“The folks in Dr. House’s family say that they will miss us very much, and we are sorry to leave them. Is this not a wonderful thing that the Lord brought about for us to go to this school? It all came about in this way. Mrs. House went and talked to the ladies of Granville and told them about Siam, and told them about us. No other boys ever had such an offer as this. Then a few kind ladies of Waterford gave us sheets, pillowcases, towels and other things that we will need.

“It all came of the Lord, so blessed be His name forever. Give my love to all.

“Your affectionate son,
“Boon Itt.”

In spite of the devout expressions in this youthful letter, Boon privately intimated to friends that he had not altogether given up the religion of his native land. One who knew him well recalls that Boon said he still believed Buddhism in his heart and that he would return to it when he went back to Siam. Upon being asked why he then had made a profession of Christianity he said it was because Dr. Houses’ life was “so terrible”—by which he explained that the godly character of Dr. House overcame all his arguments against Christianity. He could not contemplate all that Dr. House was doing for him in the name of Christ and at the same time deny the Christian religion. His love for the doctor impelled him to declare for Christ.

Recalling now the influences of his early childhood, it will be evident that his private expression did not signify duplicity but rather indicated the presence of vague but unsolved problems. When a child who has been reared in a wholly Christian environment becomes converted, that process is chiefly a spiritual change. But for one brought up in the midst of pagan influences to change his religion means to change his entire character, ethical principles and even his theory of existence. Somewhere between these two extremes was the condition of Boon at the time of his joining the Church. His conviction concerning the Christian religion, encouraged by the influence of his dearest friends, enabled him to make a confession of faith. But his heart outran his head. In his mind there were still unexpressed but perplexing questions.

The nature of one of these questions is shown by an incident quoted by Dr. Eakins:

“At one time, in his sophomore year, if my memory serves me correctly, he went to call upon the minister who served as pastor to the students, and the minister asked him to tell of any special difficulties he found in the way of becoming a professor of religion. After a thoughtful pause Mr. Boon Itt said that his chief difficulty was that he could not see that there was a personal God. The minister thought that he was caviling, and he reproved him for trifling with the truth. From that time on the minister had lost his opportunity to do the young student any good in a spiritual way. Sometime afterward, through the gracious operation of the Holy Spirit in his heart, he was brought to see that truth, to recognise the love of God in Christ, and to accept salvation through the Cross. It had been a long slow process, as it is usually with the Siamese, but it was complete. He was convinced beyond the possibility of a doubt, and he made a full surrender of himself to do his Master’s will.”

Perhaps the incident referred to occurred during the period of religious awakening among the students of Williams College, which took place while Boon was there. The common spiritual invigoration reacted with unusual power upon the individual whose mind was seeking light. That revival served to quicken his spiritual life and enabled him to make safely the transition from the youthful stage of habit and training, across the frail bridge of doubt that spanned the chasm of unbelief. By it he entered into a conscious experience of grace and assumed a volitioned course of life directed by personal devotion to Jesus Christ. The seed of the Gospel planted by maternal teaching and nurtured by the affectionate training of foster parents now, under the warmth of the Spirit and the dew of holy emotions, flowered into a full-blown religious character of rare beauty and fragrance. How real that conversion was is indicated by the reply which Boon gave to a fellow-student in the seminary who, interested to know what might be the sense of sin for a man while still in paganism, inquired of him what his experience had been; to which he replied, “I did not know that I had sin until I became a Christian.”

APPOINTMENT TO THE FIELD

Having made ready for return to Siam, Boon Itt met another severe test of his consecration in the question of appointment by the Foreign Board. Unfortunately the problem was made more difficult for him by the very kindly intentions of his friends in America who apparently did not recognise the fundamental principle involved. As the work in foreign lands had developed it had become the policy of mission Boards to magnify the native church, and to place upon it as rapidly as possible the increasing responsibility for managing its own affairs, as distinguished from the affairs of the missions. The development of a strong native church in each country necessitated that ordained natives should share, not the supposed advantages of foreign missionaries, but the actual conditions of their fellow native Christians. For this reason, along with others of a kindred nature, the Board had arrived at the policy not to commission as a missionary any native, however well qualified. Provision was made that the mission in the field might employ such workers according to their judgment.