Missionary

Samuel Marinus Zwemer is a big-boned, crude-featured, Dutch-descended son of Michigan. He has been called the most daring, resourceful and successful Christian Missionary to the Moslem world. When the issue is Cross against Crescent he is proud to stick at nothing. Therefore it was but characteristic that Dr. Zwemer should have been caught red handed at Cairo, last week, in the act of proselytizing students at the Mohammedan University of El-Azhar.

Under pretext of conducting a group of U. S. clergymen through the University, last week, strapping Missionary Zwemer began to distribute Presbyterian tracts. Soon some hundreds of the students became excited by this apparently inflammatory literature. One unshakably Moslem student sought to tear the last of the tracts from Dr. Zwemer's potent fist, but other students barkened for a time to his loud, impressive words.

Next day Professor Sheik Kankalouni of the University of El-Azhar, wrote passionately to an Arabic newspaper in Cairo: "The tracts of Zwemer have caused such unrest among our students that, but for the wisdom of the lecturers, the matter might have had most serious results." A like view was taken by the Ministry of Pious Foundations which demanded that officials of the U. S. Legation at Cairo should confiscate from Dr. Zwemer a permit which he has been granted to enable him to visit mosques. Pugnacious Dr. Zwemer stated that he would not give up the permit.

The Arabic press, frenzied by the incident, indulged in a Christian-scare, declaring that the Sudan is now a hotbed of Christian proselytizing, and that if the process continues it will dangerously further the seizure of this territory by Great Britain.