RR 0 Rr Library of Che Theological Seminary PRINCETON ° NEW JERSEY +0 =< D PRESENTED BY Dr. Donald BX 5995 .E62 Tomes, Margaret A. Julia Chester Emery iy ie Ms Ay ‘ t's Ye ah idiaty “y Re. A ‘ j nhl? . i -) eee PAS we DA en ea my Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2022 with funding from Princeton Theological Seminary Library https://archive.org/details/juliachesteremerO0tome Julia Chester Emery 5) So i FES eg : $ ey Bae Pee: as ss: 8 Ga ee ie ae From a charcoal drawing made by her sister, Helen W. Emery Julia Chester Emery Being the Story of Her Life and Work By Margaret A. Tomes eo Wi0 ta Nes AALS tlh vairay, to the National Council Protestant Episcopal Church 281 Fourth Avenue, New York 1924 Printed by EARNSHAW PRESS CORPORATION BOSTON, MASS. 1924 To the Two Sisters MARGARET THERESA and HELEN WINTHROP EMERY this volume 1s affectionately dedicated by the author Foreword ULIA CHESTER EMERY, of whom it has recently been said, and most truthfully, “was more widely known and more universally beloved than any one in the American Church,” was nevertheless the humblest, gen- tlest, and most self-effacing of women. When I was asked to write the story of Miss Emery’s life, and mentioned the fact to a mutual friend, she at once remarked, “Why, no one could possibly fill a book with what Julia did. There is nothing to write about.” I recognized at once this was not from any lack of appreciation on the part of our friend, and also for the first time saw how true it was. There is no one great achievement which stands today as a monument to her memory. The Woman’s Auxiliary itself, of which one can never think as disassociated from her, was organized by another, her sister; the work was carried on and developed “ chiefly,” as she writes herself, in her short history of the Woman’s Auxiliary, a leaflet Called A> Half-Century of Progress’ (W. A. 122), “ through the voluntary service so unstintedly given and which no earthly record can ever show, which diocesan and parochial officers have rendered.”’ Yes, itis true. She didn’t do anything one could write about. Yet again, the contrary is also true, for the Woman’s Auxiliary itself is a triumphant monument, not so much to what she did, as to what she was. It is to this, her remarkable personality, and unswerving faith and devotion to duty, that we owe the far-reaching and inspiring influence that has made her name a sacred byword throughout the Church. In this unworthy sketch of her life’s history I have endeavoured to portray her character, not so much by describing her as she appeared to one privileged to be her intimate friend for fifty years, as by the relating of incidents and anecdotes as I knew them, leaving it to others to draw such inspiration as they may need to go . “right onward,’ and hoping to awaken in them a desire to follow where she led. Failing in this, I have failed utterly in the task IJ set myself to do. M. A. T. Fuly, 1923 CHAPTER I I] Table of Contents New ENGLAND ANCESTRY AND EDUCATION EARLY YEARS OF THE WOMAN'S AUXILIARY Visits TO ENGLAND AROUND THE WORLD RESULTS OF Forty YEARS’ LABOUR LookinG Back—1l. REMINISCENCES LooKING Back—2. BEGINNINGS HoME AND ParisH LIFE LABOUR OF LOVE ANNIVERSARIES THE J UBILEE CELEBRATED CLOSE OF A COMPLETED LIFE WorRDS OF APPRECIATION 103 111 118 a ese mat = —) i vty i ra ie “a Us 4 s 5 ksh ae List of Illustrations Pra ere ees Vee oy Cel ee ed eg Sait TONUSPIECe Captain Charles Emery AY NW Sea Sa Vr a 1B MIN piace Worchester, ViaSSQChUselise Vi ee ee TS BEN RRICT Ia Oe oil Sony Wie he WAR Vara erat ar eed a ACAI A CATSAAICMINEW NY OFK Wee tym score OM RE Three Sisters in the Home PMA EN aL hg oem Lumiere 8 PAL AD POLL ZINES TNC GES SO OLATSAGIE he oa, at ADS ISIC Ae i MN ee em ane ean ee me TB Ai OMB L fen by wet c, hh a a oy ; ny As, Deena a ae - ; ne 7 > s : CapTAIN CHARLES EMERY CHAPTER | New England Ancestry and Education N the year 1831, while yet a mere lad, Charles Emery left Springfield, Massachusetts, where he was born, in 1816, and where he attended the Old High School on Spring Street from its opening, in 1828, to follow the calling of his father and grandfather and begin his sea- faring career. On his fifteenth birthday he started on his first voyage, sailing on the ship Eclipse, from Salem, for Manila and Canton, being gone for a period of thirteen months. Five years later he was offered the command of the brig Swan, destined for the west coast of South America. This he accepted, and made the voyage around Cape Horn as captain when but three months over twenty years of age. He spent two years on that coast, visiting all of its principal ports. These voyages, and many others, took him to various distant countries, such as Calcutta, the West Indies, and also to Peru, to carry naval stores for the United States fleet at the Rio de Janeiro station, where he sold his vessel to the Russian Government of Kamtchatka, and came back via Callao, Peru, and the Isthmus of Panama. After remaining at home for about two years, he bought another brig and loaded it with material for a shipyard in Hong Kong, then lately acquired by the English. This trip required a passage of one hundred and sixty-four days. His policy generally was to carry a sailing vessel, with its cargo, to some point in the 13 14 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Far East or South, sell both ship and cargo, and return as a passenger on another vessel. In the year 1840 Captain Emery married Susan Hilton Kelly, daughter of the Hon. John Kelly, of Exeter, New Hampshire. Mr. Kelly was graduated from Dartmouth College in 1804. He was Registrar of Probate, Representative to the State Legislature, Member of the Governor’s Council, Trustee of Dartmouth College, and Treasurer of Phillips Academy, Exeter. He was a man of high character and manifold accomplishments; was a peacemaker and a most genial associate, attracting to himself a host of friends and admirers. He was, withal, a man of keen wit, quick repartee, and a prince of story-tellers. Mrs. Emery was born in 1821, in Northwood, New Hampshire, and died in her eightieth year in New York City, a charming, gentle, lovable woman of good old New England stock, whom everyone learned to love; whose intense interest in and love for missions was surely imparted to her children. Three years after his marriage Captain Emery aban- doned the sea, moved his family from Springfield to Dorchester, Massachusetts, and became interested in several coal and copper mining companies, and later was Secretary and Treasurer of the Pewabic and Franklin Mining Companies, having an office in Boston. In the winter of 1878, in the interests of the cedar and mahogany trade, he explored the river Amazon in order to obtain supplies of the valuable woods of the tropics. At one time he took charge of an expedition, and carried the United States flag where it had never been before, several hundred miles up the Amazon. He later made another voyage to Para, Brazil, and thence went to Manaos, one thousand miles further up the ae ys 7 : aser4 : 0 ele” . » ¥ ‘ = bd 7 e : la s > ad r a, 7 Ds e*. «>» ie i ‘| 7 as i * i. ad 2 , 745 wy < : a we e ¥ 2 —_ a :: a= a) @ iP : 4. >. ¥ . “— a 7s; ; ~ 4 a Cs ae ww pe iL a8 : a et ce “as La > Pil F226 aE dic , a | du ‘ SLLASAHOVSSVJ\] ‘AALSAHOUOG ‘AYINY YILSAHD VITAL 4O AOVIdHLUIG NEW ENGLAND ANCESTRY AND EDUCATION 15 Amazon, to establish a branch for a rubber house in Boston in the heart of the rubber country. Returning home in June, 1882, he lived quietly with his family in Dorchester until his death, on January 3, 1890, in his seventy-fourth year.* In the records of the Boston Marine Society, of which for two or three years Captain Emery was president, we find the following tribute: “‘ He was a typical sea-captain of the old merchant service, that fast vanishing class of fine old men who delighted in recalling memories of the old days when they sailed the high seas, before steam had supplanted the slow sailing ships.”’ These were the parents of Julia Chester Emery, who was their fourth daughter and fifth child, subsequently becoming one of a family of eleven children. It is worthy of note that all of her emigrant ancestors, so far as is known, came to this country from some part of England, the earliest recorded date being 1635; and also, that she inherited a unique genealogy, her father being descended from Anthony Emery, second son of John and Agnes Emery, the English ancestors, and her mother being descended from the eldest son, John Emery. The Emerys also inherited an unmixed New England ancestry, among whom were five Colonial Governors (see page 18). No member of the eight generations on one side and seven on the other is known to have resided elsewhere than in New England until the year 1865, when her eldest brother, John Abbot Emery, settled in Cali- fornia. Julia was born in Dorchester on September 24, 1852, and was baptized by the Rev. E. L. Drown on the 26th of the following June in St. Mary’s Parish Church, * From “‘ History of the Old High School,” on Spring Street, Springfield, Massa- chusetts, by C. W. Chapin. 16> JULIA CHESTER EMERY Dorchester. It is interesting to know that Captain Emery was born and brought up in the Unitarian Church and that Mrs. Emery was a Congregationalist, but after their marriage, and when their eldest daughter, Mary, had “‘ come to years of discretion,” they, with her, were confirmed and became communicants of the Church. Julia herself was confirmed by Bishop Eastburn at the age of thirteen. | Little is known of Julia’s childhood or school-days, except that she was graduated from the Dorchester High School and studied for one winter at the Normal School in Boston. She also attended, as a boarding pupil, St. Catherine’s Hall, in Augusta, Maine, but being too far advanced for its course of study was withdrawn at the end of six months. Several characteristic anecdotes are recalled of her during this period. Though usually a very quiet and retiring girl, she is said once to have led her class in an act of rebellion. When the Headmaster, who was a devoted student of Milton, had kept the English class on the study of “‘ Paradise Lost”’ beyond the time allotted for it, he met the students one morning each armed with his or her copy of Shakespeare, having left the Milton at home. The Master sadly and reluctantly accepted the rebuke, and the study of Shakespeare began. It was Julia’s habit, according to the general custom, to prepare her lessons at home for the following day, but she devoted only so long a period as she thought right and fair. After spending a certain number of hours on her work, she would close her books whether or no her task were completed, and would then turn her attention to other duties. It must have been this same trait showing itself in later years when at work at the Mission Rooms, for on closing her office for the day, the moment NEW ENGLAND ANCESTRY AND EDUCATION 17 she turned the key in the lock she would at once dismiss any thought of work and talk of other things until the following morning when she entered her office again at nine o'clock. This was a daily habit, showing that when she had accomplished her task for the day, she recognized the time had come for a needed recreation, and to it was probably due the wonderful physical endurance which enabled her to continue her work uninterruptedly for so many years. She and her sisters constantly amused themselves with the writing of nonsense rhymes, and large books of manuscript verse now exist full of these and more serious writings. Julia’s translation of the “Iliad” while at school was always given in English verse, and was much commended. She was clever also at writing acrostics and riddles, though her verses spoke more often of the religious life. GENEALOGY PATERNAL Father — Charles Emery, born in Springfield, Massachusetts, 1816; died in Dorchester, 1890. Grandfather — Robert Emery, born in Newburyport, Massa- chusetts; died in Springfield. Entered Harvard University, and through loss of property did not graduate, but went to sea and became master of a vessel at age of twenty. Mary Lyman, his wife, was the daughter of the Hon. Samuel Lyman, a lawyer, and graduate of Yale University. State Senator, 1790-1793; member of United States Congress during Washington’s administration, 1795-1800. Great-Grandfather — John Emery, born 1746; died at sea, 1787. The first sea captain in the family. Great-Great-Grandfather — Noah Emery, a staunch patriot, who had an important hand in staying the destinies of New Hampshire. Admitted to the Bar, 1725, the first lawyer who ever resided in the State of Maine. , 18. JULIA CHESTER EMERY MATERNAL Mother — Susan Hilton Kelly, born 1821; died 1901. Grandfather — Hon. John Kelly, born 1786; died 1860. Gradu- ated from Dartmouth College in 1804. Great-Grandfather — William Kelly, graduate of Harvard Uni- versity, ordained minister in Warner, New Hampshire, 1772. The house built by him was the first in the town with two stories. When he first settled there were but fifteen houses in the town, and about as many glass windows. His wife, Lavinia Bayley, was the daughter of Abner Bayley, graduate of Harvard, ordained minister of the Church in Salem, New Hampshire. Great-Great-Grandfather—Hon. John Kelly, who was a learned antiquary, and lawyer of high character. He was a peacemaker, dis- couraging all unnecessary litigation. He demonstrated it was possible to be a lawyer and at the same time a Christian gentleman, controlled by his convictions of duty and teachings of the Bible. THE FIvE GovERNORS FROM WuHom SHE Was DESCENDED George Wyllys Samuel Symonds John Winthrop Thomas Dudley Simon Bradstreet CHAPTER II Early Years of the Woman’s Auxiliary F Captain Emery’s eleven children, eight were daughters, two dying in early youth, and one of the three sons was accidentally drowned while quite a young man. The other two sons* entered the ministry, and three of the daughters gave their lives to the missionary work of the Church. The elder son, John Abbot Emery, became Archdeacon of California, but was retired after a service of twenty years. The younger, William Stanley Emery, is, at this time of writing, rector of St. Paul’s Church, Concord, New Hampshire. The eldest of the eight daughters, Mary Abbot Emery, left home at an early age to teach, going to Rockland, a small town in the State of Maine. When the General Convention sitting in Baltimore, October 16, 1871, adopted the resolutionst authorizing the women of the * The Venerable John Abbot Emery, D.D., Archdeacon of California, died in London, England, Thursday morning, November 16, 1922. Was buried in Highgate Cemetery. Resolutions } Resolved, That this Board, recognizing the tested value of organizations of Christian women in prosecuting the work of Christ and His Church, hereby recom- mends that measures be immediately taken for the engrafting such Association as may hereafter be organized under the constitutional provisions of this Board, upon the already existing missionary organizations of this Church, whether by the formation of “ Sisterhoods Auxiliary,” or otherwise, in such manner as may be deemed most practicable and expedient. Resolved, That the suggestions contained in this Report (of Committee on Organized Work of Women in the Church) as to the organization of a Woman’s Society Auxiliary to the Board of Missions be referred to the Reverend Secretaries of the various departments of this Board, with power to mature such organization as may seem to them practicable and expedient, and submit it to the consideration of the Church at large, through The Spirit of Missions. Both resolutions were unanimously adopted. 19 20 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Church to organize as an Auxiliary to the Board of Missions, she accepted a call to become its first Secretary. She took up the work in New York on the 2nd of January, 1872, establishing her headquarters at 21 Bible House, a room rented by the Missionary Society for its Woman’s Auxiliary, where its committees had their own rooms. This was the first official recognition of women’s work by the general Church. : Miss Emery’s first effort was to get into touch with all women’s societies already existing, and to bring them under one organization along diocesan and _ parochial lines. The Board of Missions had previously approached the Ladies’ Domestic Missionary Relief Association with a view to making it a nucleus for the new society. This Association was organized November 3, 1868, at Grace Church in New York, by the Rev. Dr. Alvi T. Twing, Secretary of the Domestic Committee, having for its object the supplying of clothing and other necessary articles to be sent to “ our more than one hundred and fifty missionaries and their families in our Domestic field.” It seemed a fitting suggestion, as two of the Associa- tion’s othcers, Dr. Twing, its Treasurer, and Miss Bul- finch, Associate Editor of The Young Christian Soldier, its Corresponding Secretary, were already associated with the Board of Missions. The remaining officers, though all of the diocese of New York, had yet working with them one parish in the diocese of Albany, one in Central New York, four in Connecticut, one in Illinois, one in Long Island, two in Massachusetts, two in New Jersey, one each in Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, and two in Vermont. However, the Association, when thus ap- proached, not caring to enlarge its scope of interest and EARLY YEARS OF THE WOMAN’S AUXILIARY 21 embrace work for the Indian and Negro, nor for those in foreign and heathen lands, declined to accept this oppor- tunity and privilege. We would like to record here that two years later, with loving patience and skill on Miss Emery’s part, and generosity and unselfishness on the part of the Association, it gracefully conceded to pressure and resolved the New York parish societies into the Domestic Committee of the New York Branch, and set free those of the other dioceses to connect themselves with their respective diocesan branches. Disappointed in their attempt with the Ladies’ Domestic Missionary Relief Association, the Secretaries then called Miss Emery and announced her appointment as General Secretary in a letter sent to rectors throughout the Church, asking their co-operation in the new enter- prise by the appointment of a secretary in each parish. To the fifteen hundred letters sent some three hundred favorable replies were received. This, with the delicate and tactful work of Miss M. A. Emery in dealing with existing societies of women throughout the Church, was the beginning of the Woman’s Auxiliary. She held her position a little more than four years, when on March 24, 1876, she handed in her resig- nation to become the wife of the Rev. Dr. A. T. Twing. Subsequently, that is in 1883, after the death of her husband, she was appointed Honorary Secretary, and in that capacity gave a voluntary and very valuable service until her death in San Francisco, in 1901, while attending General Convention in that city. A second daughter, Susan Lavinia, had already been associated with the Board as Associate Editor of The Young Christian Soldier, succeeding Miss Maria H. Bulfinch. In 1874 she resigned, to be in her turn suc- ceeded by her sister Julia, who for two years continued 20 JULIA CHESTER EMERY the work of editing this missionary magazine for children, which the previous year had been changed from a monthly to a weekly publication, and had also absorbed that other paper for young people called The Carrier Dove. Julia became thus the third member of the family to give her time and talents to the Church’s Missionary Society. But these were not all, for when Mary resigned the secretaryship of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and Julia. was elected to that office, a fourth sister came to New York to take up the editorship, and held it until the Soldier itself ceased to be published. This fourth sister, Margaret Theresa Emery, also rendered most valuable services as Acting Secretary and leader of the Junior Department of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and as the duties of the Secretary increased took entire charge of the box work in the Auxiliary’s office, whose duties she per- formed most acceptably until 1918. Of these four sisters she is now the only one still living. As the history of the Woman’s Auxiliary is so largely the story of Julia Emery’s life, it 1s only through an intimate knowledge of the one that we may understand and appreciate the fullness of the other. It was Mrs. Twing’s own suggestion that her sister Julia should succeed her as Secretary, and in doing so she remarked, “ Julia is young, but she can do it. She has it in her.” That the suggestion was a wise one, and the action of the Board in accepting it was justified, is fully exemplified in the history of her forty years’ tenure of office. It must have required not a little faith on the part of those in authority to elect one so young, so modest and retiring. But that they appreciated her worth is shown in the following note, to be found in the postscript to the Fourth Annual Report of the Woman’s Auxiliary: EARLY YEARS OF THE WOMAN’S AUXILIARY 23 We do not venture to say one word respecting the character and qualifications of the incoming Secretary; these are appreciated by all who have known her for the past two years as Associate Editor of the Y. C. S.; and we have entire confidence that, guided by the loving Hand of God, the course of the Woman’s Auxiliary, under administra- tion of the new Secretary, will be right onward in its career of use- fulness. (Signed) S.A. Davis GHEHALY R. C. Rocers Secretaries of Depts. of B. of M. In undertaking this work she was of necessity pushed into public life, but she was never aggressive, never unduly prominent, but always self-effacing and more than generous in according to others prominence and credit where due. She was elected May 3rd and assumed the office of Secretary on October 1, 1876. Of her work in detail there is no record except as it may be gleaned from the reports of the Woman’s Auxiliary, written by herself, and then only such items may be recognized as her work by one who knew. The original policy as created by Mary Emery was simple, and being free from complexities needed no change even after fifty years. Following the general plan of the Church’s government, no written constitution seemed necessary, and freedom of action made it easy and at- tractive to all to enter the ranks of this authorized society of Churchwomen. A group in any one parish doing missionary work of any sort could, if desired, call itself a parish branch of the Woman’s Auxiliary. These, taken collectively in any one diocese and under the bishop, re- porting to a general officer, or board of officers, formed a diocesan branch, who again reported to the General Sec- 24 JULIA CHESTER EMERY retary, Miss Emery, which taken as a whole created the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions. All bap- tized women in the Church were possible members, and all who took any part in praying, working, or giving for missions were considered active members. With no general constitution to follow, each diocese was allowed to organize and employ methods suitable to its needs, and to adopt a constitution, were one desired, best adapted to its own conditions. In the few eastern dioceses, the societies for furthering missionary work among Indians or Negroes, already established, were persuaded or encouraged to serve: as a nucleus and foundation upon which to build a more comprehensive organization. So varied were the plans of working that in these days of organized labour for all classes they would scarcely be recognized as members of one and the same society. Yet one can but feel that this very freedom, given to each and all, was what hastened the union of the various dioceses, strong and weak, and each missionary district, domestic and foreign, in one common cause, and created the eniente cordiale which exists today. To illustrate how various in form were these diocesan branches, let us recall the old days when Pennsylvania and New York had committees working for each of the missionary departments of that time, Domestic, Foreign, Indian, and Coloured, each with its staff of officers and each working independently; Long Island and New Jersey each had but one board of officers, interested in all of these fields together; Southern Ohio and Virginia each had but a single indefatigable officer, under the title of Secretary, who visited, organized, planned, and guided the work in each parish. One or two dioceses, such as Florida, worked at first for their own missions only, which, EARLY YEARS OF THE WOMAN’S AUXILIARY 25 needing all that could be done for them, could therefore scarcely go outside of their own.borders. Others devoted their energies to the Domestic and Western field, but later were induced and able to take up work for foreign missions. All of these were welcomed as branches on equal terms, and while in their infancy were nurtured, encouraged, and educated until, reaching womanhood, they were able and anxious to embrace every department of the Church’s missionary work, and contribute ac- cording to their means to all her missionary interests. In this can be seen the wisdom of Mary Emery’s ~ methods originally adopted, and that of her sister Julia in strictly adhering to a plan so successfully launched. The one strongest instrument wielded by Julia Emery, and the one which most naturally belonged to her because of her remarkable personality, was what is called the “ personal touch.”’ The work for which the Woman’s Auxiliary at first considered itself responsible had for its aims: ‘‘ (a) the increase of its (the Board’s) funds; (4) the circulation of missionary publications; (c) the education of mission- aries; (d) the making, collecting, and distributing of articles of clothing for missionaries and their families; (e) the education of missionaries’ children.” Miss Julia Emery, in her first report, dated September 1, 1877 (the Fifth Report of the Woman’s Auxiliary), thus defines the scope of the work undertaken at that time: The Domestic work is mainly confined to the preparing and send- ing of missionary boxes, and comparatively little money comes through this source to the Domestic treasury. To supplement the stipends with gifts which obviate expense otherwise unavoidable, which lighten care and toil and contrivance, that add so heavily to the burden under which our missionaries labour to do their holy work; which save from an overpowering weariness the wives and daughters 26 JULIA CHESTER EMERY who share their labours and their sufferings; this, the members of the Auxiliary have always felt to be one of their chiefest privileges. It is a source of deep pleasure and thankfulness, and an incentive to further effort, to know that the work of the Auxiliary for Foreign Missions during the past year has been one not only of direct service to the missionaries and those for whom they labour, but also of indirect usefulness, perhaps much more important, to the Church at home. That parishes have been moved to give to this cause, that societies have been formed to work for it, and that individuals have been © constrained to recognize their duty in regard to it in a marked degree more widely and more heartily because of woman’s zeal and labour, are indeed facts demanding earnest gratitude. In conclusion she would appeal to each bishop in whose diocese there 1s no society or association of parish branches working in the missionary interests, to appoint some woman, capable, earnest, and devoted, to guide and promote such work, to form parish associations, to combine the scattered societies into an organized body, and to assert the claims of all our Church Missions, bringing them home to the hearts and consciences of the members of that body. These seem but timid ventures of faith in the light of what has been accomplished, and the tremendous tasks the Auxiliary is facing today, but in Miss Emery’s first years all was untried and fallow ground, the seed was sown in faith only, and was encouraged and fostered by earnest prayer and laborious efforts in awakening an interest among women who knew no work beyond their homes, and who were timid and cautious, and could only spread the knowledge of the Church’s missionary work by telling their personal friends. It was through this same “ personal touch” that Miss Emery herself per- suaded and inspired others to enter into the ranks of the Auxiliary. When asked once how she trained the workers, she replied, “I do not try to train them, I love EARLY YEARS OF THE WOMAN’S AUXILIARY 27 them.” This is clearly visible through all her work. Love! She loved first of all her Saviour, she loved His Church and His children, and wanted all to know Him and be members of His Kingdom. No one was ever too small and insignificant nor too great and conspicuous but could find a place in her loving heart. With this as her incentive the Auxiliary could not but grow, and on the firmest foundations. CHAPTER II] Visits to England HE organizing of new branches, and maintaining the . interest of the old, involved an enormous amount of travel on Miss Emery’s part, for a visit from her did more than any number of letters either from the office or the missionary field could possibly have accomplished. When invited to visit any diocesan branch at a distance from the headquarters in New York, she would invariably try to arrange an itinerary taking in en route the inter- vening dioceses and parishes, and thus, both going and coming, utilize the time and money necessarily expended on the journey. She was frequently away from the office as much as a month or even two at a time. During the forty years she gave to the work of the Auxiliary, she visited, at least once, nearly every diocese and missionary district in the Union, where she never failed to leave the branches with fresh inspiration, further knowledge, and greater zeal. An occasional visit to some part of the mission field, an Indian Convocation in South Dakota, or one of the Industrial Schools for Coloured People in the South, gave her food for new interests and enlarged efforts with which to feed the ever- hungering branches. From the Triennial Meetings at the time and place of the General Conventions she in- variably returned, though physically and mentally tired, refreshed in spirit, because of the great enthusiasm shown by the diocesan officers and others and the inspiration 28 VISITS TO ENGLAND 29 caught from contact with the missionary bishops and many straight from the field; and she came back full of plans and schemes for helping every mission station where the need seemed greatest. She was a good traveller,and never appeared to tire, but would go from place to place, always a welcome visitor, making addresses in a different town or city each day. While on the train, if alone, she usually occupied her time in writing reports or letters, and rarely missed a moment which she might put to some good use. Occasionally these trips took her beyond the confines of our own country, as when, in 1897, the Lambeth Con- ference being in session, she went to London to attend a gathering of English and American women, which was brought about largely through the energetic efforts of the . Honorary Secretary, her sister Mrs. Twing, whom she met in London, Mrs. Twing being on her return from her second journey around the world. Twenty-three of our American diocesan branches of the Auxiliary were represented at the Quiet Day held on July 7, 1897, in St. Saviour’s Church, Southwark, and at the Conference on the following day at St. Martin’s Town Hall, Charing Cross, where Miss Emery made an address. It was during her absence at this time that the Rev. Dr. William S. Langford, General Secretary of the Board of Managers, was so suddenly stricken and taken from us, on the second day of his vacation, the Church losing a wise and enthusiastic officer, and the Auxiliary a loving friend. Miss Emery bears testimony to this in her report for that year, in these words: In the early days, when the late General Secretary of the Board of Managers first came among us, he did not know us, we did not know 30 JULIA CHESTER EMERY him. For a time there was the lack of mutual understanding which makes combined effort harmonious and delightful. But as years went on, and Dr. Langford came to know the Auxiliary, and the Auxiliary to recognize the manner of man he was, the Secretary of the Auxiliary would testify now, in the shadow of the removal of his sunny presence, to his ever-increasing confidence and friendliness, to his constant kindness and forbearance. Under his tutelage the lesson has been oft repeated of the welcome dependence upon the Board of Missions which the Auxiliary enjoys. And if sometimes to the women of the Church the men of the Church seem slow in their wise caution, they remember gratefully the friend and leader who could effect so much with a sudden outburst of enthusiastic effort, who carried his troubles with a smiling face, who thought no difficulty too hard to conquer, and who, in the last year of his life on earth, left them a motto for years to come, “‘ As thy days so shall thy strength be.” Thus was Miss Emery’s first visit to England sad- dened. She returned to this country after a number of weeks, and in the Spring of 1908, when many of the American bishops were preparing again to attend the Lambeth Conference, and previously the Pan-Anglican Congress to be held in London, the Bishop of New York appointed Miss Emery one of the six delegates to repre- sent the diocese at this latter gathering. The prospect of this second visit to England, which country always appeared to have for her an especial attraction, filled her with enthusiasm, and in planning for it she asked the privilege of a trip around the world, that she might be an eye-witness to the missionary work in the Far East. The Board readily granted her request, believing it would be a beneficial respite and change, and the knowledge gained be of far-reaching importance to the work. That the inspiration received, the knowledge gained, and the insight into the missionary problems of the foreign field fully justified such a trip has surely been acknowl- edged by all who have worked with and under Miss VISITS TO ENGLAND ai Emery in these later years. However, from the beginning she appears to have had that wonderful gift, vouchsafed only to the few, which enables one to see and to solve the difficulties of others. On May 30th of that year she sailed on the §S. S. Minnehaha, of the American Transport Line, for London. That she might have a companion, some one kindly made it possible for her to invite a friend, who shared her cabin and remained with her in London so long as the Congress was in session. As the author was the friend fortunate in being chosen as that companion, she may perhaps be able to give details of her visit to England which might otherwise remain unknown. The Presiding Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Daniel S. Tuttle, and several other bishops and clerical and lay delegates on board, made an agreeable and interesting party. The voyage itself was a pleasant one, with the exception of the blow and snow squall experienced before we were fairly outside of New York Harbour. Miss Emery, however, doubtless inheriting her father’s love for the sea, enjoyed every moment of it. She, with one other lady of the party, and but few men, never missed a meal during the entire nine days. Reaching Tilbury Docks on Whitsun-Monday, and Whitsuntide being a bank holiday in England, we anchored in the mouth of the Thames for twenty-four hours, so that not until June 9th, Tuesday, did we again set foot on shore. Arriving at St. Pancras Station, London, we went to the Hotel Metropole. The Congress not opening until Tuesday, the 16th, there was a week 1n which to see something of London and the numerous friends gathered there from America as well as from all other parts of the world. Again Miss Emery did not lose a moment of her precious time, but 32 JULIA CHESTER EMERY visited Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s, and various churches, always for an early Celebration or Service, and the S. P. G. and C. M. S. Houses, where she met Bishop and Mrs. Montgomery, Miss Mackenzie, and others of the English missionary societies. On June 13th, by invitation of friends, we motored to Oxford and back, motoring at that date being rather a novel experience. The trip occupied nine hours and a quarter, during which time we saw a number of the colleges, lunched at the Randolph, and on the return home stopped at the Red Horse Inn, Wycombe, for tea. What the Pan-Anglican Congress itself was, and what it accomplished, are well known. Miss Emery’s strict ad- herence to duty may, however, be witnessed in what she writes in her Annual Report of 1908, prepared while steaming through the Gulf of Suez on her way to the Far East. She writes of her visit to England: So far as the Secretary of the Auxiliary was concerned, the kindness of friends in the Board of Missions and the Auxiliary made her visit to England possible. She sailed on the 30th of May, and was present at the special meetings for women and girls, and the Intercessory Service of the Congress held in Westminster Abbey, at the Thank- Offering Service in St. Paul’s at its close, and daily throughout the interesting days at sessions of the Congress. In a series of eleven articles written while on the trip for The Spirit of Missions, and which appeared each month under the title “A Travelling Secretary,” she says of the Pan-Anglican Congress: To those who went with minds open to learn, there were large lessons to be gained from the wonderful care and skill with which the meetings were planned and conducted, and one saw a daily example of extraordinary promptitude, which might well be copied on our many far smaller occasions. . . . The meetings were not missionary VISITS TO ENGLAND 33 meetings as we generally understand the term, nor meetings for creating and deepening enthusiasm by direct and eager appeal. They were rather the culmination of careful preparation and study, the thoughtful and clear presentment of conclusions reached with de- liberate and prayerful effort. To those of us who had not understood the exact nature of these discussions, and who had expected possibly more of fire and stimulation, there may have seemed something of loss; but it was the loss one might feel in watching the calm and ordered action of an army of regulars rather than the eager onset of volunteers. She was able to attend the opening Services of the Lambeth Conference at Canterbury and Westminster, and to visit the houses of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and the Church Missionary Society, and homes for the training of missionaries; she attended committee meetings of the S. P. G. and its Women’s Com- mittee, and met women of the Women’s Missionary Association in the Scottish Episcopal Church. In the second article of the series, describing the Houses and Homes of the S. P. G. and the C. M. S., she compares them with our own Church Missions House, the Home of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and tells how she noticed the smaller matters of economy in which we might emulate our English sisters. In the saving of electric light, for instance, and in selling the leaflets, rather than distributing them with the lavish hand, as was our custom. In this latter, however, there appears to have been a change, possibly at Miss Emery’s instiga- tion. She also tells of the S. P. G. hostel for training missionaries and deaconesses, and Sisters’ Houses. All of these places she visited frequently and attended many committee meetings, and the accompanying at- tractions, or what might be called “ side-shows,” for want of a better name, were of great interest to her. They were mostly advantages in seeing a side of English life 34 JULIA CHESTER EMERY closed to the ordinary tourist. The garden-party given to the delegates at Marlborough House by Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, to meet the King (Edward VII) and the Queen, where Miss Emery was presented by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Princess of Wales, the present Queen Mary; the receptions at Fulham and Lambeth Palaces; the trip to Knebworth, Lord Strathcona’s estate outside of London, were all thoroughly enjoyed by her. I cannot refrain from mentioning what probably would have amused my readers, could they have seen Miss Emery and me practising before a mirror, at the instigation of an English friend, the correct style of curtsey, lest at the garden-party we should come into direct contact with the Princess of Wales. It was fortu- nate that we had this opportunity, for we both had occa- sion to put our skill to the test. The day, July 4th, for the opening Services of the Lambeth Conference at Canterbury, Miss Emery, 1n- tensely anxious to attend, suggested that we should be at Victoria Station at the hour the special train was to carry the bishops, and find if by any chance we might also go. Reaching the platform, Miss Emery found many friends among the American bishops eager to assist her, buying our tickets and obtaining seats for us on the train. Arriving at Canterbury, the next step was to gain admittance to the Cathedral. Nothing daunted, she went at once to the door, and finding the verger, asked of him the way to accomplish this, saying she was from America and was very anxious to attend the Service. He kindly promised the seats if she would be at a certain door at a given time. After seeing the town and visiting St. Martin’s Church, very small and quaint, and said to be the oldest in England, she returned to find the VISITS TO ENGLAND 35 verger as good as his word. He showed us very good seats, from where the wonderful procession of Anglican bishops could be well seen, and the beautiful, impressive Service thoroughly enjoyed. To the garden-party at the Deanery, immediately following, we again were assisted by the bishops, and allowed to pass through the gates as members of their families. It was altogether, indeed, a memorable day, and when we again reached London we felt well repaid for the effort. Another interesting feature of this visit to England was the view of the Winchester Historic Pageant, given July lst on the campus of the Winchester School, or St. Mary’s College, a beautiful spot enclosed by the ancient walls of the college with such magnificent trees as are seen only in England. Miss Emery hesitated some time, and not until several of her friends (the bishops) said to her that she should certainly not miss anything so interesting did she ask me timidly if I thought we might go. I certainly could see no reason against it, though I realized it was probably the nearest approach she had ever made toward seeing a play of any kind. The pageant itself was indeed interesting and well presented, but we also enjoyed the visit to the town, the Cathedral, where we attended a noon-day Service in the choir, the college buildings and grounds. As we left London by a 9.20 train in the morning, we were glad to leave for London again at 9.15 in the evening. At this time, the Pan-Anglican Congress and the Lambeth Conference being closed, Miss Emery accepted an invitation from Miss Mackenzie, Secretary of the Woman’s Missionary Society of the Scottish Episcopal Church, to visit Scotland, planning on her return to start 36 JULIA CHESTER EMERY on her trip to the Far East and around the world. Some kind friend, hearing that she was intending to take the P. & O. steamer from England, and thus go all the way by sea to China, was distressed that she should make so comprehensive a journey and yet not include Paris, and therefore offered to make it possible for her to cross the Continent and with some friend spend a week en route in that city. It was on the morning of July 8th, when she was to start on her trip to Scotland, at Euston Station, where she knew I expected to be seeing some members of my family off for another part of Scotland, that she met and surprised me by saying she wanted me to go with her to Paris for a week, and told me, in a very hurried way and with a beaming face, the story of the friend’s offer. I promised to think it over and let her know my decision on her return from Scotland. To show how conscien- tiously she kept her secret, to this day I do not know the name of the kind friend or friends, should it not be the same, who made my visits at this time with Miss Emery possible. Should she still be living, and a possible reader of these pages, may I be allowed this opportunity of expressing my appreciation of her kindness and my grateful thanks. Miss Emery left that morning at ten for her ten days’ visit to Edinburgh, stopping on the way at Rugby, Coventry, Warwick, and Kenilworth. During this trip she met a number of men, as well as women, interested in the work of the Scottish Church in the mission fields, and did a considerable amount of sight-seeing in Edinburgh in addition to making many excursions to neighbouring points of historic interest. Here again she attended meetings of the Churchwomen’s Association of the Scottish Episcopal Church, where she says she was able to tell those Scotchwomen what the Church in America owes to the Church in Scotland. VISITS TO ENGLAND 37 Just two years later Miss Emery made a second visit to Edinburgh, this time being sent by the Board of Missions as one of its representatives to the World Mis- sionary Conference, at which the Anglican Church was prominently represented. On June 4, 1910, she sailed on the S. S. Arabic in company with others, among whom were Dr. John W. Wood, now Executive Secretary of the National Council, and the Rev. Dr. Pott, President of St. John’s University in Shanghai. The visit lasted but three weeks, but she writes for The Spirit of Missions, under the title “Setting of the Conference”’: The Edinburgh Conference was too big and too serious a thing to be treated lightly by those whose most earnest prayer is that in His own good time, through the united efforts of His people, Christ may establish His Kingdom throughout the world. . . . When the Con- ference had once opened it would have been difficult indeed to have kept enthusiastic delegates away. And again, in the Thirty-Ninth Annual Report of the Woman’s Auxiliary: The Unity of Christendom was the underlying longing of the Con- ference in Edinburgh, and again a missionary secretary returns eager that the unity so desired for all Christians might be shown among the peoples of our dioceses and congregations, to the strengthening and encouragement of the missionary and his people in the field. She feels it would add to the influence of the Woman’s Auxiliary if the Board might reassert it to be, not a separate society of women of the Church to do a stated bit of work, but rather a helper to itself in all its plans, being a personal influence in behalf of all advance action the Board may undertake, with every society and individual whom it may reach. . . . She feels that the Woman’s Auxiliary is no longer auxiliary merely as a help in raising money, but that as each new development opens before the Board, the Auxiliary in that develop- ment may have its place to help. It stands ready now, as heretofore, to welcome change, hoping earnestly that change shall mean growth to greater and better things, more ways in which to serve, more weight of responsibility, the giving of leadership in the different paths of service to those most competent to lead. CHAPTER IV Around the World ETURNING to the narrative of Miss Emery’s second visit to Europe, we take it up again where she returned to London from Edinburgh. After another week there, and when our plans were completed, on Friday, July 24th, Miss Emery and I crossed the English Channel for a week’s real holiday on French soil. The crossing from Folkestone to Boulogne was really delightful, a calm and sunshiny day, the Channel itself proving at times, at least, one of the smoothest seas that could be imagined, just as though oil had been poured upon its surface. Reaching Boulogne at 1.30 we first secured seats in the railway carriage and then entered a café for luncheon. We had not been seated long before our attention was arrested by loud talking, evidently a quarrel between two Frenchmen. Miss Emery was frightened, and sug- gesting we should leave, was about to start to her feet, when I fortunately was able to reassure her and explain that the squabble was only between the proprietor and a patron over a few sous change, a not uncommon oc- currence amongst the generally excitable French people. Within a few minutes all was quiet again, and we finished our very simple repast in peace. I could not help but contrast this fear with her moral courage, and when it came to a matter of duty. Especially was I thinking of her then as she stood upon the platform of Carnegie 38 AROUND THE WORLD 39 Hall in New York on the occasion of one of the Triennial Meetings of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and gave her message to the women of the Church, who crowded that vast auditorium, withouta faltering word orquavering voice. The time in Paris, all too short, was spent in visiting the principal places of interest, including Versailles, where we were greeted with such a terrific downpour of rain that we could not leave the station, but took the first train back to Paris. Three days later, attempting it again, we were more successful. But even in Paris Miss Emery could not forget she was the Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary. On leaving England she had written to the rector of the Holy Trinity Church and asked that the members of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and those of St. Luke’s Chapel, might be gathered to meet her. It was her one opportunity to speak face to face with those American women in a foreign country trying to do their share in the missionary work, “ women remote from their old homes, and living more or less temporarily amongst conditions strange to their native land, who might be spiritually strengthened by the continual reminder, which the Auxiliary is, of union with the one great body whose office is to grow till it embraces all the world.” Neither did she forget that other duty she had laid upon herself, the seeking out of the lonely, but soon after her arrival went to call on the deaconess in charge of the hospital for all English- speaking students and strangers. In both places was she made most welcome; especially was the deaconess delighted to invite her to supper, and also to escort her to the Conciergerie, where she kindly interpreted all the guide’s explanations. On August Ist, Saturday, the trip around the world began in earnest, when. Miss Emery, at 8. 45 a. M., 40 JULIA CHESTER EMERY boarded the train en route for Naples, where she was to meet the steamer and, joining the Bishops of Shanghai and Tokyo, make her way to China. Never shall I forget her as she stood upon the rear platform of the car, and seemed to realize that in parting from me she was breaking the last link with home and was facing a long and distant journey in many strange lands, alone. I believe it was the only time I ever saw a tear in Julia Emery’s eye. I. might have felt the separation more myself had I not known that the wife and daughter of Bishop McKim were on the train also, that the two Bishops of Shanghai and Tokyo were on the steamer she would board at Naples, and that she would find a friend in every port, for no woman was better known nor more dearly loved than she throughout the Church. Wherever the American Church had been planted there would she surely receive a hearty welcome. Sailing from Naples August 14th, and passing through the Isthmus of Suez and the Red Sea, she reached Shang- hai one month later. To know what hopes and aims were hers as she looked forward to her visits to the various mission fields in foreign lands, we may quote from her report of 1907-1908, written whilst steaming through the Gulf of Suez: When the Board of Missions allowed her to start on such an enterprise, she hopes it was with the realization, as when they sent their General Secretary last year, that every such venture must mean enlargement of vision, the opening up of new occasions for service, the acceptance of new tasks. Already, from what has been seen and heard in Great Britain and on the Continent, a varied and constantly growing possibility is coming into view, and the desire grows with it that, when another year comes around, and the Secretary shall have returned with something more of experience, and so of hopefulness, than she had when she went out, the Board may be ready to ask of its Auxiliary far more than it ever yet has asked. AROUND THE WORLD 41 Arriving at Shanghai she made it her first duty to visit the District of Hankow, and at once prepared for the trip of one thousand miles up the Yang-tse. An interesting and characteristic incident appeared a few months ago in The Spirit of Missions, related by Dr. H. W. Boone, one of our first medical missionaries in China, now residing in California, and which I venture to quote. He writes: When reading the account of the Memorial Service for Miss Julia C. Emery, I recalled an incident of her visit to China. The cholera was raging, and was especially virulent on the steamers on the Yang-tse River. The secretary of the Methodist Board, visiting their missions, had just died of it on oneof thesteamers. I felt it my duty to warn Miss Emery, and I said that her life was too valuable to be sacrificed, and begged her not to go up the river to visit the mission stations. She looked up with a quiet smile, and said, ““ Doctor, are you attending cholera cases daily?’ I said, “That is what I am here for.”’ She said, “I am here to visit our missions. IJ must go up the river. Give me written directions how to avoid the disease and I will follow them.” She went up the river and came through safely, though people were dying on the steamer. I write this to illustrate her calm courage and her faith in her Lord and Master when she was doing His work. Yes, “she went up the river”’ apparently alone, as no mention is made in her diary of any companion, and, “thank God, came through safely.” Entering the District of Hankow September 17th, thirty-five days and nights were spent in visiting the various mission stations, of which seventeen nights and nine and a half days were spent upon the waters of the Yang-tse. One rides up and down high hills in an open native chair or through the city streets in a jin-rick-sha, or a sedan chair enclosed in curtains; but one can ride behind horses on the maloo in Hankow. A wheelbarrow and a railroad train seemed the only conveyances left in the District for the Travelling Secretary to try. But both wheel- barrow and train are there. | 42 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Thus she describes the various means of travel on the trip. Again reaching Shanghai she continued her kindly but careful scrutiny of the work of the Church in all its branches, taking in fresh inspiration and giving welcome encouragement to all of our faithful workers. It is neither possible nor advisable to try to follow Miss Emery every step of the way in this long journey in the Orient. Suffice it to say: She visited the missionary districts of China, Japan, the Phil- ippines, and the Hawaiian Islands, and in those visits saw every institution the Church has planted in them, and almost all the missions that have been established. (Annual Report of W. A., 1909.) I say it is impossible to follow every step, for there are apparently no comments extant made by her on what she saw, and therefore nothing to give but the bare facts and dates of her visits to the different countries and their towns or cities. What she saw of the mission stations and institutions then, in 1909, many of which were yet in their infancy, would be far from enlightening in view of what most of these colleges, schools, hospitals, etc., are today. To judge somewhat of the rapidity, and yet thorough- ness, with which she pursued this tour of inspection, if we may call it such, we will take the records for one week from her diary, which gives in each case the bare outline of her day’s visits and the people she saw, with no com- ments whatever. Opening the book at random we find we have fallen upon November 23rd, Monday, the day she reached Japan after leaving China on the §. S. Korea. Date — 1909, Nov. 23rd, Monday. Place — Yokohama and Tokyo. Saw Fuji. Talked with Miss E. and Dr. . Bp. McKim came to Yokohama. 12.20 train for Tokyo, Mrs. McKim and daughter, Mr. Smart, Mrs. Cole. 6 p. M. English Evensong. Hubard Lloyd, Mr. Sweet, Mr. Woodman, Bp. McKim. Reception in evening. AROUND THE WORLD 43 Nov. 24th, Tuesday. Tokyo and Kawagoe. 7.30. Cathedral, prayers, St. Paul’s (College) and St. Margaret’s (School). 10 a. M. train for Kawagoe, people met us. Auxiliary meeting. Big meeting in Club House (450). Mr. Tai to dinner. Visited little church before P. M. meeting. Nov. 25th, Wednesday. Kawagoe and Fuchu. Kindergarten Sewing-school. Train Koruma to Fuchu (Mr. Tai, Miss Upton, Miss Koraki). St. Mark’s people met us. Nice chapel, rectory, and garden. Met Auxiliary. Train at 6; to Tokyo 8. Nov. 26th, Thursday. Tokyo. Thanksgiving Day. Shopping. Church at 11. Mrs. Scheres- chewsky, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. After tiffin Miss Neely, Auxiliary officers. 6 P.M. Prayers. Mr. Jefferys and Mr. Williamson to dinner. Mr. Tucker, Mr. Lloyd in evening. Nov. 27th, Friday. Tokyo, Kumagaya, and Mayebashi. Left Tokyo with Mr. and Mrs. Evans. P. M. at Kumagaya, St. Paul’s Church. The Kuwadas. Meeting in Parish room (27). Reached Mayebashi towards evening. Evensong, Miss MacRae, the Evans. Nov. 28, Saturday. Mayebashi and Shimmachi. Went in a. Mm. to Shimmachi, Confirmation. Returned to Maye- bashi for tiffin and meeting (20). Tea at Miss MacRae’s. Miss M. at dinner at the Evans’. Nov. 29, Sunday. 7 A.M. Holy Communion. 9 a.M. Sunday-school. 10 a. m. Morning Prayer, Baptism, and Confirmation. P. M. Takasaki, S.S. girls, evening service. Bp. McKim. Dinner with the Warnocks. This is but a specimen week, showing the way she travelled during those ten months after leaving Paris before she again set foot on her own land. And it is by .no means a unique week, for there appears through the whole journey to have been no let-up at any time. These notes, jotted down upon the pages of her diary, are but skeletons of what she did and saw, and the only further notes we have which might clothe them with 44 JULIA CHESTER EMERY > interest through her descriptions or comments are con- tained in those same articles of “The Travelling Sec- retary’ before mentioned, published in The Spirit of Missions. ‘There must have been many interesting and some amusing incidents during this time of which there is no record, except as it may have been in her home letters. These letters were very voluminous, as when away from home it was her invariable custom to give every minute detail of each day’s doings, writing on trains or steamers, or, as Bishop McKim tells, “ even while travelling in a ’rick-sha.”” No wonder the deck steward on the S. S. Lutzow, as she sailed towards Hong Kong on her way to Manila, thought she “wrote too much.,”’ Hawaii was the last land she visited before she reached San Francisco on the 10th of May in this same year. One may imagine with what longing eyes she looked toward the East and her home in New York; to seeing her family once more and being able to tell of all she had seen and done; but the opportunity for further duties lay before her, and she must not shirk, but embrace the opportunity to visit the diocesan branches on the Pacific Coast and the missionary districts west of the Rockies. In the month after her return, therefore, to the States, she travelled in the West, visiting the missionary districts of Sacramento, Olympia, Spokane, Eastern Oregon, Utah, and Nevada, as well as the Dioceses of California, Los Angeles, and Oregon. In this was she able to see in some places the Woman’s Auxiliary and its results as she had never seen them before, in others as she had not seen them for many years. Sunday, June 20th, saw Miss Emery again in New York, the long journey ended, the trip happily accom- plished. AROUND THE WORLD 45 It was not until the following Autumn that I returned home, having remained abroad more than a year after she left me in Paris. As my steamer neared the dock at New York, one raw, bleak November day, I, looking out from the deck to scan the crowd for a familiar face, soon saw at that early hour of the morning, in the dampness and cold, Julia Emery standing on the wharf, alone. CHAPTER V Results of Forty Years’ Labour T would indeed be a difficult task to give within the pages of a single chapter any adequate idea of the results of Miss Emery’s faithful labour, nor does it seem necessary, as the Church is more or less familiar with the work accomplished during her forty years as Secretary. No story of her life, however, would be complete without a summary, at least, of what she did, or, better still, some conception of how she did it. This latter could be known only to the few who, intimately associated with her in the work, could watch her day by day and possibly imbibe some of her spirit. | Results themselves are generally measured most ac- curately by comparison, and this can be obtained only by considerable research, for which but few have the opportunity or leisure. Therefore they are given. Going back to the conditions and work of the Auxiliary as they were when Julia Emery took it over on the resignation of her sister Mary (afterwards Mrs. Twing) in 1876, we find that the number of branches was thirteen, mostly in the dioceses of the Atlantic States, four only being of the Middle West, and one county where a society to aid Indians was organized in Connecticut. Each year others were added, until the whole Church, through its dioceses and missionary districts, or “ jurisdictions,” as they were at first called, was represented, and Her women had become active workers for the cause of Christ. To the 46 RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 47 women of each diocese the work of the Auxiliary was presented through their bishop, and gently, tenderly, were they urged to take their share in it. As soon as a new diocese was created, generally by the division of one already existing, Miss Emery at once suggested the im- mediate organization of a branch for each diocese, that the previously enkindled interest of the more remote parishes be not allowed to die through neglect. Thus it came about that in 1916, when Miss Emery resigned the secretaryship, there were ninety-two diocesan branches, or one in every diocese and missionary district in the American Church, including Africa, China, Japan, Alaska, Brazil, Hawaii, and the isolated parishes in European cities. A better idea may be gleaned from the following quotation from the Auxiliary’s Forty-Fifth Annual Report, Miss Emery’s last, written just before her resignation: The Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions as it is known today, with its provincial organization and officers in five of the provinces, with diocesan officers in all its dioceses and missionary districts, with its parish branches and officers in over 5,500 of the 8,500 parishes and missions, and an individual membership which has never been numbered; with its yearly gifts of more than $100,000 toward the Board’s appropriations and specials in money and boxes of $260,000 more; with its Triennial United-Offering, now reaching $300,000 and beyond; with its ever-increasing intelligence through meetings, conferences, summer schools, institutes, mission study, and reading, and its ever-rising tide of prayer; with its reiterated efforts to reach all women and train and enlist the children and young people of the Church — this Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions is the development of that ““ Woman’s Society, Auxiliary to the Board of Missions,” which the Reverend Secretaries of the Board were empowered to organize in 1871. That for all this she gives no credit to her own efforts is seen as she continues: 48 JULIA CHESTER EMERY The Auxiliary gratefully acknowledges the unstinted kindness and the friendly appreciation shown it through all these years. And it records with grateful thanks, as well, that approval and personal interest on the part of the bishops of the Church and the parochial clergy and all of our missionaries, which have made the establishment of the Auxiliary in diocese and missionary district, in parish and mission, a possibility. Nor is she satisfied to sit down in contented con- templation of the results, when she says: But it is not satisfied with itself nor content to feel that the women of the Church have compassed their capacity for helpfulness. The gain of $29,000 toward the Board’s appropriations, largely in response to the Emergency appeal, the suggestions that led to the day of unbroken intercession, now twice kept at the Church Missions House, are by no means a sufficient answer to the Board’s latest call. We feel that Board and bishops and parochial clergy may gain much more from this company of women who stand so ready to co-operate with the men of the Church under their leadership in the widest plans that may be made for the spread of Christ’s King- dom throughout the world. Therefore, at this time, we ask the Board if, in reviewing the Auxiliary’s work, it will not hold back its praise, and, instead, give a judicial and constructive help; tell us what it sees not of strength only, but of weakness; not of success, but failure, and set before us some call which shall exercise the very best that not only the women of today’s Auxiliary, but all the women of the Church, can give. But we must give some acknowledgment of our appreciation of her efforts as we realize what strides had been taken and what great things accomplished in these forty years. Great undertakings and great ac- complishments; but not until we recall that in the begin- ning they were days when no typewriters, no stenog- raphers, were known, nor even telephones, and every message given or answered meant a letter written by hand. The long epistles from the mission field, used for information and to arouse an interest in the Church at RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 49 home, were laboriously copied not once, but often many times, that they might be distributed amongst the diocesan and parish branches. At one time various devices were used for multiplying copies of these letters for circulation, but with indifferent success, as the amount of time saved was too small to justify the trouble. Notwithstanding these hindrances, which were not thought of as such because we knew then of no other methods, the work grew steadily and increased rapidly, as witnessed to above, and assistance was necessary from time to time until a permanent assistant became 1m- perative. This assistant was her other sister, Miss M. T. Emery, who, as editor of the children’s paper published by the Board, became acting secretary for the Junior Department, and later, until 1918, carried on the box work. In addition, in 1878 Miss Emery chose a personal friend to serve as her amanuensis, for the morning hours only at first, later for a full day. It was not, therefore, until the Missionary Society, with its Auxiliaries, leaving the rooms in the old Bible House, made its home in the Church Missions House that telephones and typewriters were introduced; not until after the year 1900 was a stenographer employed. In 1909 a junior secretary, in 1914 an educational secretary, and in 1916 a travelling secretary were added to the staff of the Auxiliary. And so the march went on, and like a huge snowball gathered and grew as it went. But here, again, it was not only to the staff, but Miss Emery would not omit to give credit wherever due, for she writes in one of her last contributions to the literature of the Woman’s Auxiliary, a little pamphlet or leaflet called “A Half-Century of Progress,’ being a history of the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Mis- sions, 1871-1921. (W. A. 122.) 50 JULIA CHESTER EMERY _ But through all the years of the Woman’s Auxiliary the officers at headquarters have chiefly depended upon the voluntary service so unstintedly given, and which no earthly record can ever show, which diocesan and parochial officers have rendered. Choice women — choice byreason of their Christian character, their churchly zeal, their quick or studious intelligence, their honoured names, their ability to plan and to do large things — have repeatedly been placed in the care of Auxiliary work in parish or diocese, and have not failed their trust. One such, whose name was synonymous with far-reaching and abounding helpfulness, was once asked how she came to care, and the answer was that her rector had given her office in the Aux- iliary, about which she had till then known nothing. A word is suf- ficient — there are such women now, able but ignorant, whom to call to responsibility would awaken to service. From women such as these the diocesan officers were chosen. They now number more than 1,100. .. . On October 14, 1874, from 2 to 5.30 Pp. M., the first general meeting was held, in the Sunday-school room of Calvary Church, New York, with sixty-six women present from five dioceses. On October 9, 1919,* at 7.30 a. M., Saint Paul’s Cathedral, Detroit, was crowded with the representatives of this same Woman’s Auxiliary, who had come from ninety-two dioceses and districts to spend fourteen days in conference and study, in prayer and plans, for a great advance. With these results, which I have tried with imperfect success to give, the Church is already familiar, but it is or was the privilege of the few to know how she accom- plished them. What patient, painstaking, arduous, and conscientious efforts she put day by day into her work | could only have been persisted in through all those years because of her faith and love for the Master and her zealous desire that all His children, of whatever blood and in what- ever clime, should come to know Him as their Saviour. It was through her personality, and by her character of highest integrity and never-swerving loyalty to the Church and its Board of Missions, that she made her * Only three years after Miss Emery’s resignation as Secretary. AT THE TRIENNIAL OF 1913 RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 51 greatest progress, sinking her own identity always into that of the work. Her ever-ready sympathy for all dis- couraged and disheartened and weary labourers from the mission field, and her loving tact in straightening out the difficulties and perplexities of diocesan officers, made her the friend-in-need to all. There were often days when the office was the scene of a steady stream of visitors, but each received the same welcoming smile and the same ready ear and eager effort to help. It is difficult to put into words this intangible something which was peculiar to Miss Emery, but those who knew and re- member her at her best understand. The various sec- retaries of the Board knew, and came for a talk with her in their darkest hours of anxiety and despondency over their self-consciousness of failure to arouse the Church to Her sense of duty; the missionary bishops knew, when in their hurried visits to New York they never failed to find a few moments for a visit to the Auxiliary room, where they would get refreshment and strength to return to their work; the lonely and weary missionary, home on a furlough, knew, when Miss Emery sought her out the moment of her arrival from the mission field, even to meeting her at the dock or railway station, and visiting her in a hospital, if ill. We diocesan officers also knew who could make the best suggestions which would get us out of our peculiar difficulties, and send us back to them with a feeling that our efforts had not been entirely in vain after all. We have all heard of a “‘ New England conscience.”’ Miss Emery certainly had it, and in view of her ancestry came by it rightly. During the term of Dr. Langford’s office as General Secretary of the Board of Managers, the Church was facing a large deficit, and was seriously con- sidering the reduction of salaries and stipends of the 52 JULIA CHESTER EMERY missionaries. On hearing this Miss Emery wished at once to offer to relinquish a portion of her own, saying that ‘if the missionaries’ salaries must be cut down, so must those of the secretaries.”’ She was dissuaded, how- ever, wisely or unwisely, from making this offer, and through the herculean efforts of Dr. Langford, the over- strain of which possibly caused his death, the Church, or individual members of the Church, aroused themselves to the situation and the catastrophe was averted. I never felt quite sure, had the reverse happened, and the apathy of the Church warranted such a step, whether Miss Emery would have been guided by the advice given her, or keeping her own counsel have done what she at first felt was right. Many individual members of the Woman’s Auxiliary contributed a sum of money amounting to $16,019.60, which was presented to the Misses Emery in 1913 at the Triennial in New York. Known as the “ Emery Fund,” it should yet not be confounded with the fund of the same name of the Jubilee Year, 1921. It was placed with the Board of Missions, to be invested, and the income paid to Miss Julia C. Emery, during her life, and then to Miss Margaret T. Emery, if she should survive her. After the death of the survivor, the income to be used as they might dictate. At the following Triennial Miss Emery tells in her report of 1916 what disposition she made of the income thus received: The gift has enabled us to enjoy, in larger measure than we could otherwise have done, the happy blessedness of missionary giving. The contributors to this fund kindly placed the choice of its final disposal by the Board of Missions in the Secretary’s hands, and it seems right that she should report her decision in the matter. RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 53 At her request the principal will go to the Board of Missions as a perpetual fund whose interest shall be devoted to General Missions in the yearly work for which the Board is responsible. And then she adds: Sometimes the objection is made that the Living Church should do the work of its own generation, and not fall back upon the in- heritance of those who have died. To your Secretary it seemed that this continuous gift were rather a participation with friends on earth of a still living member of Christ’s Body, and she dwells on the matter, not only to express again her sister’s appreciation and her own, but also to suggest that in making a last disposition of those means with which God has entrusted them, many members of the Auxiliary may place some portion in the care of the Board, to enable it to grasp some present opportunity,or as a resource in time of need. It must have been in the nineties that Miss Emery asked me seriously to promise I would tell her as soon as I thought her usefulness as Secretary of the Auxiliary had come toanend. Very reluctantly I made the promise, but feeling at the time that she herself would probably know long before I should when such a time had come. Her action proved that I was right. On completing her fortieth year of service, in October, 1916, during the season of the General Convention in St. Louis, Miss Emery presented to the President of the Board of Missions her formal resignation. She had been considering this step for some time, and had even spoken of it to her family, who did not look upon it at first with favour. As was usual with her she made no further com- ment, but started for St. Louis to attend the Auxiliary’s Triennial. During the whole session she said nothing, but on the last day wrote her letter of resignation and sent it to Bishop Lloyd. The contents of this letter were not disclosed, not even to her assistants, until several weeks later, when she had returned to New York. 54 JULIA CHESTER EMERY That this resignation was accepted with many regrets and misgivings we can well appreciate, and with Miss Grace Lindley, her assistant for many years and her worthy successor, we would say, as she does, in her report of 1916-1917: The Auxiliary would gladly join in the resolution passed by the Board when Miss Emery’s resignation was presented to them: “The retirement of Miss Julia C. Emery from the office of General Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary affords to the Board an opportunity to give expression to the affectionate regard in which she has long been held by us all. Under her wise guidance and the inspiration of her leadership, the women of the Church have ac- complished great things for the extension of the Kingdom. Her wisdom, her graciousness, her courage, her zeal, are qualities which we of the Board will strive to emulate. Her retirement cannot be permitted to deprive the mission work of the Church of her help and counsel. She will always be regarded by the Board as an adviser and a colleague. By the Church her services will always be held in loving and grateful remembrance.” At the Conference of Auxiliary officers in January, 1917, the Woman’s Auxiliary passed the following pre- amble and resolution: The Conference of diocesan officers received with surprise and regret Miss Emery’s announcement that her resignation had been presented to and accepted by the Board of Missions. The majority of the officers and members of the Woman’s Auxiliary have never known any other General Secretary, and the example always before them of perseverance, devotion to duty, loyalty to the Board, and entire self-forgetfulness has been a constant incentive to give of their best to the work best worth doing. Miss Emery’s willingness to receive suggestions and adopt new methods, even when advanced by women without a tithe of her experience or judgment, has been most remarkable, and shows her breadth of mind as well as her ability. Therefore, be it Resolved, That this conference wishes to express in the warmest terms its affection and admiration for Miss Emery, and that it will RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 55 endeavour to show its appreciation of the great work she has done by doing that which will please her most, working ever more earnestly for the extension of the Kingdom of God. On the last day but one of that year, in which her resignation meant so much to many people, Miss Emery sent out to every diocesan officer the following letter, which, as she says, “is not a farewell letter,” but it was her last official communication to them, many of whom had worked with her for years enjoying her loving guid- ance and friendship: December 30, 1916. My dear I am writing you because you have seen my resignation as Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary. You do not need me to say that it has been a great privilege and joy to have held the office for forty years, or that I would not lightly give it up. You have given me your loving confidence so long, I am looking for it also in this. My belief is that the great advance of the Woman’s Auxiliary is to lie along the lines of diligent and prayerful study and the devel- opment of missionary training in our young people in co-operation with our parish clergy and the superintendents and teachers in our Sunday-schools. The recent gains in the growth of mission study among us owe much to the schools — as they may well be called — conducted at our last three Triennials under Miss Lindley’s leadership; the Sunday-school plan, inaugurated at our last Triennial in St. Louis, is her own. By placing her for the next three years as Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary, the Board is giving her, and you with her, the opportunity to develop both plans in such a way as to show the Church, at our next Triennial, their value. They are plans which appeal to our younger women with peculiar force. It is my earnest prayer that they may be the means of raising up a great company of young women to share with us in all the tasks of the Woman’s Aux- iliary, and to carry on its work without break and in the most entire harmony. For this is not a farewell letter. To give up office does not oblige me to give up work, and that I am still allowed. The box 56 JULIA CHESTER EMERY work will continue as for years past under the care of Miss M. T. Emery. Bishop Lloyd and Miss Lindley have asked me to continue to edit the Auxiliary pages of The Spirit of Missions, and in this I shall more than ever want your help. Will you not tell me where they have seemed inadequate, what kind of matter you could spare from them, what you want to see in them, and add your experiences in study and Sunday-school and Junior work, the latest and most telling news from the mission field, questions you would like to have answered? All will be welcome. And through this year I am to follow with you in our Pilgrimage of Prayer. Please call upon me for any helps you may need, and © please tell me of your week when it has passed. I expect to be at the Missions House to see our Auxiliary and missionary visitors, with more time, perhaps, than heretofore to make them welcome. I am hoping also to visit when desired, and to help you as I may be able in telling of the Auxiliary and the work. I want to be your friend and helper still, but I shall feel an added joy in your faithful friendship, as I see you giving to Miss Lindley, in her new responsibility and office, an ever-growing affection and the heartiest and happiest co-operation. With loving thanks, and best wishes for this New Year and all the years to come, Yours very sincerely, (Signed) Juria C. Emery. Again we find in Miss Lindley’s first report this added testimony and appreciation of Miss Emery’s forty years’ labour: As we review the past year in the Auxiliary, two events stand out most prominently, Miss Emery’s resignation and the Pilgrimage of Prayer. This is the first report of the Woman’s. Auxiliary ever signed by any other name than that of Emery. For four years Miss Mary A. Emery was the Secretary; for forty years Miss Julia C. Emery. It would be almost impossible for the Auxiliary ever to express adequately what Miss Emery has done for the Auxiliary, and through it for the Church, but no history of the development of the work of women in the Church will fail to put her name high in the American Church. RESULTS OF FORTY YEARS’ LABOUR 57 At the next Triennial, held in Detroit in 1919, the Woman’s Auxiliary, in general session on October 17th, passed the following resolutions with reference to the retirement of Miss Julia C. Emery, and that of her sister a few years previous, Miss Margaret T. Emery: Whereas, The Board of Missions has with great regret accepted the resignation of Miss Julia C. Emery as Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary after forty years of faithful service, and Whereas, We feel that the growth of the Auxiliary and its use- fulness have been largely due to her untiring zeal and devotion, and Whereas, She has endeared herself to us of the Auxiliary and to countless men and women throughout the Church by her sympathetic interest and loving counsel, therefore be it Resolved, That we, the members of the Woman’s Auxiliary, in triennial meeting assembled, do place on record our grateful and loving appreciation of Miss Emery’s labours in the cause of our Master, and be it further Resolved, That a copy of this resolution be sent to Miss Emery, and that it be placed on the minutes of the meeting. Whereas, For forty-three years the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions has been blessed with the devoted services of Miss Margaret T. Emery, who has given the best years of her life to the work of Christ and His missions, with earnest endeavour and intimate knowledge of the needs of the ministry in the mission field, and Whereas, With sympathetic delicacy she so dignified both giving and receiving that through the length and breadth of the land the personal touch between those who had contributed in filling boxes and the recipients was felt as an inspiration through the spirit of her loving consecration; therefore Be It Resolved, That the appreciation of the Woman’s Auxiliary be expressed, through its members in session assembled at the Tri- ennial of 1919, and conveyed to Miss Margaret T. Emery for the life of service which must beautify all her years. CHAPTER VI Looking Back 1. Reminiscences HILE still breathing the atmosphere of the Church Missions House, or, rather, perhaps that of the Bible House, where the original headquarters of the Auxiliary were situated, we might with possible interest look back over the years and learn something of the be- ginnings of what we now think of as long-established customs. During the days of the Centennial and Jubilee cele- brations of the Missionary Society of the Church and its Auxiliaries, in 1921, the Rev. C. E. Betticher, late editor of The Spirit of Missions, asked 1f I would write a series of short articles for that magazine on what I knew or remembered in the way of interesting incidents connected with the work. A few days later, while I was considering this proposal, I was shocked to learn of Mr. Betticher’s very sudden death. The articles were not written. In these pages, while we are reviewing somewhat the earlier and later years of the Auxiliary, 1t may not be out of place to record these incidents, which, though not of special historic importance, are yet indirectly, at least, associated with Miss Emery, and may be of interest to many of the older workers, and possibly to not a few of those more recently taking up the reins. (The reader will pardon the mention of any personal references made in the reminiscences. The apology must be the fear of all 58 LOOKING BACK — 1. REMINISCENCES 59 knowledge or remembrance of them being lost should they fail to be written now.) Let me carry you back in thought, you charter and older members of the Auxiliary, to the little room in the old Bible House in New York which was rented by the Board of Missions as a headquarters and office for Miss Mary A. Emery, when in 1871 she was asked to organize the women of the Church into a society auxiliary to its own. The building is still standing, and occupies the entire block on Fourth Avenue between 8th and 9th Streets. “‘ Room 21” was at the end of the long corridor on the second floor, and on the opposite side from the offices of the Domestic and Foreign Committees. On the glass panel of the door were painted the words, “‘ Woman’s Auxiliary.” Opening this door one would invariably be met witha welcoming smile from Miss Emery (at first Mary, and later Julia), as she sat at the large table in the centre of the room, facing it. What a flood of pleasant memories floats back to me as I recall this little room where I spent the working hours of nine happy years as an assistant! It was not attractive in outward appearance — it was even shabby and dingy. The tables and bookcases were not new, and the large horsehair-covered sofa was a relic of a past generation. But — we loved it, and the atmos- phere created by Miss Emery and her sisters gave it always a feeling as of “‘home”’ to each of its many and constant visitors. Beginning with Bishop Tuttle, then of Montana, Idaho, and Utah, whose recent passing, even after his thirty-seven years as the Diocesan of Missourt, has left a blank in the missionary world deeply felt by every member of the Auxiliary — Bishop Tuttle, whom I called our “‘ ray of sunshine,” because he never failed when in New York to visit the Rooms daily, if only to 60 JULIA CHESTER EMERY thrust in his head, and with a cheery voice to say, ““ Good morning’’; and every other missionary bishop, numbering some nine or ten only in those days, missionaries from all parts, whether from Africa, China, or Alaska, or nearer home; a diocesan officer of the Auxiliary or a personal friend; all were made to feel they had come at the right time and to the right place for sympathy, interest, and encouragement. It was in this room that noonday prayers were first said, at the suggestion of the Rev. Dr. William Hobart Hare, later Bishop of Niobrara, or later still of South Dakota, but at that time, in 1872, Foreign Secretary of the Foreign and Domestic Missionary Society. At the noon-hour Miss Emery would straighten up her desk and, placing a prayer-book and hymnal on the table, prepare for the entrance of the several secretaries, office workers, and possible visitors. She would also make a choice of the hymn, which was played (by her assistant, who also led in the singing) on the small melodeon in the room. This was followed by a few mis- sionary prayers read by one of the reverend secretaries. “No. 21 Bible House ” was, therefore, the first ““chapel ” of the Mission Rooms, and in it was begun the daily custom of noonday prayers, now held in the more at- tractive Chapel of the Church Missions House. While the Rev. Dr. William S. Langford was General Secretary of the Board of Managers, who, as every one knows, was so identified with and instrumental in the building of a house for the Church’s missionary work, I was Miss Emery’s assistant. Knowing that Dr. Langford and the Board were busily seeking a suitable site for such a house, one morning, on my way to the office as usual, I noticed a sign ‘“‘ For Sale’ on some two or three old basement houses on Fourth Avenue, between LOOKING BACK —1. REMINISCENCES 61 21st and 22nd Streets, in the middle of the block, squeezed in between the small chapel adjoining Calvary Church and the building on the 22nd Street corner. When Dr. Langford made us his daily visit, I told him of this, as it appeared to me, suitable site for the Missions House. He at once scorned the suggestion. On my asking why, he said, “Too near Calvary Church.” As [ hap- pened to be a member of Calvary Parish, I felt a trifle hurt, but said no more. Not many weeks later I learned that the Board had made an offer for these same lots, and the property was secured. The Board wanted the corner lot also, but the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which owned and occupied the building thereon, refused to sell. How- ever, when the walls of the adjoining houses were torn down, the Building Commissioners condemned the corner building as unsafe. The Board immediately renewed its offer. This time it was accepted, and the S. P. C. A. moved its quarters to the corner of Madison Avenue and 26th Street. The way now being clear, the architect and builders went ahead, and on October 3, 1892, the cornerstone was laid. January 25, 1894, the Foreign and Domestic Mis- sionary Society’s new home was dedicated — the Church Missions House — where it stands today. A large room on the second floor was devoted to the work of the Woman’s Auxiliary. For some few years this room was sufficient for the housing of all its work, but has since been partitioned in various ways to accommodate the enlargement of the work and for the convenience of the workers. Today, with the exception of the space occupied by the Chapel and the Board Room, the whole of this second floor has been given over to the Auxiliary’s use. 62 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Miss Emery has left in her own handwriting a memo- randum of the gifts with which the original room was furnished, giving some descriptive details. It is here quoted as she wrote it: The Woman’s Auxiliary Room had a tablet marked to name it the Mary Edson Hall. This was not to distinguish her as an especially active member of the Auxiliary. I do not know if she were an active member at all. She was a member of Grace Parish, New York, and gave $50,000 towards the building of the Church - Missions House. The Board wished to commemorate the gift by a tablet, and, as she was a woman, ordered it placed in the Auxiliary Room. [The tablet is now found in the hall on the second floor.| The tablet to Miss Cornelia Jay is a reminder of one of the earliest and most devoted officers of the Auxiliary. In 1874 Bishop Horatio Potter made her Chairman of the New York Committee on Work for Foreign Missionaries, and at a time when that work was little known and perhaps less liked in the diocese, her persistent effort introduced it into parish after parish, and her faithful care nourished and strengthened interest in it for many years. The Woman’s Auxiliary as a whole contributed towards the fur- nishings of the Auxiliary Room and the Chapel, first occupied in 1894. The clock was given by the Delaware Branch, Bishop Coleman designing the case and selecting the motto — “‘ Redeeming the time.” The carving was done by a Swiss carver in Wilmington, Delaware. The large table was selected as the gift of the Missouri Branch by Mrs. Tuttle. A smaller table and a set of shelves were from Christ Church, Rye, New York. The settle was made in Portland, from Oregon maple, and was sent across the country by the Oregon Branch. The two African chairs were brought over by Bishop Ferguson in 1885, before his consecration. When he came again, in 1913, the black clergyman who was with him sat very proudly in the larger chair — which we have been told is a King’s seat — and said, “In my country no woman would be allowed to sit in this chair.” The square of gold and blue embroidery (hanging on the wall) is the gift of the Christian women of Wusih to the Auxiliary, the text being, ““ How shall they hear without a preacher,” etc. LOOKING BACK —1. REMINISCENCES 63 The red and gold scrolls are from St. Mary’s Hall, Shanghai, with greetings to the Auxiliary. (Translated, it says: ‘‘ Respectfully pre- sented to the Woman’s Auxiliary of the United States by the pupils of St. Mary’s Hall, Shanghai. “The Holy Doctrine continually abides May it spread over all the earth. The gracious light is glorious To illuminate all mankind.’’) The Japanese scrolls were brought over from Osaka many years ago by Miss Mailes (one of our missionaries), from whom they were bought. They represent the gods of the elements — rain, wind, snow, etc. The water-colour sketches of stork, wistaria, etc., were presented by pupils and teachers of St. Margaret’s School, Tokyo. The coloured rice-paper pictures came from Ichang, 1,000 miles up the Yang-tse, and were given by Bishop Huntington’s aunt when she lived with him there (described on the back). The alms-box in the hall came from the California Branch, a memorial to the first deaconess of that diocese. The chimes Dr. Langford bought at Liberty’s, London, on the occasion of a visit in England. The Rev. Dr. Brown, a former rector of St. Thomas’ Church, New York, gave the dorsal in the Chapel. The Altar is the Auxiliary’s memorial to Dr. Langford. The Altar linen and vessels, the alms-basins, stoles, bookmarks, stall, lectern, credence, were all gifts of members, or branches, or of the united Auxiliary. The Spirit of Missions of 1894, pp. 64, 65, contains a note of some of these things. In further reference to the Altar in the Chapel, 1t was very shortly after the sudden death of the Rev. Dr. Langford, in July, 1897, that one of the officers of the New York Branch was visiting in Twilight Park, in the Catskill Mountains, almost under the very shadow of the little cottage where the death occurred. It may be interest- ing to note, by the way, that this cottage was built and occupied, when Twilight Park was an artists’ settlement, 64 JULIA CHESTER EMERY by the late Walter Satterlee, the artist, and at this time was owned by his cousin, Bishop Satterlee, the first Bishop of Washington. It was in this atmosphere, almost, as I say, under the very shadow of this little cottage, and filled with the memory of Dr. Langford’s personality and self-sacrifice, that this Auxiliary officer sent a letter to Miss Emery suggesting as an appropriate memorial to Dr. Langford that the Woman’s Auxiliary give the Altar for the Chapel in the Church Missions House. At once Miss Emery accepted her suggestion, and asked her to write a letter, to be sent out to all the diocesan branches, soliciting gifts for this purpose. Within a short while a sum of $300 was in hand, and the beautifully carved Altar in the Chapel stands today as the Auxiliary’s memorial to the Rev. Dr. William S. Langford, whose monument is the Church Missions House itself. On the side of the Altar to the right is found a brass plate bearing this inscription: TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN LOVING GRATITUDE FOR THE LIFE AND SERVICE OF WILLIAM SPEAIGHT LANGFORD, PRIEST GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE BOARD OF MISSIONS A. D. 1885-1897 HIS FELLOW WORKERS IN THE WOMAN’S AUXILIARY PLACE THIS ALTAR IN. THE CHAPEL WHERE “ HE EXECUTED THE PRIEST’S OFFICE BEFORE GOD ” “HOW LONG, O LORD, HOLY AND TRUE” While recording what the Auxiliary did for itself in this direction, we would like also to mention what it did towards furnishing the new rooms of its sister society, in LOOKING BACK —1. REMINISCENCES 65 London, the Woman’s Missionary Association of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. In Miss Emery’s diary, during one of her visits to London, we find: The rooms where the officers of the General Society meet are adorned with oak panellings, given by American Churchmen, the most zsthetic touch in the construction of the building, which in general is severely plain and utilitarian. In the Committee Room of the Woman’s Missionary Association are chairs and a clock given by Auxiliary officers of the dioceses in the thirteen original states. Under the clock is the following inscription: “This clock, together with the chairman’s chair and thirty others, is the gift of the Woman’s Auxiliary of the Board of Home and Foreign Missions of the Episcopal Church in America, who, by the hand of Bishop Montgomery, Secretary of the S. P. G., sent in 1907, $300, representing $1.00 a year for the 300 years since the first church was built in Virginia.” CHaPTER VII Looking Back 2. Beginnings E have reviewed the early days of the Woman’s Auxiliary. We have considered the results or progress made during Miss Emery’s tenure of office, and we know of the work as it is today, with its six general secretaries presiding over its various departments. Re- calling some of the past we may see in many cases the seeds were sown by the wise and guiding hand of Mrs. Twing or Miss Emery, whose careful watering and patient waiting allowed the growth and development of what they foresaw to a gradual fruition. In the Bible House there was a room behind the office of the Auxiliary which was called the Publication Room, and was used for packing. The walls from floor to ceiling were covered with rough pine shelves laden with “ back numbers” of The Spirit of Missions and The Young Christian Soldier, and other publications and leaflets. Packing boxes stood about the room to be packed or unpacked, as the case might be, and, in fact, all seemed in general confusion. It certainly was dusty. It was amidst these surroundings that the first missionary boxes were packed. Packages of clothing of all kinds, and other articles, were sent by the parishes and individuals interested to the Auxiliary Rooms to be forwarded to the missionaries for personal use or distribution in their mission stations. One or two faithful, self-sacrificing 66 LOOKING BACK —2. BEGINNINGS 67 women of New York devoted one or two days a week to sorting, valuing, and packing these into large cases to be dispatched to the South or West. Out of this simple beginning grew the systematized, orderly, and much- appreciated box work which was carried on so many years by Miss Margaret T. Emery, and is now thoroughly organized along Red Cross lines and known as the Supply Department. One of the original objects for which the Auxiliary held itself responsible, these missionary boxes proved themselves of inestimable value, not only because they provided necessities for the missionaries’ families, who in the early days were living on the frontier, and beyond the pale of “‘ department stores,” even had their meagre stipends allowed of their purchasing such as they needed, but because of the encouragement, refreshment, and sym- pathy they received through the so-called “ personal touch.” The pathetic little story related by Bishop Frederick F. Johnson, then Bishop Coadjutor of South Dakota, in a letter written to and for Miss Emery’s “Book of Appreciation,” witnesses to this. The story, as Bishop Johnson tells it, is as follows: One day during those rare years when it was my privilege to be a Bishop Assistant to the sainted Bishop Hare, I came to a mission- ary’s home in the South Dakota Indian Field, hidden out of sight in a far-away corner of the prairie. The home was quite bare of adorn- ment. The good missionary and his good wife spent so much for others, only a little was left, out of which they bought just the necessaries for themselves. When I arrived I found the missionary’s wife sitting beside a missionary box which she had just unpacked, crying. ‘‘ What is it that troubles you?” was the question I asked of the dear woman, as I tried to pour in oil and wine. “‘This,” she replied, as she showed me a delicate piece of embroidery. “‘This perfectly beautiful thing! Not necessary, but beautiful! And it was in this missionary box for me!” 68 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Of course, missionary boxes have almost always carried certain serviceable things into missionary homes. But the Emery sisters in the Woman’s Auxiliary, so it seemed to me, lifted the “ box work ”’ up into a means of carrying blessed beauty into many a humdrum home. I know that in many a bare and lonely missionary dwelling joy and cheer have often come because of some beautiful something, “‘ not serviceable,” tucked tidily away into the midst of the necessary things which all missionary boxes are supposed to carry. Yes, it is true, as Victor Hugo makes the old bishop say to his housekeeper, “ The beautiful things of life are quite as useful as the useful things; and,” he added, after a slight pause, “I sometimes think, more useful.” While the Auxiliary thus cared for the bodily com- forts of the missionaries and their families, Miss Emery became impressed with the necessity of feeding their minds. Herself an insatiable reader, she realized how starved must be the isolated missionary for books on theology, the spiritual life, current topics, or even fiction. Asking any interested visitors for what they were willing to part with from their libraries, or would contribute in the way of recent publications, she soon filled the shelves of the small — very small — bookcase standing in the Room. The missionaries were informed through the sending of a list of books to be loaned, and were en- couraged to state their preferences. The books were then sent back and forth by mail to any required distance. Thus began, in 1879, what was called the Lending Library for Missionaries. Shall we say that this very small venture was the forerunner of the Church Periodical Club, and possibly suggested the greater ideal to its founder? Later, books on missionary subjects, biographies of missionaries, and kindred interests were added to the library at the Auxiliary Rooms, which were borrowed and read by members of the Auxiliary and others, who thus were stimulated to the study of Missions. Definite missionary instruction was begun, however, in 1874, when LOOKING BACK —2. BEGINNINGS 69 the Auxiliary’s Foreign Committee of New York issued catechisms on China and Japan and Africa. In 1886 Indiana and Missouri officers introduced mission study into their Auxiliary Branches, and in 1891 members of the Connecticut Branches founded the Church Missions Publishing Company. Although in 1886 the Auxiliary established a Domestic Missionary Lending Library, and the following year a Foreign Missionary Lending Library, and the third year suggested a systematic Daily Half- Hour Missionary Reading and Mission Study, it was not until 1900 that the Church Missions House established a really satisfactory Missionary Library for Study Classes. The earliest Mission Study Classes I can remember were in New York, led by a few of the Auxiliary officers, who invited all women interested to come together one day of each week in Lent for a short period to study and to discuss the subject of Missions. Some one field, as Africa or Haiti, was chosen each year, and the members wrote papers to be read at a meeting of the class, followed by a discussion. ‘Topics were distributed among the members. The geography, history, climate, the people and their customs, the history of the mission and the work carried on by the Church’s missionaries in that country, past and present, were studied, always with a view toward increasing their knowledge and deepening their interest. They made their own maps and had no text-books, but resorted to encyclopaedia, biographies, The Spirit of Missions, etc. A few of the women thus aroused were encouraged to organize and lead similar classes in their own parishes. The study of the Bible in its relation to missions was also instituted during the Lenten seasons. Doubtless all of these were introduced into many diocesan branches, and thus gradually evolved the system of Mission Study, 70 JULIA CHESTER EMERY with its valuable text-books, its normal classes, its summer conferences, and its trained leaders of today. Theidea of the United Thank-Offering, though not ema- nating directly from Miss Emery, but from Mrs. Richard H. Soule, an officer at that time of the Diocese of Pitts- burgh, was nevertheless a welcome suggestion, and was accepted by her as the ideal of what the Auxiliary stands for, a united effort for a common cause in the Church of God. Doubtless seeing the vision from the first, by her it was fostered, and through her energies and interest it grew to the proportions it has now reached. The objective or destination of this ever-increasing amount of money, varying according to the vote at each Triennial Meeting of the diocesan officers, has come at last to be devoted, with the exception of a few thousands for special buildings as a memorial to mark each Triennial Offering, to the training, sending, support, and care, when disabled, of the women workers in the field. But it was ten years before the first United Thank-Offering that Miss Emery, writing, in 1879, on the support of women missionaries, says: It is earnestly desired by the Auxiliary that this work (support of women missionaries), which seems of all most fitting to it, may in time be assumed by it entirely. Mrs. Twing, as Honorary Secretary, which title was conferred upon her in 1883, was more especially interested . in arousing a desire for training schools for women mis- sionaries, which she endeavoured to do through her tri- ennial reports to the Board of Missions and the publica- tion she issued, called Church Work, which magazine treated of women’s work in the Church, deaconesses, missionaries, and lay workers, etc., and their need for special training. Miss Emery was with her, however, heart and soul,in this movement, and the Woman’s LOOKING BACK —2. BEGINNINGS 71 Auxiliary asked as early as in 1889 for a training house for women workers. Three years previous to this, Cali- fornia had suggested establishing a training school in San Francisco’s Chinese quarter, as supplying the oppor- tunities for the study of the language, customs, and peculiarities of a foreign people. Though homes and schools for the training of deacon- esses have been established in several of the dioceses, and from these well-trained workers have gone and are con- tinuously going to the mission field, it was not until the Auxiliary gathered for its Triennial Meeting at Portland, in 1922, twenty-one years after Mrs. Twing’s, and ten months after Miss Emery’s, passing away, that definite action was taken providing for a training school for women missionaries. In the near future it is hoped that a home for this school will be opened in New York, and another for coloured students in some one of the Southern States. The Corporate Communions, the Days of Interces- sion, and the Quiet Days, begun as early as 1882, and held since in never-ceasing succession in parishes, dio- ceses, and for the Auxiliary as a whole, owed much to the influence of Miss Emery’s own deeply religious life, which influence is still felt, though unconsciously, to be working in and through the great mass of Churchwomen today. It was doubtless she who suggested and arranged for the Days or Weeks of Prayer and Self-Denial kept on special occasions, such as in 1895, as a preparation for the approaching triennial gathering, and in 1915,in the time of a special emergency of the Board. How natural, there- fore, that when she learned of the Pilgrimage of Prayer carried on throughout England in the first years of the World War, she should plan a similar Pilgrimage in our own country. CuHaPTeR VIII Home and Parish Life O lift the veil behind which is hidden the home life of such an one as Julia Chester Emery is indeed a delicate undertaking, and one which possibly no one but a member of her immediate family should dare to attempt. The most reticent of an extremely reticent family, it was difficult to know how she felt or of what she was thinking. To know her at work was not at all to have known her in the home, and to one knowing her in the home only it was not possible to imagine her in the office. One of her younger sisters, seeing her there for the first time, and among those with whom she was thrown in the daily round of duty, remarked that she could “ scarcely believe it to be the little sister Julia”’ she herself had as yet known only in the home. Everyone loved her, but no one really knew her. Taking up her duties in New York at the age of twenty-two years, she was after that at home in Dor- chester for short periods only, usually for one week during the Christmas holidays and for a month’s vacation in summer, yet no one could have had a deeper devotion for the family ties than she. In the home she thought only of how she could help and wait on others; in times of sorrow and trouble, which inevitably came frequently to so large a family, she would devote herself to com- forting others, apparently entirely forgetting the sorrow was also her own. Her knowledge of the practical house- 72 HOME AND PARISH LIFE 73 hold duties was but small compared with her work in other directions, yet she delighted in assisting where she could, though lack of knowledge robbed her of self- confidence and made her timid in attempting much beyond the simplest duties. Neither was she an adept at sewing, and it was not until she was asked jokingly one day how she expected to use her time when she grew older if she could not knit — or possibly was it from a desire to do her bit during the War? — that she learned to knit the simple stitches. No, her attainments were more of a literary nature, for she would read aloud by the hour while others sewed or knit, and she was particularly good at all literary games, and wrote acrostics and numerous verses, both nonsense rhymes and those of a more serious character. The following short example of her work was written for one who was at the time facing a sore trial: THE SIN AND SoRROW OF ALL THE WoRLD The sorrow and the sin of all the world Against a Form and Face Divine were hurled. They bowed that Form, and marred the perfect Face Which was the joy of Heaven’s highest place. O Child, if thy face ever shall have worn Such lines as that Divinest Face hath borne, By suffering marred, by sin and sorrow tried, Wait, sleep in hope, thou shalt wake, satisfied. Isaiah LII, 14; Psalm XVII, 15. And another, written during the World War, 1918: UNDER SEAS In the Eternal Infinite, Where float the balls of Time and Space, What chance the high and righteous God Shall ever scan my darling’s face? 74 JULIA CHESTER EMERY He’s only a boy, though a brave one, And maybe he’ll fail and fall; But he never waited a moment When he heard his Country call. My righteous God is a Father, And ’twas in Time He sent His Son, And in Space He saw Him suffer That so might His will be done. And so I believe without doubting My son He is sure to know, Whom the sun and the moon seek vainly In the secret seas below. Being an insatiable and exceedingly rapid reader she managed to accomplish a considerable amount. As a young girl she was very fond of the stories of Charlotte _M. Yonge, and often spoke of the “ Daisy Chain” as a favorite. I believe she read it many times. She joined a reading circle called the “St. Andrew’s Half-hour Reading Club,” of which she was a member for many years. The requirements of this club were to read for at least one-half hour each day a portion of some serious and instructive book. When she went out of town to live, and became a commuter, she daily carried some such volume with her and made her half-hour while on the train, either going or coming. The lists of such reading, being kept, were submitted to the chosen judges, who more than once awarded to her the prize for the best and most comprehensive list. With the exception of one occasion in England in 1908, when she saw the Winchester Historic Pageant, and another time a pageant in Baltimore, she had never attended a theatre until about two years before her death. She then saw Drinkwater’s representation of “Abraham Lincoln.” That she went then one might HOME AND PARISH LIFE 75 almost say was by pure accident. One of the two sisters intending to use the tickets was at the last moment indisposed, and Julia was, to every one’s astonishment, persuaded to take her place. Her eagerness and excite- ment over the event were almost painful to see. She found the play most absorbing, having but recently read the “ Life of Lincoln”? by Drinkwater. Until this she had always studiously declined attending any theatrical performance, though she gave no reason for so doing. This one occasion on which she witnessed a real play occurring three or four years after her resignation as Secretary of the Wcman’s Auxiliary bears testimony to the possibility of the correctness of my surmise, that she felt ““ Caesar’s wife should be above suspicion,” or, in other words, that the Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary should give no ground for criticism. I knew she could not entirely disapprove of the modern drama, for she not infrequently herself bought tickets for others to use. Possibly this same conscientious scruple forbade her playing cards except in her own home, where we together not infrequently enjoyed a good game of whist or auction bridge. She was a very rapid and keen player, and I believe thoroughly enjoyed a game. Living as she did, with two of her sisters, in boarding- houses for some sixteen or seventeen years, she must have hailed with delight the move her mother made when, after her husband’s death, she came, in 1891, with her younger daughters, to an apartment in New York, and made a home for the three who were already residing there. After occupying several in various parts of the city, they finally settled in East 24th Street, conveniently near to the Missions House, and where many missionaries and others always found a welcome, and shared with the Emery family the joys of their happy home. It was 76 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Julia’s great delight always to invite her friends and those of the Auxiliary, especially the stranger in New York, to meet her mother and to enjoy a cup of tea. It was here that Mrs. Emery died in 1901, and it was Mrs. Twing’s home when she was taken, while attending General Convention and the Triennial Meeting of the Auxiliary in San Francisco, in the Autumn of that same year. Nine years later the three sisters built an attractive cottage at Scarsdale, New York, within commuting distance of the city, and here they lived and entertained their hosts of friends as of yore. The most sociably in- clined of all sociable people, I really believe one of the minor trials of Julia’s last years was her inability to exercise her usual hospitality, the distance they now lived from the Church Missions House rendering it impossible for their missionary friends to run in informally for luncheon or tea as when they lived in 24th Street. Never can I forget the little hurried visits she so frequently made us in the early morning on her way to the office, or as she snatched a few moments before catch- ing the train when her work was done. Never a Christmas Eve but found her ringing our doorbell, she, herself, some- times covered with snowflakes, which she seemed to enjoy, and carrying on her arm a small basket, carefully covered with white tissue paper and tied with the proverbial red ribbons and a bunch of holly, from which she lovingly drew some little gift. Such a beaming smile as she wore! It was as though she had surely seen the vision of the Christ-child and had come to bring to us His Joy and Light. Her office work, which, because of the conscientious- ness with which she faced her responsibilities, would be to many another overtaxing, she could at any time put MUO MAN SFIVASUVIS LV FOVLLOY) HOME AND PARISH LIFE 77 aside to visit a missionary, sick or lonely, or any friend or worker to whom she might bring a word of cheer. Not one woman missionary was forgotten by her at Christmas or at Eastertide. She would spend hours sorting and selecting the card most appropriate to the needs of each, and laboriously endeavour to catch the mail both for the foreign and the domestic fields which would carry her message nearest to the date desired. How many might say, as did the recipient of the letter from which I quote below, that Miss Emery was the only one who sent her a letter of sympathy in some time of trial. And this is the hopeful kind of comfort and sym- pathy she gave, and in the last year of her life: I saw the death of your aunt in Africa, the other day. My last aunt, my mother’s youngest sister, has just gone, too. She was ninety. Don’t you think when these old people go, they must be so glad and thankful? It pushes us along a little on our way. But as one takes the forward step doesn’t the real life open out before one, more and more, with such boundless and beautiful possibilities? If it be true that a person is known by the books he reads, then we have a glimpse of Miss Emery in the fol- lowing from the same letter, showing even up to the last how active was her mind. She says: | Are you and your sister reading Wells together or separately? We did the latter, also Beveridge’s “‘ John Marshall,” which is fine. Aloud we have had Strachey’s “‘ Queen Victoria,” ‘‘ Mirrors of Downing Street,” Bishop’s “‘ Roosevelt,” “‘ Edward Bok,” “ Joseph H. Choate,” this last rather disappointing. Have you seen Vida Scudder’s “‘ Social Teachings of the Christian Year”? Her style never appeals to me. It seems too complex and laboured. For light reading I am indulging in the Waverley Novels, and have reached “‘ Ivanhoe.”’ Some of Oppenheim’s stories are bright and entertaining. I don’t like the ‘“‘ Dust,” “ Main Street,” and “ Captives ” kind. 78 JULIA CHESTER EMERY This amount of reading, added to the writing she also did, must have made a busy life for one confined to her couch. What Bishop Lawrence, of Massachusetts, said of the sainted Bishop Tuttle, in his memorial sermon in Christ Church Cathedral, in St. Louis, may with equal truth and fitness also be said of her: And as his organization became larger and his field of influence wider, he never lost the personal touch. The youngest bishop, the latest bride, the friend in joy or sorrow, was sure of a loving letter in his own hand. Surely she was one of the “ decent bodies’ of whom Lord FredericHamilton writes, that are, in his experience, Vin) va’ great (majority). :.). . They «may snot bag cane spicuously to the fore, for the ‘decent bodies’ are not given to self-advertisement. They have no love for the limelight, and would be distinctly annoyed should their advent be heralded with a flourish of trumpets. In the garden-borders the mignonette is a very inconspicuous little plant. ... These ‘decent bodies’ are not the exclusive product of one country, of one class, or of one sex. They are to be found ‘ Here, There, and Every- where.’ ”’ Miss Emery’s Church life and home life were so inter- mingled it would be impossible, even could one wish it, to separate them. St. Mary’s Church, Dorchester, Massachusetts, was her parish home until she took up her permanent residence in New York. On assuming work in this city she connected herself with the Church of the Holy Communion, as Mrs. Twing had already done. Later, she and her sister, Margaret T. Emery, at- tended Calvary Chapel, when the Rev. Floyd W. Tom- HOME AND PARISH LIFE 79 kins was vicar, and who was succeeded in time by Miss Emery’s younger brother, the Rev. W. Stanley Emery. It was about this time that her mother and sisters settled in New York, and all the family, therefore, became members of that parish, and there remained until Mr. Emery’s removal to Norwich, Connecticut, and later to St. Paul’s, Concord, New Hampshire. After this the family attended the Church of the Incarnation so long as they remained in the city. Wherever her parish she was always, except when on a missionary trip, to be found in her place on Sunday and at the early Celebrations. She could always find time amongst her multifarious duties for the Saints’ Day Services at Calvary Church, which was next door to her office at the Missions House, and received inspira- tion and strength from these Services for renewed vigor. We would scarcely expect one whose entire week was given to the Church’s work to devote any portion of the Sundays to parish duties, and yet for years she taught a class in the Sunday-school. Except when her Auxiliary journeys of necessity caused her absence from New York, she was regularly and punctually on duty each Sunday morning. It is difficult to conceive of her, knowing of her continuous and confining office work, as spending her Sundays after this programme, which we find in her diary not once, but every week the same. 1888, Fanuary 15th, Sunday. A. M.—9, Early Celebration at Grace Church; 10.45, Calvary Chapel. P. M.—2.45, G. F. S. Sunday-school; 7.30, Calvary Chapel, Evening Prayer. Company to tea. Yet such was her life. Her interest in the little home parish in Scarsdale is" best told by her rector in his parish paper of January, 1922 80 JULIA CHESTER EMERY To our parish she was an inspiration and help. It is not too much to say that every individual and every event in the parish was of interest to her. On the day before Confirmation she asked to be told the name of each one who was to be confirmed, and her prayers and thoughts followed that Service, as they did every Service in the parish Church. Two days later all was over, and she had peacefully and joyfully gone to her Heavenly Father. To her rector, Miss Emery was more than he can put into words. Coming from the Missionary District of Wyoming, he found at once in her one who was a friend to all in the Mission field. Her advice, inspiration, and friendship made lovely the days in the new parish. And during the last days, a quiet visit to her bedside was a bene- diction to him, and the smile and light in her eyes made faith very real. Anyone reading this chapter may be inclined to criticize the author as giving only the serious side of Miss Emery’s character. There was no other side. Though full of the joy and happiness of life, I never saw her frivolous, never humorous. Her every word was full of serious import, her every act was prompted as by some purposeful intent. | She had her faults, as who has not, but as I think of them now they are too small to be worth mentioning. Many years ago, on one occasion I was both surprised and pleased to discover she was not a little proud of her small feet — surprised, because I believed her void of all vanity, and pleased, for it proved that she was really human after all. I always thought her to have had naturally rather a hasty temper, but this she had under wonderful control, and kept it so, largely, by avoiding all discussion. She disliked controversy above everything, and_ neither listened to nor read any such when possible to avoid it. Whenever any discussion at a meeting showed signs of becoming at all heated, the colour in her face would AWOP AHL NI SYALSI$ FAUMH] HOME AND PARISH LIFE 81 mount to the roots of her hair, and she would at once tactfully turn the attention to another side of the subject. She had the strongest possible convictions, but never forced them upon others except in the gentlest, most persuasive terms. Gentle and modest to a degree, yet strong and brave where duty called. CHAPTER IX Labour of Love F any one part of Miss Emery’s work could above another be called a “ labour of love,” it surely might be her planning and conduct of the Pilgrimage of Prayer. Quoting again from Miss Lindley’s first report of oie Nothing could be more beautiful than the last official act of MissEmery—the plan for the year of the Pilgrimage of Prayer and her guidance of that Pilgrimage. Perhaps she foresaw all that it has been to the Auxiliary, but for most of the members it has meant more than any dared hope, and they are grateful to her and to God, who put it in her heart to suggest. At the closing of the year of 1916, and the beginning of the Christian year, the First Sunday in Advent, December 3rd, the Pilgrimage began. In The Spirit of Missions Miss Emery gives the detailed plan and method in the following: This name (“ Pilgrimage of Prayer’) we have taken from our English friends, the plan for our Pilgrimage is our own — with them it means the proceeding of persons from place to place, making inter- cession as they go; with us it signifies the same petitions arising in place after place, until in the whole course of our Christian Year intercession shall have been made from every portion of the Church. For this year we hope to make a new beginning, to pray with better understanding of what prayer is, with a firmer belief in its power; we plan that our course of study shall take Prayer for its subject, and we want to make of the year a Pilgrimage that shall fasten our hope and wish on the mind of all. 82 LABOUR OF LOVE 83 There are such large things to pray for: The Unity of Christ’s Church; The binding together of the hearts of His people in the bonds of love; _ The spread of His Kingdom through all the world; That peace may prevail among the nations, among the divided members of Christ’s Body; That organizations formed for good may work in loving harmony together for the one great aim of making Christ’s Name and Love the better known; That our enterprises of study and gifts and prayer may be blest through the outpouring of the Spirit upon our souls; That our fellow-Christians, unreached as yet, may be won to pray and learn and give. It is to this end we are calling to our Pilgrimage of Prayer. It is a call from the triennial gathering of the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions, to all members of the Woman’s Auxiliary. Should others, men or women, be moved to join in it, we would be thankful indeed. THe METHOD Beginning with the first Sunday in Advent, December 3, 1916, month by month, each week will be assigned to the Auxiliary in one or more specified dioceses, with the request that on the Sunday assigned all members of the Auxiliary, who can do so, make their Communion with the intention noted in the intercessions which this paper sets forth, that, individually, they repeat these intercessions daily throughout the week, and that, on one day in the course of that week, each parish branch in the diocese or dioceses hold a special meeting for the one purpose of making this intercession. The list of dioceses and assigned weeks is here given, and the diocesan and parochial officers of the Auxiliary in each diocese are asked to lay this plan before the Bishop and parish clergy and to ask their prayers and help. On the closing Sunday of the year —the Sunday next before Advent, November 25, 1917 — all members of the Woman’s Auxiliary throughout the Church, widely separated yet one in heart and will, are asked to make their Communion together and offer unitedly these intercessions of our Pilgrimage of Prayer. 84 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Beginning with Province I, the New England States, each diocese, or group of dioceses, was assigned one week for its Services of Prayer, every diocese in the eight Provinces being included within the Christian Year, Province VIII ending October 14th with Alaska, Hono- lulu, and the Philippine Islands. This leaving five Sun- days and weeks for the Extra Provincial districts, Tokyo, Kyoto; Shanghai, Anking, and Hankow; European Churches, Liberia, and Southern Brazil; Haiti and Cuba; Panama Canal Zone and Mexico. The last Sunday, the Sunday next before Advent, No-. vember 25, 1917, for the Auxiliary throughout the Church. The editorial in The Spirit of Missions for November, 1916, was fully justified in saying: The things which have marked this Convention (St. Louis, 1916) in the Auxiliary are its spirit of prayer, the seriousness of its study, and its joy in giving. Of the results of such work we are not concerned, for there can be no earthly record, and the prayers of the Auxiliary, rising in continuous succession throughout the year to the Throne of Grace, are noted in heaven, and our Eternal Father alone knows what those prayers meant to those who offered them, and of their benefit to the Church. That the plan was acceptable we may judge from the manner in which it was taken up by each province or diocese in turn. In the beginning, with the First Sunday in Advent, the Pilgrimage was made in Maine and New Hampshire, and during the second week it continued in Vermont and Western Massachusetts. The Bishops of Maine and New Hampshire both commended the plan in their diocesan papers, the former describing it as “a very LABOUR OF LOVE 85 simple plan, requiring merely a willing heart, a generous vision, and a hearty faith.” The latter issued a special prayer for the Auxiliary. In New Hampshire the Bishop called on “the clergy of the diocese, the women not already active in the Auxiliary, the men and children also, to share in our praying year.” The Bishop of Western Massachusetts held a retreat for the diocesan officers of the Woman’s Auxiliary and the heads of kindred societies. Writes the Dean of the Cathedral in Maine to his people: “‘ Maine begins in the East; week after week this current of prayer will energize diocese after diocese until it has throbbed its course through the whole Church.” And thus, through every diocese and missionary district in the Union, until we come to the Province of the Pacific. From Alaska, our oldest and most faithful of mis- sionaries, Dr. Chapman, writes: “I do not think you could have done us a greater service than to ask us to join in the concert of prayer that has been planned.” In this Eighth Province, Arizona had the first week, which found Arizona still in the grip of summer heat, ‘“ when everything around the Church, as does everything social and educational, dies’; when “those who can afford it and those who can scrape together any money at all, go away, and those who stay at home leave their houses during the daytime only when it is absolutely necessary, and everyone who possibly can spends the afternoon in bed.’’ Notwithstanding,in Tucson, “‘on the day of continuous intercession, there was not a moment when the church was left without some one kneeling in prayer.”’ The Auxiliary president of Los Angeles writes that “ for a week we have been a diocese on our knees, and the precedent is established.” 86 JULIA CHESTER EMERY California adopted a plan differing from that of any ° other diocese, keeping a week of preparation as well as a full observance of that of prayer—each day of the week being given to the intercessions of special organizations, and of men and children also. The Bishop of San Joaquin says: “‘Our beautiful Week of Prayer has ended, and oh, how much stronger we feel! ”’ Miss Emery writes: ““We are accustomed to look to Honolulu for an example of single-hearted devotion and — unflagging zeal. It was a sweet thought to give it that special feature which no other diocese could present, to have the days of its week given to island after island, and the prayers arise from Oahu, Mani, Kanai, and Hawaii in turn.”’ Miss Lindley speaks, in her Report for 1916-1917, of the planning of the Pilgrimage of Prayer as Miss Emery’s “last official act,” but this by no means meant that with her resignation, which took effect in December, 1916, when she handed over to her successor the duties and responsibilities as Secretary, that her work for the Church was ended. Freedom from office work, the fatigues of travel, and responsibilities which a year or so later she was no longer able to endure, gave her leisure to continue as she was asked and as she herself hoped, “ to edit the Auxiliary pages of The Spirit of Missions”; to forward the conduct of the Pilgrimage of Prayer; to be ready to welcome missionary and Auxiliary visitors; make oc- casional visits as desired, and in every way possible, in accordance with the wishes of the President of the Board and General Secretary of the Auxiliary, to render any service within her power. A little later she was asked to gather notes for an official history of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society. This she set about with an absorbing interest. LABOUR OF LOVE 87 When, after long labours of research, she had gathered a considerable number of facts, she almost unconsciously, so she said, began to compile and write the consecutive statement. Having finished the first several chapters and submitted them to the President of the Board, who highly approved, she was asked to continue and complete the whole volume. Thus she came to be the author of the official history of the first one hundred years of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, which she called “A Century of Endeavor,’ “rather,” as she said, “than of ‘Achievement,’ because, seeing so much remaining to be accomplished, and feeling the new or- ganization under whose leadership the new century has opened to be but the forerunner of an ideal still before us,”’ and “believing this is not a time to rest upon anything which has gone before, but rather one in which to take each past experience as a starting-point for future effort and help, with which to meet the problems and duties of the years to come.” To see her in the little room on the upper floor of the Church Missions House, surrounded by the familiar fittings of the old headquarters, 21 Bible House, and talk with her about the book she was writing, was to realize with what joy and zeal she was still labouring in mis- sionary interests. Gradually her health began to fail, but her work went on even after she was confined to her couch, and she saw it completed and published, the first edition on the eve of the Centennial Celebration, on November 6, 1921. Of this valuable contribution to the Church, Miss Emery’s last and crowning work, I do not feel competent to speak as reviewing the book, but know it is one which no parish library nor branch of the Woman’s Auxiliary can afford to omit from its shelves. It stores a fund of 88 JULIA CHESTER EMERY information which may be found nowhere else in so con- venient a form. She has traced every step of the Church’s realization of Her Mission, and has brought together and placed in their proper relation a multitude of details. It is a book of over four hundred pages, with a wealth of statistical information and a satisfactory index. It is not too much to say that anyone who owns a copy of this book will have then means at hand to answer any ques- tions which may arise as to the missionary work of the Church for the past one hundred years. ) In other words, Miss Emery did for us the work of research which must have been ours should we wish, as we should, to learn the history of our Missionary Society. Bishop Lloyd, in writing the Foreword, which is here quoted in its entirety, says: The Church in America will not be slow to recognize its increased debt to Miss Emery for having added to her labours through long years of joyful service this bit of painstaking research. This would be manifest if she had done nothing more than make available the story told by the Church’s records of the efforts made through the years to find a way by which the Church might do something for those who need spiritual help. But our debt to her is very much increased because she has not yielded to the temptation to tell again the story of the great things which have been accomplished in spite of the blindness and unbelief of the people of our Lord Christ; but has held herself to the task of letting the records show the steady if slowly increasing consciousness of the Church as it has come to recognize itself as the Body of Christ, through which He will complete the purposes of His Incarnation. Most interesting is the story which the growth of the Board of Missions tells all unwittingly of the spiritual growth of the Body of Christ. At first, driven solely by the vague conviction that the Gospel must be preached, pushed into doing even so little by the zeal of a few who would not be gainsaid, the Church as the years passed (so demonstrating the faithfulness of Him who promised that they who do His Will shall know) came to comprehend that it had in its LABOUR OF LOVE 89 keeping the Truth on which development depends. So at last, in Detroit, all the makeshifts to which the Church had resorted to meet the exigencies as they arose were swept aside, and an organization for work was agreed upon which makes it possible for the whole strength of the body to be applied to the task which alone can justify the Church’s existence or measure its faithfulness. One puts this book down with the feeling that at last the Church has made a beginning, and with the comfortable assurance that as our fathers were blessed in their groping after a way to share with others the Truth which makes men free, so our children will be blessed as with courage and understanding they labour with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with sincerity to help the nations comprehend the Revelation on which civilization must rest. The book itself, however, must be read to be ap- preciated. Glancing through the “ Chronological Table,” covering fifty pages of the Appendix, and the “ Historical Table,’ some thirty-nine more, one may gather some idea of the enormous amount of ground she must have gone over to obtain such information, and the accuracy with which she must have recorded it. In a letter written to her sister on learning of Miss Emery’s death, the Dean of Trinity Cathedral, Cleveland, Ohio, says: “ Her book is not her memorial, but it was a little monument to her honesty of statement and her devotion to truth.” It was in the summer of 1921, as she lay on her chaitse- longue, that with a very happy satisfaction she told how she had just finished the last proof-reading, and that the book was now ready to go to press. She was looking over a number of illustrations in order to determine which to insert, and had decided upon several as interesting and appropriate. [When, however, “The Century of En- deavor’”’ was published, no illustrations appeared.| Even after this her pen could not be idle. She began at once, following the completion of her other work, and 90 JULIA CHESTER EMERY wrote comprehensive articles on the lives and work of both Bishop Griswold of the Eastern Diocese and Bishop Hobart, both of which appeared later in pamphlet form, published by the Church Missions Publishing Company. CHAPTER X Anniversaries HAT Miss Emery lived to see the Centennial of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, and also, or more especially, the Jubilee of the Woman’s Auxiliary, was to her a signal joy. No one at that time officially connected with the Society had given as many con- secutive years of service, and no one had a clearer recol- lection of its earlier days. Living over the past, as she did in preparing her history of its first one hundred years, must have given her untold pleasure and an interest few could better appreciate. It was a curious and undoubtedly an unusual coinci- dence that the Centennial of the parent society and the Jubilee of its Auxiliary should occur within the same twelve months, the anniversary date of the one being November 6, 1921, and that of the other, less than a month previous, October 16th, happily falling upon a Sunday. Preparations for the proper celebration of these occasions were in the making for a year or two, or, rather, were under consideration immediately after the close of the General Convention in Detroit, 1919. Unlike the younger generation of today, we of a previous age still like to put the older one first. There- fore the Centennial of the Church’s Missionary Society, though falling upon a later date in the year, demands our first attention. 91 92 JULIA CHESTER EMERY A poster issued at this time explains somewhat how the General Convention planned the Centennial should be celebrated, and gives the objectives proposed by the Committee of Arrangements: I. The securing of one hundred missionaries. II. The enrollment of the first one hundred thousand proportionate givers by Easter, 1922. III. The completion of the enrollment of the first one hundred thousand intercessors by the same date. The clergy and laity of the Church were asked by the President of the Presiding Bishop and Council to observe © Armistice Day, November 1ith, and Sunday, November 13th, as days of special intercession. The November (1921) number of The Spirit of Missions was almost com- pletely filled with letters and messages of greeting from bishops and others from all parts of the world, including the C. M. S. and the S. P. G. of England and the diocese of Tohoku, Japan. We give that of the Presiding Bishop, that it may be linked with that of Miss Emery, which follows: Missouri was admitted to be a State in the Union in 1821. The same year brings to her, as well as to our great Missionary Society, a Centennial Anniversary. Then it may not be unseemly for a Bishop of Missouri to cry aloud, “ All hail!” and ‘“‘ Well met!” to the Church folk of the whole land. In 1821 we had but nine Bishops. Now we have one hundred and thirty-seven. In 1821 we had one communicant to every four hundred and sixteen of the population of the United States. In 1921 we have one communicant to every ninety-nine of the population. Hitherto hath the Lord helped us. Thank God! Let ‘‘ Courage ”’ be our Watchword, and “ Forward ” our Marching Orders. (Signed) Danie, TUTTLE, Presiding Bishop. This veteran at headquarters recalls Mr. Hare when foreign secretary, and Bishop Tuttle among the young bishops, and Doctor Schereschewsky before he bought Jessfield and founded Saint John’s ANNIVERSARIES 93 College, and Bishop Ferguson at his consecration, and Bishop Coxe kneeling before the Missions House Altar, offering privately, perhaps his own noontide prayer, “‘ Blessed Saviour, Who at this hour,” etc. And her message is simply the hope that the inspiration which she received from these and many others, our young people may find in the Church’s leaders now, to help them on their way until they become the veterans of the future. (Signed) Jura C. Emery. In Dr. John W. Wood’s thrilling article in The Spirit of Missions (November, 1921), where he answers the question “ What has the Missionary Society done in these one hundred years since 1821?” he closes with these words: In all these enterprises of the Church no single agency has done so much in the last half-century to further the Church’s Mission as the Woman’s Auxiliary. It has saved hundreds of parishes and dozens of dioceses from the deadening blight of self-centred thought, prayer, and work. It has introduced and popularized the missionary meeting, the mission study class, and the Church summer conference. Many missionaries have come from its ranks, and fully $14,000,000 have been given by women through its channels, in addition to all that women have done as members of congregations. What has our “ Society ”’ done in the last one hundred years? It has rendered a great patriotic service by leavening our ex- panding national life with Christian principles. It has rendered a great world service by sharing in the campaign for international good-will. Behind lies a century of endeavour. The record is by no means unworthy, though “still the restless millions wait the Light whose dawning maketh all things new.”’ Ahead, by the mercy of God, is the century of a new chance. Shall we do our part to make it the century of the finished task? A Centennial Service was held on November 7th at the Church Missions House, and many services were held in all parts of the country and Centennial offerings made. 94 JULIA CHESTER EMERY The editor of The Spirit of Missions gives us some idea of the effect of this celebration of the 100th Anniversary when he says: The Missionary Centennial aroused great interest and left many stirring memories. Thousands are today praying more intelligently than ever before for the gathering of mankind into the Kingdom of God — a Centennial monument of no mean worth though invisible and made of many individual parts. Numbers have actually offered and some have already been sent as missionaries, whose decision dates from their renewed interest at this time — another and a living monument of no mean worth. Many have contributed more sys- tematically than ever before to the work of the Church at home and abroad — still another and continued emphasis on the value and significance of the service for which the Missionary Society exists. The nine objects suggested as a minimum goal for the Offering are simply so many material monuments, the erection of which will mark in a tangible way the Missionary Centennial. They will stand as thank-offerings for the years of service which have gone; they will stand as starting-points for new and greater service in the future. God grant us grace to do our part in worthily marking the Centennial! Miss Emery’s own special contribution towards this Centennial Anniversary was the completion of her book. Her share in the Golden Jubilee of the Auxiliary was of course equally large. As she happily named her history of the one hundred years ““ A Century of Endeavor,” so she called her history of the Woman’s Auxiliary’s fifty years, “ A Half-Century of Progress.’’ This appeared in July, 1920, in The Spirit of Missions, and was also pub- lished in pamphlet form. It surely needs no comment beyond that to be found in the following note by the Committee on the Jubilee: This sketch of fifty years of the Auxiliary’s life has been written at the request of the committee by the one most conversant with this half-century’s work, but with her usual modesty no mention has been made of the gift which will bear her name and with which we hope to mark this anniversary for all time. The year previous to our ANNIVERSARIES 95 fiftieth birthday will be devoted to a campaign of education and inspiration, that all Churchwomen may know more fully what the Auxiliary has accomplished in the past, and will culminate in a cor- porate Communion on October 16, 1921, held in every parish through- out the country, when the members of the Woman’s Auxiliary may dedicate themselves afresh to the service of the King — body, soul, and spirit —a living sacrifice to Him Who died that we might live. During this year a thank-offering will be gathered to be presented to the Presiding Bishop and Council as a trust fund, to be known as the “Emery Fund,” in grateful appreciation of what these three sisters have meant to the Auxiliary and its members during these fifty years. The income from this fund will be used for missionaries at home on furlough for board, medical care, study, or recreation. It is hoped that every member of the Auxiliary will have a share in this fund, so that it may be truly representative, and that each one will give as liberally as she can, so that it may be worthy of those whose name it bears and of the organization whose Golden Jubilee it marks. Let each one of us who is now a member have a share in making this work known to others and in contributing to this ““ Emery Fund.” In this way we shall not only be witnesses to Jesus Christ in this life, but through our money will be serving Him here on earth after we are called into that larger service of the life beyond. As the time for the celebration drew nearer Miss Lindley sent out this circular letter to all diocesan officers, accompanying one from Miss Emery: Woman’s AUXILIARY TO THE PRESIDING BisHoPp AND COUNCIL 281 FourTH AVENUE, NEw YORK September 12, 1921. My dear Friend: It is not possible to let the Jubilee of the Woman’s Auxiliary pass without a word from the Church Missions House. May we send, therefore, through the officers, a message of greeting and congratu- lation to the Auxiliary in the Diocese. The efficient committee on the anniversary, under the able leadership of the Chairman, Miss Winston, has sent out suggestions for keeping this fiftieth birthday, and of course we shall all want to follow their plans. How beautiful it will be if every member who can 96 JULIA CHESTER EMERY do so makes her Communion on Sunday, October 16th, thanking God for what the Woman’s Auxiliary has been able to accomplish through these years, and giving humble thanks that she is allowed to serve Him in and through this organization. You will do everything possible, we are sure, to see that this service of the Holy Communion is celebrated in every parish on October 16th, and that, as far as possible, every member of the Auxiliary knows about this anniversary and the invitation to take part in it. In our rejoicing we shall give thanks, too, for all that Miss Emery and her sisters have done; for the wise foundation laid by the first Secretary, Miss Mary A. Emery, for the wonderful guiding and developing care of Miss Julia C. Emery’s leadership, and the loving assistance of Miss M. T. Emery; and because no one can do it so appropriately, and also because we all love her and are deeply grate- ful for the many lessons she has taught us, I have asked Miss Emery to send a greeting and message to the Auxiliary, and this is only a few lines from the present officers at the Church Missions House to go with her message. Faithfully yours, (Signed) Grace LINDLEY, Executive Secretary. Woman’s AUXILIARY TO THE PREsIDING BisHoP AND COUNCIL PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH 281 FourTH AVENUE, NEw York September, 1921. My dear Friends: Miss Lindley has asked me to send you some message on the occasion of our Fiftieth -Anniversary,and I am glad to try in this way to link our happy past with what I hope may be a still better future. You remember that our first United-Offering was made in the Church of the Holy Communion, New York, in October, 1889. I want to take you back to the same Church, and to April 21,1880, when a special Service, with an instruction by Bishop Huntington, of Central New York, inaugurated the Society of the Royal Law. There may be one or two of the present members of the Woman’s Auxiliary who remember attending this Service, and a very few who recall their membership in this society. In the interval between her resignation, in 1876, and her appoint- ment as Honorary Secretary, in 1883, with a few of her friends, the ANNIVERSARIES 2H first Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary devised and set on foot this plan for an unorganized and unofficial society. It was to be com- posed of communicants of the Church, and its purpose was to be “ the especial cultivation of the gift of Charity, and a daily supplica- tion for the increasing holiness of all its members as a body, with frequent and particular intercession for such individuals as may be known personally or by their work to any one member.” Through correspondence circles, the distribution of leaflets, special Services, instructions, conferences, and for four years, 1885— 1889, through the pages of a monthly magazine, Church Work, this purpose was set before the women of the Church. At the end of the four years bound volumes of the magazine were sent to the Bishops, to Divinity schools and Church colleges, to Sisterhood and Dea- coness houses, to boarding-schools for girls, to Diocesan branches of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and to. headquarters of other organizations of many kinds. These volumes must still be on the shelves of many of these libraries, and are also in the Library at the Church Missions House. Besides much other matter, the magazine gave the history of almost every form of woman’s work then organized in the Church, and the evident purpose was that every reader, whatever her own individual interest or activity, should know of every work, and, knowing of it, keep it in her loving thoughts and prayer. As we stand now on the threshold of a new beginning, the present leaders in the Woman’s Auxiliary, and those in the other societies making up the Church Service League, are bending their careful efforts upon the working out of some plan by means of which the various organizations of women in the Church today may be co- ordinated in a common, comprehensive service. My message, there- fore, is simply to express the earnest hope that we all, as we go on in the development of the aims for which the League stands, may preserve the purpose of the Society for the Royal Law, that the living force compelling us, and the banner under which we move, may be the Divine Power and the God-given standard of Love. Your affectionate friend, (Signed) Jutta C. Emery. How true to her ideals! How she reminds us of the work of another and sends her anniversary message 98 JULIA CHESTER EMERY encouraging us above all our material methods to go for- ward in the strengthening power of our Heavenly Father! In October the Church’s missionary magazine was replete with interesting articles of the fifty years’ work, encouraging all members of the Auxiliary to look forward to even a more blessed future. Miss Emery’s testimony to the loving work of others is worthy of interest as showing deep appreciation: AUXILIARY CHARACTERISTICS By Julia C. Emery The editor of The Spirit of Missions has asked me to review the “ great epochs’ or “ great steps’ or “ great events’ which have marked the fifty years of the Woman’s Auxiliary, but as I have been looking back over those fifty years it seems to me that they have been, rather, fifty years of quiet growth. They had one great advantage in their beginning: The women of the Church did not have to go to Her representative body, urging a claim and begging for recognition; instead, that representative body came to the women of the Church, asking their help, giving them an assured position, and the right to share in the responsi- bilities and activities of the Church’s mission — privileges ever since continued to the Auxiliary by a long succession of the Society’s officers. Again, in its beginning the Woman’s Auxiliary was greatly blessed in that example of a generous yielding when societies that antedated the new one modified their methods in order that they might be included within its bounds. And it was early greatly favoured by the welcome given by the Bishops of the Church into diocese after diocese, and by their careful choice of fit persons to be the b ANNIVERSARIES 99 Auxiliary’s diocesan leaders, assuming local responsibilities and meeting local conditions with fortitude. There can be no one so qualified as a secretary long at headquarters to tell the great, the inestimable share in the life of the Woman’s Auxiliary which these officers have had. Chosen by their Bishops because of their Christian character and their known love for the Church, the influence which they have brought to their task has been varied as well as great. The clear-cut executive ability of one, the super- abounding zeal and glowing, possessive love of another, the spiritual power overcoming natural hesitancy and reserve in a third, the feeling of true Christian fellowship in all, which have carried these women from parish to parish in their respective dioceses, prepared for any reception, and rejoicing in the support of the parochial clergy as they organized in all varieties of parishes and missions; The call of like to like, which made them the friends and helpers of missionaries, which brought hundreds together annually in the different dioceses, triennially, from throughout the Church; The spirit of adventure enjoyed in these journeys by fastest express or slowest freight, by stage or wagon, or by boat, on horse, by sedan chair, or jin-rick-sha, or by wheelbarrow or on foot; The free and full hospitality which opened parishes and homes to multitudes of missionaries and fellow- workers; The industry, business skill, and sense of responsi- bility and trust evidenced by unnumbered secretaries and treasurers; The response of understanding sympathy, of en- thusiasm, and of duty shown in numberless specials in 100 JULIA CHESTER EMERY the United-Offering, and in increased gifts towards the Society’s appropriations; The clear-sighted vision and loving hearts that enlisted the children of the Church; The recognition of the need of missionary knowledge and education displayed in study classes, in missionary publications, in a co-operation with the efforts of others, and an heroic faith and steadfastness, inaugurating and developing publications, schools, conferences, of the Church’s own; The historic sense and dramatic feeling which have made their contributions to missionary knowledge and zeal; The realization that knowledge and zeal must be the beginning of definite training for workersin themission field; The profound attachment that has held women to the ranks of the Woman’s Auxiliary in an unchanged af- fection through many changing years; The spirit of devotion underlying and making real its life — the belief of its members that the work was given them of God to be done for Him and in His might — which has had its outward showing in daily prayers, united intercessions, corporate communions, spiritual instructions, quiet days. As my thoughts have glanced at these high qualities consecrated to Christ and His Church, there has arisen before my eyes a great company of women, well beloved, not diocesan officers only, but officers and members in parishes and missions, and the missionaries for and with whom they worked, and it seems to me in these we find a great cause for thankfulness to God. And as we turn from such a past to the future that is before us, we ask the same tender love and guidance that have blessed that past for the present Secretary and her associates upon their farther way. ANNIVERSARIES 101 The story of fifty years of the box work of the Auxiliary, as given below, naturally finds a place here, for it was a part of Miss Emery’s daily interest until the growth of the work made it necessary for some other, her sister, to take it over: Box Work OF THE WoMAN’S AUXILIARY By Margaret T. Emery The story of the box work of the Woman’s Auxiliary is written in the hearts of hundreds of missionaries at home and abroad, and of the children and grandchildren of those who in the earliest days looked forward to the coming of the annual missionary box as the bringer of cheer, the solver of problems, the sharer of burdens. The tables of the numbers of boxes and their value give but the framework of the story. Its life and spirit linger in those lightened hearts and as vividly in the memories of a multitude of women who were as truly blessed in the preparing of the gifts. Long before the Auxiliary itself came into being, when the venerable Board of Missions was but a young thing, adventuring somewhat feebly on its way, the forerunners of the present competent Supply Committees sat down in New York and New Haven to cut and stitch the gar- ments that were to help our earliest missionaries in Green Bay and Nashotah in their work. Followed later the preparation of boxes for schools and missions for the Freedmen; and still before the dawning of the Auxiliary day, from here and there, notably from New York and Connecticut, good and helpful boxes went out to families of our missionaries in the West. Then came the birth of the Auxiliary, and, as or- ganization and system wrought efficiency in all its depart- ments, the box work also was systematized, until in time 102 JULIA CHESTER EMERY every missionary in the Domestic missionary field, as well as missionaries of the Board in feeble dioceses, whose names were given to the Auxiliary by their Bishops, received their annual boxes. Mistakes there were, but, as a rule, the box was a joy to the senders, and, consequently, a comfort and pleasure to the receivers. That the work was on the whole satisfactorily as well as lovingly done was shown by the cries of protest received at Auxiliary headquarters when it was proposed that money gifts be substituted for the annual box, and many have been those who have declared again and again that they could never have stayed in the mission field had it not been for this help. Charming stories might be told of new babies in missionary homes arrayed by their proud mothers in the lovely christening robe found in the box, with all other dainty clothing for the little one; of young brides happy in the trousseau prepared by unknown but ever-to-be- loved Auxiliary friends who did not stop short of the little prettinesses that made the outfit “just like other girls,” nor forgot to include even the wedding cake. And how many a missionary wife can recall the relief that rose in her heart when the ever-desired clerical suit, backbone of the whole, came in time for her to send forth her man to convention or other gathering clad as well as the best? It is these things that we like to remember in looking back over fifty years of box work; and the lasting friend- ships that have been formed between those who have never seen each other’s faces on earth, but feel sure they will recognize them in Heaven; and the prayers that have gone up for the workers in the field from the workers at home, and for the women who packed the boxes from those who explored their treasures. CHAPTER XI The Jubilee Celebrated N Miss Lindley’s own words we have an account of how the Anniversary was kept: From cathedrals to little missions, in this country and in foreign lands, the members of the Auxiliary gave thanks and re-consecrated themselves. That Anniversary could not be passed over at head- quarters, and therefore we turned the regular October Conference for diocesan officers into the day of our celebration. The result gave us a celebration in which we were most happy. First of all, Miss Julia C. Emery and Miss M. T. Emery were able to be with us; and Mrs. Sioussat, President of the Woman’s Auxiliary of Maryland, and the one diocesan officer who, as a girl, had actually been present in Emmanuel Church, Baltimore, when the resolution was passed, most appropriately and graciously presided over the meeting; and many friends representing many dioceses were present. First came the Service in the Chapel, with Bishop Gailor as celebrant. The Bishop also spoke, mentioning the many services at which he had spoken in honour of the Jubilee. At the close of the Service the meeting was held in the Board Room, which was opened by Mrs. Sioussat with appropriate and inspiring words of the Auxiliary’s past. Miss Emery’s own address followed, with its wonderful parting message to the Woman’s Auxiliary, which address proved to be her last, as also was it the occasion of her last visit to New York and the Church Missions House. She said: “These days have been full of thankfulness to us in the Woman’s Auxiliary. We have been deeply thankful to our God for the privilege that He has given to the women of the Church in these last fifty years to serve Him. We are mutually grateful to one another for the joy that we have had each with the other in the common service. We are 103 104 JULIA CHESTER EMERY grateful to Miss Lindley today that she has managed to get so many old friends together to look into each others’ faces, some whose friend- ship runs back through these fifty years, in whose memories there lives today the thought of those who served with us in the past, who serve with us today, and will never cease their service. ““ How much we have to be grateful for! The day before yester- day I received from South Dakota this little book, a memorial of the Jubilee. It is full of names of Christian people, Indians and white people, and records of past remembrances. When we speak of South Dakota we think of one who was perhaps in all our Church’s history the greatest missionary hero; one who gave youth and the. beauty of personality to the service of the Indians; one who knew to suffer mentally and bodily until death came upon him as a merciful release. There are those to whom he was very near and very dear. The women of the Auxiliary loved to pour their treasure out for his work among the Indians, and when the day came that he was called upon to go, there might have been the thought that South Dakota was going to suffer such a loss as could never be repaired. We turn, however, to the pages of such a little book as this, and we see how God raises up for His work successors who shall take up that work and carry it on with the blessing God gave it in the past. There is nothing but hope and courage and cheer in the history of the missions of the Church of Christ. “T spoke a little while ago of our causes for gratitude. For fifty years the Woman’s Auxiliary has been deeply indebted to the au- thorities of the Church. The Auxiliary never could have lived its life and never could have done its work had it not been sustained and helped by those whom the Church had placed foremost in the conduct of the affairs of the Missionary Society. We owe much to the officers who have been placed in this home of missions for many years of leadership, of guardianship, of care — for how much trouble we have given them! Mr. Tompkins stands there, and no one knows better than he how one woman will write and want to know whether the $2.85 sent four months before has gone straight to Saint Stephen’s Mission, Alaska. Or think of Mr. Wood having to plan how his one solitary missionary can go around to the hundreds of branches that want to hear him speak. What a debt of gratitude we owe there! “And that debt is going on into the present time. New officers have come, new leaders have arisen. The latest report from Mrs. THE JUBILEE CELEBRATED 105 Biller tells of her visits to the mission field, and many of the women she met have consecrated themselves to the cause of Christ. If we have only one hundred this year and two hundred next year, and so on, what may we not do? “Fifty years is something to look back upon; it is something to look forward to. We do not know what lies before us, but we do know that the one thought we would carry away from such a gathering as this is that we want the one purpose, the one aim, the one object, in which every smaller and lesser purpose and aim and object are hidden away, and in which everything that may cause dissent or difference may die—please let us make every effort of that future with one end in view — that each day we live, each work we do, each word we say, may give our Lord and Saviour, the Master of us all, joy and light!”’ Miss Lindley continues: At twelve o’clock Mrs. Sioussat closed the meeting, asking “every woman present to go with us to the Chapel and have this memorable reunion of the early days crowned with the words of greeting from one to whom we looked for guidance and counsel for so many years — Bishop Lloyd will speak to us from his wealth of experiences and his consecration to the service of the Woman’s Auxiliary.” The Bishop began by speaking of Miss Emery, than whom “ there is no individual in the Church to whom we owe more, because faith- fully and bravely she has stood in her place and accepted nobody’s thanks, because she was doing what she considered her high privi- lege’; and of his own debt of gratitude to her, adding that “ though we do not talk about her to her face, the reason that woman has been such a blessing to us is that she has been faithful about the things we talk about!”’ Then, referring to the work of the Auxiliary, he said that which will warm the heart of every member: “There is a word I want to say. Your work has grown and prospered. You have seen things grow out of little seedlings into a power which cannot be resisted. Most of all, you have seen the Church, after one hundred years’ groping, come out into the light of a national organization. If you do not know it, I am here to tell you that there is no influence in the American Church that has had more to do with the Church appreciating the fact that it has responsi- < 106 JULIA CHESTER EMERY bility resting upon it than the Woman’s Auxiliary. There is no influence that has had more to do with breaking down the individual- ism that so long hampered everything, with helping the Church to think of itself as a unit — no influence has been so potent towards bringing these things to pass as the steady stand which the women of the Church have taken and have persistently kept before the Church, in season and out of season, that the Body of Christ is here to com- plete that for which Christ became incarnate. Down underneath everything else, and the foundation on which all human development must rest, is the revelation Christ showed of His Father, and there- fore the Mission intrusted to the Church is the reason why and the purpose for which all of us are Christians. The Woman’s Auxiliary has been ringing that up and down the Church for all the time I have known it and before. I have been in touch with the members for forty of their fifty years, and sometimes my very skin depended on the Woman’s Auxiliary back of me, because without them I could not have accomplished my work.” After the closing prayers and the benediction, the Service ended, as so many meetings of the Woman’s Auxiliary have ended through these fifty years, with the singing of the Doxology. That this Jubilee year might be marked in some sub- stantial or material way, the women of the Church passed a resolution and appointed a committee to establish what was to be known as the “‘ Jubilee or Emery Fund.” The income from this Fund, already referred to in the pre- vious chapter, will be used for missionaries at home on furlough for board, medical care, study, or recreation. Many a missionary returns on furlough needing medical or dental treatment, but is unable to pay for this attention because of the meagre stipend received. Or perhaps some devoted soul is willing to give vacation time to study, so that she may be better equipped to do the work when she returns to her post, whether it be in America or a foreign land. Or perhaps it is just that some poor worn-out missionary needs a rest, and we would like to pay her board during this period, or provide some other form of recreation for the one who has been our representative on the firing-line. It was such thoughts as these that led the women to decide to mark the fiftieth anniversary by this gift. THE JUBILEE CELEBRATED 107 The idea is that every woman in the Church, and men, too, if they care to be included, should have a part in it, and therefore we are suggesting that each woman should give at least fifty cents (one cent for each year). Many will want to give more and should be en- couraged to do so, as we shall need some large gifts if we are to attain our goal of $50,000; but we are anxious that this offering should be truly representative of the womanhood of the Church and that each gift should be accompanied by prayer. This should not in any way interfere with our regular contributions, especially that other gift of privilege, the United Thank-Offering, but should be over and above all others, just as we would make a present to anyone whom we love on an anniversary meaning so much to us both. On October 16, 1921, the women all over the country are asked to re-dedicate themselves to the service of their Lord at His Altar by participating in the sacrament of the Holy Communion, thanking Him for what the Auxiliary has done in the past, and asking His guidance and blessing for the future. If we truly appreciate our privileges as Christian women, the “Emery Fund” will greatly exceed the $50,000 goal. And it did, for we read later in The Spirit of Missions: The suggested goal of $50,000 for the “ Emery Fund ”’ has been reached and passed. . . . It will be a matter of sincere gratification to the Misses Emery and to their many friends that the ‘‘ Emery Fund ” is to be used to bring comfort to others. The full amount raised, every diocesan branch of the Woman’s Auxiliary contributing, reached a total of $93,258.58. : Miss Emery’s appreciation is shown in what she writes to Miss Lindley on hearing the good news: It was dear in you to send me that midnight message, and we are all so happy over it. I hadn’t the faith to be sure the amount pro- posed would be given, and now it is such a cheer to hear that it is already exceeded. Every addition will make it just so much more useful, and I feel so much of it is owing to what you are and the way in which you do. 108 JULIA CHESTER EMERY A novel way of celebrating the Jubilee of the Woman’s Auxiliary was the reception given to our Liberian mis- sionaries, the *Rev. W. H. Ramsaur and Mrs. Ramsaur, at the residence of one of our diocesan presidents. About one hundred women from the near-by parishes had gathered and listened with rapt attention to addresses from both Mr. and Mrs. Ramsaur. After the meeting a huge birthday cake with fifty lighted candles, and deco- rated with the letters “ W. A.,” was brought in by the hostess, who explained that as the Woman’s Auxiliary was fifty years old she thought this was an appropriate time to have a birthday party. The wife of the Bishop of South Dakota made use of an ingenious scheme in collecting for the Emery Jubilee Fund in that district. We will let her tell itin her own words: I had a loose-leaf black leather notebook about eight inches by five, with “ Woman’s Auxiliary, Jubilee Fund, South Dakota,” on the cover in gilt letters. A ‘white woman could sign her name in the book if she gave at least twenty-five cents, and an Indian woman could sign, or make her mark, for ten cents. In signing they wrote also how many years they had worked in the W. A. Men could sign for fifty cents. They had to pay more because they are not giving to the United-Offering. Another interesting feature of the celebration of the Auxiliary’s fiftieth anniversary was the “ Anniversary Books,” or “‘ Books of Remembrance,” compiled by a number of the diocesan branches in commemoration of the members of the Auxiliary who, having rendered faith- ful and valuable service, had gone to their reward. Massachusetts, and also Newark, prepared an elabo- rate volume, giving to each parish in its diocese a full page upon which the names of those they wished to remember are inscribed. Each year the names of those * Both Mr. and Mrs. Ramsaur have recently died. THE JUBILEE CELEBRATED 109 having since died are added on the page devoted to their respective parishes, and the book again received and dedicated by the bishop. We have already told what Miss Emery said in her Jubilee address of the book in South Dakota. New York’s book contains a brief history of the New York Branch, followed by a list of all the presidents of the standing committees from their organization, and the presidents of the branch, with their dates of service, and the honorary officers; names of sixty-two diocesan officers, and two hundred and eighty-two members of parish branches who have rendered faithful service in the past and have now entered into Rest. Following these are the names of eighty-three members of the New York Branch still living, who have served notably for fifteen years or more. The volume is bound in white leather with a hand- illuminated title-page. In almost every diocese some form of special service was held as an Anniversary Celebration, which was at- tended by countless numbers of their Auxiliary members. Where there is a Cathedral it was held there, and sermons were preached as a special feature of the day. New York’s service was on All Saints’ Day, at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, when Bishop Lloyd preached and the Bishop of the Diocese was the celebrant. At this service the Anniversary Book was received by the Bishop, and by him reverently placed upon the Altar as a symbol of the service of the women of the diocese. Though it was to this diocese that Miss Emery belonged, to the grief of all she was unable to be present. This was but one of the many beautiful and inspiring services throughout the country in commemoration of the “ Golden Jubilee.” 110 JULIA CHESTER EMERY May what Bishop Gailor, President of the National Council, says, in writing for its semi-centennial, always be true: The Woman’s Auxiliary has put the emphasis upon prayer and worship. It has made the spiritual values of life the first considera- tion. It has taught us to realize that faithfully to seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness is to have all other things added unto us; and we may humbly and gratefully look back upon the fifty years of this splendid service and say, “ What hath God wrought.” And may God accept her thanksgiving and grant her petition, as her many members, with one heart and one mouth, pray: “Thanks be to Thee, Almighty God, for the work which Thou hast wrought by the hand of Thy humble servants. Continue, we pray Thee, Thy grace to us from generation to generation, that Thy Name may be glorified in the lives of Thy servants until all men know Thy Son Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Amen.” CHAPTER XII Close of a Completed Life BOUT four years before the end, Miss Emery, feeling that all was not well with her, called upon her physician, who, after a thorough physical examination, told her she had the choice before her of living a life of inactivity, entirely free from work or responsibility, choos- ing which she would probably live, or “‘ breathe,” as he expressed it, a few months longer than if she continued in the work so far as she was able, and which he knew she so much loved, and made life to her the pleasure and joy it was. No one knowing her could doubt which of the two courses she would take. So, the condition of her health unknown to her friends, she continued her “labour of love.” For three years longer she commuted and, occupying a little room on the top floor of the Church Missions House, studiously laboured over the book, “A Century of Endeavor,” coming to town for that purpose every day. Later, finding this too irksome, she came two or three days a week only. She never lessened her interest nor her zeal, however, until every page of this valuable history of the Church’s missionary work was carefully and conscientiously com- pleted. As the attacks of pain and distress became more frequent, coming usually at night, thus robbing her of needed rest, her visits to New York ceased altogether. On January 12, 1921, she writes to a friend: 111 112 JULIA CHESTER EMERY I haven’t been quite right for a good while, and did not seem to be gaining, when Dr. telephoned out about a doctor he wanted me to see. He has been out twice, very nice and cheery, and has put me to bed for three or four weeks — a rest cure! I am not to have visitors, but can read all I wish, and write half an hour each morning and afternoon. She writes then of the books she is reading; the atten- tions of the neighbours, who “‘are more than kind”’; of her room being filled with flowers and fruit from loving friends. She was up and about again a little after this, and it was then that she busied herself with articles on the Jubilee Celebration and wrote the lives of Bishop Hobart and Bishop Griswold, already referred to in a previous chapter. It was at the close of this year, October 20th, though very far from well, that she and her sister were able to be present at the Officers’ Conference at the Church Missions House, when the Auxiliary’s Jubilee was especially cele- brated. A friend kindly took them in her car to New York and back on that occasion, to save unnecessary fatigue, and another friend had them to luncheon. It was about this time that Miss Lindley conceived the happy idea of preparing “A Book of Appreciation ” to be presented to Miss Emery, which idea was at once taken up with enthusiasm by the National Executive Board of the Woman’s Auxiliary, and was carried through successfully. The following circular letter was sent to about two hundred people, scattered in many directions throughout the Church, which brought responses from one-hundred and twenty-nine, including thirty-one bishops, nine mis- sionaries, sixty-four Auxiliary officers or former officers, twelve secretaries at the Mission Rooms, and thirteen personal friends. CLOSE OF A COMPLETED LIFE 113 Miss Lindley’s letter reads: November 29, 1921. The Executive Board of the Woman’s Auxiliary plans to give to Miss Julia C. Emery “ A Book of Appreciation”? on January 2nd, which will be the fiftieth anniversary of the day when her sister, Miss Mary A. Emery (Mrs. Twing), came to Headquarters in New York to organize the Woman’s Auxiliary. We would like to hear from a few of Miss Emery’s friends. Won’t you write a message, telling what the Woman’s Auxiliary and her work have meant to you? If you will write this on one side of a sheet of paper not larger than 814 x 6 inches, we will paste it into the Book. Please mail your message to Miss M. A. Tomes, Church Missions House, 281 Fourth Avenue, New York, as soon as possible, even by return mail. Miss Tomes, being an intimate friend of Miss Emery, has kindly consented to compile the Book. We realize that the time is very short, so we will appreciate your promptness, and hope we are not asking too much. Very sincerely yours, (Signed) Grack LINDLEY, Executive Secretary. That the response was so general was hardly a sur- prise, but a great gratification to everyone. The book itself was a worthy tribute of affection and appreciation from the Woman’s Auxiliary to its beloved Secretary of so many years. No expense was spared in making the volume one of beauty and interest. These one hundred and twenty-nine autograph letters, replete with words of appreciation from all parts of the world and many varie- ties of people, alone make it invaluable; the binding of bright blue goat-skin lined with white moiré silk, with a clasped lap, enclosing hand-illuminated title-page, the Foreword, and the letters, each one of which is pasted on a separate page, make it a thing of beauty. The Foreword is here given for the benefit of those who may not see the book itself: 114 JULIA CHESTER EMERY FOREWORD In presenting to you this Book on January 2nd, 1922, we are commemorating the day, fifty years ago, when your sister, Miss Mary Abbot Emery, first took up her work as organizer and first Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions. When, upon her marriage to the Rev. Dr. Alvi T. Twing, you assumed her duties, you could scarcely have foreseen that, even after forty years of devoted service, the Woman’s Auxiliary should have reached the proportions it has today, with a diocesan branch in every diocese and missionary district in the American Church, all organized during your term of office. As Mrs. Twing so ably planted, and you faithfully and prayerfully watered, so surely has God given the increase. Each letter in this Book brings a message of love and appreciation from some one of your many friends and fellow-workers throughout the Church, and whose hearts are full of gratitude for your many years of patient labour and your example of enduring faith. No one more than you would wish to share these words of ap- preciation with your sisters, Miss Susan L. Emery and Miss Margaret Theresa Emery, each of whom for years fulfilled the duties of editor of The Young Christian Soldier, and the latter also as your assistant in the box work. Nor would you, nor we, fail to remember that other, Miss Helen W. Emery, whose unobtrusive watchfulness in the home, and untiring care of her sisters, has made it possible for them to give of their best to the Christ and the work of His Church. January 2nd being the date chosen for the presenta- tion of the “Book of Appreciation,” it was arranged that the originator and the compiler should that afternoon visit Scarsdale and present it to Miss Emery. Late the evening before, the compiler received a call from a relative of Miss Emery, and one of her physicians, who had just returned from a visit to her, to say that Miss Emery had that day suffered a slight stroke and would not be able to receive the official delegation. She asked at once if that meant that she, as a personal friend, i aay a aie 7 ee wires. ie a egy 4 Ron re : ee 7 re a . > f neh < eo oe ae: ~ an ATVASUVOG ‘Ssa'] AHL SAWV[ “LG 40 HOWNHD CLOSE OF A COMPLETED LIFE 115 should not go to them, to which he replied, ‘‘ No, cer- tainly not,’ and as he was again motoring to Scarsdale himself the next day, kindly invited her to accompany him. The following very cold morning they started, and had gone but six or seven blocks when a taxi-cab crossed their path and a collision occurred. There was nothing to do but to return home, as a broken wind-shield and a few cuts on her face threw both the car and the compiler out of commission. Miss Lindley, who, as the originator of the loving thought which produced the “ Book,” and who surely was the appropriate presenter, kindly came to the rescue and carried the precious burden herself to Miss Emery’s bedside and placed it in her hands. She, however, was too ill at the time to see or appreciate the gift. She rallied a little a few days later, and was able to have read to her by her sisters the Foreword and a few of the letters. This was all, but showing her appreciation she asked to have the “ Book ”’ beside her on the bed where she might place her hand upon it. A week later I was able to go to Scarsdale, and I was urged again to put it into her hands. She thanked me with a smile, and lovingly turned leaf after leaf, though her eyes were too dim to read the loving words of her many devoted friends. Her faltering tongue could only say very feebly, ““ Very nice, very nice.” That evening, January 9, 1922, a few minutes before midnight, when all was accomplished, she folded her hands in sleep — a life fully lived and fully completed. Three days later, on the afternoon of January 12th, Services were held in the Church of St. James the Less, Scarsdale, and at the setting of the sun Julia Chester Emery was laid to rest in the little churchyard, and close to the door of the church she loved so well. 116 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Men and women from the town in which she lived filled the pews with those from distant dioceses, officers and members of the Auxiliary from Massachusetts, New York, Long Island, Newark, and Erie, who gathered to do her honour. Every seat was occupied by her many friends. The Services were conducted by the Rev. Alan R. Chalmers, her rector, and by Bishop Rowe, of Alaska. A friend and co-worker writes thus: The Service seemed especially beautiful—in its triumphant assurance of death overcome and victory won, and the hymns — Miss Emery’s favorites — strengthened that impression: “‘O God, Our Help in Ages Past’; “‘ Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee.” As the family and friends left the church and gathered around the open grave, the choir followed, singing verse after verse of the hymn “ For All Thy Saints Who from Their Labours Rest.” The sun was setting, the western sky a glorious mass of purple and gold as the beautiful words of the Committal Service were said. It was a lovely scene, — the fresh and dazzling snow and ice covering the earth, the dark overhanging branches of the protecting trees, the masses of flowers from many devoted friends, — and will never be forgotten by those who stood with hearts full of thankfulness for the example of her beautiful life and the desire to follow whither she had led. As the Bishop raised his hand to pronounce the blessing, the sun burst through the clouds and rested upon the open grave as though making visible the words the choir had just sung: The golden evening brightens in the West; Soon, soon to faithful warriors cometh rest; Sweet is the calm of Paradise the blest. Alleluia. Her life and work stand for all time as an enduring monument to her faith and zeal in the Master’s service, CLOSE OF A COMPLETED LIFE 117 and are today an appealing Call to every woman in the Church to enlist in that great army of women which, throughout this whole country and beyond, were, through her influence, recruited in “ countless hosts” to fight and to win the World for CHRIST. The spot where she lies is marked by a simple granite stone bearing this inscription: f JULIA CHESTER EMERY September 24, 1852 January 9, 1922 “ The Glory of the Lord is Risen upon Thee ” CHAPTER XIII Words of Appreciation S the distance and the limited size of the church at Scarsdale made it impossible for the many who wished to pay homage to Miss Emery’s memory to attend the funeral Services, a “ Service of Praise and Thanks- giving for the life and example of Julia Chester Emery”’ was held at the Church of the Incarnation, New York, on Thursday morning, February 9, 1922, with a Celebra- tion of the Holy Communion. Bishop Lloyd was the celebrant, assisted by Bishop Rowe, the Rev. Ernest M. Stires, and the Rev. H. Percy Silver. In the chancel also were Bishop Reese, of Georgia, and a large number of the clergy of New York City. Bishop Reese and Dr. Stires came as representatives of the Presiding Bishop and Council, which was in executive session and unable to attend in a body. In the congregation, which literally filled the church, were members of the National Executive Board of the Woman’s Auxiliary, lay-members of the National Coun- cil, the staff at the Church Missions House, and mission- aries at home on furlough, all of whom had special seats allotted to them. Each parish branch in the diocese had as many seats assigned to it as were asked for, and all the organizations of women in the Church were also similarly provided, as well as representatives from neighbouring diocesan branches. 118 WORDS OF APPRECIATION 119 To The Churchman we are indebted for the following synopsis of the addresses made at this Service: Bishop Rowe, the first speaker, referred to Miss Emery’s wonder- ful capacity for personal friendship with every missionary, whether bishop or whether the newest and most inexperienced lay-worker in the field. He spoke of Miss Emery’s letters, all written in her own hand; all the letters of a friend who cared for the person to whom she wrote and was deeply interested in that person’s special problem. The Bishop mentioned still another kind of help that Miss Emery gave to the missionaries: her warm and never-failing hospitality. Bishop Rowe asked: “‘ How shall we explain the great spirit of this servant of God? Why was she the most outstanding figure in the American Church?” The answer: her personality, summed up in that greatest of words, faithfulness. Bishop Lloyd spoke also of Miss Emery’s personality. He said that it was a source of power because it was informed by, filled with, the spirit of God. In moving words Bishop Lloyd described Miss Emery’s personality as he learned to know it in twenty years of close association with her in the ways of daily work at the Church Missions House. He spoke of the significance of the fact that before him and around him, filling the church, were men and women gathered to do high honour to a woman whose care had always been to be incon- spicuous, who was the most shy, the most retiring, the least “‘ public ”’ of persons. Bishop Lloyd spoke of Miss Emery’s steadfastness. Never in all her life was she “‘ aggressive’; always she was prone to think that she might be wrong and the other person right; and yet she held fast to what she believed to be right. She never lost sight of the purpose of the Christian life, of the goal of the child of God. The Bishop said that where others wondered or hoped, Miss Emery knew; but she never questioned the revelation itself. As a Christian, she believed in the Church as a Missionary Church; her life was dedicated to that Church. Her rector’s tribute is also very beautiful, as it ap- peared in his parish paper: There are many gifts which come to us from above. One of the most precious is the opportunity of knowing a child of God, whose life throughout is filled with loving service. That privilege has been given to us in this parish through the life of Julia Chester Emery. 120 JULIA CHESTER EMERY No one can measure the influence for good which radiated from her person all the days of her life. We are each one of us better men and women because we have known her. From the Church Missions House, her second “ home,”’ her fellow-workers, the Secretaries of the Woman’s Auxiliary, find expression not in words of sadness at their loss, but in a feeling of infinite peace: It was a privilege beyond expression to have been permitted to spend a few moments in that quiet room, where a life which had been lived greatly was drawing greatly to its close. There was no sadness, but only a great peace, teaching to those of us who felt its wonder the lesson of what a Christian’s last days can be. With the members of her devoted family beside her she peace- fully breathed her last. As soon as the news which brought so keen a sense of loss to all who had known and loved Miss Emery was received, telegrams from officers and members of the Auxiliary representing almost every diocese and missionary district both at home and abroad began to pour into the Church Missions House— messages filled with love and gratitude for the example of a noble life, and of sympathy for those who were left without the joy which her presence brought. We regret that space will not permit the publication of all the messages which showed how deep was the sense of loss throughout the Church. From points as widely scattered as Oregon, Western Massachu- setts, Duluth, and Idaho, messages were received; with two from the coloured branches of the dioceses of South Carolina and Georgia, all of which, while expressing grief at her loss, thank God for her example and inspiration. The Spirit of Missions (February, 1922) gave pages to the memory of Miss Emery, and many loving friends and co-workers were glad to tell others what they knew of her and what her life had meant to them. We will quote only Bishop Lloyd and Miss Lindley, who of all her co-workers had the opportunity of knowing her best. Bishop Lloyd, a close friend, and one who worked with WORDS OF APPRECIATION 121 her at the Missions House for more than twenty years, speaks of her thus: The passing of Miss Julia Chester Emery brings mingled feelings of sorrowand joy to the multitude who loved her throughout the world. There is joy because she has entered into the joy of her Lord. There is sorrow because all are alike conscious that they are bereft of a friend whom they could rely on and whose example was ever a challenge to steadfastness and patience and courage and faith. Everyone, whether man or woman, who knew Miss Emery knew that in her they had-seen one who was her Master’s servant without withholding anything. The end of Miss Emery’s course was in singular accord with the life she had lived. As in the days when she was actively at work, she never left her desk till the day’s task was finished and her desk in order; so the One she served gave her this joy also, that when He called her to the new service waiting, she should first see the summing up of her day’s work and share with the whole Church the satisfaction of seeing how blessed that day’s work had been. Even in details she had this pleasure. She was able to enjoy all the services held in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Woman’s Auxiliary. She had the comfort of knowing provision had been made for the better care of missionaries on their furlough, because God’s people were moved to make it possible for her to have her heart’s desire in this matter. She saw the story she had prepared of the growth of the Board of Missions 1n the people’s hands. And as though to make it clear that none of this was accident, while she was still able to enjoy it, the study of Bishop Griswold’s work, to which she had given so much labour and thought, came to her fresh from the press. Then she fell on sleep with the same calmness and serenity which had marked all she did and said, while in her body she bore witness to His Resurrection. The whole Church knows Miss Emery and the story of the growth of that work which will remain the best monument to her wisdom and grace and fidelity, since the fifty years’ work of the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions is practically a demon- stration of her ever-growing understanding and courage. It would be useless to recite again all the good works Miss Emery did, or to tell of her unwearied fidelity in her work, or to recall the story of her unwavering sympathy and solicitude for those who had 122 JULIA CHESTER EMERY given their lives to carry forward the Church’s Mission. All this has been often repeated in these days when to speak of the Church’s work included of necessity reference to Miss Emery’s share in it, so closely identified has been the Woman’s Auxiliary with all progress in the Church’s growth. At the same time, it would be to defraud the Church if one who had the privilege of working near to Miss Emery for many years were to withhold that which has seemed to furnish explanation of the delightful harmony and good-will which marked the work she represented. When one recalls that during the fifty years of the Auxiliary’s life there has not been one ugly page in the story of its growth, it is evident that there must have been some potent force at work. Not only does the Auxiliary represent all sorts and conditions of women, but from the beginning its leaders have been representatives of that class who, because most intelligent and competent, are folk who have a mind to do their own thinking; and because they are strong and keen for their cause must express their thoughts without reserve. Because they are mortals, even though they may be saints, folk delight in having their way; nor has this mark of vigorous life ever been lacking in the Woman’s Auxiliary. Yet in spite of oftentimes hot discussion and sharp disagreement, the Auxiliary never forgot its business, nor departed from its purpose, nor was weakened by dissension. There must have been cause for this, and to one who saw things from the centre, sufficient reason was found in the astonish- ing understanding and sympathy and self-restraint which were so conspicuous in the character of the woman who for so many years, without serious challenge, was the leader of them all. She could make those unlike at one, because she was able through her clear understanding to interpret one to the other. Miss Emery was a striking exhibition of the wonderful power that He will give to His servant whose only purpose it is to know the Master’s mind and do it. To follow her as she followed Christ would mean to those whom Christ has set as leaders in His Church the wisdom which would make possible the healing of the schisms of His Body. Who better than Miss Lindley, whose was the privi- lege of taking up the task she had laid down, can tell us of the love and consecration Miss Emery gave to her service for the Master. She writes: WORDS OF APPRECIATION 123 One thinks of her large, clear outlook and planning. She always seemed to keep the end in view, never becoming so engrossed in details as to lose sight of the reason why sharing in the Mission of the Church is the supreme duty and privilege of every member of the Church. That is why the one who built up the Woman’s Auxiliary never allowed us to become engrossed in the organization, but made the wonderful organization only a means through which the Church’s daughters might serve the Church. So we think not so much of her love of the Auxiliary, but of her deep love of the Church. Having said that, one thinks of the keynote of her character and all her work — absolute, entire consecration. She gave herself so absolutely and completely to the Christ and His Church that her whole life was a beautiful one of love and service. As a natural result, it was a life of energy. Fortunately, she had wonderful health, and she gave all her time and strength to the work. A remark made by one of the women missionaries in China brings a smile. After Miss Emery’s energetic visitation of the missions, this missionary wrote: “The only thing that troubled us was the fear that she wouldn’t think we worked hard enough, for we couldn’t keep up with her!” But the missionary need not have worried, there never was any criticism. In all the years I have never heard one word of criticism of anyone, and many words of approval and commendation. Her reports mentioned this and that person, this and that branch doing such good work, introducing a new plan, and she was continually referring questioners to persons who could help them. I cannot imagine that a jealous thought ever entered her mind; in fact, I can’t think she ever thought of herself, but only of the work and of others. One more characteristic must be mentioned, because we shall want to remember it—her willingness for change and new ways of development. Those of us who heard her closing speech at the Triennial in Saint Louis, made the morning when she had definitely decided to resign, will remember how she told us change should mean new life, and that we should go forward gladly. One of the newspapers spoke of her resigning in 1916 on account of “ failing health,” but it was for no such reason. She resigned because she felt the next gener- ation should have the privilege of carrying on the work. In these last years of change and adjustment, she encouraged us to try new ways. A letter came from a troubled member of the Auxiliary begging us to make no changes in the Auxiliary, “at least as long as Miss 124 JULIA CHESTER EMERY Emery was here to be hurt by them.” I sent the request to Miss Emery, telling her that my answer had been that she was the most progressive, not to say radical, one of us all! But we could go on endlessly talking of those years through which Miss Emery taught us. It will be better testimony to live those lessons through the years to come. In closing, however, | want to share one thing with the whole Auxiliary. While I was working under her, many a time when I was starting off on a trip, she went to the doors of the Church Missions House with me, and, as she bade me good-bye, whispered a “‘ God bless you.” It was the last thing she said to me a few days ago. I should like to share that blessing of hers with the Auxiliary. And for her? We cannot but rejoice in her joy. Miss Lindley again, in her Triennial Report to the Presiding Bishop and Council meeting in Portland, Oregon, in October of this year, gives this most beautiful tribute: The Triennium of 1919-1922 has been an important period in the life of the Woman’s Auxiliary. Its most sorrowful experience came through the death of Miss Julia Chester Emery, who, with her sister Mrs. Twing, and helped by another sister, Miss Margaret T. Emery, was the founder of the Auxiliary and for forty years its Secretary and leader. Sad for us as was her going, there still remains the realization of the privilege the Auxiliary has in the fact that it enshrines, as a most precious heritage, the life and work of that servant of Christ and His Church. As we stood at her grave that beautiful January day, singing, ce . there breaks a yet more glorious day; The saints triumphant rise in bright array; The King of Glory passes on His way, Alleluia. From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast; Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host, Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Alleluia! ” there came the assurance that there will be many in that “ countless host,” because she had led the Auxiliary to make its prayers and give its gifts in order that they might know the King of Glory. Hers was WORDS OF APPRECIATION 125 a life of service and of triumph, and today, while we miss her griev- ously, we thank God for Miss Emery. The Chairman of the Executive Board has told you of the desire of Miss Emery’s family that the ““ Emery Fund ”’ shall be the only memorial to her, and, of course, their wishes will be respected; but we do suggest that there shall be established at headquarters a Rest Room for Missionaries, to be, as it were, the foretaste of that fund which in her name will mean happiness and refreshment to many a worker for the service thus rendered them. The Executive Board considered the question of a Memorial Service here in Portland, and decided that the most appropriate plan would be a Memorial Address by Bishop Lloyd at the great United Thank-Offering meeting to- morrow night, while, of course, our hearts will be full of love and gratitude for her as we kneel at the Altar tomorrow morning. Miss Lindley speaks of the Memorial Address by Bishop Lloyd. We are glad to give here a portion of it: It is my high privilege to put into words the thought that I know has been uppermost in the mind of everyone assembled here since the beginning of this meeting — thanksgiving to God for the wonderful example and inspiration and courage she brought to us, of His servant, Julia Chester Emery. That name will go down in the annals of the American Church as a rare exhibit, not of what a woman can do, but of what the servant of Jesus Christ, inspired by His Spirit and given of His courage, can lead her fellow-servants to undertake. When Miss Emery as a young girl went into the office of the General Secretary of the Woman’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions, that was a small company of faithful people gathered together from hither and yon in God’s Church in America to devise means by which they might help forward the pioneers of the Gospel of Christ. When Miss Emery was relieved of the burden of her day’s work and pro- moted to the service in His very presence, that Auxiliary had grown to be the very most potent factor in the life of the American Church. Whatever there is of largeness of view, of courage in endeavour, of clear vision of the future, of purpose to go forward until the Christ reigns in our land, is largely due to the persistent and unwearying effort of the women who are bound together under the name of the Auxiliary to the Board of Missions. If the peace and quietness and fellowship and good-will with which the King’s business was for- 126 JULIA CHESTER EMERY warded was perhaps the most notable thing in the Auxiliary’s life, I believe that it was largely due to that quiet and unassuming and shy personality who was at once your loved leader and the heart of your purpose. I have watched her as she smilingly went up against the troubles that almost made my heart faint, going on steadily and patiently and as sweetly as though the whole Church understood and was ready to support her. I have watched her in the hour when all that she hoped for had been accomplished — and she herself largely responsible for the accomplishment—and the same quiet gentleness and unobtru- sive shyness controlled her as though she had had nothing to do with it. I declare to you that the best gift God gave us in that remarkable woman was that astonishing quietness and serenity that came of the knowledge of her Lord. This one thing always impressed me con- cerning her — she never spoke as one who believed something; she never went forward as an advocate of a cause; every word and act was of one who knew her Lord and loved Him, and whose whole purpose was to commend Him to those she loved. I wonder if it would not enrich us all if we would emphasize that one word in her character and strive to emulate the astonishing way in which she demonstrated what St. Paul meant when he said, “I know in whom I have trusted.” That the influence of Miss Emery’s work and life reached far out beyond the confines of our own Church and missionary world is witnessed to in the following testimony given at a meeting on January 12th, the day that she was laid to rest, of the Twenty-Ninth Foreign Missionary Conference of North America (of Foreign Mission Boards in Canada and the United States): Her noteworthy service to her Church along missionary lines was recognized and honoured not long ago by the women who knew best about it. Her service was long and faithful, but very self-effacing. She was of the old type — the “ vanishing lady,” as some one has said — a woman who had the leisure to think things through and a willingness to take pains. For some years she has not been in active service, yet every memory of her stands out clearly. All admired her for her well-ordered thinking, for her accuracy, and for her devoted- WORDS OF APPRECIATION 127 ness, contributing much to the great growth of the Woman’s Auxiliary of the Church. Several years ago Miss Emery was appointed by her Church as its representative to the great Jubilee Celebration of the South. She was very reserved and retiring, and kept herself occupied on the train, often in silent prayer. Rarely speaking in public, and not frequently even in committee meetings, she gave one evening, in a great church of Louisville, Kentucky, a remarkable missionary address. She had just returned from China, and surely mission work and missionaries never had a finer or more sympathetic interpreter than she was on that great occasion. Miss Emery’s place in the annals of quiet, unassuming, but efficient mission progress has been important. Missionaries, Auxiliary workers, and administrators will alike miss her helpful aid, but there is joy in Heaven as she enters upon her full reward. It is not uncommon, when one has passed away, that their good deeds are recalled in vivid memory, and words of praise flow freely in admiration of their high traits of character, but seldom does it fall to the lot of any one to receive while living full commendation of one’s work, or real appreciation of one’s incentive in the doing of it. Yet such was Miss Emery’s lot, though late, for when the “ Book”’ came containing this appreciation she was already beyond the interests of this world, and too feeble to realize the full import of the many letters which flowed in from all parts of this country and beyond in answer to Miss Lindley’s request. The “Book of Appreciation” has already been described: in these pages, but I will take the liberty now of quoting a few letters, selecting those which appear to show that the writers have touched Miss Emery’s life at many different points. Of her missionary friends, none had known her so long as Bishop Tuttle, whose friendship dated back to the days of his episcopate when sent by the Church as a b 128 JULIA CHESTER EMERY young man into what was then literally the “ Wild West,” and continued through all the more than fifty years he sat in the House of Bishops, for some years at the end as Presiding Bishop of the Church. To him she was always “ Miss Julia,” and so he begins his letter: Dear Miss Fulia: Friends and admirers are to give you “A Book of Remembrance.” In sending it they are good enough to ask of me to pre-write a word. St. Paul, in his letter of good-bye, called to remembrance the unfeigned faith that was in his dearly loved Timothy; and he linked in the names of the kinswomen, Lois and Eunice. It may not be wrong for me, a fellow-worker with you for many years, to call to remembrance your devoted life and faithful work, and then to link in the names of your dear sisters, Mary and Susan and Theresa, who lovingly stood by and served in the wonderful earlier days of our missionary soldiering. God bless us every one, and have us ever in His holy keeping, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. DaNIEL S. TUTTLE, Presiding Bishop. St. Louis, Mo. Dees 192k. Next in years of friendship, perhaps, of the thirty-one bishops who were eager to express their appreciation, comes the succeeding Presiding Bishop, now also gone to his Rest. Bishop Garrett writes: Courtesy, sympathy, and generous consideration were the un- failing characteristics by which these ladies gave their most valuable time and co-operation to the founding of new missions and parishes in these 100,000 square miles of territory. ALEX. C. GARRETT, Bishop of Dallas. A bishop of later date gives this charming tribute to the three sisters: WORDS OF APPRECIATION 129 My dear Miss Emery: I could more adequately write of the Three Graces than of the Three Emerys, for there is so much more I would say of them — the “Three Graces ” personified. Miss Mary, who had the “‘ faith’ to begin the splendid work, and organized the Woman’s Auxiliary; Miss Julia, who saw the more glorious day, and in “ hope” kept it going forward splendidly; Miss Margaret, whose gracious “ charity ”’ has gladdened the hearts of so many missionaries, clothed the little children, and bound up wounds. May God bless them and keep them! Not only in the Domestic field were her work and missionary interest appreciated, for from Japan we have Bishop McKim’s testimony, as also Bishop Tucker’s. Bishop McKim, of Tokyo, says: Miss Emery’s unfailing patience, good humour, and untiring energy; her cheerful optimism, tact, and courtesy; her exact knowl- edge of conditions, and eager desire to help, have always been a stimulus and support to those who have the honour of knowing her. Bishop Tucker, of Kyoto, addressing his letter to Miss Emery herself, writes: I shall always remember it was your suggestion at the time of your visit to Tokyo which really began the movement of providing St. Paul’s College with its new buildings. Again, with regard to St. Agnes’ School, it was you who made it possible to appeal to the Auxiliary for the buildings which have enabled the school to start on a new career of prosperity. We have always felt in Japan that we could count not only on your sympathy but on your understanding of the situation. To quote another, and this time the Rev. Dr. Pott, President of St. John’s University, Shanghai: I can now look back on thirty-five years of service in the foreign field, and I recall my first furlough to the United States after I had been in China for six years. I set about the task of raising money for a new building for St. John’s. I was utterly inexperienced in the art of begging, and was often downcast and discouraged. You gave me 130 JULIA CHESTER EMERY your hearty sympathy and advice, and enabled me to get into touch with that splendid organization, the Woman’s Auxiliary. I have always felt that the success with which I met in obtaining funds was largely due to the interest you took in the matter and to the encourage- ment which you gave me. I know I encroached upon your time a good deal, but whenever I came into your office, I received a hearty welcome, and you were never too busy to help me in the realization of my plans. It was a great privilege to be a speaker at the same meet- ing where you made an address, for you always put the missionary cause on a higher level, and made us realize that it was not so much a matter of dollars and cents as it was the inspiration that comes from spiritual vision. From the Bishop of Cuba we have: To begin to describe what the Woman’s Auxiliary and Miss Emery have done for the Mission of the Church in Cuba would be to write the history of the work, and would require volumes. Bishop Burleson, a friend long before he became a bishop, touches her life in a more personal way: The Burlesons have always been thankful that they were living in the same world with the Emerys. There never was a time when we did not know them, and when they were not devising and doing nice things for us. | But especially this member of the family recalls the days when he came, as a new and green theological student, to the great city of New York, which contained scarcely a human being whom he had ever seen before. It was then that the Emery home was opened to him, and the friendship of long years began. Her fellow-workers at the Missions House also testify to her devotion and the strength of her influence. Dr. John W. Wood writes: Every one of these fifty years has been made beautiful by rich service. I am proud that it was my privilege to be associated with you for part of the time. And those more closely associated with her in the Auxiliary work: WORDS OF APPRECIATION 131 In every section of the country I visit, I hear gracious words of affection and appreciation for you and the marvelous service you have rendered the Church. .. . I can ask for no greater happiness than to be able to pass on to others some of the help and inspiration I have gained through the example of your own beautiful life. And another: How much I owe to you, dear Miss Emery! You trusted me with a share in a great task,and ever since the day when you let me come to the Missions House to work with you, you have been to me the in- spiring leader, and the kind, sympathetic, and patient friend. I am grateful for your life, doubly grateful that I was privileged to touch it so closely, and I pray God that His richest blessing may be yours, now and always. One who was her helper and secretary for many years says: I learned from her a lesson of faithfulness to the work in hand and of untiring effort to do to the utmost of my ability what has been intrusted to me, which I hope I shall never forget. What an inspiration she was to the many women who have and are today guiding the work as diocesan officers, will be learned from the following: A Mississippi president: Those of us who, like myself, have been identified for nearly a generation with the Woman’s Auxiliary and its gracious and en- larging influences, think of Miss Emery as children recall their mother when summoning the sacred memories of home. Her patience in the days of difficulty, her endurance in the days of discouragement, endeared her to us all. A Southern Virginia U. T. O. treasurer: Through all these years Miss Julia C. Emery has been one of my greatest inspirations. Any life touched by hers is enriched. 132 JULIA CHESTER EMERY A California president: I shall never forget your kindness to me at the General Conven- tion in Richmond, when J was a new and inexperienced diocesan president, and you made me feel at home in our large Auxiliary family. And so it is a privilege to send you my heartiest congratulations on your great part in the half-century of progress of the Woman’s Aux- iliary, and my deepest appreciation for all that your leadership has meant to the Auxiliary, and to me personally. . . . Bless you for ail you are to us all! A member of the Executive Board of the Woman’s Auxiliary: Today, as the National Executive Board faces the many problems of re-adjustment, I find, as a member of that body, that it is Miss Emery who has no fears for the future, but rather a vision and faith that dare to go forward with a true spirit of adventure for God. A personal friend may speak of her apart from her work: As Christmas draws near, I am reminded of your little annual visits to wish us joy. In sorrow or joy we could always depend on you. Among your manifold labours you never forgot your friends. As a big “ box”’ must be to a lonely missionary, so are your little calls to us. It is the same personal touch carried out through the past fifty years. But above all was she a friend to the missionary. One for twenty-seven years working among the Indians of South Dakota, and now retired, says: Words fail to duly express my gratitude for all that your dear letters of interest and cheer meant to the writer and her faithful helpers as the work advanced. When coming home on my vacations once in three or four years, thought for my welfare and rest concerned you. If in need of help physically, every effort was made to be assured that New York’s best skill professionally was given me. Also you extended to me little & . en . _ 2. Mi i qi j MEMORIAL TABLET PLACED IN THE CHAPEL OF THE CHURCH Missions House BY MEMBERS OF THE First EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE WomMaNn’s AUXILIARY WORDS OF APPRECIATION 133 home courtesies, which have been treasured memories. Particularly that of having me meet your dear mother and sisters in your home. You were always so patient when I made mistakes, and most prompt in all of our emergencies. . . . That “ wonderful box” you had sent me at the close of my twenty-five years of service was one of your crowning expressions of interest in my labours, as it helped me to divide its weekly Sunday gift through the year with my faithful associates at St. Elizabeth’s, Standing Rock. | For the coloured people of the South, her interest was equally unfailing: St. Agnes’ Hospital could not have come into existence in 1896, or continued its work, without the generous support which has been given by the Woman’s Auxiliary. Miss Emery’s unfailing interest and encouragement helped the work during all these years, and it was through her suggestion to a donor that the first gift came to begin the work of St. Agnes’ Hospital. As she cared for the hospital itself, so she cared also for the missionary physician in charge: The Woman’s Auxiliary has meant homes thrown open to me _ anda seat at the fireside, or on a moonlit veranda, all over the country, with friends ready to take me in, and many a friendship that shall never cease. It has meant encouragement in my work, with love and a deep personal interest always. An interest and a love that in the dark days of sickness and pain shone with a radiance unsurpassed, a radiance reflected to me through the followers of the King in His Beauty, the leaders and members of the Woman’s Auxiliary. We cannot refrain from giving also the beautiful tribute to her work and that of the Auxiliary by Mr. Chapman, our oldest missionary in Alaska, which was written one week after Miss Emery had left us: Dear Miss Emery: Miss Lindley offers me a page 814 x 6 inches to tell of all that the Woman’s Auxiliary has meant to me during one-third of a cen- 134 JULIA CHESTER EMERY tury. Think of that! The Auxiliary has been hands holding us up, sympathy almost inconceivably patient, hearts taking up our burdens and laying them down before the feet of God. It is the Auxiliary that has clothed our children, given us a church and two excellent buildings, besides helping with others many furnishings, many conveniences, always a welcome and a hearing, the personal labours of workers in the field and devoted labours of women at home. If I should have my wish for any new venture of faith, such, for instance, as the Liberian enterprise, it would be that it might meet with the same spirit in the Auxiliary that has so firmly sustained us. In the name of all here I send our affectionate greeting and congratulations. Sincerely yours, Joun W. CHAPMAN. These are but a few of the many jewels in her crown, but they suffice as showing in what loving remembrance she was, and is, held in the hearts of all who knew her. But far more eloquent than tongue or pen was the squeeze of the hand given me by the wife of that mis- sionary in the far-distant corner of our land when, as we travelled together in the subway to attend a “Quiet Day,” she was told by a friend that I was attempting to write this story of Miss Emery’s life. *) 7; F ag Ch Pts Pala Mange eA eS y ply hater \ ; yin (Act te et weiss MAR a > Nihct € By. Ss a yal Me kat a “uy As Loe Ney} bts PRB) > in ia? ay ey ee ae : He Pb he i eal 5 t Hig) (aa) ; Me ye ue | Rea , UN ; MW 4 aie h he} bike iy y figs: N nity. ' 4) A al fi mi ‘ POA aah i Lint Wit : | NU By SP isaslas re dic WTR th el Pe ? et xe » sets | 7 ‘ - 4 j i { j hh vs Ay mn, Wi t 1- Toe HNN al Seminary 2 a 2 ° a = i - ° © 2 a 1 1012 01039 25 NUIT 7,