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""148 MISSIONS AND CHUKCHESfavourable rate of exchange prevailing throughout the entireyear greatly enhanced the silver equivalent of the goldremitted to China. Thus through the unfailing faithfulness of God there was not only an absence of financialpressure, but it was found possible to spend more money onthe work in the field under almost every head than duringany similar period in the Mission s history.In every department of the work there wasevidence of progress. The results gave causefor encouragement, whether viewed in theirrelation to the evangelization of the heathen or the spiritualdevelopment of the Church. Emphasis was, as ever, placedon the preaching of the gospel. Besides the regularproclamation of the divine message at each station, thesurrounding villages were in many instances systematicallyvisited, and extensive itinerations were made with a view toreaching the unevangelized regions in the various provincesinto which the operatioos of the Mission extend, A fewexamples of the methods employed may be of interest.A worker in Kansu, accompanied by aEvangelistic Christian teacher and a colporteur, made ajourney to Nien-peh-hsien, some twenty milesdistant from Siningfu, and canvassed all the shops. Theywere well received, the shopkeepers being most willing bothto talk and to purchase copies of the Scriptures. TheGovernment school was visited and each of the teacherspresented with a copy of the New Testament and of TheTraveller s Guide," both of which were much appreciated.The sacred mountains near Meihsien in Shensi and inthe district of Changteh in Hunan were visited bymissionaries and bands of Christians who preached thegospel to the thousands of pilgrimswho visited theseheights.A lady missionary, with seventeen women whovolunteered to accompany her, evangelized every market,village and hamlet in the mountain region north-west ofYiishan, Kiangsi, and left a portion of Scripture with eachfamily."In the evening," this lady writes,their tiny