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CHAPTER X. 



THE DOWNWARD VOYAGE. 



Adieux — A crowded boat^Change to a salt -junk — A strange 

 manoeuvre — A day on the rocks — Sham tea — Equipage of the 

 junk — The gorges once more — Mooring for the night — Delays — 

 Change to a wupan — Pirates — Feng Tu. 



It was now nearing the end of April, and the time for my 

 departure had come. I called to make my adieux to the 

 members of the China Inland Mission, who have a staff of 

 five or six members in this city. The China Inland or 

 Taylor Mission is the most active of all the Protestant 

 societies in China, and the only one that had, at that date, 

 followed the exampje of the Catholics in adopting the native 

 dress. They lead hard lives, and work on a most ungrateful 

 soil ; but as they believe themselves to be simply carrying 

 out the commands of their Master, and leave the results to 

 Him, the fact that there are so few genuine Protestant 

 converts in China does not appear to trouble them. In fact, 

 seeing that one of the few bond, fide converts to Protestantism 

 devastated thirteen out of the eighteen provinces in his 

 endeavours to Christianize his fellow-coimtrymen a little 

 more rapidly than the missionaries were doing, the Chinese 

 may deem it fortimate that not more enthusiastic converts 

 are made. " Hung shiu chuen," the Tai-ping king, accepted 

 the example and teachings of the old Jewish captains in all 



