Mr. Wheeler returned from his visit to the United States in October, 1868, accompanied by Mrs. Wheeler, and the Misses Parmelee and Baker; and they were met, six hours or nearly twenty miles out, by the Harpoot and village pastors, and quite a delegation from the city. The last day was a constant succession of welcomes. As they drew near the city, they saw a large crowd on the hill, with a white flag. It was the theological students drawn up in a line; and next, the women and girls of the school; and then men, women, and children crowded to greet them. It was the spontaneous expression of love to those who had told them of Christ and his salvation.
The return of Dr. David H. Nutting from the United States to the Central mission, in the autumn of 1868, led him to speak of the progress of civilization at Aleppo. "All the stations of this mission are now connected with this city by telegraph, while it is connected with Constantinople. A line from here to Killis, Aintab, and Marash, has just been constructed. We have French and Russian, as well as Turkish, posts. A semi-weekly paper called the "Frat" (Euphrates), is printed here, in three languages—Arabic, Armeno-Turkish, and Arabo-Turkish. The streets are being repaved and widened in some places, and street-lamps are put up. A carriage-road from here to Alexandretta, the sea-port, is to be built immediately."
John Concordance, the blind preacher at Havadoric, died at that place in March, 1869, greatly beloved and lamented, and not by his own people alone. The Armenians vied with the Protestants in attending to the burial services, and especially in seeing that Hohannes' particular requests were carried out to the letter, and both classes were genuine mourners at his grave. His influence in the matter of consecrating one tenth of one's income has been extensively felt; and he practiced what he preached. His salary was only eight dollars a month, and although he had a wife and child to support from this, he never failed of giving one tenth into the "store-house;" thus leaving but little more than seven dollars for the monthly support of himself and family.
In the year 1868, Dr. Schneider, after a residence at Aintab of a score of years, returned again to Broosa. It was natural for him to review the progress of the good work at Aintab during his connection with it, and his statement will interest the reader.
"I preached my first sermon in Aintab to a company of twenty-five or thirty in the year 1848. Now, the average audience is near one thousand, and often rises to twelve or fifteen hundred. Then, there was a church of only eight members; now, there are two churches, containing three hundred and seventy-three members. Then, the entire community of Protestants numbered only forty souls, while at present there are nineteen hundred, small and great. The number has become so large, that a division into two separate congregations became a necessity; and while there was then hardly any native laborer, now two able native pastors are settled over these two churches. In the beginning, next to nothing was done in the way of self-support and general benevolence; while now, these communities pay the salaries of their pastors and school-teachers, and all their other expenses. Besides this, nearly five hundred dollars in gold were given for general benevolence, and more than nine hundred towards a second church edifice. All this in a community where a day-laborer receives thirteen and a half cents per day, and a mason or carpenter thirty-two cents. In view of their poverty, and the exactions of the government, this is extraordinary liberality. More than one half of the male members of these churches give a tithe of their income to benevolent objects.
"In the beginning, we worshipped in a private house; but for many years a large church edifice has been filled, and a second one, for the benefit of the second church, will be completed in a few months. At first, there was no school through the week, or on the Sabbath; now, there are seven common schools, with nearly four hundred pupils, and a Sabbath-school averaging a thousand, which has been as high as sixteen hundred. More than a score of pastors and preachers have been trained at Aintab, most of whom are still in the service, and a large number have been sent forth as teachers and colporters into the surrounding regions. Finally, when the Gospel was first preached in Aintab, the Protestants were despised and persecuted; while now, they are not only recognized as a regular community, with rights and privileges, but they have acquired for themselves a name, respect, and influence."
CHAPTER XLIII.
THE ARMENIANS.
1869-1872.
The year 1870 commenced at Marash with another revival. A thousand persons were present at the prayer-meeting on the 3d of January, which was admirably conducted by Pastor Murad. The missionaries, though present, did not deem it necessary to assist him. Fifty-three new members were received into the two churches, and a much larger number offered themselves for admission. Successful efforts were made to reach the women, who were visited in their own homes by the wives of students in the theological school, and by the older scholars in the girls' school. The number of houses thus visited during six weeks, was three hundred and eight, and there were fifty-five prayer-meetings.