furtherance of the most important object in the world, viz., the conversion of the Jews. When Simeon sat down, Edward Bickersteth, who was at that time a secretary of the Church Missionary Society, wrote on a slip of paper-eight million Jews, eight-hundred million heathens, which of these is the most important? This paper he handed to Mr Simeon, who at once turned it over, and wrote on the other side:- Yes, but if the eight million Jews are to be as "Life from the dead" to the eighthundred million heathens, what then? And this done, he returned the slip of paper to Mr Bickersteth.

We are very grateful for the following sympathetic and generous allusion to the Society's work-" Individuals are now being brought in numbers by our London Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews to the acknowledgement of Jesus as the Messiah, and right glad should we be that we possess such an instrumentality for making a special effort on behalf of Israel. Let us, then, gratefully recognise its value, and liberally support it; and, to encourage us to do so, let us feel assured that, if there is one jewel that will sparkle more brightly than another in the Redeemer's crown, it will be the Jew who, plucked out of the depths of his bigotry and unbelief, is brought by Divine grace to "sit at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind" (Isa. lxii. 3).

The Vicar of St. John's Church, Worksop, has issued some very useful "World-wide Communicants' Cards" for use of members of the "Communicants' Union." The rules of membership are only two in number-to be a communicant, and, to use at home in private devotions some of the prayers and praises on the card. These latter are very suggestive, and will be found helpful as a preparation for the holy feast.

FOREIGN MISSIONARY MAGAZINES.
Saat auf Hoffnung, 1892.

It is not very convenient to receive all four numbers of this very valuable publication at once, because we are in this way unable to do that justice to them which they deserve. For though we do not agree with the opinions of Saat auf Hoffnung to the same extent that we formerly did when it was edited by Delitzsch, it is still very able, and demands careful consideration. It is now marked by a strong tendency to depreciate much of the work of the older Missionary Societies, on the ground that they have not paid sufficient attention to the national side of Jewish life. This may be partly true, but there are such enormous practical difficulties in the way of retaining the Jewish nationality of Hebrew-Christians that full allowances ought to be made. Drs. Müller and Zöckler hardly do so.

Missions Blatt des Rheinisch-Westphälischen Vereins fur Israel. December, 1892.

The editor has done wisely in reprinting the autobiography of H. London, one of our own converts and missionaries, who died in Tunis in 1840. It is a typical instance of what so often happens, a young Jew wandering from place to place, having his heart moved first through one Christian, then through another, and at last openly confessing Christ and living earnestly for Him.

Le Reveil d'Israel. January, 1893.

M. Krüger's is quite the ablest of the smaller missionary periodicals with which we are acquainted. He gives us this month a very interesting discussion on one of the synagogue prayers, a short bird's-eye view of 1892, a commendatory but judicious review of Mr. Mark Levy's proposal to issue a weekly paper representing the opinions of Hebrew-Christians, and an interesting letter from M. Giavi to the editor of the Univers Israélite. Altogether, the number is greatly above the high average that M. Krüger maintains.

In January Mr. Becker made a journey to Würtemberg. He preached three times in Gerlingen, and at, Leonberg, gave an address on Jewish Missions before the Lutheran clergymen of the diocese. The "Society of Friends of Israel," established in the province of Brandenberg by Mr Becker, is prospering, and provides him with the greater part of the salary of his Colporteur, who visits the Jews of Berlin and other towns.

At the monthly meeting for prayer held in Palestine Place, at 3.30 p.m. on Friday, February 10th, the Devotional Address was given by the Rev. E. W. Moore, M.A., Incumbent of Emmanuel Church, Wimbledon. Mr. Moore took for his subject the last verse of the third chapter of St. Paul's Second Epistle to the Corinthians, bringing out the privilege of the Christian in being enabled to reflect the glory of the character of Christ. At the next meeting on Friday, March 10th, the Address will, D.V., be given by the Rev. W. Fleming, LL.B.. Secretary of the Society.

On Sunday, February 5th, the Annual Sermons for the Society were preached in St. Matthew's Church, Croydon, in the morning by the Rev. R. Allen, Vicar of Christ Church, Gipsy Hill, and in the evening by the Rev. C. S. Painter. There was also an address to children in the afternoon. On Tuesday, the 7th ult., the Annual Meeting was held in the Church Institute. In the absence of the Vicar of Croydon, through illness, the chair was taken by the Rev. T. L. N. Causton, Vicar of St. Matthew's. The Rev S. T. Bachert, Missionary in Hamburg, and the Rev. C. S. Painter pleaded for the Society. Mr. Bachert's account of his work in Hamburg was listened to with deep interest by a most attentive audience. We are happy to say the collections both after Sermons and Meeting were considerably in advance of those of the previous year.

Very successful Anniversaries of two important Associations in Devonshire have been held recently. At Exeter, sermons were preached in the Cathedral and several churches; and the meetings were presided over by Sir John Kennaway, Bart., M.P., President of the Society. At Plymouth, in addition to the sermons and "Palestine Exhibition" was held, when illustrated meetings a lectures were given by the Rev. C. H. Banning, Vicar of St. Nicholas', Rochester. The Rev. S. T. Bachert was the missionary deputation at both places.

The Jewish newspaper Allgemeine Zeitung des Judenthums had an article on the late Dr Cassel, in which occurred the following remarks:-" When the Anti-Semites began to show themselves, Cassel remembered his origin, and opposed the leaders, Stöcker, Wagner, and others with great decision and manliness. It was this manly action that gives us some satisfaction for his desertion of the parental religion. We have to judge this apostacy very differently from that of many others in former and present times, as he did not forsake his old creed for any worldly reason, or to get honours and position, but rather because he followed a mystical line of thought. God alone can judge the veracity and purity of his life; we dare not. 'Peace be to his ashes!'"

The Jewish Chronicle says:-The deaths of David and Paulus (formerly Selig) Cassel remove two brothers, both of whom had won a place for themselves among the honoured names of Jewish scholar

ship... Paulus was the greater man of the two, but David's works on Jewish literature, and the part he played in communal life were not without value and importance. . . Paulus Cassel was a scholar and writer of a higher type, and his works will live. He took a worthy part in the struggle against anti-Semitism. One of his very many works, his Commentary on Esther, has been translated into English (T. & T. Clark, 1888). Paulus Cassel was perhaps the first man to recognise what was really meant by writing a history of the Jews.

We are much indebted to the Rev. A. A. Isaacs, of Bath, for his kind gift of three sets of the "Everlasting Nation" (Vols I. to IV.), for the Libraries at the Society's House, Palestine Place, and Jerusalem. We also have to thank our former Missionary, the Rev. D. A. Hefter, for the handsome gift of his books to the Palestine Place Library. Mrs. Hefter, in her letter accompanying the books, said:-"A small package of old Hebrew papers written by my husband, and printed in Jerusalem about thirtyeight years ago, will perhaps interest you a little. Mr. Crawford and he were preaching and disputing about them with the Jews in the bazaars, streets, and on the Jaffa plain. A blessed time it was! These two, one heart and one soul, were constantly seen together, so that people used to call them David and Jonathan. But our day is short indeed, the night soon at hand. May God grant, that we may live what is remaining entirely in His presence, and in the light of His countenance."

During the last three months of 1892 a good deal of aggressive Missionary work was carried out in Holland. The Monthly Lectures delivered by the Rev.A.C. Adler in Rotterdam again attracted large audiences. After one of these gatherings, a young Jewess spoke of our Lord Jesus Christ with visible affection, but she does not yet see her way to professing His name publicly. Mr. Adler also lectured at Utrecht and Alkmaar, in the province of North Holland. The baptism of a Jewish enquirer by Mr. Adler in the English Church at Amsterdam must also be noted. In December Mr. Adler paid a most interesting, and, as he believes, blessed visit, to some of the centres of Jewish population in the provinces of Overijssel, Drenthe, and Groningen. Addresses were given

by him to the Jews of Zutfen, Zwolle, Groningen, Hoogeveen, Meppel, and Leeuwarden. The Jews, in all these places, responded to Mr. Adler's invitations, conveyed through the local newspapers and by circulars. Colporteur Zalman again did valuable work in preparing the way for these addresses. The most successful meeting, as to numbers of Jews present, was held a Groningen, where the French, or Walloon Church, was kindly opened for the purpose. Half-an-hour before service commenced the church was crowded with Jews, all of whom listened most attentively.

In connection with the many visits paid by Miss Schneider to the East-end Jews, the following incident is worthy of mention. A Jew, who had not been able to find work for six weeks, was nearly in despair. His landlord came every day for his rent, and threatened to send the broker if he was not paid. His wife was ill, and his daughter also out of work. "He told me on one occasion," says Miss Schneider, "that he had read the Testament which I had given him for hours together on the Sabbath; but he was now very downhearted, and said, 'I pray and pray to God, but He does not listen to me. He is just as if He were dead. I know my trial comes from God: it must be a punishment.'' I told him God might have sent it to bring him to Himself; and he answered, "Yes, that may be, but will you tell me why it is that you, who have so many troubles as well, are always looking so happy? Is it that you believe in a Redeemer, who bore your sins, to whom you gave them over?" I told him he was right, and if he knew the way so well, why did he not choose it for himself? He said that he would give his right hand to be able to do so. I told him where I obtained the power, and that he too would be heard by God if he came in the right way, through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. The next time I came he was full of excitement, and told me that on the very evening when I left him he had prayed in the name of Jesus secretly, had read the New Testament far into the night, and that the next day an old employer of his had given him work, and his daughter had found work also. He said he would surely pray again in the name of the Lord Jesus."

OW is it that comparatively few earnest Christian people give a hearty support to Missions to the Jews? We fear that the reason is to be found in indifference to the whole subject. This indifference is in part produced by an ignorance of the real condition of the Jew, intellectually and spiritually, and of his need of the Gospel to emancipate him in this life, to assure him of a future, and to prepare him for it. That Christians should be indifferent to the needs of the Jews, through whom they obtained all their rich spiritual inheritance, is difficult to understand, and can only be explained by the fact that their indebtedness to the Jews is lost sight of; or else by the supposition that the Jews, not being ignorant of the one true God, have not that urgent need of Evangelisation that the heathen claim.

To this we answer that, the greater the advantage, the greater the responsibility; and the greater the sin of the Jews in rejecting the Gospel, so much the greater need of Christian aid to remove this sin. Our knowledge of the way to everlasting happiness and peace entails upon us the duty of handing on to others that blessing, which, under God's mercy, we possess. And why, more especially, to the Jews?

Consider the debt of gratitude due to the Jews from the world at large. All our modern commercial system, with its wonderful machinery of exchange and business, is due to them. They have always been the bankers and financiers of those countries which have afforded them protection and hospitality. In the dark periods of the middle ages, the knowledge of medicine, surgery, and chemistry was kept alive

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amongst them. The Jews of Spain preserved those treasures of mathematical science, which, but for their zeal, must have been lost. What has music gained, what has literature gained from the Jews? Much more than we have any idea of.

But let us ascend to higher ground. The Jews were and are the chosen "witnesses " of God-of His unity, His faithfulness, His truth. They have given to to the world moral ideas of purity and humanity unknown to the heathen. Through them came that Law which is the foundation of all modern legislation. In their dispersion they have exercised an influence on mankind greater than can be easily estimated. Moreover, they prepared the way for the coming of the Messiah. Through that race He came into the world; to them we owe Christianity with all its blessings; to their unwearied watchfulness and care we owe the preservation in its purity of the Old Testament; and from the Apostles and Evangelists of that race we also gain the New.

When we think, then, of these blessings and our debt of gratitude, we cannot help feeling a sense of deep shame and self-reproach at the very ill return made to them by the world at large. Persecution and death, spoliation and exile have been the policy pursued again and again by nations priding themselves on their enlightenment and civilisation. The Jews do not deserve this treatment; for, both in England and in America, circumstances have proved over and over again, that there are no citizens more law-abiding than the members of the dispersed race.

Again, the mental activity and powers of the Jews should afford another reason for gaining them over

to Christianity. Far better would it be for those mental abilities to be arrayed on behalf of, not against, the Christian Faith. They must be either powerful friends or powerful enemies of the Gospel. As Dr. Donald Fraser says: "There has sprung up a generation of Western Jews, wider in culture than any generation that ever went before, and not only qualified to act, but unquestionably acting with no small effect on the public opinion, and therefore on the course and fortunes of the leading nations. of the world. How far this new element is perilous to the Church of God, and is, practically, an ally of Positivism and Infidelity is a serious question."

These are true and weighty words. The innate energy of the Hebrews furnishes a hostile Saul; under the Gospel influence the same becomes the Missionary Paul. Are we to leave them to roam over the barren wastes of scepticism; or, by true Christian doctrine and example, to lead them to that which alone can satisfy their mental and spiritual cravings-the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Sooner or later their time of probation will be over, and they will enter upon the work of Evangelising the Worlda work for which they are peculiarly fitted above all nations. Shall we not do what we can to help forward this much-desired event? Shall we not help to stir up the Jew to a recognition of his privileges and his duties to the world?

But, again, there is a direct command. If, as men say, we should "leave the Jew alone," are we carrying out our Captain's marching orders that "the Gospel should be preached to all nations?" Most emphatically "No!" God has placed His people in our midst. They are close at hand everywhere; it is not necessary to make long and perilous journeys into unhealthy regions to find them. Just as our Lord, when on earth, lived a poor man, and left the poor as His representatives-so, too, He who lived as a Jew, has left everywhere the Jews as His brethren and His kinsmen.

To the Jewish Nation God gave, 3,000 years ago, a certain work to do, allowing no alternative as to what was to be done; at the same time He permitted an alternative as to how it was to be done. If willingly, a blessing was promised; if unwillingly, a curse and that choice was left to themselves. So now, the work of preaching the Gospel has to be done, to the Jew as well as to the Gentile. That is the duty God has laid upon His Church. But how shall it be carried out? In the abundant peace of a Church, beautiful as a garden, watered with the

early and latter rain of the Holy Spirit of God; or in a Church, cold with indifference, without zeal, warmth, and life? This is the choice God has left to Christian people.

The Committee are most anxious to commence the building of the New Hospital in Jerusalem, and are only awaiting the permission of the Turkish authorities to do so. The President, Sir John Kennaway, Bart., lately put a question in the House of Commons to the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs as to whether he would make inquiries, through Her Majesty's Ambassador at Constantinople, as to the reason of the long delay in granting the Firman for the erection of the Hospital; and whether Her Majesty's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs would move Sir Clare Ford to use his best endeavours to facilitate and expedite the granting of the Firman. The UnderSecretary replied that the matter was receiving the attention of Her Majesty's Ambassador at Constantinople. So we hope that this vexatious period of delay and waiting may soon be over, and the building operations forthwith commenced. The amount of the Building Fund was £6,524 1s. 3d. on February 28th.

We regret to say that the Building Fund of the Girls' School, Jerusalem, has been practically stationary for some time, and amounted, on the same date, only to £3,790 6s. 1d.; that is £2,000 below the amount actually expended. Perhaps this statement may induce some generous friends to contribute to the deficiency.

A "Palestine Exhibition " was held at Brixton from March 21st to 25th inclusive. We cannot give any details this month; but through the exertions of the Ven. Archdeacon Richardson, the Revs. J. Seaver, W. Horne, and W. W. Pomeroy, and Colonel Farquharson, who kindly acted as Honorary Secretaries, everything was done to ensure success.

As already announced, it is proposed to hold a similar Exhibition in St. Martin's Town Hall, Charing Cross, during "the May week." This ought to add materially to the "feast of good things" so amply provided during that period provided during that period for the friends of Missions; and we confidently hope that this effort to throw additional light upon "the Land and the Book," and that people to whom both in the first instance belonged, will be heartily and widely supported. An advertisement of the Exhibition appears on the cover, in conjunction with that of the Anniversary, of which it will form a novel and interesting feature.

BOUT 60 or 80 miles from Bagdad, past Babylon, lies the little village of Kiffel. The entire village, with the exception of a few poor mud huts inhabited by Arabs, is composed of good houses and stores built in a large square, in the middle of which is a large unsightly building, in which is a big tomb, said to be that of the prophet Ezekiel. Thither the Jews and Mahommedans make pilgrimages, the former especially between the feasts of Passover and Pentecost. With devotion they combine pleasure and business. It is a fifty days' picnic, and the richer Jews buy wool and corn from the Arabs; after Pentecost, they leave the place, and their agents continue to buy and store the goods in the place. A certain Mustafa Pacha came as governor of Bagdad. He was a great bigot and an enemy to the Jews, and having himself made a pilgrimage to the prophet's tomb, conceived a plan of taking it and the buildings about it away from the Jews, under the pretence that the whole must have been a Mahommedan mosque, as, not far from it, is a minaret with the door toward the tomb. Had he succeeded, all the Jewish houses and stores would also have been confiscated. In this trouble and perplexity, the Jews applied to me for help and advice; the rabbis, together with other rich and influential people, called upon me, and I took them to the then acting consul, and laid their case before him. He was very kind and took the matter up most warmly, and after a good deal of delay and trouble, the property was declared by the Sultan to belong to the Jews. The Jews were most grateful to me for what I had done for them. Many of them visited me, and I had most precious opportunities of setting before them Christ as the King and Redeemer of Israel.

Kiffel being so near Bagdad, and a great centre for

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Jewish pilgrimage, we visited it as often as we could being certain of finding there numerous Jews from not only Bagdad, but also from the towns around. The way to Ezekiel's tomb lay across Babylon, and the pretty little town of Hillah, the only inhabited place in the precincts of ancient Babylon. Here also is a small congregation of Jews, whom I invariably visited on my way to Kiffel. I generally met the Jews in the synagogue, and had delightful converse with most of them. The rabbi was an amiable, upright, truth-loving man, and although he differed from us in many things, he liked to hear us expound the Scriptures, and was not a bitter enemy to Christianity or its Founder. To my great astonishment, he invited me to give an address to his people in the synagogue one Thursday morning (being one of their fast days), which invitation was repeated on my return journey from Kiffel. I had many opportunities of selling and distributing Scriptures, and gave away many tracts in the place. At Kiffel, I regret to say, I did not meet with such success, although I was received with the greatest kindness, lodged in one of the best houses, and gratuitously entertained at the expense of the family to whom the house belonged, one of the richest families of Bagdad. On the evening I arrived all the rabbis were invited to meet me at dinner, and I was rather surprised to find that they were drinking freely. When I began talking about religion to them, they said, "This is not a place for serious talk; we come here to enjoy ourselves; the tomb of our holy Prophet gives us such joy and happiness that we indulge in merriment." I saw that I could not talk seriously to them that evening, and joined them at their morning prayers near the tomb. Even there I could not get many to listen to me after the service. It was evident that I could make no impression upon them collectively, but with individuals here and there, I had some serious conversations. Looking back, I believe that some good was done by these visits, as I had several letters afterwards from persons whom I had met there, and whom I supplied with Scriptures and tracts.

Our relations with the Jews became more and more friendly as we visited them in different places, and showed that we had not only a desire to bring them to the truth, but also that we were really and sincerely their friends, by always assisting them against oppression, helping them in the medical mission, and being always ready to correspond for them in any of the European languages which they did not knowand all this even to our own apparent disadvantage.

How astonished was Mr. L., who formed a plan to establish a school in connection with the "Alliance