women) four hundred and fifty-six adult females, nearly all of them mothers. The average age is twenty-three. The great majority of girls are married young, but actual child-marriage is comparatively rare. You will also see, that three hundred and twelve are farmers' wives and daughters, all women with dowries, and almost without exception land-owners. There are twenty-two Brahmans. There are now one hundred and twenty-six who can read the Bible. Alas! they do not care enough to read it for themselves, but if I send them teachers and fresh books, and keep up their interest, they will read it. In time I hope the habit will be formed, and a real love for the truth will take the place of indifference. “Home, Sweet Home” and “Jessica's First Prayer” are such nice books for this class of women! “Tales of the Reformation ” is now just out, and “Moody's Sermons'' (six of them). “Life of Miss Fiske’’ is much liked by many of the more thoughtful ones. The lives of “Sarah,” “Mary,” etc., in tract form, are also attractive. There is quite a collection of books now. I am very anxious to have help, and could then increase my staff of teachers. I could also increase the number of pupils by a hundred or more in two months, had I the funds. “Who goeth a warfare anytime at his own charges,” has often come to my mind as the work has increased on my hands. Think of it—four hundred and fifty-six adult pupils; and to pay my teachers, I receive less than $10 a month. Last year, Miss IIillis, formerly of our mission, and the originator of this work at the station, sent me $25 for the “Helping Hands,” of whom more presently. Now, my dear friends, I have felt heretofore that if the Lord would have the work go on, he would incline the hearts of those at home to send me help out of their abundance. Of late I have thought, perhaps, it was not sufficiently understood how wide a door was thrown open here, and that I ought to write and tell you more about it. I am paying my teachers at the rate of one rupee for every eight pupils. They all feel that this is not sufficient, but I can afford no more at present. All my teachers living within half a mile are required to come every Tuesday afternoon at four o'clock to our church, to teach the members of the “Helping Hands.” These are very poor women, mostly of the lower classes, though twenty-one belong to the farmer, or Velalah caste. They come at four o'clock, and are divided into eight classes, according to their proficiency— one class using the Sabbath-school lessons (International), another class, of old women, simply hearing the lessons read and explained, committing the Golden Texts to memory, etc. At five o'clock all come together for singing and Scripture recitations. Closing with the Lord's Prayer, they are dismissed, and usually pass out in single file. The attendance has been large for the past year, averaging eightytwo for the year 1884. You will not be surprised that it took about six hundred yards of cloth to give each one a dress, the number of yards and the quality differing according to the attendance. This had been so remarkably good, that one hundred and eight women received cloths, to enable them to come to the class clean and whole. The cloth given is all unbleached muslin, about one and a half yards wide, costing about twenty cents a yard. Each receives from four to eight yards, according to the attendance registered. I wish I could give each of the teachers a cloth, too. They are all poor women, and do not receive a cent for this special work. It is very unpleasant work, and this will explain itself when I tell you that many of the women are so poor that they have no wells and no bathing o What to do about the matter is a great question with us, for really they are not wholly to blame for their unwashed condition. Many of them, however, do keep clean, comb their hair very neatly, and look quite respectable. Perhaps this glimpse of the well-to-do farmers' wives and daughters and the poor members of the “Helping Hand,” may lead you to think of us, pray for us, and help some poor women to learn to read the Bible. This is our aim — Bible-reading. Who will come to “the help of the Lord against the mighty" in this battle with ignorance, superstition, and heathenism 2 Will you ?

And Mr. Smith writes: —

One of your Bible-women is Mrs. Chinarchy Chinnapody. This name means in English, Mrs. Little-Mother Little-Boy. Its owner is one of our best Bible-women, though all of them are good and true. Chinarchy was educated in the village station-school. She has a remarkable memory and a wonderful knowledge of the Bible. She knows over twenty-five psalms and many chapters of the Bible by heart, and can tell Bible stories very effectively. The work of the Bible-women is twofold — teaching women and grown-up girls to read, or helping them keep up the habit, and telling the gospel message from house to house. All do the former, but only the more mature and experienced are allowed to devote their afternoons to the strictly evangelical work.

If any reader should consider these Christmas greetings out of season, let her thoughts be tender and her prayers, most earnest for our dear young lady teachers, whose news of the home-land is often just as much out of season. And when they read of Miss Cathcart's hope for a teacher to be sent by the Morning Star, and remember that it has been only a “hope deferred,” let them hasten to send

“Around by the way of heaven
Their loving sympathies.”

A “MERRY CHRISTMAs” and “Happy New Year” to you far over the sea. It may be it will reach you in time for ’85 or 'S6. At any rate I will take the opportunity I have to send it as far as Ponape.

Yesterday, to #. variety to Christmas, there came at early dawn the cry “Sail ho!” It proved to be a schooner run by one of the Captain Kiestels. She has been cruising about for four or five months, so there came no news of the outer world; but it is such a little while since the Jennie Walker came that we don't begin to feel the need of news. Well, I don’t know that you would call it so very short a time, four months; but I did not think till after I wrote it how it might seem to you in the home-land. The vessel came from the Gilbert Islands, via Namerik, and brought a letter from Joralik, our teacher there. He writes encouragingly of the work; over a hundred in the school, and all eager to learn. But there comes with it a plea that came by the other vessel from Jaluit and Ailinlaplap, “Cannot you send us books? We are poor for books;” yet months must pass before their needs can be supplied. When I see how greatly our people need the Testament that will come when Dr. and Mrs. Pease return”, I think nothing of the increased care, work, and responsibility that must come while they are absent, and am glad they are gone. It is years since there has been such a scarcity of native food on the island as this fall — for over three months §§ little breadfruit and but little taro. The Kusaians have gone to the mountains and hunted for wild yams, often requiring nearly the whole day to |...". enough for their families. As a consequence, there has een but little that we could buy for our school; and as our usual supply of rice did not come, the outlook has not been very encouraging. We have been using our graham flour and beans for the scholars, and now bread-fruit is beginning to ripen, and we succeeded in buying a hundred pounds of rice of this vessel, and may secure a box of hard bread; so I think we shall, by careful planning, make both ends meet till June, when we hope our next year's supplies will come. We omit an earnest plea for more money to educate native teachers, because it was published in the September Missionary Herald, but must not ful to give Miss Cathcart's requests for prayers. Her friends at home cannot read these too often. " You know this is the first time that I have had any real care and responsibility since I entered the work. One can’t have very much until the language is learned, while at the same time new missionaries find plenty that they can do. The Lord has wonderfully helped and strengthened me, and with all my heart I thank him. I often think the strength for new duties comes in answer to prayers of Christian friends; and I rejoice in the thought that now, when you come to know our greater need of help from above for this year, you will exercise your prayers in our behalf. Our prayers rise more tenderly and earnestly, if it can be, now, as the old year draws to a close and the “Week of Prayer” is at hand, that our land and friends may receive richer spiritual blessings; and that, in answer to prayer, thousands of souls may enter upon a new life at the beginning of the new year. And you who have not been on mission-ground cannot know how we long for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit here in our field. You who have stood as we stand, in the midst of dawning light, know just how to feel. The Kusaians, with both our schools, are to unite in prayer for the same subjects each day. We arranged the subjects, and I have written them in Kusaian, with Bible references, and sent them to Sela. It is surprising how rapidly I gain in using both Marshall and Kusaian, now that there is no one else to use them with the natives. I don’t believe I should read or hear any English this year, except what I need for teaching, if it were not for Miss Palmer. I am too tired to read much in the evening, but she reads aloud for half an hour or so. She has read the life of Mrs. Prentiss, and we enjoyed and were helped by it. Now we are visiting our brothers and sisters in other mission-fields, and sharing in feeling their joys and sorrows. Then almost every evening we hunt words for the next day's spelling lesson. Two months have passed since Dr. and Mrs. Pease left, and we hope for only six more before some one comes in the Mornin Star to strengthen our hands and take charge of this school. Go only knows what is in waiting for us; pray that we may be pre- o for all that he has prepared for us. And now a loving goodye if this reaches you. LLLIE S. CATHCART.

INSTEAD of the usual lesson this month, we offer some suggestions in regard to thank-offerings, in the hope that the first autumn meetings of auxiliaries will be “feasts of ingathering.” We hope to resume the lessons next month. –– –— - – --> w-

With the mellow light of autumn days comes the happy work of harvest time, and the memory of our feasts of ingathering held one year ago. We are sure that all who have once joined in such an occasion will not let the season pass without repeating it; and to any of our auxiliaries who have this year to celebrate their first “thank-offering meeting,” we reach the hand of congratulation that they have thus come to a new opportunity. Friday, August 21st, was our day at 75 Madison Street. Only one basket stood on our table this year, and it bore the word “Self-denial.” We are not sure but the reverse of the card was “Thank-offering.” We know it well might be; for must we not hold any gift of thankfulness incomplete if it does not touch the point of self-denial 2 One gold-piece was enfolded with the words, “A thank-offering as well as a gift of sacrifice”; and most were accompanied with texts of praise. Letters from far and near testified to the preciousness of the occasion, and made us resolve that this should be to us a regular annual feast. One, referring to our treasury, gave this text as our incentive: “According to your faith be it unto you.” Another, who has lately left us, and is now about returning to her work in China, said, “I give myself anew, a glad thank-offering to the Lord.”

We commend to our auxiliaries as the theme for thank-offerin meetings, “Causes for thankfulness in the history of the American Board,” now completing its seventy-fifth year. Let us remind ourselves, by some review of its history, how the work begun in the anxiety of untried seed-sowing seventy-five years ago, has grown into large harvests already gathered; while broadening and whitening fields call earnestly for more laborers. The early workers, seeing the heathen world closed to them, prayed for open doors; now their abundantly answered prayer is seen in open doors in every part of the earth, inviting the Church of God to enter in.

It is a good time to seek the answers to prayer in which this history abounds; the casting away of idols in the Sandwich Islands; the large ingatherings of souls there, and, later, in Japan and Turkey; and to be reminded of Elijah as we read the story of answered prayer told by Mr. Logan in his “Work of God in Micronesia.”

The lives of officers of the Board, as well as of its missionaries, have given us a rich legacy of prayer and faith of which the fruits are not all garnered. We may o learn of them, and of the families born to missionary work as to an inheritance—the Gulicks, Scudders, Riggs, Schaufflers, Binghams, and others. Shall we not i. thanks for such a line of nobility in the kingdom of our

ord 2

We were privileged in having at our meeting the presence of foreign workers, who are at home for rest. We wish we could give to every auxiliary the inspiration of such presence — the contagion of their enthusiasm, the impulse of their words, and glowing faces. We will give you the thought we received from one who spoke to us: “O let every gift be winged with a spirit of thankfulness and praise, and sweetened and perfumed by loving and consecrating prayers. Remember, it is an unblest offering which is given without prayer.”

THE Annual Meeting of the Woman's Board of Missions of the Interior will be held in the First Congregational Church in St. Louis, on Wednesday and Thursday, Nov. 4th and 5th. Every auxiliary from Ohio to the Rocky Mountains is invited to send one or more delegates. See Article VIII. of the Constitution. . . And it is especially requested that, if possible, the President, Secretary, and Treasurer of every State Branch will be present.

o, ladies of St. Louis hope for large delegations from the several States, and extend a general invitation to all who are interested. Railroad notices will be given in Mission Studies and The Advance.

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CORRECTION.

IN a note in the July issue we inadvertently spoke of Miss Wright as in charge of the Marsovan Boarding-School. She calls our attention to it, and asks us to state that she is only assisting Miss Fritcher in the care of that school. We are glad to make the correction.