FOR LONDON BIBLE AND DOMESTIC FEMALE MISSIONS. Money received between April 10th and May 10th, 1878.

Examined and certified by me, as duly entered in the books of the Mission, JAMES WADDELL (of J. WADDELL & CO.),

Fellow of the Institute of Accountants,

Mansion House Chambers, 11, Queen Victoria Street, E.C.

Received for the Missions and Bible-women Nurses, with thanks :-Parcels of clothing, pillows, old linen, &c., from Mrs. Trusted; Anonymous; Mrs. Arthur Hall; a "Very Old Lady"; Mrs. Hannyngton; Mrs. Edwards; Mrs. Grignon; Mrs. Danson; E. H. L. and E. K.; Mrs. Dymond; Miss Sandwith; Mrs. Page; Mrs. Hickley; needles from H. Millward, Esq; elbow-rests and bandages from Mrs. Brightwen; text quilt, &c., from "An Old Lady"; flowers and eggs from Mrs. Roake; flowers and text holders from Miss Esdaile; Mrs. Brightwen; Anonymous; Miss Huish; Miss Whitehouse; Miss E. Huish; the Misses Catt and Mrs. Hepworth; hospital letters from Mrs. Arthur Hall; Lady Fry; Mrs. Gurney Pease; and Miss Jeffery; Scripture text cards from Mr. Fisk.

Contributions to the LONDON BIBLE AND DOMESTIC FEMALE MISSIONS can be received by the Honorary Secretary, Mrs. Ranyard, 13, Hunter-street, Brunswick-square, London, W.C.; by Lord Kinnaird, addressed to the Bank of Messrs. Ransom and Co., No. 1, Pall-mall East; also by Messrs. Barclay, Bevan, and Co.. 54 Lombard-street; and by Messrs, Nisbet and Co., Berners-street. Money Orders should be made payable at the Post-office, Burtoncrescent, W.C., in the name of Ellen Ranyard, and cheques crossed Ransom and Co.

FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR JULY.

COMPARATIVE RECEIPTS.

THE well-wishers to both departments of our Mission will be sorry to be informed that while subscriptions for our 189 BIBLEWOMEN amounted in the first eight months of the year 1877 to 6,8467., in the year 1878 they are only 6,36 97. For 67 BIBLENURSES, subscriptions in 1877 for the same eight months were 2,4237.; in 1878 they are only 2,0487. Should this decrease continue during the remaining four months of our year, it will have to be met, once more, by a steady reduction of numbers, which is much to be lamented, as we are still often invited to work in districts where we have at present no women, and our welcome from the poor is more earnest and heart-felt than ever.

JOTTINGS FROM HACKNEY-WICK.

"DEAR MRS. R

By its Lady Superintendent.

"My long silence has not been caused by want of something to say, for that never fails. The Mission-work has gone on systematically and carefully under the same hard-working and loving Bible-woman.

"I will commence with my Mothers' Meeting. We consider forty a fair number; sometimes we have fifty; in very cold weather twenty-eight or thirty, as on these days the little ones cannot be brought. We have all ages, from the old widow, who is left to half starve in poverty by a careless, wicked son, and who creeps to the room with her palsied frame and no breath to speak-down to the young mother of twenty-one, who brings her three little ones.

VOL. XV. -No. 7.

"This latter woman has been entirely reformed by the Mission. She was, five years since, a rough, vulgar, violent young woman, with one ugly baby, who screamed and kicked under the vain efforts of the mother to make her quiet on her first attendance, till she said, 'Well, I won't bring her again to plague everyone.'

"Mrs. L-,' I answered, 'Do not say that; all our mothers find the little ones tiresome at first. Do you come next week and see if she is not better.'

"Mother and child rapidly improved, and now the one desire of the wife is to lead her husband to God. Eighteen months since she told the Bible-woman she had been praying God to take him, he was such a hindrance to her. (The Bible-woman had then been absent on her holiday, and Mrs. L-- had rather lost her way.) Mrs. H-- explained to her what prayer was, and what a dreadful thing she had prayed for. Now she prays as earnestly, and more wisely. Her little ones are well-trained, and tidy; her home well kept. The husband is not kind, and is often very hard to please; sometimes locks her in to hinder her going to chapel, and makes her take all the children at other times.

"Another of our mothers, whose husband died four-and-ahalf years since (a wicked man), has been led astray sadly this summer. For a time she withdrew from the Meeting, but at last expressed a great desire to come amongst us again. So at our yearly tea-meeting she came in the last, and sat in the most remote seat. She was sadly afraid I should speak to her, and sadly afraid I should pass her by. However, she comes very regularly, and though I do not consider her penitent, she is living very respectably, and working hard for her poor little baby. She is a bright, pleasant, pretty woman, and I like to have her smile every Monday, and see her look me straight in the face, which is a token she is going on well.

6

"Our attendants are of varied character. One woman, who is in very bad health, has a bad leg. She speaks always of her poor, dear, bad leg, and her poor, dear soul.' This person has been a dram-drinker for years, and has quite ruined her constitution. She is always present, even when she has to crawl in.

The other day she fainted away, and I had to break up the Meeting. She explained it to me on her recovery, by saying the doctor told her she had an objection' in her heart. I am thankful to say she has greatly improved the last few months, and has nearly given up her old habits.

"One very heartrending case has occurred lately. A poor, hardly-used, worn-out mother was induced to attend. She was ignorant and rather dull; two little ones were always dragging after her. A baby was born. Mrs. H—— visited her, prayed at her bedside. The poor, ignorant children mocked and laughed the while. The three little ones came with the mother, who never was absent. Presently the poor woman fell ill in a deadly faint. Her first words on coming to, were, 'If the baby sucks more, it will suck blood.' Mrs. H-- supplied all her wants, and when she did not rally, suggested a doctor seeing her. The brute of a husband refused to let a man inside his place,' and kicked his miserable wife in the face for being lazy and not doing her washing.

"It was too heartrending-the poor woman's agony and illness, her wretched husband, and heedless children. Mrs. H—— and the Nurse tended her day and night, and her poor bruised body found rest in the grave in a few days; while we believe the simple truths she had heard in the Mission-room guided her soul to the feet of her Saviour. Almost her last words were— 'I bless the meetings. I learnt there what lights me now. I am thankful I ever came.'

"I believe the mothers heartily appreciate the reading and explanation of Scripture. I take the utmost pains to make it clear to them, and I hope I succeed in some degree, though I fall far, far short of what I aim at. One woman tells her husband (a drunkard), and then tells two or three neighbours, what has been read and said on the Monday. This woman is a quiet person, attracts no attention, but we believe is a true disciple.

"Another woman withdrew for six months on account of some offence given when she had smallpox in her house (nothing to do with me). She watched me from the station (I live at a distance), and then told me how she desired to come back. She has been regular since. For many years I have