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MR. MAGSDALE'S COURTSHIP, CHAPTER II .-(Continued.) Miss Cresuhurn waa quite willing to marry him immediately H he wished it i'iit insisted on knowing his reason for suoh unnecessary haste. Peter l>eat alxmt the bush for a while, and when finally cornered, admitted tint lie fear- ed opposition from his ' family.' to w hoiu he dreadeil giving offense on ac- count of his expectations. Mary Creaa- liurn. who had her full share of pro- per pride, was roused, and declared her u,-!j to be introduced to his family. Peter strongly demurred ; he was much afraid that suoh a step would lead to a rupture, which might lie avoided if she w.uted until aftei their marriage t make its acquaintance. Nothing the family could say then could untie the knot, and it iniirht reusonaliljr be expected to resign itself to the inevi- table. It was plausibly put ; hut Mary wan by no means satisfied. Was Peter ashamed of her? He made the only answer be could. Well. then, if he was not ashamed of her, she must have a lietter reason for his disinclination to let her meet Ids friends. Peter looked helpless and miserable, but had no other reason to give. Then he must distinct- ly understand that their wedding need not lie discussed at all until she knew every member of his family; she would never have it aaid that the man she ' loved had lieen disinherited by reason ! of his secret marriage with her. >! wanted everything done openly and In the light of day. If the family did not approve of his choice, then it would he for him to dec.ide upon his course, whe- ther be. elected to throw over his rela- tions or herself. She .spoke bravely, though she felt with a sinking heart that she was insisting upon a condi- tion which miirhi wrest her lover from her. and leave her to the life of toil and drudgery from which ahe longed to escape. I*, -.uld not he helped, and she would not abate a jot of her de- mand whatever the consequence might be. To look at It from another point, it waa only right and just that she should know everything about the man with whom she had consented to cast in her lot That was the view Miss Parkins would take of it, and no one could gain- say its correctness. Her aunt was the only relative she had. and Mary held her in deserved esteem. She waa clear- headed, sensible old lady, who guarded her niece's interests with al- most motherly care. She was not woman to consent to suoh a proposi- tion aa Mr. Magsdale had made, and it waa altogether out of the quest ion to consider it seriously for a moment. So Peter left Queen's Road in full pussewion of Mis* Cressluirn's opinions. feeling that from their very soundness they SIM veil to raise another obstacle in a path which had Iwen difficult enough u-fore He had consistently referred to Cornelia as the ' family;' a prevarication of which he was not a little ashamed, and which did not sim- plify matters, now that be recognised i in i Mary meant to know his lielong- ings liefore she would consent to marry him. I lie ' fiiinih ' looked curiously at her brother when he came in. but having drawn her own deductions from hii lengthened absence, forlmre to nuesl 1011 him about it. She had no doul>i in liei own uiind I hat Ivi. i and Miss Ter- ri|wg had taken advantage of the lieauty ol the night to go for a little walk to- gether. instead of proc'idiiig straight to > he lady's resilience. A violation of the rules of propriety. Imt one which sln> wax disposed to overlook under the ' I like Anna Terripeg.' ahe remarked aa he took his seat Imside the fire ; ' ahe always aeeuis to enjoy lieing here I. Ml.' \ e.s.' said Peter heartily; 'she's a cheery, companionable little woman. ^ HI must ask her in again soon. I can always take her home, you know ' Mrs. Bunshaw smiled a little t ri- iiinphHiii Mnile and nodded wisely ' Quit* so, I'eler,' she mini dryly 'quite n<>' And she went u|>-l>iirs. pictur- ing her dr.it lier and Miss Tartipag al- ien. ly fciii(j each other at the nltar ' I hope Cornelia's notion won't lend lo complications,' reflected Peter aa he f'nivd the fire into a hlaxe. 'I sup- I niiisi let her keep it for I lie present, If I am ever to see Mary at ill. fur. upon m> word, the only way I 'in get out of the house wit hunt lie- ing hldgeled | (1 ((pa) h nlxillt it. is on the pretext of Uking MUM Terripeg borne.' A few da.vs passed by. ami he heard nothing from Mi< ('r.-sshiirn Her silence ms.de him uneasy , for it served to impress upon him I lint she was in ! earnest aluuil Iming Introduced to his relations, mid though the mutter was ever present in his thought*, he had. not yel (men able to decide upon the .-..urse be ought to pursue. There seem ! noihnirf for it hut to wait us ' "ilv us he might for the situation lop itself; thiiiu'h unless something very unexpected should transpire, he I not fail to see the affair would lie at a dead-hick 1 Mihs Terrifieg is coming over to spend i he afternoon with me, Peter.' <l Mrs liiinshaw onu nmrmnK soon ifler the occasion upon which he bad discovered the advantage lo In gained iiv MoorUnf that lady home. 'Spend the afternoon t' be said doubtfully. 'You had U-lter ask her to stay to dinner, hadn't you! Ms a long way for her to come.' 'Ml ak her.' said I'ornelia. She had i n wondering whetlter her lirothnr would make the HUggest ion. mid receiv- ed il in silent contentment As luck won 1. 1 have it, Mary Cresslmrn select- ed the HOIIIK day lo write, asking him to come in and aee her that evening at the usual hour He I'ist IM> tune in tending an answer. )>ut he qualified his IMOIIII.S* to go : for if anything happened lo prevent Miss Terripeg staying to dine with Item at Am ley Villa, he might be unable to get away. So he KIM! that an important engagement which he was hound to keep, would proliahty detain him. but he would of course do his utmost to come to her at the appointed time. Miss Terripeg remained to dinner, and Mr. Magsdale made ready to take her home afterwards; lea* cheerfully than he had done the last time, for he was far from happy about the interview be was alxmt to have with his finance*. The route to Miss Terripeg's dwelling took them across the end of Queen's Road; and as they passed under the gas-lamp at the corner. Peter noticed a woman atop lo look after them. It crossed his mind that the figure resem- bled that of MUs Parkins, but he could not > certain. He reached bis real destination soon flr leaving hi.s charge at her own door, and was *ur- piised to bear that Miss Cressburn had retired and would not he able to see him: he began to think there was some- i liing amiss, and the coldness with w hich her aunt received him did noth- ing to relieve his apprehensions. She cut short his inquiries aUmt her niece and put him on his trial at once: we use toe expression advisedly, for he felt far more like a criminal than a lover before Miss Parkins had done with him. CHAPTER III .-DEEPER. AND DEEP- ER STILL. Mr. Magsdale 's conference with his in brought him little comfort. Allan admitted that when be recuin- iii' n led a private marriage he had quite overlooked the pnwibility of Mis* Cree- fihtirii raising objections; but since she in-i-ie I on follow ing the conventional usage of the nineteenth century, he did not see that Peter had any right to oppute her. What would Allan advise tlim to do. thenf It appeared to him that nn advice was called for; Peter must take his intended down lo Astley Villa and introduce her to Mrs. Bun- shiiw. and the sooner he did it the bet- ter. Could Allan help him at all in it? Certainly not. This wasn't a case for the intervention of an uninterested parly ; he had done quite as much as lie could to help him already, and Peter was quite able to fight his own battles; at anyrate. if he wasn't, he ought to be. After that, our friend understood that he need not look to his cousin (or assistance, and went sorrowfully back to his off: A very despondent miserable Peter crept down to Putney tln.it evening. He felt tint every one was against him. that there was nobody to sympathise or help, now that Allan had washed hi* hands of the business. He waa ag- grieved at his cousin's defection; he had aided and encouraged him so long an the path of hi.s love ran smoothly, but t he moment difficulty arose, he drew hack, and bade him find his way through it by himself. It is to be fear- ed t hut Peter's love waa of that delicate hothouse growth which is incapable of wlthstandua rough treatment; which requires such gentle nurturing that it is not worth bringing to life, and does not deserve its nsme. Hi- too tender passion was overshadowed, almost blighted, by the selfish fears wKch filled his heart. He had no ardent longing to see Mary Cressburn now . the knowledge that be must fulfill the promise he had made and face the con- sequences, bung over him so heavily that he dreaded meeting her. He had al- lowed three days to slip by since he re- i-ei\ed her answer to the letter where- in he promised to take her to see his relations, and was no nearer making up his mind to do it on the third day than on the first. He had a sneaking hope that she might relent if he waited long enough, and beg him to marry her how and when he willed. But time went on, and she made no sign; indeed, if she had consented to a secret niar- riige now, it in doubtful whether Peter's weak-knee'd devotion would have been equal to the teat. Allan had given sound advice when he recommended his cousin to lose no t inn- iii making Mrs. Bunshaw ac- quainted with Mary Crmsburn. though he knew nothing of the former's scheme regarding Mis* Terripeg. Peter never lacked opportunities of going to Queen's Hoiid now. had be cared to make use of them ; he found hi* sister'* friend at Astley Villa so frequently that her absence was more noticeable thnn her presence. She name early and stayed late, and worked permveringly to es- tablish herself in his good grace*. She studied bis peculiar!! ie* and tastes with an unobtrusive diligence which he gradually and insensibly grew to ap- preciate ; she sought his advice, and listened lo bis opinions with a deferen- tial respect for his superior wisdom which could not fail to impress a weak vain man with an idea of her good sense It was not long before he over came the old antipathy, which owed its oiiL'in nioie to Mrs llunshaw's injiidi cioiis man ik'enii'iii than to any personal attributes of the lady herself; and with out being iibnolutely disloyal to his fian- cee. he funned a closer friendship t ban Miss Crenshui n would have been at all likely to approve of. or, indeed, waa en- tirely safe tor so weak a veasel to in- dulge in. Hays lengthened into weeks, and Peter saw hinutelf drifting slowly but surety into an entannlement Vhich he had not the strength to avoid. A month pasned. and Mary Cronsburn had never railed upon him in make good his word. though once nhe wrote, .somewhat cold ly. aeking when he intended to visit tier again. It roused the uneasiness he lud tried lo quell, and at the same time convinced him tint he 11114)11 I runt to her affection to obtain his own terms with her. She wanted him back, and he would go when she offered to set him free from tlie promise he had made. Her love for him was growing keener and brighter with ntarvat ion , and his, though he hardly knew II him self, was growing weaker and colder day by day It wait easy to leave her letter unanswered. She would un- derstand that the promise she had ex- torted from him was the reason of his silence, and would know ho\v to recall Uiiu if she wished ; an Mary received no reply to l.ci letter, and he went un- hindered on his dangerous wa*. It cliHinvd one evening that Allan Magsdale. finding lime hung heavily on his hands, made an excursion down to Queen's Road to see Miss Parkins and her niece. He had neither heard nor seen anything of his cousin since the day be had appealed to him for ad- vice, and had a little curiosity to know how the affair with Mlsi Creasburn waa progreMing Something more than curiiwity prompted his M-,, he had been the means of making Peter known to the young lady, and, when his atten- tions ti> her became obvious, haa satis- fied Miss Parkins of bis ability to marry, in a pecuniary MUM. He had, as we have already remarked, done much in bring them together, and felt himself in inejiHiire responsible for I' ' r'.s good faith. He found the ladies at hoDie. and met with cordial recep- tion they had always given him; but when be aaked about bis cousin, his question was received in silence, whilst aunt and niece exchanged glances as though they expected this and did noi caie to touch upon the subject. ' \Ve have not seen Mr. Magadale for over a month,' said Miss Parkins with stiff formality, after an awkward pause. 'Of course Mr. Magsdale may have been ill.' added Miry in excusing tones. ' I wrote to him a fortnight ago ; but be diil not answer.' ' We have not heard of Mr. Magsdale for over a month,' said Miss Parkins as gravely as before. ' I haven't beard from him myself for a long time,' said Allan, who was anxious to defend his cousin, though an angry suspicion was raising its head, despite his efforts to persuade himself thai nothing was wrong. Mary rose and left the room, murmuring some apology; and he was satisfied that she believnd Peter to have broken faith with her ' Do you know what has caused this!' he a&ked. as soon as be was alone with Mian Parkins. The old lady laid down her work, and delivered herself of the feelings which hftd been pent up in her brea.it. unre- lieved by i>e*,'h even to her niece. She .s|Mike calmly, but with an undertone of irritation. ' The last time Mr. Mags-' dale came here I saw him alone, tor something had occurred to make me think thai be was not behaving honc.-t- ly. I told him then that we didn't want to see him again until he was pre- pared to introduce Mary to his family, as she wished. The next day she told me that be had written promising to do it. and that she had usked him to call and arrange a day. Neither of us has heard a word about him since, and it's my belief that if we leave him alone, we never Hhall. He is a villain, that man I Mary nays she has done with him for good and all ; but I haven't.' The emphasis and energy of Mia* Parkins' last words told Allan that she was in earnest, and that trou- ble in one shape or anot her was in store for Peter. He aaked no more ques- tions ; he was disgusted with his cous- in's cowardly folly, and felt that he would richly deserve the worst fate it could bring upon him. ' I would never have believed this of him, had I not beard it from you,' he said. ' I will go down to Astley Villa to-morrow and find out what il means, if you think that I could do any good.' ' I don'l Ihink you could help us in that way. Mr. Allan, thank you. I think, too, that I can settle accounts w it h Mr. Maqsdale myself, though I must do it without saying a word to Mary.' Allan had no doubt of her ability to deal with Peter, and wan relieved to find that his own connection with the j affair did not saddle him with the task of giving assistance in bringing hiskins- m .in to hook Miss Parkins was a woman posse** ink- much fixity of purpose ; and the day after her conversation with Allan, she resolved to take the business in hand at once; she said nothing to Mary, be- ing quite aware that she would strong- ly resent any step being taken which might lead Peter to suppose that he still held a place in her t bought s. Miss Parkins' plan of actum was rather of action was rather undefined: she meant to call at Astley Villa, and show the false lover up in his true colours before the circle of haughty relatives Inch his references to the ' family' led her to suppose she would find there. \Vbat such exposure might lead to. she did not know : but circumstances would have to guide her thereafter Vccord- ingly. she started on her mission the same afternoon, and reached the house at an hour when Peter waa busy at his desk in Somerset House. Waa Mr. Magadale at hornet No; Mr. Magsdale was not ; but Mrs. linn fihuw wan in. if the lady would like to see her. Miss Parkins hesitated for a moment ; the name of Bunshaw was a household word not onlv in the region of Putney but for a radius of fully half a mile round, and waa not entirely new to her, though she could not at once re- collect how it sounded familiar Ah I of course, Cornelia Bunshaw, the chaui- 1'ion of woman's rights. She had no idea what relationship the. lady might bear towards Peter Magsdale. but clear- ly nhe was some near connection. Yes. sh would see Mrs. llunshaw. please; and she was conducted into that cele- brity's 'study, where she waited until the owner appeared. ' Miss Parkins. 1 am informed,' said Cornelia in her grandest manner as she entered the room She had a good memory for names and faces, and at once recognised in |..-i visitor the lady whom .she had seen with her brother and cousin in the itreet some weeks previously, and whose meiv she had been led to uudernland was the 'attraction' which drew Allan to Queen's Koad on that Sunday. She sat down, wonder ing what could have brought the young lady's aunt to Astley Villa to see her Miss Parkins was a little at a loss to know bow she had best approach the object of her visit, but, after a prelimin- ary cough, nhe rushed into it with startling straightforwardness. ' 1 came to ask for an explanation of Mr. Miigndale'a conduct towards my niece. Miss Mary CreasbiirB.' she said, and topped. t ornelia, like the clever woman she was. saw it all quite plainly before she heard another word. Allan bad been ' amusing himself with Miss Cress- burn, and had gone off ia a hurry when he found that be had carried it too far. His answer, when she expressed her re- gret at his departure, and the way he had spoken of the friends he had taken Peter to see, flashed across her mind. Of course, it was just what hare- brained fellow like Allan would do, to love and ride away a* soon M he aaw be was getting inlo trouble. ' You refer to my cousin, who resided here until four or five weeks ago,' she answered. ' He is not with us now, and 1 mil not acquainted with his where- abouts.' It was just about five weeks since Peter's last visit to Queen'* Uoad ; and Miss Parkins, who was quiUi ignorant of t hat perfidious individual'* affinity to the lady before her, naturally ac- cepted the information. It upset her calculations; she could not expect much from Mrs. Bunshaw the cousin. But Mrs Bunahaw the advocate for the rights of women was the very best per- son whose sympathies she could enlist. She waa a rapid thinker, and changed her ground with conniderable skill. ' 1 am sorry to learn that he is near- ly related to one so universally known and respected as yourself, Mrs. Rurn- shaw' (Cornelia gave a cast-iron smile of acknowledgment) ; ' but now I have troubled you thus far, I am tempted to a.-*k for your mince.' Mr*. Bunshaw's grim visage relaxed. Every one liken to De asked for advice, and .she loved it. Advice about iv.il- ing with Allan's misconduct, too; it was most gratifying, and she grew quite gracious. ' I shall be happy to afford you any ! assistance. Miss Parkins, even though , a relative of my own should be the ni- . fender. The claim* of consanguinity must ever bow to Principle.' It was a high-minded sentiment, and Cornelia fell that she was doing herself justice. 1 You encourage me to prw-eed, ma- dam.' said Miss Parkins, a little over- awed. ' About six month* ago, Mr. Magsdale was introduced to my niece; he paid continual visits, and their in- timacy resulted in his making Mary a definite offer of marriage, which she accepted. Soon afterwards, be pro- posed to marry her secretly ; but Mary of course wouldn't hear of it ; and since she refused to do so, we have heard nothing more of him.' ' Did be assign no reason for wishing to keep bis marriage private f ' He said he feared opposition from his relations. I must add that he prom- ised to present my niece to them, but never made any attempt to keep hU , word.' ' And yon have heard nothing of him now, for a month?' ' Nothing whatever. Mrs. Bunshaw.' ' I deeply regret to confess that such j behaviour is quite in accordance with J the estimate I have formed of my cous- j in's character. But what do you propose to dof ' I had intended to make his conduct known to his relatives, first of all.' ' He has none, except my brother and i myself.' ' Then. I fear we can do nothing,' ' said Miss Parkins with a sigh. 4 'ion have nut considered the pro-. priety of using the weapons offered by i the law I' | Muts Parkins had never thought of . taking such extreme measures: Mary j Crensburn would be furious if ahe dared to hint at an action for breach of prom- ise of marriage, and publicity would be quite as objectionable to herself. 'My niece would never consent to] the course you propose.' she aaid; "wej must allow; the matter to drop.' ' Your niece's duty towards her sex ] should be her first thought. Miss Par- j kins.' said Mr*. Bunshaw sententiously: | 'but I see no necessity for letting her ( know what we do. 1 can vouch for il that Mr. Magsdale will never face an '. act ion.' ' Mary would never forgive me if I made use of her name, as I should of course have. to do; and even if be paid ilamages under threat of legal proceed- ings, she would not look; at a penny of ' it. I'm afraid it isn't to be thought ( " BIBLE DBTMBDHOI. MILLIONS OF THEM BEING CIRCl'L- ATEO EVERY YEAR. L iT-inrf Thll l In Mr I < axn With I r>r -, r IH.lrll.ull... Ih. T Alkrr > -T1 IH *! t P....I II II*. . rom* the fhrapMl !.<' ! iho of. Hut Mrs. Bunshaw was Dot so easily foiled. Allen ap,>eared to hare behaved , disgracefully, and she waa not unwill- ing to hi'lp tii punish him. She thought for a minute before she spoke again. ' Is your niece of age. Miss Parkin* f 'Not yet Mix lluiishaw.' 'Then the duty of securing justice for her. the onus of protecting her from such designing knaves, devolves upon sou. whet tier she approves of your mri hixLs i>r not ' Mis Parkins wavered. Mrs. Bun- shrtw, who 'must know the man intim- ately, waa certain he would not face the ordeal of trial. She tainted to avenge her niece, and if she could do so by the simple expedient of a lawyer's letter, she might perhaps venture upon that, unknown to Mary Creasburn. She was not influenced by any hope of ob- i lining compensation; her aims were purely retributive ; if she could suc- ceed in making Mr. Magadale suffer for his fjiiblesuness. she would be quit.- n'tiiiMil. The only feasible means of punishment were those suggested by Mrs. Bunshaw. and she began to give way. ' r'ven if I wished to go to law. I r.'ul'i not afford the expense.' she said. (To be Continued.) HIS FIRST OPERATION. !* ! K\|>rrlrnrr ! I all !( O a H. ! Te. "Doyyou recall the first operation yoo ever performed yourself I was asked a surgeou. "Indeed. I remember it very well. 1 was in an hospital where there were 3.500 beds and thirty-three sur- geons in charge. I waa one of the ' young assistant surgeons. If an opera- 1 tioon waa necessary in any of the wards ' it was our duty t.i report it to the sur- j geon in charge, who than performed the operation if be chose. I reported to my surgeon the importance of an amputa- i i -ii of m great toe. The surgeon came and looked at the man and concurred \\i h luv O|i:ni 'ii tti f : n amp tt n wa< necessary. I was directed to get every- thing ready for the operation. 'Then.' said the surgeon. 'I will ooine and oper- ate if I can. If not you go on and per-> lot in the operation yourself.' "I told my young associates of the order, and they said: 'Well you go and Kl ready but he won't come. You will ve to do the operation yourself.' And that was the way it turned out. The operation waa to be at 3 o'clock. All the night before I was reoearsing what I intended to do in my mind and dream- ing of it in my sleep. The next day I rould not eat my luncheon. My hands and feet were cold. When it came time to commence the operation 1 could only steady my nerve by threading needles. I said give me the needlea to thread. I am very particular about my thread.' I took a ueedle and commenced (Hiking at the eye. In a few seconds my hand olieyed my will and became as steady as I . mild wish. I performed the operation successfully. Alter that 1 went on per- forming a great many operations, but it waa years before 1 could take I o'clock luncheon If I had to operate at 2 o'clock, How to Cur* Stammering-. Stammerer* rarely. If ever, show any impediment of speech when speaking in whispers. On this fact a new method of treatment has beea founded, which is M follow*: For the first ten days peaking is prohibited. This will allow rest to the voice, and constitute the pre- liminary stage of treatment. During the next ten days speaking is permis- sible in a whispering voice, and in the course of the next fifteen days th> dinary conversational tone may be grad- ually employed. Six millions of books 'are a great many, and that number represents thsV world's output of the Christian Scrip- tures during the last year says the New York Herald. Th number of Bibles dis- tributed since the organization of the British and Foreisrn Bible Society of London, in IftfM. is 2fiO.000.000. or enough volumes, if liid end to end. to reach m distance of more than fifty thousand mile*. The British society and the AmericA Bible Society of New York, since its establishment, in 1816. have been the two great organizations of the world for the translation, publication, and circulation of the bonks of the Bible. Thir work has been a tremendous and a growing one. yearly exhausting their increasing resources, and reaching a magnitude that Is surprising. GROWTH OF THE WORK From s rare, and the most expensive book, the Bible has become the most common and cheapest publication in the world. Dr. Plnmer, in his tract "How to I T e the Bible." *ay: " In the thirteenth century, in England, two arches of the London bridge cost 25. At the' same time a copy of the Bible with a few explanatory note* cost .10 Then the wages of a labourer amounted to but ninepence a week " In other words, the cost of such s Bible was equal to the entire wages. in money, of a labouring man for over fifteen years. At so late a period as that of the American Revolution the very cheapest editions of the Bible were valued at not less than $2 a vol- ume. Now an entire English Bible Is sold for twenty cents, and the New Testament can be bought for five cents. The increase in the supply has been aa wonderful as the decrease in the cost. Before -the age of printing a copy 1st would work for months to pro- duce a single copy of the Bible, that was almost priceless, to be secured to its place with a chain, and handled by a fortunate few. only with the greatest of care. Then, though the introduction of printing increased the supply most marvellously the high price yet held them beyond the reach of the average reader. It was only after organized societies took charge of the printing and distribution that no one who wished a Bible need go without it. And the people have wish- ed them with a desire that has in- creased with the advancement of gen- eral learning. the cultivation of thought, and the growth of the spirit of criticism. 1IIIS GROWING DEMAND for the Christian Scriptures has. on the most part, been met, whether it has come from Greenland's icy moun- tains or India's coral strand, and whether in the language of a Chines*, a Xulu. or any other tongue more nearly approaching the English. Last year tL > "ntish and Foreign Hilil.- Society diati.Vit.ed 2.1rto. 618 Bibles in foreign countries. .: ' the American Bil>l Society exported 634.- 025 copies. Theee books were printed in forty-one different languages. Many complete Biblee and portions of Scrip- ture were also printed by the Am- erican Society at Heirut. ' Constanti- nople. Shanghai. Bangkok. Yokohama. Paris, and Hreinen. An idea of tae vast territory reach- ed by the New York society and the variety of languages employed may be gained from the fact that last vear the Chinese, received from toe Sew York society 1.205 Testaments in their language, the Zulus 2.006 Portuguese -Mtrj. Italians 4.717. Poles, 3.406. Bo- hemians 1.778. Dakota, Indians SJ. Marshall Islanders 630. The list also includes Irish. Dutch. Danish. Hebrew, Syriac. Arabic. Turkish. Russian and Ojibwa. The distribution of these books and the teaching of their contents means the employment of an army of mis- sionaries and colporteurs, who hare to encounter many and great obstacles in the way of poverty, illiteracy, and prejudice. They suffer from accusa- tions, arrest, imprisonment, antagon- ism of other religions, uprisings against them, and war itself. Vet they work on. and will continue to work. THE FIELD AT HOME. While the heathen of foreign lands are supplied with copies of the Scrip- tures those at home are net neglected and increasing work in the direction of a systematic distribution of the English IHble is being carried on. During lant year about 950.000 Bibles. Testaments, and portions of Scripture have been distributed by the various home societies. Six thousand families have been visited. About one-fifth of them were found without Bibles and were supplied. Then thousand* of volumes of Scrip- ture* are being distributed among destitute Sunday schools, given to the army and navy, to immigrants, freed- nien. the poor and criminal institu- tions. In this connection the blind are not lost sight of, for fifty vear* ago was began the publication of the entire Bible in the Boston line letter, and the books are yet manufactured in increasing editions and sold at a price slightly below their cost. During last year 25.000 volumes of the Scriptures were distributed in Xew York city. The city work in the dis- tribution of Bibles has some interesting features. Through 268 distributing agencies, such aa missions, churches, and Sunday schools, during the year 20.000 volumes were sent out and 900 Bibles placed in the rooms of prominent hotels. Large as the home distribution of Bibles i. it is insignificant when com- ' pared with the vast volume of foreign work. Tnjrenlous Excuse Frank cornea into the house in a very sorry plight. Mercy on us) exclaims his father. How you look ! You are soaked. Pleaiw. papa. I fell into the canal What I with your new :Auisers oo Yes. papa, I didn't have tint* to them off.