arrived the wife was still confined to her bed but was anxious to receive baptism. I assembled the family by her bedside and after examining them, baptized the seven, including the sister-in-law. The wife has since re- covered and the last time that I was there they were still serving the Lord. — W. T. Johnson. KANAZAWA The people of Japan are certainly becoming more get-at-able, even on the West Coast. As an illustration, just before coming to Annual Meeting I re- ceived a request from the postmaster at Toyama to give an address in the main city post office. And also, within the last week, I have been asked by the Railway Mission to have one of our Presbyterian workers (Japanese) assigned to railway work among the employees at the 50 or more stations in the 232-mile section between Maibara and Naoetsu. For a number of years we have known Mr, Tsuda, the Japanese head of the Railway Mission work throughout Japan, and have helped him in his work as he has helped us in ours whenever he has come into our section of the country. And now, when the governmental authori- ties of the railway bureau are desirous of an extension of the kind of work which Mr. Tsuda and others have been doing, our Mission is asked to take charge of this big section of the work. It is one of the best opportunities that have ever come to us on the West Coast and we -have already arranged to have Mr. Nakamura, the evangelist at Toyama, give about 10 days each month to visiting all the stations along this 232 miles of railway. As the work is under government patronage, he will be welcomed and assisted by the station masters, and as soon as the authorities are assured that he is the right man for the 4 work, he is to be given a free pass so tliat the traveling can be done without any cost for transportation at least. — /. G. Dunlop. Through this kindergarten (Takaoka) we have been able to come into touch with one of our girls who was baptized six years ago, after having been in our school only one year. She was taken out of our school because she became a Christian, and has had to suffer persecution in various ways, and has never been allowed to have anything to do with Christians or even to have a Bible or hymn book. But she has bravely held on to her faith. When she heard the kindergarten had been opened, she came to see the teachers who were graduates from our school. Secretly she comes to the services at the preaching place, and recently was able to be present at a communion service. She was only fourteen years old when she was baptized and yet she has been true to her faith all these years. Surely this is an encouragement to us. Truly no one is able to pluck them out of the Father’s hand. This girl-wife has still a difficult path l)e- fore her. Her people married her into a strict Buddhist family where her husband is one of a large family, and she has to live with them all. It may be that this whole family will yet come to know our Lord through the consistent life of the one who has entered it . — Janet M. Johnstone. OSAKA A genuine Christ-like work is carried on by Mr. Fukuda, a graduate of the Doshikwan, in the Sotojime leper hospital. This is a government institution whose unfortunate inmates are drawn from the ten supporting provinces. Here we have “the three religions” all at work. There is a chapel fitted up by the government, large enough to hold about 200. It has a Shinto outfit in two corners, one of which is a tenrikyo arrangement, the other the genuine article. The Buddhists have a kwanon picture, and an arrangement for their worship- pers. The Shintoists come when anybody dies, and the Buddhists once or twice a month. With the introduction of an organ and a pulpit stand the outfit of the three was completed. Since the beginning of the work, a Sunday-school has been organized, and its members and all the inmates had their Christmas and New Year brightened by gifts from the Wilmina Girls’ School pupils and others. A Young Men’s Christian Association has been organized and also a church called the “Family Church.” The leading Christian teaches a day-school for the boys and girls and another is the organist, having been instructed by the evangelist. The latter is also qualifying himself to do Christian work among his fellow-sufferers. HIROSHIMA For the last six months the five Protestant denominations working in Hiro- shima have been conducting a Union Evangelistic Hall on the corner of the best crossing in the city. We have a good building that can be thrown open on S two sides, so that we can preach to people on the streets as well as to those in tlie house. Of the 160,000 people in the city, there cannot be many of the adults who do not know of this work. We find also that a class of people listen to the Gospel from the outside of the building who never go to church at all. Just to listen from the outside does not subject them to persecution. Teach- ers, commercial men and even Buddhist priests listen from the outside. We have given out many thousands of tracts and portions of the Scriptures. We have always had a respectful hearing. Only once or twice in six months have we been disturljed by drinking people or rioters. The fact that the police station is only a few doors away may account for this fact. Last November there was a meeting here of the evangelistic workers, native and missionary, of the five prefectures bordering on the Inland Sea. There were about 100 workers present, and we had such noted men from a distance as Dr. Ibuka and Bishop Hiraiwa. Each denomination brought one speaker from a distance. Dr. Ibuka and Bishop Hiraiwa came here immediately after the con- ference with the Minister of Education. Dr. Ibuka told us that the newspapers had said that the introductory remarks and welcome to the three gatherings, Buddhists, Shinto, and Christians were the same, but that it was not true, for the Minister of Education liad reproved the other religionists, telling tlieni that there was division and immorality in the ranks of their priests. Positively no such thing was said to the Christian ministers. During these meetings we secured the City Hall and held evangelistic meetings in the evening. We had two hundred lanterns with the cross painted on them. The workers and some of the local Christians gathered about one hour before the evening meetings and we put our candles in the lanterns and marched through the town singing Christian songs, and stopping on the street corners to announce the meetings. We think tliis did the evangelists present as much good as it did the city. They will not he asliamed of such methods in the future. I hope the people in America do not tliink this is a Christian nation. If they do they arc deceived. A Japanese teacher in Tokyo has said that nine out of every ten young men who go there to school fall. That shows that education is not sufficient, and they are Ijeginning to find it out. That is why the Minister of Education has for the first time called on the religionists to help them in training the youth. — IF. F. Hereford. 6 Christmas is getting to be a great day in Japan. People all over the country know about it. Before Christmas the Sunday-schools grow as much in Japan as they used to grow in America, and doubtless still grow. We were very favorably impressed with the exercises at the Dote Cho Sunday- school. A number of the children told Bible stories in their own language. One boy told the story of Herod, of the little boys who died instead of Jesus, and of what a welcome the Father must have given them. As to that I had always thought of the wickedness of Herod, and had never thought of those children as deserving of any more credit for their death than any other child, and while not exactly accepting his view, still it gave me something to think of. 7 EDUCATIONAL NOTES STATISTICS ; — Kindergartens 12 Primary schools 3 High schools 7 Colleges 2 Pupils under instruction 2,134 YAMAGUCHI This year our girls’ school did not join in the ceremony of venerating the soldiers. The students of the higher commercial school did not go either and several private girls’ schools did not go, but out school was singled out and criticised for not going, saying it was lack of patriotism due to the Christian religion. At a recent conference of the Minister of Education with the Christian lead- ers this matter of taking the school children to the shrines was brought to his attention and we hope and pray that some favorable action will be taken. Among normal school teachers and students there are many who are studying the Word of God. A little Christian girl who attends the primary school connected with the normal said recently: “My teacher reads from the Bible every morning and explains it to us. He does not say that it is the Bible.” But the child recognized the sacred words . — Gertrude S. Bigelow. Most of the temples and shrines in this vicinity have greatly improved their surroundings within the past year. New walls or handsome stone railings have been put up, the gardens cleaned and made very attractive and new images have been set up. The grounds of some of the country shrines have become veritable little parks. One tera in Yamaguchi was repaired, fitted with electric lights and in the early spring had a revival. Priests from abroad said masses and preached to large congregations afternoon and evening for eight days, at the end of which time many people shaved their heads and took vows. Does this mean that the old religions have really grown vigorous here, or is it simply another patch of new cloth on the old garment ? — Gertrude S. Bigelow. Thoughtful Japanese are much concerned about the morals of the rising generation and it certainly is high time that they take an inventory of their moral assets. But instead of beginning the w'ork of regeneration by purifying the home, they advocate greater care in the oversight of the dormitories of the normal schools. This is a perfectly logical deduction, for the primary school teachers come from the normal schools and the primary school teachers are persons of great influence 8 in the land. They seem to have more authority than the parents. The attendance at our Sunday-school and children’s meetings varies according to the attitude of the local school teachers. The normal schools proper, of which there is one in every prefecture, have only male students, but hundreds of them who receive board, tuition and uniform while in school and all lodge in the school dormitories, and after graduating are under obligation to teach ten years in the public schools. A few girls take a short course, but it is not thought worth while to give them the full course as they marry early. They may become teachers in the lower primary schools. There are two female normal schools of high grade. Religion is avowedly free in Japan and ethics only are taught in the schools, but in a certain normal school on the anniversary of the death of Confucius all the pupils burned incense before his statue. On the local fete days the teachers march the children to the official shrine to worship or venerate. Life is often very hard for the Christian children. They attend school six days in the week and on Sunday there is often a special examination, or field day, or alumni meeting or exhibition, and if they do not participate they gain an unpleasant notoriety besides missing some of the most interesting events of the year. What might be passed over in others will not be excused in them. WAKAYAMA Wakayama is so intimately associated with the Hail family that the thought of one quickens the thought of the other. Dr. J. D. Hail is widely known and dearly beloved by the people. The mere announcement that Dr. Hail was coming filled the kogisho at Takata to overflowing. The whole district under Dr. Hail’s charge is rich in possibilities for rural dendo and a great deal can be done within easy travel from Wakayama itself. Some of the rural work is so close to the city that one can walk from Wakayama and work these towns, returning by night to Wakayama. This work is sufficient to keep Dr. Hail busy, while a younger missionary ought to be associated with him to climb the mountains and skirt the coast in visiting the out-stations. Dr. Hail has the prize Sunday-school. Nowhere in creation could you find t a noisier and dirtier crowd than he has gathered together at Dejima. Bedlam is silence compared to the din that was made when Dr. Hail arrived on the scene. Yet he handled that crowd so skillfully that he obtained intelligent answers to every question put to the class . — Outlook Committee. A most marvelous work has been done in the government leper hospital on an island near Osaka. Nowhere did I see anything which shows more vividly the wonderful power of the Gospel to transform and make beautiful than there among those unfortunate outcasts. To see the light which shone from those marred faces was a most compelling witness to the redeeming power of God’s love. In this great work a loving woman’s heart plans for the pleasure of the patients and her hands and those of others make gifts to bring sunshine into their 9 lives. A young woman goes among them and sings the story of love and teaches the children that “God is Outlook Committee. HIROSHIMA As to these hostels for young men, something should be said. For years we have felt that the only way to reach the 25,000 to 26,000 workmen was by hostels. Other methods have failed. Boarding houses in Kure pander to the lowest. They are unclean, physically and morally. We have wanted to give an object lesson, at least, of what decent homes for young men should be. The need was mentioned in the Kure Bulletin and two gentlemen of Philadelphia have responded, offering to give the sums required above their regular contri- butions to foreign missions. Already one home is in full swing. In the Fall, a second hostel will be started. A fine committee advises Mrs. Brokaw, for it is totally her work. One of the committee is the governor of the naval peniten- tiary, one of the principals of the school mentioned above, and the third is a technical engineer interested in young men. A Christian wife is mistress of the home, and her husband, also much interested in young men, assists, although not yet a Christian. The young men are simply delighted with the cleanliness, the good food, the amusements, the papers, books and magazines and the home atmosphere. Already some come to church. We call this home Sekifukisha, and our home as the shiten (branch house). These homes are to become self-sup- porting and independent. If they do not, they can be dropped at any time, thus in no way involving the mission or the Board . — Harvey Brokaw. 10 Kyoto: 300 miles west of Tokyo on Lake Biwako; Station occupied 1890. Mission- aries — Rev. R. P. Gorbold and Mrs. Gorbold, and Miss F. E. Porter. Yamaguchi : about 650 miles southwest of Tokyo; occupied 1891. Missionaries — Rev. J. B. Ayres and Mrs. Ayres, Miss Gertrude Bigelow, Miss Lillian A. Wells, Miss Florence Bigelow, Rev. Carroll Whitener. Dairen, Manchuria (formerly Dalny) : Missionary — Rev. T. C. Winn, D.D., and Port Arthur, Manchuria : occupied 1907. Missionaries — Rev. A. V. Bryan and Mrs. Bryan. Chosen: Work among Japanese; begun in 1907. Missionaries — Rev. F. S. Curtis and Mrs. Curtis. Yamada: on island of Hondo near Gulf of Ise, 200 miles southwest of Tokyo. Missionary — Miss Jessie Riker. Fukui: Missionaries — The Rev. J. E. Detweiler and Mrs. Detweiler. Wakayama : on the east coast of Inland Sea, 270 miles southwest of Tokyo. Missionaries — Rev. J. B. Hail, D.D., and Mrs. Hail and Miss J. L. Leavitt. Tanabe: out-post of Wakayama, on the southern coast of the province, 70 miles from Wakayama. Tsu: on the west coast of Gulf of Ise, about 250 miles southwest of Tokyo. Mis- sionaries — Mrs. John E. Hail, Rev. D. A. Murray and Mrs. Murray. Matsuyama : on the west coast of the island of Shikoku, 50 miles southeast of Hiroshima. Missionaries — Rev. J. C. Worley and Mrs. Worley, and Miss M. B. Sherman. 11 The Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the U. S. A. 156 Fifth Avenue, New York March 1, 1914 Form No. 2118