you
as long as you stay with us."

"Thank you, Chief Edem. I am happy to be here."

"This is my sister, Ma Eme," said the chief. Mary liked Ma Eme at once and
Ma Eme liked Mary. They were friends as long as they lived.

"I want to go to visit the next village now," said Mary. "I want to go to
Ifako."

"Oh, no, Ma," said Chief Edem. "The chief is a very bad man. He is not fit
for you to meet. Besides he is drunk now and he doesn't know what is going
on. You must stay at Ekenge."

"Very well," said Mary, "I will stay, but call the people together so that
I can have a Jesus-talk."

When the people had all come together, Mary told about God's great love for
them. She told them about Jesus who died that they might be saved. She
told them about the happiness Jesus would bring to their village by
changing their lives when they came to Him.

That night Mary did not sleep very much. The chief had given her one of
the best houses in the village, but we would not think it was much of a
house. Her bed was made of a few sticks with some corn shucks thrown over
them. In the room all night were plenty of rats and insects. But Mary's
heart was happy.

Later Mary went to Ifako. The chief there liked Mary very much. He and
Chief Edem agreed to let her start a mission in their villages. Each one
promised to give her ground for a schoolhouse and a mission house. Mary
chose the places for the buildings. They were a half-hour's walk apart.

"Now I must go back to Creek Town," said Mary. "When I come back again, it
will be to stay."

"Come soon, Ma," said Chief Edem. "It will make us very happy to have you
stay with us."

As they rode down the river, Mary could not sleep at first because the
rowers kept whispering,

"Don't shake the canoe or you will wake Ma," or "Don't talk so loud so Ma
can sleep." At last, however, tired from her days of work in Ekenge and
Ifako, she fell asleep and did not wake up until she came back to Creek
Town.

Now she was very busy getting ready to move to Ekenge. One of the traders
heard about her going to Ekenge.

"Do you trust those wild people?" he asked. "Do you think you can change
them? What they need more than a missionary is a gun-boat to tame them
down."

"No, my friend," answered Mary, "they need the same thing that every person
in the world needs and that is the Saviour Jesus Christ. Only Jesus can
change the hearts of sinful people."

At last Mary was packed up. She was taki