udied and searched out in every detail, than all those letters
were by Eleanor; for every fact was of importance to her; and the
manner of every word told her something. They told her what made her
eyes fill and her pulse beat quick. But among them there was not a word
to herself. No, and not even a word about herself. In vain Eleanor
hoped for it and searched for it. There was not even an allusion that
looked her way.
"Do you want to know what I am doing?" Mr. Rhys wrote in one of these
letters. "You see by my date that I am not in the place I last wrote
from. I am alone on this island, which has never had a resident
missionary and which has people enough that need the care of one; so it
has been decided that I should pitch my tent here for some months.
There is not a large population--not quite five hundred people in the
whole island; but almost all of them that are grown up are professing
Christian--members of the church, and not disgracing their profession.
The history of the church in this place is wonderful and even of
romantic interest. One of their chiefs, being in another part of Fiji,
fell in with a chief who was a Christian. From him he learned something
of the new religion, and carried back to Ono thus much of truth--that
Jehovah is the only God and that all worship and praise is his due.
Further than this, and the understanding that the seventh day should be
especially spent in his service, the Ono chief knew nothing. Was not
that a little seed for a great tree to grow from? But his island had
just been ravaged by disease and by war; in their distress the people
had applied in vain to their old gods to save them; they were convinced
now from what they heard that help is in the Lord alone, and they
resolved to seek him. But they knew not the Lord, nor his ways, and
there was no one to teach them. Fancy that company of heathens
renouncing heathenism--setting apart the seventh day for worship,
preparing food beforehand so that the day might be hallowed, putting on
their best dresses and fresh oil, and meeting to seek the unknown God!
Oh kingdom of Christ, come, come!--
"When they were met, they did not know how to begin their service.
However, as old custom referred them to their priests for intercourse
with heaven, they bethought them to apply to one now, and told him what
I they wanted. I do not understand what influenced the man; but
however, heathen priest of a heathen god as he was, he consented to
of
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