The Work in Bengal, India
By W. R. FRENCH
THE work in Bengal, on the whole, is quite encouraging. By the blessing of God we are able to say that our work in this section of India has made advancement in all branches during the last year. By means of the help that has come from the $300,000 Fund, two mission stations have been established on land of their own, where work can now be carried on to better advantage than formerly. In Gopalgunj the prospects for our work are good. Miss Branson, who has passed her first year in language study, is joining the workers there. With this increase in the force, we hope to see results the coming year. Brother Watson will unite his efforts with those of the colporteurs in pushing the sale of our literature, with the hope of increasing the output of our Bengali Signs of the Times. During the last three months, while he has been staying in Calcutta, he has, by the blessing of God, succeeded in taking about four hundred orders for this paper. I have just returned from a visit to Karmatar and Babulmohal. At the former place we found the work progressing. In spite of the fact that this is the busy season of the year, about two hundred children were present at the Sabbath-school. These are children of Hindu and Mohammedan parents, and are members of our day-schools, where the Bible is daily taught to them. Surely, the Word will not return void, but will produce a harvest in time. The work on the buildings of the new mission station is well under way, and we hope to be able to occupy them by the close of the year or soon after. When the buildings are completed, we shall have a large bungalow for our European workers, three houses for native workers, a church, a dispensary, and a school. For the erection of a dispensary one hundred seventy-five rupees has been donated by the Indian people who live in the station. At Babulmohal we found the boys in the boarding-school making encouraging progress in their studies. One village school-teacher came with his boys, ten in number, to be present while we were there. These boys quoted a number of Bible verses, sang two Christian songs, and also did some reading and writing which showed that they are making progress. It is encouraging to see these boys receiving Christian instruction; for it is said in the Word, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” We hope to see some of these boys develop into good Christians, and have homes in God’s kingdom. Pray that the Lord may add his blessing to the work that is being done in Bengal.
W. R. FRENCH.