om this country. Their characteristics,
and their success in their new surroundings, have won for us the
highest commendation of the Authorities concerned.

In the vast fields of South America, we have as yet only small forces,
but we have established a good footing with the various populations,
and have already received no inconsiderable help for our purely
philanthropic work from several of the Governments. Our latest new
extensions, Chile, Paraguay, and Peru, and Panama, seem to offer
prospects of success, even greater than we have been able to record in
the Argentine or Uruguay. Before your book is published, we shall
probably have made a beginning also in both Bolivia and Brazil.

The South American Republics--chiefly populated by the descendants of
the poorest classes of Southern Europe--are professedly Roman
Catholic. The influence of the priesthood, however, owing to various
causes, seems to be on the wane, and a habit of abandoning all
religious thought is much on the increase. But the realization that
our people never attack any Church, or quibble about details of creed
and ceremonial, has won their way to the hearts of many, and there can
be no doubt that we have a great future amongst these peoples. In Peru
the law does not allow any persons not of the Romish Church to offer
prayer in public places, but when it was found that our Officers made
no trouble of this, but managed all the same to hold open-air and
theatre services very much in our usual style, great numbers of the
people were astonished at the 'new religion,' and so many had soon
begun to pray 'in private' that we have little doubt about the future
of our work there.

In thinking of the future, I cannot overlook our plans of organization
which have, I am persuaded, much to do with the proper maintenance and
continuance of the work we have taken in hand.

While striving as much as possible to avoid red tape, or indeed any
methods likely to hinder initiative and enterprise, we are careful to
apply a systemization comprehensible to the most untrained minds, so
that we may make every one feel a proper degree of responsibility, as
well as guard them from mere emotionalism and spasmodic activity,
accompanied as that kind of thing often is, by general neglect.

Thus no one can join the Army until after satisfying the local Officer
and some resident of the place during a period of trial of the
sincerity of his profession. He must then sign our Articl