Reverend Lauritz Larsen, secretary for the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare, gave a complete report on the activities of the Commission as follows:

"National Lutheran Commission

"As one of your appointees on the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare, and as secretary of that body, I beg leave to submit to your attention the following report:

"When a meeting was called for October 19, 1917 by the presidents of the General Synod, the United South Synod, and the General Council for the purpose of organizing a central board or commission for spiritual work among the Lutherans serving with the colors, the president of the Norwegian Lutheran Church sent as 2representatives to this meeting the Reverend J. A. O. Stub and the undersigned. This meeting was called in spite of the fact that the Church Council of the Norwegian Church had already made elaborate plans and preparations for work in the cantonments and training camps of our country, and in spite of the fact that the Lutheran Brotherhood had secured permission to erect its building at Camp Dodge because it was evident that it would be necessary for the Lutheran Church to act as a unit in the great emergency which confronted our country and our Church. Seven synodical bodies were represented at this meeting, and it was decided to form a permanent organization of Lutherans in America for war work. The name given this organization was the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare, and its functions were designated as follows:

"a) To promote by every means the spiritual welfare of our soldiers and sailors;

b) To co-ordinate the work of Lutheran organizations already active in this behalf; c) To initiate new work whenever the need demands it; d) To collect 3and disburse funds for the prosecution of this work; e) To secure proper candidates for appointment as chaplains in the Army and Navy of the United States. It was also understood that the Commission should be empowered to undertake such other work as might be delegated to it.

"The following officers were (on a national scale) unanimously elected: Dr. F. K. Knubel, president; Dr. C. M. Jacobs, vice-president; Reverend Lauritz Larsen, secretary; E. F. Eilert, treasurer. The executive committee was to consist of the officers of the Commission and Dr. H. A. Weller, Dr. F. Jacobsen, Reverend A. C. Kildegaard, and Reverend Oscar C. Mees. Later Reverend Emil H. Rausch became a member of the executive committee and Reverend Arthur Bruun became a special representative of the Synodical Conference.

"At this time, the following twelve Lutheran bodies are in complete co-operation 4with the Commission: General Council, General Synod, Synod of Illinois and other states, United Danish Lutheran Church, Danish Lutheran Church, Norwegian Lutheran Church of America, United South Synod, Joint Synod of Ohio, Lutheran Brethren, Icelandic Synod, Lutheran Free Church, and Suomi [sic] Synod. The Synodical Conference co-operates in external affairs. The present representatives of our Synod are President H. G. Stub, Mr. S. H. Holstad, and the undersigned.

"In order to promote interest and efficiency, as well as co-operation between East and West, a western executive committee was set up in November with Dr. H. G. Stub as chairman. The committee worked effectively until the middle of March. At that time the national executive committee was enlarged by the addition of a western member, Reverend Emil Rausch, and the western field secretary was called executive secretary. At this time all general Lutheran bodies were urged to appoint members to the National Commission on the basis of one member for each 100,000 confirmed members of the Synod. Since that time 5a number of western men have been appointed, and the western executive committee, in the interest of centralization and efficiency, ceased to function.

"For a thorough understanding and an effective basis of co-operation with the patriotic society, the Lutheran Brotherhood has agreed to assist. The Brotherhood stands ready to erect buildings wherever the National Commission desires. Its campaign for funds was merged with that of the Commission, and much of the wonderful success of this drive, especially in the Middle Western States [where Chicago and Illinois went over the top], was due to the influence of the Brotherhood and the effective work of its representatives.

"Since its organization, the National Commission has held four meetings; the executive committee has met twelve times. Besides, there have been a great number of meetings of the officers of the Commission to prepare the larger meetings and to act on the great many matters that have been referred to them. The 6Commission opened offices in Chicago and New York on November 6. Since then it has been necessary to move to larger quarters where the rapidly increasing work can be handled to advantage. Reverend Stub, who originally was field secretary for the Norwegian Church in its army work and later western field secretary for the National Lutheran Commission, has now been appointed executive secretary and has his headquarters in Chicago. Reverends Howard R. Gold, C. E. Hoffsten, and W. C. Schaeffer are now acting as field secretaries, and Reverend William Freas as office secretary. At present there are ninety pastors who have been appointed by the National Lutheran Commission for work in camps, cantonments, and training stations in our country, and more are constantly being added to the list. In nearly all cases, the Commission pays the salaries and expenses of these men.

"When war was declared, there were two or three Lutheran chaplains in the service of their country. At present there are forty-nine in the various branches of the Army and Navy. The appointments of these men have all passed through the 7chaplains' committee of the National Commission, and no men are appointed by the United States Government at this time unless they are approved by this Commission. As the Government does not furnish any equipment for spiritual work, the Commission has furnished these chaplains with literature, communion sets, and other things that are helpful in doing their work for the boys. More chaplains will be appointed from time to time, and the chaplains' committee has already approved several names and submitted them to the War Department. Reverend Charles M. Jacobs is the chairman of this committee and applications should be sent to him.

"In accordance with the earnest desire of our Church and our boys serving under the colors, and upon the urgent invitation from the French Lutheran Church, an effort has been made to send pastors of our Church to France. After a great deal of delay and much negotiation, the War Department has finally consented to our sending two men to negotiate with the French Church and decide what we can best do to assist them in caring for the soldiers of our faith overseas. A list of available men for this mission has been submitted to the War Department, and 8it is expected that a choice from these will be made in the near future; our hopes of being represented "Over There" will soon be realized.

"Another way in which our Church may be advantageously represented in the work in France has been opened through the Red Cross. The Red Cross desires a number of chaplains for hospital work as well as a large number of men who need not necessarily be clergymen for work as casualty searchers. The importance of these two branches of work can hardly be overestimated and it has therefore been determined by the executive committee to pay the salaries of Lutheran men for this work, as the Red Cross only provides equipment and expenses for these men. The Red Cross will, however, pay for the support of the chaplain's family at home in the case of exceptionally well-qualified men on the recommendation of his War Commission. The service of the chaplains is for the duration of the war, but men will be sent for the minimum service of one year. The searchers are also appointed for one year.

"In order that the camp pastors and chaplains may be able to do as efficient work 9as possible, it is necessary that they be equipped with suitable literature. A great many local congregations and pastors have also been looking for proper literature with which to fortify the boys before they leave home as well as after they have entered service. In order to meet this demand, the Commission has published a soldier's letter to be sent to all boys under the colors, together with a soldier's catechism which is a collection of Scripture passages to answer a great many questions that will naturally come to the mind of every thinking man who is under arms. This includes a war-time service, message for the day with a hymn, texts for every Sunday in the church year, and short sermons on these texts have also been prepared. These sermons are being used extensively as a weekly message to the boys from the home church, and in several instances are sent direct from the Commission offices to the individual soldiers or sailors. Another splendid publication is the Christian Service in War Times, with suggestions to pastors and congregations, prepared by the United Church Inner Mission and distributed in great numbers by that committee as well as by the Commission. For Lent, a handbook of texts, 10collects, bidding prayers, and The Litany for use at church services, was prepared and sent to all Lutheran pastors in the country. It was very thankfully received, and has been extensively used. The most popular publication of the Commission is the Army and Navy Service Book which has been pronounced the most excellent book of hymns, texts, and prayers published by any organization for the use of the soldiers and sailors, and which has been printed, reprinted, and distributed in thousands of copies. Many instances of the blessed influence of this book and all publications of the Commission might be mentioned if space permitted. As a help in organizing and conducting Bible classes among the men, a splendid series of lessons on the life and teachings of the Master has been prepared. The latest publication of the Commission is an eight-page bulletin, entitled Our Lutheran Boys. This contains a great deal of information about the work of the Commission, its finances, a list of Lutheran chaplains and camp pastors, etc. It is the purpose of the Commission to publish this bulletin regularly as a bimonthly, and to give it as wide a circulation as possible among our pastors and workers at home and 11in the camps. In order to secure second-class postal rates, it is necessary to have a number of subscriptions, and it is to be hoped that a great many will send thrift stamps to pay for the subscription for one year.

"It has always been the purpose of the Commission to send a personal message to all the Lutheran boys serving under the colors and thus try to enlist them in active service among their companions. This has been done, to a certain extent, but has been greatly hampered by the fact that so many of the pastors, in spite of repeated request from the Commission and Synodical authorities, have failed to send our office a list of the boys from their churches who are in the service. To date less than 20,000 names have been received although a conservative estimate of the number of Lutheran men in the armed forces is 200,000. The importance of having such a list on file cannot be overestimated, and much more could be done for the church and the boys if such lists were available. It is also of vital importance that this list be furnished and kept 12up to date with all changes of addresses noted in order that our office may send to the various camp pastors the names of Lutheran boys in the camps where they are working. All pastors should be urged to comply with this reasonable request which is of such great importance for the success of our work.

"Another important field of work is the large number of military hospitals that have either been opened or are under construction. Two men have already been assigned as supervisors of work in the hospitals, and it is our purpose to give all Lutheran boys in these various hospitals an opportunity to be ministered unto by pastors of their own faith.

"A women's committee has also been organized and is actively engaged in encouraging the women of the churches to furnish and prepare useful garments that may be distributed by the chaplains and camp pastors as the need arises.

"It is evident that the extensive work of the Commission which has in part been 13outlined above, and which is constantly increasing, has demanded and will require considerable funds. The work is, naturally, more expensive than regular church work because of the unusual circumstances under which it must be carried on. The question of securing funds was, therefore, from the very beginning a burning one, and various plans were suggested and several smaller collections were started. It was finally decided that a general campaign for funds should be carried out and the time was set for February 18, 1918. This date was chosen in order that our campaign might not in any way conflict with other national campaigns for war purposes. The time for preparing such a large and new undertaking was too short. Other difficulties, such as heatless Mondays and express embargoes, did much to retard the progress of the campaign. Nevertheless, through the untiring efforts and self-sacrificing work of the national committee, the various state and local chairmen, the great army of canvassers, as well as the splendid response of the churches, the result of the campaign far exceeded the fondest expectations of most of those that watched its progress with great interest. Although the goal of the campaign was 14to raise $750,000, the sum of $1,318,439.68 has been reported and subscribed. Chicago and the Illinois district were the first to complete its quota. The Illinois district went thirty-four per cent above its quota. On June 1, the report of the financial campaign was as follows:

"On the 24th of May, the total amoung received in cash by the treasurer of the National Commission was $863,525.18. The expenditures to date are as follows:

"Office Expenses

Salaries	$3,154.82
General	2,216.34
Postage	541.42
Printing	997.83

15

"Executive Expenses

Salaries	$2,649.95
Traveling	2,347.97
General	2,639.47
Books	3,959.31

"Financial Campaign Expenses

General	$9,796.70
Postage	5,858.11
Salaries	1,893.15

16

Y. M. C. A.

$1,000.00

"Camp Pastors' Expenses

Equipment	$ 971.15
General	10,309.77
Traveling	571.52
Salaries	6,026.67
Buildings	35,200.00
Furniture	2,413.09
Miscellaneous	1,021.24

17

Federal Council

$2,000.00

"Chaplains' Expenses

Equipment	$4,408.51
General	185.00
Emergency fund	1,300.00

"Women's Committee Expenses

General	$7,847.78
Church repairs	1,000.00
Total all expenses	$108,955.65 [sic]

18

"Some difficulty is being experienced in furnishing detailed Synodical credits, but we hope within the near future to be able to specify to the penny just how much every contributing Synod has furnished toward the total credit. Provision has been made that whatever funds may remain in the treasury of the National Commission at the end of the present emergency shall be returned to the various Synodical treasuries in the same proportion as they were contributed. Should the war continue so long that it will be necessary to collect further funds for this work, we feel confident that the response will be just as general and that we shall find it far easier to carry the campaign through successfully. The experience gained in the former campaign will be valuable.

"Naturally, the question of the legal status of the Commission has come in for considerable thought and study. The question of whether or not the Commission should be incorporated has been discussed at length. In view of the difficulties and questions that might arise in case the Commission should be incorporated, 19Articles of Association of the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare have been prepared. These articles carefully present the purpose, authority, responsibility, etc., of the Commission, giving it the same legal status as that of any corporate body. These articles will be submitted to the next meeting of the Commission for final action.

"A new and important field of labor for the church has been called to the attention of National Lutheran Commission. This is the great new industrial centers that have sprung up, especially in the eastern part of country and to some extent in Chicago, in connection with munition factories, ship building industries, etc. After repeated requests from Synodical authorities and others, Field Secretary H. R. Gold has been delegated to visit these industrial centers and investigate the field for Lutheran mission work. The result of the investigation will be submitted to the various home mission boards for action.

"Within the last week, representatives of the Commission and the Lutheran Synods 20of Canada held a meeting in Chicago and organized the Canadian Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare. The plan of this Commission is similar to that of ours as it was originally proposed by the Chicago district, and it proposes to co-operate with us to the fullest extent.

"The National Lutheran Commission is an emergency organization. It is taking care of a new field of labor for our Church. It is the first time in the history of Lutheranism in America that all the various Lutheran bodies have been united on one single issue. God has blessed the work in the most wonderful way. Seemingly insurmountable obstacles have been overcome. Misunderstandings and suspicions have been removed. Difficulties that no one could anticipate have been met successfully. Wonderful opportunities lie before us. The Commission needs and bespeaks the hearty sympathy and co-operation as well as the earnest prayers of the entire Lutheran Church, that it may be faithful and efficient in carrying out its program for the welfare of our boys and the Church at home in such a way that God may be glorified."