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364 CHINA MISSION YEAR BOOK.THE CIRCULATION OF THE SCRIPTURES.The figures which follow, it should be noted, arethose which come to us from the sub-agents, depots,and correspondents when the actual sales are reported,and to these are added the Scriptures given to schools,hospitals, and other charitable institutions. It is, therefore, with no little satisfaction that an increase in thecirculation over that of 1908 is reported of 139,710copies, i.e., the number of Bibles, Testaments, and Portions that have actually gone forth among the Chinese.That the circulation has now reached a total of overone million and a half, and that nearly 99 per cent, ofthese Scriptures were sold, is surely a matter for sincerethanksgiving.As an introduction to a brief account of thecirculation of the Scriptures in the Chinese Empireby the B. F. B. S. during 1909, the figures for thepreceding eight years may be of interest, and it maybe further noted that the average annual circulation forthe ten years 1890-1899 was 392,057 copies.Total 129,522 327,212 8,210,899 8,667,633The total number of copies putinto circulationprior to 1890 was 4,320,000. The Scriptures circulatedin 1909 were 1,504,933 copies, viz., 18,656 Bibles,52,739 Testaments, 1,476,506 Portions. This total is inadvance of the previous highest figures by over 139,000.Channels of Circulation. (<?) Colportage. Thedistribution of the Scriptures is carried on by a widelyorganized system of colportage in which missionaries,