on the lower forms of philanthropic effort, the
higher, spiritual purposes and endeavors must suffer.

The Basle Lutheran Mission of South India has done more industrial work
than any other mission of that land. But the industrial department grew so
rapidly and became so absorbing that it was found necessary to make a
separate "mission" of it. It has flourished as a commercial enterprise and
is self-supporting. But the leader of that mission informs me that its
blessings are questionable, in that it tends to demoralize the people and
renders little or no aid to their spiritual work.

While I believe that a certain amount of endeavour, by a mission, for the
temporal good and social betterment of its people is legitimate and
desirable, extreme care should be taken, in the present early stage of
progress, lest this form of activity become prominent or dominant; and,
above all, lest it, in any way, interfere with the conviction concerning
the supreme importance and prime urgency of the spiritual training and
growth of the people. This class of work can very easily, by changing the
people's ideas of a mission's aim and purpose, demoralize them. It can
also, with equally fatal facility, transfer the interest of the missionary
from the higher to the lower realm of work, and thus become a curse,
rather than a blessing, to him. If the work of missions is to be broadened
the greatest care must be exercised lest this breadth be secured at the
expense of depth of spiritual purpose and power, and height of spiritual
life and experience. I must confess that this new movement, in the present
stage of the progress of missions, brings to me as much fear as it does
hope. For, while I see reason for taking up such work, I know also the
demoralizing influences that so naturally and easily follow it. A mission
that allows itself to be secularized, by giving too much emphasis to these
social and civilizing agencies, becomes inevitably paralyzed as a
spiritual force in its field; and woe be to any mission that gains
anything at the expense of its spiritual paralysis.

7. MISSION ADMINISTRATION.

The question of administration is an exceedingly important one to every
mission. How wisely are our missions organized for large economy of money
and effort and for highest efficiency? Could not missions unite, for
mutual counsel and wisdom, as many officers of our societies at home now
do; could not missions learn more from one another in this most