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POSTO RICO—“WHERE EVERY PROSPECT PLEASES” 
 
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 Not alone in the stress of 
 war, but in times of peace as 
 well, the Lutheran Church fol¬ 
 lows this glorious emblem of 
 liberty. Two decades ago, 
 when, after a brief contest with 
 Spain, the United States found 
 itself with many island wards 
 thrust upon its benevolent keep¬ 
 ing, the Lutheran Church was 
 among the first to follow the Stars and Stripes to Porto 
 Rico that it might assist in the Government’s reconstruc¬ 
 tion program by giving to the people the pure Word of 
 God, the greatest power in the remaking of men that the 
 world has ever known. 
 
 Again, two years ago, when the exigencies of the great 
 world war compelled our Government to purchase the 
 Danish West Indies at a cost five times that at which 
 they had been offered before, the American Lutheran 
 Church was the first to step forward with an offer of 
 assistance to the people thus brought under the protection 
 of the Stars and Stripes. 
 
 For almost a generation a band of consecrated men and 
 women have labored in PORTO RICO with a devotion 
 hardly equalled in the modern missionary annals of our 
 Church. Dealing with a people as easy-going as the 
 climate is enervating, fickle, worldly, careless about re¬ 
 ligion, but ignorant, proud and superstitious, with an 
 equipment and working force never equal to the task 
 imposed, our missionaries have bravely stuck to their 
 post, and now, today, with the foundation firmly laid, 
 and the opportunity for a forward movement never 
 greater, they are calling to the Church to rally to their 
 support and send them the men and the means to erect 
 a superstructure that shall be worthy of the foundation 
 which, under God’s blessing, was laid before we were a 
 Untied Church. Shall they call in vain? 
 
 LUTHERAN CHURCH, ST. JOHN, VIRGIN ISLANDS 
 
 Just as insistent is the call for men and means for the 
 VIRGIN ISLANDS. Now that the war is over, the 
 Danish Pastors and Deaconesses, who so generously re¬ 
 mained that the Board might have time to secure laborers, 
 desire to return to Denmark. Here our opportunity is 
 not that of a mission field in as much as the work of the 
 Lutheran Church, dating from 1672, has resulted in es¬ 
 tablished congregations with large Inner Mission activ¬ 
 ities comprising Homes for the Aged, for Sick and Neg¬ 
 lected Babies, for Orphans, for Deaconesses, and for 
 Young Girls, but everything supported by the Danish 
 Government or Danish Missionary Societies, and which 
 now must be cared for by the Church in America until 
 the people have been trained in the ways of the Church 
 freed from State control, and are prepared for self-gov¬ 
 ernment and self-support. Pray the Lord of the harvest 
 that He would raise up laborers for this field, and inspire 
 His people to make liberal gifts which will enable the 
 United Lutheran Church to enter this door of oppor¬ 
 tunity opened in the Virgin Islands, 
 
 OUR DEACONESSES IN THE VIRGIN ISLANDS 
 
HOME OF A COUNTRY PARISHIONER 
 
 OUR MISSIONARIES IN PORTO RICO. The 
 senior missionary has been on the field for fourteen years, 
 and it is largely due to the heroic labors of Rev. Alfred 
 Ostrom and his devoted wife that our Church has ob¬ 
 tained such substantial success. The latest addition to 
 the working force is the Rev. Fred W. Lindke, who with 
 his wife and Miss Emma R. Schmid, Miss Sofia Probst, 
 and Miss Nanca Schoen constitute the present missionary 
 staff from America that labors so patiently and zealously 
 to enlarge the borders of our Lutheran Zion. In addi¬ 
 tion, we have a force of native helpers, six men and four 
 women. 
 
 PROPERTY IN PORTO RICO. As a result of the 
 self-sacrificing labors of the missionaries, we have today 
 nine congregations and 13 mission stations, with a com¬ 
 municant membership of 580; 22 Sunday Schools, with 
 an enrollment of 1800 pupils; 6 Luther Leagues, and one 
 Kindergarten. The property is valued at $50,000, and 
 consists of six chureh buildings with their furnishings, a 
 school house, a cottage and a parsonage. In addition to 
 the ground on which these buildings are erected, four 
 other lots are owned and await developments. 
 
 The WORKING FORCE IN THE VIRGIN 
 ISLANDS. Outside of the Pastors and Deaconesses 
 from the State Church who remained temporarily, we 
 have but one man from the States, the Rev. J. C. Peder¬ 
 sen, who in the few months he has been on the field 
 has done excellent work. The former Provost, Arch- 
 Deacon Hellweg-Larsen, left on April 1, 1919, and 
 Field Secretary G. H. Hemsath will take temporary 
 charge of the congregation. Rev. Mr. Kastrup, who has 
 most acceptably supplied the congregation in St. Thomas, 
 is anxious to resume his work among the delinquent boys 
 of the island. There are four deaconesses on the field, 
 but two return to Denmark Easter, 1919. There are 
 besides, four lay readers, one parish nurse, and several 
 paid helpers. 
 
 PROPERTY IN THE VIRGIN ISLANDS. The 
 value of the five Church buildings, the parsonages, mis¬ 
 sion houses and homes, amounts at a conservative esti¬ 
 mate to no less than $200,000. The communicant mem¬ 
 bership numbers 3000, and 700 children are in the Bible 
 Schools. 
 
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 SPANISH LUTHERAN CHURCH, BAYAMON, 
 PORTO RICO 
 
 OUR NEEDS 
 
 For Porto Rico we need at once another ordained min¬ 
 ister to relieve our overworked missionaries and to assist 
 in seizing the opportunity that has opened in San 
 Domingo and Cuba. We need an ordained man for the 
 Virgin Islands, who, unlike the man for Porto Rico, 
 who must know Spanish, will be able to succeed without 
 knowing any other language than English. We need the 
 generous gifts of consecrated people who will add their 
 prayers to their donations as they send them to our 
 Treasurer, Mr. S. F. Telleen, care of the Chase National 
 Bank, New York, N. Y. 
 
 The West Indies Mission Board of the United Lutheran 
 Church in America is composed of the following mem¬ 
 bers: President, Rev. W. D. C. Keiter, D.D.; Vice- 
 President, Rev. H. W. A. Hanson, D.D.; Secretary, Mr. 
 H. F. Heuer; Treasurer, Mr. S. F. Telleen; Executive 
 Secretary, Rev. Zenan M. Corbe; Rev. E. Belfour, D.D., 
 Mr. F. A. Burkhardt, Rev. F. B. Clausen, Mr. A. H. Dur- 
 burrow, Rev. W. J. Finck, D.D., Rev. C. A. Freed, D.D.. 
 Rev. F. F. Fry, D.D., Mr. Chas. W. Fuhr, Mr. R. E. 
 Gaskell, Rev. B. F. Hankey, Mr. J. D. Heilig, Rev. A. J. 
 Ho!!, Rev. Wm. M. Horn, Mr. J. B. Kaereher, Rev. John 
 H. Meyer, Mr. Wm. Steinmeyer. Advisory members: 
 Rev. Morten Parson, Mr. H, A. Johnson, Rev. J. A. 
 Bernhard. 
 
PRIMITIVE MERCHANTS 
 
 LOOKING FOR THE MISSIONARY 
 
 SUNDAY SCHOOL RECRUITS 
 
 IN THE MAKING