boys and 51 girls), as well as the 47 Christian girls in the Alexandra School. The adults are a smaller proportion than in many Missions, being only 303; and of these, 141 are women. There are 61 Christian men at Amritsar, 22 at Batala, 65 at Clarkabad, and 14 at the other villages; which shows that the work is even yet only in its infancy. But Mr. Keene well observes: "Thank God, if we cannot point to numbers, we can to men who, for fine intellectual powers, Christian zeal, Christian graces, good sound practical ability, and manly independence, are an ornament and strength to the Church of this province.'

It

The principal event of last year at Amritsar was a sad one. pleased God to lay upon the city a terrible visitation of cholera and fever. Out of the population of 150,000, no less than 10,444 died, and many thousands besides suffered severely. On one day, Oct. 3rd, 268 persons died, the ordinary death rate per day being twenty-five. But in His infinite mercy God spared the Christians. Not a single adult Christian died; only five young children. But the effect on the Mission was for the time disastrous. As one of the Zenana ladies wrote, "The black cloud of sickness and death settled on the city, closing schools and houses, and putting an end to all work but that of ministering to the sick." That work, however, was done, as only heroic Christian women could do it. Miss S. S. Hewlett, the devoted medical missionary of the Zenana Society, came back from the hills in the midst of the pestilence, and though ill herself, fearlessly went in and out among the people to relieve their sufferings and point them to the great Healer. Advantage was taken of the visit of the Bishop of Calcutta in November to hold a special service in the mission church for confession and supplication to God on

behalf of the city, at which both he and the Bishop of Lahore addressed a large and attentive congregation, the former taking as a text the words, "See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh." A meeting of the leading Native (non-Christian) gentlemen of the city was also convened, that the Bishops might express their sympathy with them. "I trust," wrote the Metropolitan, "that our meeting may have contributed something towards strengthening the bonds of union between Native and European." It can scarcely be that this heavy visitation was without a gracious purpose for the softening of some hearts to receive the divine message.

One of the Zenana ladies wrote, "Being called one day into the house of a Native doctor, he told me that when he was so ill, and hundreds were dying around him, he began to think that this world was indeed kuchh nahin (nothing at all), and would I come and teach him and his family about the other world and how to get there?" Babu Elias, the oldest catechist in the Mission, who was baptized in 1854, and has been preaching Christ ever since, wrote: " People were so anxious to find out the source and cause of this trouble that I was often and often invited to their homes to talk on the subject, which gave me many an opportunity of gently leading them to Jesus."

Through the instrumentality of this old evangelist one of the most interesting converts of the year was won to Christ. This was Kharak Singh, municipal engineer of the city. For six years Babu Elias was seeking his soul; and he was baptized by Mr. Keene on February 10th of this year. Of two female converts also Mr. Keene gives an account which cannot be read without a sense of the "mysterious way" God moves in, "His wonders to perform ":

Of six women baptized, five are connected with the medical branch of the Zenana Mission established in this city. Two of these call for special remark, because the foundation of their knowledge of Christianity was laid some thirty years ago by an honoured lady, Mrs. Fitzpatrick, the wife of one of the founders of this Mission.

In those early days, "the day of small things," Mrs. F. made an attempt to teach the women of this city. Adjoining the room she took in the city, in the next house, lived two Kashmirí girls, the daughters of a pashmina merchant. These girls said, "We cannot visit you unless you make a hole in the wall-then we will come and see you." This was done, and these two girls came under Mrs. F.'s instruction and her high Christian influence.

Mrs. F. eventually left for Multin with her husband, and the instruction given does not appear to have been followed up by any other lady. The girls did not, however, pass entirely out of sight, nor were they entirely unheard of. The wife of a Native Christian of this Mission was attacked by a terrible bodily affection. And who were the nurses of this afflicted woman? Why, these two Moslem women, who under very trying surroundings, for the disease was a loathsome one, with assiduity and love exhibited the spirit of another Master than him to whom they were tied by their hereditary profession. A noble Christian lady of the American Presbyterian Mission was in the habit, during her journeys up and down the railway, to take up her position in the third-class carriages allotted to Native women, for the purpose of instructing her fellow-travellers. On one of these occasions, while engaged in her work of love, a woman at the other end of the carriage opened her mouth and gave utterance to her knowledge of the Gospel. When asked where she had learned this, she answered, from Mrs. Fitzpatrick. These are the only two episodes which to our knowledge occurred between those early days and what took place at the end of the last year.

Then one of them fell ill, and the lady in charge of the medical hospital was in the providence of God led to pay her a visit. She became an inmate of the hospital, and again came under Christian instruction there. They both came several times to me for examination, previous to their baptism, which holy rite was administered to them by me on December 28th last. Is not this narrative another striking instance of those words so often fulfilled, Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days"?

All the schools and institutions suffered by the epidemic. The High School, which had done extremely well in the Government examinations, was closed for a time, and on re-opening, its numbers were greatly reduced. In August there were 703 names on the books of this and the other boys' schools; at the close of the year there were 558. In the Girls' Orphanage, not a single girl escaped the fever; yet every one, by God's mercy, recovered. This institution has been admirably conducted by Mrs. Reuther. In March last year the Bishop of Lahore confirmed eleven girls. During his stay at Amritsar he visited the orphanage and wrote in the Log Book: "The work is honest and thorough, pursued vigorously and with true aims, and pains will not be spared to raise up a valuable class of Christian mothers, whose lives will be bright and speechful examples to their Indian sisters, exercising an attractive influence Christwards."

The Boys' Orphanage has been removed to the Christian village of Clarkabad, which will enable its excellent superintendent, Mr. H. F. Beutel, to wield influence over the people there for good. The Native pastor there, the venerable Rev. Daud Singh, asked for some help of the kind, both he and his wife being now in poor health.

Of the Alexandra Christian Girls' Boarding School, the Bishop of Calcutta wrote:

It gave me great pleasure to be able to visit this grand school, of which I had already heard so much, and I soon came to the conclusion that grand as are the buildings, they are only in keeping with the very superior character of the work carried on within them. It may be, as I am told, the day of small things in the Punjab so far as great results in the way of conversions from heatherism and Mohammedanism are concerned, but the stream flowing out from such a school as this must, in time, have an influence, which will make the wilderness a very garden of the Lord. I was much struck with the brightness and happiness which seemed to reign over all.

Thus are our brethren and sisters labouring to bring the dwellers in "the Fountain of Immortality " to Him whom the Psalmist addresses in these words, "With Thee is the Fountain of Life." God prosper them and their work!

ANOTHER CONVERT FROM THE TELUGU CASTE GIRLS' SCHOOL.

MASULIPATAM, June 26th, 1882. |EAR MR. EDITOR,—As an account has lately been sent you of the conversion of Seshamma, the first-fruit gathered into the visible Church of Christ from our Caste Girls' Schools, it will, I think, interest our friends to know that another girl, named Paidamma, also a widow of the Sudra caste, has followed in her steps. She was educated in one of our schools, and left about five years ago, while still quite a child. Since then she seems to have been lost sight of, and has had no instruction whatever. However, what she learned of the love of Jesus when at school was deeply impressed upon her heart, and, though lost to external Christian influences, the Holy Spirit has been her Teacher, watering the seed sown, and from that time to this she has refused to worship idols, and has prayed to Jesus as her Saviour.

One Sunday, about a month ago, she went to Anantam Garu's house, where Sesbamma was staying, and stated her earnest desire to be a Christian. Anantam Gara, not knowing anything about her, advised her to go home again, and take the opportunity of learning more about Christ before taking the decisive step of joining the Christians, which would involve the breaking of caste, and separation from her relatives; but it was with great difficulty that he could persuade her to leave the house.

Soon after she had gone, her mother and sister came to look for her, and would not at first believe that she was not there still. When asked why talking to us about Jesus Christ, and telling us it is wrong to worship they should suppose she would remain there, they said, "Oh, she is always idols." This independent testimony to her sincerity encouraged us to hope that she would come again; and most thankful were we when she appeared again the following Sunday, having managed to slip away from her home, where she had been carefully watched all the week. Anantam Garu sent her on to our house, where she would be safer in the event of our deciding to let her stay. We asked her what she would do if her relations came, and cried, and beat themselves, to try and make her go

back with them. She said, "I will stay here: Jesus has died to save me from my sins." We were a little puzzled as to her age; but, on hearing from the collector that if we were reasonably assured that she was over sixteen, we might safely keep her without being subject to the penal law, we no longer hesitated, but sent word to tell her relations of the step she was about to take. They have been to see her several times, and seem satisfied that she is quite happy here. Though there have been tears shed on both sides, it is a matter for thankfulness that there has been none of that violence which so often characterises interviews of this kind. We hope that in a few weeks' time she will be publicly received into the congregation of Christ's flock by baptism.

In Paidamma we have a striking instance of the silent way in which the Holy Spirit sometimes works, and it is most encouraging to think that of the hundreds of children who leave our schools, and then hear nothing more of Jesus, there may be very many who, like Paidamma, have received a lasting impression, but whose names will only be known when He cometh to make up His jewels. May we all be led to pray more earnestly and believingly for these dear children who are taught in our schools, and who in after life may exercise an untold influence for evil or good upon the homes of India! AGNETA JANE PEEL.

THE STORY OF THE LIFE OF DR. KRAPF,

The Pioneer-Missionary of East Africa.

TOLD BY HIMSELF.

IX.-MORE ADVENTURES IN UKAMBANI-FURTHER TRAVELSRETURN TO EUROPE.

UGUST 28th, 1851.-After climbing the mountain for some way, all of a sudden I observed a man and woman standing on a rock which projected from it, and tried to conceal myself behind a bush, but they had seen me and came towards me. By the aid of my telescope, I discovered that these people were Wakamba. They called me by my name, and I came out of my hiding-place and went towards them and recognised them. We were heartily glad to see each other, and they inquired anxiously about Kivoi and our caravan, but I could only tell them of what had befallen myself.

August 29th.-In the evening we reached the plantations of the Wakamba, and with nightfall arrived at the village of Umama, a relation of Kivoi's. From Umama we heard that many fugitives had already returned, but that four Wakamba, with Kivoi and one of his wives, had been killed.

August 30th.-The Wakamba have been extremely cold in their demeanour towards me. One or two bananas and a few beans were all that they gave me for breakfast, although I was very hungry; and some of them visited Umama, and said openly, "The Musungu is a wicked man," for not having protected Kivoi and his caravan, whilst several were of opinion that I ought to be punished by death. Knowing the superstitious and capricious character of the people, I had little doubt of some homicidal attempt, and, therefore, resolved to escape.

August 31st.-In the afternoon two Wakamba made their appearance, and carried me off to the village of Kitetu, and on the way I was forced to halt in the middle of a village because the whole population wanted to stare at me.

September 4th.-I was yesterday convinced of the murderous designs harboured against me by Kivoi's relatives, and resolved to escape by night. Before I lay down in the evening I put some food and a calabash with water all ready for my flight. After midnight, about two in the morning, I rose from my hard couch and, not without a beating of the heart, opened the door of the hut. It consisted of heavy billets of wood, the Wakamba having no regular doors, but piling up logs above each other in the aperture of the habitation. Kitetu and his family did not hear the noise necessarily made by the displacement of this primitive door, and after I had made an opening in it sufficient to creep out I gained the exterior of the hut, and hung the cowhide, on which I had been sleeping, over the aperture, lest the cold wind, blowing into the hut, should awaken its inmates before the usual hour; and fortunately there were no dogs in the inclosure. I now bent my steps in a south-westerly direction towards a village which I had noticed the day before; as for several days previously, I had been inquiring after the route, preparatory to my flight to Yata. When day dawned I sought concealment upon the slope of a hill, which was covered with grass and bushes, and though my hiding-place was not far from a village, for I could hear the Wakamba talking, I lay the whole day hidden in the grass.

September 5th.-At nightfall I quitted my hiding-place and continued my journey towards Yata. I had an additional reason to reach it as quickly as possible, in the fear that my people might have seized upon my property, on hearing, as was very probable, that I had been killed. The tall grass and the thorns sadly obstructed my path, and made my progress slower than I could have wished. Often in the darkness I fell into pits or over stones, and the thorns, those relentless tyrants of the wilderness, made sad havoc with my clothes. Wishing to husband my little stock of provisions, I plucked as I passed through the plantations of the Wakamba green Mbellasi, a kind of bean, and thrust them into my pockets. About midnight I stumbled on the sandy bed of a forest brook, and became hopeful of finding water, so I followed its course, and was overjoyed to meet with it in a sandpit, which, no doubt, had been dug by wild beasts. Thanking God for this mercy, I drank plentifully, and then filled my calabash. After a while I came to marshy ground, where I noticed a

quantity of sugar-cane, a most welcome discovery. I immediately cut off a number of canes and, after peeling them, chewed some of them, taking the remainder with me. The horizon began soon to blush with the crimson of morning, and warned me to look out again for a hiding-place; so as I saw at a little distance a huge tree, the large branches of which drooped till they touched the grassy ground beneath, I concealed myself under it at daybreak. When it was quite day I climbed the tree to ascertain my whereabouts; and great was my astonishment to find myself near Mount Kidimui; so that there were yet thirty-six leagues to be traversed before I could reach Yata.

Towards noon I was very nearly discovered by some women who were gathering wood only thirty races from my hiding-place; for one of them was making straight for the tree under which I was lying, when her child, which she had put on the ground some sixty paces off of it, began to cry bitterly, which made her retrace her steps to quiet it. After I had been kept in suspense for an hour, oscillating between fear and hope, the women took their loads of wood upon their backs and made haste to their village. My flight from the Dana to Kidimui was very different from the present one; then I traversed a country both level and uninhabited, and could journey by day as well as by night; but now I could progress only by night, and in a region full of thorns, holes, and villages, liable to be discovered at any moment and to be put to death as a magician, or detained in captivity until a ransom came from the coast.

[After many further adventures, the journal proceeds :---] September 13th.-We reached Yata in safety, and the whole population of the village was in a state of excitement and came forth to see and greet me, some Wakamba who had come from Kitui having spread the news that I had been killed along with Kivoi.

September 17th.-I quitted Yata with painful feelings. It grieved me not to have been privileged to make a longer missionary experiment in Ukambani, as I could not feel satisfied that a mission in this country would not succeed, as the people of Yata had behaved with friendliness towards me; yet, situated as I was, my further stay was impossible.

September 28th.-In the evening, weary and worn, I reached my hut in Rabbai Mpia, where I found my friends well with the exception of Kaiser and Metzler, who were still ill with fever, as I had left them in July. It had long been given out on the coast that I was dead, so the joy of my friends, as well as of the Wanika, was proportionately great when they saw me come back alive.

[Dr. Krapf then resumes his general narrative:-]

After my return on the 30th September, 1851, to Rabbai from my Ukambani journey I continued, as formerly, to visit the scattered Wanika and to preach the Gospel to them. In October of that year Rebmann went to Egypt, to marry an amiable English lady, who had already proved her aptitude for missionary life amongst the heathen whilst residing with the wife of missionary Lieder at Cairo. Soon afterwards I resolved to visit Usambara a second time, being desirous of knowing whether King Kmeri was disposed to fulfil the promise made by him in the year 1818, and at what place he would allow the station to be established. This second expedition was carried out in the period between the 10th of February and the 14th of April, 1852. On my return from Usambara I had the pleasure of greeting my dear fellow-labourer Rebmann and his wife. Erhardt had meanwhile pretty well finished the building in Kisuludini, so that the two missionaries could now occupy their pretty residence there, while I remained in the old hut in the Kaya, making from it daily excursions to the Wanika. I endeavoured, moreover, to organise in the Kaya itself a regular congregation, which was joined every morning by some neighbouring families and my servants, when after prayers I explained to them the gospels according to the order in which they are to be read in the Church.

It was late in the autumn of 1853 that I was compelled to leave Rabbai, and to return to Europe for the restoration of my health. Rebmann and his wife were now alone at the station, as Erhardt was in Usambara, and on the 25th of September I took leave of my dear friends from whom I had experienced so much love. Leaving Mombaz in October I sailed to Aden, thence to Suez, and from Alexandria, in an Austrian steamer, to Trieste. I reached the dear fatherland, Würtemberg, about Christmas, but in a very enfeebled condition.

(To be concluded in our next.)

GLEANINGS FROM CHINA LETTERS.

Old "Praise the Lord."

HE Rev. R. W. Stewart writes of the oldest convert at Oh-
Iong, in the Fuh-kien Province:-

The old Christian, Chung-Te, the father of the Church in that district, is still as earnest and hardworking as ever. He talks to every one he meets on the road; and as we trudged along together I heard him familiarly styled by the passers-by as "Praise the Lord." This man has indeed suffered for the Name he loves. According to the local custom, when any one dies, it is necessary to fasten the body in a sitting position, in a chair, in the best room; and the catechist told me that when Chung-Te's dearly loved wife, who had been his sharer and his one human sympathiser in persecution, died, he had to perform all these painful offices single-handed, for not one neighbour would come near to assist him while he worshipped Jesus. He stood alone then; but he has lived to see not only a Christian congregation in his own village, but several other little churches spring up in the surrounding country as offshoots from it. At my last visit I found his dear little girl, his sole remaining comfort, had left him to become the wife of a heathen man, to whom she had been engaged in infancy, before the father believed. May God grant that this husband may not illtreat his young wife on account of her faith, but soon join with her, and take her God to be his God!

"Bearing in the Body the Marks of the Lord Jesus." Mr. Stewart gives a touching account of a young man lately baptized at Tong-A, another village in Fuh-kien :

He is a young man of good family, and one of the senior members of

The night I arrived, the catechist told me at once of this young man, but said he scarcely expected to see him at the service next morning; however, to our surprise and delight, just at church hour, he came in, still bearing the marks of his wounds. I examined him for baptism, and shall not forget the look in his face as he answered the question, "How do you know that Jesus loves you?" "Why," he said, "did He not leave His Father and the glory of heaven, and come down and die for us wicked men ? What is that if it is not love? "

Perils of a Missionary's Life.

The Rev. W. Banister, of Fuh-Chow, sends us an account of a narrow

escape he had from drowning while itinerating early this year :

As an instance of the real dangers which sometimes suddenly befall the missionary, I may relate what happened to myself while in the company of the Rev. L. Lloyd. I had intended to accompany him through the Ku-Cheng district.

It

is necessary to go first to Chui-Kau by water, a journey up the River Min of three or four days. On the second day of our journey, after breakfast, Lloyd and I left our boat and walked along the bank, our example being followed by the coolies. After some time Lloyd returned to the boat; but I went on, followed by the coolies, and continued my walk for more than an hour, at which time we had arrived over against a place called Töük-Kie, where I intended to await the arrival of our boat; but the coolies said the boat could not land on that side, and we must cross over. The

river here is nearly as wide as the Thames at London Bridge. We therefore hired a little ferry-boat, and began to cross. When we arrived at the middle of the stream we found the water agitated by the wind which blows up the centre of the river, being scarcely felt at the side, and the waves began to wash over the low gunwale of the boat, and it began to fill. I had barely time to stand up and get out from under the bamboo covering, when the whole thing went over, and the entire party were thrown into the water. I, with three or four others, clung to the upturned boat until help came.

his household holds an important official position over the literati of the district, and, as a matter of course, is bitterly opposed to Christianity. This young man, when it was demanded of him why he had joined the hated sect, and brought discredit on his people, replied that the doctrine was good, and that he could not give it up. He was forthwith set upon and beaten till he fell to the ground insensible. At this stage his mother interfered, saying she only wished him to be beaten, not killed. They supposed him to be dead; but on his showing consciousness, the elder brother, who had been his chief tormentor, fled from the house, fearing that the young man would bring him before the mandarins; but on his recovering, the Christian sent word for him to return, for that he need fear nothing from him, he was a follower of Christ, who forgave His enemies, and he would follow His example.

But it came all too late for three of the poor coolies, who were carried away by the current. It was an experience that I shall never forget, and I can only thank God our Great Father that I was not numbered amongst those who were washed away. All this time Lloyd and the others in the boat knew nothing of the accident; but when they arrived opposite the village they saw that something had happened, and crossed over to see what it was. Lloyd was alarmed to see some one wearing my sun-hat, dressed in Chinese clothes; but happily it was my real self wearing the dry clothes of one of the boatmen. It was now our melancholy duty to find the bodies, and bury them decently. We had first to go to the