Christian missions in the Telugu country - Uecf.net

i82 MISSIONS IN THE TELUGU COUNTRY
consequence is that in hard times—and hard times are
of frequent occurrence—the levy is very difficult to
collect and its success depends on the personal
influence of the pastor or catechist who collects it.
Some contribution can be enforced by the threat of
removing the teacher, an event which the people fear
a good deal, for, if carried out, it lowers their
status in the eyes of their neighbours and removes
their nearest defender against oppression. The police
especially will look on them as an abandoned community
and probably commence to harass them, and the congregation,
in the absence of their natural leader, may
even begin to fall to pieces. It often seems hard, in the
face of such abject poverty, to collect money, but thei-e
is no doubt that, for the sake of its moral results, it
must be done.
Mission In order to show to what extent the Mission is
grants.
financially dependent on the S.P.G., a brief reference to
the system on which S.P.G. grants are given is necessary.
The S.P.G., in giving grants to a mission district for the
support of pastoral and evangelistic work, insists on one-
third of every pastor's salary, and one-fifth of every
schoolmaster's salary, being raised locally ; and this
rule is strictly enforced. Even these proportions in the
aggregate amount to a large sum ; and it may be asked,
how does the poor mission district manage to keep up
its churches, chapels, and schools, and provide its share
of the salaries of all agents ? The answer is that most of
the schools draw a Government grant. These grants,
though very small, averaging only forty rupees a year
while an ordinary teacher's salary is about Rs.ioS,