A PLEA FOR THE NATIVE 369 
So far, at least, as Africa was concerned, she was not a 
missionary church. And even before the Mohammedan 
invasion swept her down, she was, as all non-missionary 
churches must sooner or later become, a church decaying 
and ready to perish. 
North African Christianity of long ago is represented 
to-day by the Coptic Church of Egypt, and the Christianity, 
such as it is, of the mountaineers of Abyssinia. Favoured 
by their mountain fastnesses, the Abyssinians have hero- 
ically, for more than twelve hundred years held their own, 
a nominally Christian country islanded in a dark sea of 
Mohammedanism. But that the religion the Abyssin- 
lans profess is much in advance of that of his Moham- 
medan neighbour he so cordially hates, few who know him 
well will be prepared to admit. Nor does the Copt repre- 
sent a high moral standard. In Africa, Christianity may 
be said to have failed. Its tribes have had no saviour, 
governor, or guide. For ages, so far as we can tell, its teem- 
ing millions have stood still. 
How was it in those far-away days, when the man was 
slowly rising from the clod, when first there came to the 
half-beast savage a dawning sense of law and beauty, 
that these unguided feet halted or went astray? Did some 
far forefather throw life’s once-offered chance for himself 
and his offspring away? Why for all other peoples has 
existence been on the whole an advance, while for these 
gentle, lovable, dark men, who are so easily made happy, 
who up to their lights perform man’s duty so well, there 
has been no progress, no marching forward but merely 
an age-long period of “marking time’? 
The hopes and longings that in other branches of our 
race ripened to fruitage, have never, so far as we can tell, 
blossomed for them. Or if they blossomed, the fruit 
withered in the green. 
Why has no influence from within or without drawn 
