WESTMINSTER GUILD ■ ■ HOME MISSION STATIONS NUMBER II ALASKA NORTH CAROLINA PORTO RICO WOMAN'S BOARD of HOME MISSIONS of the PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, U. S. A. 156 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK CITY Note. — Pamphlet Number One introduced Westminster Guild Chapters and Circles to the station work assigned by the Woman's Board of Home Missions. Three times a year — in March, September and December — the latest news from these stations appears in the Westminster Guild Bulletin. The messages and illustrations of this pamphlet will help to a still more intimate knowledge of the work which has become very dear to the hearts of 1,250 groups of girls and young women. The splendid ad- vance in gifts during the year ending March, 1916, has made possible a larger share in the work of these stations. LA MARINA MISSION MAYAGUEZ, PORTO RICO npHE March, 1916, number of the Bulletin gives a brief review of the growth at the Marina Mission. Little by little the work has developed until the "impossible" slum district of July, 1907, has become attractive in ap- pearance and a safe place in which to live. The little chapel schoolhouse by the sea was the nucleus around which has grown a group of useful buildings for industrial classes, kin- dergarten, day nursery, teacher's home, etc. Several girls, trained in the mission schools of the Woman's Board, are the teachers and assistants for lace making, drawn work, bas- ketry, etc. The drawn work is so beautiful that several bridal undergarments and an ex- quisite wedding gown were recently made at the Marina Mission for brides-to-be in the States. The material for these garments was purchased here, but the designing and needle- work were done by Miss Hazen and her assistants. Numerous other gowns with exquisite drawn work, in white and colors, are also made at the mission and sold to tourists. The latest, and very important acquisition to the working force is the district nurse — a graduate of our Presbyterian Hospital train- ing class at San Juan. Another of the girls from this mission is in the States this year in order to fit herself for more efficient service among her own people. These native girls are teachers in Sunday school, leaders in the Christian Endeavor Society, house-to-house visitors, and "all around" wholesome Chris- tians. We report a Westminster Guild Chapter and Circle in Mayaguez, and a Chapter at Aguadilla, Porto Rico. Of the one at the Marina we hear : "The leaders take up the subject for discussion in a very capable way. All the studying and reciting is in English, and no girl refers to her book when taking part in the meeting. They are doing some real missionary work through our visiting nurse, but their study is awakening them to a keen interest in mission work in foreign lands." With the registration from Aguadilla came this message : "It gives me great joy to tell you that we have a Westminster Guild in Aguadilla. I organized it several weeks ago and have waited before writing to see how the girls were going to take hold of the study. So far they have shown great interest and have good meetings. They meet on Sundays twice a month here in our house and have a membership of eighteen. There were fourteen at the meeting last Sunday. We pay five cents a month, which is to be used for local charity (our day nursery, I hope). "The girls are making great plans for the next meeting on Porto Rico. They are so in- terested and all want to lead. All are asked to take part. Last Sunday I asked how many were products of Presbyterian work, and every one is, either from the school here, the Colegio that was in Mayaguez, or the hospital of San Juan. Isn't that a fine record for the Presby- I terian work , in the past ?" PRESBYTERIAN HOSPITAL HAINES, ALASKA Hp HE picture shows Doctor and Mrs. Craig, Miss Reagh (the nurse), and the splen- did missionary dogs. The following letter from Miss Reagh in- cludes, in part, the story told by Dr. Craig at the recent meeting of the Woman's Board in Atlantic City : "I want to tell you something of the Klinket tribe of Alaskan Indians, and of their customs, health conditions and medical needs. Were I to give you even a glimpse of this wonderful land, its wealth, scenery, hunting, agriculture — its possibilities in every way — you would all leave the States and migrate to Alaska. "We have enjoyed a prosperous year as re- gards the mission work. Our hospital now has facilities for the accommodation of twenty patients. The hospital staff consists of the superintendent, who is the physician, the su- perintendent of nurses, four pupil nurses, a kitchen matron, and an engineer. While our training school for nurses is small, we will increase it as necessity demands, and we ex- pect to graduate only efficient nurses as each pupil must take a rigid examination before receiving her diploma. We have an abundance of cases requiring both medical and surgical nursing, and modern apparatus with which to accomplish our work. Some maternity cases are also admitted to the hospital. Last year there were thirty-three babies born here — all Indians but two or three. "That the Alaskan Indians are decreasing at a rapid rate is shown by the census. Dur- ing the last census decade there was a decrease of 14 per cent, in the population of the natives of Alaska. Last year the death rate among the Indians of this and a neighboring village was 100 to every 1,000 of population ; at the same time the birth rate was only 60 to the 1,000 of population. Thus there was a de- crease in population that year of 40 persons to every 1,000 of population. Compare these figures with those of the United States, in which the death rate is about 18 to the thou- sand population. In the natural course of events, this decrease will gain momentum with- out the right sort of instruction. The native does not realize the necessity for fresh air and good food. Necessarily a hardy people, their health and strength have in recent years been affected by the white man's diseases and the white man's liquors. Eighty per cent, of the deaths among the Indians of these parts is caused by preventable diseases, and often their own customs retard the recovery of a patient. "Not long ago a young Indian appeared at. the hospital very early one morning. He wished the doctor to return with him to the neighboring village as one of the young men of his tribe was very ill with pneumonia, and not expected to live. The trail was impassable except to dog teams, but our four big huskies carried Dr. Craig to the sick man in about nine hours. The patient was in one of the large tribal houses of only one room, and in which live several families. When the doctor entered the house he thought that he must have made a mistake and entered a house where there was some public meeting, as the room was filled with people all sitting quietly. The crowd of Indians separated so he could pass and at the further side of the room he saw a bed. This cot had been drawn under the rays of a big lamp suspended from the ceiling, and facing this glare was the sick- man. The people who were in the room were his friends, and they were waiting for the end. As is the custom, they had made his burial clothes and showed them to him several days before. His coffin was already there waiting to receive him. The patient knew all that was going on around him, although he was very sick. They had told him so many times that he was going to die that it was firmly im- pressed in his mind. Although he had a very high temperature, they had not only covered him with many blankets, but they even had a fur skin around his head and neck. Not even a cooling hand was laid upon his brow, for fear he might take cold. The windows and doors of the room were kept tightly closed, and a large heating stove was kept running at its utmost capacity. The missionary and the school teacher both tried to persuade them to change their mode of caring for the patient, but it was of no avail. The first thing the doctor did was to remove the oppressive blan- kets and the furs from the patient and apply cold compresses and other simple remedies to make him comfortable, although he realized that for his pains the tribe would probably say that death was caused by these changes. That same night the man did die. The church bell was tolled, and the inhabitants of the vil- lage, old and young, gathered to the house of death. The body was then carried from house to house to remain as a guest for a few hours in each place. At these homes the band came and played, with all the people of the village present. This procedure was kept up for sev- eral days, and would no doubt have continued for a much longer time had not the school teacher advised an immediate burial, an open- air funeral being a necessity by this time. "I am sure this description of some of the customs of the Alaskan natives, and how they not only retard recovery but cause illness and death, will prove interesting to the friends of our work." Westminster Guild Chapters and Circles will find in this story a call to earnest prayer for the Alaskan people and for our missionaries among them. An extract from the report of the Woman's Board shows how our Government is coming to recognize the needs of these "Native Amer- icans." "A start was made by the Government toward meeting its responsibilities for the , physical welfare of the Alaskan natives by the appropriation last year of $25,000.00 for medical work. This was increased by the sum of $25,000.00 taken from the general appropriation for educational work, making a total of $50,000.00 spent by the Govern- ment. It is now maintaining three 'school- house hospitals' and is about to open a hospital at Juneau, erected at a cost of $11,000.00. When at least $250,000.00 is needed annually to provide adequate facili- ties, $50,000.00 seems a small amount, but in view of the dearth of medical facilities which existed a few years ago this report is most encouraging." Read the prayer written by Professor Rauschen- bnsh for Tuberculosis Day as quoted on page 188 of the June, 1916, Home Mission Monthly. McCormick Cottages at Borland Institute where the girls learn housekeeping by practical experience. DORLAND INSTITUTE HOT SPRINGS, N. C. Hp HE special work in the Mountains of the **■ South assigned for Westminster Guild girls is that of teaching home making at Dor- land Institute, Hot Springs, N. C, and it is a mighty force in the lives of the mountain peo- ple. The report of the Woman's Board calls attention to the development of this work: "Each year at Dorland marks advancement in equipment and improvement in surround- ings. From the time that Miss Phillips came to the school and began to fill in the gulleys extending from the girls' boarding building (just completed) to the street, a distance of about ten rods, until the present day, work on the grounds has continued, new buildings have been erected and surrounding properties necessary to the successful running and at- tractive appearance of the plant have been acquired." The following from Miss Phillips gives an interesting touch to the work for which West- minster Guild girls are responsible at this sta- tion : "Dr. Luke Dorland came to Hot Springs twenty-six years ago and started a school with eight pupils. It was due to his efforts that our dormitory for over fifty girls was erected. "At first these mountain girls rode or walked to school. They are skillful horseback riders, and I have seen them jump lightly from one horse to another when both were moving briskly. Some walked twenty or thirty miles. On asking one girl when she started, she re- plied, 'While it was yet plumb dark night.' Most came in homespun linsey-woolsey, wo- ven on the rude looms in their homes and dyed with native dyes. There being no other school in the place, over a hundred day schol- ars attended, both boys and girls. During the past four years there has been a public school. Our first school building was a rough affair, one and one-half stories high, and the roof leaked badly. When in 1900 a new building was erected, one of the practice cottages was built of the old material. "For several years there was no place for housing young men who lived too far away, but begged to come and avail themselves of the privileges of the school. One said, 'Pears you-uns don't care whether we-uns knows anything or not ; you give all the larnin' to the gals.' "Small and inconvenient quarters were se- cured for sixteen boys ; for their need so ap- pealed to us, and, besides, we felt the need of other associates for Dorland girls than the ignorant country boys. . . . We now ac- commodate fifty boys at 'The Willows,' two miles away. "The course of study is thorough rather than extensive, intended for a foundation for future development. In addition to classroom work, both girls and boys learn poultry rais- ing, gardening and beekeeping ; the boys are taught good farming and the girls good house- keeping. This last accomplishment has been greatly helped by two practice cottages given by Mrs. Cyrus McCormick. In each of these ten girls at a time are instructed how to care for a home of their own in the very best way." PRACTICAL WORK A Few Suggestions Always consult the Westminster Guild sec- retary at Headquarters before presenting prac- tical work to the girls. Plan for parcel post packages. Always cover transportation charges. (At Haines Hospital last year they averaged $3 per week for freight and express parcels not prepaid beyond Seattle.) If asked to make garments for any field or station use paper patterns, common sense and good taste. Possibilities. A limited number of sewing aprons with pockets, wall bags with pockets for comb, soap, etc., pin cushions, handkerchiefs, thread, nee- dles, scissors and shears, safety pins, common pins. An unlimited supply of absorbent gauze, absorbent cotton, adhesive plaster, tape, rolls of bandagings from \ l / 2 to 6 inches in width and from 5 to 10 yards in length. (Ask a doctor or nurse about the rolling.) Pretty sash curtains (never just one of a kind). A Few Don'ts. Don't send old post cards, nor old papers of any kind. (A foreign missionary said re- cently that the sending of old post cards is a wrong sort of training for children !) Don't send towels for twelve months from this date. Don't send anything without first communi- cating with Headquarters for needs and di- rections. M. Joseph ine Petrie Sec'y for Young People's Work 156 Fifth Avenue, New York City 2V6S1716 Price Five Cents