"THEY WENT EVERYWHERE PREACHING THE WORD."-ACTS VIII. 4.

HE early Christians were naturally drawn by a common bond to a common centre. This communion of saints was exceedingly enjoyable, though not without its dangers. Apart from the disobedience to the plain command to preach the gospel to every creature, such a fraternity, ambitious only for personal blessing, would be in great danger of stagnation. This has been frequently illustrated in later times. Communities of Christians withholding their active sympathies from a dying world around them have become corrupt through internal fermentations. As though that inward principle of life which the Holy Ghost had implanted among them, denied its proper normal and aggressive manifestation, must find vent; if not in outward power and sweetness, in inward corruption and sourness. The Lord would not permit His early followers thus to suffer and decay. Persecution visited them, driving them into far-off fields, and "they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word."

It calls for devoutest thankfulness that many Biblical agencies have been recently established to provoke to action, and direct into the desert places, the hidden springs of church life. Observing, since our first acquaintance with the EAST LONDON INSTITUTE, its laudable design as a great agency in this direction, we have sympathised with its intention and rejoiced in its success.

From this centre have radiated streams of light to the dark places of the earth, and around the globe are to be found its former students, holding forth the word of life; both in the home and foreign fields are they met with, proclaiming the gospel of peace.

It was the writer's pleasure recently to have met with four brethren of the Institute on the other side of the Atlantic.

About five years since Messrs. Bromley and Hutchinson left the college for Newfoundland. There they entered upon what proved to be a very successful evangelistic tour, afterwards extending their travels to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Canada and the United States. After four years of earnest labour and continuous travel, realizing the necessity for deeper study as preparatory to what might be before them, they were constrained to enter upon local work.

Mr. Bromley's present effort is essentially missionary in its character. He has organised a little church of about forty members in the godless city of San Francisco, through whom he seeks to reach the semi-civilized heathen around him. Mission work on the Pacific Coast is far from easy; and especially does San Francisco, with its gold-worshipping population, present difficulties to the servant of Jesus Christ. But our

brother is faithful and hopeful, toiling on in ploughing and sowing; while doubtless in the day of reaping he shall appear with honour, bringing his sheaves with him.

Mr. David Hutchinson is at present in St. Thomas, Ontario, as pastor of a large flourishing Baptist church in that thriving city. Located at a point of great importance, where several lines of railway meet, and where extensive shops erected by the railway companies are giving employment to hundreds of young men, we found about seven hundred persons gathered on a week evening in his church to hear the gospel, having previously arranged to spend a night with him en route. We were delighted to hear from the church officers of the value of our brother's ministry among them, both in the conversion of sinners and

the edification of saints.

Messrs. Benjamin and William Needham, from America, were received at the Institute about five years ago. After spending two years there, and in mission work at the East End, they returned to the States better equipped for the ministry. After evangelizing for a time they localized their work. William Needham became identified with a country church in Canada, from whence after two years of fruitful labour he removed to Providence, Rhode Island. His present field is thoroughly missionary, most of his congregation being mill hands. His artistic skill is of great advantage. With rapidity he sketches in coloured chalks such objects as will illustrate his addresses. These appeals to the eye not only call out large congregations, but help to fix on the mind the subject thus pictorialized. We recently listened to him preaching in a large city church near his own field, and were delighted to see how effective he made these chalk parables; his sketches holding the eye, while his words were reaching the ear and heart.

Mr. B. C. Needham has for three years directed his efforts to preaching the gospel among a colony of semi-barbarous Indians in Western Ontario, known as the Six Nations. Without patronage, or support from any society, he and his earnest hearted wife have laboured on amid many discouragements, seeking to christianize and civilize this much abused and deeply neglected people. There are in the "Reservation" many pagans, though some have nominally embraced the worship of the true God. Their morals are however very doubtful, and only by patient and persistent teaching do they become purified and elevated.

The Canadian Baptists carried on a mission among these Indians for years, and Mr. Needham was led to expect their co-operation when he entered upon his work. But they claim financial inability, and have withdrawn their interest from the field. Only through individual cooperation has he been able to maintain the battle against vice and filthiness, alas even yet too prevalent. For some time he has suffered from malarial fever, contracted through exposure in the unhealthy regions of

the "Reservation," and he may be compelled to abandon his labours in that locality.

Thus having had recent intercourse with these four former students of the EAST LONDON INSTITUTE, and observing their piety and self denial as soldiers trained to endure hardness, and having repeatedly heard of similar faithful and aggressive work which other students from the same training college are accomplishing in foreign fields, under the most trying vicissitudes of climate and circumstance, we voluntarily speak in praise of such an agency, which moulds the faith and directs the energies of these young men, who perhaps, but for its Christian patronage and timely assistance, might have been hindered from giving themselves to the ministry of Jesus Christ.

G. C. N.

MESSRS. CAMERON and NICOLL, two of our early students, who have for the last seven years done excellent work in China, have returned home on furlough, and it was a real joy to us to greet them once more in October last. Mr. Cameron, as our readers know, has traversed China in almost every direction, visiting all its great provinces with one exception, and passing even beyond the borders of China proper. His long and weary pilgrimages, of many many thousands of miles, lasted for months and even years at a time; and he was for the most part without the company of a European colleague. He both preached the word, and distributed the Scriptures, in each of the large cities and towns of some of the northern provinces, and he has probably seen more of China and the Chinese than any other European. He has had the honour, to an unusual and very enviable extent, of preaching Christ far and wide among millions to whom He had never before been named.

MR. NICOLL also travelled extensively in China at first, but his health was not strong enough for him to bear the excessive fatigue involved in a constant continuance of such long and weary journeys, fatigue and exposure which nothing but the strongest constitution could endure. He settled down after a time at Chun-King, in western China, married, and has been enabled to do excellent work, and not a little itineration also from that place as headquarters.

Both these brethren will (D.v.) return to China after a period of repose at home.

CHRIST FORGOTTEN.- "The reason why the men of the world think so little of Christ is, they do not look at Him. Their backs being turned from the Sun, they only see their own shadows, and are therefore wholly taken up with themselves; while the true disciple, looking only upwards, sees nothing but his Saviour, and learns to forget himself."-Payson.

AMONG THE INDIANS OF THE ROCKY

MOUNTAINS.

AR away westwards, in the plains of Mexico and on the slopes of its Rocky Mountains, our dear Lord has wrought with one of His servants a work which only needs to be better known, to ensure the sympathy of all Christians and to receive the support of

their purses and their prayers.

That it may be rehearsed to our readers how God has opened the door of faith to the Mexican Indians, we insert a brief outline of Mr. Pascoe's work in Mexico.

A Bible reading held by him on the 5th January, 1873, in Toluca, a city of 27,000 inhabitants without a single Protestant, was attended by two Mexicans.

A few years later there were five congregations gathered in and about Toluca, and as many converts preaching in different parts of the country. In the district of ZITACUARO 100 converts were gathered during a few months' itineration by two Bible colporteurs; and here also congregations were formed, and remain light-diffusing centres.

About four years ago Mr. Pascoe was led to establish a mission amongst the Indians living on the mountains near Ixtapan-del-Oro. A year later 140 converts had been baptized, of whom 93 were Indians, and the following year the number had risen to 272.

Such results had not been attained without suffering, danger, and toil. The Romanists were of course bitterly opposed to any spread of Bible knowledge, and created an uproar whenever they could. They attacked

the Capalhuac brethren, killed one, wounded others, and drove the rest away. Rising after rising took place, the houses of the Protestants were sacked, the state governor had to interfere, and the Federal troops were called in to maintain the peace.

For several successive years these scenes of violence and persecution were renewed, but still the work spread. Mr. Pascoe began public preaching at Ixtapan last year, and the local authorities, instead of repressing, almost encouraged the riots. For a month he and his Indian converts had to stand a regular siege. But when peace was restored the evangelist resumed his preaching, and the mob quickly repeated their opposition. Some of the converts were badly wounded, and Mr. Pascoe had to appeal to the President for help from the Federal troops to repress outrage.

Nor was this the worst hardness which this good soldier had to endure from the fierce bigotry of the Mexican Romanists. In 1875 his wife was very ill, and required medical advice. Very touching is the following entry in his diary: "Nov. 26. My dear wife fell asleep in Jesus! Her death has been wilfully caused by the Mexican doctor. She made me

promise her to spend my life in preaching Christ to the Mexican Indians."

Besides preaching and teaching, and building and planting, both literally and spiritually, Mr. Pascoe has been much occupied in writing, translating and printing with his own hands. He commenced such work in 1873 on a small scale, with a little press which had been sent out to him from England, and four years later by means of a steam printing press which he took out from England. He had the help of an English printer for a short time, but has relied for assistance mainly on the native converts. He has printed in all over four million pages of gospel teaching, and these have been scattered far and wide among the benighted population of Mexico.

All this work has been carried on without any regular or reliable subsidies from England or elsewhere; and Mr. Pascoe's faith has often been severely tried. In the autumn of last year he suffered from a four months' financial dearth, obliging him to transfer some of his work to the American missionaries. Since that date he has been led to devote himself wholly to the Indians, to whom he is now still further linked by his marriage with an Aztec of Capalhuac. His children, who on the death of their mother had been placed for training with Mrs. Pennefather, of Mildmay, have returned to him under the care of his sister, and are now ready to devote themselves to the task of gathering in and teaching the Indian children, a work dear to the heart of their martyred mother.

In his remote home among the mountains of Capalhuac Mr. Pascoe has had to build and rebuild the house which the wild tornadoes of that trying climate have unroofed. He needs help in many respects, and the much bodily suffering which is too often his portion is aggravated by exposure and privations, which more liberal help from friends dwelling in comparative luxury at home might easily avert.

At the present time his earnest desire is to re-occupy Toluca, the scene of his former labours, in addition to carrying on the work among the Indians. Since he left, the costly printing press has stood silent in Toluca for want of money to work it or remove it. Several times Mr. Pascoe has tried in vain to sell it. Now he sees the Lord's hand in these failures, and His call to re-enter Toluca, in the fact that the buildings belonging to the mission have been vacated by the American Presbyterians, who, having purchased premises of their own, no longer require them.

And so the house, with its signboard "English Steam Printing Press: House of Prayer," stands empty, but ready, waiting only for funds to enable Mr. Pascoe to re-occupy it for our Lord, and to work the steam press once more for Him. As it is the only one in that part, and there is now railway communication, the press might also earn money for the mission.

This re-occupation of Toluca would in no way interfere with the Ameri-.