What We Are Learning at the Nashville Agricultural and Normal Institute
By M. Bessie DeGraw
The Bible gives an account of a certain missionary whose experience always reminds me of the instruction the Lord has given concerning the work to be done in the South, and the methods that will prove most effectual in this field.
The missionary I have in mind is Isaac. He was living on a farm in the borders of the country of Philistia. He followed divine instruction in the cultivation of the soil, for he was educated in the industrial school (“Patriarchs and Prophets,” page 141) of his father Abraham, where this instruction was made practical.
The first results of his adherence to these principles of agriculture and fruit raising and dairying were that his grain fields yielded enormous crops,—one hundredfold,—and his fruit did equally well, and his pastures were filled with flocks.
The second result was that his neighbors looked upon his fields and “envied him.” They came to inquire the cause of his great success, and gave him an opportunity to explain his methods of soil cultivation which God had taught him; his belief in the Lord's ownership of the land, which he recognized by the payment of the tithe; the Sabbath, which he kept week by week, and which the land kept every seventh year; the health principles, for he raised what he and his large family required to sustain them.
Not a few isolated Philistines came, but the fame of this farm was carried to the ears of the chief magistrate of the country, and he came to see. His chief counselor and the captain of his army came also, and the question was thoroughly investigated.
Now the grand result of all this was that those neighbors, and that king and his counselors when asked, “Wherefore come ye to me?” answered; “We saw certainly that the Lord was with thee.”
“Thou art now the blessed of the Lord.”
Whenever I read this bit of personal history which is to be found in the twenty-sixth chapter of Genesis, I think of the South, its needs, and the manner in which the Lord's work is to be done here.
A few quotations with which you may be already familiar will show that God's plan for carrying the gospel to the world to-day is the same as in the days of Isaac.
“Let Sabbath-keeping families move into the South, and live out the truth before those who know it not.”
“In fields where the conditions are so objectionable and disheartening that many workers refuse to go to them, most remarkable changes for the better may be brought about by the efforts of self-sacrificing lay members.”
Much is said in the Testimonies about the good that may be done by families who live out the truth as Isaac did.
The minister and the canvasser are needed, but they are not to carry the whole burden. “Men and women should now be offering themselves to carry the truth into the highways and hedges of this field.”
“God calls for missionaries, and asks us to take up our neglected duties. Let farmers, financiers, builders, and those who are skilled in various arts and crafts, go to this field to improve the land, and to build humble cottages for themselves and their neighbors.”
Families who live the truth will have the same experience as did Isaac. Men of the world will come inquiring for the truth, and saying, “Surely God is with you.”
It requires patience and faith to do missionary work in this way. It may be some time before the fruit appears, but does not the Lord say, “Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it”? He calls attention to the farmer and his method of work because in all the world the farmer's work is most nearly like the Lord's work for the salvation of souls. That is why he would have his people live in the country and cultivate the soil. This is why we are exhorted to locate our schools in the country and to train missionaries to work the soil.
Many may think the Lord's way a difficult one, but it is not. In fact, when the Lord bids his people do anything, he prepares the way before them. And this is so in this matter. The South throws her doors wide open to progressive men, and gives them a hearty welcome.
During the past few years manufactories have greatly increased throughout the South. The opening of factories calls many from the country. This depopulating of the country is greatly deplored by statesmen and others, and there is a desire to have those who love the country and who understand agriculture move into communities to show what country life should be, and what the soil will yield.
Plantation life is not the most attractive to the white man. In slavery times the white man was the gentleman in the plantation home, and the work was done by the negro. Since then only the poorer class of white men work the soil, and consequently this manner of life is considered degrading.
There are many who want to learn better ways of living, and there is a growing desire to improve the agricultural condition of the South.
Are there not men in the North, the East, and the West who will read the signs of these times and accept such opportunities?
The Nashville Agricultural and Normal Institute on its four-hundred-acre farm in middle Tennessee is working out some of these problems in the training of self-supporting missionaries. Your co-operation is solicited, and correspondence is invited.
M. BESSIE DEGRAW.
Madison, Tenn.
Suggestions for School Work
“Order is heaven’s first law, and every school should in this respect be a model of heaven.”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. VI, page 201.
“The Lord would have our primary schools of such character that angels of God can walk through the room, and behold in the order and principles, the order and government of heaven.”—MS.
The first requisite of good government is perfect self-government; but no teacher can impart it to her pupils unless she herself puts it into practise.
Strive to teach self-government by having the children do right because it is right. Let rules be as few as possible, but when you find it necessary to make them, have the children see their necessity, and have a part in making them; and then they will take a real interest in seeing that these rules are not broken. Aid the children in keeping order by giving them plenty of work to do—keep them busy; for “an idle brain is the devil’s workshop.”
As far as possible avoid public reproof. Do as you would wish to be done by under similar circumstances; but before administering reproof of any kind, ask God to direct you, and you will find the reproof much more effective. In everything “be kind, but firm.”
There should be a definite program, and both teacher and pupils should work in harmony with it. The lessons should be assigned, that there can be no doubt in the pupil’s mind as to just what is expected of him. The lesson should not be too difficult, and when once assigned, the teacher should be careful that it is all recited.
There should be order in everything. There should be a place for everything, and everything should be kept in its place. With a little care the children can be led to help in this by keeping their books, wraps, etc., in their places. It is almost surprising what a difference it sometimes makes in the order if the schoolroom is kept clean, being carefully mopped or swept every day. No paper should be allowed to remain on the floor, and the blackboards should be wiped with a damp cloth every day. The pupils should be taught to keep their hair combed, and their hands and faces clean. The teacher should be an example of neatness in dress as in all other things.
Another help in preserving good order, is keeping the schoolroom at a temperature of about sixty-five degrees, and well ventilated.
It will be found beneficial, and no21time will be lost, if a few minutes are spent between intermissions in taking some brisk physical exercise. During such exercise the windows may be lowered to change the air in the room.
These things are all important, as they help much in the building of a strong, clean, and pure character.—Home, Farm, and School.
Current Mention
— Yellow fever is reported at Havana, and yellow fever and bubonic plague at Rio Janeiro.
— The French government is facing a deficit on account of the great expense of the military preparations made when war with Germany over the Moroccan question seemed imminent. It is stated that these preparation cost France $50,000,000.
— By a large majority the lower house of Congress has voted to agree with the committee report on the meat inspection bill, recommending that the government bear the cost of the inspection. The packers are not to be required to state on the labels of canned meat the date when the contents of each can was put up.
— Attorney-General Moody has taken initial steps toward prosecution of the Standard Oil trust for violation of the Elkins Anti-rebate act and the Sherman Anti-trust law. Special sessions of the federal grand juries will be called in Chicago, Cleveland, Buffalo, and Kansas City, for the purpose of preparing indictments against the oil trust and against the railroads implicated in the granting of rebates. It is not expected that this prosecution will reach the higher officials of the Standard “system.”
— The most sensational step ever taken in the prosecution of illegal combines in this country was that of Judge Kinkade of Toledo, Ohio, who, on June 25, sentenced five prominent ice dealers in that city, who had combined to raise the price of ice, to one year in the workhouse and a fine of $5,000, the sentence being the maximum penalty provided by the law of that State. The judge stated that part of the term of imprisonment would be remitted provided the men made restitution of money extorted from the people, and ceased to operate as a trust.
— The pressure which the Douma is bringing to bear upon the czar to dismiss the Goremykin cabinet, and form a ministry which will defer to the wishes of the people, is greatly strengthened by alarming reports of disaffection in the army. A St. Petersburg dispatch says: “The government’s sudden fear of affronting public opinion after finding the army infected with the revolutionary propaganda is shown in the hurried grant of a new trial to seven men condemned to death at Riga, the acquittal of six others, and the commutation of death sentences imposed on the three murderers of the foreman of the Putiloff iron works. . . . The news from the provinces shows that a state of general anarchy is growing. The efforts of the agitators to induce the peasants working for landlords to strike are meeting with success. In Altarak and Taurida Provinces the peasants are abandoning the fields, and in Tula Province roving bands of peasants are marching through the country, dragging in their wake not only the workers from the fields, but the domestic servants of the gentry.” An uprising of a very serious character is reported on the part of the garrison of Osowiec, one of the great fortresses on the frontier of Poland.
— The following incident throwing a side-light on conditions in China is reported from Tientsin: “Yuan Shih Kai, viceroy of Chile, delivered an original judgment the other day in the case of five prisoners, who were liable to the death penalty. He gave them a chance of redemption by prayer. It is a period of extreme drought, and the viceroy ordered the men to pray for rain. If their prayers were not answered in three days, they were to be executed. There was a small rainfall, and the prisoners were liberated. The success of the experiment induced its repetition, and five other prisoners are now fervently praying for more rain on behalf of the community, but more particularly on behalf of themselves.”
— An incident showing the degree of ignorance and superstition which is harbored in darkest New York occurred June 27, when a report was in some way started among the Jewish East Side residents that Jewish children were being butchered in the schools. “Before eleven o’clock,” says the Sun, “more than 50,000 children were pushing and surging through the narrow streets south of Houston and east of the Bowery, school windows were being broken by maddened parents, window screens were being torn off, and mounted police, patrolmen, and roundsmen were charging the mobs in an effort to restore order.” It was necessary to dismiss the schools for the day. Who started the report could not be learned.
— At a conference of representatives of the nations, called last summer by King Victor Emmanuel, it was decided to establish an International Institute of Agriculture, and a protocol was drawn up accordingly. This was signed by the diplomatic representatives of forty nations, the only nation refusing to become a party to the institute being Santo Domingo. All the home governments have ratified the protocol, with the exception of the United States, and President Roosevelt has taken steps to secure its ratification by this country. The purpose of the institute is to gather and disseminate accurate information of the condition of the world’s supply of agricultural staples, for the common benefit of agriculture in all countries. The quantity of staples on hand in various producing countries and the condition of the growing crops are to be ascertained through the co-operation of the powers signatory to the protocol, and this information, collated and translated into the equivalent measures and values of each nation, is to be transmitted by cable simultaneously to all countries. Through this agency the agriculturists throughout the world will be made acquainted with the state of the world’s supply. It is expected that the International Institute will put an end to violent fluctuations in the price of food products by placing the world in possession of information now unavailable or guessed at.
The Virginia Conference Agency
By R. D. HOTTEL
The second annual meeting of the membership of the Virginia Conference Agency of Seventh-day Adventists, Incorporated, will be held in connection with the annual camp-meeting of the Virginia Conference, at Petersburg, Va., July 26 to Aug. 5, 1906. The first meeting will be held on Monday, July 30, at224 P. M. The delegates in session of the Virginia Conference compose the membership of the agency.
R. D. HOTTEL, Pres.
NOTICES AND APPOINTMENTS
Camp-Meetings for 1906
ATLANTIC UNION CONFERENCE
Virginia, Petersburg.......July 26 to Aug. 5
New Jersey........................Aug. 2-12
West Virginia.....................Aug. 16-26
New York (State)........Aug. 23 to Sept. 3
Vermont..................Aug. 23 to Sept. 3
Central New England....Aug. 31 to Sept. 10
Greater New York................Sept. 23—
CANADIAN UNION CONFERENCE
Ontario................Aug. 23 to Sept. 2
Quebec........................Sept. 6-16
SOUTHERN UNION CONFERENCE
Louisiana, Lake Charles...July 26 to Aug. 4
Georgia........................Aug. 2-12
South Carolina, Cowpens.........Aug. 9-19
Alabama.........................Aug. 16-26
Tennessee River, Nashville,
........................Aug. 23 to Sept. 2
Cumberland......................Sept. 6-16
North Carolina, High Point......Sept. 7-16
Florida, Lakeland...............Nov. 1-11
LAKE UNION CONFERENCE
Indiana, South Bend......July 25 to Aug. 2
Indiana, Seymour................Aug. 8-16
Southern Illinois, Pana.........Aug. 2-12
West Michigan, Hastings.........Aug. 9-19
Ohio............................Aug. 16-25
Wisconsin, Stevens Point..Aug. 22 to Sept. 3
East Michigan, Holly........Sept. 27 to Oct. 8
Northern Michigan, East Jordan,
.........................Aug. 30 to Sept. 10
Northern Illinois...............Sept. 5-15
NORTHERN UNION CONFERENCE
Alberta, Red Deer................July 10-17
CENTRAL UNION CONFERENCE
Nebraska, Aurora................July 19-29
Nebraska, Fremont...............Aug. 3-12
Nebraska, Beatrice..............Aug. 17-26
Nebraska, Lexington......Aug. 30 to Sept. 9
Colorado, Boulder........Aug. 23 to Sept. 3
Missouri, Versailles............Aug. 2-12
Kansas, Salina..................Aug. 9-19
SOUTHWESTERN UNION CONFERENCE
Texas, Alvarado.................Aug. 2-12
Texas, Buffalo Gap.......Aug. 23 to Sept. 3
Arkansas, Winslow...............Aug. 16-26
Oklahoma, Clinton...............July 17-23
Oklahoma, Kingfisher.....Aug. 23 to Sept. 2
PACIFIC UNION CONFERENCE
California, Eureka..............Aug. 16-26
California, Oakland.............July 19-20
Southern California, Los Angeles, Aug. 16-26
AUSTRALASIAN UNION CONFERENCE
Union Conference session, Cooranbong,
N. S. W.........................Sept. 13-23
EUROPEAN MEETINGS
German-Swiss, Lake Zurich.......July 5-9
Roman-Swiss and Latin Union, Gland,
Switzerland.....................July 10-15
German Union, Friedensau, Germany,
.................................July 19-29
British Union, near Birmingham...Aug. 3-12
Holland........................Aug. 16-19
France..........................Aug. 21-26
The presidents of the various conferences are requested to forward any additional information which will enable us to publish a complete and correct list of the camp-meetings appointed for the present season. If any changes are made, of either time or place of meetings already appointed, notice should be forwarded at once.
The South Carolina Camp-Meeting
By E. W. Webster
THIS meeting is to be held August 9-19, at Cowpens, a town on the Southern Railway, ten miles northeast of Spartanburg. Arrangements are being made to accommodate all who come, and we ask all our people in this State to lay plans at once to come. Please let me know soon if you expect to be there and will want a tent.
We expect help from the union conference, and possibly from the General Conference; and, best of all, we expect special help from the Lord. There will be plans formed for the more rapid advancement of the message, and special instructions given on various points of truth. Every Sabbath-Keeper in South Carolina should be present. Bring plenty of bedding and clothing. Seek the Lord before coming, and bring him with you. None can afford to miss this meeting. You need the help to be had there, and the work needs your help. Write me at Greenville, S. C., for any further information you may desire. E. W. WEBSTER, Director.
Publications Wanted
[SPECIAL NOTICE.—We learn that objectionable literature is being sent in response to these requests, and we urge all to examine with special care any periodicals or pamphlets received outside of our well-known denominational publications. Be sure that the literature which you distribute teaches the truth.—ED.]23
The following persons desire late, clean copies of our publications, post-paid:—
La V. B. Henry, Stroud, O. T., religious literature and tracts.
E. B. Winslow, Myricks, Mass., Signs, Instructor, REVIEW, etc.
Margaret Warnock, Springfield, Mo., literature for reading rack.
Sullivan Wareham, Greenville, S. C., REVIEW, Signs, Liberty, and tracts. Can use many each month.
The Virginia Annual Conference
By R. D. Hottel
The twenty-third annual session of the Virginia Conference will be held in connection with the camp-meeting at Petersburg, Va., July 26 to Aug. 5, 1906. The first meeting will be held on Friday, July 27, at 3 P. M. All delegates should be present at the first meeting.
R. D. HOTTEL, Pres.
The Wisconsin Conference Association
By C. McREYNOLDS
THE annual meeting of the Wisconsin Conference Association will be held in connection with the conference and camp-meeting at Stevens Point, at 9:30 A. M., Tuesday, August 28, for the election of officers and such other business as may properly come before the meeting. Questions pertaining to the purchase, sale, and holding of conference property should be brought before the conference at this time. All members in good standing in our churches are members of this association.
C. McREYNOLDS, Pres.
The Wisconsin Annual Conference
By C. McREYNOLDS
THE annual meeting of the Wisconsin Conference will be held in connection with the camp-meeting at Stevens Point, beginning August 22. We greatly desire that a good representation of people may be present at the beginning of the meeting, so that the conference business may be largely disposed of in the early part of the meeting, and thus several days be left free from business meetings, to be devoted wholly to the spiritual interests of those in attendance.
C. McREYNOLDS, Pres.
The Wisconsin Medical Missionary and Benevolent Association
By C. McREYNOLDS
THE annual meeting of the Wisconsin Medical Missionary and Benevolent Association will, be held on the camp-ground at Stevens Point, Monday, August 27, at 9:30 A. M., for the election of the board of trustees and the transaction of other business that may necessarily come before the meeting. We hope all the people who are members of the church will remember that they are members of this association; that they have a voice in the transaction of its business.
C. McREYNOLDS, Pres.
Georgia Camp-Meeting and Conference
By GEO. W. WELLS
THE next annual session of the Georgia Conference will be held in connection with the camp-meeting, Aug. 2-12, 1906.
Everything around us indicates that these are days of great peril. What is done for ourselves, our families, and our neighbors must be done soon. The controversy is growing sharper each year. Developments have taken place since our last meeting which should stir every loyal Seventh-day Adventist to intense earnestness.
A beautiful grove has been secured at Marietta, Ga., twenty miles north of Atlanta, on the W. & A. R. R. It can also be reached from Atlanta over the electric line. We greatly desire that this meeting shall be a spiritual feast to our people. We hope for a good attendance. Let none remain at home for trivial reasons. You are needed at the meeting, and you need to come. Plans must be laid to advance the work: Let us speak of it to one another, and urge those who are inclined to stay away to attend.
GEO. W. WELLS, Conf. Pres.
Wisconsin Annual Camp-Meeting
By C. McREYNOLDS
STEVENS POINT, the place selected for the annual camp-meeting and conference, is quite central in the State. The location is a beautiful and convenient one, being the fair-grounds, which are granted us for free and exclusive use, with the buildings, which are very convenient for dining-hall, book stand, storage, grocery, etc. The grounds are just at the end of Main Street, only one and one-half blocks from the large State Normal, with the best residence portion of the city immediately joining; thus we shall be able to reach the people very conveniently.
We trust that many of our people will come to the meeting, not only to get a blessing, but to be a blessing by working to interest others to attend the meetings. Youth and middle aged, and all those who are physically able to do so, can take part in carrying out the plans for this work. Even the children may have a part in it.
The best help will be furnished to bring to our people spiritual food. Special arrangements are being made for excellent help for the youth's meetings, and definite plans are arranged for the children to have two regular meetings daily. A series of lessons will be studied. All the church-school teachers, Bible workers, and some others will assist in conducting class work for the children. Parents, bring your children, and co-operate with the teachers by getting the children to the meetings on time. It will be a great blessing to them not only while on the grounds, but also after they return to their homes.
Never have our people needed the benefits of a camp-meeting more than they do this year. Some have been depressed by the dissensions that have arisen among us; such need the instruction and help which they can receive at the camp-meeting. God's message is onward, and there is no time to waste in parleying over minor questions. We must be so absorbed in the work of soul saving that we shall have no time to consider the weaknesses of others.
The usual rates of one and one-third fare for the trip will be given over the railroads. We have secured easy seats, made of canvas for seating the large tent. They are almost as easy as rocking-chairs. This was done at a very slight cost, and we know they will be much appreciated. The aged will enjoy them much. Every convenience will be provided for the comfort of those attending, that we may have a free time in seeking the Lord and in the study of his truth.
O that all may come with hearts filled with a desire for a better acquaintance with God! “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” Let us begin the heart searching now, and come bringing the blessing of God with us into the meeting.
We are encouraged to believe that this will be one of the largest meetings ever held in the State. Our people are planning to come from the far-distant corners of the conference. “Let no matter of common nature prevent any from attending these annual gatherings of God's people.”—“Testimonies,” Vol. VI.
C. McREYNOLDS, Pres.
The Southern Publishing Association, of Nashville, Tenn., Desires to Obtain Loans of Money
By George I. Butler
This institution, under the advice of the Southern Union Conference, and in harmony with the light given through the Testimonies that our public institutions should get out of the cities into the country, moved last winter to the outskirts of Nashville, putting up a building 120 x 70 ft., a very convenient building, indeed, for the publishing work. The old building was sold for $6,500, a very low price, for the sake of making this move. Three thousand five hundred dollars of this was paid down. The purchaser, a rich Jew, got sick of his bargain, and refused to pay the three thousand dollars remaining, and we either had to take it back or have a big lawsuit, lasting we knew not how long. So it was taken back, and, of course, this was a great disappointment to us, and caused us great anxiety and perplexity, but we thought the Lord was in it, and the prospect now is that we shall get several thousand dollars more for it in the near future than the price for which we sold it to the person in question.
But the cost of moving, and this particular disappointment, have placed us in some degree of embarrassment for ready money. As we are in debt, and our creditors wish their pay, we need money. This office has paid its bills as presented, and we can truly say that our credit in the city, so far as we know, is good. We do not intend to keep a large bank account, and wish to obtain money on low rates of interest, the same as our other offices pay,—that is, about four per cent,—and we should be very glad, indeed, if any of our friends could place in the office money without interest. Some have small sums of money that they would be glad to place in a safe position, where they could draw upon it any time. Others are willing to loan for a term of years. Of course, this latter class is the one most desirable, but we would be glad to get money even for a brief time, to bridge over some of these perplexing difficulties.
We ask our brethren in different parts of the country who can loan us money in this way to do so. It will be a great accommodation to us, and help us over the difficulties that have arisen from the circumstances we have mentioned. We were never more hopeful for the prosperity of the office than at the present time. Every new printing-office that has been originated among our people has had to pass through these particular difficulties. It was so with the dear old Review and Herald Office at Battle Creek; it was so with the Pacific Press, and with other institutions which have been organized among us, and this one is no exception. But these have outgrown their difficulties and become strong institutions, and we expect this will do the same, as the Testimonies of the Lord have spoken in behalf of this office, over and over, and it was brought into existence because of this light which came to us, and we believe it will successfully triumph over its difficulties. If our brethren are willing to trust us with some money at the present time, it will be very gratefully received.
GEO. I. BUTLER,
Pres. Southern Publishing Assn.
Notice!
By Wm. GUTHRIE
THE Maritime Conference will convene September 20-30. The place will be announced later. Wm. GUTHRIE.
