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 BY 
 
 REV. WARD PLATT, D.D. 
 
 OPEN DOOR COMMISSION 
 MISSIONARY SOCIETY 
 METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH 
 150 Fifth Avenue, New York 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 OF A PRESIDING ELDER’S 
 DISTRICT 
 
 HE Missionary Campaigns to be 
 described are those of Buffalo Dis¬ 
 trict, Genesee Conference, for the 
 years 1903 and 1904. The 
 District is a difficult field in which 
 to secure a liberal support for missions. It 
 confronts in Buffalo a dense foreign popula¬ 
 tion. Methodism there is not financially 
 strong; most of the churches are weak and 
 burdened. There are no large givers. The 
 majority of out-of-town churches are in a ter¬ 
 ritory generally unproductive for Methodism, 
 and are marked with a spirit of conservatism 
 and apathy toward world evangelism. In out¬ 
 lining the work done we do not distinguish 
 between the methods of the two years, but 
 treat both as one. 
 
 The District mentioned is not presented as 
 the one leading the Conference in missionary 
 support, for it is outdistanced in proportionate 
 giving by Rochester District. We report 
 progress only, and if any value attaches to this 
 presentation it may be to indicate some possi¬ 
 bilities in the culture of stubborn soil. 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 
 The campaign divides naturally into three 
 parts: conventions, a pulpit exchange, litera¬ 
 ture. The culmination was Easter Sunday, 1 
 when the offerings were received. The mis¬ 
 sionary revival was carried on during the 
 month preceding, with the exception of the 
 last week, which was reserved, where churches 
 so elected, for services appropriate to Holy 
 Week. 
 
 The Convention work naturally divided 
 into two sections, city and out-of-town, with 
 methods suitable to the radically different con¬ 
 ditions. Most of the time was spent in the 
 out-of-town campaign. The keynote was 
 God’s trumpet call to the church of this gener¬ 
 ation to arise and take the world for Christ. 
 The plan, with minor exceptions, was to reach 
 every church on the District. There were, 
 save a few Epworth League gatherings, no 
 group meetings. The Convention went to the 
 people, even to the out appointments of cir¬ 
 cuits. As many as 29 conventions were held 
 out of town and 23 meetings in the city, that 
 is, 52 conventions and gatherings in 22 days, 
 with a total of more than 200 addresses. 
 Every pastor of the District and a number of 
 laymen were employed as speakers, together 
 with a contribution of able speakers by the 
 Missionary Society. Dr. F. D. Gamewell 
 gave a number of thrilling addresses. Mis- 
 
 1 This day may not be best for a Spring Conference, when the 
 Sunday nearest Thanksgiving or another date might be preferable. 
 One date, however, for the whole District seems essential. 
 
PREPARATION 
 
 sionary collections were not taken at the con¬ 
 ventions or meetings. 
 
 Preparation .—To insure the carrying out 
 of so large a programme preparations began 
 weeks in advance. Separate conferences of 
 city and out-of-town pastors were held in 
 which details were discussed at length and 
 approved; later the presiding elder by steno¬ 
 graphic help placed before each pastor by cor¬ 
 respondence the complete plan, and kept in 
 touch with all points of the District, that no 
 failure might occur at any meeting. Each 
 speaker was even notified of the hour he must 
 take his train to not fail of connection. 
 
 The advertising was generous, about 30,- 
 000 pieces being provided. One year it was 
 in the form of a general circular applicable to 
 all the District, giving the dates and speakers 
 for all the meetings. This was to impress the 
 smallest church with the largeness of the move¬ 
 ment of which it was a part. This was all 
 looked after from the central office of the pre¬ 
 siding elder. Nothing was left to a pastor but 
 to carry out details as directed. 
 
 The sum paid by each charge toward the 
 campaign fund covered all their local expenses, 
 including advertising. The result of a central 
 management was that all went smoothly and 
 effectively. 
 
 The pulpit exchange, coming not later than 
 the Sunday preceding Palm Sunday, was 
 found most satisfactory when arranged in 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 
 pairs. This, in case of sickness, insured but 
 the breaking of a single link in the plan. 
 
 Each pastor was expected to prepare his 
 greatest missionary address. He was not to 
 divide his energies on more than one. The 
 committee expected him to deliver this, in most 
 instances, four times: twice at conventions, 
 once in the pulpit exchange, and, as a climax, 
 to his own people on Palm Sunday. 
 
 Three pastors of the District made prepara¬ 
 tions on Freedmen’s Aid and Southern Educa¬ 
 tion work and two others on Church Exten¬ 
 sion and gave several telling addresses. The 
 out-of-town conventions with few exceptions 
 continued through an afternoon and evening. 
 The presiding elder was at all these gatherings 
 save one. The corps of speakers visiting a 
 church in the afternoon were on the pro¬ 
 gramme for another church in the evening, as 
 two conventions were held daily at places 
 contiguous. 
 
 A fine educational exhibit was prepared 
 in duplicate by the Missionary Society in New 
 York, illustrating, by leaflets, booklets, and 
 charts, the League and Sunday school forward 
 movements, latest missionary literature, and the 
 “Station Plan.’’ This covered about fifty 
 running feet and was placed across the front 
 of the church. Charts and maps adorned the 
 walls. A competent man, a pastor, devoted 
 himself continuously to the work of placing 
 and explaining each exhibit. Local talent, 
 save to assist in this, was impracticable. 
 
PREPARATION 
 
 A young lady thoroughly conversant with 
 League work traveled over the District, and, 
 in connection with the conventions, met by 
 appointment the several cabinets, inquired into 
 their work, corrected errors, and gave valuable 
 instruction concerning the possibilities of the 
 several departments and forward movements. 
 The new Sunday school missionary pro¬ 
 grammes were explained in an illustrative ad- 
 ’ dress by Miss Hixson, of the Missionary So¬ 
 ciety. In short, the campaign was educational. 
 It agitated incidentally for one dollar for mis¬ 
 sions per member and probationer, but chiefly 
 to awaken every department of the church into 
 intelligent, effective missionary activity. Con¬ 
 siderable free literature was distributed. Five 
 or six addresses were delivered at each con¬ 
 vention. The attendance was good, in many 
 instances large. As a rule, the people who 
 mold the sentiment of the local church were 
 present. The children were much in evidence 
 and quietly attentive. 
 
 In one campaign separate and convenient 
 hours of the programme were devoted to the 
 Sunday school children, also to the young peo¬ 
 ple. Programmes for the larger, busier towns 
 were so modified as to command attention and 
 impress the church. 
 
 The city campaign was covered in three 
 nights—ten simultaneous meetings on the first 
 night, twelve on the second, and a great mass 
 meeting on the third. These were a marked 
 success. A brilliant array of out-of-town 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 
 speakers, former pastors, and home talent gave 
 to each church two or three addresses. The 
 smaller churches were manned by able men. 
 These twenty-two meetings in two nights were 
 held without a hitch in a single programme; 
 most of the speakers spoke in two churches 
 each night. The presiding elder sat at his 
 ’phone to guard emergencies. 
 
 The mass meeting packed the great audi¬ 
 torium of Delaware Avenue Church with the 
 bone and sinew of our city Methodism. For 
 size and quality it was one of the most repre¬ 
 sentative Methodist audiences ever gathered in 
 Buffalo. These meetings left a profound im¬ 
 pression and reached thousands of people. 
 
 The expenses of the campaign were travel¬ 
 ing expenses, correspondence, postage, adver¬ 
 tising, and the exhibit. Each pastor, however, 
 contributed his traveling expenses to one day’s 
 convention trip, also to the pulpit exchange. 
 The presiding elder’s traveling expenses were 
 paid by himself, as he was able to hold a series 
 of Quarterly Conferences. The expenditures 
 were covered by an apportionment to the 
 several churches ranging from five to ten dollars 
 in the out-of-town churches and from two to 
 three times those amounts in some of the city 
 churches. This covered all expenses except 
 the Easter collection envelope. 
 
 Each pastor was privileged to take offerings 
 at his convention or meetings to apply on ex¬ 
 penses or to raise the amount as he might think 
 
LITERATURE 
 
 best. One method was the use of season 
 tickets of admission at ten cents each, good 
 for all the services on the District. A round 
 perforated children’s ticket in bright red ad¬ 
 mitted all children fifteen years of age and 
 under free. These were in great demand, 
 and, being worn at school, days in advance of 
 the conventions, were effective advertising. 
 
 Literature .—Correspondence was had with 
 more than forty missionary boards to secure 
 their best leaflets on systematic giving and the 
 spirit of missions. These were carefully culled 
 and a choice assortment sent each pastor to aid 
 in his missionary preparation; also another 
 choice set to each Sunday school to enrich the 
 monthly programme and as samples from 
 which purchases might be made for the chil¬ 
 dren. Personal letters accompanied these 
 packages. Envelopes containing the latest 
 Epworth League literature went by mail to 
 League officers. About six thousand sets of 
 the series of five leaflets issued by the Mis¬ 
 sionary Society were used, one each Sabbath. 
 
 In addition to this an Easter envelope is 
 annually provided as an aid to the collection. 
 It contains an Easter pastoral greeting signed, 
 "Your Pastor," also two leaflets, the one this 
 year a forceful setting forth of the claims of 
 Christian stewardship by a prominent clergy¬ 
 man, the other a story intended to bring home 
 the same truth. In addition to these is a blank 
 pledge ruled for each member of the family, a 
 sample of which is here given: 
 
Treasures in heaven , where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt'. 
 
 “ Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother .” 
 
 JTSLEASE to fill in this pledge and place it on the 
 ^ collection plate EASTER MORNING. If 
 detained, kindly send by another or mail to pastor. 
 This will lighten the labor of the committee in gath¬ 
 ering contributions. If a cash subscription, instead 
 of this form place money in an envelope bearing name 
 and address. 
 
 / will give for 1905 toward the 
 
 Missionary Collection 
 
 of the METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH 
 the sum opposite my name below. 
 
 NAME 
 
 Dols. 
 
 Cts. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ADDRESS 
 
 If a family, please to have each member sign on one of the 
 above lines. If the children can but print, let their autographs 
 appear. Write in the baby’s name. Do not withhold a gift nec¬ 
 essarily small; few will need to go below one dollar each. 
 
 Many will subscribe a penny a day ($3.65) each, and many 
 will go beyond that amount. Let all be “ as unto the Lord.” 
 
 “ That which he hath given zvill he pay him again." 
 
 NOTE.—One pastor greatly increased his collection by writing in 
 the above lines the names in each family. The envelope should be 
 in the homes of the donors one Sunday in advance, that, at the pas¬ 
 tor’s suggestion, the family may consult concerning their offering. 
 
 The preliminary work being done, the mere laying of the 
 filled-out pledges on the collection plates does not interfere with the 
 Easter or other services. 
 
 He which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. 
 
RESULTS 
 
 The intent of the envelope is to reach every 
 family or self-supporting member of the Dis¬ 
 trict with attractive missionary literature. This 
 is the more effective as a part of the culmina¬ 
 tion of the campaign. Also the aim is to secure 
 a contribution from everyone, not merely those 
 present at the service. The pledge card gives 
 specific directions concerning its use, and a 
 committee may call for those cards not re¬ 
 ported. An abundance of pledge cards was 
 kept in the seats for three or four subsequent 
 Sundays to remind delinquents. 
 
 The pastors order long in advance as many 
 envelopes as each may need. These are sent 
 filled and ready for addressing. The pastor is 
 urged not to cheapen and nullify their effect 
 by handing out in the congregation, but to 
 mail with a one-cent stamp. The ornamental 
 envelope and its motto saves it from the waste¬ 
 basket. The cost of the envelope and postage 
 is deducted from the missionary collection and 
 seems a most profitable investment. 
 
 This year about 6,700 envelopes were used 
 on the District, and more than that number 
 were ordered from the printer by pastors of 
 other Districts, it being understood that no one 
 but the printer selected had any financial inter¬ 
 est in the publication. We find that our own 
 reprint of the leaflets used is not without 
 advantage in the matter of size and cost. 
 
 Results .—The amount contributed for mis¬ 
 sions by the Buffalo District in 1 902, the year 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 
 preceding the first campaign, was $5,187, or 
 about 57 cents per member and probationer. 
 In 1903 the amount was $6,966, or about 75 
 cents per member and probationer. The in¬ 
 crease was $1,779, or about 34 1-3 per cent. 
 
 No marked increase was expected in 1 904, 
 the aim being to hold at least the increase of 
 the preceding year with a possible addition of 
 $500. The increase, however, was $1,235, 
 making a total of $8,201, or about 87 cents 
 per member and probationer—an advance 
 over 1902 of $3,014, or about 54 per 
 cent, or 30 cents per member and probationer, 
 raising the District as ranked among Districts 
 by the Missionary Society from number 327 
 to number 65. This brings us nearer the good 
 companionship of Rochester District, which 
 properly and serenely holds her place at 
 number 40. 
 
 In 1905 for unavoidable reasons no aggres¬ 
 sive campaign was held outside a few meet¬ 
 ings, the pulpit exchange, and the Easter 
 envelope. The present indications are, how¬ 
 ever, that the offerings may hold up to last 
 year, which, if true, will encourage us to 
 think that God’s people when informed will 
 respond, and that the results of a campaign 
 tend to permanence. Our plan for next year 
 may be a radical departure from what we 
 have tried before. We hope to employ the 
 Silver Bay idea, with emphasis upon a metro¬ 
 politan center as a basis. We are persuaded 
 that a fullness of time has come when the 
 
THE THEORY 
 
 young, introduced by the presiding elder and 
 pastors to those plans for mission study both 
 in the Epworth League and Sunday school, 
 will give a response, in consecration and offer¬ 
 ing, far beyond that of the adult members of 
 the church, and that from them, more than 
 from any other agency, will come the mightiest 
 inspiration to their seniors. Tangible proof of 
 this was seen in the fact that of the increase in 
 the missionary offering last year on Buffalo 
 District that of the Sunday schools was a 
 marked proportionate advance over the in¬ 
 crease in the church. 1 
 
 We may notice that the increase resulting 
 from education came wholly from ordinary 
 contributions; no single considerable gift was 
 noted. The society heading the District is a 
 downtown church with almost no wealth and 
 a shifting constituency. In 1903 it contrib¬ 
 uted for missions $600; last year a mission 
 study class and the gospel of salvation for the 
 whole world resulted, without pressure, in 
 freewill offerings of that people aggregating 
 $ 1 , 000 . 
 
 The theory of the missionary campaign as 
 set forth above is, first, that in missionary en¬ 
 deavor a District may be considered as a single 
 pastoral charge on which there may be as 
 
 1 In 1903 the churches of the District increased their offerings over 
 1902 by 31 per cent, and the Sunday schools by 40 per cent. In 
 1904 the churches advanced over 1903 by 1 1 per cent, and the 
 schools 25 per cent. The whole advance for the two years was: 
 churches, 50 per cent; schools, 76 per cent. 
 
SOME MISSIONARY METHODS 
 
 many assistant pastors as churches. In the. 
 work of missions the District, and not the 
 church, is the natural unit. Each church works 
 out its part of the District plan emanating 
 from the presiding elder. If the Missionary 
 Society may be likened to a great trunk line, 
 the presiding elder is to furnish terminal facili¬ 
 ties. In this he is the proper leader. His 
 position at the head of the District and his 
 intimate relations with pastors and churches 
 tend to turn all toward him as the one about 
 whom the District will rally. He is also recog¬ 
 nized as the connecting link between his Dis¬ 
 trict and the Missionary Society, he being in 
 vital touch with both. His leadership does 
 not rest upon authority, but upon a fitness born 
 of knowledge of the situation. In the dis¬ 
 charge of his missionary responsibility may not 
 the presiding elder visit the Sunday schools 
 and young people’s societies as regularly as he 
 does the churches of his District? May he not 
 seek to be an up-to-date encyclopedia of plans 
 and missionary methods applicable to his 
 several schools and Leagues? May not a 
 District feel that for information or initiative 
 in the matter of missions there is no need to 
 look beyond its presiding elder? A presiding 
 elder’s District is more pliable that the average 
 individual church; hence the elder whose plans 
 are clear-cut, if energetically applied, may 
 mold his District almost at will into a compact 
 
THE THEORY 
 
 and well-drilled corps, fit to take its place in 
 the right wing of God’s line of battle. 
 
 Second, that pastors who thoroughly pre¬ 
 pare a missionary discourse and deliver it 
 several times get on fire. 
 
 Third, that the young people and children 
 are the most valuable human asset in the 
 world’s conquest for righteousness. 
 
 Fourth, that the church is commissioned to 
 evangelize the world, that the Holy Spirit is 
 promised to individuals and churches who 
 recognize and accept this commission; hence 
 a missionary campaign incidentally secures 
 money for missions, but chiefly it constrains 
 the local church to adjust itself to divine con¬ 
 ditions and principles vital to its own life and 
 power. 
 
 Price, 5 cents each