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Mediterranean.

ports on the Caravans maintain its communication with Persia, with other parts of Mesopotamia and Upper Arabia. Carriages and wagons are practically unknown, but it is one of the finest horse markets in the world. The great industry of the city is weaving. "In nearly every house," writes Dr. Wishard, "one finds a loom." The business, however, has sadly declined from its former greatness, when Mosul, the name of the city, gave the name muslin to one of the most familiar commodities of the civilized world.

The same missionary pronounces the people of Mosul itself, "kind, manly, fine-looking, but the dwellers in the Mosul plain and in the villages between the city and the mountains, the lowest to be found in that whole region, unless it be in the mountain district of Gawar." Of the population of Mosul by far the larger part are Moslems. The nominally Christian sects, principally Jacobites and Chaldeans-or Nestorians who have become Romanists-number about twenty-five thousand and there are not far from ten thousand Jews. The Protestant community as yet is but a handful. The Lord's Day finds perhaps a hundred and thirty in the little congregation in the city, including the pupils in the schools. To these schools are brought the girls and boys from the rude mountain districts. About the last week in October they begin to gather. The home of the nearest is four days away. Some come floating down the Tigris on rafts; others travel on foot; a few, more aristocratic, on mules. To them all, coming from the remote recesses of Koordistan, Mosul seems more distant, more wonderful, perhaps more aweinspiring, than London could be to any lad from the Orkneys. Here they are brought under the daily lessons of the Bible and the influence of Christian teachers. Many of

[October,

and strength to devote to training these boys who are soon to be the teachers of their people."

The language of Mosul itself is almost exclusively Arabic and this is the tongue mainly employed in preaching within the city. Once outside the gates, Arabic is little heard. Syriac is everywhere spoken. We must therefore have a bi-lingual mission. Some of the missionaries must have Arabic at their tongue's end, and be able to converse also somewhat in Syriac, while others master thoroughly the Syriac, in order to maintain the schools, with their village scholars, and to carry forward by their tours and helpers the work of evangelizing the great mountain field, whose first ranges are seen lif ing themselves on the eastern horizon twenty miles away.

The climate of Mosul is acknowledged to be exceedingly unhealthy. Precious lives have been laid down here by the early missionaries of the American Board in their heroic attempts to evangelize the city. This, among other reasons, accounts for the interruptions which have occurred in missionary labors there. The heat of summer in Mosul is almost insupportable, so much so that large stone cellars are built, which, although damp and otherwise unhealthful, are a refuge for the people from the terrible heat of the summer days. It is not the intention of our missionaries to reside in Mosul during the summer, but to spend those months in the Koordish mountains where their schools and parishes, constituting so large a part of their work, will profit by their presence and supervision, and where the direct evangelistic work for that part of their field can also be

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the yard in front and the adjoining garden were crowded with people and many were seated on the verandah in the rear of the screen. The natives said there were fifteen hundred present. This shows that the city must have a considerable population. We estimated the population at about ten thousand, though we could get no reliable information on the subject. The next day I went to a village on the coast, called Pakpanang, where we have some church-members. We travelled all night and arrived there towards morning. That day we held five services, and encouraged the hearts of the native Christians. They thought it would be possible for them to build a chapel, but it is hardly likely that they will attempt it without any missionary to keep them up to the work.

COURTESIES FROM PRIESTS.

The service was held in a Chinese temple, and the priest who had charge of the place invited us to preach. The two head men of one village were present, and at the close of the service our small stock of books was displayed, and in five minutes they were all sold, and the people grumbled because there were not enough to go around. We returned that night and reached Nakawn in the afternoon of the following day, having been absent fifty hours.

Another day I was invited by the head priest of a wat on the south side of the city, outside the wall to go and visit them. On my arrival, they beat the big temple drum and called the villagers together to the number of about a hun. dred. Eleven priests were present, and all listened attentively to the gospel, and at the close asked me to come again. There seemed to be no opposition from any source. The temples are just as open to us as preaching places as any other building.

We had frequent conversations with the Prapalat on the subject of religion, and he asked many questions and seemed pleased when I gave him a copy of the New Testament in Siamese. Many of the people asked us to send them a teacher, and when told that if they would build a chapel I would find them a teacher, they

[October,

said they would do it. It is plain that this province is ripe for the gospel.

POSSIBLE REACTION.

It is not expected that the way will remain as free from obstacles as we found it. No doubt there will be strong opposition as soon as the priests understand that the Christian religion leaves no place for theirs; but I believe that there are many people in that province who would accept Christ joyfully if they only knew Him. This is also the opinion of our native helpers who had better opportunities of learning the state of mind of the people than we had. Six persons wished to make a profession of their faith, but they were advised to study the Scripture and to wait until our next visit before receiving baptism.

It is quite possible to over-estimate the interest of these people and their readiness to become Christians. It must be remembered that no missionary, so far as we could learn, had ever before visited the province. The people were attracted at first largely by curiosity, and partly, perhaps, by an expectation of temporal advantages of some kind. It is likely that our next visit will not be so enthusiastically received. for by that time opposition will have arisen, and people will have learned that it costs something to be a Christian in the midst of heathenism. On the other hand we gave the plain gospel; we preached the Word to them; we left with them about 700 copies of portions of the Scriptures and other religious books which will nearly all be read because they were bought and paid for; the seed is sown, the leaven is hidden away, and we know that the word of God is quick and powerful, and we believe that it will do its appointed work in the hearts of those people.

Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.

In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.-Eccl. xi: 1, 6.

1892.]

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KOREA.

THE FUSAN CIRCUIT.

REV. W. M. BAIRD, Fusan:-We left Fusan May 18, and returned June 13, after a circuitous journey of from two to three hundred miles. My objects in starting on the journey were chiefly these: To preach the Gospel, to study the Korean language, customs and geography, to make known to those living in neighboring places the presence of the missionary of Jesus in Fusan, and to study the best methods of work, how to travel, etc. It was not my purpose to make a long journey, but to try to reach those near by first. We visited the magistracies of Kimhai (once the capital of South Korea-a place of perhaps 6,000 inhabitants,) ChangWon (5,000), Chinhai (3,000), Kosyeng (5,000), Tongyeng (100,000), Yangsan (4,000), and Tongnai (10,000). Besides these magistracies we visited a number of villages and towns where no magistrates live. The largest of these is Masaupo (15,000). These estimates are based upon information derived from the Koreans. I need not say that that is extremely fluctuating and unreliable. I judge that the district through which we passed contains a population of from two to three hundred thousand people.

PREJUDICE AGAINST FOREIGNERS.

willingness to hear again. After each one of these tells his neighbors, the country will have been prepared for a second and more profitable trip. We were able to distribute upwards of two hundred books, many of which were sold for a few cash each; but in the majority of instances we could not even give them away at first. I think the most of them were judiciously placed. We often refused either to give or sell

The Gospel is an entirely new story in this province. The people are very much prejudiced against it and against all foreign influenee. They are ruled by their superstitions and fears, and so are very hard to reach. In Kosyeng, where we were compelled to wait a few days on account of Mr. Saw's sickness, very few Koreans came to see us after they learned our object. Nevertheless, we were able to preach to one or two hundred people on the trip. Many came merely from curiosity, and went away with no better motive. But I think that as many as twenty or thirty listened with a

the books where the desire seemed simply to be to obtain the paper of which they were made.

MEDICINE IN DEMAND.

We were often asked for medicines. I have every reason to believe that a physician would be able to make an entrance here to the people almost from the first. We meet with every form of foul disease. At Kosyeng we often saw smallpox patients. Koreans mostly have this disease when children. They are carried about on the

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backs of other children-thus spreading the disease. Leprosy is most common in South Korea. We see the poor, miserable victims almost everywhere. At times we even come into apartments in the inns which they have occupied.

INDIA.

PETTY PERSECUTION.

REV. J. P. GRAHAM, Sangli: - On returning from my furlough in the United States I found that our church in the city showed a kind of special interest on the part of some of the people by the striking appearance of the windows which had more than fifty broken panes of glass. In the next few weeks following some forty more were smashed; and on the doors-the key holes of which would be stopped with mud or some more offensive substance-posters were frequently found reproaching people for not showing more pride in the ancestral religion, and exhorting them to worship the gods of their fathers, not Christ, and warning them not to cross the threshold of the Christian temple. At one service there was left on a seat a letter for me, written in abusive, vile and obscene language. After a somewhat prolonged watch I succeeded in catching a boy throwing a stone through one of the windows. Thinking it wise to prosecute the boy, I did so on a charge of mischief and insult to a place of religious worship. The judge, a Brahman, did not give his judgment when the trial was over, but only after a delay of several weeks. He then found the boy guilty and fined him one rupee, i. e., about thirty cents, and in reply to my comment that the fine was a small penalty for an offence of that kind, he said he did not like to increase the fine "because the boy's father would have to pay it." However, since the prosecution, no more windows have been broken, the audiences in the church have been larger, and there has been no disturbance or disorder during service.

A LOW CASTE CENTRE.

REV. E. P. NEWTON, Lodiana:-Khanna is 26 miles from Lodiana and is the fourth station

[October,

you go down the line I cannot give the population

house in an excellent

on the railway as towards Ambala. exactly, but it is about 5,000, including Hindus, Mohammedans and low castes, Rahtars, Chamars, and Chuhras. This is the order in which they come, the last named being the lowest. We have a native minister, Rev. Jaimal Singh, and his family stationed there. Until this year they have lived in a rented situation just outside the gate of the town. There is also a lay preacher, Baldeo Sahai, who is supported by the Lodiana Presbytery, and a teacher, Ghanaiji, who has a few pupils in a village a mile and a half distant. Besides these there is one Christian, a Chuhra convert connected with the mission, living in the town. Within a radius of four miles of Khanna there are thirty-nine villages, large and small. If a five mile radius were taken there would probably be nearly double that. In two of these villages there are Christians living, At Rahaon, distant a mile and a half to the north there were until within a few days sixteen baptized persons, of whom ten were adults. One of them has died recently and the number now is nine adults and six children. Another mile and a half in the same direction is the village of Harion where there is one Christian family consisting of the father and mother and two children. comprise all the baptized persons in and around Khanna. At Bassi, a town of twelve or thirteen thousand inhabitants, which is some thirteen miles east of Khanna in the Raja of Patiala's territory there is a little community of eighteen Christians of whom thirteen are adults. The country lying between these two centres is one of the finest in our district for intineration, and ladies living in Khanna would be able to do a good deal in the cold weather for the advancement of the work in Bassi. During the hot months they would find more than enough work to occupy them in Khanna and the numerous villages that lie around it. The converts of this region are all amongst the Chubra community. who, as I said, hold the lowest place socially. As a class these people are degraded morally and intellectually though there are bright ones

These