Page:China's spiritual need and claims.djvu/40

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Province of Chih-li.

purely evangelistic work to each million of the people spread through the province. Might not the mass of this open, easily accessible, and healthy province truthfully exclaim, "No man careth.for our souls!" The gospel has not yet been preached to "every creature" here.

CONFUCIAN TEMPLE, PEKIN.

CHIH-LI; area 67,276 square miles, population 20 millions.

Still going north we come to the province of Chih-li. This province is larger than England and Wales, and is now estimated to contain 20 millions of souls. Pekin, the capital of the empire; Pao-ting Fu, the capital of the province; and Tien-tsin, its principal seaport; with T'ung-chau, and Kalgan (a trading city on the Mongolian border), are its five mission stations. There were 55 missionaries in these stations in March, 1884; but what are they among so many? Imagine England with only 55 ministers of Christ and that number living in five only of our cities, while all the rest were left destitute! But of these 55 missionaries four are medical men; one superintends the mission press and the secular affairs of his mission; one is a colporteur of the National Bible Society of Scotland; and 17 are single