We are not inattentive to the suggestion that we are wearing ourselves
out in holding protracted meetings, and that we should devote ourself
wholly to the management of the _Review_. We have thought of this
matter much, both before and since we saw the suggestion, and find it
not so easy to determine what ought to be done. The tendency is to find
pleasant positions, occupy them, and go on easily and smoothly; to
settle down and preach for churches, get professorships in colleges or
high-schools, edit papers and evangelize the world by _proxy_. In other
words, the popular idea is not to _go_ but to _send_ some one to preach
the gospel. If we were to sit down in our editorial chair, at home, and
write the most stirring articles about the great work of evangelizing
the world and urge men to go, we fear they would inquire, “Why do _you
not go_?” We aim to be an example—to go ourself, as we urge others to
do. We see no other way to give force to the appeal to others to _go_.
The demand for preaching is such that we can see no possible way to
excuse any man that can go. We have, therefore, rather concluded to _go
while we can_.
When we shall go hence, we desire that any who may refer to us may see
that while we said _go_ we also _went_.
We are perfectly aware that we could, in some respects, make the paper
better to devote our entire attention to it; but, that we could, in
every sense, give it the _spirit_ and _power_ that we can when we are
in the field and among the people continually, we still hold in doubt.
We desire to do all we possibly can for the cause, while it is to-day.