The American Missionary — Volume 35, No. 8, August, 1881Various
Religion
The American Missionary — Volume 35, No. 8, August, 1881
Various
Congregational churches -- Missions -- Periodicals; Home missions -- Periodicals
They are said to be
remarkably fine singers, and are fond of music. They manufacture
great quantities of cloth and various other articles of a superior
quality. They are, however, reported to be the husbands of many
wives, counting their honors by the number of their wives. The
rivers that drain this region afford an imperfect approach to the
country, but are available for considerable distances. Let the
means and the men be found, and this healthier and more promising
country can soon be captured for Christ. It is only a question of
time. This push for the interior must soon be made, and a larger
and better work must soon be inaugurated.
BRIEF EXTRACTS FROM THE JOURNAL.
On Wednesday, March 23d, we sighted the point of Sierra Leone by
early dawn. The country as approached from the sea is beautiful.
The serrated Lion Mountains slope to the water’s edge, covered
with a luxuriance of tropical vegetation. The city of Freetown at
a little distance appears comparatively well built. The public
buildings are large and attract immediate attention, the streets
are wide and regularly laid out; and the whole external aspect
strikes one as much finer than what is naturally expected on this
coast; but a nearer view suggests the truth of the old saying that
“Familiarity breeds contempt.” The stay here was short, but into
the time was crowded a variety of strange and novel experiences.
From this point the mission boat “Olive Branch” carried us to
Good Hope Station, on Sherbro Island, where we landed late in the
evening of March 30th. This trip of about one hundred and twenty
miles occupied three days and two nights, and was, perhaps, the
most trying part of our journey. We experienced several severe
tornadoes on the way, and suffered from the intense glare of the
sun, now nearly vertical, and the difficulty of procuring proper
food. Having reached the mission house, we at once made ourselves
as much at home as possible. Thursday, March 31st, we were all
up at an early hour, and went out before the intense heat of the
day to inspect the grounds and buildings. The fine property of
the mission had evidently suffered in many ways from neglect. All
the buildings stood in need of repairs, and a large portion of
the grounds, including the little cemetery where Barnabas Root is
buried, was overgrown with bush. The spiritual condition of the
church and station seemed also to bear some resemblance to its
outward condition. It was not hopeless, but somewhat depressed.
The grounds in the immediate vicinity of the mission house gave
evidence, however, that the missionaries had neither forgotten to
exercise their taste, nor been wasteful of the small force and
slender means at their command. So, also, the spiritual condition
of the station presented some encouraging features. The warm
reception which Mr. Kemp and his wife received on every side gave
some reason to hope that the church would yet nourish under his
judicious care.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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