THE following letter has been received by the Rev. Neil Cameron, Convener of Foreign Mission Committee:—
“C/O NATIVE COMMISSIONER, BEMBESI,
MATABELELAND, SOUTH AFRICA, 9th January, 1913.
MY DEAR MR. CAMERON,—I received your letter of the 4th December informing me that the Synod had resolved to proceed at once with building the Church at Ingwenya, Bembesi, and that Mr. M’Keurtan’s offer had been accepted.
I wrote to Mr. M’Keurtan as soon as I received your letter, and as Mr. M’Keurtan sometimes delays in answering letters I thought it best to go over to Bulawayo and see him personally. Bulawayo is about thirty miles from here, so that I cycled over and returned the same day. I found that he had got my letter, and that he had received yours too, and also the resolution passed by the Synod, which you had enclosed in his letter, authorising him to proceed with the building at once. To my regret I found that he had not kept a copy of the plans and specifications of the building. I thought it best for him to write to you at once and get a copy of the plans and specifications of the building, and if you think it best, you might send him the original. It could be returned to you again when he is finished with it. He was wondering if he could not make another plan, but I thought that would not do, as it would cause a much longer delay—as that new plan would have to be submitted to you again for your consideration. He will be writing to you himself. He also promised to cycle over here in a week or two, if the weather permits, and come and see the bricks and stones for the foundation. We will be very glad if he comes and sees the bricks and stones for himself. The stones for the foundation have already been dug up. These bricks were examined by a gentleman called Mr. Granger, who said they would do very well for a brick-lined building to be used only as a wall inside the corrugated iron, but would not do otherwise. We were all very sorry about the failure of the bricks.
I was very sorry, indeed, that I was not able to send in a report for the last Synod. It was owing to the fact that I was very busy
at the time examining carefully and comparing the English version of the Psalms with the Kafir that Mr. Bokwe had sent me for transmission to Mr. Mackay, as I wanted Mr. Mackay to get them in time for the Synod. I considered them a very good translation of the Psalms in Metre, and that the letter of the Scripture had been preserved; and I was very glad to hear that the Synod had given instructions to the Lovedale authorities to proceed with the printing. It is a matter to be very thankful for to the Most High for having opened up a way for the Psalms to be printed and put into metre in the Kafir language. May the Lord in His mercy spare Mr. Bokwe and give him grace and strength to complete his work! Our people here were also glad to hear that so much progress had been made towards putting the Psalms into metre.
As regards the carriage of the stuff to Bembesi Station by rail, Mr. M’Keurtan informed me that the price he asked, which I think if I remember aright was £338 8s., includes the carriage for the stuff to Bembesi by rail. The money for the transport only from Bembesi Station to Ingwenya was to be added. He said in his letter to me, “Allow for transport 16,500 lbs.,” which I found to be 1s. 6d. per 100 lbs. That alone has to be added to the £338 8s. You will see that in the specifications that he sent, if you will refer to them.
Services are still held regularly every Sabbath in all our out-stations by our men. At Koco the hut there was too small to hold all the people and a larger one had to be built. Also at Morgen farm, too, a large square hut had to be built; as the one they had was too small. That is the place where we have a day school and an evening school. The last time I went to preach there the large square hut was quite full. At our last Communion here at Ingwenya, the church was so full that a large number of people remained outside, and as we did not like to see so many people going away, a service had to be held outside for them by one of our elders, although it was so very hot and windy.
I was very glad to hear that the Synod had agreed to build a larger and more substantial building at Ingwenya, as the one we have, besides being too small, is now very unsafe on account of the white ants having eaten some of the wood, which is now rotting. There is no way of protecting this kind of building from white ants and other insects, which eat up the wood-work.
Of course, all candidates for baptism who have professed “faith in Christ” and wish to be baptised are fully examined by the Session, and are only received when they have satisfied the Session. And, if the Session are not satisfied, they are put back and do not receive baptism. I was glad to hear that the Lord’s people were not forgetting us in their prayers. We need the prayers of the Lord’s people that the heathen might be brought to the knowledge of the truth, as it is in Christ Jesus, as without Him we can do nothing.
I must now conclude, with kindest regards to you, Mrs. Radasi joining.—Yours sincerely,
J. B. RADASI.”