“Dublin, August 16th.
“DEAR MR. WILEMAN—Thank you very much for the most welcome box of useful books. Those for the children are very pretty, and will be highly prized by the dear little ones who may yet get them. Some are already being read by families in Dublin. We trust the friends who have so liberally helped us to sow the good seed in poor dark priest-ridden Ireland may be richly blessed in return for their Christian kindness and generosity. With very sincere thanks, believe me, yours truly in the Master’s service, E. S. SCOONES.”
“Connemara, October 3rd.
“DEAR MR. WILEMAN—I meant to write and thank you before this for the beautiful books received from you before Miss Scoones and I left Wimbledon. We came away from home in August, and have been in Ireland ever since. Workers are sadly needed in poor dark Connemara. One feels, if our English friends only realized the dire need in these benighted districts, surely some would be found to come to the help of the Lord against the mighty.
“We are once again in the same place where we came through so much last year, and sorely need the prayers of God’s children, as there is not one here to lend us a helping hand. Still, I am thankful to say, since last year the persecution has ceased; the attitude of the people has changed; an open-air meeting, which we had commenced when here last year, amidst much opposition and persecution, is now carried on weekly, and the people listen quietly and attentively. A Christian man comes a distance of nearly twenty miles every Thursday to hold it, unless circumstances prevent, as is the case today; and I am always so sorry when it falls through. I accompanied him myself last week; and, though a great effort, felt it a great privilege to tell out to those poor dark benighted souls, who are in too much fear of the priest to have ventured so far, the old, old story of Jesus and His love.
“The young worker we had with us last year, and who under us commenced the meeting, was cruelly ill-used and persecuted. He has gone now, and we are waiting on the Lord to send another. We do want His choice, a God-sent man, for the work is not easy. There is an old barn here we are thinking might be converted into a little dwelling-house for one or two Christian workers, or for a man and his wife.
“At a great effort, I have myself secured the little cottage in which we are just now. It had to be sold, and we feared it falling into the hands of Roman Catholics, and so the work would have been stopped, and the one solitary opening closed.
“We are very glad to have some of the texts you sent on the walls of my bare little cottage. It is a comfortless little place yet. But I feel thankful for the privilege of having been permitted to purchase it to hold for God and for His work. The texts we have found very useful. One was left in one of the few Protestant lodging houses in Galway. The woman is a Christian, and has promised to put them up; nothing of the kind being there before. Two others have been placed in a Protestant cottage, where lives a poor old rheumatic man. Roman Catholics come in to see him sometimes, and he talks with them; so we trust the texts will be blessed.
“I hope I have not wearied you with this lengthy epistle, but I wanted to thank you for the beautiful books, and to ask an interest in your prayers on behalf of the work here.
“With Christian regards, believe me, yours in the Master’s service, A. M. BARBOUR.”
The books sent included volumes of the Gospel Echo, Old Jonathan, and other illustrated books, suitable for young and old; halfpenny gospels, and pictorial tracts; and the cards were floral texts of Scripture, 12 inches by to, published at a penny each. My readers will thus see for how small a sum a great deal of good can be done. It will give me pleasure to send another box early in November, and another early in December.
W. W.