Mr. Shelton At Northfield Again.
Mr Moody is nothing if not practical, and when he undertakes a thing he is apt to push it through. We give below another pleasant illustration of this. Our readers will remember that Rev. C.W. Shelton two years ago made an address at the great Missionary Meeting at Northfield, Mass., which touched the sympathies of the audience and moved Mr. Moody at once to "do something about it." Under his inspiration three thousand five hundred dollars were raised to establish several new Indian mission stations in Dakota.
At Mr. Moody's solicitation, Mr. Shelton attended the Northfield Missionary Meeting this year, making report of what had been done with the money given before. The enthusiasm of the audience was again kindled, with a result which we give below, condensing the sketch of the meeting as given in the Springfield Union.
The meeting opened with prayer by Major D.W. Whittle, and then Rev C.W. Shelton of New York City, who is connected with the American Missionary Association, spoke about the work among the Indians. He said that two years ago the people of Northfield gave money enough to establish five mission stations; and he would first report on the work in those missions. The first one had been established one hundred and fifty miles northwest of Bismarck, and was called the Moody station. Having found two classes of people thirty miles apart, both of whom seemed to be equally in need, we had been in doubt as to where to plant the station; but finally a man was found whose parentage included both nations, and who was willing and able to preach to both in their own language. We had, therefore, started two stations, calling them both by the same name, and with this man managing them. People had told him that he couldn't do anything in the interior of the country occupied by the Indians, but he described his meeting with the Indians at that remote place, and their willingness to receive the gospel, one of the chiefs finally saying to him: "When you go back I want you to take that man by the hand that sent that school and thank him, and tell him that we will try to live like the white man." The speaker accordingly took Mr. Moody's hand and thanked him in those words, raising a perfect storm of applause by so doing.
The next mission was called the Frederick Darling Memorial mission, and was established sixty miles below Bismarck. There was good work going on there. Sixty miles farther down still there was located the Robert Remington Memorial mission, and the reservation had since then been opened up for settlement, as they had prophesied, and, as the Indians came up the valley, driven out from their homes, there stood a man at the door of the mission, who invited them in, and so to-day there were gathering round that mission hundreds of Indians, forsaking their tepees, building their houses and taking the first steps toward civilization.
On Cherry Creek, the Sankey mission was located, and, although it was not two years since that work was begun, they had a church of about forty members.
The funds for the Northfield mission were given by quite a number of people here and the Indians who could be reached by it from the opening of the reservation during the last few months had nearly doubled. They had organized one church only a few weeks ago some distance off, and expected to organize another there within a few months.
"What do you want now?" said Mr. Moody at this point. Mr. Shelton replied: "We haven't a dollar for carrying on a single one of these missions after the first of September. It costs from $300 to $350 to carry each of them on. But I believe that God has started this work and will carry it on. Let me add a word with regard to the whole Indian problem. It is not the problem I presented to you two years ago; it has changed in the two years, and, thank God, it will change in two years more, if we do the work we ought to. Do we realize that our Indians are getting beyond the wild life? Forty thousand Indian people have come out of the tepee life into little homes that these Indian men have built for themselves, taking their people forward toward Christ. We talk of the Indian in his paint and blanket, forgetting that he is coming forth into life. His game is gone, his wild roving life is gone, his reservation is going. They understand their position; the old life is back of them forever. What is before them? Old Gall showed a scar reaching from his shoulder to his hip, and said: 'A white man gave me that; shall I trust him, dare I trust him, can I trust him?' The Indian takes a step ahead, and stops and trembles, doesn't know if he dare take another.
"Do you want to know the solution of the Indian problem to-day? In Christ's love take the Indians by the hand and lead them out into the same light, the same love, and to the same Christ that you have. You can talk about the government and land in severalty. Grand and good as these are, the first and all-important thing in that problem is the gospel of Christ. It must do it, it can do it, it is doing it, it will do it. The Women's Missionary Societies of fifteen Indian churches gave $200 more for home missionary work outside themselves than the Women's Missionary Societies in one hundred and forty churches of white people in the same time. They have Christian Endeavor societies there, and all kinds of Christian work. I saw one morning delegates from the Christian Endeavor Society going out to teach a white Sunday-school nine miles off in one direction, and another similar school four and one-half miles off in another.
"It is said that the young people will go back to the blanket. In ten years we have had only one case of that in our Santee school, and that was the case of a young girl who had only been in the school six months; 95 per cent. of all that come to the schools go back consecrated young men and women.
"When you think that your five stations have gathered in two or three hundred scholars and of the possibility for each, can you tell what will be the result of this work? There are thirty thousand poor Indians in Dakota alone, lifting up their cry to the Christian church for light and hope." He added: "I have turned my back to many storms on the Dakota prairies, but God grant you may never turn your back on a soul praying for light. I sometimes dread the day of judgment, because there is to stand the Indian. I would rather stand there in his place than to hear him say: 'I was hungry and ye gave me no food.' How shall we meet it, how shall we answer it? for to meet it and answer it we must before the throne."
Here Mr Shelton finished and sat down. "Now let's pay our debts," said Mr. Moody. "How many people will give $100 toward that $1,800 for sustaining those missions?" It didn't seem as though there were many responses at first, but in a few minutes eighteen names were handed to H.M. Moore of Boston, who was keeping account, and then Mr. Moody asked if there wasn't anything else he wanted—a new mission anywhere? Mr. Shelton of course said there was, and spoke of a place on the Rosebud Agency where $500 was needed to build a school, and $300 to take care of it for a year. Here was Mr. Moody's chance again, and he asked if some one wouldn't give $100 for that. One or two contributions of $100 were forthcoming, and any number of fifties came in, so that it was only a few minutes when Mr. Moore announced that they had $875 for that. Then Mr. Moody said he wanted to have the people start one more new mission and proposed that unfailing American resource, a collection. The hats were soon busy in all parts of the house, and at the end of the meeting it was found that $640 had been collected for another mission, making a grand total of $3,315.04, to be exact, raised within twenty minutes, for the work among the Dakota Indians. Mr. Moody looked more bright and cheerful than he has during the conference, as he kept calling for more contributions, and his method of applying for one seldom failed. "Col. Esty, of Brattleboro, isn't here, but he's all right, so we'll put him down for $100," he remarked, as the interest flagged for a moment, and that was the signal for a laugh and another name was sent up. Altogether it was the most enthusiastic and thoroughly roused audience of the session.