Woman and her Saviour in Persia

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Laurie, Thomas, 1821-1897
Woman and her Saviour in
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WOMAN AND HER SAYIOUR

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IN PERSIA.

BY

A RETURNED MISSIONARY.

$mt IllustrJifioits, attb a glH|) of gcslonan Coxintrg.

B 0 STON:
GOULD AND LINCOLN,

5 0 Wa s h I n g t 0 y Street.

NEW YORK: SHELDON AND CO^fPANY.

CINCINNATI : GEO. S. BLANCHARD.

1865.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S63. by

GOULD AND LINCOLN,

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.

ELECTR0TT1>EI) AT THE
BOSTON STEREOTYPE FOUNDRY.

PREFACE

Our Saviour bade his disciples gather up the fragments, that
nothing be lost ; and many who have known of Miss Fiske's fifteen
years of labor for woman in Persia, have desired her to prepare
for publication the facts now presented to the reader. The Avriter
was one cf these ; arid it was only when he found that she could
not do it, that he attempted it, in accordance with her wishes,
simply that these interesting records of divine grace might not
be lost.

The materials have been drawn from the letters and conversa-
tions of those familiar with the scenes described, and especially
from Miss Fiske. In all cases, the language of others has been
condensed, as much as is consistent with the truthful expression
of their ideas ; and, in the translation of the letters of Nestorians,
it has not been deemed essential to follow slavishly every Syriac
idiom, for, instead of these letters owing their interest, as some
have supposed, to their translators, they may have sometimes rather
suffered from renderings needlessly idiomatic.

It was at one time proposed to embrace the history of both the

Male and Female Seminaries, but the proposition came too late, and

the memoir of the lamented Stoddard gives so full an account of
1* (v)

VI PREFACE.

the former, that now we need to hear only the story of its less
known companion ; but let the reader bear in mind that as much
might have been said of the one as of the other, had the design
been to give an account of both.

A strict adherence to the order of events in the following pages
would have .produced a series of disjointed annals. To avoid such
a breaking up of the narrative, each subject has been treated in
full whenever introduced, though that has involved a freedom
somewhat independent of chronological order.

The notices of the revivals are mere incidental sketches. Their
complete history remains to be written.

The beautiful Illustrations introduced are all new, copied from
sketches taken on the spot by the skilful pencil of a dear mis-
sionary brother, whose modesty, though it will not consent to the
mention of his name, yet cannot prevent a grateful sense of his
kindness. The Map is an improvement on others previously pub-
lished, and, besides adding to our geographical knowledge, will be
found valuable to the friends of missions.

If the readers of these pages enjoy but a small part of the
delight found in their preparation, the writer will not regret his
undertaking. May the day be hastened when heaven shall repeat
the hosannas of a regenerated world, even as now the abundant
grace bestowed upon the Nestorians redounds, thi'ough the
thanksgiving of many, to the glory of God.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.
WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL.

POLITICAL CONDITION. — NESTORIAN HOUSES. — VERMIN. — SICK-
NESS. POSITION AND ESTIMATION OF WOMAN. NO READERS

AMONG THEM. — UNLOVELY SPIRIT. — SINS OF THE TONGUE. —
PROFANITY. — LYING. — STEALING. — STORY ABOUT PINS. — IM-
PURITY. — MOSLEM INTERFERENCE "WITH SEMINARY .... 13

CHAPTER II.
MARBEESHOO.

VISIT THERE. — NATIVE ACCOMMODATIONS HOSPITALITY OF SE-

NTTM. — MOHAMMEDAN WOMEN 27

CHAPTER III.
THE SCENE OF THE NARRATIVE.

NESTORIANS. — THEIR COUNTRY. — FRONTISPIECE. — LAKE. —
PLAIN. — FORDING THE SHAHER. — MISSION PREMISES IN OROO-
MIAH 33

CHAPTER IV.
MISSIONARY EDUCATION.

OBJECT. — MEANS. — STUDY OF BIBLE. — PUPILS KEPT IN SYMPA-

(Vii)

Vlll CONTENTS.

THY WITH THE PEOPLE. PEOPLE STIMULATED TO EXERTION

AND SELF-DEPENDENCE. — TAHITI. — MADAGASCAR .... 42

CHAPTER V.
BEGINNINGS.

MRS. GRANT. — EARLY LIFE AND LABORS. — GREAT INFLUENCE. —

HER SCHOOL. HER PUPILS. BOARDING SCHOOL. GETTING

PUPILS. CARE OF THEM. POVERTY OF PEOPLE. PAYING

FOR FOOD OF SCHOLARS. — POSITION OF UNMARRIED MISSION-
ARY LADIES. — BOOKS 48

CHAPTER VI.
THE SEMINARY.

MAR YOHANAN. — STANDARD OF SCHOLARSHIP. — ENGLISH BOOKS
READ IN SYRIAC. — EXPENSE. — FEELINGS OF PARENTS. — DO-
MESTIC DEPARTMENT. — DAILY REPORTS. — PICTURE OF A WEEK
DAY AND SABBATH. — << IF YOU LOVE ME, LEAN HARD." — ESLl's
JOURNAL. — LETTER FROM PUPILS TO MOUNT HOLYOKE SEMI-
NARY.— FROM THE SAME TO MRS. C. T. MILLS 57

CHAPTER VII.
VACATION SCENES.

IN GAWAR AND ISHTAZIN. — VILLAGES OF MEMIKAN. — OOREYA,
DARAWE, AND SANAWAR. — IN GAVALAN. — ACCOMMODATIONS.

— SABBATH SCHOOL 73

CHAPTER VIII.
EARLY LABORS FOR WOMEN.

FIRST MEETINGS WITH THEM. — FIRST CONVERT. — FIRST LESSONS.

— WILD WOMEN OF ARDISHAI 81

CONTENTS. iX

CHAPTER IX,
FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES.

USEFULNESS AMONG RELATIVES OF PUriLS. — BEACON GUWERGIS. —
REFORMED DRUNKARD AND HIS DAUGHTER. MATERNAL MEET-
INGS.— EARLY INUUIREllS FROM GEOG TAPA. — PARTING AD-
DRESS OF MR. HOLLADAY. — YISIT TO GEOG TAPA. — SELBY AND
HER CLOSET , 87

CHAPTER X.
GEOG TAPA.

DEACON MURAD KHAN IN 1846. PENTECOSTAL SABBATH IN 1849.

MEETINGS IN 1850 AND 1854. EXTRACTS FROM JOURNAL

OF YONAN IN 1858 103

CHAPTER XI.

REVIVAL IN 1846.

PREPARATORY WORK. — SANCTIFIED AFFLICTIONS. NAME FOE,

REVIVAL. SCENES IN THE SEMINARIES IN JANUARY. DEACON"

JOHN, SANUM, AND SARAH. — MR. STODDARD. YAKOB. — YONAN.

MEETING IN THE BETHEL. PRIEST ESHOO. DEACON TAMO.

PHYSICAL EXCITEMENT AND ITS CURE. ARTLESS SIMPLICITY

OF CONVERTS. MISSIONARY BOX. MEETINGS BEFORE VACA-
TION.— MR. Stoddard's labors. — female prayer meeting.

REVIVAL IN THE AUTUMN 113

CHAPTER XII.
FIRST FRUITS.

SARAH, DAUGHTER OF PRIEST ESHOO. — MARTHA. — HANNAH . . 127

X CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIII.
SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS.

DEACON JOHN STUDYING BACKSLIDING IN 1849. — WORK IN VIL-
LAGE OF SEIR. — WIVES OF SIYAD AND YONAN. — KHANUMJAN.

— WOMEN AT THE SEMINARY. — GEOG TAPA. — DEGALA. — A
PENITENT. — SIN OF ANGER. — REVIVAL IN 1856. — MISS FISKE
ENCOURAGED. — STILLNESS AND DEEP FEELING. — UNABLE TO
SING. — CONVERSION OF MISSIONARY CHILDREN. — VISIT OF ENG-
LISH AMBASSADOR. — REVIVAL OF 1857. — LETTER OF SANUM . 137

CHAPTER XIV.
DARK DAYS.

SEMINARY BROKEN UP IN 1844. — DEACON ISAAC. — PERSECUTION
BY MAR SHIMON. — FUNERAL OF DAUGHTER OF PRIEST ESHOO.

— DEACON GUWERGIS. — ATTEMPT AT ABDUCTION OF PUPIL. —
PERIL OF SCHOOL. — MRS. HARRIET STODDARD. — YAHYA KHAN.

— ANARCHY. — LETTER FROM BABILO 150

CHAPTER XV.

TRIALS.

EVIL INFLUENCE OF HOMES. — OPPOSITION IN DEGALA. — ASKER
KHAN. POISONING OF SANUM's CHILDREN. REDRESS RE-
FUSED.— INQUISITOR IN SCHOOL. — TROUBLES AT KHOSRAWA.

— LETTERS FROM HOIMAR 161

CHAPTER XVI.
PRAYEREULNESS.

LANGUAGE OF PRAYER. — PRAYER ON HORSEBACK. — OLD MAN IN

SUPERGAN. MAR OGEN. EARNESTNESS. FAREWELL PRAYER

MEETING IN 1858 LETTER FROM PUPIL. SPIRIT OF PRAYER

IN 1846. — WOMAN WHO COULD NOT PRAY. — »• CHIilST BECOME

CONTENTS. Xi

BEAUTIFUL." — CLOSET IX THE MAXGER. — MOXTHLY COXCERTS.
— PRAYERFULXESS IX 1849 AXD 1850. — SABBATH, JAXUARY
20th. — IXTEREST COXTIXUEB TILL CLOSE OF TERM. — FAMILY
MEETIXGS. — AUDIBLE PRAYER. — AXSWER TO MOTHERS* PRAY-
ERS.— CONXECTIOX OF REVIVALS WITH PRAYER AT HOME . . 172

CHAPTER XVII.
FORERUNNERS.

MOUXTAIX GIRLS IX SEMIXARY. — PRAYIXG SARAH. — RETURX TO
THE MOUXTAIXS. — VISIT OF YOXAX AXD KHAMIS, IX 1850. —
OF MR. COAX, 1851. — OF YOXAX, AGAIX, 1861. — SARAH's LET-
TERS 191

CHAPTER XVIII.
LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS.

LETTER OF BADAL. — ACCOUXT OF HAXXAH. — THE PIT. — LETTER

OF GULY AXD Y'OHANAN. ACCOUXT OF SARAH. — LETTERS OF

OSHAXA. — LETTERS AND JOURXAL OF SARAH. — LETTER FROM
AMADIA. — COXFEREXCE OF XATIVE HELPERS 205

CHAPTER XIX.
EBENEZERS.

EXAMIXATIOX IX 1850. — COLLATIOX AXD ADDRESS. — VALEDIC-
TORY BY SAXUM. — SABBATH SCHOOL IX GEOG T.APA. — EXAM-
IXATIOX THERE IX 1854. — PRAYER MEETIXG AXD COMMUXIOX .
AT OROOMIAH, MAY, 1858. — SELBY, OF GAVALAX, AXD LETTER.
LETTER FROM HATOOX, OF GEOG TAPA 223

CHAPTER XX.
COMPOSITIONS.

THE FIELD OF CLOVER. — THE LOST SOUL. — THE SAVED SOUL. —

HAXXAH 244

XU CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXI.
KIND OFFICES.

HOSPITALITY OP NESTORIANS. — KINDNESS OF PUPILS. — BATHING

FEET. LETTERS OF GOZEL, HANEE, SANUM OF GAWAR, MUNNY,

RAHEEL, AND MARTA. HOSHEBO. RAHEEL TO MRS. FISKE.

MOURNING FOR THE DEAD. — NAZLOO. — HOSHEBO's BEREAVE-
MENT. — DEATH OF MISSIONARY CHILDREN. — LETTER FROM
SARAH, DAUGHTER OF JOSEPH 263

CHAPTER XXII.
PROGRESS AND PROMISE.

BENEVOLENCE, EARLY MANIFESTATION OF. — PROGRESS. — REVIVAL
OF BENEVOLENCE IN APRIL, 1861. — INTEREST OF PARENTS FOR
THE CONVERSION OF THEIR CHILDREN. — PEACE IN FAMILIES.
— REFORMED MARRIAGES. — ORDINATIONS. — COMMUNION SEA-
SONS.— MISS RICE AND MISS BEACH. — CONCLUSION .... 280

fist 0f |Ihtstniti0ns,

I. PLAIN AND LAKE OF OROOMIAH, AS SEEN FROM ROOF OF

SEMINARY AT SEIR FRONTISPIECE.

II. MAP OF THE NESTOBIAN COUNTRY.

III. FEMALE SEMINARY 37

IV. TENTS 73i

V. MISSIONARY SCENE IN TERGAWER 92

VI. COURT YARD OF SEMINARY 131

VII. SEIR GATE, OROOMIAH 154

Vm. TIARY GIRL 199

TH20L0GIG

WOMAN AND HER SAYIOUR.

CHAPTER I.

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL.

POLITICAL CONDITION. — NESTORIAN HOUSES. — VERMIN. — SICKNESS. —
POSITION AND ESTIMATION OF WOMAN. — NO READERS AMONG THEM.

UNLOVELY SPIRIT. — SINS OF THE TONGUE. PROFANITY. — LYING.

— STEALING. — STORY ABOUT PINS. — IMPURITY. — MOSLEM INTER-
FERENCE WITH SEMINARY.

We love to wander over a well-kept estate. Its green
meadows and fruitful fields delight the eye. Its rij^ening
harvests make us feel as if we too were wealthy. But
while the view of what lies before -us is so pleasant, our
joy is greater if we can remember when it was aU. a
wilderness, and contrast its present beauty with the rough-
ness of its former state.

So, in viewing the wonders of divine grace, we need to
see its results in connection with what has been. We can
appreciate the loveliness of the child of God only as we
compare him with the child of wrath he was before. Paul
not only recounts the great things which God had done
for the early disciples, but bids them remember that they
were once without Christ ; and before he tells them that
God had made them "sit together in heavenly places in
2 (13)

\¥

14 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Clirist Jesus," he reminds them that they had "walked
aec'ordini:^" to the spirit that now Avorketh in tlie ehihh-en
of disobiHlionco/'

III seeking, then, to set forth the great things whieh God
has done for woman in Persia, k^t us first kiok on her as
Iiis gospel found her, tliat we may better appreeiate the
graee whieh wrouglit the change.

We can understand the condition of woman in tliat
empire only as we bear in mind that its government is
despotic, and that no constitutional safeguards shield the
subjects of a thoroughly seltish and profligate nobility.
The Xestorians, too, are marked out alike by religion and
nationality as victims of oppression. However great their
wrongs, they can hope for littlo redress, for a distant court
shares in the plunder taken from them, and believes its own
officials rather than the despised rayahs, whom they oppress.
Even wlien foreign intervention procures some edict in their
favor, these same othcials, in distant Oroomiah, are at no loss
to evatle its demands.

The Nestorian is not allowed a place in the bazaar;^ he
cannot engage in commerce. And in the mechanic arts,
he cannot aspire higher than the position of a mason or
carpenter ; which, of course, is not to be comj^ared to the
standing of the same trades among us. When our mission-
aries Avent to Oroomiah, a decent garment on a Xesto-
rian was safe only as it had an outer covering of rags to
hide it.

In their language, as in Arabic, the missionaries found
no word for home ; and there was no need of it, for the
thing itself was wanting. The house consisted of one
large room, and was generally occupied by several geu-

* The biuaar is, literally, the market, but denotes tlie bxisiness part
of a litv.

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 15

erations. In that one room all the work of the family
was jicrformed. There they ate, and there they slept.
The beds consisted of three articles — a thick conifoilal^le
filled with wool or cotton beneath, a pillow, ajid one heavy
quilt for covering. On rising, they " took up their beds," and
I^iled them on a wooden fi'anie, and sj)read them down
again at night. The room was hghted by an opening in
the roof, which also served for a chimney ; though, of
course, in a very imperfect manner, as the inside of every
dwelling that has stood for any length of time bears wit-
ness. The upper part of the walls and the under surface
of the roof — we can. hardly call it ceiling — fairly glitter,
as though they had been painted black and varnished, and
every article of clothing, book, or household utensil, is sat-
urated with the smell of creosote. The floor, like the
walls, is of earth, covered in ])uit with coarse straw mats
and pieces of carpeting ; and the Hat roof, of the same ma-
terial, rests on a layer of sticks, supported by large beams ;
the mass above, however, often sifts through, and some-
times during a heavy rain assumes the form of a shower of
mud. Bad as all this may seem, the houses are still worse
in the mountain districts, such as Gawar. There they are
half under ground, made of cobble stones laid up against
the slanting sides of the excavation, and covered by a
conical roof with a hole in the centre. They contain, be-
sides the family, all the implements of husbandry, the cattle,
and the flocks. These last occupy "the sides of the house"
(1 Sam. xxiv. 3), and stand facing the "decana," or raised
place in the centre, which is devoted to the family. As
wood is scarce in the mountains, and the climate severe, the
animal heat of the cattle is a substitute for fuel, except as
sun-baked cakes of manure are used once a day for cook-
ing, as is the practice also on the plain. In such houses

16 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

the buffaloes sometimes break loose and fight fmiously,
and instances are not rare when they knock down the
posts on which the roof rests, and thus bury all in one
common ruin.

The influence of such family arrangements, even in the
more favored villages of the plain, on manners and morality,
need not be told. It is equally evident that in such cir-
cumstances personal tidiness is impossible, though few in
our favored land have any idea of the extent of such un-
tidiness. If the truth must be told, vermin abound in
most of these houses; the inmates are covered not only
with fleas, but from head to foot they are infested with the
third plague of Egypt. (Ex. viii. 16-19). This last is a con-
stant annoyance in many parts of Turkey as well as Persia.
If one lodges in the native houses, there is no refuge from
them, and only an entire change of clothing aflfords relief
when he returns to his own home ; even there the divans
have to be sedulously examined after the departure of
visitors, that the j^lague do not spread. The writer has
known daughters of New England, ready for almost any
self-denial, burst into tears when first brought into contact
Avith this.

At first, the teachers of the Female Seminary in Oroo-
miah had to cleanse their pupils very thoroughly, and were
glad thus to purify the outside, while beseeching Christ to
cleanse the heart. Each one, on lier first arrival, had to be
separately cared for, lest the enemy should recover ground
from which he had already been driven with much labor.
Missionary publications do not usually tell of such trials,
but those who drew the lambs from the deep j^it, loved
them all the more tenderly for having gone down into it
themselves, that thence they might bring them to Jesus.
Such trials are less common now, for it is generally under-

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 17

stood that a degree of personal cleanliness is an indispen-
sable requisite for admission to tlie Seminary ; but such a
demand, at that time, would have rendered the commence-
ment of the school impossible.

The pupils became much improved in j^ersonal appear-
ance, and some of their simple-hearted mothers really-
thought their children had grown very pretty under their
teachers' care. So, as many of them were strangers to the
cleansing properties of water, they would ask again and
again, "How do you make them so white ?"

But if such houses were comfortless abodes for those in
health, what were they for the sick ? Think of one in a
burning fever, perhaps delirious, lying in such a crowd. In
winter, there they must remain, for there is no other place,
and in summer, they are often laid under a tree in the day
time, and carried up to the flat roof, with the rest of the
family, at night.

Dr. Perkins, in the early part of his missionary life, tells
us that in a village the family room was given up to him
for the night, and in the morning he found a little son had
been born in the stable. He supposed that he had been
the unwitting cause of such an event occurring there ; but
longer acquaintance with the jDCople shows that woman
almost invariably resorts to that place in her hour of
sorrow, and there she often dies. The number who meet
death in this form is very large.

In Persia, as in other unevangelized countries, women
spend their days in out-door labor. They weed the cotton,
and assist in pruning the vines and gathering the grapes.
They go forth in the morning, bearing not only their imple-
ments of husbandry, but also their babes in the cradle ; and
returning in the evening, they prepare their husband's sup-
per, and set it before him, but never think of eating them-
2 *

18 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOITR.

selves till after he is done. One of the early objections the
Kestorians made to the Female Seminary was, that it
would disqualify their daugliters for their accustomed toil.
In after years, woman might be seen carrying her si3elling-
book to the field, along with her Persian hoe, little dream-
ing that she was thus taking the first step towards the
substitution of the new implement for the old.

Nestorian parents used to consider the birth of a daugh-
ter a great calamity. When asked the number of their
children, they would count up their sons, and make no
mention of their daughters. The birth of a son was an
occasion for great joy and giving of gifts. Neighbors
hastened to congratulate the happy father, but days might
elapse before the neighborhood knew of the birth of a
daughter. It was deemed highly improper to inquire after
the health of a wife, and the nearest approach to it was to
ask after the welfare of the house or household. Formerly,
a man never called his wife by name, but in speaking of
her would say, "the mother of so and so," giving the name
of her child ; or, " the daughter of so and so," giving the
name of her fatlier ; or, simply "that woman" did this or
that. Nor did the wife presume to call her husband's
name, or to address him in the presence of his parents,
who, it will be borne in mind, lived in the same ajDartment.
They were married very young, often at the age of four-
teen, and without any consultation of their own preference,
either as to time or person.

There was hardly a man among the Nestorians who did
not beat his wife. The w^omen expected to be beaten, and
took it as a matter of course. As the wife lived with the
husband's father, it was not uncommon for him to beat
both son and daughter-in-law. When the men wished to
talk together of any thing important, they usually sent the

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 19

women out of doors or to the stable, as unable to under-
stand, or unfit to be trusted. In some cases, this might be
a necessary precaution ; for the absence of true aifection,
and the frequency of domestic broils, rendered the wife an
unsafe depositary of any important family affair. The
same causes often led the wife to appropriate to her own
foolish gratification any money of her husband she could
lay hands on, regardless of fimily necessities. Women
whose tastes led them to load themselves with beads,
silver, baser metal, and rude trinkets, would not be likely
to expend money very judiciously.

In 1835, the only Nestorian woman that knew how to
read was Heleneh, the sister of Mar Shimon ; and when
others were asked if they would not like to learn, with a
significant shrug they would reply, " I am a woman."
They had themselves no more desire to learn than the
men had to have them taught. Indeed, the very idea of
a woman reading was regarded as an infringement of
female modesty and propriety.

It is a little curious, and shows how we adapt ourselves
to our situation, that the women were as unwilling to re-
ceive attention from their husbands as they were to render
it. Several years after the anival of Miss Fiske in Oroo-
miah, the wife of one of her assistants visited the Seminary,
and on leaving to return to her village, the teacher, in the
kindness of her heart, proposed to the husband to go and
assist her to carry the child. She seemed as if she had
been insulted in being thought unable to carry it, and sent
her husband back from the door in any thing but a gra-
cious mood, leaving the good teacher half bewildered and
half amused at this reception of her intended kindness.

Indeed, until some of them were converted, all that was
lovely and of good report in woman was entirely wanting.

20 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

They were trodden down, but at the same time exceed-
ingly defiant and imperious. If they were not the "head,"
it was not because they did not " strive for the mastery."
They seemed to have no idea of self-control ; their bursts
of passion were awful. The number of women who rev-
erenced their husbands was as small as the list of husbands
who did not beat their wives. Says Miss Fiske, in writing
to a friend, " I felt j)ity for my poor sisters before going
among them, but anguish when, from actual contact with
them, I realized how very low they were. I did not want
to leave them, but I did ask, Can the image of Christ evei-
be reflected from such hearts ? They would come and tell
me their troubles, and fall down at my feet, begging me to
deliver them from their husbands. They would say, ' You
are sent by our holy mother, Mary, to help us;' and do not
think me hard-hearted when I tell you that I often said to
them, ' Loose your hold of my feet ; I did not come to
deliver you from your husbands, but to show you how to
be so good that you can be haj^py with them.' T^eeping,
they would say, ' Have mercy on us ; if not, we must kill
ourselves.' I had no fear of their doing that, so I would
seat them at my side, and tell them of my own dear father,
— how good he was; but he was always obeyed. They
would say, ' We could obey a good man.' ' But I am very
sure you would not have been willing to obey my father.'

" It is one thing to pray for our degraded sisters while in
America, but quite another to raise them from their low
estate. When I saw their true character, I found that I
needed a purer, holier love for them than I had ever pos-
sessed. It was good for me to see that 7" could do nothing,
and it was comforting to think that Jesus had talked with
just such females as composed the mass around me, and
that afterwards many believed because of one such woman."

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 21

Sometimes the revilings of the women were almost
equalled by similar talk among the men, as in a village
of Gawar, where they said, " We would not receive a jjriest
or deacon here who could not swear well, and lie too." In
the same village, a young man spoke favorably of Mr.
Coan's preaching in Jeloo. Instantly a woman called out,
" And have you heard those deceivers preach ? " " Yes,"
was the reply, " both last year and this, and hope I shall
again." Hearing this, her eyes flashed, and drawing her
brawny arms into the form of a dagger, with a vengeful
thrust of her imaginary weapon, she cried, " The blood of
thy father smite thee, thou Satan ! " and dreadful was the
volley of oaths and curses that followed. Yet she was
only a fair specimen of the village.

We of the calmer West do not know what it is to have
a mob of such women come forth in their wrath. In one
town was a virago, who often, single-handed, faced down
and drove off Moslem tax-gatherers when the men fled in
terror. N"o one who has ever heard the stinging shrillness
of their tongues, or looked on their frenzied gestures, can
ever forget them, or wonder why the ancients painted the
Furies in the form of women. Words cannot portray the
excitement of such a scene. The hair of the frantic actors
is streaming in the wind ; stones and clods seem only em-
bodiments of the unearthly yells and shrieks that fill the
air; and yet it was such beings that grace made to be
"last at the cross and first at the sepulchre."

The East is notorious for profanity, and among the Xes-
torians women were as profane as men. The pupils in the
Seminary at first used to swear, and use the vilest language
on the slightest provocation. Poor, blind Martha, on her
death bed, in her own father's house, wasysonstantly cursed
and reviled. She was obliged sometimes to cover her head

22 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

with the quilt, and stop her ears, to secure an opportunity
to pray for her profane and abusive brother; and though,
in such circumstances, she died before her prayers were
answered, yet they were heard, for he afterwards learned
to serve his sister's God. "Do you think j^eople will be-
lieve me," said a pupil to her teacher, who was reproving
her for profanity, " if I do not repeat the name of God very
often?"

Lying was almost as common as profanity, and stealing
quite as prevalent as either. It was a frequent remark,
" We all lie here ; do you think we could succeed in busi-
ness without it ? "

In the early days of the Seminary, nothing was safe ex-
cept under lock and key. Sometimes there seemed to be a
dawn of imi^rovement, and next, all the buttons would be
missing from the week's washing, and the teacher was
pretty sure to find that her own pupils were the thieves.
Miss Rice tells of one, amjDly supplied with every thing by
her parents, yet noted for her thefts. Indeed, sons and
daughters were alike trained to such practices. In 1843,
Miss Fiske could not keep a pin in her pin-cushion ; little
fingers took them as often as she turned away, and lest she
should tempt them to lie, she avoided questioning them,
unless her own eye had seen the theft. No wonder she
wrote, " I feel very weak, and were it not that Christ has
loved these souls, I should be discouraged; but he has
loved them, and he loves them still." If the pins were
found with the pupils, the answer was ready — " We
found them," or, " You gave them to us ; " and nothing
could be proved. But one summer evening, just before
the pupils were to pass through her room to their beds on
the flat roof, kn(%wing that none of that color could be
obtained elsewhere, the teacher put six black pins in her

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 23

cushion, and stepped out till they had passed. As soon as
they were gone, she found the pins gone too, and at once
called them back. She told them of her loss, but none
knew any thing about it. She showed them that no one
else had been there, and therefore they must know. Six
paii*s of little hands were lifted up, as they said, " God
know^s we have not got them;" but this only called forth
the reply, " I think that God know^s you have got them,"
and she searched each one carefully, without finding them.
She then proposed to kneel down where they stood, and ask
God to show where they were, adding, " He may not see
it best to show me now, but he will do it some time." She
hiid the matter before the Lord, and, just as they rose from
their knees, remembered that she had not examined their
cloth caps. She now proposed to examine them, and one
pair of hands went right up to her cap. Of course she
w\as searched first, and there were the six pins, so nicely
concealed in its folds that nothing was visible but their
heads. This incident did much good. The pupils looked
on the discovery as an answer to prayer, and so did their
teacher. They began to be afraid to steal when God so
exposed their thefts, and she was thankful for an answer so
immediate. The oifender is now a pious, useful Avoman.

Yet some w^ere so accustomed to falsehood, that, even
after conversion, it cost a struggle to be entirely truthful,
and missionaries could see, as Christians in our own land
cannot see, wdiy an apostle should write to the regenerate,
"Lie not one to another." The teacher labored to impress
her charge with the sinfulness of such con<]uct, but in the
revival of 1846, tliey seemed to learn more in one hour
than she had taught them in the two years preceding.
Yet that faithful instruction was not lost. It wns the fuel
which the Spirit of God kindled into a flame. The sow^er

24 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

has not labored in vain because the seed lies for days buried
in the soil.

In that revival, the awakened hastened to restore what
they had stolen. One came to Miss Fiske in great distress,
saying, " Do you remember the day, two years ago, when
Sawdee's new shoes were taken from the door?" — They
leave off their shoes on entering a house. — " Yes, I recol-
lect it." . " You thought a Moslem woman stole them, but "
— and here her feelings overcame her — "I took them, for
I was angry with her, and threw them into a well. What
shall I do ? I know Christ will not receive me till I have
confessed it to her. Can I go and confess it to-night, and
pray with her, and then may I go and work for money to
replace them?" She paid for the shoes, and became a
bright light in her dark home. There were many such
cases, and from that time the teachers had little trouble
fi'om theft. New pupils would sometimes steal, but the
older ones were ready to detect them, and show them a
more excellent way. Miss Fiske says of this, "The fre-
quent visits of the Holy Spirit have removed an evil which
mocked my efforts. God made me feel my utter helpless-
ness, and then he did the work." That same term there
was but one case of theft in the Male Seminary, though
formerly it was not infrequent there.

In reference to transgressions of the seventh command-
ment, much detail is not expedient. It is sufficient to say,
that the first impressions of earlier missionaries respecting
the purity of Nestorian women were not sustained by sub-
sequent acquaintance. The farther they went beneath the
surface of things, the more they found of corruption. One
might go to Persia supposing that he knew a good deal of
the degradation of the people, and yet really know very
little of the pit into Avhich he was descending.

WOMAN WITHOUT THE GOSPEL. 25

A seminary gathering together such a company of young
females, was a new thing in Persia, and it will readily be
conceived that amid a Mohammedan community it Avas an
object of peculiar solicitude to its guardians. Many a
Moslem eye was on those girls, as the results of a religious
education appeared in their manners, their dress, and per-
sonal beauty. In one instance, an officer of government
attempted to take one of them to his harem, but God
thwarted his purpose through the interference of the
English consul. Similar dangers threatened from other
sources, and eternity alone will reveal the burden of care
and watchfulness they involved. If only one pupil had
been led astray, what a hopeless loss of confidence Tvould
have followed among the people ! In the early years of the
institution, when parents could hardly be persuaded to
trust their daughters out of their sight for a single night,
it might have broken up the whole enterprise ; but in this
matter, also, God showed himself the hearer of prayer, and
not one danger of the kind was ever allowed to be more
than an occasion for renewed intercession, and more con-
fiding dependence on his gracious care. Sometimes, in
vacation, it seemed strange to its guardians that they had
no longer a fold to protect, and could retire to rest free
from that anxious solicitude that sometimes drove sleep
from their eyes.

It is not in the beginning of missionary life that all these
things are understood : they are learned gradually. This
is wisely ordered, that the missionary be not discouraged
at the outset. Strength is given each day to meet new
trials as they come, and it would not be leaving a truthful
impression on the reader, if, at the close of this description
of what has been, it should not be recorded, to the praise
of divine grace, that a great change has taken place.
3

26 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

There are many to-day to whom the missionary may say,
"Such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are
sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus,
and by the Spirit of our God." Not only do some who
stole steal no more, but many young husbands now provide
separate apartments for the bride whom they bring home,
and they need all that the word "home" expresses to de-
scribe their mutual joy. The hour of suffering is antici-
pated by a considerate affection, and that affection is so
reciprocated that many hearts safely trust in the daughters
of the Female Seminary of Oroomiah.

It is not merely education that has wrought this change,
but a Bible education. Paul cared for just such converts,
and left divine teachings for the use of those who should
come after him in the same work. As a young wife said to
her teacher one day, after she had been talking with her
about her new duties, "I thank you; you are right. I am
glad that you have told me what Paul says, and I think
that God has told you the same thing." Many a graduate
might say, with another, "I thank you for your instructions,
and as I look on the trials of ungodly families, every drop
of my blood thanks you."

CHAPTEE II.

MAEBEESHOO.

VISIT THERE. — NATIVE ACCOMMODATIONS. — HOSPITALITY OF SENUM.
MOHAMMEDAN WOMEN.

The followiDg account of Miss Fiske's visit to Marbee-
shoo, in November, 1847, presents a vivid picture of things
as they were, and the Christian thoughtfulness of one who
had learned a more excellent way : —

" As we sat at dinner a few days since, Mr. Stocking pro-
posed that I spend the Sabbath with him at Marbeeshoo.
I said at once, ' I cannot leave my school.' But he forth-
with called Sanum, Sarah, and Moressa, my oldest girls,
and asked them if they did not love souls in Marbeeshoo
well enough to take good care of school, and let me be
absent till Tuesday. They were delighted to think of my
going where no missionary lady had ever been, and said,
' We will do all we can for the girls, and we will pray for
you, if you will only go and try to do those poor women
good.' It was hardly two o'clock before we were on
horseback. Marbeeshoo is about fifty miles from us, and
in Turkey. Two years ago it was said 'no lady should
try to go there,' but brother Stocking thought not so now ;
and I was willing to follow where he led, esi^ecially as a
former pupil had recently settled there. We must be out
over night, but we thought best not to spend it in a tent,
on account of the cold. Near sunset we came to Mawana,

(27)

28 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

a village of mud huts. We went to the house of the head
man, who joyfully welcomed us to his house. It consisted
of a single low room, inhabited by at least a score of men,
women, and children. They came in one by one, but
already the hens had found their resting place, evidently
no strangers there. Several lambs had been brought into
their corner, and three or four calves, each had his couch of
grass. Our horses had been arranged for the night on the
other side of a partition wall, some three feet high. When
all were within, the coarse bread and sour milk were
brought out for supper. Then Mr. Stocking read from the
Bible, and talked, and prayed with the numerous family,
and the women sat around me, while I tried to do them
good, till about ten o'clock. At that time, the mother of
the family rose, saying, * Now we will settle it.' I listened
to hear the settlement of some family quarrel, but to my
surprise her meaning was, *We will settle where to lie
down for the night;' and as I looked over the room I
thought, surely some little skill in settling is needed, if we
are all to sleep here. But soon she took out three of the
children to an empty manger, where she put new hay, and
quickly settled them ; they were covered with an old rug,
and at once fell fast asleep. She then returned, saying,
'Now there is room for our guests,' and brought a piece
of cotton cloth, whict she said was all for me. In a short
time, one and another was fast asleep. They lay on mats,
without either bed or pillow, and the divers breathing or
snoring of men, and calves, and lambs was soon heard, all
mingled together.

" I found myself sitting alone with the old lady, and so,
putting my carpet bag under my head, and drawing my
shawl about me, I lay down too. This was a signal for^
extinguishing the light ; but before that, I had marked a

MARBEESHOO. 29

road, where I thought I might possibly pass out between
the sleepers should I need fresh air. There was no sleep
forme; and the swarms of fleas made me so uncomfortable,
that before midnight I found my way out, and remained as
long as the cold air of that November night allowed, and
so passed out and in several times during the night. I
watched long for the morning, and at length it came, and
the sleepers, one by one, arose. They all hoped I had
slept well, and I could not tell them I had not, for they
had given me the best they had, and told me again and
again how glad they were that I had come, and hoped
their house would always be mine when I came that way.
There was a proposal for breakfast, but the morning was so
fine that I suggested to Mr. Stocking that a carpet bag
sometimes furnished a very good breakfast.

"We did enjoy that ride very much after a sleepless
night. • The road was often only a narrow path on the edge
of a precipice, and such as I had never passed over before ;
but I thanked my God at every step for the pure, fi-esh air of
those mountains. As we approached the village, hid away
among the cliffs, and in such a narrow spot that houses
were placed one above another on the terraced hill-side,
one of our attendants insisted on riding forward, and we
were not greatly surprised to find a crowd ready to wel-
come us. One and another cried out, ' Senum wants you
to go to Zechariah's.' So to Zechariah's w^e went, and
there was ray pupil, waiting with open arms to receive me.
She took me from my horse, exclaiming, ' Is it true that
you have come ? I have heard where you staid last night,
and I know you did not sleep at all. Come right into my
roorn ; there are no fleas here ; I have a bed that is clean,
that I keep for the missionaries. I wdll spread it for you,
and you shall sleep before any body comes to see you.'

30 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

The bed was spread ; she gave me milk to drink (Judg.
iv. 19), and then said, ' I will guard the door so no
one shall distm-b yon, and I will wake you for dinner.'
I was soon asleep, and slept two long hours before she
woke me.

"When she did, she came with her tray in her hand,
where was the freshly baked bread, the nicely cooked little
fish, which, she said, 'my husband caught expressly for
you and Mr. Stocking,' honey from their own hives, miik
from their flock, and other simple refreshments. All was
neatly prepared, and we were so thankful for the dear child's
attentions! When dinner was over, she said, 'Now I want
you to see the women ; but they must not come here, for
they will leave fleas, and you will not be able to sleep to-
night. There is another large room the other side, and we
will have meeting there this afternoon,'

"About three o'clock I met there more than one hun-
dred poor women, who of course must ask many questions
before their curiosity would be satisfied. They finally
became quiet, however, and I could tell them of the
Saviour, who had loved to teach just such needy ones as
they were. I enjoyed the afternoon very much ; it was all
the more precious for the discomforts of the night, and the
comforts of Senum's house. The next day was the Sab-
bath, and most of the time I was in the * large room,'
where the women came freely. In the afternoon about
three hundred were present. I was weary at night, but
Senum's care, with the thought of the privilege of meeting
so many who had never before heard of Christ as the only
Saviour, made me forget it all."

Painful as is this view of woman as she was among the
Nestorians, her condition was still worse among the Mo-
hammedans ; not, indeed, in matters of outward comfort,

MARBEESHOO. 31

for the wealth of Persia is in Moslem hands, and they
occupy every position of rank or authority in the land.
But in all that pertains to morality and religion, they
stand on a lower level.

The Nestorian woman may not have known what was
contained in the Bible, yet she knew that it was the word
of God, and was ready to receive all its teachings as of
divine authority. To her Moslem sister it is not only an
unknown book, but one she is taught to regard as super-
seded by the Koran.

Although the ISTestorian woman knew nothing of spirit-
ual worship, yet she regarded the Lord's day as set apart
for his service. The Moslem, on the other hand, regards
it like any other day of the week, and exalts her Friday
to the place that of right belongs to the Sabbath of the
Lord.

In all her degradation, the N'estorian woman reverenced
the name of Jesus as her God. True, she had no correct
idea of salvation or redeeming love ; yet even a blind
attachment to that sacred name is not without its reward.
She may have fallen very low, but there was a power even
in her ignorant adherence to Christ, that kept her from
falling to the level of those who renounced him for the
Arabian impostor. This was seen especially in the bless-
ings that came to her through the institution of Christian
marriage, while others groaned under the debasing in-
fluence of a sensual polygamy. The wretchedness this
occasioned is a topic too large and too painful to dwell
upon here. But the wide gulf that separated the two
classes was clearly seen, when on her Sabbath the mis-
sionary could speak to the Nestorian of her Saviour
out of her Bible, while the Moslem knows nothing be-

32 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

yond her kohl and her henna,^ her dresses and her
follies, and other topics at once belittling, debasing, and
corrupting.

* Kohl is a black powder used to paint the eyebrows and eye-
lashes. Henna is a plant employed to stain the nails, and sometimes
the entire hand and part of the foot, of a dark orange hue.

CHAPTER III.

THE SCENE OF THE NARRATIVE.

NESTORIANS. — THEIR COUNTRY. — FRONTISPIECE. — LAKE. — PLAIN. —
FORDING THE SHAHER. — MISSION PREMISES IN OROOMIAH.

We will now glance at the scene of the events to be
narrated, as it may not be familiar to every reader. To
write of woman in Persia would embrace the whole empire
as the field of inquiry; for the existence of woman is co-
extensive with the population. But "Woman and her
Saviour in Persia " confines our attention to those who
have been taught the truth as it is in Jesus; for when
Christ sent forth Paul to preach his gospel to the Gentiles,
it was that they might receive forgiveness of sins, and
inheritance among them who are sanctified by faith that is
in him ; and how shall they believe in him of whom they
have not heard? Our theme, then, confines us to the
Nestorians, who number about one hundred thousand souls.
About two thirds of these live in Turkey ; but the follow-
ing pages relate principally to those residing in Persia, and
hence the title of the A^olume.

This people inhabit, along with Koords and other races,
the territory extending from the western shore of the Lake
of Oroomiah to the eastern bank of the Tigris. It includes
the Persian province of Oroomiah, and both the eastern
and western slope of Central Koordistan. The most inac-
cessible recesses of the Koordish Mountains have been

(33)

34 WOMAN AND HEll SAVIOUR.

their refuge for centuries. The whole region extends across
four degrees of longitude, with a varying breadth of from
one to two degrees of latitude. Attention will be called
especially to the city of Oroomiah and the villages around it.
The plain of that name is seventy-five miles long and from
twelve to twenty miles in width, containing more than
a thousand square miles. It is dotted with perhaps three
hundred villages, the population varying, according to the
size of the village, from less than one hundred to more
than a thousand inhabitants.

The frontispiece gives a view of this plain, from the roof
of the mission premises at Seir, one thousand feet above
the city. The lofty Wolf mountain appears on the right,
and the high range west of the narrowest part of the lake
on the left. The lake itself is seen beyond the plain at
the foot of the mountains which rise abruptly from its
eastern shore. The distance makes it seem much narrower
than, it is, for while one hundred miles in length, it is not
far from thirty miles in breadth. Its surface is forty-one
hundred feet above the sea, and four hundred feet below
the city of Oroomiah. No living thing exists in its waters,
which are both salt and bituminous.

The plain is more croAvded with villages than here rep-
resented, and each one is made conspicuous by its grove
of trees, as well as its houses. The city appears prominent
at the foot of the hill, though six miles distant from the
spectator. It is in the same latitude with Richmond,
Virginia, and contains about thirty-five thousand souls.
The plain slopes up very gradually from the lake, and
Mount Seir rises, behind our point of view, two thousand
eight hundred and thirty-four feet above the city. Farther
west, the summits of Central Koordistan rise, range above
range, to the height of seventeen thousand feet.

THE SCENE OF THE NARRATIVE. 35

We pass down from Seir to the city by a carriage road,
now by the side of vineyards, and now near fields of wheat
and clover, diversified by orchards and gardens of cucum-
bers. All of these, and indeed the whole plain, owes its
fertility to canals, led out from the rivers which descend
from the mountains. Willow, poplar, and sycamore trees
line these watercourses. All kinds of fruit trees abound,
while the rich verdure of the j^lain contrasts strikingly
with the bare declivities that overlook it from every side.
The villages on either hand are clusters of mud houses
crowded together for greater security, and every tree in
their groves has to be watered as regularly as the fields
and gardens.

Before reaching the city we must ford the Shaher, a
jriver that, though fi'equently all drained off into the fields
fia. summer, is very deep in early spring, when fatal acci-
dents sometimes occur. It was here that, in May, 1846,
Miss Fiske narrowly escaped a watery grave. On her way
to Seir, with Mr. and Mrs. Stoddard, the horse lay down in
the middle of the river, leaving her to be swept off by the
rapid current. Mr. Stoddard hastened to the rescue ; but
the moment his steed was loose, he rushed to attack the
horse of Mrs. Stoddard, and, as Miss Fiske rose to the sur-
face, she caught a glimpse of Mr. Stoddard looking back
on the battle, and his wife held between the combatants by
her riding habit, which had caught on the saddle; but
while she looked the dress gave way, and Mrs. Stoddard
was safe. She herself had sufiicient presence of mind not
to breathe under water, and, on coming up for the fifth
time,' floated into shallow water near the opposite shore,
forty rods below the ford, just as Mr. Stoddard reached the
same point.

From the river, beautiful orchards line the road on both

36 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

sides to the city gate, of which a representation is given on
page 154 ; and about one eighth of a mile inside of that,
where the ISTestorian and Moslem sections of the city join
each other, stand the mission premises, built of sun-dried
bricks, like the houses around them.

They occupy a little more than an acre, in the form of a
parallelogram; and if, foi* the sake of clearness, we compare
it to a window, the bottom of the lower sash is represented
by a long, earthen-roofed structure, half of it a dwelling
house, once the home of Dr. Grant, but now the dwelling
of Dr. Wright. It is the building on the left of the en-
graving at page 131, and the round object occupying the
nearest window in the second story is a clock, the gift of
a well-known merchant of Boston, brother of one of our
deceased missionaries. Let our lower sash be filled by two
large panes in modern style, and these are represented by
two courts surrounded by pavements, and shaded by large
sycamore trees. In the engraving just referred to, the
spectator stands in one of these courts, looking over a low
wall into the other. For the top of the lower sash, we have
another building, extending across the premises. The left
half of this appearing on page 131, behind the trees, and on
the opposite j^age represented without them, was the first
home of Dr. Perkins, and is now the Female Seminary ;
but repeated additions and modifications have been re-
quired 'to transform a building, originally erected for a
private residence, into a structure suitable for such a
school.

Miss Fiske first taught in one room of a building to the
right, which does not appear in the engraving, though a
part of it is seen on page 131 ; then, as the school grew
larger, another room was added, and when those quarters
became too strait, this building was remodelled for its use.

THE SCENE OF THE NARRATIVE. 39

As we shall have a good deal to do with the Seminary
in these pages, let us become familiar with its home. Be-
tween the central door and the one on the left, those three
windows belong to a large room once used as a chapel,
but since then as a guest room for the accommodation
of the women whom we shall see coming here to learn of
Jesus. In this room, Nestorian converts first partook of
the Lord's supper with the missionaries. The left of the
three windows directly over these, with the rose-bush in
it, belongs to Miss Fiske's private room, and the other
two to her sitting room. This the pupils have named
" The Bethel," and it is so connected that the teacher can
step into recitation room, dining room, or kitchen, as occa-
sion requires. The last named apartment is on the rear
of the building. The largest recitation room, by a curious
necessity, is in the form of a carpenter's wooden square,
with the teacher's desk in the angle between the two com-
partments. One of these is on the back side of the build-
ing, out of sight ; the other, extending across the end, is
represented in front by the window at the extreme left.

Over the central door is, first, the steward's room, a^id
then closets over that ; for one of the results of the succes-
sive alterations and additions is, that parts of the building
are two, and other parts three, stories high. Miss Rice's
room is directly over the door on the left hand, as the stew-
ard's is here. The three windows in the second story, to
the right of the two central closets, open into the dining
room, and one of the girls' rooms occupies the corner be-
yond. On the lower floor, going from the central door to
the right, is first a closet, and then a large guest room for
visitors ; and underneath the whole is the cellar where the
boys' school was first taught, that has since grown into the
Male Seminary at Seir.

40 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

The rooms of the pupils are mostly in the rear. These
are large enough to accommodate six or eight occupants,
as the Oriental style of living does not require so much
furniture as ours. In each room is a member of the senior
class, who exercises a kind supervision over her younger
companions. Every room has two or more closets, de-
signed especially, but not exclusively, for devotion ; and
some sleep in the recitation rooms, as such a use of them at
night does not interfere with other uses during the day.

But we had almost forgotten our imaginary window, the
upper sash of which remains to be described. In that we
have only one pane, representing a large court, with the
chapel on one side, and the wash rooms and other out-
buildings of the Seminary on the other. This court is
more garden-like than the other two, has fewer trees, and a
long arbor, covered with grape vines, forms a covered walk
in the middle of it. It was in this arbor that the tables
were spread for the collation in 1850, to be described
hereafter. This court is invaluable as a place for out-door
exercise, where the pupils may enjoy the fresh air, free
from the annoyances and exposures of the streets in an
Oriental city.

A stream is led through all these courts in a channel
lined with stone. Its murmuring waters are a pleasant
sound at early dawn, when they mingle sweetly with the
morning song of birds. Here many Nestorian women
come to fill their earthen pitchers, as the water is not car-
ried through the courts of Christian houses. The mission
premises belonged to Mohammedans; and here, in the shade
of the tall sycamores, Mrs. Grant used to sit, with her chil-
dren, and talk with the women who came for water. Her
successors find time to continue the same practice, and as
the natives let down their pitchers (Gen. xxiv. 18), and

THE SCENE OF THE NARRATIVE. 41

now and then one is broken (Eccles. xii. 6), realize that
they live in a Bible land, and seek to make its daughters
feel the power of Bible truth.

The Seminary is outwardly very humble, and would
contrast very unfavorably with the stately edifices of sim-
ilar institutions at home. But we shall see that the Saviour
has not disdained to honor it with his presence, and its
earthen floors and mud walls ^ have witnessed many a
gracious visit of the Holy Spirit. Though the glory of
Lebanon has not come unto it, yet has God himself beauti-
fied the place and made it glorious..

^ The pilasters in the engraving are made of brick, and not only
support the large timbers of the roof, but, by their greater projec-
tion, protect the softer material of the wall from the weather. The
whole is plastered outside with a mixture of lime and clay, that
requires frequent renewal.
4*

CHAPTEE IV.

MISSIONARY EDUCATION.

OBJECT. — MEANS. — STUDY OF BIBLE. — PUPILS KEPT IN SYMPATHY WITH
THE PEOPLE. — PEOPLE STIMULATED TO EXERTION AND SELF-DEPEN-
DENCE. — TAHITI. — MADAGASCAR.

Let us now look at some of the principles on which
missionary education was here carried on, that we may see
what kind of an instrumentality God was pleased to crown
with his blessing.

The Seminary was founded, not to polish the manners,
refine the taste, or impart accomplishments, but to renovate
the character by a permanent inward change. The main
dependence for bringing this about was the power of the
Holy Ghost — the only power that can impart or maintain
spiritual life in man. This dependence was expressed in
fervent prayer, offered for years amid discouragement and
opposition, and, instead of ceasing when an answer came,
only offered by a greater number. It is worthy of note
that some of the seasons of greatest revival were preceded
by disasters that threatened the very existence of the
mission.

The principal text book was the word of God ; partly,
as we sliall see, through a providential necessity, but
chiefly because it was God's own chosen instrumentality
for the salvation of our race ; and it was eminently
adapted for the education of such a peoj^le. The teachers

(42)

MISSIONARY EDUCATION. 43

jDOuld say, with a beloved co-laborer on Mount Lebanon,
" To the Scriptures we give increased attention ; they do
more to unfold and expand the intellectual powers, and
to create careful and honest thinkers, than all the sciences
we teach." It is also most efficient in freeing mind and
heart from those erroneous views that are opposed to
its teachings ; and actual trial developed a richness and
fulness of practical adaptation to the work that aston-
ished even those w^ho already knew something of its
value. Its precepts and instructions were also clothed with
power : requirements and counsels which from the mis-
sionary had only awakened opposition, coming from the
Bible were received as messages from heaven. Said a
Nestorian to a missionary who had been speaking to him
the words of God, " His words grew very beautiful while
we were talking." In reference to every suspicious novelty
or distasteful duty, the Bible was the ultimate appeal.
The missionary could say to them as Paul did to an early
church, " When ye received the word of God, which ye
heard of us, ye received it not as the word of man, but, as
it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh
also in you that believe." Besides, those thus educated
were to teach others, and needed to be thoroughly furnished
from the divine oracles with the truths they were to im-
part. It is not strange, then, that in the Seminary the
Bible was studied both doctrinally and historically; that
they had a system of theology and tables of Scripture
chronology ; that biblical biography and geography were
regular studies ; that different portions of Scripture occupied
different years ; and that, instead of Butler's Analogy and
Wayland's Moral Science, were the Epistles to the Romans
and Hebrews studied with all the accurate analysis and
thoroughness bestowed elsewhere upon the classics. Such

44 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

teaching would yield good fruit any where, and the good
seed found good ground in Persia.

So much for the instrumentality; but, then, influences
are every where at work to check the growth of the plant
of grace, and these must be overcome. There is danger
that missionary education may be made worse than useless
by allowing the sympathies of pupils to become alienated
from the masses around them. Children from heathen
families may be puffed up with an idea of superiority to
their own people. Their taste may be cultivated so as to
render disgust with heathen degradation stronger than the
Christian desire to do them good. A foreign language,
foreign dress, and foreign habits may widen the gulf that
separates them from their people, till, what with an undue
exaltation on the one hand and a suspicious jealousy on the
other, usefulness is well nigh imj)ossible. But here such
tendencies have been carefully watched and guarded
against. The pupils have been trained with the view of
doing good among their own people. N"o line of separa-
tion has been drawn in dress or diet, furniture or household
arrangements. While taught to be neat, the goal kept
ever in sight has been, a happy usefulness in their own
homes, the elevation of the mass just as fast as was con-
sistent with mutual love and sympathy, the people not
feeling that their daughters were denationalized, and they
not lifted out of sympathy with the homes they were to
bless. Hence, even in 1844, we find the mud floor of the
small school room covered with straw mats ; one window,
of oiled paper, admitting the light ; and a brick stove, with
a few rude benches, its only furniture. In the other room,
where the cooking was done, the pupils ate, and spent their
time out of school. Here were two windows of like ma-
terial ; and besides the mats, the floor was covered with a

MISSIONARY EDUCATION. 45

thick felt, on which they spread their beds at night. A
table was jDrovided, covered with a coarse blue and white
check. There were also a set of coarse plates and a few
other dishes, but no knives nor forks. They eat their soup
with wooden spoons, and their other food with their hands.
Their clothing, like their cooking, was mostly in native
style ; and they were taught to make it for themselves.

Another object in missionary education is, to do enough
to stimulate to exertion, and yet not foster inefficiency or
undue dependence. The Nestorians are poor, but doing
too much for them may make them still poorer. They
must be brought to sustain their own institutions at the
earliest possible moment, and their training should keep
that end in view. Hence Miss Fiske writes, "At first I
was inclined to do more for them than afterwards, and at
length settled down on this principle, — to give my pupils
nothing for common use which they could not secure in
their own homes by industry and economy. So I furnished
only such articles as they could buy in the city. I pre-
ferred that they should make all their own clothing, and
may have grieved friends sometimes by declining clothing
which they offered to send for them. We chose rather to
spend our own strength in training them to provide for
themselves. I do not mean that I am not glad to see
foreign articles in Oroomiah ; but we were in danger of
fostering a more expensive taste than they would have the
means of gratifying. Our great object is to raise up the
most efficient coadjutors from among the people, and they
must labor among their neighbors as of them, and not as
foreigners, and be prepared to carry forward the work when
we leave it.

" At first we clothed as well as boarded our puj^ils, and
then led them to provide one article after another, till they

46 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

clothed themselves. It was delightful to see the interest
parents began to take in clothing their daughters, in order
to send them to school after they provided their own gar-
ments. They took better care of them, and so learned
to take better care of other things. Since I left. Miss Rice
has advanced farther in this matter ; and last year most of
the pupils paid a trifle for tuition, amounting in all to over
twenty dollars. It often costs more than the amount to
secure these pittances ; but it does our pupils good, and we
sj^ared no pains to this end."

It is touching to see the spirit manifested by some parents
in this connection. One very poor widow, whose little field
of grain had been devoured by locusts, brought a large
squash and a quantity of raisins which she had earned by
laboring for others — a self-denial almost equal to her pre-
vious giving up of her only bed for the use of a daughter
in the Seminary, which she brought, saying, "I can sleep
on the hasseer [rush mat], if you will only receive her
into school."

It certainly is not benevolence to do for others what
they can do as well for themselves, or to do for them in a
way to diminish either their ability or disposition to pro-
vide for themselves. Missionaries may be in danger of
staying too long and doing too much for a people, rather
than of leaving them too soon after the gospel has taken
root among them.

Native pastors came into being at Tahiti simply because
the French drove off the missionaries. They were not
ordained before, but at once proved themselves equal to
the work that Providence assigned them ; and after twenty
years of French misrule, in spite of Popery on the one
hand and brandy and vice on the other, there are now

MISSIONARY EDUCATION. 47

more church members under these native pastors than ever
before.

Twenty years ago the European shepherds were driven
from Madagascar, and a few lambs left in the midst of
wolves ; but God raised up native pastors, and, instead of
tens of Christians under Europeans, there are now hundreds,
yea, thousands, under these natives.^ Those missionaries are
wise who aim constantly at results like these ; and it is in
such a spirit that work has been done among the women
of Persia.

^ Rev. Dr. Tidnaan, secretary of the London Missionary Society, in
<* Conference of Missions at Liverpool," 1860, p. 225.

CHAPTEK V.

BEGINNINGS.

MRS. GRANT. — EARLY LIFE AND LABORS. — GREAT INFLUENCE. — HER

SCHOOL. HER PUPILS, CHANGED INTO BOARDING SCHOOL.

GETTING PUPILS. — CARE OF THEM. DIFFICULTIES FROM POVERTY

OF PEOPLE. PAYING FOR FOOD OF SCHOLARS. POSITION OF UN-
MARRIED MISSIONARY LADIES. BOOKS.

We have seen that among the Nestorians it was counted
a disgrace for a female to learn to read ; and even now, in
the districts remote from missionary influence, a woman
who reads, and especially one who writes, is an object of
public odium, if not of persecution. How, then, could the
Nestorians be induced to send their daughters to schools ?
What overcame this strong national prejudice ? These
questions open a delightful chapter in divine providence,
showing how wonderfully God adapts means to ends, even
on opposite sides of the globe.

A Christian gentleman in the State of New York, on the
death of his wife's sister, adopted into his own family her
infant child. She was trained to the exercise of a practical
Christian benevolence, and her superior mind was improved
by an education remarkably thorough. In the classics and
mathematics she exhibited uncommon aptitude, and made
unusual attainments; so that it was truly said of her, "Per-
haps no female missionary ever left our country with a mind
so well disciplined as Mrs. Judith S. Grant." She sailed for

(48)

BEGINNINGS. 49

Persia, July 11, 1835 ; and there she displayed rare ability
in acquiring the language of the people. The Turkish she
soon spoke familiarly. In a short time she read the ancient
Syriac, and acquired the spoken language with at least
equal facility. Previous even to these acquisitions, she
taught Mar Yohanan and others English ; and as they
noticed the ease with which she turned to her Greek Tes-
tament, whenever ours seemed to differ from the ancient
Syriac, they regarded her with feelings in which it would
be hard to say whether wonder, love, or reverence was the
strongest. Some might have cried out, when her fine intel-
lect and rare acquirements were devoted to the missionary
work, " Why is this waste of the ointment made ? " But
had her friends searched the round world for a sphere of
greatest usefulness, they could not have selected one where
her rare gifts would have accomplished so much; and when
such a woman manifested deep solicitude for the education
of her sex, ancient prejudice fell before her. She taught
her own domestics to read. She sedulously cultivated the
acquaintance of both Christian and Mohammedan women ;
nor did she rest till she had opened a school for girls in
what is now Mr. Coan's barn. Such was her zeal, that
when her health would not allow her to go there, she
taught the pupils in her own apartment. She commenced
with only four scholars, but at the same time prepared the
maps for Parley's Geography in modern Syriac, and the
old map of Oroomiah, so familiar to the readers of the
Missionary Herald, was her handiwork. Nor was her use-
fulness confined to her school room. Hers was the privi-
lege of creating such a public sentiment in favor of the
education of woman, that her successors have found the
gates wide open before them, and often wondered at the
extent and permanence of the influence she acquired.
5

50 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

There is no one topic of which Miss Fiske has spoken to
the writer so frequently, and with such enthusiasm, as the
great work that Mrs. Grant accompUshed for woman in
Persia, during her short missionary Hfe. She was the labo-
rious and self-denying pioneer in female education, and
every year thus far has brought to light new evidence of
her extensive usefulness. It was no empty compliment,
when the venerable Mar Elias said, "We will bury her in
our church, where none but very holy men are laid. As she
has done so much for us, we want the privilege of digging
her grave with our own hands."

Miss Fiske writes, shortly after her arrival, "The first
Syriac word I learned was 'daughter;' aud as I can now
use the verb ' to give,' I often ask parents to give me their
daughters. Some think that I cannot secure boarding
scholars, but Mrs. Grant got day scholars; and when I
hear men, women, and children say, 'How she loved us!' I
want to love them too. I mean to devote at least live
years to the work of trying to gather girls into a boarding-
school, as Mrs. Grant desired to do. She h;is gone to her
rest. I wonder that I am allowed to take her place."
And again : " I am usually in scliool till three P. M., and
then I gd out among the poor mothers till tea time. They
often say to me, 'Mrs. Grant did just as you do.' Her
short life was a precious offering. I feel each day more and
more that I have entered into the labors of a faithful servant
of Christ."

Among the pupils of Mrs. Grant was Selby, of Oroomiah,
who was hopefully converted while teaching some day
scholars connected with the Seminary, in 1845. Raheel,
(Rachel,) the wife of Siyad, the tailor mentioned in the
Memoir of Mr. Stoddard, was another. So were Sanum,
the wife of Joseph; Moressa, the wife of Yakob; and

BEGINNINGS. 51

Sarah, the daughter of Piiest Abraham, and wife of
Oshana, of whom we shall hear more hereafter.

After the death of Mrs. Grant, January 14, 1839, the
school was corftinued under the charge of Mr. Holladay,
who employed native teachers to assist him, the ladies of
the mission cooj^erating as they could. It then passed into
the liands of Dr. Wright, who had the care of it when Miss
Fiske arrived in Oroomiah, June 14, 1843. During all this
time it was only a day school, and contact with vice in the
homes of the pupils greatly hindered its usefulness. It
was for this reason that Miss Fiske was exceedingly anxious
to make it a boarding school, so as to retain the pupils
continuously under good influences. But would they be
allowed to spend the night on the mission premises ? This
was doubted by many, and all had their fears; yet in
August an appropriation was made for the support of six
boarding pupils, Avho were to be entirely under the control
of the mission for three years. Some said they could not
be obtained for even one year, and not one of them would
remain to complete the three. Even Priest Abraham said,
" I cannot bear the reproach of having my daughter live
with you." At that time, scarcely a girl twelve years old
could be found who was not betrothed ; and years were
devoted to the preparation of a coarse kind of embroidery,
a certain amount of which must be ready for the wedding.

One day in August, Mar Yohanan said to Miss Fiske,
"You get ready, and I find girls." She devoted that
month and the next to preparation for her expected
charge. But the day came for opening the school, and not
one pupil had been obtained. The teacher was feeling
somewhat anxious, when, from her window in the second
story, she saw Mar Yohanan crossing the court, with a girl
in either hand. One of them was his own niece, Selby, of

52 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Gavalan, seven years of age ; the other, Hanee, of Geog
Tapa, about three years older. They were not very inviting in
outward appearance ; but it did not take Miss Fiske long to
reach the door, where the bishop met her, and placing their
little hands in hers, said, in his broken English, " They be
your daughters ; no man take them from your hand." She
wrote to a friend an account of her success, adding, " I shall
be glad to give them to the Lord Jesus, and love to look
on them as the beginning of my dear school." These two
pupils were supported by ladies in Maiden, Massachusetts,
and the number soon increased to six; but fifteen days
after, two of them, finding the gate open, suddenly left for
home. Their teacher did not think it advisable to follow
them ; nor did she see them again till, ten years after, an
invitation for a reunion of all her scholars brought two
whom she did not recognize. She said, "Perhaps you
were here under Mrs. Grant ? " " No, we were your own
scholars for fifteen days, and we are very sorry we ran
away." They are now both useful Christians, and the
places they left in 1843 were speedily filled by others.

The care of the school was much more exhausting than
its instruction. When the teacher went out, and when she
came in, she must take her pupils with her, for she dared
not leave them to themselves. Indeed, so strong were the
feelings of their friends, that they allowed them to remain
only on condition that they should lodge with or near their
teacher, and never go out except in her company. A
native teacher rendered such help as he could, needing
much teaching himself; and every thing combined to make
the principal feel that hers was to be a work of faith and
prayer. As the first of January approached, she thought
how sweet it would be to be remembered by dear friends
at Mount Holyoke ; and when it came, she wrote to Miss

BEGINNINGS. 53

Whitman, "In looking over Miss Lyon's suggestions for
the observance of the clay, last year, I cannot tell you how
I felt as I read the words, ' Perhaps next new year's day
will find some of you on a foreign shore. If so, we pledge
you a remembrance within these consecrated walls.' I
thought not then that privilege would be mine ; but since
it is, I count your prayers the greatest favor you can
confer."

At Oroomiah, the missionaries met together for prayer at
one o'clock, and after that Dr. Perkins and Mr. Holladay
preached to the assembled Seminaries, while the ladies of
the mission met separately for prayer ; then united inter-
cession again closed the day. And they needed to wait on
God, for many difficulties combined to prevent success.

One was the poverty of the people. To say merely that
they were jDOor gives no true idea of their situation to an
American reader. They were extremely poor, and grind-
ing opi^ression still keeps them so. In 1837, Mr. Stocking
found very few pupils in the schools wearing shoes, even in
the snow of midwinter; and one sprightly lad in Sabbath
school had nothing on but a coarse cotton shirt, reaching
down to his knees, and a skull cap, though the missionary
required all his winter clothes, besides a fire, to keep him
comfortable.

Another evil growing out of then- poverty was, that the
missionaries, in order to give the first impulse to education,
resorted to some measures which, after an interest was
awakened, had to be laid aside in order to increase it.
For example, poor parents could not be persuaded to earn
bread for their children while they sent them to school ;
hence, to get scholars at first, the mission furnished their
daily bread ; and this having been done for the boys, had
to be done for the girls also. So, in the winter of 1843-44,
5*

54 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

twenty-five cents a week was paid to the day scholars,
the others having their board instead. But the current
having once commenced to flow in the new channel, such
inducements became more a hinderance than a help, and, in
the spring of 1844, Miss Fiske told her scholars that no
more money would be paid for their bread; and though
some of the mission feared it would be necessary to resume
the practice, instead of that it was soon dropped in the
other Seminary also.

But the special difficulty growing out of the condition
of woman in a Mohammedan country demands our notice.
Some may suppose that because Miss Fiske and Miss Rice
have succeeded so well, an unmarried lady from this coun-
try has nothing to do but to go there and work like any
one else. This is not true; such a one cannot live by
herself; her home must be in some missionary family. She
cannot go out alone, either inside or outside of the city.
In many things she needs to be shielded from annoyances
here unknown. And God provided all that the teachers
of the Seminary needed of such help ; first, in the kind
family of Mr. Stocking, and, after his death, in the pleasant
household of Mr. Breath. Indeed, not one of all the mis-
sionary circle ever stood in need of such a hint as Paul
gave the church at Rome concerning the deaconess of
Cenchrea. As Miss Fiske says, playfully, "Whenever we
went with them to visit pupils at a distance, they always
made us believe that it was a great privilege to take us
along ; " and every lady who goes out, in a similar way, to
labor in the missionary field, will find just such Christian
kindness indispensable to her comfort and usefulness. In
such a sphere of action, a lady's dependence is her in-
dependence.

Another difficulty was the want of books. Such a thing

BEGINNINGS. 65

as a school book had been unknown among the Nestorians.
The only ones to be had in 1843 were the Bible in ancient
Syriac, — a language unintelligible to the common jDCople,
— and the Gospel of John, with a few chapters of Genesis,
in the spoken language, besides a few tracts. Later came
the Gospel of Mattiiew, and, after that, the four Gospels.
Mr. Stocking prepared a Spelhng Book of fifty-four pages,
8vo, a Mental Arithmetic of twenty-four pages, and after-
wards a larger Arithmetic. Mr. Coan, a Scripture Spelling
Book of one hundred and sixty pages, 8vo. Mr. Stoddard
issued a very full and complete Arithmetic for the older
scholars in 1856, but his System of Theology did not appear
till after his decease, in 1857. Dr. Wright was the author
of a Geography of three hundred and two pages, printed
in 1849. Mr. Cochran's Scripture Geography appeared in
1856, and Barth's Church History was published the same
year. But the book studied more than all others, and
most efficient in <}nlightening and elevating the people, was
the Bible, of which the New Testament appeared in 1846,
and the Old in 1852. As many as three hours a day were
devoted to that; and no recollections of missionary educa-
tion in Persia are so pleasant as those of the Bible lessons.
The pupils have pleasant memorials of some of them in the
form of Bible maps, drawn by themselves, which now form
a conspicuous and ap])ropriate ornament of their homes.

It may seem to some as though so much study of the
Bible would make the pupils weary of its sacred pages ;
but precisely the contrary was true. When the New Tes-
tament, shortly after it was printed, w^as offered to those
who, during recreation hours, would commit to memory the
Scripture Catechism, containing more than one thousand
texts, some learned it in three weeks, and others in a longer
time; and their joy in receiving the reward could hardly

56 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

be expressed. It was near the close of the term, and some
who had not quite finished when vacation began remained
to complete the task; for they said they could not go
home unless they carried with them their Testament;
and the diligent use they made of it afterwards showed
that their desire was more than mere covetousness. Even
eighteen months after, writing to a friend in America, they
say, " Now we have each of us this blessed book, this price-
less blessing ; would that in it we might all find salvation
for our souls. This book is from the unspeakable mercy of
God; nor can we ever repay our dear friends for it." I
cannot forbear quoting here the closing sentence of the
letter — "Dear friend, the gentle love of the Saviour be
with you. Amen."

CHAPTER VI.

THE SEMINARY.

MAR YOHANAN. — STANDARD OF SCHOLARSHIP. — ENGLISH BOOKS READ
IN SYRIAC. — EXPENSE. — EEELINGS OF PARENTS. DOMESTIC DE-
PARTMENT.— DAILY REPORTS. — PICTURE OF A WEEK DAY AND

SABBATH. — "IF YOU LOVE ME, LEAN HARD." ESLl's JOURNAL.—

LETTER FROM PUPILS TO MOUNT HOLYOKE SEMINARY. FROM THE

SAME TO MRS. C. T. MILLS.

When Mar Yohanan returned to Persia after his visit
to the United States, in 1843, Prince Malik Kassim Meerza,
who could speak a little English, asked him, "What are
the wonders of America ? " He replied, " The blind they
do see, the deaf they do hear, and the women they do
read ; they he not beasts." Having visited Mount Holyoke
Seminary, he often said, "Of all colleges in America,
Mount Holy Oke be the best ; and when I see such a school
here, I die ; " meaning that then he would be ready to die.
When he brought her first boarding scholars to Miss Fiske,
he said, "Now you begin Mount Holy Oke in Persia."

As she sought to reproduce one of our female semina-
ries, as far as was possible in such different circumstances,
it seems fitting to enter somewhat into the minutias of its
arrangements.

Resemblance to similar institutions at home is not as yet
to be sought in the standard of scholarship, though that is
rapidly advancing. In an unevangelized community, the
people move on a lower level. Not only social condition,

(57)

58 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

but morality and education, feel tlie want of the elevating
influence of the gospel. A seminary that commences
operations by teaching the alphabet must advance far, and
climb high, before its graduates will stand on a level with
those whose pupils were familiar with elementary algebra
when they entered ; yet its course of study may be the best
to secure the usefulness of its members in their own com-
munity. If ragged village girls, untutored and uncombed,
studying aloud in school hours, and at recess leaping over
the benches like wild goats, now study diligently and in
silence, move gently, and are respectful to their teachers
and kind to each other, a thorough foundation has been
laid ; and if, in addition to that, the literary attainments of
the lower classes to-day exceed those of the pupils who
first left the school, the superstructure rises at once beauti-
fully and securely.

Leaving out the Bible, — which has been already spoken
of, — to the original reading, writing, singing, and compo-
sition ; have been added by degrees, grammar, geography,
arithmetic, and theology; with oral instruction in phys-
iology, chemistry, natural philosophy, and astronomy.

But we should neither understand the attainments of
the pupils, nor the source of their marked ability as writers,
did we not notice that, as a reward for good conduct
during the day, their teacher was accustomed to translate
orally to them, at its close, at first simple stories, and then
such volumes as Paradise Lost, The Course of Time, and
Edwards's History of Redemption. To these were added
such practical works as Pike's Persuasives to Early Piety,
Pastor's Sketches, and Christ a Friend; and the pupils
understood books a great deal better in the free translations
thus given, than in the more exact renderings issued from
the press. Baxter's Saints' Rest, poured thus hot and

THE SEMINARY. 59

glowing into a Syriac mould, was more effective, at least
for the time, than the same after it had cooled and been
laboriously filed into fidelity to the original.

The Seminary was unhke similar schools at home in the
matter of expense. In 1853, the cost for each pupil was
only about eighteen dollars for the year, including rent,
board, fuel, lights, and clothing in part; and as this was
paid by the American Board, education to the people was
without money and without price. We have already
alhided to the eftbrts of the teachers to train up the people
to assume this expense themselves.

Let us now trace the progress made in getting the pupils
away from the evil influences of their Persian homes. In
1843, besides her six boarding pujoiis, Miss Fiske had a few
day scholars; next year she had still fewer; and the year
after that, they were dropped entirely. Many Avished to
send their daughters in this way ; but she w^as decided in
her refusal to receive them, because thus only could the
highest good of the pupils be secured. At first, so great
was her dread of home influences, that she sought to retain
them even in vacation ; but she soon saw that their health
and usefulness, their sympathy with the people, and the
confidence of the people in them, required them to spend a
part of the year at home. This also gave their teachers a
good opportunity to become acquainted with their friends
and neighbors, and a door was opened for many delightful
meetings with women, in which the pupils rendered much
assistance. It also secured the influence of the parents in
favor of what was for the good of their daughters, and
made them interested in the school. During Miss Fiske's
entire residence in Persia, fathers rarely disregarded her
wishes concerning their daughters in her school.

The only time that the teachers were ever reviled by

60 WOMAN AND HSR SAVIOUR.

a JSTestorian father was in the case of a village priest. He
came one day to the Seminary to see his daughter, and be-
cause she did not appear at once, — she was engaged at the
moment, — he cursed and swore, in a great passion, and
when she did come, carried her home. No notice was
taken of it, and no effort made to get her back ; but three
years after, the first indications of his interest in religion
were deep contrition for his conduct on that occasion, and
a letter full of grief for such treatment of those who had
come so far to tell him and his of Jesus. He at once sent
his daughter back, and three weeks after she too came to
the Saviour, and even begged, as a favor, to have the care
of the rooms of the teachers her father had reviled. Since
then, the priest has written no less than three letters, as he
says, to be sure that so great wickedness was really par-
doned, it seemed to him so unpardonable.

The circumstances of the Seminary required a domestic
department. It was difficult, in Persia, to have girls only
ten years old take charge of household affairs; yet a
beginning was made ; but how much labor of love and
patience of hope it involved cannot be told to those who
have not tried it. At first, their one hour of work each
day was more of a hinderance than a help ; but gradually,
through watchfulness and much effort, they were brought
to do the whole without the least interference with their
regular duties in school. They were thus trained to wait
upon themselves, and so one deeply rooted evil of Oriental
life was corrected. This practice also relieved the school
of the bad influence of domestics, while it prepared the
pupils for lives of contented usefulness among a people so
poor as the Nestorians. Besides, in this way they acquired
habits of regularity and punctuality such as they never
saw in their own homes.

THE SEMINARY. 6i

But while these Western habits were inculcated, such of
their owr customs as were harmless were left untouched.
They were carefully taught to do things in their own way,
so as naturally and easily to fall into their projier place at
home.

At first, in their daily reports, Miss Fiske dared not ask
any question the answer to which she could not ascertain
for herself. The earliest she ventured to put was, whether
they had combed their hair that day. The pupils all stood
up, and those who had attended to this duty were asked
to sit down. The faithful ones were delighted to comply.
The others, mortified and ashamed, remained standing;
but if one of them tried to sit down, a glance of the eye
detected her. This simple method laid a foundation for
truthfulness and self-respect; and from this the teacher
gradually advanced to other questions, as their moral sense
became able to bear them, till, when they could answer
five satisfactorily, such as, "Have you all your knitting
needles ? " " Were you at prayers ? " " Were you late ? "
— things that could be ascertained at once, — they thought
themselves wonderfully good, little dreaming how much
the teacher did not dare to ask, lest she should lead them
into temptation. After the first revival, she could ask
about things that took place out of her sight; and now
this exercise is conducted in the same way as in our best
schools at home. There is very little communication now
between them in the school room. In 1852, there were
only five failures on this point for four months, and those
by new scholars. Dr. Perkins wrote, that year, " The
exact system in this school, and the order, studiousness,
good conduct, and rapid improvement of the pupils, in
both this and the other Seminary, are probably unsurpassed
in any schools in America."
6

62 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

In reply to a request for the picture of a day in the
Seminary, Miss Fiske writes, in 1862, —

" You ask for a day of my Hfe in Persia. Come, then, to
my home in 1854. You shall be waked by the noise of a
hand-bell at early dawn: twenty minutes after, our girls
are ready for their half hour of silent devotion. The bell
for this usually finds them waiting for it, and the perfect
quiet in the house is almost unbroken. At the close of it,
another bell summons us to the school room for family
devotion, where, besides reading the Scriptures and prayer,
they unite in singing one of our sweet hymns.^ In a few
minutes after this, another bell calls us to breakfist, and,
that finished, all attend to their morning work. Tables
are cleared, rooms put in order, and preparations made for
supper — the principal meal in Persia; then for an hour
they study silently in their rooms. At a quarter before
nine o'clock I enter the school room, while Miss Rice cares
for things without. We open school with prayer, in Avhich
we carry to the Master more of our little cares and trials
than in the early morning. My first lesson is in Daniel,
with the older pupils, while two other classes go out to
recite in another room. Yonan stays with me, for I want
him to help and be helped in these Bible lessons. The
class enjoy it exceedingly, and the forty minutes spent on
it always seem too short. The other classes now come in,
and all study or recite another forty minutes. After that,
a short recess in the yard makes all fresh again. The older
classes then study, while one of the younger ones has a
Bible lesson with me on the life of Christ. Each time I

^ At first, only one hymn was printed on a separate sheet; then
a little hymn book of five, — as many as Luther commenced with at
the Reformation, Now the hymn book contains about two hundred
hymns, and some of the pupils can repeat them all.

THE SEMINARY. 63

go over it with them I find tilings wliich I wojider I had
not perceived before. It is delightful to hear them express
their own thoughts of our blessed Saviour. We trace his
journeyings on maps prepared by the pupils, and they study
the Scripture geography of each place. After this, one
class recites ancient Syriac to Yonan, and another, in
physiology, goes out to Miss Rice, leaving me to spend
forty minutes with the older girls on compositions. At
present the topic is, " The Christ of the Old Testament ; "
and I am thankful that I studied Edwards's History of
Redemption under Miss Lyon. This done, fifteen minutes
remain for a kind of general exercise, when we talk over
many things ; and then the noon recess of one and a half
hours allows the girls to lunch, see friends, and recreate,
till fifteen minutes before its close, when they have a prayer
meeting by themselves.

" In the afternoon, Miss Rice takes charge of the school,
and I have the time out. At present the first hour is given
to writing; soon astronomy w411 take its place. ^Recita-
tions in geography follow till recess, and after that singing
or spelling. The last hour, I go. in and hear a lesson in
Hebrews. On this Epistle we have full notes prepared in
, Syriac, and we study it carefully, in connection with the
Old Testament. Miss Rice also has a lesson in Judges,
and then all come together for the daily reports, more as a
family than a school. There is still an hour before supper
for mutual calls, knitting, sew^ing, and family duties. After
supper and work are over, and they have had a little time
to themselves, come evening prayers. Then they have a
short study hour in their rooms, followed by the half hour
for private devotion, which closes the day.

" Of course, at another time, the studies might be some-
what different. The hours that Miss Rice and I are out of

64 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

school we spend in seeing visitors, holding i3rayer meetings,
going out among the women, and sometimes devote a
whole day to a distant village."

Having thus looked in on a day of study, let us, through
the same glass, take a view «f the Lord's day. The letter
is dated December, 1855.

My dear Friend : I have learned here that He who
fed five thousand with tne portion of five can feed the
soul to the full with what I once counted only crumbs.
May I give you one of the Master's sermons ? A few Sab-
baths ago, I went to Geog Tapa with Mr. Stoddard. It
was afternoon, and I was seated on a mat in the middle
of the earthen floor of the church. I had already at-
tended Sabbath school and a prayer meeting with ray
pupils, and, weary, I longed for rest. It seemed as if I
could not sit without support through the service. Then
I remembered that after that came my meeting with the
women readers of the village ; and O, how desirable seemed
rest ! But God sent it in an unexpected way ; for a wo-
man came and seated herself directly behind me, so that I
could lean on her, and invited me to do so. I declined ;
but she drew me back, saying, "If you love me, lean hard."
Very refreshing was that support. And then came the
Master's own voice, repeating the words, "If you love me,
lean hard ; " and I leaned on him too, feeling that, through
that poor woman, he had preached me a better sermon
than I could have heard at home. I was rested long
before the services were through; then I spent an hour
with the women, and after sunset rode six miles to my own
home. I wondered that I was not weary that night nor
the next morning ; and I have rested ever since on those
sweet words, " If you love me, lean hard."

THE SEMINARY. 65

But I intended to tell you of our Sabbaths in school.
Saturday is the girls' day for washing and mending, and
we are busy all day long. Just before sunset, the bell calls
us to the school room, and there we inquire if the last
stitch is taken, and the rooms are all in order. If any
thing is still undone, the half hour before supper sees it
finished. After leaving the table, every thing is arranged
for the morning, and then we have a quiet half hour in our
rooms. After this, half the pupils come to Miss Rice, and
half to me. Each has a prayer meeting, remembering
the absent ones, also the Female Seminaries in Constanti-
nople, South Hadley (Mass.), and Oxford (Ohio). All retire
from these precious meetings to their " half hour," as they
call it, and before nine o'clock all is quiet, unless it be the
voice of some one still pleading with her God.

The first bell, Sabbath morning, is at half past five,
when all rise and dress for the day. Morning prayers are
at half past six ; then comes breakfast, and, our few morn-
ing duties being done, the girls retire to study their Sab-
bath school lessons, and sometimes ask to meet together
for prayer. At half past nine, we attend Syriac service in
the chapel. The Sabbath school follows that, numbering
now about two hundred pupils. About two thirds of our
scholars are teachers in it, and it is a good preparation for
teaching in their homes. Those who do not teach form a
class. We then go home to lunch, flavored with pleasant
remembrances and familiar explanations of the morning
service. The afternoon service commences at two o'clock,
and our Bible lessons an hour before supper, though some
are called earlier, to help us teach the women who come in
for instruction. At supper, all are allowed to ask Bible
questions, and before leaving the table we have evening
prayers. At seven o'clock. Miss Rice and I go to the
6*

66 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

English prayer meeting, while the pupils meet in six or
seven family meetings, as they call them, the inmates of
each room being by themselves, and the pious among them
taking turns in conducting them. If any wish to come to
us after this, we are glad to see them ; and often this hour
witnesses the submission of souls to God.

Besides these there is a weekly prayer meeting on Tues-
day evening, a lecture on Friday afternoon, and on
Wednesday, as well as Sabbath evening, the school meets
in two divisions for prayer.

The following journal, kept during the revival, in 1860,
by Esli, an assistant teacher, forms an appropriate continua-
tion of this interior picture of the Seminary : —

'-^February \st. To-day, a part of the girls wrote compo-
sitions on ' anger,' and a part on ' the gospel.'

" 3c?, Friday. John was here to-day writing to Mount Hol-
yoke Seminary, and attended our noon prayer meeting. In
the afternoon. Deacon Joseph of Degala preached from the
words "King of kings and Lord of lords." In the evening,
Mr. Coan sung with us, and we read the weekly report of
our conduct.

" 5^A, Sabbath. In the forenoon. Dr. Wright preached from
Acts ii. 37. He said that we must know what sin is ; that
we are sinners ; and that we cannot save ourselves. In the
afternoon. Priest Eshoo preached from Luke xv. 32. The
evening prayer meetings were very pleasant.

" %th. A blessed morning. Some of the girls are thought-
ful. This was seen in the quiet at table and the silence in
the kitchen. The work was done both earlier and better
than usual. During the study hour, the voice of prayer
sounded very sweetly in every room. When the girls
walked in the yard, it was very quiet, and so when they

THE SEMINARY. 67

came in. Our noon prayer meeting was very i^leasant ;
Miss Rice said a few words on the shortness of time.
While Hanee prayed, some wept. When Miss Rice dis-
missed us, no one moved ; all were bowed on their desks.
weeping. She then gave opportunity for prayer, and while
I prayed, all were in tears. The girls have kept all the
rules well to-day. This evening, the communicants met
with Miss Rice, and the rest with Martha. Miss Rice read
about Jonah in the ship, and said a few words ; after that,
Raheel the teacher prayed. Then Hanee spoke a little of
her own state, and asked us to pray for Raheel of Ardishai,
who is thoughtful. I spoke, and asked them to pray for
Hannah and Parangis, who are in my room.

" 10^^. The state of our school is the same. Mr. Cochran
preached on the faithfulness of the Jews under Nehemiah,
"when they rebuilt Jerusalem. After meeting he told us that
the members of the Male Seminary spent yesterday as a day
of fasting and prayer, and many rose confessing their sins.
One very wicked man, also from the village, asked them
to pray for him. After work was done in the kitchen this
evening, a little time remained, and the girls there asked
to have a meeting. With gladness of heart I knelt and
mingled my tears with theirs, as though I, too, were com-
mencing the work. Afterwards Mr. Coan came and sung
"with us, and we read the accounts of the week."

Esli, the writer of the above, is the daughter of Yohanan,
a pious man in Geog Tapa, who for a time was steward of
the Seminary. She was one of the first fruits of the revival
of 1856, and graduated after Miss Fiske's return to America.
She has since been a most faithful assistant of Miss Rice,
and is very much beloved by the pious Nestorians. But
the following letter to Miss Fiske, from her own pen, dated
April, 1859, will form her best introduction to the reader: —

68 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

" When I recall your love to me, my heart is full. I
remember the times when we knelt together before our
Father in heaven, in godly anguish for priceless souls.
Especially do I remember when God first came near to me,
how you shared my sorrow by day and by night, and
pointed me to Him who bled for me. After you brought
me to Christ, you showed me the helps to a Christian life ;
that I must pray not only in my closet, but also in my heart,
when at work or studying, that God would keep me. O
that I had heeded your counsels more !

" This winter the Lord led me to see my cold state. For
a time the Saviour's face was hidden ; then it seemed to be
midnight ; but I looked above, and the darkness fled. I saw
him standing with open arms, and quickly I threw myself
into those arms. Tears of joy fell from my eyes, and by
the grace of God I was enabled to go forward day by day.
Secret prayer has since been very pleasant to me.

" We have had pleasant seasons of prayer in our school
this winter, and we trust that some souls have been born
again. I have the care of a circle of girls in the kitchen.
They work well, and keep it clean. I think you know that
such work is difiicult, but if you were to come in you
would find every thing in order. Every Wednesday we
scour all the shelves and the doors.

" The girls have made the yard very pleasant ; but one
thing is wanting there : we miss you at the cool of the day,
walking in it to see if any evil has grown uj) in youi
garden.

" I went to my village in vacation ; the prayer meetings
there were very pleasant, and I enjoyed much, praying
with the women alone. Our seasons of family devotion also
were delightful. In the morning we read the Acts in
course; and as each read a verse, my father asked its

THE SEMINARY. b9

meaning. When he went away to j^reach, I used to lead,
and we then read the portion for the day, in the book
called ' Green Pastures for the Lord's Flock.'

" In the school we have studied Ezra, in connection with
Haggai and Zechariah, and are now in Nehemiah. In the
New Testament we are on Paul's third journey, and have
nearly finished Scrijiture geography and theology."

The Seminary keeps up a Christian intercourse with
tlie institution at South Hadley, as the following letters
will show ; and the beautiful melodeon in the sitting room
is a tuneful testimony to the liberality of Holyoke's
daughters.

"Many salutations and much love from the school of
Miss Fiske to you, our dear sisters of the school at Mount
Holyoke. We rejoice that there is such a great institution
full of holy words and the warm love of Christ : we hear
that many of you have an inheritance above, and are
daily looking forward to it. We want to tell you how
glad we are that the Holy Spirit has come among you, and
that God has turned so many to himself Though we are
great sinners, we rejoice exceedingly in the success of the
work of God in every place ; and we beg you to pray that
the Holy Spirit may visit us also, and our people, and strike
sharp arrows into flinty hearts, that they may melt like wax
before the fire. Blessed be God, that though we had be-
come the least of all nations, and adopted many customs
worse than the heathen, and our holy books were carefully
laid away and never used, yet he put love into the hearts
of his servants, that they should come to this dark land.
We are greatly obliged to you and to your people for so
kindly sending us these missionaries. They have greatly
multiplied our books, and, as we trust, brought many souls
to Christ. Some of us, formerly, knew not who Christ

70 Vv^OMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

was, or whether a Redeemer had died for us ; but now he
has gathered us together in this school of godly instruc-
tion ; and some of us are awaking to our sins, and to the
great love God has shown in sending his Son to die for
us. We thank God very much that we know Jesus Christ,
the only Saviour.

" Again, we want to thank you for sending Miss Fiske to
teach us the way of life ; we love her because she greatly
loves us, and desires our salvation. Every day she takes
much trouble that we may be the daughters of God. But
her burdens are so great, that we feal* she will not remain
long with us, unless some one comes to help her. And now
we have a jDetition to present : we hear that in many of
you dwelleth the spirit of our Master, Jesus Christ; and
that you are ready to leave home and friends, and go to
distant lands, to gather the lost sheep of Christ. Dear
sisters, our petition is, that you will send us a teacher.^
We shall greatly rejoice if one comes, and will love her
very much. We ask this, not because we do not love Miss
Fiske. No ! no ! this is not in our hearts ; but she is weak,
and her work is more than she can do alone. We shall
exjDCct one to come, and pray God to bring her to us in
safety.

"Please remember us in your closets and in your meet-
ings, and ask your friends to pray for us and for our people.
Farewell, beloved sisters."

The following extracts are from a letter written by them,
in 1848, to Miss Susan L. Tolman, now Mrs. Cyrus T. Mills
of the Sandwich Islands, and formerly of Ceylon: —

" Much love from the members of tlie Female Seminary
of Oroomiah to you, our dear Miss Tolman. We are very

^ Miss Mary Susan Rice, already mentioned in these pages, went out
this same year (1847), from the Seminary in South Hadley.

THE SEMINARY. 71

glad to find one who loves us so mach, and prays for us.
Our delight in your letter was greater than we can express.
Miss Fiske came in joyfully with it in her hand, and while
she read, it seemed as if you were present, inviting and
drawing us to Christ.

"Give our love to all in your favored school, and ask
litem to pray for us. We love all those dear ladies, because
they have been so kind to us, and have been willing that
Miss Fiske and Miss Rice should leave them, and come
liere for our sakes. Though they were dear to you, we think
that now they have come to us, your joy in them is greater.
We hope to hear of many of you carrying the leaves of
life to the dark corners of the earth.

" Dear Miss Tolman, you said, ' You love Miss Fiske, you
must also love Miss Rice.' Did you think that we would
not love her ? We love them both, not only for leaving
their friends to come to us, but also because they are full
of the love of our dear Redeemer.

" We have heard that you are going to India. We are
glad, and love you more for it, because the love of Christ
constrains you to this, and thus in spirit you come very
near to our dear teachers. We entreat Almighty God to
be with you, and bring you in safety to the place he ap-
points for you, that jon may be a light among a dark
people. We hope that when there you will not forget us,
but write us about your work, and about the daughters of
India, whether they love you much or not. Tell your
Mends not to sorrow for you, but to rejoice that they have
a friend ready to go and teach those who know not Christ.
The Saviour guide you in all your labors."

Those who aided Miss Lyon to caiTy out her large-
hearted plans in New England, little dreamed that oflshoots
from the vine they planted would so soon be carried to the

72 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

ends of the earth. Who does not admire that grace which,
in this missionary age, raised up such a type of piety to be
diffused over the globe ? Doubtless it will undergo changes
in Persia, as it has done already ; but the devout student
of Providence will watch its growth with interest, and its
developments will not disappoint his hopes.

CHAPTER VII.

• VACATION SCENES.

IN GAWAR AND ISHTAZIN. — VILLAGES OF MEMIKAN. — OOREYA, DA-
RAWE, AND SANAWAR. — IN GAVALAN. — ACCOMMODATIONS. — SAB-
BATH SCHOOL.

To the interior pictures of the school in the last chapter
we acid some vacation scenes, though chronologically in
advance of other things yet to come.

Towards the close of July, 1851, Mr. Stocking and fam-
ily, with Misses Fiske and Rice, and several native helpers,
spent the vacation in Gawar. Mr. Coan accompanied
them on his way to regions beyond. Wandering from

place to place, like the patriarchs of old, they pitched their
tents at first near the village of Memikan. A sketch of
7 (73)

74 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

these tents .is here presented. The women there were
frequent visitors, and few went away without some idea of
the truth as it is in Jesus. The pious natives were un-
wearied in labor, and sometimes woke the missionaries in
the morning with prayer for the people round about them.
On the Sabbath, there was preaching in as many as five
different villages, and after morning service in Memikan,
the women came to the tents to receive more particular
instruction from their own sex. In the evening, a mother
who had buried her son in February — then a very prom-
ising member of the Seminary at Seir' — brought her
youngest daughter, about six years of age, saying, "We
give her to you in the place of Guwergis. ^ He has gone to
a blessed place. You led him there. We thank you, and
now intrust to you our little daughter." Eshoo, the father,
spoke of his departed son with much feeling, but most
sweet submission. He said to Miss Fiske, as the big tears
glistened in the moonlight, " I shall not be here long. I
shall soon rejoin him. My hope in Jesus grows stronger
every day." The death of that dear son was not only a
great spiritual blessing to him, but the mere mention of his
name at once secured the attention of the villagers to any
thing the missionaries had to say about his Saviour.

On Monday, they left for a visit to the Alpine district of
Ishtazin. Unable to take horses along those frightful
paths, they rode on hardy mules. In a subsequent journey
over the same road, the fastenings of Miss Fiske's saddle
gave way, and she fell, but providentially without injury.
Sometimes they climbed, or, more hazardous still, de-
scended, a long, steep stairway of rock, or they were hid in
the clouds that hung around the higher peaks of the moun-
tain. Now the path led them under huge, detached rocks,

* Nestoriaii Biography, p. 127.

VACATION SCENES. 75

that seemed asking leave to overwhelm them, and now
under the solid clifts, that suggested the more grateful idea
of the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. Down in
the valley were pleasant waterfalls, little fields rescued by
much labor from the surrounding waste, choice fruits, and
such a variety of flowers, that it seemed as if spring,
summer, and autumn had combined to supply them. Then,
in looking up, the eye rested on silver threads apparently
hanging down from far-off summits, but really foaming
streams dashing headlong down the rocks, yet so distant
that no sound came to the ear from their roaring waters.

The party stopped at Ooreya, on one of its flat roofs,
shaded by a magnificent walnut tree. The villagers
brought mulberries, apples, and other fruits, till they could
prepare something more substantial, and seemed to forget
their fears of the patriarch in their zealous hospitality.
After supper, all adjourned to the churchyard, and there,
in the bright moonlight, a crowd of eager listeners heard
of Christ, and redemption through his precious blood.
The silence of night was broken only by the voice of the
preacher, and the echoes of the surrounding cliffs seemed
to repeat joyfully the unwonted sounds. Yonan preached
from the words " Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in
their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the king-
dom." He commenced by asking whether Christ was
right in so doing. They replied, " Certainly he did right."
" Yes," said the preacher, " and as he did, so must his fol-
lowers do; and you must expect to see them in Ishtazin.
AVlien we cease to climb over these precipices to come to
you, fear lest we have become Mussulmans, for Christians
cannot but go from village to village to preach the gospel."
The reader will see the force of such an aj^peal, when he
remembers that Mar Shimon had forbidden these people

76 WOxMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

to receive the missionaries because they preached. This
was followed by a statement of the doctrines that Jesus
preached, in which he did not fail to bring out the essence
of the gospel. When he sat down, Khamis, the brother of
Deacon Tamo, followed with a most impassioned exhorta-
tion. The missionaries had thought him a good preacher
before, but the place and the circumstances — he was
among his own native mountains — seemed to carry him
beyond himself. All through this region, the people
appeared to render as much honor to him as they would
have done to Mar Shimon. The assembly dispersed, and
the travellers lay down where they were, to battle with the
sand-flies till the welcome dawn lit up the conspicuous
summits high above them.

Almost every moment of the next forenoon was filled by
personal religious conversation with many who never heard
such truths before. In the evening, even more fixed atten-
tion was given to another service in the open air, at the
village of Boobawa, for the pious Mar Ogen^ was then
living there, and the bright light of his piety had not
shone in vain. Several were earnestly inquiring how to
be saved.

On Thursday, the day after their return to Memikan, Mr.
Coan, Priest Dunkha, Khamis, and Deacon John left for
Central Koordistan, and Deacon Isaac went to Kochannes.
But though the laborers were fewer, the number of visitors
continued the same. Next Snbbath, besides two services,
and two meetings with the women in Memikan, there was
preaching in three other villages. In Chardewar, the home
of Priest Dunkha, Miss Fiske found his daughter, who had
come with them from Oroomiah, already full of work.
She had just dismissed her Sabbath school, and was read-

' Nestorian Biography, p. 267.

VACATION SCENES. 77

ing the Bible with her cousin, the village priest, who did
all ill his power to help her, both in her school through the
week, and her meetings with the women. One Sabbath,
almost every woman in the place had been present, as was
the case also when she was visited by Misses Fiske and Rice,
and Sanum said that she could not ask for a better place in
which to work for Christ. There was more of real hunofer
for the truth here than any Avhere else in the mountains.

Leaving Memikan, the travellers removed to Darawe,
the village described on page 21. Here they could scarcely
get permission to pitch their tent, or procure provision for
themselves and horses ; yet even in such a place, the mani-
festation of Christian love was not without fruit, though
many bitterly opposed them to the last. The neighboring
villages wondered at the missionaries going there at all,
and still more at their being able to remain.

At Keyat, the kindness of the people, and pleasant in-
tercourse with them, were all the more grateful for the con-
trast with what had gone before. Here Miss Fiske met
with that kind reception from Mar Shimon, then passing
through the place, described on page 159, while the tent
literally flowed with milk and honey furnished by the
villagers, whom he had charged to take good care of their
visitors.

On the following Sabbath, Yonan preached to a congre-
gation of about two hundred, at Sanawar, where forty
families of refugees from Saat were spending the summer.
When Miss Fiske and Miss Rice visited their camp, they
found a number of temporary huts enclosing a circle,
where the domestic labors of spinning, weaving, and cook-
ing were actively going on. All the women at once left
their work, and welcomed their visitors with every mark of
confidence and gladness. Some of them had heard the
7*

T8 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

gospel from the missionaries in Mosul, as they had often
spent the winter near there. So they drank in every word
with eagerness.

The ladies were delighted with their visit, especially
with a widow, who, though unable to read, showed unusual
familiarity with the Bible, and, as they hoped, a spiritual
acquaintance with its doctrines. When the topic of our
fallen nature was mentioned, "Yes," said she, "we were all
shapen in iniquity, as David testifies." When asked if she
had any hope of being saved from sin, she replied, " I am
very far from God, yet my only hope is in the wounded
side of Jesus Christ. If penitently I stand beneath the
blood dropping from his cross, I hope that my sins, though
red like scarlet, may become as white as snow." Her views
of the way of salvation were not only clear, but beauti-
fully expressed. It was exceedingly refreshing, in that
region where they had expected only darkness, thus to find
the rays of light struggling through from their associates
in another mission ; and it gave a delightful foretaste of the
time when the voice of one watchman upon those moun-
tain tops should reach to another, and on all sides the eye
behold the trophies of Immanuel. It was with feelings of
peculiar interest that they heard, some years after, that
this stranger in Sanawar, but, as they fondly hoped, their
sister in Christ, held fast her confidence in his grace to the
end, and so fell asleep in Jesus.

For a companion picture to the preceding, we turn to
the summer of 1852. Mr. Stocking moved out to Gavalan,
the native place of Mar Yohanan, early in the season, and
both teachers followed, with thirteen of their pupils, about
the middle of June. The village lies near the base of a
range of mountains, at the northern end of the plain of
Oroomiah, forty miles distant from the city. On the east.

VACATION SCENES. 79

the blue waters of the lake seem to touch the sky, and
stretch away to the south in quiet loveliness. Sometimes,
when reposing in tlie gorgeous liglit of sunset, or reflecting
the red rays of tlie full moon^ they remind the beholder
of the "sea of glass mingled with fire" revealed to the
beloved discii)le. The breeze from tlie lake, in the long
summer days, is very grateful, and the evening air from the
mountains makes sleep refreshing.

Mar Yohanan gave the school free use of two rooms as
long as it remained. In the court yard before them a large
tent was pitched, that served for dining room, dormitory,
and reception room, or diwan khaneh. An adjoining house
afforded a comfortable recitation room. Here the regular
routine of the school went on, and while men from the
village found their way to Mr. Stocking's at the hour of
evening prayer, women also came to the school room at
the same hour. At the last meeting of this kind before
Miss Fiske returned to the city, nearly forty were present,
listening with quiet attention to the words of- life. On the
Sabbath, the sides of the tent were lifted outward from
the bottom, and fastened in a horizontal position, so as to
admit the air and exclude the sun. The ground beneath
was covered with mats, and formed quite a pleasant chapel.
In the forenoon, this was thronged with attentive hearers.
The children of the boys' school in the village sat close to
their teacher. The members of the girls' school could be
distinguished from their playmates by the greater smooth-
Tiess of their hair, the whiteness of their faces, and general
tidiness. Among the old men, the venerable father of the
bishop was very conspicuous. The members of the Sem-
inary crowded round their teachers so as to leave more
room for others, and still all could not get under the
shadow of the wings of the tabernacle. Mr. Stockino;

80 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

preached in the forenoon, and in the afternoon the people
came together again as a Sabbath school. Each of the
pupils of the Seminary had a class of women or girls, and
seemed to learn how to do good faster than ever before.
They visited them at their houses during the week; they
sought out the absentees ; and it was delightful to go round
the school and note the interest of both scholar and teacher.
If these were zealous in teaching, those were no less so in
learning. The classes, after the introductory services,
filled every available corner in the rooms, the tent, the
front of the house, and even sat on the low mud wall
of the court. With the same variety of character, there
was greater diversity of lessons than in schools at home.
Some studied the Old Testament, and some the New;
others were just learning to read, and those who could not
read at all were taught the Scriptures orally. One class of
Armenians was taught in Turkish.

Matters went on very well for two Sabbaths, but on the
third, women and children had vanished. What was the
matter? It had been reported that all this labor was only
a preparation to transport them to America, and the simple-
minded mothers staid away with their children in great
trepidation; but visits from house to house, during the
week, dispelled their fears, and next Sabbath all were again
in their places, and this pleasant labor in Gavalan con-
tinued till September.

CHAPTER YIII.

EARLY LABORS FOR WOMEN.

PIRST MEETINGS WITH THEM. — FIRST CONVERT. — FIRST LESSONS.—
WILD WOMEN OF ARDISHAI.

The teachers of the Seminary did not confine their labors
to its inmates ; they expended both time and toil for adult
women as well as for their daughters, and never felf that
they gave them too large a proportion of their labors. At
first there was a strong feeling among most of the women
that they might not worship God along with deacons and
readers ; and so they could not be persuaded to attend pub-
lic preaching. But Miss Fiske found that a few would
come to her room at the same hour ; so, encouraged by her
missionary sisters whose hearts were in the work, but whose
family cares prevented their doing it themselves, she visited
the women at their houses, to urge them to come in. Then,
as her own knowledge of the language was as yet imperfect
(this was in 1844), and she wisely judged that listening to a
gentleman would sooner prepare them to come in to the
regular service, she secured one of the missionary brethren
to conduct the meeting. The first day only five attended ;
but soon she enjoyed the sight of about forty mothers listen-
ing to the truth as it is in Jesus. On the third Sabbath, she
was struck with the fixed attention of one of them, and, on
talking with her alone, found her deej^ly convinced of sin.
She had not before seen one who did not feel perfectly

C81)

82 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

prepared to die; but this one groaned, being burdened, and
seemed bowed to the dust with the sense of her unwor-
thiness. When Miss Fiske prayed with her, she repeated
each petition in a whisper after her, and rose from her
knees covered with perspiration, so intensely was she
moved : her life, she said, had been one of rebellion against
God ; and she knew that no prayers, fasts, or other outward
observances, had benefited her, or could procure forgiveness.
In this state of mind she was directed to Christ and his
righteousness as her only hope ; and though for some time
little progress was apparent, at length, as she herself ex-
pressed it, " I was praying, and the Lord poured peace into
my soul." The change in her character was noticed by her
neighbors. From being one of the most turbulent and
disagreeable of the women in her vicinity, she became
noted for her gentleness and general consistency. She has
since died, and her last days were full of a sweet trust in
her Saviour. She was the first inquirer among Nestorian
women.

This meeting was given up as soon as the women found
their way to the regular service ; but ever since there have
been separate meetings for them at other hours.

Until the revival in 1846, those who conducted these
meetings had to labor alone, for there were none of the
Nestorians to help them. Indeed, Miss Fiske had been
in Oroomiah more than two years, before women came
much to her for strictly religious conversation, or could be
induced to sit down to the study of the Scriptures.

Some of her first efforts to interest them in the Bible
were almost amusing in the difficulties encountered, and
the manner in which they were overcome.

She would seat herself among them on the earthen floor,
and read a verse, then ask questions to see if they under-

EARLY LABORS FOR WOMEN. 83

stood it. For example : after reading the history of the
creation (for she began at the beginning), she asked, "Who
was the first man?" A^isioer. "What do we know? we
are women;" which was about equivalent in English to
"we are donkeys." The passage was read again, and the
question repeated with no better success. Then she told
them, Adam was the first man, and made them repeat the
name Adam over and over till they remembered it. The
next question was, " What does it mean ? " Here, too,
they could give no answ^er ; not because they did not know,
for the word was in common use among them ; but they had
no idea that they could answer, and so they did not, and
were perfectly delighted to find that the first man was
called red earthy because he was made of it. This was
enough for one lesson. It set them to thinking. It woke
up faculties previously dormant. The machinery \yas there,
perfect in all its parts, but so rusted from disuse, that it
required no little skill and patience to make it move at all ;
but the least movement was a great gain ; more was sure to
follow. Another lesson would take up Eve (Syriac, Haica,
meaning Life). Miss Fiske would begin by saying, "Is
not that a pretty name? and would you not like to know
that you had a great-great-grandmother called Life f Now,
that was the name of our first mother — both yours and
mine." It was interesting to notice how faces previously
stolid would light up with animation after that, if the
preacher happened to repeat the name of our first parents,
and how one would touch another, whispering with childish
joy, "Didn't you hear? He said Adam."

Such were the women who came to the Seminary for
instruction ; but the teachers also went forth to search out
the no less besotted females in the villages; and, as a coun-
terpart to the above, we present an account of labors

84 WOMAN AND liER SAVIOUR.

among the wild women of Ardishai, a village twelve miles
south-east from Oroomiah.

When Miss Fiske had been in Oroomiah about one year,
Mr. Stocking proposed a visit to Ardishai. So the horses
were brought to the gate, one bearing the tent, another
the baskets containing Mr. Stocking's children, and a third
miscellaneous baggage ; besides the saddle horses. The first
night, the tent was pitched on one of the threshing floors
at' Geog Tapa ; but as American ladies were a novelty in
Ardishai, the party there, in order to secure a little quiet,
had to pitch their tent on the flat roof of a house. It was
Miss Fiske's first day in a large village, and she became so
exhausted by talking with the women, that she can never
think of that weary Saturday without a feeling of fatigue.
As the village is near the lake, the swarms of mosquitoes
allowed them no rest at night ; and morning again brought
the crowd with its idle curiosity as unsatisfied as the appe-
tite of more diminutive assailants. About nine o'clock, all
went to the church, where Mr. Stocking preached, while the
women sat in most loving proximity to their strange sisters,
handling and commenting on their dresses during the dis-
course. Mr. Stocking could preach though others talked,
and readily raised his voice so as to be heard above the
rest. At the close, Priest Abraham, without consulting any
one, rose and announced two meetings for the afternoon;
one in another church for men, and a second in this for
women, who must all come, because the lady from the new
world was to preach. So the news flew through the neigh-
boring villages. The good lady called the priest to account
for his doings ; but he replied, " I knew that they would
come if I said that, and you can preach very well, for your
girls told me so." He was greatly disappointed, however,
when he found that his notice left him alone to preach to

EARLY LABORS FOR WOMEN. 85

the men, while Mr. Stocking preached to some six hundred
women, with half as many children. They were a rude,
noisy company, not one of them all caring for the truth ;
and there was no moment when at least half a dozen voices
could not be heard besides the preacher's. When he
closed, as many as twenty cried out, " Now let Miss Fiske
preach." So he withdrevy, and left her to their tender
mercies. Her preaching was soon finished. She simply
told them, that when she knew their language better, she
would come and talk with them, but she could not talk at
the same time that they did, for God had given her a very
small voice, and her words would no more mingle with theirs
than oil and water. They said, " Oil and water never
mix ; but we will be silent if you will come and preach."
Months passed on, and she again visited the village. The
women remembered her promise, and hundreds came to-
gether; but they did not remember to be silent. As soon
as she began, they began ; and if she asked them to be quiet,
each exhorted her neighbor, at the top of her voice, to be
still ; and the louder the uproar, of course the louder the
reproofs. At length Miss Fiske said, " I cannot say any
more, unless you all put your fingers on your mouths."
All the fingers went up, and she proceeded : " I have a good
story to tell you ; but if one takes her finger from her mouth,
I cannot tell it." Instantly muzzled voices, all round the
church, cried, " Be still, be still, so that we can hear the
story ! " Some minutes elapsed, and the four hundred Avomen
were silent. "Once there was an old woman — I did not
know her, nor did my father, and I think my grandfather
did not; but he told me — " Here commenced many in-
quiries about said grandfather ; but again the fingers were
ordered to their places, and their owners told that they
should hear no more about the woman if they talked about

eb WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

the grandfather. " Now, this woman talked in meeting, —
I should think she must have been a relative of yours, for
ours do not talk in meeting, — and after many reproofs she
was forbidden to go to church any more if she continued
to do so. She promised very faithfully ; but, poor woman,
she could not be still ; then, as soon as she heard her own
voice, she cried out, ' O, I have spoken in meeting. What
shall I do? Why, I keep speaking, and I cannot stop.'
Now, you are very much like this woman, and as I think
you cannot stop, I must." By this time their fingers were
pressed closely on their lips, and no one made a reply.
Having thus secured silence. Miss Fiske took the New Tes-
tament, and read to them of Mary, who, she was sure,
never talked in meeting ; for if she had, Jesus would not
have loved her so much. She talked to them about
fifteen minutes more, and prayed with them, and they went
away very still and thoughtful.

Miss Fiske gave this account to the writer, with no idea
that he would print it. But he thinks — and the reader
will doubtless agree with him — that in no other way
could he convey so vivid an idea of woman as she was in
Persia, or the tact needed to secure a first hearing for the
truth. Miss Fiske w\as often called to deal with just such
rude assemblages, and by varied methods she generally
succeeded in securing attention. In subsequent visits to
Ardishai the number of hearers was never again so large;
but they came together from better motives, and, as we
shall see, not without the blessing of the Lord. In March,
1850, Miss Rice met nearly three hundred women in the
same church, some of them awakened, and a few already
hopefully pious.

CHAPTER IX.

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES.

■USEFULNESS AMONG RELATIVES OF PUPILS. DEACON GUWERGIS. —

BEFORMED DRUNKARD AND HIS DAUGHTER. — MATERNAL MEETINGS.
— EARLY INQUIRERS FROM GEOG TAPA. — PARTING ADDRESS OF MR.
HOLLADAY. — VISIT TO GEOG TAPA. — SELBY AND HER CLOSET.

Having thus glanced at early labors for women in the
Seminary and in the villages, let us now turn to another
field of usefulness among the relatives of the j^upils, who
came to visit them in school ; and here we are at no loss
for a notable illustration.

In the autumn of 1845, Deacon Guwergis, of Tergawer,
— and almost every reader was either priest or deacon, —
brought his oldest daughter, then about twelve years of
age, and begged for her admission to the Seminary. He
was known as one of the vilest and most defiantly dis-
solute of the Nestorians, and Miss Fiske shrunk from
receiving the daughter of such a man into her flock. Yet,
on the ground that, like her Master, she was sent not to
the righteous, but to the lost, she concluded to receive her.
Still the father, during his short stay, showed such a spirit
of avarice and shameless selfishness, — he even asked for
the clothes his daughter had on when she came, — that she
rejoiced when he went away.

His home was twenty-five miles ofi", in the mountains,
and she hoped that winter snows would soon shield her

(87)

88 WOMAN AND HEE SAVIOUR.

from his dreaded visits. Little did she think that his next
coming would result in his salvation. In February he
again presented himself at her door in his Koordish cos-
tume, gun, dagger, and belt of ammunition all complete.
He came on Saturday, when many of the pupils were
weeiDing over their sins ; and the teacher could not but feel
that the wolf had too truly entered the fold. He ridiculed
their anxiety for salvation, and opposed the work of grace,
in his own reckless way. She tried to guard her charge
from his attacks as best she could; but they were too
divinely convinced of sin to be much affected by what he
said. His own daughter, at length, distressed at his con-
duct, begged him to go alone with her to pray. (The win-
dow on the right of the central door of the Seminary
points out the place.) He mocked and jeered, but went,
confident in his power to cure her superstition. "Do you
not think that I too can pray?" And he repeated over
his form in ancient Syriac, as a wizard would mutter his
incantation. His child then implored mercy for her own
soul, and for her perishing flither, as a daughter might be
expected to do, just awakened to her own guilt and the
preciousness of redemption. As he heard the words
" Save, O, save my fiither, going down to destruction," he
raised his clinched hand to strike; but, as he said after-
wards, " God held me back from it." No entreaties of his
daughter could prevail on him to enter the place of prayer
again that day.

The native teacher, Murad Khan, then recently con-
verted, took him to his own room, and reasoned with him
till late at night. Sabbath morning found him not only
fixed in his rebellion, but toihng to prevent others coming
to Christ. At noon Miss Fiske went to the room where
he was. (The two lower windows on the right of the

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 89

engraving of the Seminary mark the j^lace.) He sat in the
only chair there, and never offered her a seat ; so she stood
by him, and tried to talk ; but he sternly repelled every
attempt to speak of Jesus. She then took his hand, and
said, "Deacon Guwergis, I see you do not wish me to
speak with you, and I i)romise you that I will never do it
again unless you wish it; but pledge me one thing: when
we stand together in judgment, and you are on the left
hand, as you must be if you go on in your present course,
promise me that you will then testify, that on this twenty-
second day of February, 1846, you were warned of your
danger." He gave no pledge, but a weeping voice said,
"Let me pray." The hand was withdrawn, and he passed
into the adjoining room, whence soon issued a low voice,
that Miss Fiske could hardly yet believe was prayer.
The bell rung for meeting, and she sent her precious charge
alone, while she staid to watch the man whose previous
character and conduct led her to fear that he was only
feigning penitence in order to plunder the premises undis-
turbed. She staid till a voice seemed to say. What doest
thou here, Elijah? then went and took her place in the
chapel ; soon the door opened again very gently, and Dea-
con Guwergis entered ; but how changed ! His gun and
dagger were laid aside ; the folds of his turban had fallen
over his forehead ; his hands were raised to his face ; and
the big tears fell in silence ; he sank into the nearest seat,
and laid his head upon the desk. After Mr, Stoddard had
pronounced the blessing, Miss Fiske requested Mr. Stocking
to see Deacon Guwergis.

He took him to his study, and there, in bitterness of

soul, the recent blasphemer cried out, " O my sins ! my

sins! they are higher than the mountains of Jeloo."

" Yes," said Mr. Stocking, " but if the fires of hell could be

8*

90 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

put out, you would not be troubled — would you ? " The
strong man now bowed down in his agony, exclaiming,
" Sir, even if there were no hell, I could not bear this load
of sin. I could not liv^ as I have lived."

That night he could not sleep. In the morning, Miss
Fiske begged Mr. Stoddard to see him, and after a
short interview he returned, telling her that the dreaded
Guwergis was sitting at the feet of Jesus. "My great
sins," and " My great Saviour," was all that he could say.
He was subdued and humble, and before noon left for his
mountain home, saying, as he left, " I must tell my friends
and neighbors of sin and of Jesus." Yet he trembled in
view of his own weakness, and the temptations that might
befall him. Nothing was heard from him for two weeks,
when Priest Eshoo was sent to his village, and found him
in his own house, telling his friends " of sin and of Jesus."
*He had erected the family altar, and at that moment was
surrounded by a company weeping for their sins. So
changed was his whole character, and so earnest were his
exhortations, that for a time some looked on him as insane ;
but the sight of his naeekness and forgiving love under
despiteful usage amazed them, and gave them an idea of
vital piety they never had before. He returned to Oroo-
miah, bringing with him his wife, another child, and brother,
and soon found his way to Miss Fiske's room. As he
opened the door, she . stood on the opposite side ; but the
tears were in his ey^s, and extending his hand as he ap-
proached, he said, " I know you did not believe me ; but
you will love me — will you not?" And she did love him,
and wondered at her own want of faith. In a few days,
he was able to tell Mr. Stocking, with holy joy, that two
of his brothers were anxiously seeking the way of life.
His own growth in grace surprised every one, and his

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 91

views of salvation by grace were remarkably clear and
accurate.

When his claugliter returned to school, on the 30th of
March, she w^as accompanied by one of her father's broth-
ers, who seemed to have cast away his own righteousness.
and to rely on Christ alone for pardon. As no missionary
had conversed with him, Mr. Stocking felt desirous to
know how he had been led into the kingdom, and learned
that he had promised Deacon Guwergis to spend the
Sabbath with one of the native teachers of the Female
Seminary. This teacher and others prayed with him, till
he threw away his dagger, saying, "I have no more use
for this," and in tears cried out, " What shall I do to be
saved ? " He gave no evidence then of having submitted
to Christ, but in his mountain home he seemed to make a
full surrender, and became w^ell acquainted with the mercy
seat. The native helpers felt that he was moving heaven-
ward faster than themselves. In April, it was found that
as many as nine persons in Hakkie, the village of Deacon
Guwergis, gave evidence of regeneration, five of them
members of his own family ; and the whole village listened
to the truth which the zealous deacon constantly taught.

He always remembered the school as his spiritual birth-
place, and ever loved to pray for it. Once, when rising
from his knees in the Male Seminary, where he had been
leading in evening devotion, he exclaimed, " O God, forgive
me. I forgot to pray for Miss Fiske'S school." So he knelt
again and prayed for it. And Mr. Stoddard said he did
not think there was a smile on a single fice, it was done
with such manifest simplicity and godly sincerity.

In June, 1846, Miss Fiske visited Hakkie with Mr. and
Mrs. Stocking. It was the first time ladies had been in the
mountains, and the good deacon was greatly delighted.

92

WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Labors were then commeDced for females there that have
been continued ever since. The annexed sketch will give

MISSIONARY SCENE IN TERGAWER.

a more vivid idea of the nature of such labors than the
most accurate description. One day the party was toiling
up a rough ascent, and the deacou, as much at home among
the roclis as the wild goats, offered his assistance. The
reply was, " We get on very well." At once his eyes filled,
and he said, "You once helped me in a worse road; may I
not now help you ? " And his aid was at once gratefully
accepted. At the tojj of the hill, while the party rested,
they heard his voice fir off among the clefts of the rocks,
pleading for them and their relatives in distant America.

After his conversion, the deacon devoted himself to
labors for souls, especially in the mountains. One might
always see a tear and a smile on his face, and lie was ever
ready, as at first, to speak "of sin and of Jesus." He

FRUITS OF LAROR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 93

traversed the mountains many times on foot, with his
Testament and hynm boolv in his knapsack. In the rug-
ged passes, he would sing, "Rock of Ages, cleft for me,"
and at the spring by the wayside, " There is a fountain
filled with blood " flowed spontaneously from his lips. Pie
warned every man, night and day, with tears, and pointed
them to Jesus as their only hope. He rested from his
labors March 12th, 1856, and, as his mind wandered in the
delirium of that brain fever, he dwelt much on those days
when he first learned the way to Christ. He would say,
" O, Miss Fiske was right when she pointed out that way ; "
and then he would shout, " Free grace ! free grace ! " till he
sunk away unconscious. Again he would say, "That bless-
ed Mr. Stocking! O, it was free grace." These were
almost his last words. The daughter who prayed with him
that first Saturday was by his dying bed, and her voice in
prayer was the last earthly sound that fell upon his ear.

It may strike the reader as strange that a man so noto-
rious for wickedness as Deacon Guwergis was, should be
allowed in the Seminary ; but Oriental notions of hospi-
tality are widely difterent from ours ; and in order to do
good to a people, however rude, they must feel that you
are their friend. No protection from government can take
the place of this feeling of afiectionate confidence from the
people ; and while sufiicient help was at hand to repel any
overt wickedness, the highest usefulness required that
patient love should have its perfect work, and in this case,
at least, its labor was not unrewarded.

The usefulness of the Seminary among the relatives of
its pupils was illustrated in another case that occurred
about the same time. March 2d, 1846, the father of one
of the girls called and inquired, with tears, if his daughter
was troubled for her sins. Surprised at such an inquiry

94 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

from a notorions drunkard, he was exhorted to seek his
own salvation. He then told how he had been taught the
plague of his own heart, and, as a ruined sinner, was cling-
ing to Christ alone. His prayers showed that he was no
stranger at the throne of grace. Father and daughter
spent the evening mingling their supplications and tears
before the mercy seat. The daughter had given more
trouble than any in school, and several times had almost
been sent away. Four days later, her mother came, and
remained several days, almost the whole time in tears, and
hardly speaking, except to pray. Her daughter and the
pious members of the school were unwilUng to let her go
till she came to Christ, and she seemed to take him for her
Saviour before she left. She was a sister of Priest Abra-
ham, and had been so exceedingly clamorous and profane
in her opposition to religion, that her brother had for years
dreaded to see her. How did he rejoice, when, instead of
the customary oath, he found her nttering the j^raises of
her Saviour! The sister of her husband had been one of
the vainest of the vain, wearing an amount of ornament
unusual even for a Nestorian ; but she no sooner put on
the righteousness of Christ than she sold her ornaments,
and, giving the proceeds to the poor, clothed herself with
that modest aj^parel wliich becometh women professing
godliness. The husband liimself, tliough an ilUterate la-
borer, preached the gospel while at work in the field, and
often took two or three of liis associates aside to pray with
them, and to tell them of Christ and his salvation.

But these cases must suffice : we can only indicate the
ways in which the school became a centre of holy influence,
especially for woman; but it is impossible to narrate all
the facts.

After the revival, the Seminary was thronged with

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 95

visitors, who desired the time to be filled up with religious
instruction. That year witnessed a rich ingathering of
wives and mothers, brought by their converted husbands
and children to be taught the way of salvation. The
teacher who received visitors always found enough to do
both by day and by night. As soon as there were two pray-
ing women in a village, Miss Fiske and Miss Rice sought
to establish female prayer meetings ; and Avhen they visited
a village, the women expected to be called together for
prayer ; and when the women returned the visit, they each
sought to be prayed and conversed with alone. This was
done also with the communicants generally three times a
year. The prayers and remarks of the pious members of
the school often gave a high spiritual tone to the weekly
prayer meeting. Occasionally there were maternal meet-
ings ; and on such occasions one teacher met with the moth-
ers, and the other with the children in a separate room.

These took the place of the early meetings with women
mentioned in the beginning of the chapter, and were
very useful.

Nestorian families have been already described in part,
but the absence of the religious element in them can hardly
be realized by Christians here. They did not believe that
a child was possessed of a soul until it was forty days old.
This belief affected all their feelings towards children, and
their custom of burying unbaptized infants outside of their
cemeteries did not serve to correct such impressions.

Family registers were unknown. In 1835, probably not
five Nestorians could tell their birthday, and but few knew
in what year they were born. Miss Fiske kept a list of all
the children, which was read at every meeting ; but at first
she could record the birth of only the very youngest. The
deceased children were written down in a separate page.

93 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

and it was sad to see how much they exceeded the number
of the livmg. One childless mother, who had buried eleven,
was always present ; for she said she wanted to pray for
the children of others, though her own were not. They
assembled in Miss Fiske's room, sometimes to the number
of thirty, with such of their little ones as were too small to
attend the other meeting, and, seated on the floor around
her, were never more happy than when telling their troubles,
asking questions, and receiving instructions about family
duties, much more specific than could be given on other
occasions. Now and then she read to them, from Eng-
lish books, facts and truths adapted to their needs. One
good man in Fairhaven, Connecticut, w^ho had heard of
this, sent a complete set of the Mother's Magazine, to be
used in that way. So interested were they, that many of
them walked regularly three miles and back again, under a
burning sun, to enjoy these gatherings ; and from a monthly,
it had to be changed to a weekly meeting. It sometimes
lasted three hours, but never seemed to them too long;
and, commenced in 1850, it is still kept up with as much
regularity as Miss Rice's many other duties will allow. It
would be interesting to dwell on its results ; but a single
incident may suffice. One mother, whose husband was not
a Christian, was very regular in private devotion, but
thought she could not offer prayer in the family, till her
husband became dangerously sick, when, in the agony of
her intercession for him, she vowed that, if God would
^spare him, she would establish family prayer. So, as sooti
as he was able to bear it, she gathered her children around
his bed, and after they had read the first chapter of Mat-
thew, verse about, she led in prayer, and so went on read-
ing the New Testament in the morning and the Old
Tsistament in the evening, till she got through with the

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 97

whole of the former, before any one of the missionaries
knew that she had commenced.

The teachers of the Seminary enjoyed very much the
visits of the early inquirers from Geog Tapa, in the summer
of 18-45, most of whom became hopefully pious the follow-
in «• winter. Let us look in on one visit made towards the
end of May. A pupil announces that two women below,
wish to see Miss Fiske ; and a middle-aged stranger is shown
into her room. In answer to the usual inquiry, "From
whence do you come ? " she replies, " I have come from
Geo^ Tapa, for I have heard that you have repented, and I
want to knoAV about it." She has walked six miles on pur-
pose to make the inquiry. "I wish that you, too, had
repented," calls forth the reply, "Alas, I have not! I am on
my way to destruction." Feeling that the Bible was the
safest guide for such an inquirer. Miss Fiske reads appro-
priate portions, explaining as she reads. The visitor shows
a great deal of Bible knowledge for one who cannot read,
indicating that she had not been inattentive to the faithful
instructions of Priest Abraham and Deacon John, and her
questions are numerous and intensely practical. Among
other things, she asked, " Is it true, that for one sin Adam
and Eve were cast out of Eden ? " and on being told that
it was so, "There," said she, turning to the unconcerned
neighbor, who had come with her, " do you hear that ?
What will become of you and me, who have sinned so of-
ten?" At length prayer was proposed, to which she eagerly
and tearfully assented ; and though the tongue that com-
mended her to Jesus, in that strange language, might have
faltered, the heart did not share in the embarrassment.
The woman, like the first inquirer, repeated every word of
the prayer in a low whisper, as though unwilling to lose a
single syllable. The conversation was then resumed till it
9

98 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

was interrupted by the entrance of some of the pupils on
business. " Have you finished ? " was the woman's eager
inquiry. " I wish very much to liear more of these things."
Her companion now begged her to go home. "No," was
the kind reply; "you may go, but I must stay here to
prayers." Evening prayers were earlier than usual that
evening for her sake, but still she lingered. She had not
yet found rest. Selby, one of Mrs. Grant's pupils, then in
the Seminary, now conversed with her; and as there
seemed to be a sympathy between them (Selby had
recently found peace in believing), they were left by them-
selves. After supper, Selby remained with her an hour or
more, that they might pray together, till it was quite dark,
and her friends had sent for her repeatedly. She left, hav-
ing first begged permission to come in to morning prayers.
Morning came, and before sunrise she was again listening
intently to the reading of the Word, and, after devotions,
left for home, earnestly begging Miss Fiske to come and
spend a week in Geog Tapa.

The Seminary was dismissed June 5th. On that day,
several hundreds of the parents and friends of the pupils,
in both Seminaries, were invited to a simple entertainment,
got up in native style. The gentlemen of the mission ate
in one room, with the men and boys, and the ladies in
another, with their own sex. The confidence and kind
feeling manifested by all towards the school was very
gratifying. After dinner, the whole company, seated in the
court, listened to an address from Mr. Holladay, then about
to return home. He spoke to parents and children on their
duties, pri\'ileges, and responsibilities : towards the close,
he spoke of the almost certainty of never meeting them
again till the judgment, and bade them an aflTectionate fare-
well. His utterance was often choked, and his hearers

FRUITS OP LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 9&

wept ; and well they might, for in him they parted with a
faithful friend. During the exercises, the members of the
two schools sang twice, to the great gratification of their
fi'iends.

That evening most of the pupils went home, all but a
few of the girls carrying with them a copy of the four
Gospels, in modern Syriac, which they had paid for with
their needles.

Miss Fiske left for Geog Tapa on the 14th of June
with Mr. Stocking, reaching that place as the people were
coming out from evening prayers in the church. The first
to welcome them were six j^upils, residents in the village,
who greeted their teacher with a hearty good will. Next
to them came Pareza, the inquirer, changed somewhat in her
feelings, but with no loss of religious interest. John, too,
was there (the native pastor) : he had been busy, day and
night, instructing the people, and had taken special care of
the pupils, that they might both improve themselves and ex-
ert a good influence on others. When Mr. Stocking asked
him about matters in the village, "O sir,'isaid he, "it is a
very good time here now; very many love to hear the
truth ; their hearts are very open. O sir, I have very much
hope ! " After supper, the villagers poured into the room
for a meeting, to the number of one hundred, while some
thirty or forty more were unable to get in. This was all
the more welcome, as no notice whatever had been given.
It was a clear moonlight evening, and the groups outside
were distinctly visible, through the latticed side of the
room. John commenced with an earnest prayer for a
blessing on the evening; asking, in his simplicity, that
"the people might run after the word like sheep after
salt" — a strange expression to us, but most appropriate
and striking there. Fixed attention was given to Mr.

iOO WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR-.

Stocking's discourse : then John, who feared that those
around the door had not been fed, spoke to them of
Zaccheus. "The crowd about him," said he, "did not
know his feehngs ; but Jesus knew them, and loved him ;
and so, mothers and sisters" — they, as an inferior class,
had to take the lowest places while the men were within —
" if you have come here to-night with a broken heart, though
we have not seen you, Jesus has." He then, with Miss
Fiske's puj^ils, sung a hymn, and the meeting closed. Still,
many women lingered ; some sitting down by Miss Fiske,
and others in little groups, talking over what they had
heard ; very different from previous visits, when dress and
such things were the most interesting themes of conversa-
tion. This was the first meeting in the village in which
the missionaries noticed much religious interest.

Early in the morning. Miss Fiske's pupils were gathered
together for a Bible class. The women soon filled the room.
The exercise continued all the forenoon, simply because it
could not be closed. It was impossible to send away unfed
those who hungered for the word. Among the women
were a few men, one of them the husband of the inquirer.
He was asked, " Have you and your wife chosen the good
part ? " He covered his face for a moment ; the tears rolled
down his cheeks ; and then he said, " By the grace of God,
I hope we have." His heart was too full to say more.

Soon after noon, Mr. Stocking preached in the church,
on the barren fig tree, to a crowded assembly. The heat
and the multitude made the place very uncomfortable, but
the interest deepened till the close. As soon as they were
out of the church, many women crowded around Miss
Fiske, some of whom she could look on as truly pious, and
more as thoughtful. One, who was the first to be awa-
kened about a year before, seemed now a growing Christian.

FRUITS OF LABOR IN NESTORIAN HOMES. 101

On leaving, she said, " Perhaps I shall not see you again
till I meet you in heaven." She seemed to be looking for-
ward with humble hoj^e to a sinless home. With others,
she had encountered much opposition from her family and
friends. She has since entered into rest.

On the 19th, Selby visited Miss Fiske, and in answer to
a question about a place for private devotion, "O, yes,"
said she, "there is a deep hole under our house, like a
cellar, and there I go every day to pray."

A brief account of her may not here be out of place.
In 1830, when she was an infant in her mother's arms, the
cholera in five days carried her father and five of his house-
hold to the grave. In 1838, she was one of the first pupils
of Mrs. Grant. She learned more raj^idly than the rest,
and yet was so amiable that she was loved by those whom
she excelled. Still, she was a stranger to God, and she felt
it. When thirteen years of age, her brother took her out
of school, replying to her earnest pleadings, to be allowed
to remain, " You have been there already too long." At
the same time she was forced to marry a boy twelve
years of age, with whom she had never spoken. For days
previously, tears were her meat and drink; nor was she
the only one that wept. After this, the missionaries sel-
dom saw her, till, one cold Sabbath in the winter of
1844-45, a girl entered the chapel, wrapped, as brides
usually are, in a large, white sheet. She was not recog-
nized, of course, till her mother led her forward, saying,
" I have brought Selby here to-day to listen to the words
of God ; she loves them and you very much." She was
feeble and much depressed, and expressed a strong desire to
return to school. Her father-in-law consented to her teach-
ing in the primary department, on condition that her hus-
band was received into the Boys' Seminary, which was done.
9*

102 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

She now manifested much interest in religion, and one day
wept much, and incUned to be alone. The next evening,
she went to Miss Fiske, distressed with a sense of sin.
Said she, " I have lied, and stolen, and sworn ; nor that
only, but have lived so long without once loving my kind,
heavenly Father ! When I felt sadly about dying at home,
I thought then only of hell ; but now my sins — O, how
many they are ! I never knew before that I was such a
sinner." The next day, at her father-in-law's request, she
was to spend the Sabbath at home. She was very loath
to go, but it was not thought best to try to retain her, and
she went. There she found neither closet nor Christian
friend, and the house was full of guests from morning till
night, whom she was required to entertain. Yet in the
morning she returned with even increased interest in spir-
itual things. Said she, "Tavo or three times I was left
alone for a moment, and then I tried to commit my soul to
my Saviour." Those few moments she seemed to value
above all price. Not long after, she found peace in Jesus,
who became her chosen theme. No wonder she loved to
point others also to the Lamb of God, and lead, them to
the mercy seat.

CHAPTER X.

GEOG TAPA.

DEACON MURAD KHAN IN 1846. — PENTECOSTAL SABBATH IN 1849. —
MEETINGS IN 1850 AND 1854. — EXTRACTS FROM JOURNAL OF YO-
NAN IN 1858.

The village of Geog Tapa is so prominent, and has been
so largely blessed, that, though there is not room for a con-
tinuous account of the work in that place, we here give a
glimpse of its progress in different years.

Deacon Murad Khan, one of the assistants in the Semi-
nary, and a native of the place, spent some Sabbaths there
in May, 1846. He took turns with the other native teacher
in this, going Saturday, and returning on Monday. He
tells us that, after morning prayers in the church, pious
men met together to pray for a blessing on the day ; twelve
of their number then went to labor in other villages, the
rest remainins^ to work at home. Passing: throuirh a vine-
yard, he found hidden among the vines a youth setting
home gospel truth to a group of others about his own age.
At their request, he expounded the parable of the ten vir-
gins to them till it was time for forenoon service; then
they separated, to spend a few moments in private devo-
tion before entering the church.

In 1849, the pious men of the village divided it into dis-
tricts, and visited from house to house for religious conver-
sation and prayer. Meetings were held daily, and well
attended. The most abandoned persons were hopefully

(103)

104 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

converted. Crimes committed twenty-five years before
were confessed, and restitution made. One Sabbath in
February, Mr. Stocking and Mar Yohanan found a large
assembly in the house of Mar Elias, listening to an exhort-
ation from Priest Abraham. Mar Yohanan, who had not
been there since his conversion a little while before, was
then called on, and spoke of himself as the chief of sinners,
having led more souls to destruction than any other of his
people, and being all covered with their blood. In regard
to his flock he said, the fattest he had eaten, the poorest he
had cast away, the lame and the sick he had neglected.
He begged them no longer to look to their bishops for sal-
vation, but to repent at once and turn to God. Priest
Abraham, then recently awakened, ^also made a humble
confession of his sins as their priest, and besought them,
one and all, to attend to the salvation of their souls.

In the afternoon, the church was crowded, and a number,
unable to gain admission, retired to a school room, where a
meeting was conducted by a member of the Male Sem-
inary. In the church, they sung the hymn, " Come, Holy
Spirit, heavenly Dove." Mar Yohanan ofiered prayer, and
Mr. Stocking preached from the text, " Now, then, we are
ambassadors for Christ," and produced a very deep im-
pression, which was increased by short addresses from the
bishop and others. This was known afterwards by the
name of the Pentecostal Sabbath.

In 1850, those previously renewed gained new light,
and those whose piety was doubtful — to use Deacon
John's broken English, — were "very much firmed." Miss
Fiske and Miss Rice spent a day in the village, after the
close of their spring term, and had delightful intercourse
with about twenty women hopefully pious, and many more
inquirers. In the evening, supper was hurried tlirough.

GEOG TAPA. 105

and men, women, and children hastened to the house of
the pastor. Mr. Stocking preached there to a crowded
assembly of men, while the teachers adjourned to a neigh-
boring house, to meet with the women. Their hearts were
full at meeting so many for whom they had alternately
hoped and feared, now sitting in heavenly places in Christ
Jesus ; they remembered seeing their first penitential tears,
and could hardly restrain their own for joy. The house was
full, and in a silence interrupted only by stifled sobs, they
communed together concerning Jesus and his grace. It
seemed as though God jDcrfected praise that night out of
the mouths of babes, by keeping them perfectly still in
their mothers' arms ; and as the pupils of the Seminary
belonging to the village, in their prayers, laid mothers,
sisters, and friends at the feet of Jesus, the place seemed
near to heaven. Next day, about one hundred and fifty
attended another meeting, and it was with diflSculty the
teachers could tear themselves away. One of the pious
mothers could not bear to have her daughter, recently con-
verted in the Seminary, leave her sight; and more than
once a day they bowed together at the throne of grace.
When this mother met Miss Fiske her feelings were so
intense she could only say, " Thank God," over and over,
and weep. Her husband was moved by his child's anxiety
for his salvation. Once, when she urged him to pray, he
replied, " I cannot ; but you may pray for me." She at
once knelt and interceded for him, with many tears. The
gray-headed man knelt also, deeply moved, and tears flowed
from eyes not used to weep. When she ceased praying,
she rose ; but his strength was gone ; he could not rise.
Yet the love of the world was strong within him, and it is
to be feared that he resisted the Holy Ghost.

In 1854, Miss Fiske found about sixty families maintain-

106 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

ing family prayer, and hardly a family in which there was
not some one that seemed to be a true disciple. John held
•A prayer meeting Sabbath morning with those whom he
gent out, two and two, to preach in the neighboring vil-
lages, and in the evening they reported what they had
done. Sabbath school commenced about nine o'clock, and
before it oj^ened, almost all were reading or listening to
those that read ; and then the school continued in session
two hours, without a sign of weariness. The number
wishing to learn to read was so large that it was difficult to
provide for them. Men came begging good teachers for
their wives, and women came pleading for spelling books
for their husbands. After school, at their own request,
Miss Fiske met twenty-one girls, who had been members of
'iier school (twenty of them now teachers in the Sabbath
school), and gave them a word of counsel and encourage-
ment in their work. At the close of afternoon service, the
women who could read staid with her till near sunset, they
viever so thankful before, and she never more thankful to
be with them.

The next glimpse we take of Geog Tapa shall be from a
native standpoint. A young man of the village, possessed
of more than ordinary abilities, was early taken into the
Male Seminary. His influence over the rest was so great,
and so decidedly opposed to religion, that he was about to
be sent away, when grace made him the first fruit of the
revival in 1846. Yonan (for that is his name) was a teacher
in the Female Seminary from 1848 till 1858, and, as he was
generally accustomed to spend his Sabbaths in his native
village, on Monday morning he handed in to Miss Fiske a
written report of the labors of the previous day ; and from
these we now give some extracts: —

'•^Ja7iuary 17th, 1858. I had a pleasant time in morning

GEOG TAPA. 107

family prayer, at which several young persons were present.
The Sabbath school was followed by a meeting, at the close
of which I returned to my room with four young men. I
talked with them about two hours, first about coming to
church, — for they attend only occasionally, — and in this
they promised to do better. I then questioned until I
reached their inmost souls. I asked one, ' What is the
distance between you and God ? ' ' My teacher, there is a
very great distance between us.' *Is it God's fault, or
yours?' 'It is mine.' I then looked on another, noted
for his wickedness, and said, ' Beloved, did not Christ come
for you ? His stripes, his anguish, his crucifixion, — were
they not for you ? Why, then, treat him so ill ? Has he
left the least thing undone for you?' He admitted the
truth, but seemed like a rock. At length I said to them,
'ISTow, Satan has provided something or somebody outside
the door, to drive these thoughts from your hearts.' One
replied, 'True, Satan has let down all the nets of the Sea
of Ardishai ^ for us.' I prayed for them, and they left me,
serious. Then I prayed for them alone. Soon my little
sister Raheel came in, who is under Papal influence. I
talked with her about prayer to the saints, and opened to
the ten commandments, and began to read; but she did
not want to hear. My heart yearned over my poor sister,
and I prayed with her.

"Moses preached in the afternoon about Achan, and after
that I had my usual meeting with the pious women. Guly
returned with me for conversation. I think she is a blessed
Christian. She labors and prays with two of her com-
panions. She told how her cousin ridiculed her, and I
encouraged her to go forward, but said, 'If all the world
think you a Christian, don't rest till you can say, " I know

^ Lake of Oroomiah.

108 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

in whom I have believed." ' We prayed together, and O,
what a prayer she offered ! Deacon Siyad led the evening
meeting.

^'•January 2^th, After morning service, I took Baba
Klian and Guwergis to my room. The first I had labored
with last year, and thought him interested. His wife fears
God, and has often asked me to talk Avith him. He is sel-
dom absent from church or prayer meeting, and often goes
out with our young men when they preach. This was my
thought in talking with him : ' Near the kingdom, but not
in it.' I earnestly pressed these questions : What do you
think of yourself? What is your dependence for salva-
tion? Have you repented? In short, on which side are
you ? He was troubled ; tears ran down his cheeks, and
for a time he made no reply. At last he said, ' I cannot
tell.' A companion began to answer for him, with the
confidence of ignorance, judging Christians and finding
holes in the coats of the righteous : ' Who knows whether
a man is a Christian? God alone.' I said, 'Are there
any Christians in our village?' 'Yes.' 'Then you know
some as Christians ? ' His words were many, while Baba
Khan's were few. My fiither here came in, but I prayed
with them all, and then went to church, where I preached
from the words, 'And thou mourn at the last.'

" To-day I conversed with Sadee. I found her in the habit
of praying with her sisters in Christ one by one. I advised
her to try and lead some of her unconverted neighbors to
Christ by her labors and prayers. She promised to do so.
We spent more than an hour speaking the language of
Canaan, and then knelt at the feet of the Saviour whom
we love. She prayed, spreading out her hands to heaven,
as I think the early saints used to do ; and it seemed as
though God would fill us with blessing in answer to that

GEOG TAPA. 109

prayer. She left me alone, and thanking God for these
blessed oi:>i3ortunities to labor.

" January Z\.8t, After meeting, conversed with Munny^
daughter of Mukdesseh. It was profitable to talk with
her. She said that her sainted mother used to say, "When
my heart is cold, I go to Christ, and never rise from my
knees till he warms it." She has some hope for he^ hus-
band, and also fear, since he does not forsake wino. She
told of a woman for whom she had prayed and labored five
or six years, and promised to do so with others. O, what
a sweet savor of piety did I receive from her ! if we had
many such mothers in Geog Tapa how changed it would
be ! I cannot write all our pleasant words ; they remain
for eternity.

" February 1th. I took home from Sabbath school two
young men, for whom I have fears because they drink too
much wine. I talked long with them, not as though I
would take a pledge from them, or that it is a sin ever to
drink at all, for I thought this would not be profitable ; but
I asked them questions, that they might themselves distin-
guish what is right ; as, ' Does wine make you to sin ? '
They owned that it did. Their hearts seemed won to the
right, but the work is the Lord's. May he save them from
this temptation.

" In the afternoon, I began to talk with SaikiVim without
feeling, but ended in tears. I did not ask questions, but
carefully explained the difficulties and the fight of faith,
also the special grace of God to his people. When I said
to her, 'I want you to enlarge your heart, and take in onG
more besides the two women whom you now labor with,'
she selected a very ignorant one. I am afraid that I do
differently, seeking rather an easy work.

^''February 22(7. This afternoon I sent for Nargis. I
10

110 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

had never thought of her as a Christian, but I found that
I was greatly mistaken. It is all my own fault. I had
seldom met her, and never prayed with her. I com-
menced: 'Do you think yourself a Christian?* 'I do.'
'How long have you thought so?' 'About eight years.'
'How is it that I have not known it?' 'Yakob was my
pastor, and since he left I have had none.' Then she told
of her awakening, and sufferings for Christ's sake, between
her betrothal and her marriage. 'I used to go to evening
meetings with Yakob, and on my return my uncle would
take me by the braids of my hair and throw me on the
ground, saying, "You go because there are young men
there." Sometimes I found the door barred against me;
then I went to a neighbor's to lodge, or oftener to the stable,
and slept in a manger ; but I was never afraid, for Christ
was with me : for a time my betrothed wished to put me
away. It was then I found Christ, and I have never for-
saken him since.' She is now poor and in distress. She
attends church and Sabbath school, but cannot go to
evening meeting, as her two little children keep her at
home. She lamented this, not thinking that she could
serve Christ in the care of these little ones. I told her, ' I
preach that prayer and the care of children are equally a
duty.' She was greatly comforted : these words seemed
like oil poured into the flickering lamp. I gave her the
' Green Pastures,' and prayed with her. I have great con-
fidence in her piety.

" On Friday forenoon, I saw Martha, the wife of Eshoo.
I trust she has grace in her heart ; and her husband hopes
that he is a Christian, but looks after her more than him-
self She sees him not doing right, and tells him in love ;
he is not pleased. Still, she thinks him a Christian. She
wished I would talk to them together, that their path

GEOG TAPA. Ill

might be one. I told her I did not think it best that
she should talk much to him, but be very quiet, pray for
him, be obedient to him, and hope to win him by her
chaste conversation coupled with fear. She received my
words well.

^'February 2Sth. I talked with Moressa. We hoped,
seven or eight years ago, that she was a Christian ; but her
husband soon prevented her attending meeting, and so she
remained, till lately she came to church again. I did not
know that one of the sisters in Christ had prayed regularly
with her all this while, but supposed that she had gone
back to her dead forms, and that God moved me to call
her to repentance. But I found her trusting that she had
been set in Christ's breastplate, the light of which can
never go out. I said, 'Do you think you love the Sa-
viour?' 'Yes, as the apple of my eye.' 'Are you sure
that yoti have not forsaken him in all these years?' 'I
have been very sinful all the time, but do not think I have
taken my hand from Christ.' My heart was now drawn
towards her. I said, ' Moressa, forgive me. I have been an
unfaithful shepherd. I have not once searched for you. I
confess my faults.' ' I have faults. I have been a wander-
ing sheep, forsaking the fold.' ' Have you kept up secret
prayer during all these years?' 'I have.' I found that she
had learned to read at home, and I gave her a Testament.
I have a good hope for her ; but how negligent I have
been ! There may be many Christians unknown."

These extracts might be extended; but enough have
been given to illustrate the inner workings of Nestorian
piety, and the labors of those so appropriately called
"native helpers." It was such men that Paul called his
helpers in Christ Jesus.

The women of Geog Tapa, in a letter to Miss Fiske,

112 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

written Feb. 1861, thanking her for her labors among them,
say, "We often think. What are we more than the women
of other nations, that we should have such heavenly bles-
sings ? and are ready to cry. Blessed is the dust of the
land that sends forth such good news, and makes known
the way of life to the world." They add, that at their last
communion more than eighty souls sat down at the Lord's
table ; and it seemed as if He who sitteth between the
cherubim was present in the church.

CHAPTEE XI.

REVIVAL IN 1846.

PREPARATORY -WORK. — SANCTIFIED AFFLICTIONS. — NAME FOR REVIVAL.

SCENES IN THE SEMINARIES IN JANUARY. — DEACON JOHN, SANUM,

AND SARAH. — MR. STODDARD. — YAKOB. — YONAN. — MEETING IN
THE BETHEL. — PRIEST ESHOO. — DEACON TAMO. PHYSICAL EXCITE-
MENT AND ITS CURE. — ARTLESS SIMPLICITY OF CONVERTS. — MISSION-
ARY BOX. — MEETINGS BEFORE VACATION. — MR. STODDARD's LABORS.
— FEMALE PRAYER MEETING. — REVIVAL IN THE AUTUMN.

The first revival in Oroomiah seemed to burst forth like
a fountain in the desert. Yet, as such a fountain, though
springing full grown from the earth, is connected with un-
seen arrangements working out that visible result, so was
this revival connected with an extended process of prepara-
tion. For years there had been a laborious inculcation of
divine truth, especially in the Seminary. True, there had
been few conversions ; but those few were an essential part
of the preparatory work. The roots of this revival ex-
tended back as far as the conversion of Deacon John, in
1844. Even in those still unconverted, there had been a
wonderful preparation of the way of the Lord. No one
could compare the condition of the places yet unblessed by
missionary labor, with those so favored, and not feel this.
Religious education had made a marked improvement in
the appearance of the pupils of both Seminaries, in their
personal habits, their intelligence, and especially in their
10 * (113)

114 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

knowledge of the doctrines of the gospel. Old supersti-
tions had lost their hold; they could no longer trust in
fasts and ceremonies, and they had an intellectual under-
standing of the way of salvation through a Redeemer.
True, all this did not necessarily involve a spiritual work ;
but God is pleased to have the way thus prepared for that
Spirit who sanctifies through the truth. Those who had
received the most instruction were the first to come to
Christ, and have since lived the more consistent Chris-
tian life.

Then, in the good providence of Him who always ob-
serves a beautiful order in the manifestations of his grace,
other influences tended to the same result. The very
delay of the blessing called forth earnest prayer from the
husbandmen who were waiting for precious fruit, and had
long patience for it, till they received the early and the
latter rain. The trials which the missionaries had passed
through in 1845 also tended to produce that despair of
help from themselves which usually precedes blessing.
In 1844 they numbered sixteen souls; but in 1846, from
various causes, they were diminished to ten. These were
not discouraged, but remained at their post confident that
labors in the Lord cannot be in vain. Then the persecu-
tion under Mar Shimon shut them up to God as their only
hope, while it rid them of some native helpers, who care^
chiefly for their own temporal advantage. The army of
Gideon, on all sides, was being diminished in order to
secure obedience to that precept, " He that glorieth, let hini-
glory in the Lord." The feeling was general, "all our
springs are in God." One of the missionaries said, in the
autumn of 1845, "God never formed a soul that Christ
cannot redeem from the power of sin. I know this people
are sunk in sin and degradation; but Jesus died to save

REVIVAL IN 1846. 115

them, and we may see them forever stars in his crown of
rejoicing, if we are only humble and faithful enough to
lead them to the Saviour."

At the time of the revival, Dr. and Mrs. Perkins
resided at Seir, and Dr. and Mrs. Wright were tempo-
rarily with them in that village. Mr. Breath was in the
city, but using the Turkish mainly, he never ventured to
give rehgious instruction in Syriac ; so that Mr. Stocking
and Mr. Stoddard were the only laborers in Oroomiah.
They lived on the mission premises already described ; and
at that time the Male Seminary occupied a building in the
same enclosure.

One day in the autumn of 1845, Mr. Stocking, Miss Fiske,
and Deacon John were riding together, when John asked
in English, " If we ever have a revival here, what shall we
call it ?" Mr. Stocking replied, "Let us get it first ; then
we will find a name;" and when it did come, the pious
Nestorians at once called it " an awakening."

Towards the close of December, Mr. Stocking noticed
repeated indications of deep seriousness among the pupils
of Mr. Stoddard, and felt that they were on the eve of a
revival. About the same time, Deacon John was more
active in labor, and earnest in prayer. In the Seminaries,
the teachers did not think so much of what their pupils
were, as of the power of God to make them like himself.
They labored in hope, expecting a blessing ; but it came
sooner than they looked for, and in larger measure. The
first Monday of the new year, January 5th, was spent as
a day of fasting and prayer; and the missionaries had just
begun to pray, when they found that some were praying
for themselves. Miss Fiske went into her school, as usual,
at nine o'clock, and, after telling her flock that many
prayers were being offered for them that day in a distant

116 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

land, led their morning devotions, and then sent them into
another room to study with a native teacher. Sanum and
Sarah lingered behind the rest ; and as they drew near, she
asked, "Did you not understand me?" They made no
reply; and she saw they were weeping. "Have you had
bad news?" Still no reply ; but when they got near enough,
they whispered, "May we have to-day to care for our
souls ? " and Sarah added, " Perhaps next year I shall not
be here." There was no private room to give them, but
they made a closet for themselves among the fuel in the
wood cellar, and there spent that day looking unto Jesus ;
nor did they look in vain. Their teacher did not know
where they had gone, till, long after one of them had died,
the survivor gave her an account of that memorable day.

On Sabbath evening, January 18th, the words at the
English prayer meeting were few; but the prayers car-
ried the dear pupils and laid them at the feet of Jesus.
At the close of the meeting, Mr. Stoddard was lighting his
candle to go home, when Mr. Stocking asked if he saw
any indications of interest in his school. There was no
rejily ; but the expressive face, and the candle dropping un-
noticed as he held it, showed that thought was busy, and
the heart full. At length he said, with deep feeling, "I
should expect to see interest if we felt as we ought to
feel;" and passed out. All were impressed with his man-
ner, so earnest, yet so humble. He retired to his study,
called John, and talked with liim on the state of the
school. Pie proposed that they should each day make
some one pupil a subject of special prayer and personal
effort, and begin that night with Yakob of Sooldooz.
They prayed together for him, and then he said, " John, I
want to talk with him to-night ; we don't know what may
be on the morrow ; go and call liim." Yakob, who had

REVIVAL IN 1846. 117

acted badly in meeting that day, came, expecting to be
punished ; but when Mr. Stoddard kindly asked him to
come and sit down by him, and, taking his hand, said,
" Have you ever thought that you have a soul to be saved
or lost?" he broke down at once. He confessed that
the whole school had combined to shut out the subject
from their thoughts, but really felt so uneasy, that if one
of them should be brought to Christ he thought all would
follow. Then the good man, who was so distressed that
day because he could see no impression made by the ser-
mon, thanked God and took courage. Not willing to
devote Monday to Yakob alone, he conversed with another
of the same name, and he too went away weeping to his
closet. The two had been in the recitation room but a
little while before their feelings became so intense that
they had to ask leave to retire. "It is God!" "It is
God!" was whispered from seat to seat; and at noon a
group collected to discuss what was to be done. One pro-
posed to rise up against the work, and put it down ; but at
length Yonan of Geog Tapa said, "I don't want to be a
Christian ; I don't mean to be ; but I am afraid to oppose
this ; we had better let it alone. If it is God's work we
cannot put it down, and if it is man's work it will come to
nought without our interference." Nothing more was said,
but before school commenced that afternoon, some of those
boys were on their knees in prayer.

In the evening, Mr. Stoddard sent for two leaders in
the opposition, very promising scholars, but of late for-
ward in every thing that was evil — one of them this
Yonan, and as he himself told aftei-wards : " Mr. Stoddard
said, * If you do not w^ish to be saved yourselves, I beg of
you, from my inmost soul, not to hinder others;' and
eternity so opened up before me, that I was ready to be

118 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

swallowed up. I longed for some one to speak to me of
the way of escape ; but no such word was spoken to me
that night. I could not sleep, for I was almost sure there
was but a step between me and death." Late on Thursday
evenmg, the other Yonan, of Ada, came to Mr. Stoddard
m extreme agitation, who conversed with him a while, and
then left him there to pray alone. That night he too could
not sleep. The years he had spent in sin rose up before him
in the light of God, and filled him with anguish ; but next
morning, in conversing with Mr. Stoddard, he seemed to
find rest in submitting to sovereign mercy.

On Monday evening, the indications of interest in the
Female Seminary were such, that the teacher invited those
disposed to seek salvation at once, to come to her room at
five o'clock. Before that hour, a number had retired to
pray for themselves. Just then, Mr. Stoddard came to
the door of the teacher, saying, " I cannot stop ; but I
wanted you to know that four or five of my boys are
much distressed for their sins." This was the first intima-
tion she had of what was taking place in the other school ;
and she turned away from Mr. Stoddard to find five of her
pupils in the same condition. Mr. Stoddard came in again,
in the course of the evening, to pray and consult ; and Mr.
Stocking gave up every tiling else to labor with the pupils
in both schools. Both Dr. Perkins and Dr. Wright came
down frequently from Seir. Every day brought out new
cases of those who were being taught of God. Wednesday
evening, at the conclusion of a sermon from Mr. Stocking,
on the words, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock," no
member of the Male Seminary seemed willing to leave his
seat. After a few words of exhortation, they were dis-
missed to their rooms ; but so intense were their feelings
that they came in crowds to the teacher's study, where he

REVIVAL IN 1846. 119

preached Jesus Christ, and forgiveness through his blood,
till near midnight ; then, fatigued and exhausted, he retired
to rest. Thursday evening, in the English prayer meeting,
Mr. Stoddard said, " God will assuredly carry forward his
own work. Let us give ourselves up to labor for him, in
pointing these precious souls to Christ." After the meeting,
the teachers of both Seminaries left to engage in that
blessed work till midnight. Eleven years after, on the
same evening, and about the same hour, one was called to
see the other pass from earth into the presence of the
Saviour whom he then set forth so faithfully. No wonder
the survivor recalled it in the' hush of that parting scene.

It is difficult to describe the occurrences of this eventful
week. The teachers' rooms were in such demand as closets
for the pujiils, that they could hardly command them long
enough for their own devotions. They were ready to
write " Immanuel " on every thing around them. The girls
were very free to express their feelings, and they had such
perfect confidence in their teacher, that often, during the
revival, some of them woke her in the morning, standing at
her bedside, with some inquiry about the way of life.

The two schools hardly knew any thing of each other
till Friday evening, when they met in a room fitted up for
the Female Seminary the preceding autumn. The first
time Mr. Stoddard entered it after this, he looked round,
and said, "May this room be wholly consecrated to the
Lord forever;" and this evening Christ seemed to take
possession of it. The boys sat on one side, and the girls
on the other; and seldom, jDcrhaps, has there been a com-
pany more under the influence of things unseen. It
seemed as though Go'd himself spoke that evening through
his ministering servants, and this and that one was born
there and then. It was in the same room that that last

120 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

prayer meeting of the teacher with her former pupils was
held, July 15th, 1858. In the engraving, the two upper
windows, immediately to the left of the small ones over
the central door, belong to this room.

At the close of the week, ten of the pupils were trusting
in Christ ; and of the next Lord's day it might truly be
said, " That SalDbath was an high day," for the Lord was
present, and many strong men bowed before him. Priest
Eshoo had watched the boys ; he had watched his own pray-
ing Sarah ; and now he looked within. He had never been
known to weep ; he scorned such weakness ; but when, at
the close of the afternoon service, Mr. Stocking took his
hand, saying, " Be sure you are on the right foundation," he
buried his face in his handkerchief and wept aloud. Nor
did he weep alone; Deacon Tamo, too, — whose levity all
through the week had been a sore trial to Mr. Stoddard, so
that he had asked, " Can it be that God has let him come
here to hinder the work?" — now trembled from head to
foot. Mr. Stoddard prayed with him, and as they rose
from their knees, Tamo looked him in the face, and, with
streaming eyes, said, " Thank you, thank you for caring for
my soul."

During the following week, most of the inmates of both
Seminaries were deeply convinced of sin, and daily some
souls seemed to come to the Saviour.

But some things rendered it apparent that the interest
was not all from above. One evening, fifteen or twenty
boys were found rolling on the floor, groaning and crying
for mercy. Measures were taken at once to prevent the
repetition of such a scene, and at evening prayers Mr.
Stocking commenced his remarks by asking if any of them
had ever seen the Nazloo River, at Marbeeshoo, near its
source. Startled by what seemed a very untimely question,

REVIVAL IN 1846. 121

a few answered, " Yes." " Was there much water in it ? "
Wondering what he could mean, t}ie answer was, "No;
very Uttle." "Did it make much noise ? " "Yes; a great
deah" The catechist went on : " Have you seen the same
river on the plain ? " By this time, every ear was listening,
and all replied, " Yes." " Was it deep and wide ? " " Yes ;
it was full of water." "And was it more noisy than at
Marbeeshoo ? " "No; it was very quiet and still." The
parable was now applied very faithfully. He said that he
had hoped the Holy Spirit had been teaching them the evil
of their hearts; but their noise and confusion that evening
showed him that there was no depth to their experience.
The effect was wonderful; they hung their heads and
quietly dispersed, and from many a closet that night might
have been heard the jDctition, " Lord, make me to know my
heart, and let me not be like that noisy river." What
threatened to be an uncontrollable excitement became at
once a quiet but deej^ sense of guilt. Their desires were
not less intense, but more spiritual ; their consciences were
very tender, and their feelings contrite, but subdued and
gentle.

In this revival, the converts had a great deal of feeling,
but no knowledge of the mode in which such feelings find
expression in Christian lands; and in the freshness and
strength of their emotions they yielded to every impulse
with an unconscious simplicity that was exceedingly inter-
esting. If they v/ere under conviction of sin, that found
immediate and unrestrained utterance. If they thought
they were forgiven, that, too, at once found exj^ression.
There was a wonderful transparency of spirit that revealed
each varying aspect of their feelings, and withal a ten-
dency to undue excitement that needed careful handling.
Indeed, it was found necessary to watch their social meet-
11

122 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

ings very closely, and sometimes to direct them to j)ray
alone.

For three weeks, very few visitors came to the Sem-
inary. The time seemed to be given ex23ressly for the
benefit of the pupils, and it was like one continual Sab-
bath. Every corner was consecrated to 25i"ayer, and most
of the work was direct effort for the salvation of souls.
But after that, visitors began to come, and then the young
converts became helpers in Christ Jesus, even the sight of
their devotion turning the thoughts of others to spiritual
things. Often ten or fifteen women spent the night on the
premises; and at such times, all the spare bedding was
brought into the great room, which was transformed into a
dormitory. The teacher often staid with them till mid-
night, and then, from her own room, could hear them
praying the rest of the night. In connection with this,
one incident claims our notice. One clay in February,
a box arrived from America for the Seminary; but so
engrossed was the teacher with more important duties,
that it was midnight ere she could open it. Next morning,
all were invited to her room, to see the contents. She told
of the kind friends who had sent it, and the love of Christ,
that constrained to such kindness. They were moved to
tears, but not one rose to examine the things, and not a
word was spoken, till the proposal was made that the quilts
should be kept for the use of their friends who came to
hear the word of God. All joyfully agreed to that, and
then, after looking at the articlcKS, tlicy returned to pray
for their benefactors.

The last meetings of the school before the March vaca-
tion were called thanksgivings, and fitly, too, for in the two
Seminaries as many as fifty souls had begun to love the
Saviour. When they left, the universal cry was, " Pray for

REVIVAL IN 1846. 123

US." "Pray for us in the temptations that await us at
home." One little girl said, " Did you ever see a new-born
lamb cast into the snow and live? And can we live?"
Thank God, most of the hopeful converts did live, and we
trust are to live forever, with the good Shepherd who gave
his life for their salvation.

It does not fall in with the design of this volume to give
a complete account of the revival, but we cannot leave it
without a word more about the instrumentality of Mr.
Stoddard in connection with that work of grace. He was
abundant in preaching. He did not think that the most
ordinary sermons are good enough for the mission field;
for he knew that the Nestorians could discriminate as well
as others nearer home, and so wrote out his sermons care-
fully in English, but in the Syriac idiom, noting on a blank
page the books consulted in their preparation. He also
excelled in labors for individuals. The first inquirer
became such while Mr. Stoddard pressed home upon his
conscience his guilt as a sinner against God; and the
same is true of many others. After conversing with a
person, he always led him to the throne of grace, and then
had him present his own offering there; and after such
a one had left, he seemed unable to turn his thoughts
to any thing else, till again in private he had commended
him to God. Indeed, he often began to do this before
they descended the stairs. He kept a little book, in which
he recorded every case, the state in which he found the
person, and any subsequent change; and it was noticed
tliat where he began, he continued to labor, not only till
there was hope, but even assurance of hope. Such labor
is as exhausting as it is delightful; and no wonder his
strength proved less than his zeal and love.

It was a great joy to him when his people could take

124 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

part in prayer meetings. He divided the thirty converts
among them into three circles, and met each of them twice
a week : this furnished him a season of refreshment every
day, and each of them took part at least once a week.
They were thus early initiated into a course of Christian
activity, and taught that they would lose much themselves,
besides failing to do good to others, if they held back. The
converts were so rooted and grounded in this truth, that
once, when Miss Fiske was in Geog Tapa, a brother said to
her that she must not leave the village till she had induced
a woman to pray with her, whom they all regarded as a
Christian, but who would not take part in their female
prayer meetings; and when she objected to urging her,
Deacon John replied, "If she was an ordinary Christian,
w^e might let her pass ; but her position is one of such
prominence, that the other women will do just as she does;
and so she must do right." Miss Fiske talked long with
the delinquent, but she insisted that she could not do it.
The missionary told of her own trials in the matter, — how
she had staid away fi*om meeting lest she should be called
on, and remained unblessed till she was willing to do her
duty. She prayed with her once and again, even a third
time, before she consented, saying, "I will not clisplease
God any more in this." So, drawing very close to her
instructor, she offered two petitions for herself, and one that
her friend might be rewarded for showing her her duty.
Hannah was • soon active in the women's meetings, and is
to this day a most useful and consistent Christian.

Another marked feature in Mr. Stoddard's labors was his
tact in setting others to work for Christ. He taught his
pupils that they must toil as well as pray, and soon alter
the first converts were brought to Christ, definite labor for
others w^as assigned to them, not only among their school-

REVIVAL IN 1846. 125

mates and those who visited the premises, but also in
gathering in those not disposed to come to meeting. Once,
when three fourths of the pupils were hopefully pious, Mr.
Stoddard said, "I must bring in more, just to furnish woi'k
for these converts." lie himself was happy in his work,
])ecause he gave himself wholly to it, without the least
reservation ; and amid the many trials that marked the
years of his residence in Persia, he looked beyond them all,
to Him who not only can give joy in sufiering, but, by
means of it, bring sinners to the Saviour.

The hopeful converts in the Seminary, after spending
the summer of 1846 at their own homes, in circumstances
of great trial and temptation, returned, all save one, not
only retaining their interest in spiritual things, but estab-
lished in Christian character. Their friends also testified
to their thoughtfulness, prayerfulness, and cheerful obe-
dience at home, and the influence of their piety was happy
on others.

For a while, in the autumn of 1846, the school was dis-
banded on account of the cholera. But, contrary to the
fears of many, after a separation of two months, all were
spared to meet again, though hundreds had fallen on all
sides. Three weeks afterwards, the Christians among them
seemed more than usually earnest in prayer for the con-
version of the impenitent, and at once the answer came.
The first one awakened was Moressa, now the wife of
Yakob, of Supergan, and then about fourteen years of age.
She had been taken into the family of Mrs. Grant nine
years before, and that of Mr. Stocking afterwards. She had
received much religious instruction, with apparently little
effect ; but now her convictions were deej), though she did
not submit to Christ for nearly a week after she felt she
was lost. Her case deeply enlisted the sympathies of her
11*

126 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

fellow-pupils, and soon several otliers passed through a
season of deep distress, to rest in the grace of Christ.

One of these was Eneya, sister of Oshana, and now the
"wife of Shlemon, in Amadia. Her widowed mother had
fled with her children to Oroomiah before the Koordish
invasion of her native Tehoma. Few children have so
deep a sense of sin as she had, or exercise such implicit
trust in the Saviour. At that time, her teacher wrote,
"May she become a messenger of great good to her
countrywomen ; " and noAV, that prayer is being answered
in her usefulness in that distant and lonely field of labor.
Altogether there were seven who seemed at this time to
take the Lord Jesus Christ as their God and Saviour.

CHAPTER XII.

FIRST FllUITS.

SARAH, DAUGHTER OF I'RIEST ESHOO. — MARTHA. — HANNAH.

Let us now tuni aside to take a nearer view of tlie first
fruits of this revival. Tlie first to ask the way to heaven,
to find it, and to enter through the gate into the city, was
Sarali, or Sai-ra, as tlie Xestorians pronounce it. Slie was
born among the rude mountaineers of Gawar, in 1831.
Her father, Eshoo, then a deacon, regarded her at first
with the aversion Nestorian fathers usually felt towards
their daughters ; but her strong attachment to him while
yet a child, so won his heart, that when the Koords over-
ran Gawar, in 1835, and the family fled from their smoul-
dering village, he wns willing to be seen carrying her on
his back, in the same w;iy tliat his wife bore her younger
sister. The fnmily stopped for a time at Degala, and sub-
sisted by begging from door to door, lodging at night in a
stable. The fine intellect of the self-taught father soon
brought him to the notice of the missiomu-ies ; and one
day Mrs. Grant, then just about securing her long-cherished
desire of a school for girls, asked him, in her winning way,
" Have you any daughters ? and will you not send them to
our little school? The inquiry revived a Avish that he had
ieit while yet in Gawar, that his daughter should learn to
read ; and in the s]u-ing of 18-4:1, Avlicii ho moved from

(127i

128 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Degala to the city, he sent her to the mission school. She
had just entered her tenth year — a tall, slender, dark-eyed
girl, even then giving indications of her early death, and
though often a great sufferer, she applied herself so dili-
gently to study, that she soon became, as she ever con-
tinued to be, the best scholar in the school.

The ancient Syriac Bible was the principal text book ;
and she so far mastered that language as to acquire a
knowledge of Scripture rarely attained in any land by a
child of her years. She was the walking concordance of
the school; and her knowledge of the doctrines of the
Bible was even more remarkable. Under the teaching
of Mrs. Harriet Stoddard, she had also learned to sing
sweetly our sacred music. Still, with all her acquirements,
she was destitute of grace ; and her declining health led
her teacher to feel much anxiety for her salvation.

On the first Monday in 1846, she said to Sanum, one of
her schoolmates, who, she knew, was thoughtful, " Sister,
we ought to turn to God. Shall we ever find a better
time than when so many are praying for us ? " They
together resolved to spend the day in seeking salvation;
and the manner in which they made known this purpose
to their teacher, and carried it out, has been already
related. (See p. 116). From that day, she never seemed to
waver. As soon as she found peace for herself, she sought
to make others acquainted with" her Saviour ; not for-
getting, however, that prayer of the Psalmist, "Search
me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my
thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me, and
lead me in the way everlasting." Feeble as she was, she
never shrank from labor. Hours every day were spent in
her closet, and the rest of her time was sacredly used for
Christ. She had much to do with the conversion of the

FIRST FRUITS. 129

twenty schoolmates whom she was permitted to see in
Christ before she went liome ; and she did much for the
women Avho came to tlie Seminary. Her teacher never
knew a young pei'son more anxious to save souls. Both
l)upils and visitors loved to have Sarah tell them the way.
They said, " We can see it when she tells us." No won-
der they saw it, for she seemed to look on it all the time.
Her teacher depended much on her, and yet often remon-
strated with her for such incessant labors. Still she felt
that she must be about her Father's business while the day
lasted. Her desires for the salvation of her father seemed
to commence with her anxiety for herself; and his feelings
were soon so tender that he could not answer an inquiry
about his own state without tears. Sarah was the first to
know that he had found peace. His first religious inter-
course with her was to tell her that he had found Jesus.
He had known that she was thoughtful, but was not pre-
pared to find her so full of humble hoj)e and holy joy.
Next day, when urged by a missionary to labor for the
salvation of his fiiuiily, he replied, " Sarah knows the way
to heaven better than I do. She can teach me far better
than I could her." Their previous strong attachment now
ripened into Christian love. He never felt that his daily
bread had been given him, if he had not knelt with her in
prayer, and his heart been lifted up by her petitions as well
as his own. Her mother at first scoffed ; but soon she, too-
sought the Saviour ; and her younger daughter, whose evil
ways for a time tried Sarah sorely, was also afterwards
brought into the kingdom.

Mr. Stocking used to call her "the best theologian
among the Xestorians," and often said, " If I want to write
a good sermon, I like to sit down first and talk with Sarah,
and then be sure that she is praying for me."

130 WOMAN AND HER iiWlOUR.

Her attachment tO'the means of grace was strong. She
went to every meeting, even after she could not reach the
cliapel without help. Her emaciated form, her hollow
cough, her eye bright with unnatural lustre, all told that
she was passing away, but, combined with her sweet sing-
ing and heavenly spirit, led her companions sometimes to
whisper, as she took her seat in the chapel, " Have we not
an Elizabeth Wallbridge among us ?" — "The Dairyman's
Daughter," in Syriac, had just then issued from the press,
and was a great favorite with tlie Nestorians.

As early as March, it was seen tliat she must die. Still
she clung to the school, and not for nought. She had a
mission to fulfil, and her Saviour strengthened her for the
work to Avhich he called her. As yet, none of the pious
Nestorians had finished their course. With the converts,
victory over death w^as something heard of, but never wit-
nessed ; and Sarah was chosen to show them " in what
peace a Christian can die." Perhaps the last days of no
young disciple were ever watched with more eager inter-
est. " Will Christ sustain us to the last ? Will he be with
us through the dark valley? Will he come for us and
receive us to himself, as he promised?" These were to
them momentous questions ; and they stood ready to an-
swer them according as the Lord supported her. Ever
since her death they have looked upon the last change
from a new point of view. But we must not anticipate.

The five months between her conversion and her de-
cease were very precious to all who knew her. She
sometimes sat with her teacher and talked an hour at a
time on the home of the blessed. She seemed to look in
upon its glories, and share its gladness ; and then her
thoughts turned to the perishing aroimd her, saying, "I
would labor a little longer for them, if it u my Father's

FIRST FRUITS.

lai

will." Tlie vonns; converts whom slio li.id tano-ht could

t/ CD O

not bear tlio thought of her leaving tlieui ; but they sought
to stay an angel in his course. The dross had been con-
sumed, and the spirit was made meet for the inheritance
of the saints iu liglit.

About the middle of May, it was felt that she must go
home to her father, whose house was near the Seminary.
It was a beautiful d;'.v in a Persiim summer. The morninL''

1

nil

COURT Y.SRD OF THE FEMALE SEMINARY.

exercises were closed. When her teacher told her what
they thought, she replied in a whisper, "I think I had
better go, but I want to be alone a little before I leave
not to return." With weary step she sought the closet
where first she found her Saviour : it Avas occupied. Per-
haps He saw she might think more of the place than was
meet ; so she spent an hour in another room, and then
returned, saying, "I am ready to go now." She went sup-

132 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

ported by a schoolmate on either side : stopping in the
court, she turned to take a hist look of the dear home
where she had learned of Jesus, and, i)lucking some of
the roses that bloomed by hei' side, passed on. On the
preceding page that court is represented, as seen from the
adjoining one. She suffered intensely for a few days. Her
disease forbade her lying down, even at night. But still
not a day passed that she did nof gather some women
about he]', and point them to Jesus. Her teacher visited
her frequently, and often found her with her Bible open,
and several women around her bed, to whom she waif
explaining it. The praying pupils, too, often knelt with
her at the accustomed throne of grace.

One Saturday in June, her father was asked if he could
go to Tergawer — twenty-five miles distant — and preach.
His reply was, "I will see what Sarah says." She said,
" Go, father, and I will pray for you." Sabbath morning
came, and her teacher saw that Sarah was almost home :
she told her so, and once more committed the dear pupil
to the Saviour who stood by. She had to return to her
duties in school, but first said to her mother, "Send for
me when the Master calls for her, for, if I cannot go over
Jordan wdth her, I would at least accompany her to the-
swelling stream." In the afternoon her sufferings became
intense ; and losing herself for a moment, she said, " Call
my father." They told her where he was. "O, yes, I
remember. Don't call him. Let him preach; I can die
alone." She then said, "Call Miss Fiske;" and her sister
started to go. But the dying one remembered that it was
the hour for prayer meeting, and beckoned her to return,
saying, "She is in meeting now, with my companions.
Don't call her ; I can die alone." Perhaps, with that teacher
present, her eyes had not so clearly discerned the Lord

FIRST FRUITS. 133

Jesus. Her sufferings were now so great, she hardly spoke
for an hour. Then she said, in a clear voice, "Mother,
raise me, that I may commit my spirit ; " for she would
never approach her Saviour but on her knees. Supported,
as she had been hundreds of times before, by that mother's
strong arms, and in the attitude of prayer, she said, " Lord

Jesus, receive " And there she stopped : prayer had

ended. Instead of the closing words of the earthly pe-
tition was the opening of the new song in heaven. The
Saviour did not wait for the close of her petition before he
answered it. The teacher had just sat down with her
pupils when the door opened, and a messenger said, " Sarah
is asleep!" "Yes," thought she, gratefully, "till Jesus
shall say, ' Awake ! ' " According to Eastern custom, Sarah
was buried that same evening (June loth), and the whole
school followed her to the grave, which was close to that
of Mrs. Grant. The first fruit of the school appropriately
lies by the side of her who planted that tree in the garden
of the Lord. At the funeral her teacher was just think-
ing that Sarah could help her no more, that her prayers and
labors were forever ended, when she looked up, and her eye
rested on the evening star looking down upon the grave. It
was a pleasant thought that she, too, was a star in glory.
She was glad that the first to love Christ was the first to go
to be with him, and still loves to think of her as waiting for
those who used to pray with her on earth. The Christian
life of Sarah was short ; but she did much, for sho taught
her people how

«< Jesus can make a dying bed
Feel soft as downy pillows are." *

^ For additional facts about Sarah, sqq Nestorian Biography, pp.
25-40.

12

134 WOMAN AND UER SAVIOUR.

After Sarah, like Stephen among the early disciples,
had led the way into the presence of her Saviour, Blind
Martha was the next to follow.

She was constrained by sickness to leave the school early
in the spring of 1847, and go home to her parents in Geog
Tapa. Though six miles distant, her schoolmates loved to
walk out there to comfort her. They prized no recreation
so much as the privilege of going to see her. They read
and talked witli her about her favorite portions of S(;rip-
ture, prayed with her, and were never allowed to leave
without singing "Jerusalem, my happy home." At such
times, one of them said, "Her countenance always showed
that her spirit was walking the golden streets." When
asked about her he;ilth, she uniformly replied, " The Lord
helps me ; " and when urged to speak more particularly,
would say, "Dear sisters, the Lord helps me, and that is
enough." When, after five or six of them had prayed in
succession, she was asked if she was not v/earied, she
would reply, "I know that I am weak, but ])rayer
])ever tires me." So great a privilege was it deemed to
be with her, that one morning, when a pious member of
the Seminnry at Seir was called to leave the village early,
he said, "I cannot go till I have prayed with Blind
Martha, and got from her manna for the road."

Her comi^aiiions desired very much to be present when
she went home ; but this was not permitted. One mornir.g
in June, she said, at early dawn, "Mother, the day bre;iks ;
I think Jesus is coming for me now ; let me go." But see-
ing no change in her appearance, her mother lay down
again, and, when next she woke, found that Jesus h.'ul
come, aud taken her to be with him in his home above.
What was that vision of the glory of Immanuel that
prompted the cry, "Mother, the day bienks!" from one

FIRST FRUITS. 135

who never remembered to have seen the light? She
became blind in infancy. A smile remained on her pale
flice ; and well might the sight of Ilim who said, " If I go
to prepare a place for yon, I will come again and receive
you unto myself," leave such a memento of the bliss.

Little Hannah, the youngest member of the school, was
suddenly called home the following September, wdien only
eleven years of age. When she first came to Christ, her
teacher was awakened one morning by her asking at the
bedside, " Is it wrong to wish to die ? " " But why do
you want to die ? " " That I may go and stay with Jesus,
and never sin again." This desire never left her. Once
she said, with tears, " It seems as if I cannot wait so long
to go to my Saviour;" and at another time, "I fear that I
have sinned in not being willing to wait till Jesus calls
me." Before leaving for vacation, each pupil put up her
own things in a bundle, to be laid away till her return.
As Hannah was at work on hers, she said to a girl near
her, " Perhaps you will open this. I do not think that I
ever shall. When you come together in the autumn, I
trust that I shall be in the Saviour's school above." So
strong was the desire awakened in her by Him who in-
tended soon to gratify it.

While the cholera raged around her in August, she
frequently said, " This may be my time to go to my dear
Saviour;" and repeated it to her mother on the last morn-
ing of her life, but went out as usual to her work in the
vineyard. About noon she became unwell, and said to a
companion, " I am sick ; perhaps I shall die soon." " Are
you willing?" "O, yes, I am not afraid to go to Jesus."
The disease made rapid progress, and again she said, "I
am very sick ; I shall die soon : shall we not pray to-
gether?" Her young friend led in prayer, and then called

136 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

on her to follow ; but her time for prayer was almost- fin-
ished. She could just say, "Bless my dear sister; take
me gently through the dark river;" when she sunk ex-
hausted, and was carried to the house. A mother bent
over an only daughter, and three loving brothers over an
only sister; but they could not keep her back from Jesus.
She sent for her companions, and they hastened to her
bedside. She called for her Testament ; but her eyesight
was failing her, and she returned it, saying, " I can never
use it more ; but read it more prayerfully, and love the
Saviour more than I have done." She lingered through
the night, and rose with the dawn to her long-desired rest
in the presence of her Redeemer.

It is remarkable that three timid girls should have been
chosen to lead the advance of a great multitude of Nesto-
rians through the dark valley into the light beyond. No
member of the Boy's Seminary died till three years after-
wards; and only two others of this before 1858 — a period
of eleven years ; but Infinite Wisdom chose, through such
weak and timorous ones, to glorify the power of Christ to
bear his people through the last conflict into everlasting
rest.

CHAPTER XIII.

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS.

DEACON JOHN STUDYING BACKSLIDING IN 1849. — WORK IN VILLAGE

OF SEIR. WIVES OF SIYAD AND YONAN. KHANUMJAN. WOMEN

AT THE SEMINARY. — GEOG TAPA. — DEGALA. — A PENITENT. — SIN
OF ANGER. — REVIVAL IN 1856. — MISS FISKE ENCOURAGED. —
STILLNESS AND DEEP FEELING. — UNABLE TO SING. — CONVERSION
OF MISSIONARY CHILDREN. — VISIT OF ENGLISH AMBASSADOR. — RE-
VIVAL OF 1857. — LETTER OF SANUM.

The first indication of a work of grace in 1849 was seen
in the unusual seriousness of Deacon John. He had been
reading Pike's Guide to Young Disciples, and the chap-
ter on backsliding moved him deeply. For a long time,
he went mourning his departure from God. One day he
was reading aloud in the Seminary, when a missionary
came in, and wondering to see him there, asked what he
was doing. He replied, " I am studying backsliding ; and
O, sir, I love it very much ; " meaning to say that he loved
to study the way back to the enjoyment of God. This
state of mind was followed by earnest eifort for the salva-
tion of others, and the hopefully pious first passed through
a season of deep heart-searching and renewed consecration
to God. Under an awful sense of the violation of cov-
enant vows, for many days some of them did nothing but
weep and pray. "How unfaithful have I been to my
Saviour and to immortal souls ! " was the cry on all sides.
12^^ (137)

138 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

One whose Bible was found blotted with tears, had been
converted in 1846, and her grief was on account of her
unfaithfulness as a follower of Christ. Having thus wept
bitterly herself, she was well fitted to lead others to the
God of all comfort. Her labors were unwearied, both in
and out of school. Indeed, the mission was now so re-
duced in numbers, that much of the work in this revival
was performed by the ISTestorians, and they proved them-
selves very efficient. Naturally ardent, they preached
Christ and him crucified with a zeal and faithfulness ra>rely
witnessed in our own land ; but their ardor needed careful
guiding, for some Avere, at one time, entirely prostrated by
excessive labor.

The pupils of the Seminary, during a short vacation,
seemed like angels of mercy to their families and friends.
In Gcog Tapa, their meetings for women every evening
had an attendance varying from thirty to one hundred.
Many of these were glad to learn the way of salvation,
even from children. Besides this, the older pupils, under
the guidance of an ex23erienced native helj^er, spent much
time in j^ersonal conversation and prayer with their own
sex, as did the members of the other Seminary with
the men.

In the village of Seir, the work was very general. In
addition to the labors of the pious students in the Male
Seminary there, Sanum and Moressa labored from house to
house among the women. But hear their own account of
what they did, in a letter to Miss Lovell's school at Con-
stantinople ; —

" What shall we tell you, beloved, of the great love God
has shown to our school and people? For two months we
have had such delightful days as we never saw in our lives
before. The work of the Lord has also commenced in the

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 139

villages, and in many there is great inquiry for the way of
life. The servants of God are so full of zealous love, that
they preach till their strength and voice give way. But
again they go on to 2'>i'each, for the harvest is great, and
the laborers few. How should we, with burning hearts,
beg the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers ! Can
we bear, dear sisters, to see the deadly wings of Satan's
kingdom spread out and destroy those bought by the pre-
cious blood of Christ ? Ought we not rather to wrestle like
Jacob till we see the loving wings of the kingdom of the
Saviour spread out, and impart life to Avounded souls on
every side? We hope that your waiting eyes may see
greater wonders among your own people than we do here.
"Now we will tell you about the little village of Seir,
which contains nineteen houses. God has visited every
house ; and because the w^omen were much awakened, and
had no teacher, the missionaries sent two of us there, not
because we were fit for such a work, — for we are deficient
in Godly knowledge, and CA^ery qualification, — but because
God sometimes chooses the ignorant and weak to do him
service. And what shall we tell you of the wonders God
showed us among those poor women ? There was no
time in which they did not cry, with tears, ' What shall we
do?' 'Woe unto us!' 'We are lost!' When we asked
them to pray in meetings, they prayed as if taught of God.
We wondered at them very much. In one house, we found
a woman beating her head Avith both hands, crying, ' O my
sins ! They are so great ! There is no pardon ! ' We
tried to reason with her ; but if Ave took her hands from
her head, she beat her breast. She saifl, 'You told me,
AV^hen you prayed Avith me the other day, to go to Christ;
but he will not receive me, I am such a sinner.' With
difficulty we quieted her, and told of the great mercy of

140 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

the Son of David. We prayed with each woman of the
village alone, and they with us, fervently and in tears.

" In one instance, we heard an old man praying earnestly
in the stable, and his wife in the house. We waited till
they had finished, before we went in, and there we found
an old man, perhaps ninety years old, and his wife, also very
aged. We spoke with them of the lowly Redeemer, and
how he was ready to dwell with them, poor as they were.
The tears rolled down their wrinkled faces, and piade our
own hearts burn within us. The old man prayed with us as if
Christ stood light before him, and we prayed with them both.

"There were meetings several times a day, and when
they closed, the voice of prayer might be heard on all
sides, in the houses and stables. Every family now has
morning and evening worship."

In this revival, the native helpers were very much in-
terested for the salvation of their unconverted wives. The
families of Siyad a^id Yonan live in Geog Tapa, and their
first visits home were blessed to the conviction of their
companions, who soon came to the school, begging to be
allowed to stay and learn the way of life. Of course, they
were not refused. The wife of Siyad had been a frequent
visitor there, but such an opposer of religion, that her
coming was always dreaded ; but now how changed ! Day
by day her convictions deepened, till they were over-
whelming. Tears were her meat, and prayer her employ-
ment, day and night, till, as she said, " The Saviour found
her," and she was at rest. Three children and a daughter-
in-law joined her in believing, and it was delightful to see
the family, not long after, each in his or her turn, calling
on the name of the Lord in one of the rooms of the
Seminary.

Yonan, the junior teacher of the school, had been mar-

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 141

ricd by force two years before, by his wicked father ; that,
too, when his heart was fixed on another, every way fitted
to be his companion. It was a severe trial ; but grace
triumphed, and his great desire seemed to be the conver-
sion of the wife thus forced upon him. At midnight, he
was often heard interceding for her, and, in the early ^part
of the revival, the answer came. Miss Fiske will never
forget the time Avhen, in an adjoining room, she heard her
for the first time praying with her husband. It gave her a
new insight into the meaning of that scripture, "They
believed not for joy." The new convert was very acti\e
among the women in her village ; and when her father-in-
law forbade social prayer in his house, she took her little
company at sunset behind the village church, where even
the bleak winds of February did not chill their devotions.

Khanumjan, the aged mother of John, though past
threescore and ten, entered into the work with a zeal that
might put to shame many younger women in our own
land. She toiled to bring the more aged women right to
the cross, taking them one by one into her own closet, that
then and there they might accept the Saviour. Though
herself unable to read, she did much for the preachers who
went out to the villages, providing food for them on their
return, and exhorting them to courage and faithfulness.
No wonder she said to a Adsitor, " Three years ago, I saw
Christ in heaven, and I haA^e seen him there ever since ;
but now he sits by my side all day long." When she died,
she said, over and over again, " I am going after Jesus."

In this revival, the encouragement to labor for woman
was greater than ever before. After the middle of Jan-
uary, the Seminary was almost constantly thronged with
inquirers. Day and night, it was consecrated by the
prayers and tears of women seeking their Saviour. On

142 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Friday, and on the Sabbath, many from the neighboring
villages spent the time there between services. The room
was filled with them ; and even wiiile they ate, they must
have some one speaking to them of Jesus. Those who did
so, often spoke with such tenderness as showed that Christ
himself was very near. Sometimes the women could not
eat any thing but the bread of life. At times, the anguish
of some for sin was so overpowering, that the question,
" Can a woman forget her sucking child ? " might almost
have been answered in the affirmative. In some instances,
the scenes that took place were too much for frail nature
to bear, and the laborers were ready to ask to be clothed
upon with immortality while the Lord passed by. Those
who spent the night in the Seminary slept in the large
room on the lower floor, between the central door and that
on the left, in the engraving ; and occasionally the sound
of their weeping and praying banished sleep from the
rooms above themx. Yet such hinderance to rest brought
a refreshment all its own.

In Geog Tapa, the village ruler was found sitting at the
feet of Jesus, and going with the preachers from place to
place, to give greater weight to their words ; and twenty-
five young men, though they could not read, yet did what
they could with untiring zeal.

There was an interesting work in Degala, so noted for
vice that it w^as called the Sodom of the Nestorians. The
first converted there was a young man employed in the
Seminary. He passed through a severe mental conflict
before his proud heart yielded ; but when it did, he became
a living sacrifice to God. One day he came to the teach-
ers, saying, " I have a petition to make ; will you receive
it?" Supposing it to be some pecuniary matter, they
replied, '-Tell us what it is." He at once burst into tears,

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 143

and covering liis fuce with his garment, said, "My village
is lost; my fimiily is perishing, and their blood is on my
neck ; let me go to-night and beg forgiveness for my wicked
example, and urge them to flee from the w^rath to come."
He obtained his request, and left, sobbing aloud. Kext
morning, he brought his w^ife and two other women to be
instructed. About a week after, Ueacon Tamo found in
the village several inquirers, and one woman in agony on
account of her sins. She had been notorious for wicked-
ness, and so vile as hardly to find one who would associate
with her, though now one of the most lovely Christians in
any land. The next day, she came to the Seminary, and
as soon as Miss Fiske sat down beside her, she threw her-
self into her lap, crying, " Do tell me Avhat to do, or w^iere
to go, to get rid of my sins." She was pointed to the
Lamb of God, and one moment her feet seemed to rest on
the Rock of Ages, and the next a fresh wave of conviction
swept her into the raging sea. So she vibrated between
life and death. She was asked to pray. In all her life she
had not probably heard ten prayers ; but her strong crying
and tears showed that the Holy Spirit was her teacher,
and the helper of her infirmities. She had learned to
pray where her Saviour found a cradle — in the manger
— cast out and derided by her friends.

She was first awakened in the Seminary ; for one day, as
soon as she entered the door, a pupil, then under deep con-
viction herself, and to whom she was an entire stranger,
seized her hand, saying, "My sister, my sister, what are
you doing ? We are all lost. We must repent, or perish."
These words she could not forget, and from that hour
sought until she found her Saviour, and then bore ill treat-
ment with such meekness as won others also to Christ.

The desire of the converts for instruction was most

144 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

affecting. One of them wept bitterly when asked if she
was willing to forsake every sin, saying, " What shall I do ?
I have one sin so strong that I fear I cannot leave it off."
" What is it ? " "I cannot live without these words of
God. My husband will not let me go to hear them, and
anger sometimes rises in my heart at this. Tell me what
to do with this sin."

An account of the revival in 1850 will be given in the
chapter on the prayerfulness of the Nestorians. After this
were instances of conversion each year, but not so marked,
or so general, as in 1849. So we pass over the intervening-
time to dwell a moment on the revival of 1856. That
year, the pupils were very studious, and kind in their feel-
ings towards each other and their teachers ; but the win-
ter was nearly over before any additions were made to
the now diminished number of believers. The teachers
mourned ; still the heavens were brass, and the earth iron.
Christians were lukewarm, and none seemed to have power
with God.

Miss Fiske returned from the English prayer meeting
Sabbath evening, February 18th, in that desponding state
that sometimes follows intense and protracted desire, when
its object is not attained. At such times, the sensibilities
seem paralyzed, and emotion dies of sheer exhaustion.
The pupils had retired; so also had Miss Rice; and she
was left alone. Her thoughts brooded over the state of
her charge, but she had no strength to rise and carry those
precious souls to Christ. She could not sleep, and yet so
shrunk from the duties of the morrow, that she longed for
a lengthening out of the night, rather than the approach
of dawn. Eleven o'clock struck, and there was a knock at
the door. Could she open it ? Must she see another fac^
that night ? She did open it, and there stood one of her

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 145

pupils, not SO without feeling as her fainting heart had
imagined. Struck by the languor of her teacher's looks,
she inquired tenderly, " Are you very tired?" "No, not
very; why do you ask?" "I cannot sleep; our school
has been resting on me all day, and I thought perhaps you
would help me to pray." The spell Avas broken ; the dry
fountain of feeling gushed out afresh, and, with a full
heart, she said, " Come in, thou blessed of the Lord." As
an angel from heaven, that dear pupil strengthened her
teacher that night, and together they carried the whole
household to Jesus. When at length she retired, all was
sweetly left with Christ, and he whispered peace. She could
sleep now, and when morning came there was still j)eace.
"Could ye not w^atch with me one hour?" was the word
spoken to her as she arose ; and hardly had she repeated it
at morning prayers, before three, in different parts of the
room, were weeping. She said little, for she felt it safer to
go and tell Jesus their wants and their unworthiness. All
day, the feeling in the school was subdued and tender.
No one asked, "What shall I do to be saved?" but there
w^as quiet at the table, and quiet in the rooms. The work
was done willingly and well, but in silence, and the voice
of prayer in the closets was gentle. Tuesday passed in
almost perfect stillness. No one said even, " Pray for me."
Towards evening, Miss Fiske said, "If there is one who
wants first of all to attend to her eternal interests, I would
like to see her at half past eight o'clock." At that hour,
her door opened, and one entered alone; then another and
another, each alone, till the room was full. She closed
the door, but still they came. What were her feelings
when she looked round on twenty-three, sitting with
their heads bowed down in silence? She said little, for
she felt that they wanted to hear God; rather than man,
13

146 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

and the parable of the prodigal son that evening seemed
to come fresh from the lips of Jesus.

Next day, each lesson was recited in its season, and
recited well; but tears blurred many a page, and at recess
not a few went to be alone with God. At eleven o'clock,
Mr. Perkins came in as usual to sing with them. "Bar-
timeus" was the first hymn. All began it; but some
voices filtered on the first stanza, more on the second, and
soon the leader's voice was heard alone. He took up the
Bible lying on the desk, and saying, "Perhaps some wan-
derer would like now to arise and go to her heavenly
Father," he too read the portion of the night before, and
led in prayer. The teachers had to lengthen the intermis-
sion at noon, because they could not bear to summon the
pupils so early from their closets.

The mission met that afternoon in the Seminary. Mr.
Stoddard came down from Seir covered with snow, saying,
in his pleasant way, as he oj^ened the door, "We have
snowed down this time ; " but when he learned the state
of things, he said, very tenderly, " You must have thought
my speech untimely ; I did not know God was so near; but
my heart is with you, and I hope we both shall have a
large blessing." That meeting was almost all prayer, and
the weeks that followed it witnessed a work silent but
deep. It was characterized by humble contrition, and much
simple dependence on Christ. Most of those twenty-three,
before the close of the term, were hoping in his mercy.

Three missionary children were among the converts in
this revival, and their conversion did much good to the
Nestorians; for, though they had felt their own need of
regeneration, they were in doubt about the children of
pious parents; but when they saw the children of mis-
sionaries weep over sin, and come as lost sinners to the

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 147

Saviour, they understood as never before that the entrance
into the kingdom was the same for all.

At this time, the English ambassador passed through
Oroomiah ; and though, when he and his suite visited the
Seminary, there was some apprehension felt as to the effect
it might have on the religious interests of the pupils, they
not only did themselves credit, in the examination he made
of the school, but returned from the interview with their
relish for spiritual things undiminished. Indeed, the event,
which ordinarily would have been more than a nine days'
wonder, caused scarce a ripple on the deep current of spir-
itual emotion.

The Seminary was again blessed in 1857, and the year
following Miss Fiske returned from Seir after the funeral
of Harriet Stoddard to welcome several who had entered
the fold of the good Shepherd during her absence.

The labors of Miss Rice, who had charge of the school
(Avhile she was away,) have also been blessed in each of the
four succeeding years. During that time, eighteen of the
pupils have been received to the communion. The revival
in the winter of 1861-62 was, however, more interesting
and extensive.

At one meeting in the Male Seminary, the young men
burst into tears while singing the hymn, " Alas, and did my
Saviour bleed ? " and soon after, in the Saturday evening
meeting. Miss Rice's whole school were bowed in earnest
prayer, and did not move for some time when requested by
her to retire for private devotion. On this occasion, Mr.
Cobb writes, "It was my privilege to speak a word to
them, and I can truly say that I never saw such a scene
before, as, with heads bowed down on their desks, unable
wholly to repress their sobs, they listened, and again en-
gaged in prayer." Even then, it was only after repeated

148 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

requests that they went to then- own rooms, where many
contmued their supplications far into the night.

The interesting scenes of these awakenings are thus
gratefully recalled by Sanum, a convert of the first revival,
in a letter dated Salmas, June 6th, 1859 : —

Beloved Teacher, Miss Fiske : I received your
2)riceless letter with many tears of joy, and when I read
your loving, motherly counsels, my» heart was full ; it was
drawn to you with inexpressible love; and when you
reminded me of those blessed revivals, my eyes were dark-
ened with floods of tears, so that, for a time, I could not
read. How can I ever forget the first night that you met
me, after the Lord had touched my heart, in that blessed
room ? or how many times you took me by the hand, and
led me to the throne of grace ? Often I was in the dark,
and the Lord, through you, was pleased to give me rest.
Can I ever forget, when the hand of the Lord rested on me
in the death of my dear children,^ how many times you
came as an angel of peace to wi23e away my tears ? Shall
I ever forget the Lord's coming among us by the still rain
of the Holy Spirit ? or those meetings of the sisters for
prayer ? or those tearful pleadings in the closets ? Can I
ever forget the fervent supplications and preaching of
blessed Mr. Stocking, and how he begged us to flee from
the wrath to come ? If I forget these, let my right hand
forget her cunning, and my tongue cleave to the roof of
my mouth.

It is a year, my beloved, since I have been able to go

to Oroomiah. I have sorrowed greatly to be cut off so

long from the supper of our Lord, and them that meet

around his table. Perhaps it is because I am not worthy

1 Page 165.

SUBSEQUENT REVIVALS. 149

of the blessing. The Lord mercifully grant that I be not
cut off from the heavenly supper of tlie Lamb.

Our work here is much as before. I grieve to say that
there are few with whom I can pray, and in the few cases
where I can do so, it must be done as by stealth. But
tliere are those with whom I can talk. Hoimer and I have
a meeting for the women every Sabbath, and on other days.
Eveiy Tuesday, Hoimer, Kaheel, and I have a little meet-
ing together, and it is very pleasant, but will be more so
when the Lord shall increase our number. O that we
longing ones might see that day, and our troubled hearts
ivjoice !

During the nineteen years since the Seminary was estab-
lished, it has enjoyed, in all, twelve revivals; and though
it is not desirable to count up the results of human labors,
it is due to the praise of divine grace to record, that out of
those who have been connected with it, as many as two
tliirds have, in the judgment of charity, been created anew
in Christ Jesus.

13*

CHAPTER XIV.

DARK DAYS.

SEMINARY BKOKEN UP IN 1844. — DEACON ISAAC. — PERSECUTION BY
MAR SHIMON. — FUNERAL OF DAUGHTER OF PRIEST ESHOO. — DEA-
CON GUWERGIS. ATTEMPT AT ABDUCTION OP PUPIL. PERIL OF

SCHOOL. — MRS. HARRIET STODDARD. — YAHYA KHAN. — ANARCHY.
LETTER FROM BABILO.

The Nestorian mission has encountered less opposition
than other missions in Western Asia. Yet here, also, they
who would live godly in Christ Jesus have suffered perse-
cution. On June 19th, 1844, the brothers of Mar Shimon
issued this order : " Be it known to you all, ye readers at
Seir, that if ye do not come to us to-morrow, we will ex-
communicate you from our most holy church ; your finger
nails shall be torn out ; we will hunt you from village to
village, and kill you if we can." Miss Fiske was spending
the summer there with her pupils, and it was not deemed
best to provoke further trouble by retaining them. When
told of this, they all wept aloud. Nor did they weep
alone. Their teacher, and the family of Mr. Stocking,
in which they lived, could not restrain their tears. It
seemed as if the girls would never tear themselves away
from their teacher ; and when at length they departed,
again and again the lamentation arose, "We shall never
liear the word of God again." Miss Fiske laid them at
the feet of Jesus, trusting that he would bring them back
to lier, and otliers with them. A German Jew, who was

(150)

DARK DAYS. 151

present, said in his broken English, " I have seen much bad
to missionaries in other countries, but nothing bad like
this, to take little children from words of Jesus Christ."

Even Deacon Isaac, a brother of Mar Shimon, who was
prominent in the act, was ashamed <^f it. On a visit to the
school, eight yeai*s afterwards, he asked leave to speak to
the pupils, and said, " My youug friends, I want you to do
all you can to help your teachers, for I once troubled Miss
Fiske, and it has made my life bitter ever since." Here
the good man broke down, and there was not a dry eye
among his hearers ; while he added, " I have vowed before
God that I will do all that I can to help her as long as I
live." And all who know him can testify that he has kept
his word, ever since his conversion in 1849. When he first
began to be thoughtful, he heard that one of the pupils was
in the habit of praying for him. He sent for her, and in-
sisted on her praying with him; and though he was the
most intelligent of the iSTestorians, and possessed of rare
force of character, and Sarah was more noted for devotion,
than for her mental powers, yet he learned from her in a
most childlike spirit; and that scripture which says, "A
little child shall lead them," found in this case a beautiful
illustration.

He has been occasionally employed in the school, and
always proved a very useful and acceptable teacher.
When he bade Miss Fiske good by, in 1858, he said,
"You may rest assured that I will do all I can for the
women till you come back;" and the next Sabbath found
him teaching a class of adult females. In our favored land,
the grace of God has made it nothing strange for the gov-
ernor of a state to be a teacher in the Sabbath school ; but
one who has not lived in Persia can form no idea of Avhat
it is for a brother of Mar Shimon to teach a class of

152 WOMAN AND HER &3AVJ0QR.

women. He has great skill in bringing out the meaning
of Scripture, and is every where exceedingly acce^Dtable as
a Bible teacher. Along with unfeigned piety, he has more
real refinement than any of his countrymen, and few
Nestorians can show kindness with such true delicacy of
feeling.

The health of Miss Fiske was so impaired in the spring
of 1848, that she reluctantly yielded to the advice of the
mission, and went with Mr. Stocking to Erzroom, to meet
Mr. Cochran and flimily, then on their way to Persia.
When they returned, they found Mr. Stoddard's health so
seriously affected by long-continued over-exertion, that he
only awaited their arrival to leave for Trebizond. Little
did they dream that it was Mrs. Stoddard's last farewell to
the scene of her labors.

Nor was this all. The patriarch Mar Shimon, who had
long worn the guise of friendship, now threw off the mask.
He broke up schools in small and distant villages, and
secured the beating of a man by the governor on the
charge of apostasy. The Female Seminai^ was honored
with his special anathema. "Has Miss Fiske taught you
this ? " was his frequent demand of those who fell into his
hands, followed by such reviling as only an Oriental could
pour forth.

On the morning of July 28th, the infant daughter of
Priest Eshoo, named Sarah, after her sainted sister, lay on
her death bed ; and to punish her father for his preaching,
Mar Shimon forbade her burial in the Nestorian grave-
yard. He collected a mob ready to do his bidding as
soon as she should die ; but she lingered on, and so disap-
pointed him for that day. Next day she died, and at once
he anathematized all wlio should assist in her burial. A
pious carpenter, however, forced his way through the

DARK DAYS. 153

mob, and made her coffin. ITe remained steadfast through-
out the stonn, replying to every dissuasion of liis friends,
"I must go forward, even to tlie sliedding of my blood."

The missionaries appealed to a former governor, who
owned that pnrt of the city, for leave to bury in the cem-
etery used by the Nestorians from time immemorial ; but
the patriarch paid no attention to his messages, and the
cliild remained nnburied. Miss Fiske wrote, "As we look
out on this troubled sea, and sympathize with these afflicted
parents, we love to look up and think of the dear child as
sweetly resting on the bosom of the Saviour. May the
Sabbath bring ns a foretaste of heavenly rest." But it
found them still "v\-here storms arise and ocean rolls."
The governor sent men to demand the digging of a grave,
which the mob wovdd not allow. Meanwhile, the profligate
Mar Gabriel craftily ' suggested that a promise from the
priest not to preach any more, might end the trouble.
"Never," was the prompt reply. "Let my dead remain
nnburied, but I will not go back from the service of the
Lord." Til is so enraged the patriarch, that, for the sake of
peace, the governor advised to bury the body in one of
the villages. The sorrowing parents then locked their
house, and leaving their babe alone in its slumbers, went to
the chapel. There they found comfort from a sermon on
the text, " Through much tribulation we must enter into
the kingdom of God." About twenty men returned with
them to the house. Then one bearing the little coffin went
before ; the rest followed, singing the forty-sixth Psalm.
Even Moslems gazed with wonder, as they passed close by
the door of the patriarch, and went out of the city gate.
The engraving (page 154) gives a very good representation
of this gate. On the green hill-side at Seir the little one
was laid to rest, and the father, thanking the company

154

WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

for their kindness, hastened them back, to be in time for
the afternoon service.

In the mean time, Mar Shimon sent far and near, forbid-
ding all intercom'se with the missionaries. At Geog Tapa,

-^m

SEIR GATE, OROOMIAH.

in the absence of the Malik, he ordered an old man, who
formerly held that office, to summon the people before him.
Only a few vagrants obeyed, and these he commanded to
break up the schools, and prevent preaching in the church.
So, that evening, when John commenced preaching, they
proceeded to execute their orders ; but, afraid to face the
determined people, they deferred the attack till the hearers
passed out; and then, like stanch old Puritans, hardly
noticing them, the congregation wended their way home-
wards, singing jDsalms as they went.

The patriarch now excommunicated Mar Yohanan, and
made common cause with the French Lazarists. He even

DARK DAYS. 15o

wrote a fraternal epistle to the pope, ready for any thing,
if he could only cnisli the mission. His attendants
inarched about the mission premises with loud threats ;
pious Nestorians were knocked down in the streets; while
his brother Isaac went to a distant village, to show that he
had no sympathy with such iniquity.

Soon after, the carpenter who made the coffin was
severely beaten by his own father for attending a prayer
meeting. As the blows fell thick and fast, he cried, " Must
this come from my own father ? " But he remained firm,
and next day went to the chapel pale and weak, but filled
with holy joy.

Deacon Guwergis, prevented from going to the moun-
tains,— for the Koords sided with Mar Shimon, — fear-
lessly encountered the revilings of the patriarch in his own
house, and told him that he hoped to continue preaching
till he died. His countenance must have shone like Ste-
phen's, for his persecutor said to one of the attendants,
" See how his face glistens. If he is so bold here, what
will he be in the mountains ? " Well might a missionary
write, "What a blessing are such men! The sight of
them is worth ten thousand times the sacrifices made by
us all."

Though this was vacation, fifteen of the pupils remained
in the Seminary for protection during the storm ; yet even
there they were not Avholly safe. On the 25tli of August,
a messenger came in haste for one of them,'saying that her
dying brother wished to see her immediately. As the man
was her relative, the girl was ready to go at once ; but
providentially Miss Fiske learned that the brother was
well, and the messenger had been seen last with Mar
Shimon. So he left, chagrined and enraged at his failure.
The patriarch had told him to be sure and hide his pur-

156 W03IAN AND UEll SAVIOUR.

pose from that Satan, Miss Fiske, and in case of failure, to
take the girl by force. But the teacher had had some
experience in guarding her fold, and both she and her
pupil were thankful for the deliverance. Next day, Mar
Shimon forbade preaching in Geog Tapa ; but if the church
'was closed, the house-tops remained open. The same day,
the school in Vizierawa was repeatedly dispersed, but each
time reassembled by the teacher.

The 28th of this month was such a day as the mission
had never seen before. In the forenoon, the teacher from
Charbash fled wounded from the servants of Mar Sliimon
to the mission premises. Scarcely had he entered, when
his brother came in, having escaped from similar violence.
The Moslem owner of the village had to put a stop to the
tearing down of their house.

Miss Fiske and Miss Rice had just sat down to dinner
with the school, when the cry, "A man is killed!" was
followed by a rush from all parts of the yard. A mob at
the gate was trying to break in and seize the native help-
ers. Mar Yohanan was wounded, and all was confusion.
The teachers exhorted their little flock not to count their
lives dear to them, foi- Jesus' sake. Happily, they were not
called to such a test of discipleship ; but the sympathies
of the Moslems were plainly with Mar Shimon, and no
one knew what a day might bring forth. That tried friend
of the mission, R. W. Stevens, Esq., English consul at Ta-
breez, feared lest the missionaries should foil by the hand
of violence. Miss Fiske writes, "Our native friends will
doubtless suffer much, and we rejoice to share with them.
We ho2)e that fears on our account will not be realized.
Still there is danger ; and we try to be i-eady for life or
death, as our Father sees best. Though in a land of vio-
lence, we are not unhappy ; we trust in God, and hope this

DARK DAYS. 157

vine is being pruned that it may bring forth more fruit.
We would have all the gracious designs of God fulfilled,
even though we should be cast down."

The same day came tidings of the death of Mrs. Stod-
dard, at Trebizond, and Miss Fiske wrote that night an
account of it to her former teacher, at South Hadley,
adding, "Precious sister: she died far away; but my
Father knows why I might not stand by that dying bed,
and I would submit, though my heart bleeds. Our homes
are sad to-night, and there is many a weeping eye among
those for whom she toiled so fiiithfully. From my first
acquaintance with her, she has been to me all that mortal
could be. Her heart was tenderly alive to the spiritual
interests of the dear Nestorians ; and to them she devoted
all her powers. It was she who first taught their daugh-
ters to sing the songs of Zion. Few, probably, liave
accomplished so much in so short a life. Her family, the
mission, the Seminary, and all about us, shared in her un-
tiring labors. As truly as of dear Mrs. Grant may it be
said of her, ' She hath done what she could.'

"Like Mrs. Grant, she was the youngest member of the
mission at the time of her death. When she left her
native land, some almost regretted that so frail a flower
should go forth to encounter the hardships of missionary
life ; but she did much, and did it well. The Seminary in
Seir still bears the impress she stamped upon it. Pier
memory is not only fragrant to-day among the Nestorians,
but it draws them nearer to Christ, and renders them more
efiicient in his service."

Mar Shimon now made common cause with the Persian
nobility. The English and Russian ambassadors had pro-
cured the appointment of Dawood Khan as governor of
the Christians in Oroomiah, in order to protect them from
14

158 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

illegal oppression. The nobility of course opposed this;
and Mar Shimon, by promising his aid in the removal of
the protector of his own people, secured their cooperation
in his wickedness. The converts were now insulted at
every turn. They could hardly appear in the street, and
the authorities afforded no redress. The missionaries had
no earthly friend nearer than Mr. Stevens at Tabreez, who
did all he could for them ; and the pious natives felt shut
up to God as their only refuge.

Yahya Khan, the governor of the province, now wrote
urging on Mar Shimon, and ordered his agent in Oroomiah
to aid him to the utmost of his power. As Yahya Khan
was brother-in-law to the king, he was able to do the mis-
sion much harm at the court; and the pf^triarch, encour-
aged by such a coadjutor, set himself with renewed zeal to
destroy it ; but in September, the prince royal summoned
him to Tabreez, and, the nobility hardly daring to resist
the order, he was reluctantly preparing to comply, when
news came of the death of the shah, and all was confusion.
The missionaries had been praying for help against their
dreaded enemy, Yahya Khan, and lo ! his power to harm
them perished with his master.

The night after the news reached Oroomiah, anarchy
reio-ned, and all kinds of crime abounded. Five men were
killed near the mission premises, and the firing of guns
was heard all night long ; but though outside were rob-
beries and murders, within that enclosure all was peace.
Though its inmates knew that the fanatical population
would gladly stone them, yet they felt it a privilege to
labor on under the care of the Keeper of Israel.

In Persia, no king, no government ; so besides this
anarchy in the city, the Koords came down and plun-
dered many villages, burning the houses and driving the

DARK DAYS. 159

people for shelter to Oroomiah. These strokes fell most
heavily on the Moslems, many of whom were robbers
themselves. The fear of an attack on Seir was at one
time so great, that the ladies were sent off, and the gentle-
men remained alone to guard the mission premises; but
both in Seir and the city the houses of the missionaries
were thronged by multitudes seeking relief, and each ap-
proaching footstep announced some new tale of woe.

Mar Shimon, after the death of the king, prudently
retired into Turkey, and his servants were put under
bonds to keep the peace. The Koords, however, drove
him back, later in the season, but stripped of his power to
persecute. It may sound like the close of a tale of fiction
to add, that the next time Miss Fiske met the j^atriarch
was in Gawar, August, 1851, when he rode up to the tents
of the missionaries to inquire after their health, before he
went to his own. He staid an hour and a half, appearing
more free and social than ever before ; and when they
returned his visit, he came out of his tent to meet them,
and treated them with unusual respect, saying, in the
course of the interview, "I fear that Miss Fiske is not
happy here: she does not look well." On being assured
that she was both well and happy, he said to his attend-
ants, "This lady is happy only as she has a number of
Nestorian girls around her, eating care * for them, teaching
and doing them good." So, when our ways jDlease the
Lord, he maketh even our enemies to be at peace with us.

Babilo, the carpenter, who made the coffin for the child
of Priest Eshoo, was taught to read by the younger girls
in the Seminary after school hours, and thus writes to Miss
Fiske, November 20th, 1859 : —

* This is the Nestorian idiom. We say, '< taking care of them."

160 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

"I remember how, thirteen years ago, in that trouble
with Mar Shimon, wlien my father beat me for attending
meeting, and men despitefully used me, dear Mr. Stocking
and you comforted me in the great room. I shall never
forget your love. Give my love to your dear mother, who
so loved us that she willingly gave you to the Lord, as
Hannah did Samuel.

"If you inquire about my work in the city Sabbath
school, — I teach a class of ten women; three of them, I
trust, are Christians. When I read your letter to them they
greatly rejoiced. I reminded them of the meetings you
used to have for them in your room, and their eyes filled
with tears. In the afternoon I went to Charbash, and read
your letter to the eighteen women in my class there.
They, too, were very glad. Five of them, I trust, are
Christians. We are now studying Second Timothy. After
the lesson, I question them on Old Testament history;
and then I teach the women and their children to sing."

CHAPTEE XY.

TRIALS.

EVIL IXFLUEXCE or HOMES. — OPPOSITION IN DEGALA. — ASKER KHAN.
— POISONING OF SANUM's CHILDREN. — REDRESS REFUSED. — IN-
QUISITOR IN SCHOOL. — TROUBLES AT KHOSRAWA. — LETTERS THOSt
HOIMAR.

But, aside from open iDcrsecutioii, there is a constant
danger arising from the people themselves. The teacher
in a Christian land can never fully understand the feehngs
of the missionary teacher. The one sends forth his pupils
to meet Christian parents, brothers and sisters, who, with
more than a teacher's love, lead the young convert by still
waters, and establish him in holy feeling; but the flock of
the other goes out often into families where every soul
would gladly break the bruised reed and quench the smok-
ing flax. He can sympathize with Paul in his anxiety in
behalf of those for whom he had labored in the gospel.

Sometimes the pupils of the Seminary so dreaded the
scenes of home, in vacation, that they preferred to remain
in the school.

In April, 1849, Miss Fiske visited the village of Degala.
As it was a holiday, most of the women had gone out for
amusement ; but a little company of twelve praying ones
gathered around her, and listened in tears while she spoke
of Jesus and his love. Their fervent prayers for neighbors
and friends made her feel that a blessing was yet in store
1-1* (IGl)

162 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

for Degala. These women suffered all sorts of insult for
their attachment to the truth ; they were often beaten and
driven from their homes by their husbands. While the
pupils of the Seminary were here, some of their own sex
did all they could to annoy them. But read an account of
their trials from the pen of Sanum, of Gawar. She writes
to a friend in this country, —

" I had bitter times this vacation, for our neighbors are
all very hard-hearted, not listening at all to the words of
God. When I opened my Testament to read to them, they
would shut it, and begin to quarrel about the forms of
religion. I entreat you to pray for my village, that I,
so unworthy, may see its salvation.

"One day, Miss Fiske went to the village of Degal:],
where is a band of women who greatly love the Lord.
They gathered about her, and she had a very pleasant
time. All these were inquiring what they should do to be
saved. She could not stay long with them ; but they were
so humble that they asked to have some of the girls sent
to them. So four of us, though so weak, ventured to go in
the name of Christ. We found these sisters in great dis-
tress, being reviled and beaten by wicked men, for Jesus' sake.

" We were speaking in an upper room there on a feast
day, and the women with us were weeping very much,
while others, afraid to come in, seated themselves on the
terrace by the window. Suddenly a wicked man came
with a rod, and drove all those away who were without.
Poor souls ! how my heart burned for them! One, who had
not been used to come to meeting, came that day for sport.
She wore many ornaments, but as soon as she heard the
words of God, her tears began to flow. After meeting, she
arose up quickly, and threw aside her ornaments, and fol-
lowed us wherever Ave went. We Avere having a meeting

TRIALS. 163

in another house, when a quarrelsome woman entered,
having a large stick in her hand, and began to beat her
daughter and daughter-in-law, and she carried off her
daughter; but the other remained, though sorely bruised
saying, ' I will spill my blood, but will not leave the j^lace
of prayer.' The women who fear God wept much because
this woman did so.

" We went to the sacrament, and there was a comj^any
of women who sej^arated themselves from the others, and
were weeping in one corner of the church. Some very
bad women came to them, and said, 'Let us rise up and
dance, because they are weeping.' Another, in anger,
took the sacrament from the mouth of one of them, and
gave it to her little granddaughter. There was much
confusion in the village, and they seemed like those who
cried, 'Great is Diana of the Ephesians.' One said,
'I wish neither Satan nor God, but only Mar Shimon.'
Once, when we were assembled with the women, and Mo-
ressa was speaking, a wicked man fired a pistol to frighten
us. But the women encouraged us, saying, ' Go on, and
speak louder, that he may hear.' And when he heard my
sister speak of the wickedness of man's heart, he cried out,
'Those words must have been for me. She must have
known that I was there.'"

It does not fall within the object of this volume to give
any detailed account of the proceedings of Asker Khan,
who for several years sought to wear out the saints of the
Most High, causing the native helpers to be beaten, fined,
and annoyed in many ways, and then arrogantly denying
all redress. Encouraged in his persecutions by the prime
minister, he was able to defy all interference. Indeed^
during part of the time, the English ambassador was con-
strained to leave the kingdom, and the Russian ambassa^

164 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

dor, though personally disposed to do all in his power for
the mission, was yet officially unable to help.

At one time, he gave orders that no school should be
oj^ened without his sanction, and that all the teachers must
report to him ; and in case of disobedience, he threatened
them with fines and imprisonment.

It may show in what estimation the influence of the
Female Seminary was held by enemies, when we find him
issuing his command, "Allow no girls to attend your
school; schools are for boys alone;" and claiming credit
for great forbearance because he did not at once break up
the Seminary. That which called forth such opposition
from enemies was surely not inefficient. There must have
been a power for good manifest even to Moslem opposers,
that taught them where to strike so as most effectually to
destroy. But there was a Power above them that said,
" Thus far, and no farther." " The bush burned with fire,
yet it was not consumed."

Tlie evil wrought by Asker Khan was not confined to
his own doings. His hostility, in a position so command-
ing, emboldened every Shimei to curse. In Ardishai, two
or three unprincipled drunkards, with their dissolute
bishop (Mar Gabriel), saved themselves from Moham-
medan rapacity by taking part against the converts. These
last were made examples of, to deter others from attending
preaching or sending their children to the schools. One
poor widow, with four children, — a most consistent Chris-
tian,— was driven from her house by her father-in-law,
because she allowed her oldest daughter to attend the
village school. As many as thirty families, unable to en-
dure persecution any longer, Hed from the village ; and
Priest Abr.'iliam himself, after suffering much, was com-
pelled to leave, though his congregation was from one
hundred and fifty to two hundred every Sabbath.

TRIALS. 165

In Dizza Tnkka, on the evening of April 20th, 1856,
Sanum, who graduated in 1850, had arsenic put into the
supper which she carried to a neighbor's tandoor (native
oven) to be warmed. Happily, Joseph, her husband, was
delayed beyond his usual hour, so that he was uninjured ;
and the quantity of arsenic was so krge, that, by tlie
prompt use of remedies, the mother's life w^as saved,
though her innocent children suffered severely, and, after
lingering a few months, both of them died. She rose
from weeping over their graves to serve her Master more
faithfully than ever. But Asker Khan, — though the arsenic
was found at the bottom of the pot, -though a portion of
the contents, given to a cat, speedily jDroduced convulsions
and death, and though a Jewess testified that " the neigh-
bor " had recently applied to her husband for arsenic, and
no one else had access to the vessel where it was found, —
instead of investigating the case, insulted Joseph and his
friends, and caused his aged father to be beaten ; at the
same time telling the people of Dizza Takka to shoot
Joseph if he w^ent to their village again. Sach conduct
emboldened the enemies of the truth to complain ao-ainst
the more enlightened of their clergy who had renounced
many sinful customs, as forsaking the religion of their
fathers ; and, with blasphemous threats, they were ordered
to do the bidding of their accusers.

On the 1st of June, an order from the authorities at
Tabreez to Asker Khan was presented to him by the
missionaries, which, after a calm recital of the facts in the .
case of poisoning, proceeded thus : « As the person who
did this act is a criminal, and, if unpunished, the affair
may lead to the destruction of life, it is necessary that you,
liigh in rank, take the attitude of investigation, and having
discovered the criminal, that you punish him, with the

166 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

knowledge of the Americans, and so act that no one,
Christian or Moslem, shall dare to repeat such a crime."
This order was obtained through the kind offices of the
Russian ambassador ; but the criminals were only detained
a few days, and not pressed at all to a confession. Asker
Khan then proposed, as they had not confessed, that the
missionaries should intercede for their release. Of course,
they refused. Then, saying "that if he had known that,
beforehand, he would not have touched the matter, and
that he could defend himself at Tabreez," he dismissed the
accused, and it was in vain for the missionaries to pros-
ecute the matter further.

Indeed, the opposition at this time was more serious
than at any previous period, and for a time it seemed
as though the seminaries, and especially the Female Sem-
inary, would be destroyed.

In the autumn, a commissioner, sent from Teheran to
examine into the proceedings of the mission, made an
inquisitorial visit, and went all through the building, peep-
ing into the chambers, and making himself and suite every
where at home. Coming into the recitation room, where
most of the girls were engaged in study, he selected a
large, robust pupil, who could speak Turkish, and ques-
tioned her as follows : —

" Are you allowed to follow your own customs ? "

" We follow all that are good, but not such foolish ones
as you would not wish us to follow."

"Do these ladies let you see your friends?"

" Certainly ; we always see them when they come here,
and we go home three times a year, staying, at one time,
three months." •

"What do yon do when at home?"

"We work in the fields, and do any tiling that our

TRIALS. 167

friends do. Our teachers tell us to help our friends all we

can, and are displeased if we do not."

" Can you work, or have you become Ingleez? " (English.)

" Look at me ; I am strong ; I can carry very large loads."

" What do you do here ? "

" We study, and learn all wisdom."

" Are you allowed to use your own books ? "

" Certainly ; the principal book of our religion they have

printed for us, and we use it more than any other."
" But have you not left the books of your fathers ? "
"The book I spoke of is our sacred book, like your

Koran, and we use all others that agree with that."
"Do you fast?"
" One day at the beginning of the year, and other days

afterwards."

" But have you not forsaken some of your church fasts ? "
" None that are written in that book. I keep all those

very carefully."

" What ! twice in the week ? "

" No ; for that is not required in the book."

" But your people do."

" Yes ; not being readers, they do many things that are

not written in the book."

" Would your teachers allow you to fast ? "

" O, yes ; but we don't want to fast more than our book

requires."

" What are your prayers ? "

" Those taught in the book."

Then followed questions about dress, employment, and

such things, all of which she answered in the same manner.

The teacher was very thankful that the Master had neither

left to her the selection of the witness, nor her preparation

for the examination. But the examiner expressed very

168 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

decided disapproval of female education, and held up their
previous condition as their only proper one. The truth
was, the Moslems were angry that their rayahs were being
elevated, and they were specially indignant at the educa-
tion of women.

So the opposition went on. Messrs Stoddard and.
Wright proceeded to Tabreez, and secured orders for re-
dress ; which, as usual, were counteracted by secret orders
to the contrary. The native helpei-s were now beaten
because they were in the employ of the mission : some
were thrown into prison, and threatened with being sent
to Teheran in irons. But when the Lord saw that the
wrath of man had proceeded far enough, he restrained the
remainder tliereof For one of the leading spirits in this
onset on the mission fell under the daggers of the Koords,
and his death at once called off attention from missionary
operations to other things.

Again, in January, 1858, two pious residents at Kliosro-
wa, in the province of Salmas, were shamefully oppressed ;
and when application was made for redress, Asker Khan
not only refused to adjudicate the matter, but beat one of
the complainants so severely that he was confined to his
bed for weeks. Still later, after urgent importunity from
Nestorians and nominal Papists, two very able and excel-
lent men. Deacons Joseph and Siyad, were sent to labor in
that distant province. On one occasion they entered the
village of Khosrowa to purchase fuel, and were quietly
j^assing along the street, when a mob stoned them out
of the village. Shortly after. Deacon Siyad was expelled
from the district so suddenly that he had to leave his
wife, Merganeeta : she, too, was driven away alone ; but
Hoimar, a pious woman residing there, went with her.
The first night they spent in a field, and the next day they

TRIALS. 169

sought refuge in an Armenian village; but, driven from
thence, the persecuted wife fled to Oroomiah. After long
effort, an officer was sent from Tabreez to Salmas, and ample
promises of full redress were given, ending, as usual, in
nothing. A mob, headed by a French Lazarist and native
bishop, rescued the offender, and the officer desisted from
further j^rocedure.

The reader will be interested in the following extract,
from a letter of Hoimar to Miss Fiske, in 1859 : —

" I cannot tell you how glad I am to hear that your
health is better. O that quickly you might meet us, if the
Lord will ! Till death I can never forget your love, nor
your reminding your pupils to ask the Lord to support a
poor, ignorant on* like me. I do not believe your thoughts
can ever rest about your little company of Nestorians.
If a mother leaves a nursing child, she cannot rest till she
returns to it. If you are far from us in body, I know your
spirit is with us. If Jonah mourned over the gourd for
wdiich he had not labored, how shall not you mourn after
those for whom you have labored ?

"If the breezes did not bring the cry of ' Salvation' over
the ocean, our desolations would cry out. But thanks to
Him who favors those that leave their native land to labor
among the ignorant. Yet what shall this people do ? The
beast having great iron teeth still reigns here ; but it may
be the Lord will speedily destroy him with the breath of
his mouth. I trust that you will ever remember in your
prayers one who will remember you in her weakness till
death."

Two years later brought the following, with its graphic
delineation of the trials that such as choose the better part
may meet with yet for years to come ; —
15

170 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUIl.

Beloved Miss Fiske : Almost every day of this sum-
mer has been a bitter day. For my mother had become
willing to give Raheel (Rachel, sister of Iloimar) to the
Papists, and she had i>revailed over my father to do the
same. And now I will tell you how Goliah fell ujDon the
earth, and he that had no weapons overcame ; but it was
from the power of God. The arrangement had all been
made by my parents, and the betrothal feast made ready.
Sanum and I were in Oroomiah, but Deacon Joseph was
in Salmas, and we had also this comfort — my oldest
brother stood firm, saying, "Fear not; till death Z stand."
Raheel also was firm, hoi:)ing for help. With entreaties
TOcl tears, I asked Deacon Isaac to go to Salmas. He
went, but Raheel knew it not. She was very sorrowful, for
only an hour remained to the time fixed for putting the
betrothal ring on her finger. The hope of her life seemed
uo hang on a hair. She went to the vineyard, and prayed
God to deliver her ; then returned sorrowful to her room.
She hears them say, "They have come!" and locks her
door. They ask her to open it, but she opens it not. Just
then. Deacon Joseph goes to the window, and, seeing that
Deacon Isaac has come, says, " Open ; be not afraid."
Deacon Isaac sits down w^ith the Papists who have come
to, the betrothal. My father leaves it with him, and he
says, "Very well; I have only now come; I must have
time to examine into this business. To-morrow I will give
you an answer." He talks with my father, saying, " How
can you give your daughter to the Papists ? The missiona-
ries are not willing, our people are not willing, I am not
willing ; and more than all, the girl is not willing." My
father at length said, " She is your daughter, not mine ; do
as you please." Then Deacon Isaac sent word to the
Papists, " There is no possibility of your carrying this

TRIALS. 171

forward. I have questioned the girl, she is not willing ;
speak no more about it." The deacon then asked my
father to let her go to the city to school again. At first he
consented, but finally left it with her mother, who did not
let her go. The deacon left displeased. When I heard
this, I arose and took Mar Yohanan's brother, and went to
Salmi\s, thinking I might j)ossibly bring Raheel. While
yet a good way from the village, like Canaan's spies,^ we
sent for my oldest brother (who is, as we trust, a Chris-
tian). He gave us good news, and said, "Raheel is all
ready to go to school." As the Lord favored Eleazar
about Rebecca, so he favored us; and the next morning
my sister and Deacon Joseph returned to Oroomiah, while
I remained to meet the wrath of my mother. As soon as
Raheel was gone, she left, and as yet we know not where
she is. Truly, great is the power of prayer. So God
brought to nought evil counsels, scattered fearful, dark
clouds, and caused the light of joy to rise upon us. But I
am very sad about my mother, because she has turned
away from the fear of God, and is fleeing from life. My
father and husband still get intoxicated. I trust that you
will multij^ly your prayers for them; and ask your friends
to do the same, and to pray for me, and our village and
country. Give my love to all your friends.

From your lover, Hoimae.

We shall hear from Hoimar again, in connection with
the communion.

CHAPTEK XVI.

PRAYERFULNESS.

LANGUAGE OP PRAYER. — PRAYER ON HORSEBACK. — OLD MAN IN STJPER-
GAN. — MAR OGEN. — EARNESTNESS. — FAREWELL PRAYER MEETING IN
1858. — LETTER FROM PUPIL. — SPIRIT OF PRAYER IN 1846. — WOMAN

WHO COULD NOT PRAY. " CHRIST BECOME BEAUTIFUL." CLOSET IN

THE MANGER. MONTHLY CONCERTS. PBAYERFULNESS IN 1849 AND

1850. SABBATH, JANUARY 20tH. INTEREST CONTINUED TILL CLOSE

OF TERM. — FAMILY MEETINGS. — AUDIBLE PRAYER. — ANSWER TO
mothers' PRAYERS. — CONNECTION OF REVIVALS WITH PRAYER AT
HOME.

The Nestorian converts have been noted for their sphit
of prayer.

In 1846, the prayers of the hopefully pious in the Male
Seminary were very remarkable. Several rooms were ap-
propriated to devotion, and there one might hear the
voice of supplication from morning till night. Many spent
several hours a day in this holy employment ; and one
needed only to listen to know that their prayers came
from the depths of the soul. At one time, they beg that
the dog may have a single crumb from the table of his
master; again, they are smiting on their breasts by the
side of the publican. Now they are prodigals — hungry,
naked, and far from their Father's house ; and now they
sink in the sea, crying, "Lord, save me; I perish!" or, as
poor outcast lepers, they come to the great Physician for a

(172)

PRAYERFULNESS. 17B

cure. This one builds on the Rock of Ages, while the
torrents roar around. That one washes the feet of Jesus
with his tears, and wipes them with the hair of his head ;
another, as a soldier of the cross, plants its blood-stained
banner in the inner citadel of his heart. Their ardent
feelings found such appropriate expression in their Oriental
metaphors, that one might learn from children to pray as
he never prayed before.

On the reopening of the Seminary that spring, the first
desire of the pupils was to enter their closets and commune
with God.

Riding out one evening, Mr. Stoddard saw three per-
sons before him on the way to Seir. Their horses went
from one side of the road to the other, at random; and
their own heads were uncovered to the cold March wind.
At first he took them for dervishes ; but on coming nearer
he heard the voice of prayer, and found they were Nesto-
rians. The eyes of all were reverently closed, and when
one finished the other continued their supplications. He
turned aside, and left them undisturbed. On another occa-
sion, when John and Moses were riding to Geog Tapa on
the same horse, they again engaged in devotion; but as
the horse was unruly, they each prayed in turn, while the
other held the reins.

Sometimes the language of their prayers is very broken,
Mr. Stoddard once stood in the church in Supergan,
twenty miles from Oroomiah, while prayers were read in
the ancient Syriac, and overheard an old man, very igno-
i-ant, praying back in the congregation by himself He
had, perhaps, never heard five prayers, in his whole life, in
a language he could understand ; but reverently, and in a
low tone, commino'liiior the memories of old forms with the
utterance of new desires, he was saying, " Our Father in
15*

174 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

heaven — always going after Satan — O Lord Jesus Christ
— hallehijah — forever and ever, Amen!" It was inco-
herent, but compreliensive. He addresses God as his
heavenly Father. He confesses his sins. He appeals to
Christ as his only helper. He praises God for his unspeak-
able gift, and then closes in the usual form.

The pious Mar Ogen, of Ishtazin, when in great pain,
and hardly able to move, often broke out in words like
these : " O Lord Jesus, thou art the King of glory, the
King of kings and Lord of lords ; thou art great, and
holy, and merciful. I am a sinner, condemned. My face
is black, my bones are rotten. O Lord Jesus, have mercy
upon me, poor, and blind, and naked, and miserable. O
Lord Jesus Christ, I am vile, I am lost ; but do thou re-
member me."

No language exj^ressed their sense of guilt better than
the words, "All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags."
In the fervor of their desire for Christ, and grace through
him, they would say, " Blessed SaviouT, we will cling to
the skirts of tliy garment, and hope for mercy till our
hands are cut off." A common petition was, *' O Lord, we
pray that we may never deny thee, even to the blood of
our necks" — most expressive w^ords, in a land where so
many criminals are beheaded.

One prayed for our country, when he heard of the south-
ern rebellion, thus : " O God, pour peace into that land.
Permit them not to fight with each other, but with Satan
and their wicked hearts, and may chey fight spiritualty to
subdue the whole world to Christ."

During one of the revivals in the Female Seminary, the
prayers of the pupils were exceedingly earnest. A member
of the mission, having occasion to open the door of a room
where a few of them were together, heard as follows :

PRAYERPULNESS. 175

" We are hanging over a lake of fire, with a heavy load
upon our backs, by a single hair, and that is almost broken.
We are in a shiji burned almost down to the water; the
flames are just seizing upon us. O God, have mercy.
Jesus, Son of David, have mercy. O Lamb of God, have
mercy on us." "No wonder," a missionary wrote, "I
sometimes think that it is pleasanter to pray in Syriac than
in our own language, because I have such fervent-minded
ones with whom to pray."

The day Miss Fiske left Oroomial], a large number of
women and girls gathered around to bid her farewell. They
said, " Can we not have one more prayer meeting before you
leave ? " They were told that they might meet in the school
room. "But may it not be in that Bethel?" they asked, re-
ferring to the teacher's own room. She told them she could
not lead their devotions then. Their reply was, " You need
not do it; we will carry you to-day." Seventy were soon
assembled in her room. They sung, " Blest be the tie that
binds," and offered six prayers. One asked that when Elijah
should go up, they might all see the horsemen and chariot,
and all catch the falling mantle ; not sit down to weep, or
send into the mountains to search for their master, but
take up the mantle, go, smite Jordan, and, passing over, go
to work. She then reminded the Saviour that he had
promised not to leave them orphans (John xiv. 18, Greek
and Syriac), and begged him not only to come to them,
but to abide Avith them when their teacher was gone.
Her thoughts then turned to the departing company, who
were to take their long land journey of six hundred miles
on horseback. She asked that the sun might not smite
them by day, nor the moon by night. Theirs was a desert
way, and the Lord was entreated to spread a table for
them through all the wilderness, and, Avhen they should

176 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

pass over the narrow, precij^itous roads, to give liis angels
charge to keep them in all their ways, and bear them up
in their hands, lest they dash a foot against a stone ; and
when they should go through the rivers, not to let the
waters overflow them. The company would lodge by
night in tents, and it was asked that the angel of the Lord
might ever encamp round about the moving tabernacle.
Borne in mind as they should pass on, first to the steamer,
and then to the mailing vessel, she asked that when they
should be on the "fire ship," the flame might not kindle
upon them; and when on the "winged ship," where the
waves would go up to heaven, and down to hell, that He
would keep them in the hollow of his hand, and bring
them to the desired haven. She then asked that all her
teacher's friends might be spared till she should reach
them, especially the aged mother, and that when she should
fold her daughter in her arms, she might say, like Simeon
of old, "Now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace."
Here she paused, and Miss Fiske thought she had finished ;
but soon she added, " May our teacher's dust never mingle
with a fiither's dust, or with a mother's dust ; but may she
come back to us to mingle her dust with her children's
dust, hear the trumpet with them, and with them go up to
meet the Lord, and be forever with him." Nor did their
prayerfiilness cease after their teacher had left them.

There was a pupil in the Seminary, who, before conver-
sion, was exceedingly obstinate and rude ; but afterwards, in
<vriting to Miss Fiske, she uses expressions like these : " I
remember how you used to put your arms about my neck,
nnd tell me how Christ became obedient unto death ; not
for friends, but for enemies like me. Especially do I re-
member how you spoke of that love which saw a remedy
in its own blood, when there was no lielp for a lost world.

PRAYERFULNESS. 177

At that time I did not understand it, but now I know not
how to express my gratitude. I know that you are very
happy with your aged mother, though your heart is here ;
and she is happy, too, that she sees your face. Yet these
earthly meetings, though so pleasant, are but for a season.
l>iit how delightful will- be that meeting with the holy
angels, with the risen Lamb, and with God our Father !
and if separations are so trying here, what must be those
of the last day ? May I not then be separated from you.
If I should be, I know you will say, 'Holy, holy Lord God,
just art thou, for she has been taught.' We miss you
much ; but the Teacher who is better than any earthly in-
structor, came and taught us this winter (1858-1859). The
Lord Jesus has been the gardener of our school. He has
come down and watered it with heavenly rain. He has
truly fidiilled his promise, 'I will not leave you orphans; I
will come to you.' He said, 'Wait for the promise of the
Father.' We waited for his coming, and he turned him-
self quickly, and we had delightful seasons. Our times of
prayer were longed for. We prayed more than we did any
thing else. When we retire from the school room now, in
many places two girls are found praying together. Li my
village I meet the women together and alone. I also have
precious seasons, praying with a company of girls ; and I
have selected two women to pray with and for till they
shall be Cliristians. I hope that they will choose Christ for
tlieir portion. Some of the women of our village, like
Mary, sit at Jesus' feet. One Christian mother had an only
son, and very wicked, who trod the Sabbath under foot, and
was wholly given up to his own pleasure. She set apart a
day for fasting and prayer in his behalf, and soon the
Lord met him in his evil way, and now he is a decided
Christian."

178 WOMAN AND IIZIl 3A VIOUE.

But let US leave these general views, and look at this
prayei-fulness more in the order of it§ manifestations.

During the revival in 1846, two of the pupils spent a
whole night in prayer for the conversion of their brothers,
first one leading in devotion, and then the other, till morn-
ing. Like Jacob they felt, " We will not let thee go except
thou bless us." While the missionaries admired their pious
zeal, it is proper to add, that they generally insisted on tlie
observance of regular hours of sleep, as conducive alike to
bodily and spiritual health. Yet one writes on a similar
occasion, " Sometimes, in my anxiety, I have gone to their
cold closets to persuade them to leave ; but the fervor of
their prayers has oftener driven me to mine, than it has
allowed me to call them from theirs."

Twice, and even three times, a day, were not enough for
them to retire for communion with God. Many spent
hours every day at the mercy seat. There were but few
closets, and this was a great trial to them. Often three or
four of them might be seen sitting, in tears, waiting their
turn to go in to the mercy seat. Would that they might
have had some of those closets at home that are never
entered ! iVt another time, the Bible of one of the girls
was found on one of their wooden stools, open at the fifty,
first psalm, and the page blotted with weeping, as she read
it preparatory to retiring for prayer. Her teacher could
put her finger on no part of those large pages without
toucliing a tear.* Still later, when news of the death of
Munny, of Ardishai, by the accidental discharge of a gun,
reached Miss Fiske in America, her first thought was, "Dear
child, I shall never again break off your communion with
Jesus ; " for she remembered that when once she begged her
to leave her closet and get rest for the Sabbath, her reply

* See page 138.

PRAYERFULNESS. 179

was, "O, I am so soiry tliat you spoke to mo! I was having*-
such a good time with my dear Saviour." Only a few days
before her death, while in the vineyard Avith her brother,
she suddenly clasped her hands, and exclaimed, "Blessed
Mr. Stoddard ! when shall I see him ? and Avhen shall I see
my blessed Saviour ? "

A poor woman, came to the Seminary one day, weep-
ing for her sins, and seated herself on the floor. The
teacher was soon at her side, telhng her of Him who was
wounded for our transgressions. She prayed with her, and
then asked her to pray for herself " But I can't pray ; I
don't know your prayers." " Hatoon, don't try to pray like
me, or like any body ; but just tell God how you feel and
what you Avant." "May I tell God just what is in my
heart ? " Being assured on that point, she fell on her face,
weeping aloud, saying amid sobs, " O God, I am not fit
even for an old broom to sweep with," and could say no
more. This was doubtless the most worthless thing the
poor woman could think of in her humble home. But it
was not long ere she could join others in their little meet-
ings for prayer; and she still lives, honoring the Saviour,
whom she loves. She is the mother of two of the most
useful graduates of the Seminary.

Again : a pious man brought his wife to spend a few days
in the Seminary, when she was somewhat thoughtful, and
left her nearly a week. Let Miss Fiske describe their meet-
ing. " He came for her at noon, and I was conversing with
him in my room, when she passed out from her closet with-
out seeing him. [The small upper window to the left, over
the central door, marks the closet.] But he saw her, and
reached out his hand, saying, 'My beloved, come here.' She
placed her hand in his, looked up in his face, and answered
his 'Is Christ become beautiful?' with a gentle 'Ithirdv

180 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

SO.' The tears of both fell fast, while he led her, without
leave, into my chamber, that they might unite in prayer.
But I was glad to have them offer their first united prayers
there. It was ever after a more sacred place."

Miss Fiske spent most of the vacation, that followed the
first revival, in 1846, with Mr. Stoddard, in the villages,
where her pupils aided her much in labors among the
peoj^le. After a very pleasant evening spent in Geog Tapa
with those who were seeking Jesus, Hanee, the pupil with
whom she staid, came and asked, " Would you like to be
alone?" It was the first time she had ever been asked
such a question by a Nestorian, and it awakened feelings
similar to those that filled her heart when first she heard
the voice of a Nestorian woman leading in prayer. To use
her own words, " I followed the dear child, and she led me
to the best closet she could give me — a manger, where she
had spread clean hay; and she said to me, as she turned to
leave, ' Stay just as long as you like.' You may well sup-
pose it was a precious spot to me. It was my own fault if
I did not there meet Him who was once laid in a manner
for us."

The members of the Seminary were especially interested
in the monthly concert, which was held in Oroomiah, on
the first Monday of the month. On that day they generally
wanted two or three meetings; and in 1846 it was often
difficult to persuade them to study at all. From the rising
to the setting sun, the voice of supplication for a dying
world continually fell upon the ear. At one time, all united
in pleading for a world's redemption ; then, in little com-
panies of five or six, they urged the request ; and again,
each, alone in her closet, still pressed the same petition.

Previous to 1846, so few of the Nestorians knew how to
pray, that rehgious meetings were for instruction rather

PRAYERFULNESS. 181

than prayer ; but now it was a clelightful privilege to unite
with them in pleading for the conversion of the world to
Christ. Never were their petitions so full of unction as
when offered for this object. In April, Miss Fiske's pupils,
not satisfied with an extra meeting by themselves, though
continued till near sunset, were induced to close it only by
the promise of having a similar meeting next day. No
wonder their teacher never enjoyed a monthly concert in
America as she did that one. It w^as indeed a rare privi-
lege to unite with such spirits in its observance.

The pupils wrote to the Seminary, at South Hadley —
"Dear sisters, we love the monthly concert very much.
Three hours on that day w^e meet together to pray that the
kingdom of God may come among us, and among all the
nations of the earth. It is a very sweet day to us, and we
love none so well, except the Sabbath."

In January, 1849, they spent day and night in w^eeping
and j^rayer, mostly for themselves, as unfit to pray for
others. The same w^as true of the Male Seminary. The
teachers, the older pupils, and Deacons John and Guwergis
spent nearly the w^hole of one night in prayer; and so bur-
dened were they with the lost condition of their people,
and their own unfaithfulness, that almost all of them gave
np their former hope in Christ, and sought anew for pardon.
The voice of praise and prayer was now heard, not only
through the day, but frequently during the night.

Up to January 29th, only two or three of the uncon-
verted in the Seminary showed any concern for salvation.
Most of them were so careless and trifling, that their teach-
ers w^ere almost heart-broken ; but wdien the retiring bell
rung that night, many were so distressed for sin that they
could not heed it. The pious were pleading in behalf of
those out of Christ, and many of these last were crying for
16

182 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

mercy. One prayer commenced, " O Lord, throw us a rope,
for we are out in the open sea, on a single plank, and wave
after wave is dashing over us." So they continued till near
midnight, when their teachers constrained them to retire.

At the beginning of February, the other Seminary wit-
nessed a remarkable outpouring of the spirit of prayer.
Every spare moment of the previous day, and much of the
night, had been devoted to fervent intercession by those
who feared that the Spirit of God was about to leave them.
So intense was the feeling, that the ordinary services were
suspended, and at once every closet was filled; yet a majority
had no place for retirement. One of them proposed prayer
in the yard, and there, on that wintry day, for an hour,
their earnest cries went up to heaven. All of the careless
were deeply moved, and mnny dated their conversion from
that day.

The work extended to Geog Tapa, Seir, and other vil-
lages. From Degala, Deacon Joseph wrote, " Whenever I
went home, I found our house a house of mourning. After
the lamp was put out at night, I could not sleep for the
sounds of prayer and weeping on all sides. In some
houses, very young children had heard their parents pray
so much, that they also did the same. The women, too, had
frequent meetings by themselves. One day I led some
men to a place where they could hear women praying
within the latticed window of a house, and, trembling, they
begged me to teach tliem also how to come to God."

The missionaries avoided all stirring appeals to the pas-
sions, among a people so excitable, though the ready per-
formance of every duty manifested tlie sincerity of the
praying pupils, while it made the labors of their teachers
pleasant.

There was not that agonizing wrestling in prayer on the

PRAYERFULNES3. 183

first Monday of 1850 that had marked tlie same day tlie
year before ; but the following week was characterized by
unusual tenderness in both Seminaries, and two of the older
pupils of the Female Seminary found no rest except in
their closets.

On the evening of the second Sabbath in January, Miss
Fiske was not able to attend the prayer meeting, and re-
mained in her room alone. The gentle opening of her
door announced that the meeting was over, and a little
group passed on hastily, but quietly, to the rooms beyond.
She had just risen to follow, when she heard several voices
in earnest supplication. She turned to the stairway, and
there also the sound of fervent entreaty came up from
many closets, while some groped about to light their lamps,
or stirred the dying embers of their fires. What meant
this simultaneous movement to the mercy seat? There
had been nothing unusually exciting in the meeting, and she
sat down with the sweet assurance that it was from above.
It was late before the suppliants left their closets, and re-
tired in perfect silence ; but morning found them resuming
the same loved employment, and good news came of simi-
lar blessings from the Boys' Seminary.

That week was one of deep solemnity. The pious pupils
devoted every leisure moment to prayer. Their domestic
duties were performed faultlessly, and much earlier than
usual, and then they sought their closets. Some spent five
hours each day of that week in those sacred retreats, and
when urged to leave for needed sleep, the reply was, "For
weeks we have slept, doing nothing for God and souls.
How can we sleep until forgiven ? "

Saturday afternoon, several begged leave to give them-
selves entirely to prayer for a blessing on the morrow; and
never did the teachers more gladly welcome the approach

184 WOMAN AND lllOli SAVIOUR.

of holy time. A blessed Sabbath followed such a prepara-
tion day. During morning service, almost all were in tears.
At dinner, many seats were vaeant. It may seem an ex-
aggeration, but it was literally true, that no voice was
heard all that day save the voice of prayer. Miss Fiske
lias never known such a Sabbath before, nor since. In the
al'ternoon, the feeling Avas overpowernig. There was no
re(piest for i>rayer, but unbroken stillness and the perfect
jierformanee of every duty, without a word being said. At
the supper table, every face seemed to say, "Our meat and
drink are not here." Seine asked to be excused, but at
length all wei-e seated; and the scene that followed can
never be forgotten. All Avho were previously interested,
and more beside, wept tears of siU-nt sorrow. The blessing
was askeil, and the steward* began to help them, himself
in tears; but no plate was touched, for even the uninter-
ested gazed in silent wonder. Tlieir teacher urged them to
eat; but one, seizing her hand, said in a voice too low to be
overheard, "You Mould not ask ))ie to eat if you knew my
heart." The reply was, "I feel just as sure that the Lord
would have you eat, as that he M'ould have you pray."
They were then besought to eat, so as to have strength to
]u-ay. This touched a tender chord, and so succeeded; and
then they silently withdrew to make that nse of their reno-
A'ated strength. Kaeh hour that night found some at the
mercy seat, feeling that to leave oif at such a crisis might
lessen the blessing.

Two mouths now passed on, each day furnishing new
evidence that those prayers were heard. There Avas less of
excitement, but no diminution of interest, to the close of
the term. The uniform and sustained prayerfulness of
those months surprised the beholders. The voice of sup-

♦ Yohauan, father of Esli. See page 67.

I'RA YKftFULNEBS. 1 85

plication was the latest sound of evening, the watchword
of midnight, and tlie lark song of the dawn. One pupil,
nine years of age, after spending two hours in her closet,
consented to retire only when allowed to rise and pray if
she awoke during the night; and she was sure to wake.
About thi'ee o'clock cvei-y morning, her earnest pleadings
ious(id her teachers from repose.

The hours of social prayer Avere full of tenderness.
Those who heai'd the jjiijtils jjleading far within the veil,
close by the mercy sent, almost foi;cj:ot that they were yet
on earth. The school, their parentr: and relatives, were all
affectionately remembered. ''J'he hour always seemed too
short, and often closed with such expressions as these : " If
we have not been heard here, we will go to our closets,
and if not heard there, we will return here, and again go
back to our closets, and so continue to plead for these
loved ones to the last." These meetings, though varied in
(;haracter, were always of thrilling interest. Now there
was an overwhelming sense of sin, as committed against
a holy God, and then, as a ray of hope appeared, a weeping
voice would implore, as on one occasion, that "the Holy
One would walk over the hills of Judea, find Golgotha, and
let them live." Again, the sight of manifold transgressions
prompted the cry, " But we fear our sins have covered
Golgotha from thy sight, and then are we forever lost."
Another part of the same prayer contained the entreaty,
" Lift not the mercy seat from off the holy ark, to look on
the law Ave have broken, but look into Jesus' grave, and
bid lis live."

In the daily family prayer meetings eveiy inmate of the
room was specially and tenderly remembered. Once, Avhen
a father had come for his daughter, and Miss Fiske went
to find her, on opening the door she heard a prayer for one

186 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

who had shown little feeling ; and in pleading the suffer-
ings of Christ on her behalf, each petition seemed to rise
higher, till every face was turned upward, as if to see
him; and the one who led in devotion involuntarily
stretched out her hands to lay hold of him, saying, " Come,
Lord Jesus, and save our perishing sister; but if she will
not receive thee in this life we must forever rejoice in her
destruction" — a striking illustration of intense spiritual
emotion, bringing the heart into sympathy with the whole
truth of God. (Rev. xix. 3.)

These labors for their impenitent associates, and for
those women who came to the Seminary, were full of
Christ. The hour between supper and the evening meet-
ing was usually spent in personal labor from room to
room ; and the entreaties and prayers, then audible on all
sides, made it delightful to be a stranger in a strange land
for Jesus' sake. It was scarcely less affecting when super-
stitious grandmothers, worldly mothers, and giddy sisters
were prayed wdth and entreated to come to Christ.

The audible prayers of the pupils may trouble some
readers, but not more than they troubled their teacher.
She desired more silent devotion ; but Mr. Stoddard, him-
self in the habit of praying aloud, looked on it with more
favor, and feared to have it checked. Soon after his own
conversion, a friend remarked to him, "I think you had
better not i^ray quite so loud;" and for days after it he
could not pray at all. He had never thought of others
while communing with God, and he was troubled that
others should think of him. Even to the last he continued
the jDractice of praying audibly.

Miss Fiske sometimes spoke to her pupils on the subject.
There was one who spent hours daily in her closet, bnt her
teacher heard all she said. So, on a fitting opportunity,

PRAYERPULNESS. 187

she suggested to her, in a gentle way, that she might
modify the practice. "I will try to pray in a lower voice,"
was the reply; "but I never thought of any body's hear-
insc me." That ni^ht her voice was more subdued, but
her jDrayer was very short ; and soon after midnight her
teacher was awakened by the voice of prayer out on the
roof. She stepped out quietly; and there was her pupil
wrapped in a blanket, and thanking the Lord for such a
place to pray. She continued her devotions till near
morning ; and the kind teacher had no heart to interfere
any further. Mr. Stoddard was much amused with her
success ; and it may teach all of us, in this matter, to suffer
the Holy Spirit to divide to every one severally as he will.

On another occasion, not liking to assume the responsi-
bility herself, and yet fearing for the health of her pupil,
who generally spent a long time in fervent devotion, she
led the physician to the outside of the door ; but he, too,
after listening for a while, did not A^enture to interrupt such
communion with God. Sarah of Tiary was within.

Meetings were held three days in the week with the
women in the neighborhood, and were well attended. The
older pupils were allowed to assist in these in order to
form habits of doing good for after life ; and they did so
to edification, both leading in prayer and addressing the
beloved mothers — as they called those older than them-
selves— tenderly and in fitting words.

It was of such a work that Miss Fiske wrote at the
time, "We cannot speak confidently of its fruits at this
early date, especially as many of our dear charge are so
young ; but we can say what present appearances are ; and
while we daily try to obey our Saviour's command, 'Feed
my lambs!' we trust that friends at home will hear no less
distinctly the same voice, saying, ' Pray for my lambs in

188 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

shown tliemselves most fliithful to their Master during this
season. Others, of whom we were less confident, have
seemed to pass through a previously untried experience,
and, we tremblingly hope, have laid hold of eternal life.
The same is true of several never before convicted.
Among these last is a little girl who was suddenly
awakened, with as clear convictions, apparently, as I ever
saw in any ; and her final trust in Christ as implicit. For
several days she would say, with tears and sobs, 'I have
never yet loved the Saviour; but O, I do want to love him
now.' Her mother is one of the few converted in Geog
Tapa before the first revival. She has suffered almost
every thing for Cln'ist. Often, on returning late from
meeting, she has found herself shut out for an hour in a
piercing winter wind, before her husband would open the
door. At other times she has been beaten, but never denied
Him who bought her. The pious natives often say that
in the conversion of her daughter, she now receives the
reward of her years of prayer and faithful endurance.
The last days of the term bound the dear pupils very
closely to each other, and we trust to Christ. When the
hour of separation came, a prayer meeting was held in
each room, and continued to the last moment. Those
without hope clung to their praying sisters, with tears and
entreaties for prayer. The hopeful converts went forth
with a holy, chastened gratitude and trust. We tremble
for them among tlieir wicked friends, but rejoice that
Israel's Shepherd will keep his own."

Their prayer was, "May we not carry to our homes the
poison of the second death in our hearts, but bear to them
the seeds of eternal life."

But the rich blessiuos bestowed in Oroomiah were not

PRAYERFULNESS. 189

all in ahswer to prayer ascending from that place. There
was a connection between tlieni and prayer offered in our
own country, of which David would say, " Whoso is wise,
and will observe it, even he shall understand the loving
kindness of the Lord." Most of the revivals in Oroomiah
commenced on the day of the monthly concert of prayei-,
and several on or immediately after the first Monday in
January — a day specially set aj^art to prayer for mis-
sions. But there was a special centre of prayer for the
Female Seminary in the institution at South Hadley; and
pious hearts loved to watch the connection between the
two. While the two inquirers, on that first Monday in
1846, were making closets for themselves with the sticks
of wood in the cellar, some of Miss Lyon's pupils distinctly
remember how she said to them that morning, " AYe must
pray more for Miss Fiske and her school." They did so ;
and they remember, too, how the good news of the revival
cheered them, when it came.

The earliest indication of interest, in 1847, was on the
first Monday in January; and letters afterwards told of
special prayer for the school ofiered that day in South
Hadley. Almost every letter written during the winter
of 1849 contained similar information. The revival of
1856 came suddenly and unexpectedly; but when, on the
night of February 17th, one of the praying pupils could not
sleep, because, as she said, "the whole school was resting
on her," and at midnight went to her teacher to ask her
help in prayer, subsequent letters from America showed,
that on that night she wrestled not alone. In 1857, the
first inquiry for the way of life was on the last Thursday
in February, the day of prayer for institutions of learn-
ing. Miss Fiske returned from the February concert of
prayer, in 1858, feeling depressed on account of the want

190 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

of interest in the school, and in half an hour was called to
see two of her pupils, who felt that they could not remain
the enemies of God. In the first week of February, 1859,
meetings were held every evening in the Seminary at
South Hadley to pray for the school in Oroomiah ; and a
letter from Miss Rice, written that week, says, "God is
with us ; souls are seeking Christ ; and I am so strengthened
for labor, that I am sure Christian friends are praying for
us more than they did last month." Do Christians in this
country realize as they ought the connection between their
prayers and the blessings bestowed on the opposite side of
the globe ? Do we go to the monthly concert believing
that prayer, offered then and there, will, through infinite
grace in Christ Jesus, result in the salvation of souls and
the advancement of his kingdom? Such facts as these
ought surely to increase our faith. Well might a mission-
ary say, " I have so often felt sure that I was reaping in
answer to the prayers of those far away, that on this sub-
ject my heart is full, and my first and last word to friends
is, 'Pray for us.'"

CHAPTER XYII.

FORERUNNERS.

MOUNTAIN GIRLS IN SEMINARY. — PRAYING SARAH. — RETURN TO THE
MOUNTAINS. — VISIT OFYONAN AND KHAMIS, IN 1850. — OF MR.
COAN, 1851. OF YONAN, AGAIN, 1861. — SARAH's LETTERS.

But rich as are tlie benefits conferred on the females
of the plain, the influence of the Seminary is not confined
to Persia. It has climbed the rugged steeps of Kurdistan,
and pours into its wild glens and secluded hamlets the
same spiritual blessings. It is delightful to trace the way
in which God has led to results, as yet only beginning to
appear, among the mountain Nestorians.

As the Seminary could not enter the mountains, Provi-
dence brought the mountains to the Seminary. In 1843,
Badir Khan Beg sacked and burned the villages of Tiary,
and the homeless fugitives who escaped the sword fled to
the plains of Assyria and Azerbijan. Towards the close of
that year, a miserable group presented themselves at the
Seminary door for charity, asking for the lady who teaches
Nestorian girls. The quick eye of the teacher detected
th.ree in the company before her, and replied, " Silver and
gold we have not, but such as we have we will give you — a
home for these children." This sent them away sorrowful,
for it was not what they wanted. But while the parents
retired to the shade of the tall sycamores to debate the

(191)

192 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

matter, the little ones, attracted by kindness in a stranger,
staid with their new friend. By and by the parents came
back, and, fjilling on the necks of their children, told them
they might stay, till they returned to Tiary. The teacher
never heard a more gentle and subdued "thank you"
than this announcement called forth from those mountain
girls. This was the first movement of the school towards
the evangelization of Kurdistan, and it will be seen how
Providence led the Seminary at Seir in the same path.

The girls were taken in, washed, and clothed ; and though
at first they knew no more of good manners than of the
aljjhabet, they made commendable progress in both. Bet-
ter than that, Sarah and Nazee became hopefully pious in
the revival of 1846, and Heleneh three years afterwards.

The last days of the spring term, in 1849, as we have seen,
were full of interest. The teachers did not understand it
then, but now they see that God was preparing his first
messengers to the rude mountaineers for the work before
them. Among a company of praying ones, Sarah had long
been known as "the praying Sarah." She was the pupil
whom Deacon Isaac invited to come and pray * with him;
and the strong man bowed before the simple piety of that
mountain girl. Her mind was not so gifted as many of her
associates. She comprehended truth with difiiculty, but
she prayed with all prayer and supplication in the spirit.
At this time an unusual spirit of prayer was imparted to
the school. The prospect of vacation, instead of divert-
ing the mind from devotion, seemed to produce intenger
earnestness. The voice of prayer fell on the ears of the
teachers at all hours, except the most silent watch of the
night. After the evening meeting, some spent two hours
in their closets, and others of the older pupils could not

* See page 151,

FORERUNNERS. 193

leave till tliey had jji-ayed with each one in the school alone.
On the last morning of the term, they separated with many
tears and fervent supplications. The quiet of the hour
seemed a foretaste of the rest of heaven. Not a loud voice,
heavy step, or harshly shutting door was heard in all the
house. All was so sacredly quiet that the still small voice
might be heard the more distinctly. The teachers sent out
the lambs from the fold with feelings of peculiar anxiety.
Some were to go into families where every soul would
gladly undo in them the work of the Spirit ; others to vil-
lages where not one heart could enter into their feelings as
the followers of Christ ; and as they went forth, their teach-
ers prayed, from full hearts, that the Shepherd of Israel
would himself be to them for a little sanctuary in the places
where they went.

While their thoughts Avere on such of their flock as
belonged to the plain, the thoughts of God were on those
also whom he was about to send forth to a life-long sepa-
ration from these means of grace. As late as ten o'clock,
on the evening after the close of the term, Miss Fiske heard
the voice of j^rayer for the absent ones, and fearing that the
occupant of the closet was transgressing the laAVS of health,
she approached the door, intending to enter, and advise her
to retire; but as she listened to her strong crying, with
tears, for each of the school by name, she could not find it
in her heart to disturb the intercessions of Sarah. She was
then a great bodily sufferer, but very patient, and for a long
time had not spent less than four hours daily in her closet.
The next day her disease assumed a serious form, and for
more than a week she hovered on the borders of the grave.
Several times she appeared to have drawn her last breath.
But though her sick room seemed to all like the gate of
heaven, and though to her the dark valley was all light,
17

194 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR,

and she longed to embrace the messenger who should lead
her through, it was not her Father's will to call her then.
She was at first disappointed at the prospect of coming
back to the world; yet still she sweetly said, "Thy will be
done," as God restored her to health, with its responsi-
bilities and temptations.

April came, and a scarcity in the plain, occasioned by
locusts, drove the fugitives from Tiary back to their moun-
tains. The teachers hoped the girls might remain, and
besought their parents to allow them to do so, but in vain.
They were only too glad to get their daughters away from
influences which in their blindness they abhorred. But
God intended through these daughters to lay the founda-
tions of many generations, and build again the old waste
places of those mountains.

It was hard for them to go. How could they leave their
Christian home, and the means of grace they had enjoyed
so much ? It was no less hard for the teachers to think of
those lambs as about to be left at the mercy of wolves, in
rocky glens, so far away that no cry of distress would ever
reach them. Yea, even if those loved ones died, long
years might pass ere their friends could hear of their death.
Those were days of sadness, and communion with God was
the only comfort of all, and especially of Sarah.

On the day of their departure, the whole school came
together, in the room of the teachers, for the parting prayer.
All was silent, till the three asked to go and bid a farewell
to their closets. They went, and only He who seeth in
secret knows how they prayed. They returned weeping.
A few words of comfort were uttered, and the teachers
commended them to God. They rose from their knees,
but only to kneel again ; for one of the pupils proposed that
all who would pledge themselves to remember their Tiary

FORERUNNERS. 195

sisters in every prayer should join hands around them,
commend them to the good Shepherd, and give to him
their pledge. About twenty thus enclosed the departing
sisters, and so they continued in prayer until the last mo-
ment. As the dear ones passed out, they could not speak,
they whispered but one word, — " the promise," — and so
they Avent. For years after, no prayer was heard within!
those walls that did not contain a petition for "blessings
on our Tiary sisters."

Many a time had her teacher noticed the large folio page
of Sarah's Syriac Testament wet with her tears, and after
she left, found the whitewash of the wall in her closet
farrowed with tlie same. It opened out of the passage be-
hind the door on the left of the engraving. She did not
tell this to the school, lest superstition should attach an
idolatrous sacredness to the j^l^ce ; and yet she could not
obliterate marks that to her own heart were so full of com-
fort. Sarah had gone but a little Avay before she pleaded
with her parents to stop, and allow her to retire a little
from the road for prayer.

And so, weeping and praying as they went, these lambs
were led into the dark recesses of a den of lions. We shall
see persecution raging, pitiless as the mountain storm, and
long continued. But we shall also see the Hearer of prayer
preserving them unharmed ; and if we hear more from the
others than from Sarah, it may be that the revelation of the
answers to her prayers is reserved for that day which shall
unfold disj^lays of grace too glorious for comprehension here.

Nothing was heard from them till October, 1850, when
l^onan and Khamis entered those rocky fastnesses to
gather tidings of them. They spent the first Sabbath of
the month in the house of Nazee; but she was absent.
They say in their journal, —

196 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

"We preached three times to hirge assemblies. They
brought us Nazee's Testament to preach from, and seemed
accustomed to the sound of the gospel. In respectful at-
tention to the word, as well as in knowledge, they were far
superior to other villages in Tiary. This we knew was the
result of her teachings. Monday we waited her return.
She came about noon. How can we express the joy of
that meeting ! We sjDcnt another night there, the most of
it in sweet Christian conversation with Nazee. We were
surprised at the respect shown to her, and the restraint felt
in her presence. If any chanced to swear, he at once went
and asked pardon for thus injuring her feelings. Tuesday
we had to leave, lest we should be detained by the snow
till spring. We longed to pray with her before we left, but
custom here forbade it; yet she accompanied us a little
on our way, which gave us an opportunity to mingle our
prayers and tears together. As we bade her farewell, she
said, weeping, 'Here is my love for my teachers, for my
sisters in the school, for the missionaries, their children,
and all that know me. Tell them to remember me in their
prayers, that God may keep me in this place of tempta-
tion.' We left her looking after us, and wiping away her
tears, till we were out of sight.

" We went that day to the village of the other two. As
soon as Heleneh saw us, she began to weep, thinking of the
past. Sarah we did not see ; she was in another village,
very anxious to come, but her wicked husband, whom she
had been forced to marry, would not permit it. We spent
the night with Heleneh, and preached to a large company.
Next morning we left, and she too, with tears, begged that
all her friends in Oroomiah would remember her in their
prayers."

Was Sarah prevented from seeing her Christian friends,

FORERUNNERS. 197

that God might show hereafter hoA-r. without even that
helj), he could answer the j^rayers of others for her, and her
own ?

The next we hear of them is through Mr. Coan, who
visited Tiary in August, 1851. The writer can understand
his account of crossing the Zab, as the bridge was in the
same condition when he crossed it with the late Dr. Aza-
riah Smith, August 31st, 1844. But hear Mr. Coan: —

"A toilsome day, over the roughest of roads, brought
us opposite Churaba. The bridge had been swept away, and
fording such a torrent was impossible. Two long poplar
trees spanned the flood ; and we crossed on them, bending
under us at every step, ^azee was on the bank, ready to
greet us. After a few words of salutation and kind in-
quiry, she hastened to prepare a place for us ; and while
doing this, the malik took us to his house. She was much
disappointed, but followed, anxious to treasure up every
word. After suppei', we spoke long to the company assem-
bled on the roof. It was afiecting to see how eagerly she
listened. She staid after the rest, for religious conversa-
tion, till near midnight, when she apologized for keeping
us up so late. She is cruelly persecuted by her wicked
mother and ungodly neighbors ; for she is a shining, light,
by which the dark deeds of the wicked are reproved ; and
hence their hatred. When Mar Shimon's attendants come,
they treat her with wanton cruelty. Some friends in
America had sent her several articles of clothing ; but her
neighbors came together and tore them in pieces before
her eyes. She bore it meekly, and only prayed for them.
She expected fresh insults because of our visit, but prayed
that nothing might separate her from the love of Christ.
Long before day, she again, sought to improve every mo-
ment for Christian conversation, We tried to comfort her:

198 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

and her eyes filled with tears of gratitude. She received a
copy of the Gospels with joy. When we left, she followed
us, lonely and sad, to the river side. I opened her Testa-
ment, and pointed to Matt. xi. 28 : ' Come unto me, all ye
that labor, and are heavy laden ; ' but her voice choked, and
tears prevented her reading. We kneeled by the roaring
Zab, and in broken accents commended her to Him who
will keep her, for his promise is sure."

For ten long years we hear nothing of either of the
three ; till, in September,1861, Yonan — the same who found
them in 1850 — and another preacher visited the mountains.
In a • village of Tiary, some two thousand people were
keeping the feast of the cross — eating, drinking, dancing,
and carousing. They sat down among tlie quietest of the
crowd. Heleneh came up and saluted them. Though she
had not seen her teacher for eleven years, she recognized
him at once. They talked from morning till near sunset.
As they spoke of old friends, Yonan asked, " Heleneh, do
you remember where our Lord was crucified ? " " On Cal-
vary. Can I forget Calvary f'' as though grieved that he
should think she could forget. Yonan gave her a kei^
chief for the head, saying, " Take this, and remember me
by it." " Shall I remember you by this ? " was the reply.
"I will remember you in my prayers." "Do you pray,
Heleneh ? " — She was the last one converted, and left
Oroomiah soon after her conversion ; so he wanted to
know whether she still held on her Christian way. — " Al-
ways," was the answer. They sought a place to pray
together ; and though they might not go away alone, yet
there, in sight, but not in hearing of the crowd, they
approached the mercy seat, the spectators little dreaming
of the nature of their intercourse. It was delightful to
find that she had not forgotten the language or the spirit
of devotion.

FORERUNNERS.

199

The accompanying sketch of a Tiary girl will show how
the kerchief is worn. It also exhibits the mode of using
the Oriental spindle, which is probably a fac-simile of the
article mentioned by Solomon. (Pro v. xxxi. 19.)

A TIARY GIRL.

The other two were not at the feast ; so, next day, they
left to seek them at their homes. Nazee was absent, but
came home in the morning — a widow with two children.
She was delighted, and even her children seemed to recog-
nize in the strangers their mother's friends. She was poor;
her house had been burned, and almost all it contained ; but
a stone was on her Testament, and that was saved. They
talked long with her, and gave her a copy of the Rays of
Light (the monthly periodical issued by the mission), and
a pencil to write to her friends. She gave them letters

200 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

written ten years before, which she had penned in secret,
and carried about with her ever since, waiting an oppor-
tunity to send them.

The next day, another long journey brought them to the
home of Sarah ; she saw them coming and hastened to meet
them ; but that very night she had to leave for a distant
village : yet not till in answer to prayer they had an op-
portunity to pray together ; and the friends left that vil-
lage happy ; for, as Yonan said, they " found her, like the
others, having the love of our Christ in her heart."

That solitary discii^le, through those long years of seclu-
sion, never hearing the voice of Christian fellowship, or
knowing whether her pious friends Avere alive, or if her
sisters still remembered their pledge, was yet kept of God
according to his promise ; and it is interesting to see that
she does not once allude to her persecutions in her letters,
but only solicits the prayers of her friends for her relatives
and neighbors ; and then, while' both Mr. Coan and her
teacher testify to her usefulness, with what humility does
she allude to herself, and "the very little she has made
known of the Lord Jesus Christ."

Extracts from the letters that she kept so long here fol-
low. The first, to friends in Middlebury, Vermont, is dated
September, 1851, and reads thus : —

"To you, dear fi-iends, I write a letter unworthy and
imperfect, in which I make known to you my lost con-
dition and my present abode. Know ye that a little
more than two years ago I left the Seminary, and came
with my friends to our country. I did not wish to leave
so soon, for I had learned but very imperfectly what the
Scriptures teach about our Lord Jesus Christ. But my
mother was not willing' I should remain, for lier heart is

FORERUNNERS. 201

yet hard and dark. Know, then, dear sisters in Christ, I
dwell in Tiary, in the village of Cliumba, about six days'
journey from Orooraiah. Again, though so far away,
know ye, that your letter reached me in May. It was
translated and sent to me by Mr. Perkins, our beloved
father, whom we are unworthy to call such. My dear
sisters, when I took your letter in my hands and read, my
heart longed to fly and sit down by you, and behold your
faces in the body ; but I said, " The will of the Lord, not
mine, be done." AYhen I look within myself, and see
not a place worthy to cherish gratitude to God for his
great mercy and grace, which he hath wrought for us, sin-
ful and unworthy, I liken myself to the slotliful servant,
who did not the will of his Lord. Yet, O, my sisters,
though I have not done the will of my Saviour, I have
hope in him that I shall do it, and serve him henceforth so
long as I am in this world — fleeting as a dream in the
night.

Though our country has been, in time past, greatly
afflicted by the Koords, yet God has spared many of us,
who had sinned and trodden under our feet the blood of
his holy Son. But do not marvel that we have sorrow
from the scourge God brought upon us for our sins. No.
Still every day we provoke our Maker more and more.
Then ought we not to mourn over this people, lost and fallen
under the yoke of Satan ? For should you go through all
Tiary, you would not find one soul that fears the Lord, but
all bound in fetters not to be loosed. If God do not loose
them, quickly will they perish ; and not this country only,
but many others, sit under the shadow of death and walk
in darkness, going to destruction. Then, dear sisters,
though unworthy, we should increase our painful efibrts,
and our prayers to God, that speedily his kingdom may

202 WOMAN an;j hep. saviour.

come and his will bo done on earth as it is done in heaven,
that all regions may know him and praise him forever.
Beloved sisters, I am unworthy to thank you, and still
more to thank God, who has disposed you to show such
kindness to my poor body, and yet more to my perishing
soul, with words so gentle and full of love ; yet greatly do
I thank you.

Again, dear friends, I have one request to make — that
every time you bow before God, the Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, and of all who love him, you will remem-
ber me in your prayers, for I am very needy, and there is
great danger that my soul will perish forever. Remember
also my mother, and all my friends, sinners, and on their
way to destruction. Know ye, further, that I conceal the
writing of this because they would not allow me openly
to write, for they are very foolish and benighted. Accept,
then, this poor letter, as a token of friendship and grati-
tude, in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

From your unworthy and sinful sister,

Nazee, of Tiary. Amen.

The following are extracts from another letter to the
same persons: —

"Though we are far from each other in this evil world,
yet I hope that our Lord Jesus Christ will make us pure
from sin, and worthy of his kingdom, where we shall see
each other with tliat light which shall not end, in the joy
of the holy angels. Ah, my friends, how great are our
mercies and we how unworthy, but especially I! — un-
worthy of the gift of the gospel of God, which I have
received, that I might make it known to lost souls around
me. But know ye, very little have I made known about
our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, dear friends, I desire to

FORERUNNERS. 203

speak of him to lost souls, in the imperfection of my mind.
But many do not desire even to hear of the sound doctrine
of the Lord Jesus Christ, and yet think to gain heaven,
while they practise in this world according to their wicked
desires. And for this reason, O my sisters, I beseech you
that you will remember this people, lost and fallen under
the snares of Satan ; especially my mother, and brother, and
all my friends. But more especially, I beseech you to re-
member me, a sinner, in your prayers, every time that you
bow the knee before God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the Father of all who fear him, and listen to
his commandments."

Accompanying these was the following to Dr. Perkins,
dated October 3d, 1851 : —

" To you, O my spiritual father, Mr. Perkins, I presume
to send two letters, for friends in Middlebury. If you
please, you will translate them, and send them ; but I fear
that they will give you much trouble.

"Again, you wrote me in your letter, that I should
teach children to read. Now, I am very needy myself of
instruction. Yet I desire that that might be my em-
ployment. But that is a very difficult matter among such
a people, of whom you have heard that although there
may be here and there one who would walk in this way,
yet there is a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence
therein ; so that every one that goeth in it, his foot stum-
bleth, and quickly he turns back.

" Again, O friend beloved, though I am unworthy to call
you such, yet I beseech you that you remember me always
in your prayers. I know that you do remember me, but I
desire that you remember me more, for I greatly fear for
my perishing soul. Greatly do I desire to see you once
more in this world, if the Lord will."

204 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

He who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in work-
ing, commissioned these praying souls to prepare his way
in the mountains, even as he chose those other three to
show forth his grace in death ; and they who live to mark
the future course of the river of life in those rocky glens
will find, we trust, that his strength was made perfect in
their weakness.

CHAPTER XYIII.

LABOEERS IN THE MOUNTAINS.

LETTER OF BADAL. — ACCOUNT OF HANNAH. — THE PIT. — LETTER OF
GULY AND YOHANAN. — ACCOUNT OF SARAH. — LETTERS OF OSHANA.
— LETTERS AND JOURNAL OF SARAH. — LETTER FROM AMADIA. —
CONFERENCE OF NATIVE HELPERS.

Besides these, the Seminary has sent up other laborers
into the same field. At the monthly concert in Oroomiah,
June, 1858, there were present four graduates, with their
husbands, either going there for the first time, or returning
to resume their labors. Guly, the wife of Yohanan, who
had already spent one year in little Jeloo, was now about
to return there with her husband. Nargis, the wife of
Khamis, who had spent the winter laboring alone in the
vicinity of Amadia, on the Turkish side of the mountains,
was now with him, going back to Gawar. Hannah, the
wife of Badal, who had sent her husband, three days after
marriage, to his winter's campaign in the same region, was
now accompanying him to the chosen field of his labors ;
and Eneya, the wife of Shlemon, his associate, was also
expecting to leave in a few days.

By the way of introducing the reader to one of these
laborers, we subjoin a letter from Badal to 3Iiss Fiske,
dated December 12th, 1859. It is a good specimen of Ori-
ental style.

" Writing to you brings to mind many sweet conversa-
18 (205)

203 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

tions with you. Dwelling on them, my mind is sad. My
sighs rise Uke the swelling stream, and almost cany me
away, especially when I look at your garden, -where you
labored with so much skill to graft in these wild olive
plants, cutting off your sleep w^ith watchings by night, that
they should not be rooted up by the desert wind. Thus
you watched them, till they became as noble forest trees
that not even the avalanche can overturn. Your garden,
now, not only gives a shade pleasant to the traveller, but
it yields sweet fruits; clouds rise from it that give us the
early and the latter rain ; they empty themselves, — the plain
rejoices, and the barren places become verdant. Yes, the
vine that you planted has budded, and blossomed, and gives
of its fruit to every passer by. Come to us, our beloved,
open the door of your garden, that the traveller may enter
in and be refreshed. You have left many pleasant remem-
brances in the work of your hands. On every side you
have left a picture for our eyes, and the skilful work of
your hands (his wife), lo, and behold! it is with me. I
cannot be silent. My voice shall be heard as the turtle's :
'Behold, your feet are within my doors, and your counsels
are ever in my fjimily.' The Lord reward you for these
pupils, that you have taught to be patient and persevering,
so that they truly help us in the work of life.

"Beloved, give my love to your friends, and ask them,
when they go up to Shiloh to offer sacrifice, to place me in
the censer of their prayers.

" We are troubled that as yet we know not the Lord's
thoughts concerning you, — whether he will allow you to
meet your flock again, or says to you as to Daniel, ' Thou
shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.'
Like Moses, you are gathered to your fithers ; but Miss
Rice stands like Joshua, commanding the sun not to go

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 207

down till the s\voi"d of tlie gospel shall triumph. We
thank the Lord that she is still a judge in Israel, so that as
yet the sceptre has not departed from Judah.

" Your affectionate friend, Badal."

There are some things about Hannah, and the work of
divine grace in her, that demand grateful record.

She was the daughter of one of the most intelligent and
wealthy Nestorians, who placed her in the Seminary as
early as 1845. She was then quite small, and the teacher
objected very much to taking her ; but paternal importu-
nity prevailed. As soon as her father turned to go, she
began to scream; but he left, saying she must remain,
and "learn wisdom." The kind teacher took her in her
lap to soothe her ; but it was of no use ; her bleeding hands
bore the marks of the nails of her new protegee for weeks.
She called for her father, but he was intentionally out of
hearing.

The child remained, but learned wisdom very slowly.
She had her fits of rage so often, that she was sent home
sometimes for weeks, and again for months. She made little
progress, either in study or other good, till the winter of 1850,
when she seemed to begin to love the truth ; yet, though her
general deportment was correct, she often showed such a de-
termined wall, that her instructors feared she had never said
from the heart, " Not my will, but thine," and often told her
that, if she was a Christian, God would, in love, subdue that
will. She could not feel her need of this, and thought
that they required too much of her. So they were obliged
to leave her with God, and he cared for her in an unusual
way. The mission premises had formerly been occupied
by an Oriental bath ; and here and there were old pits,
once used for carrying off the water, but now covered

208 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

up, SO that no one knew where they were. One evening
Miss Fiske called the girls together, and told them some
things she wished they would refrain from. They prom-
ised compliance, and went out ; but hardly had they gone
before their teacher heard the cry, " Hannah is in the well ! "
She ran there, but all was right. Then they led her to an
opening just before the back door, saying, "The earth
opened and swallowed her up." The covering of one of
the pits had given way, and she had fallen perhaps twenty
feet below the surface. Fortunately, as in the case of
Josej^h, there was no water in the pit, and in a few days
she was able to resume her place in school, but much more
gentle and subdued than ever before. The change was
marked by all. Months after, in a private interview with
her teacher, she gave an account of the whole matter. She
said the girls went out, most of them saying, "We will
obey our teachers; " but she, stamping her foot, said, " I did
right before, and I shall do so again." With these words
on her lips, she sunk into the earth. At first she did not
know what had hapiDcned, but remembered all that had
been said, and felt that God was dealing with her. Lying
there helpless and bruised at the bottom of the pit, she
made a solemn vow to God, " Never again my will."
From that time she was a most lovely example of all that
was gentle. She seemed to give up every thing, and " bear
all things." Her father saw the change, and one day said
to her teachers, " I am not a Christian ; but Hannah knows
nothing but God's will. If she should die now, I should
know she was with Christ, she is so like him." Her Chris-
tian character developed beautifully ; the school learned of
her to be Christ-like. She longed to do good, and was
ready to make any sacrifice for the good of souls. When
Badal sought her hand from her father, the latter called her,

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 20^^

and said, " Hannah, Badal the son of the herdsman, wants

you to go to the mountains with him, and wants you

to live here with him. It shall be as you say." She re-
plied very meekly, "I wish to suffer with the people of
God. I choose to go with Badal;" and June 8th, 1858, sho
left for her mountain home.

The parting jDrayer meeting with those four girls, going
as missionaries to the mountains, was one of the pleasantest
memories that Miss Fiske carried away from Oroomiah.
She left soon after, but often heard from Hannah and her
companions that she was happy in her life of privation for
Jesus^ sake, and did what she could. She suffered, however,
from the change, and was advised to visit Oroomiah for her
health. It was hoped she might soon recover ; but she
went only to leave her sweet testimony to the blessedness
of knowing no will but God's, and then go home. She
sent the following messages to Miss Fiske from her dying
bed : "I love to have God do just as he pleases. I thank
you for all your love, and especially for showing me my
Saviour." She died in December, 1860.

Having given herself to Missionary work among the
mountains, it is interesting to know that her little property
also went to the same object. In the remarkable revival
of benevolence, in Oroomiah, in the spring of 1861, her
brother gave her inheritance, which had fallen to him, to
sustain laborers in the mountains : thus, after her life had
been laid down in the work, all her living went to carry
it on.

Let Guly introduce herself to the reader by giving her
own account of her conversion, in 1856 : —

My dear Superintendent, Miss Fiske : I wish now,
as far as I can, to describe to you my spiritual state. The
18*

210 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

first four weeks of the revival I did not realize that I was
lost, but afterwards was more burdened ; my sins were
round about me like dark clouds. One night I went to
Miss Rice to have her pray with me. I did not know how
to find Christ. She told me ; yet all that night I saw no
light, but only darkness. I was almost in despair, yet felt
that this was from Satan. In the morning the sun rose
i:)leasantly, but it was as night to me ; for I knew that I
had no portion in God. So I continued all that day. I
could not read in my class, but went to my room, and
vowed not to leave it till I had some token that Christ
was mine. I brought nothing in my hands save my sins,
wliich were like mountains. I remembered that scripture,
" Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as
snow;" and I recalled the promises of God, and that no
other could pardon me. With earnest longing, I laid my
soul into the hands of Jesus. I heartily covenanted to
serve him all my life, and sought help from him in prayer.
Then suddenly I saw light, as if he were at my side; and. I
did not wish to rise from my knees, so blessed was that
communion. From that time I had hope, but sometimes
fear I may be deceived. Yet daily I find Christ more and
more jDrecious. Though old Adam is not dead, yet in the
strength of God I will resist him.

Yes, my dear mother in Christ, my guide to the cross,
my desire is to please God, and live for him, not for myself
I cannot say that I shall never sin, for I am weak, and my
foe is strong; but I will seek help from Him who was
tempted, and can succor me when tempted.

I am most thankful to you that you have been the
means of my salvation, and can never forget your love till
my tongue is silent in the grave.

Your affectionate Guly, of Seir,

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 211

She and her hiisbjind, Yohanan, have labored in the
mountains ever since their marriage. He writes to Miss
Fiske in February, 1861, —

"I have not forgotten your pleasant love, and trust I
never shall until I die. I hope that, with all your friends
here, I shall see you again. As our joy is not full in your
absence, may you not rest till you return.

" We are now in Vizierawa of Gawar ; for the people
of Ishtazin, instigated by Mar Shimon, have cast us out. I
had hoped to go to Amadia, but was robbed and wounded,
in the autumn, by the Koords ; and before I could recover
my goods, it was too late to go so fir. So I remain here ;
and, thanks to God, our labor in the gospel is more j^leasant
than ever. Some of the men wish to hear the whole will
of God ; and women and girls come to Guly to hear his
words. A few children also are constant in learning to
read. The work of God prospers this year in Gawar, and
the laborers are more numerous and more faithful."

In estimating the zeal and self-denial of these Nestorian
missionaries, it should be borne in mind that our missiona-
ries there, think it requires as much self-denial for a native
of Oroomiah to go to the mountains, as for an American to
go to Oroomiah ; and according to the testimony of a na-
tive observer, the married graduates of the Seminary, in
the mountains, are centres of light in that great sea of
darkness.

Besides those already mentioned, Oshana and Sarah,
with Shlemon and Eneya, are laboring in Amadia. This
Sarah is daughter of Priest Abraham, of Geog Tapa, and
was one of the earliest pupils of the Seminary. When
Deacon Isaac broke it up, in 1844, she was the only pupil
who remained. She was hopefully converted in 1846, and
wdiile in the Seminary was supported by the Sabbath school
in Owego, New York,

212 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

In 1849, it was proposed that her father labor m Ar-
dishai, one of the darkest and most wicked villages of the
plain, as one might expect the home of the notorious Mar
Gabriel would be. Great opposition was made by the
people to his coming among them; and his own wife —
not then converted — did much to hinder his going; but
Sarah did all in her power to encourage him ; and a letter
of hers on the subject decided him to go. She rejoiced to
give up her friends, her pleasant home, and even her privi-
leges, that he might labor in that unpromising field. Nor
was she by any means idle. She spent all her vacations
there, laboring with much acceptance and success ; and
after she graduated, in 1850, besides her day school
througli the week, she had a Bible class on the Sabbath,
with the women ; and on Friday, also, she sent out her
pupils, in the afternoon, to invite their mothers and other
women to a meeting she held with them in the evening.
She thus acquired great influence, and led several to the
Saviour. Her labors were very systematic. She had a
plan for conversing personally with one pupil each day,
and was noted for her tact and success in efforts with in-
dividuals. Others might act from impulse, and soon tire ;
but hers is an activity controlled by principle, and there-
fore uniform and enduring. Very faithful in admonition
when admonition is required, she is at the same time
noted for gentleness, and thus expresses to Miss Fiske her
delight in laboring for Christ : " Separated from Christian
friends, I am sometimes sad ; but I am not greater than my
Master, who left the holy society of heaven to come to
earth, and I am glad for a corner where I may labor for
such a Master. Come and spend a Sabbath here if you
can ; if not, pray much and often for these poor women."
Again speaking of her school, slie says, "It is the good-

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 213

ness of God that gives me tliese little girls. Prny for
them. I see indications that they will be lovers of the
Lord. Forty or fifty of the women come to meeting, and
twenty-two are willing to receive the truth." She was ac-
customed to study the Bible with her father, and in that
way also aided him in his labors.

But it is time to bring forward her husband, in letters
which open up a new department of usefulness, and illus-
trate the meaning of Mar Yohanan, when he brought lier
first pupils to Miss Fiske, and said, "No man take them
from you." The truth was, that the same parents, who at
first could not trust their daughters in the Seminary for a
single night, were now unwilling that they should be
united to a husband who did not commend himself to its
teachers as a suitable companion for their pupils. But let
Oshana speak: —

HoxoEED Lady, Miss Fiske : I have a petition to lay
before your zeal, which is active in doing good to all poor
insignificant ones like me. Dear lady, whose love is like
the waters of the jSTile, and spreads more than they ; for it
reaches the sons of the mountains of Kurdistan, as well as
those of the plain. I am venturing to trouble you more
than ever before. This summer, when I went to my coun-
try (Tehoma), my mother and uncles, who gi-eatly love
me, with a natural love, beset me to marry one of the
daughters of my country, whomsoever I should please;
but I made known to them that I Avished, if possible, to
take one of the pupils of your school, for I said to them,
" If I take one of these who are so wicked, ignorant, im-
modest, and disorderly, they will embitter my life." I
entreated of them not to put this yoke of iron on my neck.
They listened a little to my petition, from the mercy of

214 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

God, but made me promise that if it should reach my
hand, I would marry this winter. The girl on whom 1
have placed my eye, to take her, is Sarah ; because she has
the "fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom," and
she has been brought up in all the graces of Christianity,
and has well learned the holy doctrines ; and in the fear
of God, and the knowledge she has acquired, she can help
me, and strengthen me, in the work of God, on which I
have placed my heart for life.

And now, to whom shall I look to help me in this
matter? I will look to God, the Lord of heaven and
earth. But he works by instruments. Then to whom
shall I look, as the instrument to do this work ? I am a
stranger, poor, and without a name here. My relatives
are far away. If I have friends in Oroomiah, they cannot
do this kindness for me. If I remain silent, silence alone
shall I see. Now, my lady, I look to you for help ; and
with confidence shall I do so more than I should to my
parents ; for you have guided me and my sister better than
any Nestorians have guided their children. Yes, by your
hand God will supply my need. 'Now do as you think
proper. From your unworthy

OSHANA.

P. S. The other letter (enclosed) is for Sarah, and on
this subject.

Some time after he was engaged to her, she was very
sick, when he wrote as follows ; and the reader will
notice that the "honored lady" gives place to

Dear Mother, and Noitrisher of Sarah : I have no
friend in whose pleasant, pure love I can delight as in
Sarah, and she is now wasting away on a bed of sickness.

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTALNS. 215

My heart is very heiivy with sorrow on iier account. Yes,
I am so borne down with trouble, that for three days my
tears have not been stayed. I do not say this to boast of
my love. I oice her all this. I have a petition to make ;
which is, that you will do all you can for Sarah. But I
need not ask this, for I am confident that your kindness
will lead you to do, and cause to be done, all that can be
done for her. But will you not let me know whether her
sickness increases or diminishes? — if it increases, that my
sighs and tears may increase in pleading before the Lord
for mercy, and if it diminishes, that my thanksgivings may
increase before our merciful Father in heaven.

Dear mother, if it is the will of our Father in heaven to
take Sarah to the ujDper mansions, — though I shall be com-
forted on account of her being saved from all the bitter
misery of this world, and her blessed rest with the Saviour,
where she can praise his love with her pleasant voice,
joined with the sweet songs of angels, — still it will be hard
for me. If I live after she has gone, God forbid that I be-
hold her dust, and not long to be her companion in heaven.
Your unworthy

OSHANA.

Our next letter is from Sarah to Miss Fiske, written at
Seir, in 1859, more than two years after her marriage, and
gives a good idea of her Christian spirit : —

Beloved : The good news that you gave us of the
revivals in your country, rouses our hearts to warmer zeal.
Shall we not also prepare the way of the Lord? We
know, by the gracious visits of God here this winter, that
Christians there are ever praying for our poor people. For
we hear from the preachers wiio come up to the concert

213 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

every month, that the work of the Lord goes forward in
the villages of the plain, and also in the mountains.

Here in Seir, the good work began among the women.
I hear them say, "Though we have had revivals before, we
have never seen a year like this, when the words of God
had such deep effect." Mrs. Cochran and I have good
meetings with these women. Our congregations make
glad the Christian heart, and I am particularly happy in
laboring for them, one by one. A portion of them, with
tearful eyes, are covenanting to be the Lord's. We ask
the Lord to strengthen them in their covenant, and we
entreat of you and of your friends to pray for them.

Our Sabbath schools are veiy pleasant. Mr. Cochran
will tell you how the work goes forward. Mrs. Cochran
has a class of women, aud so have I. Last Sabbath Mr.
Cochran read one of your letters to the congregation, and
we learned from it how the work of the Lord goes forward
in your blessed churches. We praised the Lord, and then
we entreated him to bless our churches, and make them
more spiritual, for we are confident that his grace is suffi-
cient for us all.

ShQ visited Tehoma, in May, two months after the date
of the preceding, with her husband, Oshana, and two little
children, and gives the following account of their jour-
ney:—

"Through the favor of our heavenly Father, I have
made a journey into these mountains, rejoicing in the op-
portunity to labor for my people. I am very happy that
my father and friends brought me on my way in willing-
ness of soul. From the day that I left my own country,
in every place that I have entered, until now, my heart has
been excited to praise my Guide and my Deliverer, and I

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 217

have also been grateful to my teachers who brought me to
labor in a desolate vineyard, joyfully, I, who am so weak,
and such a great sinner. In all the various circumstances
in which I have been, your counsels have been of great
benefit to me.

" I think you will be glad to know that the gospel door is
wide open here. You and your friends will pray that
the Lord of the harvest w^ould send forth laborers into his
harvest.

" We left the city of Oroomiah, May 6th. We were ten
souls — Hormezd, of Aliawa, Sagoo, of Geog Tapa, Matlub,
the Tehomian, Guly, and little Gozel, Oshana and his
brother, our two little girls, and myself May 8th, we
reached Memikan, and remained there three days.

" It was our first Sabbath in the mountains. I met that
company of women for whom our departed Mrs. Rhea
used to labor. May 12th, we left Memikan, and went up to
the tops of the snowy mountains of Gawar. The cold was
such that we were obliged to wrap our faces and our hands
as we would in January. As we descended the mountain,
we found it about as warm as February. That night we
staid in the deep valley of Ishtazin, in the village of
Boobawa, where Yohanan and Guly dwell. The people
here are very wild and hard. Yohanan and Guly were not
here, having gone to visit Khananis. Only a few came
together for preaching. The people said, ' Yohanan
preaches, and we revile.' May 13th, we left Boobawa, and
soon crossed the river. Men had gone before us, and were
lying in wait there. They stripped us, but afterwards, of
themselves, became sorry, and returned our things. As we
were going along this wonderful, fearful river, and beheld
the mountains on either side covered with beautiful forests,
we remembered Mr. Rhea, the composer of the hymn,
19

218 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

'Valley of Ishtazin.' And when filled with wonder at
the works of the Great Creator, we all, with one voice,
praised him in songs of joy fitting for the mountains.
Here the brethren reminded me that our dear Miss Fiske
had trodden these fearful i^recipices. This greatly encour-
aged me in my journey. . This day we went into many
villages, and over man^ ascents and descents. At evening
we reached Jeloo, and remained over night in the pleasant
village of Zeer, which lies in a valley made beautiful by
forests, and a river passing through it. They showed great
hospitality here, and were eager to receive the w^ord of the
Lord. May 14th, we left Zeer, and went to Bass. It was
Saturday night, and we remained over the Sabbath in the
village of N"erik. I shall always have a pleasant remem-
brance of the Sabbath w^e passed there. From the first
moment that w^e went in till Monday morning, we were
never alone, so many were assembling to hear the words
of the Lord. With tearful eyes and burning hearts, they
were inquiring for the way of salvation. They would say,
' What shall we do ? We have no one to sit among us, to
teach us, poor, wretched ones.' Truly, a man's heart burns
within him as he sees this poor people scattered as sheep
without a shepherd. May 16th, we mounted our mules, and
went on our way. Half an hour from Nerik we came to
the village of Urwintoos. An honorable, kind-hearted
woman came out, and made us her guests. This w^as
Oshana's aunt. As soon as w^e sat down, the house was
filled with men and women. They brought a Testament
themselves, and entreated us to read from that holy book.
Did not my heart rejoice when I saw how eagerly they
were listening to the account of the death of our Lord
Jesus Christ ! When the men went out, the w^omen came
very near to me, entreating for the word of the Lord, as

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 219

those thirsting for water. Then I read to them from the
book.

" There are many sad deeds of wickedness among these
mountain Nestorians ; and when Christians hear how anx-
ious they are to receive the words of Ufe, will they not feel
for them ? We reached Tehoma May 17th. ISTow, from
the mercy of God, we are all well and in the village of Maz-
rayee. I am not able to labor for the women here, as I de-
sired, because many of them have gone to the sheep-folds.
It is so hot we cannot remain here, and we will go there
also, soon. I trust, wherever I am, and as long as I am
here, I shall labor for that Master who wearied himself for
me, and who bought these souls with his blood.

" The Lord keep and bless you, our beloved, who have
been a mother to the Nestorian girls, all of whom, with
longing hearts are expecting your return. We contin-
ually pray Him who gave you to us, to restore you again
in mercy to our people. If counted worthy, I should
greatly rejoice to receive a little note from you."

She returned to Oroomiah in the spring of 1860, and left
again in 1861 for Amadia. When she went away, her
three children had the whooping cough ; so she would not go
into any of the mission families lest she should spread the
disease among the children ; but after she was all ready to
go, and the heads of her own little flock were peeping out
of the saddle-bag contrivance in which they rode, Mrs.
Breath went out to bid her good by. Sarah told her how
Miss Fiske had said, when she took her oldest child into her
arms for the first time, " ' Now, Sarah, you will not seek for
this child a pleasant home upon the plain, as Lot did, but
rather to do God's will, and then he will give you all
things.' I have always remembered it," she added, "and
am not willing now to be found seeking my pleasure here.

220 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

During the long winter of 1861-62, no messenger could
SI-OSS the mountains from Oroomiah to Amaclia; and she
thus writes in March, 1862, to Miss Rice: —

"I did greatly long for the coming of the messenger.
We were very sad in not hearing a single word from home.
Now I offer thanksgivings to Him in whose hands are all
things, that he has opened a door of mercy, and has de-
lighted us by the arrival of letters. They came to-day.
Many thanks to you and your dear pupils. The Lord bless
them, and prepare their hearts for such a blessed work as
ours.

" Give Eneya's salutations and mine to all the school. I
think they will wish to hear about the work of the Lord
here. Thanks to God, our health has been good ever since
we came, and our hearts have been contented and happy in
seeing some of our neighbors believing, and with joy re-
ceiving the words of life. Every Sabbath we have a con-
gregation of thirty-five, and more men than women. For
many weeks only the men came ; but now, by the grace of
God, the women come too, and their number is increasing.
I have commenced to teach them the life of the Lord Jesus
from the beginning. I have strong hopes that God is
awakening one of them. His word is very dear to her.
Her son is the priest of the village, and a sincere Christian.
Four other young men and five women are, we trust, not
far from the door of the kingdom. We entreat you, dear
sisters, to pray in a special manner for these thoughtful
ones, that they may enter the narrow door of life.

" From the villages about us we have a good report.
They receive the gospel from Oshana and Shlemon, who
visit them every Sabbath. In my journeys through these
mountains, I have seen various assemblies of men and wo-
men listening to the gospel, poor ones, exclaiming ' What

LABORERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. 221

shall we do ? Our priests have deceived us : we are lost,
like sheej) on the mountains. There is no one to teach us.'
They sit in misery and ignorance. They need our prayers
and our help. I verily believe that if we labor faithfully —
God help us to labor thus — we shall soon see our church
revived, built up on the foundation Christ Jesus, and
adorned for him as a bride for her husband. With tears
of joy we shall gaze on these ancient ruins becoming new
temples of the Lord. Soon shall these mountains witness
scenes that wdll rejoice angels and saints. Those will be
blessed times. Let us pray for them, and labor with Christ
for their coming."

Our latest news from Sarah is, that during the summer
of 1862, her little son had died, and she herself was just
recovering from a dangerous fever.

The joyful anticipations awakened by such a letter from
a graduate of the Seminary, in ancient Amadia, are ^ not
diminished by accounts received of a conference of " Moun-
tain helpers," held in Gawar, from May 30th to June 2d, 1862.
They came from Gawar, Jeloo, Tehoma and Amadia. At
the opening of each session, half an hour was spent in
prayer ; then carefully prepared essays were read on subjects
previously assigned, and each topic was afterwards thor-
oughly discussed. The first subject was, " Hinderances to
evangelization in the mountains, — such as their ruggedness,
deep snows, superstition of the people, and persecution."
Deacon Tamo, in speaking, admitted all these, but said,
"For rough roads we have our feet and goats' hair sandals ;
for deep snows, snow shoes; for the darkness and supersti-
tion of the people, we have the light of the truth and the
sword of th^ Spirit; and for persecution, we have God's
promise of protection and the firman of the sultan."
" The faithful pastor's duty to his flock," and " Means of
19*

222 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

securing laborers for the field," were among the topics
discussed. Their discussions on the subject of benevolence
showed that they regarded that duty as binding as any
other. They engaged to observe the monthly concert,
and take up monthly and also annual collections in their
congregations, and apply the proceeds to the support
of a laborer in the mountains. On Sabbath evening the
monthly concert was observed, and after stirring addresses,
the contribution amounted to what was for them the very
large sum of fifty-two dollars. Among the ofierings were
a horse, an ox, a sheep, a goat, and difierent articles of
jewelry. Arrangements were made at the conference for
the formation of a Protestant community in Gawar, in
accordance with the firman of the sultan. In all res23ects
the meeting was a rich spiritual festival, and from the
spirit its members manifested, and the progress already
mac^e, we may hope for extensive and important results
before many years have passed away.

CHAPTEK XIX.

EBENEZERS.

EXAMINATION IN 1850. — COLLATION AND ADDRESS. VALEDICTORY BY

SANUM. — SABBATH SCHOOL IX GEOG TAPA. — EXAMINATION THERE
IN 1854. — PRAYER MEETING AND COMMUNION AT OROOMIAH, MAY,

1858. SELBY, OF GAVALAN, AND LETTER. — LETTER FROM HATOON,

OF GEOG TAPA.

There are occasions, interesting in themselves, that also
serve to mark the progress which they promote. Such an
occasion was the examination of the Seminary, June 6th,
1850. There have been examinations since, but none so
marked in their influence for good ; none where the teach-
ers felt so much like calling the name of it "Ebenezer,"
and saying, " Hitherto hath the Lord helped us."

Tlie pupils had improved, during the last weeks of the
term, more than they had ever done in twice the same
length of time, both spiritually and mentally. At the
close of the term, their parents and friends, with some of
the leading Xestorians, were invited to the examination.
More than one hundred and sixty spectators, besides the
pupils, were crowded into the large recitation room. This
had been adorned with a profusion of roses, from the vine-
yard of Mar Yohanan, arranged in wreaths and bouquets,
with festoons of sycamore leaves, and other devices. The
people were delighted, — for, like other Persians, they are
great admirers of flowers, — and many, on entering, involun-

(223)

224 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

tarily exclaimed, " Paradise ! Paradise!" In their various
studies, the attainments of the pupils would have reflected
honor on a seminary in our own land ; but their knowl-
edge of ScrijDture exceeded all besides. Even on the
details of the Tabernacle they rarely faltered; and their
compositions showed an intimate acquaintance with Bible
facts and doctrines.

Dr. Perkins delivered an address, comparing the early
days of the mission with that scene, and felicitously an-
swering various objections that had been raised against
female education ; and, at the close, dii:)lomas were given
to three of the oldest pupils.

The exercises were pleasantly diversified by a plentiful
collation under the arbor in the court behind the Sem-
inary, where lambs roasted whole, in the native style,
lettuce, cherries, pilav (a preparation of rice), and some
cake, prepared by the pupils, were duly discussed. Many
of the women had never before sat at the same table with
men, and it was amusing to witness their awkward embar-
rassment. Some snatched the food from the table by
stealth, and ate it behind their large veils, as though it
were a thing forbidden.

Hormezd, the father of John, now aged and blind, who
had been led all the way from Geog Tapa, said, towards
the close of the afternoon, "I wish Joshua were here."
"And what do you want of Joshua?" "I want him to
command the sun and moon to stand still, for the day is al-
together too short." As the company dispersed, several old
men took Miss Fiske and Miss Rice by the hand, saying,
with moistened eyes, "Will you forgive us that we have
done no more for your school?" But the best of all was,
some sixty adult women, from different villages, begging
for spelling books, that they might commence learning to

EBENEZERS. 225

read. Thirty of them did not rest till they could read
their Bibles. The cause of female education never lost
the impulse that it received that day.

Instead of the valedictory composed for this anniversary,
is here subjoined the greater j^art of the one prepared by
Sanum, for a like occasion, because it takes a wider range,
and is richer in its historical allusions : —

" Now that another year is closed, and we are ready to
leave each other in peace, it is fitting to review the past,
that together we may praise the sweet Keeper of Israel for
the blessings he has poured upon our heads. We fear to
try to recount them all, lest we temj^t the Lord ; so we
will speak of but a faw.

"Let us renew the ^Wno•s of our lovino- thousjhts, send
them to the years that are past, and see where rests the
dust of some of the dear teachers of this school. Listen !
There comes a voice, ' They are not to be found among the
living.' Yes, the place of one is empty here, and of
another there. Then, where are they ? Thou, O country,
art a witness that they have pressed thy soil ; and you, ye
blessed winds, answer us, 'They have gone!' and ye
green leaves of time are true witnesses that they lie among
the numbered dead. But where shall we find them? They
lie far apart. We must visit one tliat first laid her hand on
some of us to bless us [Mrs. Grant] ; and though we re-
member her not, she often embraced us in the arms of love,
and carried us before a throne of grace. She was one of
the first that left all her friends, and ploughed the mighty
waves of ocean, that she might come to Oroomiah's dark
border. Though fierce tempests raged, and heavy waves
raised themselves above the ship, her prayers, mingled
"with love for us, ascended higher still, and overcame all.
At the foot of Mount Ararat she doubtless remembered

226 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

the bow of promise ; and her consolations were renewed,
when she thought of it as a prophecy, that a company of
the fallen daughters of Chaldea should become heirs of
glory. She so labored, that her influence is widening from
generation to generation.

"The Lord is rewarding her even to the third and
fourth generation. But though she engaged in her work
with such holy zeal, her journey was short. Some of us
had not seen our eighth summer when those lips, on which
were written wisdom, were still; and that tongue, on
which dwelt the law of kindness, was silent in death.
Now she rests in our churchyard. She sleeps with our
dead, and her dust is mingled with the dust of our fathers,
till that day when she shall rise to glory, and a company
of ransomed Nestorians with her.

" But where is that other dear friend of our school [Dr.
Grant], who was the beautiful staff of her support ? He
encouraged her to labor for us while many of us were yet
unborn. His heart was large enough to love every son
and daughter of our people. He sowed with many tears,
and gave himself for the Nestorians. Shall we not believe
that the fruits of his labors have sprung up among us ?
Then, where is he ? Let us go silently, silently, and ask
that ancient city, Nineveh. It will direct us, ' Lo, he rests
on the banks of the noble Tigris.' Would that our whis-
per might reach the ear of the wild Arab and cruel Turk,
that they walk gently by that stranger grave, and tread
not on its dust. Then, shall we think no more of it?
No; 'with a firm hope we expect that those mountains, on
which his beautiful feet rested, shall answer his name in
echoes, one to the other; and the persons who saw his faith-
ful example there shall mingle in the flock of his Saviour.

" But the journey of our thoughts is not finished. We

EBENEZERS. 227

must leave in peace this blessed grave, and go search for
one with whom we were well acquainted [Mrs. Stoddard],
and whose gentle, loving examj^le is so graven on the
tabletxof memory, that it cannot be erased. Can we for-
get her prayers with some of us the week she left us? or
how, when she took our hand for the last time, she said,
' The blessing of the Lord rest upon you' ? We did not then
expect that our eyes would no more rest on that lovely
face, and our ears no more hear that sweet voice in our
dwellings. When we heard of her departure to a world
of light, it was hard to believe that she had gone and left
us behind. Lo, on the shores of the Black Sea she has
laid her down to rest. O ye angry weaves, be still, and ye
winds of God, fan gently that sacred spot. All our people
are indebted to thee, thou blessed one. Thou, who didst
first teach us to sing the songs of Zion, now removed
from sin and sorrow, thou art singing with the myriads of
the just. We would not call thee back, but rather praise
the Lord that you and those other dear friends are entered
into rest. No, ye are not lost, ye spirits made holy; but
as it was necessary that some should come from a distant
land to labor here, so ye were necessary to do a greater
work in heaven. We believe that ye are domg there more
than ye could have done here ; yea, that ye form a part
of that great cloud of witnesses that encompass us to-day.
It is delightful to us to think that ye blessed ones guard
us. It is a comfort to our teachers to think that you, who
laid these foundations, are still round about us. Beloved
ones, we would not call you back. Cling closely, and more
closely, to your Saviour, till we, too, through free grace,
shall share in your glory,

"And now, beloved friends, who with them flew on the
wings of the gospel across the ocean to tell us of salva-

228 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR,

tion, we rejoice to-day that the sharjD arrows of death have
not touched you. Ye have been more than fathers and
mothers to us. Our hearts are full of love to every one
of you, O blessed band! but we cannot express it, ex-
cept with a heavenly tongue. When darkness reigned in
the breast of every son of the Chaldeans, and no whisper
of salvation had fallen on the ear of their daughters, you
opened the beauties of the priceless pearl before our eyes,
that it should enlighten us with heavenly brightness. We
cannot make known all that you have done for us. Let it
remain till that day of light when the Lord shall com-
mend you before his chosen. When we look at our dear
teachers, our hearts warm to you with no common love,
because you led them to leave the sweet place of their
nativity for our sakes. You have been parents to them,
wiping away their tears with the soft hand of a mothei-,
and sharing their trials with a father's heart. While you
have helped- them in every department of their school, the
blessing has all been ours.

"If on the wings of an eagle we should fly to the
extreme north, we should find no such school as this,
crowned with blessings, but should see our sisters groai.-
ing in bitterness, saying, 'Not one ray from the divine
sun rises on us in our misery.' If we turn to the south,
there we see the daughters of Arabia lamenting, 'In all
this desert, not one oasis yields the waters of life to
quench our burning thirst.' Eternity alone will suffice to
praise Him who sent you, the only heralds of his grace, to
us sinners.

"But our southern journey is not finished. From one
end of Africa to the other our sisters lie wrapped in the
shadows of death ; and if we turn to the east, all the way
to China, the daughters cry, 'Wretched is our unhappy

EBENEZERS. 229

lot : no cloud of mercy, such as surrounds you, lights up
the place of our abode. So on the west, as far as Con-
stantinople, our companions in suffering have no school to
sound in their ears the blessed name of Jesus.

" What are we, that the Lord should choose us from the
midst of such darkness, and send you to us with the mes-
sage of life ? Let ^11 nations, witli wondering lips, praise
the Almighty for his grace to us, so worthless.

" Now that we go from you, we leave with you this our
handiwork as a token of gratitude. [A specimen of needle-
work now among the curiosities at the Missionary House
in Boston.] Receive it, though a trifle. The figures on
it show what you have taught us in our pleasant school.
As we have first of all been taught to sit at the foot of the
cross, and neither hope nor glory in any thing else, we have
made that the foundation. Under the cross you have wa-
tered us with the showers o^ divine instruction and prayers,
that, like this vine, we might entwine about it and bear
pleasant fruit. From this cross we learned, while yet
in the bloom of life, like newly-opened flowers, to join
together in sweet friendship. Above this we have placed
a circle around the Holy Bible, that bright lamp of the
Lord, that will enlighten us like the sun if we follow its
leading — that well of living waters, which will cause us
to flourish like the palm tree. Tluis will our leaf be ever
green, and our fruit sweet till the day when the mystery of
love shall be revealed, and we dwell in the mansions of
the blest. There, joining with all the singers in heavenly
])]nces, we shall receive harps and sing glory to our heavenly
King, who saved us from everlasting woe. There we shall
inherit crowns of gold, and, with myriads of the saints,
cast them down before the Lamb. If but one of us reach
that place, will you deem your labor in vain ? God, who
20

230 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

rewards even the gift of a cup of cold water, will never for-
get what you have done to the least of his people, and if
the least are on the earth, we are they. Now that you
send us forth into the world, remember us, we beg you,
whenever you bring your sacrifice before the Lord.

" Dear teachers, your acts of kindness have been more
than the hairs of our heads ; we cannot^ recount them. We
can only ask Him, who alone is rich, to reward you from his
good treasures, for none but He can meet our obligations
to you. Each thought that reverts to the past demands a
tear of gratitude. O blessed seasons, w^hen God sent down
his Holy Spirit, that through your labors these walls of Je-
rusalem, so long broken down, might be again rebuilt. It
is sweet to think that in the hand of Christ, you have been
the means of the salvation of our souls, which are to live
forever. We believe that your prayers and tears are in
the golden censer before the throne. Now that we go out
from under your wings of love, which cannot reach to all
your scattered flock, we entreat you to ask the Good Shep-
herd to lead us in green pastures and beside the still
waters, and keep us under his wings of mercy in our
weakness.

[Her address to the native teachers, bishops, &c., is
omitted.]

"Dear parents, we rejoice exceedingly to see you here,
looking on us with eyes of love. No words can express
what you have done for us, especially in sending us here to
learn of Jesus. We trust that it has been, or shall be, a
blessing to you also. It is our hope that you will be
willing to send your daughters to distant places, to make
known eternal life. If you do, great will be your reward
from the Lord.

" And now, sweet sisters, another year have we sat under

EBENEZERS. 2 CI

our own vine and fig tree nnmolested. We have tasted
the honey and milk of the blessed land, and drank of the
waters from the Rock. But now the thne has come to
leave these bowers of knowledge, but not the lessons here
learned, nor the counsels of our teachers, nor the sweet
whispers of the Holy Spirit.

" Dear sisters, let us bear forth with us the light-giving
countenance of the Saviour, which will scatter all the evil
around us as the light dispels the darkness : without this
we cannot go. Though separated in body, let us be united
in fervent prayer. Let a conscience made sensitive by
grace be our abiding companion. Let the tent of Abra-
ham teach us that we have no abiding city here ; and like
him, let our first work be to offer those prayers to God
which shall testify that he is ours. And now, before going
forth, let us clothe ourselves with the meekness and gentle-
ness of Christ. Yea, let us take with us all his virtues,
being obedient, teaching our dying associates, and leading
them one and all to Christ. Though we part, our love can
never be sundered, and we will ask the Lord to send his
ministering spirits to strengthen our faltering steps, and
feed our souls with heavenly manna, so that if we never
more see each other here, we may meet in heaven with our
sisters who have gone before."

The teachers improved the interest awakened by the
examination in 1850, to urge their older pupils to labor in
the village Sabbath schools ; and let us look in on their efforts
in Geog Tapa. The children there were divided into ten
classes, each with one of the pupils for a teacher. Others
taught the women who could not read. Soon these were
joined by both old and young men, who were taught by
pupils from the Seminary at Seir, and as many as forty
spelling books were in active use. The children, too, were

232 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

taught to sing. Thus they Inbored till winter, when the
school was put in cliarge of the village school teachers.
In the spring the pupils resumed the work Avith undimin-
ished zeal, j^or did they toil in vain, for the attendance
increased from about seventy to four hundred; and some of
the teachers testified that they spent there some of the
most delightful Sabbaths they ever knew. Yonan, who
superintended the school with Moses, had also a class of
old women, that increased from six to thirty-seven, whom
he taught from the book, well known to our Sabbath school
children, "Line upon Line." His own account of it is very
interesting. He says, " The women, especially the aged
among them, have a habit, when they meet, of engaging in
unprofitable conversation, and, both on the way to church
and in it, we could not stop it. Awakening sermons pro-
duced no impression ; and though they had heard preaching
for fifteen years, they were still very ignorant. But now
what I teach them on one Sabbath I require them to repeat
the next ; and so they are obliged to leave off their gossip,
and talk over what they have heard, that they may not
forget it. These women are so anxious to be taught, that
if I am hindered a little longer than usual in arranging the
classes, they cry out after me in the church, that all the
other classes are being taught, but they forsaken."

A class of old men, taught by Deacon .John, commenced
with an attendance of ten, but soon numbered forty. For-
merly they went to market on the Sabbath, or sat sunning
themselves in the street, going to hear preaching about half
the time ; but they became so interested in the exercises,
that they were unwillhig they should close. They brought
others with them, and if one of them was kept away one
Sabbath, he mourned that the rest had got so far before
him.

EBENEZERS. 233

The women carried their books with them when they
went out to the vineyards, and at resting time : while others
slei)t, they read. Some, who could not afford oil at night,
read by moonlight, and when they spun, they fastened the
book open on a shelf, so that they could read at the same
time. Once, when a woman was asked if she could repeat
her lesson, she replied, " O, yes ; I repeated it over just now
while I was milking." The men also took their books out
to the fields, that they might improve every spare moment,
and one was so earnest that, when waked in the night to
attend to the cattle, he read till morning ; but his family,
finding that he burned so much oil, took care after that
to let him sleej). Good old Mar Elias rejoiced to see
such a work among his flock; and it was most pleasant
to see the large church so crowded by people, seated on the
floor, that one could hardly walk about among them.

After the teachers had attended to their classes about an
hour and a half, the younger scholars repeated the portion
of Scripture they had learned during the week, and the
parents were much pleased to hear their children recite.

The daily report of the Seminary was introduced into
the Sabbath school in a way that only Orientals could do
it. The older members of the school were required to
report any cases of swearing, stealing, or quarrelling among
the younger ones during the week, who were publicly
reproved on the following Sabbath. This made the jDarents
more careful to watch over their children, and the children
more circumspect in their daily behavior. If any little
trouble occurred among them during the week, they said
to each other, " Let us be careful ; Sabbath is near ; " and
though at first some of the people smiled when the children
were reproved, it soon became more common for them to
weep.

20*

234 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

After taking an account of the attendance, the children
sung, divided into two companies, on opposite sides of
the church; and then Mar Ehas, or some of the elders
of the village, addressed the school. Yonan closes his
account of it by saying, " We have learned in this work
more than ever before the value of female education.
Among our most energetic, ftiithful teachers are young
women who love to sit down before little children, and
the ignorant of their own sex, and teach them the way
of life."

Thursday, June 1st, 1854, was a great day in Geog
Tapa. The forenoon was devoted to the examination of a
girls' school, taught by Hanee and Nargis, graduates of the
preceding year, and both belonging in the village. As it
was a feast day, a large number were present from the
neighboring hamlets. At nine o'clock the examination
commenced in the spacious church, which was crowded,
the congregation numbering about six hundred in all. The
fifty pupils occupied the middle of the church. The studies
pursued were ancient and modern Syriac, geography, arith-
metic, both Scripture and secular history, reading and
spelling ; and in all of them the jDupils did credit both to
themselves and their teachers. The singing, that day,
especially pleased the parents, many of whom exclaimed
with wonder, "Our daughters can learn as well as our sons."
Miss Fiske rejoiced to see her children's children in the
pupils of her first pupil, who gracefully managed her lit-
tle flock with an easy control. The villages of Gavalan,
Yizierawa, and Ardishai, had each a similar school, contain-
ing in all. one hundred pupils; and each of these schools
was as valued a centre of religious influence as of intel-
lectual training. The teachers were in the habit of pray-
ing with one of their pupils alone every day, as well as of

EBENEZERS. 235

opening the school with prayer'; and Friday afternoon was
regularly devoted to a religious meeting with the mothers
of the pupils. These schools fitted the teachers for useful-
ness, and the pupils for admission to the Seminary, as well
as for teachers in the Sabbath school ; and they furnish a
delightful view of the present and prospective usefulness of
the Seminary among the people.

Noon came, and the large assembly scattered, to enjoy
the hospitality of the village. For the people opened their
houses for those in attendance, just as they do with us
at the annual meetings of the American Board. Geog Tapa
could also boast of its committee of arrangements, in hum-
ble imitation of greater things.

After a recess of an hour and a half, the people reas-
sembled for the examination of the Sabbath school, in a
grove behind the church, as that building could not con-
tain the multitude which now numbered more than a thou-
sand. First came a class of men, from twenty to seventy
years of age, headed by Malik Aga Bey, the village chief
They had been taught orally by Deacon John, and an-
swered questions in Old Testament history very readily.
Then followed a class of women, fifty or sixty in number,
most of them over forty years of age. These had been
taught by Yonan, and were quite familiar with the Old
Testament, from the creation to the reign of David. One
old blind woman wanted to point out the stopping places
of Israel in the desert, on the map which hung on one of
the tall trees : she had learned their names by heart, and
was familiar with their location by touch.

Next came a class of twenty men, who had recently
learned to read; for which they had each received a copy
of the New Testament. A class of women then followed,
numbering twenty-three, who had also been taught to read

236 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

by the boys and girls in the village schools. Mr. Stoddard
called for the teacher of each woman to step forward ; and
a copy of the Old Testament was presented to every one
of them, as they stood in a row in front of their pupils.
There was one woman who stood without a teacher. Mr.
Stoddard called for hers also, and some one whispered
to him that she had been taught by her husband. Mr.
Stoddard thereupon led him out, and, placing his hand on
his head, said, before the whole assembly, "All honor to
the man who has taught his wife to read ! " and presented
him also with a Bible.

One who was frequently present often wej^t to see
women giving a morsel to their infants to quiet them, that
they miglit devote the longer time to their lessons ; some
of them so intent on the work of learning, that their faces
w^ere bathed in perspiration. She used to fill her jDocket
and reticule with cakes for the little ones, so that their
mothers might be more free from interruption. The exer-
cises of that day gave a great impulse to the cause of
education in Geog Tapa. As many as seventy adults were
soon poring over their spelling books ; and the next sum-
mer one half of the adult women were either readers or
engaged in the same employment ; though previous to the
examination of the Seminary in 1850, not one in thirty
could read, or cared to learn.

Having given an account of these two interesting occa-
sions, let us now look in on another equally interesting,
though of a different kind, that took place in Oroomiah,
three years later. During the interval, Mr. Stoddard had
entered into rest ; and his bereaved widow, Di*. Per-
idns and family, and Miss Fiske, were about to sit down
together, perhnps for the last tiuie, with the Nestorian con-
verts, at the table of the Lord.

EBENEZERS. 237

It was in May, and the day one of the finest of those
charming May days in Oroomiah. The most of the Nes-
torians who had been admitted to the communion were
present ; and in distributing the guests among the mission
families, it was understood that all who had been con-
nected with the Seminary should go there. The object of
this was, to gather all the scattered members of the family
together once more in the place where prayer had been
wont to be made, before they went to the Lord's table.
As yet, no one knew that their teacher was about to leave
them ; for she did not wish any thing else to turn away
their thoughts from Jesus. When they had assembled in
the school room, she could not say much, but besought the
Lord Jesus to be the Master of the assembly. After sing-
ing a hymn, the words "looking unto Jesus" were given as
the key-note of the meeting. He came and whispered
peace, and all felt that they sat together in heavenly
places. The eyes of their hearts were opened, so that they
realized the fulfilment of the promise, " There am I in the
midst of you."

They were invited to speak freely of their joys and sor-
rows, in order that together they might carry them to
Jesus. The first to speak was Hanee, one of the two whom
Mar Yohanan brought to Miss Fiske at the commence-
ment of the school.^ She had, not long before, buried her
only child ; and holding her hands as though the little one
still rested on her arms, she said, " Sisters, at the last com-
munion you saw me here with my babe in these arms.
It is not here now. I have laid it into the arms of Jesus,
and come to-day to tell you there is a sweet as well as a
bitter in afiliction. When the rod is appointed to us, let
us not only kiss it, but press it to our lips. When I stood

' See page 51.

238 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

by that little open grave, I said, ' All the time I have given
to my babe, I will give to souls.' I try to do so. Pray for
me." She told but the simple truth; for after the death
of her child, she used to bring the women into the room
where it died, and there talk and pray with them. Since
then, she has received another little one, and in the same
spirit given it back to Christ. When she ceased, the whole
com^^any were in tears. "The leader could only ask, " Who
will pray ?" and Sanum, whose children had died by poison,
and who could enter into the feelings of the bereaved
mother, knelt down and prayed as very few could pray for
mothers left desolate, and for those who still folded their
little ones in their arms. Tliere was perfect silence while
she pleaded for them, save as the sweet voice of her own
babe sometimes added to the tenderness of her j^etitions.
A child in heaven ! what a treasure ! and what a blessing,
if it draw the heart thither also !

There was a little pause after the prayer ; and, to the sur-
prise of all, the voice of ISTazloo was heard in another part
of the room ; for they had suj^posed her near, if not already
entering, the river of death. " Sisters," said she, " since
seeing you, I have stood with one foot in the grave ; and
may I tell you that it is a very different thing to be a Chris-
tian then, from what it is in this pleasant school room.
Let me ask you if you are sure that you are on the Rock
Christ Jesus." A tender prayer followed, the burden of
which was, " Search us, O Lord, and try us, and see if
there be any wicked way in us, and lead us in the way
everlasting."

The next to speak was one of the early pupils, who had
come many miles that day to be present. She said, "I
could think but one thought all the way as I came, and
that was, 'Freely ye have received, freely give.' We have

EBENEZERS. 239

certainly received freely: have we given any thing? Can
we not do something for souls ? I fear the Lord Jesus is
not pleased with us."

They were then asked if they were ready to engage in
direct labors for souls, to search them out, and by conver-
sation and prayer seek to lead them to Christ. Many
pledged themselves to the work, and engaged to bring the
names of those for whom they had labored to the next
communion, that all together might intercede in their be-
half to God. Before that time arrived. Miss Fiske left for
America; but the first letter she opened, out of a large
parcel that awaited her in Boston, was one containing the
names of those with whom her pupils had labored and
prayed in distant Persia. Is it strange that, as the slips of
paper fell at her feet, her heart was moved ?

But we cannot dwell longer on the prayer meeting. As
many as twelve said a few words, and more than that num-
ber led in prayer, during the two hours they were together:
from thence all repaired to the dining room, — the three
upper windows on the right of the engraving belong to
this, — where they did "eat their meat with gladness and
singleness of heart." Then it was announced that ari-ange-
ments had been made for class prayer meetings. It seemed
to be just the thing that all longed for, though none had
spoken of it ; and at once each class went along the
familiar passages to the room assigned it, and the voice of
prayer arose from nearly every apartment in the building.
The chapel bell rung, but it was unnoticed ; and each little
company had to be separately summoned to church. There,
according to previous aiTangement, Miss Fiske led each to
a seat, that the communicants might be together, and then
herself sat down behind them all. A glance revealed
ninety-three sisters in Christ before her; and as the ser-

240 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

vices had not yet commenced, her thoughts went back to
the day when, asking concerning many of them, "Is this
one a Christian?" "or that one?" "or that other?" the
answer came, " You have no sister in Christ among them
all ! " 'No wonder she now inwardly exclaimed, " What hath
God wrought ? The Lord hath done great things for us,
whereof we are glad." There was but one among the ninety-
three with whom she had not bowed the knee in prayer,
and that same evening, as she was devising methods to get
her away from the rest to her room alone, the Lord sent
her, unexpectedly, to the door; and with her also she en-
joyed the privilege of personal religious intercourse and
prayer.

At the communion, when all stood up to enter into cov-
enant with thirty-nine new converts, six of them pupils of
the Seminary, there seemed a deeper meaning than ever
before in engaging to be the Lord's forever.

In Hanee we have seen the grace bestowed on one of the
two whom Mar Yohanan brought to form the nucleus of
the school. The other was Selby, of Gavalan, his own
niece. She became hopefully pious in 1846, when hardly
ten years of age. There were very few in whom her
teachers took such uniform delight, though they felt some
anxiety when she married Priest Kamo, of Marbeeshoo, a
cousin of Mar Shimon — intelligent and influential, but
unconverted. Yet she had strong faith that he would
become a Christian, and soon gained a wonderful influence
over him, without compromising in the least her own
religious principles. She became his teacher in the Bible,
— it was a new book to him, — and in her he saw the
Christian life it described beautifully exemplified. She had
just begun to hope that her prayers were answered in his
conversion. He was much interested in aiding the evan-

EBENEZERS. 241

gelists in the mountains, and the mission was hoping great
things from him, under the good influence of Selby, when
he died. Her feelings, under this affliction, are thus de-
scribed by her own pen, in a letter to her teacher, dated
Marbeeshoo, June 4th, 1859 : —

" It is not because I have forgotten you that I have not
written you until now. How can I forget you ? And
were that possible, I could not forget your instructions. I
remember them at all times, by day and by night. They
comfort me in sorrow, and strengthen me in anguish.
You have taught me the duties of this life, and you have
pointed me to the world to come. I remember when you
used to take me by the hand, and lead me into your closet,
and there pray with me ; and my heart fills with mingled
joy and sorrow — with joy, that such precious seasons were
given me ; with sorrow, that they will be mine no more.
Shall I never see your face again — that face, which bore
to us more than a mother's love ? You were a perfect
mother, because in Christ.

" I grieve very much that I did not see you before you
left ; but I believe that the seed you have sown will con-
tinue to spring up to the end of the world. You askgd
me, in your letter, to tell you about my work. I have a
greater work than any of my companions, but it is in a
place covered with thick darkness, like that of Egypt. The
people are stiff-necked, wise to do evil, but of God they
have no knowledge. Temptations surround me as moun-
tains ; they rise up about me like the waves of the sea.
While Kamo lived, I was comforted, for he loved the truth.
Every day he used to read the Scriptures with me, and
ask the meaning of each verse. I had hoped he would
have Paul's zeal in the work of the Lord. I had expected
that we should have schools in our village after a year or
21

242 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

two, and that the places of concourse for idle conversation
would become places for reading the Scriptures, and for
prayer. But it has pleased the Lord to give me a great
and heavy affliction. He has smitten me with his own
rod, making this world a vale of tears. But it is the Lord ;
let him do what he pleaseth. It is all for my profit.

" I want to ask you and your friends to pray for me, that
I may endure to the end."

The feelings of the pupils, after the departure of Miss
Fiske, are graphically expressed in the following letter from
Hatoon, of Geog Tapa : —

"My heart longs to tell you of the change in our dear
school. Our return, after vacation, was much like that of
the Jews from Babylon, when they found their city laid
waste, and their temple in ruins. Every time they looked
on the spot where it had stood, their hearts were crushed.
So when we did not see you, and went not to take your
hand and be kissed by you, — when we saw not your ready
feet coming to the door, to bring in each one and make
her happy, — our hearts were broken, and we could not
restrain our tears ; especially when I remembered the times
that the daughters of the church used to meet in your
room to mingle our prayers, our tears, and our joys to-
gether. These recollections leave an aching void which
cannot be filled. It seems to me that the ways of your
room mourn, because you come not to the solemn feasts.
If Jeremiah were here, I think he would say, ' How doth
Miss Fiske's room sit solitary that was full of people !
How do the daughters of the Oroomiah schools mourn,
and their eyes run down with water, because Miss Fiske
is far from them ! ' These changes show us that this world
is as down driven by the wind. Perhaps you will reply,
in your cheerful way, 'Do you feel so? There is much

EBENEZERS. 24S

that is pleasant in the world.' I know it ; but our school
was always such a pleasant place to me. I was so happy
in it and its heavenly employments, that not even the
death of friends could destroy that joy. But now I seem
overshadowed by dark clouds, and sinking in deep mire.
Yet I will try, in all this, to bow my will to the holy will
of Him who doeth all things well."

CHAPTEK XX.

COMPOSITIONS.

THE PIELD OF CLOVER. — THE LOST SOUL. — THE SAVED SOUL. —
HANNAH.

It was very important that the pupils should be able to
express their own thoughts, readily and correctly, with the
pen, and unwearied effort was devoted to this end ; but for
a long time they seemed incapable of clothing an idea in
words. The simplest sentence was copied over and over
without the change of a single word ; and even when it
was expressed for them in other language, they only re-
peated over that variation of the first. Three years were
spent in trying to teach them to write their own thoughts,
with very little success; but in 1846, the Spirit of God
secured the result that man had sought in vain. After
that, both their ideas and their language were very beauti-
ful. Nothing pleased them better than to be allowed to
write; and it was matter of grateful remark that those
compositions which were penned during a revival were
always the best.

This was especially true in the awakening of 1850, which
was noted for the prevalence of a spirit of meditation and
holy communion with God. The pupils at that time came
forth from private intercourse with their Saviour, to pen
some of the sweetest writings in the Syriac language.

One day that winter, both the teachers wished to attend

(244)

COMPOSITIONS. ' 245

an examination at Seir, and asked them if they would be
diligent during their absence. " O, yes," was the reply, " if
you will only let us write composition." The following
was found on the slate of Nazloo, when they returned ; —

"the clover field.

" We walk out in the country, and the road leads us by a
lovely field of clover. Wc see it in all its modest beauty.
There are the green leaves, so regular in their form and
outline ; the beautiful flowers, so wonderful in their struc-
ture ; and the sweet fragrance, that regales our senses as we
pass. All these are there, but we see not whence they
come. No showers descend to make it grow; the earth
is parched on all sides. Do you inquire for the source of
all this loveliness ? A tiny rill of water flows gently under-
neath. No eye sees it. You cannot hear its quiet advance,
for it does not murmur as it wears itself out in its work of
love. Noiseless it hies to each little rootlet. It conveys
nourishment to every leaf; not one is overlooked or for-
gotten. That unseen rill causes these fair blossoms to
spring forth. It distils these odors for the enjoyment of all
that pass this way. What that streamlet is to the field,
prayer is to the Christian. We see it not; it is all hid from
human eye ; but O, the rich fruit that it yields every day
in the soul thus made partaker of the life of Christ ! That
also makes the wilderness to rejoice and blossom as the
rose. "

At the annual examination in 1850, Sanum read her
composition, a translation of Avhich is here inserted : —

"the lost soul.
" I have dreamed a dream, dear friends — may I relate it ?

2V

246 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

" In my dream I was wandering about, seeking for earthly-
pleasures, though my life was crowned with blessings more
plentiful than the dew of the morning. My father and
mother did every thing they could to bring me to Christ.
Their labors for me were enough to make me weep my last
tear, but my hard heart remained unmoved. Four times did
the Holy Spirit strive with me, and as often I grieved him
away. I broke every promise that I made to serve the Lord.

" There came a beautiful day in spring. The sun lighted'
up every thing with gladness. The fields w^ere dressed in
green. The trees were in blossom. Loved by my friends,
surrounded by every thing to make me happy, and rejoicing
that so much enjoyment was still in store for me, I was
saying to my soul, 'Take thine ease,' when suddenly a
voice cried, ' This night thy soul shall be required of thee ;
then whose shall be all these ? ' Another voice added,
'These four years heaven and earth have pleaded with
you to bring forth fruit to God, but you have refused.
Your heart has said "I will fix my seat above the stars of
heaven." N^ow you must go down to the abyss.' Like
arrows these words pierced my heart ; ray strength departed,
and others bore me to my home. There my parents were
speechless with sorrow. The bed of down was made ready,
but it afforded me no rest. I seemed to lie on thorns.
Then I appeared to faint, though still able to hear their
conversation. Sobbing aloud, they sairl, ' Sweet child, if
you were only a Christian, gladly would we go with you to
the gates of heaven, hoping soon to meet again ; but this is
more than we can bear. Alas, that one borne in the arms of
our love, with whom and for whom we have prayed, must
now say that our God is not her God, nor our Saviour hers !
Is there no ray of light for her in the darkness? Can we
never again point her to Jesus ? ' As I listened in anguish,

COMPOSITIONS. 247

I cried aloud, 'Is there no hoi:»e forme?' They replied,
* We will implore mercy for you again and again, and pos-
sibly the physician may help you. Here he is.' As he
came in the recollection of his past fiiithful warnings made
me weep aloud. He said, ' Why weep? Do you not wish to
see me ? ' ' Dear friend, it is not that ; but the sight of
you recalls your entreaties to come to Christ, and my
neglect of them. If you can only give me one hour of
quiet, I will try to come now.' He saw that the hand of
death was on me, and replied, ' What you do you must do
quickly.' 'What can I do in such distress?' 'Can you
not cry, "Lord, remember me," like the dying malefactor?'
'Those words comforted me once, but now I cannot use
them.' ' Can you not pray ? ' ' No. Once I would not
hear God, and now he will not hear me. O father, mother,
friends, pray for me. Send for my teacher to l^ray for me.
Ask every servant of God to entreat for me while yet I
live.' The request went forth. The w^eeping physician
offered supplication at my side. My father and mother
seemed to pour forth their last breath in intercession for
me. As I turned, I saw my teachers, and conscience
arrayed before me every word they had ever spoken to me
of Christ and heaven. All my own actions were likewise
spread out before my eyes. Then the whirlwind of my
sins swept me away like a tiny leaf, to sink in a sea of
anguish. My teacher now cried, ' AYe had hoped to see
our dear pupil passing over to the new Jerusalem; but,
instead of that, must she dwell among the lost?' A gentle
voice then whispered, ' Go to Jesus ; he will not cast you
out.' ' To Jesus ! nay, for knowingly my hands have
pierced him. Willingly these feet have trampled on his
precious blood. I have compelled his sjnrit to forsake me,
and must perish.'

248 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

" Then I saw those whom I had led into sin and encour-
aged in unbelief, and said to them, ' Can you forgive me ? '
But a voice from heaven replied, ' You cannot be forgiven ;
for the name of Jesus you have set at nought, and there is
none other.' Then my teacher pressed my hand; she
could not speak. I said, ' You have ever shown great love ;
can you not help me now ? ' ' Dear child, have I not told
you that though I love you, yet I have no power to help in
this hour or hereafter.' ' O, dreadful thought ! Must I
leave you all, forever ? parents, teachers, all ! Can you do
nothing for me ? ' ' We can only point you to Jesus.'
' I have no part in him. I am a Deraas ; and with such
agony now, what will be the wrath to come ? ' I begged
all present not to live as I had lived. ' Seize the moments
that fly swifter than the lightning. There is no place for
repentance now : my retribution begins. Forget not these
words of your lost sister.' I turned to my mother : ' There
is no love like a mother's; can that do nothing for me
now?' What could she do? 'Can no one help me?
Father, father, I am going ; can you do nothing? '

" Now the light forsook my eyes. O for a few moments
more ! But even this was denied me ; for, as I remembered,
' Cursed is the man that trusteth in man, and whose heart
departeth from the living God.'

" I now heard a voice as of a rushing, mighty wind.
Trembling seized me, as I discerned four fiends of darkness.
I uttered a piercing shriek, and died. Then I found myself
suspended between heaven and earth. Behind me, the
world I loved so well had gone forever. Before me I saw
the Ancient of Days seated on liis throne, his raiment Avhite
as snow, his eyes as a flame of fire, his feet like brass glow-
ing in the furnace, and a stream of fire issued from before
him; thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten

COMPOSITIONS. 249

thoiisfind times ten thousand stood before him. Bright-
ness radiated from him on all sides. He fixed his eyes on
me, gloAving with lioly indignation, while a two-edged
sword proceeded out of his mouth. My sins arose before
me. Conscience condemned me. I could not look up.
The pains of hell gat hold upon me. In a voice unlike all
I ever heard before, he said, ' Slayer of my Son, despiser
of my grace, what hast thou done? Thou hast set at
nought all my counsels.' I longed to flee; but above me
stood the Judge, beloAV, the abyss. I could give no reply.
Again he said, 'My covenant thou hast trodden under
foot;' and he commanded his servants, 'Bind her hand and
foot, and cast her into outer darkness, where is weeping and
gnashing of teeth. There let her remain till that great day,
when all mine enemies shall be trodden in the wine-press
of my wrath.'

" Then a voice from out of the throne said, ' Praise our
God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small
and great;' and all cried, like the voice of many "svaters,
'Amen. Allelujah.' Heaven responded from all sides, 'Just
and true are thy judgments, thou King of saints.' Then
Satan and his angels clapped their hands ; and mocking
my misery, they thrust me into the inner prison.

"I now found myself associated with Cain, Judas, Jero-
boam, and Jezebel. I understood what Christ meant when
he said, 'Bind the tares in bundles to burn them,' for I was
enclosed by them on all sides, and the flames from them
kindled on me. Then a voice said, 'Judas sold his Lord
once, but thou many times. Cain slew one brother ; thou
hast brought many to this place of torment.' Then all,
especially those whom I had led there, cursed me. Fallen
spmts gloried over me. The evil passions of all the lost
were let loose on me. My own wicked feelings were kindled

250 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

into a flame by the divine wrath. IS^ow I understood that
scripture, 'They have no rest day nor night.' My ears,
that had taken pleasure in evil conversation, were filled
with revilings. My tongue, which had set on fire the
course of nature, now itself set on fire of hell, I gnawed
for pain. I looked up to beg a drop of water; but in-
stead of it came the word, 'Daughter, remember.' As I
looked up, I got a glimpse of one of my companions in
Abraham's bosom. Once we were together pointed to
Jesus. Now the impassable gulf was between us. Hope
now fled forever, and that word, 'Remember,' brought
every moment of my life before me in characters of flaming
fire. Gladly would I have exchanged this agony for the
pangs of death endured a thousand times over, or for all
the sufierings of earth till the final conflagration. I cursed
my soul, weeping without a tear. Why were my associates,
once, like me, children of wrath, now in heaven, while I was
shut out? Ah, they listened to Jesus, while I rejected
him, and to enjoy a momentary pleasure plunged into all
this anguish. I had loved those who now tormented me,
and cast aside the loving Saviour. No ray of mercy can
ever reach me more. No friend will ever love me again.
In my madness I sought to flee ; but wrath held me rooted
to the spot. Cloud on cloud rose above me, each inscribed,
'Eternity!' A voice cried aloud, 'Forever!' and another
replied, ' Forever and ever ! ' The waves of fire now rolled
over me, and the worm that dieth not seized hold of me. I
begged for even the smallest mitigation of misery, and the
vials of wrath were poured out upon me. In my anguish
I cried, 'Roll on, ye eternal ages!' But why? They will
be no nearer through. 'O Lord, how long?' With an
earthquake, that seemed to shake the very throne, came
back the reply, 'Forever! Forever!' I s".nk down in

COMPOSITIONS. 251

unutterable agony. Then I awoke, and lo, it was all a dream.
The darkness of night was yet around me ; a cold sweat
covered me; and that word, 'Forever!' still rang in my
ears. Friends, this was a dream, and only a drop in the
ocean, compared with the terrible reality. Let us pray
that we may be saved from it through Jesus Christ om-
Lord."

The large audience hstened to these vivid delineations,
part of the time, in breathless silence ; and again the
women beat on their breasts with half-suppressed cries for
mercy. The reader, as well as they, will find relief from
the companion picture by Moressa. Sanum's was an
original conception of her own. The theme of this last
was suggested by Miss Fiske, as a fitting counter|>art to
the preceding, but the treatment of it was left wholly
with the writer.

"the saved soul.

"While meditating on death, I fell into a sweet sleep,
and dreamed a dream which rejoiced my spirit. I cannot
refrain from relating it to you, dear Christian friends, who
are looking forward to the glory that shall be revealed. I
dreamed that my heavenly Father said to me, ' Dear child,
heir of my kingdom, you have long enough borne the
troubles of this vale of tears ; now you shall be freed from
them, and come to your heavenly home, to worship me in
holiness.' As I listened, sickness came, and I laid me down
on my bed of death with this thought : ' One more fruit of
sin, and then — heaven.' My poor friends, not understand-
ing this, inquired, with weeping, if I could not possibly
recover ; but when they saw that I was dying, they gath-
ered round me, to go down with mc to the banks of Jordan.
My soul was exceeding joyful, for the light of the promised

252 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

land shone on me, and the dread river was quiet, for Jesus
had said to it, ' Peace, be still.'

"While in this joyful state, I remembered with sorrow
how many years I had refused to acknowledge the Prince
of life as my King, while he waited with open arras to
receive me ; and how often, after putting my hand to the
plough, I had looked back. My backsliding, my evil ex-
ample, my neglect of souls, all rose before me like a dark
cloud, and 1 was in agony. But soon a voice said, 'Thy
sins are forgiven!' and all was light. I said, 'Lord, I
must praise thee for this forever ; but I cannot forgive my-
self Yet, though the pains of death were on me, I was
comforted to be nearer the land where they sin no more.
Earthly pleasure now seemed emptiness. The pleasures
of heaven filled my thoughts. I said, 'Is this death — that
which we poor mortals fear ? ' My friends asked, ' Has he
no terrors for you?' 'No; none. The king of terrors is
to me the chief of joys.' One of my teachers said, ' So
you have no fear of him — no sorrow that your body shall
lie in the grave ! ' ' Why fear or sorrow, when Christ has
overcome both death and sin?' My father then asked,
' Do you suffer much ? ' ^ Yes ; but if I suffered a thou-
sand times more, what would that be to those bitter hours
upon the cross. This veil must be rent asunder, though by
suffering, before I can see Him, whom, even now, I long
to behold.' My poor mother interposed, 'But are you
willing to leave us?' 'You are all very dear to me; but
there is only one who is altogether lovely. When shall I
jee him as he is, and be filled with his love ? '

"It was now difficult to speak, but I could bid my
friends farewell. I could thank my dear teachers for tell-
ing me of Christ, and ask their forgiveness for all I had
ever done to grieve them. As my weeping mother wiped

COMPOSITIONS. 253

the cold sweat from my brow, she gently whisj^ered,
'Where is my child going?' 'Mother,' I replied, 'your
poor sinful child is going to that Saviour who has been
willing to receive her.' His rod and staff then comforted
me, till I had passed quite over into the blessed land.
And, as I was borne on in my Saviour's arms, voices cried,
' Welcome, dear sister ; you are now made whole — you
shall sin no more — enter into rest.' Mortal tongue cannot
tell what I now saw of the treasures which Christ has j^re-
pared for the redeemed. He gave me a mansion he had
made ready for me, and I found myself gazing on the
brightness of the Father's glory. What a change had
come over me ! I was among those without spot, for they
had been made white in the blood of the Lamb. Their
voices were one, for all praised the Lord. Now the glory
of the Ancient of Days filled me with awe. He sat upon
a throne of light, with seraphim on the right and cheru-
bim on the left, and I could read the foundations of
his throne. Legions of bright angels and happy saints
were around him. I fell down with them to worship at his
feet, when he touched me and raised me up, saying, ' Thou
art blessed, for thou art redeemed w^th the blood of my
Son.' Then he clothed me in a heavenly robe, and bade
all heaven rejoice, saying, 'This my child was dead, and
is alive again, and is saved from everlasting destruction.'

"He then revealed to me more fully that mystery of
ages — the Redeemer standing on the right hand of the
Father. He stood with open arms, saying, ' Come, daugh-
ter of my bitter grief, come in peace. I remembered thee
on the cross. For thee I drank that cup of agony; thy
curse has rested on me, that everlasting joy might dwell in
thee.' As he thus spoke, I fell down to worship, and when
I looked up, my eyes rested on his pierced hands and
22

254 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

wounded side. Tears filled my eyes when I remembered
tliat my sins had caused them ; but they were tears that
Jesus wiped away,

" When I saw the book of remembrance at his side, I
thought, there is the record of my sins; but he opened it,
saying, ' Fear not ; from the day thou first camest to me,
they have been blotted out.' He then held out to me the
Book of Life, bidding me to read ray name recorded there,
and added, ' Ages hence, in the great day of account, the
world shall know that I have saved thee ; and as thou hast
not denied me before men, I will confess thy name before
my Father and before his angels; enter into the full joy of
thy Lord ; inherit the kingdom prepared for thee from the
foundation of the world.' Then all the blessed ones cried,
'Amen.' Their harps were tuned to a new song, and they
praised the living God that another soul was rescued from
the great adversary. A crown was also placed upon my
head, tliat, with the saints, I might cast it at the feet of the
Redeemer.

" Afterwards I was led to our first parent, now for more
than five thousand years in Paradise, but not walking amid
forbidden fruit. Still, when he stretched out his hand to
the tree of life, he seemed to remember that first sin, and
to thank God more than others for the healing of the na-
tions. His bright face glistened with a tear as he took
my hand, saying, 'Heir of my fallen nature, welcome to
this inheritance of the second Adam ; ' and I learned that
tears are always wiped from that face when Christ brings
home his fallen children.

"As I turned, I saw the great company of the patriarchs,
perfect in holiness, and clothed in light. Faithful Abra-
ham was there, his fiith changed to perfect sight, and
rejoicing in his spiritual children. Tlie meek Moses was

COMPOSITIONS. 255

there, adoring the Prophet whom God raised up from the
midst of Israel like unto him. And I beheld Isaiah, satis-
fied with the eternal sight of the glory of which he had a
glimpse on earth. Jeremiah, too, was no more weeping for
the slain of the daughter of his people, and all the holy
prophets were clothed upon with immortality, and praising
their Beloved with holy lips.

" While I stood gazing on them in wonder, my thoughts
reverted to my former state. What a glorious change,
from a world of sin to a world of holiness — from sinful
friends to the Friend of sinners. How different these sweet
sounds of praise from the rude sounds of earth ! I am
receiving my reward for every bitter tear of penitence I
shed on earth ; an age of joy is before me. Who am I,
that I should be raised from companionship with sin to the
society of heaven ? My soul at length is at rest. But
how? Not as rests my poor body in the grave, but in
blessedness ; for I rest from sin, but not from praise. I rest
from suffering, but not from everlasting joy. How sweet
to rest, while not ceasing to cry. Holy, holy, holy is the
Lord God Almighty ! I rest in the bosom of my Saviour.
My prayers are turned to praise, and my love is j^erfect.

"While these thoughts filled my soul, I thanked the Lord
with a new song on the golden harp that had been placed
in my hands, singing with a loud voice, 'What is my wor-
thiness, O eternal King, that thou hast made me to w^alk
in thy presence, while millions are shut out from it ? '

"Now a company of the holy ones led me through a
street of pure gold, to where the river of water of life pro-
ceeded out of the throne of God. They showed me the
hidden manna, and the tree of life yielding its twelve fruits,
and leaves for the healing of the nations ; and beyond, I
saw a great company of martyrs who had been slain for

256 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

the word and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. They
stood beneath the altar, for they were living sacrifices.
They were clothed in white, and wore crowns of glory on
their heads, and they sang hallelujah to him who had been
slain for them, and made them kings and priests forever in
his kingdom.

" While thus wandering among those holy mansions, I
met a sj^irit crowned with honor, — Mary, the mother of
our Lord. She was specially delighted at seeing me,
saying, ' How glad I am that you, from that erring people
who trust in me, have found the right way to this blessed
place ! Are there other sisters of like faith, who believe in
the only Mediator ? ' When I told her that there were,
she embraced me, and led me where I could see the twelve
apostles of the Lamb. They were all seated round their
Master, just as they used to be on earth ; but no more
debating who should be greatest, for now they ascribed all
greatness to their King, and dwelt in perfect love. Among
them I saw Peter, zealous still, but with a holy zeal. I
heard him ask, 'How long shall those precious souls, re-
deemed by thy blood, be led astray ? May I not fly on the
wings of love, and destroy that city of blasphemy on the
seven hills, that the glory may be thine?' But Jesus
looked on him with an eye of love, and said, ' Simon, son
of Jonas, the time is not yet come.' Then Peter only
replied, ' Lord, thou knowest. Thy will be done.'

" While in this joyful state, I walked in the green pastures
of life. I went round about the holy city, and counted its
towers. They were all of purest gold, and built with skill
divine. I looked from the top of one of them, and beheld
the sea of glass, and also caught a glimpse of the abyss,
enough to see that the enemies of our God were all beneath
his feet. I could see some, onoe my fi'iends among them ;

COMPOSITIONS. 257

but I could say, * Holy and just art thou, O Lord God ;
and O, wonderful grace, that has made such as I to
differ.'

" But while thus filled with praise, and delighting myself
in that ocean of love, I awoke, yet only to say, 'Blessed
are the dead that die in the Lord.' Dear friends, let us
cleave to Christ on earth, until he plants our feet on the
Mount Zion above."

The next composition was written by Nargis, of Geog
Tapa, in 1852. It is an account of Hannah, the mother
of Samuel, and gives a very good idea of the Bible knowl-
edge of the pupils, and their interest in Scripture themes.
The allusions to the condition of Nestorian families, illus-
trate, and are illustrated by, the statements of Chapter I.

" About three thousand years ago, the family of Elkanah
dwelt on the hill of Zophim, in Palestine. He was a just
man, and one that feared God. According to the custom
of those days, he had two wives, Peninnah and Hannah.
Let us turn our thoughts to Hannah, for every memory of
her is pleasant. She had no son, on whom she could look
as a staff of joy for her old age. Yet Hannah had a wor-
thy portion in the love of Elkanah, which flowed unceas-
ingly like a crystal stream. Why was she thus loved?
We believe because of the lovely spirit which she had
received from that gentleness of the eternal Son which
maketh great; and, like him, her voice was not heard in
the streets. Listead of the contentious temper of the
women of this age, we find in her a meek and quiet
spirit; instead of pride, humility; and instead of anger,
patience ; she was kind, pleasant, and abounding in other
graces. Shall not such a woman be praised ?

" Now Elkanah took his family to Shiloh, to worship and

258 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

feast before the Lord. But the envious Peninnah so
grieved Hannah that she could neither eat nor drink.
Soon, however, slie heard the sweet tones of her husband's
voice. Was it not like an angel's ? saying, ' Hannah, why
weepest thou ? and why eatest thou not ? and why is thy
heart grieved ? Am I not better to thee than ten sons ? '
When she heard that she arose and ate. Love was
rewarded by love. She would not grieve Elkanah. Un-
like many in our day, she was obedient to her husband,
yielding her will to his, and clothed with humility. They
were not only one flesh, but one spirit ; and they walked
together in the valley of love to that world where love is
made perfect. Now, after she had shown her love by
partaking of the feast,* may we not suppose that she arose
and whispered to Elkanah to know if he would approve
of her intended vow; and did he not reply, 'Your vow
is mine.' Then did she not seek a corner of the court
where she might pray? Radiant spot, where Hannah
communed with God ! herself a bright light among the
women of that age. There, in bitterness of soul, she wept
before the Lord, and obtained his blessing. She believed
that God would grant her request, as he saw best, and gave
back her expected son to the Lord to be his forever. Here
was true faith. She left all with God ; and though, like
her Saviour, she prayed the more earnestly : still her voice
was not heard. But we hear the voice of Eli: ' How long
wilt thou be drunken?' 'O Eli, Eli, why speak to her
thus ? She was of thy flock, and thou shouldst have dis-
tinguished her from other women round about her.'

" Bright star of that generation ! Blessed art thou among
the daughters of Levi. The moving of thy lips is like the

* In Oriental families, anger is shown by refusing to eat, sometimes
for several days.

COMPOSITIONS. 259

voice of the dove. There was a blessing in thy mouth,
like the olive leaf of Noah's dove, that told of rest from
the tossings of the flood ; for thy request was about to give
rest to the millions of Israel. Blessed art thou, daughter
of Zion. Thou soughtest not a son for thy own glory,
but for the glory of thy God.

" What a prayer was Hannah's ! It brought a deliverer
and a j^rophet to Israel, an intercessor and a preacher to
the people of God. May the daughters of Hannah and
the sons of Elkanah be multiplied among our j^eople. She
is a mirror into which we may look, to learn how to for-
sake our evil ways. Let us, like her, build uj) the kingdom
of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"Her prayer finished, Hannah returned to her house.
Her sorrow was now turned into joy, and her happy face
was like the opening rose of the morning. No wonder
she was joyful. The will of the Lord was her will, and
what evil could befall her? Blessed Israel, that contains
such a praying soul.

" Time passes on, and the answer to that prayer is a be-
loved son. The grateful mother calls him Samuel — 'God
heard.' Her full heart could give no other name to this
child of prayer. She would remember ever, Not mine,
but God's. And now the childless one folds in her arms a
child of the covenant. New joy fills the heart of Elkanah.
Their son was new to them every day; yet not alone as
theirs, but His Avho answered prayer.

"The time now draws near for them to go again to
Shiloh. The happy father does not forget God in his
mercies. He appears before the Lord with his thank offer-
ing— a noble example to us. Pie asks Hannah to go with
him : not in a voice of harsh command, but in love he said,
' Will you go ? ' and it was, doubtless, a gentle voice that

260 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

answered, 'Not now, for then I must bring Samuel back
with me. He is too small to leave ; but when he is weaned,
I will bring him, that he may appear before the Lord,
and there abide forever.' The good Elkanah was satisfied,
saying, 'Only the Lord establish his word;' for he had
not forgotten the vow. So the happy Hannah remained
at home another year, and taught the child as a mother
only can.

" When the time came to go up again to Shiloh, Samuel
was probably three years old. That praying mother did
not say, ' He is small ; let him stay with me one year
longer.' No ! With her whole heart she carried him to the
house of the Lord, to abide there ; and she went not up
empty, saying, 'It is enough that I give my son;' but in
the three bullocks we find the burnt offering, the sin offer-
ing, and the peace offering, and in her son the first fruits
besides. She was ready to say, 'In all things I am a
debtor to the Lord.'

" Nor did she come in pride of spirit, saying to Eli, ' You
called me drunken, wliile oflering a prayer that God hath
heard;' but in all humility she accosts the aged priest, say-
ing, ' I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying ; '
and then, leading forward the child, 'for this child I
prayed, and the Lord hath given me my petition, and I
have lent him to the Lord.' We seem to see little Samuel
approaching Eli reverently; and then turning those speak-
ing eyes to his mother, he says, 'Is this my father, of whom
you told me, and with v.iiom I am to live?' 'Yes, my
cliild, he will be your fiither.' And now Eli places his
hand upon the head of Samuel, saying, 'Blessed art thou,
ison of a true daugliter of Levi. The Lord bless thee, and
make thee a prophet of the Most High.'

"Hannah worships, and returns to her home. Her

COMPOSITIONS. 261

little son asks not to go with her ; for he has been taught
that he is the Lord's, and is to abide in Shiloh. What
a blessing are praying mothers, training their children
for God !

"Still she does not forget the Lord's Samuel. Every
year she goes up to Shiloh, with her husband, and as often
does she carry for the little prophet a coat, made by a
mother's loving hand. She did not say, like some of our
mothers, 'If he is in the school of the proj^hets, let the
prophets clothe him ; ' but she clothed him for the Lord's
service, and he comforted Eli as he was never comforted
by his own children. Will our mothers follow the example
of Hannah ? Should a voice come from the mountains
to-day, calling for preachers, would they give their sons to
go and save the lost ? Blessed are those mothers who
give their sons to be soldiers of the cross ; who, like Han-
nah, lead the way to the throne of grace, and serve God in
their households.

" The Lord helped Hannah to pray, and he helped her
to write that beautiful song. Her words are golden and
full of wisdom. It is fitting to call her a mother in Israel.
Deborah sat as judge, but Hannah gave a judge and teacher
to the people of God. Both were bright stars, but where
is the people on whom they shone ? The chosen people
are scattered. Deborah, perchance, sleeps under the oak
of judgment, and Hannah on the hill of Zophim. We
love to think that her son stood by her dying bed to thank
her for all her prayers and instructions, and see her rever-
ently gathered to her people.

" We leave thee, mother of the holy prophet. Thou hast
passed through this valley of humiliation. Thy works fol-
low thee, and thy God hath crowned thee with glory and

262 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

honor. Sweet singer of Israel, sing on in heaven, for with
thy Saviour thou canst never sorrow more. Who will rise
among us to carry forward the kingdom of our Christ?
Such as honor the Master here, he will honor when moth-
ers in Israel see their sons made kings and priests unto
the Lord forever."

CHAPTEE XXI.

KIND OFFICES.

HOSPITALITY OF NESTORIANS. — KINDNESS OF FUPILS. — BATHING FEET.
— LETTERS OF GOZEL, HANEE, SANUM OF GAWAE., MUNNY, RAHEEL,

AND MARTA. — HOSHEBO. RAHEEL TO MRS. FISKE. — MOURNING FOR

THE DEAD. — NAZLOO. HOSHEBo's BEREAVEMENT. — DEATH OF MIS-
SIONARY CHILDREN. — LETTER FROM SARAH, DAUGHTER OF JOSEPH.

The foregoing pages have told something of the change
that grace has wrought among women in Persia. Let iisi
now look at some points in that change more carefully.

The Nestorians are noted for their hospitality. Kind-
ness to strangers is regarded as a part of then* rehgion;
and if, after bringing out the choicest of their stores, it is
said, even in a strange language, " How can I eat this ? "
or, " Who could endure a dish like that ?'" the words may
be unintelligible, but not so the look and tone of the
speaker. Yet even such treatment often only calls forth
additional efforts to please. A stranger may not relish
some of their dishes. Yet a spirit of kindness would be
careful not to let this appear. In the Seminary, the pupils
studied how to please, even in the folding of a table nap-
kin ; and the kind-hearted steward was perfectly deUghted
when reminded that the pains he took in the prepara-
tion of a meal was so much service to Christ, because it
strengthened his servants to labor for him.

The girls were very kind to each other. When any one

264 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

was sick, her companions not only readily performed her
share of domestic work, but nursed her tenderly besides.
If their teachers were ill, they coveted the privilege of
attending them by night and by day. It may comfort
some timid one to know, that in Oroomiah Miss Fiske never
had a missionary sister with her by night in sickness ; not
that they were backward to come, but the services of the
pupils left nothing to be desired. It did good like a
medicine to see those girls, once coarse and uncouth, show-
ing even kindness in a way offensive to refined feelings, now
move with noiseless step, anticipating every wish. They
sought to conform every thing to the home tastes of their
teachers ; and yet there was nothing of that show of effort
that says, " See how much we do for you." They seemed
to feel that they could not do too much, or do it well
enough. If Miss Fiske was exhausted and feeble during
the day, they might say nothing at the time, and not
trouble her even to answer a question ; but when they sup-
posed she was ready to retire, there would be a gentle
knock on the door, sometimes on more than one door, and
then, with a " Teacher, you looked tired to-day. Shall we
come in and bathe your feet? The water is warm, and
every thing ready," their loving service would not cease, till
every thing was in its place, and they had put out the light
after she retired.

Woman there, as in the days of our Saviour, still bathes
the feet of the guest whom she wishes to honor. And
sometimes, when stooping over them, she rubs them gently
with her loosely-flowing hair — not as a substitute for a
towel, but as a token of kindly welcome. This privilege
belongs to the oldest daughter of the family ; and the cus-
tom once liable to perversion, now shines with new beauty,
as the expression of Christian love. He who once accepted

KIND OFFICES. 265

the service in his own person, will liereafter say, to many a
daughter of Clialdea, " Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of
the least of these my brethren, ye did it unto me."

Their tender sympathy with the afflicted was not con-
fined to their own household. In January, 1857, Miss
Fiske was absent at Seir, assisting in taking care of Mr.
Stoddard in his last illness ; and from a number of letters
written to her, at that time, by her pupils, we select the
following : —

January 1st, 1857.
Many of your flock have observed this as a day of fast-
ing and prayer ; and all have looked on it as a blessed day.
The pleasant voice of j^rayer has been heard during all its
hours, and it seems as if the Saviour was about to come
among us with great power. I trust that he will work in
many hearts by the Holy Spirit. We greatly desire to
have you liere ; but again, with all our hearts, we w^sh you
to do for the sick one whom we love. Yes, if each pupil
were to write to you, all would say, we wish you to remain,
and do all you can for him ; and may he be raised up again
to labor for our poor people. Give our love to Mrs. Stod-
dard, and tell her we are glad to have the one we greatly
love, with her at this time.

Your daughter, Gozel.

January 2d, 1857.
My heart is drawn towards you all the time ; but I thank
God that he has given yoii strength to do for our beloved
brother Mr. Stoddard. I am very much distressed when I
think of him, and can only say, " The w^ill of the Lord be
done." I greatly desired to hear your voice yesterday. It
■was indeed a blessed day. Give my love to Mrs. Stod-
dard, and though it is hard for her to bear these bitter
23

266 WOMAN AND HEK SAVIOUR.

pains, tell her to try to .trust tlic Lord of our beloved
brother.

Peace be to you. Hanee.

The next is written by a graduate, who was then on a
visit at the Seminary : —

January 3d, 1857.

I cannot tell you what great anxiety and anguish I have
for Mr. Stoddard. He has won my whole heart by taking
so much pains for my dear companions, and particularly
for Elisha. I did not think he would be taken from us.
This trial seems to me heavier than losing Elisha and
Jonathan (her children, who died by poison), for it is not
only a loss to his dear family, but also to this band of
stranger missionaries, and a dreadful desolation to our
poor j)eople. May the Lord see how great is the harvest,
and how few the laborers. I cannot write more ; my eyes
fail because of my tears. Give my tenderest love to dear
Mrs. Stoddard. I know her sorrows in such trying days ;
would that I could help her.

From your truly afflicted pupil,

Sanum.

The following was written the day after the death of
Mr. Stoddard, which took place the 22d of January, and
refers to that sad occurrence : —

January 23d, 1857.

What bitter intelligence comes to us these days! — the
taking away of those who carried us in the arms of love to
the blood-stained cross of Christ. Truly, my mother, these
afflictions fall veiy heavily on our heads. The guides of
our souls are cut off from us. What shall we do ?

Dearly loved sister Mrs. Stoddard, sorrow and mourning

KIND OFFICES. 267

are ours. There is hope that you will soon meet the orna-
ment of your life. But in his school and in ours are those
for whom there is no hope that they will ever see him.
Wounded sister, blessed is the heavenly pilgrim who has
spent his life in a strange land, and been a well of living
water to many thirsty souls. I know this separation is
bitter to you ; but there is consolation for you, for it is not
eternal. But what shall I say of our poor people ?

O, how much more than any of you knew we loved that
dear brother. It was a quarter past three o'clock this
morning when your letter reached us (Miss Fiske's). I
handed it to Miss Rice, and never saw such a bitter night
except that in Avhich my father died. I did not sleep till
almost dawn; and when I slept, I saw the loved one
standing in Miss Rice's room, his face shining like the
morning star. Both his hands were raised to heaven,
when suddenly he stooped and looked in my face. I said,
"O, you are not dead!" He answered, "No!" and I
cried aloud, " O, Mr. Stoddard is not dead ! " and my own
voice awoke me. How favored those of you are who see
the face of our beloved friend !

MUNNY.

Still later, she writes to her teacher, who was again at
Seir, during the sickness of Harriette Stoddard, whose
death occurred March 16th, 1857.

Though it is a time of anguish, yet, blessed be God, he
has given us One to whom we may look for comfort. A
thousand thanks to the Saviour that he does not chastise us
by taking away the Holy Spirit. Though the discipline is
bitter, yet it is mingled with love, in that the Lord comes
by death among his own, and by his S}>irit to those who

268 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

have not known him, that he may make them his own also.
What grief would the lovers of the Lord have, if you now
sat by the bedside of a sister of whom we had no evidence
that her heart was purified by a Saviour's blood ? If you
are so distressed about one whom you trust your Father is
taking to rest in the bosom of his Son, how would you feel
if she were one of those who, as soon as the breath left
her body, would dwell with everlasting burnings! How
thankful we should be that it is not the bed of one of
these !

I have never seen such a trying year; but I do not
believe it is for the harm of those that fear the Lord. It
only fulfils the j^romise, " Whom the Lord loveth he chas-
teneth." O that the gentle voice of Jesus might be heard,
whispering, "Daughter, I say unto thee, arise!" Who
knows but, if our faith were as Christ would have it, he
would call this sister back to life, though now so near to
death ! But your Father knows what is for your good, and
you know that here he often gives anguish to those who
love him, that they may be exceedingly joyful with him
hereafter. The Lord grant that these afflictions do not
harden oul- hearts.

I have conversed and prayed with all the younger girls,
save two. Eleven say that they are resolved to follow
Christ ; but I fear lest the vineyards and the cotton fields
do not testify hereafter that they have walked with God.
It is very pleasant to me to sit down by them and ask
them of their state.

Yesterday (Sabbath) was a delightful day, but it seemed
very short. The Lord help us in our weakness, and cause
the dark clouds to rise from all your friends. The God of
consolation heal the wounded spirit of your poor sister,
Mrs. Stoddard. I have never seen the death of the

KIND OFFICES. 269

righteous — only by hearing have I heard of it. The Lord
be with you more and more.

MUNNY.

Others, written during the same period, are as follows : —

Sorrower for us, who hast also become as a stranger to
us ! Now we know your anxious love for us. We have no
doubt that He who directs not according to man's thoughts
has directed you to be away from us much this year. We
had thought that it would be a very pleasant year ; but the
Lord has ordered it as he pleases, and let us say, " His will
be done." We know that he does all for our profit. What
a comfort this is to us who have given our all to the
Saviour to do with us as he will !

It is very hard to look at your vacant place; but we
thank God it is not made vacant by death. Though not
with us in body, we believe that you are, in spirit, and we
rejoice that you can do as few can, for the sick. The Lord
be with you, who are the second in anguish, and strengthen
your weak body. The prayer of your pupils is ever for
your life. We have no words with which to comfort you;
we can only say, " The Saviour, with whom you are better
acquainted than we are, give you comfort."

What can we say to you, dear Mrs. Stoddard, who are
shrouded in a cloud that is very dark ? We know it is very
hard for you to look on the great vacancy that is made in
your dwelling. But do trust in the Lord; he will bring
light out of darkness. We feel for you, plunged in a sea
of sorrow, in the deep places of sighs. Our eyes are every
hour upon the door, expecting what we shall hear from
Harriette ; and our prayer is, that if it can be the Lord's
will, she may be brought back to you; bat every letter
increases our anxiety. We understand not the Lord's
23*

270 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

dealings this year, excej^t this : we know that he does all
things for the profit of our souls.

Raheel.

Maeta.

The writer of the following was at that time a teacher
in the Seminary, and a striking illustration of the elevating
power of a good education. Formerly a female who was
either lame or deformed was so despised, that she could
never hope to be the head of a family : she was doomed to
drag through a miserable life, the object of universal
neglect. But Hoshebo, though a fall in early youth had
shattered her ankle, and the ignorance of native surgeons
made her a cripple for life, yet because of her education was
as much esteemed as before she would have been despised,
and is now the wife of Meerza, our native helper at Sara-
Ion. Miss Fiske might have filled up her school with such,
but, with a wise foresight, selected her pupils with an eye
to their future usefulness among the people, as well as their
own personal advantage.

When I understood from Miss Rice, that you would not
meet your loved flock next Sabbath, I felt that I could not
let all your absence pass without giving you an account of
my charge. I have been sitting with them, as I do every
Saturday evening, to search out their spiritual state ; and I
have good news to tell you of one for whom you, and also
others, have been very anxious — Esli, of Takka. I noticed
her changed all this week ; but last night I saw a great
breaking down under Mr. Cochran's preaching. She came
out in anguish of soul. I then saw her alone, and found
her contrition still increasing. I know this is not evidence
that she has passed from death unto life ; but I rejoice

KIND OFFICES. 271

that she is visited by the Holy Spirit, and I trust she will
become a Christian. I am anxious for her arid for all the
girls of my room. I look for the gentle shower that shall
make the withered plants like the fresh springing grass.
Though you are absent, we know well that you carry every
one of your flock in the arms of love to Him who can do
all things, whether you are fur away or near to us. The
girls send up many petitions for Harriette. We fear much
when we recall your former going to Seir. How glad
should we be to hear of indications that she will recover.
Peace and love to Mrs. Stoddard.

Your affectionate Hoshebo.

More than a year after this, Miss Fiske left Oroomiah,
and at S almas, on her way home, met her dear pupil
Sanum, the wife of Joseph. Having no other place for
devotion, they retired together to an orchard for the part-
ing prayer. In a subsequent letter, Sanum thus beautifully
alludes to it : —

" O, the remembrance of that bitter separation J* and of
those prayers, when the green grass was watered with our
tears ! How could I have borne it, but for the recollection
of Him who prayed and wept in the garden of Gethsemane,
and whose kneeling upon the tender grass was for the com-
fort of our souls ! "

The gratitude of the pupils to their teacher extended
also to her aged mother. Seldom have they written a
letter to Miss Fiske, in America, without its message of
kind remembrance to the parent who gave up her daughter,
as Hannah gave up Samuel, to be the Lord's ; and several
wrote letters to her separately. From among these we
select the following, written by Raheel (Rachel), of Geog
Tapa, Sept. 10th, 1859: —

272 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

My dear Grandmother Hannah: Though I have
never seen you, yet I must write to you, for I love all Miss
Fiske's friends as I do my own, and especially yourself.
I want to thank you for all your love to me. Blessings
have thus reached me which were not given to my early
sisters. When it was a great reproach for a girl to learn
to read, God had mercy on us in that he poured such love
into your heart as made you willing to send your daughter
eight thousand miles, by sea and land, to show our people
the great mystery that had been previously hidden from
their eyes — that there is salvation for women. They
used to dwell much on those words of Solomon, " One man
among a thousand have I found, but a woman among all
these have I not found ; " but now they see their mistake,
and that Christ died for women also. Many thanks for
your patience all these years. I know something of it from
the feelings of my own mother, for if she did not see me for
five months during term time, she would mourn that she
had not seen her daughter for so long.

It war certainly a sacrifice for Christ to come into this
world, and deny himself; and it was also a sacrifice for the
Father to send his Son, when he knew all the sorrows and
wounds there were in the cup which he was to drink in this
world of sin.

You will see your daughter much changed from w^hat
she was fifteen years ago ; but I am confident that when
that day comes, which will be longer than any day we have
seen in this world, — when He whom the Jews could not
bear to hear called king, shall sit upon his throne, judging
the world, — then all troubles, sorrows, and separation from
friends will appear to the Christian as the small dust of the
balance ; and I think that it will es})ecially seem so to you,
when you see a band of Nestorian girls on the right hand

KIND OFFICES. 27B

of the Reclcemer, whom you, tlirough your dfiughter, were
the means of bringing there. Yes, justly might they have
been left to dwell with Satan forever ; but instead of that,
they will have joyful life with Christ in his kingdom.

I can never repay your love; but there is one so rich
tliat he can give you what man cannot, and I ask him to
I'eward you in heaven.

Is there another Miss Fiske in your country ? We can
hardly believe it. I hope that I shall see her again, but it
is difficult for me to expect it.

It is very pleasant for me to write to friends, and espe-
cially to my own dear mother, Miss Fiske. I should never
be weary if I wrote to her every day; but I thought that
this time she would like to have me write to you, and I
trust that you will live to receive it.

Please give my love to Martha, and also to Mrs. Stoddard
and Sarah, and tell them that our hearts are with them.

From your granddaughter, whom you have not seen,

Raheel.

No reader of the Bible needs any description of Oriental
mourning for the dead. The rent garments and sackcloth
(2 Sam. iii. 31), loud weeping and wailing (ver. 32), pro-
tracted lamentation as for Jacob (Gen. 1. 10 and 11), and for
Moses (Deut. xxxiv. 8), and the hired mourning women
(Jer. ix. 17, and Matt. ix. 23), were to be found nowhere in
greater perfection than among the Nestorians. It is very
difficult for us, in this land, to realize the force of such
habits; but it required much grace to break over them;
and even now, when the Christian heart grows cold, it is
apt to return to the old ways. One day, in 1845, the
whole school were going to attend a funeral. When the
time came, one of the pupils requested to be excused.

274 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

"Why? are you sick?" "No." "Why not go, then?"
" I do not wish to tell. But another said, "May I tell you
alone ? " " It will be a great shame if we do not all weep.
We all think we can do it but Sarah, and we are afraid
her tears will not come; and so, lest she bring reproach
upon us, we do not want her to go." The heart of the
teacher sunk within her, as she found that she was about
to lead a company of mourning women to the funeral.
She asked them how they could make themselves weep.
" O, when we go to such places, we call to mind all the sad
things we ever knew, and so we weej) ; but if the tears do
not come, we leave very quickly."

But grace has wrought a great change in this matter
also. In the journal of Yonan, we find the following
entry : " At the close of afternoon service, I had a Bible
class with the women : this was followed by a j^rayer meet-
ing. Then Munny came to see me : she has buried a
little child recently. It is a matter of joy to me, that these
women can lift up their eyes and see their children with
the dear Saviour, and feel that they have treasures in
heaven. I asked her, ' Did you ever do any thing for your
little girl that you remember now with gratitude ?' 'Many
times I carried her with, me to the stable, and knelt with
her upon the straw in the manger, to ask blessings on her.l
' Christ was in the manger, and perhaps there your daugh-
ter was consecrated to him.' "

In another place, we find him asking Esli, — the wife of
Joseph, of whom he had just said, "Her little daughter has
died recently, and her heart is broken," — "When your
child died, did you weep and wail as your j^eople do ?" and
she answered, " No."

Nazloo, of Vizierawa, a pupil who hoped she took Christ
for her Saviour in 1849, and graduated in 1853, within less

KIND OFFICES. 275

than a year after her conversion was summoned to the
death-bed of her uncle ; and scarcely had she returned to
her studies before she was called to the bedside of her
father. For three days she watched with him incessantly,
by day and by night. Those who were present were
greatly moved by her tender care of him. During the
whole of his sickness, she never failed to improve every
opportunity to j^oint him to Christ. Even to the last, she
begged him to look to the Lamb of God and live. And
when he died, with his head resting on her hand, though
she had no evidence that her efforts were successful, her
wonderful calmness, under so severe a stroke, led many to
feel that she j^ossessed a source of consolation to which
they were strangers. But her cuj) was not yet full. A
few days passed, and she hastened once more to her af-
flicted home, to find her mother entering the dark valley.
Others wept aloud, but she pointed the dying one to
Jesus ; and supporting her in her loving arms, she seemed
to plant her feet in the cold waters of the river of death,
and commit her departing mother into the hands of Him
who could bear her safely to the other side. So sensible
was her mother of the benefit she and hers had received
from the school, that when the teacher came in, she beck-
oned her to her side, and said, with difiiculty, "God is
not willing I should be a mother to my daughters any
longer. I commit them to you : they are yours." She soon
fell asleep, as was hoped, in Jesus. After this, Nazloo was
in the school most of the time till her marriage. As a
teacher, no one could have been more faithful : her re-
ligious experience was very marked, and she labored
wisely for souls. She still lives to show how God can
make grievous afiiictions yield the peaceable fruit of right-
eousness in his people.

276 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

In this connection, we cannot omit another letter, writ-
ten by Hoshebo to her teacher, in 1860, on the death of
her son Absalom. It is dated Saralon, wiiere she and her
husband Meerza reside.

Dear Mother: I received your letter just before I
received a bitter stroke from the never-erring hand of my
heavenly Father. Many thanks for your loving remem-
brances of nie. I cannot reward you for one of a thousand
of the good things that you have shown me, so unworthy.
I have many thoughts of you, and of those pleasant days
that we passed together in that blessed school. I am very
sad when I think that perhaps I may never, in this house
of my pilgrimage, see your face, which makes others to be
exceeding glad.

Dear mother : like a daughter distressed, who would find
a little rest by falling into the kind arms of her mother, I
come to tell you what has pierced the heart of your poor
child. It is true that you are so far from me that I cannot
lean on your kind breast, and let you lead me in prayer to
the Father who has afflicted me ; but with a feeling like
that I write you. Beloved, you used to write me that I
must take good care of my dear and tender babe, Awesha-
lom. Perhaps I did not fully do as you told me. But one
thing I know : the Lord, who loves little children, was not
wilhng that I should keep him. And I beheve that he will
take better care of my dear child than I could. You must
know that I am deeply wounded and crushed by the death
of Aweshalom. My tears cease not. His first birth was
October 14, 1858; his second and spiritual one, April 23,
1860. His life with us was a pleasant one, and he made
our lives very sweet and delightful ; but now he has gone
to heaven, while we remain on the earth. He lives the

KIND OFFICES. 277

new life, while we die daily. He is strong, while I am
weak. He has grown beautiful, in the light and image of
the Saviour, while I am pining away. If you have heard
what a child he was, you will not wonder at my sickness
since his death. My husband is greatly afflicted in the
death of this, our first, our only child. We find no com-
fort except in casting our wounded souls at the feet of the
Saviour, who was tempted that he might heal our wounds.
It seems, sometimes, as if our comforters were far from us ;
but our Saviour is very near to hel}) and comfort.

Our work has been as last year. My husband has
taught in the Seminary at Seir, coming here to preach on
the Sabbath. I have taught a school of eighteen boys and
girls here. Before vacation, my babe sickened, and rested
in Jesus. Since that time, I have had fever, and am still
very weak.

Five in the village, besides ourselves, are communicants.
My father and brother are among them. I trust that my
mother and brother's wife will soon unite with us. The
work of the Lord in the village goes forward better than
formerly. I try to talk and j^ray with the women alone,
and they are more ready to have me do it, which makes
me to rejoice in the Lord.

Give my loving peace to my dear grandmother Hannah.
Though with the eyes of this mortal body we have not
seen each other, nor have I any hope that we shall, the
Lord her God help me, that we may meet on the blessed
hill of Zion above. I believe, my mother, that you will
remember your weak, unworthy lamb, when you bow before
the throne of mercy and grace. Perhaps this is the last
letter you will receive from me, for death seems very near.
Receive loving peace from the priest [her husband].

Your true daughter, Hoshebo.

24

278 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

Jesus has seemed to be almost bodily present, taking iiji
these lambs in his arms ; and the mothers have not feared,
for they felt sure that under such a Guardian it was well
with their children.

Perhaps bereaved missionary mothers in Persia do not
realize how much their patient suffering has done for their
poor Nestorian sisters. The short lives of those twenty
missionary children, who lie in Persian graves, were a
precious offering to Christ. They were all missionaries,
and did not go home till their work was done. Each one
had a place to fill among the instrumentalities employed
by the Master to promote his kingdom in Persia. There
was no waste in the breaking of those alabaster boxes of
precious ointment. Nestorian parents looked on, to learn
how to lay their children into the arms of Jesus, and become
more Christ-like themselves. No years of mature toil have
been more blessed than the years of those thus early called
home ; jfind in this truth their bereaved parents may find
abundant consolation. There are influences too deep and
silent to be fully understood ; but they are none the less
real and powerful ; and the mother who to-day misses the
little feet, the loving eyes, and the pleasant voice, which
God had lent to gladden her earthly home for a season, may
rejoice in the assurance that her loving submission to a
Father's hand is teaching a lesson to the people whom she
loves, such as they could never learn from words.

During the revival of 1846, a little child of Dr. Perkins
died ; and as the missionaries laid it away, in the hope of a
glorious resurrection, it helped them to point others to him
wdio is the Resun-ection and the Life. It w\as buried on a
snowy Sabbath day, and the faces of the young converts,
who stood in silence around the grave, showed tliat to
them the associations of death were no longer fearful.

KIND OFFICES. 279

Turning awfiy from tlie cemetery, Mr. Stoddard, feeling
that he could not be separated from those young disciples
even in death, said, " Do you not hope that you shall rest
here to rise with these to everlasting life ? " * Little did
they who heard him know how soon that cemetery at Seir
would become more sacred as his own resting place.

Before leaving this topic, we insert a letter from Sarah,
daughter of Joseph, a former pupil in the Seminary, and
the oldest of four sisters. The death of little Deborah
seemed to draw her heart very closely to her Saviour, and
she now sleeps by her side, doubtless understanding better
the meaninsT of those arms of love that here she believed
" folded her little sister in his own bosom."

" What word of fitting love can I write, and how tell
you what God has done? We are afilicted, for he has
taken from us our dear little Deborah. She was only two
years and seven months old. We mourn, and yet are com-
forted ; for we know that He who loves little children has
taken her into his own arms, that we may love him more
and better praise his glorious name. She did not leave
lis to go to a stranger. The dear Saviour, we think, has
made her happier than we could ; and now we dwell much
on this scripture, ' Prepare to meet thy God.' Deborah
was very sick, and suffered much; but when she died,
there was a pleasant smile on her little face. Then she
rested from sorrow, and Jesus folded the little lamb in his
own bosom."

* See Nestorian Biography, page 242.

CHAPTEE XXII.

PROGRESS AND PROMISE.

BENEVOLENCE, EARLY MANIFESTATION OF. — PROGRESS. — REVIVAL OV

BENEVOLENCE IN APRIL, 1861. INTEREST OF PARENTS FOR THE

CONVERSION OF THEIR CHILDREN. — PEACE IN FAMILIES. — RE-
FORMED MARRIAGES. ORDINATIONS. COMMUNION SEASONS. — MISS

RICE AND MISS BEACH. CONCLUSION.

The pupils were early trained to form habits of self-deny-
ing benevolence. In 1844, the day scholars made as many as
fifty garments for poor children. Early in 1845, when some
mountaineers came to beg money for their ragged children,
the question was put, " Who will give her own clothes
and wear poorer ones till she can make others." Many
responded at once, and she who gave her best dress was
deemed the most happy. Some even wept because they
could not do the same. In a letter written December, 1848,
the pupils say, " The last day of the term was monthly con-
cert. We had a good time of prayer, and then a collection,
which went up to thirty-two sahib korans — (seven dollars.)
We hope this will be increased, and used for sending the
gospel to the poor people of the mountains."

They were accustomed to devote several hours a week
to sewing for some benevolent object. At the close of one
term the articles thus prepared were sold for sixteen dol-
lars, and the proceeds sent to Aintab to pay for teaching
women there to read.

(280)

.PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 281

The same virtue was assiduously cultivated in the people.
Deacons John and Yonan had for some time been urged to
take up a collection at the monthly concert at Geog Tapa,
but they dared not try ; not that they did not wish it, but
they feared that the people, in their poverty, might take
offence at the innovation. At length, on the first Sabbath
of 1852, John pfeached on the subject, and a few korans
(worth twenty cents each), Avere contributed. The first
Sabbath of February it was Yonan's turn to preach there.
So he prepared himself thoroughly on this subject, — Miss
Fiske had read with him the jDrize essays on Benevolence,
published by the American Tract Society, — and, carrying his
map into a crowded church, he spoke at some length about
missions in various parts of the world. His account was
well received. Then Billies were distributed through the
3hurch, and the readers were called on to read passages
previously selected, showing, first, the antiquity of benevo-
lent contributions ; secondly, that the poor Avere to give as
well as the rich ; and thirdly, that the blessing of God was
promised to the benevolent. The readers were scattered
all over the church, and the peoj^le listened Avith great
attention. Then several spoke on the subject, and the
elders of the village gave the work' their hearty approval.
Afternoon came, and as the time for meeting drcAv near,
old and young were eagerly engaged in getting ready
their contributions (in Geog Tapa the monthly concert is
held on Sabbath afternoon), and as many as tAvo hundred
came together. There Avere remarks and j^rayers, and
while the missionary hymn was being sung at the close,
the collection was taken up, amounting, in money and cot-
ton yarn, to more than fifteen korans. One sick boy, who
had heard A\diat Avas going on, rose from his bed, and crept
in to deposit his little coin. Instead of spending their
24*

282 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

saints' clays in idleness, as had been the custom, many now
wrought on those days to earn money for giving, saying to
objectors that it was better to labor for the spread of the
gospel than to be idle for Satan. Mr. Stoddard attended
the March concert, with some idols from India, and so
interested the people that the collection amounted to more
than twenty-five korans, thus the good work went on.

After this the spirit of benevolence steadily increased,
and instances of marked self-denial were not wanting. It
shows at once their poverty and their disposition to do
what they could, that at the monthly concert a basket
was passed round along with the contribution box, to
receive eggs from the little children and such as were too
poor to give any thing else. Crosses of ivory or silver were
often found among the contributions.

One day, a man was seen to take a silver coin out of his
purse ; and as the missionary went on to describe more of
the condition of the heathen world, a second and a third
was taken out, and held in readiness for the collection. At
another time, a woman, whom she had not seen before,
asked for a private interview with one of the ladies of the
mission; and when alone, besides requesting prayer that
she might become a Christian, she took out a gold orna-
ment, the only one of any vahie that she possessed, which
had been handed down as an heirloom in her family for
several generations, and said she wanted to give that to
send the gospel to others, only no one must know who
gave it. The ornament was sold for four dollars and fifty
cents, and the woman, in less than a year, became a useful
Christian. Sometimes the amount of interest might be
measured by the number of silver coins manufactured into
buttons that were found in the contribution box ; for when
their feelings were aroused, the women cut olf the fasten-

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 283

ings of their outer garments, and cast them into the Lord's
treasury.

But the most remarkable revival of benevolence occurred
in April, 1861 ; and we condense the following account of
it from a long letter of Yonan to Miss Fiske and Mrs.
Stoddard : —

" The prayers and tears of our missionary friends have,
this winter, received a joyful reward from our Father in
heaven. We were told that the first week in January
would be devoted by all Christians to prayer for great
things, and my heart was never so enlarged before. It
seemed as if Persia, nominal Christendom, and all the
heathen were under the power of prayer ; as if the Chris-
tian's measuring-line was stretched round the four corners
of the eartli. One day the missionaries met, as usual, for
prayer in Dr. Wright's large room. It moved me much,
and I said to my companions, ' They are praying for us
wdiile we are idle.' They said, ' It is good that we spend
this half hour in prayer every day.' We did so. On the
Sabbath, I went to my village, Geog Tapa, and mentioned
these things to the people at the evening meeting. The
Lord opened the mouth of Abraham, who said, ' Brethren,
in these places we are always idle — let us meet for prayer
half an hour before sunset.' They did so. The clouds
over our heads seemed loaded with blessings : still they did
not descend. Mr. Cobb and Mr. Ambrose had talked with
me about commencing in our village to support preachers
in the mountains. So did Mr. Labaree last week. I told
him of our poverty. He said, ' I am grieved for that ; but
begin with some little thing.'

"We went to Geog Tapa the last Sabbath in March.
John gave notice, as it was the gospel Sabbath, [monthly
concert is so called], of the contributions for our brothers in

284 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

India. In his sermon he said that much of our poverty is
from our indolence. Last year our collection was fifteen
tomans. [A toman is about two dollars.] If we had more
zeal, we might raise twenty, and that would support a
preacher in the mountains. At once Guwergis cried out, ' I
will give one.' I said, ' We will support one preacher and
two schools among ourselves, and if any thing is over, we
will send it fnr away.' Priest Abraham approved of this.
Then all the brethren in the congregation began to speak.
*So is good.' 'Thus we will do.' John would have stilled
them ; but I said, ' Perhaps God is blessing your preaching ;
let them speak.' Praised be God's name 'forever ; in a mo-
ment every obstacle was swept away. Had we known that
God was so near, we would have bowed our heads before him.
Now Aib Khan cried, ' I give one toman ; ' and ' I,' said
Priest Moses, ' twelve korans ;' and another, ' I two monats.'
[A monat is seventy-five cents.] Moses now took out his
pencil to w^ite. The Malik said, 'I have often thought that
I would put a gold imperial in the box [four dollars and
fifty cents]; write that.' I then said, 'My family of eight
souls hear preaching all the year, and three or four attend
school. I am a debtor; write for me three tomans — it is
not too much.' When God pleases, excuses flee away;
high prices and oppression were not thought of; we were
lords of wealth. Moses then said, ' I am troubled that I
remain to the last ; but we are three brotliers in company,
and I know not whether they will act through me, or each
one for himself ' One brother cried out, ' Our agent and I,
five korans more.' Another man then said, ' I also am at a
loss on account of my brother;' and his brother replied,
'Four monats.' These things made brotherly love very
firm. Guwergis now cried out, ' Women, where are you ?
In the wilderness women <xn\e their brazen mirrors.' I

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 285

said, 'Holy women, to-day ends fifteen years of the prayers
of Christianity among ns. Speak!' [It was fifteen years
since the revival in 1846.] One replied, 'I half a monat ;'
and 'I a head-dress;' 'I a silver ornament;' 'I my ear-
rings;' and so on. A widow said, 'I have kept my hus-
band's coat till now ; I will sell it, and give half the price.'
And others made similar responses. Isaac, a poor old
mountaineer, gave two korans ; and another said, 'I have
nothing but the mat I sit on : I give that.' It was a new
one he had just finished. A mother said, ' I have nothing
now, but I will give the work of my hands this winter — a
tope [ten yards] of cotton cloth.' A pilgrim said, ' When
I was in Jerusalem, an Armenian and a Russian bid against
each other, and the Russian prevailed, giving five hundred
tomans to the Greek convent. If they had such zeal for
error, we ought to have more for the truth.' And one un-
accustomed to come to church gave the fruit and prunings
of fifteen rows in his vineyard. [The prunings of the vines
are sold for fuel.] We were in the church about four
hours. Time was given for all to contribute, and then we
spent a season in joyful song and pleasant prayer.

"The report of what had been done spread quickly
through the village, and my mother-in-law sent word .that
she Avould give a hundred and twenty-eight pounds of
raisins. At evening meeting, the house was full. Benja-
min said, ' Brethren, the teacher of our school was one day
explaining the verse, "Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth
of the ox that treadeth out the corn ; " and Mr. Stoddard,
Avho stood near, added, " But the Nestorian oxen eat from
the straw of America." That word has worked, in my
heart ever since. I trust that, hereafter, we will eat our
own straw.' That night we lay awake a long time for
joy. In the morning, before I was up, my uncle and his

286 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

wife came and promised a load of wheat [five bushels] ;
and when passing through the village, a woman put an
ornament in my pocket to sell for the cause.

" Monday we came to the city for the gospel day [the
concert is held there on Monday], and every one who met
us remarked our glad faces. In the meeting, after Mr.
Coan spoke, John opened a bundle of the gifts, and Moses
described the scenes of the day before. I said, 'One
toman led to sixty in our village yesterday : perhaps it will
lead to hundreds more. Many times the good in the heart
of the Christian comes up into his mouth, and then goes
back ; but when the power of God prevails, it not only
comes into the mouth, but comes forth and abounds.'
Priest Moses arose, and said, ' As long as a man is sick,
it is no shame if he does not walk ; but if the blood walks
well in his veins, and he becomes fit, and still lies in
bed, every one reproaches him. We have grown fat ; and
how long shall we lie under the quilts?' Priest Yakob
added, 'For twenty-five years we have said, "Let the Lord
go before;" and now that he has come, let us wait no
longer, but give.' He gave two tomans, and others fol-
lowed. Mar Yohanan's wife gave a toman of ornaments,
and almost every girl in school from one koran to three or
four. Isras, of Degala, gave fifteen tomans and a new
vineyard that he had recently bought. Guwergis, who
had already proposed to plough the field the second time,
now rose, and opening liis hand, said, ' If a man thrust his
hand into a pile of gold, and give of it to God, is it a great
thing when He has filled his hand with the blood of his
Son, and given it to us ?' Sagoo,^ of Gulpashan, said, 'My
father gave each of my two sisters thirty tomans. When
Hannah died, hers became mine. I give it for the bride's

' See page 209.

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 287

veil; [The kingdom of Christ is here spoken of as the
bride], also a silver watch.' One who had only two or
three sheep promised one of them. My little girl, Sherin,
had asked, a few days before, for a new dress. She now
sent word to me that she would do without it for a year,
if I would give the money for the gospel. I cannot fully
describe the spirit of the meeting : we went out wondering
and congratulating each other at having witnessed such a
pleasant sight. At the evening meeting one said, ' I heard
in the market what you were doing ; I give a gun, the
price of which was seven and a half tomans.' Some gave
for themselves, and others for their wives and children.
Moses gave four monats for his brother's children. There
were tithes and sixths, fifths and fourths, thirds and halves,
of crops of hay and grapes. Priest Abraham said, ' We
say a thief will never own a house. Did you ever see
one that had wealth ? We are thieves, and therefore are
so poor. We have robbed God. I will give a tithe of my
vineyard.' Another replied, 'And I of every thing.' And
a man, who had before given one quarter of his vineyard,
now gave the half A widow, who had nothing but a cow,
pledged a hepta [four pounds] of butter. A poor man,
who has a few fruit trees in his yard, promised ten heptas
of apricots. Guwergis spoke up, ' We have butter : what
shall we cook in it for the bride ?' A woman answered, ' I
give four heptas of rice ;' to which her husband added two.

"Mar Elias now kissed us much ; he put nineteen korans
into John's hand, saying, 'As yet I have not grown indif-
ferent.' And Mar Yohanan said, with tears, ' The crown
of the bride remains for me. I give thirty tomans.'

" In our village, besides the tithes, seventy tomans were
collected, and in the city two hundred and fifty. I hope
the whole will go up to five hundred or more. T stand

288 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

amazed. I can think nothing but, ' I am a miserable sinner.'
The glorious God has gone before us in mercy. For two
or three years our village was going down; we were at
Yariance and in trouble ; but Immanuel has met us with a
blessing, a hundred fold beyond our exi3ectation. It is the
beginning of a great work for future generations. I know
that the joy of heaven is awakened in the joy of blessed
Mr. Stocking and Mr. Stoddard. I want to fly to them
and talk with them about it, but this veil does not allow
it. You, too, will want to fly to the i^eople that are so
dear to you. I trust that this pouring out of such a spirit
will be the door of many blessings. We liave had a
scarcity for seven years, so that wheat is six times its
former price. Our people are poor and sorely oppressed.
From the depths of their poverty they have given : I
never knew them before. If all were Christians, what
might we not see ? Perhaps the poor widows and orphans,
wdio have contributed for our good, have been discouraged ;
but truly their gifts have not been sown in vain among
our people. I believe at the last day you will see fruit
according to the word of Jesus. — thirty, sixty, and a
hundred fold. The time is not far off" when every con-
verted Nestorian will go to ten Mussulmen to teach them
the word of God.

" Pray for us more than ever, for many are the enemies
of Neheraiah and ruined Jerusalem. Our hope is in God.
He has begun, and he will finish."

The pledges then made have since been fulfilled, with
very few exceptions, and that not regretfully, but with a
heartiness truly affecting to those who knew their poverty.
In July, 1861, the mission resolved to furnish no teacher
for a school — except in new villages — where a part of
his support was not assumed by the people. The Bar-

Progress and promise. 5S9

andooz congrogrition, in the spring of 1862, cheerfully
assumed the burden of their schools ; and some have also
expressed a readiness to aid in the support of their pastors.
A number of pupils, in both Seminaries, contribute liberally
towards their support.

In bringing to a close these glimpses of the changes
wrought by grace among the Nestorians, we must not pass
by the number of pious parents who now aid the mission-
aries by their prayers. While, in the early days of the
Seminary, its teacher was left to pray alone for her pupils,
before she left, in 1858, she rejoiced to know that two
thirds of them had either a pious parent, or other mem-
ber of the family, who prayed for their salvation.

One cold morning, in 1856, a pious mother walked three
miles through the snow, to inquire if there was any inter-
est in the school. " Why do you ask ? " replied the teacher.
" I have thought of you continually for two or three days ;
and last night, after falling asleep, thinking about you, I
dreamed that God was visiting you by his Holy Spirit.
So, wdien I awoke, I arose and baked, and hurried here. I
am so anxious about my daughter! Can I see her?" She
was told that her daughter was among the inquirers the
evening before, and sank down where she stood, ^veeping
for joy. The heart of the teacher grew strong in the feel-
ing that the mothers were wrestling with her. The mother
passed into an adjoining room to see her daughter ; and a
missionary brother, who came in just then, could not
restrain his tears as he listened to her earnest intercessions,
saying, " This is more to me than any thing I have seen in
Persia." After that year, some parents, wdien they came to
the Seminary, were never willing to leave till they had
prayed with their children. A father once wrote, " Yester-
25

290 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

day I invited some Christian friends to my house, and had
three prayers offered for the school ; and while praying for
yon, we felt our own sins very much, and cried to God to
save us from their power."

Nor were the pupils wanting in interest for their impen-
itent parents. During the long vacation in 1850, Hanee,
who used to spend several hours a day in prayer for her
mother, so pressed her with entreaties to come to the
Saviour, that one day she roughly replied, " Enough !
Enough ! Stop your praying and weeping for me : you will
weep yourself blind." "O mother," was the beautiful
reply, " it seems as though I would gladly become blind, if
thereby you might be brought to Jesus."

Perhaps the effects of grace were nowhere more con-
spicuous than in the effects it produced in those great
households already described. Let us first look in on the
hinderances they occasioned to a life of piety. Yonan
writes, in his journal of March 7, 1858, "Widow Platoon is
a devout woman, and tries to erect the family altar in her
house ; but it is very difficult. She often collects the read-
ers in the neighborhood on Sabbath morning, to read the
Bible with her family. I asked her, 'Do you pray with
your children ? They have no father ; they are left in your
hands, and God will require them of you again.' 'I do;
but I find it very hard in our house : we are all in one
room, our beds very near each other, and there is no sep-
arate chamber : when about to retire, I gather them
together behind a quilt, and talk and pray with them.' "

Again he writes, " Hatoon, the wife of Sarhoosh, is a
member of a large family. Three of the women in the
house, and one of their husbands, fear God ; but the older
members of the household are very wicked, and even vio-
lent in their opposition. She is much troubled about

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 291

family prayer. While the devout ones engage in -^vorship
at one end of the room, the rest, at the other end, talk,
laugh, and revile."

Yet, even in such households, grace reveals its divine
power. We find Yonan putting this question to a com-
municant: "Do you and M. live pleasantly together?" M.
was her sister-in-law, 'in a household of more than thii't}'
souls. "She is a little quick tempered," was the reply;
"but I try not to trouble her, and. to have our love perfect
that we may be a good example to the rest." Yonan
prayed with her, and asked if he could do any thing for
her relatives. "Dear brother in Christ," she replied, "in
the name of the Lord Jesus, our precious Saviour, I beg
you to pray with my husband : it may be God will bless
him." " My sister, God will bless him : this your anguish
shall be turned into joy." "My own heart was moved,"
adds the narrator. " I saw my own love very little, com-
pared with hers, and felt my unworthiness very much."

The change in their social condition was beautifully illus-
trated by a little incident in the Seminary, in 1849. One
of the older pupils had been betrothed ; but when the ring
of betrothal was brought, to be placed on her finger, she
could not be found. After long searcli, her gentle voice
was heard in tlie most retired part of the building, implor-
ing the blessing of God to abide with her in that new
relation. Only those who had seen the rioting and folly
common on such occasions could appreciate the change.

The marriage of Mar Yohanan, in 1859, was a step in
the work of lifting up woman to her true position. For-
merly, maiTiage had been deemed something too unholy for
a bishop ; and the consequence was the general degrada-
tion of the sex. The entrance of the gosj^el corrected
public sentiment on this point ; and that act of the bisliop

292 WOMAN AND HER SAVIOUR.

only gave exi:)ression to the popular conviction that mar-
riage is honorable in all, even the highest and holiest, nur-
turing some of the loveliest graces of the Christian charac-
ter. The event for a time caused some stir among the
enemies of the truth ; but it soon died away, and the old
ascetic views of piety are passing away with the social
degradation in which they had their origin.

About the same time Yohanan, whom we have seen labor-
ing in the mountains with his estimable wife, was ordained
to the work of the ministry without any of the mummeries
that had been added to the simple usage of the New Tes-
tament ; the venerable Mar Elias uniting with the mission-
aries in the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.
Two months later, six more of the most pious and best
educated young men, who had long deferred ordination
through aversion to the old forms, followed his example ;
among them our mountain friend Oshana, Deacon John,
of Geog Tapa, and Deacon Yakob, of Supergan. Mar-
riage ceremonies and entertainments have long been
improved, and the revelling of former days on such occa-
sions is going into deserved disuse among the more en-
lightened.

*In the year 1858, the people of Memikan left off keeping
their fasts, on the ground that they tended to nullify sal-
vation by grace through Jesus Christ. Formerly this
would have brought down on them the wrath of the patri-
arch, their village would have been devoted to plunder and
the torch, and themselves to death or exile ; but now it
caused scarce a ripple on the current of events — not that
men did not see the drift of things, but they allowed it to
have free course.

There is another sign of the times that calls for more
special mention. Other missions in Western Asia had been

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 293

forced by persecution to the early formation of churches.
Tliey liad to provide a fold for the lambs driven from their
former shelter. Here there had been no such necessity;
yet the converts longed for a more spiritual observance of
gospel ordinances.

The mission had hithertc celebrated the Lord's supper
by themselves, and with one or two exceptions, no Nesto-
rian had witnessed its observance. There had been some
thought of admitting them ; but nothing had been done, till,
in the spring of 1854, three of the converts, who had been
reading an English treatise on the subject, asked one of the
ladies of the mission to intercede with the gentlemen to
allow them to be present. She informed Mr. Stoddard of
their request, and he encouraged them to go forward. The
matter was laid before the mission, and it was concluded
that a few of those judged most fit for admission to the
ordinance should be invited to partake.

The first communion to which the converts were admit-
ted was celebrated in September, 1854, in the large room
on the lower floor of the Female Seminary. Eleven
TsTestorians partook with the missionaries, and three of
them were women, who had graduated there. After the
service, some of the men went up stairs and sat down with-
out speaking. Miss Fiske, not knowing the cause of their
silence, and fearing lest they might have been disai:)pointed
by the simplicity of our forms, did not venture to allude to
the subject, till one of them asked, "Is it always so when
you commune, or was this an unusual occasion ? " " Why,
did you not enjoy it ? " " Not enjoy it ! Jesus Christ him-
self seemed almost visibly present; it was diflicult to realize
that it was not the Saviour in person who presided at the
table. It must have been just such a scene when the
ordinance was first instituted in Jerusalem ; and I could
25*

204 WOMAxN AND HER SAVIOUR.

not get rid of the inquiry, ' Shall one of us go out like
Judas and betray him ?'" It is a significant fact that those
most accustomed to mediaeval forms, when regenerated by
the Spirit, relish them the least; and the more spiritual
they become, the more they crave the simple forms of the
New Testament, because they draw the least attention to
themselves, and fix it most completely on the Saviour.

In January, 1855, as many as seventy of the converts,
after careful examination, were allowed to partake; and
once every four months the privilege was renewed, with
an accession of from twelve to thirty communicants each
time. These were occasions of unusual interest. Several
days were devoted to religious meetings, and even in mid-
winter pious people made long journeys, and crossed bleak
mountains on the snow, to attend them. One woman,
Hoimar, of Salmas,* travelled sixty miles, through deep
snow and piercing cold, to be present at this ordinance
in January, 1858.

In June of that year, the better to distinguish those
entitled to this privilege, before the sacrament all entered
together into solemn covenant with God. The whole
number received up to that time was two hundred and
forty-nine ; at the close of 1861, it had swelled to five hun-
dred. As the meetings became too unwieldy, and it was
inconvenient for so many to come so far, the ordinance was
administered at Seir also, in September, 1858 ; and here
providentially another end was secured, for as Dr. Wright
was then too sick to distribute the elements, some of the
natives had to perform that service. In June following, a
very interesting communion was observed at Memikan ;
Yohanan and his wife crossing a high mountain, even then
covered with snow, to bring their little child for baptism.

* See page 171.

PROGRESS AND PROMISE. 295

Next year, the ordinance was celebrated in every village
where there was a suflicient number of hopeful converts to
justify its observance. Thus has God led his people, step
by step, in a way that they knew not, till now there are all
the essentials of a church at every place where God has
raised up members of the body of Christ. They enter into
covenant with hira and with each other. They keep his
ordinances, and grow in grace, in knowledge, and in num-
bers. They may take one step farther. Since this last
sentence was written, the converted Nestorians have pro-
ceeded even to the adoption of a creed and directory for
worship.

Did the limits of this volume allow, it would be pleasant
to dwell at length on the labors of Miss Mary Susan Rice,
who joined Miss Fiske in November, 1847, and has ever
since toiled diligently, and without interruption, at her post.
Since the return of Miss Fiske she has entered into all her
labors, both thoroughly and successfully. Her fifteen years
of toil will never be forgotten by those who have been
privileged to receive her instructions, both in and out of
the Seminary. They form an important part of the instru-
mentalities God has employed to bring woman in Persia to
the knowledge of her Saviour. A mass of her correspond-
ence now lies before the writer, which he has read with
much interest ; but to quote from it would only be repro-
ducing scenes already portrayed. It is not necessary to
describe the laying of each course of brick in the walls of
the spiritual temple.

One sentence, however, now arrests my eye, which I
must quote, because it shows how the Saviour was prepar-
ing her for the sole care of the school, that has devolved
on her ever since, owing to the protracted illness of Miss
Aura J. Bcacli, who wps sent out to her assistance in

OOP>

WOMAN AND HEIl SAVIOUR.

February, 1860. Writing to her predecessor, three years
ago, she says, " O, what a rehef, to roll the burdens, which
we cannot bear, upon the strong arm outstretched to help,
and feel that, like sinking Peter, we shall be sustained amid
raging billows ! "

Labor among the Nestorians is becoming more assim-
ilated to labor at home. Instead of the national peculiari-
ties conspicuous at the outset, different from our own, and
prominent because so different, things begin to move in
familiar orbits, because they set out from similar condi-
tions and tend to like results. In proportion as the gos-
pel advances in its work, the distinguishing characteristics
of a people fall into the background, to give place to
those spiritual features common to the work of grace in
every land. The river is most picturesque high up among
the mountains, while its stream is yet small and many
obstacles oppose its course ; after it glides out from among
the hills into the open plain, it moves with larger volume,
but in a more monotonous current, to the sea.

May the work of God advance, till this unity of all
nations in Jesus Christ shall every where replace the
diversity and hostility under which to-day creation groans,
till in the placid surface of such a river of life the Saviour
shall see his own image reflected, as it is from the sea of
glass above!

APPENDIX.

TABULAR VIEW OF SCHOOLS.

Seminary Pupils.

1

1 Pupils in Schools.

Year.

Schools.

1

Total.

Male.

Female.

"

Boys.

' Girls.

1840

39

23

1"

' 414

25

501

1841

28

18

20

430

40

516

1842

70

18

40

635

128

851

1843

55

22

44

948

117

1142

1844

30

26

I

1
)ismissed this yec

wr.

1845

40

40

32

382 in all.

462

1846

40

36

30

441

21

538

1847

37

'36

36

517

91

681

1848

40

30

33

463

45

578

1849

44

35

32

473

125

677

1850

44

30

35

487 _

166

727

1851

40

42

45

1023 in all.

1105

1852

40

50

60

777

261

1128

1853 ;

42

48

79

990

365

1445

1854

73

1092

153

1855

50

48

58

793

301

1195

1856

40

40

53

611

283

974

1857

54

39

63

1200 in all.

1293

1858

47

40

54

1135 in all.

1222

1859

50

30

68

936

494

1510

1860

a4

30

48

678

367

1129

(297)

INDEX.

Arandoned woman of Degala, 143. j
Abduction of pupils, attempt at, 25, |

155.
AimAllAM,Priost, .51,1^4,211,284, 287. 1

His sister converted, \y.i. I

Accomm<^)IjATIOn.s lor the uiylit, 28.
Ali'INB sfpuery, 74. i

AMBASSArxnt's, the English, visit to i

the school, 147.
Amruosk, Kov. TliomaB L., 28-3.
AxAiu'iiY in Oroomiiili, 158.
An'OKIJ, sin of, 144.
Aui>i.snAi, wild women of, 84.

Peisecution in, 104.

Labors in, 212.
AsKEU Khan, persecution under, 163-

Baba Khan, 108.
I5AHILO, I5:i.

Beaten by his father, 155.

Letter of, 159.
Backsliding, study of, 137.
Badal, 205, 209 ; letter of, 206.
B vDiu Khan Bey, 191.
Bkach, Miss Aura .T., 295.
Beating of wives, 18.
" Beautiful, Christ become," 179.
Beds, 15.
Benevolence in the mountains, 222.

or the i)!ii)ils, 280.

Of the people, 281,282.

Revival of, in 1861, 283-288.
BEitEAVEi) missionary mothers, how

useful, 2V8.
" Bethel, ThL-," .39, 119, 175.
Betkothei), the, prayer of, 291.
Bible as a text book, 42, 43.

Attachment of pupils to, 55.

Bible blotted with tears, 138, 178. «
BlitTHS in stables, 17.
BlUTHDAYS unknown, 95.
Boarding school, reasons for, 51, 59.
BOOBAWA, 217.
Books, school, 54, 55.
BuEAD money, 53.
Bkeath, Edward, 54, 115.
Mrs. Sarali Ann, 219.
" Broom, not fit for an old," 179.
Buffaloe-s in houses of Gawar, 16.

CHARDEM'AR, 76.

Children of missionaries, influence of
tlieir conversion, 146.
Deaths of, a means of good, 278.
Childless mother in the maternal

meeting, 96.
Chumba, 197.
Ciiuu«;h organization, how it grew up,

'29.3-295.
Closet, in cellar, 101.
In wood cellar, 116.
In manger, 143, 180, 274.
How prized, 178.
Marked with tears, 195.
Coan, Kev. George W., 55, 67, 73, 76,

lOr, 286.
Cobb, Rev. Henry N.. 147, 283.
CociiKAN, Rev. Jos. G., 55,67, 152,216.

Mrs. Deborah W., 216.
Communion, Nestorians admitted to,
29.3-295.
Impression made by our simple

form, 203.
Farewell, in 1858, 2.39.
Compositions, 244-262.
Condolence, letters of, 265-271.
Conference of mountain helpers, 221.
(299)

300

INDEX

Cost of education in seminary, 59.

Country of Nostorians, 33.

COUKTS of niissiou premises, 3G, 40,

131, 132.
Courtship, Christian, 213-215.

Dairyman's Daughter, 130.
Darawe, 21, 77.

Daughters, how regarded, 18, 127.
Daughter praying for her mother,

290.
Day in seminary, 62-G4.
Deaths of first converts, 130-136.

Of missionary children, 27S.
Deformed women, 270.
Degala, wicked woman of, 143.

Visit there in 1849, IGl.

Letter of Sanum concerning-, 162.

Letter of Deacon Joseph, 182.
Desire to depart, 135.
Despondency dispelled, 144.
Dishonesty, 22.

DizzA Takka, oppression in, 165.
Domestic department in seminary, 60.

Harmony, 291.

Education, missionary, 42-45.
Elevating influence of, 270.
Eggs contributed at monthly concert,

282.
EnEYA, 126, 205, 211, 220.
Enquirer, first among the women, 82.
Enquirers, early, from Geog Tapa,

97.
Eshoo, Priest, conversion of, 120, 129.

Bui-ial of child, 152.
ESLI, journal of, 66.
Letter of, 67, 68.

Her prayer for Miss F. returning
home, 175.
Examination of seminary in 1850,
223-''25.
In Geog Tapa, 234-236.
EXCITE3IENT, uudue, how quelled, 120.

Family, unfavorable situation of, 16,

290.
Evil influences in, 161, 290.
Prayer, established by a woman, 96.
Fa RE AV ELL prayer meeting in semi-
nary, 237-239.
Fasts laid aside, 292.

Father, drunken, his anxiety for his

daughter, 93.
Feet of guests bathed by women, 264.
I-'emale prayer meetings, 124.

Missionaries, unmarried, position
of, 54.
Fields, labor of women in, 17.
FiSKE, Miss Fidelia, prtssim.

Mrs. Hannah, letter to, 272.
Fording the Shalier, 35.
Fuel in Gawar, 15.
Furniture of houses, 15.

Of seminary, 40, 44.

Gavalan, 78.
Gawar, houses in, 15.

Vacation in, 73.
Geog Tapa, 103, 104.

Letter from women of, 112.

Persecution in, 154.

Sabbath school in, 231-236.

Monthly concert in, 281.
Gozel of Geog Tapa, 265.
Grant, Asahel, M. D., 226.

Mrs. Judith S., 48-50, 127, 225.

Her pupils, 50.
Gratitude to Christians in America,

112.
GULY of Geog Tapa, 107.

Seir, 205.

Letter of, 209.
GUWERGIS, Deacon, 87-92, 155.

Hair, wiping feet with the, 264.
Hakkie, 90, 91.
Hanee, 52, 234, 237.

Letter of, 265.
Hannah, of Geog Tapa, 135.

Of Gulpashan, 205, 207-209, 286.

A composition, 257.
Harmony in the household, 291.
Hatoon of Geog Tapa, who could not

pray, 179.
Heleneh, 192, 196, 198.
Helpers, how trained, 44, 45.

Labors of, 106-111.
Hoi:mar, 108, 294.

Letters of, 169, 170.
Holladay, Rev. Albert L., 51, 53, 98.
HoLYOKE, Mount, seminary, letter to,
69.

Answer to prayer in, 189, 190.

INDEX.

301

Home, no word for, in Syriac, 14.
HORMEZn, 224.
HOSHEBO, letters of, 270, 276.
Hospitality, 235, 203.
Houses and housekeeping, 15.

Of Mawaua, 28.
Husband who taught his wife to read,
230.

" If you love me, lean hard," 64.
Ignorance of women. 19, 83, lr5.
Immorality, 24.
Importunity in prayer, 178, 183-185,

193.
Inquisitor in seminary, 166.
Irrigation, 35.
Isaac, Deacon, 151, 170, 192.
Ishtazin, 74.

JOHN, Deacon, 99, 113, 115, 116, 137, 173,
232, 235, 284.

His father, 224.

His mother, 141.
Journal of Esli, 66-69.

Of Yonan, 106-111.

Of Sarah in mountains, 216-219.

Key'AT, 77.
Khamis, 76.

KHANU3IJAN, 109, 141.

KnosRO"\vA, persecution in, 168.
Kindness of pupils to teachers, 264.

Labaree, Rev. Benjamin, Jr., 283.
Labor of women in fields, 17.
Ladies, missionary, unmarried, posi-
tion of, 54.
Lake of Oroomiah, 34.
Letter.s of Babilo, 159.

Badal, 205.

Esli, 07, 68.

Miss Fiske, 20, 27, 45, 50, 52, 62, 64.
153, 156, 157, 179. 180, 187.

Gozel, 265.

Guly, 209.

Hauee, 265.

Hoimar, 169, 170.

Hoshebo, 270, 276.

Joseph Deacon, 182.

Martha, 209.

Munny, 266, 267.

Nazee, 200-203.

26

Letters of Oshana, 213-215.

Pupils, 09, 71.

Kaheel, 209, 272.

Sanura, 138, 148,102,266,271.

Sarah of Geog Tapa, 215, 210, 220.

Sarah, daughter of Joseph, 279.

Sclby of Vizierawa, 176.

Women of Geog Tapa, 112.

Yohanan, 211.

Yonan, 2.32-234.
Lice, 16.

Licentiousness, 24, 31.
" Lost Soul, The," 245-25L
Loud praying, 186.
Lying, 22.
Lyon, Mary, 53, 63, 71, 189.

Madagascar, 47.

Manger, closet in, 143, 180, 274.

Makbeesiioo, 27-30.

River of, 120.
Mar Qgen, 76.

His prayer, 174.
Marriage, early, 18, 51.

By force, 18, 101, 141, 170, 196.

Ceremonies reformed, 292.

Former ideas of, 291.
Mar Shimon, 152-100, 211.
Martha of Geog Tapa, 110, 134

Of Mar Sergis, letter of, 269.
Mar Yoh.\nan, 51, 57, 104, 156, 223,

287, 291.
Maternal meetings, 95.
Mawana, 28.
Mazrayee, 219.
Meetings for women, 81, 94, 95.
Melodeon, 69.
Memikan, 73.

Mills, Mrs. C. T., letter to, 71.
Mob at mission premises, 156.
Monthly concert, 180, 189, 190.

At Geog Tapa, 281.
Moressa of Geog Tapa, 111.

The saved soul, by, 251-257.

Of Supergan, 125.
Moslem interference, 25.

Women, 30, 31.
Mother, a praying, 96, 289.

Anxious for her daughter, 289.
Mothers, bereaved, usefulness of, 278.
Mountaineers, 191. ^

MOUKTAU^S, 191>222.

302

INDEX

Mt. Holyoke Sb:minary, 69, 189, 100.
Mourning, Oriental, 273, 274.
MUNNY of Geog Tupa, 109, 274.

Of Ardishai, 178.

Letters of, 266, 267.

Nargis of Geog- Tapa, 110, 234.

Her composition ou Hannah, 257.
Nazee, 192, 19(5, 197, 19y-20-l.
Nazloo, 238, 274, 275.
Nerik, 218.
" Noisy kiver," 120.
Nurses, pupils as, 264,

Ooreya, 75.
Oppression, 14.
Ordination reformed, 292.
Ornaments, female, 19, 94, 282, 286.
Oroomiah, 34.

OSHANA, 205, 211.

Letters of, 213, 214.

Paper, slips of, 239.

" Paradise," 224.

Pakeza, 97, 99.

Passion, 20, 207.

Perkins, Justin, D. D., 61, 115, 118,

146, 201, 203, 224, 278.
Peril of seminary, 156, 166.
Perseverance in prayer, 183-185.
Pin stealing, 23.
Pit, story of the, 207.
Poisoning of Sanum's children, 165.
Population, 33.
Poverty, 14, 46, 53, 282, 283, 288.
Prayer, language of, 172, 173-175, 182,
185.

On horseback, 173.

Broken, 173.

For our country, 174.

Letter concerning, 176.

Importunate, 178, 183-185.

Munny, 178.

In Degala, 182.

Kemarkable week of, 183.

Without ceasing, 184.

Audible, ISO.

On roof, at midnight, 187.

Here, connection of, with blessings
in Persia, 189.

Meeting, farewell, 175, 237-239.
Preachlng, missionary, 123.

PRE:\riSEs, mission, in Oroomiah, m.
Profanity, 21, 22.
" Pro:\iise, The," 195.
Pupils, labors of, 138-140.

Quarrelsomeness of women, 20.
Quietness of school iu revival of 1856,
145.
OflS50, 184.
Quilts from America, 122-.

Uaheel of Geog Tapa, letters of, 269,

272.
READERS,women, formerly none, 19.
Reading of English in Syriac, 58.
Restitution of things stolen, 24, 104,
Reviling among women, 21.

By a father, 60.
Revival of 1846, 113, 178.
Of 1849, 137, 181.
Of 1850, 183.
Of 1856, 144.
Of 1857 and 1861, 147.
Revivals, number of, in seminary,

149.
Rhea, Rev. Samuel A. and Mrs. Mar-
tha A., 217.
Rice, Miss Mary Susan, 39, 40, 62-64,
67, 86, 144, 147, 156, 206, 210, 220,
224, 267, 295.
Ring of betrothal, 170, 291.
Roses, 223.
Runaway pupils, 52.

Saat, woman of, 78.
Sabbath iu seminary, 64-66.

Pentecostal, in Geog Tapa, 104.

School in Gavalan, 80.

In Geog Tapa, 106, 231-236.
Sadee, 108.
Sanawar, 77.
Sanum of Gawar, 77vll6, 165, 238.

Valedictory of, 225.

" Lost Soul," by, 245-251.

Letters of, 148, 162, 266, 271.
Sanum of Geog Tapa, 109.
Sarah of Gawar, 110, 127-133.
Sarah of Tiary, 151, 187, 192, 200.
Sarah of Geog Tapa, 211-221.
SAR.VH, daughter of Joseph, letter of,
279.

INDEX

30:

•Saved Soul, The," by Morcsfsa, 251-

257.
Schools in Goog Tapa, 234,
Seik, Mount, 34.

Labors in village of, 138, 216.
Selby of Oroomiah, 101,102.

Of Gavalan, 51, 240-242.

Of Vizierawa, letter of, 176.
Seminary building, 39.

Scholarship, 58.

Expense, S'J.

Daily reports, 61.

Day in, 62.

Sabbath in, 64.

Broken up in 1844, 150.

Attempts at abduction from, 25, 155.

Peril of, 156, 166.

How regarded by foes, 164.

Inquisitorial visit to, 166.

Labors with women in the, 9:5-98.
Senum's hospitality, 29.
Shaiier river, 35.
Shoes restored to the owner, 24.
Sickness, accommodations in, 17.
Simplicity of converts, 121.
Sing, unable to, 146.
Singing in the Sabbath school, 234.
SiYAD, conversion of wife of, 140.
S:moke in houses, 15.
Social position of women, 18, 19, 151,

224.
« Soul, The Lost," 245.

" The Saved," 251.
Speaking in meeting, 85.
Spelling books begged for, 224.
Spirit, Holy, resisted, 105.
Stealing, 22.

Stevens, R. W., Esq., 156, 158.
Stocking, Kev. Wm. R., 27, 54, 73,
78-80, 84, 89, 92, 98-100, 104, 105,
115, 118, 120, 129, 148, 288.
Stocking, Mrs. Jerusha E., 54, 73, 78,

84.
Stoddard, Rev. David T., 35, 54, 90,
91, 115-120, 123-125, 152, 168, 180,
180, 236, 265-267, 279, 282, 285, 288.

Stoddard, Mrs. Harriet, 128, 152, 157,

Stoddard, Mrs. Sophia D., 265-271.
Stoddard, 3Iiss Harriette, 267-270.
Stupidity of women, 8o.
SuPEUtiAN, prayer of old man in, 173.

Tahiti, 46.

Talking in meeting, 85.

Ta:mo, Deacon, 120, 221.

Tents, 73.

Tent chapel, 79.

Testament, how paid for, 55.

Wet with tears, 195.
Tiary girls, 191, 194.
Title of volume, 33.
Trials, connection of, with revivals,
114.

Untidiness of people, 16.
Urwintoos, 218.

Valedictory', by Sanum, 225.
Vermin, 16.
Viragoes, 21.

Widow, self-denial of a poor, 46.
Wife who learned to pray in seminary^

179.
Wives beaten, 18.
Woman, position of. 18, 19, 151.

Not allowed to eat with man, 98.

224.
Praying in meeting, 124.
Wright, Austin H., M. D., 51, 54, 66,
115,118, 168.

Yahya Khan, 158.
YOHANAN, 205, 292.

Letters of, 211, 217.
YONAN of Geog Tapa, 75, 106-111, 117..
141, 195, 198, 234, 235, 281, 2S3-288.

ZACCHEUS, 100.
Zeal to learn, 233.
Zeer, 216.

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DAIL Y MANNA ; for Christian Pilgrims. By Kev. B. Stow, D. D.

THE CYPRESS WREATH; Consolation for those who mourn. Edited by
EUEUS W. Griswold, D. D.

THE YOUNG COMMUNICANT; an Aid to the Eight Understanding and
Spiritual Improvement of the Lord's Supper.

LYRIC GEMS; a Collection of Original and Select Sacred Poetry. Edited
by S. F. Smith, D. D.

THE MOURNER'S CHAPLET; an Offering of Sympathy for Bereaved

Friends. Selected from American Poets. Edited by John Keesk.

THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN. Kev. H. A. Graves.

THE SILENT COMFORTER; a Companion for the Sick-Koom. By
Louisa Payson Hopkins.

G OLDEN GEMS, for the Christian. From the writings of John Flavel,
with Memoir of the Author. By Rev. Joseph Banvard.
i^» Sets of the above fourteen, volumes, forming a beautiful Miniatuee Libraet, put up in
neat boxes, $5.60.

ELEGANT DOUBLE MINLATUEES. 32mo, gilt, 75 cts. each.

THE WEDDING GIFT; or, the Duties and Pleasures of Domestic Life.
Containing the " Marriage-King" and the " Family Circle."

THE YOUNG CHRISTIAN'S GUIDE to the Doctrines and Duties of a
Religious Life. Containing " Casket of Jewels" and " Active Christian."

THE MOURNER COMFORTED; containing the " Cypress Wreath," and
the " Mourner's Chaplet."

DAIL Y D UTIES; containing the « Bible and Closet," and " Family Altar.'

THE CHRISTIAN'S DAILY COMPANION; containing the "Daily

' Manna" and the " Young Communicant."

CONSOLATION FOR THE AFFLICTED ; containing the "Silent Com*
forter" and the "Attractions of Heaven."
ncy Sets of tho above, in neat boxes, six volumes, $4.5(1. (55)

(SCIENTIFIC.)

ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 11 vols., from 1850-186a
By D. A. Wells, A. M. With Portraits of distinguished men. 12mo.

TEE PLURALITY OF WORLDS; a new edition, with the author's re.
views of his reviewers. 12mo.

COMPARATIVE ANATOMY OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. By
Trofb. SiEBOLD and STANinu8. Translated by W. I. Bubkett, M. D. 8vo.

HUGH MILLERS WORKS. Testimoxy of the Rocks. With Illus-
trations. 12mo, cloth.

— Footprints of the Creator. With Il-
lustrations. Memoir by Louis Agassiz. 12mo, cloth.

^- The Old Red Sandstone. With Illus-

trations, etc. 12mo, cloth.

My Schools and Schoolmasters. An

Autobiography. Full-length Portrait of Author. 12mo, cloth.
First Impressions of England and its

People. With fine Portrait. 12mo, cloth.

Cruise of the Betsey, a Eamble among

the Fossiliferous Deposits of the Hebrides. 12mo, cloth.
Popular Geology. l2mo, cloth.

HUGH MILLER'S WORKS, 7 vols., embossed cloth, with box.

UNITED STATES EXPLORING EXPEDITION, under Charles
Wilkes. Vol. XII., Mollusca and Shells. By A. A. Gould, M. D. 4to.

LAKE SUPERIOR. Its Physical Character, Vegetation, and Animals. By

L. AGASSL2. 8V0.

THE NATURAL HISTORY OF THE HUMAN SPECIES. By C
Hamilton Smith. With Elegant Illustrations. With Introduction, con-
taining an abstract of the views of eminent writers on the subject, by S.
Kkeeland, M. D. 12mo.

THE CAMEL. His organization, habits, and uses, with reference to his intro-
duction into the United States. By George P. Marsh. 12mo.

INFLUENCE OF THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE UPON INTEL-
LB CT UAL ED UCA TION. By W. Whewell, D. D. 12mo.

SPIRITUALISM TESTED; or, the Facts of its History Classified, and tfieir
causes in Nature verified from Ancieu^^ and Modern Testimonies. By Geow
W. Samsok, D. D. 16mo, cloth.

(61)

GOULD AND LINCOLN,

69 WASHINGTON STREET, BOSTON,

Would call particular attention to the following valuable works described
in their Catalogue of Publications, viz, :

Hugh. Miller's Works.

Bayne'a Works. Walker's Works. Miall's Works. Btmgener's Work*

Annnal of Scientific Discovery. Knight's Knowledge is Power.

Krummacher's Suffering Saviour,

Banvard's American Histories. The Aimwell Stories.

^ewcomb's Works. Tweedie's Works. Chambers's Works. Harris* WorhJt

Kitto's Cyclopaedia of Biblical Literature.

Mrs. Knight's Life of Montgomery. Kitto's History of Palestine.

Whewell's Work. Wayland's Works. Agassiz's Works.

Mn'SM/rrALSiL

Williams' Works. Guyot's Works.

Thompson's Better Land. Kimball's Heaven. Valuable Works on Misslonat

Haven's Mental Philosophy. Buchanan's Modern Atheism.

Cruden's Condensed Concordance. Eadie's Analytical Coucorda-jice»

The Psalmist : a Collection of Hymns.

Valuable School Books. Works for Sabbath Schools.

Memoir of Amos Lawrence.

Poetical Works of Milton, Cowper, Scott. Elegant Miniature Volumes,

Arvine's Cyclopaedia of Anecdotes.

Ripley's Notes on Gospels, Acts, and Romans.

Bprague's European Celebrities. Marsh's Camel and the Hallig.

Roget's Thesaurus of English Words.

Hackett's Notes on Acts. M'Whorter's Yahveh Christ.

SielJOld and Stannius's Comparative Anatomy. Marcou's Geolosrical Map, U. S,

Religious and Miscellaneous Works.

Works in tha various Departments of Literature, Sci^ioe and Art.

BW7307.5 .W8L3 1865
Woman and her Saviour in Persia

Princeton Theological Seminary-Speer Library

00039

DATE DUE

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