f making themselves more familiar with the tongue and
accent of the Tuscans, in order to be able to avail themselves of the
greater openings of usefulness now presented to them, both in their own
country and in central Italy.

They preached occasionally, and attended the prayer-meeting, which now
greatly increased, and which was the only one at this time among the
Florentines. Having by their visit helped forward the good work, these
evangelists, after a six months' stay in Florence, returned to their own
country.

A full year elapsed between the departure of the Waldensian brethren and
the movement among the Florentines to obtain an Italian pastor. After
much deliberation they resolved on this step, and in May 1850 a
deputation set out for the Valleys, which, arriving at La Tour,
prevailed on Professor Malan to accept of the charge at Florence. M.
Malan returned to that city, and, on the 1st of July 1850, began his
ministry, among a little flock of thirty persons, in the Swiss chapel
Via del Seraglio, in which the Grisons had a right to Italian service.
The work now went rapidly forward. Formerly there had been but one
re-union; now there were ten in Florence alone, besides others in the
towns and villages adjoining. M. Malan had service once a fortnight in
Italian; and so large was the attendance, that the chapel, which holds
four hundred, was crowded to the door with Florentine converts or
inquirers. The priests took the alarm. They wrought upon the mind of the
deformed Archduchess,--a great bigot, and sister to the Grand Duke. A
likely tool she was; for she had made a pilgrimage to Rimini, and
offered on the shrine of the winking Madonna a diamond tiara and
bracelet. The result I need not state. The immediate result was, that
the Italian service was put a stop to in January 1851; and the final
result was the banishment of Malan and Geymonat from Tuscany in the May
of that year,--the expulsion of the pastors being accompanied with
circumstances of needless severity and ignominy. Geymonat, after lying
two days in the Bargello of Florence, was brought forth and conducted on
foot by gendarmes, chained like an assassin, to the Piedmontese
frontier. On this miserable journey he was thrust every night into the
common prison, along with characters of the worst description, whose
blasphemies he was compelled to hear. The foul air and the disgusting
food of these places made him sometimes despair of coming out alive; but
he