The Norwegian Lutheran Synods in America have also been engaged in mission work among the heathen, as follows: the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America has its field at Hupeh and Honan, China, with 70 missionaries and 873 native workers; in southeastern Madagascar, with 31 missionaries and 450 native workers; in Natal including Zululand, South Africa, with 8 missionaries; among the Indians of Wisconsin, with 2 missionaries; among the Eskimos of Alaska, with 3 missionaries. (The figures are for 1927.) The Norwegian Lutheran Free Church has its fields in southwestern Madagascar and Honan, China; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (Elling Synod), among the Indians of Wisconsin; the Lutheran Synod of the Brethren, in Honan, China. In addition to these synodical missions, the Norwegian Lutherans of America have conducted independent missions among the Jews of Palestine, Russia and the United States, the Santals of India, the Nestorians of Chaldea, the Mohammedans of Kurdistan and the Negroes of the Southern States and the Soudan. Both Catholics and Reformed have, during the last century, been energetic in missionary work. In 1926 about 750 Protestant Missionary Societies were in existence, carrying on missionary work amongst the heathen in every part of the world. Four hundred and fifty of these societies were working in Asia, 200 in Africa, 200 in North America, 110 in South America, 60 in Australia and the South Sea Islands. The earliest Bible society was the Canstein of Halle, founded in 1712. The largest Bible society is the British and Foreign Bible Society, founded in 1804. It has translated the Bible or parts of it into many languages and dialects, and has distributed about 400,000,000 Bibles and New Testaments. There are also other important Bible societies, of which we shall mention two: the Norwegian Bible Society, organized in 1816, which has issued about 3,000,000 Bibles and New Testaments; the American Bible Society, organized in 1816, which has issued over 185,000,000 Bibles and New Testaments. In 1926 the Bible was translated into 800 languages and dialects. Of 10 million copies given away in 1926, China alone got almost 4 million copies. The Gospel has never before been preached in so many countries as at present, but yet the prophecy is far from being fulfilled, that there shall be one Flock and one Shepherd. In 1927 the population of the world was 1,850,000,000; and of these only 683,000,000 were nominally Christians, while 15,000,000 were Jews, 209,000,000 were Mohammedans, and 943,000,000 were heathen. 10. A Brief Sketch of the Holy Land