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Travel Notes- Thailand and Malaya
During the past few months I had the opportunity to travel ^d o
observe conditions in the Far East; an area which is of crilic^
importance during this period of the cold war. Of course we are not so
much interested in the political situation except as it affects the o
opportunity to preach the Gospel ydiich it does to a large extent.
I came to Thailand with the preconceived idea that it was fast
becoming saturated with missionaries,but was soon dissabused of that
idea. '%e missionaries vho faithfully labor there are not nearly
enough to reach the unreached in their generation. The time to strike
in lhailand is now, inhile the government is favorable and the people
Mrs. and I were disappointed in not being able to visit the field
where Church of ^hrist work is centered, but we did have the pleasure
of meeting with the Galloways, Byers, and Garland Bares in ^ound
table diseussion of mission topics. We enjoyed also meeting ^ss i
Williams, Mr Macdonald and "tiie J Russell Morses* Wg thoroughly enjoyeai
the extented visit with Brother Morse while he was waiting for his
Burma Visa We -personally realized the great need for a Receiving
Home in Bangkok for our missionaries, but we did not feel called for
that work.
have all bemoaned the fact of the closing of the doors
China^ but seemed to have closed our eyes to the farther iact mat te-
rhere are millions of "^inese in the free countries of S.E.
about Tidiich we are doing absolutely nothing. We should by ^1 means
have centre built arAund a Bible College, in Formosa, Hongkong or
Singapore. If we as a people have a plea, and if we are to have
impact upon the new thina ^idaich is about to emerge, we must be about
the task of training a native leadership.
Tn passing I would like to say that I can sincerely thank God
for those bits of territory where the British flag still waves.
Singapore has the name of being a city of sin,but it is the cle^est
and I believed the best governed of any city in the East which I have
visited. Its public housing project is most successful. On a journey
from Singapore to Malacca I saw many new villages constructed by
government. Whole Chinese villages had been removed from jungle
areas .where they were subject to terroization by red b^dits, relocat
ed near a main highway, and entirely surrounded by barbwire enclosure
Gates are closed and guards stationed at night. At one stroke the
goverhment deprived the bandits of their source of food and gave p^
protection to the villagers. The Gospel may be freely preached in the
These villages,but as yet there is no one going
Edgar Nicjjols
NEXT WEEIC, "MY VISIT TO BORNEO") 5"
Don't miss this exciting episode.
S Pramuan ttd BangkokyThjallasid
August 21, 1955.
Dfear Mac:
Greetings in His precious Name. I hope'^and yours are
well, and I Imow you are keeping busy.
I believe Mre Nichols forwarded an article I had v/ritten
some time ago. I Xear she also copied an appendage that was meant
for her, just a bit of foolietoess. l^w^der what you thought.
I donot know if you can us^^hese at'all,seems we have so little
space for mission news ahymore,and the missionaries are getting
so numerous. I sometimes get pretty discouraged and #Lsgusted
with our churches,and wonder what it will take to wake them up
If you don< t keep your name before the public all, the time your
support drops, if you do Jjou are a^heggar". I head nothing but
the highest praise for the missionary papeant staged by you at
the N. A. in Canton, and I was hoping that would mark a change
and you would receive adequate support for the much needed work
you are doing. But I see you are struggling along with inadequate
support like most of the rest o us. Perhaps the trouble is that
we have not learned hownto pray with no thought of self; to let
t^e other fellow be increased while we decrease. I was thinking
of myself then. And it looks like ots a decrease all along the
line, just let there be a mention of "depression" in the papers
and Missionary giving starts to drop. *** At least "He is faithful"
we are not suffering, only if we were ordered home I do not know
where we would findt the money for sea-passage.
We have been virtually refused entrance to Brunei, but
have asked for reconsideration. If you know of anyone who might
be interested in Brunei or N. Borneo, we could give them informatio
that might be of help, but it is very difficult to get in;
impossible,I think unless one has some contact residing there.
The American Gonsul is hopeful ,that our boys will be allowed to
enter under the new Refugee Immigration law. We will probably
go to Hawaii,but are not ready to make public annoxmcement.
May God bless you all,
yours in Him,
My VISIT TO BORNEO
It seems that most of us,when we think of Borneo, there comes to
our mind that line from an old song "The Wild Man of Borneo has just
come to town". I did not see any "wild men", but I didi see plenty
who were without a saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. I must
myself confess to an ignorance of things Bomeon, and perhaps it
would be well to catch up ab bit on the geography and history of
that region. All Borneo is at present divide into two parts, Indo
nesian Borneo,and British Borneo. British BodnSorih divided into
three states, Sarawak and North Borneo, which are Crown Colonies,
and Brunei,which is a native state under British protection. The
l^Moslem Sultan of Brunei is the nominal ruler,and has the last word in
matters religious. This makes it difficult for Protestant missions to
enter. Sarawak follows a policy of enforced comity, and it is virtually
impossible for new Missions to get a start. There are independent
missionaries working in North Borneo,and I am of the opinion that:
here are wide opportunities for service, and the chances for gaining
entrance are quite good.
Borneo sita astraddle the Equator, and the climate is decidedly
tropical. However,along the coast, where the cities are located, the
heat is tempered by a cool breeze from the sea. The coastal plain
is rather narrow and covered with mangrove swamps or otherwise heavi
ly forested. Inside this belt is broken country,also heavily forested,
risin.to a backbone of mountains, 4000 ft. in altitude. Travel is
lar^ly by water,along the coast and jrp the rivers. The longest all-
weatfer highway inthe colonies being not more than 50 miles in length
The hard packedsand of the beach on a receeding tide i in some cases
used as a road. Life in. the interior is extremely primitive.
The people of Bl?ittl)iBorneo are the Malaya, who are Moslems and live
along the coast. Sea Byaks, Land E^raks, Melanaus, Du^ns and Muruts.
The Dusuns are a tribe of North Borneo which have tflrtb Christianity
in large numbers. Muruts simply means "hill-dwellers" and there are
many different tribes of these. The lamguages of some of these tribes
have not yet been reduced to writing. The Chinese are the largest
non-indigenous group, their connections with the island going back
several centuries. They are the the business men,shop-keepers and.
white-collar workers.
Myprinciple objective in Borneo was Seria, the oil metropolis of
Brunei. Here and in Kuala Belait are housed the 17,000 employees of
the British Malayan Petroleum Co., and their families. Alarge proportion
of these have been imported from Ceylon, India, Singapore and Hongkong,
and consequently speak English. It seemed a good opportunity to do a
work in English. The opportunity is there alright. I have not seen such
another bee-hive of activity and efficiency on this side the Pacific.
Giant bulldozers are clearing the jungle; giants of the forest crash
down and are pushed up into hugh mounds,gas flares are lighted beneath
until they are dried ou t and will finally burn. Tournapulls roar in
with loads of sand and gravel,filling lov; places and making roads. Houses
sprlngpup and can be seen in every stage of C05ii)litibQn,as in a large
housing project in the Ststes. But still there are not houses enough,
for this fast growing project. The tragedy isithat though there are
houses for entertainment and amusement,there is no house for the wor
ship of God. There is one R. C. Mission and day school and a smalll
Anglican Church. I heard that there was a small "evangelical" group
meeting in one of the Homes,but in my short stay I failed to make
contact with them. To see children of miny races and all shades of
color; iajiitiads of children, well dressed,intelligent, eager,
surrounded by y.lthe comforts of modern living, but being brought up
in a thdSg^ughly materialistic atmosphere, a society which does not
deny God, but lives as if He were not; that presents a real challenge.
More prayer power needs to be brought to focus here, that Gods man
may be permitted to enter.
It is always interesting to see what other Missions are
doing. V^lhile I was on the island of Labuan, waiting for the boat
which would take toe back to Singapore, the mission plane from Lawas
arrived. Perhaps I should explain that Labuan, in Brunei Bay,has
the largest Airport and is one of the busiest seaports in Borneo.
I met Mr. Bruce Morton, the pilot, and he invited me to accompany
him to Lawas for a short visit, which I was glad to do. Lav/as is
the headquarters of The Borneo Evangelical Mission, an Australian
Mission organized along the lines of the China Inland Mission.
Here they have their Bible School,where some 70 students,men and
womOT,were being prpared for their work as evangelists and Bible
womiSi'. The students work part time on the school farm, raising a
part of their food,and at the same time learning new methods of
rice growing. It is the policy of the B.E.M. to establish indigen
ous churches,and free them from any control by the mission. Naturally
the training of a native leadership is the keystone of the plan.
The B.E.M. uses the modern toils of radio and the airplane
to great advantage. Each station has short wave transmitter and
receiver. Every morning at callup time,the weather,health ofMiss-
ionaries, report on the work,special developements or needs,are
reported by each station. The wherabouts of the plane and its route
for the day is announced. I believe that the plane and radio.used
together add 50% to the efficiency of the force on the field; that
is like adding an extra for every two already engaged in the task.
Besides this there is their great value in sickmess or other
emergencies.
I was told by missionaries of the B.E.M. that much remains
to be done,and m^y tribes are still unreached, both in Sarawak and
North Borneo. ThEiCfitare scbtoertribes which are extremely primitive
having no proper dwellings, and practicing a shifting cultivation!
There are others which are lilterly dying out be cause of their
demoralized condition and dissolute customs. They gather in their
"long house",both men and women,for drinking bouts which last all
night,and sometimes several nights running. It is sort of a contest
in which,in which each inturn drinks rice beer out of a hugh Jar
set in the middle of the room, each drinking through a straw down to
certain mark. While they drink,the others sing, and they seem to
work themselves to a state of self-hypnosis. Often the Jar is
refilled with plain water,but they go on drinking Just the same.
One can imagine what other anti-social acts accompany these bouts,
and what kind of attention the babies and children get while it is
going on. These people are open to the gospel, but there is no one
at present to take it to them. We believe that there is One who
can ssree from the uttermost to the uttermost, but if His messenger
does not reach these people soon,it is going to be too late. Shall
we not pray that God's messenger will come soon, and that government
regulations will prove no bar.
(4t.
1. .
Junction City
.August ^7| 1955
Bear Sir
We meznbere of the Christian Church at Junction City* Kentuchyt
respectfully oall your attention to the plight of our missionaries
Mr* and Mrs* Sdgar Hichols,
While serving at Batangi (Paan) Sihangf West Chinat and Mra^
hichols adopted two motherless Xihetan boys. When the CofiSBunists /l
assiuaed control of the goveriiment of Sikaog Provinosi Mr* hicholsy
with his wife and the little boys escaped across the border into
Tibet* Months later* they reached hima* on the border of India
where* after some delay* they were permitted to enter India as
refugees* Juno 8* 19&0*
Because of their refugee status they were permitted to rao&aiA
in India only until April 1* 1953. At present the family is in the
Mission Home at ^o* Z Praznuan Road* Banghoh* Thailand on a tesiporary
permit* They are unable to obtain a residential permit because the
boys are rated as Chinese Nationals and the quota has been filled*
They desire to cou^e home en furlough and to bring these boys
with them to continue their education and preparation to return as
evangelists to their own people* Reuben is now five* and Andrew*
fifteen years of age*
We request the weight of your influence in behalf of bringing
thses desirable young oitizens into this country in the new quota of
refugees from Communist dominated countries,
four help in this matter will be deeply appreciated*
c