Part 4

3. OROVILLE.—We had scarcely concluded the meeting above referred to, when it became time to take the train for Oroville, twenty-eight miles distant. I took our faithful helper, Lee Sam, with me, desiring him to spend two or three months at least in Oroville. Here I found a sad state of things. Sufficient care had not been taken in receiving members to our Association there, and I am afraid that few, if any, among them are true Christians. In a strife for the pre-eminence they had become bitter, one toward another, and I hoped, and still hope, that the good judgment, the gentle spirit, the Christian example and the faithful preaching of Lee Sam will, with the blessing of God, set things right again. The school in Oroville is blessed with a very faithful teacher, who is aided and guided by her father, Rev. A. Ostrom, pastor of the Congregational Church, himself formerly a missionary in China. Mr. Ostrom speaks Chinese, but not in the dialect of the districts from which our Chinese have come, and he cannot communicate with them, except through the English language. We ought to have had a good helper there six months ago, but I had not the man to spare, nor the funds to sustain him. Now I leave Marysville destitute, that Oroville may be supplied.

We spent Monday and Tuesday evenings till a very late hour seeking to secure mutual forgiveness and to bring peace. We succeeded so far as the weaker party was concerned; and the confession of fault and the request for forgiveness were made with tearful eyes. But as to the other, and hitherto the controlling faction, no relenting could be made to appear. They have since withdrawn and set up some sort of a house and a worship by themselves. But I believe that our prayers will be answered, and that out of all this will come shortly a far better work than has ever yet been done for the thousands of Chinese who centre at this town.

4. The mission-house at Santa Barbara was burned to the ground in the latter part of November. It was a rented building, and the most valuable part of the mission escaped the flames, so that the loss was not great. I record with much thankfulness the fact that the Congregational Church in Santa Barbara, notwithstanding that it had, just the week before, completed an offering of $327.50 for our Theological Seminary, and scarcely a month before had made a generous contribution to our Mission, at once took a collection amounting to $27.55 to repair the damages of this fire. The origin of the fire is hard to explain. Our helper regards it as no accident, but as having come from the hatred of heathen Chinese.

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CHILDREN’S PAGE.

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“TESSIE.”

BY A. WESTON W.

“Dunno, miss.”

“But, Tessie, you must know where you got it.”

“’Deed, miss, I dunno no more’n de dade. I nebber tuk it none: it jes’ comed.”

“Just came! O Tessie, Tessie! are you never going to be good?”

“I is good, miss,” said the little colored girl, who could not seem to learn how very wicked it is to take other people’s property, and who had never been taught it is wrong to tell an untruth.

“Yes, Tessie, you are good about some things,” I said; “but you are not good when you take things out of my room, as you did last night.”

“Deed, miss, I nebber tuk it none: it jes’ comed.”

“Tessie,” I said solemnly, “what will you do when God asks you about this.”

“I jes’ say I dunno nuffin’ ’tall ’bout it.”

“But you can’t tell a lie about it to God, for he saw you take it.”

“Reckon ye’re out dar, ’cause it were dark as Egyp,” said Tessie, grinning at me, and showing a row of white teeth and a pair of large black eyes.

“But, Tessie,” I said, “that makes no difference; God sees you all the time, and knows what you do in the dark, just as well as what you do when it is light.”

The girl’s expression changed, and she looked about her stealthily, as though in some dark corner she expected to see some one looking at her. Failing in that, she looked back at me, and said:

“’Tain’t wurth while ter vex ’im.”

“No, Tessie,” I said, “it’s not right to vex any one who has been kind to us; and God does more for us than any earthly friends we have.”

“Reckon ef I puts it back in de dark agin, he’ll see it?”

“Yes, Tessie, God will see you, whether you put it back at night, or in the day.”

“Den it’ll be all right?”

“If you make up your mind never to take again what does not belong to you.”

“S’posen His head’s turned round the wrong way, an’ He don’t see me?”

“God’s head is never turned round, Tessie; it is always towards us.”

That evening I watched Tessie to see the effect of our conversation, and soon after dark I discovered her on her way to my room, with the little thermometer she had taken from it the night before.

After that, there seemed to be a decided change in Tessie, which pleased me very much; but I was even more pleased when, one day, I found her with a bottle of cologne in her hand, and heard what she was saying.

“I reckon it smells kind o’ good, an’ I reckon I’d like ter hab it; but de good God’s a-lookin’ on, an’ he moight ax ’bout it some day.”

My little friends, would it not be well if we could take that as a sort of watch-word—“He might ask about it some day”? Do we not all do little things quietly, in a kind of slurring way, as if they wouldn’t count? And yet we would be ashamed to be asked about them. Remember that everything counts, and that “He might ask about it some day.”—_Well-Spring._

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RECEIPTS FOR DECEMBER, 1881.

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MAINE, $556.18.

Augusta. John Dorr, $15; Mrs. D. A. F., 50c. $15.50 Bangor. Central Cong. Ch. and Soc. 100.00 Bethel. Mrs. E. W. W. 1.00 Boothbay. Mrs. F. H. 0.67 Brewer. M. Hardy, $50; Sab. Sch. of F’st Cong. Ch., $15, _for John Brown, St’r_ 55.00 Brewer. First Cong. Ch. 7.40 Calais. “A Friend,” _for Student Aid, Talladega C._ 10.00 Falmouth. Second Cong. Ch. and Soc. 7.20 Falmouth. First Ch., Bbl. of C.; Second Ch., 2 Bbls. of C.; For Freight, $7; “A Friend,” $1, _for Selma, Ala._ 8.00 Farmington Falls. Cong. Ch. 6.18 Gorham. Cong. Ch. and Soc., bal. to const. MISS MARY C. HINKLEY, MISS MARY E. SMITH and DR. H. H. HUNT L.Ms 33.41 Limerick. Ladies, 2 Boxes of C., _for Raleigh, N.C._ Limerick. S. F. H. 0.50 Machias. Centre St. Cong. Ch. 7.22 Newport. Mrs. M. S. N. 1.00 New Sharon. First Cong. Ch. 5.82 No. Bridgton. Co’g Ch. & Soc., $3; C. H. G., 50c 3.50 Norridgewock. Cong. Ch. and Soc., $40; Individuals, _for Mag._, $1.50 41.50 North Vassalborough. Joseph White 10.00 Orland. M. C. Trott ($4 of which _for Indian M._) 8.00 Portland. Second Parish Ch. and Soc. 134.78 Richmond. S. S. 0.50 Searsport. Cong. Sab. Sch., _for Student Aid, Atlanta U._ 15.00 Skowhegan. Mrs. S. P. 1.00 Union. Bbl. of C., _for Selma, Ala._ Sweden. Mrs. D. N. 0.50 Westbrook. Warren Ch. and Soc., to const. JOHN E. WARREN and HEZEKIAH ELWELL L.Ms 60.00 Woolwich. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 14.50 York. First Cong. Ch. and Soc. 8.00

NEW HAMPSHIRE, $356.45.

Antrim. By Imla Wright 28.00 Bristol. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 1.15 Claremont. Mrs. S. C. C. 0.50 Concord. F’st Cong. Ch. & Soc., $85.31; “A Friend,” $2; “A Friend,” $1; C. T. P., 50c 88.81 Derry. First Cong. Ch. and Soc. 15.54 Fisherville. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 8.84 Fitzwilliam. H. H. W. 1.00 Hanover. Mrs. E. M. Y., $1; Miss L. J. S., 50c; L. B. D., 50c. 2.00 Harrisville. Darius Farwell, _for John Brown Steamer_ 5.00 Hinsdale. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 10.00 Hollis. C. B. 0.50 Hopkinton. Rev. D. S. 0.60 Keene. Benev. Soc. of Second Cong. Ch., Bbl. of C., val. $54; Mrs. N. R. Cooke, _for Freight and Mag._ 3.00 Keene. Miss S. E. H., 60c.; Mrs. N. R. C., 10c 0.70 Marlborough. Ladies’ Freedmen’s Aid Soc., _for Student Aid, Talladega C._ 10.00 Nashua. First Ch. and Soc. 35.14 New Ipswich. Cong. Sab. Sch., _for Sab. Sch._ Cong. Ch. and Soc., Bbl. of C., _for Marietta, Ga._ 4.00 New London. M. K. Trussell 2.25 Northwood Center. “A. B. W.” 2.00 Peterborough. A. A. F. 1.00 Peterborough. Box of bedding, val. $15.44, _for Tougaloo U._ Pittsfield. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 34.00 Pittsfield. Box and Bbl. of C., _for Talladega C._, & Bbl., val. $50, _for Marion, Ala._ Rochester. “J. M.,” _for John Brown Steamer_ 10.00 Salem. Mrs. G. D. K. and Mrs. D. E., 50c. ea. 1.00 Stratham. Cong. Ch. and Soc., to const. MRS. MARTHA LANE THOMPSON L. M. 30.00 Walpole. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 25.00 West Campton. T. J. Sanborn 5.00 Wilton. Bbl. of C., val. $60. Wolfborough. First Cong. Ch., to const. REV. GEORGE W. CHRISTIE L. M. 31.42

VERMONT, $460.63.

Alburgh. Cong. Ch. 4.00 Bellows Falls. Cong. Ch. and Soc., $29; “Individual” (ad’l). $16 45.00 Bennington Center. First Cong. Ch. and Soc. 25.00 Cabot. Mrs. S. S. H. 1.00 Castleton. Mrs. L. G. S. 1.00 Colchester. First Cong. Ch. 10.00 Danville. Cong. Sab. Sch. 10.00 East Hardwick. Mrs. J. F. F., _for Student Aid_ 1.00 East Sheldon. S. M. H. 0.50 Essex. “Cash” 1.00 Essex Center. Cong. Ch. 7.00 Essex Junction. Cong. Ch. 18.00 Hartford. Cong. Ch. coll., $24.17; E. Morris, $100; E. W. Morris $30, to const. DEA. NORMAN NEWTON L. M. 154.17 Lower Waterford. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 9.70 Montpelier. Bethany Ch. Sab. Sch. 6.05 Morgan 4 Corners. Miss L. L. 0.50 Newbury. Hon. P. W. Ladd 5.00 Norwich. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 17.00 Peacham. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 31.80 Peru. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 3.00 Post Mills. Ladies, Bbl. of C. Pittsfield. Miss M. J. S. 0.50 Rochester. Mrs. L S. Patten 5.62 Saint Johnsbury. South Cong. Ch. 48.18 Springfield. Cong. Ch. 18.68 Townsend. Nancy B. Batchelder 2.00 Wallingford. Cong. S. S., Miss Minnie Childs’ class; Miss Lizzie Gleghorn’s class; Mrs. Jay Newton’s class; Miss Ettie A. Ballou’s class, _for John Brown Steamer_ 10.00 West Brattleborough. Cong. Ch. and Soc. 10.43 West Fairlee. Cong. Ch. and Soc., $6, and Sab. Sch., $7.50 13.50 West Westminster. Mrs. A. S. G. 1.00

MASSACHUSETTS, $7,305.26.