STORY OF NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 219, 10 June 1920, Page 6

STORY OF NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

GENERAL BOOTH INTERVIEWED WHAT THE SALVATIONISTS j. HAVE DONE 13 •• THEIR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE [- d "We have got a wonderful start in i, Czocho-Slovnkia," said General Bramwell is Booth, head of the Salvation Army, in e fflie course of an interviow he Rave to 0 Wellington pressmen yesterday.lnat i. statement, as ii.dicatinfr the enterprise '■- of the Army and the gigantic extent of r its lahours, was -jerhapa the most re. ■ markablo that the distinguished viator * uttered. It was made ouito casually, i- for thero is no thcatricalism aoout tlio ? General's manner in conversation. The 1 first impression that one gets upon meet* ' inn the General is that most of his a photographs have done him an injustice. ? One is almost surprised at the readiness ; " with which the brown eyes twinkle and tho sensitive mouth break into a genial, friendly smile. Three-nuartcra of an hour in the presence of tho man who 1 once preached a sermon from a coffin " results in nothing moro terrible than the 3 conviction that the General's earnestness ? is no bar amiability. f It is to the spiritual power of the f Army that General Booth looks for its future success. "My hope and belief is," ! he told the pressmen, "that the Arms ' will continue a great spiritual force, ! and I am influenced in that confidence ' by three considerations. First of _ all, \ its present power is in its spiritual ' power; its social and philanthropic work, which is so widely appreciated in all tho , countries, ig_really completely dependent '. upon the spiritual vitality of its ofli. . cers and, its people. The. social work could bo'carried on only!by peoplo of a certain type—people of a certain heart and devotion, and above all, self-sacrifice. Secondly, I think that the future 19 obvious from the fact that a great many of the people benefited by the philanthropic work turn out spiritual triumphs; bo that it may be seen all the time that the aim is the people's souls—character. Thirdly, I v think the future is assured in this direction from the faot that it is seen everywhere that this is the only true way of saving the people who are broken and forgotten; that changing a man's circumstances or a woman's clothimr is a mere bagatelle—what you want to do is to change her heart, to change his character. "The RTowth of the spirit of sacrifice in the Army fills me with confidence and joy. If you ask how it ha 9 been specially manifested of late years, I would snv by the remarkatly increased interest in and. readiness to suffer for the heathen nations. In the first seven years since the death of the founder—a period which, was expected to'be one of retrenchment, if mt of collapse—we have more than doubles our work in the heathen lands/ and every year brings me more offers for service in those lands, both from our officers and our soldiers, despite all the trials and sacrifices and loneliness and risks of life and death which that service involves." Views on Spiritualism, "What is the attitude of tho Army towards Spiritualism?" the General was asked. He answered for himself. "My quarrel with the Spiritualists is this," ho said; "they can't tell us anything we don't know. There is nothing' in what they say that is not abundantly, egregi' ously behind what the New Testament says; and even though I may not be pre pared to support with any great demonstration my personal view that familiar spirits are evil spirits—even though I may not wish to enforce that upon every body—l say that from tho point of view of the utilitarian there is nothing in it. They tell us nothing about Heaven, and they never mention Hell. They have no word of comfort or guidance upon the greatest of all human problems, the problems of sin and pain and retribution, My advice is: let them alone. If you ask mo whether. I havo had any personal experience of the outcome cf Spiritual' ism. I say 'Yes, a great deal in many lands.' And I may sum it up iu one word—that I.have never seen any good come out of it to tho lifei and lasting happiness of any individual soul; and 1 have seen an infinity of doubt and misery and miin." ; The effect of tb'o war upon morality was a matter on which the visitor was invited to express an opinion. "The war," ho w plied, 'Hike any other human experience of deep significance, has affected us both ways. I seriously believe that the good in the world is better for the war, but J. am afraid that the evil in tho world is stronger for the war. That is a platitnde." observed tho General with n deprecating smile, "but it is true. The w«r has helped faith in those who had faith, it ins helped the lealisation of another world; on tho other hand, hate and. rivalry and the spirit of murder havo been ptrcngthencd by tho war, and we Live got a bigger fight against badness than before the war. The Work* in Germany, "Germany has suffered from the war, but I don t think sho has suffered as Franco has suffered. The Salvation Army in Germany has gone on. It has increased. We lost very few officers— though they all 6erved—because tho authorities recognised the character of our work and placed them all on non-com-Imtont duty—commissariat, telegraphs, Red Cross, and so jn—so that we have come' through better than might have been hoped. Wo had 25 corps in GTeater Berlin when the war began. When the war ended, we still had 30, and no serious harm. In tho first Spartacist rising the leaders on both sides agreed that the Salvation Army property should be immune from attack, and notices signed by both sides that the Salvation Army was to bo Te» spected were posted upon our buildings. "We havo got a wonderful start in Caecho-Siovakia. Tho Government has placed all facilities at our disposal. We have a fine building in one of tho principal streets of Prague for our headquarters, an old nunnery with 100 rooms for a rescue home; schools, and a monastery for a training college. "The Patriarch of Serbia haa asked me to commence the regular operations of the Army in his country. It is th« first time in history that such a thing has happened. He said: 'You have no buildings at present. It is my pleasure to offer you all the churches in Serbia to have in them one meeting a week of your Salvation Army.' That is a fact, not a mere yarn, and it showA tho influence that tho Army is exerting. Tho Serbians are a very fine people. 'They know how to suffer for an ideal, like the Czecho-Slovaks. Tho latter havo been 400 years fighting for tho littlo bit of freedom they havo now got. £1000 From the Mikado "What do you hope may ho the result of yo- present tour?" was the last qi«stion addressed to tho General. Ii elicited the following reply: "1 am here more than anything olse on a visit oi inspection and inquiry with a view tc timing new ways of extending our worV, I am hopeful that I shall create tnich feeling and public opinion, especialli witTiin tho Army, in with tiio heathen world, that I shall obuiir «omo officers, both now and in tho noxl year or two, as well as additional money to help me forward in those lands, par ticulari.v in China and India, I pui China first becauso China is at tin moment most in need of he!)) and mos open—wonderfully open. Wl.ilo I wn: ih Melbourne I.got a message sayin; that the President of China had givoi the equivalent of about as a per sonal donation to our work by way o putting his imprimatur upon it. No so long ago I received from the Em peror of Japan a gift of .£IOOO for tin work in Japan. Leading Mohammedan in the Dutch. Indies are warm friend of our work there. A British Soldier's £5. "I will tell you a curious little inci dent. On the same day that I got th ,£•1000 from the Emperor of Japan I go a letter from a lowyer saying ho wu administering the small estate of a Bn fish soldier who was killed in th trenches and who loft £H> to be distri

Iwte'l as fallowB: so much to his mother, so much to big sister, .and X 5 to tbo Salvation Army—"because they tried to s;ivo him." General Booth left ft* CltrUtcliuroh iu-t night and will return to Wellington about tho middle of next vcA.