sample, and ask—What provision is made for their moral and spiritual needs?
One of our queries was, "Have you any night-school, Sunday-school, or Sunday service?" These questions were answered in 22 cases by a comprehensive negative. These answers came in part from the 12 places where there were no huts, and implied that no schools or services existed especially for the navvies, although there may have been both in the town or village, but — the navvy would say—not for him. The next question was, "Does any regular Minister come?" To this, in 21 cases, the answer was "No." Out of the total number of 34 places we counted four only where was a Sunday service attended by navvies; two where they attended a Sunday-school; three where they had night-schools; and three where were day-schools for their children.
Iu each case the managers—to whom our inquiries were addressed—were invited to add such remarks to their replies as they thought fit. Some of these remarks are very striking, and show how differently our efforts were viewed by those in authority in different quarters.
One manager appends a warning to his remarks to the effect that if any missionary is coming he must not be thin-skinned. Another tells us that "navvies don't care much for ministers, the idea being that money is wanted more than souls." This is, indeed, a most unfortunate idea, and one which I have never met with among navvies. At L W we certainly never asked the men for their money, save once a year, when we held a missionary meeting, and had a collection, which was almost always a good one. Our observations led us to the conclusion that no man is more ready and willing to pay
