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FRENCH PBOTBSTAiJT BOARDING SCHOOL 4 I pledge myself to pay to the Treairarer of tJie Frmch Protestant School, Lowell, (on oi- before the 15th Oct. 1885) U»e sum of $ for scholarship towards the e4uo4ition oi' one papil. Oufl «;holar8hip w ^50, One htilf . $35. Ono quarter, $13. Sign and return as cifx>n »e ooHveniejit to HbV C IL Amaron, 36 Arliugtoo sUfcet howttil. MASa. itlin 35264 THE EVANGELIZATION OF THE FEENCH CANADIANS. The evangelization of the French Canadian population of Canada and of the United States is a subject dear to ray heart. I shall thank God when the day has come in which the iron yoke under which my fellow-countrymen are crushed shall have been forever re- moved. I shall praise His name when the despotic and arrogant hierarchy that rules Canada with a rod of iron shall have lost its power. As the son of one of the first Swiss missionaries who 45 years ago in response to the Macedonian cry, left the shores of their beautiful Lake Leman and their inspiring Mount Blanc, to begin this much needed work, I would consider myself little worthy of my godly father, who shall soon rest from his arduous task, did I not take up his mantle, devote myself to this same work, and endeavor to awaken an interest in it among God's people in this Christian republic. I. ITS ORIGIN. The French Canadians whose evangelization is graduall}' becoming one of the important missions of the churches of Massachusetts, are the descendants of nat'vos of France who had made of Canada, then known as "La Nouvello France," their home, between its discovery by Cartier in 1535 and the capture of Quebec by the British in 1759. . Several establishments of the French settlers are still to be found in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, preserving the language, manners, and religion of their foreftitliers. When the first attempt was made to give them the light of the gospel, the French Canadians, located on the rich lands lying along the banks of the St. Lawrence and its magnificent tributaries, num- bered about half a million of souls ; now, three quarters of a century later, they have increased to over one million and a half. That part of Canada where they were chiefly located was still under the old feudal tenure, a system at least coeval with tlie 17th century in France and pretty nearly the same as the old Norman n system in England, which was abolished about the time of Charles II. (Can. Com. report.) The early settlers of Canada were not all of the kind generally found in new countries. Among them were several men of rank and learning, who had made of New France their home, through motives of piety. Tliey devoted tliemselves to the conversion of the Indians, and occasionally succeeded to induce the red man to bury his hatchet of war for a time at least. Aided by a number of .Jesuits, Recollects and other ecclesiastics, male and female, they displayed a wonder- ful and most commendable missionary zeal in propagating their religious views, and well might have put to shame as well the Pro- testant churches of Canada as those of Euroix;. " Tlie grants for the support of education and religion were of the most princely char- acter ; the island of Montreal, those extensive domains called the Jesuit Estates, and man}' of the most valuable portions of the coun- try were freely given. Nor was aid of other kinds wanting, either from the Parent country or from the Colonists, to promote those ob- jects, wisely felt to be of such vast importance in the founding of a new community. In addition to those grants, a provision was created by law, in the shape of a twenty-sixth of the grain raised, payable by the farmer to the priest of his parish, and which still re- mains, although only recoverable from those of the Roman Catholic faith. As has been remarked there were among the Colonists not a few whose ac(niircments were of a superior description ; indeed a writer remarks that great attention was in general given to the choice of those who went to establish themselves in Canada, and that as respects the rank of the settlers, it was said that Canada had more of the ancient nobility than any other French colony, and perhaps than all of them together. Such was the field which the church of Rome had to occupy in Canada." (Reix>rt F. C. M. S.) It may well be said that Rome could never have asked a better field. She had ample provision to establish her system, her priests were con- sidered demigods by the people ; they had a clear field before the English conquest and the fullest toleration and encouragement by the British government since. There was nothing to prevent her from doing her work, and if she were what she claims to be, she should have made of this French colony one of the firet nations of the earth in commercial, intellectual and moral greatness. Have we not a right to expect this of her when she declares herself to be the onl}' true church of Christ, the light and salt of the earth ? But what did the Protestant Christian church of Europe find out after three centuries of culpable neglect? Was it discovered that the Romish system of religious and secular education had enlightened n 1^ the iiiiiul, had niisc^d the people ubove the piejiuliees and supersti- tions peculiar to ignorance? Was it found that the heart had been made liberal and generous, that tliis Kornan Catholic colony was foremost in relieving human siifrering and in Itenevolent enterprises? Did the Christian church Mud a people well-educated, thriay, pros- perous? It is well known that the reverse was the case. Scarcely a trace of education could be found among the peasantry ; out of every jury summoned one half could not read, and when a parish had occa- sion to send a petition out of KK) names, 90 per cent, were accom- panied by a mark. Moreover there was a total lack of enterprise among the jjeople. Kcliglon was not religion I)ut sui)erstition and bigotry. Home liad thus lailed compleU'ly, notwithstanding her great privileges, to raise that colony and give it a name among the nations of the earth. True Christians, large-hearted men then began to put themselves the fpiestion : Have we done our duty towards these poor victims of error since they have become English sulijects? They do not know the (lospel, they know nothing of its elevating influences. For three centuries they are at a stand-still, intellectually and morally. Do we wish the French Canadians to make advances in the things wliich be- long to their happiness for both worlds? Then must we set them free from a system that has made them and keeps them what they are? Romanism has utterly failed to lift them up, it has rather caused them to sink ; the IJible alone can save them from the temporal and s|)irit- ual degradation into which they have Allien. And we may add that what it could not do then and there it cannot and will not do in this repul)lic where it is establishing itself so firmly. As far as is known, to the Wesleyans of England is due the honor of the first attempt to evangelize the French Canadians. Reference is made in the minutes of the Hritish Weslcyan Conference for 181.5, to the sending out of John de Pudron as a French missionary to preach in Canada in the French language. This he did until 1821 and after that he seems to have devoted his time to English work and returned to F^urope in 182."). The last report of the F'rench Canadian Missionary Society fur- nishes the following interesting fact which would indicate that even earlier attempts to circulate the Scriptures had been made. ''At Niagara, in 1795, a copy of Martin's Bible was purchased by a far- mer from Ste. Therese. It was obtained from two Frenchmen who had been in the Lower Province to sell Bibles, but had been driven away by the priests. This Bible which Mr. Filiatrault brought home gave him light. When in 1841 the colporteurs visited Ste. Therese, they weio well received by these fumilies, who in (hie time were con- verted to Christ." There seems to have been no missionary in the field for ten years after Mr. de Pudron's return to Europe. Various causes, however, had prepared the way for missionary work and had made the Chris- tians of Canada anxious to see it begun in earnest. Tlie late General Armstrong, R. A., wrote to Edinburgh, and in 183.'5 a committee was formed there, with Robert Ilaldane as secretary and treasurer. Their desire and purpose was "to engage men of approved piety, without reference to names or party distinction, to preach and teach the un- searchable riciies of Christ, to traverse the Province as colporteurs and to scatter the seed of the kingdom wherever they go." Mr. IlcJiri Olivier, an eminently pious and devoted Swiss mission- ary, oifered himself for this work, and reached Montreal with his ex- cellent wife in 1H;U. He began to preach, many came to hear him, until the pi'iests took the alarm and forbade the people to listen to him. How conscious of weakness must be that system that fears contact with Ciod's eternal word ! In 18,'}.> a Baptist cinirch was formed at Montreal, and in the fall of that same year a Swiss lad}*, a large-hearted and devoted woman, Mrs. H. Feller, joined Mr. Olivier along with Mr. L. Roussy, who was sent b}' the Association of Churches in the Canton de Vand. These devoted missionaries founded a mission at Grande Eigne, which they carried on in the midst of privations, dangers and perils, the details of which would fill volumes. They were severely beaten, Mr. Roussy's horse was cruelly mutilated, he himself was shot at, Mrs. Feller's house was at night surrounded by a mob numbering several hundreds. With frightful yells and horrid imprecations they threatened this Christian lady with death if she did not leave, and commanded the new converts to abandon their new religion under pain of fire and sword. God alone knows what these godly men and women had to endure for Christ's sake. Enconraged by the results of the Grande Eigne Mission, several Christians of Montreal met, and after much thoughtful consideration and prayer, on the 8th of April, 1839, laid the foundation of the great society known as the French Canadian Missionar}' Society, which for fort3'-two years carried on a non-sectarian work of evangel- ization among the French Canadian Roman Catholics of Canada. This organization did a great and good work, and it may well be asked whether a mistake was not made when the French work became denominational and when the societ}^ gradually deprived of its resources, ceased to exist. May I express the hope that Christians tU :i 111 of hII hIjiuIos sh'ill do all In their power to snve our New Kngland French I'rotcstjuitisin from the evil and weakness of sectarian divi- sions. In Lowell we have had up U) this date hut one church, work- in*; harmoniously and broad enough for all who seek first the king- dom of (lod and his righteousness, and we trust that this state of things will continue. In the fall of 183!) Rev. W. Taylor and Mr. James Court were sent to Europe as agents of the F. C M, S., and, after visiting several cities of Scotland, went to (leneva in quest of a few brave, zealous and pious nien who would be willing to leave kindred and country to go to Camida to proclaim the glad tidings of the gospel. Dr. Taylor addressed a crowded audience in the church of La PeUs- serie, having I'rof. Laharpe as interpreter. He did the same in the church of the Oratoire. The deepest interest prevailed and the ap- peal was sustained by such men as Col. Tronchin, Dr. Malan, and the church historian whose name is so familiar, Dr. Merle D'Aubiirne. It is said of one of those who listened to that Macedonian cry, that he declared after the meeting that he had to hold on by the bottom of the seat to prevent himself fi-om rising and calling out: "Here am I, send me ! " 1 may be permitted to say with gratitude to God that the first young man who rose in tlipt meeting to offer himself for this missionary work was my father. Through the visit of this deputation the services of eight mission- aries were secured who were sent to fields of labor as yet untouched. Trials and obstacles beset them on all sides. The greatest of these was ignorance and the superstition it breeds. The clergy of the church of Koine seemed to make it a duty to keep the people ignorant in order to keep them under control. They fiercely opposed the efforts of the missionaries to spread education, Gosi)el truth and liberty ; they gratuitously bestowed upon them every bad epithet the dictionary could furnish : ravening wolves dressed in sheep's clothing ; emissaries of the devil ; dangerous beings whom the devout woman should drive out of home and parish, stick in hand. No absolution granted otherwise. It may readily be understood how easy and safe it must have been for these men of God to go from house to house in the midst of a population thus prepared. It happened very often that no shelter would be given them when night came, or again, having found a house to receive them, in the dead of night when it was discovered what mission theirs was, they were cruelly ejected. And thus after a hard day's work, with wearied bodies and aching hearts, like Jacob they were obliged to sleep, a stone for their pillow, under shelter of the spacious firmament. But the God of the patriarch watched over 8 tliciii, coinforti'd nnd protected tlu'in. Tlie (V)ll()\vin«f incident will sulllce t() f?ive an idea of tlie siipeiMtition wliicii tlicu prevailed. It is taken from the report of one ol" tiie niiMsionaries, dated Killi Decem- ber, IHIO: "To-day I viwited a pernon to whom wo had h'nt a Hif)h^ Kil\v persons ansemhh'd. .. . I i'ndeavored to adch'CHs them seriously on the danjjer in which they were if they died unconverted. It was of no avail ; but what astonished tne most was that they kept nlwavs looking; at my feet. Finally a woman said tint their priest had told them that in the latter days false prophets woultl come and that we wore such; that wo were iuali<>nant spirits escape-aiix-'rrt'niI)l('s schools, now in the hands of the IVcshvtcrians, or to tlic (iiiincic lA'^iw and Saltrcvois institntions. The cliildren who iiuve attended tliese schools liave i)een used hy (Jod in a inarvellons wny to scatter preeions seeds whicli we, yonntjer missionaries, arc reai)in{r every (hiy. It is achnitted by all that these mission sehoois have hoen the most efl'eetive ninonj; all evanj^elistic agencies em- ployed. They were fonnd to l)e the indispcnsahle snpplements to the woW< done Iiy the missionary from house to honse. As soon as he found a family spliciitions have hvvn recei- ved, all from young men who cannot without help pursue their studicH. One of them a Ro- man Catholic young man aged 17, left his fami- ly and country to be able to study the gospel. He eame to Lowell some weeks ago, attended the French l*rotestant church, gave his heart to Christ, joined the church and desires to give himself to christian work. Christian men and women, be thankful to God that such opportu- nities are offered you to give christian educa- tion to so many young men whom God shall use verv soon to save thousands of others who are yet in the darkness of sin. Gladly seize the op- portunity. Let $100 be given for each of these young disciples of Christ who wish to fit them- selves for his service and vet are not able for ft- want of monev.