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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume II, Issue 148, 17 March 1874, Page 2

A terrible famine prevails in Greenland. At one place alone 150 persons have died from hunger. An old miser, who wao notorious for self-denial, was one day asked why he was so thin. “I do not know,” said the miser, “ I have tried various means for getting fatter; but without success.” “ Have you tried victuals ?” inquired the friend. Shares in Paying Church Debt.— Our churches, says an American paper, are continually taking lessons in financial affairs from the world, and applying method and business precision to the management of their temporal affairs. An instance which has just come under my notice will illustrate this. A church in Wisconsin was embarrassed by a debt of £2,000. A crisis came and it must be paid. To have raised this in the usual way would have been simply impossible. But this plan was hit upon : Let one cent a day for five hundred days be a share, to be paid weekly, monthly, or quarterly, as convenient. Every child can take at least one share. The poorest can save and lay by two, three, or five cent a day. Some will take ten shares, some twenty and a few a hundred. If a thousand persons —and there were as many as that in the con-gregation-take an average of two shares each —that is save and give two cents a day each far five hundred days, the £2,000 will be reached. This was presented and explained from the pulpit. Early in the week canvassers went to work, and in a short time, to the great surprise and delight of all, the full amount was subscribed. [How would that act in Gisborne 9 Ed. S.J