In spite of some disappointment caused by the great severity of last year’s drought, our numbers have somewhat increased and the year has been a good one.

Never has the work of Christian education, in which the A.M.A. is engaged, seemed so absolutely necessary as at this hour in uplifting the people and purifying the churches.

H.L.H.

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THE INDIANS.

We are in the midst of the closing exercises of school for the year past.  Some three or four hundred Indians, chiefly relatives of pupils, are now encamped about us.  These have come some as far as ninety miles, and some few a hundred and twenty-five miles, to attend the exercises and take their children home.

T.L.  RIGGS, OAHE, DAK.

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SEWING WOMEN AT FORT BERTHOLD.

To one coming in sight of the Berthold Mission, curiosity would be aroused by the sight of blanketed forms, two or three together, not walking side by side, but gliding along, one after another, with rapid steps toward the mission-house.

It is the afternoon of the Women’s Sewing Meeting, and, although it does not begin until two o’clock, by one the room is generally full—­yes, crowded, so that, in passing around among them, one has to stumble quite often over feet which have no place of retreat.  We do not pretend to offer chairs to all.  The floor holds as many without chairs as with, even tables and wood-box do not remain empty, but perched on each are the blanketed forms, from many of which the blankets have not fallen, at least not more than to show the face or head.  Here the women sit patiently.

After sewing about two hours, the thimbles and needles are gathered up, the names taken, or something to designate each one, and each one’s desires discovered:  tea, sugar, or coffee, for this is a strong point where these women show their heathenism.

Some portion of God’s truth and some help to a better life is then given to them in Gros Ventres and Ree; prayer offered, and they receive their little bag or package of tea, coffee or sugar.  It has been a busy afternoon, and we are all tired, but it pays, O, how it pays, a thousand times over!

AN INDIAN CHURCH SOCIABLE.

Do Indians have sociables?  Indians like to visit, and they do enjoy a good supper.  With these two qualifications, what else is necessary for a sociable?  Some women to do the work.  The women of the Women’s Native Missionary Society, of Yankton Agency, are not lazy, nor are they slow in devising ways and means of making money; therefore, on the evening of Feb. 22, they had a sociable and charged 25 cents for supper.  The cooking was done at the homes of Mrs. Brazeau, Mrs. Aungie, and Mrs. Williamson.  The provisions were donated by the members of the society.  A number of the women gave chickens, others flour, coffee,