she might not come down next Saturday, and
lodge with his family. She said she would bring with her some dried
potatoes for her food. Of course her request was readily granted. From
that time to the present, she has come the whole distance from her village
to Amoy almost every week, in order to hear the Gospel. She has two sons
and one daughter. She has brought both her sons with her, desiring that
they also may become Christians. The eldest, aged seventeen, is among our
inquirers. She has also brought some of her neighbors with her to hear the
Word. She has met with much opposition and persecution; but so far as we
can learn, she has borne all with the meekness of a true disciple of
Christ. Since her baptism, she has rented a room in Amoy, that she may
live within sound of the Gospel. When she told me of this, I asked her how
she expected to maintain herself, and whether she thought she should be
able to earn a living at Amoy. She replied that she trusted in God. If
she could not get as good food as others, she would eat coarser food.

"There is still a goodly number of inquirers at Amoy. In our meeting for
conversation with them to-day; we met with two very affecting cases. They
are lads, the elder being in his seventeenth year, and the younger in his
thirteenth. Their parents and friends bitterly oppose them in their
determination to follow Christ.

"They have been severely beaten. The elder was severely scourged
yesterday. This morning he was again tied up in a very painful manner, and
beaten by his cruel father. He carried the marks of his sufferings on his
arms, which we saw. We were told that he had scars also on other parts of
his body. We trust that they are 'the marks of the Lord Jesus.' A
brother, still younger than themselves, we are told, also worships Jesus.
If they are, indeed, lambs of Christ's flock, the blessed Saviour will take
care of them; but their severe afflictions should call forth much sympathy
and prayer in their behalf.

"The conduct of our church members continues to give us much comfort. They
are not free from faults. They need much careful oversight and exhortation
and instruction. In consequence of this, our cares, anxieties, and labors
must necessarily increase as the converts increase. But if allowance be
made for their limited knowledge, only a short time having elapsed since
the most of them first heard the Gospel, there are probably but few
churches, even in our own beloved country