Stations in the Soudan. 37 request a school was opened in the following year, which was attended in the summer by nearly forty pupils.

4. MALEK.

A pioneer party started from Khartoum in December, 1905, to undertake work in the Southern Soudan. They had much difficulty in selecting a suitable place for a station, but eventually they fixed upon Melwal, seven miles south of the Government station at Bor, and 1,018 miles south of Khartoum; within a few months they also occupied Gwalla, ten miles inland, and Malek, five miles south of Melwal. They found that they had two great advantages in their work among the Dinkas.

First, the people had not been Islamized. On the contrary, their whole experience of Mohammedanism had been such as to make them loathe it, for they had endured many evils at the hands of both Arabs and Dervishes. Second, there was no priesthood among the people to organize opposition to the Gospel, and they were quite ready tosit downand be taught. So far from being hostile, they displayed the greatest confidence in the missionaries, and submitted themselves readily to such medical treatment as might be thought desirable. The missionaries at once busied themselves with gaining a knowledge of the language, and preparing a reading sheet consisting of the alphabet, Creed, Lord’s Prayer, Ten Commandments and a selection of verses of Scripture. They also opened a dispensary (which, however, attracted but few patients) and made an attempt to set industrial work on foot. As experience was gained it became evident that the district thrown open to the Mission was smaller than had been supposed and that the population accessible was but sparse, and some of the original band of workers—which consisted of three clergyman, one doctor and two other laymen—being invalided home or transferred to other spheres of work, and two of them retiring, only one missionary was left. He came home on furlough in May, 1908, and for several months the work was entirely in abeyance. It was resumed in November of the year mentioned, when the Rey. A. Shaw returned from furlough, accompanied by a recruit, and the people at once began to attend the dispensary in larger numbers and more regularly than before.