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many efforts and endeavors which made up his life. In the beautiful valley lying along the base of the Western Ghauts, in the Madura District in Southern India, for forty years save one he found his work, and having found it he did it, and that is the latest gospel for any human life. When he entered that valley there were but few Christians, scarcely a schoolhouse or a church; when he left it there were forty-seven Christian congregations numbering 2,787 members, and six organized churches with 703 communicants; there were schoolhouses and churches, family altars and noble Christian lives-the promise and hope of a transformed civilization-the beginning of The Kingdom.

Three of Mr. Noyes's children are engaged in foreign missionary work—a son and two daughters; one son is in the ministry in the United States, at Somerville, Mass., and one, who has been a generous contributor to the work of the Madura Mission, is a successful business man in a large Western city.

MATEBELE AND GAZA LANDS.

BY REV. FRED R. BUNKER, OF THE EAST CENTRAL AFRICAN MISSION. [The fact that a preliminary occupation of a portion of Gazaland has already been undertaken by members of the East Central African Mission will render the following sketch of the history of the region and the chieftains who have ruled in Matebele and Gaza Lands of special interest to our readers. Mr. Bunker prepared the sketch before the expedition had started from Natal.]

LOBENGULA is the paramount chief over Matebeleland, Mashonaland, and part of Manica. Gungunyana is the paramount chief over Gazaland and part of Manica. These two chiefs are confederates through intermarriage. In the early part of this century the tyrant Chaka had, with wonderful skill and genius, united the scattered tribes and clans of Natal and Zululand into the great Zulu nation, which swept everything before it, and set up military rule over this whole country. In 1820 two of his fighting captains fell into disgrace and rebelled against his power and with their followers withdrew to the north. One of these, Mosilikatse, ravaged his way to what is now known as Matebeleland, and the other, Soshangane, traveled to the north and settled in Gazaland.

Mosilikatse is supposed to have first made his way to the Zambesi, but, not being able to get his cattle across that river, he turned back and settled on the elevated plateau now occupied by his people. He conquered the Makalakas and Mashonas, who then occupied the Matebele highlands, and they have ever since been subject to the Matebele power as slaves, or living on high hills in constant fear from the tribute-collectors and forays of their conquerors. Dr. Moffat visited Mosilikatse about 1830, while he was temporarily staying in the Transvaal country, and several times afterward in Matebeleland. In 1857 he received permission to establish a mission in that country, and in 1860 the London Missionary Society began its work in Matebeleland. Very little apparent success has been seen from the labor of this mission, as the chiefs have opposed the profession of faith in Christ on the part of their subjects.

In 1868 Mosilikatse died, and Lobengula his son succeeded as king. He is a thorough tyrant. His whim is the law of the land. Witchcraft is the religion,

and human life is counted of little value. He has recently put himself under English protection and granted concessions to hunt for gold to the British South Africa Company, which is beginning to establish some degree of order in Mashonaland, which is directly under its control. The Church Missionary Society and the English Wesleyan Society have recently begun work in Mashonaland and Manica, leaving Gazaland, by a commonly acknowledged comity, to the care of the American Board.

At the same time that Mosilikatse broke away from Chaka and settled in Matebeleland, Soshangane left him and settled in Gazaland, where the tribes of

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that district accepted him as paramount chief. Less is known of his conquests than of those of Mosilikatse

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guese visited him. When Soshangane died he was succeeded by his son Umzila, who died

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Mr. permission for missionaries to enter the country. He left a well-consolidated kingdom

to his chief son Gungunyana, who now collects tribute and is a terror to all the smaller tribes in Gazaland. A simple report that Gungunyana's soldiers have been seen will send the people all hurrying to the coast. The Portuguese claim Gungunyana to be their vassal, but he denies all such claims and desires an English Protectorate. But England, as an ally of Portugal, does not accede to his desire, much to his disgust. In the recent treaty between Portugal and England, as a result of the troubles of last year, a portion of Gungunyana's territory comes under the English protection, and it is in this territory that we expect to settle.

About seven years ago Gungunyana left Moyamuhle, the old site of his father's

kraal in the north, and with about 100,000 people, among whom was a standing army of 15,000 men and about 15,000 reserves, moved south to the Limpopo River, where he is now settled, at Manhlagazi. It is near the site of his old capital that we will be situated. There are rumors that he plans to return soon, which will bring a great population about our stations.

We sent a messenger to his kraal recently and have received his full written permission, through his attorney, to go and settle in his country. This, with the grant of three thousand acres of land from the British South Africa Company, seems to open the way fully for us. It seems that the Lord has thrown the door open for us which was closed by Gungunyana's reply to Messrs. Wilder and Bates in 1888, refusing them admission to his country.

Great numbers of white settlers are coming into the country now. Dutch farmers from the Transvaal are taking advantage of the liberal offers made of agricultural lands, and Englishmen are flocking into the country for the gold which it yields. We shall be satisfied to let others have all the gold that they can find if they will leave us free to win these dusky treasures for the crown of "the greater than Solomon."

This race of people to which we go are a brave, independent nation, still retaining the Zulu characteristics, and may be made a mighty conquering power for the Prince of Peace if they can be redeemed from sin and consecrated to his service. The hope of Africa is in her redeemed and consecrated children, who in their turn shall become evangels to the regions beyond.

THE MACHINERY OF MISSIONS.

BY ONE OF THE MECHANICS.

WOULD that three or four members of every church could visit some mission field in Asia and see how we live, how we grapple with these strange languages, our methods of touring and preaching, our publication work, our educational work, the manner of organizing self-supporting churches and of aiding in every orm of evangelistic labors! Such travelers would always be ready to give right mpressions to their churches on the great subjects of mission policy and on the practical and business methods of missions. It requires as much business ability o run a mission successfully as to handle a university or a railroad. All the ɔrayer and praise and devotion in the world, without real common-sense and ɔusiness tact, would never bring a particle of credit to the cause of missions.

Perhaps a brief account of the more important facts of our eight days' annual neeting just held in Kōbe, Japan, will enable your readers to understand somevhat the machinery of our mission.

I. We assembled with our families from twelve stations scattered over a region of one thousand miles in length. To bring our seventy-three adult members and the children together and return us to our respective stations cost the Board ›ver $500. This would at once raise the question in the minds of many, "Is his a wise use of Board money? Could n't the thirty male members of the nission have met at one fifth of this expense, and have done all the necessary work of planning for a year ahead?"

The only business reply to that is, Our mission has at this time twenty-six single ladies in it, who are mainly graduates of the best seminaries in the States, and they know their own business and are doing their own great work quite as well as the men do. "The success of your mission is largely due to your ladies," said an Englishman once to me. We fully agree with our English friend. Not to have these ladies come to the annual meeting would be a real loss to the business ability of the mission.

"But could n't the twenty-three wives and thirty children stay at home and save that amount of expense?" Yes, of course they could. The wives of this mission are in pretty fair subjection to their husbands and would stay at home if the husbands really thought it best. But, as a rule, it is conceded that the wives have as good business heads as their husbands. Many of them are directly engaged in evangelistic work and are deeply interested in the discussions. More than that, many a time in the heat of debate when the husband fires off some sharp remark, the more sensitive and sensible wife, by a look or a jerk, has brought him to his better self and caused a retraction that destroyed all bitterness. No; it would be a bad business policy to have only men to plan for a mission.

As for the children, to leave them at home without their parents for a week would not be impossible but it would not be safe. It would show such a lack of business ability to leave the children at home without their parents as would virtually discredit our ability to arrive at right decisions in other matters.

It is worthy of unquestioning belief that our many mistakes would have been yet many more, and our successes fewer, were it not for these full annual meetings, in which all perplexing questions are thoroughly talked out and in which the final decision is accepted by all. Any one who knows anything at all of the practical working of missions knows that harmony in such a large mission as ours prevents, at the least calculation, an annual waste of thousands and thousands of dollars.

II. One of the great questions of every annual meeting is on the estimated amount of money needed for the next year. This year we have asked the Prudential Committee for $81,053. A large sum indeed, when looked at from the side of the smaller churches at home which can contribute only a few score of dollars. But this estimate is not made up in haste nor without greatest care. For the support of the more than a hundred men, women, and children of our mission we ask for $44,851. A hater of missionaries has recently published the statement that missionaries actually save $10,000 in ten years from their salaries! Any one can see that this bold writer could not pass the lowest class in mathematics in any primary school.

Of the remaining $36,202, $14,890 are for evangelistic work, in a large var ety of forms. The next largest sum, $4,532, is for teachers of the Japanese language and helpers in personal work. The rest is for schools; the support of theological students; repairs of dwellings; rent and taxes, etc. Not an item is passed over lightly. Each station first makes its own estimates, and then a com mittee of one from each station goes over the whole, giving uniformity to the various estimates, and revising in the interest of economy and of wise expenditure. Then the budget is given to the whole mission for discussion, item by item.

One item of $200 was talked over through the better part of two days, and the support of our mission during that time actually cost more than the sum we were considering. Yet, because the asking of this $200 might involve the gradual asking of larger sums, and thus affect the policy of our whole educational work, this one item was argued for and against by men and women until at last it found its proper place.

It is a solemn moment with us when called to vote upon the whole amount. And it is not done without a prayer in many a heart that we may not use wastefully a cent of this, the Lord's money.

III. Another question, so delicate and personal, that, were it not for the most patient and helpful consideration of all concerned, it would wreck our mission, is the location question. Some for family reasons, and some for health, and some as specialists, are limited to a very few places in which they can do successful work. There are also some who are quite unable to work harmoniously with certain other persons. This last sentence may seem strange to those who think of us as self-sacrificing missionaries. Alas, we know it looks bad, but we, as practical men and women, also know that when two persons can't work together, they may do excellent work in other circumstances. So our policy is to put those who can work together where they may do so. In no other way is it possible to secure permanent harmony in our diversified work. Prayers and good resolutions and mutual confessions are good, but they are of little value in the joint work of two persons who unconsciously rub against each other in the wrong way. We therefore follow Paul and Barnabas who, "when the contention was sharp between them, departed asunder one from the other." We have had just such contentions in our mission, among the best of men and among the choicest of women. I, who came here without the shadow of a doubt about my ability to work pleasantly with any and every one, very quickly fell from grace and said nost emphatically to my brethren: "You may hereafter work in your own ways, and I'll work in mine. I'll never come to another meeting with you." But the older members knew how to stroke me down. A few tears, a new grip of hands, a kind and frank and patient getting at facts, and we are together yet fter many years. This may explain in part why the location committee, composed of a dozen of our experienced men and women, had to hold ten sessions before they could report the advisability of changing the location of thirteen mem›ers. So far as I know, the inability of certain persons to work together played :: very minor part, if any at all, in the prolonged discussions of this year. The veighty reasons for these changes were two the extension of our work five undred miles north into the Hokkaido, and contraction into the large central tations, in order better to hold the important work there.

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There is no band of missionaries of any size that does not have trying times in ocating its members so that they can work harmoniously. Nobody of experince blames missionaries for not being able to work with every other missionary. Ve are blameworthy only when we have not business tact enough and grace nough to consult together and plan our work so that each one shall have a fair ield for usefulness in connection with helpful companions or else alone.

There were also many other things, which if they were written would fill more columns than any paper or magazine would accept. Joint sessions were held

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