Part 12 (2/2)

Among others, eight hundred priests have received these, so that we cannot but hope that a large amount of good has been effected. While Eli and Sybil Jones were at the stand numbers of people came for the little gratuitous French, German, and Italian Gospels, and seemed much pleased to receive them. Our friends had the pleasure themselves of giving some copies to soldiers and others. The gentlemen at the stand were much interested in E. and S. J.'s mission to the East, and supplied us with Arabic and Turkish portions for distribution there.

On First day we attended the Friends' meeting at the Congregational chapel, 23 Rue Royale, at 9 A. M. About forty persons were present, among others L. Mellor and her husband from Philadelphia, whom it was pleasant for E. and S. Jones to meet. The meeting was a memorable and impressive one, ministry and supplication flowing freely. Soon after the Friends' meeting the usual Congregational meeting was held, at which we remained, the pasteur inviting E. and S. Jones to come to his afternoon meeting in the Avenue des Ternes, where they might have an opportunity of addressing those present. We accordingly went, and found a small but serious gathering of English and Americans; the song of the angels on the night of our Saviour's birth was dwelt upon. Next day E. and S. J., having been invited by the secretary of the Evangelical Alliance to be present at the usual service in the Salle evangelique, we went thither at the appointed time, but were sorry to find on arriving that, though free opportunity was offered for Eli Jones to speak, the committee could not allow Sybil Jones to do so.

Under these circ.u.mstances Eli Jones declined to take any part in a service which would so distinctly have compromised one of our Society's leading views. On Third day we left Paris for Lyons. E. and S. J. much enjoyed the country with its long lines of poplar trees edging the streams and ca.n.a.ls, and vineyards terracing the slopes of Cote d'Or. We slept at Lyons, setting out the following morning for another day's journey to Nismes. Nismes was reached between nine and ten P. M., our Friends less tired than after the journey of the day before, having much enjoyed the scenery. Jules Paradon, who for so many years had been an interpreter for Friends and their kind helper in the south of France, came early to the hotel on the following morning to welcome the Friends back to Nismes. Lydia Majolier and other Friends also called, and an arrangement was made for a meeting to be held at the Free Church the same evening, the pasteur kindly giving up his usual service to E. and S. Jones. A good meeting was held, about one hundred being present. Jules Paradon interpreted the free gospel message and the prayer for France, her rulers, her pasteurs, and her people. Much joy was expressed at seeing E. and S.

J. again. Much fruit of their labor here fourteen years ago is evident. There seems much good stirring among the young people who are connected with Friends. Some of those who were at school when E. and S. J. were last here bear marks of their influence. On the 3d we drove to Congenies, about twelve miles from Nismes, through the rich vineyards and oliveyards of the South. There are not many Friends at Nismes, but the little meeting-house was well filled. In the evening a meeting was held, and about ninety present, half of them men. It was an interesting sight to see the men in their working dress and the women--many of whom had been working hard all day--listening so attentively and seriously to the loving and encouraging words spoken to them. Much feeling was shown as they spoke to the Friends after meeting. E. and S. Jones and their party were kindly lodged at the house of George and Lydia Majolier, and the following day were driven to Fontanes to see Friends in that neighborhood. We were hospitably entertained at the house of Daniel Brun, a minister of our Society. A meeting was held in the afternoon, about forty present; L. Majolier interpreted. E. and S. J. addressed words of warning and encouragement to all. Daniel Brun prayed for a blessing upon the seed sown. On First day the meeting convened at 10.30 A. M. at Congenies, many Friends coming from other places, so that the little meeting-house was again filled, J. Paradon having come over to interpret. Sybil Jones dwelt upon the nature of true wors.h.i.+p. Eli Jones dwelt earnestly upon woman's part in regenerating and elevating the world, reminding us of what a prominent part she played in the fall, and, on the other hand, both in the Old Testament history, and still more in the New, how many n.o.ble women are written about. These were held up as not unattainable examples. A large and very interesting meeting was held at 4 P. M. at Nismes in one of the Protestant places of wors.h.i.+p. On Second day E.

and S. J. visited two girls' schools for the poorer cla.s.ses, at both of which they spoke to the children, encouraging them to pray morning and evening for help for the day and forgiveness for what they had done amiss.

”On Third day we were at St. Gilles, where we were very kindly entertained at Anna Vally's, where a meeting was held in the afternoon for the few Friends in the place, and in the evening a good meeting was held in the temple. The following day a large meeting was held at Calvisson, six hundred being there, and Pasteur Abausit himself interpreting. On Fifth day a farewell meeting was held with the Friends, thirty or forty in number, at which much tenderness of feeling was shown while S. J. urged and encouraged them to fight for the faith once delivered to the saints. She dwelt earnestly on the need of their forgiving those who had injured them, as they hoped to be forgiven. Many tearful farewells were said and earnest desires expressed for E. and S. J.'s welfare, and for a blessing on the labors of their hands. On Sixth day we left Nismes at noon, reaching Ma.r.s.eilles about 5 P. M., whence we hope to sail this afternoon for Athens, thence to Beirut, where we look to be about the end of the month.”

We give below a letter from Ellen Clare Miller, written on board the steamer ”G.o.davery” to the _Friends' Review_:

SMYRNA, 10th mo. 25, 1867.

It falls to my lot to give some account of the very interesting visit to Athens of our dear friends Eli and Sybil Jones.... It was a time never to be forgotten. Our account was written from Ma.r.s.eilles, from which port we embarked on Seventh day, 10th mo. 12th, reaching the Piraeus on Fifth day morning. We had a safe and pleasant voyage, receiving much kindness from the captain, who seemed a superior man.

There was not opportunity for much outward service on board, but earnest desires were felt and loving prayers raised that our tarriance there might be for good to those who sailed with us....

On the 16th the fine ramparts of the rocky, sterile hills of Southern Greece came into view, and all that day we coasted along that most interesting country, with its mountains rising up from the very edge of the sea, here and there a poor little village with its scanty olive trees set in the hollows of the hills, or a solitary house for the shepherd or goatherd. It was past midnight when we sailed into the Piraeus, very calm, with beautiful starlight and a very soft air; and so we landed in Greece.

We did not know quite what we should do, landing at midnight in a strange country and hearing only a strange tongue, but we were wonderfully provided for in this respect. A Greek gentleman, who was our fellow-pa.s.senger returning to Athens, very kindly did for us all that could be done, getting our baggage through the custom-house without detention--which at that late hour was a great relief--and taking us to a comfortable hotel. It is difficult to convey the great interest of our visit to Athens, which should, I think, be confirming to all who go in simple faith where they feel themselves required to go, believing that the way and the work will be opened up before them.

Such has been everywhere the openness to receive our dear friends that surely He who put it into their hearts to visit this place, and who when ”He putteth forth His own sheep goeth before them,” prepared the hearts of the people in a wonderful manner to receive them, and opened the way for their mission among all. It was very interesting next morning to find ourselves opposite the Acropolis with its ancient ruined temples and fortifications, and the less conspicuous but still more interesting little eminence beside it, Mars Hill, from whose rocks, where the council of the Areopagus sat, Paul spoke.

On Fifth day, the 17th, Eli Jones and Alfred Lloyd Fox delivered letters of introduction to J. H. Hill, chaplain of the English emba.s.sy, who for more than thirty years, with his wife, has been teaching the Greek children. There is a great work going on in Athens in reference to the poor Cretans who have fled from their own islands and taken refuge in Greece. Thousands have come to Athens, where they have been provided with food and clothing, and schools have been opened for the education of their children. We visited five of these--some more than once--where E. and S. Jones had an opportunity of speaking to the children, and often to the poor Cretan women. Some were widows; others had lost their children, others whose husbands and children are still engaged in the war. All had lost their homes and their whole possessions. It was a very affecting sight to see these poor sorrowing creatures thronging to speak to the friends, thanking them for their words of loving sympathy and comfort, and for the help and sympathy sent them from America. At all the schools the message of our dear friends was to point both children and parents to Jesus as the one who is able under all circ.u.mstances to give peace and happiness to the soul. The message, which to many was a new one, seemed to go home to their hearts, and seed was sown with fervent prayer which we must believe will be blessed to these poor creatures and to Greece by Him who giveth the increase. Demetrius Z.

Sackellarios, editor of _The Star in the East_ and treasurer of the American and Greek fund for the support of the Cretan schools, very kindly and efficiently interpreted on several occasions. He is a Greek by birth, but spent several years in America, and his wife, A.

Josephine Sackellarios, is an American lady. There are indeed several Americans in Athens, with whom we had some very delightful intercourse.

We spent First day evening with Dr. Hill and his family, and (through the medium of Edward Ma.s.son, a Scotchman, and formerly one of the judges of the supreme court of Areopagus) E. and S. Jones had an opportunity of addressing a school at Dr. Hill's house for between twenty and thirty Greek girls of the upper cla.s.ses. Several were introduced to them from Macedonia, Asia Minor, and many parts of Greece and the islands, besides Athens. An impression seemed to be made that evening which we trust will not soon be forgotten. After visiting another of the schools on First day, where we saw five hundred children taught on the national-school system, and some Cretan women spinning and weaving their native silk, we went to the prison, where Sybil Jones had obtained permission to speak to the prisoners.

Leave was granted for all the prisoners, about one hundred and fifty in number, to come into the courtyard, in the centre of which was a large plane tree, under the shadow of which all stood, the poor men forming a large semicircle around S. Jones and D. Sackellarios, her interpreter, and the others. It was a striking scene and a time of great interest. The men were exceedingly attentive, and many were moved while S. J. spoke to them for nearly an hour. She sympathized with them in their present condition. She related some narratives of prisoners who, having found their Saviour in prison, had been filled with joy, and she prayed for them that they too might be brought to Him. The governor of the prison seemed very grateful--said he hoped the words spoken would be blest to the souls of the poor prisoners; and many said it was a day never to be forgotten. It was found that the prisoners had no Bibles, but an arrangement was made that each should be supplied with at least a Gospel. We spent the evening very pleasantly at the house of Dr. Kalopothakes, where we met most of the missionaries, to whom, after the First of Romans had been read, E. and S. J. addressed many words of encouragement, as they did on a similar occasion on Third day morning, when many came to the hotel to take leave, alluding to the refreshment it had been in coming to a strange land to meet with those to whom, as servants of the same blessed Master, they could feel united in one common love and faith, partaking together of the one true communion and speaking together the language of Canaan. All present were deeply affected, and a strong impression was made there as on all other occasions. Some said that the visit of these dear Friends to Athens was just what they had long desired and prayed for--that what they had brought was as a message from the Saviour to encourage them in their work; and D. Sackellarios said that the day of his interpreting for them was the happiest of his life. The same morning E. and S. Jones visited the theological college for the education of young Greek priests. It is under the superintendence of a young Greek, who seems a serious man. He has one or two Friends'

books, and is desirous to know something of our Society. S. J.

addressed a few words both to him and to the students, encouraging them to give their hearts to the Saviour and to attend to the teaching of the Holy Spirit in their hearts.

E. and S. J. also received a visit from the Cretan bishop of Kissaruss to thank them for their visits to the schools and their interest in the Cretan children, and through them to express grat.i.tude to the American people for their help and sympathy. He also asked for the prayers of Americans that Crete might be made free.

We sailed from the Piraeus 10th mo. 22d, landing at Syra the following morning, where E. and S. J. visited the school for Greek children under the care of F. A. Hildner, a Basle missionary, who has been for thirty-seven years engaged in work on this island. Here, as before, the gospel message was spoken to the children and a cheering visit paid to the missionary. We re-embarked on Fifth day, and after running for some time pretty near the coast we sailed into the beautiful bay on which Smyrna stands. The city looks bright and Eastern with its light-painted, square, flat-roofed houses, among which towers and minarets rise. Behind the city rises a steep bare hill crowned with a mosque and the ruins of an old castle. The mountains rise all round the bay, greener than any we had seen since leaving the south of France, and with olive trees and vineyards round their base.

To-day, the 25th, we went on sh.o.r.e, and were driven up and down the narrow, roughly-paved streets of Smyrna, in which we saw many sights reminding us we were in Asia--the trains of laden camels, the veiled Turkish women, the fine large cypress trees shading the graveyards with their painted inscriptions in foreign characters. We visited the deaconesses' home, where fourteen of the sisterhood educate between two hundred and three hundred children, many of the upper cla.s.s. The establishment is in beautiful order, and a bright and Christian spirit appeared to reign in it. We hope to-morrow to continue the voyage to Beirut. Our dear friends are pretty well, though needing rest. Thine sincerely,

ELLEN CLARE MILLER.

Ellen Clare Miller writes again in 11th mo. to the _Friends' Review_:

BEIRUT, Syria.

The account of the journey of our dear friends E. and S. Jones was brought down to the time of our leaving Smyrna. Having now reached Beirut in safety, they wish thee and their friends in America to know as soon as may be of their welfare, and of the pleasant and very interesting voyage which we were favored to make safely and comfortably. Since our arrival here, on Sixth day, the weather has been so broken and stormy that we do indeed feel that there is great cause for thankfulness to Him who holds the winds and waters under His control.

We sailed from Smyrna about noon on the 26th, gradually losing sight of the beautiful mountains which rise up on the south-west side of the bay with their fine coloring of gray, pink, green, and purple, which gives such a charm to the hills about this coast. We pa.s.sed Chios and Samos--Patmos with its great interest as the isle to which the beloved disciple was banished by the emperor Domitian, and where the wonderful visions were revealed to him. The following day, First day, the 27th, we reached Rhodes, and, the steamer stopping for a few hours, we went on sh.o.r.e, going up the steep street where on either hand stand the half-ruined, strongly-built castles and houses once occupied by the Knights of St. John. Over each doorway may still very plainly be seen the various coats-of-arms of the members of the order, the grand master having a larger house and more elaborate escutcheon. We pa.s.sed a mosque at the time when the congregation were coming out, and saw each man resume his shoes at the door; there were no women. We were allowed to look inside, but not to enter more than a step or two. It was a plain, whitewashed building, with matting, but no seats; texts from the Koran painted here and there upon the walls, and a kind of pulpit from which the Koran is read. There are many Jews and Mohammedans at Rhodes. It was sorrowful to think how many there were who were professing to wors.h.i.+p G.o.d, but in so mistaken a manner. E.

Jones and A. Fox distributed a great many portions of Scripture and tracts in Arabic, Turkish, and Hebrew, as they did all along the coast at our various stopping-places, so sowing much good seed, some of which at least may, we hope, take root and bear fruit.

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