EL ee ee NTT CCIE INT A iN Ee I MW a AERTS OM CN Ae Pen aS rR AN RN IT ee ee 2 em Bote Yee eee ee O22 S/2e LIBRARY OF THE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Jf PRINCETON. N. J. PURCHASED BY THE HAMILL MISSIONARY FUND. os 2000) CPt W45 1995 Wheeler, wW. Reginald 1889- 1963. i ke Modern missions on the Sovanish main at) , WO OE ie y {3 t y had A reais Ok mn ‘ ; Re en We AAR } 4 any 4K Min yantg rena (iat Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2022 with funding from Princeton Theological Seminary Library https://archive.org/details/modernmissionsonOOwhee ‘TX ‘YQ) sauoavastndNoo AHL 4O sIIVaL AHL uaAO dIuL TVIUAV NV “Dypvog hq 004g MODERN MIS alana Leroy, 39” SPANISH MAI Impressions of Protestant Work in Colombia and Venezuela BY / W. REGINALD WHEELER AND WEBSTER E. BROWNING PHILADELPHIA | THE WESTMINSTER PRESS 1925 Copyricat, 1925, By W. ReGiInaLD WHEELER PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CHAPTER if Il. BEL LV Ne Viiv VII. VIII. IX. X. XI. 6. Hb ALT: ALY: XV. XVI. XVII. XVIII. XIX. XX. XXI, XXII. XXIII. XXIV. CONTENTS PAGE CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN, UNDER THE SOUTHERN POROGH IL lola. ey heared salar Our Nearest SoutH AmeErRIcAN NEIGHBOR. . CaRTAGENA, THE “ GoLDEN GaTE” or CoLom- BUSS eee es) ie ear sk Peete Mal ei g tear BARRANQUILLA AND THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THEACCOLOMBIA MISSION. ¢ Ss) ho ett eb ee Up tue Maaparena River To Boaotrk .. . OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA ....... On Mute Back From BucaRAMANGA TO BELEN A Hieuuianp ParisH oN THE Royat Roap To Bogota antidd oo eae ee eae an GuaTavité, THE LAKE oF THE GOLDEN ONE — THE Reat Home or “ Ex Dorapo”.. . Bogotsk, THE “ ATHENS oF SourH AMERICA” An Ariat Trip Over THE TRAILS OF THE CONOUTETAUORS ae Aaa tee te Wand cer eee A Tue PresByTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH . . CERETE AND THE VALLEY OF THE SINU.. . CaRTAGENA AND THE CALL FoR CoONQUISTADORS oF THE Cross IN CotomBia To-Day. . . GEOGRAPHICAL AND HistoricaL SKETCH OF COLOMBIA NY wee Reel et ia tue oe a oe Petree An Ovriine History or THE COLOMBIA WETSEYO WEBNS dd co Grete ee ey 20 Fe 1 ec rae ele HDUCATION DING WOLOMBIA’ Gao sls, gine fe fate From CoromBia To VENEZUELA ..... Venuzorna, Lirtim Venice os 2 2) ahs) AN OvtTuine History or THE MIssIon IN WAP RTELA tase bat ln lh Shed toc, serie Masao EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA ........ CCRMROAS Tore Ue Ste iat hy ays el ciate ay oe bale FIOME WARD? DOUND Vir felines + hess \eoereate teins Mission DevELopMENTS SINcE 1923 ... . A Brier Reapinae List on CoLoMBIA AND VENEZUELA . lil 104 110 131 139 165 190 206 229 238 263 271 289 294 304 322 325 331 ets ' 4 Le Phi SA Ds yi rmar cur | pare ee ee Ta) TR UME 2 ; Peet TAL Wve ie PE ena hat , ie ier art Yin yah te hela, | fia ety Wy Ware i 4 aA ey aie? © “ a! ya UA Le {amr pegs! La Rone ; Vy a - ys wees ILLUSTRATIONS FACING PAGE An Arriat Trip Over THE TRAILS oF THE CoNQUuISTA- DORS + ch vase MMe eur oe es vl Meet (ay 2 rote mece Por TRESS OVA SANS PERNANDO 90) 00/520) WS aren ely eeietigy SeO STUDENTS oF BARRANQUILLA GiRLs’ AND Boys’ ScHoots 34 A GRADUATE OF THE BAaRRANQUILLA GIRLS’ ScHooL . . 50 Tue CotomsBia Mission aT BARRANQUILLA IN 1923 . . 66 MAGDALENA\ RIVER ‘STREAMERS HL t0e be eed re area BO AMD YPICAL}COLOMRBIAN) HIGH WAY) (ois eiihe He) ontetaane nial tod PARR GUSTAVITA, COP eat VS CANUTE COLE SPAY aA ORE Ve OG Monument MarkING THE BATTLEFIELD OF BoyacaA . . 116 REPRESENTATIVES OF THE RoMAN CATHOLIC PRIESTHOOD TN LAIOLG MBIA Cousin Cahners Gude alkene Uh Lk tet teste iter. Fae Tue Bogota Cuurcnu, Purcuasep In 1868... . . . 136 THE) BOYS } SCHOOL) AT: BOGOTA) 2 ies ema ata steed LOO A Hypro-ArrPLaNne ON THE Banks OF THE MAGDALENA 166 An AIRPLANE View oF THE MaGpaLENA..... . . 180 A MemsBer or THE CoMMISSION AND A CoLOMBIAN Con- TRAST IN} TRANSPORTATION 6. <\)slvletie) sicen whene vee eoe REACHING THE INTELLECTUALS IN SoutH AMERICA . . 214 A Priest OrFriciaTING aT A Lorrery In MEDELLIN . . 240 Tue Burning oF THE Bisxes at Iruanao, CotomBia. . 256 “Wuen SHatt We Turee Meet Again?” .... . 272 Tue Late Dr. anv Mrs. T. S. Ponp, Founpers oF THE MELEE A MISSION Wire calice haha ear aie k a tou eeer a Nae BO THE VENEZUELA MIssION AND THE COOPERATIVE Con- FERENCE Hextp in Caracas In 1923 .... ...,. . 292 WOGAMERICAN PATRIOTS \i 8 bh ete) hate tem ces COOS Tue PANTHEON WITH THE Toms or Bo.uivar IN Caracas 320 Map or CotomBiA AND VENEZUELA WITH Route OF THE ComMISsION Me Pa a ANAT anthem 1aee te MSRM Urata Bf fp \ * Rial> wh Ke Aen Ariss mh i: ink i nt ysl We wy i | anes " rf fie , ti } F iy f ‘of } j w , 7 dt yh Pie ky a! ae ea) Fle . As Py A “ 7 te Ge iW gibi: Ly ; y uf INTRODUCTION HE present volume is the outgrowth of a four months’ trip to visit Presbyterian Missions in Colombia and Venezuela on the “ Spanish Main ” of South America. The trip originated in the practice of the For- eign Mission Boards and Societies of sending at stated intervals commissions or deputations to visit the Missions on the field and to bring back to the United States direct word about them to those in- terested. The particular Mission Board with whose work this book is concerned — the Board of For- eign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America — has approved of such a visitation and report for each of its Missions at least once in every seven years. In 1922-1923 it was the turn of Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela to be thus visited. In this book the work of Co- lombia and Venezuela is described; another volume, entitled Modern Missions in Meaico, is devoted to Mexico. The Commission in Colombia and Venezuela was composed of Webster EK. Browning, D.D., Litt. D. (University of San Marcos), Educational Secre- tary of the Committee on Codperation in Latin America, with residence in Montevideo, Uruguay, and with twenty-eight years of experience in South America; and the Executive Secretary of the Pres- vii viii INTRODUCTION byterian Foreign Board for the Latin American Missions. On December 20, 1922, the writer sailed from Mexico, where with another Commission he had visited the Presbyterian Mission. On December 23, he left Havana for Panama, where he met Dr. Browning who had come up the coast of South America. On December 28, we sailed for Colom- bia, arriving at Puerto Colombia on the thirtieth. We attended the annual meeting of the Colombia Mission and then went up the Magdalena River on the way to Bogota, the capital city, 900 miles in- land and 9,000 feet above the sea. At Puerto Wilches, four days up the Magdalena from Bar- ranquilla, Dr. Browning went overland, by train and by mule, to Bucaramanga, 120 miles from the river. From Bucaramanga he rode four days on mule back to Belen, where we met him after a trip of 150 miles by motor from Bogota. On the way from Bogota to Medellin, the writer flew from Girardot to Puerto Barrio, a distance of 210 miles. After Medellin, Cartagena and Cerete, and the Sinu River Valley were visited, and on March 19, we sailed from Puerto Colombia for Venezuela. We reached the port of La Guayra on March 22, met with the Venezuela Mission in Caracas, and sailed for New York via Panama on April 2, ar- riving on April 20, 1923, just six months from the day the writer had left the United States for Mexico and the South. Our methods of travel as indicated in this itin- erary were many and diverse. We traveled on INTRODUCTION ix land: on foot, on horseback and on mule back; the writer can still see in his imagination the long white ears of his mammoth white mule as we rode over the rough mountain trails of the Cordilleras of the Andes in Colombia. We rode behind wood-burning locomotives on narrow-gauge South American lines; we traveled in what are popularly known as “tin Lizzies,” and the writer has come back to the United States with a much deeper appreciation of the prowess, the potentialities, and the longevity of the productions of Henry Ford. We traveled on the water: on the sea in modern ocean liners, out- fitted for the increasing number of tourists who visit the Mexican Gulf and the Caribbean; along the river, in wood-burning, paddle-wheel river steamers; on smaller streams in long dugout canoes; and along the coasts in motor boats with engines of marvelous mechanical composition that choose the most extraordinary times and places in which to break down. We traveled in the air: and the writer flew 200 miles down the Magdalena River Valley in an airplane manned and managed by Germans most of whom saw service in the late war. The trip up the Magdalena River over that same distance by river boat and narrow-gauge train had taken us four days and four nights; the writer came down in the air in two hours and fifteen min- utes actual flying time. We went up the river on the steamer at a speed of six miles an hour; the writer came down in the air at a speed of 100 miles an hour. The travel by dugout canoe and mule and river steamers was the slowest the writer has x INTRODUCTION ever known; the travel by airplane, the fastest; on the one hand, transportation of the tenth and sixteenth and nineteenth centuries; on the other, means of travel of the twentieth; the old and the new, side by side. That is Colombia and Venezuela to-day — and it is with these countries and with efforts to bring into the old the best gifts of the new that this volume deals. Most of this material was prepared on the field; letters written during the trip have been left prac- tically unchanged. Chapter XXIV summarizes any major changes in the local situation or any special progress made in reaching the objectives outlined in the preceding chapters. Dr. Browning wrote Chapters VI, VII, XII, XV, XVI, XVII, XIX, XX, and XXI. I am responsible for the rest of the book, but we have both been over the whole volume and it represents our united view- point. Where property and equipment are mentioned, with suggestions as to additional items needed, the fact should be kept clear that the views presented are those of the Commission, and do not necessarily represent the most recent actions of Missions and Board. These latter are, of course, the only actions that are “ official,” and they should be secured by individuals who are interested in such matters. We wish to thank the members of the two Mis- sions for their guidance and assistance in preparing this volume; the Westminster Press, for cordial co- operation in its publication; and Miss Augustine Schafer and Miss Mabel V. Schluter, for their help INTRODUCTION xi in preparing the manuscript and seeing the volume through the press. To the General Assembly in 1923, Dr. Martin D. Hardin, Chairman of the Foreign Missions Committee, spoke thus of his impressions of the Board’s Annual Report and of the missionaries whose work was therein described. We believe that his words apply truly to the work in Colombia and Venezuela to-day: “These men and women have not run away from the tragedy of human existence. They have faced life at its lowest, and from every continent and every race they cry back to us that there is some- thing in man, no matter what his state or race, which was made for the highest, and by God’s grace he can be redeemed into it. “This work speaks not of a Saviour who can save the world, but of One who is actually doing it. This work vibrates and flashes with the kind of divine power that ever attended the presence of our Lord. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the dead live. “The work described throbs with that kind of first-hand experience with the power of the living God, that mighty redemptive passion of Jesus, without which all our professions and preachings are as sounding brass and tinkling cymbal. “We do believe that as we read there will come a new consciousness of the glory of that life which turned a felon’s cross into a throne; a new devotion to Him who, in the very hour of defeat, cried, ‘ And I, if I be lifted up . . . will draw all men unto my- xii INTRODUCTION self’; a new conviction that a love which lives blood-red and all-conquering for nineteen hundred years, and reaches from Calvary with saving power over the whole earth, can come from no other source than the Heart of the living God.” W. REGINALD WHEELER 156 Firra AvEeNvge, New Yorx Criry CHAPTER I CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN UNDER THE SOUTHERN CROSS On Boarp S.S. CartLtio, CaripBEaAN SEA, December 28, 1922 N December 18, 1922, we sailed on the steam- ship Morro Castle, of the Ward Line, from the port of Progreso in Yucatan, for Cuba. Our boat made the trip across the Yucatan Gulf in thirty-six hours. Early on the morning of the twentieth we sighted the Cuban shore line and later the beautiful harbor of Havana. The island and port have all the attractiveness of Honolulu and the Hawaiian Islands, with the Spanish influence and architecture even more in evidence, and the same delightful atmosphere of the South Seas, into which setting, by a strange contrast, American energy and business activity have recently been introduced. Columbus first sighted the Cuban shore in October, 1492, and reported it to be “the most beautiful land which human eyes have ever seen.” As we first saw it in the soft light of the rising sun whose effulgence gently effaced the starry outline of the Southern Cross, his tribute did not seem extravagant. Havana harbor is most interesting in itself, with Morro Castle on the left and the forts of La Punta and La Fuerza on the right of the inner harbor, 1 2 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the bold curve of the malecon, serving as a break- water and promenade, half encircling the bay, and the cream-colored Spanish buildings of the city rising beyond. Our boat passed near the section of the harbor where the battleship Maine was sunk in February, 1898. Over Morro Castle the Span- ish flag, which had been carried victorious over half of the Americas, floated for the last time on January 1, 1899, its furling marking the end of nearly four centuries of Spanish occupation in the New World. We could not but reflect upon the changes which had come over the island during the past twenty- three years, since the departure of the Spaniards and the introduction of American influence. Through patient and courageous science, in which life was given that others might live, the island has been transformed from one of the most un- healthy countries in the world to a land with one of the best health records, the mortality record in 1918 being 12.5 in one thousand. The island, which is roughly 800 miles long by 20 to 100 miles wide, with approximately the same area as the state of Pennsylvania, has a population to-day of nearly three million, the city of Havana having approx- imately half a million people within its boundaries. Cuba’s trade with the United States exceeds that of any other Latin-American land; its total foreign trade for 1920 was $1,300,000,000 which was ex- ceeded only by that of Argentina. We were met in Havana by Rev. E. A. Odell, the representative of the Presbyterian Home Board CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN 3 in Cuba, who generously gave us of his time during our stay between boats. Mr. Odell is the only rep- resentative of his Board and has the responsibility of the direction of the nineteen church centers built up by the Board and the local churches throughout Cuba, the pastorate of the Presbyterian Church for Americans in Havana, the supervision of a press and bookstore, the charge of work among the Chi- nese, and participation in the direction of a hos- pital which has been erected through local subscrip- tions. Under the Foreign Board such a list of duties would be considered the task of a mission station at least. Mr. and Mrs. Odell need help in the carrying of these multifarious responsibilities ; we can think of no more interesting place in which to work than this near-by island, and we trust that the volunteers who are desired for this work will soon appear. Mr. Day left Havana on the twentieth, going by boat to Key West and thence by rail to New York. Dr. Rodgers stayed until the twenty-second and then followed by the same route. A hydroplane makes the trip from Havana to the United States coast, covering the seventy-five miles in as many minutes. New York is fifty hours from Key West; Christmas was coming and the impulse was strong to take airplane and train and be home on Christ- mas Eve. The schedule of the second part of the deputation’s itinerary, however, called for a visit to Colombia and Venezuela; Dr. W. E. Browning, Educational Secretary of the Committee on Codp- eration in Latin America, had been appointed as 4 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the other member of the delegation to visit these two countries; I was to meet him in Panama. So, on December 23, I turned south again and sailed on the steamship Ulua of the United Fruit Line for the Canal Zone. We spent Christmas Day on the boat. On Christmas Eve, which was Sunday, we had a well- attended service. Christmas Day we celebrated by deck sports, followed in the evening by a bountiful dinner. On Christmas Eve, after the service, I went up to the top deck and watched the wonderful stars of the tropical night, so large and luminous and apparently so close as to be within touch of the swinging masts. Columbus had watched those stars as he set out with his frail caravels for the voyage into the unknown; they had guided many a courageous seaman and conquistador during the century that followed his first trip across this sea. The boldness and intrepidity of these pioneers came to me afresh; the recent words of a British his- torian seemed a fitting tribute: “'The human race in all its annals holds no record like the conquest of the New World. Uncharted seas, unnavigated gulfs, new constellations, the unfathomable black pit of the Magellan Clouds; the Cross hung in the sky; the very needle varying from the pole; islands innumerable and an unknown world rising from out the sea; all unsuspected races living in a flora never seen by Europeans, made it an achievement unique in all the history of mankind.”* Then I 1 The Conquest of New Granada, R. G. B. Cunninghame Graham, preface, p. vii. CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN 5 heard the click of the wireless instrument near by, the operator called out that he was in communication with New York and Pittsburgh and Los Angeles, and that the ether was full of ‘“ Merry Christ- mases.” I remembered another event even more unique in the history of mankind; I thought of the star of Bethlehem, and of the slow but steady con- quest of lands through the whole world made by those who are first captive to its Lord; of the mis- sionaries of our own Church, who had crossed this sea to give a living witness to the true message of Christmas, with its beneficent spirit of peace and good will. The love that had drawn them on this mission, love of Christ and love of their fellow men, knew no bounds of time and space. As the wire- less clicked on it seemed that science at last was catching up with love, and that the time must soon come when this spirit of brotherhood and neighbor- liness and mutual trust, which was born into the world nineteen centuries ago, would unite the world in spirit as twentieth-century invention has united it in material ways. On the twenty-sixth we sighted the shores of Panama. The first appearance of the Isthmus bears out the general impression of the unhealth- fulness of the region. The land is low and swampy; a miasmic mist and vapor rises from the tangled underbrush; pestilence and fever seem to haunt the shores. Against this background the achievements of the American Government in first clearing the Isthmus of disease and then cutting the great canal stood out as an almost superhuman 6 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN victory. We passed between two long break- waters, entered a sheltered bay, with the opening of the canal and the first locks at the farther end to the right, and, after sailing up the bay, swung around a long wharf on the left and tied up to the pier at Cristobal. ‘This is the name given to the American town at the Atlantic end of the canal, while the Panama town across the railroad track is called Colon, the two names being the Spanish version of “ Christopher Columbus.” ‘The com- bined towns have a population of about 10,000. Cristobal has an atmosphere of American cleanli- ness and efficiency; wide, smooth avenues shaded by beautiful palms, substantial buildings resem- bling those of California, steamship offices, the headquarters of the American Bible Society, Y.M.C.A. buildings, and soldiers’ club houses for the use of the ten thousand United States soldiers stationed in the Zone. Colon, with its dilapidated frame houses, unkempt streets, and many saloons and cantinas, is a depressing contrast. I met Dr. Browning on the afternoon of the twenty-sixth. He had visited all the countries on the east coast of South America before crossing the continent to come up the west coast through Chile, Bolivia, and Peru. In each country he had been helping to set up the preliminary organization for the Congress on Christian Work in South America which is to be held in Montevideo in April, 1925. We called on Rev. R. R. Gregory, agent of the American Bible Society, and Rev. H. B. Fisher, pastor of the Union Church. There was CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN 7 not time to see the Canal itself, but I hope that I can do this on my return trip. We sailed on the twenty-eighth on the United Fruit Line steamship Carillo, for Cartagena, and Puerto Colombia. As we crossed the sapphire- tinted waters of the Caribbean, the “‘ Mediterranean of America,” we talked of all the conflicting na- tional ambitions that had centered about that sea and its ports for the three centuries following its discovery. EF. S. Hart in the introduction to his recent book, Admirals of the Caribbean, has clearly summed up the strategic importance of this sea during those centuries, an importance which I had not realized until I actually visited this region: “The romantic interest which attaches to the waters of the Caribbean has to some extent ob- scured the fact that the records of events in the Caribbean during the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries are an integral part of the his- tory of England and of the American colonies. Battles fought in the Caribbean Sea were often an important factor in making peace or war in Europe. “Not only were settlements established in the West Indies and in the Spanish Main a century in advance of those in North America, but for three hundred years the struggles of the European nations for the control of the commerce of this region had a direct effect upon the material, politi- cal, and racial development of the North American colonies. “ Both by discovery and by conquest Spain, in 8 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the sixteenth century, claimed the exclusive right to the New World. Although this claim was suc- cessfully disputed by the English and French in the regions north of Florida and by the Portu- guese in certain other places, Spain had, during the century following the first voyage of Colombus, es- tablished her rule over the West Indies, Central America, and the greater part of the continent to the South. . ... “Tales of these vast and rich territories had bred in the venturesome hearts of many an Englishman and Frenchman a wish to share in the develop- ment and trade of this marvelous New World. Spain had clearly proclaimed, however, that all foreigners were forbidden entry to the waters of the Caribbean. Envy of the Spanish bred a hatred which was fanned to fever heat by stories of cruel- ties inflicted on English sailors by their captors. The terror of the Inquisition at Cartagena had served in Protestant England to give a religious fervor to the hatred of Spain. This hatred was shared by the French and Dutch who wished for equal opportunities in the rich trade of the Car- ibbean. # ni “The story of the great seamen of Elizabeth’s reign — Drake, Hawkins, and Frobisher — is al- most the history of England of their day; the battles they fought made the settlements in Vir- ginia and Massachusetts possible. “Of no less influence in the development of the English colonial settlements were the naval under- takings of Sir Henry Morgan in the seventeenth, CHRISTMAS ON THE CARIBBEAN 9 and of Admiral Vernon and Admiral Rodney in the eighteenth century... . “It was the final supremacy of British control of the Caribbean Sea which made the Rio Grande the northern boundary of Latin America instead of the Potomac.” * We are soon to see one of the great battlegrounds of this international struggle for supremacy, and we look forward with eagerness to the first sight of Colombian and South American shores. 1 Admirals of the Caribbean, F. S. Hart, pp. 5, 6, 42. CHAPTER II OUR NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR On Boarp S.S. Caritio, CariBpBEAN SEA, December 29, 1922 OLOMBIA has a special interest for the people of the United States. This is true whether the country is considered from the stand- point of commerce, of history, or of the Church. Commercially, Colombia is the South American country nearest to the United States. From its chief port, Puerto Colombia, it is only three hun- dred miles to the Panama Canal, while to New Orleans it is but thirteen hundred miles. From Puerto Colombia and Cartagena to the oil refin- eries on the eastern coast of the United States is a shorter distance than from Tampico, Mexico, to the United States coast. Colombia has the third largest population of any country in South America, being outranked only by Brazil and Argentina. Colombia is the only country in South America that has a coast line on both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Ships can steam from Buenaventura, its chief Pacific port, through the Canal to Puerto Colombia on the Atlantic side, in four days. This coast line extends for 465 miles on the Pacific side and 650 miles on the Atlantic. Due to its original relationship to Panama, and in accordance with the treaty of 1922, approved 10 NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR 11 by both governments, Colombia is the only South American nation whose ships pass through the Canal on an equal basis with our own. This treaty provides for the payment of $25,000,000 in five annual installments to Colombia. Colombian exports, while not as large as those of some other South American lands, are of special value to the United States. In 1918 our country took ninety-three per cent of them while furnishing eighty per cent of Colombia’s imports. The ex- ports include agricultural products, with coffee heading the list, making up seventy-eight per cent of the whole export trade in 1920. Mineral prod- ucts include gold, in the production of which, dur- ing the Spanish occupation, Colombia stood first, surpassing Mexico and Peru, the total value of gold exported since the Conquest being reckoned at between $600,000,000 and $800,000,000. For- merly second to Russia in the production of plati- num, Colombia now leads the world in the expor- tation of that mineral. Coal has been discovered in almost every department. Petroleum, of a higher specific gravity than that produced in Mexico and the American Southwest, has been discovered 400 miles up the Magdalena; plans are being made to pipe it to the mouth of the river so that it may be shipped to the United States. The Colombian forests have scarcely been touched; vegetable ivory, or tagua, from which are made buttons of a superior quality, rubber, a low grade of mahogany, and other woods are found there. As a cattle-raising country Colombia, although 12 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN now suffering from a general slump in the cattle market, has a distinct future. The total value of exports and imports in 1920 was $70,000,000 and $94,000,000 respectively. In 1921, when the post- war depression was felt, especially in the decline of the price of coffee, the figures for imports were estimated to be $31,000,000 and for exports $16,000,000. From the standpoint of density of population and intensive cultivation of the land, Colombia is among the least developed countries of all South America. For its area of approximately 476,000 square miles there is a population of only 6,300,000, an average of thirteen per square mile. There are only 776 miles of railroad and, aside from certain narrow mule trails and one or two military high- ways near the capital, there are almost no good roads in the country. Manufacturing is hardly begun; the country people and the Indians along its vast waterways and among the mountains live to-day almost as they lived when the Spanish con- quistadores invaded their land four centuries ago. Capital and industrial activity of the twentieth century will inevitably move in the direction of such an economic vacuum and despite the diffi- culties of climate, Colombia, situated as it is close to the Canal and so near the United States, will be affected by such developments. Foreign capi- tal and entrepreneurs will have a large share in this development, just as they are having in the development of China, which is in a somewhat similar relation to the more advanced countries of NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR 13 the world, and there are many signs to-day that the battle for foreign concessions has already begun. From the standpoint of history there are cer- tain aspects of Colombia’s development which are unique. It is the only South American land and the only territory sighted by Columbus which bears his name. The great explorer first saw the South American coast near Trinidad and the mouths of the Orinoco in his third voyage in 1498, and then followed the coast line west toward Panama. The story of the Spanish conquest of Colombia — stands on a par with that of Mexico and Peru. The name of Jiménez de Quesada, the Spanish leader, is not so well known as that of Cortes or Pizarro, but his exploits and his daring will bear full comparison with theirs. He lived in Spain in a time when the tales of the conquests of Cortes and Pizarro and of the quest of Kl Dorado were circulated everywhere throughout the country, when “ even the tailors wanted to go a-conquering, and looking out for mines.” In 1535 he sailed for Colombia; in 1536 he headed an expedition of a thousand men to march from the port of Santa Marta, which had been founded eleven years be- fore, up the Magdalena River Valley, to reach, if possible, the capital of the Chibchas, the Indian inhabitants of the land near the site of the present city of Bogota. The difficulties and dangers of that march can scarcely be overstated; in addition to the necessity of beating off the Indians, who, in 14 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN canoes and from the banks of the river showered poisonous arrows on the soldiers as they marched, Quesada fought against “a hostile nature, vastly more powerful and challenging than any that man- kind had known before his time. He had to break his way into the fastnesses of a world that put all its strength in heat and rain, in floods, in pestilences, in monstrous and invading vegetation that over- flowed the paths his macheteros cut through and obliterated them almost as fast as they were made. Cortes in Mexico and Pizarro in Peru marched through relatively open country and every day brought them toward climates more suitable for Europeans. Quesada’s men, plunged in the re- cesses of the virgin forest without quinine or any febrifuge, devoured alive by the mosquitoes and by the innumerable insect plagues that make life miserable, marched forward, going they knew not ° where. Hunger and thirst —those enemies which the modern soldier with all his discipline and courage hardly resists two days — were with them constantly, the handmaidens of death.” * Often they made only three miles a day; it took them eight months to reach the present town of Barranca Bermeja, four hundred miles up the river. When they encountered the cliffs and the precipices of the mountains near Bogota, they faced new difficulties. In some places they had to haul up their forces by improvised ropes; they im- pressed Indians into their service as carriers, but 1 The Conquest of New Granada, R. G. B. Cunninghame Graham, pp. 25, 38. NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR 15 the aborigines were unaccustomed to such steady labor and died, so that the loads came back upon the Europeans again. Finally, eleven months after leaving the coast, they reached the plains of Bogota. Of the 1,000 men who had started, only 166 were still alive. On the site of the Indian town of Muequeta, nearly nine thousand feet above sea level, Quesada founded the present city of Bogota, naming it after the Indian chief of the Chibchas. They had scarcely overcome the opposition of the local Indians and become orientated in their new surroundings, when a most curious coinci- dence in exploration took place. Messengers brought word of the coming from the south of a band of Spaniards; they proved to be under the command of Sebastian de Belaleazar, who had led his men from the city of Quito, founded by Pizarro in Ecuador, via the Pacific coast of Colombia to the plains of Bogota. As Quesada set out to treat with the newcomer he came upon another band of Europeans who had come from the east; these men were under Captain Don Nicolas Federmann, Lieutenant General of Venezuela, who had spent three years in traversing the Venezuelan Ilanos and the passes of the Andes, and had arrived with one hundred of his original four hundred men. “ Neither Quesada nor Federmann nor Belalcazar had heard of the other’s expeditions, so that the meeting of the three generals starting, as they had done, from points so far from one another reads like a fairy tale.” An element of humor was pres- 16 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN ent in the fact that all three had started on their expeditions without the knowledge of their su- periors, with the intention of slipping off to Spain after completing their discoveries, to receive there the rewards of their labors. ‘This meeting took place in February, 1538. ‘The three leaders estab- lished friendly relations with each other and finally embarked together in a boat bound for Spain. Associated with Colombia in the early nineteenth century are the names of several great patriots. Francisco Miranda, “the Nazarene of Spanish- American independence,” visited the United States, England, and France, trying to enlist their interest in the independence of the Spanish colonies. He called on President Stiles of Yale University in 1784, and Dr. Stiles wrote in his diary that he was “a learned man, and a flaming son of Liberty.” His correspondence with President Adams and with Alexander Hamilton is most interesting; he hoped that British and American forces would come to the aid of the Spanish-American countries. “Allis approved and we await only the fiat of your illustrious President to depart like lightning.” * Simon Bolivar, the “ George Washington of Latin- American Independence,” whose statue stands in Central Park, New York City, is claimed by Co- lombians just as is Francisco Miranda, although both were born in Caracas, in what is now Vene- zuela, the division between the two countries hay- ing come after their independence had been won. 1 Rise of the Spanish American Republics, W. S. Robinson, pp. 30, 44. NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR 17 Finally, from the standpoint of the Church, Colombia is of unique interest, whether considered from the Catholic or from the Protestant angle. Colombia has its Concordat, which gives the Ro- man Catholic Church complete ecclesiastical free- dom and a guarantee of governmental protection as the State Church. Later legislation, in accordance with the Concordat, gives the Church the power of annulling civil marriages contracted by civil laws by a marriage ceremony conducted in conformity with the rites of the Catholic Church. This Church has been more tenacious, perhaps, in its hold upon national and civil life in Colombia than in any other Latin-American country. But there is also a liberal element in Colombia, and the Constitution, despite the Concordat, pro- vides for tolerance of religious worship. Liberal leaders are increasing in number and influence. From the standpoint of the Protestant, specifi- cally of the Presbyterian Church, the work in Colombia has a special appeal. This work was started in 1856 at the express request of a group of individuals in Bogota, who were convinced that the Word of God as much as the sword of Bolivar was needed in Colombia to bring in true justice and freedom. It is the oldest Presbyterian work in South America, antedating by three years our first work in Brazil. Aside from two missionaries of the Gospel Missionary Union of Kansas City, in Cali, our Church is the only Protestant Church represented, and we are wholly responsible for the spread of evangelical truth. 18 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN With the possible exception of Venezuela, our youngest Latin-American Mission, it is the most needy field of our Church. Dr. Robert E. Speer visited Colombia in 1909 and after his return pointed out that for over thirty years there was but one Station with only two men, rarely a third, who came to begin work just as one of his prede- cessors was leaving. In 1909 there were eight missionaries in the whole field. ‘To-day there are thirty, but these thirty are trying to meet the needs of 6,000,000 people in a country whose area is as great as that of Germany, France, Holland, and Belgium combined, or as great as the area of all the Atlantic States of our own country, from Maine to Florida, with the addition of Ohio and West Vir- ginia. Imagine thirty Protestants, two thirds of whom are women, trying to serve the needs of such an area, and consider that in this total area there are less than 800 miles of railroad and practically no roads. The ratio of missionaries to a parish is one to 200,000. Even China and India cannot show such a comparative need. Here is a field which will call for all the courage and patience of any volunteer. Our Church has been long in the field but the work is not yet done. Dr. Speer in his report in 1909 wrote further: “We have put our hand to this plow. We put it there fifty-three years ago. The furrow is not run yet. We shall not turn back. Others have come and gone but the work that is to be done is laid at our door. It is a needy work. There is none needier. ... I am writing these words on NEAREST SOUTH AMERICAN NEIGHBOR 19 the Magdalena River. We are just passing a col- lection of hovels on the river bank. Children are playing before the door. ‘The father has come down to hold off his canoe to save it from damage from the afterwash of the boat. ‘The mother is looking out from the main hovel, which is her home. There is no school. There is no church. For scores and scores of miles up and down the river are hundreds of such homes. Back in the mountains they are gathered in villages and towns and cities. The people are of flesh and blood like ourselves. They are a warm-hearted, loving, responsive people. The gospel is in our hands for them, and if we abandon them, who will give it to them? : The Roman Catholic Church has been with them for three centuries and it has not given it to them. Who will, if we do not?” As I remembered those early adventurers who had braved the Colombian wildernesses, as I thought of our little group of Americans who are facing almost as great odds, and as I read of the needs, now multiplied, of which Dr. Speer wrote thirteen years ago, I thought that here indeed was a challenge to the bravest and best of the young men and young women of our Church. In the carrying out of this high adventure they would have a greater right than the soldiers of Cortes or Quesada to the watchword that was emblazoned on one of those ancient standards: “ Friends, let us follow the cross, and under this sign, if we have faith, we shall conquer! ” CHAPTER III CARTAGENA, THE “GOLDEN GATE” OF COLOMBIA On Boarp S.S. Caritio, CARIBBEAN SEA, December 30, 1922 OR three centuries Cartagena was the focal _ point in the contest of international forces for control of the Caribbean. The city is located on the northern coast of Colombia, 266 miles northeast of the Panama Canal. It has a beautiful harbor, which reminds one somewhat of San Franciso Bay. On the west- ern side of the harbor, which is about eight miles from north to south, runs a large island known as Tierra Bomba. ‘The channel, called Boca Grande, which is wide and ‘shallow, between this island on the north and the city, was blockaded by the Spaniards by a wall built along the sea floor so that large vessels cannot enter. The channel at the southern end of the island, which is narrower and deeper, is called Boca Chica, and is guarded on both sides by fortresses. ‘The city itself, the southern boundaries of which border the harbor, the northern limits extending along the beach, front on the sea, is protected by a massive wall, which is unique for size and construction in the Western Hemisphere. The city was founded in 20 4, *, Pa ya a Pe pe FORTRESS OF SAN FERNANDO Guarding entrance to Cartagena Bay, the former rendezvous of the plate fleet of Spain. THE “GOLDEN GATE” OF COLOMBIA 21 1533, although it had first been visited by Alons6 Ojéda, a companion of Columbus, in 1510. It was the meeting place of the great plate fleet, which took the silver gathered from the Spanish posses- sions across the Atlantic to Spain, and was for- merly the center of the Inquisition in the new world, where many thousands of heretics were put to death. The city had a stormy history during the time of the Spanish occupancy. It was repeatedly at- tacked and plundered by the buccaneers and priva- teers of the Spanish Main. Three of these attacks are especially well known. In 1585, Sir Francis Drake, after attacking and capturing the city of San Domingo in Hispaniola and forcing a ransom from its citizens, sailed to Cartagena, and defeated the Spanish troops who attempted to defend the city. A ransom of £28,000 was extorted by the British admiral, who returned to England in 1586. The following year he was put in command of the English fleet which attacked Cadiz and the next year took part in the historic contest with the Spanish Armada. In 1697, a French fleet under Admiral de Pointis, attacked Cartagena and collected be- tween eight and nine million livres of gold and silver. In 1741, a British fleet under Admiral Edward Vernon set out to capture the city and harbor. The formidableness of the fortifications was indicated by the fact that his fleet consisted of thirty ships of the line and ninety other vessels, manned by 15,000 22 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN sailors. There were 12,000 English troops on board, and at Jamaica these were reénforced by 3,600 soldiers from the American Colonies. One of their officers was Colonel Laurence Washington, the uncle of George Washington. Mount Vernon afterwards received its name from Colonel Wash- ington’s association with the admiral. This attack was not successful and the fleet finally sailed away without having secured any booty. The first sight of Cartagena harbor and of the South American shores is most attractive. The foliage is rich and tropical and the shore line is pleasingly irregular and mountainous. We passed between the two ancient forts on either side of Boca Chica, and steamed slowly up the historic bay. Fishing vessels with their gleaming white sails dotted the beautiful blue waters of the bay. The natives in long, dugout canoes came paddling out to meet us. At the farther end of the bay, the city of Cartagena with its massive walls and its gleaming white houses, and, in the background a beautiful green hill, studded with palm trees, cov- ered with luxuriant tropical foliage, and crowned by the crumbling walls of the monastery of El Popa, was a most brave and beautiful sight. As we neared the wharf the native Colombian boys swam out to dive for coins thrown from our ship, as they do in Honolulu. Two beautiful swordfish with seemingly impossible purple tails and irides- cent scales shining in the pellucid waters of the bay circled our boat. We were met in Cartagena by Rev. and Mrs. THE “GOLDEN GATE” OF COLOMBIA 28 J. L. Jarrett. Mr. and Mrs. Jarrett and their daughter, Helen, live a hundred miles up the Sinu River which flows into the ocean about a hundred miles west of Cartagena. They are the only mis- sionaries in the whole Department of Bolivar, which has a population of nearly 500,000 people. This whole family carries out three distinct lines of mis- sionary work, Mr. Jarrett overseeing the directly evangelistic work and church centers, Mrs. Jarrett doing medical work among the women who espe- cially need such service, and Miss Jarrett under- taking the responsibility of educational work. ‘The Mission last year took action changing the name of the Cerete Station to Cartagena, with the under- standing that, until an additional missionary could be appointed, Mr. Jarrett should spend a part of his time in Cartagena, and that the field of the Station should include the whole Department of Bolivar. In addition to the residence of the Jarretts m Cerete, which is the gift of Mrs. J. Livingston Taylor, of Cleveland, and Mr. H. C. Coleman, of Philadelphia, and certain small chapels in neigh- boring towns, lent by Mr. Coleman, the Mission has no property in the Department of Bolivar. There have been no funds available for secur- ing property in Cartagena, the chief city of the department. We visited the city and inspected various places where property might be secured in the future. In the evening we attended a meeting of a little congregation situated in a district called Cabrero, on the outskirts of Cartagena near the northern 24 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN shore line. A large proportion of the people on the coast of Colombia have colored blood, the an- cestors of many of the present inhabitants having been brought to its shores as slaves by the early conquistadores and buccaneers. Nearly everyone at the little meeting was dark-skinned. There was no regular pastor and there had been no missionary to give them counsel and encouragement. ‘Their spirit was warm and bright, however, and we were glad to join them in this first Protestant service on South American shores. In the future it is hoped that another congregation can be built up nearer the center of the city, where influential men and women live and work; many of the people of this class are Spanish or European in descent, and they are the ones who exert true leadership through- out the region. After the service, we walked along the great wall guarding the approach to the city from the sea. We marveled at the workmanship of the early Spaniards and the way in which the masonry of the wall has withstood the battering of ocean and storms for so many years. We returned to the ship along this ancient way and this morning sailed for Puerto Colombia. After visiting the interior, we expect to go up the Sinu River to see the work there. Cartagena is a world-famous city and port, with a growing population of over 50,000 souls, less than 300 miles from American soil at Panama, and there is not a single representative of the Protes- tant Church to carry the gospel to its people, and THE “GOLDEN GATE” OF COLOMBIA 25 not a cent of money from American Christians invested there. Bolivar, a department with a popu- lation of nearly 500,000, has only one missionary family trying to cover all its needs. This was our first contact with Protestant Christianity in South America. Will the Presbyterian Church, which has the sole responsibility in behalf of Protestant- ism for this work, allow this situation to remain unchallenged and unchanged? CHAPTER IV BARRANQUILLA AND THE ANNUAL MEET-— ING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION On THE Magpatena River, January 17, 1923 N December thirtieth, at sunset, we arrived at Puerto Colombia, sixty-three miles north- east of Cartagena. Puerto Colombia is the port for Barranquilla, the chief Colombian city along the Atlantic sea- board. Barranquilla is situated eleven degrees north of the equator; the city is about five miles from the mouth of the Magdalena River and is seventeen and one half miles by rail from Puerto Colombia. The Magdalena’ River flows through the center of Colombia from south to north; the lower river is navigable by fairly large river steam- ers to La Dorada, over 600 miles from Barran- quilla. With the exception of a stretch of about sixty miles above La Dorada, the upper river is navigable for smaller steamers to Girardot, 780 miles from the sea. The Magdalena River is the route taken by travelers going to the capital city of Bogota, 900 miles inland, and is the main artery of transportation to the Atlantic for the whole country. The mouth of the river is blocked by sand bars so that ocean-going vessels cannot enter 26 MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION) 27 it; consequently they unload at Puerto Colombia. This port has no harbor facilities comparable with Cartagena; our boat docked at a long pier which stretches out for over a mile into the ocean. A brisk trade wind was blowing when we landed and the open port gave little protection from the heavy sea. The delay in passing the customs made us miss the first train to Barranquilla; in company with the customs officials we boarded a caboose attached to a freight train and thus reached Barran- quilla about midnight. Barranquilla is a sprawling city of about 80,000 inhabitants, the census of 1918 giving the popula- tion as 64,551, with an estimated growth of 15,000 in the past five years. Most of the houses are thatched one-story huts with whitewashed adobe walls, but intermingled with them are many well- built residences in the Spanish-American style with surrounding gardens and beautifully planted patios. The city has mainly dirt streets, which are rough and in many places are drifted deep with sand. An enterprising American corporation has purchased a square mile of high land along the river bank to the north of the city in a section called EK] Prado or Barrio Americano, and is laying this out in city blocks with asphalt streets. Already many houses have been built in this section by the wealthier citizens of Barranquilla and the results obtained show what can be done in city-building under efficient management. Barranquilla is the Shanghai of Colombia. Like Shanghai it is situated some miles from the mouth 28 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of the chief waterway of the country; like Shanghai it is the chief port of entry and export. In 1920, fifty-three per cent of the total exports of Colom- bia passed through Barranquilla, as compared to eighteen per cent for Cartagena and twenty-five per cent for Buenaventura on the Pacific coast. Due to its cosmopolitan character and contact with the outside world, Barranquilla is one of the most liberal cities of Colombia. The climate somewhat resembles Shanghai in its heat and humidity, though it has a longer rainy season lasting fully five months. ‘The roaring trade winds which blow with increasing violence from January to March bring whirling clouds of dust and the incessant rattling of windows and doors that one associates with Peking. The city has a poor health record and the Mission is justified in breaking the term of service there every three years by a short furlough in the homeland. | The work of our Church in Barranquilla was be- gun in 1888. There is a church with approximately 175 members, whose pastor is Sefior Manuel Manga, a fine boys’ school under the efficient care of Rev. and Mrs. W. S. Lee who have been in charge for twenty-three years; and a girls’ school where Miss M. B. Hunter has worked for over twenty years. Associated in the work of the boys’ school during the past two and a half years were Mr. and Mrs. T. L. Nelson; with Miss Hunter at the girl’s school in recent years have been Miss Jane R. Morrow and Miss E. A. Tompkins; Miss Ruth Bradley has recently been appointed to this school MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 29 and has just arrived on the field. Rev. and Mrs. T. H. Candor, who have been forty years on the field — Mrs. Candor indeed having come out as a single missionary forty-two years ago — are sta- tioned at Barranquilla with responsibility for the evangelistic work and for the preparation of candi- dates for the ministry. Dr. and Mrs. W. E. Vanderbilt, who had twenty years of service in Mexico, followed by three years’ war service, dur- ing which Dr. Vanderbilt was decorated by the Portuguese Government, came to Colombia in 1920 and are now in charge of the boys’ school. Dr. Vanderbilt is also the permanent secretary of the Mission. We enjoyed the Sunday-school and church ser- vices on Sunday, December 31, and from January 1 to January 13, the annual Mission meeting ses- sions were held. Although the Mission was founded in 1856, and is the oldest of our Latin- American Missions, the number of missionaries in the early years was so small, the distance between stations was so great, and the funds available were so limited that until last year, 1921, there had been only eight Mission conferences and these had been largely delegated meetings without full attendance by all members of the Mission. Several of the missionaries had been on the field for ten years without having seen some of their fellow workers. For the last two years funds have been available for fully attended meetings, and we were grateful for the privilege of being present during the session of 1923. 830 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Several problems of some difficulty were before the Mission for discussion and decision. The three most important in which the Barranquilla station was specially involved related to the securing of new property for the boys’ school; securing ade- quate property for the girls’ school; and deciding on the location of a new church building for which funds were in hand. The record of the boys’ school has been an ex- ceptional one. Started in 1898, on the condition that it should be made self-supporting and should not receive any current subsidy from the Board, it met these conditions from the first, though some of the missionaries contributed their own savings to make this possible; during the last two or three years of management by Mr. and Mrs. Lee, the annual balance from fees and local receipts amounted to several thousand dollars. From these balances Mr. Lee invested approximately $14,000 in new property, land, and buildings which were thus added to the school equipment. The Board has invested a similar amount, and the property to-day, located in the center of the city, with dormitories and recitation hall and an acre of land, is valued at over $75,000. Mr. and Mrs. Lee have been in- defatigable in their labors, rising before five o’clock in the morning, teaching from eight to ten half- hour classes a day, assuming all the responsibilities of administration and of the boarding department, their day’s work often continuing into the night. The registration increased until in 1921 the en- rollment was 236 and the average attendance 160, MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION © 31 with 64 boarders; in 1922 the enrollment was 266, with an average attendance of 180. For five years, the school paid out of its receipts the expenses of half a dozen candidates for the ministry who studied in its classrooms under the direction of Mr. Candor. With the exception of Mr. Nelson, who assisted Mr. Lee during the last year and a half of his services in Barranquilla, Mr. and Mrs. Lee had no American colleague during their twenty-three years of service in the school. This was too great a burden for anyone to carry in- definitely, especially in such a climate, and, in the fall of 1921, Mr. Lee’s health broke; the doctors ordered him to go to a more healthful climate and he was transferred to Bogota, which is over 8800 feet above sea level. There he and Mrs. Lee have charge of the boys’ school which the Mission opened thirty years ago. When all factors are taken into consideration — the difficulties of climate, the ab- sence of Board subsidy, the lack of American col- leagues, and the comparatively unstable student material with which the school was working — I do not know of any Mission school related to our Church which has had a finer record than that of the Barranquilla Boys’ School under the direction of Mr. and Mrs. W. S. Lee. In case the growth of the school makes nee advisable, there is a possibility of securing land for the boarding department and older boys in the new Ei] Prado section of the city, where the developing corporation has offered a site of ten acres at the cost of the street construction adjoining the prop- 32 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN erty. The land is on the highest part of El Prado; it commands a fine view of the Magdalena River, which flows along the eastern boundary of this sec- tion of the city. The seashore and lighthouse at the mouth of the river five miles to the north, with a white line of the surf breaking upon the beach, are distinctly visible. In the distant east on a clear day the massive wall of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta rises from sea level to a height of 19,000 feet, the peaks of the Sierra crowned with per- petual snow, and, although seventy-five miles dis- tant, standing out clear and sharp like a wall of heaven itself. The Mission hopes that this site can be used by the future boarding school and also for missionary residences. Action was taken by the Mission approving of the purchase of this land for $10,000 and efforts will be made during the coming year to secure the funds needed for the purpose. The history of the girls’ school shows exceptional service and sacrifice. In 1888, Rev. and Mrs. T. H. Candor, who had been previously stationed in Bo- gota, were transferred to Barranquilla to open a Mission Station in that important seaport. Shortly after their arrival, Mrs. Whelpley, the wife of the United States Consul, asked Mrs. Candor to teach her two daughters and some of the children of their Colombian friends. The school was opened in the Consulate with three pupils. The equipment consisted of three pieces of chalk, a yard of black cotton cloth for a blackboard, a few books, and some writing materials. It was a long walk from the Mission compound to the Consulate, through MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 383 sandy streets, under the burning rays of the tropi- cal sun and during the hottest hours of each school day. Other girls soon came in and the school with over twenty pupils was removed to a house near the Consulate which was rented for a missionary residence, church, and school. A native assistant in the school was employed and the need for an additional American teacher became evident. Mrs. Candor greatly rejoiced when she learned that her sister, Miss Adeliza Ramsay, had been appointed for this work by the Board of Foreign Missions. She and Mr. W. W. Findley, who had been appointed to take charge of the boys’ school in Bogota which Mr. Candor had opened some years before, arrived in Barranquilla, where Miss Ram- say remained, while Mr. Findley started on to Bogota. Both of them developed yellow fever, probably having been exposed on the Island of Haiti, on the way to Colombia. Five days after her arrival, Miss Ramsay died, and thirty-six hours later, Mr. Findley died on board a Magdalena River steamer for lack of the services of a com- petent physician. His lonely grave on the banks of that great stream and under the branches of a wide-spreading tropical tree is an evidence of his love for Christ and for the young men of Colombia. Friends of Miss Ramsay, hearing of her death, resolved that there should be some memorial to her service, so brief in time but so fine in spirit, and in her memory they gave the funds for the erection of a school anda chapel. For some years Mrs. Can- 34 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN dor was head of this school. Mrs. Edward Ladd next assumed charge of the school, assisted by Miss Martha Bell Hunter, who afterwards followed her as principal and for twenty-five years has success- fully directed the work. By 1923, Dr. and Mrs. Candor had completed more than forty years of service, and according to the regulations of the Foreign Board were eligible for honorable retire- ment with full salary. We could not but reflect upon the way in which two sisters had been used as missionaries in God’s service, the one for forty- two years of rich and active participation in the work in Colombia, the other for only five days. Their best memorials are the institution which they both helped to build up —the one by life and the other by death — and the influence which that school and chapel have exerted on individuals and on the community. Similarly, the friends of Mr. Findley gave in his memory the funds for the purchase of property for the boys’ school at Bogota, and there is the expectation that younger relatives of his will soon join in the work in Colombia which he was so suddenly compelled to lay down. The Ramsay memorial property was once ade- quate for the girls’ school, but, due to the growth in the registration and to tropical deterioration, that is no longer true. ‘The school is in greater need of new property than is the boys’ school. The present property occupies only about half an acre of land. Its main building was erected thirty years ago; the roof is in an unsafe condition; part. ——ORTES ELAN IREL RT EEN (ROR Tone —— eae Jy DENTS OF THE BARRANQUILLA rs’ STL A BOYS sCHOOL HE SECOND LARGES' PROTESTANT SCHOOLS FOR GIRLS AND BOY N) I RGEST 10) 0 Ss IN OUTH AMERICA. MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 35 of the walls are built of mud and bamboo; the floor and ceiling have been riddled by white ants. The actual playground for the 170 girls measures only twenty-five yards by twenty-five yards with an ex- tension of ten by fifteen yards. The facilities for drainage and sanitation are most inadequate; in the rainy season the yard is sometimes covered a foot deep in water. Despite these disadvantages, the registration of the school has steadily increased. This last year by actual count, eighty-one girls were turned away because of lack of room. We marveled at what Miss Hunter and her colleagues had accomplished with such inadequate equipment, and we felt that the record of the girls’ school was as extraordinary as that of the boys’ institution. But it is not just either to the teachers or to the children to allow them to continue longer in such quarters if it is possible to make any change for the better. We believe that it is possible to make this change and that the Church at home, when it knows the facts, will contribute the comparatively small amount of funds necessary to effect this change. The Mission had planned to move the girls’ school to the boys’ school quarters if the change to the Prado is made; this course is possible, although the ideal plan would be to secure entirely new quarters for the girls’ school and to use the present boys’ school property for a city day school. It will prob- ably take from three to five years to move to the Prado and in the meanwhile something must be done. We inquired whether there were not some property which might be leased as we are renting 36 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN buildings in Mexico for two of the girls’ schools there. It happened that a few months ago oc- curred the death of a former governor of the De- partment of Atlantico in which Barranquilla is situated. His estate, consisting of beautiful grounds covering three acres and a thirteen-room house with adjoining buildings which will more than accommodate the school with its present en- rollment, had come on the market two weeks be- fore. ‘The property is in a fine location halfway between the present school building and the Prado lands. The Mission took up the possibility of rent- ing, and secured a lease with an option on an ex- tension and the right to buy on equal terms with any other purchaser. ‘The place is valued at $50,000 but might be secured for less. Provided the Board can make the necessary increase of $1,500 for rent in the budget of the Mission for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 1923, the action of the Mission will mean that the school will be transferred to hygienic quarters with ample play- ground space, plenty of air and sunlight, and beautiful trees on its own land. If there are those in the Church at home who wish to make an investment in the Christian edu- cation of the girls of Colombia, I recommend to them the buying, on behalf of the school, of this Barranquilla property. A decision was reached at the Mission meeting with reference to the location of the new church building at Barranquilla. The present building is most inadequate, being a little more than a shed MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 37 located at one end of the girls’ school enclosure. Twenty thousand dollars had been provided by donors in the United States and $5,000 had been subscribed locally for a new church building. 'The best site available was a section of the ground owned by the present boys’ school which is on high land and is centrally located. If the Prado lands are secured and a part at least of the school moved, the way will be clear for the placing of the church on this school lot. The new church building, when erected, will be a landmark in the city and will be a fine asset for the Protestant cause. At this annual meeting of the Colombia Mission, just as in the meeting of the Mexico Mission, it was necessary to make out the estimate for the expenses of the work for the coming fiscal year. The estimates of each Mission related to our Church are divided into ten classes. ‘The first three classes include salaries and allowances of mission- aries on the field and on furlough in the homeland, as well as appropriations for newly appointed mis- sionaries. Class IV includes requests for new property for which no appropriations can be made unless special gifts are received for this purpose. Class V includes estimates for repairs and main- tenance of property; Class VI includes Station expenses and medical expenses of missionaries on the field; and the remaining four classes pertain to educational, evangelistic, medical, and literary work. Each of the ten classes is divided into va- rious subdivisions. Each Station of the Mission comes prepared with local estimates arranged ac- 388 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN cording to these classes. Every Mission carefully works out inclusive estimates for the coming year. After approving the total sum of the estimates of all the Missions, which must be well within the limits assigned by the Executive Commission of General Assembly, the Mission Board appeals for its budget to the Church as a whole. It is difficult to conceive of any budget which is more carefully made up than that of our Missions, or into which there enters such close scrutiny and calculation. I wish that some of the members of the Church at home could be present in the annual Mission meeting when the budgets are under con- sideration. Unless special authorization is given by the Board, and unless the gifts of the Church warrant an increase, each Mission must keep its estimates for the coming year within the limits of the appropriation assigned for the closing year. It is a hard task for the Mission and for the various Stations, in the face of all the pressing needs of the ever expanding work, to apportion the limited funds at their disposal and to keep the total within the sum apportioned to them. In Colombia, out- side the salaries and allowances of the missionaries themselves, for the remaining seven classes cover- ing the work of the five Stations, including five schools, a printing press and bookstore, as well as traveling expenses related directly to evangelistic work among a population of over six million people, there was available this year the total sum of $15,933. It was no easy task at the meeting of the Colombia Mission to bring all requests within this MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 39 total, but with the single exception of the sum of $1,500, requested for rent for the girls’ school, the amount to be presented to the Board and to the Church was the same for the coming year as for the year ending in March. This amount represents practically the total annual Protestant investment in these classes of work in Colombia; it ought to be doubled in the near future. Urgent requests for additional missionaries are being sent to the Board and the home Church. A man in educational work is needed at once for the boys’ school in Barranquilla and another for the boys’ school in Bogota, so that the limited staff will suffer no further breakdowns. Another young woman is needed immediately for the faculty of the girls’ school; and an ordained man is required for the evangelistic work of Barranquilla Station to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Mr. Candor. These reénforcements are needed at once; indeed it is difficult to see how the work can be maintained at its present level, unless volunteers are led to offer themselves for this service within the early months of this new year. A much larger list of candidates needed, based on a five-year pro- gram for the Mission, is also being submitted to the Board and Church. During the second week of the Mission meeting, the local Church observed the Week of Prayer which is universally recognized in all Protestant lands. Representatives of the Mission met with them at their evening meetings for this observance; there were other meetings and engagements which 40 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN helped to fill nearly every hour of our two weeks in Barranquilla. The Mission met with the local foreign community, and Dr. Browning and I visited the neighboring schools maintained by the Jesuits and by a Catholic order known as the Christian Brothers. We called on the Assistant Director of Education of the Department, and on the Secretary to the Governor of the Department. Both teachers and officials were cordial and seemed appreciative of our schools and ready to codperate in this service in behalf of the youth of Colombia. The last meeting of the Mission was held on Saturday, January 13. After inspiring meetings with the local church the following Sunday, on Monday the fifteenth, Dr. Browning and I started up the Magdalena River in company with the mis- sionaries who were stationed outside of Barran- quilla. Many of the decisions reached at the Mission meeting involved a certain venture of faith, and a trust in the increased support of the work by the Church on the field and at home. In accordance with recent decisions by the Executive Commission of the General Assembly, giving more latitude to the Boards of the Church for special financial ef- forts within the limits of the total budget allotted to the Church, campaigns will be planned for Mexico and Colombia for this fall. With the ex- ception of the share which Latin America had in the larger campaign in 1916-1917, for other fields, in which Colombia and Mexico were included in a limited way, there has not been for many years MEETING OF THE COLOMBIA MISSION 41 any organized financial effort made on behalf of the work in these two lands. The work in Co- lombia is the oldest work of our Church in South America; Mexico is our nearest neighbor. We have seen with our own eyes the courage and fidelity, the “ work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Christ Jesus,” of the missionaries in these countries who have been battling in far too thin ranks against great odds. In this spiritual warfare, they have given and are giving their most precious possessions, their entire capital, their health, and life itself. Surely the Church at home will provide, in equal measure, the interest, the prayers, and the financial support that will help to bring results commensurate with the spiritual investments already made. In the introduction to his report on the Missions in India and Persia, which he visited last year, Dr. R. E. Speer wrote: “ We have been with the men and women who most richly embody the Chris- tian spirit and who are most nearly reproducing the work of the Apostolic Church.” As we have met with our fellow missionaries during these past days in Colombia, as we have listened to their prayers, as we have seen their earnestness and de- votion in the face of many difficulties and limita- tions, we have felt again and again the full force of these words; we believe that any material ad- ditions to the structure of the Kingdom which they are trying to build, will be wise and enduring in- vestments because the whole edifice will be founded upon the Rock which is Christ. CHAPTER V UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA Bogota, January 29, 1923 HE trip up the Magdalena River and over the mountains to Bogota is unique among the journeys to the capital cities of the world. It is unique in the time and the number of transfers required for the trip. Six changes must be made. The journey of 880 miles inland, about the same distance as from New York to Chicago, requires, on the average, ten days; occasionally in the dry season, when the river is low, three weeks or a month are consumed on the way. One of our missionary families spent twenty-four days on this expedition last year. The first part of the route is by rail from Puerto Colombia on the sea, seven- teen miles to Barranquilla. There the traveler em- barks on a river boat which takes him 592 miles up the meandering Magdalena to the town of La Dorada. Rapids and a falls near Honda make further travel on this boat impossible, so one boards a train on the Dorada Extension Railway which carries him sixty-nine miles to Beltran. From there, another smaller boat steams up the narrow- ing ‘“‘ Upper River” ninety-five miles to Girardot. Here a transfer to a railroad is made for the trip of 107 miles out of the valley and up over the 42 UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 43 mountain range to Bogota, which is situated on the plain or sabana, 8850 feet above sea level. This journey cannot be made without a change, however, for the first section of the railroad, known as the Girardot Railway, which is eighty-two miles in length, has a track a yard in width, while the final portion of twenty-five miles on the Sabana Railway from Facatativa to Bogota has a meter gauge. As a means of rapid transit between the chief port and the capital and largest city of the country, there are few lands in which this route can be duplicated. The words of Lord Murray in his introduction to Dr. Veatch’s book, Quito to Bogota, seem justified, “In point of view of locomotion, the country is little in advance of the days when Sir Francis Drake appeared with his ships outside the walled city of Cartagena.” Dur- ing these half-dozen transfers from train to boat, from boat to train, and from train to train, with eleven days consumed in these various combinations and permutations, the city of Bogota took on a certain mythical aspect, and we seemed to be in pursuit of another El Dorado. The first sight of the capital was consequently attended by sensations of considerable pleasure and relief. The trip down the river in high water is some- what shorter, requiring less than a week. By con- trast, a hydro-airplane, which carries passengers and mail and is managed by an enterprising Ger- man firm with German pilots, makes the journey of 600 miles by the air route from Barranquilla to Girardot in nine hours. The price for the trip up 44 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the river made such transportation out of the ques- tion for us; but the cost of the down-river trip, due to the corresponding decrease in steamship rates on account of the shorter time en route, is less ex- pensive; and it will be difficult for one of us not to take advantage of this aérial route on the return trip from Bogota. In the second place, the means of transportation up the river is uniquely anachronistic. The trip is made in a blunt-nosed, flat-bottomed, three-storied, stern-wheeled, wood-burning steamer, which looks like a cross between the old Mississippi River craft and a Jersey City ferryboat. 'The boats make about six miles an hour upstream and twelve miles an hour downstream. In the swifter portions of the river the steamers pant and blow great sparks and live coals from their wood fires, which shower on the upper decks and make a marvelous pyro- technic display. The staterooms are ranged on either side of the central hall where the dining tables are placed. The woodwork of the boats is light, and the sun beating upon the upper rooms makes one flee in the morning to the west side and in the afternoon to the east to escape its rays. Each passenger provides his own blankets and equipment for his stateroom, this arrangement having certain obvious advantages. The pilot house is on the upper deck; the chief pilot has two assistants who help him whirl the wheel as the boat seeks to follow the shifting channel. The boats do not draw over four feet, but as they usually carry along a bongo, or barge, on either side, the three boats thus require UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 45 a wide channel. In places where the depth of the river is in doubt the pilot rings a bell; two deck hands spring out to either side of the broad bow with long poles on which foot measurements are indicated; they sound, and call out the depth, yell- ing, ““ Hey!” to the pilot when there is deep water, and giving the number of feet in more shallow places. ‘The pilots show extraordinary skill in the control of the boats; when in doubt or in difficulties they sometimes whirl the ships completely around, almost within their own length, and then try an- other channel. ‘The bed and banks of the lower river are of soft mud so there is no great danger when the boats run aground, though in low water there is a possibility of being stuck for an un- pleasantly long time. We passed three such boats on the way up the river; one of them was hopelessly high and dry and the cargo was being moved to several barges. We went aground twice but soon floated free again, and so had no unpleasant ex- periences of this kind in reaching our destination. One incident occurred, however, which caused some commotion. One night while turning quickly in the swift water above Puerto Berrio the rudder broke; the ship was anchored in midstream, but a heavy storm of wind and rain came up, and the boat started to drag her anchors and to drift down- stream. The rudder was repaired. temporarily by the sailors, who worked in the water, and about midnight we moved up the river again. ‘The next day further repairs were made in a convenient cove, the deck hands, who had stripped for the task, re- 46 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN garding the diving and delving in water and mud with evident relish; and the trip on the lower river was completed without further mishap. We had originally secured accommodations at Barranquilla on the oil-burning steamship Pi- chincha, one of the first of the Magdalena River steamers to use that fuel, but the boat was delayed in sailing, and at the last minute our wood-burning steamer, the Ayacucho, was substituted in its place. The oil-burning steamers make better time up the river because of their avoidance of so many delays in taking on firewood, but we were thankful later that we had made the change, as through some carelessness on the part of the engineer or crew of the Pichincha an explosion occurred on board when the boat was an hour above Puerto Berrio, about the same place where the accident occurred to the rudder of our ship, and a number of the passengers in the third class and of the crew were killed or wounded. Fortunately the oil on board was not ignited, but the ship was forced to return to Puerto Berrio and there was a considerable de- lay in the forwarding of passengers and freight. In the third place, the journey is quite extraor- dinary in the great extents of virgin forest and jungle which are traversed. In the whole 592 miles from Barranquilla to La Dorada, there are not more than half a dozen towns and villages with a population of over three thousand. ‘There are soli- tary huts and groups of two or three of these homes scattered at long intervals on the banks of the river, but the country as a whole is unsettled and unde- UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 47 veloped. In Colombia, along the Magdalena, ex- cept for the difference between the foliage of the Tropical and Temperate Zones, one sees to-day such a wilderness as must have at one time covered certain portions of our own land. The thick forest reaches to the very river banks; it presses upon the solitary little clearings and their clusters of thatched huts, with an ever-present threat of swal- lowing them completely and covering all signs of human habitation with its vines and lianas and ex- uberant vegetation. These little centers of human life and activity seem to be in perpetual danger of the fate which befell the Indian village in Kip- ling’s Letting in the Jungle. The contrast between this Magdalena River val- ley, where there are practically no signs of human handiwork, and the valley of the Yangtze River, where practically every square foot of ground has been cultivated and where nature is in practically complete subjugation, is most striking and impres- sive. The climate of the Colombian Valley is no worse than that of the Yangtze and of other river valleys in China; but there has not been in Co- lombia the crowding of a great population which has necessitated the development of all arable land, and the Colombians as yet have not displayed the patient industry and endurance of hardship which are typical of the Chinese. From our boat on the Magdalena we saw tropi- cal birds of brilliant plumage flitting among the trees along the river banks; we heard macaws and parrakeets calling to one another as we passed; 48 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN swallows with delicately tinted wings flew over our boat; herons and cranes and other waterfowl, more bright in hue than their North American kindred, waded sedately along the shallows or splashed noisily out of the lagoons. On the sand bars in certain sections of the river we saw crocodiles, or caimanes as the Colombians call them, of extraor- dinary size and length, some of them sleeping with their ugly mouths wide open, giving us a clear view of their great teeth. Many of these reptiles were fully twelve feet in length; on some stretches of sand there would be six or eight in a row. In Westward Ho, Charles Kingsley tells a graphic story of Amyas Leigh’s rescue of Araca- nora from one of these reptiles in the upper Mag- dalena River; various modern tales were told us of adventures with them. At one town, Bocas del Rosario, two of our missionaries some years ago, were called upon to attend a Colombian who had been attacked and severely wounded by one of these crocodiles. He had been standing in the water loading his canoe when he heard a splash behind him and, fearing an attack, threw himself upon his canoe. ‘The crocodile opened its mouth and took in both man and boat, its upper jaw clos- ing on the man’s back, its lower jaw passing under the canoe. A companion saw the attack, seized a rifle, and, despite the danger to his friend, shot the crocodile, which slid back into the water, its upper teeth scarring the man’s back as it did so. There were the marks of four of these teeth in the man’s back, the wounds had been filled with raw cotton, UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 49 thirty-six hours had passed, and infection had set in. Neither Mr. Williams nor Mr. Barber are medical men but they attended to the wounded man’s needs as well as they could, and then went on with their boat. A few years later Mr. Williams heard that the man had survived the adventure without any permanent injury. A passenger of another boat told Mr. Lee of seeing a man who had fallen overboard, and who tried to swim for the shore, seized by a crocodile just as he was grasping a limb of a tree to pull himself upon the bank, and so dragged back into the river. The sight of these beasts on the banks and sand bars so near the boat was too tempting for us, and, after securing permission from the captain accord- ing to the custom, Dr. Browning and I varied the work which we were trying to do on the boat by intervals of shooting with his revolver at these saurian targets. We heard other shots and later saw the chief pilot, standing in the pilot house, trying his skill with the rifle, thus combining work and sport in an unusual manner. In addition to this bird and animal life, at night clouds of insects clustered about the boat, filling the halls and crowding madly about the lights on the deck and in the staterooms. The whole river valley has changed little since the time when Quesada’s men forced their way along its banks. Even in our comparatively modern craft the glaring heat of the day and the enervating humidity of the night were unpleasant factors in the journey. In Barranquilla, I had 50 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN contracted one of the prevalent fevers there, which lasted for a few days on the lower river. From my enforced horizontal position in the little state- room, the surrounding jungle and forest seemed to take on an even more menacing and oppressive as- pect, and I understood better how it must have appeared to those early conquistadores who were without our modern medicine or resources, and how to-day it often seems to our missionaries, who, in their itinerating over these ancient trails, face fever and hardship. A vivid description, in the lighter vein, of the trip up the Magdalena has been given by Harry Franck in his book, Vagabonding Down the Andes, the first chapters of which refer to Colombia: “'We moved at about the speed of a log raft towed by a sunfish. Day after day we watched the monotonous yellow bank unroll with infinite slow- ness, like a film clogged in the machine. Here and there on the extreme edge of the stream hung a few scattered thatched villages, all apparently en- gaged in the favorite occupation of doing nothing, living on a few fruits and vegetables that grew themselves, and drinking the yellow Magdalena pure. ... The voracious engines of our boat re- quired more halting than movement. Never did a half day pass without a long halt to replenish the fuel. The sight of a bamboo hut or a cluster of shacks, crowded in a little semicircular space gouged out of the immense forest, was sure to bring a shrill scream from the whistle, and in the soft air of the evening we would crawl up to a tiny TOOHOS S'THID VITIOONVUUVA AHL AO ALVAdVUD V UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 51 clearing where perhaps thirty cords of wood lay awaiting a purchaser. Palm, gourd, mango, and papayo trees suggested that the spot might have been one of the most flourishing gardens on earth, had the inhabitants any other industry or desire than to roll about on their earth floors. We passed timber enough in a week to supply the world for a century and rich soil enough to feed a large sec- tion of it permanently. But very rarely did a little bamboo hut, roofed with leaves, dot the monotony of virgin nature.” The nights along the Magdalena are full of a vast and transcendent peace. This spirit of peace is accentuated by the sense of the illimitable forest and jungle stretching away on either bank; the great flood of the river, unchecked and uncontrolled by any handiwork of man; and above, the stars of the tropics, so luminous and so low, with the celes- tial cross shining clear and fair above wilderness and wandering water and the tiny habitations of man. But the nights in that valley are also very lonely. In the evening we often went to the top deck of the steamer to walk and to sing. For the benefit of the representatives of various countries on the boat we sang their national songs: God Save the King, America, and the Colombian national an- them. Then we would sing some of the old fa- miliar airs of the homeland: Way Down Upon the Swanee River, and Carry Me Back to Old Vir- ginny. But there was one song that we never sang — Home, Sweet Home. One night some one 52 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN suggested that we sing it; there was a moment’s silence, and then we turned to something else. We knew that we could not sing that song without a break in our voices. I have been much in the woods and on many rivers, but I have never seen such lonely woods and water as those of that Colombian valley. They are made lonelier still by the fact that for six hundred miles along that river, from Bar- ranquilla to La Dorada, there is not a single Protestant missionary or evangelist. For those who live along the Magdalena the night is indeed dark and they are far from home, and there is no kindly light to lead them on. Together with the missionaries, who were sta- tioned outside Barranquilla, Dr. Browning and I boarded the steamship Ayacucho of the P. A. Lopez Company on the evening of January 15 for the first stage of the journey to Bogota. The boat started upstream that night; the afternoon of the next day we passed Calamar, fifty miles from Barranquilla, where the Dique, a half natural, half artificial canal, first opened by the Spaniards in 1570, branches off towards Cartagena, sixty-five miles distant. The lower Magdalena averages half a mile in width, about half the width of the Ohio River, with one quarter to one half the volume of water; the upper river resembles more nearly the Allegheny as it appears in high water. The lower river falls on an average of one foot a mile; the upper river four feet to the mile, the total navigable length averaging two feet to the mile in compari- son with the fall of half a foot per mile of the Ohio. UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 53 On the seventeenth we passed the mouth of the Cauca River, the largest tributary of the Mag- dalena, whose valley is famous for its beauty and productivity; on the nineteenth, we reached Bocas del Rosario, the scene of the attack of the “ cai- man” upon the Colombian in his canoe; on the twentieth, early in the morning, we arrived at Puerto Wilches, a mere cluster of nondescript huts, where the passengers for Bucaramanga disem- barked for the four-day trip, by train and by mule, for that city. I had planned to go to Bucaramanga with Dr. Browning, Mr. Barber and Mr. Williams, but because of the fever which had accompanied me from Barranquilla, it did not seem wise to attempt this trip. With much regret I gave up that plan and said good-by to the three who left the boat at Puerto Wilches according to the original schedule. We made arrangements later by wire to make con- nections at Belen, 145 miles by auto road from Bogota. Dr. Browning will write the next two travel letters about Bucaramanga and the four-day trip overland by mule to Belen. On the twentieth we passed Barranca Bermeja, an oil center and river port for the distribution of the petroleum which has been discovered several miles inland. American and Canadian capital has been invested in the development of these oil con- cessions; at Barranca Bermeja, in addition to the village where the Colombians live, a “ boom town,” with a population of about one hundred Canadians and Americans, has arisen. Another center of about the same size has grown up a little farther 54 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN inland at the wells. The houses are well built and well screened; there is a good hospital there; men in sombreros and the familiar costume of oil pros- pectors in the States rode through the streets of the little town and up to the boat landing; and all through the village there was an air of energy and efficiency and cleanliness that contrasted sharply with the other scenes along the river. It took Quesada and his soldiers, in their march inland in 1536, eight months to reach Barranca Bermeja. Just above the town the Opon River enters the Magdalena; there Quesada rallied his men, who wished to turn back, ascended the Opon Valley, and thus reached the highlands near Bogota. The val- ley of the Opon River to-day is unsettled, and is inhabited by roving bands of Indians, who occa- sionally attack travelers in that region. Five years ago a former member of the faculty of our boys’ school at Bogota was killed by these Indians. It would be an interesting turn of fate if, at this par- ticular point, oil should be found in paying quanti- ties, the value of which would far outweigh that of the gold of El Dorado which Quesada was seeking. On Sunday, the twenty-first, a service in Spanish on board our boat was conducted by Mr. Lee and Mr. Allan, of the Bogota Station. Practically all the male passengers in the first-class quarters at- tended and gave an interested and respectful hear- ing to the message, an indication of the growing open-mindedness of the Colombian people toward Protestant work. At Puerto Berrio, which we reached that after- UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 55 noon, the Medellin missionaries disembarked for the trip next day by rail to that station. On the evening of ‘Tuesday, the twenty-third, we reached La Dorada, an unimpressive town of about 1,000 inhabitants, the terminal of navigation on the lower river. We stayed on the boat that night and the next morning took an early train on the Dorada Extension Railway to Beltran. An hour and a half’s ride brought us to Honda, where the old Spanish mule road turns off to go to Bogota. This was the regular route to the capital before the rail- roads were built; when Dr. Speer visited Colombia in 1909, he took this road to Bogota, as at that time travel over that road was quicker and more certain than by the railroads. The difference in scenery and general atmosphere in the twenty odd miles be- tween La Dorada and Honda was striking. After our eight days in the hot Magdalena Valley it seemed that we were doomed to continue indefi- nitely ascending its muddy flood, with the thick, oppressive jungle surrounding us, the creepers and vines and lianas seemingly fettering our freedom and binding us to this steaming waterway. But near Honda we came out on high land, and were lifted above all these tropical entanglements. Mountains, irregular and fantastically shaped, with cathedral rocks and similar formations, were on either side of the river, instead of the low, level expanse of the tropical plain. ‘The trees and foli- age became more and more those of the Temperate Zone. The plains were covered with grass and shrubbery instead of the thick jungle growth, and 56 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN had broad, level reaches which must have delighted Quesada and his horsemen, and which meant suc- cess for their expedition. The river valley and banks also were transformed. Instead of mud banks we saw gravel beaches and rocky bluffs; the river became more narrow and deep and swift and its course more winding, with many rapids, or “ riffles,” full of treacherous eddies and whirlpools. There is a marked difference in the intellectual and religious spirit which dominates the inhabitants of this region, and the towns along the railroads of- fer some of the most promising fields for the devel- opment of the work of our Church. At Honda, a town of 10,000, a liberal school, as opposed to those controlled by the Roman Catholics, was opened several years ago, and has been making progress, with a present enrollment of about 100 students. English is given a special place in the curriculum of the school, although there are no foreign teachers on its faculty. Meetings have been conducted at intervals by members of the Bogota Station during the past few years, and the town is favorably dis- posed to the work of our Church. At the recent meetings held by the evangelists, Rev. H. H. Strachan and Rev. Roberto Elphick, in a theater which formerly was used as a bull ring, about 1,200 people were present every night. The Mission has approved the establishment of permanent work there as soon as possible, the town to be considered an outstation of Bogota. At present the Mission owns no property in Honda; there is a desirable plot of land for sale near the railroad station, which UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 57 the Bogota Station believes should be purchased by the Mission. We passed Mariquita, a town of about 3,000 people, where a converted ex-priest conducts a boys’ school, and where cottage meetings have been held regularly all year. A cableway for the trans- portation of freight is being built between Mari- quita and Manizales, a distance of forty-five miles. When completed this cable line will pass over a mountain range, 12,000 feet in height, and will be the largest of its kind in the world. At present it extends from Mariquita to Frutillo, a distance of twenty-two miles. Quesada passed his last years in Mariquita and died there in his eightieth year. He died a leper and in his will left funds for the supplying of water for travelers and those in need. If Quesada were living to-day he would see that the needs of the sick and friendless in Colombia are relatively as great as in his own time, and that on every hand there are calls for generous and scientific philanthropy and medical help. We passed San Lorenzo, a town of about the same size as Mariquita, where a fine-looking group of friends and supporters of our work came to the station to greet us. The Mission owns property in San Lorenzo which is used for the chapel, the school, and the residence of the Colombian worker in charge. San Lorenzo is the key to the develop- ment of our work in eight towns, one with a popu- lation of 10,000, which are situated in the adjacent mountains. Rev. A. M. Allan, of the Bogota Sta- tion, has been the leader in the work of our Church 58 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN in these towns. A twelve hours’ ride on horseback will take one from the semitropical surroundings of San Lorenzo to the snow line on the great shoulder of Mount Ruiz. In these itinerating trips, Mr. Allan has been accompanied at times by Mrs. Allan and by their small daughter, “ Pixie.” ‘The spirit of their work in this territory is indicated by an ex- tract from a Letter from Colombia, written by Mrs. Allan in June, 1921: “From Frias we rode back to San Lorenzo. For sheer delight, it would be impossible to find anything to compare with those rides; the peace of God in your heart, a good horse under you, the joyful expectation of soul-satisfying service await- ing you at the journey’s end, the sight of a cur- tained hamper bobbing cheerfully up and down as the peon trots steadily ahead, an ideal com- panion at your side, to say nothing of a little daughter’s merry chatter and the song of birds in your ears. Has life anything better to offer? Is there any bliss like it in all the wide world? Surely missionary service does fill one’s cup with joy pressed down and running over.” About one-thirty in the afternoon we reached Beltran and there boarded a diminutive steamer named La Union for the run on the Upper River to Girardot. The boat was about half the length and a quarter of the tonnage of the steamer on the Lower River, and measured about 100 feet in length with a twenty-five-foot beam. We had read that a boat by this name first steamed up the Upper River in 1840, and from the size and appearance of UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 59 La Union we thought that possibly this might be the same steamer. A “ glider,” propelled by gas- oline, makes the journey to Girardot in three hours, while the upstream trip by boat requires seventeen or eighteen, but as we could not all take advantage of this means of transportation, we chose the more prosaic craft. ‘There were no staterooms available for the male passengers on the boat, so we slept that night on cots on the forward ‘deck. 'The boat ran all night, which is quite a feat in that section of the river with its many rapids, abrupt turns, and deceptive whirlpools, and we reached Girardot at eight-thirty the morning of the twenty-fifth. Despite the efforts of the captain and the crew of our vessel we missed the seven-thirty train for Bogota, and so spent the day in Girardot. This town has about 10,000 inhabitants, and due to its position at the juncture of railroad and river traffic, has grown rapidly in size and influence. The people there are decidedly liberal, and Mr. Allan, of the Bogota Station, has secured land and prop- erty for a school there, which was opened early in February of this year. The history of the Colombia Mission is full of lost opportunities for purchasing desirable land and property. The members of the Mission have pointed out to us various plots of ground which could have been secured ten years ago for one tenth of their price to-day. So in Girardot, opportuni- ties for buying needed property in this outstation of Bogotdé have been allowed to pass for lack of funds, until finally Mr. Allan invested the money 60 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN he had set apart for his children’s education in the land and building for the school which has just been opened. ‘The school property consists only of a thatched house on a quarter-acre corner lot, but there is consecrated money invested there, and love and faith and sacrifice, and such investments will inevitably bring dividends in the world of spiritual values. A fine lot for a church site can be pur- chased at an important crossroads in the northern part of the city, near the school building, for the sum of $700. I think that our Church should help the Mission to acquire this land and, with Mission approval, should also pay back to Mr. Allan the money which he has put into the school property, a total of $1,250. Lots adjoining the present land secured for the school can be bought at moderate prices now, but their value will inevitably increase in the near future. On the morning of the twenty-sixth we boarded the narrow-gauge Girardot Railway train for the final stage of our journey to Bogota. Girardot is 1,066 feet above sea level. We ascended over 8,000 feet in crossing the range which guards the sabana, or plain of Bogota. On account of the somewhat uncomfortable contrast in altitude and tempera- ture between the river valley and Bogota, many passengers break their journey overnight at La Esperanza, an attractive resort 4,000 feet above sea level, which we reached about noon. The Mis- sion has approved of placing a rest house here for the missionaries in Bogota, and the funds needed, $5,000, ought to be given. UP THE MAGDALENA RIVER TO BOGOTA 61 When the train topped the mountain crest and emerged on the broad plain of Bogota, it seemed as if a section of Southern California had been dropped down among these tropical mountains. The level, fertile plain of Bogota stretches for twenty miles in one direction and ten in another, with finger-like extensions projecting in various directions from the northern boundary; this plain and its extensions are part of a larger plateau which is fifty by three hundred miles in extent. From the car windows herds of fine cattle were visible on either side of the track; stately rows of eucalyptus trees ornamented the plain. At Facatativa, a town of about 6,000 people, and a promising potential center for our work, we made the last change to the meter-gauged Sabana Railroad, which was to carry us to the capital. An hour later we saw the first buildings of Bogota, and beyond the city, the two guardian mountains of Monserrat and Gua- dalupe, the former crowned by a sanctuary with cream-colored walls, surmounted by a graceful spire, delicately outlined against the cerulean blue of the evening sky. The “ Athens of South America” was before us. ‘To reach it we had traveled over a long, long, trail, which had gone winding through a land that often seemed like a dream; but when at last we saw before us the city, sheltered by its noble twin mountains, the white walls of its houses and govern- mental “ palaces” shining in the clear air of the Andes, we felt amply repaid for any time or effort spent in the ascent to this Colombian acropolis. CHAPTER VI OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA BucaRAMANGA, January 25, 1923 UCARAMANGA, the center of one of the Stations of the Presbyterian Mission in Co- lombia, is the capital of the Department of San- tander which lies well to the east on the borders of Venezuela. To reach the city of Bucaramanga, one leaves the Magdalena River at Puerto Wilches and travels about eighty-five miles into the interior. The travel of the first day is by train, although the distance run is only about sixteen miles and the equipment of the train is the most primitive that one could imagine. The railway, which is supposed to reach Bucaramanga, when completed, was be- gun some twenty-five years ago, but, for various reasons, mostly political, construction has been slow and at times has entirely ceased. We left the steamer early in the morning of January 20, and were told that the train would start for the interior at one o’clock in the afternoon. It was hot in the streets of the little port and there was no hotel in which to find refuge; consequently we bought some cord and a few fishhooks and spent considerable time trying to lure the splashing fish in the direction of our enticing bait, but without success. Boys near us, with the most elementary 62 OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 63 equipment, seemed to have no difficulty in drawing out large and seemingly edible specimens of the fish of the region, but our own attempts were fruit- less. Finally, the train came in, but it was after three o’clock before we were started for the interior and we reached the end of the line at half past five. This part of the journey is not difficult and it is a pleasure to ride through the tropical forest, even in a train of such extreme simplicity as that which carried us, and note the manner of life of those who live in this region and manage to do their work in spite of the intense heat that always prevails. We spent the night in a small inn situated on the top of one of the hills near the terminal station, where we were somewhat freer from the mosquitoes that swarm in the lower levels, and our real journey began the following morning when we took mules for the ride of three days to Bucaramanga. Mr. Williams had telegraphed ahead, asking that his agent secure “a lusty mule for a heavy horseman,” but, on inspecting the one that had been sent down for my use, and having in mind a fair sample of the Missouri breed, I feared that the order had not been understood and that we might reach Bucara- manga with the carrying process reversed. But I confess to a pleasing disappointment. ‘The mule, although of but slight proportions, was certainly “lusty ’ and carried me safely over many a sway- ing bridge and single planks that serve for bridges across the mountain streams, up and down precipi- tous hills where a horse could scarcely have found 64 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN a foothold, through the tangled forest and across sandy plains under the fierce rays of a torrid sun, and, soon after noon of the third day, landed me safely in front of the Charles W. Williams Me- morial Home in Bucaramanga, in a more placid state of mind and comfortable condition of body than was her rider. On the first day of this ride to Bucaramanga, the trail leads up from the end of the railway line to Puerto Santos, on the Lebrija River, about twenty-five miles in distance. It leads through the tropical forest which is threaded by numerous streams of water and in which all kinds of tropi- cal animals flourish. ‘The region is among the most mortiferous in all Colombia, if not in all South America. This is due to the fact that a virulent type of malarial fever is endemic, and that hookworm and other diseases peculiar to the tropics claim their victims without any intervention of science which might lessen the annual toll. There is no doctor in Puerto Wilches or along the trail until one reaches a small town near Bucara- manga. When I asked one of the residents who cared for them when they are ul, with a shrug of the shoulders he replied, “ La Providencia.’” It is verily a trail along which “ pestilence walketh in darkness,” and “ destruction . . . wasteth at noon- day.” Yet our missionaries have been traveling it for years and I doubt that the home Church has had any idea of the risks they were taking. The missionaries have accepted it as a part of the work and have said little about it. OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 65 We spent the second night of our trip in a shed, surrounded by workmen who were suffering from paludic fevers, and were visited by mosquitoes of a peculiarly voracious type, that had, no doubt, come directly to us from those who were burning with malaria. Just back of our shed flowed the rushing stream of the Lebrija River, which takes its name from one of the early Spanish explorers, a com- panion of Jiménez de Quesada in the conquest of New Granada for the Catholic kings of Spain. Captain Lebrija was devoured by crocodiles near the mouth of the river that now bears his name and where these terrible saurians still breed in myriads in the swamps through which the river winds its muddy course to the Magdalena. We were up early on the morning of the second day for a ride of twenty-four miles to a farmhouse where we were to spend the night. The trail still wound through the forest, with its constantly changing scenery seeming more beautiful and im- pressive as we proceeded. As we started out in the early morning, we heard the scolding of the monkeys on the near-by trees that lined the banks of the gorge up which the trail leads, and heard them again, at intervals during the day. ‘These simians have learned from hard experience that it is wiser to keep out of sight of passing travelers, but the sound of their voices as they discussed us left nothing to be imagined as to their opinion of the entire human species. In these same forests are to be found all kinds of reptiles, from the huge boa constrictor that often 66 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN measures from twenty to thirty feet in length to the small “ wasp snake” that strikes but once and, like the bee, sacrifices its own life. Leopards, jaguars, deer of various species, bears, wild hogs, a number of smaller animals, and a great variety of birds make their homes in this region. It would be impossible to name the multitudinous forms of insect life that swarm on every hand. A repre- sentative of the Carnegie Museum is reported to have taken over three hundred and fifty species of birds in one month and on a single estate through which we passed. On the Lebrija River, near where we spent the night, and whose winding course we followed dur- ing the day, the Colombia Syndicate, an American oil company, has established a station. A number of Americans direct the work and a considerable number of Colombians are employed. ‘They have a local doctor and, due to modern sanitary methods and other strict prophylactic measures, the camp has been converted into the healthiest spot in all this region. Farther up the Magdalena River, above Puerto Wilches, near the port of Barranca Ber- meja, the Tropical Oil Company, a branch of the Standard Oil Company, has also opened a promis- ing field and has established refineries which pro- duce a high grade of gasoline and kerosene. We spent the night of the second day at El Tambor, the administration center of one of the largest farms in Colombia. 'The evils of the system of latifundia, which has done much to maintain a large part of the population of Latin America in ‘(gr ‘d) una yok You st Moaang oy} fmozpd styy 0} puey ano ynd savy 2M, ‘9]dood uo xis Buowe YylomM [Roresuead aAOF o[qrsuodsat o1e sotreuorsstur ALATY T, ‘BIquUIOJO)) UL YOM Ye UOTZBUTMIOUDP JULYSo}JO1g ATUO 9Y} SI “YW “S ‘Q 24} UL YounyO uUPIIezAqserg 9UT, €Z6I NI WITIOONVUUVA LV NOISSIN VIAWOIOO AHL OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 67 a state of semi-servitude, was illustrated in this great establishment, which, nevertheless, under owners graduated in our best American universi- ties, is one of the best administered of the many we have seen in this or other countries. ‘The estate embraces a tract of land which measures twelve square leagues, or one hundred and eight square miles. This amounts to almost seven hundred thousand acres, and is but one of several farms owned by this same family, in this Department. On the morning of the third day we were up by four o’clock, in preparation for an early start on the journey of twenty-five miles which would ter- minate in Bucaramanga. The clear atmosphere of the surrounding foothills seemed to bring the sky very near to earth, and the stars shone out with unusual splendor. The Big Dipper swung low in the north, with Polaris barely visible on the hori- zon. Of the planets, only Venus and Saturn were visible, the former hanging like a pendant flame just over the hills to the east while Saturn cast his mellow light over the scene from his place a little higher up on the ecliptic. The valley below us, along the Canaverales River, in the straggling light of the dawn, seemed to be filled with fluffy masses of snow piled together during the night by some giant hand from the tops of the near-by mountains. As we continued up the trail, this mass of fog, agitated by the morning breezes, took on fantastic shapes and finally lifted itself from the low-lying valley and drifted away over the hills. When the sun finally blazed forth in all his strength, we 68 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN saw the valley stretching away for many miles and the fog was but a small and ever-diminishing cloud on the distant horizon. The trail led upward and ever upward during the day, until we at length reached the summit of the divide which separates the plateau on which are situated Bucaramanga and other towns of the De- partment of Santander from the lowlands of the Lebrija and Magdalena Rivers. Yet it had often led down into deep gorges and across brawling rivers, some of which we crossed on bridges but most of which had to be forded, and along yawn- ing precipices where the traveler may look straight downward for many hundreds of feet to the stream that rumbles along on its way to the sea, while the overhanging cliff with its dense vegetation provides a grateful protection from the burning rays of the sun. A little after midday we reached the end of our journey and were cordially received by Mrs. Williams in her home. This is the Charles W. Williams Missionary Home, and is located on the edge of the city of Bucaramanga on a gentle slope that commands the surrounding country, as well as the near-by city. It was provided through the generosity of Dr. Charles W. Williams and others of the Synod of Minnesota, and the ladies of the Southwest District, through their Board. Rev. T. E. Barber, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Mission, accompanied me on this trip, but all the details had been planned by Rev. Charles S. Williams, of Bucaramanga Sta- OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 69 tion, and it was due to his prevision and constant vigilance that we reached our destination without the slightest mishap and ready for the work that lay before us. To an understanding of the importance of our Mission’s work in this region, some facts must be given in regard to the Department of Santander which is one of the most important of the republics of Colombia. Its population is about five hundred thousand and is almost entirely white, in marked contrast to the population of the Departments along the Caribbean coast and the Magdalena River. Bucaramanga is the capital and has a pop- ulation of forty thousand. In the villages within a radius of a few miles, there are at least sixty thousand more. Politically, both the capital and the Department are Liberal centers and the people, on the whole, are friendly to the work of our Mis- sion. ‘There is a strong feeling of distrust of the dominant Church and the Liberals are now plan- ning to. establish in Bucaramanga a secondary school, in order that their children may not have to come under the influence of the Jesuits who, at present, have the only secondary school in the city or Department. The principal products of the Department are coffee, leaf tobacco and its products, hides, cattle, Panama hats, ivory nuts from which buttons are made, leather and manufactures from the same, sugar, cereals, and a great variety of fruits and vegetables. All these exports are carried down the long trail up which we traveled, to the head of the 70 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN railway line or to the river ports, on mules, and it is not uncommon to meet hundreds of these patient animals staggering along under huge sacks and boxes, while on the return trip they bring up equally huge cargoes of foreign merchandise. Even automobiles and pianos are thus brought into Bucaramanga for the delectation of its inhabitants. There is evidence, however, that the people are tiring of this semi-isolation from the great centers and there is an increasing demand that the railway be completed. At present, negotiations are being perfected which look to the securing of the neces- sary capital, and there is great expectation among the merchants and producers of the Department. As one of the local celebrities put it: ““ We want no more of the civilization that comes in on mules. We get friars, nuns, scapularies, medallions, images, red paint, and other objects to enslave our consciences and minds. Let us have something of the civilization which comes in on railways, by air- plane and wireless: machinery, automobiles, books, teachers, and other things that mean progress and the uplift of the people!” Religiously, as are all other Departments of Colombia, Santander is officially Roman Catholic. Yet considerable evangelical work has been done in the past years and there is an open door for all that we may care to do now and in the future. Dr. H. B. Pratt, the founder of Presbyterian work in Colombia, lived in Bucaramanga for a number of years, established preaching services, and itinerated to the surrounding villages. He also set up a OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 71 small press, translated and edited a part of his translation of the Bible, maintained a small news- paper, and printed many tracts which were widely circulated throughout Santander and the neighbor- ing Departments. This was about a half century ago. Since then, beginning some twenty-five years ago, Joseph P. Norwood, an agent of the American Bible Society, opened and maintained work for a number of years, including the period of the last civil war (1899-1903). He gained much sym- pathy for the evangelical cause during this trying period, especially in his care of the wounded sol- diers, but his work was discontinued in 1904 and the Presbyterians returned to the task in 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Williams were sent to Bucaramanga at that time and, with intermissions, amounting to about four years, have remained until the present time. Late in 1920, Rev. and Mrs. Thomas Crocker were assigned to the Station. During the present year, 1923, all these missionaries go on furlough, that of Mr. and Mrs. Williams being almost a year delayed, and the Station will have to be abandoned during that time, since there seems to be no worker available to take their places. It is unfortunate that this should be necessary. No Church organization has as yet been effected. However, could the work be continued without in- terruption, this could soon be done. ‘There are over 130 persons who count themselves members of the congregation and from this number a nucleus could be formed for the organization of a church. The Sunday school has an attendance of sixty and 72 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the midweek meetings a larger number. On Fri- day night more than fifty people meet for special Bible instruction. There is also a small group of young men who meet weekly for special study in preparation for leadership. ‘The attendance at the chapel, especially when there is something new, is large. The first night we were there the number exceeded 3380, by actual count, and the following night there were many more. This is the largest congregation we have had the pleasure of address- ing in all Colombia, exceeding even that of the church in Barranquilla. The present property of the Board in Bucara- manga consists of two entire blocks of land, located very advantageously just at the edge of the city. The total area is 12,400 square meters. On the front half of one block are situated the two mis- sionary homes, and the other block is vacant. It is hoped that on this vacant block a school may eventually be erected, while, on the remaining half of the other block, there is abundant room for a church building, although the site is too far from the center of the city to serve for the principal center of evangelization. I understand that there is an ap- propriation on the books of the Mission of two thousand pesos for the acquisition of a site for a church or chapel. ‘This sum is not now sufficient for the purpose, due to the great increase in values of real estate, but a further appropriation should be obtained, if at all possible, and the site secured with a view to beginning construction as soon as may seem advisable. OVERLAND TO BUCARAMANGA 73 It should be said in regard to the Charles W. Williams Memorial Home and its companion on the same block that they are among the most com- fortable missionary homes in all Latin America, possibly the most comfortable and best planned of all. Those who have so generously contributed to the erection of these homes may be assured that their generosity will enable future missionaries in this Station to do better work because of the im- proved health conditions, during many years to come. Because of the insalubrious housing of the missionary family, one little grave has been occu- pied in Bucaramanga. But this period is now past. The hard and discouraging work of pioneering, in other respects, also, has been largely finished. Protestantism stands high in the estimation of the people and we ought to go forward from this be- ginning to a complete staffing of the Station that will enable the workers to go out into the sur- rounding villages and completely evangelize the Department. With our great Church behind us, it ought to be possible to secure such recruits as will enable the Mission to carry on both school and evangelistic work; to provide for the con- struction of needed church and chapel buildings; and the training of a body of national helpers that will enable our workers to go beyond the bounds of the Department of Santander and to reach the lands that lie along the frontier of Venezuela and to the south and north in Colombia. This is a peculiarly Presbyterian task and we can- not elude it, even if we so desired. 74 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN In this connection we found a historical con- nection with the life of the Republic of Colombia, which ought to be mentioned here in a final para- graph. One of the officers in the “ British Le- gion,” which took a prominent part in the libera- tion of New Granada from the Spanish rule, early in the nineteenth century, was a Captain Fraser, a Presbyterian. He afterward headed the delega- tion that went from Bogota to New York to ask our Board to undertake work in the new republic. Previously, he had married the niece of General Santander, one of the generals under Simon Bol- ivar, and his descendants are still to be found scat- tered throughout Colombia. As a rule, they are still Protestants or friendly to Protestants. One of the best known residents of Bucaramanga is a granddaughter of Captain Fraser, and, al- though unable to attend services because of age and infirmities, she is interested in the work and loyal to her faith. We have inherited a special responsibility for all Colombia, but a very particular responsibility for the Department of Santander, through this valiant Presbyterian who fought for Colombian independence, and it now remains for us to cease playing at missions in this and other Departments and to begin a real work worthy of our faith and our Church. CHAPTER VII ON MULE BACK FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN Been ve Boyaca, January 30, 1923 HEN Rev. T. E. Barber, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Colombia Mis- sion, Mr. Williams, the chairman of the Bucara- manga Station, and the writer started up the trail from Puerto Wilches, on January 20, we fully expected to return by the same route, a week later, and thence proceed up the river to the Stations we had not yet visited. But, for various reasons, it seemed best to change this plan and, while Mr. Barber felt obliged to return by the same trail and to his own work in Medellin, it was decided that Mr. Williams should accompany me on a further ride over the mountains, to Belen, about halfway to Bogota, my final destination. Mr. Wheeler was already in Bogota and had telegraphed me that, with Mr. Allan, he would meet me in Belen, coming out in an automobile over the great highway built by General Reyes, president of the republic many years ago. This change of plan meant a ride of four days through the high mountain region, with the added possibility that, due to some mishap by the way, this time might be lengthened consider- 15 76 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN ably. However, it also meant that we should not be compelled to retrace our steps through the malarial districts, but would be up in the high, pure air of the mountains, free from noxious animals and in- sects, exposed to the cold rather than to the heat, and, a matter of great value, it meant the saving of several days in our schedule for the further visits to be made to the various Stations. Accordingly, when this decision was taken, we immediately set about the organization of our pack train and the securing of riding mules for this somewhat taxing trip. I was glad to find that I could secure the same doughty little beast that had carried me up from the river, and to which refer- ence has been made in a former letter. This satis- faction was not necessarily shared by the mule, but I may run ahead of the story sufficiently to say that she again carried me over bridges and across streams, up and down precipitous inclines, across the high, cold plateaus and into the yard of the hotel in Belen, a journey of one hundred miles, and seemed perfectly able to continue the journey indefinitely, which her rider was not! Only once was there a possibility of a mishap. Having care- fully selected what must have been the hardest piece of rock on the trail, she suddenly fell full length, while her rider continued in a straight line and measured his six feet on the hard road. How- ever, no serious results came from this experiment, and it was not repeated. The same faithful muleteer also accompanied us and, at the end of the ride, begged that I take him FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN we on with me to ‘“ Nueva York,” where he felt that he might better his condition and rise to something better than his present work. We started out from the city of Bucaramanga early in the morning of January 27 and ran the first fifteen miles of the journey in an automobile, to the little town at the foot of the hills and beyond which there is traffic only by means of mules. Here we were met by the muleteer with the pack and riding animals and were soon in the saddle and headed up into the hills, bound for Los Santos, the little village where we were to spend the first night of the trip. We passed through a number of small villages, and found the country in this region rather well populated. Some of the villages have electric lights, and all looked much cleaner than we had expected to find them. We passed many trains of mules, coming down from the hills above, carry- ing tobacco, coffee, and other products of the De- partment, and destined to go on down through Bucaramanga and to the Magdalena by the trail we had already traversed several days before. There are few or no hotels in these towns, but there are posadas, or inns, which receive the traveler and his beasts and for a very small com- pensation give such food and protection as they can. The wise traveler will see that his beasts are well cared for, even though he may have to sleep on a hard board by their side, for, without them, he cannot proceed on his journey. We carried food to supplement that which we might secure by the way, and our cot beds in order to secure freedom 78 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN from insects, so that all we asked was food for our animals and a corner in which to spread our cots. We reached Los Santos late at night and found that it is a;small village perched almost on the very edge of an immense chasm which marks the bed of the Sogamoso River, one of the tributaries of © the Magdalena. After a comparatively comfort- able night, we were astir early and ready to start down into the deep gorge which lay before us. The heat in this gorge in the middle of the day is said to be almost unbearable, and, for that reason, we had started long before dawn in the hope of getting well up on the other side before the hours of greatest heat should overtake us. The bottom of the gorge is about one mile below the inn in which we had spent the night, but, in order to reach it, we had to ride at least three times that distance, down the steep sides by means of a zig- zag path that twisted and turned on itself every few feet. On each side the massive walls rose tier on tier and the increasing light, as dawn came upon us, showed all the colors of the rainbow, shading off into tints and variations that were as bewilder- ing as enchanting. It was Sunday, too, and al- though we could not attend service as we could have desired, yet we easily imagined ourselves in some great cathedral, or looking on temples not made by the hands of men. Flying buttresses, lofty towers, minarets, Gothic windows, and slated roofs, all appeared to the fancy as we slowly clambered downward and we felt that we were in the presence of the Architect of the universe, the God of the FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN 79 open air. The words of Henry van Dyke came to us with unusual force: “'Thou who hast made Thy dwelling fair And set Thine altars everywhere — In Thy great out-of-doors! To Thee I turn, to Thee I make my prayer, God of the open air.” One of the missionaries to Colombia, who made the trip through this same gorge by night, has described it in the following words: “We had a difficult bit of travel ahead of us; the descent of the precipice, 5000 feet into a gorge, the crossing of the river responsible for the gorge, and, on the other side, a straight clamber of 6000 feet to a paramo, a table-land desert. “Tt was an enchanting hour for a ride. ‘The soft, dim radiance of the moon with her quiet, subdued light had a most soothing effect upon us, after many days of the blistering glare of the sun on white rocks. Things around us took on phantom shapes and grew interesting from their very air of mystery. The gorges on either side of us, as we slowly felt our dim way along the cliff, were brimful of the white chiffon of dropped-down clouds, so close that we could almost reach out our hands and touch it. The drapery of the skies, lavender vestments embroidered with silver stars, seemed about to de- scend upon our shoulders. The gurgle of a brook near at hand and the music of a distant waterfall were in our ears, the perfume of flowering trees and the scent of dewy shrubs were in our nostrils, 80 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the friendly pressing embrace of the woods was about us and the magic of the calm night possessed us... . At the first pink flush of daylight we commenced the descent. By ninety-five steep, short inclines, turning every six feet to face the opposite direction, we slid and floundered down the preci- pice and two hours after sunrise found ourselves perpendicularly under our starting point, 5000 feet above us. We caught the first faint glimmer of dawn gliding stealthily over the mountains, searching out the giant forms of towering cliffs. We descried the spirit of the night, fleeing, leaping from cliff to cliff, skulking, hiding, trying to es- cape the mocking smile of her enemy, the sun. Reaching fingers of light, pointed to us, one by one, the gulches, the ravines, the overhanging cliffs, clothed in clinging draperies of grey mist... . Shadows took form and, here and there, gigantic trees loomed threateningly. Rosy tints kissed mountain crests while soft blues dropped lower and lower until they blended with the indigo of the gorges. ... The contrast in color was most strik- ing; no artist would have dared reproduce it. Lim- pid lakes of soft blue and silver hung suspended around peaks, the indigo of deep ocean, splashed recklessly with browns and yellows, daubed moun- tain slopes, blood-red streaks slashed and gashed faces of cliffs, a narrow silver thread which was a river framed in vivid green glinted through each ravine, while peaks, cliffs, gorges, ravines, all were suffused in the wilder lights of purple and orange. Here was nature most lavish. Within the sweep “grr MAGDALENA RIVER STEAMERS “We moved at about the speed of a log raft towed by a sunfish” (p. 50). FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN 81 of the human eye she flashed out all her beauties, and caused puny man to hold his breath in awed amazement.” * Once during the day we all lost the trail, and once, due to mistaken directions, I rode ahead on the wrong road and lost almost an hour. But, late at night, after a most tiring day, we rode into the little town of Mogotes and soon found accommo- dations in the principal inn. We were given a large upper room and lost little time in extending our cots and occupying them, in expectation of our much needed rest. During the day, as during the whole trip, we had been impressed with the large number of vil- lages through which we passed, after leaving the gorge, and with the fact that no one of them has ever been entered by an evangelical missionary for the purpose of holding services, so far as there is any record. ‘The people seem to be simple and kindly disposed, and it is evident that, aside from the inevitable opposition of the Roman Catholic hierarchy, there would be but little difficulty in establishing evangelical work. The official Church has a grip on the people, it is true, but it is the grip of a dead hand. Its church edifices are old and tumbling into decay, since most, if not all, of them date back to the time of the Spanish occupa- tion, now more than a hundred years ago. Only once or twice did we notice any sort of repairing going on and in no place did we see a new church building, or one that showed any signs of compara- 1 The Least of These, in Colombia, Maude Newell Williams. 82 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN tive modernity. ‘The subservience of the people was often shown in the evident fear in which they held the priest, standing in his presence with bared heads and in positions of humility, and in the care with which they followed the mass in the church, even when going about their business in the street or the public square. As I looked out on the prin- cipal square in Mogotes, the morning of our de- parture, I noted that, at a certain signal given by the bell in the church tower, all who were walking stopped immediately and the men removed their hats. A minute later, at another signal, business was resumed as though nothing had transpired. The signal had meant that, at that moment, the host was being elevated before the altar and the act of devotion showed the results of the teaching of the Church that this wafer, because of the bless- ing of the priest, had been actually converted into the real body and blood of Christ. ‘That is to say, they believed that He was actually present in the church, held in the hand of the officiating priest, and they made their obeisance accordingly. We noted this sign of servile devotion on other occa- sions, even in the country districts where the sound of the bell penetrated, and, while respecting the simple faith of these peasants, could but wish that the Church which has held supreme power over these lovable simple people for so many hundreds of years had reached their hearts rather than contented itself with what is merely an empty form of service. For we could not forget that probably ninety-five per cent of this same population can FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN 83 neither read nor write, and one hesitates even to conjecture at the percentage of illegitimacy. The mysticism and mystery of the mass have not given practical results in the education of the people, and the priesthood has, unfortunately, been satisfied with a servile devotion that does not touch the springs of life. On January 29, after leaving Mogotes, we made a comparatively short ride, since we started late. One of the pack mules had cast a shoe and we were obliged to await the pleasure of the local black- smith. But all that day we traveled through fertile valleys which are carefully cultivated and where we saw many herds of fine cattle that reminded us of the fine herds in the central valleys of Chile. We noticed, too, the great production of coffee. This was being carried down the trail toward Bucaramanga, from whence it goes on to the river and the ports of the Caribbean. Fique, the hene- quen of Yucatan, grows abundantly and women and even small girls may be seen in the doors of their huts or walking along the roads, spinning its coarse fibers into a heavy thread which is used in the manufacture of sacks and a sort of primitive carpet. ‘They also spin the wool from their sheep, using a spindle much like that used by the Indian women of Bolivia and Peru who spin the wool of the llama or the alpaca as they trot along the streets or public roads, a burden on the head, a child slung in a sack on the back and the spindle dexterously spun by the ever-busy hands. One accustomed to travel in other countries of 84 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Latin America also notes the comparative freedom of these Colombian highlands from the perils of highwaymen and gentry of their kind. No one, save an occasional muleteer, carries a revolver, while on the frontiers of Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil it is unusual to find a traveler or a resident of the region who does not go armed to the teeth, and one feels that life is cheap. Tuesday, January 30, was to be our last day in the saddle and we were mounted and ready to start at dawn. As we rode out from the inn I noted that the Southern Cross stood erect in the south, unerringly indicated by Alpha and Beta of the Centaur, the first our nearest sidereal neighbor; the Clouds of Magellan floated lightly above like wisps of carded wool, and the somber “ coal pits ” seemed darker than ever in contrast with the many stars that blazed about them. We had already noted the clearness of the atmosphere in these mountain heights and the consequent brillianey of the stars, but the Cross seemed especially near to us as we rode out toward the south and began the usual climb upward among the hills. Our goal for the day was the little city of Belen, the Spanish for Bethlehem, and it was with a feeling of security that we rode toward the star that gleamed ahead of us and remembered how other riders had been guided into another Bethlehem by a similar light. The total distance for the day was something over thirty-five miles, and we could have covered it by the middle of the afternoon had not our muleteer in- sisted that we ride with him as a protection against FROM BUCARAMANGA TO BELEN 85 thieves, which, he insisted, he was likely to meet. As it was, we reached the highest part of the trail early in the afternoon and continued to ride across the desert table-land which lies some ten to twelve thousand feet above the sea. Storms of sleet and snow are frequent in these high altitudes, and dur- ing the day it rained behind us and before us and on each side of us, but it did not “ come nigh” us. We reached the Hotel Tundama about half past six o'clock in the afternoon. Fifteen minutes later Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Allan were climbing out of their auto and we had kept our rendezvous. Al|- together, on the two trips from the river to Belen, I had ridden on mule back something like two hun- dred miles and must confess that the prospect of continuing to Bogota in a good Dodge touring car was altogether alluring. During the eight days of travel, with the excep- tion of a few hours of the last day, we had ridden constantly through the great Department of San- tander, and yet had merely touched a corner of it. One and a half times larger than the State of New Jersey, it contains a population that, compared with that of the Departments along the coast and the Magdalena, is active and intelligent and offers an interesting field for the work of the Christian missionary. Except in the small villages, where the people have been continuously under the con- trol of the priest, there is a tendency to think in- dependently and men and women look one in the eye with a frankness and friendliness that is seldom found in Latin America. As we crossed the neigh- 86 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN boring Department of Boyaca, the following day, a village priest summed up the local situation when he said: “There is much obedience in Boyaca. The people obey the parish priest, the priest obeys his bishop, and the bishop obeys the pope. Yes, there is much obedience in Boyaca.” I do not be- lieve that this would be said of the people of San- tander. Possibly this is because they have already had some knowledge of the gospel, through our missionaries. At any rate, we have a great oppor- tunity, as Presbyterians, in the Department of Santander, and it is the hope of the writer that this hurried description of a missionary journey through its highlands and among its likable people may result in creating a new interest in the work we have already begun and in carrying it on to greater successes. CHAPTER VIII A HIGHLAND PARISH ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA Bogor, February 2, 1923 N January 26, we arrived in Bogota; on the thirtieth, Rev. A. M. Allan, of the Bogota Station, and I left the city for the trip of 145 miles to meet Dr. Browning at Belen. In this letter I will try to give some of our impressions of the country and people along the highroad between Bogota and Belen. We rode in an energetic Dodge over a surpris- ingly good macadamized and hard-surfaced road, constructed in 1906 by the order of President Rafael Reyes. ‘The road in general follows the course of the old Spanish Camino Real, or “ Royal Road,” connecting Bogota and Tunja. It is now called Carreteria del Norte (Highway of the North). It is ample in width, having a base of twenty-six feet and a wearing surface of sixteen feet. The highway is both a military road to the Venezuelan frontier and a means of connection between the outlying Departments of Santander and North Santander, lying along this frontier, whose inhabitants had become impatient because of the lack of much needed communication with the capital. At the present time the road extends 145 87 88 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN miles to Belen, with a branch road running thirteen miles to Sogamoso from Duitama, fifteen miles from Belen. Surveys have been made and men are at work on the extension of the road to Cucuta, near the Venezuelan border. The road traverses the highlands of the Depart- ments of Cundinamarca and Boyaca. At first we followed the valley of the Rio Bogota, which flows past Bogota and into the Magdalena, plunging over a precipice at 'Tequendama in a fall of 444 feet; then we crossed the watershed where the streams flow into the Upia, which, in turn, empties into the Meta, and so into the Orinoco River. Later we came again to a height of land where the water seeks the Magdalena valleys via the Opon and Sogamoso Rivers. In 1536, Quesada came up the valley of the Opon and eventually reached Tunja; in the following months he covered prac- tically the same route as we planned to take to Sogamoso and back to Bogota. The scenery is much the same as in Southern California. ‘The mountains are of the same hue and contour, and stately rows of eucalyptus trees give quite a Californian touch to the landscape. It did not require a great vault of the imagination to fancy that we were driving along the Sierra Madre from Pasadena to San Bernardino. But there were sights along this road which one never sees in California. Here were great two-wheeled carts drawn by two pairs of oxen; trains of pack mules and burros, with their muleteers trudging along on foot; men and women, barefooted or shod ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 89 in sandals, stooping under high-piled loads of fire- wood and baskets; occasional horsemen in som- breros and rwanas (short Spanish capes) with jing- ling bridle chains, leather chaps, and the curious, slipper-shaped bronze stirrups, Moorish in origin, which were brought into the country by the Spaniards long ago; men plowing in the fields with a yoke of oxen and a primitive plow much as they have done for the past three hundred years. In every town were massive churches that looked like resurrected California Missions. But in Cali- fornia the Missions have died, while the people have gone forward in a happy and abundant life; in Bogota the churches are alive and rich, while the people are dead to nearly all that makes life worth living. Along the road were adobe huts, cold and poor, and unlike the neat, clean, California bungalows. Nearly every house bore a name painted on the simple adobe or on the whitewashed walls. Some of these names were appropriate; some uncon- sciously humorous; nearly all pathetic. At a cross- roads the name of the house was Hl Dilema ('The Dilemma); along a-wet stretch of road, El Charquito (The Little Puddle); some of the poorest and most tumble-down houses bore the bravest titles; La Dorada (The Golden); Villa Hermosa (The Beautiful Villa); Las Delicias (The Delightful) ; Hl Triwnfo (The Triumph) ; and La Violeta (The Violet). Some of the houses bore the inscription, “ Viva Maria” (Hail Mary). The day laborers on the farms along the road 90 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN receive thirty-five to forty cents a day and their food. ‘There are many large estates and planta- tions where a feudal relationship exists between landowner and tenant laborer. This whole system of large ownership with its attendant consequences is called latifundia. The tenants are allowed, roughly, three acres each, with three weeks out of every month in which to work their land. For this holding they pay the owner a rental varying from ten dollars to fifty dollars a year according to the value of the land. On eight days out of every month they must work for the owner, who pays them ten cents a day and gives them their food, thus securing labor on a much cheaper basis than it could otherwise be obtained. ‘The landowner lends to his tenants and they are not allowed to leave his land while they are in debt. Aside from these economic limitations the people of this district are fettered mentally and physi- cally, in appalling numbers, by the effect of drink. They make an alcoholic beverage from corn and sugar cane, called chicha, and we were told that practically the whole population is addicted to the use of this liquor. ‘The landowners must serve chicha with the food supplied to their tenants or the latter will not work; even the children are given chicha by their parents when they are hardly old enough to drink. A Catholic teacher of twenty- eight years’ experience, now resident in Bogota, told us that the children from Boyaca were mark- edly dull and difficult to teach, and that chicha was largely responsible for their backwardness. ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 91 Many of the people in this region, especially in the Department of Boyaca, are Indians and mes- tizos, descendants of the Chibcha tribe that once inhabited this plateau. In China and elsewhere I have seen people who were ragged and dirty and in distressing need. But nowhere have I seen such abject poverty and pitiable degradation as among these Indian inhabitants of Boyaca, the land once won by the conqustadores for the Spanish sover- eign and the Catholic Church. In the faces of these men and women there was hardly a spark of that intelligence and divinity of soul which are the birthright of all human beings. Saddest of all were the faces and bearing of the children. They looked so cold, dirty, and forlorn, with none of the responsiveness and innocent joy which we always associate with children; their faces were stamped by ignorance and vacuity and even perversion. And yet that country is rich in natural resources and the gifts of nature which ought to make human existence comfortable and full of the durable satis- factions of life. We passed carts loaded with bi- tuminous coal, and later saw the mouths of the mines within 300 yards and even 100 yards of the road itself. We explored one of these shallow, horizontal shafts, and picked out the loose coal from its walls less than 100 feet from the entrance. Other carts were piled high with hides; all along the road we saw herds of cattle and sheep. The government statistics for the year 1908 state that in that year there were 862,550 head of beef cattle in Boyacd alone. The two best-known emerald 92 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN mines in Colombia, the Muzo and the Cosquez, are located in Boyaca; these two mines alone have pro- duced 800,000 carats of emeralds of fifteen differ- ent grades in one year. A handbook on Colombia, published by the United States Department of Commerce in 1921, states that the region north of Bogota contains enough salt to supply Colombia for centuries. Unlike California there was abun- dant running water in nearly every valley; corn and barley and wheat were growing in the poorly plowed fields, but a moderate amount of irriga- tion would greatly increase the products of the soil, and there are opportunities for the raising of much larger herds of sheep and cattle than we saw along the road. A small portion of the intelligent energy invested in California and the middle-western states would produce even richer results in this tropical highland. What is the cause of all this poverty and degra- dation, and what is the remedy? A partial answer has already been indicated by the economic status and personal habits of the people; we found further answers to this question in our experiences in three of the towns or localities visited along the road: in Boyaca, Tunja, and Sogamoso. At Boyaca, eighty-one miles from Bogota, was fought one of the decisive battles in the struggle for the freedom and independence of the Spanish- American colonies. ‘This movement had followed, by two decades, the revolutions in the American colonies and in France. Curiously enough, Na- poleon played a large part in furthering this cause ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 93 by his deposition of the reigning Spanish sovereign, and his weakening of the Spanish power. But, in 1815, Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo; the Spanish armies thus released were sent to recon- quer American territory and, for a time, were suc- cessful in this attempt. Then, in 1819, Simon Bolivar, who had risen as the chief military leader in the revolting Spanish dependencies of the north- ern part of South America, with his foremost gen- eral and colleague, Paulo Santander, led an army over the Ilanos, or plains, of Venezuela and Co- lombia, and by a forced march, surprised the Span- ish forces at Boyaca. Here the Rio Boyacaé makes an abrupt bend around a steep headland, and it was in the narrow ravine beneath this bluff that Bolivar trapped the Spanish army. ‘The founda- tions of the old stone bridge across the stream, which was the center of the hottest fighting, are still intact, though the present road crosses the river a little higher up. ‘The great rock on which Bolivar stood after the battle and addressed his soldiers, was pointed out to us. ‘There are no houses at Boyaca, but the government has beauti- fied the place by a well-planned garden and by an imposing shaft of stone with a bronze relief of Bolivar and busts of the leading generals in the revolutionary cause in white marble at its base. The name of the British Legion, Legion Britdnica, which fought with Bolivar’s troops was given a prominent place at the base of the shaft. Colonel Fraser was enrolled in this legion, though he was not present in person at the battle of Boyaca. On 94. MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the monument are inscribed a statement by Bolivar and one by Azuero which read: “ La Libertad del Nuevo Mundo es la Esperanza del Universo,” and “Hil mas Grande de los Hombres es el que Sabe Conquistar la Libertad para los Otros.’ “The liberty of the New World is the hope of the uni- verse,” and “ The greatest of men is he who knows how to win freedom for the rest.” Brave words; true words; words full of hope and expectancy, and inspired by a confident faith in freedom and its gifts!) More than a century has passed since they were uttered; how has their prophecy been fulfilled ? We moved on to Tunja, the capital of Boyaca, 100 miles from Bogota, and looked for an answer there. 'Tunja was the only real “ El Dorado” in Colombia; it was there that Quesada found the first and only large amount of gold in the Chibchan empire. His first sight of that city in 1537 was quite in the “ El Dorado” vein. “ In the last rays of the fast-setting sun a wondrous spectacle broke on the Spaniards’ eyes. From nearly every house, swinging lightly in the breeze, hung plates of gold, beaten as thin as sheets of paper, that gave out sounds like an Aeolian harp. ‘The houses were well built, although of slight material, and the tall poles of the chiefs’ residences, all brightly varnished red, gave a fantastic look to the strange city that was so soon to be destroyed.” * Here Quesada and his army seized over two hundred thousand dollars’ worth of gold and silver and emeralds, and, al- though overwhelmingly outnumbered, they brought 1 The Conquest of New Granada, R. G. B. Cunninghame Graham, p. 128. A TYPICAL COLOMBIAN HIGHWAY MULE PATH TAKEN BY DR. BROWNING TO BUCARAMANGA “In point of view of locomotion, the country is little in advance of the days when Sir Francis Drake appeared with his ships outside the walled city of Cartagena” (p. 42). ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 95 the Indians and their chief into complete sub- jection. . Tunja is known to-day not only as a political center but also as the ecclesiastical capital of the Department. Although a town of only about 12,000 people, the census of 1912 giving it 8,971 inhabitants, there are eight large Catholic churches or cathedrals, five chapels, two convents for wo- men, a seminary for candidates for the priesthood, two monasteries for men, and a number of schools controlled by the clergy. The Bishop of Boyaca has his palace there. Because of its historical background and because we knew that it was the center of Catholic influence, we looked forward with anticipation to visiting the city. ‘There we should see and there we could judge the full fruits of the work and influence of the dominant Church. As we neared the city, the road, which had been quite smooth and well kept up, became unpleas- antly rough and full of holes. Our driver re- marked that the responsibility for that section of the road rested on the municipality of Tunja, and that the city was not interested in this thorough- fare. The valley broadened, and Mr. Allan pointed and said, “ There is Tunja.” I looked for a city which might have some signs of its former golden glory and of the present favor of the Church, but at first I could see nothing, not even the whitewashed walls of the houses which make these upland towns stand out so clearly in their mountain settings. Then as we came nearer I 96 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN gradually made out the outlines of dull, drab, adobe walls and houses, which shaded into the brown hills and rendered the city practically invisible. ‘The appearance of the majority of the people on the streets as we entered the town was in keeping with the squalor of their homes. ‘They seemed even more poverty-stricken and more vacuous in expres- sion than the country people in the villages along the road. Only the priests — and every third per- son appeared to be a priest — seemed affluent and comfortably supplied with this world’s goods. 'The churches, which loomed large in the plazas and along the streets, overshadowed the huts on either side. They were well kept up, with the inner walls and ceilings decorated lavishly in gold and crimson. We entered one of the oldest churches, dedicated to Saint Dominick. Just within its threshold a stone slab marked an ancient grave. In the center of the slab was the outline of a crowned lion ram- pant — the lion of Castile and Aragon. On either side of the lion was cut the outline of a skull and crossbones. Around the edges of the stone ran the inscription in a peculiar, archaic, Latin-Spanish lettering: “This is the church and tomb of El Capitan Garcia Arias Maldonado and his sons and his heirs. He died in the year 1568.” We could not make out the date clearly, and asked the help of a Dominican priest who was standing near by. He dipped his gown in the receptacle for holy water and scrubbed off the stone, so that the letter- ing stood out clearly and unmistakably. The priest said that the church had been built first in 1551. ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 97 The church was there fourteen years and the grave thirty years after the coming of Quesada and the founding of Bogoté; before Sir Francis Drake sacked Cartagena; before the defeat of the great Armada; and long before the Pilgrim Fathers reached our shores. As we looked at the lion of Spain and the skulls and crossbones and the an- cient inscription, we seemed to be carried back more than three centuries and to be living again in the days of buccaneers and conquistadores and the ancient glories of the Spanish Main. The Roman Catholic Church has been dominant in this land and in this town for 370 years. What service, in Christ’s name, has it performed for the people, and how has it discharged the trust and the responsibility of bringing to them the light and truth and abundant life and love of his gospel? In the first place, it does not attempt to evade its responsibility for the present condition of the inhabitants of the region, claiming them all as members of its faith. ‘The Dominican friar in Tunja and the parish priest at Duitama, where we stopped later, in answer to our question as to what percentage of the people were Catholic, responded with the same word, “ T'odos,’ that is, ““ All.” The government census of 1912 designates only eleven in the municipality of unja as being of a religious faith other than the Catholic. 'The figures for the other districts are not available, but would doubt- less bear out the assertions of the representatives of the Church, that practically all the inhabitants, in name at least, are Catholics. 98 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN In the second place, the representatives of the Church refuse to face the truth, or to tell the truth, about the condition of the people in their parishes. The handbook published by the Department of Commerce of the United States in 1921, previously referred to, affirms that “the literate population does not exceed 500,000’; that is, only eight per cent of the population of Colombia can read. ‘The census of the Colombian Government for 1912 re- cords the number of adult men in the Department of Boyaca who can read as sixteen per cent of the population. Boyaca is next to the lowest in the list of Departments of Colombia from the stand- point of literacy. Officials whom we questioned in the Department placed the percentage of the total population of literates as between five and fifteen, but when we questioned the two priests in Boyaca, one stated that nearly every one could read and the other that ninety per cent could do so. The pro- portion of illegitimacy in this Department is esti- mated to be between fifty and sixty per cent, an estimate sustained by the statements of intelligent observers with whom we later conversed. The of- ficials in the mayor’s office of one town supported the latter figure; nevertheless one priest said that three per cent of the families in his district were not married, and that five per cent of the children were illegitimate. The other said that there was one per cent of illegitimacy in his parish. It hap- pened that at the same time that Mr. Allan and I were talking to the former priest, Mr. Williams, not knowing how we were engaged, was seeking ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 99 the same information from the mayor’s office. The statements secured from these two sources on the same subject did not reflect credit upon the ve- racity of the priest. One priest frankly stated that none of his parishioners possessed Bibles or read them in their homes; the other said that of the 20,000 in the district of Tunja, 10,000 had Bibles and read them. As far as we could learn the Roman Catholic Church is doing nothing effective in social service, or in raising its parishioners’ standards of living, or in attacking and lessening the evils of drink. ‘These two priests gave us their signatures after making these statements. Since then we have had similar experiences with other priests in or near Bogota. How can the representatives of this Church, who have omitted the cornerstone of truth from the arch of the Kingdom they are trying to build, ade- quately serve and save the people assigned to their care? One priest, as Dr. Browning has already written in his letter concerning the trip from Bucaramanga to Belen, said that there was much obedience in Boyaca; the people obeyed the priest, the priests obeyed the bishop, and the bishop obeyed the pope. As we thought of the obstacles in the way of economic freedom, in the path of intellectual free- dom, in the road to religious freedom, we wondered if this was the New World liberty that Bolivar had .said would be the hope of the universe. Against the words of Azuero, “The greatest among men is he who knows how to win freedom for the rest,” 100 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN came to us the words of Another who said, “ If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” Boyaca needs that freedom of body, mind, and soul that the living Christ alone can give; in this fight for liberty the narrow valley where Bolivar conquered the Spaniards was but the initial battlefield. From Tunja we went on to Belen, which we reached within fifteen minutes of the time when Dr. Browning and Mr. Williams and the latter’s son, Newell, had arrived there from their trip on mule back more than 100 miles overland from Bu- caramanga. In his letter concerning this trip Dr. Browning does not emphasize what a test of strength and endurance is involved in this expedi- tion. We were glad to see him and his companions arrive on schedule time, apparently not overfa- tigued. We stayed that night in a typical Spanish inn, with an inner courtyard filled with flowers, and with marvelous old doors of a bronze color, studded with iron decorations; then, the next day, drove to Sogamoso, and the following day, Febru- ary 1, went on to Bogota. Sogamoso, which in the time of the Spanish In- vasion was called Sugamuxi, was the seat of a great temple to the Chibchan gods, destroyed when Quesada’s soldiers captured the town. Sogamoso has apparently inherited iconoclastic tendencies and has the reputation of being the most liberal of the villages and towns along the whole road to Bogota. It has a population of about five thousand; in the election of 1922, in the district of which it is the ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 101 center, there were 2,600 Liberal votes against eighty for the Conservatives. In this town, ten years ago, Mr. Williams, who was then the head of the school in Bogota, was invited to open a Protes- tant school and promised property and the interest and moral support of the best people of that vicinity. ‘There were no funds in the hands of the Mission which might be used for teachers’ salaries or for current expenses; an appeal was made for the needed funds from the United States, but with- out result, and the opportunity was lost. We met a general, who, after many difficulties, had organ- ized the movement for a Liberal school, which those interested in the Liberal movement in that district will support, and they will use the same school building, well located on the central plaza of the town, which was once offered to our Mission. When questioned as to the difference between the Roman Catholic schools, which are the only schools in Sogamoso, and the proposed Liberal school, the general stated that in his school, re- ligion, meaning Roman Catholicism, would be op- tional, and that a modern scientific course of study would be adopted instead of the antiquated cur- riculum of the Jesuits. This Liberal school in Sogamoso is one of a chain of similar schools which the Liberals are attempting to found throughout the country, heading up in a Liberal university in Bogota. When we asked the general if the school would recognize its responsibilities for the moral education of the students, he answered with some emphasis in the affirmative, quoting a prevalent 102 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN phrase, “Our aim is to educate, not merely to instruct.” The Mission has approved the opening of an outstation at Sogamoso, which shall be related to the work of the Station at Bogota. ‘The town is apparently ready for such a step. The population of the Department of Cundinamarca, in which Bogota is situated, and of Boyaca, a portion of which is traversed by the road which we were on, is estimated to be 1,440,000; next to Antioquia, these Departments are the largest in population in Colombia. . Over a million people live along this highway or within access to it. Despite the great needs of the people, needs which are not now being met, in this whole parish there is not a single repre- sentative of the Protestant Church at work, and, aside from the sporadic efforts of one or two col- porteurs, evangelical Christianity has never been preached there. A missionary and a Colombian worker, a Ford or a Dodge car, an initial invest- ment of $2,500 in land at Sogamoso, $5,000 for property for a school and chapel there, and a slight annual sum for current expenses, would mean the beginning of a work which would echo and reécho along that whole highway to Bogota, bringing truth where error now reigns unchallenged, and light in the midst of unillumined darkness. As we drove back to Bogota, and as we passed the long line of clumsy, two-wheeled carts, each drawn by two pairs of oxen, Mr. Allen pointed out to us that the cattle were harnessed to a Roman yoke and not to the American type which we know ON THE ROYAL ROAD TO BOGOTA 103 in the homeland. We had seen the same kind of yoke in Mexico, and it is in use throughout Latin American countries. This yoke is fastened to the horns of the cattle instead of upon their necks and shoulders; it is obviously more irksome and tiring than the more modern kind. Thus were the cattle harnessed in the days when Jesus walked through the fields of Galilee; His words, which reflect the imagery of those fields, came to us with fresh force and appeal. The yoke which the cattle carry in these Colombian highlands is not easy; the burdens which the people bear are not light; no one can witness these scenes and not feel the compulsion upon us and upon our Church to share with these people, who are indeed weary and heavy-laden, something of the light and love and peace of soul that are to be found in Christ. CHAPTER IX GUATAVITA, THE LAKE OF THE GOLDEN ONE THE REAL HOME OF “EL DORADO” Bogota, February 10, 1923 HE legend of “El Dorado” is known the world over; the term has become a current phrase, a synonym for the fantastic and the chi- merical. Over four centuries ago the story first ap- peared, — a tale of a gorgeous, golden city, full of treasure, situated somewhere in the mountains of the realms newly won by Spain. It was the lure of this fabled city that, early in the sixteenth century, drew the three generals, Quesada, Feder- mann, and Belaleazar, from three different lands, the Colombian coast, Venezuela, and Ecuador, and caused them to meet in the highland wilderness near Bogota. Many another conquwistador and pioneer sought this city; Gonzalo Pizarro, Her- nando Cortés, and Sir Walter Raleigh spent much treasure and many lives in this quest. It was the desire to see the actual place where this legend originated that led us in this twentieth century to leave Bogota early one February morning for the Lake of Guatavita, where the real EK] Dorado was once to be seen. The facts which lie back of the legend are few and simple. A chief of the Chibcha Indians, the 104 THE REAL HOME OF “EL DORADO” 105 cacique of Guatavita, every year led in the observ- ance of solemn ceremonies at the Lake of Guata- vita, which had come to be regarded as the sacred home of powerful gods who were patrons of their tribe. The chieftain, having covered his body with turpentine gum, sprinkled this with gold dust, and then appeared by the lakeside, in the presence of a great gathering of his clan. In the clear sunlit air, he shone like Hl Dorado (“the Gilded ” or “ the Golden One”). He mounted a raft which was towed into the center of the lake, offered up prayers and cast offerings of gold and emeralds into the depths, then dived into the clear water, where he gleamed like a great goldfish, while the Indians threw in jewels and ornaments as a tribute to the spirits that dwelt in the lake. When Europeans came to the New World, the story of this ceremony and of the golden man be- came transformed and distorted into a tale of a golden city, that was the wonder and the will-o’- the-wisp of many a treasure-seeking captain and conquistador. The Lake of Guatavita is situated in the moun- tains about fifty miles northeast of Bogota, and about 1500 feet above it. To reach it, on Febru- ary 9, we drove forty-five miles on the highway that leads to Belen; then turned off to go to the little town of Sesquile, a mile from the main road, and to San José, a mile farther on, where we took horses for the ride of five miles over broken trails to the lake. , We rode up a corduroy clay road, with walls of 106 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN tapia pisada, “tamped-down earth,” that are visible everywhere in this section of the country and are even used in the building of houses; up a wide valley with cultivated fields; then over the ridge and through a narrower valley, with rough hillsides like those of the Scottish highlands, where we almost expected to see heather blooming on the slopes. After an hour’s riding, the trail turned sharply to the right; we rode down into and through a narrow defile, overgrown with vines and trees. Then some one called, “ Guatavita!”’ and we saw before us, through the tangled branches, the shining waters of this well-guarded lake, a circular body of water, hardly larger than a wide pool, cupped in the crater of an extinct volcano, and fed by springs that trickled down from the encircling hills or that bubbled up from the depths of the lake. On the western side of the crater, opposite us, was the valley of this inflowing stream, and down this valley, which was scarcely less steep in slope than the rim of hills on all sides of the lake, tradition says the chief of Guatavita and his Indians came to take part in the picturesque ceremony of El Dorado. As we faced the west, there were no visible signs of man’s handiwork along the shore or on the hill- sides which bounded the lake. But when we turned to study the path by which we had come, we saw we had entered by a great gash which had been cut in the rocky rim of the lake, in order that its waters might be drained and any treasure hidden there might be recovered. By the side of the road ‘sdayaos oansved} Ulopout Aq [TBM uUreyUNOUT UL yD Ysed IY} 2}0N ‘opRiod [WH JO euIOY [Ret sy} ‘Ras ay} BADGE JooJ PUBSNOY} Us} puR pUPTUL So[rut Ayyy poipuny OMT, VLIAVLVOAD AMVT THE REAL HOME OF “EL DORADO” 107 we had come down there were an enormous winch, coils of wire cable, and a huge dredging bucket, abandoned tools of the English company of treas- ure seekers. On one side we saw signs of a tunnel that had been driven through the hill below this cliff, and so out to the slope along which we had come. But in these two engineering endeavors of fortune hunters more gold has been sunk than has been taken out of the lake; the efforts have been abandoned; the level of the water is slowly creep- ing up to its one-time height within its encircling walls. We wished for a picture of the lake from the summit of the crater, and so Mr. Allan and I fol- lowed the deer paths halfway around the shore, until we came to the inlet on the western side. We climbed the bluff which lifts itself almost perpen- dicularly from the water, and after some effort, due to particularly tenacious thorns, vines, and underbrush, and to the fact that we were more than 11,000 feet above sea level, we reached the top, and so won an exhilarating and inclusive view of the lake, the surrounding crater, and the mountain ranges that stretched away on every horizon. When we descended by the old Indian avenue of approach down the valley of the inflowing stream, we could not resist the temptation to imitate the cacique and dive, EK] Dorado-like, into the cooling waters at the mouth of the stream; then we circled the lake, which is from one third to one half a mile in diameter, and rejoined our companions. There was a seclusion, and a peace, and an air 108 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of sweetness and repose over all that will linger long in our hearts and memories. If this lake were in any other country but Colombia, it would be made the Mecca of tourists and hotel keepers; a boulevard for travelers would be built to it; a tea room and inn would stand upon its shore; adver- tisements would doubtless decorate and desecrate its quiet hills. But we were glad we could see it as it had existed for the past four hundred and per- haps four thousand years; with no sign of life or human habitation, the only paths along its shores the trails marked by the deer that come down in the cool and quiet of the evening to drink and to wade in its crystal waters. One of the Bogota missionaries, Mrs. A. M. Allan, has caught the spirit of the place in a bit of verse written after a visit to this secluded tarn: “Deep in the mountain fastnesses Gleameth its water fair; Each ripple silver-shod, Lifts up its face to God, And brooding peace doth fill the quiet air.” Such an atmosphere of peace and of sanctity hovers about the wide plain surrounding Stone- henge in England, where gathered the Druids and their predecessors in their strange, forgotten worship; it is apparent in the wooded hills and half- hidden temples of the great Daibutsu at Nara in Japan; it is present in the wooded enclosures that surround the Altar and Temple of Heaven in Peking. Side by side with the memory pictures THE REAL HOME OF “EL DORADO” 109 of these ancient shrines, will always be the vision of the peaceful Lake of Guatavita, the scene of the glory of “the Golden One,” who, for a brief half century, became a world-absorbing reality, and has since faded to a byword and a tale for the children’s hour. The glory of the cacique and his chieftains has gone; but the quiet glory of the woods and of the water, the mountains and the sky, remains, and we are grateful for their memory. Before leaving for Bogota, we turned to the prayer calendar of our Church and in the quiet of the evening, on that still lake shore, which had been the scene of oblations to other gods, we prayed to the Father of all for the children and for the work of His Church at home and abroad; and espe- cially that, through the fidelity of missionaries on the field, and through the faith of the Church in the homeland, the true and righteous ordinances of the Lord, which are more to be desired than gold, even than much fine gold, might be written in the hearts and lives of all those who now live and work in the land of El Dorado. CHAPTER X BOGOTA, “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” En Route to Meprvuin, CoLtomBia February 13, 1923 N the Saint Nicholas, which I read when a boy, there was a story entitled “ Chris and the Won- derful Lamp,” which tells of the magic power of this lamp when properly manipulated by its owner, in summoning genii who would perform extraordi- nary feats, including the building of palaces and cities at will. There was a picture which I still remember vividly, of one of these magic palaces which had been brought into being by one of the genii and set down by him in a vacant and unin- habited field. The first sight of Bogota recalls that picture. Surrounding this inland capital there is the same atmosphere of unreality which characterized that fanciful creation of juvenile fiction. Perhaps this atmosphere is due to the legends and the mystery that were associated with the hidden empire of the Chibchas who lived in that high plateau for so long a time without discovery. Perhaps it is due to the mythical and marvelous tales about EK] Dorado (the City of Gold), that existed somewhere in that in- accessible region. Perhaps the feeling is due to 110 “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 111 the experiences of the long journey inland from the coast through primeval and practically unin- habited jungle, where it seemed impossible to con- ceive of the existence of a modern city of nearly 150,000 inhabitants, situated 900 miles from the coast, and 9,000 feet above the sea. The first sight of Bogota comes then as an apparition, a glimpse of a genii-constructed collection of palaces, that at a slight twist of the magic lamp, might vanish into thin air leaving only the empty jungle and plain behind. The next impression that comes to one of Bo- gota is that of its detachment and isolation from the rest of the world, and of its consequent conserva- tism and devotion to customs that elsewhere have been outgrown or transformed. The barred win- dows of the houses are built higher from the side- walks and street than in other Colombian and Latin-American cities, and the iron grilles are fully five feet from the ground. These windows afford practically the only meeting place of the young people of the better class, and after four o'clock many such windows are occupied by one or more expectant sefioritas. Many of the women still wear only black when they appear upon the street or in public places, and it is a common sight to see them in black mantillas returning from mass. When women ride, the sidesaddle is nearly everywhere in evidence. As far as I could observe, Bogota and its inhabitants are more conservative than Peking and the Chinese in their attitude toward the social relationships of men and women. But despite this 112 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN isolation and separation from the forward-moving currents of world thought and progress, the people walk the streets with a certain dignity and com- posure, confident in their important position as Bogotdnos, both in relation to Colombia and to the world. From an artistic standpoint, certainly, they have reason to be proud of their city, for it can claim one of the most picturesque and beautiful settings in the world. Built at the foot of the two imposing mountains of Guadalupe and Monserrat it stretches down over the fertile plateau, its red-tiled roofs and white-walled houses half hidden by groves of handsome eucalyptus, cedars, and pines. ‘The plazas are well laid out and are beautified by shrubs, gardens, and groves; they also contain many monu- ments of unique historic interest. Flowers of every hue grow profusely in this upland plateau: mam- moth roses, violets, lilies, and orchids without number and certainly without New York prices. In a little inclosure, guarded by cypress trees and hedges and by two Norfolk Island pines, that re- mind one of the natural surroundings of Wash- ington’s tomb at Mt. Vernon, are the simple and impressive monument and grave of Jiménez de Quesada. A well-turned white marble shaft about six feet in height surmounted by a marble urn, representing the receptacle in which his ashes were brought from Mariquita and from the cathedral in Bogota, mark the grave. On the monument are chiseled the simple inscriptions, “ Jiménez de Que- sada — Al Fundador de Santa Fe de Bogota” — “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 118 and his own words, “ Hapecto resurrectionem mor- tuorum.’ In a little valley which borders the foot of the mountains, is the quinta, or estate, assigned to Bolivar when he came to the city in 1819, at the head of his troops, the conqueror of the Spanish power, which Quesada had set up nearly 300 years before. Bordering the central plaza of the city is the building of the National Capitol, with its fine Corinthian columns, and on the other side of the square, the great cathedral of Bogota that over- shadows the capital building and all other struc- tures, just as the influence and power of the Church overtops and places its mark upon all civil power and upon all the social life of the people. One morning before sunrise, Mr. Allan and I climbed Monserrat, which towers 1200 feet above the city, and from the place of vantage at its top, we saw the whole sabana of Bogota and the sur- rounding mountain ranges spread before us. The houses of the city at first were hidden by a thick mist, only the rows of the eucalpytus trees rising through the covering cloud. Mr. Allan, whose home is in Scotland, remarked that the scene looked like a field in Argyleshire, in the Scottish High- lands, that had been covered by a four-foot fall of snow, with the eucalyptus trees appearing like Scottish hedgerows above the white blanket. We looked toward the west to glimpse if possible Mount Ruiz and Mount Tolima, that rise 18,600 and 18,400 feet above the sea. They are 125 miles away, but as the sun rose higher and the light be- came stronger, we saw clearly for a few fleeting 114 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN minutes, these two great snow-capped peaks, with the mighty range of the Eastern Cordillera of the Andes stretching between them. Then the distant haze hid them from our sight. Below us, the mist dissolved and the residences and governmental buildings and cathedrals of Bogota stood out in clear outline. As we gazed, we thought the name given to this plateau by Quesada when he first emerged upon it, was amply justified, Hl Valle de los Alcazares, “'The Valley of the Palaces.” Words written upon another mountain top, of almost similar name, the European Montserrat, picture equally well the scene and atmosphere of this South American vista: “Peace waits among the hills; I have drunk peace Here, where the blue air fills The great cup of the hills, And fills with peace. “ Beneath the earth and sky, I have seen the earth Like a dark cloud go by, And fade out of the sky; There, was no more earth. “ Light fills the hills with God, Wind with His breath, And here, in His abode, Light, wind, and air praise God, And this poor breath.” “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 115 This myth-surrounded, detached, and beautiful city of Bogota is the capital of Colombia. As Bar- ranquilla is the Shanghai of Colombia, so Bogota is its Peking. It is the political capital, for there the president, the members of the national congress, and highest officials have their residence and seat of office. It is the ecclesiastical capital, which state- ment, by virtue of the Concordat of 1887 between Colombia and the Holy See, is but a repetition of the preceding one, for Church and State, re- ligion and politics, are almost synonymous terms in Colombia. It is the educational capital; there are the highest governmental colleges and universities, and thither flock groups of students from prac- tically every Department. Finally, it is the largest city and the center of the largest population in the country. The population of Bogota is estimated at 140,- 000; on the plateau where it is situated is gathered the largest grouping of Colombians in the country, the population of the four Departments closely related to Bogota being nearly two million. In this city and this section of the country, it can be said, as truly as of the city and valley of Mexico, that here beats the heart of the ancient empire of its Indian inhabitants; and here beats the heart of Colombia to-day. In this capital city of Bogota, the work of our Presbyterian Mission was founded. The circum- stances of that founding were unique. Colonel James Fraser was a member of the British Legion which fought with the Colombian soldiers under 116 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Bolivar, against the Spanish armies, and helped Colombia to win its independence and freedom. Colonel Fraser was a Protestant, and after that independence was won, he saw the need of the contribution which the Protestant movement would make in the building of a true republic, so he wrote to Scotland to suggest that a Scotch- Presbyterian missionary society there enter this work. It was not possible for the organization to accept this invitation, and Colonel Fraser then wrote to New York and invited the Presbyterian Board to send missionaries to Colombia. Our ‘Board accepted the invitation and on June 20, 1856, Rev. H. B. Pratt arrived in Bogota; in 1858, he visited Santander; then opened a school for boys in Bogota, with an enrollment of fifteen students, Colonel Fraser and his daughters sup- porting him strongly in this work. In the same year Rev. Samuel M. Sharpe reached Bogota, and the following year, Mr. Pratt returned to the United States to report to the Board and the home Church. On October 30, 1860, Mr. Sharpe died of fever incurred in Honda, where he had gone to meet Mr. and Mrs. McLaren. The old records read, “ Hra un hombre santo,’ “ He was a saintly man.” In 1861 a congregation was organ- ized with six members, all these being foreigners, for until 1885 no Colombians had entered the Church. On March 19, 1862, Rev. T. F. Wallace reached Bogota. In 1875 he went to Mexico, where his son, Rev. William Wallace, is now working. In 1863, the McLarens retired from the field; in "(9rr ‘d) BIquIO[O,) UL YyIoOM uvlayAqsetg Ulsaq 0} 9GST UI Y¥1OK MIN 0} UOTZRPIAUT oY} VUIeD ‘UOIBI[ SITY} JO AaoYO UB “daseayy [OUOTOD Woy INGAWONOW AHL AO ASVa HHL LY NOIDAT HSILIVA AHL OL NOILdINOSNI (76 “d) ., esaaaruy) ayy Jo adoyy oy} st pon MON 24} JO AjLOqryT ey, ,, ‘Sprom SAPATOG peqiiosur ote JusuUINUOU sty} UD WOVAOd 40 QGQTUIAATLIV€a AHL DONIMUVN LNAWONOW “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 117 1866, Paul H. Pitken arrived; in 1868, Miss Kate McFarren came, and the next year opened a girls’ school. In 1868 property for a church was pur- chased for $8,000; to-day this property is valued conservatively at over $50,000. In 1869 the new Church was dedicated. In 1874, Rev. and Mrs. Willis Weaver arrived in Bogota; in 1877, Mr. Pratt returned. In 1880, Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell and Miss Margaret Ramsey, who later became Mrs. Candor, came to Bogota. In 1882, Rev. Thomas H. Candor arrived; in 1885, for health reasons he was forced to leave the country with his wife; three years later they returned to Colombia and opened a Station at Barranquilla. Mr. and Mrs. Candor are still members of the Mission, but this year will be placed upon the list of honorably retired missionaries, who have served forty years on the field. In 1883, Miss Mary B. Franks reached Bogota, but was forced to leave after three years. In December, 1886, Rev. and Mrs. J. D. Touzeau and Miss EK. E. Macintosh arrived; for a part of 1888, they were the only missionaries in Colombia. That year with the return of the Can- dors, Barranquilla Station was opened, and the fol- lowing year work at Medellin was begun. Mr. Touzeau is still living, and has been most helpful to the work in Colombia, and especially to Medel- lin. This summary of the early history of Bogota Station is given to show some of the difficulties and discouragements and frequent change of personnel which the missionaries there, who were the only 118 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Protestant workers in Colombia, had to face in the pioneer stages of this movement of our Church. In Bogota to-day there are stationed six mis- sionaries, Rev. and Mrs. Alexander M. Allan, Rev. and Mrs. W. S. Lee, Miss Retta McMillin, and Miss Agnes Russel. ‘The work includes that of a church, a boys’ school, a girls’ school, a press and bookstore, and itineration among the towns in the region from Girardot to San Lorenzo in the Mag- dalena River Valley. The church building has an exceptionally central location in Fourteenth Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues, in the heart of the city. The church originally was a part of an old Spanish building in which were carried on activities of the Inquisition. The building is dignified and com- modious, and Dr. Browning and I felt that the church and station were fortunate in their owner- ship. The church communicants number eighty with one hundred adherents, but this is not an exact indication of its strength and influence. All along the road to Belen and down to Bucara- manga, and in the towns along the railroad on the upper Magdalena, we found people who had visited the Protestant Church in Bogota or had heard of it, and of the truth and teachings for which it stood. It is a landmark, both in the city and in the sur- rounding country, and stands as a signal light to those who are looking for the dawn of a brighter and a purer day throughout Colombia. We were impressed by the comparative small- ness of the number of children in the congregation “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 119 of the Sunday school and church. This is partly due to the fact that we visited the church first dur- ing the vacation period of the schools; later more children appeared. Many of the parents, especially the mothers, would not allow the children to attend Protestant services, but the church which looks forward to a healthy growth should include a large percentage of children, and perhaps special effort should be made to bring them under its influences. Our church as yet has not strongly influenced the students of Bogota, at least as far as numbering them as church members, and there is a tremen- dous need of reaching out toward these men and women who will be the coming leaders of the coun- try. Ten years ago, Mr. Allan led some most in- teresting discussions and held meetings which were largely attended by students and intellectuals, and it should be possible to attract similar audiences, if the right appeals and methods were adopted. Finally, there is need of a Colombian pastor to lead the church, as a foreigner cannot do. ‘There are some hopeful candidates for this position, and every effort is being made to train them and strengthen them for this work. Mr. Allan has been pastor of the church, and has carried a heavy load in this work and in the direction of press and periodical, and in itinerating in the towns of the Magdalena Valley. The boys’ school is situated in property on Twentieth Street, between Ninth and ‘Tenth Avenues, north of the church, but in a good loca- tion near one of its main squares, La Plaza de Las 120 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Nieves. Last year there were enrolled ninety-eight students, with an average attendance of fifty-eight. There were four boarders. The initial enrollment was much larger this year with seven boarders, and prospects are bright for the future, under the able leadership of Mr. and Mrs. Lee. The school occupies an area about a quarter of an acre, with classrooms which are small and dark, and with no adequate room for athletics. ‘There have been no additions to this property since it was first bought, more than thirty years ago. ‘The school is cramped for space with its present enrollment, and there is no room for expansion. An additional lot should be acquired as near the school as possible, to pro- vide for an athletic field; this could be done for about $7,000; additional rooms could be built and a wing of the school building extended on the pres- ent ground, to provide more classrooms and dormi- tory accommodations for the purpose; $25,000 for this additional building and $5,000 for equipment are being asked by the Mission. The Station has also voted in favor of securing an additional resi- dence for the second teacher who is needed at once. A third missionary will be required as the school grows. A current appropriation of $500 has been made for the school until this last year, when $300 was available: it will be difficult now to build up a self-supporting school, as was done in Barranquilla, and we do not think Mr. and Mrs. Lee should attempt this. The Station is asking for a $1,000 annual appropriation for this school, and this should be made available as soon as possible. “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 121 The girls’ school is situated on Tenth Street and Ninth Avenue. It is part of a school and former convent, which dates from 1595. The en- rollment last year was 105, with matriculations this year ahead of last. There are ten boarders. Miss McMillin is the directora of the school, and Miss Russel, who has just arrived, will be one of the teachers. As the school grows, three foreign teach- ers will be needed here; the same is true of the boys’ school. ‘The property is a three-story building, with a patio about the size of a tennis court. The building has stone floors and is not in good repair; the Mission is asking for funds to make much needed repairs, and to put in wooden floors, which, in that chilly climate, should be done. An attempt has been made to beautify the building and its balconies by plants and flowers, and Dr. Browning remarked at the improved appearance, both of this school and the boys’ institution, in comparison with the impression received during his last visit four years ago. Until the school shall outgrow these quarters, it will doubtless be best to continue to use this property, but eventually, this school should be moved to a more healthful and less limited site. The Station has voted to use this property, when the school has moved, as a hostel for students, who are in attendance upon the many schools and uni- versities in Bogota. Most of these institutions have no dormitory facilities; the students room in pri- vate dwellings, and live under conditions which are not healthy, either physically or morally. Abso- lutely nothing is being done toward improving these 122 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN conditions, and we believe our Mission and Church should reach out to serve them; and that this prop- erty, with its courtyard which is large enough for meetings and moving pictures and entertainments, and its three-storied building, with an ample num- ber of rooms, can be used for such service if the right man and woman can be found to direct this work. The press which prints Hl Evangelista Cris- tiano rents two of the front rooms of the school building, receiving rent free, and printing the paper free, in exchange for their quarters. ‘The book- store was formerly located in the boys’ school, but will be transferred to the church building in the near future. Mr. Allan has been the editor of this periodical, which ranks high among Protestant publications in Latin America. Until last year there had been no appropriations, either for the paper or the book room; in that year $350 was available. In Mexico, where we have a population whom we are trying to serve of about 2,500,000, an appropriation of $2,500 has been made for press and book room for several years; $3,500 was assigned to this work last year. The Bogoté Station is asking for $1,000 current sub- sidy for this work, and the needs in a field where 6,000,000 people are to be served, certainly justify this request. Through the work of the paper, Mr. Allan has come into touch with the editors and publishers of the various dailies and periodicals in Bogota, and a number of smaller cities. These papers in Bogota “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 123 include three strong Liberal papers and a number of Radical or independent publications. The columns of these papers have been open to articles by our constituency and we believe there is an in- creasingly important opportunity for the spread of our principles and message through such channels. Mr. and Mrs. Allan have done some dispensary work, and have met the medical needs of the con- gregation whenever they could do this. This com- ing year, a Colombian girl, with nurse’s training, is to work in and near Bogota as the pioneer in trained medical work of the Station. There is a real need for such service, especially among the women and the children. On the day before we left Bogota, Mr. Allan and I visited the public hospital of the city. It was built to accommodate 200 patients; between 600 and 700 were there when we visited it. In the wards we saw one half of the patients lying on mattresses and blankets on the floor. The hospital is under the direction of the “ Sisters of the Presentation ”; there are fourteen of these sisters in charge, who have had the usual elementary school education of their order, but none have had any true medical training. The nuns are assisted by servants in the care of the patients. We asked if it were possible for the patients to have baths and what signal they used when they needed attention. The nun with whom we were talking said that bathing was impossible, of course, and that if the patients needed attention, they could call out. She said the four most common groups 124 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of diseases represented in the hospital were tropi- cal anemia, hookworm; syphilis and other venereal diseases; dysentery and typhoid, these last being especially virulent during the early days of the rainy season; and tuberculosis and pulmonary diseases. ‘The patients with these various illnesses were placed in groups in different sections of the wards; but they were all in the same room, and there was no segregation as we understand the term. In each room were gaudily decorated crucifixes and im- ages; the inmates were expected to go through the ritual of worship and confession; if they did not do this, various methods of compulsion were resorted to in certain instances extending even to actual persecution and acts of cruelty. Happily there is a new hospital under construc- tion, and other efforts are being made by leading residents to care more adequately for children, the aged, and the sick. ‘The Protestant Church has no right to criticize, as we have done nothing to ameliorate these condi- tions. But we could not visit this hospital, packed with suffering humanity, without feeling what a cruel travesty it was upon both science and re- ligion. A happier experience was that of visiting the private clinic, clean and modern, of Dr. Howard Smith, an American physician, and in learning of the services of Dr. Munroe, a representative of the Rockefeller Foundation there. We called at his office, as we had done at the office of the local rep- resentative of the Foundation in Vera Cruz, but in “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 125 both instances missed seeing the men whom we hoped to meet. One of the weaknesses of the work of the Protestant Church in Latin America has been the incompletion of its full fourfold program of ser- vice — evangelical, educational, literary, and medi- cal — and we are glad that steps toward progress are being taken in Bogota. Wide itinerating work has been done by Mr. Allan from Bogota as headquarters. The Station is asking for an ordained man to have the oversight of this work among the towns along the railroad in the upper Magdalena Valley; an ordained man for the same type of work along the highway to Sogamoso; an ordained man especially for student work in Bogota; and one for the general evangelis- tic work in the city. ‘Two men educators and one woman educator are requested; a woman for evan- gelistic social service, and a Station secretary and stenographer. Certainly six missionaries cannot adequately carry the work of a school for boys, a school for girls, the local church work and the itin- erating in widespread regions on the plateau and the upper Magdalena, the work of the press, book- store, and periodical, and the full representation of the Protestant movement, among both foreigners and Colombians, in this capital and largest city of Colombia. The Bogota requests for reénforce- ments are based on real needs and should be answered by the young people of our Church. Additional property needs are for chapels and day schools in different districts of the city, espe- 126 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN cially in the poorer section of Las Cruces, and for land and property for boarding schools in the Chapinero district, north of the city, where modern residences are being erected, and where there will be adequate space for expansion. Already many of the larger Catholic schools have taken advan- tage of the beautiful sites in that section, which commands a fine view of the wide-reaching plain. Day schools will always be needed in the city, but if the Protestant Church is truly to serve Colombia, it should have a school for boys, and one for girls, in the capital city, the student center, which in standards of efficiency, scholarship, and general service will be in the front rank of educational institutions of the country. ‘Throughout the land we found expressions of revolt against the narrow, intolerant, unscientific type of education fostered by the Roman Catholic Church. ‘The Liberal schools which are coming into existence in many towns and cities, with the Liberal University in Bogota which opened this year, are united ex- pressions of the movement. The danger is that the students, when freed from the fetters which have been forged by the dominant Church, will go to the opposite extreme in abandoning all religion. If the Protestant Church — and to-day in Colom- bia that means the Presbyterian Church — could establish at this student center two absolutely first- grade institutions that are efficient in education and permeated with a warm, true Christian spirit, and dominated by Christian ideals that fit the twentieth century, it would perform an inexpress- VIAWOTO,) NI GOOHLSATYG JVIOHLV ) NVWOY AML AO SHALLVIN ASTANA AY ATINOSHS LV LSAIYd V : VENOL LY LSdldd NVOININOG V ianartat ans | sit me grok “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 127 ibly valuable service, and would ward off dangers that the future may hold because of the growing atheism and agnosticism of the leading intellec- tuals of the country. Despite the slowness with which this program has been taken up, and de- spite the present scarcity of numbers in our Mis- sion, it is not too late for the Presbyterian Church to take the lead in this whole movement of mind and heart away from error and toward truth. The statement quoted in an earlier letter, made by a noted scholar with reference to China, is equally applicable to Colombia to-day: “‘ What this coun- try needs most is the spirit of Christ, expressed through the methods of modern science.” Chris- tian schools, efficiently conducted and adequately supported, can meet this need. We had reached Bogota on Friday, January 26. On the thirtieth we had gone to meet Dr. Brown- ing at Belen and had returned to Bogota on Febru- ary 1. On February 12, Dr. Browning and I left Bogota to start on the trip northward to Medellin and the coast. The days and evenings in Bogota were filled with meetings and receptions for Colom- bians and foreigners; with examining our prop- erties and investigating sites for new locations; and with interviewing many interesting individuals, in- cluding the American Minister (former Senator S. H. Piles), Sefior Otero Fraser (a grandson of Colonel James Fraser), priests of the Catholic Church, and representatives of both the Liberal and Conservative Parties. Dr. Browning had hoped to lecture at the Na- 128 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN tional University, but he had been troubled by a fever which visited him after the long trip to Bucaramanga and this plan had to be given up. He was advertised to speak in the church on Sun- day evening, the eleventh, and the auditorium was well filled at this final service in Bogota. On the twelfth we started down the mountains to Girardot, where we arrived that afternoon. The little Protestant school had just been opened there and twenty-two children were present when we visited it the next day. The morning of the twelfth, in the columns of the Girardot paper, the local priest came out with a denunciation of Protestants, of Liberals, and especially of all non- Catholic schools. A few extracts from the article by this priest will give a fairly clear idea of the type of mind and psychology of these leaders of the dominant Church in Girardot and in Bogota. “The misguided parents who send their children to non-Catholic schools ought to remember the words of the Holy Writ: ‘ Nourish crows and they will at last eat your entrails.’ [It would be some- what difficult to locate this passage in Scripture which we recognize. | “ Listen, parents! Here are some examples: (1) A priest once advised a mother to send her son where he would learn the Catechism. She derided the priest, but twenty years later, she was strangled by her own son. “Listen, parents! (2) A French schoolmaster once ill-treated a crucifix before his class and his “THE ATHENS OF SOUTH AMERICA” 129 wife joined in the mockery. But the judgment of God was close at hand. A few months later, she gave birth to twins, of whom one died and the other was black, deaf, dumb, and blind. “Listen, parents! (3) A young man trained in a lay school, in Libano, paid an assassin $1,000 to shoot his own father. “Listen, parents! A child brought up on the Catechism will honor, love and obey you; without it, he will make you weep and bring your gray hairs quickly to the grave. “Mr. Allan has just sent to Girardot a school- teacher who was not successful in her work else- where; will the people of Girardot receive those who have been rejected in lesser towns? ” We questioned the leader of the Liberal Party, locally, who had been a general in the army, as to the main principles and platforms of the Liberal Party. He summarized them under three points; other Liberal leaders have supported this analysis in other centers. The principles were: (1) Genuine liberty and freedom of speech and of institutions, for all; (2) separation of Church and State; (3) development of primary education, especially throughout the rural districts. That night a meeting was held at which Dr. Browning and Mr. Allan spoke, and promises of support for the school were given after the meet- ing and the next day by various interested indi- viduals, It was both encouraging and pathetic to see the interest aroused by the little school, with its thatched hut for a schoolhouse, its mud floors, 130 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN and inadequate equipment. If such interest is stimulated by a school of such standards, what could not be accomplished through an institution which might really typify American Christian ele- mentary education at its best? On the morning we left Bogota, I turned to the seventeenth chapter of ‘The Acts and read how, nearly nineteen centuries ago, a missionary stood in the historic Athens of Greece, and brought to its citizens, who were reaching after the true God, the message of His living and abiding presence, and of the inadequacy and absurdity of representing Him by images of gold or man’s device. As we walked through the streets of this Athens of South America, and past its great churches, with their images and incense and preposterous paintings, I thought that there was a call to-day for just such messengers as went forth many centuries ago, bringing the knowledge of the true God to those who, like the Athenians of old, were seeking after Him, “if haply they might feel after Him, and find Him.” CHAPTER XI AN AERIAL TRIP OVER THE TRAILS OF THE CONQUISTADORES MEDELLIN, February 14, 1923 OME of the travel letters which have been sent to you have been written on the narrow- gauge trains that traverse most of these Latin American lands; some on steamers on the ocean or on the river; some in the various Mission Stations of Mexico and Colombia. ‘The largest portion of the letter which follows was written in a hydro-air- plane which was traveling at a speed of nearly a hundred miles an hour and at an elevation of three thousand feet above the Magdalena River Valley, between Girardot and Puerto Berrio. Colombia is a land of contrasts, and nowhere are there more conspicuous differences than in the va- rious modes of transportaton now in existence throughout the country. Colombia has less than 1000 miles of railroad and less than 500 miles of real highways. Yet this country has one of the most efficient aérial mail-and-passenger services in the world. This line, to which reference has already been made in the letter concerning the trip up the Magdalena River, provides a semiweekly service between Barranquilla and Girardot, covering the distance of 600 miles in eight or nine hours, in- 131 132 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN stead of the eight or nine days consumed on the upriver trip by boat and train. Like most of the transportation systems in Colombia, this line is under foreign management or supervision and has been supplied with foreign capital and personnel. The service was organized by Germans soon after the close of the war; it operates under the name Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transportes Aereos, shortened for current use to ‘““SCADTA.” Most of the pilots and mechanics are Germans who have served in the Great War. All but one of the hydro-airplanes are of German make; they are monoplane and accommodate three pas- sengers in addition to the pilot and mechanic, with the maximum of eighty-five kilos (187 pounds, one kilo equaling 2.2 pounds) allowed for each pas- senger, including baggage. Between Girardot and Barranquilla the planes make four stops for gas- oline and mail, at Honda, Puerto Berrio, Barranca Bermeja, and Banco. ‘They fly at an average height of 800 to 1000 meters (2600 to 3200 feet), and at a speed of 90 to 100 miles an hour. In planning our schedule for the trip from Bo- gota to Medellin we included transportation for one of us by this route from Girardot to Puerto Berrio, a distance of 210 miles. Dr. Browning left Girardot by express boat early in the morning of the thirteenth, and I arranged to go by airplane that afternoon, reaching Puerto Berrio in a little over two hours instead of the two days which other- wise would have been consumed. By taking this route, I should gain a much needed half day in TRAILS OF THE CONQUISTADORES 133 Girardot and a full day in Medellin, and we had mapped out our work accordingly. It happened that at the beginning of the down- river trip just a week before, one of the planes, in its initial course along the surface of the river, had collided with some rocks in the river channel, and had been overturned, the pilot and the mechanic being thrown into the river and the passengers being shut in the compartment, which was submerged. There were three adult passengers and a three- months-old baby, which was being taken by its mother on this novel route to the coast. The me- chanic did not know how to swim and was drowned, but the pilot and the passengers, including the baby, were rescued, none of them being seriously injured. This mishap had made the officials of the company very strict about enforcing the regulations con- cerning the weight allowed each passenger, as there was a possibility that the wrecked machine had been overloaded. My own weight, without baggage, totalled 77.5 kilos (170 pounds), so I was entitled to 7.5 kilos (seventeen pounds) of baggage. I had expected to start on an itinerary from Medellin to some outstations reached on mule back over the mountain roads, and it was necessary to include in my baggage sufficient outfit for this trip. My duffel bag was several kilos overweight and it was necessary to extract all but the most essential articles in order to comply with the regulations, which were enforced by the officials of the company with true German thoroughness. Finally, the weighing-in process was complete, and I went 1384 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN down to the bank of the river with two Colombians who were to be fellow passengers. The Magdalena River at Girardot narrows to a secant one hundred yards, and the current runs swiftly between walls of sandstone which slope up on either side. ‘The river describes an abrupt curve at the foot of Girardot and then passes through a narrow valley walled in by mountains on both sides. The hydro-airplane glided down the fast-moving stream until it had sufficient speed to take off into the air and rise above the surrounding mountains. The following notes on the trip were written in the cabin of the seaplane as we flew to Puerto Berrio: “We start down stream at Girardot at 3.45; we pass two stern-wheel boats on the right, around the bend and under the bridge. The mechanic beckons to us to come to the front of the cabin; he closes the front window, and we rise from the water and start to climb. “I feel some concern until we have risen above the valley and have added a good distance of air between us and the land. “My fellow passengers hand me some cotton, and, following their example, I put it in my ears. We turn away from the river course and fly across country. The plane rocks a little as we go over a narrow valley with treeless mountains on either side. We keep climbing to get above these moun- tain tops. “The cabin where we ride has seats for four pas- TRAILS OF THE CONQUISTADORES 135 sengers. Itis enclosed by heavy glass windows and is about four by seven feet. “The mechanic had told me before we started that he had gone through the war as a mechanic in aviation, having flown in Belgium, France, and Italy, and against American troops. “On the way to the hydro-airplane, along the banks of the Magdalena at Girardot, we had passed a long dugout canoe of the style Colombians have used since before the Spanish Invasion; then one of the archaic-looking paddle-wheel steamers of the Upper River; then the modern gasoline-propelled glider which makes the trip from Beltran to Girar- dot. Beyond this was the hydro-airplane. So four types of locomotion and three centuries of trans- portation were represented in that one short sec- tion of river bank. “ At 4.12 P.M. we are up 900 meters (2900 feet). “In passing over the mountains, where ‘air pockets’ are encountered, the machine takes curi- ous hops and sudden drops that are not especially comfortable. The sensations are somewhat the same as during the first hours on a rough sea. “At 4.18 the river is on our right and we see in the far distance a boat creeping slowly up the winding ribbon of the stream, followed by a curling white wake at the stern wheel. ‘ T snapped some pictures of the river and moun- tains, changing seats with one of the Colombians to do so. My fellow passengers had told me before we started that they had made the trip together upstream from Barranquilla to Girardot, a dis- 136 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN tance of 600 miles by the air route, and that they had left Barranquilla at 6.30 a.m. and had arrived at Girardot at 2.30 p.m. They are now going back to Barranquilla. They are Sefior Gregorio Obre- gon and Dr. Suri Salcedo; the latter is espe- cially interested in the project of the opening of the mouth of the Magdalena River. “ At 4.39, the pilot cuts off his engine and we be- gin to circle and drop. We describe some beautiful parabolas, glimpse the flat-looking houses of Honda, and slide down to the water, just missing an intervening sandbar. The boat circles and draws up with a bump on the bank at 4.40. We leave mail for Honda and take on mail from that town; the mechanic does some tinkering with the engine, and at 4.52 we start again. “We glide down the river, rock on the waves of a riffle, then lift and go straight down the river valley, just clearing the tops of plantain and palm trees. ‘The river is broader here and the moun- tains are farther away from the stream, so one does not feel as if there is so much probability of colliding with them as farther upstream. We fly along the face of a cliff on the right, with the broad valley of the Magdalena widening and flat- tening on the left, and picturesque crags and cathedral rocks guarding the distant rim of the plain. “ At 5.02 we are well up and on our way. The old Spanish road from Honda to Bogota runs off from the river and over the mountains, and there is a thrill in passing over this ancient trail of the THE BOGOTA CHURCH, PURCHASED IN 1868 The first Presbyterian church in South America was organized in Bogota in 1861. TRAILS OF THE CONQUISTADORES 137 conquistadores by this twentieth-century aérial route. “We pass over the river, which makes seemingly impossible and unnavigable curves, and I can see the shining line of the railroad from La Dorada to Beltran cutting straight across the plain. At 5.10 we are over La Dorada, situated just below a horse- shoe bend. A boat going downstream is visible far below us. The boat and the town fade from view as a dream vanishes when one opens his eyes from sleep. We are over the flat valley, which is cov- ered with jungle, and looks as primitive and wild from above as it does from the river itself. From the air I can see the mountains on either side, which are invisible from the decks of the river boats. The boats in the river look tiny and seem to move so slowly, and the river makes many unnecessary and time-consuming bends. It is better to travel straight and high like this machine. “I think that this kind of perspective and this direct conquering of space are a little like the divine processes. Such advances in science can help us to understand how God looks at us slow-moving beings, and how we must appear in his eyes, al- ways taking the crooked river channels instead of flying straight, unable to see the mountains of faith and eternal truth that are always there, even though at times the lower level of our lives blocks them from our view. “ At 5.21 we pass the other hydro-airplane com- ing from Barranquilla, the mechanic pointing it out to us in the air. At 5.55 the sun is just above 188 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the mountains in the west; the river, with its islands and branching streams, is on our left; below is the tropical jungle with palms and white-barked cot- tonwood trees, unbroken by clearing or road. “At 6.00 the sun is almost hidden under a great cloud in the west; the river far below us shines like molten silver; and above it, cutting it off from our view, is the broad wing of the plane, stamped A-9. “ At 6.10 the pilot partly cuts off his motor and we start to descend to Puerto Berrio. We drop down, circle above the town, and take the water at 6.15.” We had traveled from Girardot to Puerto Berrio in two hours and a half. Fifteen minutes had been consumed in the stop at Honda, so the two hundred and ten miles of our route had been covered in two hours and fifteen minutes actual flying time, a little Jess than a hundred miles an hour. It had taken us four days and four nights to travel by boat between these two points going upstream, while two days and'a night are consumed in the down-river trip. It took the conquistadores of the sixteenth century an equal number of months to traverse the unbroken wilderness; how would they have regarded this twentieth-century type of travel, which cuts months to a few hours? As we walked up the path from the river to our. hotel at Puerto Berrio one of my two Colombian companions broke the silence which he had main- tained during most of the trip. Speaking in Eng- lish he said, “ My, that kind of travel is quite a jump from riding on mule back!” With which statement I heartily agreed. CHAPTER XII THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH Puerto Berrio, Rio MagpALeNna, February 28, 1923 NTIOQUIA, one of the most important and influential of the fourteen Departments of the Republic of Colombia, lies to the west of the Magdalena River, about halfway between Bar- ranquilla and Bogota. It is the largest of the Departments, with an area of 24,401 square miles, and the census of 1918 gave it a population of 817,530. The city of Medellin is the capital of the Department, with 80,000 inhabitants. The De- partment contains thirty-five towns of 10,000 people or more, and the commercial territory reached by Medellin includes over 2,000,000, or almost one third of all Colombia. This Department, as a whole, represents the most interesting social problem of the whole country, since the meeting of many races is distinctly peculiar to this section. Among the first Spanish families to settle in Antioquia were many who had formerly been Jews, but who had embraced Catholi- cism in Spain, and whose ancestors had lived in Antioch, Syria. Due to this fact, both the De- partment and the city of Antioquia bear the name 139 140 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of that city in which the disciples were first called Christians, and the inhabitants, in many respects, bear out the characteristics of their Jewish an- cestry. They are more practical, more shrewd in business, more self-assertive, and among them the spirit of acquisitiveness is more fully developed than in any other part of Colombia. Consequently, this is the Department which has had the greatest industrial development and is the richest, most populous and most progressive section of Colombia. The wave of colored population that rolls up from the coastal region thins out and breaks in this re- gion, and the number of Negroes is comparatively much less than in Barranquilla, Cartagena, and along the rivers near the coast. The people are generally fair in complexion, some even have blue eyes and fair hair, and in their slight build and agile movements are dissimilar to the inhabitants of other sections of the republic. Medellin, the capital, is situated about 5000 feet above the sea, in a beautiful valley at the juncture of four mountain ranges, and has the climate of perpetual spring. 'To reach it, from the Magda- lena River, one journeys about seventy-five miles in a railroad train to the foot of the high ridge which forms the backbone of the mountain range, transfers to a high-powered automobile which car- ries one over the summit and down to the end of the line on the other side, about seven miles, and then continues into the city itself. Medellin is one of the most progressive cities of Colombia, and one of the most advanced in educa- PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 141! tion. It is said that 82 per cent of the factory and industrial workers can read and write. Out of the total population, in 1918, 12,350 pupils were in school. ‘This would be 15.6 per cent of the total number of inhabitants, which is an un- usual record for Latin America. The second larg- est university in Colombia, La Universidad de Antioquia, is located in Medellin. This was founded over one hundred years ago. The latest statistics available give approximately 400 students in all departments, while the annexed secondary, or high school, has 460 pupils. ‘The National School of Mines is also located in Medellin. ‘This institu- tion has about 175 students and offers full courses in mining and in civil engineering. One of the na- tional normal schools, located here, reports a total of 335 students, 97 of them men. A model pri- mary school building has been completed and is to serve as the model of all such buildings in the Department. The national mint, located here, has an electro- lytic plant and is capable of coining $6,000,000 worth of gold per annum. The Department pro- duces an average of $5,000,000 annually. There are ten banks in the city, two of which are English and one American. Politically, Medellin may be considered one of the most important centers of Colombia, a kind of laboratory in which the Liberal laws are being tried out for the benefit of the whole country. As an example: the Department had a governor a few years ago who favored tolerance in religious 142 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN matters, although he himself was a Catholic. At that time, the Medellin Station had a colporteur in its employ, but he had been forbidden by the arch- bishop and the clergy to sell Bibles in the Depart- ment. The new governor, at the request of the missionary in charge of the Station, addressed an open letter to the mayors of the various towns and cities of the Department, ordering them to allow the colporteur to carry on his work unharmed, and, as he handed it to the colporteur, the governor said, “May you be able to do a great work and take away the fanaticism of the people.” Armed with this document, the colporteur returned to his work, was repeatedly arrested by order of the local priests and as often released by the mayor as soon as shown the order from the governor. On one oc- casion, however, the priest declared that the Con- cordat takes precedence over the Constitution, the mayor agreed with him, and left the colporteur in jail, and the future looked dark. But influential citizens then took up the case and demanded his release, on condition that he leave the town as soon as possible. This he agreed to do, provided these friendly citizens would sign a statement of the facts in the case. This was done and the letter was pre- sented to the governor on the return of the col- porteur to Medellin. The final result was the gov- ernor at once demanded the resignation of the mayor and sent another to take his place, even without waiting for a reply to his communication. It is in Medellin, also, that the conflict has been waged on the question of civil marriage. This PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 143 form of the ceremony has been sanctioned by the laws, but it is fiercely combated by the Church, as it is combated throughout Latin America, and few there be who will dare the anger of the hierarchy and risk the ban of excommunication. Several couples, belonging to the Presbyterian congrega- tion in Medellin, have, after real legal battles, suc- ceeded in securing the civil ceremony from the local judge, but each has been fought by the archbishop, and the judge who has been compelled to sanction the marriage, although merely carrying out the plain dictates of the law, has lost his position and suffered excommunication. The Roman Church finally selected one such couple and decided to make it a test case, evidently counting on sufficient influence to carry its point. The marriage was declared null and void, and the baby of illegitimate birth. In return, a petition was prepared and addressed to the national con- gress, signed by a large number of influential citi- zens, among them an ex-president of the republic, asking that the law be defined and a decision given as to the marriages already performed by the judges. This petition had the desired effect, since congress, in view of the political and social stand- ing of the signers, was obliged to give the only legal interpretation possible, and declared the com- plete legality of the marriages according to the law. The Department of Antioquia seems to be in- creasingly important, politically, as well as educa- tionally and commercially, since three out of the last four presidents have been elected from Medel- 144 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN lin. The present President, Dr. Pedro Nel Ospina, who is from this Department, is a graduate of the University of California and has the reputation of being one of the most brilliant statesmen that the country has produced, and we found Antioquefios in all parts of the country, occupying responsible positions in the various departments of the govern- ment. Representing neither the highlands nor the coast, but a region halfway between, they seem to be acceptable to all political parties and to give acceptable services to their country. In Medellin there are three hospitals, one of which is an annex of the school of medicine and has beds for four hundred patients. It occupies an antiquated building and its arrangements are en- tirely antihygienic and out-of-date. There is also an asylum for the indigent classes who suffer from incurable skin diseases, such as tropical ulcers which are very common in Colombia and are caused by the bacillus of Vincent. A splendid new hospital is under construction, by a local society, and this, when finished, should be of great help to the city. One of the local physicians, however, expressed the belief that it would soon fall into the hands of the Church, as the others have done, the nursing would be done by the nuns, who have little or no prepara- tion for their work, and the real ends of its con- struction be defeated. The principal diseases in this part of Colombia are hookworm, dysentery, and venereal affections. A physician assured us that fully sixty per cent of the population suffers from some form of syphilis, PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 145 and in a letter he has the following to say as to the need of help in the care of the sick of Medellin: “ I believe that a small hospital under the immediate control of the members of the Presbyterian Mis- sion, would be not only a paying investment, but that it would increase very largely the great pres- tige which the Presbyterian religion is daily ac- quiring among us. In it not only your own mem- bers would receive attention, but also those of other advanced elements of our society who would gladly give it help, especially if you could place at its head an American professional whose scientific prep- aration would be a guarantee in this city where American medical science is much respected.” The death rate, per thousand, in Medellin, for the year 1919, was 23.0, and for the whole Depart- ment, 19.3. In 1920, there were 30,504 births in this Department, of which 4,427 were illegitimate. During the same year, there were 13,625 deaths. The Roman Catholic Church is very strong in Antioquia and this Department has been consid- ered one of the most fanatical of all the Depart- ments of Colombia. There are eighteen churches in the city, among them a cathedral which boasts of being the largest building in Colombia; a large seminary is being erected, and a magnificent palace, surrounded by extensive grounds, is to be built for the archbishop. There are also several convents and monasteries, asylums and hospitals, in which the Church rules supreme, and a number of schools are carried on by the teaching orders, among them five which belong to the Christian Brothers. High 146 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN on a hill that overlooks the city stands a colossal statue of the Christ, with outstretched arms as though in benediction and proffering protection to the people below. A lengthy inscription in Latin states that this monument was erected by the clergy and people of Antioquia and dedicated to “ Jesus Christ, the Leader and Teacher of the World.” At night the statue is brilliantly lighted up by electricity and the figure of the Master stands out in bold relief against the dark background of the hills beyond. The conception is beautiful, and the carved figure is a work of art; yet one cannot help wondering how much of the divine gentleness and pity, how much of the boundless love that throbbed in the great heart of the Master, how much of the purity of life and thought which He preached, really actuate the lives of those who gaze on His image. The Presbyterian Mission first opened work in Antioquia in 1889. ‘Toward the end of that year, Rev. and Mrs. J. G. Touzeau, who had been la- boring in Bogota, were transferred from that city and began their work in Medellin. In 1907, be- cause of failing health, they retired from the field and no workers could be spared from other Sta- tions to take their place until 1911, when Mr. and Mrs. Warren and Rev. Thomas EK. Barber were assigned to this work. A small group of believers had held together and maintained services during these four years, and the new missionaries at once set about the development of this nucleus, the re- establishing of a school in the city, and the exten- PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 147 sion of the work into other towns and cities of the Department. In speaking of the labors of Mr. and Mrs. Touzeau in Medellin and its vicinity, another has said: “ For more than eighteen years the Touzeaus had labored in the city of Medellin. They were the first messengers of the gospel to enter the great region lying west of the Magdalena River and stretching out to the waters of the Pacific. Later missionaries have heard Mrs. 'Touzeau referred to as ‘the blessed one,’ ‘an angel,’ ‘a benediction to any home,’ by persons who had no relation to them other than those of friendship. Devout Catholics greatly admired her and her husband. In the fanatical towns Mr. Touzeau was frequently iltreated at the hands of the priests and, on dif- ferent occasions, was refused lodging; but every- where he went, he was a most faithful seed sower, leaving his tracts among the people, selling them the Word of God, and talking to them personally about its sacred teachings.” It was largely due to the foundations thus laid during those eighteen years of devoted service that later missionaries have been able to extend the work so rapidly throughout the Department. The fact that a small group had continued its meetings dur- ing the time that elapsed between the going of the first missionaries and the coming of reénforcements, shows how deeply the members of the church had been affected by the teaching received, and, when the new missionaries appeared, their leader, one of 148 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the first three to accept the gospel in Medellin, exclaimed, “ We have waited long, but God has now answered our prayers!” Since 1912, Mr. and Mrs. Barber have been in charge of the work of this Station and have had the assistance of a number of other missionaries who have come for short periods of service. Mr. and Mrs. Cruikshank took part in the general work of the Station, and, particularly, in the school work, from 1915 to 1919, but resigned at that time to enter the Moravian Mission in Central America. Miss Florence M. Sayer was also a member of this Station from 1917 to 1922; because of illness, she has been compelled to close her connection with the Mission. Rev. and Mrs. W. E. Vanderbilt, who were members of the Mexico Mission for many years, also gave a part of a year to this Station, in 1920-1921, but were then transferred to Bar- ranquilla to take charge of the boys’ school in that city; Rev. and Mrs. C. A. Douglass came from Barranquilla in 1920 and, although at present on furlough, are still members; and Miss Margaret B. Doolittle, a practical nurse, has been giving her services to this Station since 1920. The latest ar- rival, as a member of the Station, is Miss Lydia E. Parker who is in charge of the school for girls. In spite of the lack of continuity of service on the part of those who have been members of this Station, the work has gone steadily forward and has been extended to other important centers of the Department, and the way has been prepared, by the circulation of literature, for the beginning PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 149 of a work in the Department of Caldas, which borders on that of Antioquia, and whose inhabi- tants are in many respects similar in character to those of Antioquia. In the Department of Antioquia, there are now four organized churches. The strongest is that of Medellin, with some forty members. In the city of Antioquia, there is a membership of twelve; in Dabeiba, fifty; and in Kl Eden, about forty. It is hoped that during the year congregations may also be organized in Frontino and Peque, where there are considerable groups of Protestants who are urging that the Mission hasten their organization into churches. ‘The membership in the churches that have already been organized will be consider- ably increased as soon as the missionary in charge can visit the field and hold services for the purpose of admitting new members. The only ordained worker who is now in service in Colombia — the other being at least temporarily retired from the work because of an accident — has been serving the church in the city of Antio- quia, but has now accepted a call from the congre- gation in Medellin and will soon take up his work in this city. Another national worker, a licentiate, is in charge of the work in Dabeiba. In addition to these four organized churches, there are fifteen preaching places in which services are conducted with considerable regularity, and occasional services have been held in many others. Three schools are carried on by the Station, as follows: one in Medellin, with twenty children; one 150 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN in Antioquia, with twenty-five, and another in Dabeiba with twenty-five. Another is being opened in Las Cruces and some twenty children are ex- pected to enroll. The Mission has voted to estab- lish the theological seminary, for all Colombia, in this city. | The reasons for this last-named action are largely social and racial. Medellin is halfway between the coast and the high interior, the people from Antioquia are acceptable in all parts of the re- public, and it was believed that ministers prepared here could enter the work in any section and be well received by the people. The racial question also enters in. Practically all our membership along the coast are Negroes or mulattoes. In Bogota, Bucaramanga, and other high regions, there are but few who give evidence of African descent. In Medellin there are many, but the ma- jority are white, and there is no predisposition in favor of either race. The climate is also a deter- mining factor in favor of Medellin, since here it is eternal spring, while Bogota, 8,800 feet above the sea, 1s always cold, too cold for those used to the heat of the coast, and Barranquilla offers no cli- matic attractions to those who live in the uplands. It is needless to say that these activities have recently stirred the resident archbishop. In a pas- toral letter, published in the local papers just as we reached the city, this man solemnly warns his flock against the Protestants and pronounces ex- communication on all who in any way cultivate acquaintance with them. His letter, too long for RoLeuly YN Jo susyyV ,, ey} UL Skog OZ [OOYDS JURYSe}OIg ATUO UJ, VLODOd LV TOOHOS SAO AML Page SG een we ee A, ian 0 eee D Aika - \ é . is i. AMY, : 2 - € . ‘ P a ~ PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 151 full quotation here, is interesting as showing the obscurantism still dominant in the minds of the leaders of the Church and their utter disregard of individual conscience and the liberal spirit of the times. One of the leading lawyers of the city, a senator of the republic, a member of the Liberal Party, with whom we lunched, rather gleefully com- mented on this letter, remarking that it was only fair for the Protestants to get a share of the prel- ate’s wrath, since the Liberals had been receiving his undivided attention for some years and would be glad of a respite! In the pastoral letter referred to, after bestowing its full meed of praise on his own Church, he pays his compliments to the Protestants as follows: “ Since the early ages of the Church there have not been lacking men who have taken on them- selves the Satanic office of disseminating heresy among the faithful and have succeeded in seducing many of the unwary. This is the work of the Protestants in our own days, of whose propaganda you must be unusually wary.... Faith is the foundation of salvation, since ‘ without faith it is impossible to please God.’ . ... But faith alone is not sufficient; good works are necessary, as Christ taught and the Apostle James says: ‘ Man is justi- fied by works and not by faith alone, as a body without the soul is dead so also faith without work is dead.’ Therefore, the apostle teaches that for salvation works are necessary, since faith alone is not sufficient, and this divine teaching is opposed to one of the principal heresies of the Protestants 152 MODERN. MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN who say that faith alone is sufficient. Luther, in horrible blasphemy, said, ‘He who believes firmly may sin as much as he wishes.’ ”’ The prelate concludes his lengthy epistle with these words: “Thus you see, beloved children in the Lord, that there can be no greater consolation than that of having a Master so good as is Jesus Christ our Lord; a mother like the most holy Virgin; and a guide like the Holy Mother Church which can make no mistakes. “ But, in order to conserve this grace and this immeasurable treasure of spiritual good, do not put yourselves in danger of losing your faith. Hear, what we have so often repeated, that it is ab- solutely forbidden to attend the preaching services of the Protestants, take part in their acts of wor- ship, read or distribute their Bibles, pamphlets, booklets, periodicals, or portions destined to hereti- cal propaganda, since, in addition to committing a mortal sin, one easily falls under the ban of excommunication reserved as a special arm of the Pope against those who favor any form of heresy. “Remember that it is prohibited, under pain of excommunication which is reserved to us, to put your children in the school of the Protestants.” This pastoral is signed by the Archbishop of Medellin, bears the date of February 2, and was published in Hl Colombiano of Medellin, under date of February 12-13, 1923. Acts of direct persecution of our missionaries PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 153 and the destruction of the Bibles which they have tried to circulate among the people have not been lacking. Rev. C. A. Douglass gives the following interesting description of one such scene which seems to carry one back to the Middle Ages, to the autos-de-fé which were carried out under the auspices of the Holy Inquisition. He says: “ My object on a recent evangelistic trip was to visit a number of towns that had never been visited by a missionary. About midday on Wednesday came the most exciting event of the trip. A man known to us to be a traveling merchant came to us and wished to buy a number of our Bibles and portions to sell at the farmhouses in the mountains around about. This man took stock of all we had, then closed the bargain accepting the whole quan- tity at the price named. Soon a boy came running in, crying, ‘They are burning the Bibles!’ I snatched up my kodak and ran out to the Plaza which was near, and sure enough, there in front of the Church they had a pile of straw burning and they had all of the Bibles we had just sold to the trader and they were tearing them to pieces and dropping them on the fire. The priest was stand- ing there directing them, and two policemen were watching to see that not a leaf escaped the fire. When they saw the kodak they seemed pleased, and the priest especially, for he pulled his cassock straight and smoothed it out and posed for the picture. “ After I took the picture I tried to get some leaves of the Bible half-burned, . . . but the po- 154 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN licemen watched until the last bit of paper was reduced to ashes. The crowd under the direction of the priest gave a number of ‘ Hurrahs’ for the Church, for the Virgin, for the Pope, for the nuns, and one for the priest. His action was very much disapproved by many of the Conservatives, or Church Party, as there is much sentiment in our favor in that town and many who openly say that they will gladly receive us and listen to our mes- sage when we return.” That a more liberal spirit is developing in this Department is evidenced by the attitude of the leading men toward the new currents of thought. Some five years ago, one of their physicians, just returned from the United States, was scheduled to give a course of three lectures in the University. He succeeded in giving but one and then found it impossible to continue. It developed that he had described, in his first address, a Sunday scene of Fifth Avenue, New York, where the people walk along together and drop into their various churches with no thought or act of personal enmity because of their different ecclesiastical affiliations. He added that it ought to be possible to do this in Colombia. For this reason, he found the Univer- sity closed to him for further lectures. But the mental attitude of the community has changed. About a year ago one of the woman teachers of the city spoke to an enthusiastic audience in the Univer- sity at Antioquia and people sat up and rubbed their eyes to make sure they saw right, for never before had a woman spoken from this plat- PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 155 form, or, possibly, in any one of the state uni- versities. On our arrival in the city, we set plans in motion looking to the giving of a lecture in this University. We were speaking every night in the little Protes- tant chapel, and the whole town knew just who and what we were. However, an invitation was first extended to give an address in the Union Club, on the somewhat general subject of ‘“ University Life in the United States.” This invitation was accepted and an ex-president of the republic pre- sided and presented the speaker. About one hun- dred students and representative men of the city were present and the meeting was held without the slightest friction or misunderstanding. As a con- sequence of the results obtained in this introductory address, plans were then put into operation by the local Society for Public Improvement, a kind of University Extension Committee, to have the lec- turer speak a second time, but in the Assembly Hall of the University, on practically the same subject, illustrated with lantern slides. The city was billed with posters, attractive handbills were distributed, and the daily papers generously gave of their space in calling attention to the coming lecture. There was some doubt in the minds of the men who were pushing the matter as to the attitude the archbishop might assume, since it was known that he might issue orders closing the University to the lecture, or, at least, forbid faithful Catholics to attend. However, the evening came and went, and some five hundred people were present at the lecture, 156 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN most of them students from the University with a liberal sprinkling of men and women from the leading families of the city. Ex-President C. E. Restrepo attended, with his family; a brother of the actual president was also present; and the most exclusive social circles of the city were well repre- sented. The lecturer spoke for over an hour and was repeatedly applauded. When a picture of the Yale Bowl was shown, Mr. Wheeler gave the Harvard and Yale long cheers, ending with three “Medellins.” This called forth tumultuous ap- plause, and almost broke up the meeting. ‘There was so much cheering and uproar that the police came in; the lights had to be turned on and order restored before the lecture could be continued. Apparently the police thought that a revolution had broken out. This was, no doubt, the first time that a representative of Protestant Christian work had had an opportunity of addressing such a group of the illuminati of Colombia, especially in the Convocation Hall of one of the state universities, and the result shows how possible it is to secure access to this influential class of citizens, especially where the proper background has been prepared. In this case, much was due to the many helpful contacts made by Mr. Barber, during past years, among the influential classes of the city and to the very evident esteem in which he and his fellow workers are held by all classes of the citizens. As an immediate result, some of the students called to discuss the subject presented and to in- quire as to further study in the United States, and PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 157 it was felt that a current of sympathy had been started between the students of the two parts of the continent that may bear fruit in the future. A number of Colombian ex-students of American universities were in attendance and seemed de- lighted to have touch, once more, with the scenes familiar to them during their stay in “La gran republica del norte!” The deputation was in Medellin for about two weeks and we had time to go over the ground thoroughly and take up with the different members of the Station the various problems of the situation. We did not visit the outlying field, as we had planned, for reasons beyond our control, but saw a good deal of the immediate vicinity of the city and came into touch with the local congregation and many friends of the work who do not attend the services but have great interest in the progress of the church and little school. We had a meeting with all the members of the Station on one of the last days of our stay among them and went very carefully over the whole situ- ation and helped to outline a plan of work for the next five years. The principal points discussed were the following: 1. The question of a site for the new church edifice. This has been a problem before the Station for several years. The sum of $12,000 has been made available for this purpose, $5,000 of this sum having been given by Mr. Touzeau; a little over $2,000 has come in from gifts on the field; so that this entire amount has been and is available for 158 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN immediate service. But the missionaries had wanted to secure a site in the center of the city, which would have absorbed the whole amount available, leaving nothing for the construction of the building. The present congregation num- bers only forty communicant members although some eighty count this their Church home and the usual attendance is around seventy, and it seemed unwise to invest so much money in ground when the present chapel is still uncrowded. More- over, the sites desired were near the great Roman Catholic cathedral, where the Protestant work would have been completely overshadowed unless we had been able to put at least $30,000 into a building which, even then, would have been but a sorry contrast with its enormous neighbor, the largest building in Colombia. With these facts in mind, the Station voted unanimously in favor of a site near the missionary residence, at one side of the city but still in the midst of a considerable population and on the side toward which the pop- ulation is tending. It is located just in front of the National School of Mines, on a small plaza, and overlooks the cathedral which is a few blocks distant, since it is on higher ground just at the foot of the hill that rises above the entire city. It is hoped that a corner lot, measuring forty-five by fifty yards, may be secured, which will give space for the church and a residence for the pastor, and the cost ought not to exceed $8,000, leaving a con- siderable sum with which to begin building. The erection of this church will mean a great advance for the Station, since practically all the PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 159 work in Medellin, including the school, all activi- ties of the congregation, and residence for the two unmarried women, is now crowded into the one small property, which measures only thirty by forty-two yards. ‘The school will attract more pupils when it is no longer in the same building with the church, and the congregation should take on new life when installed in a separate and prop- erly constructed building of its own. 2. The enlargement of the present school prop- erty. There are some lots at the back and at the side of the building occupied by the school and church, which should be secured as soon as possible in order to make sure of room for the expansion of the school. It will always be necessary to keep a day school in the city, although the boarding de- partments be moved to a suburb, as will be sug- gested later on, and the present location is admi- rable for the purpose. The lots at the back can be secured for about $2,000 and the two at the side, with the present buildings, for about $7,000 each. This would mean a total of $16,000 for the purpose of rounding out this property and giving the Sta- tion sufficient ground, for school purposes, for years to come. 3. In the same way, a lot located at the side of the present missionary residences should be secured in order to avoid the location on it of undesirable neighbors, as well as to secure ground on which to erect another residence when it may be needed. This lot is now unoccupied and can be obtained for about $2,500. 4. In the plans for the future extension of the 160 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN work of the Station, the deputation and the mem- bers of the Station took into account the need of securing land for the theological seminary, which is to be located in this city, by vote of the Mission, and for the two boarding schools which have also — been authorized. Careful study was made of sev- eral locations in and near the city, and final choice was made of a block of some five full squares in extent, located less than two miles from the present school property, on one of the new tramcar lines, and in a delightful situation which overlooks the entire city of Medellin. ‘This is in the suburb known as “ America,” and it is said that the land may be secured for, at the most, forty cents a square yard. Since there are 50,000 square yards in the entire piece which it is desired to secure, the cost would be $20,000, which is the amount already asked for the purchase of a site for the seminary. This would give us land enough for the seminary, a boarding school for boys, and, probably, a similar school for girls, with the athletic fields, and other equipment necessary to such institutions. 'This is one of the most beautiful sites that the deputation has seen, in any Station, and it would mean much to our work in all Colombia could it be secured for the purposes named. ‘The fifty thousand square yards amount to about ten acres and the property is sure to advance in value within a short time. 5. A study was also made of the need of chapels in which to establish work in the outskirts of the city, and it was voted that the Station should look forward to establishing, as soon as may be possible, PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 161 a chapel in each of the following suburbs: America, Guayaquil, Berlin, Buenos Aires, and Campo Valdes. This would mean a ring of chapels about the city, the entire work centering in the church which is to be constructed within the city limits. An average of $3,000 will be required for this work, or a total of $15,000. With the acquisition and staffing of these centers of evangelical work, the city could soon be evangelized and a strong work developed in each. 6. In another part of this letter, reference is made to the need of medical work and the opinion of one of the physicians as to its practicability under the direction of the Presbyterian Mission. The Station voted to ask the Board for $1,500 with which to establish a central dispensary, pref- erably in some property owned by the Board within the city, its work to be extended to the chapels already mentioned in paragraph 5. Miss Doolittle is doing considerable medical and nurs- ing work, both in the city and in the outlying districts, but a well-equipped central dispensary would be of great help and, as much as any other one thing, would tend to establish confidence in our work among the people of the city. The English- speaking community, in appreciation of Miss Doo- little’s work, recently presented her with a riding horse which she is using now for her visits to those in need. 7. 'The above property investments presuppose the appointment of a larger staff of missionaries, and it was voted to ask for the following: two or- 162 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN dained men with field experience for the seminary; one ordained man for itineration; one man for the boys’ boarding school which should be started soon; one woman educator; one physician; and one trained nurse. ‘This means an increase of twelve missionaries for this Station, counting that the or- dained men, the educator, and the physician are married. But as we have seen the splendid oppor- tunity of the field, the unusual beginnings already made with such insufficient equipment and staff, the confidence in which our missionaries are held by leading citizens of the Department, and the evident signs of the coming day when this active, virile people will break with the dominant Church and be left to drift into unbelief unless there is some other influence here to stay them, we can but believe that the number asked for is conservative and should be granted by the Board and Church as soon as possible. Antioquia, as already stated, is one of the most strategic centers of the republic and the Presbyterian Church has here a great field and a great opportunity which ought not to be lost. As with Paul, so here also “a great door and ef- fectual is opened ”’ and it is also true that “there are many adversaries.” As one climbs the hills that surround Medellin and continues the journey to the river, one feels — at least the writer has so felt on both occasions that he has visited the Department of Antioquia — that within those beautiful valleys, especially in the attractive city of Medellin, lives a people that is worthy of the best we can give it, and that the PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ANTIOCH 163 greatest triumphs of our work in this republic will sooner or later be found to center within this re- gion. ‘That triumph can be appreciably hastened if our Church will give our present workers just and generous support. We left Medellin at six o’clock in the morning, on February 27, on our return to the Magdalena River, en route for Cartagena and the region of the Sinu where we are to visit the only Station of our Mission in Colombia which we have not yet seen. During the two weeks spent in Medellin we had attended the special and regular meetings of the local church, which meant a service almost every night, and had been able to give two lectures to the university circles of the city. We had also studied the whole situation as regards the future expansion of the work and had planned a trip to the outlying churches of Antioquia, Frontino, and Dabeiba. Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Barber even started on this trip, which meant almost continuous horseback rid- ing for eight days, but had to turn back during the first day because of illness on the part of the latter who suffers from recurrent attacks of malarial fever. The life of an evangelistic missionary in Colombia is not all joy riding; nor is it free from the dangers incident to life in the tropics. Mr. Barber has had more than his share of sickness, especially of malaria and amoebic dysentery,. and more than once has been compelled to suspend pro- jected journeys through his field because of sudden attacks from one or the other of these persistent enemies. 164 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN At our last meeting with the local congregation there were addresses of farewell, with affectionate greetings to be carried to the members of the Board and to the membership of the Church in the United States, thanks for past help, and prayers for a continuance of this help in the future; and we were presented with a beautiful silk flag of Colombia which we are to carry to the Board as a gift from the congregation. On presenting this flag, the speaker stated that the usual interpretation of its three colors is that the yellow represents the gold which the early Spaniards sought, the blue is the sea over which their caravels sailed to the Spanish Main, and the red is the blood shed in the conquest of liberty from Spain. The evangelical interpre- tation, he said, is that the yellow represents the inestimable treasures of the Kingdom of heaven; the blue, the Kingdom itself toward which we are traveling; and the red, the blood of the Redeemer shed in order that we may enter into full posses- sion of the heavenly riches. It was with this in- terpretation ringing in our ears that we left this little group and started on our further travels among the attractive people of Colombia, sure that here in Antioquia a strong constituency is to be built up and the Kingdom of Christ appreciably set forward in the coming years. CHAPTER XIII CERETE AND THE VALLEY OF THE SINU CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, March 15, 1923 HE Department of Bolivar, in which Cerete and the Sinu Valley are situated, is the most primitive, the least developed, and the least often visited of all the Departments of Colombia. We spent eight days in the interior of this Department after our visit to Medellin, and this letter will be devoted to our experiences there and en route. On February 27 we left Medellin for Cerete. The distance to the north in a direct line is not over 200 miles; if there were a railroad of American standards built to the coast, the trip ought not to take more than six or eight hours. Under present conditions of transportation, to reach our destina- tion it was necessary to spend one day in the train to Puerto Berrio; three days and nights on the Magdalena River to Calamar; a night on the train to Cartagena; a night and a day on a launch to Covenas, and a day in an automobile, making a total of six days and five nights of continuous travel. Medellin is only 120 miles from Puerto Berrio on the Magdalena River, but the trip of 113 miles by train, with an automobile ride of seven miles 165 166 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN and the consequent delays, requires twelve or thir- teen hours. We left Medellin at six oclock; reached Santiago at nine-thirty; took an automo- bile over La Quiebra Mountain which rises 1,800 feet above the valley and makes a barrier which the ingenuity and energy of the Antioquefios have not yet tunneled or surmounted. All the freight and cargo which come to Medellin from the river must be carried over this mountain along the seven- mile stretch of winding road between Santiago and Limon. The road is jammed with two-wheeled carts piled high with lumber, iron piping, flour, and the products of the region, and pulled by two mules hitched tandem, the muleteers, each carrying a whip and a machete, trudging alongside barefooted, wearing tattered Panama hats and with handker- chiefs over the lower parts of their faces as a pro- tection against the dust. ‘They look exactly like brigands of three centuries ago preparing for a raid upon some interior town. It costs three dol- lars to move a ton of freight on this seven-mile piece of road in this primitive fashion, and plans are be- ing made for the construction of a tunnel through the mountain which will do away with this slow and expensive means of transportation. The seven-mile ride to Limon, an appropriately named village hung on the rough hillside, consumed over an hour, as the road was constantly blocked by the mule carts; we had lunch, almuerzo, at Limon, and the train left at one o’clock for Puerto Berrio, where we arrived at seven. The express boat was not due until the following ‘sanoy JYSIo UL ‘[reuL puke siosuossed YIM ‘satu paipuNy XS 19400 soul VYNAIVGDVN AHL AO SHNVA AHL NO ANWIduYIV-OUGAH V a. i, CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 167 evening so we spent the twenty-eighth at Puerto Berrio. The President of Colombia, Dr. Pedro Nel Ospina, had flown to Puerto Berrio by hydro- airplane on the day of our arrival and had stayed at the hotel that night and the next day. Puerto Berrio is an important point for traffic both by rail and by river, and it is interesting to watch the various types of transports get under way at day- break. A river boat usually ties up there for the night; the narrow-gauge train starts for Medellin in front of the hotel; the hydro-airplane on its way down the river is moored by the bank. Promptly at daybreak the boat sounds its hoarse whistle and starts puffing up the river; the train answers with a shrill blast and moves off into the wooded in- terior; and, with a roar and a rippling wave, the hydro-airplane sails down the river. About five o'clock on the afternoon of the twenty-eighth the express boat appeared, a smaller steamer than the one we had taken up the river, but a sturdy, businesslike-looking craft with two flags fluttering at her forward masthead, one red, labeled Correo, mail, the other yellow, with Ha- preso on it; she was flanked by the inevitable two barges; with them she swung around neatly and nosed her way up to the bank, close to two other boats already moored there. We left Puerto Berrio at daylight next morning and made a good run down the river to Calamar, in spite of the low water which had caused several other boats considerable delay. We did have an accident, striking a sunken log or stump only two 168 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN hours after leaving Puerto Berrio. A hole was knocked in the bottom of the vessel and we had to anchor for two hours while the water was pumped out, the cargo transferred, and the damage re- paired. We met with no further accident, and reached Calamar in the evening of March 3, three days and three nights after embarking. It had taken us six days and nights to cover this same distance on the upriver trip. The narrow-gauge train of the Colombian Rail- way and Navigation Company is scheduled to meet the boat at Calamar, which is sixty miles from Cartagena. We arrived about seven o’clock and expected to reach Cartagena in three or four hours. However, in good Colombian fashion, although the road, I believe, is British owned, the train waited in Calamar three hours after the boat arrived, and then moved off in a leisurely manner toward the coast. A hot box contributed its quota to our diminishing speed and we reached Cartagena at three o’clock Sunday morning, having spent five hours in covering the sixty miles of the trip. Cartagena was the first South American city we had visited a little over two months before, and it was good to see it again. After an acquaintance with the other cities of Colombia we appreciated all the more its distinctive character and atmosphere. That morning at ten o’clock we conducted a service for the English-speaking residents of Car- tagena. ‘The American consul, Leroy R. Sawyer, kindly allowed us to hold the service in his own rooms adjoining the Consulate. A fine group was CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU_ 169 present, including Americans, British, Swiss, and Hollanders. Outside, a beautiful American flag rippled and billowed in the sea breeze; royal palms rustled in the patio beyond; and the sunshine streamed across the room, lighting up the white linen clothes of the congregation, and shining on the pages of the New Testament and hymnal be- fore us. We sang the old familiar hymns, “ Sa- viour, like a Shepherd lead us,” and “ He leadeth me,’ and it was good to be there with our own people, in worship and love of the living Christ. Afterwards many of those present came up and spoke of their happiness at being at a Church service again; some of them had not had an oppor- tunity to go to church for over two years. We had felt the need of serving the Colombian residents of Cartagena when we first visited it; now there came to us the sense of the need to serve our own fellow citizens and the English-speaking resi- dents of this important port. ‘There is no Protes- tant missionary or minister in the city, and not a dollar’s worth of property available at present for the service of either Colombians or foreigners. That evening we went to the meeting of the little Colombian group in the suburban district of Ca- brero, which is using rented property for its church and school. We met afterwards A. M. May, who had recently come from the Island of San Andrés, off the coast of Honduras, which is Colombian ter- ritory. Most of its residents speak English rather than Spanish and there is a strong Protestant Church there, numbering over one thousand mem- 170 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN bers out of a total of five thousand inhabitants; few of the residents, except the officials, call them- selves Catholics. Mr. May had just heard of the church in Cabrero and said that he was willing to bring his family to Cartagena under these cir- cumstances; that he had not wished to bring them before to a country where “ religion was in such a filthy condition! ” On the trip to Cerete and the Sinu Valley we had ample opportunity to see the condition of this religion, which the adjective chosen by the speaker appropriately described. The Department of Bolivar, of which Cartagena is the capital, has an area of 41,000 square miles and lies along the coast of the Caribbean, west of Barranquilla and the Magdalena River. It is nearly all flat country or alluvial plain and with the exception of the plain of Los Llanos de Carozal was at one time covered with forests, parts of which have been cleared away to make pasture land for cattle. Two rivers traverse the province; the Sinu, which rises in the mountains of Antioquia about 200 miles to the south and flows into the Caribbean at Cispata; and the river San Jorge which joins the Magdalena River near Magangué. The rainy season lasts from April to October, but the roads are almost impassable for nearly eight months of the year. The Sinu is a miniature Nile and overflows its banks in the wet season, inundating the surrounding country and blocking transportation except by boat. The pop- ulation of the Department was stated, in the cen- CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 171 sus of 1912, to be 420,730; there are probably 500,000 people now resident there. “The pre- dominating type is that of the Negroes who are seen in almost pure type, being the direct descend- ants of the negro slaves imported by the Spaniards for work in the mines and plantations and on the defenses of Cartagena.” ‘There are some Indians, descendants of the original Carib tribes, and some Syrians or “Turcos,” as they are called locally, who devote themselves to shop-keeping and retail trade. The chief industry is cattle-raising. In all Co- lombia, in the 1915 census, the number of cattle was estimated to be 7,000,000; the figure is now put at 10,000,000. ‘There are three distinct regions where cattle are produced: in the sparsely settled llanos, or plains, of the Orinoco watershed; on the high plateaus near Bogota; and in the coast lands, especially those of Bolivar. The last named is the only section with transportation facilities which make exportation possible, and from the standpoint of foreign trade it is the most important. A pack- ing house with modern equipment is being built by the Colombian Products Company, backed by both Colombian and American capital, at Covenas, seventy miles from Cartagena, near the mouth of the Sinu River. The Department is being ex- plored for oil, and a well has been drilled near San Andre, about thirty miles from Covenas, by the Gulf Oil Company, but oil in paying quantities has not as yet been found. “ Bolivar was the first of the provinces of the 172 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Kingdom of New Granada to be colonized by the Spaniards, but the cooler climate and the search for gold, never to be found near the coast, set the stream toward the interior. ‘Thus the far interior was sooner civilized than the coast, and this brought about a sort of atrophy of civilization in the places where it had been established first. Although less than 300 miles from Panama with its modern life, Bolivar still sleeps in an Old World repose.” * The only railroad is the one which connects Calamar and Cartagena. Covenas is reached by boat from Cartagena; the Sinu is ascended by launches and boats of light draught, the service of the larger vessels being discontinued in the dry season. ‘There are plans for building a road up the Sinu Valley, and it is possible at present to drive from Covenas to Monteria, twenty miles above Cerete, ninety miles in all, though half of the road is only a winding cattle trail or an unobstructed plain. Even this drive is possible only during the dry season of four months. Roman Catholicism was introduced into the re- gion by the Spanish conquerors in the early part of the sixteenth century. An account of the man- ner of its introduction is given by Mr. Cunning- hame Graham in his translation of a book on Colombian geography by Fernandez de Enciso, written after an expedition to the region of the Sinu in 1515. It reads: “T notified, from the king of Castile, two caci- | 1 Cartagena and the Bunks of the Sinu, R. G. B. Cunninghame Graham, p. 2. CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU_ 173 ques (chiefs) of the Cenu, that we were followers of the said king, and that we had come to let them know that there was only one God, who was in three parts, and yet one. That he was ruler of the heavens and of earth. That God had come down upon earth and left St. Peter to rule for him. That St. Peter had left as his successor the Holy Father, and that the Holy Father was lord of heaven and earth, acting on behalf of God. ‘That the said Holy Father as lord of the universe had made a present of all the Indies, including the Cenu, to the king of Castile. I further notified them that in virtue of this gift they were all sub- jects of the aforesaid king. That they must pay him full obedience, and send him something every year. If they did this the king would help them against their enemies and send them friars and priests to indoctrinate them in the Christian faith. “This said, I asked them for their answer, which they gave, saying that as to there being but one God, ruler of heaven and earth, it seemed quite reasonable; but that the pope was lord of heaven and earth on God’s behalf, and, acting with that power, had given their land to the king of Castile, they looked upon it as the action of a madman. “The pope, they said, must have been drunk when he did such a foolish thing as to give away something which had never belonged to him, and the king, who received it, just as mad as the pope. They said that they were lords of their own terri- tory, and wanted nothing either from pope or king. I again notified plainly to them that in that case I 174 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN would make war upon them and sell them all for slaves. ‘Their answer was that they would kill me and stick my head upon a pole. This they tried hard to do, but we were too strong for them and took their villages, though they killed two of our men with poisoned arrows, although their wounds were very small.” The work of the Protestant Church in Bolivar was begun in 1910 on the Campanito Plantation about twenty-five miles from Cerete. Rev. and Mrs. John L. Jarrett, who had spent fifteen years in Peru in the pioneer work of the “ Regions Be- yond Mission ” of Great Britain, began this service in Bolivar. H.C. Coleman, of Philadelphia, the owner of the plantation, gave them active interest and financial support. ‘The story of the work of the Protestant Church in this Department is in- deed the story of the work of Mr. and Mrs. Jarrett and their daughter, Helen, aided financially by Mr. Coleman, and later by Mrs. J. Livingstone Taylor, of Cleveland, Ohio. A church was or- ganized at Campanito, and a school and medical work were maintained there. In 1912 meetings were started in Cartagena by representatives of the American Bible Society; a national worker was placed there, and Miss Jessie Scott, from the Bar- ranquilla Station, lived and worked there for two years. After that no resident missionary was avail- able. Itinerating among the towns near Campa- nito was carried on by Mr. and Mrs. Jarrett, and when a national evangelist was available in 1914, regular meetings and a school were started at CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU_ 175 Wilches, a town of about 2,000, a mile above Cerete. When a second Colombian worker was added to the force in 1916, the regular work was begun in San Carlos, a town of about 4,000, fifteen miles from Campanito. In 1917 the Jarretts moved to Wilches, leaving a national worker in charge at Campanito. In that year a group at Laguneta was baptized and regular meetings were then begun. In 1919 the Jarretts moved to Cerete, a town of about 3,000, ninety miles from the mouth of the Sinu River. In 1920 through the gener- osity of Mrs. J. Livingstone Taylor, a mission residence was built at Cerete, where the Jarretts now live. Except for this house at Cerete the Mission does not own any property in the Depart- ment of Bolivar, the schools and congregations making use of rented houses and rooms. In 1921 the support of the work of the Cerete Station, which had been financed by Mr. Coleman and Mrs. Taylor, was assumed by the Board, and fol- lowing a visit by two members of the Mission, Dr. Vanderbilt and Mr. Barber, action was taken by the Mission and Board establishing the Station of Cartagena, which should include Cerete, with the intention that the Cerete missionaries should spend some time each year in Cartagena, until ad- ditional missionaries can be placed there. The field of the Station includes practically all the Department of Bolivar. The Church members of the Sinu total forty-five, with fifty members in good standing in Cartagena. The schools, which enroll both boys and girls, 176 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN have the following attendance: Campanito, twenty; Wilches, twenty; San Carlos, ninety; Cartagena, fifty; Cerete, just opened, twenty. These figures seem small, but they do not give _ an adequate or just indication of the influence of the Protestant Church, of its life-cleansing and strengthening power, and of its reputation and good name throughout the Sinu region. We had the opportunity of seeing with our own eyes some- thing of the accomplishments of those who had been moved by its spirit and ideals, and are full of thank- fulness for what has already been achieved, and of hope and expectancy for the future. Travel in Colombia is generally tedious, often precarious, and always uncertain. ‘The trip to and from Cerete filled out all these adjectives. At this time of the year the river Sinu is in its lowest stages and the regular boat service from Cartagena had been discontinued. It was necessary, accordingly, to locate a launch or small boat in which to make the trip. Mr. Jarrett finally succeeded in doing this, and introduced us to the Cold Spring, a converted catboat, seven by thirty-seven feet, in which a motor of doubtful horse power had been installed. A jib and a second sail had been added and a light cabin built for the protection of pas- sengers. ‘This boat was in the possession of two Englishmen and an American, with a crew of two Colombians. We engaged passage for the three of us in company with the Colombian travelers and looked forward to the trip with interest if not with pleasure. CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 177 We were due to leave at eight o’clock on the evening of March 5. The trade winds begin to blow in the morning about eight o’clock, and con- tinue to freshen until the afternoon, when the breeze is strongest. In the evening they die down and at midnight the air and sea are quite calm. Consequently most of the sea travel by the smaller boats is done at night. We were bound for Cove- nas, where we were to take an automobile for the overland trip to Cerete. To reach Covenas the smaller boats go down the bay of Cartagena nine miles, then through an inner passage for about eight miles. From there on, for about fifty-three miles, the boat is in the open sea, the last part of the route, about twenty miles past Point Tigua and across the Gulf of Morrosquillo, which is about the width of the English Channel, being most trouble- some. ‘The usual time for this trip of seventy miles by launch is ten or twelve hours, so that a boat which leaves in the evening arrives at Covenas at daybreak next morning. When we reached our boat at eight o’clock we found the engine dismantled and in an apparently complete state of disintegration. Dr. Browning and I took our places in the two bunks reserved for us in the bow cabin, which was about four and a half by six and a half feet in size, and Mr. Jarrett later settled himself in a bunk amidships. It was twelve o’clock before the assembling of the engine was completed. A full moon rose and cast its lovely light over all. In the tropics the moonlight is stronger and brighter than it is farther north, 178 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN and in its radiance objects take on a more distinct outline and shape without losing the air of mystery and unreality that always marks a moonlit scene. On this night the silver light shone over the massive walls and picturesque houses and towers of Car- tagena; over La Popa, rising, Gibraltar-like, above the bay; over the boats riding so quietly in the silent harbor; and over the palm-covered island of Tierra Bomba that guards the harbor from the seaward side. ‘The great clock in the central tower of the wall struck the hour as we started, and the moon- light gleamed on our rippling wake as we moved down the bay. Masefield’s lines, written about another scene, fitted this one, with some slight alterations: “'Then the moon came quiet and flooded full Light and beauty on clouds like wool, On the ancient walls at rest from fighting, O’er the tall watch towers that the stars were lighting. The sleeping boats rode still in the night With Me fallen in poo of as A Aye struck ieee and the church bells chimed.” We woke to find the sun up and the boat sput- tering steadily along the coast. The sea, which under the first rays of morning light was a milky gray, changed to a lustrous pearl as the sun as- cended, then to an aquamarine, and finally to a delicate turquoise blue. Palm-crowned islands with CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU_ 179 dazzling white beaches looked as if they had arisen from “ White Shadows in the South Seas.” All went well until about noon, when we rounded Point Tigua and started across the Gulf of Mor- rosquillo. At that hour we should have reached Covenas, but our motor was decrepit and made slow time, halting completely at inopportune in- tervals. The wind had freshened, and as it came from the west while we were headed due south, we caught the full force of the rising swell. At a quarter after two, when we were completely out of sight of land, the motor stopped. Sails were run up, and after half an hour of tossing in the trough of the waves the boat started again. We reached Covenas about five o’clock. The perverse engine stopped as we were nearing the pier and we had to sail in, to the delectation of the spectators on the wharf. The water and the air were both extraor- dinarily warm, so from that standpoint we should not have suffered much discomfort if we had cap- sized, but we were too far from shore, and there were too many sharks in those waters, to make the thought pleasant. We arrived in somewhat the condition ascribed to Don Quixote after one of his melodramatic encounters, referred to by Cunning- hame Graham in his description of a similar trip across this bay: molido y quebrantado, “ passed through a mill and broken up.” * We inspected the huge buildings of the packing 1 On the return trip down the Sinu River, the Cold Spring struck a rock or submerged log, and sank with her crew and passengers. No one was hurt but the arrival in Cartagena was much delayed as a result of this accident. 180 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN house at Covenas, in which over $2,000,000 have been invested, and left next day for the overland trip in a Ford car for Cerete, seventy miles away. This trip was accomplished without great difficulty, though the middle section of the route of fifteen miles had not been covered by an automobile for over a year. ‘There was a bamboo bridge to which we had to lower the car with ropes, and the road was merely a cattle trail which we followed as best we could. ‘The last section traverses great pas- tures, where we ran through herds of cattle and saw the Colombian cowboys, or vaqueros. 'The road had been flooded in the rainy season and had been terribly cut up by floundering cattle and horsemen; the highway had been allowed to dry with no attempt to work or improve it, and the consequent ridges and hummocks were impassable for even a Ford. Accordingly, wherever possible, we left the road and drove across the plain itself, finding it easier traveling, which is perhaps suf- ficient commentary on the condition and care of the highways of Bolivar. Late in the afternoon of March 7, we reached Cerete, a dusty collection of thatched houses with about 3,000 inhabitants on the banks of a branch of the Sinu, the river dividing into two parallel streams in this immediate section. We were wel- comed to the attractive home of the Jarretts, which stands at the other end of an extraordinary, bow- backed bridge. After we had reached Cerete it was necessary to return, and the recurring problems of transporta- ‘(2e7 *d) . ured oy} ssoaoe yYsreays Bund UeAQLOg 0} Opei0og vy Wory pROAIet IY} JO JUTT Bururys sy} ves uvD JT pue ‘saaInd o[qestavuun pue opqrssodut AT VNGYIVG9SVN dad BUIUIGIS SayeUL YOM S1OATL OY} Lo HL 4O MHIA ANVIdHYIV NV Ao ssed 3A ,, “‘DIpwvI w CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 181 tion had to be solved. We had expected to go down the Sinu River, ninety miles by launch or by dugout canoe, to the river’s mouth, and then to try to find some boat which would take us across the bay to Cartagena. On the morning of the twelfth, having made arrangements with a launch to carry us down the river, we arrived at Wilches, a mile above Cerete, at the appointed hour. The Colom- bian engineer of the boat did not appear until an hour later, and then started to overhaul the engine. After an hour’s industrious labor the mechanic had stripped so many screws and opened so many aper- tures in the machinery that, when at last the engine was started, it spit fire and fumes from every crevice and pore. After watching this for half an hour, we abandoned the trip down the river.’ The next day we took a Ford car over the same route by which we had come from Covenas. We covered the seventy miles in about seven hours’ driving, which was good time, considering the roads and the delays in extricating the machine from various cul-de-sacs. In one impasse it was neces- sary to chop out a path with a machete, but we reached Covenas in good condition and were glad to be on the brink of civilization again. We found that we could get transportation on the packing-house boat, the Covenas, which makes a weekly run to Cartagena, and, because of the dearth of other ships, carries passengers and their baggage. The Covenas is a vessel of departed 1 We learned later that this boat broke down on the trip down the river and that those on board had to wait to be picked up, and did not reach the coast for several days. 182 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN glories, and is an example of what unskillful hands, lack of care, and the tropics can do to a once beautiful boat. She was originally the Cherokee, built in 1903 for a well-known and wealthy poli- tician of New York City. A steam yacht, with graceful lines and once luxurious fittings, she seemed strangely out of place among the dugout canoes and the mongrel motor boats and dories of Morrosquillo Bay. Her once polished decks were darkened with grime, ground in by the naked feet of the dusky seamen and voyagers of the Carib- bean, and the mahogany cabins below and the once shining brass were stained and besmeared with dirt and grease and the rust of the tropics. But she was larger and faster than the Cold Spring, and we were glad to have the opportunity of crossing on her to Cartagena. We sailed a little before three o’clock on the morning of the fourteenth; reached 'Tolt, the one- time Spanish capital of the district, at a quarter of four; took on passengers and their baggage; and started for Cartagena at a quarter of five. The sea was fairly smooth and the boat made good time until about nine-thirty, when we rounded Baru Island and were in the open sea an hour and a half’s run from Cartagena. ‘The wind was up by that time, and the next ninety minutes were not com- fortable. It seems that almost every boat or train on which our deputation has traveled has had some kind of accident or mishap, either just before or just after our use of this means of transportation. The mate of the Covenas, when we were in the CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 183 roughest part of the sea outside Cartagena har- bor, told us that on the second trip before this a pipe in the boiler had burst when the ship was in about this same location. The fires had gone out, and to keep from being driven on the beach it was necessary to anchor in seventeen fathoms of water (over a hundred feet), and to repair the boiler. This work required about twelve hours; there was a violent wind and an increasingly rough sea; the boat had thirty-eight passengers, who became panic-stricken, and the whole incident was not happy. ‘This recital did not make our voyage more pleasant, but we finally reached Boca Chica, the southern entrance of the sheltered harbor of Cartagena, and were glad to be sailing up the quiet waters past Tierra Bomba and the ruined forts to the peaceful city at the northern end of the bay. In the five days from March 7 to 12 we visited Cerete and the surrounding towns and communi- ties, San Carlos, Campanito, Ciénaga de Oro, “ Marsh of Gold,” Wilches, and Monteria; we held services at San Carlos and at Cerete. At Monteria Dr. Browning spoke to a gathering of more than 600 people, who gave him and his message a most enthusiastic reception. His theme was ‘“ What Evangelical Christianity Has Done for Latin America,” and the audience was composed of the leading citizens of the locality, officials of the gov- ernment, and a strong representation of the arti- sans of the city, many of these men accompanied by their wives and families. On the day after the 184 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN meeting at San Carlos Mr. Jarrett and I rode from that town to the Campanito plantation and then on to Ciénaga de Oro, a total of thirty-five miles, following a narrow, winding trail through the primitive jungle. We heard owl monkeys howling in the forest; deer, peccaries, and an oc- casional jaguar — called “tiger” by the natives — inhabit these woods, but we saw no signs of them on this trip. Sunday morning Mr. and Mrs. Jar- rett conducted the service at Wilches, while Dr. Browning and I attended the morning service at Cerete; Sunday evening the Cerete chapel was crowded, with many in the doorways and outside the windows. A priest came to hold service that night in the town, and it was reported that not a single person went to the Catholic church. We found no places in Colombia more open to the Protestant message than these towns of the Sinu Valley. ‘The Catholic Church has lost its hold upon the people; the inhabitants of this region are in a state of transition, and our Church will have done them a grave disservice if, after having had a part in awakening them to a sense of higher values and principles, it does not strengthen and serve them in their groping after new ideals and loyalties. One missionary family in a Department with a population of half a million cannot adequately serve this cause. ‘There is an immediate need for reénforcements, for an increase in the current bud- get of the Station, and for the acquiring of prop- erty which will render unnecessary the continual payment of rents. Over half of the present budget CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 185 of the Station, which totals about $3,500, not in- cluding the salaries of the missionaries, is expended in these rentals. In a Station meeting on the eleventh a program was mapped out for the com- ing five-year period. This included requests for property in Monteria, $4,000 for land and $4,000 for church, residences, and school; $10,000 for the purchase of land in Cartagena, $10,000 for the building of a chapel and a school and $6,000 for a missionary residence there; $4,000 for land and property for a school and chapel in Cerete, and half that sum for the same purpose in San Carlos, Covenas, and Wilches. Mrs. Jarrett has done a remarkable service medically among the women of these towns, and the Station is asking for $500 to be invested in equipment for a dispensary, which she can establish at Cerete. A Ford car for travel in the dry season and a launch for use in the rainy season ought to be added to the equipment of the Station. Work ought to be begun in Cartagena as soon as possible, and a budget of $1,000 will be needed in its initial phases; the current, concrete needs in Monteria, San Carlos, and Cerete would justify an expansion of the present budget of the Station during the five-year period under consid- eration, by an additional $3,000. An ordained missionary and his wife are needed to begin work in Cartagena, this request standing first on the Mis- sion list last year; an ordained missionary should be placed in Monteria as soon as practicable; the Station is asking, in addition, for a woman teacher for Cartagena, or for Cerete, if Miss Helen 186 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Jarrett should be placed in the former city; and a nurse is requested for work in Cerete or Monteria. There are no other missionaries at work in this whole field, except the three members of the Jarrett family; in the light of the needs and the opportuni- ties this five-year program for personnel, for ap- propriations for the current budget, and for prop- erty is one that the Church should support. When we were in Bogota and in the surround- ing regions we saw to what low levels the people on those highland plateaus could fall; in Bolivar we saw similar deterioration and degradation among the inhabitants of the tropical lowlands. In the former region it was among the Indians; here, among the Negroes. In the country villages and along the river and the roads the people live in rough huts with thatched roofs and bamboo walls. The children up to six and eight years of age go about entirely naked, frequently with distended abdomens indicating disease; we saw men clothed only in loin cloths, and the clothes which are worn consist usually of one or two garments, shapeless and stained with dust and dirt. We saw two lepers, one by a hut in the midst of the jungle, the other riding along the highroad near Covenas. The scenes in these villages, with the palms and the tropi- ~ cal foliage in the background, could hardly have been different if we had been visiting our West Africa Mission in Cameroun, instead of a Mission in supposedly Christian America. No doubt many of the ancestors of these Negro inhabitants came from Cameroun, and to-day the evil effects of that slave CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU 187 trade hang like a pall over the three coast provinces of Colombia. ~ In most of these towns there are no schools. The percentage of illiteracy is unbelievably high. In San Carlos in a family of better standing than the average whom we visited only one out of eight could read. The figures for the whole town would be between ninety and ninety-five per cent of il- literates. ‘The ratio of illegitimacy is even more desolating. In this town with 4,000 inhabitants, one of our workers who had lived there most of his life said that there were not over thirty couples who had been legally married. The others form tem- porary liaisons, but are bound by no ties of Church or State. The results of these conditions in broken homes, in deserted children, and in disease cannot be described. The Catholic Church has no doubt done service of unquestionable value in holding before the people the name and fact of Christ, even though the vision given is but partial and distorted, and in erecting certain restraints and barriers which have served the social life and relationships of the warm-blooded people of this country. But to-day the Church has lost its grip, its liturgies are dis- regarded, and its priests derided and ignored. It is through the very nature of the lives of many of these priests that the Church has lost much of its influence. The children of these priests are scat- tered throughout the country; the grandfather and great-grandfather of one of our own national workers were priests. The great majority of the 188 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN people live without the inspiration or sanction of any Church. There are only three priests resident on the Sinu River, a district with a population of 100,000. The word “heathen” is not a nice- sounding word, but if it is ever right to apply it to any people, it is as applicable to these people in America as to those in Africa or Asia. And these “heathen” live less than 300 miles from Panama and less than 1,300 miles from the southern coasts of our own land, which is blessed by the light of the Christian gospel in its purity and power, and by resources in life and in material well-being which enable it to share this gospel with people on the other side of the world. If with Asia and Africa, why not with America? If the word of truth and light is to be carried to the uttermost parts of the earth, should it not also be shared with those who are our neighbors? There are those who maintain that missions in South America are not necessary, because the people there already have a form of the Christian religion. I think that one day on the road to Bogota or in the valley of the Sinu would be suf- ficient answer to this argument. What is the Christian religion? James, the Lord’s brother, de- fined that religion which is pure and undefiled as visiting “the fatherless and widows in their af- fliction ” and keeping “ oneself unspotted from the world.” There are many widows and fatherless in the valley of the Sinu; there is affliction which is deep and desolate; in the quagmire of temptation and unrestraint in that valley it is hard indeed to CERETE AND VALLEY OF THE SINU_ 189 keep unspotted and clean. The Christian religion is love and purity; as long as any land does not possess those two attributes it does not possess the religion of Christ, and it is an unescapable obliga- tion, as well as an ever-blessed joy, for those who do have the meaning of service and of cleanliness of heart and life through Christ, to share such in- estimable riches with those in dreadful need. CHAPTER XIV CARTAGENA AND THE CALL FOR CONQUISTA- DORES OF THE CROSS IN COLOMBIA TO-DAY Puerto CoLomBia, March 19, 1923 N March 15 we arrived again in Cartagena; on the seventeenth we sailed on the United Fruit steamer Sixaola for Puerto Colombia, from which port we were to take a boat for Venezuela. This was the third time that we had been in Car- tagena during our two months and a half in Co- lombia. Our previous visits had been hurried and filled with engagements. This time, due to the delay of our boat in sailing, we had more oppor- tunity for impressions of its historic and pictur- esque buildings and institutions. Mr. Cunninghame Graham has given a vivid word picture of the city as it appears to one on shipboard entering the bay: “Cartagena seems to rise out of the waves, as if a coral reef had suddenly been raised out of the depths; it looks sea-born and ethereal, when seen from a vessel’s deck. ... A mass of domes and towers, of houses painted pink, with brown-tiled roofs, gleam in the sun. A golden haze softens and blends them into a picture; showing no outline, melting into the atmosphere, intangible and look- 190 CARTAGENA 191 ing like the mirage of a town seen in a dream. The floating city is ringed round with a vast, brown wall, turreted here and there with towers, broken by bastions and by counterscarps. Great gates yawn here and there in which portcullises are ready, or were ready until time devoured them, to drop upon the foe. All the medieval art of fortifications seems to have been exhausted, as if some De Vau- ban of those days had wrought his masterpieces and then retired, knowing his work impregnable if hearts were stout enough behind its walls. Palms and more palms fringe all the shores; castle suc- ceeds castle, El] Pastelillo, El] Manzanillo, and San Lazaro upon its isolated rock ... and beyond rises the hill known as La Popa, from its resem- blance to the stern of a galleon. . . . As you draw near the shore the cathedral dome seems to de- tach itself from the sea of rose-pink houses, and the towers of La Merced, Santo Tomas, and La Trini- dad stand up like lighthouses above the massive walls and the compacted houses of the town... . No one would feel surprised if there were still gal- leons at anchor or if the captain of the port were to come off dressed in trunk hose and cloak, his rapier riding on his thigh.” * Cartagena is rich in churches which are charac- teristic of the various generations that built them. The oldest, perhaps, is the Church of San Pedro Claver, which was founded in 1603 under Philip III, and was dedicated to St. Ignatius de Loyola. It is built of warm brown sandstone, in the usual 1 Cartagena and the Banks of the Sinu, pp. 125-127, 192 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN massive and dignified style of the Jesuits. On the exterior of the church is an inscription in four languages, Spanish, French, German, and English, which declares that the church guards the remains of San Pedro Claver, who is buried within. Claver arrived in the Indies in 1610 and devoted himself to work among the Negro slaves, being given the title, ““ Apostle of the Negroes.” It is said that he baptized 200,000 Negroes, “besides a great quantity of Moors, English, and other heretics.” Claver died in 1654 and was canonized by the pope in 1888. ‘The church is a good example of the Jesuit architecture at its best, and it shelters the bones of a man who represents the best product of the Society of Jesus, which is known in Cartagena for other fruit not so worthy of praise. The cathedral, an unimpressive building in the Greco-Roman style, is not so, picturesque or pleas- ing as the Church of San Pedro Claver. Within, stand two great rows of marble pillars, which have been painted or stained with varying tints of red and brown, running in grotesque patterns from floor to ceiling. ‘The arches above are stenciled with crude markings in crimson and yellow, against a glaring white background, and the ceiling is painted a sky-blue with gilt stars liberally inter- spersed. ‘The effect is somewhat like that of cheap bunting, and the whole interior of the cathedral reflects African rather than Hispanic taste. A series of mural paintings in the unhappy modern style of Latin-American churches, depicts the twelve stations of the cross and other scenes from CARTAGENA 193 the life of Christ and of various saints and apostles, but nowhere in this church, or in any other in Co- lombia, did we see a picture of the resurrection, or any reference to its fact and its significance. There are three objects in the interior which are less crude and more worthy of attention. ‘The gilded wall back of the main altar, with its golden saints and figures of the Virgin, is characteristic of Spain and of Spanish Catholicism, which is at least artistic; a newly built alcove in white marble, which frames a shining picture of the Virgin of Guadalupe, the original of which we had seen in Mexico, has an air of quiet beauty and tranquillity that contrasts sharply with the gaudy trimmings and inhuman figures in the central nave; and a beautifully carved marble pulpit, decorated with figures of apostles and saints, with marble canopy and winding stair- case, though somewhat floridly colored, is a true example of Italian art which draws and holds one’s attention. There is an interesting legend concerning this pulpit and the method of its arrival in the cathe- dral. ‘This legend says that the pulpit was origi- nally sent by the pope to Cartagena in a Spanish vessel. A British ship attacked the galleon, plun- dered its contents, threw the cases containing the marble pulpit overboard, and then sailed away. The marble cases miraculously floated; the Spanish crew rescued them, and went on toward Cartagena. The ship was next attacked by a Dutch vessel, whose seamen murdered the Spanish crew and set fire to the boat. The ship and its cargo sank, but 194 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the cases of marble came to the surface and went ashore under the walls of Cartagena. Merchants found them there and set such a prohibitive price upon them that the bishop of Cartagena was un- able to buy them; they were placed on a ship bound for Spain, with the intention of selling them there; but the vessel was wrecked and the cases floated through Boca Chica, the entrance to the harbor, and so up the bay to the beach at Cartagena. They were thereupon taken up by the bishop, and the pulpit installed in the cathedral, where it is to be seen to-day. In Cabrero, a suburban district situated on a sandy isthmus to the north of the main city, stands a dainty white chapel built of marble, with min- arets and spire-crowned towers like a Moham- medan mosque. It was erected recently in memory of the late President Nunez; with the sapphire- blue waters of the lagoon before it, and the fresh green of royal palms in the background, it makes a charming picture, and is a refreshing example of an unusual type of modern ecclesiastical archi- tecture. But perhaps most interesting is the famous, or infamous, ‘“‘ House of the Inquisition,” which faces the Plaza de Bolivar near the cathedral. The square is full of beautiful palm trees and tropical shrubs, and in the center stands an equestrian statue of Bolivar, with the inscription on its base: “ Cartageneros, si Caracas me dio vida, V osotros me disteis gloria! Salve Cartagena redentora Jad CARTAGENA 195 “ Carthaginians; if Caracas gave me life, You gave me glory! Hail, Cartagena, the Redeeming City!” La Casa de la Inquisicion is a solid, white-walled building, with a red-tiled roof and a giant doorway. The arch over the doorway is decorated by heavy stone carvings, with a cross cut above what was once the state seal of Spain, whose details have been effaced. In the wall of the first story are small round windows, like portholes in a ship, but heavily barred. In these rooms of the first floor were imprisoned the victims of the Inquisition; there are more iron bars and gratings visible from the courtyard within, and a small doorway on the second floor leads to the death chamber, where those condemned were despatched by the rack, by fire, and by a species of “ Iron Maiden” resem- bling the historic “ Maiden” of Nuremberg. In the cellar wall of the cathedral can be seen the grating, with its iron spikes, upon which heretics were placed over a slow fire, the gridiron now being put to the more pacific service of a protection for one of the cathedral’s cellar windows. In the second story of the House of the Inquisition are the rooms which were used as judgment halls in the trials conducted by the Holy Office. The whole building is now in the possession of a Co- lombian family, and the lower story is used as an office and a store. The contrast between the beautiful plaza, with its tossing palm trees and rustling shade, the words 196 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of “‘ Bolivar, the Liberator,” and the House of the Inquisition, with all that it represents, is impres- sive and depressing. Charles Kingsley in West- ward Ho!, describing the experiences of the “ Rose of Devon” and of Eustace Leigh, who had be- trayed her and brought her to the House of the Inquisition, has pictured truly the facts of that time and place, though they are presented in a work of fiction: “The scene is shifted to a long, low range of cells in a dark corridor in the city of Cartagena. The door of one is open; and within stand two cloaked figures, one of whom we know. It is Eustace Leigh. ‘The other is a familar of the Holy OTICey agua “A man’s voice is plainly audible within, low but distinct. The notary is trying that old charge of witchcraft, which the Inquisitors, whether to justify themselves to their own consciences, or to whiten their villainy somewhat in the eyes of the mob, so often brought against their victims. And then Eustace’s heart sinks within him as he hears a woman’s voice reply, sharpened by indignation and AION ose Ne ‘“ A wail which rings through Eustace’s ears and brain and heart! He would have torn at the door to open it; but his companion forces him away. Another, and another wail, while the wretched man hurries off, stopping his ears in vain against those piercing cries, which follow him, like avenging angels, through the dreadful vaults. “ He escaped into the fragrant open air, and the YOOH NV SATIN AAIA JO UAHLO AHL SALONIW V ATVH V GNV GNV ATIN yY dO AITA@VdVO ANO :NOILVLUOdSNVUL NI LSVULNOD NVIAWOTOO V AGNV NOISSINWOO AHL AO YHANAN V Lh, oe met oo, te te . U = | i o¥i op LA te S » CARTAGENA 197 golden tropic moonlight, and a garden which might have served as a model for Eden; but man’s hell followed into God’s heaven, and still those wails seemed to ring through his ears.” The days of the Inquisition are over, but there is something of its spirit still at work in Colombia. The attempt is still being made to form and alter men’s opinions by force, and to withhold the min- istrations of mercy to those in need, if their ecclesi- astical beliefs do not coincide with those of the dom- inant Church, which controls the government and most of its institutions, both civic and philanthropic. Men have been threatened with the loss of their governmental positions if they should attend meet- ings of the Protestant Church. In Cartagena, at the time when this is being written, there are four prisoners, members of the Liberal Party, which is committed to the principle of the separation of Church and State and revision of the Concordat. These men have been brought here without trial for alleged attempts to stir up a revolution in Monteria at the election held on February 4 for representatives in the departmental congress from that District. The town of Monteria, in its voting constituency, has a ratio of ten Liberal votes to one Conservative, but at the recent election, through intimidation and manipulation, the voting was de- clared a victory for the Conservative Party, with three Conservative candidates and one pseudo- Liberal elected. These four members of the Lib- eral Party under suspicion were arrested on false charges and sent to Cartagena. ‘There is irony in 198 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the fact that one of these four men was a candidate for election as representative, and it is reported that he would have received the necessary plurality of votes if the election had been honestly conducted. These men have lost their liberty and their means of livelihood and there is no certainty as to when they will regain their freedom. Such incidents could be repeated indefinitely. ‘The Catholic Church, which should have a purifying influence in the political as well as in the social life of the country, raises no voice of protest against such actions, but rather uses its power to countenance and shield them. Another recent incident, which is typical, is re- lated to the conduct of the governmental asylum for lepers on the island of Tierra Bomba, bordering Cartagena Bay. ‘This institution is one of three leper colonies in Colombia; they are maintained by the government, and confinement there is compul- sory for lepers throughout the country. It happens that in the Cartagena colony there are sixteen men, with their wives and families, who are Protestants. Under the Constitution they are entitled to freedom of worship, but this freedom has been denied them and they have been punished by close confinement and by a reduction of one half of their meager rations because they assembled to worship. An appeal was made to the judge of the colony and was referred to the central govern- ment in Bogota. The official responsible for the conduct of these asylums recently replied, instruct- - ing the authorities in the Cartagena colony to ad- CARTAGENA 199 vise the petitioners that “the religion imposed by the government in that establishment is the Roman Catholic Apostolic religion, for the carrying out of which the government maintains a chaplain, a minister of the said Church, who will not agree to any other worship being established there. “That the head office in Bogota in 1918 dictated Resolution Number 65 as follows: ‘ The practice in public of any religion other than the Roman Catholic Apostolic religion, which is the religion of the Republic of Colombia, is prohibited,’ which resolution was approved by the supreme authori- ties.” The official therefore instructed the local officials in the Cartagena colony: “1. To refuse absolutely the request of the peti- tioners [for permission to hold their meetings] and give them to understand that if they carry on their plan and continue their meetings they will be pun- ished by the authorities and declared disturbers of the peace, losing thereby the right to fifty per cent of their rations. 2. To make known to the peti- tioners this resolution by means of the chief of police, who is to take note of it and see to its being carried out.” Representatives of the Protestant Church have been refused admittance to the asylum, and no ministers of this faith are permitted to visit the lepers there. The life of any leper, even in an in- stitution, is pitiable indeed, and it is difficult to understand how any human beings can deny them the comfort and consolation of worshiping God 200 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN according to the dictates of their own conscience. Furthermore, the Constitution of Colombia ex- pressly grants this right to all citizens, and lepers have not lost their citizenship. But there was no place for clemency toward non-Catholics in the sys- tem of the Inquisition as practiced until the be- ginning of the last century, and where the Catholic Church in Colombia has untrammeled control, the Concordat takes precedence over the Constitution, and there is no place for that clemency to-day. The story of one of these lepers, who has been released from the asylum, was written by him at our request, and a summary of his statements follows: “The city of Medellin, once a village, now the capital of the Department of Antioquia, is situated in a beautiful valley ona branch of the River Porce. In the suburbs of this city I was born. My parents, because of their poverty, removed while I was quite young to Sopetran, my mother’s birthplace. “My infancy was passed in begging, and with- out any instruction save that which I received from a neighbor. But my desire to enter the priesthood was great, and I carried a book with me everywhere and begged lessons at every opportunity. “When I was somewhat grown up my parents sent me to an uncle some three days’ journey dis- tant, with whom I was to work and who promised to send something to my parents for my services. I do not know of his ever having sent anything. Because he wished to chastise me unjustly I ran away from him, but was in such a miserable plight, CARTAGENA 201 without clothing and without money, that I was ashamed to return to my parents. When I finally returned home my parents were dead. “In the three years’ war I sought refuge in the Department of Bolivar. Living with the Indians in the dense forests I forgot all about God and fell into almost every sin of which man is capable. “In 1916, on a visit to my home, I found a Bible, and at first, in spite of my spiritual destitu- tion, I did not think that this was the anchor which God had thrown out to save perishing souls. ‘This Bible was taken from me by a priest in the town of Ituanga and I remained in deep darkness and confusion as to the way of salvation. “T left home again and returned to Bolivar. My sickness did not decrease, but rather increased, and in Ure I met a man who confirmed my sus- picions that I was a leper. The notice soon spread and I concluded that I must leave the district. While waiting for a means of transportation, I met an old friend, a Syrian, who gave me some evangeli- cal tracts. That same night I left for Ayapel and did not see him again for several days. When we met I asked him where he had found these tracts, which had so rejoiced my heart and lifted my burden and made me forget my sufferings. He answered me, “This is the true religion founded by Christ and the apostles, based solely upon the Bible.’ He asked me if I wanted a Bible; with passion I said, ‘Yes.’ In a few days he secured one for me, and I soon found that in it was revealed the true re- ligion and a Saviour for me. 202 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN “ Under the direction of this friend I found my way to Campanito to the Mission of the Presby- terian Board. There I was further instructed and given other books and finally, with the help of Mr. Jarrett, I was sent to Cartagena where the doctor sent me to the leper asylum. I was very sick for some time but I could not keep silent about my new religion, and I always had the hope of being cured and leaving the asylum. Without any treatment the sickness gradually left me, until you behold me now a hew, strong man, desirous of serving the Lord. ‘The group of believers suffered with me in the asylum, being imprisoned and deprived of their food for meeting together and singing, but God was our help. My experience is a testimony to the power of the living God and a testimony to the love of Christ to whom is given all power in heaven and earth. To Him be glory and praise for the eternal ages. — Luis Maria Carbajal. Febru- ary, 1923.” In the conclusion of his chapter on “ The In- quisition in the Indies,’ Kingsley summarizes the effect upon Eustace Leigh of his relationship to the Jesuit order. Men have spoken to us in Colombia to-day who have used practically the same words that Kingsley used in this chapter years ago. We have talked with representatives of this order and of kindred organizations of the Catholic Church, Colombians, Spaniards, and English, and we are forced to subscribe to Kingsley’s own words as to the effects of the system of thought and of practice of these orders upon the mental and moral integ- CARTAGENA 203 rity and veracity of their members. I do not know personally of their results in other lands; but I do know that these words are true of Colombia to-day: “ Kustace Leigh vanishes henceforth from these pages. ... This book is a history of men; of men’s virtues and sins, victories and defeats: and Eustace is a man no longer; he is become a thing, a tool, a Jesuit; which goes only where it is sent, and does good or evil indifferently as it is bid; which, by an act of moral suicide, has lost its soul, in the hope of saving it; without a will, a conscience, a responsibility (as it fancies), to God or man, but only to ‘ The Society.’ In a word, Eustace, as he says himself, is ‘dead.’ Twice dead, I fear. Let the dead bury their dead. We have no more con- cern with Eustace Leigh.” It is possible thus easily to relieve oneself of responsibility, for characters in fiction, but it is neither possible nor right for those who love God and their fellow men to turn their backs upon the responsibility of service to those who are in such need of truth and light and purity of life in Christ as are the people of Colombia to-day. On the evening of the eighteenth, our ship sailed for Puerto Colombia. We arrived there the next day and had the privilege during our brief stay of visiting again our schools in Barranquilla. We are to sail to-day for Venezuela, and our days in Colombia will be over. A new moon will be in the sky as we cross the Caribbean. Words written by Alfred Noyes picture the scene as it was four centuries ago and as it is to-day: 204 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN “The moon is up; the stars are bright; The wind is fresh and free! We are out to seek for gold to-night Across the silver sea! The world was growing grey and old; Break out the sails again! We're out to seek a Realm of Gold Beyond the Spanish Main. “Beyond the light of far Cathay, Beyond all mortal dreams, Beyond the reach of night and day, Our El Dorado gleams, Revealing — as the skies unfold — A star without a stain, The Glory of the Gates of Gold Beyond the Spanish Main.” The physical warfare between Protestant Anglo- Saxons and Roman Catholic Spaniards, with the jure of El Dorado and of far-reaching realms as the guerdon of victory, is no more; but another type of warfare is being fought out to-day, with a far greater and more precious prize to be won, the souls of men and of nations hanging in the balance. “Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” A man needed the whole armor of God if he were to stand in that combat in the early days of the Church; the battle to-day will require cour- CARTAGENA 205 age and steadfastness and skill, and that same God- given armor. There is the call to-day for conquis- tadores of the cross of the living Christ, who will brave the Spanish Main, to bring life instead of death, love instead of fear, for despair an imperish- able hope, and in the place of sorrow and sighing a joy unspeakable and full of glory. CHAPTER XV GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH OF COLOMBIA HE Republic of Colombia occupies the ex- treme northwestern corner of South America and, alone among the ten republics that form this grand division, enjoys the advantage of possessing a coast line on both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The total area of the republic is reckoned at 476,916 square miles, although the lack of definite boundary treaties with neighboring nations makes an exact statement impossible. But leaving out of the reck- oning large tracts of territory in the far interior, which are still in dispute, the area of the republic would still be two and a half times as large as Spain, or equivalent to the combined areas of Ger- many, France, Holland, Belgium, and Switzer- land. In comparison with areas in the United States, this would be equivalent to the combined territory of all the states on the Atlantic seacoast, from Maine to Florida, plus that of Ohio and Indiana. The Republic of Colombia les entirely within the Torrid Zone, but, because of the elevation of certain portions of the interior, all degrees of climate may be found within its borders. Along the coast, and for many miles inland from the 206 GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 207 Caribbean Sea on the north, and from the Pacific Ocean on the west, the constant and extreme heat reminds one of the seething plains of India “ where the ’eat would make yer bloomin’ eyebrows crawl.” Among the foothills there is eternal spring, like that of Southern California or Florida; and on the high plateaus, which stretch up to regions of per- petual snow and terminate in peaks that rise to 18,000 feet above the sea, extreme cold not in- frequently causes the death of travelers, the inhabi- tants are few, and life is both difficult and insecure. The great Cordillera de los Andes, coming up the south and forming the backbone of the conti- nent, divides into three ranges, on reaching the frontier of Colombia, which are known as the Western, the Central, and the Eastern Cordillera. Other cross lines and high plateaus break the con- tinuity of these three ranges and give to Colombia an appearance not unlike that of Switzerland. Many travelers also find in the attractive and fer- tile valleys of the interior a great similarity to the valleys and hills of California. The flora and the fauna of the two sections are also similar, as are also the Spanish traditions and the inheritances from early settlers. Because of the trend of the mountain ranges from south to north, the principal rivers take the same general direction: the Magdalena, which is the most important way of communication in the republic, is navigable for eight hundred miles of its tortuous course, falling in that distance only 1,066 feet; the Atrato empties into the Gulf of Darien 208 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN southeast of Panama; the Cauca, after draining the beautiful valley of the same name — said to be one of the nearest approaches to the Garden of Eden that man has known—empties into the Magdalena; and the Sinu, which drains the north- western section of the country, between the Atrato and the Magdalena, empties into the Caribbean Sea about seventy miles west of the walled city of Cartagena. To the east of the mountain ranges lie vast, un- explored regions with which communication is both difficult and infrequent. ‘These selvas are unin- habited, save by a few wandering tribes of Indians of whose number no exact statistics can be made. The great majority of the population inhabit the interior uplands and the Atlantic coast region. Along the two coast lines and extending to the foothills, this population shows decided traces of African ancestry; and the skin varies in color from the deepest black to a light brown in which the influence of the dark stream is detected only in kinky hair and slightly flattened noses. Due to diverse climatic conditions already men- tioned, the productions of Colombia are both va- ried and abundant. Along the coast in the hot belt all the usual tropical fruits abound, especially bananas, the growth and exportation of which form one of the principal industries of the region. From the port of Santa Marta, where the United Fruit Company operates extensive plantations equipped with the latest machinery for loading the fruit on its specially constructed refrigerator boats, at least GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 209 10,000,000 bunches are shipped annually to the United States. In the interior, grains and other products of the Temperate Zone are easily pro- duced. Coffee grows in the valleys and on the hills of the lower uplands, and is one of the chief ex- ports. The coffee of Colombia has a peculiarly agreeable flavor and is used extensively in forming the blends preferred by coffee lovers of the United States and Europe, and when taken alone seems to lack the hurtful qualities of the stronger grades. An exporter of this product told us that at least three million bags are shipped out of the country annually, and that Colombia now stands second only to Brazil among the coffee-producing coun- tries of the world. There is great mineral wealth in the hills and mountains of Colombia, but this source of national income has been but slightly exploited. Emerald mines produce the world’s chief supply of this most precious of gems, and gold in paying quantities may be washed, even by the most primitive proc- esses, from the sand of the streams of the interior. Placer mining is carried on, to some extent, in some of the best known auriferous regions, yet it may be repeated that the mining industry of Colombia is still in its infancy. A number of strong American and British companies have bought or leased enor- mous tracts of land which promise to yield oil, and some of them, such as the Tropical Oil Company, with headquarters at Barranca Bermeja on the Magdalena River, are already producing and ex- porting a good grade of oil in satisfactory quanti- 210 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN ties. ‘Thick veins of coal crop out of the hills in many parts of the country, and some of the most promising salt mines of the world are being oper- ated in the Department of Boyaca. The salt, after being refined and molded into portable blocks, is carried on mule back throughout the surrounding Departments. For purposes of administration, the territory of the republic is divided into fourteen departments, three territories, and seven districts. ‘The depart- ments are subdivided into municipal districts, the executive authority of each department being vested in a governor who is appointed by the presi- dent. The governor, in turn, appoints the mayors of the different municipalities, so that the political party which finds itself in power is assured of the control of practically all the administrative machin- ery of the republic. The territories and districts are governed by special commissioners. ‘The president of the re- public is elected for a term of four years by direct vote of the people. Bogota is the capital of the republic, and is situated on a high plain, 8,800 feet above the sea, and about 900 miles, as the journey is made, from the Atlantic seaboard. The popu- lation of Bogota is 143,950, according to the most reliable estimate. Probably the first view of the Spanish Main by white men was obtained by Columbus and his fel- low explorers in 1498 on the third voyage to the New World. On this occasion, the island of Trini- dad was sighted and the cruise then continued into GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 211 the Gulf of Paria, from whence the great admiral turned the prows of his caravels toward the north; but not before he concluded that he had sighted land of continental dimensions. In a letter written to the Spanish sovereigns at this time, he said, “This land which your highnesses have sent me to explore is very extensive and I think there are many other countries in the south of which the world has never had any knowledge.” Because of the great volume of water which pours into the ocean through the various mouths of the great Orinoco River which form a delta as wide as is the distance from Washington to New York, the voyagers were confirmed in their belief that they had discovered a continent. Of the re- sult of the impact of this mighty stream on the salt waters of the gulf, Columbus wrote: “ In the dead of night, while I was on deck, I heard an awful roaring, that came from the south, toward the ship; on the top of this rolling sea came a mighty wave roaring with a frightful noise, and with all this terrific uproar were other conflicting currents, pro- ducing, as I have already said, a sound as of breakers upon rocks. To this day I have a vivid recollection of the dread I felt lest the ship might founder under the force of that mighty sea; but it passed by, and reached the mouth of the before mentioned passage, where the uproar lasted for a considerable time.” ‘The marvelous beauty of the landscape, the dense tropical vegetation, the many- hued birds and other abundant animal life of the region led them to believe that they had reached 212 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN a terrestrial paradise and that the river had its source in the Garden of Eden which they con- jectured as situated in the hinterland. The entire coast line, stretching from the mouths of the Orinoco to Panama, together with the im- mense and mysterious territory that extended into the interior, was long afterward given the name of Nueva Granada, and, when a republic was set up, this was changed to Colombia, in honor of the great admiral. No immediate attempt at the time of the discovery was made to take possession of the region in the name of the Catholic kings of Spain; nor was any effort made to subdue the warlike aborigines. But in 1508, Alonso Ojeda received from the Spanish Government a grant of all the territory lying to the east of the Darien River and he at once set about the conquest of this region. Al- though he succeeded in establishing his forces in forts strategically located along the coast, he was unable to subdue the strong tribes of the interior, especially those who lived in the uplands and who formed the kingdom of the Chibchas, and it was left to Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, who arrived in 1536, to undertake the formal subjugation of this people, a highly civilized nation, similar to the Incas in Peru. The toil and daring of Quesada and his followers; their terrible sufferings as they slowly fought their way into the interior; their struggles against disease and famine, wild beasts and venomous reptiles, as well as against a wily and ever active enemy, are less known than are the exploits of Hernando Cortes, the conqueror of GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 213 Mexico and Montezuma, or of Francisco Pizarro, who slew Atahualpa and took the empire of the Incas; yet they form one of the most stirring pages in the history of Spain’s conquest of its vast empire in America. Two other expeditions, one under Sebastian de Belaleazar, lieutenant of Francisco Pizarro, and the other under Nicolas Federmann, a representa- tive of German colonists in Venezuela, were fight- ing their way toward the Chibcha capital, at the same time, and by widely separated routes, al- though each of the three was entirely ignorant of the presence of the other in the country. ‘These three expeditions finally met on the high plateau, near Bacata, the Chibcha capital, to which Quesada had given the name of Santa Fé de Bogota. There they united their forces under the leadership of Quesada, and having established friendly relations with the Indians, the three returned down the river and continued their journey to Spain in order to give an account of their discoveries and conquests. A governor-general was afterward appointed by the Spanish crown, the name was changed to Nueva Granada, and the region was elevated to the rank of a viceroyalty in 1718. ‘Twelve viceroys succes- sively governed Nueva Granada until 1810, when, owing to a strong sentiment among the Creole population in favor of liberty from the Spanish yoke — a sentiment which had fired the people in all the colonies of Spain in the New World — the last was deposed by the citizens of Bogota. By this time, various revolutionary movements 214 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN had taken on a definite form and acquired a degree of unity. On August 7, 1819, after a long series of reverses and partial victories which might have dis- couraged weaker men, the great Venezuelan pa- triot and leader, Simon Bolivar, utterly defeated the Royalist forces at the battle of Boyaca, and in the final battle of Carabobo, on June 24, 1821, de- stroyed the power of Spain in northern South America. Of Bolivar, no doubt one of the greatest leaders of South America, one of his ardent ad- mirers has written: ‘‘ Bold and fortunate as Alex- ander, a patriot like Hannibal, brave and clement like Cesar, a great captain and a profound states- man like Napoleon, honorable as Washington, a sublime poet and a versatile orator, such was Bolivar, who united in his own mind all the vast multiplicity of the elements of genius. His glory will shine in the heaven of history, not as a meteor that passes, and is lost in the bosom of space, but as a heavenly body, whose radiance is ever increas- ing.” * ‘This is perhaps extravagant praise but to Bolivar, more than to any other, is due the inde- pendence of northern South America from Spanish misrule. On June 25, the day following this battle, Bolivar is said to have written to one of his generals, “ Yes- terday a splendid victory signalized the political birth of the Republic of Colombia.” On December 17, 1819, the republic, set up in the place of the viceroyalty of Nueva Granada, was formally in- 1 Quoted by H. J. Morans, Up the Orinoco and Down the Mag- dalena, p. 304. Angin © eth le Bigot NPSRENCIE Miliddl Wake TEMPLO EVANGELICO Webster E. Br eons SPRESA SEMIS BAZ 33 : tt —s SSS SSS Se. ae SVE ae? STRALY u ei DR. BROWNING AND THE POSTERS ANNOUNCING HIS ADDRESS AT BOGOTA homes etl Sey, SENOR DON CARLOS Ek. RESTREFO, EX-PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA, AND DR. W. E. BROWNING Before the lecture at the Government University in Medellin, REACHING THE INTELLECTUALS IN SoutTH AMERICA GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 215 augurated and adopted the name of the Republic of Colombia. A year and a half later, on July 12, 1821, a constituent Congress in session in Cucuta elected Bolivar as the first president and Francisco de Paula Santander as vice president of “ Greater Colombia.” This included Venezuela, and in 1822 what was then known as the Intendencia de Quito, now the Republic of Ecuador, joined the union of Venezuela and Colombia; but on the death of Bo- livar, on December 17, 1830, this union was dis- solved. Nueva Granada, or Colombia alone, then adopted the title of the Republic of Nueva Gra- nada, on November 17, 1831, and Santander was elected president. Later on, the name was changed to the Granadine Confederation, then to the United States of Colombia, and, finally, to the Republic of Colombia which is its present title. By the terms of the present Constitution, which went into effect on August 4, 1886, the Republic of Colombia adopted the unitary republican form of govern- ment with the respective legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The formation of La Gran Colombia, by the union of the present Republics of Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, is still a dream in the minds of many modern South American states- men, but with little prospect of practical realiza- tion. Of this proposed union a former statesman said, more than 100 years ago, “ United, neither the Empire of the Assyrians, the Medes, or the Persians, the Macedonian or the Roman Empire can ever be compared with this colossal republic; 216 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN but neither of the three departments of Venezuela, Cundinamarca, or Quito [Ecuador] can in the course of a century become by itself alone a stable and respectable nation.” 'The prophecy has been, in great part, fulfilled, but local jealousies and ambitions still prevent the realization of this dream of Bolivar. It was during this evolution of civil government especially during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, in what are now the Republics of Co- lombia and Venezuela, that the most stirring and romantic pages of the history of this coast, gener- ally known as the Spanish Main, were being written. England and other Old World powers had become interested in the West Indies and the adjacent mainland. Sir John Hawkins, Sir Fran- cis Drake, Sir Walter Raleigh, Baron Rodney, Admiral Vernon and other great English seamen, as well as the French admirals, De Pointis and Ducasse, contested the rights of Spain to this re- gion and endeavored to win new territory for their respective sovereigns. ‘These hardy seamen, who banded together as brethren of the coast, made war on Spain for religious as well as_ political reasons and, because of their skill and courage, easily took the well-laden galleons and even gained possession of heavily armed men-of-war whose crews were made to walk the plank or were other- wise quickly, if not humanely, despatched. They assisted in the destruction of the Spanish Armada and gave rise to that great navy which until to-day has made Britain mistress of the seas. GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 217 In 1588, the Spanish Armada was destroyed and the way was thus opened for the English, French, and Dutch vessels to sail the Spanish Main with but little to fear from the ships of Spain. Buc- caneering continued for some time, and among the most famous buccaneers* Sir Henry Morgan stands out as one of the most daring and resource- ful seamen of the stirring times in which he lived. With the treaty of Ryswick, in 1697, all excuse for buccaneering ended, and those who continued their depredations on the high seas degenerated into mere pirates, the dregs and outcasts of a really great organization that gave many famous names to contemporaneous history. The slave trade was also inaugurated during this period and many thousands of unfortunate black people, caught like wild beasts in the jungles of Africa, were sold to the settlers, and their descend- ants have since given color and special race limita- tions to a large part of the present population. In the veins of members of many of the best families of Colombia of to-day, runs the blood of sable kings and of more humble captives of the Congo, and these families lose little or no social prestige in con- sequence. Since the foundation of the republic, the politi- 1 Buccaneer is a name derived from the term applied to the French settlers of Espafiola who secured and sold the sundried beef and flesh of wild hogs used to provision the vessels of the sea rovers. This beef was dried on poles or slats, which were called, in local parlance, buccans. Thus, the name buccaneer which came to have a sinister meaning, had a very simple and innocent origin, entirely free from the bloody associations usually given it. 218 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN cal life of Colombia, if compared with that of many of its South American neighbors, has been unevent- ful and but slightly prolific of revolution, inasmuch as the people are pacific and interested in the peace- ful evolution of democracy. Five such movements may be mentioned, during the course of over a hundred years of national life, although there were many others of scant importance, especially in the early years. The first, in 1840, was a militaristic revolution, fomented and carried into effect by the remnant of the military forces who had taken part in the war for independence, under Simon Bolivar, and had little effect on the life of the nation. In 1860, General Mosquera, who had been a leader of the Conservative Party, joined with the Liberals for personal reasons, and became one of the most radical opponents of the Church. The revolution was successful, the Church was despoiled of much of its property, and a strong reaction set in against the clerical forces in the republic, and, for a number of years, they were fanatically perse- cuted. Since this was, in great part, a personal war, it had no great permanent influence, except that it stirred up religious animosities and opened the way for the revolution of 1876. At this time the Conservative Party, excited by the clergy, re- belled against the exactions of the Radicals who were in power, but were defeated after a bloody campaign in which the contending forces suffered heavy losses. In 1886, by which time the extreme animosities of the Radicals had disappeared, and the political GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 219 life of the country had, in its natural evolution, approached a more liberal interpretation of the laws and of the relations to be observed between the parties, another revolution was waged, this time on purely ideological grounds. The theoretical Lib- eralism, which had developed, tended more and more toward a practical and exaggerated Con- servatism, giving an excess of authority to the government, therefore the Radical elements, which had not taken part in this evolution, began a civil war which lasted for only a few months. The revolution was not successful, but, because of the authoritative Constitution adopted by the new Conservative government and its Radical applica- tion in the life of the people, the Liberal Party, driven to desperation, again appealed to arms in the revolution of 1899-1902, which was waged on what may be termed theological grounds — that is to say, between the Conservative, or Church Party, and the Liberal elements of the country. This revolution was put down, with great loss of life, but, meanwhile, many of the Conservative leaders had come to recognize the justice of the Liberals’ claims, and, in consequence, united with them in a revision of the Constitution in order that the peo- ple should have a national, rather than a partisan, charter of liberties. This is the Constitution of 1886, which, with certain revisions made in 1909- 1910, is still in force. According to this Consti- tution, both the great parties of the country must be represented in the National Congress in pro- portionate representation, so that presumably su- 220 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN preme power at no time falls into the hands of a single party. In Colombia, as in most countries, all the great movements in the evolution of the people toward full political, religious, and economic liberty, re- volve around certain personalities, and four great names among the statesmen of Colombia stand out as peculiarly worthy of mention in this short out- line. The first is that of Simon Bolivar, who, al- though a Venezuelan, gave the country its sov- ereignty over the territory which composes it, but who was incapable of serving as the head of a democratic government and finally died in banish- ment in the little town of Santa Marta. It is said that as death approached and this military genius reviewed his work and the state of politics in the countries which he had liberated, he exclaimed, “ I have plowed the sea”; and, again, “ The three greatest buffoons in history have been Jesus Christ, Don Quixote, and I.” However, the nationality which he founded endured and it was left to Gen- eral Santander, one of his greatest commanders in the war with Spain, vice president and afterward president of the republic, to organize the state and start it on the way of progress. Cohesion, how- ever, was still lacking and the name of Rafael Niufiez stands out as that of the one statesman who developed this unity and contributed to strengthening the national spirit of the Republic of Colombia. Elected by the Liberals he gradually went over to the Conservatives and, retiring from office be- GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 221 cause of age and feebleness, a number of vice presidents finished out his term and probably car- ried the reaction in favor of the Conservatives farther than he would have desired. Rafael Reyes, although compelled to flee the country because of his political difficulties, prob- ably largely because he could not fulfill lightly given promises to his political friends, as well as because of lack of real honesty in his administra- tion of public affairs and a disregard of the Con- stitutional rights of the citizens, is looked upon as the man who began the construction of roads and other improvements that are still so lacking in the country, and who taught the nation its need of industrial development. This outline of the development of the people of Colombia illustrates, in a special manner, the essential difference existing between the mode of evolution of the national life in the United States of America and that of the Iberian nations in this continent. In the colonies of Great Britain, now the United States, this evolution may be symbol- ized by the use of the plow, the pen, and the sword, in the order named. 'That is equivalent to saying that the natural resources were first organized and developed; then came a period of great intellectual activity; and, finally, because of its great indus- trial development, the sword of the United States weighs heavily in the balance of world power. In the Iberian colonies, the sword was the first appeal, and, after freedom from the mother country was secured, the formation of a number 222 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of small and warring states resulted, each of which desired to exercise hegemony over the others, al- though no one of them has developed to the point where it has been strong enough to attain a posi- tion of prominence among world powers. The pen next came into prominence; the writers of each nation sang the praises of their race and of their particular nation, a considerable body of literature being produced which ranks well in comparison with that of other and stronger nations. But, only within recent years, has any one of these twenty nations begun to develop its great natural re- sources. Consequently, Latin America has not exercised any special influence in the councils of the world, although a few, such as Brazil, Chile, and Argentina, have developed a national con- sciousness and rank high among the powers of to- day. It is interesting to note that the first presi- dent of the League of Nations was a Chilean, re- cently reélected to this high position by vote of the nations which compose the league. Relations between the people of the Republic of Colombia and the people of the United States of America have, on the whole, been friendly, al- though official relations were at one time severely strained by the secession of that part of the na- tional territory now known as the Republic of Panama. This Department, after a number of un- successful attempts, finally seceded in November, 1903, proclaimed its independence, and set up its own government. Due to certain circumstances GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 228 attending the action, official friendship of the two countries suffered for a number of years. A recent treaty, however, has been subscribed by the two governments, according to the principal terms of which the United States grants to Colombia the same shipping privileges in passing through the Panama Canal that are accorded to vessels of the American Merchant Marine or Navy, and the United States pays twenty-five million dollars in five equal annual installments. ‘This treaty has done much toward reéstablishing friendly relations between the governments of the two countries, and the American traveler in Colombia to-day receives assurance from all classes of society that the in- cident is closed and that the two peoples — who really took little or no part in the incident of Panama — are on a basis of real and enduring friendship. As will be readily understood, this fact has great weight in relation to missionary work carried on by citizens of the United States within the borders of the Republic of Colombia, since there is now no political bias against them on the part of the gov- ernment officials, and in Colombia, as in other countries of Latin America, the fact is coming to be recognized that Christian missions, as conducted by the evangelical churches, have no connection with politics. In this connection, it will be interesting to refer to the terms of the Constitution which, as has been noted, seem to grant at least a benevolent tolerance to religions other than that of the Roman Catholic 224 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Church. The principal articles which refer to re- ligious rights and privileges are as follows: ** ARTICLE 38 “The Roman Catholic Apostolic Religion is that of the nation; the public powers shall protect it and shall see that it is respected as an essential element of the social order. ** ARTICLE 39 “No one shall be molested because of his re- ligious opinions, nor compelled by the authorities to profess beliefs, nor to observe practices contrary to his conscience. ** ARTICLE 40 “ The exercise of all forms of worship, which are not contrary to Christian morals nor to the laws, is permitted. All acts contrary to Christian morals or subversive of the public order, which may be committed on the occasion of or under pretext of the exercise of any form of worship, are subject to the common law. “ARTICLE 41] “Public education shall be organized and di- rected in accordance with the Catholic religion. Primary instruction supported by public funds shall be free, but not obligatory.” These laws in regard to religious liberty seem to grant at least a semblance of freedom to dissenters, GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 225 and one could expect but little more from a govern- ment which is so thoroughly under the power of the Roman Church. However, the Constitution, which went into effect in 1886, and was the work of both Liberals and Conservatives, was practically superseded by the Concordat with the Holy See, especially in all matters referring to religious prac- tices and public instruction, which was celebrated the following year and went into effect in Sep- tember, 1888. The articles of the Concordat which follow are of greatest interest for our present pur- poses. However, they are subject to varying interpretations by both civil and_ ecclesiastical courts. ** ARTICLE 1 “The Roman Catholic Apostolic religion is that of Colombia; the public powers recognize it as an essential element of the social order and bind them- selves to protect it and cause it to be respected, as also its ministers, preserving for it the full enjoy- ment of all its rights and prerogatives. ** ARTICLE 2 “'The Catholic Church shall conserve its com- plete liberty and independence from the civil power and, consequently, free from all intervention on the part of the latter, shall be permitted to exer- cise freely all its spiritual authority and ecclesias- tical jurisdiction, conforming with its own laws in its government and administration. 226 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN * ARTICLE 3 “* Canonical legislation is independent of the civil, and does not form a part of it; but it shall be thor- oughly respected by the authorities of the republic. “ARTICLE 4 “The State grants to the Church, represented by its legitimate hierarchical authority, true and proper personality before the law and capacity to enjoy and exercise the rights which correspond to tbe ARTICLE 7 “The members of the secular and regular clergy shall not be obliged to fill public offices that are in- compatible with their ministry and profession, and they shall also be exempted from military service. ** ARTICLE 12 “In the universities and colleges, in the schools and other centers of instruction, public education and instruction shall be organized and directed in conformity with the dogmas and morals of the Catholic religion. Religious instruction shall be obligatory in such centers, and the pious practices of the Catholic religion shall be observed in them. *“ ARTICLE 13 “ Consequently, in said centers of instruction, the respective diocesan authorities, by their own au- GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SKETCH 227 thority or by means of special delegates, shall ex- ercise the right of inspection in all that refers to morals and religion, as also that of the revision of texts. The Archbishop of Bogota shail designate the books that are to be used as texts in the teach- ing of morals and religion in the universities; and, in order to make certain the uniformity of instruc- tion in the matters indicated, this prelate, in ac- cord with the other diocesan authorities, shall select the texts of the other centers of official instruction. The government shall prevent the propagation of ideas contrary to the Catholic dogma and to the respect and veneration due the Church, in the in- struction given in the literary and scientific de- partments, and, in general, all branches of instruc- tion. *“ ARTICLE 14 “In case the teaching of morals and religion, in spite of the orders and attention of the govern- ment, should not conform with the Catholic doc- trine, the respective diocesan authority shall have the power to take away from the professors or in- structors the right to teach such matters.” Thus we see that although the Constitution pro- claims religious tolerance, if not complete liberty of worship, the Concordat renders this proclama- tion practically null and void, and arrogates to the dominant Church complete control in all matters spiritual, moral, and even intellectual. There is at present a strong feeling among the 228 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Liberals in favor of annulling, or thoroughly chang- ing, the Concordat and, in view of the fact that the younger generation is overwhelmingly Liberal, especially the student class, it would seem that such action is but a matter of time. Fanaticism, even when backed by a strong, well-intrenched Church is a thing of the past and must yield to the more liberal movements which characterize our modern age. CHAPTER XVI AN OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE MISSION IN COLOMBIA (cure: as a nation, has always been, as may be judged from the foregoing pages, a faithful daughter of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church, and is to-day one of the few countries of the world whose governments maintain a Con- cordat with the Holy See. The Constitution of 1886 seems to provide a large degree of tolerance of other religious beliefs, if not complete liberty of conscience and worship; but the hierarchy of the Church of Rome, always bigoted, intolerant, and fanatical, has, when pos- sible, swept all law aside and ruled the people with haughty disregard of all rights save those of Rome. Moreover, the Concordat, adopted the following year, practically takes precedence over the Con- stitution itself and renders null and void its some- what meager provision for liberty of thought and action. Colombia thus remains one of the few strong- holds of the spirit of obscurantism that distin- guished the Middle Ages, and to the protection of its government still flock the cowled representa- tives of Rome who are compelled to flee for their lives from more advanced countries. One such 229 230 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN recently declared that “ Colombia es wna isla salva- dora en medio de un mar embravecido,” ‘‘ Colombia is an island of refuge in the midst of an angry sea!” In spite of this attitude of the clergy and of a large part of the people of Colombia, there have always been those who favored more benign laws as regards liberty of worship and the breaking away from the thralldom of the Vatican, and it was at the request of a group of these liberal- minded men that the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions opened its work in Bogota. 'The chairman of the group that presented the request to our Board was Colonel James Fraser, one of the officers of the British Legion under the com- mand of the great liberator, Simon Bolivar, in the struggle for the freeing of Colombia from the yoke of Spain. He afterward married the niece of General Santander, another officer under Bolivar, for whom the Department of Santander was named, and his descendants, even to the present time, have remained faithful to their Protestant inheritance of a Scotch Presbyterian purity and strength which grows stronger in the midst of per- secution and opposition. The two Bible Societies have also entered Co- lombia, but the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions is the only strong missionary organiza- tion which has heard the Macedonian call of Colom- bia’s millions. One other organization, the Gospel Missionary Union of Kansas City, has sent a few missionaries to the western slopes of the Andes, THE MISSION IN COLOMBIA 231 with the center of their work at Cali, in the Depart- ment of Valle, but it has been unable to give even this small number of workers the equipment and support necessary to the most effective carrying forward of their work. Consequently, the Presby- terian Church, through its Board, stands in a posi- tion of peculiar responsibility for the evangeliza- tion of Colombia, and it will be well to give here some of the outstanding facts in the history of its work in this republic. In reply to the request from the committee re- ferred to above, the Board sent out its first mis- sionary in 1856. This was Rev. H. B. Pratt, who reached Bogota June 20 of that year. He began his work among the English-speaking residents, but found only a few who were interested and it is naively remarked in a history of those early days, written by another, that this number grew smaller under his ministration. Consequently he sus- pended his work in English and began itinerating and preaching in Spanish. In 1858 he transferred his work to the Department of Santander and es- tablished a small printing press on which he pub- lished an evangelical paper. At this time, too, he began his well-known translation of the Bible into Spanish. In the same year the second missionary, Rev. Samuel M. Sharpe, arrived and began his work in Bogota, and a school for boys was opened with fifteen pupils in attendance. In 1859, Mr. Pratt visited the United States and published one of his best-known works, Noches con los Roma- nstas, ““ Nights with the Romanists.”’ 232 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN In the following year, 1860, Mr. Sharpe died of yellow fever, contracted while at Honda, a port on the Magdalena River, from whence the overland trip was made to Bogota, where he had gone to meet Mr. and Mrs. Mclaren, who were arriving as new members of the missionary force. It seems, from the scant records of the time, that the McLarens remained but a short time in Colombia and that, on returning to the United States, Mr. McLaren became affiliated with the Episcopal Church and finally attained to the dig- nity of bishop, in Chicago. In 1861 the first congregation was organized in Bogota, with six members, all foreigners, and it is interesting to note that until 1885 no Colombians had united with the Church. In 1862, Rev. and Mrs. T. F. Wallace arrived in Bogoté. They were the parents of Rev. Wil- ham Wallace, D.D., who is still rendering valu- able service in the Mexico Mission to which his father and mother were transferred in 1875. One still meets men and women in the churches who remember them and their work. The church property in Bogota was purchased in 1868 for the sum of $8,000, and the new edifice dedicated in 1869. In this year, too, the girls’ school was opened in Bogota, in rented property, since the present building had not been secured. Rev. Thomas H. Candor, who has just been placed on the list of honorably retired missionaries, reached Bogotd in 1882, having come out for the purpose of starting a school for boys. The follow- THE MISSION IN COLOMBIA 233 ing year he was married to Miss Margaret Ram- say, who had arrived in 1880. In 1885 they opened the boys’ school. Other missionaries had reached Bogota in pre- ceding years, among them Paul H. Pitkin in 1866; Kate McFarren in 1868; Willis Weaver and wife in 1876; and Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell in 1880. But at no time was the force sufficient to meet the necessities of the growing work, and sick- ness and furloughs kept the little group reduced to the smallest possible number. As a proof of the narrow margin on which the work was conducted, it is recorded that in 1888, Rev. J. G. Touzeau and wife, who had arrived but two years previously, were the only missionaries actually on the field in all Colombia. Considerable impression, however, had _ been made on the public mind and numerous friends had been secured for the cause, although communi- cant members were still few in number. Although the number of workers was still small it was felt that other cities should be entered. Consequently in 1888 Mr. and Mrs. Candor were asked to go to Barranquilla and begin work. ‘This Station has now come to be one of the most successful of the Mission, since it has our two largest and most suc- cessful schools and a strong congregation which is soon to have its own commodious place of worship. Dr. and Mrs. Candor, now living in the United States, and still helping in the work of the Mission in Colombia, are the first missionaries from Latin America to come under the new ruling of the 234 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Manual which automatically retires missionaries who have given forty years of service to the field or who have reached the age of seventy years. The third Station to be opened was that in the Department of Antioquia. Mr. and Mrs. Tou- zeau had been requested by the Board to open this new field, and accordingly they left Bogota in October, 1889, and started on what was then a long and tiresome journey to the city of Medellin. On their arrival services were begun, which, at first, aroused much interest and some persecution. In 1892 three men were received into the member- ship of the Church, one of whom is still an active member. In the same year the little school, which had been opened on the missionaries’ arrival, closed its sessions with an enrollment of seventeen pupils. In 1893 a new property was purchased by the mis- sionaries at their own expense and fitted up as a school, which, in the course of a few years, came to have an enrollment of 135 pupils and was con- sidered the best school in the city. Itineraries were also made to surrounding towns and villages and much seed sown which is still bearing fruit. After eighteen years of service Mr. and Mrs. Tou- zeau retired from the Mission in 1907, and this Station was closed until 1911, when Mr. and Mrs. Warren were assigned to it. During the same year they were joined by Rev. Thomas E. Barber, who had just arrived on the field. Services had been kept up by the little congregation, which at once rallied round the new missionaries. The church was soon reorganized, and Mr. and Mrs. THE MISSION IN COLOMBIA 235 Barber, the latter previously Miss Ethel I. Towle, who had been in charge of the girls’ school, in Bogota, and whom Mr. Barber married in 1912, have since carried on the work with evident proofs of God’s blessing upon it. There are now four organized churches in this Station; seven preach- ing places; four outstations; a girls’ board- ing school; three day schools; a boys’ boarding school and an industrial school have been author- ized; and, at the recent meeting of the Mission with the deputation in Barranquilla, it was voted to locate the theological seminary, for the instruc- tion of all Colombian candidates for the ministry, in Medellin. No other Station was opened until 1912, when Rev. and Mrs. Charles S. Williams removed to Bucaramanga, about 300 miles north of Bogota, and took up their new work in the Department of Santander. They labored alone and in the midst of unusual difficulties until 1920, when they were joined by Rey. and Mrs. Thomas Crocker. A fine property, consisting of two complete city blocks, has been secured on the outskirts of the city of Bucaramanga, and two unusually attractive and comfortable missionary residences have been erected on one of them. No church has as yet been organized in this Station, but in view of the evident interest of the community and the large attend- ance at the services there should soon be an abun- dant ingathering. The fifth and the last Station to be opened is located in the Department of Bolivar, on the At- 236 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN lantic Coast, with its center at Cerete, on the Sinu River, about seventy-five miles from the coast. This was opened in 1913; the following year the old city of Cartagena was linked to this Station and has now been made the residence of the mis- sionary. For several years missionary work was carried on in the region of the Sinu by Rev. and Mrs. John L. Jarrett, whose expenses and salary were met by a Christian business man in the United States who had interests in this part of Colombia. ‘This work has now been incorporated with that of the Presby- terian Mission, by the formation of the new Sta- tion, and Mr. and Mrs. Jarrett, with their daugh- ter, Helen, are members of the Mission and still carry on the work in the region to which they have given so many years of devoted service. The Colombia Mission has been one of the neg- lected children of the great Presbyterian Church and, even to-day, after sixty-seven years of exist- ence, in which great good has been accomplished, often at the cost of health or even life, it has not re- ceived the recognition and support which its work merits and which are essential to its proper continu- ance. In a population of 6,300,000, it is the only organized Mission that is trying to bring the gospel in its purity to a society which is either fanatically Romanist or which in an intellectual protest against the errors of Rome, has fallen into un- belief and the negation of all religion. To ac- complish this work, the Mission has less than thirty workers, including wives and seven single women. THE MISSION IN COLOMBIA 237 Only four men may be considered as evangelists, and each of these carries other responsibilities, such as the press, or schools. In Chile, with a popu- lation of 3,750,000, the Presbyterian Church has more missionaries than in Colombia, and other Boards working in that country bring the total of Christian workers almost up to three hundred. In Colombia there is only one missionary to every 275,000, while in Chile there is one for every 12,000. Even giant China has one Christian mis- sionary to every 60,000 of its population. In the sixty-seven years of its existence the Colombia Mission has ordained but two native Colombians to the ministry, and the total member- ship of its churches does not exceed 600. The work has been, and is, difficult, but the future is big with promise, if the Mission can but receive the needed reénforcements. CHAPTER XVII EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA N few countries of Latin America is there such _ an extensive official program of education as one finds in Colombia; in few are the results so meager and disappointing. ‘The present school system was organized in the seventies of the last century and, according to the Constitution, pri- mary instruction is free, though not compulsory, for children between the ages of seven and fifteen years. But the dominant Church sees to it that no instruction is given in any grade which does not measure down to its own methods and submit to its own rigorous censorship. In one of the publications of the Ministry of Public Instruction we find the following state- ment: “Education, even that which is primary, is a special and proper duty of the parents; and, al- though the State ought, by natural right, to help parents carry out that duty, it has no right to in- terfere in the government of the family, in this respect, as in no other that has to do with the con- trol of children. In this respect all writers of moral philosophy are in accord. Parents are more in- terested than anyone else in the instruction of their children, as is also the Church of Jesus Christ .. . 238 EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 239 and the repugnance which both have always shown toward obligatory instruction is well known.” In another paragraph, after referring to the fact that public instruction in the country is organized and directed in accordance with the Catholic re- ligion, the Minister of Instruction adds: “That organization and direction are due not only to the constitutional and legal dispositions which I have just cited, but very especially to the sentiment of the people of Colombia, whose re- ligious beliefs are daily strengthened in the meas- ure that they observe and recognize that the Church legislates in a wise and infallible manner; that its teachings purify and ennoble mankind, and that it is a living example of respect toward the civil au- thority which is an emanation of divine authority.” The terms of the Concordat, adopted in 1888 and still in full vigor, provide that in the universi- ties, colleges, schools, and other centers of instruc- tion, the organization shall be effected and the teaching given “in conformity with the dogmas and morals of the Catholic religion”; that religious instruction shall be obligatory in all schools, and the pious practices of the Catholic religion ob- served in them. The right of inspection of all in- struction is also reserved to the Church, and any professor or teacher who is found to be lacking in proper zeal for the upholding of its doctrines, may be dismissed at any time. Textbooks for the teach- ing of morals and religion must be designated by the authorities of the Church, but other depart- ments are invaded and texts for all other branches 240 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN are included. History and geography in particu- lar must conform to the wishes of the ecclesiastical inspectors, and in consequence the minds of the students are deliberately warped in favor of Roman Catholicism. In one of the texts of geography used in Colombia, endorsed by the ecclesiastical authorities is this paragraph in regard to religion: “ Religion is that body of beliefs which men hold in regard to God, and worship is the visible homage which we render divinity. . . . Christianity, which is dominant principally in Europe and America, is the religion founded by our Lord Jesus Christ, which is possessed by the most civilized peoples of the earth. It is divided into a Church which is the depository of truth, i.e., Catholicism, and two schisms, Greek Schism, or that of the Orient, and Protestantism. Catholicism, the only true religion, which conserves without change the dogma and dis- cipline and recognizes the Pope as the visible head of the Church, is that which has the largest number of adherents, 230,000,000, and has extended and continues to progress throughout the world... . Protestantism, separated from the Catholic Church in the sixteenth century, denies obedience to the Pope, and recognizes no human authority for its interpretation of the sacred Scripture. At the be- ginning it was divided into two sects, the Lutheran and the Zwinglian, or Calvinist, and afterwards into many others which are daily being converted to Catholicism.” * 1 Compendio de Geografia de ka Repiblica de Colombia, by Angel M. Diaz Lemos, Barcelona, 1907, p. 32. A PRIEST OFFICIATING AT A LOTTERY IN MEDELLIN a Li ie ai, EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 241 It is not strange that with this tremendous in- fluence over the minds of the young people of the nation while they are still in the formative period, the Church has been able to hold the people of Colombia to at least a semblance of loyalty to it- self; nor is it strange that, because of the weight of this incubus, public instruction has made but slight progress even during the hundred years that Colombia has been a republic, to say nothing of the preceding three hundred years when it was a colony of Spain. The following statistics, taken from the latest publications issued by the government, will illus- trate the present educational situation in Colombia, although, as admitted by officials and others who are interested in education, they are well padded, probably exceeding the real figures by at least twenty-five per cent, and do not conform with other statements published by official sources. 'The report of the Minister of Education, from which they are taken, states that they are “ approxi- mately ” true. In 1921, the year for which these statistics were compiled, there were 5,249 primary schools in Colombia, with 3,334 teachers and 338,792 pupils. These figures represent a loss of eighty-six schools, 2,562 teachers, and 2,636 pupils as compared with 1911, a loss which would be looked upon as a dis- turbing symptom in the development of public instruction in any country. In the same year there were 283 secondary schools, with a total of 17,407 pupils. Of these 242 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN secondary schools only 73, with 7,305 pupils, are governmental; the remainder are private, gen- erally controlled by the Church. Forty-two of the total number, many of them under Roman Catholic orders, are authorized to grant the di- ploma of bachiller, which entitles the holder to begin his professional studies in any of the five universities of the country. None of our mission schools, although giving the same or a more exten- sive course of study under better trained teachers and superior equipment, has been able as yet, in view of the terms of the Concordat, to secure this privilege. Moreover, no one can be graduated to the bar, the practice of medicine, or the exercise of any other profession from any school, without the presentation of documents showing that he has completed the prescribed courses in reli- gion as taught by the representatives of the Roman Catholic Church in the schools of the republic. There are five universities in Colombia, with a total of 2,026 students; and seven industrial and technical institutions, with 703 students. The total school statistics for the republic are as follows: Primary schools .... 5,249 Pupils .... 338,792 Secondary schools .. 283 Pupils .... 17,407 Universities ....... 5 Students .. 2,026 Industrial and tech- nical schools ..... 7 Students .. 703 Total: et 5,544 Total ... 358,928 EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 243 If the population of the republic is 6,300,000, as stated in official publications, the above figures give one primary school to every 1,200 inhabitants, and one pupil to every 18; one high school to every 77,228 inhabitants, and a high-school pupil to every 366; one professional school to every 630,000, and a student in these institutions to every 3,109; and one industrial or technical school to every 900,000, with a pupil to every 9,000. These statistics give the number of pupils regis- tered in the various departments of public instruc- tion during the year; the number of those who at- tended regularly and completed a full year of study would not exceed seventy-five per cent of the total registration. Not over twenty-five per cent of those in attendance complete any given course, and in the universities this figure would be much less in a given year. In a recent year in the University of Bogota, for example, out of a total registration of 909, only 61 were graduated. There are five universities in Colombia which are recognized by the government authorities, each with certain faculties, or schools, to which it gives special attention. The National University, in Bogota, which was founded in 1572, offers instruc- tion in law and political sciences, medicine and natural sciences, engineering and mathematics; that of the Department of Antioquia, located in Medellin, in political sciences, medicine, and natu- ral sciences. The National School of Mines, which offers courses leading to degrees in civil and mining engineering, is also located in this city. The uni- 244 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN versity in the Department of Cauca, in Popayan, has faculties in philosophy and letters, law and political sciences, engineering and mathematics, and in addition, has an agricultural school and a school of applied mechanics; that of Cartagena has a faculty of law and political sciences, and of medicine and natural sciences; and that of the De- partment of Narifo, in the city of Pasto, offers classes in commerce, philosophy, letters, engineer- ing, mathematics, law, and political sciences. In addition to the professional courses cited, each university, as a rule, includes in its general organization what we should designate as a pre- paratory department, in which the student com- pletes the usual grammar and high-school courses and receives the Bachelor’s Degree, preparatory to his admission to university work. In the Uni- versity of Antioquia, in Medellin, for example, the registration by courses in 1922, was as follows: In the preparatory departments ........ 551 In the schools of medicine and natural SCICTIOOS 5. ise ach he Cie Caen ale es 154 T6tahace eae WAL es AAG Ce ee 738 Due to the lack of laws on the point, as well as to the undeveloped character of professional in- struction, there are many who practice as physi- cians, lawyers, dentists, and so forth, who have not received complete professional training. In the Department of Antioquia, one of the most ad- EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 245 vanced departments of the republic, out of 197 practising physicians, 99 do not have degrees; of 274 lawyers, 64 are registered as graduates, 154 have no degrees, and 56 are doubtful; and of 140 dentists, only 53 are graduates. However, in spite of the great need for physicians and dentists, it is exceedingly difficult for the graduate of a foreign university to have his diploma recognized and be allowed to practice his profession. A graduate of the best medical school in the United States or Europe would be obliged to submit to a rigid ex- amination, given by national examiners of probably less preparation than himself, and would consider himself fortunate did he succeed in passing the final examination. As a protest against the prevailing laxity of discipline and mediocrity of instruction given in the existing universities, and particularly because of a desire to enable the students to escape the religious test which the Church of Rome now im- poses on all candidates for the liberal professions, there has recently been founded in Bogota, under the egis of the Liberal Party, a new university, known as the Universidad Libre. At the opening of the present year the affluence of students to this new institution was so great that the authorities were compelled to secure additional classroom space and finally to close the registration. The National University, hard by, was also compelled to close some of its courses, but for lack of stu- dents, all having gone to its recently installed rival. Unfortunately, however, it will mean a hard 246 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN struggle if the new venture is to succeed. Another such university, with similar ends in view, known as the Universidad Republicana, was established not long ago; but, after an anemic and precarious existence of several years, finally closed its doors. The Liberal elements are opposed to the present system, in which the Church is a dominant influ- ence, but they are not strongly united among them- selves; moreover, they have but few altruistic men of wealth who are willing to give generously to- ward the permanent endowment of free institu- tions; and, as in all the world, a moneyless uni- versity or college cannot long keep open its doors. The large majority of the students of Colombia are of Liberal tendencies and would be glad to break away from the enervating influence of the dominant Church in matters of education. But the grip of Rome is strong and the Church will make no concessions until compelled to do so. When that time comes, if history repeats itself in Colombia as in Argentina, Uruguay, and other Latin-American countries, it is probable that the Liberals will be compelled to go farther than their present program demands, and that all religious instruction will be thrown out of the schools, with both the Church and State the losers thereby. Statistics as to analphabetism are unsatisfactory and generally lacking altogether. In some Depart- ments the percentage may fall as low as seventy- five per cent; in other sections, it must reach nearly one hundred per cent. The estimate most often given as approximately true, is ninety-two per EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 247 cent, although this figure would not be borne out by the statistics already quoted as to the num- bers in school, which, as noted, are confessedly padded. Of the remaining eight per cent it must be understood, however, that many thousands merely escape classification as illiterates through being able to read, often with difficulty, and to sign their names. Probably not over five per cent of the people have the equivalent of a grammar-school course of studies. ‘The total number of literates in the country is said to be considerably less than half a million, and the really educated form a small and select group which controls the destinies of the country. Higher education in Colombia, as in other Latin- American countries, is favored at the expense of the lower grades, and the universities have pro- duced many really eminent scholars, especially in literature. But the literary atmosphere is not stimulating to original research, and the names of few Colombian scholars have transcended their own boundaries. An increasing number of stu- dents attend the technical schools and universities of the United States; the present president of the republic, Dr. Pedro Nel Ospina, is a graduate of the University of California, and many other leaders in the life of the nation have received at least a part of their preparation abroad. One gains the impression that this little coterie of Colombia’s best minds is usually engrossed with partisan politics to the exclusion of higher and bigger subjects; that these men are still bound by 248 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN old traditions and allegiances, whose influence is too powerful to allow them to give full expression to their own convictions. When once they learn to think in world terms, to commune with the mas- ter minds beyond their own frontier, one may ex- pect many men of real genius to make their ap- pearance. The following statistics, published by the govern- ment, are interesting as showing the literacy of the male population in the principal departments of the republic: Male Number Department population who can read Cundinamarca ...... 338,477 122,500 IBOVa Catia nant 276,551 46,486 PLtIATITICO tee) erent 2 54,939 19,423 RONVar Ure) ee che arte 205,080 45,418 ALAN CET we into me 191,398 67,958 PA TOG ULAR even tore 351,302 122,500 Illiteracy among women would be greater, since boys are often sent to school when the girls are kept at home and allowed to mature without any pretense at education. In Cundinamarca, the De- partment in which is located Bogota, the capital of the republic, with a total population of 713,968, only 89,692 can read and 83,391 can write. We were able to find only one table published by the government regarding attendance in pri- mary schools, in relation to the population. ‘This table is for 1912, but the figures have probably changed but little in ten years, and are as follows: EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 249 OY Bul Peas Legend aan einen ta. Niche 9 8.16 per 100 PATATIOC URLS ikbocre epee sak rat TB hen Caldas ioe tated tes es Nd TOO an ia IN ArIBO ER ER a eae rer cae te bts 5:83 wyiian Norte de Santander ........ SOL Use me Pind as eee tee NETS dint ‘ Gaver ere ies cele Stal nivee AAT in Giindinaniarcoiai terior rahe oc SETAE MENT. Oe Maodalenamwre wa wie aul el Bit bi cma PT ATULIGO MURS Teal ete wietd ey ae Bee Dope RTPA Life fsti icy Ae) Pane OES HeTELIADA BGG, COLT San Wr belt Vit ath eravotne dak SOU eas, TS OC ACH AMMEN eee uta a Git ran i 1G ZOD Bal nis Ve tel bh shy NS PIA ce Vey eee nu Ch DAY Ag AD 7 lg ENTIMAVELACCRCIU Ay. Ringe o ts 5.02 per 100 (Report of the Minister of Public Instruction to the Congress, 1912, p. 23.) The statistics for secondary and professional in- struction for 1918, in all the republic, are as fol- lows, by Departments: Pupils 9% PA DLIOC Ais at ar eM nt 7,798 1.06 PATLAFILICOR bitte Actes else 852 0.73 PRE Pee RRs oi sb ear maa ok, cs 1,789 0.43 HO Vae cama ako acca 'e ve 1,955 0.33 EHTEL? Gin ho eee eae ee ae 2,095 0.62 Catica pammumeaen Uris est, 768 0.36 CUMGIMATNATCH We oa ioe haces 8,921 1.25 EL Si be Shae ose tay fos cs b ely 464 0.29 250 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Pupils % N arinoie och ee Ree Beak 1,312 0.44 Norte de Santander ...... 1,269 0.62 Santanderic sss wee. eee 1,091 0.28 "Colima ee fes8 4400 oe Oe 855 0.30 Valle rarer ee i oe Re Bats 1,888 0.87 Perritories:s Wt She iC Re 277 0:2 Tbe REPUDHe 4 wie ot Cees 31,525 0.62 (Boletin de Estadistica, 1920, Department of Antioquia. ) Very few of the buildings occupied by schools in Colombia have been erected for that purpose. Convents and monasteries have been utilized for some of the larger institutions, while the primary and secondary schools generally occupy buildings which have been remodeled or occupied as they were found, with little or no adaptation to the new uses. In considerable travel throughout the re- public, with a close study of the situation, the writer does not recall having seen, exclusive of our Mis- sion buildings, more than one real school building occupied by a State institution — that, the primary school of Medellin — and two others occupied by Church schools. In equipment, too, the schools are poorly pre- pared to do their work. University laboratories for chemistry and physics are generally quite in- ferior to those of our great high schools, and the practical knowledge gained by the student in his courses must be exceedingly sketchy and elemen- tary, although some of the teachers who have been EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 251 trained abroad do their best to supplement this meager equipment by apparatus which they them- selves prepare. One such, a graduate of a uni- versity in the United States, now head professor and responsible for the teaching of science in one of the best universities, told us of his inability to secure even a small appropriation for his depart- ment, due to political differences, and, with evident reluctance, showed us his ill-kept, almost empty, laboratory. The foregoing facts indicate the lack of idealism in the present educational tendencies in Colombia, and show that, in spite of pretense and appearances, the results of both public and private effort in the past have been but meager in the development of character, the final end of all true education. One who contemplates the system from without seems to look on a beautiful painting, only to find that, although inclosed in an attractive frame, the pic- ture itself is but a caricature or, at the best, the work of an amateur and exceedingly sketchy. Fortunately there is a reaction against the pres- ent state of affairs, a revolt against palpably un- scientific methods. The Liberal Party is establish- ing elementary and secondary day schools in many centers, all of which lead up to the recently in- augurated Universidad Libre, of Bogota. But so far it is only a revolt, and there seems to be no great leader in the Liberal Party capable of map- ping out a system of education and securing the moral and financial codperation of influential men in a way that will meet the needs of to-day. More- 252 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN over, this revolt does not lead toward God. It is, rather, a struggle to free the youth of the nation from the relentless and ruthless grip of Rome; it is entirely iconoclastic, with no definite moral or educational ideal in view. Like unskilled seamen endeavoring to rescue their ship from the enshroud- ing storm, with no skilled hand at the helm, they are likely to thrust it into another situation even more threatening. In this attempt to break with an obscurantist form of religion, there is dire peril that education, when once the pendulum is released, may reach to the other extreme and banish all religious influence from its program, declare that God is but a myth and that science, in its swing through the depths of the universe, finds no place for the Kingdom of Heaven. In this connection it may be said that the in- tellectual members of the community, who have broken with tradition, seem more utterly adrift in their mental processes than do those of any other Latin-American nation with which the writer is familiar. Political pessimism seems to walk hand in hand with philosophical anarchy, and the leaders with whom we conversed seemed to be completely without a definite orientation in philosophy. Hav- ing rejected the puerilities of scholasticism in the light of modern scientific discoveries, they have nothing to take its place. A few, almost fearfully, refer to Darwin, Haeckel, and Laplace; but their religious natures, the results of centuries of train- ing, forbid their acceptance of a crass materialism and they seem unable to find even a middle ground EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 253 through the reconciliation of religion and science. While in other Latin-American countries one finds a definite trend toward agnosticism or positivism, which is but an “ ethical atheism,” or a reaction to- ward a more spiritualized philosophy, in Colombia there is a revolt against the past but no definite orientation for the future. Even in Peru, in uni- versity circles, where scholasticism formerly domi- nated but was succeeded by the influence of materi- alistic writers, there is now a decided trend toward a more spiritualized interpretation, while Emile Etienne Boutroux and Henri Bergson, especially the latter, have done much to change the currents of thought and to establish a new school. Some of our own writers — Emerson, William James, Jo- siah Royce, and Francis Bowen — have had a con- siderable following and have established more or less definite currents of thought. Without any doubt these writers are known to the advanced thinkers among the university men of Colombia; but they seem to have made no definite impact on the Colombians’ philosophical convictions, and the whole situation, if not static, is at the best transi- tional, so that a few bold thinkers might change the trend of thought of the whole people. Of course back of all this is the autocracy of the Church which has placed on the “Index Librorum Prohibito- rum” all writers who in any degree vary from its established doctrines; the faithful are not permitted to read such philosophers as Kant, Descartes, Spi- noza, Comte, and John Stuart Mill, and it is prob- ably due to this throttling of interest in philoso- 254 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN phical studies that our most modern thinkers are as yet unknown. Bertrand Russell, the neorealist, Bradley, the idealist, W. EK. Hocking, one of the best-known living American philosophers, and Hugo Miinster- berg, the psychologist, while probably not in the “Index,” seem to be quite unknown. In no way have their writings affected the philosophical situ- ation in Colombia. As one views this slipping of the cables that bind these men to the intellectuality and religious teach- ing of the past, notes the absence of a chart for future excursions into the realms of thought, and the steady lowering of the storm clouds of agnos- ticism and atheism, he can but cry out in the words attributed to one not an adherent of Christian faith, words tragic and thrilling because of their time- liness: “ Jesus Christ, come back! the tones of your voice have not yet died away. In spite of false creeds and wizard priests, through craft and rant, the heart of our age still turns to you. ‘Touch the sorcery of our time and wake us from the vile en- chantment of fear and foolish hate. Come! De- liver us from the doom of dead things. Bring life from the grave where faith lies bound. Jesus Christ, come back! Bring dreams and let dreams come true. Bring love that knits all hearts into one.” * It is almost superfluous to say that, in view of this situation, the moment is psychological for the 1 The Reconstruction of Religion, by Charles A. Ellwood. EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 255 educational work of our Mission. Seldom has a more splendid opportunity been presented to a group of evangelical teachers to show that science is not in opposition to religion and that our methods, based on a religious concept, are scien- tific as opposed to those now in vogue, which are both loose and unscientific. Our Mission, struggling against great odds, has established a number of schools which have reached many people throughout the republic, and with but one communicant Church member to every 10,500 of the population, we now have about one pupil in these schools to every 6,300 inhabitants. These schools have been poorly equipped, poorly housed, and inadequately staffed; yet their influence has been out of all proportion to the efforts and funds expended. The two outstanding institutions are those of Barranquilla, one of which is for girls and the other for boys. ‘The former has had for thirty years the efficient and consecrated service of Miss Martha B. Hunter, and for ten years, her efficient leadership; the other owes its all to the constant and meticulous care of Rev. and Mrs. Walter Scott Lee during almost a quarter of a century, or practically since its beginning. About a year ago when, for reasons of health, Mr. Lee was obliged to seek a colder climate and was transferred to Bogota, Dr. and Mrs. W. E. Vanderbilt, formerly of our Mission in Mexico, were placed in charge. Plans are now before the Mission and Board for enlarging the work and assuring the future 256 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of these schools. An option has been secured on a splendid site of about ten acres in a beau- tiful suburb of the city for the future develop- ment of the boys’ school, and the same action should be taken as soon as possible in planning for the future of the girls’ school. Meanwhile, because of unsanitary conditions in their own property, the women in charge of the girls’ school have been com- pelled, after securing the consent of the Board, to rent a building and grounds and transfer the school from the site occupied for so many years. ‘The school year of 1923 opened early in February, with unusual promise for both these schools, and with every probability that the number of students in each will exceed 350 before the close of the year. The registration of the girls’ school, on the first day of the school year of 1922, stood at 123; this year, largely because of its new and attractive surround- ings, it stood at 235. The registration in the middle of the second month of the academic year was 297 for the girls and 299 for the boys. The history of the two similar schools in Bogota, where we should have early developed and gen- erously maintained our strongest institutions, has not been so encouraging. Because of the great influence of the dominant Church and the somewhat conservative character of the aristocracy, which centers in the capital, the task of establishing Protestant school work in Bogoté has been much more difficult than in the more liberal centers along the coast where foreign influence is stronger. But, after all concessions have been made for the in- ‘(ger ‘d) .,aay 94} podeosa jJeay eB Jou BY} 99S 0} SuTypoyea d19M usuIdI;Od OMY} pueR SUIIZY} BuUTQDIAIIP 9104} SVM ysotad at ee : ! I I f I LL 4 VIAWOTOO ‘ODNVOLI LV SAISIG AHL AO DNINUNG AHL ho py Meth ial o> 7 vm! AS * * 4 ‘ 7 EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 257 herent difficulties of the field, it must be confessed that neither the Mission nor the Board has consid- ered this work seriously and come to its support in the degree necessary to its fullest success. 'The Mission, on the one hand, has had no definite edu- cational program, at least until within the last few years; and the Board has supplied neither the equip- ment nor the workers necessary to make the schools a success. Emerson’s declaration that “ an institu- tion is but the projected shadow of an individual” is more true in Latin America than in any other country. Every evangelical institution in_ this great field, that is a success, is the direct result of the uninterrupted labor of some consecrated and efficient man or woman who has given it his or her very heart’s blood for twenty or more years. The schools of Barranquilla attest this fact. In Bogota there has been little continuity of service and consequently no definite pedagogical objective. ‘The boys’ school has had eleven differ- ent principals within the past ten years, a fact suf- ficient in itself to explain any lack of results. Men and women have been placed in charge while learn- ing the language, or, in addition to other already heavy responsibilities; they have taken up the burden laid down by some one else, merely to tide over until another could be secured, and have done their very best to make the school a success. But scrap work cannot spell efficiency in the manage- ment of an educational institution, and the influ- ence exercised by this school on the large commu- nity that centers in the capital of the republic nas 258 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN been comparatively slight. Mr. and Mrs. Lee are now in charge and look forward to many years of usefulness in this new post. But they cannot be expected to do here, at their present age, what they did during the years given to Barranquilla, and provision should be made for an adequate faculty, including three Americans, one of whom should underbuild Mr. Lee and be ready to carry on when the time comes for him to go on fur- lough or to retire from the responsibility of the principalship. ‘The present property will not long be adequate for a growing school, and steps should be taken to secure a site farther out, with ade- quate playgrounds and other equipment. Mean- while, the yearly budget of the Mission should carry a sum sufficient to make the present quarters more attractive and to provide the equipment and the native teachers necessary to give this school high rank among the educational institutions of the city. The girls’ school is conducted in an old building in the center of the city, which was once a convent and is still surrounded on two sides by the walls of the church to which it formerly belonged, so that from certain vantage points tonsured, priests may still look down upon our teachers and students. The situation is not suitable for a girls’ school; the building is archaic and inconvenient for educational purposes, and the entrance, by a narrow, dark hallway, flanked by the church wall on one side and a printing shop on the other, is not an encouraging introduction to the really pleasing and promising EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 259 work within. ‘This school, too, has suffered from frequent changes of administration and the lack of a definite objective; yet it continues to attract a considerable number of pupils and now, under the direction of Miss Retta McMillin, is being re- organized and gives promise of greater useful- ness in the future. In this case, also, plans should be made to sell the present property, which, because of its central location, is valuable, and to transfer the school to the suburbs of the city. This might possibly be done in connection with the boys’ school; but the schools should be located at some distance from one another. In the suburb of Chapinero are located some beautiful lots which can now be se- cured at reasonable figures. In addition to these four schools, two in Barran- quilla and two in Bogota, offering both primary and secondary courses, there are a number of primary schools in the other stations, which, in time, should be developed in the same degree. In Medellin, the school has been handicapped by having to occupy a room in the same building used for the church and the residences of the missionaries, and has reg- istered but few pupils, practically all of whom have come from families connected with the church. Plans have been made and endorsed for establish- ing in this Station two boarding schools, one for boys and one for girls, and the theological seminary of the Mission is also to be located in Medellin. Tentative steps have been taken toward the acqui- sition of a considerable block of land suitable for the use of these three institutions, in the suburb 260 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN “ America,” which is beautifully located overlook- ing the city, and this community, in time, should de- velop into one of the most important educational centers of our Mission. 'The climate of the Depart- ment of Antioquia, of which Medellin is the capital, as well as the character of its people, favors the development of this kind of work to a degree not to be found in other Departments of the republic, and both Mission and Board will do well to further this program of schools. The statistics of our schools in Colombia, given on the last page of this chapter, will be of interest, if only to show how little we have put into educa- tion in Colombia in the almost seventy years since our Mission began its work in this republic. The figures as to attendance and budget are taken from the reports of 1922, and in some cases, if not in all, will be considerably surpassed during the present year of 1923. ‘The school year in Colombia begins in February and ends in November, so that the complete statistics for 1923 are not yet available. The number of pupils, however, will go well beyond 1,000, if it has not already done so. In the column marked “ Budget,” the total income for the past year is set down. Some of the schools gave free instruction, or collected so little that the amount was not reported, and the space is left blank. Out- side of salaries for missionaries, the Board gave $300 to one of the schools, and this school, like the others, now plans to become self-supporting in the present year. But why expect self-support from the schools in Latin America? We do not expect it EDUCATION IN COLOMBIA 261 in other mission fields; why should Latin America be the exception? For the past four years the schools in general have followed the program of studies as outlined by the government for the State schools, with varia- tions made necessary by our special aim. The gov- ernment elementary school offers, in general, a course of six years, and the secondary, a course of six years more. The State and certain Church schools confer the bachelor’s degree at the termi- nation of the secondary course. Our criticism of the school work in Colombia, especially of the schools in Bogota, is that they have been run on an entirely inadequate financial budget to the extent that the financial problem has been allowed, unconsciously, to overshadow and dwarf the real problem of all our educational effort, which is the building up of Christian character both in the individual and in the community; the functioning of the school in society as a center of enlightening and liberalizing truth; and the devel- opment of strong, well-prepared national workers. Only two native Colombians have ever been or- dained to the ministry — this within the last four years — and neither of them is a product of the schools. The girls’ schools have done better, inas- much as a number of capable young women have become teachers in our schools and others; but the net result of all these years of labor is disappoint- ingly small. The time has now come for a change, and we believe that the opportunity will not be lost. If the Mission will ask generously for the support 262 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN of these schools so that they may outrank in equip- ment and personnel, the best in the country, and if the Church and Americans of means will respond with equal generosity, our institutions ought to wield a mighty influence in the coming years when the soul of this splendid people is trying to free itself from the shackles of the past and stand out in the God-given freedom of this new age. If Colombia is ever to be evangelized and lifted up to its rightful place in the ranks of the nations, it will be by burning words issuing from the hearts and falling from the lips of Colombians. For- elgners must decrease, even as the national workers increase; and our schools must be the laboratory in which these workers are to be trained for this service. SraTistics OF Our ScHooLs { Total (Board: Mission-| Value Subsidy Location| School Grade ee Chit ary of Budget from Pupils) ers Teachers | Property Board Bogota Boys’ Elementary 98 5 2 $40,000 |$2,101.71/$300.00 Secondary Girls’ |Elementary} 90 2 42,000 | 3,981.29 Secondary Barran- quilla Boys’ Elementary} 266 | 43 4 75,000 |16,418.56 Secondary Girls’ Elementary| 215 17 3 20,000 |11,614.00 Secondary Medellin} Mixed |Elementary| 25 Bucara- manga Mixed |Elementary} 22 i Sinu Wilches |Elementary} 60 1 San Carlos/Elementary| 90 Cartagena|Elementary| 50 -— | | | S| ON NL | LT Total = 9 916 | 65 13 $177,000 |$34,115.56/$300.00 CHAPTER XVIII FROM COLOMBIA TO VENEZUELA On Boarp S.S. VeNEzueE.aA, near La Guaira March 24, 1923 EKNEZUELA forms the northernmost por- tion of the South American continent. It lies just to the east of Colombia and, like Colombia, borders the Caribbean Sea. From Puerto Colom- bia, the chief port of Colombia, to La Guaira, the principal port of Venezuela, is a distance of 600 miles; the trip by boat, including two stops en route, usually consumes five days. We started on this journey, on the evening of March 19, when we sailed for Puerto Colombia on the steamship Venezuela, of the Koninklyke West Indisch Maildienst, that is to say, The Royal Neth- erlands West India Mail. This steamship line maintains a service between Amsterdam and Panama, with calls at German, French, British, and South American ports, and at the Dutch West Indies. The boats are not large, being about 6,000 tons gross register, but we were impressed at once by their cleanliness and air of efficiency, and by the solidity and wholesomeness and the self-respecting carriage of their officers and crew. Such qualities were in great contrast with the lax and unkempt conditions of life and work in the land we had just left. The sign Verboten 263 264 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN was visible in many places; in the care and control of the boat and passengers, the half-German, half- British spirit of the Hollander was continually evi- dent. There was no stateroom available for us beyond Curacao. ? VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 273 towns and country districts. No definite figure can be given on this point, but a recent papal delegate was quoted as having put the number of illegiti- mates in the country at eighty-four per cent of the population. Of the 75,312 mothers in 1912, 51,580 are classi- fied as unmarried and 310 as widows. Of the 24,264 fathers, 486 were unmarried, 23,732 mar- ried, and 46 widowers. Of 68,849 mothers in an- other year for which we found statistics, only 16,356 could read and write, and 58,362 of the fathers were illiterate. Only 21,510 of these mothers were married women, and of this number, 331 were widows. The surface of the country is divided into three distinct zones: the hot lands lying along the sea; the cooler zone immediately inland among the foot- hills of the mountain ranges of the interior; and still more elevated forest regions finally merging into the immense llanos, or plains, which extend to the frontiers of Colombia, Brazil, and British Guiana, and, in general, constitute the region drained by the Orinoco River. The mountainous section is formed by three ranges, two of which are ramifications of the Andes in the north and north- west, while the third occupies the extreme eastern and southern sections of the republic. . The principal river, and one of the greatest rivers in the world, is the Orinoco, which drains the north- eastern part of the continent and empties into the Caribbean Sea. Its only rivals in South America are the Amazon, the Magdalena, and the Rio de la 274 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Plata, all of which form systems which are accounted among the greatest of the world. The agricultural zone is that which lies near the coast, and it is rich in the production of coffee, cacao, sugar cane, cotton, corn, tobacco, wheat and other cereals, potatoes, and the ordinary products suited to the climate. It is in this zone also, in the northwestern section of the country near Lake Maracaibo, that oil has been recently struck in what seems to be almost fabulous quantities. Telegraphic reports in March, 1923, gave to one well an initial production of 120,000 barrels a day, which would make it the largest in the world. This well has continued to produce from 75,000 to 100,- 000 barrels a day, and facts given out by the Royal Dutch Shell Company, as well as reports from others who live in the region, indicate that oil has been found in great quantities and that the district promises to become one of the greatest centers of the oil industry which are now known. The slopes of the mountains and the valleys along the rivers are covered with dense forests which contribute India rubber, vanilla, tonga beans, mahogany, and many other fine woods, dye stuffs, and material for tanning; and the mines yield gold, copper, iron, and coal; while the llanos, in the far interior, are renowned for their enormous herds of cattle, horses, sheep, and goats. Pearls of a good grade are found along the Caribbean coast, and there are a number of lakes in the interior from which asphalt is taken, one of them with an area of a thousand acres. This asphalt is of a good quality, VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 275 and it is interesting to know that a special variety found in Venezuela is used in the tunnels in New York as a protection against moisture. Cattle- raising is now being stimulated by establishing refrigerating plants at various points. One is located at Puerto Cabello on the Caribbean, and another on the Orinoco, from both of which the meat is exported to foreign countries. The total foreign commerce of Venezuela in 1918 amounted to a little over $36,000,000. For administrative purposes, the country is divided into twenty states, two territories, and a Federal District. In this division of the territory of the republic, the organization of the United States of America has been closely followed, since each state is autonomous and all are equal as polit- ical entities; the governors of the territories are appointed by the president of the republic; the states are divided into districts, which correspond to our counties; each state has its own congress, which legislates on all matters which have not been referred to the federal government; and the capital, Caracas, is situated in the Federal District, set apart for this purpose, which has an area of 745 square miles. The largest cities are Caracas, with a population of 92,212; Maracaibo, 46,706; Valen- cia, 29,466; Barquisimeto, 23,943; Ciudad Bolivar, 19,712.* The coasts of Venezuela were first sighted by Kuropeans on August 1, 1498, when Christopher Colombus and his fellow voyagers were completing 1 Census of 1920. 276 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN the third voyage to the new world. Carried by the equatorial current from the almost windless waters which lie east of the northern part of South America, to which they had sailed in their search for new territories, the little fleet continued its cruise to the mouths of the Orinoco. Bewildered at finding this great flood of fresh water which poured down from the mysterious hinterland of the continent, the admiral and his companions finally decided that the earth must be pear-shaped, that they were then near the stem end, that the river poured down thence, and that if they could but ascend the stream they would soon come to the Garden of Eden. Continuing its voyage toward the west, the fleet finally entered an arm of the Caribbean Sea known as the Gulf of Paria, and found its borders fringed with huts built over the water. These rude habita- tions sheltered the members of a tribe of Indians who had dwelt in this region from time immemo- rial, and had been built over the water as a means of protection against other warlike tribes, as also against the depredations of venomous reptiles and wild beasts of the surrounding tropical jungle. Canoes carved from the trunks of trees, no doubt the lineal ascendants of the thousands of such which are employed to-day on the rivers and lagoons of South America, were used by these Indians in their fishing expeditions in the still waters of the lake and in their visits from hut to hut. Columbus, without landing, but having seen the inhabitants on the shore as they went about VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 277 their occupations, reéntered the Caribbean from the Gulf of Paria, and continued his journey to His- paniola, now Santo Domingo, “ giving thanks to God who delivered him from so many troubles and dangers, still showing him new countries full of peaceful people and great wealth.” He was followed by Alonso Ojeda in 1499, who sailed even farther to the westward and entered Lake Maracaibo, where he, also, found the Indians dwelling in huts built on piles. This voyage is particularly noteworthy because on the ship with Ojeda journeyed Amerigo Vespucci, who was to have his name given to one third of the land of the globe because he wrote a clever account of the expedition and thus secured honors which should have gone to another. Among those who journeyed with the early ex- plorers of this coast — whether with Ojeda or later expeditions, we cannot be sure — were Italian sail- ors who were quick to note the similarity between this somewhat amphibious mode of existence and the scenes which they had known in their beloved Venezia. The name Venezuela, “ Little Venice,” was quickly passed from mouth to mouth, was recognized as altogether appropriate, and immedi- ately became the term which designated the region in and about the lake. This name is that which still distinguishes the modern republic, although its territory now includes not only that which lies around Lake Maracaibo, but also extends into the far interior, even south to the headwaters of the Amazon. 278 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN The early discoverers and settlers who followed after Columbus found that in this region there were at that time at least 150 different tribes of Indians, who spoke eleven distinct languages, di- vided into as many dialects as there were tribes. Chief in influence among them, if not in number, seem to have been the fierce Caribs, whose race is considered by some ethnologists to have had close relation to, if it did not actually form a part of, the great Guarani nation to the south, which in past ages is supposed to have occupied all that vast re- gion embraced in the eastern and northeastern part of the continent, but which is now practically lim- ited to the few thousand semicivilized dwellers in the plains and forests of Paraguay. The very word “ Carib” is of Guarani origin, and from it we have derived the name of the sea to the north of the im- mense territory once held by this warlike but now almost extinct people. This remnant constitutes a most difficult missionary problem. In this connection it should be said that from 325,000 to about half a million Indians still inhabit Venezuela. A few thousands are found in the peninsula of La Goajira, in the northwest corner of the republic, but the large majority live along the upper reaches of the Orinoco and its tributaries and still successfully resist all attempts at subju- gation. The blowpipe with its deadly poisoned arrows is still their favorite weapon, as it seems to have been for untold ages; their mode of life is as primitive and as savage as it was before the coming of the Europeans to the Western Hemisphere; and VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 279 there are but few white men who have dared to risk their lives among them. The Spaniards met with stubborn resistance when they attempted to form settlements along the coast of the Caribbean, and the history of this region during the first half of the sixteenth cen- tury is a succession of fierce and bloody battles waged with the Indian tribes. However, Spain gradually tightened her hold on all the territory lying along the coast from the Orinoco River to what is now known as the Isthmus of Panama. The name of Nueva Granada was given to this region and it was ruled by colonial presidents appointed by the Spanish crown from 1564 to 1718. In this last year the viceroyalty of Nueva Granada was set up and included all the vast terri- tory which is now embraced in the modern Repub- lics of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Panama. Meanwhile, Spain was being harassed by foes from without, especially by the British, French, and Dutch buccaneers and was having great difficulty at the same time not only in maintaining discipline among the Spanish troops in the interior but also in keeping the conquered tribes of Indians in sub- jection. Due to the triumph of the revolution of the English colonies in North America, and spurred to action by the unexpected successes of Bonaparte in Europe, especially his dethronement of the Spanish monarch which brought the American colonies of Spain under the control of a French king, a movement began among the Creole popula- 280 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN tion whose aim was the liberation of these lands from Spanish rule and the establishing of republics patterned, in great part, after that but recently set up in North America. The first move for the independence of Nueva Granada was made in 1797, and was put down with all the ferocity which marked the period. In 1810, there was another uprising of the Creole popula- tion, and the Spanish governor was deposed. A Constitutional Congress was called, held its first meeting in 1811, and on July 5 of that same year, declared the independence of the United Provinces of Venezuela. In 1813, the greatest military genius that Latin America has produced—unless José de San Martin, his great fellow general and military rival in the wars of independence be considered his peer — Simon Bolivar, took command of the revo- lutionary forces, and, on August 7, 1819, at the Battle of Boyaca, in what is now the territory of the Republic of Colombia, broke the power of Spanish rule in northern South America. In a final battle at Carabobo in 1821, which took place in the heights of the modern state of the same name, he put an end to Spanish rule on the con- tinent. In the reorganization of the territory after the power of Spain had been broken, Venezuela be- came a part of the newly organized Republic of Colombia, over which Bolivar was elected to rule. But, upon the disruption of that nation, Venezuela declared its secession and its own absolute inde- NOISSIN VIGOZANGA AHL AO SYAGNNOA SANOd °‘S °L “SHUW AGNV ‘Ud ALWI AHL - VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 281 pendence. This was in 1830. In 1859, a reorga- nization was effected and a Federal Republic was set up, which exists to-day under the same name, although the present Constitution dates only from 1914. The history of this republic has been tempes- tuous and, although a republic in name, it has been for a great part of its existence under the iron hand of military dictators. Very seldom in the past has the history of Vene- zuela touched that of our own country in any intimate manner. ‘I'wo of these occasions may be noted. In 1895, a dispute which had been brewing for more than sixty years between Great Britain and Venezuela, over the question of the boundary line of the last-named country and British Guiana, came to its culminating point. President Grover Cleveland, who had been appealed to by the gov- ernment of Venezuela for help, sent a message of protest to the Court of St. James, couched in his usual blunt and energetic language, and a thrill went through the two English-speaking nations when it was realized that war between them was imminent. His rather startling declaration was to the effect that he proposed to appoint a com- mission to inquire into and report on the merits of the case, and added: “When such report is made and accepted it will, in my opinion, be the duty of the United States to resist, by every means in its power, as a willful ag- gression upon its rights and interests, the appro- priation by Great Britain of any lands, or the exer- 282 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN cise of governmental jurisdiction over any terri- tory, which, after investigation, we have determined of right belongs to Venezuela.” This was compulsory arbitration, with the arbi- trators named without the consent of one of the parties to the quarrel. Great Britain, however, remained calm through it all, as her diplomats have a way of doing, and finally agreed with Venezuela to submit the matter to arbitration; the decision was rendered in Paris in 1899 and the incident was closed. In 1902, claims against Venezuela were pre- sented by Germany, Great Britain, and Italy for losses suffered by their citizens in the various revo- lutions, and the manner of their presentation, which was a blockade of the ports of the country, raised a serious international question concerning the extent to which force might be applied in the collecting of accounts from a debtor state. A blockade was established by these powers, and Ger- many was particularly insistent on its right to col- lect by force. Once again the United States, through its energetic president, Theodore Roose- velt, interfered, invoking the terms of the Monroe Doctrine as the basis of this interference. In this case a conflict between Germany and the United States seemed inevitable, but the cool persistence of President Roosevelt caused the Kaiser to recon- sider his somewhat hasty action. One good result of this incident was the pronouncement of what is now known, in International Law, as the Drago Doctrine, so named for the Argentine diplomat VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 283 who proposed it, which abolished the right of armed intervention or the occupation of foreign territory in the collection of debts. Since 1908, the virtual ruler of Venezuela has been General Juan Vicente Gomez, and although he is entitled “ constitutional president,” he is, in fact, a dictator and rules as such. His government maintains a strict control over the press, and a rigid censorship is enforced. As a consequence of these methods, political parties have been prac- tically done away with, or there remains but one, that which favors the present government. One of the prominent men of Caracas once said to the writer: “ There is no opposition to the government in Venezuela. All of those who might form an opposing party are in one of three places: the cemetery, the military prison, or a foreign country.” It would seem that the tenure of power by the family of President Gomez is assured for some time to come, inasmuch as he himself is com- mander in chief of the army; a son is first vice president and governor of the Federal District; a brother is second vice president and inspector gen- eral of the army; and a cousin is president of one of the states. As president of the republic, Gomez appoints the presidents of the various states and the governors of the territories. He also names the senators and deputies to the national congress, and these men, on the basis of the supposed reports from the elections, choose the president. As an illustration of how matters are arranged 284 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN beforehand, we were told that several days pre- ceding the last federal election, in 1922, workmen erected numerous electric signs in the city, espe- cially on the front of the Yellow House, which corresponds to the White House in Washington, on the palace of justice, and in the principal square. They were kept veiled until the night after the election and were then found to be announcements of the unanimous reélection of the president by vote of the sovereign people of Venezuela. Under the caption, “The Unanimous Vote of the Nation: Triumph of the Will of the People,” the principal daily paper of the city, on the day following the election, commented: “The National Congress, in a faithful inter- pretation of the sovereign will of the people of Venezuela, elected yesterday, by unanimous accla- mation, to control the destinies of the country during the constitutional period of 1922-1929, General Juan Vicente Gomez, whose illustrious personality typifies, both in the minds of our own people and abroad, the security of public peace, the expression of administrative order, the multiple ef- fort on behalf of the prosperity of the country, the decorum of the army, and the constant effort to bring about a realization of the noble ideals which make certain our national greatness. “This patriotic acclamation on the part of the congress was duplicated by an even more enthusi- astic response on the part of the people of Caracas, represented in the vicinity of the capitol by more than 5,000 citizens, who, regardless of their polit- VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 285 ical connections, carry on their daily occupations in various branches of activity... . “ All Venezuela is with Gomez, because it knows that only by the help of his strong spirit and his austere republicanism can it expect to carry for- ward that process of civilizing evolution which has been begun in the republic during this long and fruitful period of peace. “All the necessary patriotic virtues meet in General Gomez, in order that the different organ- izations may rally around him and the country gaze on the refulgent prestige of his political and ad- ministrative action. ... As a brave man and a patriot he gave a character of pure democracy to the revolution of December, and consecrated his efforts at once to doing away with the disorder which had taken possession of the different branches of the government, to saving the vital interests of the republic from bankruptcy, and to giving back to the nation that august majesty which adorned it in the early days of the national emancipation. ... ‘Thus we have seen him, now as president of the republic, now as the leader and inspirer of the doctrines of national rehabilitation, untiring, serene, just, carrying forward his work of renovation in all the branches of the national life.” * With the Spanish explorers and conquerors came the representatives of the Church of Rome, and right well did they do their part in the subjugation of the Indian tribes and in abetting the endeavors of the king of Spain to maintain his bloody rule in 1 Hl Universal, May 4, 1922. 286 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN these hard-won lands. The Church was practically supreme in Venezuela, and was the court of last appeal in all matters of State, until the coming into power of General Guzman Blanco. In 1873 this dictator expelled the Jesuits and the monks and nuns who had established themselves in the country, and confiscated their property. One of the vacated church buildings, a magnificent edifice, was offered to the Protestants of the city; but there was then no organization to accept the offer, which was afterward withdrawn. All parish schools were ordered abolished; civil marriage was instituted; the cemeteries were opened to the dead of all faiths; and priests were deprived of their power as well as of their fees. In 1876, the papal nuncio and the archbishop were expelled, because the latter had refused to order a T'e Dewm sung in the cathedral in honor of some of the dictator’s victories. It was on this occasion that General Guzman Blanco sent his famous message to the congress, which not only produced the local effect he desired, but also awak- ened the minds of public men in other South American lands to the possibility of freeing the State from the incubus of a medieval ecclesiasti- cism, which was always at war with their ambitions for liberty and seeking its own aggrandizement. The message ran as follows and was, of course, equivalent to a demand. ‘“T have taken upon myself the responsibility of declaring the Church of Venezuela independent of the Roman Episcopate, and ask that you further VENEZUELA, LITTLE VENICE 287 order that parish priests be elected by the people, the bishops by the rectors of the parishes, and the archbishop by congress, thus returning to the uses of the primitive Church which was founded by Jesus Christ and his apostles. “ Such a law will not only solve the eternal ques- tion, but will be, besides, a great example for the Christian Church of republican America, hindered in her march toward liberty, order, and progress, by the policy, always retrograde, of the Roman Church, and the civilized world will see in this act the most characteristic and palpable sign of ad- vance in the regeneration of Venezuela.” It is needless to say that an affirmative reply from the congress was immediately sent to the dictator, and, as representing the mode of pro- cedure under such conditions, merits reproduction. It was as follows: “ Faithful to our duties, faithful to our convic- tions, and faithful to the holy dogmas of the religion of Jesus Christ, the great Being who conserved the world’s freedom with His blood, we do not hesitate to emancipate the Church of Venezuela from that Episcopacy which pretends, as an infallible and omnipotent power, to absorb from Rome the vi- tality of a free people, the beliefs of our conscience, and the noble aspirations and destinies which per- tain to us as component parts of the great human family.” Although shorn of its political power by Guz- man Blanco, true to its history the Church has patiently waited its opportunity, and has at length 288 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN succeeded in winning back many of the prerogatives it formerly had. But it has not regained its spirit- ual power and life. One of the thinking men whom we met, said: “ The Church has no power in Vene- zuela, political, moral, or spiritual. It is degen- erate, and we have no use for it and no confidence in it. We have no religion.” At the same time it continues to receive a subsidy from the government as the State Church, as some one explained, in order that it may be kept under the government, and the people are held in igno- rance of the Bible and its teachings. 'The Virgin is exalted in an unusual degree and takes precedence over the Son in the images and paintings of the churches. One great painting in one of the churches, in which all the figures are life-size, repre- sents her as being crowned by the Father and the Son. A white dove is suspended above her head as she sits on her throne; the Father on her right and the Son on her left, are in the act of placing a crown on her head, while angels look on in rapt adoration and acclaim her the “ Queen of Heaven.” This painting, because of a reference made to it by Dr. Pond in a sermon, has now been inclosed in such a way that only those who are known to be faithful Catholics may see it. Another that represented her in the attire and attitude of a French ballet dancer has also been removed, for the same reason. But such teaching has had its effect on the people of Venezuela, whose thinking men and women reject the only form of Christianity they have ever known. CHAPTER XX AN OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE MISSION IN VENEZUELA On S.S. Van RENSSELAER, Royat NetHertanps West Inpia Matt, April 8, 1923 ] T was in the midst of a society that was thor- oughly inimical to the Church of Rome, yet by force of tradition and teaching unfriendly toward and exceedingly suspicious of Protestantism, that the foundations of evangelical work were laid in Venezuela. The American Bible Society seems to have been the first organization to reach the field.. Some time in the early eighties, Bishop Patterson, of the Southern Methodist Church, was sent out to establish this Society in Caracas, but soon died of the yellow fever. A Mr. Norwood took up his work, and, about the same time some of the Chris- tian Brethren of England entered the field. A few independents were also preaching, but their work has disappeared. The first organized Mission Board of the United States to send its representatives to Venezuela was the Presbyterian Board. Representing this Board, Rey. Theodore S. Pond and Mrs. Pond were, in 1897, transferred from the Colombia Mission to 289 290 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN open a tentative work in Caracas. Many years of missionary experience in Mesopotamia and Syria, as well as five years in Colombia where they had learned the Spanish language, were a valuable equipment for the opening of work in this new field. ‘They found the country unoccupied by any Mission, though evangelical services were held by an agent of the American Bible Society, while for two months Signor Ferrando, formerly a Capuchin monk, had held Bible classes in his own house. ‘The scattered members of a disbanded Church organiza- tion, once under the Methodist Board (South), warmly welcomed the new missionaries who imme- diately began work and laid deep and broad foundations on which it should be possible to build a strong evangelical Church in the United States of Venezuela. Possessed of that culture without which no one may expect to reach the heart or gain the respect of the Latin American, they made a large place for themselves in the capital city and were instrumental in securing reforms and in- fluencing the life of the city to a degree which few outside the Mission even suspected. Dr. and Mrs. Pond retired from the field in 1921, and Mrs. Pond soon afterwards went to her reward. Dr. Pond still lives in the United States and maintains his deep interest in the Mission.* Although Venezuela was practically unoccupied by evangelical forces when the representatives of Presbyterianism entered in 1897, other bodies of Christian workers have since entered from time to 1 Dr. Pond died September 22, 1923. THE MISSION IN VENEZUELA 291 time, until there are now fourteen organizations in all at work in the republic, in addition to a number of independent workers who have gathered small groups about them. The following statistics, compiled by our mis- sionaries, will show the extent to which the country has been occupied and the number of workers. In all the republic, there are 93 foreign missionaries, with 50 national workers who give their full time. A number of nationals also give part time, but are not included in the statistics above. Of the 23 states which form the United States of Venezuela, 12 have been occupied by both foreigners and nationals, and the latter are at work in 2 others. In the 22 organized churches there are 775 com- municant members, of which total 125 were added in the year 1922. In all the country, there is an average of 25,437 inhabitants for every Protestant worker. Six cities of over 10,000, eleven of from 5,000 to 10,000, and one hundred of from 1,000 to 5,000 are as yet unoccupied, and it is estimated that 1,000,000 people live in the unoccupied territory, and that 2,000,000, in all, are without the privileges of the gospel. The 24 Sunday schools have a membership of 864 pupils, and there are 5 Societies for Young People with a membership of 200. ‘The 16 schools enroll 329 pupils. The work done in these schools is elementary, for the most part, and but one has a boarding department. In Caracas, the capital of the republic, there are 19 foreign workers, 13 of whom are engaged in 292 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN evangelistic work, 5 in schools and 1 in industrial work. In the same city there are 21 national workers; 20 preaching points; 6 organized churches with 301 members; 5 church buildings; 6 Sunday schools with 381 scholars, and 5 schools with 86 pupils. There are five evangelical periodicals published in Venezuela by four of the organizations at work, only one of which has a paid subscription list and a wide circulation. In all the republic, only two centers are occupied by more than one Mission, which fact shows a commendable distribution of the forces. ‘The principal organizations have an understanding that they will not occupy the same towns, or the same general territory, which insures a freedom from overlapping in the future. During our stay in Caracas, a Conference on Christian Work, organized by the Regional Com- mittee on Cooperation, was held and was attended by representatives of six different organizations who, in some cases, came to the capital for this par- ticular purpose. ‘Two were obliged to make long journeys by sea, one from Maracaibo and the other from the Orinoco River Mission which has its head- quarters in Carupano, and others came by train or on mule back from points in the interior. This was the first gathering of the kind ever held in Venezuela and in the opinion of the mis- sionaries will mean much for their future work, since coming to know each other will make it less difficult to work together without friction or mis- interpretation of motives. E661 NI ‘SVOVUVO NI GIHH ‘AONAUAANOD GAILVUAdOOD AHL AGNV NOISSIN VIAOZANGA AHL _- : % i : ‘ / Satan tit pe Ra, A 78] cam 3 THE MISSION IN VENEZUELA 293 At the close of the two days’ session of the con- ference, a strong Regional Committee, with proper officers, was organized and this group will now carry on the work of promoting cooperation. For the first time, it may be said, Christian workers in Venezuela have come to realize that they have a common mission, a common responsibility, a com- mon opportunity, and a common Lord. CHAPTER XXI EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA T is no easy task to write even a short descrip- tion of education in the United States of Vene- zuela. No doubt a good deal is being done by the present government to foment this important branch of public service, but it is difficult to secure any great amount of definite and exact information on the subject. The Minister of Public Instruc- tion presents an annual report to the National Congress, published in an attractively bound, well- illustrated volume of almost a thousand pages, and freely given to those who may request it. There are abundant references to the progress made in education during the year; eulogy of the Citizen Constitutional President because of his great in- terest in this department of his government, as shown by his generous sympathy and loyal sup- port of all things educational; the different com- munications between the heads of the various departments which are written in impeccable Castil- ian, each ending with the never to be omitted phrase, “God and Federation!’’ But there is a conscien- tious omission of all data that might enable the reader to discover the actual state of education in the republic. Reliable statistics are generally lacking and the information one secures must be gathered together from many sources and is often at complete variance as to facts and figures. 204 EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA 295 As to the amount of illiteracy in the country, missionaries and other foreign residents give esti- mates that vary from 60 to 95 per cent of the popu- lation. The general average would center around 90 per cent. The official census of the government for 1920, not yet published but which may be con- sulted by special permission, places the figure at 80 per cent. Other publications in South America, outside of Venezuela, claim that it is 95 per cent. The enormity of even the most optimistic estimate becomes apparent when compared with the official figures of other countries: Germany, .2 per cent; Denmark, .2 per cent; Scotland, 1.6 per cent; Eng- land, 1.8 per cent; France, 4.9 per cent; and 6 per cent in the United States, the last apparently high figure being due to immigrants, and to the unusual illiteracy in the Black Belt of the South.’ In any case, the percentage is very high and there is but a small group of educated men, many of whom have studied abroad, who really repre- sent the intellectual element of the country. In the cities there is a considerable degree of organiza- tion and it is possible that schools exist in suffi- cient number for those who may wish to attend. But in the interior, facilities are lacking and the proportion of illiteracy steadily increases as one goes out from the capital, until among the Indians one finds that there is absolutely no provision made for instruction. In the territory of the delta of the Orinoco, which has an extension of 40,000 square miles, there are but two municipal schools. 1 La Nueva Democracia, New York, January, 1923. 296 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Primary instruction by the Constitution is both free and compulsory, between the ages of seven and fourteen, but the second provision, as is the case in other Latin-American countries, could not be enforced even if the authorities cared to do so, because of the lack of teachers and schoolhouses. As to school buildings, it is claimed that, with one exception, Venezuela has never erected a building for the purposes of instruction. The exception is the Military Academy, the West Point of Venezuela, a magnificent building which stands on a hill over against the city of Caracas, where officers are trained for the Army without whose help no president could long remain in power. All other schools and institutions related to public instruction occupy buildings which, in some cases, have been remodeled and thus made ‘to serve the new purpose; but modern school edi- fices, erected for the purpose, are lacking. For example, the University of Caracas, which was founded in 1775, occupies an old convent which was remodeled and partially rebuilt for the pur- pose under the direction of one of the revolu- tionary presidents. In a laudable desire to stimu- late instruction, this and many other buildings be- longing to the Church were confiscated, and were turned over to the State for public uses. The elementary course of study comprises six grades, on the termination of which the pupil may enter the secondary school. Instruction in this course is also free but is not compulsory. In theory, at least, it comprises four years of general EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA 297 studies, followed by two more of professional pre- paratory work. On terminating the twelve years, the pupil receives his. bachelor’s degree and may enter any one of the professional faculties of the university. The most favorable statistics available in regard to the general educational situation in Venezuela state that there are in the republic: 140 elementary schools with 48,869 pupils; 102 secondary schools with 2,189 pupils; and 31 institutions for higher learning, including 2 universities, 1 school of engi- neering, 6 seminaries of philosophy and theology, 8 schools of fine arts, and 14 schools of arts and crafts. No provision is made for the education of women in the universities, and but few girls go be- yond the elementary schools. ‘There are a few church schools where girls may study music and other cultural branches, but they are not en- couraged to enter the liberal professions. The Annual Budget of the republic for all branches of education in 1919, so far as can be determined from the report of the ministry, was less than $2,000,000, American gold, or less than one fourth the annual budget of Columbia Uni- versity. Of this amount, about $400,000 was used in the primary schools, and on secondary instruc- tion only $56,000 was spent in the year given. This means that over $1,500,000 was spent in this one year on what is designated as “ higher and special instruction,” which centers in the capital and caters to families of the upper, or moneyed class. ‘This higher instruction includes the two universities, 298 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN with the sciences, medicine, pharmacy, and politi- cal science; the National Academy of History; the School of Engineers; the National Library; National Museums; Astronomical Observatory; three meteorological stations; the School of Music and Declamation; the School of Plastic Arts, and kindred institutions. In the same year, the Ministry of War and Marine spent in the maintenance of the services under its control just over $6,000,000, or treble the amount spent on the entire educational system of the country. There are a number of private schools, especially in the capital, where general courses are offered, including the secondary studies. 'These schools are generally under some one of the teaching orders of the Roman Catholic Church and, very naturally, endeavor to turn the pupils toward the tenets peculiar to this Church. We heard of one good school for girls, in Caracas; which is patronized by some of the Protestant families, and it was stated that this particular institution, under French nuns, does not endeavor to proselytize pupils who are not Catholics. The contribution made by the evangelical Mis- sions to the solution of the problems of education in Venezuela has, as yet, been but slight. In the 16 mission schools with 329 pupils, we have gone but little beyond the elementary grades and the tendency has been to favor the children of the church’s constituency, rather than to present a program which would attract the community as a EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA 299 whole. In some eases, instruction for children be- longing to families of the church has been com- pletely free, and has, accordingly, been less appre- ciated than it would have been had some slight fee been insisted on as a prerequisite for registration and attendance. The educational work of the Presbyterian Mis- sion is limited to two schools in Caracas. One, a coeducational elementary day school with about twenty children enrolled, is taught by the wife of one of the national pastors, and is conducted in the house which is occupied by this family as a resi- dence and which also serves as the chapel in which preaching services and Sunday school are held. The attendance is almost exclusively from families connected with the chapel. The other is a girls’ school which now occupies the large central building formerly used as a resi- dence for the three missionary families and young women teachers. There is a boarding department, with four girls in residence, and the total regis- tration for the year has not exceeded thirty girls. This school, with the boarding department, has been in operation only one year, so that it may be considered that a satisfactory beginning has been made toward the development of what should prove to be a helpful center of Christian education. There are three young ladies, members of the Mission, who are assigned to this school, although the frequency of furloughs and the language study necessary for new missionaries really reduce the number to two in active service at any one time. 300 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Two other women teachers, members of the local church but natives of Colombia, also give full time to this school, and other local teachers are employed for special classes. In the plans adopted in the Conference on Chris- tian Work in Venezuela, the Presbyterian Mission designated as its field the Federal District and a part of two adjoining states that lie along the Caribbean Sea to the east of Caracas. This means assuming a special responsibility for the educa- tional work in the capital, and the missionaries have already made their plans for the extension and intensification of their present programs, within the next five years. The girls’ school should leave the present build- ing, which might be used as a day school and a center for publication work, and move into larger quarters with space for recreation grounds, as well as for more commodious buildings. ‘The estimated cost of the new property is $75,000 and two more women missionaries are requested as_ teachers. This equipment is placed first on the list of prop- erties desired in the next five years. A school for boys is necessary to the Mission, but has not yet been started. It stands second in the list of new properties, and $50,000 is asked for the purchase of land and the erection of buildings. Two men teachers are also placed in the list of new workers desired in the next five years. Theological instruction has been given to a num- ber of young men in past years by the members of the Mission, and some center of this kind of in- EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA 301 | struction will have to be maintained in Caracas, particularly for older men who may never reach a point in their studies which will permit their ordi- nation to the full work of the ministry. 'The Mis- sion has voted, however, to send its most promising young men to the Union Theological Seminary in Porto Rico, thus relieving its own missionaries from the necessity of giving such a large amount of time to theological instruction and securing, at the same time, a good course of study for its candidates at a cost not exceeding the present expenses in Caracas. The Presbyterian Mission in Venezuela has, for special reasons, an unusual responsibility and a great opportunity for the carrying forward of this program of Christian education. In this land where, as one of the leading writers told us, “ there has never been a single teacher whose name is worthy of being perpetuated as such,” a very few men and women with pedagogical gifts not even approximating those of Mark Hopkins, could so overturn and renovate and reform the present school methods as to create a new kind of revolution in Venezuela —a revolution whose end would be the elevation and enthronement of Christian charac- ter rather than that of any one individual. Moreover, among the dozen or more groups of evangelical workers in the country, only the Pres- byterians are in a position to prosecute just this kind of work. The others are more distinctly evan- gelistic and are disposed, on the whole, to limit their efforts to evangelism or, if school work is under- 802 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN taken, to the education of the children of their ad- herents. The inauguration and carrying forward of an inclusive program of Christian educa- tion is the exclusive responsibility of the Presby- terian Mission. The Church at home, by providing the necessary funds and stimulating young men and women to devote their lives to this special work, can be of inestimable service to Venezuela in the years to come. ‘The writer knows of no other of our Missions in all Latin America which occupies such a peculiarly responsible position in regard to the future educational program of an entire re- public, or a country where invested funds and life ought to give such ready and fruitful returns. The need of educational effort, on the part of the evangelical Missions, was admirably expressed a quarter of a century ago by one who visited the country and afterward wrote his impressions in a widely read book. The writer was not a missionary, but in his study of social and intellectual conditions in Venezuela, he found the real cause of the country’s backwardness and very frankly pointed out what might be the remedy. He wrote in words that might have been written to-day, so fully do they express the exact situation: “The public men of the country are ready to en- courage and sustain Protestantism, not from any religious convictions of their own, but because they see the retarding influence of the Catholic Church in the development of the country. The priests from the beginning have stood in the way of prog- ress, have opposed modern innovations, and have EDUCATION IN VENEZUELA 303 been particularly antagonistic to the educational system. The tendency of the schools and of the educated men of the country has been toward materialism for the last twenty years. Nearly every one of the professors in the university is an agnostic, or at least a materialist, and their influ- ence is great. The men of the country, except the peasants, do not attend church, except upon special occasions, and, while they assent to it, many do not believe in the Catholic faith. “The immorality of the priests and their ques- tionable practices will not permit an intelligent man to do so; but the common people, the masses, are in- tensely religious and superstitious. Whatever may be the policy of the government toward the Vati- can, nothing can shake them from the faith in which they were born, or impair the reverence for the often dissolute and nearly always ignorant priests of their parishes. “ Therefore, the work of Protestant missionaries must necessarily be among the educated classes, among the men who reason. There is in Caracas a most inviting field for clergymen of education and intellectual force, who can speak the Spanish lan- guage, and the same conditions exist throughout the country. “Tt is a wonder to me that the missionary organ- izations in the United States do not occupy this field. A dozen churches might be organized in Venezuela at once, and in a few years every one of them would be self-sustaining.” * 1 Venezuela, William Elery Curtis, p. 212. CHAPTER XXII CARACAS On S.S. Van RENSSELAER, Roya, NETHERLANDS West Inp1a Malt, April 4, 1923 F from a literary standpoint, Bogota, the capital of Colombia, deserves the title of the “ Athens of South America,” from the topographical angle, at least, Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, might be called the “Rome” of this southern continent. Like Rome, Caracas is built upon seven hills, and the mountainous character of its site and sur- roundings at once impresses the visitor who sees the city for the first time. The city is situated on the inner slope of a great cliff and mountain wall which rise 5000 feet and more out of the sea. A saddle-shaped peak of this range just north of the city, called La Silla de Caracas, reaches 8600 feet in altitude. The rail- road and highway which climb the steep ascent from La Guaira to Caracas cross through a pass at an elevation of 3400 feet and then drop down to the city level of 3036 feet. The city is hidden by its mountain rampart from the sea, but a three hours’ climb from the capital brings one to the crest of the rocky wall, and La Guaira and the beach and the Caribbean lie almost in a perpendicu- lar line below. Chapultepec, Stirling, and Edin- 304 CARACAS 305 burgh are castles built upon rocks; but Caracas is “a city set on a hill,” whose light ought to shine out over the surrounding land and sea. We disembarked on March 24 at La Guaira, where we were met by Rev. F’. F. Darley and Rev. C. A. Phillips, of the Venezuela Mission, and with them took an automobile for the ride up the pre- cipitous, winding road to Caracas. De Lesseps, who directed the cutting of the Suez Canal and who was interested in the building of the Caracas rail- road, which follows about the same route as the highway, is reported to have said, ‘“‘ There is only one dangerous part of the line, and that extends from La Guaira to Caracas.” I have driven over various highways with steep grades and abrupt curves, and have special memories of certain roads in the Allegheny Mountains and along the coast of northern California, but for beauty of scenery and for the sensation of uncertainty as to the prob- able continuation of the journey, whether on the road or in the air, the twenty-three-mile ride from La Guiara to Caracas eclipses all previous experi- ence. The highway has only an occasional wall or fence, and in various places we gazed almost straight down for a thousand, two thousand, and three thousand feet to the blue Caribbean, fringed with feathery coco palms and dotted with the white sails of native fishing boats. Our car was hardly equal to the stiff grades before us; our driver was a Latin American, who handled an automobile as he would a horse, goading it forward by fits and starts, alternately applying the accelerator and the 306 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN brakes. This particular driver wore a new straw hat; the wind along the cliff was gusty and strong; several times it caught his hat and blew it into the back of the car; each time the owner whirled around to catch at it desperately, the machine following its own devices in regard to speed and direction. All these incidents added to the zest of the drive up the mountain, and we were glad when we crossed the divide, and began to coast down toward the capital. In Venezuela the Spaniards found the moun- tains, for which they always sought, close to the sea, and consequently it is one of the few Spanish- American countries whose capital city is less than a day’s journey from the ocean. The history of the Spanish colony dates from 1527; its capital was founded in 1567, by Santiago de Leon de Caracas. Only once was the city captured by the buccaneers who sailed the Spanish Main. In 1595, a British force under Captain Preston, afterward Sir Amyas, and perhaps the forerunner of Amyas Leigh, instead of approaching the city by the old Spanish road up the cliff, where the Spanish gar- rison was awaiting them, marched up a secret “ Indian way,” and so came upon the undefended city, capturing it with comparative ease. The mountain slopes to the north guard the city, as Monserrat and Guadalupe guard the city of Bo- gota. But the Caracas Cordillera, though only half as high above sea level, rises twice as far above the city as do these two peaks. There is no wide- spreading plain before the city as before Bogota, CARACAS 307 but innumerable hills and valleys break up the fore- ground, the city residences, governmental buildings, and monuments being half hidden, half enhanced, by their mountainous surroundings. Like Rome, Caracas is noted throughout the sur- rounding region for its churches, monuments, and public buildings. The steep spires of EK] Calvario, on the wooded hill called Calvary, rise above and beyond the city on the south; to the left, is the great Arch of the Federation, built to commemo- rate the establishment of the federal system of gov- ernment, an imposing structure which closely re- sembles the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. 'The dome of the National Capitol dominates the center of the city. Within the Executive Palace, a part of the Capitol building, in the Salon Eliptico is a collec- tion of portraits of national heroes and patriots. The picture of the Irishman, Daniel I’. O'Leary, who served in the British Legion in Bolivar’s army during the War for Independence, is conspicuous among his various dark-haired and dark-eyed con- temporaries. On the ceilings of the wings are rep- resentations of the battles of Boyaca and Pichincha, the decisive battles in the freedom of Colombia and Ecuador, and of the Congress of Angostura, which met in 1819 and drew up the Constitution for Greater Colombia. In the southern part of the city is an equestrian statue of Antonio José de Sucre, who was the leader in the victories of Pichincha and Ayacucho, the latter battle in 1824 being the decisive stroke in the freedom of Peru and in the formation of Bo- 308 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN livia. On the monument are inscribed Bolivar’s words: “General Sucre is the father of Ayacucho; he is the redeemer of the sons of the sun; he has broken the chains with which Pizarro bound the empire of the Incas. Posterity will represent Sucre with one foot at Pichincha and the other at Potosi, holding in his hands the cradle of Manco Capac, and con- templating the chains of Peru broken by his sword.” At the other end of a beautiful avenue, guarded by stately trees, is a statue of Washington, which was erected in 1883 and moved to its present site in 1921. The figure of Washington faces the north, with uplifted hand pointing in the direction of his own land. At the base of the monument is the in- scription in Spanish, “'The government and the people of Venezuela to ‘Jorge Washington,’ founder of the republic of the North, erected at the centenary of the Liberator, Simon Bolivar, 1883.” In Central Park, New York City, stands a statue of Bolivar, father of five of the republics of the South, placed there two years ago with re- ciprocal sentiments. But most impressive of these buildings and monuments is the Pantheon. It is situated in the northern part of the city at the foot of the moun- tain wall. In it are the tombs, graves, and monu- ments of the greatest of the Venezuelans. Three names stand out conspicuously; those of the “ Rev- olutionary Trinity,” Miranda, Sucre, and Bolivar. The body of Miranda, who died in a Spanish prison in 1816, and that of Sucre, who in 1830 was assas- SLOINLVG NVOINMANY OMT. ‘Bjanzoua A ‘SBoR.e A re) VOINANV HLYUON NI SHIN -O1T0O) HSILIYVA AHL AO YOLVUTAIT AHL ‘NOLONIHSVM ANNOAD AO ANLVLS ‘AID YAIOK MON SYIRG [RAPUSD VOINAWVY HLAOS NI SAINOTOO HSINVds AHL dO HOLVYARIT AHL SUVAITOM NOWIS 40 FAOLVLS Rea a oe ace en ; % es 3 >. Poti Rares canna ite are 2 . rer 4 cc iwk fam CARACAS 309 sinated in Bolivia, were lost, and inscriptions at the base of their monuments lament this fact. Bolivar is reported to have once said, “If God should give to men the right to select the members of their own family, I should select for a son, General Sucre.” On the monument are inscribed the words, “ He was present at the birth of the revolution of inde- pendence; with the Battle of Ayacucho he assured the liberty of South America.” Concerning Mi- randa, an inscription reads, “‘ He took part in three great political movements of his age: the independ- ence of the United States of North America; the French Revolution; and the independence of South America.” The statues of Sucre and Miranda, each holding a flag, are placed on either side of the alcove at the northern end of the room. In this central alcove, under a marble canopy flanked by memorial wreaths and garlands, is a statue of Bolivar, and in the tomb back of this figure the body of the Liberator is buried. ‘There is a simple inscription in Latin on the monument, but on the walls are various tablets which pay tribute in unrestrained terms to “ The Liberator of Five Nations,” to one who was called by San Martin, a contemporary, “The most extraordinary personage that South America has produced.” There are tablets and wreaths bearing the name of the Liberator from Colombia, Bolivia, the United States, many societies, and individuals, and no one ean visit this tomb, which is held in such reverence and admiration by so many South Amer- icans, without being deeply impressed. 310 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN The Declaration of Independence of Venezuela, as drawn up by Bolivar at the Congress of Angos- tura, November 20, 1818, is inscribed on one of the walls of the Pantheon; it has many phrases that are reminiscent of the similar Declaration of the Thirteen Colonies farther north. The statement begins: “Declaration of the Republic of Venezuela. Simon Bolivar, Supreme Chief of the Republic. ... “ Considering: That the Spanish Government has solicited the mediation of the High Powers for the reéstablishment of its authority, on the basis of reconciliation, over the free and independent peoples of America, it is fitting to make a declara- tion, before the face of the world, of the sentiments and the decisions of the people of Venezuela.” There follows a list of reasons and provocations for the position which the Venezuelan Government had taken up, and the statement continues: “ Because of all these considerations, the Gov- ernment of Venezuela, interpreting the national desire and will, has seen fit to make public before the world the following declaration: “1. That the Republic of Venezuela, by human and divine right, is hereby emancipated from the Spanish nation and constituted in a sovereign, free, and independent State. “2. That Spain is not justified in reclaiming its domination, nor Europe in attempting to make it submit to the Spanish Government. “3. That it has not solicited, nor will it ever so- licit, its incorporation with the Spanish nation, .. . CARACAS 311 “7, Finally, the Republic of Venezuela declares that since April 19, 1810, it is fighting for its rights; that it has spilled the greater part of the blood of its sons; that it has sacrificed all its property, all its pleasures, all that is held dear and sacred by men; and that, in order to recover its sovereign rights and to maintain them whole, as the divine Providence has granted them, the people of Venezuela is deter- mined to find its sepulcher among its own ruins, if Spain, Europe, and the world persist in trying to subjugate it to the Spanish yoke.” To Bolivar and to his leadership, the cause of South American independence from Spanish rule undoubtedly owes much. ‘The statement of his biographer, Dr. Scheyvur, quoted by W. S. Rob- ertson, is not extreme: “ Besides establishing the independence of five nations, the achievement of Bolivar consisted in the fact that he thrust half a million of slaves into struggles for republican gov- ernment and democracy.” ‘The territory which be- came free as a result of the wars waged chiefly under the leadership of Bolivar was seven times as large as the territory won by the North American army under Washington. The five countries lib- erated by him recognize their obligation to him. Bolivar’s picture is in almost every public building of importance. There is hardly a city without its Plaza de Bolivar. One nation is named after him; two others designate their monetary unit by his surname. Although Sucre and San Martin un- doubtedly surpassed him in nobility and gener- osity of character, the chief homage of praise is 3812 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN given to Bolivar, and in the countries fringing the Caribbean, at least, he is held up as the model for the rising generation. ‘There is undoubtedly a certain element of justice in this viewpoint, and cause for this widespread tribute. And yet there is something of pathos in it all. Bolivar is all they have. ‘There is no group or line of men of courage and patriotism and integ- rity, as in other countries, to whom these ardent young South Americans can look for example and guidance. And Bolivar, despite his undeniable achievements, lacked two of the essential character- istics of a truly great and good man: purity and integrity of personal character, and an indomitable and undying faith in the certain victory of the cause and ideals for which he fought. Of Bolivar’s per- sonal life and relations it is better to say nothing, except that the young men of South America can- not find in them an incentive or an inspiration to purity of heart and life. In a statement published in 1829, he declared: “There is no faith in America; neither among men, nor among nations; their treaties are paper; their constitutions are paper and ink; their elections are combats; hberty is anarchy; and life is a torment.” In a letter written to General Flores of Ecuador, Bolivar shortly before his death summarized his own career and the conclusions he had reached: ‘“‘T have been in power for nearly twenty years; from this experience I have gathered only a few definite results: CARACAS 313 “1. America for us is ungovernable. “2. He who dedicates his services to a revolution plows the sea. “3. The only thing that can be done in America is to emigrate. “4. This country will inevitably fall into the hands of the unbridled rabble, and little by little be- come a prey to petty tyrants of all colors and races. “5. Devoured as we shall be by all possible crimes and ruined by our own ferociousness, Ku- ropeans will not deem it worth while to conquer us. “6. If it were possible for any part of the world to return to the state of primitive chaos, that would be the last stage of Spanish America.” Even before his death the nation of Greater Co- lombia, which he had labored to set up, fell to pieces, and Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador emerged as separate governmental entities. These countries which Bolivar liberated need, more than any other possession in the world, leaders who truly merit the high compliment of being called men. ‘They need men dominated by the ideals and loyal to the principles of truth, purity, and service. Such men are all too few. The tragedy of the contemporary life and of the past histories of these countries is that nowhere can they look for the inspiration of character which they need, neither in the past nor in the present, neither in the ranks of politics nor in those of the dominant Church. It is to supply this lack of true Christlike char- acter that Protestant missions have come to work in Venezuela. Representatives of the Presbyterian 814 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN Church were among the first to enter the field, though from the standpoint of the need of the country they could not have come too soon. In 1897, Dr. and Mrs. Theodore S. Pond came from the Colombia Mission and began work in Caracas. They had had nearly thirty years of experience in the work of the Congregational Church in the Near East and in the work of the Presbyterian Church in Colombia. They incarnated in their lives and service the living principles of truth and purity and love. They built up a congregation, established schools, and for twenty-four years labored indefat- igably for the city and the country. They were missionaries of rare culture and charm of personal- ity, and they made a lasting impression on both Venezuela and foreign communities. Jor fif- teen years they worked alone; then, in 1912, Rev. and Mrs. F. F.. Darley were sent to Caracas and the Mission was formally organized as the youngest of the twenty-seven Missions of the Presbyterian Church. In subsequent years Rev. and Mrs. C. A. Phillips, Miss Lena Wilson, Miss Verna A. Phil- lips, and Miss Lillian Hansen, were sent out; the present missionary force in the single Station at Caracas, following the resignation of Dr. and Mrs. Pond in 1921, numbers seven Americans. In 1922, Dr. and Mrs. Pond were placed on the list of hon- orably retired missionaries of our Church: in May of that year Mrs. Pond died after a brief illness. In the year 1923, the work included a congrega- tion numbering 140 communicants, three other smaller groups in the suburban districts of Cande- CARACAS 315 laria, San José, and Tapia, a girls’ school with thirty students enrolled, and a day school at Cande- laria with twenty-one pupils. Largely owing to the wise and energetic efforts of Dr. and Mrs. Pond the Mission has secured property in the best and most strategic sections of the city. The handsome church, with its melodious bell that sounds clearly among so many Roman Catholic calls to worship, is located only half a block from the National Cap- itol. ‘The girls’ school, where the three American teachers live, is a block farther to the north; and the attractive missionary residence, where Rev. and Mrs. Darley live, the gift of the Sage Legacy Fund, adjoins the girls’ school property. In Candelaria, there is a property which is used for a chapel, school, and pastor’s residence. It is not large enough for these three purposes, and has certain disadvantages of location; the Mission has voted to sell it when new property, better fitted for the same three purposes, can be secured. In Los Teques, an hour’s ride by train southwest of the city, is the “ Quinta Pond Resthouse ” at a higher elevation than Caracas, where the members of the Mission can go for recreation and change. We arrived in Caracas Saturday afternoon, March 24, and left the city Monday morning, April 2. The intervening days were devoted to public meetings, conferences with the Mission, a conference with representatives of other Protestant societies and organizations in Venezuela, and va- rious other engagements. I am not sure that you who read these letters can visualize exactly the 816 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN activities which a deputation of the Board attempts to carry out at each Mission and Station visited. Perhaps you may be interested in a brief summary of our schedule in Caracas, which is fairly typical of those in the other centers visited on this trip. We arrived about one o’clock Saturday after- noon, met with the missionaries in the afternoon to map out the work of the week ahead, and in the evening went through the mail which had accumu- lated at Caracas during the past two weeks. Sun- day morning we attended the Sunday school, giv- ing short addresses; in the evening, at a service in the church, we extended the greetings of the Pres- byterian Church in the U. S. A., as voiced by the Moderator, Dr. C. C. Hays, and added a few words on appropriate themes. Dr. Browning, of course, spoke in Spanish; I talked in English, with his services as interpreter. In such cases he had to do double duty, but my remarks in English became transformed into really good speeches in Spanish, and I was as much interested as the audience in this linguistic metamorphosis. Monday morning, the twenty-sixth, was devoted to travel letters and mail; the afternoon to visiting Candelaria and ad- joining sections of the city and to personal inter- views; that evening we took part in the impressive ordination services of Sefior Andres Key. ‘Tues- day was devoted to the Mission meeting; that night I went with Mr. Darley to a meeting in the Tapia district, held in the room of a private house, the service being sponsored by a policeman who had become much interested in the evangelical gospel. CARACAS 317 Wednesday and Thursday were taken up at the Conference with representatives of eight missionary societies and organizations in Venezuela, the first meeting of its kind ever held in the country. The twelve topics outlined for consideration in the com- ing Congress on Christian Work in Montevideo, Uruguay, scheduled for the spring of 1925, were covered with special reference to their bearing on Venezuelan conditions. Findings and conclusions were worked out to which the Conference as a whole subscribed. Dr. Browning, representing the Com- mittee on Codperation in Latin America, acted as chairman; a Regional Committee on Codperation was elected; a good beginning was made at the division and allocation of territory in the country to the various organizations represented, and we all felt the inspiration and strength of our united counsels, prayers, and efforts, and were grateful for the privilege of this meeting together. Wednes- day night Dr. Browning spoke before a meeting of all the evangelical groups in the city on the work of the evangelical Churches in Latin America; Thursday evening was devoted to preparing for the American mail which was to leave the following day. Friday was taken up with Mission meeting, and that night, after the ordination of two elders and a deacon and the baptism of two children, the Communion was celebrated, the newly ordained minister, Sefior Key, taking the central place, with Dr. Browning, the newly ordained elders, and I assisting him. Saturday, the thirty-first, we went by train to Los Teques, where the Mission resthouse 318 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN is located. The house itself is small and unpre- tentious, but its location is ideal. The village of Los Teques has been beautified by the German residents, an attractive park having been laid out with true German appreciation for natural, though well-regulated, beauty of scenery. The surround- ings add to the usefulness of the resthouse. In the afternoon we drove about the city, visiting Can- delaria again and other places of interest and im- portance. We had hoped that Dr. Browning might lecture in the University of Caracas, as in Medellin, but it was Holy Week, and although the rector of the university was most cordial, it was impossible to make arrangements for this address. We com- pleted our preparations for the trip from La Guaira on the following Monday, and that night a reception was given to us by the local church at which we enjoyed various juvenile games, and closed with a few words in a more serious vein. On Kaster morning, April first, we attended the Sunday- school service; that afternoon I had the pleasure of speaking at an Easter service held in the church for Americans and the foreign community in gen- eral. Rev. Mr. Hendrick, the Anglican pastor in Caracas, kindly codperated in this service. A group of thirty-five attended, including the Amer- ican minister, Mr. Cook, and the resident consul, with their wives. It was a joy to meet with our fellow citizens in this first American service in Caracas, and especially to have before us the Easter message of new life and power and joy in the risen Christ. That evening a final service was held with CARACAS 319 the Venezuelan church. They presented us with a beautiful Venezuelan flag with its broad blue and red and gold stripes, and its central circle of shining stars, to take to the Board together with our Mexi- ean and Colombian banners. Early the next morn- ing we left by the railroad for La Guaira and em- barked on this boat for Panama, en route for New York. The days in Venezuela were full and most happy, as were all the days of the past six months. Con- tinually it seemed that the spirit of the one who had had such a large part in building this living work for Christ was near us, in our midst. All about us were reminders of her service and her husband’s; a bronze vase, inscribed in loving memory of Mrs. Pond by a foreign friend in Caracas, their pictures in the houses we visited, and their names on the lips of those who loved them. “ Yes,” two Vene- zuelan women of the congregation told us, “ the spirit of Sefiora Pond is en los cielos y en nustros corazones,’ “is in heaven and in our hearts.” But the living and lasting monument to Dr. and Mrs. Pond’s work is the Mission, the church, and the property which were built up by this one couple alone, working in the spirit and with the grace of God. This work must go forward in the same spirit. The present members of the Mission have done much in organizing the Sunday school, church, and girls’ school, and in making clear the objectives be- fore them. At the Codperative Conference, in the distribution of territory in the country, our Mission 820 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN was assigned as the field of its service Caracas and the Federal District, except a certain section of the city allotted to the Christian Missions in Many Lands, and the northern portions of the two States of Miranda and Azoategui, which lie just to the east of Caracas, bordering the sea. The needs in the personnel of the Mission were outlined at the Mission meeting as three men educators, two women educators, one matron for the girls’ school, an ordained man for itinerating, and a nurse. ‘This list of new missionaries, if provided, would bring the total membership of the Mission to nineteen, not an excessive number for the responsibilities and opportunities of the work. The Mission is asking for land and building for a girls’ boarding school, which will cost $75,000, and for funds for the building for the boys’ boarding school, amounting to $50,000. These two schools are needed to serve the whole Protestant community and the younger generation of Venezuela as a whole; the other missionary societies represented at the Con- ference united in asking our Church to establish such schools as soon as possible. At present there are no schools of an evangelical Church above ele- mentary grades, in the whole country. Other prop- erty needs are an additional missionary residence, an enlargement of the ground around the central church to provide for necessary additions to the building which is now overcrowded; a more suitable property in or near Candelaria; and funds and equipment for our share in the joint program agreed upon by the Scandinavian Alliance Mission THE PANTHEON, WITH THE TOMB OF BOLIVAR, IN CARACAS a a Ab ig Stas Paes eae CARACAS 321 and our Mission for the production and distribu- tion of Christian literature, through press, peri- odical, and bookstore. The Scandinavian Alliance Mission has a flourishing press and paper and has invited our Mission to codperate in these enter- prises; a joint agreement was worked out, subject to the approval of both Boards, which provides for three years of codperation in Maracaibo, the present location of the publishing interests of the Scandi- navian Alliance Mission, and the transfer of this center to Caracas, under the joint control of the two Missions after the three-year period. On Monday afternoon, April 2, we embarked on our present ship, the S.S. Van Rensselaer, of the Netherlands West India Mail, and started on the reverse itinerary of Curacao, Puerto Colombia, Cartagena, and Cristobal. We expect to make good connections at the Canal Zone with the United Fruit steamer, Metapan, which sails April 12 for Jamaica and New York, being due in New York, April 19. CHAPTER XXIII HOMEWARD BOUND On S.S. Van RENssELAER, Royat NetHeritanps West Inp1ia Matt, April 5, 1923 IX months ago this trip began. As members of the deputation of the Board, we have visited Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela. We have been almost constantly with citizens of foreign nations. We have mingled with these people intimately; we have traveled to the country towns and villages and to regions far distant from the cities most fre- quented by foreign visitors. Not once have we heard a word of suspicion or distrust because of our nationality or work; everywhere we have met love and good will, and the direct look and the kind handclasp that are indicative of true friendship. These people of the two Americas south of us are so friendly and so warm in heart that service with them and for them in turn warms one’s spirit and brightens one’s horizon. It is to Another rather than to ourselves that we can trace that atmosphere of friendliness; to the One who said, “I call you not servants, but friends,’ and we have seen His life shining through the eyes of these Latin-Amer- ican followers of His and sounding through their words to us, even though they were spoken in an alien tongue. There is a picture in the building of 322 HOMEWARD BOUND 323 the Pan-American Union, in Washington, dedi- cated to the friendship of the twenty-one American republics, which bears an inscription in the hand- writing of a well-known American: “ God has made us neighbors; let justice make us friends.” Justice is needed, indeed, but something more than Justice as well. A better word might be: “ God has made us neighbors; let Jesus make us friends.” The words of the hymn, “ America the Beauti- ful,” by Katharine Lee Bates, were in our hearts as we turned our faces toward our own homeland. But now it seemed these words included both the Americas, North and South. The first verse might be considered to speak especially of our northern land; the second of the Southland; in the last verse, both North and South can unite. For the countries we have visited and the country to which we go, this hymn voices our prayer: “O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea! “O beautiful for glory tale Of liberating strife, When valiantly for man’s avail Men lavished precious life! 824 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN America! America! May God thy gold refine Till all success be nobleness And every gain divine! “O beautiful for patriot dream, That sees beyond the years, Thine alabaster cities gleam, Undimmed by human tears! America! America! God shed His grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea.” CHAPTER XXIV MISSION DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1923 INCE the visit of the Commission to Colombia and Venezuela in the early part of 1923, there have been various developments of interest. A brief summary of the major changes in the various Mission Stations is given in this concluding chapter. The pressing need for property for the girls’ school in Barranquilla has been met in the purchase of “ La Esperanza ” in January, 1924. It was not possible for the Mission to secure a lease for longer than one year for this property. The lease given extended from February, 1923, to February, 1924; the property would then be placed on the market and, as there was a possibility that another party might purchase it and the school thus be without any home, special efforts were made to secure the funds to buy the property for the permanent use of the school. In the fall of 1923, a campaign was conducted in northwestern Pennsylvania in the four Presbyteries of Blairsville, Clarion, Erie, and Kit- tanning. ‘Twenty thousand dollars was contrib- uted by churches in these presbyteries, and from the Sage Legacy Fund and from other sources an addi- tional $20,000 was secured. The property was bought for $40,000. The registration of the school increased to over three hundred after it was moved 825 326 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN into its present quarters, so that the Barranquilla Girls’ School is now one of the largest Protestant schools for girls in South America. A letter writ- ten by the teachers of the school on February 29, 1924, indicates the happiness which the purchase of this property brought to all those related to the institution. “COLEGIO AMERICANO PARA SENORITAS “ BARRANQUILLA, Cortomsia, S.A., “February 29, 1924. “ Rev. W. REGINALD WHEELER, “156 Fifth Avenue, “New York, N. Y. “Dear Mr. Wheeler: “What can we say to express our joy and grati- tude over the purchase of “ La Esperanza”? We can hardly believe that it is true. We look at the walls, the fine big patio, the trees and the flowers, and we say to each other, “ It is all ours.” We look at our girls scattered over the grounds with plenty of space to run and play, and we are so thankful. “Our chicken yard was called upon to make a sacrifice and to-night the boarding pupils and all the teachers have had a fiesta in honor of the pur- chase. We had a chicken dinner, served out of doors, and afterwards there were speeches and general rejoicing, with Vivas! for La Esperanza, for the Board, for the doners, and for all connected with the campaign. DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 19238 327 “We hope and pray that the years will prove that you were justified in the confidence that you have put in the school and in those of us who are now in charge of it. We are planning for its im- provement and enlargement. “In the name of our Colombian teachers and of all our pupils, present and prospective, we thank you. Yours sincerely and gratefully, “ (Signed) ELLen ANN TomMPkKINS “RutH W. BrRaDdLey “ RAacHEL M. SHERRERD ” As this volume goes to press a fine new church building, in which $25,000 is invested, is being erected on an unused corner lot of the boys’ school property. ‘This church will serve as the Protestant center in Barranquilla and throughout that whole coast region. In the Colombia campaign in Western Pennsyl- vania, in the four Presbyteries of Blairsville, Clarion, Erie, and Kittanning, in the fall of 1923, the contributions and subscriptions totaled $30,198.30. Of this total the sum of $3,200 was given for property for the Girardot School, and the $1,200 invested by Mr. Allan out of his own funds was repaid in full. ‘The new building is now under construction. In September, 1924, the Mission purchased land in Medellin for the girls’ school; the present school property is to be remodeled as a church and for evangelistic work. 3828 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN When the Commission met with the Mission in January, 1923, a five-year program of property needs was outlined and approved. Some of these needs have already been met. ‘The full list follows: PREFERRED List Alterations, Girls’ School, Barranquilla (Secure) IN Tein Wise sia. ies ania ne $ 2,000 Meédellin Churehiitmi nt ais tals erent 16,000 Pradosisandsiuts aes het Once tem ar, cts 20,000 Cartapenn tl sands, ete isch vate ys aaa are 10,000 SODHMALY Otel) Cem OP RUD ikea kia G seme 35,000 BOYS | SCHOOL; BOPOtHL Minnis akties hue ele ee 25,000 Equipment Girls’ School, Bogota ....... 5,000 Buildings, Boys’ School, Prado ........ 73,000 WEGUUETIA A oe dnta Hite eer cence eeeimiaey ae 4,000 Bucaramanga Land and Church ........ 16,000 Alterations, Girls’ School, Bogota ...... 5,000 Cerete Land, Buildings and Equipment .. 3,500 Equipment Boys’ School, Bogota ....... 5,000 Lots at rear of Boys’ School, Barranquilla 15,000 abel ba, seco a yts atet cies rr td ae hee ane 800 PAULO OCDE Oia wumpscut we emer ee ae ee 115 mGnolarshipgi: urea earl ten aay ec eet ei 760 Sreconp List Land, Girardot (Secured) ............. $ 1,500 Residence''s Boratare ah hia eee eee 12,000 Equipment Girls’ School, Barranquilla .. 5,000 Equipment Girls’ School, Medellin ...... 3,000 BarriovA rr Ds ioe ee 5,000 DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1923 329 LOTR: 1A a, eat eee ee eee oan aban Cee ty $ 3,000 Monteria School and Chapel ........... 4,000 San Carlos, Land, Residence, and Chapel 2,500 Residence, Barranquilla ............... 5,000 Athletic’ Meld Bogota nw. rc fits 7,000 Alterations, Boys’ School, Barranquilla 15,000 Brontimopicandir cig. cae aac ie eva iae 450 Negnneba Landa anim adr ehte eal owl yg 300 Balance of Building, Prado ............ 22,000 ResthousesBovotanvecmrot iar chor oa iret an 5,000 PETEITAMLIATICa ere Bre uate sy Ae EAT, 3,000 Residence, Barranquilla) 2.2.2.0... 5,000 Barrio Properties, Bucaramanga ........ 38,000 Cartagena Chapel and School Buildings .. 5,000 INET Way LOSATICL ceatenc eee talons Ok ean aa REE Raa 8,000 A five-year program of property needs as out- lined and approved at the meeting of the Venezuela Mission with the Commission in March, 1928, follows: Building Candelaria Chapel ............ $15,000 Girls*:Schoglteae MS ee ee 50,000 Boys Schoolpeis eee ye ena 75,000 TRESICENI CE eri ie Ghee eo lo eae eee aie 8,000 Joana vat Rear Church cs pelea ee 1,500 Land at Side of Church, and Rebuilding .. 15,000 FTALODI ODEs Aad ieoaeal cena ick aeeees: Lesh eC Ung 800 Since the visit of the Commission in 1923, eight new missionaries have been added to the force in Colombia: Mr. and Mrs. P. M. DeKalb, Mr. and Mrs. W. G. McLean, Rev. and Mrs. N. EK. Ny- 330 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN gaard, Miss Anna Oberhelman, and Miss Viola M. Warner. There were seven losses in the Mis- sion, however, due to resignations and withdrawals, so that the net gain is only one. The total number of Presbyterian missionaries in Colombia in 1924 was thirty-three. They represent the only Protes- tant denomination at work in the country, although there are four missionaries from the Kansas City Union, unrelated to any of the larger Mission Boards. The chief responsibility for the spreading of Protestant Christianity among more than six million people rests upon this group of thirty-three missionaries. “ We have put our hand to this plow; the furrow is not yet run.” In Venezuela important questions of policy are under discussion as this book goes to press, 1924, and the development of that Mission will be de- termined by decisions reached by the Presbyterian Board and other societies in the near future. A BRIEF READING LIST ON COLOMBIA AND VENEZUELA (Notr. — For those who desire a shorter list than the fol- lowing, certain books which might be included in such an abbreviated list are starred.) GENERAL * The Commercial Traveler’s Guide to Latin America, Chap- ters on Colombia and Venezuela. Revised Edition, Edited by Ernst B. Filsinger, United States Department of Commerce, 89. Government Printing Office, Washing- ton, 1922. A detailed compilation of important facts concerning the Latin-American countries, published originally in separate volumes by the United States Department of Commerce. Admirals of the Caribbean, by F. S. Hart. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 1922. An interesting summary of the lives and exploits of the great admirals and buccaneers who once sailed the Spanish Main. The Buccaneers of America, by John Esquemeling. Trans- lation of 1684-1685. Revised and edited by William Swan Stallybrass, with Introductory Essay by Andrew Lang. E. P. Dutton and Company, New York, 1924. The chronicles of John Esquemeling, one of the buc- caneers who accompanied Sir Henry Morgan, and wrote with somewhat appalling frankness of the deeds of Mor- gan and his men. There are several quotations from these chronicles in the preceding volume, Admirals of the Caribbean. Journal of His First Voyage to America, by Christopher Columbus. Albert and Charles Boni, 1924. 331 832 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN An abstract from the original journal of this momen- tous voyage which helps to give one an adequate historical perspective. RELIGIOUS CONDITIONS * South American Problems, by Robert E. Speer. Student Volunteer Movement, New York, 1912. A mission-study book on South America, written in 1910 and still a standard text on the subject. Roman Christianity in Latin America, by Webster E. Brown- ing. Fleming H. Revell Company, New York, 1924. One of the volumes in the “ Living Religions ” series. A clear, succinct summary of Roman Catholicism in Latin America from the Protestant viewpoint, by one who has lived and worked for twenty-eight years in South America. HISTORY * History of the Latin-American Nations, Chapters on Colom- bia and Venezuela, by W. S. Robertson. D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1922. An inclusive and readable history, not overburdened with detail, of all the Latin-American countries, A valuable introductory volume. * The Rise of the Spanish-American Republics, Chapters on Bolivar, Sucre, and Miranda, by W. S. Robertson. D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1921. A more detailed history based on the original sources of the recent development of the chief Spanish-American republics as told in the lives of their liberators. * The Conquest of New Granada, by R. G. B. Cunninghame Graham. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 1922. A vivid description of the exploits of Jiménez de Quesada, the conqueror of Colombia, written by a well- known British author. READING LIST 333 Bolivar — Liberator of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, by H. R. Lemly. Stratford Company, Boston, 1923. The first attempt to produce in English a detailed history of the life of the “ George Washington of South American Independence.” DESCRIPTION Cartagena and the Banks of the Sinu, by R. G. B. Cunning- hame Graham. George H. Doran Company. New York 1921. | A detailed description of this picturesque port and of an adjoining river valley, written by the author of The Conquest of New Granada after a trip through this section of Colombia. * Colombia, the Land of Miracles, by Blair Niles. Century Company, New York, 1924. A well-written account of a country whose unique character is beginning to win attention from many travelers. Quito to Bogota, by A. C. Veatch. Introduction by Lord Murray, George H. Doran Company, New York, 1917. A first-hand account by a British traveler and author of a trip from the capital of Ecuador to the capital and seacoast of Colombia. Vagabonding Down the Andes, by Harry A. Franck. Cen- tury Company, New York, 1923. The first chapters of this well-known travel book deal with the author’s experiences in Colombia. Venezuela, by Leonard VY. Dalton. Fisher Unwin, London, 1912. The Colombian and Venezuelan Republics, by W. L. Scruggs. Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1919. Second Edition. These two books give general descriptions and in- formation which, although not entirely up-to-date or al- ways accurate, are of interest in an introductory study. 884 MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN * Up the Orinoco and Down the Magdalena, by J. A. Zahm, (H. J. Mozans, pseud.). D. Appleton and Company, 1910. An authoritative description of these two great water- ways of Venezuela and Colombia by one who later ac- companied ex-President Roosevelt on his trip through Brazil. The Journal of an Expedition Across Venezuela and Colombia, 1906-1907, by Hiram Bingham. Yale Uni- versity Press, 1909. An interesting narrative of an unusual journey through these two countries by a well-known traveler and scientist. South of Panama, by E. A. Ross. Century Company, New York, 1915. This is one of the clearest and most informing de- scriptions of conditions in certain South American coun- tries written by an eminent sociologist, FICTION Captain Blood, by Rafael Sabatini. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 1922. An exciting melodrama by a Spanish author, based on certain facts in the life of Sir Henry Morgan, one of the most famous of the Caribbean privateers. Maria, by J. Isaacs. Macmillan Company, N. Y. A translation of a popular novel dealing with Colom- bian life and history. * Westward Ho! by Charles Kingsley, Everyman’s Library Edition. E. P. Dutton and Company, New York. This book was first published in 1855. Chapters 19-26 are devoted to scenes in Colombia and Venezuela, and these chapters add to the interest and charm of this classic, The current publications of the Pan-American Union, Washington, D. C., also contain much information of interest and value. Py % Ga “ertg Cn “T Mara On ly rE / Leh, / Wf 7 if —= oe —. — (/ J 7” Maracaibo ie: CartayenafZy / i yx ao i, A Galamar » } Lake G.o f { Hy <9 Ciorrey : { / Maracait Colony aN ovena 7 \% ; J << Sv Se dy j Sx J < Mc ai A > 2 = \aaN ne Sieh leNty ’ ) rd Q Lr i \ ~ % re —_ - © ‘—, Dabeiba ° Bucaramanga ~*~» Yv . o = (her cal /, s) 6 cdl . b 8 Ot iMedettin 1 POD po KBelen © La Dorada”4 9 (7 Sogamoso Honda J 8 Beléan 4 1p IK. Guatavita : BOGOTA Girardot r ? ro Peed (a ye S. Sey: NX, =, ‘ f ua. , Neem, Map of Colombia and Venezuela, with Route of the Commission. ~\. ° Psst ¥ Ply a ) rei ee " fisiy7 itm) ‘Gi 4 i YI ; A ti r Date —_ ‘= Y te 7 2 : o- n - = F . on < — ae | ¥ i — He. } Ps F * =—_ = ~ oi wa lem |@ aw i Due UO iss, * - i fs C) | nov 19 pe “ > ead ck pa a —_ Princeton Theological Seminary—Speer Library Modern missions on the Spanish main BW4727 .2.W56