> MAR 2 1909 * BV 2363 .C8 1908 Crawford, William Henry, 1855- The church and the slum P3 H «3 i-3 The Church and the Slum A STUDY OF ENGLISH WESLEYAN MISSION HALLS rn, fn. * MAR 2 1909 %/CAL %l$0 cV By WILLIAM HENRY CRAWFORD President Allegheny College New York: EATON & MAINS Cincinnati : JENNINGS & GRAHAM Copyright, 1908, by EATON & MAINS. CONTENTS PAGE Preface 11 Introduction 13 CHAPTER I Manchester and Salford Mission 17 CHAPTER II Central Hall, Liverpool 47 CHAPTER III Central Hall, Edinburgh . 67 CHAPTER IV Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, and Birmingham 89 CHAPTER V London Halls 117 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Page Central Hall, Manchester Frontispiece Interior of Free Trade Hall 16 Rev. S. F. Collier 23 Rev. Hugh Price Hughes 29 Rev. J. H. Jowett 34 Central Hall Prize Band 39 Central Mission Hall, Liverpool 46 Rev. Joseph Jackson 51 Sister Kate Chandler 55 Rev. Charles Garrett 60 Saint George's Mission Hall, Liverpool 64 Interior of Central Hall, Edinburgh 68 Rev. George Jackson 71 Rev. F. H. Benson 81 Central Mission Hall, Birmingham 88 Rev. C. W. Andrews 91 Dr. H. J. Pope 97 Eastbrook Hall, Bradford 104 Rev. H. M. Nield 108 Leysian Mission Hall, London 116 Rev. J. Ash Parsons 120 Rev. Peter Thompson 124 Rev. J. Gregory Mantle 128 Rev. J. E. Rattenbury 132 Central Hall, South London Mission 136 Rev. Henry T. Meakin 140 Rev. J. Gregory Mantle and Some of his Poor Children . . . 143 On the one hand the city stands for all that is evil: a city that is full of devils, foul and corrupting ; and on the other hand the city stands for all that is noble, full of the glory of God and shining with a clear and brilliant light. But if we think a little more carefully we shall see that the city has in all parts of the world represented both these aspects. It has been the worst and it has been the best. Every city has been a Baby- lon and every city has been a New Jerusalem, and it has always been a question whether the Babylon would extirpate the New Jerusalem, or the New Jerusalem would extirpate the Baby- lon. It has been so in the past and it is so in the present. The greatest corruption, the greatest vice, the greatest crime are to be found in a great city. The greatest philanthropy, the greatest purity, the most aggressive noble courage are to be found in the great city. San Francisco, Saint Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, and Brooklyn are full of devils, and also full of the glory of God. — Lyman Abbott. PREFACE The chapters comprising this little volume, though not in exactly the same form, were originally published last winter in Zion's Herald. Some who read these letters ex- pressed a wish that they might be put in more permanent shape and given a wider reading. Hence this book. It need hardly be said that what is here presented is not in any sense an exhaustive study of English Wesleyan mission halls. A much larger volume would be required for that. The halls visited, however, are thor- oughly representative, and the conditions under which the work is being done are sufficiently diverse to give a fairly compre- hensive idea of the Wesleyan Forward Move- ment work as a whole. The writing, as will be seen, was all done on the spot except part of the last letter, which was finished on board the Oceanic during the return voyage. W. H. C. Meadville, Pa., July 15, 1908. 11 INTRODUCTION BY REV. S. PARKES CADMAN, D.D. I have long known the work of the British Wesleyan Church in city centers, and I have watched its development from the days of James Ernest Clapham, Dr. Ebenezer Jen- kins, and Hugh Price Hughes until the present moment. No man can afford to neg- lect the study of this operation if he seeks to serve the cause of the redemption of our cities. It is replete with valuable experiences, consecrated personalities, fine energies, and grateful results. The Manchester Mission, conducted by my friend, the Rev. Samuel F. Collier, is the best type of city mission work in the world to-day. It has honorable rivals in London, Leeds, Edinburgh, Bradford, Liverpool, Birming- ham, Belfast, and elsewhere. President Crawford has rendered American Methodism, and indeed all Christian churches, a signal service by chronicling here the re- sults of his trained observation. I trust that the book will be widely read and duly pon- dered. It is the authority for the United 13 14 INTRODUCTION States on these large practical experiments that have been made by the Mother Church of Methodism. Into them she has poured without stint her time and means and minis- terial efficiency, and their general course and results are here placed before the reader. H Q < H K H M fa O o I— I « H H CHAPTER I Manchester and Salford Mission I perhaps ought to say, first of all, that my interest in Wesleyan mission halls began in 1891, when I heard Hugh Price Hughes in Saint James's Hall, West London. One could hardly hear Hughes without being won to his cause. When I was here five years ago there was great rejoicing among Wesley ans over the glorious success of the "Million Guinea Fund" movement and the purchase of the Royal Aquarium in London, on whose site, facing Westminster Abbey, Wesleyan Methodism is building a great hall and Methodist head- quarters. I had the privilege of attending a monster mass meeting in the Aquarium when ten thousand sons and daughters of John Wesley sang and shouted their thanksgiving. Mr. R. W. Perks was in the chair; there were fourteen speakers, and nearly all of them had something to say of a new era for Methodism and of the Forward Movement, of which the mission hall is one of the concrete expressions. This Aquarium meeting only increased my interest in the mission halls. 17 18 THE CHUKCH AND THE SLUM CENTRAL HALL, MANCHESTER Since the last session of the Wesleyan Con- ference the impression seems to have become current in certain quarters among us that the mission hall movement is on the decline. Be- cause of this I determined to take part of my vacation to look more carefully into the work of these halls and to inquire from men on the ground just how much was being accom- plished. I came to Manchester first because nowhere has the mission hall been tested as it has here. The Central Hall of this city is the oldest of all the halls, and its superintendent, Rev. S. F. Collier, has been in charge ever since its opening in 1896. For four days now I have been looking through what Dr. F. B. Meyer has described as "this labyrinth of halls, chapels, lodging houses, and other in- stitutions." The impression made upon me has been such that I can easily believe Dr. Maclaren is right in saying: "There is no better bit of work for Christ and man being done in England to-day." My vacation plans are all broken into. I am so amazed at what I have seen and heard that I shall devote practically my whole time here to the mission halls. The work has grown far beyond my expectations. MANCHESTER AND SALEORD MISSION 19 THE APPROACHING ANNIVERSARY I am particularly fortunate in visiting Man- chester at just this time. Central Hall is about to celebrate what its friends call its "coming of age." Big plans are on for this twenty-first anniversary, which is to be held in Free Trade Hall on Tuesday, November 19. It will be a great occasion, and the influence of it will be felt by every mission hall in Eng- land. This morning I saw the advance proof- sheets of an illustrated "Souvenir of the Progress and Present Work of the Man- chester and Salford Mission," now in the hands of the printer. It will be out in a few days. This souvenir sets forth in outline what has been done in these twenty-one years. In it are a few congratulatory letters from men who know at first hand what has actually been accomplished. CONGRATULATORY LETTERS One is from the venerable Dr. Alexander Maclaren. I had the pleasure of shaking hands with him yesterday. What a mighty preacher he has been! God bless him! He is honored and loved in America as well as here. Last evening I heard a Congregational minister say: "Twenty-five years ago, when 20 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM I was a student here in the University, Mac was in his glory. My, but he did preach! We've none like him now." Dr. Maclaren's congratulatory message to Superintendent Collier I give in full: "I always esteem it an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity of bearing my testi- mony to the worth of the work of the Central Hall Mission. I was at its cradle, and have re- joiced in its growth to maturity. I heartily congratulate you and all your workers on its coming of age, and hopefully anticipate greater progresses in the future. You have laid the whole city under obligations, and you have given all the churches an object lesson of the greatest value. You have always kept the evangelistic side of your work well in the fore- ground, and yet have set us all an example of effective social work. I would that all institu- tional churches would learn from the Central Hall Mission the proportion which the two parts of their operations should bear to each other. I wish for you a prosperous year, and confidently look forward to much growth and success in coming days." The following is from Dr. J. S. Simon, president of the Conference: MANCHESTER AND SALFORD MISSION 21 "I congratulate you on the 'coming-of-age' of the mission. Your work, and the work of those associated with you, is above all human praise, but it carries with it always the thanks- giving of the myriads who have been blessed by it. I esteem it a high honor to be allowed to help, in some small measure, the Manches- ter and Salford Mission." Dr. J. H. Jowett, of Birmingham, who is, perhaps, the most thoroughly representative preacher in England to-day, writes: "What can one say about your work except what every man would be glad and ready to say? I know nothing like it in England. What has impressed me most about it is this : the free play of the Spirit of God is not hin- dered in the amazing multiplicity of your works. I never feel smothered among them. One is always sensible of the wind that blow- eth where it listeth, and the primary aim is not lost in the means. Everything is made to tend toward the redemption of man and the building up of the saints of God. Your mis- sion offers a fine proof to the world that pentecostal power can be employed in the most modern adaptation of the Christian ministry.' ' 22 THE CHUKCH AND THE SLUM WORK OF THE MISSION PRAISED These letters are in perfect harmony with what I have heard on all sides. They are simply generous recognition of the heroic and successful Christlike work which is being done by devoted men and women whose hearts are aflame with the "white fire" of a noble pur- pose. Churchmen as well as Nonconformists acknowledge the ascendency of the Wesleyans in this work, and they particularly praise Superintendent Collier and his noble band of colaborers. I called on the city editor of the Manchester Guardian the other evening, and among other questions I asked him who were the two or three most influential ministers in the city. "After Dr. Maclaren," said he, "and he has practically retired now, I should say Dean Welldon, of the cathedral, and S. F. Collier, of Central Hall." I quoted this re- mark later to the secretary of the Young Men's Christian Association, and he said he thought the city editor was quite right. Practically the same thing was said to me by Dr. J. Hope Moulton, of Didsbury College, the greatest authority on the Greek New Testament in England. After what I have actually seen with my own eyes of the "soul- and-body-saving work" of this mission I find REV. S. F. COLLIER MANCHESTER AND SALFORD MISSION 25 it quite easy to believe all that these men have said. I know of no better place to study the evidences of Christianity than right here. A FEW FIGURES Let me give a few notable figures: There are in the mission 15 centers of work; 22 services are held every Sunday; 4,338 scholars are in the Sunday schools; 3,242 are in the Sunday afternoon meetings, and in the adult Bible classes and brotherhoods. Every week there are 33 prayer meetings, 9 Bible classes, 49 open-air services, and 21 lodging-house services. Over 41,000 persons, destitute or in special difficulty, were interviewed, ad- vised, and helped this last year in connection with the social work, and 27,986 destitute men were fed on Sundays. Four Homes and Refuges, with labor yards and workrooms, are maintained, and 220 cripples have had their lives brightened by the Cripples' Guild and the industrial classes. The field for these activities is Manchester and Salford, with a population of 1,000,000. THE CRIPPLES' GUILD My tour of inspection began on Friday afternoon, when I was shown through the Central Hall building. This building is a 26 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM large and imposing structure on Oldham Street just off Market, and not far from the Lever Street Chapel, where Mr. Collier began his experiment. Central Hall is headquarters for a wonderful band of Christian workers. The offices of the superintendent and his chief of staff are here; here is the large audi- torium and the rooms for various classes, clubs, and guilds; and here, too, is the Registry and Labor Bureau in the famous room "No. 8." Last year 6,435 persons were interviewed in this room. Positions are se- cured for nearly 600 every year. As a result of the work of all the labor bureaus of the mission, work was found last year for over 2,600 persons — 318 of them got permanent positions. In the evening I went back again to see the Cripples' Parlor and the Men's Club. Both meet every Friday night. The Cripples' Parlor was a sight to be remem- bered: a bright, well-lighted room and some sixty crippled children — all sorts of cripples they were — forgetting for a while their de- formities and aches and pains, and having a lovely time of it. There were games, songs, and much good cheer. Best of all were the kindly faces of the "workers," who gave di- rection to the evening's joy. There are some MANCHESTER AND SALFORD MISSION 27 two hundred children in the Cripples' Guild, and from fifty to seventy-five are usually at the "parlor meetings.' ' One of the nurses gives her whole time to these children, and visits those who are not able to come to the club meetings. After chatting for a time with some of the children and with a worker here and there in the room, I was invited by "Sister Marion" to go downstairs to the Men's Club. THE MEN'S CLUB Here were about two hundred and fifty men from the street. Such a lot! I looked over the company to see how many had on white linen collars. There were just two, and theirs were both black. It was a company of tramps. But here they come every Friday night to this Men's Club — not the same ones; the personnel of the company changes constantly. The room is open from five to ten o'clock. From five to eight they play games — chess, domi- noes, etc. — read the papers and magazines, of which there is abundant supply, and write letters. The letter-writing interested me most. Writing material is furnished by the mission workers, and they also stamp the letters for the men. Each man is allowed to write one letter, paper, envelope, and stamp free. From 28 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM fifty to one hundred letters are written in an evening. Many of them are letters applying for work; some are letters home. Often they talk to Sister Marion about them. When I got to the room the letter-writing was nearly done, and the letters were being brought up. Some of them were beautifully addressed. There was no reason why they should not be. Last winter they had in the club a Manchester solicitor, a Birmingham dentist, and a cap- and-gown man of Cambridge - all in the club at one time, and all chopping wood together out at the Men's Home ; all brought in through drink, but "trying to work their way back." I saw an English clergyman there, a man who had gone wrong. He is trying to pull himself together. Every man who comes into the club meeting must register. Thus the workers know whether a man comes more than once. Over three thousand are on the books for the past twelve months. Placards are here and there announcing that pledges may be taken. One reads: "Wanted! Workingmen to strike against drink and gambling." The second part of the evening's program consisted of gospel songs, prayer, a short address by "the gentleman from America," and a musical fea- ture, consisting of voice, violin, and piano. REV. HUGH PRICE HUGHES MANCHESTER AND SALFORD MISSION 31 Sister Marion, who has charge of this depart- ment, is a sanctified genius, I am sure of it. Her influence upon the men is such that it is not to be wondered at that some of them think her an angel in human form. THE MEN'S HOME Saturday morning I was at Central Hall at nine o'clock to be taken to some of the Homes where the social side of the work is at its best. The Men's Home, an immense building cover- ing half a square, has accommodations for 353 men — 212 boarders and 141 casuals. The casuals are the men who are only in for a short time, often a single night. Boarders pay sixpence per night, or three shillings a week, for room and bed. Casuals give three and a half hours' work for bed and three meals. The work is done in the woodyard, where from a hundred to a hundred and fifty men may be seen every afternoon, or in the tinyard, where scraps of iron and tin cans are brought in, sorted, and prepared for market. The men are given work in the afternoon rather than in the morning, so they may have the morning to look for permanent positions. More than a hundred men have been sent out in one day to work at which they have been able to earn 32 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM their own living. A gentleman, not of the mission, said to me: "One of the best things about Collier's mission is the work test. Collier stands in with the employers because he proves his men before he recommends them. He stands in with the men because he helps them to positions. Collier believes in work. He works himself, works hard, and he be- lieves everybody else ought to work. After he has proved the men in the woodyard or the tinyard he knows what they can do, and the employers know that he knows." Twenty- one thousand have been in this Home since the first of last January. The men average three nights each. Many remain only a single night. Even that one night means much to some. Others stay for weeks. A man whose face had attracted me in the club the night before, I found in the Home spreading bread for the casuals' dinner. He was formerly a piano-tuner. Drink and some other things did it. He is trying to work back. Dean Welldon, who is six feet three and of immense frame, climbing the three flights of stairs to the top of the building not long ago, said, as he puffed for breath, "My, but you need a lift [elevator] here, Collier." "That's what the men come for," was the quick reply. REV. J. H. JOWETT MANCHESTER AND SALFOKD MISSION 35 And they get the lift they come for. For many it is the lift that means beginning life over again. The Women's Home is hardly less interest- ing than the Men's. A fine large building four stories high, with a well-lighted and attractive- looking restaurant, is found open twenty-four hours of every day. All sorts of cases come in here. Day or night the doors are always open. Policemen and cabmen, so the sister in charge told me, often bring in outcasts in the early hours of the morning so drunk they can hardly walk. The tablet in the dining hall tells the whole story: "This House of Shelter was built by James Scarlett, of Bowdon, to the glory of God and as a memorial of his beloved wife, Elizabeth Catherine Scarlett, whose tender heart was full of compassion for the homeless and friendless." THE SUNDAY PROGRAM Sunday is the great harvest day. I missed the morning services; had the approval of "one of the staff" for it, too. I simply could not resist the temptation to hear Jowett, of Birmingham, who was to preach in Dr. Mac- laren's church. Such a sermon! I did not believe there was a man in England who 36 THE CHUECH AND THE SLUM could preach as Jowett does. No wonder the people crowd to hear him. He is certainly a man with a message. My afternoon and evening were full. At three it was a men's meeting in Central Hall — much the same sort of a crowd I had seen at the club on Friday evening, only more than twice as many men. I would not have believed that such a looking set could be brought together in one room anywhere on the face of the earth. Faces brutal, scarred, blear-eyed, hopeless, but wist- ful, many of them! There they were — the sort that hell is made of. No besotted con- dition described by Dante could be worse. "What a parody on our civilization!" "No," said one of the workers, "what an opportunity for Christ!" The men got, free of charge, a bun and a cup of tea for coming. After the tea there followed a gospel service. All stayed. There was not a Sunday suit in the room. "It seems that even God goes back on a man when he ain't got a Sunday suit." This bitter remark is said to have been made by a poorly clad fellow who was turned away from a London church by the policeman at the door. The door of Central Hall is wide open to the man without a Sunday suit. The most remarkable thing to me was the way the MANCHESTER AND SALFORD MISSION 37 men sang and listened to the sermon. The sermon was about the man out of whom the devils were cast, and the preacher showed in a striking way what the crowd did for the man, what the devil did, and what Christ did. After the service some signed the pledge, and sev- eral remained as inquirers. I said to Mr. Ful- ler, one of the staff, "How much do you get out of this?" He said, "About fifteen per cent/' It seemed to me wonderfully big re- turns out of such material as that. WITH THE BAND TO FREE TRADE HALL At five I was over in Salford to see a new institutional church just being opened by the Congregationalists. Sylvester Home was preaching. At six I was out with one of the bands and helping to place ten thousand in- vitations to the evening meeting in Free Trade Hall, the great hall made famous by Cobden and Bright. For full three quarters of an hour the band threaded the streets within a radius of half a mile of the hall. One of the greatest fires seen in Manchester for years was raging only a few squares away. Not much of a crowd to-night, I thought. To my utter surprise, when we got to the hall nearly every seat was taken. 38 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM THE EVENING SERVICE A chorus of fifty voices, with the assistance of the great organ and an orchestra of eighteen pieces, led the singing, which was hearty and worshipful. An exceptionally fine quartet, the Minnesingers, sang two selections of the kind to win men to a better life. One of them was Stebbins's "Launch Away." The prayer offered by the preacher was the prayer of a man who had been living in Manchester all the week and knew the city's needs. The announcements gave one some idea of the magnitude of the work carried on. The one of greatest interest to me was that next Sun- day, October 27, would be the twenty-first anniversary of the opening of Central Hall, "the first hall of the Methodist Church or of any church." "When I came to Manchester a young chap of thirty," said Mr. Collier, "the most hopeful man I found was a woman. She thought we might get five hundred people. My first sermon here I preached to forty-two people. To-day my colleagues and I are preaching to sixteen thousand. Every week our visitors are reaching forty-four thousand people in this city. But our work has only fairly begun. We expect to see this city won over to Christ. There's a lot to do yet, and MANCHESTEK AND SALFOED MISSION 41 we're going to need all our friends to help us. So get ready for the anniversary." Then fol- lowed the collection. Thirty of the men pass- ing the boxes were reclaimed drunkards ! The mission uses its own product. There are more than twenty-five hundred such in the mission. After the collection came the sermon, which was clear, forcible, earnest, and inspiring, at some points thrilling. It was Children's Day, or Decision Day, as we call it. Earnest appeal was made for the children, particularly for "the children in the hospitals," "the crippled children," "the children half damned in their birth and training." Here are a few of the short, sharp sentences: "The hope of humanity rests with the children." "A neglected child is a scandal to the nation." "We've got to do more for the children — stand by men for Par- liament who will do more for them." "How can men be devils enough to defile boys and girls?" "Do you know the place where your lad works?" "The men who lead a boy to drink deserve a 'cat-o'-nine-tails,' and I'd like to be one to give it to them." "Don't let the leprosy of your sin pollute young life." "Every boy who swears heard his first oath from somebody. Was it you?" "Where you work is the atmosphere pure, or does the foul 42 THE CHUECH AND THE SLUM jest come out?" There was nothing but the closest attention on the part of the audience during the entire sermon, and I did not won- der at it. In the after-service Mr. Collier said to me, "That fire robbed me of my raw ma- terial to-night." Though the number in the after-meeting was smaller than usual, the service was earnest and persuasive. Several went into the anteroom, where workers prayed with them and pointed them to Christ. I went with Mr. Collier to an "At Home" for homeless young people over on Oxford Street, and then bade him good-night and came to my hotel. AN HOUR IN THE OFFICE This morning I had an hour with Mr. Collier in his office — an hour I shall not soon forget. The man is altogether unconventional, yet is never undignified. He is well built physically, and seems to be capable of an unlimited amount of hard work. I said to him as I came in, "Well, is this blue Monday?" "No," said he, "I never have any blue Mondays. I have a cure." "Many would be glad to have your recipe," said I. "Begin work earlier on Monday. That's a sure cure." Mr. Collier is a graduate of Didsbury College, and is evi- MANCHESTEK AND SALFOED MISSION 43 dently a student, or he could not preach as he does. No living man could hold that great audience of three thousand people in Free Trade Hall, Sunday after Sunday for nearly twenty years, without study. I asked him if he got any time to read. "O, yes," said he, "I read for an hour and a half last night after I got home, and I read for three quarters of an hour this morning before coming to the office." S. F. Collier is a born leader, a genius as an organizer, a lovable nature, and his dominant passion seems to be to save men — not the souls of men only, but men. He told me of the new Hall and Institute that is to be erected on Peter Street, near the Free Trade Hall. "When we get that" — and how his face lighted up as he said it! — "when we get that, we shall have a proper home for our work. And it's going to come, too; there's no doubt about it." The anniversary gift asked for this year is $25,000— $15,000 to make up the de- ficit, and $10,000 for the new building, to which $120,000 has already been subscribed. The total cost of the new building will be $250,000. While in the office I was told of some of the work done by Gipsy Smith during the years he was evangelist for this mission. I saw in the morning mail what especially 44 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM pleased me as a college president — many checks, some of them good-sized, too, for the anniversary and the new building. Leaving the office, I ran out to Didsbury College for a couple of hours, and then re- turned to my hotel to write this letter. It poorly represents what I have seen, but I send it on with the hope that something of the new vision of possibility for the redemp- tion of the city which has come to me may through it help somebody else. If I could have the ear of all my brother ministers in America who are expecting to visit England in the near future, I should say: Leave Dur- ham, York, and Lincoln out of your itinerary, or even pass by Windsor, Oxford, and Strat- ford-on-Avon, rather than miss spending a few days, including a Sunday, in Manchester with S. F. Collier and his heroic helpers, who are winning the slums of this city to Jesus Christ. If you will see the work as I have seen it, you will feel as I do — you can't help it. Miracles are happening here. The work itself is a miracle. CENTRAL MISSION HALL, LIVERPOOL CHAPTER II Central Hall, Liverpool "You must see the Central Hall in Liver- pool. The work there is simply terrific. And don't fail to attend one of their popular con- certs on Saturday night/ ' This was said to me yesterday in Glasgow by Rev. William Lindsay, son of the great Professor Lindsay, to whom I had been introduced by Dr. George Adam Smith as the greatest authority of the United Free Church of Scotland on the work of institutional churches. "He knows more about the institutional church/' said Dr. Smith, "than the whole of us put together." Mr. Lindsay has charge of an institutional church in Glasgow — the first and as yet the only one established by the Free Church. I had nearly an hour with him, and found him to be thoroughly familiar with the work of the Wesley an halls. He seemed to know about all of them, and spoke of their work as one hav- ing authority. When he found that I had visited the halls in both Manchester and Liver- pool, he could hardly say enough about the work of these two centers. He had spent 47 48 THE CHURCH AND THE SLUM some time in Manchester, and spoke with greatest enthusiasm of Collier and his mar- velous success, particularly of the social side of the work. "But the great thing about it all," said he, "is its evangelistic fervor. You see there the joy of the early church. Every- body is busy and everybody happy. It is the greatest work the Wesleyans have, but in its way the Liverpool work is just as impor- tant. The popular concert there is the greatest thing of the kind I ever saw." THE CONCERT I cannot say that I should have used the adjective "terrific" in describing the work of Central Hall, Liverpool, but the work is hardly less impressive than that in Manchester. I attended the popular concert on last Satur- day evening — ran over from Manchester to do it. It was well worth while, too. The program was not an unusual one, but when I arrived at the hall at six o'clock there were at least one hundred people waiting at the iron gateway to get in. This was three- quarters of an hour before the time an- nounced for the doors to open, and an hour and a half before the time for the concert to begin. By previous arrangement I got in CENTRAL HALL, LIVERPOOL 49 at a side door. At half past six I went out to see the size of the crowd. The people were lined up two abreast and close together, both to the right and left of the gateway. I took the right line first, followed it a full square, passing the entrance to Shaftesbury Hotel in Mount Pleasant Street, then up that street toward the Young Men's Christian Associa- tion Hall. After reaching the end of the line I found that the distance back to the en- trance of the hall was one hundred and seventy-six yards. I took the line stretching out on Renshaw Street, and found the end to be one hundred and eighteen yards from the hall entrance. This was a quarter of an hour before the time for the doors to open and an hour before the concert was to commence. And people were still hurrying to get into the lines, some of them running. MANY SHUT OUT At ten minutes past seven orders were given not to allow any more to enter, as all the twenty-two hundred seats were filled and all available standing room taken. The police- man at the entrance raised his white glove, and the iron gates were shut in the faces of more than five hundred people who were 50 THE CHUKCH AND THE SLUM unable to get in. The pitiable thing about it was that many of that five hundred were workingmen, who could not get there earlier. As I looked at them I began to see more clearly the meaning of what the superin- tendent, Rev. Joseph Jackson, had said to me two days before: "These concerts are to get hold of the laboring men and the men in the street who never go to church." He told me of a gentleman who came to him recently, and said: "Mr. Jackson, I was at the concert last Saturday night, and I didn't quite like it. Do you think it is the place a Christian ought to go?" "Of course not," said Mr. Jackson, "it is not for Christians — it is for the men who don't go to church. You ought to have been at a prayer meeting or a class meeting somewhere. Besides, you did a posi- tive wrong in going, for you occupied a seat that I wanted badly for a poor workingman who was shut out." THE PROGRAM These Saturday night concerts — and they are practically the same in all the Wesleyan mission halls — consist of choruses, quartets, vocal and instrumental solos, humorous read- ings, and moving pictures — "animated" pic- REV. JOSEPH JACKSON CENTEAL HALL, LIVEEPOOL 53 tures, they are called here, or cinematograph pictures. Care is taken to secure good talent, professional people for the most part. There are no reserved seats in the Liverpool hall, and the admission fee, including program, is twopence. Better-to-do and worse-to-do peo- ple all pay the same admission. Even at this admission fee the concerts pay. The net profit is from thirty to forty dollars per night. The mission owns and operates its own cine- matograph, so that the only cost for the moving pictures is the rent of the films. The audience having gathered, the concert began ten minutes before the appointed hour, Mr. Jackson in the chair. Nothing is done over here without having somebody in the chair. The opening number was an illustrated hymn thrown upon the screen, the audience standing and singing. My, but they did sing! The hymn was, "Let the lower lights be burning/ ' each stanza with a different view on the screen — a lighthouse, water, and rocks show- ing in each, with lifeboat in last; but the same view for the chorus — and how they did sing out the words, "You may rescue, you may save"! Then followed a prayer, which was simple, earnest, direct, and short. The mu- sical attractions for the evening were the 54 THE CHUECH AND THE SLUM Brunswick Male Voice Choir and a contralto soloist. Both were good. The male chorus showed fine training, and there was a swing about their work which greatly pleased the audience. They sang a wide range of selec- tions, from "A Pickaninny Lullaby" to the "Crusaders' Song of Hope." They were en- cored repeatedly. Two of the encores — "The Boys of the Old Brigade" and Root's "Play the Man" — brought forth storms of applause. When they had been called back twice after one of the numbers, Mr. Jackson took the part of the singers, and said: "That is enough now; you don't want to keep them here all night, do you? They must get home some- time." The contralto appeared in a rather bespangled gown, which was almost too much for the chairman, who turned to me and said: "My! but she is done up regardless, isn't she? We do not usually have that sort here. She probably has another engagement later in the evening." But she sang well, and greatly delighted the audience, especially with two of her encores — "Holiday Time" and "Home, Sweet Home." Here, as with us, the old pieces are the favorites. In the moving pic- tures there was a great variety — humorous, entertaining, and instructive. Among the SISTER KATE CHANDLER A Deaconess of Central Hall, Liverpool CENTEAL HALL, LIVEEPOOL 57 instructive was one which lasted for nearly fifteen minutes. It showed the process of tunny fishing off the coast of Sicily — drawing up the nets, putting the fish on ship, the return, unloading a colossal catch of two hundred thousand pounds, cleaning and cook- ing the fish, putting them in cans, and ex- tracting the oil. Nothing in all the program pleased the people more than the moving pictures. During the interval between the first and second part of the program Mr. Jackson announced the events for the week. It was a full program, too — Sunday services, class meetings, brotherhood and guild meet- ings, and another concert in one week. An- nouncement was also made of the approaching anniversary, on November 26, when £2,000 would be asked for, for the double purpose of paying off the debt and carrying on the work. At the beginning of the second part of the program, and again at the close, there were illustrated hymns — "O! what a Saviour/' and "Onward, Christian soldiers." The people of Manchester and Liverpool certainly know how to sing, and they do it so heartily. It did my soul good to hear them. The concert closed at just five minutes past ten, having lasted two hours and forty-five minutes; but not a 58 THE CHUKCH AND THE SLUM man, woman, or child left the room during the entire program. GOOD RESULTS The thing that most pleased me about the concert was that there seemed to be a divine purpose running through it all. "The people come to the concert/ ' said one, "they get used to the place, then they come to the Sunday services." I was told of many cases where the concert had been the almost direct cause of leading men to a better life. One of the ushers said, "It was a concert which brought me." He had got pretty low down through drink — his wife no better — and came one Sat- urday night to the concert. Josiah Nix, the race-course evangelist, was introduced as a man who was going to hold a ten-days' mis- sion. "I liked what he said, and decided to go and hear him. I did go, and was con- verted; so were my wife and four children. I tell you, our home is a different one now." Another usher said, "We got a good lot of pledges to-night." Here, as in Manchester, they make much of the pledge, taking every opportunity to urge it. One man in the Man- chester Mission — I think I did not mention this in my letter from there — is called the REV. CHARLES GARRETT CENTRAL HALL, LIVERPOOL 61 "Pledge King." He has secured fifty thousand signers. CENTRAL HALL AND CHARLES GARRETT Mr. Jackson seems to be a man well adapted to his work — sees what is to be done and does it. He is a graduate of Headingley College, and had four years with Peter Thompson in the East London Mission. He was with Josiah Nix, secretary of Race Course Mission, and was the first secretary to the British Chau- tauqua. He has been in his present position for eight years. Mr. Jackson is peculiarly fortunate in his building — Central Hall. It is new — has only been in use for two years. It was built at a cost of $250,000. There is still a debt of some $40,000, but it is so arranged that it will be gradually paid off at anni- versaries. Central Hall was built as a me- morial to Rev. Charles Garrett, the founder of the mission and a man whose name is still almost a household word in Liverpool — one of those rare men who bless any city. His is one of the names known in all Methodism. On the right hand in the great entrance hallway is a bronze tablet, reminding all who pass that the hall is a "Memorial to Rev. Charles Garrett," and that the Central Hall buildings 62 THE CHUKCH AND THE SLUM were opened December 5, 1905, by the Right Honorable Sir Henry Fowler. The building is stately and imposing, one of the proud structures of the street. It contains not only the large auditorium, but a smaller one, with seating capacity for seven hundred. There are also rooms for various classes and guilds. There is a coffee bar, with dining rooms, where one hundred and fifty poor girls get luncheon between one and two o'clock, at a less than nominal fee. There is a social room for the men, with billiard and bagatelle tables. The table for bagatelle is one formerly used in a taproom in Wales. On Sunday evening the large auditorium is filled just as I saw it at the concert. Usually there is an overflow meeting in the lower hall. Then in the base- ment there is a men's meeting, something like the meeting I saw in Manchester, only not so large. The social agencies include five homes for boys and girls, special missions to lodging-house men and factory girls, the men's shelter, and police court work. Last winter quite a unique work was done among girls from the theaters in the neighborhood. A band plays every Sunday afternoon in the open space in front of the great Saint George's Hall. Here, as in Manchester, the band o o «1 o (—1 02 02 02 H O « O H O H 1— 1