lifting the door off
its wooden hinges, and then we were in the anteroom or rather kitchen.
In it was a built-in cooking-pan, an earthenware bowl, and a wooden
stick resembling a Scotch porridge-stick; and some brushwood which had
been brought in to be in readiness when he next arrived at that inn. One
of the two rooms, which lay on each side of this ante-room, was locked,
and we could not open it, but through the chinks of the door I could see
abundant traces of Gilmour. It was specially refreshing to see some
genuine English on one of the boxes; it was "Ferris, Bourne, & Co.,
Bristol," the people from whom he used to order his drugs. My servant
and I decided to take up our quarters in the next room, which was
evidently the servant's room. We soon managed to make ourselves very
comfortable, and there was an unspeakable relief in at last being in a
place which belonged to the London Mission, rented of course. We had to
spend the Sunday there. Mr. Sun, the box-maker, soon came round, and
seemed genuinely glad to see me, and offered to make all arrangements
for the further stage of our journey. We then discharged our carts, and
I sent with them my letters for home.

'After spending the Sunday in company with the Christians there, we set
out on the Monday morning with a local carter for Ta Cheng Tz[)u], a
distance of about twenty-three miles. We crossed a hilly and sparsely
populated district, reminding me of some of the bleaker scenery in
Scotland. On reaching the town we at once drove to the new private
mission premises. It was a little house surrounded by a straw fence.
Quite a crowd of rough-looking people followed us in. One of the doors
had been stolen, and altogether it looked so unprotected that I decided
to take up my quarters in a little Mongol inn, where Mr. Gilmour
formerly lived. Next day I expected to meet Gilmour, and the two
Christians there were fully expecting him. In the evening we had quite a
levee; Li San and the other Christian, whom Gilmour used to call "Long
Legs," sat drinking tea in my room for some time, and were very
friendly; they were evidently trying to ingratiate themselves with me; I
did not then know how disgracefully they had behaved to Gilmour, nor did
I know the anxious business which was bringing Gilmour there at that
time.

'Next day or the following, I forget exactly which, I was sitting in my
room, when a young man arrived, my servant being out at the time. I
could not make him o