give help and advice without distinction of creed to all who might bring to me their difficulties? I told him that I should ever be ready to do any service for any of them..

My heart was truly warmed with love for these people, and it is my earnest desire to supply them at once with a school and services. But where are the funds to come from? The Church Missionary Society, with a deficiency last year of 20,000., feels itself obliged to retrench instead of increasing its expenditure. And yet in reality the expense will be very small-about 1007. a year for everything. Oh! will not the Christian readers of this short account of our visit to Abood, remembering Him who has said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature,"-will not Christian readers contribute towards this, their Master's work, in Emmanuel's land, and thus enable us at once to respond to the cry from Abood, already given earnestly and repeatedly, "Come over, and help us

REPORT OF ABOU SELIM, BLIND COLPORTEUR AT BEIRUT.

How the Truth spreads.

1

"I was one day in the hospital, and found there four Moslems, two of them blind, also some Greeks, Maronites, and others. I read, as suitable to all, Heb. iii. 1, and spoke on the words, 'Brethren in the heavenly calling,' showing the difference be tween the earthly and heavenly relations, and how all are sons of one Father. The Moslems asked if they, too, belong to this brotherhood. So I told them that the Book says clearly that without Christ there is no salvation. I dwelt on the same subject at three different times, and they seemed impressed and to be considering the subject.

"I was sitting in a shop one day, talking about the way of salvation, and the people were listening earnestly. The Bishop came by and spoke to them in French, reproving them for listening to poisonous words, and, as it were, taking me as their teacher. Then one of them said: 'Oh, my Lord, I wish

187 you had been here all the time, and heard the words he was speaking, then you would not have said so, for his words were good and spiritual; nothing against religion, but such as we should like to hear every day.' Then the Bishop went away.

"One day, after I left the Sunday-school at Ashrafia, some of the children persuaded me to go to their houses. When I went there the mothers, to my surprise, called me by my name, and when I asked, they said that they had heard all about me from the girls, and they told me what I had taught them the Sunday before about the Canaanitish woman, and about the compassion of Christ, and other things. They said: 'Our children are wiser than we are. We are afraid to speak before them lest we should make mistakes.

"In a family I have long visited the wife asked me how she could learn to read, so I sent her Miriam Syongue, and she learned so quickly that I was surprised. There are two or three priests living near her house, and she went to argue with them about purgatory, &c. They laughed at her, and said: "Only yesterday you began to learn, and as soon as a blind man and a poor woman come and teach you, and you can read two or three chapters, you come and argue with us!'

"I was speaking to some poor women, who thought that when we are united to Christ we are not bound to keep the law. I warned them that we must not forget that if we are Christians indeed, we must live Christian lives and keep the Commandments, and that they as women were specially exposed to temptation from any who come and lead them astray.

"I have for a long time been visiting a poor man, blind and paralyzed. A little while ago he died, and I went to comfort his mother, who was in great grief for him. She had long known the Gospel, so I comforted her and we had a long talk. Another woman happened to be present who had lately lost her little nephew, whom she loved greatly. They listened with attention, and said: 'Oh, Abou Selim, how good it is to hear. such teaching! We have learned nothing except about the Virgin, St. Joseph, and the Pope.'”

THE TEACHERS OF THE BOOK AT TYRE.

WE had the pleasure of receiving for a week or two, at our Mother House in Regent Square, a few months since, in order that she might observe the work of our Bible-women and Nurses, "Raheel Kaleel," the Syrian "girl of the book" of whom our readers had heard something in a former day at Tyre, trained under the fostering care of Mrs. Thompson and her sisters. She had now been brought by Mrs. Mott to England for a term of further training in the methods of teaching at the British Home and Colonial Schools, with a view to further usefulness among her people. Her appointed station is now Baalbec, in company with Miss Williams, her former teacher, who had also paid a visit to England, and has long been valued by the Syrian Mission; always happy in her trying work, and thinking little of its privations.

"Raheel" has shown herself a true missionary from her fifteenth year. In 1872 we had a letter from her, while assisting in the schools at Tyre, as follows:-"On Sunday afternoon a beggar boy came in; I took him by his hand to turn him out, but I thought this is not right, I ought to teach him about God; so I began to tell him of Christ; and he said he had never heard His name; and he listened and cried, and told me he would come and hear more about Him. There is also a man blind and deaf who comes on Sundays who had learned to read before his affliction, so I form letters on his hand and teach him texts. He can repeat three; they are, For God so loved the world.' 'Come unto me all ye that labour.' "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God.' This man is a Maronite.".

And now the same attached Christian workers have returned to Syria, and from Baalbec Miss W-- writes thus to Mrs. Smith:

BRITISH SYRIAN SCHOOL.

"DEAR MADAM,

Baalbec, March 13th, 1878.

"You have, I dare say, already heard that we have reached our destination in safety. We were met by Mr. L——, who arranged everything respecting the house, &c., very nicely for

us, and after seeing us well settled in, and being a little delayed by a snowstorm, he set forward on his ardous journey to other stations. Before we came he received many visits and answered many inquiries respecting the schools, and from a generoushearted English traveller had received a donation of 107., a gift which greatly encourages us in the belief that God will own and aid our work here.

"The first incident of local interest we witnessed, was a procession of five thieves, whom the soldiers had caught and mounted on mules, making them sing as they paraded the town

'We are thieves, we are caught,

We are going to jail!'

"A crowd of people following responded quite musically— 'You are thieves, you are caught,

You are going to jail.'

"On nearing the edifice, whose mud walls do not look fearfully strong, the note changed

'Now we are near, very near the jail.

Now we are in, in, in!'

"Chorus of townspeople exultingly

'Now you are in, in, in!'

"The neighbourhood is at this time much infested by roving bands, many deserters from the army being among them; what they want is food, and they chiefly attack houses that have stores of corn, rice, and oil.

"We found the native teacher very glad to hold the service in our new schoolroom as it is far larger than in our former school house, and after a busy week of preparation the bell was rung on Sunday morning at half-past ten, and to our surprise and thankfulness, the room was nearly filled, the greater part of the congregation being men; 48 people were present, exclusive of children, and by their quiet, attentive manner showed they came to listen seriously to what was said, which was a plain, practical exposition of the lessons read, rather than a sermon.

"On Monday I was much occupied in explaining, through

dear Raheel, to the parents who came to place their children with us the objects of our Mission, &c., and we found them all willing for full and free Bible teaching. Nearly all added, 'and English,' which I promised, as they progressed in Arabic.

"The population of the place is larger than I thought, amounting to 7,000; and there are little offshoot villages lying all round.

"On Tuesday, the 12th, we opened with more than thirty-five pupils; and as the nuns have left for a little time in order to present themselves in greater force, I shall look for the strength of the school from the Moslem quarter. We have two girls already, and we are expecting a still larger attendance.

"I find the good results of Raheel's training at the 'Home and Colonial' in the ease with which she can order and classify the children, who are so eager to learn that it seemed hard at first to make one speak at a time. The teacher brought nine very nice girls whom he has chiefly trained, and two read well.

"To-night we have the weekly service, and as the singing is almost nil, I have invited some of the young people to come before the time and practise a few simple tunes.

"We have a partial view of the splendid ruins, but at present feel far too much occupied, and impelled to build up temples for the Holy Ghost to dwell in, than to give more than a glance at the broken altars of Baal. The air is very cold, but gives us health and energy. May I use my renewed vigour with redoubled zeal during the little while that may remain for sowing the good seed; and may God give to you, dear Mrs. Smith, a great harvest from a field once so thickly sown with tares.”

N.B.-A letter from Mrs. Mott, in the Missing Link for 1865, described the wondrous beauty and symmetry of six magnificent columns - still standing out among the ruins of Baalbec, against the deep blue sky; lighted up with the full golden glow of the setting sun, and set in circles of verdant foliage,-a large black eagle perched upon the base of one of them, looking around him as if "monarch of all he surveyed." The ancient foundation of these columns is gigantic, and must be long anterior to the superstructure;-of an age remote as that of Solomon. The Temple of Heliopolis was called the "three-stoned," and these stones remain, each between 60 and 70 feet long, and 13 feet high, raised between 20 and 30 feet above the ground. In 1865 portions of our Scriptures were gladly welcomed on this spot-alike by an aged sheikh and by the people.