Christian missions in the Telugu country - Uecf.net

124 MISSIONS IN THE TELUGU COUNTRY
Fresh A great impetus came from the support of the new
mJnts'''
Bishop of Madras, Dr. Whitehead. Coming to Madras
with a long experience of mission work under varying
conditions, he quickly recognised, in the movement
which for nearly fifty years had been taking place in the
Telugu country, a fact of the greatest strategical im-
portance. His advocacy of the Mission was a principal
cause of the increased support which it has since received.
But it did more :
it brought to the front the whole
question of the relation of mass movements among the
out -castes to the conversion of India. It is safe to say
that never before had the question whether in India the
Church may expect to see the reception of the Gospel
extend from the upper castes downwards or from the
lower castes upwards been so much before the attention
of students of missions.
One development made possible by the increase of
staff has had important effects on the after history of the
Mission. In 1902 the management of the internal affairs
of aU the districts of the Mission was assumed by a
committee of the missionaries with the Bishop as pre-
sident. Hitherto the management had been in the
hands of a committee in Madras, few of whom had
seen any part of the Mission. The new system was a
great improvement on the old. At the same time
that the committee assumed their new responsibilities,
a plan was devised to unify the method of working
aU the districts of the Mission. One set of rules
was drawn up under which agents should be engaged
throughout the Mission ; one system of regulating
discipline in all the congregations was agreed on ; and