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4 THE PRESBYTERIi THE BEST CALVIN MEMORIAL. Various schemes have been proposed to erect a proper memorial this four hundredth year* of John Calvin. All honor is due the man whose administrative genius and constructive power as the profoundcst and ablest of all the reformers lifted him above the men of his own day and of almost all the days. Two of the most practical forms suggested have been physical memorials in the shape of a church in the little place where he was born, and in a lecture hall at Montreat, the new Prf?sbvt<?riati cimimu- ?o?- ' ou.i?iivi gamcimg piace. i ne lirst has been discouraged because of the fact that a church suitable as a memorial is not needed in the straggling and decaying little village of his birth and for a worshipping body as small and feeble as would gather within its walls. As to the other, the Presbyteries, to which the proposition was sent down by the General Assembly, have almost unanimously declined to commend it to their churches for a collection. For those among American people who really desire to honor the name of Calvin and to express gratitude to God for his work there is a better and a very practical way, and one which will be entirely free from any thought of interested motives. It is in connection with the great mass of Calvin's fellow countrymen whom God has placed right alongside of us. There are in Louisiana between two hundred and fifty thousand and three hundred thousand French speaking people, of the very class amongst whom Calvin wrought his greatest success, in leading them to the knowledge of the pure gospel of Christ. Nearly every one of this great mass of people is as much ignorant of the Word of God and of the true way of life as were those to whom he preached and whom he brought to the reformed faith. The evangelization of this people would be the finest memorial that could be raised to his name. It would be in the Calvin spirit. It would accord with ?11 it. - ' - an me principles and teachings and work of the man. It would be in accord with the heart of Christ and with the mission of the church. Such an effort would not be either hopeless or fruitless. God's promise will be fulfilled in his presence with every one who will undertake such a work in bis name. He will not let his word fail. And the same effort and means which have been blessed in other days will produce as happy results today. The French people of Louisiana have warm and appreciative natures. They respond instinctively, perhaps more quickly even than other people, to kindness and courtesy. They are willing to be shown "a better way." An earnest, intelligent. tactful nrnrioimin^ *1 ? ^ ,?....s mcrn, in tneir own tongue, of the precious gospel of Christ will win their interest and affection and trust. Some of their people are already in our churches and make our finest and most efficient workers. Many more would come if sought in the right way. The first step needful in this effort at evangelization is to prepare a ministry for this people. Those must be found or fitted who can speak to them in their own tongue, who are familiar with their ways, who understand their characteristics, who can be tactful and sympathetic, not offending their sensibilities while trying to win them from an impure and unwarranted faith. To \N OF THE SOUTH. February 24, 1909. thi.s end call should be made to young men of consecration and zeal to equip themselves for this work. The next step will he to support those who may he found and prepared for this work. They need not expect support from the field itself, any more than our workers in Cuba or Brazil expect to be supported in those lands. For many years, perhaps for a generation, tlie burden will have to be upon God's generous people. Patience and long waiting will have to he exercised, but they will have their reward as surely as God is true. In such a memorial to John Calvin souls will be the stones of which the temple will he built, love will be the cement, grace will be the crown and trlorv! THE CONGO SITUATION. Dispatches from London to the effect that the Belgian government intends prosecuting Rev. W. M. Morrison and other American missionaries for "calumnious denunciations," are probably based on rumor or conjecture. The facts furnished by Messrs. Morrison, Sheppard, Yass and others of our own mission, as to the atrocities perpetrated by King Leopold's agents, are so conclusive and so well sustained thats^nn official investigation would be hazardous in the extreme to the government oartv. Not only have our missionaries told what they saw and knew from positive evidence, but the missionaries of other Churches have confirmed their statements, and an official investigation by the English Congo Reform Association abundantly sustains these charges. Moreover, there is an implied acknowledgment of guilt in the promise made by the Belgian government of reforms in the way of humane methods in dealing with the natives. The Belgian government will probably employ its utmost energy and engage its best diplomacy in the effort to secure* recognition as cmvprninor i-ioo,-? i*vau ui tut Congo Free State, and to this end will be careful to conciliate by all possible means, rather than antagonize, the subjects of more powerful nations. One of the happy effects of the close contact of nations in these recent times will be the censorship which will be exercised over governments that are disposd to be oppressive in the treatment of their subjects. Whether or not the world has become more' spiritual and less materialistic in these modern times, it has become more humane. Higher conceptions of just social conditions prevail, and rulers and subjects alike are more appreciative of the rights of the individual. This advancement is credited by the world to the general progress of enlightenment and the evolution of better standards of justice and duty. It must be credited in fact to the spread of Christian truth, the dominance of holy principles, that are not the product of merely human ad vancement, but are the revelation of God's will, expounded by his teachers and illustrated in the life of his people. It is exceedingly suggestive that cruelty inflicted on an ignorant and helpless race, by strong, grasping, merciless invaders, should receive its first exposure and its effectual rebuke at the hands of American missionaries.