'Y Should the American Board Under- take Mission Work in South America ? RIvI’ORT OR DWIGHT GODDARD r)Llc”ale of the American Roard to tlic Congress on Cliristian W ork at Panama, and member of the Regional Conferences held at Lima, Santiago, llncnos Aires and Rio de Janeiro. f jUNI', \i)\C) W.V AKI'.OR, lOlIIC.AN Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Columbia University Libraries https://archive.org/details/shouldamericanboOOgodd INTRODUCTION From February 10-20, 1916, there was held in Panama a Con- gress on Christian Work in Latin America. There w'ere present over 400 delegates representing nearly, if not quite, all Missionary Hoards of England and America at work in that region, together with delegates, pastors, missionaries and visitors from all the dif- ferent countries of Central and South America. The purpose of this great gathering was to consider the re- ligious needs of Latin America and the Christian work that was being done to meet them. Reports were i)resented and discussed on Survey and (Occupation, iNIessags and Method, Education, Lit- erature, Woman’s Work, Cooperation, Church in the Field and Home Base, with the object in view of ( 1 ) securing full informa- tion as to the field, its extent and character and as to whether the present occupation was adequate, efficient and harmonious; (2) to bring about a more sympathetic acquaintanceship and fellow- ship between all parties interested, both national and foreign : ( 3 ) to unite and to inspire this fellowship to higher Christian faith and greater zeal for the wider and deeper evangelism of L^itin America. This great Congress at Panama was followed by Regional Con- ferences in .six or seven great centers of Central and South America and the W est Indies. The Congregational Church of the United States showed its interest in the Congress by sending as delegates the following representative men : Pres. Henry C. King of ( Iherlin College, and the American Missionary Association. Prof. Harlan P. beach of Yale College, and A.B., C. F. M. Sec. Charles J. Ryder of the American Missionary Association. Sec. Frank K. Sanders of the Congregational Educational Board. Sec. Harry Wb Hicks of the Young People’s Missionary Alove- ment. Dr. John Howland. ^Mexican Alission, A. B., C. F. AT Sec.’Ceo. 1 . Babcock, Int. Y. At. C. A. Air. Wb E. Sweet, Layman representing A. B., C. F. AI. Air. Dwight Goddard, Layman, representing A. B., C. F. AI. Rev. W'illiam Flammer, Pastor Union Church, Panama, — 4 — As the American Hoard has no work south of iMexico it was decided not to appoint a member of the delegation to attend tlie Ivegional Conferences to be held in four of the South American Capitols following the main Congress at I’anama, but with the advice and consent of the other delegates, Mr. Goddard accepted an invitation of the delegation to go with them, as a visitor. It is proper to add at this point, that later on INlr. Goddard was cor- dially asked to b.ecome a full member of the Delegation, and although he did not think he had a right to accept, he was, never- theless, always treated as such, given full liberty of debate and vote, and assigned to duties as others, it is with great pleasure that he here exju'esses gratitude and appreciation for all the kind- ness shown him by Chairman Halsey and the other members of the Deputation, and the local officers of the various Conferences. Llefore leaving Panama, Mr. Goddard had frequent conversa- tions with different members of the Congregational delegates and all alike voiced a regret that our denomination was not bearing its share of the burden and obligation of evangelizing Latin America. We discussed the needs of the different parts of South America that had Ijeen brought to the attention of the Congress and .Mr. Goddard rvas repeatedly urged to gain all the informa- tion he could while with the Deputation, that might be of assist- ance to the .Vmericau Board in considering the question of under- taking mission wodc in South America, if the occasion for doing so should arise. Imt before the Congress adjourned the Committee on Co- operation instructed its. chairman to write the following letter: CO^IMITTEE OX COOPERATE )X IX LATIX A^IERICA KiU'REsexti xc, THE IMissiox.vkv Ar.Kxcfics .\t Work ix the Wi:sT Ixmits, Mexico, Cextk.m. .\xi) South Ami:kic.\ PAbruary 20, I(ji 6 . Mr. Dwight Goddard, 1 lotel Tivoli, Ancon, Canal Zone. 1 tear Mr. Goddard : d'he Committee on Cooperation in Christian M'ork in Latin America, to which the Panama Congress has committed the fur- ther care of the interests evhich brought the Congress together, having learned that you are accompane-iug the deputation around South America as a representative of the American Board, in- 0 striicted me at the meeting of the Committee last evening to re- quest you to consider the possibility of the American Board’s undertaking some work in South America, in recognition of its share of the responsibility for the evangelization of this great continent. We trust that after inquiry and study and observation during this visit you will consult with our sub-committee on Survey and Occupation, of which ]\Ir. E. T. Colton, 124 East 28th Street, Xew York City, is chairman, and will then feel able to recommend to your Board some definite field that is free for their occupancy. Mr. Colton will be able to inform you of the plans of any other agencies which are looking forward to taking up work in South America, and from our knowledge of the large-mindedness and Christian spirit which characterize the policy of the American Board we know that it will wish to project any new work which it may be able to undertake in a way that will secure the largest and most efficient occupation of the whole field. Our Committee would rejoice if the American Board, as one of the strongest and most efficient of all the missionary agencies, would, as a result of your investigations and recommendation, join the agencies already in the field of South America. \’^ery faithfully yours, Robert E. Speer. In accordance with these facts iMr. Goddard took part in the Regional Conferences held in Lima, Peru; Santiago, Chile; Buenos Aires. Argentina; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and sub- mits the following report and recommendation. IX GENERAL The following general facts deserve especial attention by any organization or individual considering South America as a Mis- sion field.' 1. The People. The people of South America are far less homogeneous than those of X'orth America. Racially we think of them as largely Spanish and Latin, but this is not true. The great racial blood is Indian. It is true that during the past 400 years some Spanish, Portuguese and other latin blood has been introduced, but the base has always been Indian, and in the cen- turies that have passed since the Spanish first entered, constant additions of fresh Indian blood have kept the race essentially In- dian, except in the small groups of ruling families who have kept their blood purer and arrogated to themselves the wealth and political power of the state. In the different states there are different racial types which can be explained by the character of the particidar Indian base, as for instance, Quechua in Peru, Aymara in Bolivia, Araucanian in Chile, etc. In Brazil the very large intermixture of African negro blood has still further conditioned the racial characteristics. In addition to these very divergent types of Indian blood, the Latin intermixture has itself been very divergent — Basque or Andalusian Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, English, Irish, German and Jewish, and of late Chinese, Japanese, Hindoo and Syrian — and from all other nations under the sun. Then again social conditions, educational systems and political changes have all conspired not to unify, but to cause divergence of classes. IMissionary work must therefore be equally varied if it is to successfully appeal to pure Indian, mixed Indian-Span- iards, XegroPortuguese, immigrant circles, or the highly cultured class of the rich cities. But wherever missionaries go, if they go in the spirit of Jesus, they find a reasonable welcome and response and the religious instinct present and active. 2. The Latin Spirit. While the small intermixture of Latin blood into the great Indian base has been largely swallowed up and assimulated. the Spanish and other Latin traditions have not disappeared, but have for the past four hundred years, and are today, transforming and conditioning racial characteristics. The most important of the Latin traditions are Roman Law, Catholi- — 8 - cism and French Ideals. 'I'hese have given a uniform cast to all South American character and thought. 'I'his Latin spirit is characterized by strong emotionalism that is sensitive to harmony of outward form and beauty : that loves pure ideas and generalization; that is easily moved by inflated eloquence : that makes the South American sociable, enthusiastic and attractive. This must be taken into account for it stands out in sharp contrast to our equally marked North American spirit — that loves inner honor and integrity, practical logic, utility, in- dustry, thrift and reserve; and, we must confess, tolerance of the ugly, impolite, and crass. Is it any wonder that everywhere in South America we meet a si)irit of r’an-Iherianism — that longs for a unity of the Latin race, Latin tongue and Latin Religion? — that shrinks from every- thing that is tainted lyv Anglo-Saxon or Teutonic utilitarianism, impoliteness, crass forcefulness and power leased on mere wealth. .\'o wonder they shrink from our sectarian differences and sel- flsh aggressiveness. 3. The Roman Catholic Church. This has l)een the great in- fluence acting ujion South American character and conditions. ( )f undoubted sincerity it has from the first exaggerated outward conformity. From the first it has l^een an instrument of political domination, it multiplied forms and rites and enforced outward obedience thus disciplining' the colonists and the Indians as far as it reached them, into a uniformity of belief and manners. For four hundred years the Roman Catholic Church has had absolute sway in South America and they must bear the praise or blame for conditions as they are. They never occupied the vast interior of the continent, but centralized themselves in the cities and seats of -wealth and power. Even these centers they did not ade(iuatelv occupy, for in Chile the most Catholic of states, there were oifly 400 parish priests available for 4,500,000 people, and these were almo.st exclusively in cities. In Argentine, if all the Catholic cha])els and churches were concentrated in Buenos Aires there would not be as many as there are in Philadelphia. Its power has too largely Iieen used for self enrichment and com- fort ; illiteracy is extremeL' high, morals and moral standards shockingly low, and whole provinces ( in a religious sense ) left entirel}- uncared for. d'here is todav a general cleavage in the mind of the more in- telligent peojjle betw'een their aitection for Catholicism as a re- ligion and their respect for it as an institution. Everywhere we found on the part of men open infidelity and contempt for the — 9 — priests. I ut on the part of women very deep and loyal faith. There is now legal liberty of worship in every State and in the cities actual freedom, although in remote villages of some states there is still more or less trouble, but on the whole less than in missionary lands. In fact to the deputation it seemed as though the Roman Catholic question could be wisely ignored, and our missionary work go steadily on winning its way b}' the inherent truth and value of its evangelistic appeal. It must be said, however, that everywhere we went the Xational leadership were deeply con- cerned by the opposition of the Roman Church and they urged at every opportunity that the Regional Conference take active steps to combat her power by definite statement of Evangelical principles and public manifesto. 4. In answer to the qirestion raised in the E. S. as to whether South America is a proper field for missionary activities, we can report positively that it most assuredly is. anti for the following reasons ; (a) A large proportion of the continent has never been touched by the Roman Catholic Church. There is virgin soil for missions among millions of nnevangelized Indians. (b) There is another large proportion that is only partially cared for. There are millions of mixed Spaniards, Indians, laborers, farmers, miners, herdsmen in far scattered villages and camps that rarely go to church or even see a priest. ( c ) Then there are the educated men in the cities who are entirelv estranged from the church, .and practically atheistic, or at least indifferent and ignorant of the gospel. ( d ) I'here is practically no knowledge outside of mission circles about the Gospel and salvation — except through the Con- fessional and the offices of priests. ( e ) There is general ignorance of the llible as an open book in the language of the people. ( f ) There is very great illiteracy especially in the country dis- tricts — a condition that is very largely the fault of the Roman Catholic authorities. (g) The habitual divorce of ethics and morality from religion results in extremely low moral standards that can only be im- proved by the preaching of a spiritual Gospel of Righteousness. ( h ) The great religious need of all the world is the proclama- tion of the Good Xews of a Spiritual Realm — and this is especially true of South America. The open Bible, the knowledge of the loving fatherhood of God. the supremacy of the spiritual law of love, the salvation and entrance into spiritual life that comes through faith in Jesus, the divine ^tlessiah, have been denied to the people of Latin America by the dominant church and upon us rests the responsibility of supplying the lack. SL’R\’EY AXD OCCUPATIOX As our itinerary did not include the most X'^orthern Republics, I can only report in a general way that Columbia, \'enezuela, and the Guianas form a group by themselves, whose missionary in- teersts are more nearly allied with Central America and the West Indies than with the great republics of the south, and will there- fore not be considered in this particular report. Ecuador lies immediately under the equator. It is as large as Xew England and X"ew York, with a population of a million and a half. The coast land is low and covered with tropical jungle, but the interior is high and rolling plateau that is reasonably healthy. It is counted as the most backward and conservative of the republics. One of the reasons for this is the location of its chief port of entry, Guyaquile. It is 35 miles up from the sea on a narrow river surrounded by pestilential swamps and jungles, and as they take no steps to clean the city, it is, and always has been, a pest hole of yellow fever and other diseases. There are no regular missionary societies at work in all the state and only five or six independent missionaries up in the interior. We were not permitted to land, but IMr. W. E. Reed, the only missionary in Gu\ a(]uile, came to the steamer and gave us a long statement of his fifteen years' experience. He now gives half his time, as a teacher in the Government College and finds no hindrance to doing missionar'.' work the balance of his time, but as he has no finan- cial resources beyond his support he finds progress slow and dis- heartening. Here is an exceptionally able man, of fine presence and physique, immune to yellow fever, of strikingly humble spirit and sane mind, struggling on alone, praying and waiting for help. In all of South America there is no more needy area or jjeople from a missionary point of view than Ecuador, and right here is a modern saint patiently working and waiting for our help. If the American Hoard should decide to undertake work in Ecuador, they could adopt i\lr. Reed and be honored by his reputation, and his abilitv, and begin work at once, with no delay finding a volun- teer for this most unhealthy region and then waiting for him to learn the language and possibly die of fever before he became readv for work. — II — ■ Conditions in Ecuador indicate, however, that the real evangel- istic work must be done by national agents. The physical and hygienic conditions are such, that X. A. missionaries can only be used in limited numbers and for preliminary supervision. Peru. This most interesting Republic is the fourth in size, and has an estimated population of about 5,000,000. Of these about 600,000 are counted white, 1,400,000 mixed, 2,000,000 Indian and 1,000,000 wild Indians. The wdiite and mixed are in Lima and other cities and the Indians are in small villages and groups in the high mountains, and the wild Indians are in the montanas of the upper Amazon. The physical nature of the state is bad. The narrow coast is barren sand where never a drop of rain ever falls. The only settlements are along the banks of the few rivers that come down from the snow Andes. The interior is made up of valleys and plateaus lying between the two ranges of the Cordillaras, none less than 8,cco feet and some 14,000 feet above the sea and reached only by going over passes 15,000 feet high. Beyond these are the montanas, or densely wooded tracts that border the tributaries of the upper Amazon, and which are only inhabited by an un- known number of wild Indians. The capitol is Lima, a city of 300,000 people, and formerly was the seat of Spanish authority for all of South America. Callao is the port of Lima. The other cities are small, Payta, Trujillo, iNIollendo on the coast ; Araquipa and Cusco in the mountains. Eveio'thing centers in Lima, and all missionary work must have its headquarters there. At present the missionary forces at work are very limited. The iMethodist Episcopals, South American Evangelistic Lnion and Salvation Army, and the}' represented by not more than a dozen missionaries in all for this great nation. X^ot a single missionary and only one or two national workers are located in the entire northern section. The larger part of the foreign force are located in Lima. This is inevitable because Lima is the natural and political center of the whole national life. Even if other mission- ary boards should undertake work in Peru, or in Bolivia, or Ecuador, for that matter, their headquarters should be in Lima. Again the physical conditions are such, so appallingl}- hard and discouraging — lonely desert, bleak mountains, impassable forests, that even at best foreign missionaries can endure them but a short period at times. Good sense would indicate that the foreign part of missionary work should be limited and centralized largely at Lima and the — -12 — • Other cities and the t;reat numbers of Indians in the mountain' should lie evangelized by national evangelists and itinerant pastors. Any work among the Indians would also involve the language difficulty, for all school work would have to be in Spanish, but the religious work must he done in the only tongue they know — the native (Juechua, which is a very difficult language to learn. Full religious liberty in Peru has only been granted for a year and therefore mission work is not well advanced. There are at present about 600 church members in all Peru and only six or seven national workers. i\lost discouraging of all there is not at ]U‘esent any Christian school above the ujrirer primary grade. The very very few national workers have not been trained thus far in theological schools for there are none, and that constitutes the most pressing need of the Peruvian region — namely, a union the- ological training school to train the hundreds of national workers that will be recpiired if Fcuador, Peru and Ilolivia are ever to be evangelized. d'he coast and the highlands of Peru and Bolivia are a most interesting region. Here developed and ])assed away great civili- zations which having no written language, left only a trace be- hind : here reigned the Incas and they, too, have passed away, their history more a romance than known. Here the proud Spanish adventurers and noliles conquered and reigned for three hundred }-ears over a continent of opportunity, only themselves to pass awav. Before the rising power of peoples created from their own blood mingling with the despise . 1 Indians whom they had treach- erouslv conquered and oppressed. Today in those bleak, inacces- sable valleys of the Cordilleras millions of the Indian descendants of Inca and pre Inca people, live bv themselves — sullen, resentful, ignorant, — unconsciously waiting for evangels of their own race and tongue to l)ring the mystic message that will illumine their clouded minds and set them free. Can we. whose souls are lighted A\'ith wisdom from on high. Can we, to souls henighted. The lamp of life deny? Bolii ia. This Republic includes a territory as large as Peru and is even more inaccessible. Tin, copper and silver mines are its wealth. There are about 2.000,000 inhabitants, i, 000,000 of whom are pure lidians, 700,000 are mixed Indian and Spanish, and only about 300,000 are classified as white. 13 — The largest city is La Paz, situated high in the Andean plateau. That part of Polivian territory that is not sterile mountains, is either the swampy Chaco region bordering Paraguay, or the montanas of the upper Amazon. The Indians of the mountains are akin to the Peruvian but speak Aymara and are even less easy of approach. The missionary problem is identical with that of Peru and must be solved with it from Lima as a base. There are perhaps fifteen missionaries in the Republic, the Canadian Baptists being most prominent, but only exceptional ones are able to endure the strain of the high altitudes and isolation. Bolivia, too, must be evan- gelized by national workers if at all. Chile. This is one of the progressive states of South America and missionary work is well advanced. The state itself is 3,000 miles long and only about 120 miles wide at its widest. It may be divided into three parts for missionary purposes. The northern part is barren desert and inaccessible mountains, valuable only for its nitrate beds and mines of copper and silver. This condition follows down the Andean plateau to the southern part which is wind and rain swept and useful only for sheep jiasturage. It is in the central part of these mountains that all that remains, about 100,000, of the famous uncouquered Araucanian Indians are found. It is their blood that has given to the Chilean race their greater spirit and energy. In the southern part are only roaming' tribes of Patagonian Indians. The Anglicans are carrying on work among all these Indians. The central part is a rich agricultural valley about 1,500 miles long and thirty or forty miles wide, lying between the coast range and the high Andes. The two large cities are \’alparaiso on the coast and Santiago, the capital, in this valley. The latter is a splendid city of great wealth and vigor. The central valley is comparative!}' thickly settled by the typical Indian-Spanish race, with a good sprinkling of Euroi^ean emigrants — German, English, etc. The missionary needs of Chile are fairly well provided for. The iMethodists, Presbyterians and Anglicans are active and suc- cessful. The iMethodists and Presbyterians have just organized a union theological seminary, the first in South America. The Government School system is excellent, especially in the cities. There does not appear to be any call for other missionary societies to enter Chile, unless to aid in the support and instruction of the theological school. Here additional help would be very useful and highly appreciated. — 14 — Argcniinc. This great nation is full of promise and hope. Here more than anywhere else in South America, European, and especially Italian influency, have combined to reduce the Spanish- Indian characteristics. Ilecause of the wonderful pampas, furnishing the richest pas- turage for millions of cattle, sheep and horses, the prevailing in- terests are agricultural. The population of 8.000,000 is largely in the few cities — Buenos Aires, with its 1,500,000, being the me- tro})olis of South America. Other cities are IMendoza and Cor- dova near the mountains ; Rosaria and La Plata, on the river. 'I'he rest of the population is sparsely scattered over the wide stretches of the cattle country. European immigrants were crowd- ing in before the war at the rate of 300,000 per year. Religious conditions in Argentine are not good. The nation has grown so fast that the Catholic Church has never been able to keep pace. In the cattle country there are almost no churches, and even in Buenos Aires. Dr. Speer records the fact that when he wrote his book he could only find 40 Catholic Churches and 10 Protestant Churches for a population of a million and a half. Buenos Aires is a great, rich, modern city with all its problems of vice, worldli- ness and religious indift'erence. The Boca slums are as bad as any in the world. A score of missionary societies are working here and scores of independent missionaries of all shades and colors. But candor compehs one to record that they are not working together in a co- operative spirit, and few indeed are the missionaries away in the vast interior. Here as everywhere else, the great religious need of Argentine is for the wider ])reachiug of the simple gospel of God's forgiving grace through faith in Jesus, the Alessiah. But how can this be done without preachers? Our Conference found that there were no more national evangelical preachers than there were mission- aries. This was in no sense due to a lack of raw material, but evidently because the earlier missionaries had believed that they were the only ones who could be trusted ‘‘to rightly divide the word of truth.” The denominational divisions appeared to be more stressed here than elsewhere, and getting together for union conference and efiforts appeared to be very difficult. There were noble examples of national leadership at the conference, but they a];peared to be altogether too much under the control of the veteran missionaries. I low can an adequate native ministry be raised up where these conditions obtain and where there is no high grade theological — 15 — school? The government system of education is excellent, espe- cially in the cities, but the missionary training of its leaders is poor. Just think of the great Alethodist work in Argentine being dependent for its preachers on a class of nine taught only by one missionary and he the treasurer of the mission and superintendent of a district ! 'I'here are three or four of these denominational training classes, but thus far no progress has been made, and evi- dently no serious effort made, to combine them into one good school. Argentine doesn't call for additional missionary societies, but she does call for some "unifying principle " to bring the discordant element of the Evangelical Churches together in cooperative ac- tivities. One of the best elements of the evangelical forces at work in Argentine is the Italian W'aldensian Church. Among these members are scores of aide, devoted young men — inheriting a thousand years of religious discipline, — eager to go out as preachers of righteousness if only they could be ])roperly trained and supported. They are part and parcel of this Latin America, and are essentially congregational. Why can not we Congrega- tionalists of North America hack them up in establishing witV the iNlethodists and the Southern Baptists, a Union Seminary in Buenos Aires that would be of inestimalde use in the evangeliza- tion of this great republic? Uraguay. This smaller state has a most honorable history in its effort to retain its independence of its immensely greater neighbors, Argentine and Brazil. Today Uraguay stands at the head in financial responsibility, educational advance, and indus- trial independence. It is a grazing and agricultural state of great premise. Its capitol, Montevideo, is a beautiful, well located city of commercial importance. Being so near to Argentine its re- ligious needs and ecjuijiment is largely bound up with that of Buenos .Aires and must be considered as a part of them from a missionary point of view. Paraguay. This inland state is more largely Indian than per- haps anv other and is, ])erhaps, because of it, more backward. For missionary purposes it can be divided into two parts. The western part is wholly swampy Chaco country, inhabited only by Indians more or less wild and uncivilized. The}^ are not many in number and their missionary needs are being fairly well taken care of by the Anglicans. The eastern ])art of the country is inhabited by mixed Indian and Spanish — which is in fact mostly Indian. It is a cattle country and backward in all that makes up civilization, but the — rrt — people need the gospel and no one is caring for them. There are two or three independent missionaries : a few outposts of the Argentinian missions, and two or three posts of the Inland South American Alission, but what are these among so many? If the American Hoard desired a free field for humble service here would he an open door. Brazil. This is the great Repuldic of the South. In area it is larger than all of Europe, but its population is small, only about 20,000,000, and they are not so energetic as the Chileans or so aggressive as the Argentinians. The racial mixture of Indians and Portuguese is further complicated by a large intermixture of .\frican negro blood. (Jf late there has been a large immigration especially of Ciermans in the South, and the sections in the south where the proportion of European blood is larger, show' a decided superiority. ( )f the vast area of this Republic the great Amazon basin and the trackless rubber forests of the remote west are least knowm. Resides the natural dilficulties of the tropical jungle the wild In- dians are very hostile to all settlements. Europeans find it almost impossible to dwell continuously in this central bason. Bible colporteurs have visited it rarely, but there is absolutely no regular missionary work being done for the unknown numbers of Amazon Indians. d'hen the coast country from Guiana south to Bara and down to Pernambuco is also ver_\' unhealthy and the rain fall is uncertain so that there has never been any continuous missionary work done, d'here are a few' inde})endent missionaries here and a few' small stations, Init practically no stable w'ork is in existence. In these tw'O great areas the American Board would loe welcome, and would crow'd no one, but they would undertake the work with little to give ground for encouragement. These great areas if evangelized at all, must be reached and cared for by itinerant and circuit pastors and evangelists native to the climatic conditions and more or less immune to the ever present tlangers to health. Bnt the rest of Brazil is full of promise. From Pernambuco south along the coast there are large settlements and cities of prosperous, progressive people. liere are the great and beautiful cities of Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, San Paulo, Santos, and Porto Alegra. 'Phen back from the coast is a vast area of healthy, rolling, hillv country, ami rich open valleys clear to Paraguay and Bolivia. The coast country is w'ell settled and fairly w'ell evan- gelized l)v numerous w'cll organized societies, but the interior of .... 17 — the country being less settled, towns smaller and peojjle more scattered, is almost devoid of religious and educational privileges. This country is much like our own country was at the beginning of the 19th Century. ( )ur colonies had l:,een settled on the coast east of the Allegheny Mountains. After the Revolution emigra- tion began tO' push westward over the mountains into the fertile lands of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Tennessee and Kentucky, while beyond were the almost unknown lands of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, iMissouri, Iowa, Kansas, and Colorado. Today in Brazil multitudes of desirable imigrants are pushing over the coast range and the rich coffee lands of I'eruamlnico. Bahia, iMinas Geraes, Sao Paulo, Parana, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grand de Soil, into the richer provinces of Goyaz, and Matto Grosso that are as large as empires in themselves. Here in the valleys can be grown all serials, vegetaliles and fruits, and the uplands are grass covered pasturage for myriads of cattle. The mountains are rich in minerals, diamonds, gold, coal and iron in abundance. This is almost a home mission proposition, because a ])roportion of the immigrants are European and Protestant. But they are sheep without a shepherd. The villages are as yet small and scat- tered but destined to be large and prosperous. The national evangelical church numl)ers about 50.000 and mere than in any other South American country, is self supporting and self propagating. There is in independent Presbyterian Church, and, what is of great interest to- us Congegationalists, an independent Congregational Church of about 1,500 members. I preached in two of their churches and met many of their preach- ers. To show their faith and devotion I have only to say that the pastor of the Rio de Janeiro Church is looking after nine other preaching places, five of which might l)e churches if they had preachers and hnancial aid. Regular services are conducted at these nine places by this pastor and a group of his lay members. The pastor is also head of a theological class of five members. The second church where I preached is across the bay at Xicteroi. The pastor here has about the same number of preaching ]daces, two of which are ready to be churches. He also teaches the theo- logical students, edits their paper, is president of the denomina- tional organization ami is responsible for tbeir very considerable home missionary extension work. There is no union work in all Brazil, lint there is less friction between the denominations. There are six theological schools. The Presbyterians, north and south, have a good one at Camipinas. The Indei)endent Presbyterians one at San Paolo, tlie Southern INIethodists at Juiz de Flores, the Southern 1 baptists at Rio de Janeiro, the Congregationalists at Rio de Janeiro, the Episco- palians at Puerto Alegro. And beside these, both Presbyterians and Raptists have theological classes at Pernambuco. d'he need of a high grade union theological seminary is felt to be imperative. The Presbyterians and Southern [Methodists have agreed to unite, but there appears to be some hitch, because nothing is now being done to effect the union. 'I'he need of missionary aid in Brazil is very great but the form in which it could be used is not clear. There are certainly enough societies at work but if the field is to be adequately covered there must be many more missionaries and vastly greater financial re- sources. Here, as in Argentine, the government school system is excellent and missionary schools are needed only to reinforce the training of preachers and evangelists. (Jf these latter hundreds will be needed to evangelize the interior of the north coast and the enormous Amazon valley. I lere then is where the North American Congregationalists mav be of great assistance, by cooperating with the Brazil Inde- pendent Congregationalists for the realization of a Lhiion Theo- logical Seminary ; and then by sending out national home mission- aries into the rich hinterland of Goyaz and Alatto Grosso and the provinces north of Pernambuco ; and to send out national massionaries into the great Amazon valley to the ruljber forests of the mountains under the shadow of the far away Codilleras. SlAniARY I. If tlie American Board cared to consitler entering South America in the conventional missionary way, they would find ample field and a hearty welcome in the following unoccupied fields : (a) Ecuador, (b) In northern Peru with Trujillo (or Lima) as a base, (c) In Central Peru, or Bolivia, with Cusco, or La Paz, (or Lima), as a base, (d) In Paraguay, (e) In Brazil in the Amazon valley, with IMenaos or Para as a base, (f) In Brazil in the northern coast provinces, with Portalezar, Ceara, as a base. II. If the .\merican Board cared to consider helping, or co- operating with existing missionary agencies there is field and welcome for them in the following places; — 19 — ( a ) In Pern and Bolivia in connection with the South Ameri- can Evangelical Union. (b) In Argentine and I'rngnay in connection with the Whal- densian Church. (c) In Brazil in connection with the Independent Congrega- tional Church. III. If the American Board could see its way to forget for the time conventional methods of missionary i)ro])agan(W and confine itself to one line of work, there is a great opportunity for usefulness and a royal welcome awaiting it, if it would cooperate with the existing missionary agencies already on the field, for the creation, development, and administration of Lhiion 'I'heological Schools at Lima, Santiago, jluenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro. After giving four continuous months to the consideration of this subject it is my judgment that the third method would lie the most wise, effective and welcome. The first method is almost hopeless because of the physical and hygienic conditions. The second method is jiossihle, but destined, I am afraid, sooner or later to develop friction, and it is not of a character to afipeal for sujiport strongly to our constituency. The third jdan ajipears to me to be by all considerations the wisest and liest. Some of the reasons for this belief are as follows : (a) It was the unanimous vote of each Regional Conference that a local Union 'I'lieological School was the great and the im- mediate need. ( b ) 'I'he shortage of well trained national leaders and Chris- tion workers was everywhere in evidence at these Regional Con- ferences. (c) Because of the very nature of the physical, social and hygienic conditions of the religiously needy sections of South .\merica, an increasing number of trained national workers will be re(|uired if their evangelization is to be efifected, and thev can be supplied only by these Union 'I'heological Schools, (d) Because of the intense nationalistic spirit evervwhere in evidence, it is desirable to arrange for the jiublic propaganda bv nationals themselves as far as possible. (e) Because of the prevailing Latin siiirit it is desiralde not to obtrude over irritating ways and point of view any more than is necessary. ( f ) Because of the unfortunate over emphasis on denomina- tional differences in the |iast, it is not desirable to introduce an- other denomtion into the division of the, field. — 20 — (S') I'lic offer of cooperation by the Congregationalists in the creation and administration of Union Theological Schools would not result in a further division of the field, hut would result in better schools, interdenominational relations and increased number of national workers. (h) The willingness of the Congregationalists to cooperate in the 'rheological Schools with no expectation of founding churches themselves, hut a friendly interest in the success of other denom- inations would set an example of disinterested loyalty to our Evangelical Faith that would react on all other denominations, and es])ecially have a good effect on the national workers as thev go out, and would hasten the realization of the hoj^e of all — one national evangelical church. ( i ) Such an unselfish course on the part of the Congregation- ali^t would he carrying into immediate effect the spirit and pur- pose of the Panama Congress and its cooperating- committee. ( j ) 'I'he immediate carrying into effect of such a program would lie simple and not expensive, and in no sense would it neces- sarily involve the Congregationalists in any future e.xpcnse of un- known amounts. PR( )P( )S.VF In order to carry forward this recommendation toward a re- alization, 1 propose to send a copy of this report and recommenda- tion .to the Congregatiunalist members of the Panama Congress for their consideration and comment. If there is a substantial nnanimity of judgment 1 wonld suggest th.at in our united names we offer to the next annual meeting of the American Hoard the f(.dlo\ving rcsolntion and ask for suitable time for its public consideration : “ Resolved, That the Prudential Committee be authorized to cooperate with any other missionary board or boards for the creation, support and administration of Union Theolog- ical Schools at Lima, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and Rio de Janeiro; and to appoint one or more ordained missionaries to such institu- tions as they may be formed and as suitable men can be found.” Resiiectfullv submitted, 1 IwmilT CoDDARD, 1". .\nn Arhar, Alichigan.