240 THE LIFE OF E. J. PECK 



be opposed when he seeks to carry Christ right into 

 the enemy's stronghold. Indeed, probably no 

 missionary ought to be satisfied with his work until 

 he sees Satan fighting for his own. 



And so we are not surprised that the course of 

 the Gospel did not run altogether smoothly among 

 the Eskimos when the conjurors began to find out, 

 like the silversmiths of Ephesus in former days, that 

 their craft was in danger. 



In the early days of October, Mr. Parker had been 

 attending a sick man, but he did not improve so 

 rapidly as he had hoped he would. This then was 

 an opportunity for those who had been ousted. 

 The ignorant sick man is seldom satisfied with any- 

 thing short of a miracle ; he cannot bear to wait 

 for the slow development of medical science. So 

 one of the conjurors was allowed to come in and 

 practise his art through one night. These practices 

 have been more or less described elsewhere, so noth- 

 ing need here be said in detail. Mr. Peck deter- 

 mined to speak to the people about this matter 

 when they should come together for instruction. 

 At the evening meeting, however, but few were 

 present when the instruction commenced. " I 

 was, therefore," he said, " half inclined to leave 

 the matter for what I thought would be a more 

 favourable opportunity. But I was moved by a 

 strong inward impulse to speak from the First Com- 

 mandment, and just as I commenced, who should 



