THE K I N G ’ S BUS I NE S S colporteurs to have supper with them. They publicly testified to their con viction that the Gospel was true, and expressed their determination to believe in Jesus. Mr. Cheng, leader of party No. 1, writes of a man named Liu Kao-Feng, it is one of those cases that stir us to fresh gratitude, faith and renewed effort. Four years ago Mr. Liu went to Nan Yoh to worship at the temples on the mountain, while there he received from one of our workers a copy of “ Selected Portions of Holy Scripture.” He took it home, studied it, was convinced of the truth of the Gospel, from that time he did not make any more pilgrimages. He was most happy to meet our colporteurs in his village, and to hear from them more about the Gospel. Before they left him he confessed faith in Christ. A number of Northern soldiers sta tioned in the district where Mr. Cheng and his party are working are Chris tians, they come regularly to the public meetings, and this has been a great help to them in the work there. In Mr. Ou-Yang’s district also a number of the officers have shown a real interest in the Gospel and attend the Bible classes as often as possible. Mr. Hsiao had a letter recently from the pastor of a church at Siangim, a city north of here. Just after the first Northern defeat here some Northern soldiers fled to Mr. Hsiao’s house and asked for shel ter. They had had no food for some days and no sleep for several nights, they were just exhausted. Mr. Hsiao took them in and fed them, then they just fell down on the beds, and how they did sleep. One of these refugees stayed with Mr. Hsiao for some days and Mr. Hsiao had the joy of leading him to faith in Christ. Later, when the North again became victorious these soldiers rejoined their regiments and were stationed at Siangin, and the pas tor there wrote to Mr. Hsiao telling him of the real earnestness and zeal of
965 this young soldier whom he had been permitted to lead to Christ. Now just a few lines about the Bible school. We had a splendid spring term, though it was very different from what we had planned and expected. Mr. Porteous, with his wife and eight men whom he had chosen from his district to form the nucleus of the first Kiangsi colportage band, started from their sta tion in time to reach here on April 29, so as to be on hand for the opening of the Bible school on May 1st. They reached Pinghsiang, ninety miles from here, on April 28, only to learn of the awful sacking of Lilimg, of which I have sent you printed accounts. Lilimg was thirty miles beyond them and sixty miles from here. Tracks were torn up, a bridge destroyed, and, of course, no trains running except for military pur poses. Mr. and Mrs. Porteous remained at Pinghsiang with the young men for nine days hoping that the way might open from them to come on. They had daily Bible classes with the men, and at last, finding that there was no hope of their reaching here, they reluctantly turned back. Mr. Horne of the Bur roughs Memorial Bible School of Nanchang, having been summoned home to Canada by the serious illness of his wife, took advantage of our opening for a spring term and sent five of his eight students over to us to fin ish the year’s work. Then on May 9th Dr. Sherwood Eddy, Professor Frank Buchman, and their party arrived at Changsha for their special campaign and I arranged for our students to attend Mr. Buchman’s personal work classes during the stay of the party in Changsha. We had our formal open ing with a class of eighteen students on Monday, May 20th. I have already writ ten you of our teaching staff. Both teachers and students enjoyed the work, the men passed good examinations, and in the examination of the personal work class, which was more of a report meet ing than a regular examination, the
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