in that land, had as their happy climax
'Abdu'l-Baha's memorable visit to America. The third period (1913-1923), a
period of quiet and uninterrupted consolidation, had as its inevitable
result the birth of that divinely-appointed Administration, the
foundations of which the Will of a departed Master had unmistakably
established. The remaining ten years (1923-1933), distinguished throughout
by further internal development, as well as by a notable expansion of the
international activities of a growing community, witnessed the completion
of the superstructure of the Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar--the Administration's
mighty bulwark, the symbol of its strength and the sign of its future
glory.

Each of these successive periods would seem to have contributed its
distinct share in enriching the spiritual life of that community, and in
preparing its members for the discharge of the tremendous responsibilities
of their unique mission. The pilgrimages which its foremost
representatives were moved to undertake in that earliest period of its
history fired the souls of its members with a love and zeal which no
amount of adversity could quench. The tests and tribulations it
subsequently suffered enabled those who survived them to obtain a grasp of
the implications of their faith that no opposition, however determined and
well-organized, could ever hope to weaken. The institutions which its
tried and tested adherents later on established furnished their promoters
with that poise and stability which the increase of their numbers and the
ceaseless extension of their activities urgently demanded. And finally the
Temple which the exponents of an already firmly established Administration
were inspired to erect gave them the vision which neither the storms of
internal disorder nor the whirlwinds of international commotion could
possibly obscure.

It would take me too long to attempt even a brief description of the first
stirrings which the introduction of the Baha'i Revelation into the New
World, as conceived, initiated and directed by our beloved Master,
immediately created. Nor does space permit me to narrate the circumstances
attending the epoch-making visit of the first American pilgrims to
Baha'u'llah's hallowed shrine, to relate the deeds which signalized the
return of these bearers of a new-born Gospel to their native country, or
to assess the immediate consequences of their achievements. No word of
mine would suffice to express how instan