, and inspire a hope in the ultimate and speedy triumph
of our cause in the land of the Vedas.

I gratefully express my indebtedness to the Rev. J. L. Barton, D. D., for
his valuable suggestions and kindly sympathy, and also to the Rev. W. P.
Elwood for his kind help in proofreading.

John P. Jones.

_Pasumalai,_
_ So. India._

Chapter I.

THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE.

No country in the Orient is of greater interest to the West today than is
India. It is picturesque in its life, wonderful in its history, remarkable
in its present conditions and fascinating in its promise for the future.

It is a land most worthy of study both for what it has been, for what it
is and for what it is to become; as the arena for the greatest conflict
upon which our Faith and Civilization have ever entered; and for their
most magnificent triumph in the world.

Moreover, India is now peculiarly wedded to the Anglo-Saxon race. For good
or for evil the destiny of that country, socially, politically,
intellectually and religiously, is linked with that of the Anglo-Saxon;
and we, as a part of the Anglo-Saxon race, cannot, even if we would, shake
off our connection with, and responsibility for, it.

1. The Physical Features of That Land.

It is a very extensive land. More a continent than a country, it
stretches, from east to west, a distance of 1,900 miles; and it extends
the same distance from the Himalayas on the north to Cape Comorin on the
south. It covers an area equal to one-half of that of the United States.

It is physically divided into three portions. The first, on the north,
includes the Himalaya Mountains, which separate it from the rest of Asia
and which furnish an important element in the meteorological conditions of
the country. Then from the base of this mountain range extend the plains
of the great rivers which issue from the mountains themselves. Again, from
the southern boundaries of these plains gradually rises a very extensive
three-sided table-land reaching towards the coast on both eastern and
western sides, and extending to Cape Comorin on the south. There may be
added to this the narrow strips of coast-land on the east and west. In the
land are found some of the greatest and most wonderful rivers in the
world. The Ganges, which is the queen of Indian rivers, carries life and
fertility to a population greater than that of the whole United States.
After a course o