many converts: Corea is likewise open, and has a few converts. Though these countries are not part of China, they are so closely connected with it as to merit mention here. "What hath God wrought!" is the grateful exclamation which a survey of the results of missionary labour calls forth.
RATE OF PROGRESS.
And not only is the progress made within the last fifty years considerable; one of the most encouraging features of the work is the steady and increasingly rapid rate of progress. At a Missionary Conference, held in London in March, 1884, Mr. Donald Matheson mentioned the following important facts:—
| In | 1853 | there were | 350 | native converts in China |
| In„ | 1863 | there were„ | 2,000 | native„ converts„ in„ China„ |
| In„ | 1873 | there were„ | 8,000 | native„ converts„ in„ China„ |
| In„ | 1883 | there were„ | 22,000 | native„ converts„ in„ China„ |
It is thus unmistakably proved that the Chinese, who so much need the gospel, are amenable to its vivifying and sanctifying influences; making the call all the more imperative to carry this blessed gospel into every corner of that vast land. Grateful we should be, grateful we are, to Almighty God for the triumphs of the cross already won in China; but we must not forget that the work is only begun, and veiy feebly begun, as yet. Much remains to be done before God's name is generally hallowed in China. Much, very much more must be accomplished before our Saviour's command to preach the gospel to every creature is fulfilled there. If we wish to ascertain how far this command is being carried out, let us look a little more minutely at the present state and condition of this great empire; and darkness, thick darkness, will still be found to cover much of the land.
We will commence our survey with those provinces of China Proper in which "missionary effort has been longest put forth. In considering the adequacy of the present staff of missionaries to the work before them, it is necessary, for argument's sake, to suppose them to occupy a definite sphere of labour. Their work is largely evangelistic, and not merely pastoral, and as many of them are assisted by a larger or smaller staff of native helpers, so their sphere may be supposed to be an extensive one. Lest we should be thought to underrate it, we will allow to each labourer 100,000 Chinese—men, women, and children—as his circle of influence; and this without considering the proportion of missionaries who, having newly arrived, have not yet acquired the language, or who from sickness, age, or infirmity, are able to accomplish less than when in their full vigour. To enable
