It would be presumptious, I fear, for me to assume that the readers of the Missionary remember the little sketch I gave some years ago of one of our missionary helpers—­Hong Sing.  A very little man he is, in “bodily presence weak” and in speech, for lack of lungs, sometimes “of no account.”  Yet, though near-sighted almost to blindness, and though often sick and always weary, in the intervals of work as a house-servant he gained what seemed to me a remarkable knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus.  The Bible was (and still is, I doubt not) his unfailing companion, and its study his choicest rest.

Several years ago, his health became so precarious that he decided to return to his native land.  A letter from him, under date of “San Ning District, July 9th, 1888,” has interested me so much that I feel sure that others will enjoy the reading of it.  His English needs straightening somewhat, for, while the words are ours, the idioms are sometimes decidedly Chinese.  I confess, therefore, to having done a little correcting and even translating, yet, for the most part, the letter is just as our brother himself wrote it.

“Mr. Pond:—­Dear Brother, I must tell you that I think of you many times and intended to write you many times, but some things prevented me.  I go out to tell the old, old story of Jesus, and many questions have been asked.  I am not able to write all, but I tell you a little.  Some ask:  ‘Do you believe our Confucius?’ I said, ‘I do.’  ’Don’t you think his doctrine good?’ I answer, ‘Yes.’  ’What was the matter, you believe in Jesus, the foreign doctrine, and why not for our Confucius; and what was the matter, you are entirely turned away from his doctrine and not obey him; you think his doctrine not good enough for you!  He has taught us to worship the ancestors and also use a lamb for sacrifice, why don’t you obey?’

“Ques.—­’Your Jesus men, was there any difference between them and us?’

“Ans.—­’No difference, our Jesus men wear hat just like your hat, wear clothes like your clothes, walk just like you walk, but only one thing was not like you—­in worship.  You all worship the idol, our Jesus men worship the true God who is in heaven, and you all worship with meat and fruit, etc., but we mean to worship with true heart.  We believe Jesus that we may obey Confucius doctrine, in which he has taught us to be good.  Those who are not Christians cannot obey what Confucius taught.  Before I became a Christian I was swearing and I speak evil words, but since I believe in Jesus, these things I was entirely stopped of.  I remember Confucius has written in his book, teaching us to be honest, and also say, vice things we must not look at, the vice way we must not walk, the vice word we must neither speak nor hear.  How rarely I hear of a man who believes Confucius and does what he taught.  They are swearing all the time, speak the evil word all the time, go among the bad women all the time.  So this attests that they