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Show 34 NORTH CHINA MISSION girls' own planning, and made glad with the gift of a small bag of nuts and sweets to each one present. Such is commonly the second step nowadays. It is an easy one from the streets to the "ragged Sunday-school," though they find it hard to remember the hour and the day, and sometimes the children attending will be almost entirely different from the group of the week before. In PEKING, the number of Sunday-schools of this class has grown to five, each with a company of from ninety to A Little Ragged Sunday School, Taikuhsien a hundred for-ty five or fifty. As one reaches the place, one sees them waiting, some children bright and fairly clean, many ragged and dirty, but all standing in happiness about the door as they wait for the teachers to come. Gradually they have been trained until the room becomes quite orderly as they sing and then settle into classes. After listening to their teachers for a time, they learn, with much noise, to read the verse printed on a slip of paper for them, and if perfect, receive with joy a colored picture card wdien they go. It seems only a little that they can receive, but the songs and the verse, coming week by week, are surely making their impression, even on these minds that receive no other such influence. Stories come to us of their singing the songs in the homes, so that many poor women whom we meet are familiar with them. In the more regular Sunday-schools, they have their good times too. In LINTSING this Christmas, the church members - „ „_ paid for the gifts to the children, consisting of pencils, soap and little spoons which their committee chose from what was obtainable on the street. The school girls had their "plays" at their school, and took off the greenest foreigner and the obsolescent gods with equal good-humor and impartiality. Whether these were the gods who answered (he prayer and "gae the giftie." only the foreigner who was taken off |
