We do not lose nor lessen our personal responsibility even though we feel we have made honest yet unsuccessful efforts. We recuperate our strength, and begin again. The influence of the early training of these boys is so very apparent when they try to defend their belief and question the integrity of the Gospel. If we had their minds only to deal with, their conversion would not be such a disappointing task. Some of their questions and answers in the Bible Class, when discussion is allowed, may be of interest. We do not invite free discussion, for they are too young to either question or reply as they should, and there is danger of them losing sight of the seriousness of the matter merely for the sake of argument. We had the subject of thanksgiving one day, and a bright young Mohammedan was telling of some of God's gifts for which we ought to be thankful, so I asked him what was His greatest gift, and he promptly repeated correctly, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Once I asked: "What is your belief in God?" The some as yours." Do you believe the Bible? Most of it.' What part do you not believe? That part which says that Christ is the Son of God." "Do you believe that Christ lived on earth? Yes. What more do you believe concerning Him?" "We believe that He was a prophet. "Were not the prophecies of the Old Testament concerning Him fulfilled in Him and by Him? "Many of them were. Do you believe He was born of the Virgin Mary? "We don't understand that. "What other difficulties have you?' 'We can't understand how Christ can be the Son of God, for there is but one God; and if He is the Son of God He must be equal with God, then there would be two Gods. Neither can we understand why it was necessary for Him to pray, nor how He could be tempted. Also; when did He become the Son of God? God must have existed before Christ, and yet He Himself says, Before the world was I am.

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'Why do you believe in Mohammed rather than in Christ? Mohammed was the last and therefore the greatest prophet.' "But God says nothing about Mohammed or any other prophet coming after Christ except false prophets. Oh, but the Christians have taken that out of the Bible. "When?' "We don't know." "Did Mohammed perform wonderful works such as Christ performed?" "No." Do you mean to tell us that only those who believe in Christ are saved?" "Certainly.

But the men of the Old Testament were before Christ, and how could they believe on Him; if they believed on God and were saved, why shall we not be also?"

Thus you see the trend of their thinking. Bear in mind, however, that these boys are not learned Mohammedans, and in their simplicity they will make statements and confess to truths that older and wiser heads would not.

to see

W. GARDNER ROBERTSON.

Will any Missionaries who would like their friends at home "Blessed be Egypt," send the names and addresses to Miss Van Sommer, and she will gladly send specimen copies. It would help her very much if the circulation could be doubled.

was a wretched object; thin, miserable, what he is now. Dr. Harpur fed him er oil, I believe with very good result. and was passed on to us when we ar later. His tribe wanted him efused, saying they had cast him off rable, and now he was going to stay d to him.

write with us, and was thus able to ries, though we could not teach him unt of the restrictions. He was very nd one day brought me a wild rabbit "I want you to have it," he said, me." He was a most truthful boy,

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indeed I do not think we ever had to reprove him for telling a lie, and he spoke with great scorn of the cook's little girl, because she was such a little liar," he said.

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Poor Ali was much distressed when we left, and wept, saying we had been as his father and mother, and he had so few friends. However, he was going back to his people for the present to be married, and we knew he would always have a friend in Mr. Gwynne at Khartoum.

Ali was quite different to any of the Omdurman young men ; the three years he had spent in our mission houses had had a very good effect upon his moral character, and he was upright and honest. He knew little about Mohammedism, but, like all his countrymen, was very superstitious and full of stories of spirits, and had a great belief in charms.

The picture on this page is one of our watchmen, Adam. As our house was some distance from the town of Omdurman, and in a lonely place, it was not considered safe to be without a watchman at night. The one we first had was very unsatisfactory, and we had to dismiss him after repeated thefts on his part.

After he left we applied to the Police Station for a Government watchman, and the officer in charge sent us up Adam, who remained with us till we left. He still lives in our house with the Bible Society Catechist, as his servant.

He was formerly one of the "Mulayameen" (soldiers) in the Khalifa's service and later on entered the Government employ as a watchman. These watchmen assemble at the local police station about six o'clock every evening, dressed in their

special uniform, and are then marched off to the special quarter that they are to guard during the night. The next morning they have to return to the police station and give in their names. Adam was supposed to walk round the outside of our wall all night, he informed us, but as a matter of fact he slept in our stable and got a comfortable night's rest, which he much preferred to having to parade the streets of Omdurman, as he did before he came to us. I had a very kind letter from him a short time ago, which he had got a public writer to write for him.

The woman in the picture is a very good type of the poor women of Omdurman, who have been nearly all brought there as slaves from the country round.

This woman was originally brought from Darfur, probably by some slave trader. There are many such in Omdurman; most

of them have been slaves, and after their release earn their living by drawing water from some of the numerous wells in Omdurman. It is hard work, as they often have to carry the very heavy jars of water long distances on their heads, so heavy that I could not even lift one from the ground when it is full of water. This hard work, and also that of grinding the native corn between two heavy stones, a very slow and laborious process, soon makes all the women look old and worn before their time. I was told that our cook, who looked fifty, was only twenty-seven. May I ask all who read this to pray for those about whom I have written, that they may have the blessings of the Gospel. and that many who are still in darkness may have the Light of Life. E. A. HALL.